Myth Beyond Heaven

A collective gasp escaped the battlefield. Li Shan, momentarily distracted by the sudden development, faltered in his attack.

Xi Hong, seizing the opportunity, unleashed a wave of sand that surged towards Li Shan, temporarily disrupting his storm domain.

"Gu Buxiu!" Li Shan roared, his voice laced with fury as he watched his captive allies disappear into the tendrils of darkness. The storm around him crackled with renewed intensity, threatening to tear everything apart.

Xiao Shou, his eyes burning with righteous anger, charged towards the point where Lin Xinyao and the others vanished. Lan Qinghe, her face etched with worry, followed close behind.

However, their path was blocked by Dongfang Lou and Bei Cong, their faces grim, emerald auras flickering menacingly.

"Where are you going?" Dongfang Lou uttered coldly.

"Move aside," Xiao Shou growled, ignoring her warning.

"What if I don't?" Bei Cong countered, his voice dripping with disdain.

A tense standoff ensued. Xiao Shou and Lan Qinghe, their fists clenched and muscles taut, were ready to fight their way through. However, they knew it would be difficult to get past Dongfang Lou and Bei Cong in a short time.

Meanwhile, in the distance, Li Shan's storm continued to clash with Xi Hong's sandstorm, the battle reaching a fever pitch.

The colossal lightning spear, poised for unleashing a devastating attack, wavered in Li Shan's grasp. The sudden abduction of his allies threw him off balance, a flicker of doubt clouding his previously unwavering resolve.

Xi Hong, sensing his opponent's hesitation, saw an opening. With a thunderous roar, he unleashed a torrent of sand that slammed into Li Shan's storm domain, pushing it back momentarily.

"You're weak, Li Shan!" Xi Hong bellowed, his voice hoarse from exhaustion. "You can't even help your people."

Li Shan's eyes turned cold. The taunts, though true, only fueled his rage. However, rage alone wouldn't win this battle. He needed a clear head, a focused strategy. He needed to save both his allies and defeat Xi Hong.

Suddenly, an idea sparked in his mind. A risky one, but it was his best chance.

Focusing his gaze, he channeled a portion of his vast energy into the Storm Spear, causing it to pulsate with an even brighter white light.

"Go!" he roared, launching the spear not at Xi Hong, but towards the spot where Lin Xinyao and the others were captured.

Xi Hong, caught off guard by this unexpected move, was momentarily stunned. By the the reacted, the spear had already pierced through his sandstorm, leaving a trail of scorched sand in its wake.

A wave of dread washed over him. Gu Buxiu's aura, previously faint, suddenly flared with intensity, indicating something happening on the other side.

The battlefield held its breath. Everyone witnessed the Storm Spear disappear into the darkness, its fate unknown.

"Heh." A guttural growl ripped through the dimension Gu Buxiu had ripped open. Tendrils of darkness writhed uncontrollably, as if recoiling from an unseen force.

In the center of the swirling vortex, engulfed in blinding white light, stood Lin Xinyao, Han Bingling, Yun Qianxue, Yun Meilan, and Yun Huanxin.

They emerged blinking against the sudden brightness, their robes tattered and their faces etched with pain. But before they could even react, a figure materialized amidst the dissipating light.

It was a woman. Petite and youthful, with hair as white as snow that cascaded down her back like a waterfall. Her golden eyes glowed with an otherworldly power. Clad in a pristine white robe adorned with silver embroidery that resembled swirling clouds, she exuded an aura of pure majesty.

Lin Xinyao gasped. "Linlin?" she stammered, disbelief coloring her voice.

The woman tilted her head slightly, offering a gentle smile. "Indeed," her voice was soft and melodic, like the tinkling of wind chimes.

At this moment, another figure materialized beside the white-

haired woman. This one was much smaller, barely reaching Lin Xinyao's shoulder. Her form was almost translucent, shimmering with an ethereal green light. Gossamer wings, fashioned from pure wind energy, fluttered gently behind her.

"Linlin? Qingqing?" Yun Qianxue murmured, her voice trembling slightly.

Qingqing wrinkled her nose and stared at Gu Buxiu angrily. "Hmph! How dare you make a sneak attack?"

Lin Xinyao and the others looked from Linlin to Qingqing, still trying to process the astounding transformation. They had never seen them in this form before. Especially Linlin. It was the first tshe revealed her human form.

Gu Buxiu, however, seemed far from stunned. His eyes narrowed, a flicker of surprise momentarily crossing his face before quickly morphing into a twisted grin.

"What a surprise," he cackled. "Didn't expect the direct descendant of the White Tiger God to grace us with her presence. But what does it change, really? These mortals are still under my control."

Linlin, her smile fading, raised an eyebrow. "Control? I wouldn't be so sure about that."

With a flick of her wrist, a wave of golden lightning washed over the captured women. The tendrils of darkness that bound them dissipated instantly, turning into wisps of smoke that vanished into thin air.

Before he could even muster a response, Linlin and Qingqing were gone, whisking themselves and the rescued women away with a flicker of emerald green light and a whoosh of wind. The speed at which they vanished was beyond his perception, a testament to their phenomenal power.

"Damn it." A low curse escaped Gu Buxiu's throat. Frustration battled with a growing sense of dread. The sudden appearance of the White Tiger God's descendant threw his plans into a tailspin.

At this moment, Li Shan made his move. With a battle cry that echoed across the desolate landscape, he raised his hand and ripped a gash in the very fabric of reality. From this tear emerged a colossal silver spear, identical to the one he had launched earlier.

This one, however, crackled with even more potent energy, its tip glowing with an intensity that threatened to pierce the veil between worlds.

"This ends now," Li Shan declared, his voice booming through the battlefield.

Rip—

Just as Li Shan launched his attack, a blinding portal ripped open above the battlefield. From it emerged two figures, their auras thrumming with an ancient power that dwarfed even Li Shan's.

"Mo Lianxing! Bei Yixiang!" Dongfang Lou uttered, a flicker of surprise momentarily replacing her stoic expression.

The expressions of Xiao Shou and Lan Qinghe turned solemn even more at the appearance of the two…