Chapter 79: A Battle Of Bloodlines! (2)

"Father, Ryan has no escape today. If we kill him too quickly, we’d be letting him off far too easily. It wouldn’t be satisfying enough!"

Owen suddenly stepped forward, stopping Gareth, who was already consumed by rage and preparing to attack.

He gritted his teeth and continued,

"Before he dies, let him meet that child first. I’ll use my Mystic Yin Lightning Bloodline to torment him properly and vent the hatred in my heart!"

Owen was somewhat worried that Gareth would act in a fit of rage and kill Ryan outright.

He had deliberately stopped him for a reason.

With Wesley dead, Gareth had lost his biological son.

This was the perfect opportunity for Owen to demonstrate his loyalty.

Whether he could rise to prominence as Gareth’s unofficial adopted son depended heavily on his performance today.

If he could completely replace Wesley in Gareth’s heart, his fate would undergo a dramatic transformation.

He would go from a Bloodline Fighter of humble origins to someone capable of inheriting a tremendous amount of cultivation resources and receiving countless benefits from the Sterling Family.

As for Ryan... Owen wasn’t particularly worried.

His opponent was only at the Origin Sea Convergence Realm Seventh Stage.

Even if Ryan possessed a powerful C-Grade Top-Tier Bloodline, there would eventually come a point when his Origin Energy was exhausted.

How could the total amount of Origin Energy possessed by someone at the Origin Sea Convergence Realm compare to his own, which was as vast as an ocean after reaching the Origin Spirit Realm Initial Stage?

Even if he couldn’t defeat Ryan quickly, he could simply drag out the battle until Ryan was exhausted.

Moreover, Owen himself possessed a C-Grade Ordinary Bloodline, along with various secret treasures and battle techniques.

His combat strength was far from weak.

In his estimation, the two sides should be relatively evenly matched.

As long as he endured Ryan’s initial offensive and prolonged the battle, he would eventually be able to crush him once Ryan’s Origin Energy was depleted.

"Owen, you’re right!" Gareth’s anger eased slightly. "It would indeed be better to torture him with your Mystic Yin Lightning. However, the final blow must be left to me!"

His eyes flashed with vicious anticipation. "After you torture him until he wishes he could die but is unable to, I’ll personally kill him!"

He felt that Owen’s suggestion was extremely reasonable.

They couldn’t allow Ryan to die so easily.

Just now, he had been blinded by his rage and nearly rushed forward without thinking.

At the very least, he had to torture Ryan half to death before killing him. Only then could he somewhat alleviate the hatred burning in his heart.

Moreover, Owen had been the one who devised the vicious plan to use Jake as bait to lure Ryan into Ashfall Forest.

Gareth had never expected the plan to work so quickly.

Ryan had actually come.

The scheme was simple, crude, and extremely effective.

Otherwise, who knew how long it would have taken them to track down this elusive Ryan?

For that reason, Gareth’s trust in Owen had increased considerably.

This adopted son was usually ruthless and willing to use any means necessary to achieve his goals. His mind was also exceptionally cunning.

More importantly, his strength wasn’t weak.

Gareth had always thought highly of him.

Now that Wesley was dead, however, a new successor had to be chosen to inherit what Wesley had left behind.

Naturally, that person’s overall strength had to be sufficient.

This was also a good opportunity to assess Owen’s true combat ability.

After considering everything, Gareth finally nodded.

"Alright."

At this moment, Ryan had no idea what kind of schemes were brewing between the two men.

However, after hearing Owen’s words, his previously tense heart gradually relaxed.

Because this was exactly what he wanted.

If Owen fought him first, he could avoid confronting Gareth directly.

Then, he could find an opportunity to kill Owen and use the resulting chaos to rescue Jake.

The only thing that concerned him was the Mystic Yin Lightning Bloodline Owen had just mentioned.

Ryan’s eyes narrowed slightly.

The information regarding this Bloodline immediately surfaced in his mind.

[Mystic Yin Lightning: Transformation-Type, C-Grade Ordinary Bloodline. When actively activated, the Origin Energy within the body can be transformed into gray-blue Mystic Yin Lightning to attack enemies.]

[The lightning possesses an extremely cold nature and can stagnate blood and Origin Energy. Once it enters the body, it clings to the target like a maggot attached to bone, making it extremely difficult to remove.]

[Passive Ability: Sharpens the owner’s mind and increases a certain amount of physical movement speed.]

Ryan’s expression changed slightly.

He remembered that when he had previously purchased information regarding the major families of Ashfall City, Owen’s Bloodline had only been the D-Grade Top-Tier Incandescent Thunder Bloodline.

He hadn’t expected that in such a short period of time, Owen’s Bloodline had already evolved into the C-Grade Ordinary Mystic Yin Lightning.

What incredible luck.

A Bloodline’s evolution across a major grade was extremely difficult.

Most Bloodlines couldn’t simply evolve by accumulating resources.

Absorbing sufficient Bloodline Essence was merely the most basic requirement.

Whether a Bloodline could successfully evolve ultimately depended on opportunities and luck.

Ryan had indeed underestimated the descendants of these major families.

It wasn’t only him who could obtain massive resources through the Boundless Creation Furnace and rapidly increase his strength.

His mortal enemies also had powerful families backing them.

With sufficient resources and a little luck, they could grow just as rapidly.

However...

Ryan’s eyes gradually became cold.

With his C-Grade Top-Tier Overlord Body Bloodline, he wasn’t afraid of a lower-grade Bloodline.

"Alright, father!"

Owen excitedly patted his chest.

"Please rest assured. Your child will definitely not disappoint you! I’ll torture him until he’s crippled!"

With Gareth’s approval, Owen’s confidence soared.

He turned around and looked at Ryan with an undisguised viciousness.

"Hehehe..."

"Ryan, aren’t you very arrogant?"

"Today, I’ll make you kneel before me and beg for mercy!"

The moment his voice fell, his figure suddenly blurred.

Zzzzt!

Gray-blue lightning erupted around his body.

His entire figure transformed into a streak of lightning and shot toward Ryan.

His speed was astonishing.

In the blink of an eye, he had crossed a distance of less than ten feet.

Gray-blue lightning gathered around his right fist, crackling violently.

Without any unnecessary movements, he threw a straight punch toward the center of Ryan’s chest.

"Medium-Grade Profound Tier Battle Technique—Thunder Light Fist!"

The fist arrived almost instantly.

Lightning flashed across its surface, accompanied by a biting gust of wind that ruffled Ryan’s hair.

Ryan’s expression immediately turned cold.

"Hmph. You want me to kneel?"

"Dream on!"

Instead of retreating, Ryan advanced.

His Overlord Body Bloodline erupted in an instant.

BOOM!

He planted his foot firmly against the ground and charged forward, bringing his elbow violently toward Owen’s chest.

"Superior-Grade Origin Realm Battle Technique—Exploding Heavy Elbow!"

Dense yellow Origin Energy instantly gathered around the tip of his elbow.

It resembled a sharp horn capable of piercing through anything in its path.

WHOOSH!

The elbow tore through the air with a piercing whistle.

The next instant—

BOOM!

Fist and elbow collided.

A violent explosion erupted from the point of impact.

Gray-blue lightning and yellow Origin Energy burst outward simultaneously, scattering sand, stones, branches, and leaves in every direction.

The tremendous recoil forced both figures backward.

Owen staggered six or seven steps before finally stabilizing himself.

Gray-blue lightning continued to crackle chaotically around his body, leaving him looking somewhat disheveled.

Ryan, meanwhile, was pushed back only two steps.

A brilliant yellow phantom of the Overlord Body Battle Armor appeared over his body, absorbing much of the remaining force.

He stood firm, his expression calm.

The outcome of the first exchange was immediately obvious.

Ryan had gained the slight advantage.

"I have to admit, Ryan..." Owen slowly straightened his body. "You’re not bad."

There was a hint of surprise in his eyes. He casually rotated his sore right arm.

Gray-blue lightning crackled between his fingers as a sinister smile gradually spread across his face.

"However... The hunting hour of the Mystic Yin Lightning has only just begun."

Although his expression remained confident, Owen’s heart was far less relaxed than he appeared.

He hadn’t expected Ryan, despite being only at the Origin Sea Convergence Realm Seventh Stage, to overpower him in a direct contest of strength.

He was at the Origin Spirit Realm Initial Stage.

That was an entire major realm higher.

Every time a cultivator advanced to a higher realm, their overall strength underwent a qualitative improvement.

Normally, the higher realm should possess an overwhelming advantage.

Yet Ryan had actually bridged that enormous gap through the sheer superiority of his Bloodline.

The difference between Bloodline grades could be this terrifying?

A C-Grade Top-Tier Bloodline could actually compensate for an entire major realm and several minor stages?

The thought made Owen’s heart sink.

His right arm was still faintly numb from the collision.

He hadn’t shown it on his face, but inwardly, he was deeply shaken.

Ryan wasn’t some ordinary miscellaneous Bloodline Fighter.

He genuinely possessed the ability to fight across realms.

He absolutely couldn’t afford to be careless.

"Hmph!"

Ryan sneered at Owen’s arrogant declaration.

"Hunt me?"

"What big talk."

He felt nothing but disdain.

The first exchange had clearly shown that he possessed the advantage.

Yet Owen still dared to boast as though victory were already in his grasp.

It was ridiculous.

But the moment Ryan finished speaking—

His expression suddenly changed.

A strange, bone-chilling force abruptly surged from the tip of his elbow.

It rapidly drilled into his body.

In an instant, it felt as though an extreme coldness had poured directly into his flesh from his elbow.

Wherever the strange force passed, his muscles and bones were filled with a painful, numbing sensation.

Even his meridians seemed to become sluggish.

The circulation of both his blood and Origin Energy began to slow.

If this continued, there was even a possibility that his arm would be frozen and severely damaged.

"What’s going on?!"

Ryan’s expression changed dramatically.

He immediately mobilized the Origin Energy within his body, desperately attempting to expel the strange force.

At the same time, the phantom of the Overlord Body Battle Armor appeared around him once again.

The golden armor flickered violently as it resisted the strange energy spreading through his body.

Only now did Ryan truly understand the terrifying nature of the Mystic Yin Lightning.

The information in his memories had described it, but reading about it and experiencing it firsthand were two completely different things.

This Bloodline wasn’t designed to overwhelm an opponent through brute force.

Its true danger came after contact.

The moment the Mystic Yin Lightning struck an enemy, it released a strange Yin Thunder Force that invaded the target’s body.

It was extremely difficult to expel.

Like a maggot clinging to bone, it continuously burrowed deeper, freezing and obstructing the enemy’s blood and Origin Energy.

Then, little by little, it weakened the opponent.

It wasn’t a Bloodline that relied on explosive power.

It was a Bloodline designed to erode its enemy until victory became inevitable.

Ryan’s eyes narrowed.

No wonder Owen had said it was suitable for torture.

This wasn’t an empty boast.

The Mystic Yin Lightning was genuinely troublesome.