Austin could tell that the Twelve Ethereal Guards were remarkably strong. Even though they were only
semi-governing gods, their strength was far higher than that of ordinary semi-governing gods.
Despite that, they weren't going to pose a danger to him.
Therefore, he disregarded them completely.
"How dare you talk to my master like that? Do you want a kiss from death herself?"
"That's right! You look like someone with a death wish.
Get over here, kneel before my master, and apologize!
Otherwise, I will tear you into a million bits!"
Austin's divine god slaves roared at the Ethereal Guards, pointing at him with trembling fingers. They
had all flown into a rage as soon as they'd heard the insults.
Austin was a superior being to them. They wouldn't allow anyone to disrespect him.
"Huh! That guy?
He is a mere genuine premium-grade divine god and doesn't deserve to be your master.
If you honestly believe that you should give him such regards, then you are just a bunch of idiots.
Shame on you!
You know what? This land will be glad to be rid of you and killing you will be a heavenly deed in my
book!"
the tall, thin man replied coldly.
Waves upon waves of energy rushed out of his body like a mighty ocean the instant he finished his
sentence.
"There's no point in wasting our time talking to these people. Getting rid of these losers will be a child's
play, so let's just get it over with!"
"You're right. The sooner we can finish our tasks, the sooner we can report to our superiors!"
The Twelve Ethereal Guards were running out of patience now and it was visible from their eyes, from
where ferocity and killing intent were struggling to rush out.
"Master, I have had enough of these guys.
How dare they speak ill of you? I am going to exterminate them like the pests they are!"
"Yes, master. Give the order and we will bring them down!"
Austin's slaves, particularly those who were semi-governing gods, began crying in rage.
"If you want to fight, then go ahead."
Austin nodded at them.
"Come on!"
The divine gods charged at the Twelve Ethereal Guards as soon as they got Austin's permission.
The scene was incredible. Hundreds of divine gods were rushing towards a dozen semi-governing
gods, roaring cries of confidence.
"There are quite a few of them, but they're still not a match for us!"
The Twelve Ethereal Guards let out a derisive snort as they watched the divine gods approaching.
There was no trace of fear in their eyes.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A horde of Austin's slaves clashed with the guards and a fierce battle broke out.
All of Austin's slaves were sword cultivators. They performed various extraordinary sword skills and
their performance produced brilliant sword radiances which filled the battlefield.
The Twelve Ethereal Guards were swordsmen as well.
However, their sword moves were much more powerful and mysterious. They were practicing some
sort of a cold swordsmanship. Each of their moves produced a sword light whose aura caused a sharp
drop in the temperature of their surroundings.
Moreover, their sword techniques were based on death, decay, erosion, and darkness. Hence, the
sword light they released was dark and erosive.
There were about a dozen semi governing gods and hundreds of genuine divine gods in Austin's army,
all of whom were locked in a fierce and intense battle with the Twelve Ethereal Guards.
Austin was staying behind his slaves and silently observing his enemies.
'There are massive amounts of the great cosmos force in the energy that the Twelve Ethereal Guards'
sword skills are releasing. That's what makes them so powerful compared to others at their level.
However, their great cosmos force is highly disordered and difficult to control. If one were to organize
that force and control it, he'd have incredible powers.'
He was continuously observing the Twelve Ethereal Guards and noticing their strengths and
weaknesses.
As for his slaves, the Twelve Ethereal Guards soon had the upper hand over them. Looking at the
former, they laughed triumphantly.
"Do you think you can win just because you outnumber us?
Kneel immediately and confess! Beg for forgiveness or every single one of you will die!" one of them
roared.
Austin's slaves were losing their ground and were forced to retreat.
As they stepped back,
a figure approached Austin all of a sudden.
He was one of the Twelve Ethereal Guards: a middle-aged man, clad entirely in black with a ferocious
look on his face.
"Brat, kneel before me!" he snapped at Austin and released a cloud of evil energy which transformed
into a black mist.
Before Austin knew it, a giant cloud of black mist was rolling towards him.
In an instant, he was completely enveloped. Thunder rumbled around him and shadows whooshed
around like ghosts.
The middle-aged man was trying to make Austin surrender without a fight.
This was the oldest trick in the book. Strong cultivators would often threaten the weak ones and freak
them out using powers only their high cultivation base provided. That way, no time was wasted.
Unluckily for the middle aged man, Austin wasn't affected in the least by this move.
Instead, he looked at his opponent calmly with his hands behind his back.
"You want to intimidate me and make me surrender using just your cultivation base. But such threats
don't work on me.
I can take out a weakling like you with a flick of my finger.
Just let it go. You're only making a fool of yourself by trying."
Austin shook his head and smiled defiantly.
"What the hell? !
You are just a genuine premium-grade divine god. You dare to call me a weakling?
Have you lost your mind?
Go to hell, you idiot," the middle-aged man yelled in fury.
He was pissed off at being called a weakling. Part of him was also amused to see Austin so confident
of himself. He launched a fresh attack on Austin to show the latter his powers.
A mysterious sword took shape as he put his hands together and it began to burn with a dark, hot
flame.
As Austin watched in amusement,
the sword flew towards Austin, carrying an envelope of black flames with it.
The void where he stood was collapsing and cracking due to the momentum of the sword.
Such was the ferocity of the black flames that it burned everything around it within a radius of billions of
miles.
It also released a black sword aura
which landed on Austin's body.
However, he didn't dodge. Instead, he let the sword aura hit him head on without even batting an
eyelid.
He seemed to be in a good mood.
The five truths of swordsmanship and the world of swordsmanship inside Austin's body began
absorbing the sword aura and sword intent that were attacking him.
'The sword aura and sword intent unleashed by this man are very powerful.
They'll be extremely helpful for me. However, they are in disorder which makes it difficult to absorb
them. In any case, it's not impossible and I am certain I can handle it,'
Austin thought to himself.
Seeing the sword aura hit Austin, the middle-aged man thought that his enemy would die soon. He
burst into a mocking laughter.
"You stupid lowborn weakling.
I can't even imagine what gave you the guts to break into the Ethereal World. You were courting death
then, and you will face death right now.
I bet you're regretting your decisions. But you know what?
It's too late now!"
However, his laughter dissipated when he sensed that something was very wrong.
Austin was still standing motionless with his hands behind his back.
He seemed unscathed as if the flames and the sword had done no harm to his body.
What confused him even more was that Austin looked completely calm. It was as if he weren't under
attack at all.
"No way! How is that possible?
You brat. Go to hell!"
Startled and angry, the middle-aged man launched even more powerful attacks,
unleashing all kinds of mysterious sword skills to somehow harm Austin.
However, Austin didn't evade them as well. He took all the hit head on.
"No way!
It can't be.
What kind of monster are you?
Why can't I hurt you?" the middle-aged man roared.
He was breaking down in frustration and fear.
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