Han Li and the other two had both been invited by Bi Ying to attend this gathering of the strong. Though they found it somewhat strange that they had so readily agreed to the request, they naturally had no objections and simply stood by silently. The Buddha-Bone King, after his two green flames flickered briefly and glanced at Han Li and the other, likewise remained silent. Upon hearing that Bi Ying had agreed to the matter, the Wheel King smiled slightly and once again bowed low, studying the chessboard before him. After a while, he finally placed one piece on the board. Bi Ying immediately frowned, lowering her gaze and pondering the board intently. Han Li, observing this, became quite interested and turned his attention to the chessboard. Yet after carefully analyzing the position for just a few moments, he found himself astonished and shook his head in amazement. Though his chess skills were ordinary, he could clearly see that the complexity of the current position was astonishing—far beyond what he could possibly calculate. Bi Ying's and the Wheel King's chess prowess were indeed two of the strongest he had ever witnessed in his life. It was no wonder both of them were so confident in using this strategy to decide the crucial outcome of the game. Han Li glanced at Wen Xin Feng beside him. The young woman was gazing intently at the board, her eyes sparkling with brilliance, yet her dark brows were slightly furrowed. Her chess skill seemed no ordinary thing—Han Li couldn't help but chuckle inwardly. Thus, Bi Ying and the other took great care, deliberating for a long time before placing each single piece. Time passed swiftly, and within a short while, half an hour had already elapsed. Suddenly, from afar on one side, a tremendous roar echoed. The two translucent screens on the highest tier of the rightmost mountain ridge flashed and collapsed, sending two figures soaring out—flying one after the other, straight toward the central peak where Han Li and the others stood. "Li Daojun has been defeated," Wen Xin Feng remarked, her expression subtly shifting as she quickly identified the figures approaching. Han Li also fixed his gaze, scanning the scene. A figure ahead wore a gleaming silver armor, now torn to shreds with countless holes, half of his body bloodied and fleshless, several dark, ink-black, strange ghost-heads firmly biting into his exposed flesh, his face pale as paper. Behind him came a remarkably beautiful young girl, about sixteen or seventeen, dressed in a purple cloud-like robe, yet surrounded by hundreds of such ghost-heads, relentlessly pursued by the gusts of阴wind. After a few swift movements, the two reached the mountain summit where Han Li and his companions stood, and both were momentarily stunned upon seeing the condition of Bi Ying and the others below. The silver-armored man swiftly descended, while the young girl blinked her beautiful eyes before also drifting down without hesitation. The ghost-heads surrounding her blurred momentarily and then vanished like wisps of mist. "Lai brother, are you all right?" Bi Ying looked at the silver-armored man and asked gently. "Thank you, Brother Bi, for your concern. I am unharmed. However, in the battle earlier, I fear I have somewhat disappointed Brother Bi. This divine technique of the goddess is truly strange and unpredictable. Though I have given my utmost effort, I still fell short, and had no choice but to break through the light veil and escape." The man in silver armor spoke with a faint, wistful smile. The middle-aged man on the other side seemed to have exchanged a few words with the graceful young lady, gaining a clearer understanding of the earlier battle's course, and his smile grew even more vibrant. "Wheel King, now you've also secured a victory. However, as previously agreed, these two must remain on the mountain peak and shall not interfere with the final confrontation," said Bi Ying, glancing at the young lady suddenly. "Rest assured, that's entirely natural. By the way, I nearly forgot to mention this to my friend. The seventh-portal King, who is fighting on the final mountain peak, is exceptionally powerful—among our ten kings, his strength ranks in the top three, and his abilities are truly formidable. Even I, when assessing myself, find myself far from matching his prowess. Should his opponent falter, it won't merely be a defeat; the outcome might well be catastrophic—perhaps even his life will be lost." The middle-aged man smiled suddenly. "Indeed, the Seventh-Portal King possesses such extraordinary capabilities. I personally remain skeptical. Master Xuesha is also one of the top ten powerful beings in our world—perhaps even his companions were the ones eliminated. Master Biyan's expression slightly changed, but quickly returned to its usual composure. "Indeed? Then let us both watch and see." The Wheel King chuckled heartily upon hearing this. Thus, the two continued to focus on the chessboard. Time flew by swiftly! This time, they waited for a full day and night—so long that even Han Li found himself growing somewhat puzzled. Yet even more astonishing was the fact that, despite the prolonged duration of this game between Master Biyan and the Wheel King, there was still no sign of conclusion. With each move, they now spent several times longer than before. Just as Han Li thought this situation would continue for half a day, Master Biyan, who was about to place a chess piece into the board, suddenly stiffened, raised her head abruptly, and glanced toward the last mountain peak. Han Li's mind stirred, and his consciousness followed her gaze in that direction. Suddenly, the light screen atop the last mountain flickered and went out, from which a creature half-man, half-scorpion slowly emerged. The upper half of the creature resembled a middle-aged man, while the lower half was a massive, black-and-red scorpion body. In one hand, it grasped a strange sword rippling with concentric waves of dark energy; in the other, it carried a dried, shriveled head, several times smaller than an ordinary human's. The head's eyes were tightly shut, its face filled with disbelief—as though it had not yet believed it would be defeated and slain even before its head was severed. Though the face had grown as dry and lifelike as a mummy, Han Li instantly recognized it as that of the famed warrior, "Xuesha," who had journeyed with them from the beginning. The celebrated hero of the Xuetian Continent had indeed been directly killed in single combat against the Ghost King. Not only Han Li and Bi Ying witnessed this, but Wenxin Feng and the silver-armored man also clearly saw the head in the creature's hands, their expressions instantly turning grave and serious. After a few flashes, the monster appeared calmly above their mountain peak, yet hovered motionless in the air, refusing to descend. "Ha ha, it seems Seven-Orifices King has outshone his rivals—your companions were able to withstand such prolonged combat before being defeated, which indeed speaks to their great prowess." The middle-aged man chuckled at this sight. "I didn't expect Blood-Slaughter Daoist to truly fall. Yet it appears the victor of this clash of the strongest is not your side." After a moment of thoughtful silence,碧影 said this with composed neutrality. "Indeed, even though Seven-Orifices King has emerged victorious, the game has reached a point where further play is no longer necessary. This clash of the strongest has resulted in our冥界 securing only two victories out of three, thus slightly falling behind." The middle-aged man pushed the chessboard before him and then, with quiet resolve, acknowledged defeat. "Then, according to our earlier agreement…"碧影 narrowed her eyes. "We will take only forty percent of the resources from this small realm, and the remaining portion shall belong to your side. However, if your lord finds this outcome unsatisfactory, we are more than willing to engage in another battle—until one side completely subdues the other—so as to definitively determine the true ownership of this realm." The Wheel King smiled lightly. "There is no need for that. Our alliance is content with securing sixty percent of the resources from this realm. Yet, the loss of one of our Blood-Savage disciples in the process seems to be a significant oversight." The Jade Shadow glanced at him with a few flickers of intent, responding calmly. "At our level of cultivation, every one of us has at least one or two means of survival. Since these two disciples participated in the current gathering of the strongest, they must have prepared thoroughly in advance. Whether or not they truly perished remains to be seen." The middle-aged man yawned, clearly unconcerned about the fall of the Foul Sovereign. "We hope so." However, it's a regret that we couldn't truly engage in a proper sparring session with our friend this time. I hope we'll have another opportunity in the future." The jade-clad woman's expression relaxed, and she nodded. "Indeed, King Wei has always hoped to face off against Master Han. Well, the fact that he could directly dispatch the Fūsī King without giving him a chance to escape speaks volumes about Master Han's prowess—clearly, he's far beyond the ordinary seven-sense level." The middle-aged man, upon hearing this, turned and gazed deeply at Han with a thoughtful expression. "I must admit, my success was quite fortunate. I'm not quite worthy of such high praise from you." Han smiled lightly, maintaining a composed and understated demeanor. "Since the outcome has been decided, we'll now proceed to leave. We'll immediately arrange to cede the corresponding areas within this small world." King Zhuan, having said no further, rose from his seat and spoke his parting words. The others naturally didn't try to detain them, and immediately witnessed the four Ghost Kings take flight from the mountain peak, soaring toward the nearby "Bone Mountain." With a thunderous roar, a wave of dark mist surged forth as the four Ghost Kings vanished into the distance, swiftly rushing deeper into the realm of the Ghosts. "It seems these Ghost Kings truly intend to uphold their promise—there's no sign of regret. That's fortunate. Then, the contingency plans I've prepared will no longer be necessary. This battle has already lost Blood Shadow, and if any other esteemed guest meets an unforeseen fate, this gathering of powerful beings would indeed prove to be a genuine loss." After a long, deep breath, Bi Ying stood up as well. "Brother Bi, did Blood Shad actually fall? With his astonishing Blood Path powers that could move mountains and shake the heavens, even if he couldn't overcome his opponents, he should have been able to defend himself adequately, shouldn't he?" I once heard a rumor that Master Xue Sha seemed to have cultivated an exceptionally formidable embodiment—not only did his appearance mirror that of his true self, but his strength was also nearly identical to that of his original form. "Wen Xin Feng suddenly asked, with a slightly peculiar expression on her face.