There was no time for gradual testing. People were dying throughout the continent..

He took a deep breath and planted his feet firmly in the air. He closed his eyes for a fraction of a second to focus his entire will. He was pushing his Koi martial spirit to its absolute limit. He wasn't just targeting one creature anymore. He cast his devouring intent outwards like an invisible net, mimicking the vast reach of his spiritual sense and latching onto every single Xylarri within the area.

His Koi had gotten stronger, growing with his own strength. It was not a gentle pull like he would do with aquatic creatures he didn’t want to harm. It was a violent siphoning vortex, yanking at the chaotic energy within each alien creature. If the energy was visible to the human eye, everyone would be seeing a massive hurricane like eye where Li Yu was standing and the coming storm all around him..

The effect was not instantaneous but it was pervasive. Li Yu and Jian Xuan continued their slaughter and carved through the Xylarri ranks. A subtle change began to ripple through the swarm.

A Xylarri drone that was lunging at an allied defender would suddenly find its pounce weaker. Its very own claws lacking their full corrupting power. Another, skittering on its insectoid legs would slow, its movements becoming sluggish as if it were suddenly running through thick mud. The constant drain and combined with the energy they were expending in combat was accelerating their fatigue at an unnatural rate.

After a little bit of time the Xylarri began to realize something was profoundly wrong. This wasn't just battle fatigue; they were losing energy to some external force. Their connection to the chaotic purple Qi felt strained, their very life force being siphoned away.

A low collective hiss of confusion and panic rose from the swarm. Their primitive hive-like consciousness couldn't pinpoint the source but their instincts screamed that this battlefield had become toxic. There was something here poisoning them.

Their multifaceted black eyes swiveled wildly, finally focusing on the two newcomers who had brought this change. The golden whirlwind of death and the white-robed human who seemed to be at the center of this weakening field. It must be one of them!

With a unified screeching hiss, a large portion of the swarm abandoned the transport ships and their own fights. They all surged towards Li Yu and Jian Xuan with reckless abandonment. They recognize them as the primary threats that had to be taken out immediately.

"Ah, they seek the embrace of the Crab God!" Jian Xuan roared, meeting the charge. "Soul Dominion" he bellowed, unleashing his soul suppression technique that staggered the first wave. Some that had weaker cultivation and weaker souls fell from the sky. He moved with impossible footwork that made him blur and reappear. His sword was not just 'singing' but augmented with sharp golden Qi that pierced the Xylarri's tough hides from unexpected angles.

Li Yu on the other hand was a whirlwind of black and white. His staff crushed skulls while his Abyssal Javelins fired with practiced ease. The javelins vaporized the limbs of drones trying to flank him. He used his water arts to slow and bog down the swarm giving him more time to deal with those close to him.

All the while his devouring field remained active, a constant parasitic drain on the entire battlefield. The Xylarri that reached him were already weakened, sluggish and his monstrous physical strength combined with their compromised state made the fight one-sided.

The tide of the battle turned completely now. The allied cultivators could also sense and see the Xylarri faltering. They too roared and counter-attacked. Some of the smarter or perhaps stronger Xylarri drones, sensing the catastrophic drain and the overwhelming force of the two new arrivals screechingly disengaged and fled eastward abandoning the fight.

Within minutes of Li Yu’s discovery of his absorption power the battle was over. The remaining Xylarri were either dead or had escaped. The allied cultivators slumped over completely exhausted. The transport ships were safe, at least for the moment..

Li Yu and Jian Xuan landed near the allied captain. Li Yu passed over several bottles of high-grade healing pills from his vast looted reserves. "Distribute these among yourself. Get your people moving west. We're continuing east to hold back what we can."

The captain bowed deeply and his gratitude was sincere. "Thank you, Commanders. The Ancestors bless you." He looked at the both of them hesitantly and then finally said quietly, “may the crab god continue to bless the both of you. Thank you once again for saving us..”

As the two took to the air again and were flying deeper into the abandoned territories Jian Xuan turned to Li Yu. His expression was a mix of curiosity and contemplation, his fanatic persona gone. "Brother Li... that was... more than just fighting. Back there, I definitely felt it. They weakened. All of them. Was that you?"

Jian Xuan was a trusted follower and now a long time friend. There was no sense in hiding the truth.

"Yes," Li Yu confirmed. "It was my martial spirit. As you know it can absorb energy from aquatic beasts. I found out against the Xylarri just now. It seems the same ability works. It weakens them, and," he added, a flicker of his earlier manic joy returning, "it strengthens me. I can absorb the filtered energy and use it to advance my own cultivation."

Jian Xuan stared at Li Yu, his mind processing this. This boy was just a freak, everything he knew about him just didn’t make sense at all. Then his face broke into a massive conspiratorial grin. "A... a divine blessing," he said, testing the words, the lie already forming. "Yes... that's it! The Crab God, in his infinite wisdom has bestowed upon you a divine aura! A holy field that purges these unholy creatures!"

Stolen novel; please report.

"Something like that," Li Yu said smiling, accepting the cover story. It would make things much easier to explain without revealing any of his secrets. It seems his connection to this crab god continues to grow with one legend after the next.

"This is glorious!" Jian Xuan laughed. "You are their counter! A divine weapon to cut through this darkness! Praise be to the... well, praise be!" He turned serious for a moment. "But you are right to be cautious. Your ability is a drain, not an instant kill. If we encounter a true powerhouse, something at the late Soul Formation level or higher.."

"We run," Li Yu finished bluntly. "My ability needs time to work. Against something that can kill me instantly, it's useless."

"Agreed!" Jian Xuan nodded. "A tactical retreat is just a path to a future more glorious victory! Only by surviving can we win. A brilliant strategy.!"

They flew on and soon encountered another desperate battle. This time it was a smaller group of cultivators, maybe fifty strong, defending another smaller group of fleeing civilians near a narrow mountain pass. What surprised Li Yu was the composition of the defenders – a rough mix of human cultivators wearing the battered uniforms of various allied sects, fighting back-to-back with several demons recognizable by their varied forms and dark Qi. Necessity had forged an unlikely alliance.

They were being overwhelmed by a swarm of several hundred Xylarri. Li Yu didn't hesitate at all and surged forward. He activated his devouring field again casting the wide invisible net of siphoning power.

"Fear not mortals and demons!" Jian Xuan roared as he was diving into the fray, his public-facing persona snapping back into place. "Salvation has arrived! In the name of the Abyssal Crab God!"

The battle unfolded similarly as before but this time they were watching for the effect. Li Yu and Jian Xuan tore through the Xylarri ranks, their combined power as Soul Formation and peak Core Formation experts already overwhelming.

After a few minutes the effect of Li Yu's drain became obvious. The Xylarri slowed. Their attacks which had been pressing the human-demon line hard became sluggish. Their corrupting purple auras seemed to dim every so slightly. The allied defenders sensing the shift roared and counter-attacked with their own techniques, gaining the upper hand.

The Xylarri here became confused and were rapidly weakening. Their instincts kicked in and whomever was still able to move or escape broke and fled.

The unlikely allies stood amidst the carnage and were breathing heavily. A human captain and a four-armed demon warrior approached them.

"Your... your arrival was timely, Commanders. Thank you on behalf of everyone!" the human said, recognizing the white robes and emblem that had already become a well known thing in such a short time.

"We... are in your debt," the demon grunted, offering a respectful nod. He then looked at Li Yu with his eyes narrowed. "But what was that? It wasn't just your strength. The creatures... they weakened. We felt it. Their energy... it got weaker at a noticeable rate after a while."

Before Li Yu could even formulate a non-committal response, Jian Xuan stepped forward as if he had prepared for this. He was puffing out his chest, his face radiating absolute unwavering conviction.

"Behold!" he declared grandly, gesturing towards Li Yu. "You have witnessed a miracle! Our Great Prophet Khaos divined the coming of this plague! He petitioned the Abyssal Crab God, who, in his boundless benevolence has bestowed upon Commander Little Crab a divine blessing!”

“You can call it a divine blessing in the form of an innate domain ability! In his holy presence the very life force and energy of these unholy Xylarri withers and fades! Their strength fails them! That is the power of the Crab God made manifest! To all non-believers, witness his glory!" Jian Xuan finished with a bow towards the sky.

The human cultivators stared and were murmuring amongst themselves. They had heard the wild rumors about the Crab Cult. Each telling was more exaggerated than the last that it all seemed like non-sense. A divine aura that weakened these specific monsters? It sounded insane... but they had just seen it happen and what else could it be?

The demons looked utterly baffled. They had no context for the "Abyssal Crab God." They only believed in strength and this strong Core Formation human who seemed to radiate an aura that made the Xylarri sluggish was strong. They looked at each other confused, but weren't about to argue with the results.

"Whatever the source," the demon warrior said while giving Li Yu a respectful nod, "it was effective. Our thanks, Little … Crab... Commander."

Li Yu simply nodded back, accepting Jian Xuan's ridiculous but effective cover story. "The evacuation must continue. We are heading further east."

"East?" the human captain asked in alarm. "Commander, the reports... the concentration of Xylarri grows exponentially the closer you get to the rifts. It's suicide!"

"We know," Li Yu said, his gaze fixed on the grim horizon. "But we need more people to stem the tide. Others are risking their lives as we speak."

He and Jian Xuan took to the air again. They were leaving the mixed group of survivors to continue their retreat. The two of them flew eastward, deeper into the abandoned territories. The signs of the Xylarri passage became increasingly stark. Entire forests were reduced to grey dust. Rivers ran sluggishly and looked to be choked with pale slime. And the corpses...

They saw them scattered across the plains, huddled in ruined villages – cultivators who hadn't retreated fast enough, civilians who hadn't reached the evacuation points. Their bodies were desiccated husks.

They were drained of all life force and Q. Their faces frozen in masks of terror that was horrifying to see. There were no storage rings to collect, no artifacts of value left – the Xylarri consumed everything.

Li Yu felt a cold anger building within him seeing all these corpses. This was extermination.

With grim determination they quickened their pace even further. Li Yu had a near infinite energy reserve but he had to make sure Jian Xuan wasn’t being pushed too hard. He needed him to be in top condition when they fought. They were becoming a two-man vanguard against the apocalypse.

Every Xylarri they encountered they destroyed as quickly as possible. Li Yu's Koi worked constantly, passively absorbing the energy from their kills and channeling it into his cultivation. The inert purple wisp in his sea of Qi grew steadily larger, a silent testament to the slaughter. They flew onward with their eyes fixed on the bleak eastern sky, a whirlwind of destruction heading towards the heart of the storm.