He was able to continue resisting and devour the Heavenly Spirit Mage only because he was burning the power of his own soul. If he won, he would be able to consume the Earth Spirit Mage’s power and continue to survive. Moreover, he could use that power to launch a counterattack and kill Ye Chen and the others. This would make him the ultimate victor. If he failed, his end would be miserable; having used the power of his own soul, once it was completely exhausted, he would vanish into thin air.
The Earth Spirit Mage also knew he was facing a life-or-death moment. If he lost this battle, he would be devoured. This consumption wouldn't just take his blood and energy; it would consume his flesh and spirit alike. In effect, he, too, would vanish into nothingness. Because of this, he had committed all his cultivation to resisting the Sword Demon. Of course, should they detect Ye Chen attempting to pursue them, they still possessed enough residual power to eliminate him, as Ye Chen had exhausted his own strength and had little left to resist.
Hearing this, Ye Chen quickly held back. At that moment, Qing Lingzi spoke to him via telepathic transmission: "Wait until they have exhausted themselves, then we strike—that will be most advantageous for us. However, one of them will certainly emerge victorious, and whoever consumes the other's power will be a force to be reckoned with. Of course, they will still be a far cry from their true peak strength."
Chapter 1090