The four individuals besieging Ling Zhuzhen included two whose strength was no weaker than his, while the other two, slightly less powerful, focused on preventing his escape by striking from the sidelines.
Ling Zhuzhen had held out so far because of the treasure in his hands.
The treasure was a massive banner, which not only strengthened his own Great Dao domain but also intangibly weakened the constraints of his opponents’ domains.
Though it was the first time Lan Xiaobu and Mo Wuji had seen Ling Zhuzhen wield this true weapon, they recognised it as the Domain-Breaking Banner, a post-chaos supreme treasure.
Without this banner, Ling Zhuzhen likely would not have lasted.
The intervention of Lan Xiaobu and Mo Wuji went unnoticed by the four Tianmeng Clan cultivators attacking Ling Zhuzhen. Pei Qionghu’s earlier failure had convinced them that, despite the newcomers’ numbers, they were insignificant, at the seventh step of the Great Dao, they were useless in the Great Universe, which was their domain, their world.
In their eyes, Lan Xiaobu and Mo Wuji would be easily blasted away like Pei Qionghu, perhaps leaving a corpse if lucky.
Only Ling Zhuzhen felt a surge of joy, he knew they were here to help. He was well aware of their strength, individually, he couldn’t defeat either. With both acting together, he’d be foolish not to seize the chance.
Thus, Ling Zhuzhen fully unleashed the Domain-Breaking Banner, sending dozens of red beams that locked space shooting from it.
Seeing Ling Zhuzhen go all out, the four Tianmeng cultivators were not alarmed but delighted. They hadn’t overcome him yet because his banner was like a turtle’s shell. Now that he was attacking with it, wasn’t he courting death?
The four seized the opportunity, striking with full force, the leader even prepared to risk injury to take Ling Zhuzhen down.
But when Lan Xiaobu’s Longevity Halberd locked onto one with its killing principles, they all froze in terror.
This was beyond the seventh step of the Great Dao, even the Dao Ancestor they were attacking might not match this newcomer. More crucially, this person was unaffected by the suppression of the cosmic principles.
As this realisation hit, they saw a finger descend from the void, seemingly timed to lag slightly behind the halberd. As their focus was drawn to the halberd and Ling Zhuzhen’s banner, the finger struck.
The heavens remained, but all principles within began to shift under this finger.
As if the primordial chaos had begun, all existing rules in the heavens shattered rapidly, and new mortal principles started to form. The four Tianmeng cultivators were horrified to find their strength plummeting limitlessly, falling below even the seventh step of the Great Dao.
Ling Zhuzhen was shocked to discover that as Mo Wuji’s finger fell, the pressure from his opponents collapsed, and the red beams from his banner effortlessly pierced two of their bodies without resistance.
“Pfft!” A burst of blood exploded as Lan Xiaobu’s Longevity Halberd tore through another Tianmeng cultivator’s body. Lan Xiaobu paused, stunned, they seemed so strong, yet were so fragile in combat? He soon understood and refrained from further action.
The last Tianmeng cultivator, seeing this, turned to flee, but under Mo Wuji’s finger, his movements became impossibly slow. The next moment, Mo Wuji’s principles bound him, forcing him to collapse.
Ku Yichi, watching from afar, was dumbfounded, Mo Wuji and Lan Xiaobu were so powerful, killing eighth-step Great Dao experts like slaughtering chickens.
Only Ling Zhuzhen sensed something amiss, after Mo Wuji’s finger fell, his strength seemed to have grown significantly, and his divine principles had become more than twice as refined.
Pei Qionghu’s lips curled in a bitter smile, he knew he was inferior to Mo Wuji and Lan Xiaobu, but hadn’t expected the gap to be so vast.
“Wuji, you must have figured it out, right?” Lan Xiaobu said.
Clearly, the four Tianmeng cultivators’ strength stemmed from the cosmic principles. In other words, without Mo Wuji’s heaven-altering finger, they might still be locked in combat, and even if they won, it wouldn’t have been so easy.
Ling Zhuzhen hurriedly stepped forward, clasping his fists in gratitude, “Many thanks, Daoist Lan, Daoist Mo, for coming to my rescue, otherwise, I would surely have died today.”
Mo Wuji nodded, “In truth, these people’s strength was average, at most the seventh step of the Great Dao, with two not even reaching that, definitely not the eighth step.”
“Then why…” Pei Qionghu asked in confusion but stopped, realising his words might disrespect the Dao Ancestor.
Clearly, he meant to ask why those at the seventh step could suppress Dao Ancestor Ling Zhuzhen.
Mo Wuji understood and said calmly, “They could easily overpower Daoist Ling because this world’s principles belong to them, like the forgotten principles. I used my heaven-altering divine ability to lock this space’s domain, rendering their principles useless, and their strength plummeted.”
“Forgotten principles?” Ling Zhuzhen asked, surprised.
Mo Wuji nodded, “Yes, forgotten principles, these are Tianmeng people…”
As a Dao Ancestor, Ling Zhuzhen’s vague memories stirred upon hearing “Tianmeng people.” He exclaimed, “Weren’t the Tianmeng people driven out or killed? How are there still Tianmeng people?”
“Because they used the Cosmic Tree to spread forgotten principles across the Great Universe, making human cultivators forget them, allowing them to develop slowly. Now, they’ve likely reached a critical point, even setting up principles in the Great Universe suited for their combat. Under these principles, Great Universe cultivators’ strength is infinitely suppressed, while theirs soars. With this disparity, it’s remarkable Daoist Ling held out so long,” Mo Wuji explained.
“I see…” Ling Zhuzhen murmured, realisation dawning.
He also understood that even an eighth-step Great Dao expert wasn’t a match for Lan Xiaobu and Mo Wuji, the gap was uncanny. Now it was clear, Lan Xiaobu and Mo Wuji cultivated their own Great Dao, unaffected by the Tianmeng’s restrictive cosmic rules, while the Tianmeng were hindered, leading to their annihilation.
Not only Ling Zhuzhen, but Lan Xiaobu and Mo Wuji also understood. By all accounts, the Great Universe’s Dao Ancestors, renowned for stabilising countless cultivators with their strength, shouldn’t be so weak. It was the Tianmeng’s principles suppressing them, clearly using the Cosmic Tree to impose an innate suppression on Great Universe cultivators, preventing them from unleashing their full strength.
Ling Zhuzhen thought to himself, if he left the Great Universe, free of these suppressive principles, could he defeat Lan Xiaobu or Mo Wuji? As a Dao Ancestor, he was confident he could suppress them. This thought instantly boosted his confidence.
Lan Xiaobu glanced at Ling Zhuzhen, noticing the change in his aura. He knew Ling had been suppressed by some cosmic rules here, but even without them, Lan Xiaobu believed he could still suppress Ling, though at a greater cost.
“Dao Ancestor, the Tianmeng Clan has invaded our Jicheng World, many sects, planets, and cities have been occupied, with countless casualties,” Pei Qionghu reported immediately.
Ling Zhuzhen nodded to Pei Qionghu, “You did well. Without you bringing Daoist Lan and Daoist Mo, I’d have been in grave danger. My Domain-Breaking Banner could only hold out for one more day at most.”
He then turned to Lan Xiaobu and Mo Wuji, “Though the forgotten principles affected my memory, I know the Tianmeng Clan is strong, but their intelligence seems lacking.”
“That was before. Now, the Tianmeng have intermingled with human cultivators, laying down various cosmic rules in the Great Universe and invading during the Eternal Life Conference, their intelligence is no longer a weakness,” Lan Xiaobu said.
“How do we stop them? I, Ling Zhuzhen, am willing to join you both,” Ling Zhuzhen said solemnly, clasping his fists again.
Lan Xiaobu replied, “We hadn’t realised that beyond the forgotten principles, there are cosmic rules suppressing Great Universe cultivators’ divine abilities. Imagine if our strength is halved, fighting the Tianmeng would almost certainly mean defeat.”
Mo Wuji nodded, “The first step now is to find the Cosmic Tree and see if we can erase the Great Dao principles the Tianmeng have imposed on the Great Universe.”
