“Immortal Ink Sun.”
Nan Sheng called out softly, and a powerful mental force burst forth, condensing into a pitch-black Ink Sun.
The Ink Sun merged with his head as one.
The bright moon carried by the Chenyuan Ancient Sword collided with the Ink Sun, forming two arcs of light, one white and one black. Immediately afterwards, extremely violent energy surged out from the moon and the sun.
The sword tip could never touch Nan Sheng’s scalp.
“Splatter.”
The ruins beneath Nan Sheng’s feet shattered, and his body sank a full section.
The energy surging out from the ground impacted the surrounding broken walls and ruins, sending them flying and clearing a vast, flat expanse of ground. Not far away, an ancient and dilapidated formation was triggered, and dense, sharp sword qi flew out from within it.
Before the sword qi could approach Zhang Ruochen and Nan Sheng, it was shattered by the powerful force emanating from both of them.
It did not take long for the time mark light spots to dissipate and dim.
Nan Sheng seized this opportunity to mobilise three hundred billion saint path rules from his path domain, transforming them into destructive power that surged towards Zhang Ruochen from all directions, surrounding him.
Zhang Ruochen had only cultivated over one hundred billion saint path rules, so how could he possibly withstand an attack from three hundred billion saint path rules?
“Splash!”
He executed spatial shift once more, escaping the bind.
Nan Sheng grasped the momentary flaw during his spatial shift, and the talisman fan in his hand flew out, spinning rapidly and striking the afterimage left by Zhang Ruochen as he departed.
A hundred zhang away, Zhang Ruochen reappeared.
A three-inch tear appeared on his white robe.
That had been an extremely perilous moment, for with such a vast disparity in cultivation, Zhang Ruochen absolutely could not afford to be struck by Nan Sheng. Once hit, he would surely suffer severe injuries.
This was a figure who had cultivated seventy trillion saint path rules, not something comparable to Yun Huan Iron Blood King, a pinnacle Myriad Death Rebirth Realm cultivator with just over one trillion rules.
“Such fast reaction speed, even spatial mysteries combined with time swordsmanship cannot overcome him.” Zhang Ruochen thought to himself.
Nan Sheng had long since cast aside his underestimation, thinking darkly, “What a formidable Zhang Ruochen, I nearly fell to him just now. With merely Hundred Shackle Realm cultivation, he poses a greater threat to me than some Supreme Realm great saints.”
Those figures in the distance had not expected the clash between Nan Sheng and Zhang Ruochen to be so intense, rather than a one-sided crushing.
In particular, Zhang Ruochen could advance and retreat freely within Nan Sheng’s path domain, overturning their previous perceptions and giving them a deeper understanding of the prowess of the path of space.
Nan Sheng mobilised thirty trillion saint path rules, condensing them into a rapidly spinning black giant bell that enveloped his body.
Then, he mobilised the remaining forty trillion saint path rules in his path domain, forming forty light blades that attacked Zhang Ruochen from various directions.
No matter how profound your path of space, with the giant bell protecting me, I stand undefeated.
No matter how swiftly you flee, in the instant you execute spatial shift, a flaw will appear. Any one of the forty light blades seizing that flaw and striking you would inflict severe wounds.
Zhang Ruochen mobilised six hundred and seventy million burial gold rule divine patterns, merging them with the Chenyuan Ancient Sword, emitting a ten-thousand-zhang golden radiance that cleaved the incoming light blades one by one.
Nan Sheng chuckled lightly, piloting the black giant bell to charge out from behind the light blades, smashing fiercely towards Zhang Ruochen.
“Sword Eleven.”
Zhang Ruochen was long prepared, remaining calm and unhurried. He swung his sword horizontally, trailing a straight beam of sword light. This sword merged even further with the path of truth, erupting with thirtyfold attack power as it struck the black giant bell.
This was the great consummation of Sword Eleven!
“Dong!”
The bell’s toll exploded.
At the point where the black giant bell was struck, the saint path rules scattered, cracking open a long gash.
Nan Sheng’s expression changed slightly. Zhang Ruochen had inherited the burial gold white tiger’s rule divine patterns, which were indeed formidable. All his power converged into a single line, allowing him to deliver a heaven-defying sword that breached his rule defence.
Nan Sheng immediately mobilised the Golden Radiance Divine Flame, forming a golden shield seal that collided towards the Chenyuan Ancient Sword.
“Bam!”
Having broken through the black giant bell, the Chenyuan Ancient Sword’s power was spent. Struck again by the golden shield seal, a massive force surged back, sending Zhang Ruochen flying once more.
Zhang Ruochen retreated to the base of a broken wall, steadying his form, his gaze locked tightly on Nan Sheng.
It had to be admitted that Nan Sheng was a powerhouse utterly without flaws. Whether in attack, defence, or adaptability in actual combat, he was of the utmost calibre.
At the same realm, Zhang Ruochen could naturally crush him with sheer power.
But in the current situation, finding Nan Sheng’s weakness and seeking even a sliver of victory seemed impossibly difficult.
If the battle dragged on, defeat would surely be Zhang Ruochen’s, for Nan Sheng was also probing for his flaws.
Being of lower realm was Zhang Ruochen’s greatest flaw.
The black giant bell reformed, and Nan Sheng stood within it, saying, “I have long heard that your path of truth is exceedingly strong. Seeing it today, the reputation is well deserved. However, that previous sword should have exhausted the blood fiend qi in your body, yes?”
“Do you think I cannot breach your defences?” Zhang Ruochen said.
Nan Sheng replied, “I have heard that within your body lies a great world, allowing you to mobilise world power and elevate your strength to near Supreme Realm great saint levels. Will you not deploy this power?”
There had been many spectators during Zhang Ruochen’s battle with Yan Wushen.
The fact that Zhang Ruochen possessed a great world was no secret among the higher echelons of Hell Realm cultivators.
However, Nan Sheng also knew that when Zhang Ruochen mobilised world power approaching Supreme Realm great saint levels, he himself had nearly been overwhelmed by world power and perished. Thus, he held no fear towards this trump card of Zhang Ruochen’s, merely a pure curiosity to see just how much of his own strength Zhang Ruochen could force him to reveal at full effort.
He had always harboured curiosity towards epochal geniuses.
Both Grand Chancellor and Second Chancellor revealed expressions of concern. This Nan Sheng was abnormally strong, and even with Uncle Master exhausting his trump cards, he could not overcome him and had nearly met with peril.
Zhang Ruochen calculated inwardly that to defeat a powerhouse like Nan Sheng, his own cultivation would need to reach at least the pinnacle of Thousand Query Realm to accomplish it with relative ease.
After all, for the current Zhang Ruochen, Hundred Shackle Realm cultivation accounted for less than a tenth of his combat power. The power of his demigod physique and the power of mysteries comprised nine tenths.
Even breaking through to Thousand Query Realm would yield negligible gains in combat power.
Only upon reaching the pinnacle of Thousand Query Realm, with sufficiently accumulated saint path rules and ample saint qi and blood fiend qi within his body, could true combat power form.
Zhang Ruochen said, “Fighting on like this is indeed meaningless. It seems I must borrow external power to defeat you.”
“Try receiving one more sword from me.”
“Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh…”
Zhang Ruochen executed seven spatial shifts in succession, evading blade after blade of rule light, arriving in an instant above Nan Sheng’s head. He raised the sword with both hands and cleaved straight down.
On the sword body, the light emanating from the purple divine stone shone as brightly as the stars.
At the same time, the world power of the Qiankun Realm surged towards Zhang Ruochen’s arms like roaring rivers, causing the four heavenly tribulation marks on the Chenyuan Ancient Sword, “Wind”, “Fire”, “Water”, and “Thunder”, to also emerge.
Nan Sheng looked up at the descending battle sword, sensing a thread of intangible pressure.
“Hiss.”
The forty light blades fully dispersed, transforming into forty trillion saint path rules that surged towards the black giant bell, making it larger and thicker, as if it had solidified into reality.
“Bam!”
The Chenyuan Ancient Sword struck the black giant bell, sending out a thunderous toll that flung Grand Chancellor and Second Chancellor, who were somewhat nearby, flying like straw men.
Nan Sheng’s legs trembled slightly, and he gritted his teeth, propping upwards with full effort.
“This is… power approaching Supreme Realm… This clearly surpasses some Supreme Realm great saints already…”
“Splatter.”
The Chenyuan Ancient Sword breached the black giant bell, cleaving into Nan Sheng’s right shoulder.
Half of Nan Sheng’s body was pressed into the ground, blood spurting from his shoulder, and he spat out a large mouthful of blood.
But Zhang Ruochen was slightly stunned.
This sword had cleaved open the black giant bell, yet it could not cleave through Nan Sheng’s body?
Zhang Ruochen saw that on Nan Sheng’s skin, besides thirty-six beast diagrams emerging, there were also streaks of blood-red talisman inscriptions appearing.
He had inscribed the talismans onto his body.
With only a small half of his body exposed above ground, Nan Sheng slowly raised his head, revealing a ferocious grin: “To think you could force me to use the body attachment blood talisman. That great world within you, I claim it!”
“Splash-”
The blood-coloured talisman inscriptions on Nan Sheng’s body blazed with light, condensing into a blood-red talisman hand that struck towards Zhang Ruochen.
This blood-red talisman hand was three metres long, erupting with potent divine power.
Zhang Ruochen hurriedly withdrew his sword to block horizontally, then struck out with a palm, shattering the blood-red talisman hand into wisps of blood qi.
Seizing this opportunity, Nan Sheng shot straight up from underground, retreating to a distance, and with a inhalation, swallowed all the blood qi from the shattered talisman hand into his abdomen.
Nan Sheng said, “Continuing to battle you like this would truly tarnish Tian Nan’s reputation.”
“It seems you must employ your true abilities!” Zhang Ruochen said fearlessly, his tone light as breeze and cloud.
Nan Sheng replied, “You should know that for the Deathkin, the most powerful and mysterious technique is death thought power. And what Tian Nan teaches is not the saint path, but mental force cultivation methods, death thought power cultivation methods. The saint path and physique are merely auxiliary paths of cultivation for me.”
“Tian Nan’s power has always been hailed as divine and unfathomable, bizarre beyond compare. I have long wished to witness it.” Zhang Ruochen said.
“As you wish.”
Nan Sheng’s double pupils turned dark red, and strands of eerie deathly dark clouds condensed in the water, enveloping the ruins of this divine temple within sight, then surging madly towards Zhang Ruochen.
These were dark clouds formed from death thought power!
Those great saints in the distance merely brushed against a wisp of deathly dark cloud, and their physiques rapidly withered, life force swiftly dissipating. Terrified, they all fled.
“Death thought power is the Deathkin’s innate power. When executed with Nan Sheng’s mental force intensity, it could likely extinguish all life on a planet in an instant. Fortunately, the formations and divine patterns in the Origin Divine Temple blocked the death thought power from spilling over.”
“Nan Sheng’s mental force, who knows to what extent it has grown. The strength of his death thought power is something I have never seen the like of in my life.”
“As a disciple of the Seven Adults, in Tian Nan, Nan Sheng must have cultivated exquisite methods of controlling death thought power.”
…
Nan Sheng’s gaze grew overcast, his body involuntarily floating above the water as he said, “Zhang Ruochen, I have heard your mental force is powerful. I wonder if it can withstand my death thought power?”
…
An advance explanation: regarding the purple divine stone, this is not a bug. It is both refined from a planet beside a black hole and an important component within that Stonekin deity’s body, for that Stonekin deity’s divine body is far larger than a single planet.
