“Awooo!”
A cyan divine dragon phantom, with a “swastika” seal floating at its brow, flew from Yan Wushen’s palm, colliding with the black cloud formed by the soul-devouring Gu insects.
The Buddhist light emanating from the swastika seal caused the soul-devouring Gu insects to ignite upon contact, turning into fireballs that plummeted downward.
In the next moment, the cyan divine dragon phantom crashed into the ocean realm world, its momentum vast, piercing and tearing the entire world apart.
“To think he is so strong.”
Yin Yuanchen remained undaunted, forming a cross Buddhist seal with his hands. He opened his mouth to draw in the power of heaven and earth, swallowing it into his chest and abdomen. His body radiated ten thousand zhang of Buddhist light, with a thousand li golden cloud above his head. He unleashed the divine demon lion’s roar.
The lion’s roar shook heaven and earth.
This was the sound of the Buddha, an unstoppable supreme divine technique.
“Six-Syllable Great Bright Mantra!”
“Om! Ma! Ni! Pad! Me! Hum!”
A strange event occurred. Yan Wushen released three hundred trillion holy path rules, and a thousand li golden cloud also appeared above his head.
A golden giant lion phantom enveloped his body, and from its mouth came a successive chant of the six Buddhist syllables.
The six syllables united, like the long howl of a heavenly lion.
Having reached his current level of cultivation, Yan Wushen had naturally cultivated the Six-Syllable Great Bright Mantra to a higher realm, not the former high-tier saint technique of the Thousand Questions level.
“Rumble!”
The two sound waves formed by the roars collided.
Space trembled, and seawater evaporated.
Waves of powerful energy surged outward, shattering the eardrums of countless great saints.
When the energy waves subsided, Yan Wushen realized Yin Yuanchen had already used a concealment technique, his figure vanishing. He mobilized origin rules, gathering them in his dual pupils, and unleashed the origin divine eyes. Immediately, he discerned some faint traces.
“Such exquisite concealment. No wonder he can assassinate pseudo-gods.”
Yan Wushen flew toward the nothingness space where Zhang Ruochen and Que were clashing. The origin radiance on his body grew brighter, like a star’s glow.
…
In the nothingness space Que had created, the two had already clashed dozens of times with their swords.
Que could not break through Zhang Ruochen’s defenses, yet Zhang Ruochen also struggled to wound him in the nothingness.
Whether time sword technique or space-time sword technique, both ultimately found it hard to shatter nothingness.
Zhang Ruochen knew full well that to defeat Que, the best opportunity lay in using space and time powers to seize the instant before Que unleashed his nothingness power.
Missing that instant, defeating Que would require a stalemate, seeing who lost patience first and revealed a flaw.
“It is a pity the absolute void time domain’s time stasis cannot yet be used at will. Moreover, it lasts too briefly, instantly eroded by Que’s nothingness power. Otherwise…”
Zhang Ruochen’s thought had just formed when suddenly, a strong sense of crisis arose, his entire body covered in goosebumps.
“This familiar feeling… it is Yin Yuanchen!”
Zhang Ruochen released the boundless cosmic truth realm form. Nascent stars turned into myriad light orbs, transforming the nothingness space into a half-virtual, half-real state.
Immediately, the positions of Yin Yuanchen and Que’s auras were sensed by Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen thrust a sword backward.
The sword path rules within his body fused with the power of the truth realm form, causing the sword light to surge.
“Swish!”
Where the sword light illuminated, nothingness turned to reality.
All concealment was exposed.
The Chen Yuan ancient sword clashed with the Witch God Sword thrusting from behind.
Que only felt the power erupting from Zhang Ruochen’s sword as overwhelming like a tidal wave, his body uncontrollably flying backward.
Surprise appeared in his eyes, and he could not help asking, “What sword technique is this?”
“Truth Sword Technique!”
Zhang Ruochen’s body danced like flowing light, thrusting a sword.
A space-time flower bloomed in the nothingness, forcing Que out.
This move was yet another space-time sword.
“Why not join hands? It will hone my sword path perfectly.”
Regardless of whether Que and Yin Yuanchen agreed, Zhang Ruochen was already practicing his sword techniques. One river of time after another flew out, sweeping toward both simultaneously, drawing them into the time sword technique’s battlefield.
“Since you seek death, so be it.”
Forty trillion holy path rules surged from Yin Yuanchen’s body, condensing into a heavenly-reaching divine tree. His body merged with the divine tree, its branches like arms, the Witch God Sword hidden among myriad leaves.
“Swish swish!”
Leaves flew everywhere, colliding with the stars in the truth realm form, causing the realm form to collapse repeatedly.
Zhang Ruochen mobilized the five elements rules, fusing them with sword path rules and sword path holy intent. Immediately, a new sword path evolved.
Five Elements Sword Technique!
One thrust!
The five powers of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth united with the sword energy, igniting the flying leaves and freezing the Witch God Sword in an iceberg.
Zhang Ruochen was fully immersed in the wondrous changes of the sword path.
Perhaps due to breaking through to the supreme realm, his understanding of the sword path, and his application of sword path mysteries and sword path holy intent, had reached a higher level.
Fusing any dao with sword path rules created a new sword technique, manifesting different marvels.
Time sword technique, five elements sword technique, truth sword technique, space-time sword technique, yin-yang taiji sword technique… all came effortlessly.
After repelling Yin Yuanchen with the five elements sword technique, Zhang Ruochen used the truth sword technique to counter a strike from Que’s nothingness sword technique. It seemed he handled the attacks of both with ease.
“He is stronger. His sword techniques are ever-changing. Even the nothingness sword technique poses little threat to him.”
Que’s suspicions were now seven or eight parts confirmed. Without cultivating a third-grade sword path holy intent, how could Zhang Ruochen wield sword techniques so masterfully without sword path entering divinity?
With a thought, Que drew all the sword path rules of heaven and earth to converge above his head, condensing a heavenly sword soul.
“Thousand Turns One Sword Void!”
Meanwhile, Yin Yuanchen also condensed a heavenly sword soul. Billions of sword path rule divine patterns, like rivers, swirled around the heavenly-reaching divine tree, gathering toward the Witch God Sword.
“Witch God Heavenly-Reaching Sword!”
Zhang Ruochen, Que, and Yin Yuanchen struck with sword speeds like lightning and light. Sword energies crisscrossed, rules collided, tearing the nothingness space and shattering the boundless cosmic truth realm form.
The heavenly-reaching divine tree Yin Yuanchen had condensed was even pulverized by nothingness and spatial powers.
From afar, that vast sea area was entirely covered by sword intent.
Sword energies overflowed in the air.
In the sea, every drop of water turned sword-shaped, possessing strong penetrative power.
“The sword path domain formed by their clash would surely make even pseudo-gods tremble in fear.”
“Below the divine realm, any cultivator daring to enter within a hundred li of them would surely die. Even Yuanhui-level representatives like Zhenyuan and the Destiny Goddess would be no exception.” Yao Guang, the foremost expert of the Truth Temple, activated his truth eye to observe the battle and said this.
On the sea surface, a long laugh rang out.
“Interesting. How can such an intriguing battle lack me?”
Yan Wushen ignited his nine zhang six golden body, transforming into a Buddhist light giant. He waved his hand, splitting a spatial fissure to clear the path, forcefully intruding into the sword energy-laden battlefield.
In an instant, the four contemporary Yuanhui-level geniuses engaged in a melee.
“Origin Dao Tower!”
In the sword path battlefield, Yan Wushen used origin power to condense a ten thousand zhang light tower.
But in a flash, the tower body exploded, shattered by the three streams of sword energy.
“Ten Tribulations Void Slash!”
Que’s body vanished, and a black fissure hundreds of li long appeared in the sky, plummeting downward to swallow all into the fissure.
But before the fissure could descend, it was sealed by the spatial powers struck by Zhang Ruochen and Yan Wushen, dissolving the Ten Tribulations Void Slash into nothingness.
The clash of the four Yuanhui-level geniuses turned the sea domain upside down, inverting day and night.
It was truly the sea domain overturning, appearing in the sky, because space had been inverted by Zhang Ruochen.
It was also truly day and night inverting. The origin radiance from Yan Wushen’s body was daylight, the abyssal ancient extinction death force from Yin Yuanchen’s body was night. The two powers alternated repeatedly, like day and night succeeding each other.
As they fought, they no longer limited themselves to sword path.
Yin Yuanchen sacrificed the Tongtian Pagoda, Yan Wushen unleashed the “Book of Death”, Zhang Ruochen stood atop the sundial.
Only Que still held solely the Shadow Pill Sword, but he also deployed his ultimate technique. An ancient divine script appeared in his left palm.
With the power of this divine script, every palm he struck caused everything within hundreds of zhang to vanish, turning to nothingness.
No cultivator dared touch his palm force.
“It is a divine script condensed from nothingness mysteries.” A god exclaimed in shock.
It was impossible to remain calm. The mysteries of the nine eternal daos were inherently rare, almost all grasped by universe lord-level figures.
The sole exception was the truth mysteries.
The truth mysteries appearing in saint realm cultivators was a decision by the Truth Temple Lord, aiming to find the most suitable cultivators for the truth dao in this manner.
It had indeed proven effective. Over more than ten thousand years, it had produced fourteen truth envoys.
Each of these fourteen had immense potential. After stepping into the divine realm, all condensed the boundless cosmic truth realm form.
But for those cultivators who failed to become truth envoys, the truth mysteries merely aided their cultivation of the truth dao. After reaching the great saint realm, especially after condensing holy intent, cultivators would focus more on their primary dao: breaking shackles, cultivating holy intent, condensing dao domain, supplementing mind realm, rushing to the divine realm.
Thus, the role of truth mysteries diminished for them.
Often, the lord-level gods behind them would “borrow” the truth mysteries from them for comprehension. For instance, if Merchant Ancestor wished to “borrow” the truth mysteries from Shang Ziyi for study, how could Shang Ziyi refuse?
Likewise, did Blood Absolute War God wish to comprehend truth mysteries?
Certainly.
But Blood Absolute War God was too proud, and knew Zhang Ruochen had not yet absolute loyalty to the Blood Absolute Clan, so he had not spoken. If it were Blood Qing Sheng who held the truth mysteries, Blood Absolute War God would likely have long since “borrowed” them for comprehension.
If Blood Qing Sheng were clever enough, he might even proactively offer the truth mysteries to Blood Absolute War God.
Thus, it was not that the gods were overly domineering, but rather the law of the universe.
The mysteries of eternal daos should be held by the mightiest gods. Otherwise, it would invite fatal disaster. If not for the protection of divine realm giants like Blood Absolute War God, Dragon Lord, and Fallen God Island Lord, and with heavenly secrets concealed, Zhang Ruochen would likely have long been slain by gods to seize his mysteries.
The nothingness mysteries were exceedingly rare. Their appearance in Que naturally caused the gods to lose composure.
“Boom!”
“Boom!”
…
The clash of the four Yuanhui-level geniuses was spectacular, with myriad wondrous techniques and divine arts emerging endlessly. Top holy intents and dao domains collided fiercely, various powers of heaven and earth crisscrossing.
They countered each other, balancing one another.
Cultivators who could clearly see the battle danced with excitement, as if immersed themselves, their blood surging.
“This battle will surely become legend, extolled by later generations.”
“In one era, four Yuanhui-level geniuses emerge. It is unprecedented. I only regret not being one of them.”
…
Amid the crowd’s exclamations and excitement, the situation on the battlefield gradually shifted.
The four were originally in a chaotic melee, all enemies to each other. But now, it faintly turned into Que, Yin Yuanchen, and Yan Wushen joining forces to attack Zhang Ruochen.
It was not intentional on their part, but because Zhang Ruochen grew stronger the longer the fight lasted, forcing them to unite.
The sword techniques Zhang Ruochen displayed became less pure, incorporating more holy path rules, evolving into space-time truth sword technique, yin-yang five elements sword technique, space-time origin sword technique.
Beyond that, lightning dao, flowing light dao, wind dao, destiny dao… and so on, various saint daos in which his attainment was not yet high, also fused with sword techniques.
The changes in sword techniques began to escape Zhang Ruochen’s control, drawing in heaven and earth rules.
Endless power of heaven and earth converged toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen could not stop even if he wished, for retracting his sword would mean death at the hands of Yan Wushen, Que, or Yin Yuanchen. Yet he was not panicked, for the sword techniques’ evolution aligned perfectly with his initial conception of the “Ten Thousand Daos Sword Technique”.
Embracing all rivers, encompassing everything.
Fusing ten thousand daos into one sword, breaking all laws of the world.
The saint realm cultivators of the Heavenly Court and Hell Realm were all dumbfounded, seeing that even the combined might of Yan Wushen, Que, and Yin Yuanchen could only fight Zhang Ruochen to a draw. Their hearts were shocked beyond measure.
But the gods discerned the subtleties.
“No mistake. The sword path holy intent Zhang Ruochen condensed is third-grade. What a unprecedented freak.” The eldest disciple of Fury Heaven God Venerable sighed this.
Xue Zhi Ancient God said, “With third-grade sword path holy intent, Zhang Ruochen has preliminarily comprehended methods of applying sword path mysteries. His aptitude is terrifying. Even true gods require years to grasp the essence of mysteries.”
Xue Zhi Ancient God praised only Zhang Ruochen, not Que.
This was because Que could unleash partial power of nothingness mysteries solely due to the divine script in his palm.
Mysteries were not like holy intent, merely enhancing saint technique power.
Seeing the gods evaluate Zhang Ruochen so highly, Blood Queen revealed a knowing smile.
Suddenly, Qinglu God King said, “If Zhang Ruochen steps into the divine realm, he may alter the divine realm’s landscape.”
These words drew sidelong glances from the gods, all curiously turning toward him.
How could the divine realm’s landscape be altered by a new god?
Even Emperor Luo Yan and Judgment Venerable’s cultivations dared not claim this.
