Chapter 2604 - 2569: Assassination
"Underestimating this old thing, huh..."
"He has a great possibility of escaping from beings of higher Immortal Scripture essence."
Jiang Ding’s face lit up with joy.
Along the timeline of the Golden Era’s arrival, differences in strength began to emerge among the Forbidden Area Ancient Emperors, roughly determined by how close one achieved enlightenment during the Golden Era, where the closer the achievement was, the better the world it was achieved in, and the higher the possibility of weaker strength.
This disparity is not trivial, it’s even terrifyingly vast.
For example, the Supreme Great Sun Ancient Emperor instantly defeated and captured Emperor Tungu, marking a substantial difference in essence.
Indeed, this is the difference between the Eight-character Immortal Scripture and the Nine Character Immortal Scripture, but a gap in innate aptitude also exists, profoundly influencing everyone.
In this era, someone is bound to ascend to the Eight-character Immortal Scripture within decades.
However, concurrently, a considerable portion of Forbidden Area Ancient Emperors will need tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even millions of years to ascend the Eight-character Immortal Scripture, plotting while in slumber!
This is inevitable; the Eight-character Immortal Scripture is not so easily crossed.
The beings who achieved Forbidden Area Ancient Emperor status outside of the Golden Era have exceptional talents and will surely ascend during the Golden Era, but the timing is uncertain. A timespan of millions of years is common, as this scale of time is not considered long in the Endless Starry Sky, it can even be brief, given that Supremes have millions of years of life energy.
Now, Jiang Ding is certain that the Undying Ancient Emperor is undoubtedly among the top tier among the Forbidden Area Ancient Emperors!
He is destined to ascend to the Eight-character Immortal Scripture within decades!
"Interesting,"
"Truly interesting..."
Jiang Ding wore a fervent smile on his face, his hand gripping the sword hilt, his smile increasingly twisted and frenzied.
Buzz!
A blazing golden flame appeared between his brows.
Within this flame, scenes of cosmic star destruction in the Immortal Path emerged in succession, the cosmic grinding disc spinning, enclaving the source of the End of Dharma Path.
Through this source flame of the End of Dharma Path, the Supreme Great Sun Ancient Emperor’s immortal body, divine soul, and blood began to burn slowly, making his aura surge madly, terrifyingly powerful as waves rushing into the Taiqing Flying Sword, making it shine with infinite but restrained light, nearly transforming into a true Immortal Artifact!
Desperation!
The Supreme Great Sun Ancient Emperor began to fight desperately!
Upon the first sight of the Undying Ancient Emperor, despite being an Eight-character Immortal Scripture Ancient Emperor, the Golden Era’s foremost powerhouse, stealthily infiltrating for an assassination, successfully eluding all Forbidden Area Ancient Emperors’ sharp senses, holding all favorable timing, location, and human circumstances, he instantly began burning himself desperately at first sight of the Undying Ancient Emperor!
Jiang Ding held the sword hilt, burning himself, step by step walking toward the Undying Nether Palace, along the way, all Emperor Realm Cultivators, Ancient Emperors, and Immortal Arrays completely ignored his presence, not a single person noticed, not a single shred of Tianji cause and effect was touched, even the Heavenly Dao was so tranquil.
A terrifyingly intense deathly aura was accumulating, soaring.
Yet the human world was so peaceful.
Not a ripple stirred.
...
Deep within the Undying Nether Palace.
Immense black fog gathered into rivers here, their waters turbid, floating within were corpses, zombies, skeletons, ghosts and fierce spirits, humans, phoenixes, dragons, golden crows, oxen, sheep, pigs, dogs... countless races and beings’ bodies amidst them, resembling the true mythological Nether River.
This Nether River, like a serpentine dragon, was absorbed by the incredibly majestic skeletal phoenix’s immortal body, consumed by her, leaving pitch-black runes on her bones.
These runes repeated endlessly, extending like Immortal Text, stretching across, carving into the smooth, jade-like bones, making these Great Dao runes increasingly complex, enigmatic and inscrutable.
If a being were present, they’d inevitably experience an incredibly peculiar sensation.
Clearly, these Great Dao runes on the jade-like bones were growing more complex, yet there’s an illusion of them becoming ’simple.’
This illusion is so vivid, possessing some transcendental essence, even a mortal seeing it would immediately conceive such a thought.
Just like sunlight, stars, worlds, naturally existing things, the cosmos’ essence.
This is Immortal Scripture!
It is the Undying Ancient Emperor’s "Undying Nether Immortal Scripture," transforming into the Eight-character Immortal Scripture!
Moreover, this transformation is ordered, procedural rather than fortuitous, not reliant on chance, but a meticulous, systematically guaranteed transformation!
In at most fifteen years, the "Undying Nether Immortal Scripture" will achieve the Eight-character Immortal Scripture!
Even ten years, eight years is possible.
Too fast, too fast!
For the Endless Starry Sky, what does ten years, eight years signify? Not even a breath, merely a flicker, terrifying talent for ancient Forbidden Area Ancient Emperors, surviving through endless epochs, if slightly weaker, they’d have perished long ago.
This Forbidden Area Ancient Emperor of the Phoenix Immortal Clan meditated here for a dozen years, on the verge of completing his breakthrough, never having left.
At a certain moment.
Brush!
The white jade-like Undying Nether Phoenix suddenly opened her eyes, cold glow shimmering.
In her heart, at this precise moment appeared a slight unease, touching death, hence temporarily deducing Eight-character Immortal Scripture, opened her eyes.
"Cause and effect,"
"From the Ancient Emperor of the Sun."
"What is he doing? Does he bear malice toward me and has he already begun substantial actions?"
The Undying Ancient Emperor’s voice was hoarse and deep.
Incredibly terrifying, in the unseen, unaware what the Ancient Emperor of the Sun is doing, across unknown distance, not even begun true action, merely scheming, already sensed by her, unearthly and uncanny.
And then, there was nothing more.
Unable to perceive any more malicious entities threatening life, nothing worthy of attention, no danger.
"The Ancient Emperor of the Sun does not have the ability to kill me."
"Temporarily ignore it, the most important thing now is the transformation of the Immortal Scripture, we’ll discuss it after the transformation."
The Undying Ancient Emperor sensed Cause and Effect, then slowly closed his eyes again, continuing to deduce the Eight-character Immortal Scripture, putting that slight unease into his heart.
The next instant,
He suddenly opened his eyes!
"Something’s wrong!"
"The Ancient Emperor of the Sun knows from the Nine Character Immortal Scripture that he cannot do anything to me!"
"There must be another possibility!"
"The possibility comes from, from————"
The Undying Ancient Emperor cried out.
The absence of any danger warning, this is the greatest danger sign!
This is not logical!
There’s a massive danger here!
Buzz!
In an instant, the Undying Ancient Emperor burned his Immortal Soul and Immortal Body, decisively to the extreme; although there was no danger, it was just a possibility, nonetheless decisively burning everything, manifesting even the Great Dao, as the Six Realms of Heaven and Earth rose and fell, the Great Dao manifested.
Indeed, it was the Six Dao Reincarnation!
The path the Undying Ancient Emperor was walking was the Six Dao Reincarnation!
Not Yin Yang, not Youming, not the Yellow Springs Path everyone thought, but the Six Paths of Reincarnation, completely manifesting at this moment of life and death.
The Undying Ancient Emperor showed extreme decisiveness.
Yet, it was still too slow.
Too late!
In the extremely, extremely brief instant when the Undying Ancient Emperor decided to burn himself but had not yet truly begun, a sudden change occurred.
Clang!
A crisp, melodious sound of sword ringing.
Very pleasant, pure and harmonious like mountain spring water, more like the collision of the Great Dao, the source of Dharma Ending, coming from the universe after eternal eras, when the universe had entered its twilight years, experiencing the collapse of the Immortal Path, the end of Dharma Era, everything within the Immortal Path was disappearing.
"Supreme Great Sun..."
The Undying Ancient Emperor roared, an uncontrollable image appearing within his Immortal Soul.
In a bamboo forest, drizzling raindrops fell, the sound of the rain providing peace, amidst the rain threads, a single raindrop caught the Undying Ancient Emperor’s gaze.
The raindrop was particularly captivating, enlarging continuously within his eyes, getting bigger, bigger, bigger...
This rain drop came from the End of Dharma Era, journeying through layers of time, tracing back eons, carrying all the mana, Divine Sense, Sword Intent of a self-combusting Eight-character Immortal Scripture Forbidden Zone Sword Emperor, along with all his killing intent, traversing endless time and infinite barriers, arriving before the Undying Ancient Emperor!
Extreme! Ultimate speed! A sword infinitely close to Immortal!
This was the Sword Immortal Technique from Supreme Great Sun, the End of Dharma Time Water Drop!
"Eight-character Immortal Scripture, ambush, self-immolation..."
"You’ve done well."
The Undying Ancient Emperor sighed.
Too fast.
The opponent overestimated him.
At this moment, within the Undying Nether Palace, among thousands of escaping Immortal Techniques, only nine could react, his Immortal Body radiating layers of ethereal light, billions of layers of barriers from the Six Dao Reincarnation, Four Elements Immortal Forbidden Imperial Path Heavy Object Six Paths of Reincarnation Palace unfolded, layers of palaces blocking eons of time, enough to bind countless beings within.
In this extremely brief moment, only nine Immortal Techniques, Immortal Body defenses, and Six Paths of Reincarnation Palace could be relied upon.
Despite the haste, these means were enough to survive sudden ambushes from several Forbidden Area Ancient Emperors and enable him to escape calmly and reconsider.
However, right now, can these methods be stopped?
Sizzle!
In an instant, the Undying Ancient Emperor knew the answer.
A light, a water droplet from the End of Dharma Era, pierced through nine Immortal Techniques, the defense of the Undying Immortal Body, silently appeared as a tiny hole in the solid, eternal palace walls of Six Paths of Reincarnation Palace.
Everything happened too quickly!
Immortal Techniques, Undying Immortal Body, Six Paths of Reincarnation Palace didn’t show any anomaly, no explosion, no fragmentation, as if nothing had occurred.
Only, the Undying Ancient Emperor’s head felt slightly cool.
A tiny hole appeared in the Undying Ancient Emperor’s head, piercing through it, within the hole, terrifyingly condensed End of Dharma Sword Qi instantly filled the entire head.
The Undying Ancient Emperor’s body went rigid.
The Immortal Body claimed as undying spread dense death aura, the vitality within the entire Undying Immortal Body vanishing without a trace instantly.
A green-clothed youth appeared silently beside the Undying Ancient Emperor.