Chapter 298 - 282: New Divine Techniques
The Daluo Realm of Ten Thousand Laws thundered as it completely unfurled!
Within the Realm Heaven, the trajectories of the sun, moon, and stars abruptly quickened. Earth, water, fire, and wind roared and surged, exuding a tyrannical Daoist Intent that commanded the Ten Thousand Laws.
The next instant!
The pressure emanating from Qi Yun erupted ferociously, like a volcano that had lain dormant for ages!
His Deep Blue Daoist Robe danced wildly without wind, snapping loudly, and the stellar patterns and Dao Traces faintly visible on it seemed to come alive.
The Nine-Colored Divine Radiance in his eyes ceased to flow, transforming into a pure Chaos Color.
With every blink, it seemed as if countless great Dao Talismans were being born and extinguished.
He raised his hand toward the void, his fingers slightly spread, and gently made a grasping motion!
"Trace!"
A single True Word, like a decree from the Celestial Constitution!
"Found you!"
An unprecedentedly majestic power erupted from his body. The Daluo Realm of Ten Thousand Laws was pushed to its absolute limit, its edges grinding violently against the true void, emitting a dreadful GRINDING sound that made one’s Divine Soul tremble.
"Break!"
Qi Yun clenched the bundle of Cause and Effect Threads, using it as the most precise "Dao beacon," and his entire figure suddenly merged as one with the expanded Daluo Realm of Ten Thousand Laws behind him.
It was no longer a Cultivator wielding a Realm Heaven, but man as Realm Heaven, Realm Heaven as man!
A hundred-zhang-wide streak of Chaos-colored light, containing the endless birth and destruction of stars and the raging currents of Earth Fire, water, and wind, smashed ferociously into the void before him!
CRACK—!!!
Faced with this brute force, fused with the power of a newborn Venerable Realm Heaven, the incomparably sturdy Cosmic Jade was as fragile as glass. It was violently smashed open, creating a massive hole with edges flowing with Chaos-colored flames, leading to an unknown destination.
The streak of chaotic light didn’t pause for a moment. Carrying Qi Yun’s will and killing intent, it followed the beacon of cause and effect, plunged headfirst into the spatial rift, and traveled back against the stream.
It hurtled straight toward the source of the cause and effect—the true location of the Crown Prince of Nanyin!
...
Deep within the Eastern Palace of the Nanyin Dynasty, in a quiet chamber whose walls and floors were paved with Sea-Suppressing Jade imbued with Dragon Qi and inscribed with complex Emperor Dao Array Patterns.
The Crown Prince of Nanyin’s true self sat cross-legged, a faint golden Emperor Dragon Qi flowing around him like a hazy mist. Behind him, the phantom of the Emperor’s Extreme Creation Heaven flickered in and out of existence as he calmed the minor turbulence caused by the destruction of his projection and the subsequent backlash.
The Prince’s expression was serene, as if he were still savoring the experience of their remote battle.
Suddenly!
With no warning, a heaven-shattering, earth-sundering BOOM resounded from above the chamber!
The incredibly sturdy ceiling of the chamber, as if struck by an invisible sledgehammer, caved inward and warped before exploding with a deafening roar, leaving a massive gaping hole.
Before the fragments of shattered Sea-Suppressing Jade and space could even fly apart, they were utterly annihilated and devoured by an even more tyrannical, chaotic, and aggressive power.
A terrifying, hundred-zhang-wide streak of light that seemed to contain a chaotic, starry sky within it brutally forced its way into the chamber, shattering the solemn and dignified Emperor Dao aura.
At the center of the Realm Heaven, Qi Yun’s figure solidified. He stood with his hands behind his back, his chaotic eyes coldly staring down at the Crown Prince of Nanyin.
"You actually followed me here. Heh heh heh... Interesting. How very interesting."
The Crown Prince of Nanyin slowly opened his eyes, looking up at the intruder who had smashed through his ceiling. His face showed little surprise.
Instead, a blazing battle intent ignited within his deep eyes, shining as brightly as a newborn star!
"Perfect. A battle of projections is ultimately just an illusion.
This gives me a chance to test you myself.
Let’s see just what a ’wild-path’ Venerable who just broke through to the Middle Stage is truly made of!"
Before his words had even faded, he struck!
Without even rising from his cross-legged position, he simply raised his right hand and "pointed" from afar at the hovering Qi Yun.
The gesture seemed casual and effortless, yet it instantly drained most of the Emperor Dragon Qi and Spiritual Mechanism in the chamber, condensing it all at his fingertip.
No light shone from his fingertip, yet a profound Dao Rhyme erupted from it—a rhyme of creating something from nothing, of shaping the void, of granting life to the stillness, and of stripping life away to return all to stillness.
This was the Crown Prince of Nanyin’s Foundation Establishment Divine Technique—the Creation Dao!
With a single point of his finger, the technique directly targeted Qi Yun’s Dao Rhyme, the flow of his Magical Power, and even his very life force.
It was an attempt to strip away the very foundation of his existence!
"Creation toying with man?"
Qi Yun snorted. Facing this bizarre and unpredictable attack, he neither dodged nor evaded. The Chaos-colored light in his eyes flared as he softly uttered:
"Ten Thousand Laws, hear my decree!"
Divine Technique—Mastering All Skills!
A supreme will that transcended all other Daos erupted from Qi Yun, forcefully intervening and interfering with the mystical power of the encroaching Creation Dao Divine Technique.
The invisible Power of Creation, upon coming within ten zhang of Qi Yun, seemed to plunge into an unseen mire. Its trajectory became chaotic and sluggish, wobbling uncertainly.
It even began to flow back on itself!
At the same moment he unleashed the Creation Dao, the Crown Prince of Nanyin’s left hand had already formed an ancient Seal Technique symbolizing supreme imperial authority.
He slowly pushed it out toward Qi Yun!
"Imperial Zenith... Unsurpassed!"
BOOM!
The skies above the entire Eastern Palace, and even over half of the Nanyin Imperial Capital, abruptly changed!
Endless streams of pale golden Emperor Dragon Qi rose from all corners of the Imperial Capital, converging on the Eastern Palace.
Illusory images of countless mountains, rivers, and Earth Veins manifested behind the Crown Prince.
Vast tableaus of civilized rites and music, of officials paying homage, and of the common people tilling the land all rolled forth, merging completely into his one seal!
A pale golden, illusory giant seal—seemingly condensed from the entire Nanyin empire, the Wish Power of its countless people, and the majesty of supreme imperial authority—emerged from the Crown Prince’s palm.
The Golden Seal swelled in the air, instantly expanding to a thousand zhang across.
Carrying an absolute, tyrannical will—to rule the eight wastes, to suppress all of history, to grant prosperity to those who submit and death to those who defy—it bore down on Qi Yun and the Daluo Realm of Ten Thousand Laws behind him!
Imperial Zenith Unsurpassed!
The Crown Prince of Nanyin’s Venerable Divine Technique.
With the Dynasty as its foundation, it replaced the will of Heaven with his own.
Majestic and forthright, it crushed all opposition with overwhelming power!
Faced with this terrifying strike that carried the might of an entire nation, the Chaos-colored light in Qi Yun’s eyes swirled faster.
"Then... let’s see whose is superior: your tyrannical Dynasty Realm Heaven, or my vast Ten Thousand Laws Realm Heaven!"
Qi Yun held nothing back. With a long cry, the hundred-zhang Daluo Realm of Ten Thousand Laws behind him roared to life, pushed to its absolute limit—no longer merely defending or enduring.
Instead, it surged forward to meet the thousand-zhang Imperial Zenith Giant Seal pressing down from above!
Two "Heavens" of entirely different natures collided with a thunderous roar!
On one side, the Emperor’s Extreme Creation Heaven manifested, resplendent with golden light. Within it, images of the empire’s lands rose and fell, ritual and law formed chains of order, and imperial authority weighed down like the firmament. Carrying the dual intents of Creation and dominion, it descended to crush, seeking to either absorb all heresy into its order or utterly obliterate it.
On the other side, the Daluo Realm of Ten Thousand Laws was fully unleashed. Chaos billowed, stars were born and died with every breath, and Earth Fire, water, and wind flowed without end. Myriad Dao Rhymes played out, collided, and fused within it. An inclusive and transcendent will—proclaiming that the Ten Thousand Laws return to one, that ’my Dao is the Celestial Dao’—surged upward, seeking to directly seize control of the Dynasty itself!
SZZZSSSHH—BOOM!!!
There was no sound of physical impact, only the terrifying, dissonant resonance of two completely different "Orders of the Dao" grinding furiously against each other!
At the center of the collision, space dissolved into a chaotic slurry.
Light, sound, Spiritual Qi—everything was shredded and devoured!
The chamber had long since ceased to exist; even the sturdy Sea-Suppressing Jade foundation below was silently turning to dust.
If not for the powerful protective Arrays of the Royal Court, and the fact that most of the collision’s force was focused on the clash of laws at the "Realm Heaven" level, the aftershocks alone would have been enough to destroy huge sections of the palace.
Even so, the massive disturbance attracted countless gazes from across the Imperial City.
The two Realm Heavens were locked in a struggle, neither able to gain the upper hand.
The seated figure of the Crown Prince of Nanyin swayed slightly, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
Clearly, the power of Qi Yun’s Realm Heaven, having just reached the Middle Stage, had exceeded his expectations.
But his gaze remained calm. His Seal Technique shifted, and he shouted in a low voice,
"It seems I truly cannot let you live."
"All things bow in worship—to my Dynasty alone! Rise!"
In that instant, the entire Nanyin Imperial Capital seemed to come alive.
The Imperial City’s Grand Array hummed, the Dragon Veins in the earth roared, and the formless power of the National Fortune was forcefully invoked by the Crown Prince. It transformed into illusory, purple-gold chains as thick as dragons, which reached out from the void.
Ignoring the distance, they wrapped themselves directly around Qi Yun’s Daluo Realm of Ten Thousand Laws and his physical body, binding them!
This was true suppression through overwhelming power!
An act of utter annihilation, using the vast, accumulated power of the entire Nanyin Dynasty!
As the purple-gold chains bound him, Qi Yun felt a pressure like mountains and seas. The functioning of his Realm Heaven grew sluggish, and his body was pinned in place.
Even the interventional power of Mastering All Skills was suppressed by this pure, immense torrent of force.
"In the end, you’re just a practitioner of Wild Fox Zen, a tree without roots. How can you possibly contend with a glorious Celestial Dynasty?" The Crown Prince of Nanyin’s voice was cold and detached as his fingers slowly curled into a fist.
The purple-gold chains coiled around Qi Yun tightened, and the thousand-zhang Imperial Zenith Giant Seal shone even brighter as it pressed down viciously!
"CRACK..."
The Golden Seal fell, and all turned to nothingness!
Above the ruins of the chamber, the purple-gold chains slowly retracted into the void, and the illusory Imperial Zenith Giant Seal faded away.
The Crown Prince of Nanyin slowly withdrew his hand, but his face held no trace of joy. Instead, his brow was tightly furrowed, his gaze like lightning as he scanned the spot where Qi Yun had "perished," and the void far beyond.
’We are both Venerables. If he had truly perished, body and soul, I would have sensed it. Heaven and Earth would have shown a sign as well.’
’But now, everything is calm. The thread of cause and effect has weakened, but it hasn’t been completely severed...’
’Hm? No, something’s wrong!’
’My Dao Foundation... Why is a piece missing?!’
He snapped his head around, his gaze seeming to pierce through endless space, looking southeast, toward the Overseas.
...
「Meanwhile, on Huangli Island, Overseas, in a cave-abode deep within a mountain.」
The Array Qi Yun had previously laid out suddenly erupted with unprecedentedly brilliant light.
It illuminated the entire cave, making it as bright as day.
From within the radiance, a figure with eyes shimmering with a profound, Chaos-colored light took a single step forward!
It was Qi Yun!
’Nanyin has dominated the South for a thousand years. The power of a nation is truly vast and difficult to oppose. A direct confrontation was indeed unwise.’
"Fortunately, I never fight a battle I’m not confident I can win," Qi Yun said with a faint smile.
Ten Thousand Laws Incarnation!
This was the second Venerable Divine Technique he had naturally comprehended upon entering the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage, which came with the Perfection of his Daluo Realm of Ten Thousand Laws!
It allowed him to resurrect at his peak by using any of his own Magic as an anchor.
Although it required a cooldown period after each use, it was still an absurdly powerful ability.
With this Divine Technique, he could ignore all fatal traps and forbidden lands. As long as he left a magical seal in a safe place, he could resurrect with ease even if his body was destroyed.
It was truly the must-have Divine Technique for home, travel, murder, and plunder!
After a moment of appreciation, Qi Yun slowly opened his right hand.
In the center of his palm, a wisp of pale golden, profound Daoist Intent—uniquely belonging to the Dao Rhyme of the Crown Prince of Nanyin—hovered quietly, struggling faintly like a trapped dragon.
Looking at this wisp of Daoist Intent, the smile on Qi Yun’s lips widened.
’And the rewards this time were quite substantial.’
He slowly closed his palm, and the pale golden wisp of Daoist Intent grew completely still, firmly enveloped and sealed by a layer of Chaos-colored Daluo Heaven Magical Power.
This was another Divine Technique he had developed at the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage—Seizing Profound Intent!
Any magical technique nullified by Mastering All Skills would have a portion of its essence permanently seized by him.
Just now, when his incarnation fought the Crown Prince of Nanyin’s true body, Qi Yun had secretly activated this Divine Technique, successfully seizing this wisp of true Daoist Intent from the prince’s Creation Dao.
In other words, he had well and truly fleeced him!
’Emperor’s Extreme Creation... Interesting.’
Qi Yun put away the wisp of pale golden Daoist Intent and cast his gaze westward, as if he could once again see the magnificent Nanyin Imperial Capital.
’Consider this a welcome gift.
Your Highness, the Crown Prince.
From now on... we’ll have plenty of time to play.’
With a flick of his sleeve, he turned, erasing all traces of his aura within the cave. Qi Yun’s body transformed into a streak of rainbow light and vanished in an instant.
...