Chapter 260: Senior Brother, the Heavenly Dao Changes Masters (5000)
Rumbling—
Mountain bodies and lava replaced clouds, floating in tatters across the sky curtain. Rolling thunder snaked between the earth and mountains, and the light of clashing spiritual energy illuminated the vast plains for moments at a time.
On the last relatively flat patch of ground below, Elder Hu stood before Feng Yu Die, Yun Yiyi, and the others, using her own spiritual essence and magical treasures to shield them from the residual waves of the battle between the two figures above. Yet, her brows remained tightly furrowed.
The sudden surge of the earth’s veins was a once-in-a-century event, but she didn’t have the energy to ponder why the timing of this “earth vein surge” was so coincidental; it was almost as if heaven-sent.
Elder Tian Xing, facing the earth vein surge, had a power that even rivaled early Deity Transformation cultivators. Logically, it should have been effortless to finish off that arrogant young man from moments ago.
However, the reality was that Yun Kunwu, with his extremely clever spirit-attraction methods, had managed to counteract Elder Tian Xing’s summoned Heavenly Spiritual Earthly Soul time and again. Dozens of collisions had resulted in only minor injuries.
Yun Kunwu’s sword arts, the spiritual energy contained within him, and his combat experience were all outrageously formidable.
If transcending realms to fight enemies was a unique advantage of geniuses, then among the multitude of geniuses, Yun Kunwu undoubtedly stood out.
Boom—
Elder Hu waved her hand, using the giant gourd at her side to block another residual wave from the two battling above. She then turned her head and looked at Feng Yu Die, who was now sitting behind her like a roasted duck, looking rather helpless.
—Heavenly spiritual root, Saint Emperor bloodline, Spring Aspect Spirit…
She had been thinking that Feng Yu Die was the most heaven-blessed rising prodigy in the world, surpassing Ye Anping. But compared to Yun Kunwu, the girl was still at least a mountain’s height behind.
“You three little ones, don’t just stand there. Cultivate Qi and fortify your bodies. Even a fragile eggshell is better than nothing.”
“Ah… Yes.” “Tsk…”
Yun Yiyi seemed a bit flustered and quickly channeled her spiritual energy to protect herself as Elder Hu had instructed. On the side, Yun Jiujiu, seeing the sky-shattering battle above, lost her usual temper. With a slight tut, she released spiritual energy to form a protective shield around herself.
Only Feng Yu Die remained frozen in place, making no move at all.
Despite the fierce winds whipping her silver hair around and the golden eyes fixed on the thunderous explosions and raging fires caused by Yun Kunwu and Elder Tian Xing’s battle above, she didn’t blink.
Whether it was Xiao Tian or Grand Void True Person, they had always told her when she was young that compared to cultivators of the same realm, she would be unparalleled and invincible. Those with higher cultivation were merely born decades or even centuries before her, and she shouldn’t fear them.
However, watching Yun Kunwu battle Elder Tian Xing, she couldn’t help but wonder if, with the same cultivation level as Yun Kunwu, she could actually defeat him.
She didn’t want to admit it, but the truth was, she couldn’t.
Killing a Core Formation cultivator while in the Foundation Establishment Stage was nothing compared to Yun Kunwu, a Nascent Soul early stage cultivator, easily dealing with a formidable figure on the verge of Deity Transformation.
Thunderclap—
The sound of exploding spiritual meridians was deafening. A wave of air erupted, and even Elder Hu nearly lost her footing.
“Tsk… This isn’t giving me any chance to step in.” She tutted slightly, seeing Feng Yu Die still dazed, and quickly shouted, “Girl Feng!!! Girl Feng!! What are you spacing out for?! Hurry and protect yourself!”
“Ah, okay…”
Feng Yu Die finally snapped back to reality and quickly erected a spirit wall. Turning her head, she saw that Xiao Tian, who had been floating beside her, was gradually becoming transparent.
“… …”
Xiao Tian seemed oblivious, holding the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao in its hands and sitting on her shoulder. Its small golden eyes rapidly scanned the contents of the scroll.
“Not this… not this either… This one!! Yes, this one!!”
It seemed to have found something, and turning its head, it said, “Yu Die, quickly tell Yun Yiyi and the other two girls to use their bloodlines to gather the spiritual energy of this place. This Thousand Sword Pool has a terrain-shifting formation left by Yun Jian Shang Xian, which can alter the five elements of the earth. With the Yun family bloodline, it can be done.”
“The cultivator named Tian Xing is at a disadvantage. You can’t interfere with their battle, but you can assist from the side, shifting the five elements of this place to favor Tian Xing. With favorable timing, location, and unity, unity is currently with that Yun Kunwu. You must help Tian Xing completely secure timing and location, understand?!”
Just as Xiao Tian finished speaking, its body suddenly floated uncontrollably off Feng Yu Die’s shoulder.
“Hey, hey— Hey?! What’s going on?!”
At the same time, the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao in its hands suddenly flew out and floated towards the sky.
Feng Yu Die’s eyes widened. Forgetting everyone else around her, she quickly Reached out to grab it.
“Xiao Tian?!”
But her hand passed straight through Xiao Tian, and in her eyes, Xiao Tian’s form became even more ethereal, as if it might disappear at any moment.
Xiao Tian flailed in mid-air, desperately trying to descend, but it felt like an immense suction force was pulling it. It couldn’t resist.
After a moment’s hesitation, it formed a sword finger and forcefully pulled the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao, which had flown far away, back into its hands. It then flipped open the first page of the scroll.
However, upon seeing the content of the first page, disbelief flickered in its eyes.
Where the name of the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao’s owner was originally written, half of the characters “Feng Yu Die” had vanished, leaving only “Diao Die.” In its place was “Yun Kun.”
“The scroll changed masters?!”
Xiao Tian exclaimed, turning its head to look at Yun Kunwu in the sky, who was laughing as he battled Elder Tian Xing.
The Heavenly Scroll of the Dao had always belonged to the Saint Emperor. Yun Kunwu was by no means a descendant of the Saint Emperor. But if the name had changed, it meant he had gained the recognition of the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao, causing it to abandon Feng Yu Die and pledge allegiance to him instead.
“No, no, no!!”
Xiao Tian shook its head frantically and looked at Yun Kunwu in the sky. Seeing him staring at itself with a smirking expression, it immediately understood.
This wasn’t that the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao had recognized him, but rather that he had defied the Heavenly Dao and forcibly snatched the scroll from Feng Yu Die.
This person could actually defy the Heavenly Dao to such an extent?
Was he not afraid of his soul being destroyed by heavenly lightning?!
Thunderclap—
Thunder rumbled in the sky above, like an enraged true immortal, causing even Elder Tian Xing’s expression to freeze for a moment. He squinted and looked up.
“What is this…”
Yun Kunwu, covered in scars, saw Elder Tian Xing pause. Despite his dishevelled appearance, his expression remained as calm as before. He said, “It seems I’ve accidentally angered a true immortal. Heh… Is that thing a treasure of the Heavenly Dao?”
“… …”
Elder Tian Xing did not reply. He glanced at Elder Hu below, then once again mobilized his Heavenly Spiritual Earthly Soul and sent it surging towards Yun Kunwu.
“Old man Tian Xing, at your age, aren’t you afraid your body will fall apart?”
“Insolent cur!!!”
Boom—
… …
At the same time, Xiao Tian, having flown into mid-air, was racking its brain and yelling downwards, “Yu Die!! Do as I said and don’t worry about me!! I’ll find a way!!”
Hearing this, Feng Yu Die’s brows furrowed slightly. She immediately summoned her spirit sword from her storage bag, stood up, and relayed what Xiao Tian had said to Yun Yiyi and Yun Jiujiu behind her:
“Jiujiu, this Thousand Sword Pool has a terrain-shifting formation left by Yun Jian Shang Xian, which can alter the five elements of the land.”
“What are you talking about?!” Yun Jiujiu, with tightly knitted brows, didn’t understand. “Damn it, sit down and cultivate your Qi! What are you getting up for…”
But Yun Yiyi, hearing her words, immediately understood. Although she didn’t know how Feng Yu Die knew about the terrain-shifting formation, there wasn’t much time to ponder it now.
“Second Sister! Help me tame the spirits!”
“Huh?”
“Don’t worry about it, just follow me!”
Elder Hu, who had been shielding the three of them in front, saw this and did not intervene. She merely commanded, “Girl Feng! Sit down! Tsk…”
Halfway through her sentence, Elder Hu’s voice abruptly stopped. Her gaze shifted sideways, and she quickly swung her spirit sword vertically.
Clang—
Zhuang Yan, who had been lurking nearby, seized the opportunity and suddenly flashed forward, striking Elder Hu directly away from the three of them with his magical treasure.
“Damn it, you surnamed Zhuang!!”
“Elder Hu, didn’t you yell at me not to run last time? Heh…”
Zhuang Yan, with only one hand remaining, approached Elder Hu, but his face remained composed, as if he had already determined that the advantage lay with him and Yun Kunwu.
Elder Hu could only brace herself to block, her heart filled with worry for Yun Yiyi and the others.
Without her, the residual waves from the battle above would be enough to kill the three of them. And it seemed Zhuang Yan was aiming for precisely this.
However, at this moment, Feng Yu Die also recalled Ye Anping’s previous words. She pointed her finger between her brows, her spiritual sense diving inward.
“Old Ninth, come out and help!!”
Golden spiritual energy swirled around her, and a golden dragon manifested around her body. Using its claws and body as a shield, it curled into a massive golden ball, protecting the three below within its form.
Yun Jiujiu couldn’t help but be startled. “What?”
Feng Yu Die glanced back, smiling faintly.
“I told you, I can protect you all! You all continue!!”
Then, she looked up at Xiao Tian, who was still floating upwards, and couldn’t help but curse.
“Young Master Ye!! What are you doing? You should have anticipated this, right?! If this continues…”
Yun Yiyi, standing nearby, heard this and her expression tensed. She didn’t say anything, but reminded Yun Jiujiu, “Second Sister, don’t get distracted!! Keep gathering the spirit energy!”
“Tsk… What is going on?!”
… …
At this time, Xiao Tian, already caught in the midst of Elder Tian Xing and Yun Kunwu’s battle, felt a bit helpless. It could only watch as itself and the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao flew towards Yun Kunwu, utterly unable to resist.
“I’m the artifact spirit!!! I don’t approve!!!”
It formed a sword finger and, using its artifact spirit laws, desperately tried to break free from Yun Kunwu’s control, but with little effect.
If that heaven-defying karmic tie could forcibly snatch the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao, then it was certainly not something it could contend with.
Xiao Tian bit its lip hard, seeing that Old Ninth had come out to protect Feng Yu Die below. It even began to contemplate self-destructing its spiritual marrow.
No matter what, the scroll must not fall into Yun Kunwu’s hands. If it did, everything would be ruined.
But at this very moment, a person appeared in its mind.
—Ye Anping.
He was also someone who could see it. In terms of heavenly destiny, he was no less than Feng Yu Die. And if Yun Kunwu could forcibly snatch the scroll, then what about Ye Anping?
Could he snatch it from Yun Kunwu?
What if Ye Anping’s fate and karmic ties were above Yun Kunwu’s?
Indeed, among cultivators, aptitude determined superiority.
Ordinarily, the karmic ties of a Heavenly Spiritual Root cultivator would surely be greater than those of a dual spiritual root cultivator.
But Ye Anping was the only one in these tens of thousands of years who, despite having only dual spiritual roots, could see its destiny.
The fate of a dual spiritual root cultivator, surpassing that of a Heavenly Spiritual Root cultivator with a Sword Heart physique…
Thinking about it, most powerful cultivators would probably dismiss it as nonsense, but…
Xiao Tian took a deep breath and amplified its voice with its spiritual energy, shouting to the surroundings for a hundred li.
“Kid Ye!!! Stop messing around!! Now is not the time for you to be temperamental!!”
At the same time, its brows furrowed, and it looked at the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao flying towards Yun Kunwu. It stared intently at the name on the first page.
— “Hoo…”
And in the very next moment, a cold sighing sound reached Xiao Tian’s ears.
The tumultuous residual waves of battle seemed to have stopped at this instant. The three words “Yun Kun Wu” on the first page of the Heavenly Scroll of the Dao instantly turned into dust and scattered.
In their place was the name Xiao Tian had been thinking of all along — Ye Anping.
It cried tears of relief, as if it had finally relaxed.
“Kid Ye! I told you you had destiny too! Why wouldn’t you admit it?!”
And in the very next instant.
Boom—
A golden sword light, as if cleaving day and night, flashed across a hundred li, bisecting several towering peaks from their tops.
Yun Kunwu, who had been fighting so effortlessly, seemed to have faltered for a moment. This golden sword light struck him directly in the chest, sending him hurtling heavily towards the mountain forest below.
Like a meteorite, it stirred up a whirlwind of stones in the forest, creating a massive crater resembling a volcano.
“Cough–”
He quickly sat up, looking in disbelief at the small golden figure in the sky. He no longer held back his spiritual energy, roaring upwards.
“Who?!!!”
The surging killing aura, like a nightmare, instantly dyed the sky of the forbidden zone behind the mountain with a layer of dark mist.
Yun Kunwu’s expression gradually contorted. In that brief moment, he felt that someone whose destiny far surpassed his own was lurking somewhere nearby, having not revealed themselves from the beginning to the end.
This was not someone with higher cultivation than him, but someone who seemed capable of defeating him in every aspect, someone who could truly make him taste defeat.
He raised his pitch-black spirit sword and swung it wildly in all directions.
Black sword light scattered, and wherever it passed, it turned into dust, like a sandstorm.
“Come out!! Stop hiding in the shadows and fight me!!! Ahahaha— Come out… Unknown senior!! Or perhaps… unknown junior!!!”
The mad roars echoed throughout the wilderness.
Zhuang Yan, who was fighting Elder Hu with his sword, heard this and looked over with a worried expression. He immediately understood that his Slay Dan likely hadn’t been fully refined, and after enduring Elder Tian Xing’s full-force assaults so many times, it was showing signs of cracking.
“Not good, the Slay Dan can’t hold on… Tsk… Kunwu!! Calm yourself, don’t be moved!”
“Zhuang Yan!!! Still daring to look around? Take this gourd from me!!”
Elder Hu seized the opportunity, using her full strength to hurl her wine gourd at his forehead, smashing Zhuang Yan directly into the ground.
Meanwhile, Elder Tian Xing, floating in mid-air with a weary expression, watched the black sword light inexplicably scattering in all directions below. He narrowed his eyes, realizing that Yun Kunwu’s attention was no longer on him but on an unknown individual.
In fact, during the earth vein surge, Elder Tian Xing had an vague feeling as if someone had been secretly helping him?
Otherwise, the timing of this earth vein surge was just too coincidental.
“Hoo…” He exhaled, “No matter who it is, thank you for your assistance.”
He then formed a sword finger, holding the Yin-Yang Spirit Sword towards the sky. This caused the lava below to surge upwards, condensing into a fire beast resembling a Golden Crow.
Sensing the heat that threatened to scorch the mountain forest, Yun Kunwu finally came back to his senses, shifting his attention from the unknown cultivator to Elder Tian Xing above.
“Hoh?! You’re bringing out the big guns now, an Earth Phoenix True Treasure? That must have cost you hundreds of years of cultivation, right? Old man Tian Xing, are you really willing to go that far?”
“I was never fated to reach Deity Transformation anyway. Having so much cultivation is useless. It’s better to use it today to eliminate you, this disgrace of the Yun family!! The Sect Master didn’t kill you back then out of kinship. Today, I will rectify that mistake for the Sect Master!!!”
“Heh… Then I’ll take it on!!” Yun Kunwu’s eyes sharpened. He swung his spirit sword to his side and looked up, saying, “You’ll need a hundred years to recover the cultivation you lost, while I’ll only need a few years. This is quite a profitable transaction.”
“Noise!!”
Blazing flames surged, and the Earth Phoenix descended, shattering the Heavenly Spiritual Earthly Veins and sweeping across the sky for a hundred li.
Meanwhile, Yun Yiyi and Yun Jiujiu, within the Saint Emperor Dragon Body, had completed their spirit gathering. They each cut their wrists with their spirit swords and sprinkled blood onto the ground.
“Jiujiu!! Gather the earth veins to assist Elder Tian Xing.”
“Damn it, I know!!!”
Two streams of spiritual light shot up from the east and west, converging on Elder Tian Xing. He immediately guided these two streams of spiritual energy into his True Treasure.
Yun Kunwu’s eyes narrowed slightly. He placed his palms together and pushed his spirit sword towards the Earth Phoenix, forcefully blocking Elder Tian Xing’s True Treasure in mid-air.
Their spiritual energies entwined and collided, illuminating the entire mountain forest once more.
The vision of everyone present was obscured by a white light.
After the white light faded, the wind calmed, and the spiritual energy subsided. Only a ravaged mountain peak remained, with a proud golden dragon coiled atop a cliff edge.
Feng Yu Die peered out from within the dragon’s body, observing the situation outside. After a long while, she breathed a sigh of relief and asked with a furrowed brow, “Is it over?”
“Yu Die!!!” Xiao Tian flew down rapidly from the sky, grabbing Feng Yu Die’s face and asking, “Yun Kunwu’s Nascent Soul has fled! Are you alright…”
Feng Yu Die pursed her lips and nodded. She then took a few steps forward, gazing down at the lifeless forest below the cliff, and couldn’t help but bite her lip.
“En…”
… …
