Chapter 309 The Complete Liberation of the Naval Xuanwu
What I sensed from the naval commander Xuanwu was the burning wound in his soul, the flames he suffered from the failed assassination attempt on Xuanming. He must have already treated it countless times, yet the flames of Xuanming still clung to his wounds, unable to be extinguished.
What I deeply fear is the legendary move he supposedly used when he assassinated Xuanming, a move powerful enough to kill Da Wuchang.
Could it be that he was able to harm Xuanming because of elemental advantage? I think that possibility is highly unlikely. Regardless of whether Xuanming's flames would be as strongly countered as his flames were against mine, based on my past experience with Mingzhuo, the power of Dawuchang cannot be reversed simply by elemental advantage.
Assuming that Mingzhuo is also a "fire attribute" like me, if Shuishi Xuanwu uses its current power to attack Mingzhuo, or even increases Shuishi Xuanwu's current power several times, the result will only be the same as when I attacked Mingzhuo before, unable to cause any decent damage.
Fancy restraint relationships or seemingly profound and mysterious special abilities are meaningless to Da Wuchang. Shui Shi Xuanwu must possess a truly extraordinary and powerful technique sufficient to enter the realm of Da Wuchang in order to be able to harm him.
I tried to manipulate the remaining flame of enlightenment within his soul.
If I can manipulate it, it means I can launch an attack directly from within. This would be enough to reverse the tide and secure my victory in a short time.
But I quickly gave up, not because I felt that doing so would damage the dignity of the fight.
Admittedly, I am ambitious, and achieving victory with Xuanming's "off-field assistance" is somewhat of an unfair victory. However, I am not some "arrogant warrior," nor am I so pretentious as to abandon the winning strategies I found on the battlefield because of this.
Just as I might feel that my overly powerful superpowers could spoil the experience of adventure, and I might be happy when my superpowers are unexpectedly limited, I would never deliberately refrain from using them if they were still usable, much less simulate a situation where I'm limited for no reason. What I seek is the experience of using every means to solve problems in difficult and desperate situations, so even if I feel it's undignified, I would never leave readily available methods unused.
The reason I abandoned this approach is because I cannot control the flame of enlightenment.
This was another "first time"—the first time I'd encountered a situation where I couldn't control flames since gaining superpowers. The Flame of Proclaimed Light seemed to exist in a different dimension than mine; no matter how much I concentrated, I couldn't interfere. It was likely because that flame was on a higher level than me.
It makes sense, if I can manipulate Xuanming's fire at will, wouldn't that mean that if Xuanming attacks me in the future, I can turn the tables and manipulate his flames?
Of course, the flame is currently ownerless, and the conditions for manipulating it are much more relaxed than when Xuanming was present. However, even so, I am still not qualified to attack it. The flame seems to be displaying an unruly attitude, implying that even without Xuanming's presence, it is not something I can control in my current state.
However... it's rather strange. Even the wounds of the naval master Genbu still have remnants of flame. It is said that even the body and mind of the life-destroying spirit are being burned by the flames of enlightenment. But as for Asaho's soul burns, I could only sense the wounds in the past, and I could never detect the remnants of flames no matter what.
Could it be because the nature of Xuanming's flames changed during the Great Impermanence and Great Demon periods? Or is it because Asaha's power of return is more refined than the water magic of the Water Master Genbu, and can even do things that Meiko cannot?
Or perhaps... the Great Demon of Calamity who caused the burns and numbness was not Xuanming at all?
After shifting my attention away from the Flames of Proclamation, I unleashed my flames once more. This time, I expanded my sea of fire to cover the entire mountainside of Moonshadow Mountain. Since the opponent's spreading water magic would delay my flame teleportation, I transformed the battlefield itself into a sea of fire, placing myself within it and establishing a "wired connection" with it. In this way, I could freely change my position within the sea of fire.
At the same time, I can also generate new flames by burning the natural environment of Moonshadow Mountain, and then absorb these flames to restore my power. The Water Master Genbu was right before; even I cannot regenerate and revive indefinitely. However, as long as there is a continuous influx of external flames, I can achieve countless regenerations.
However, I still can't do anything about the Water Master Xuanwu; I can't break through the defensive circle he formed with black water currents. Both my offensive and defensive capabilities are being overwhelmed by his. I must find a way to reverse the situation as soon as possible, otherwise he'll notice my rapid growth in combat.
I have no good way to deal with his possible ultimate move; I can only try to dodge it. I know his ultimate move won't be easy to avoid, or he'll definitely choose a moment when I can't dodge it, but I have no better strategy.
The naval commander Xuanwu wasn't just standing there watching. In fact, aside from the difference in strength attributes, our battle strategies were quite similar in many ways. As I unleashed my sea of fire, he also summoned a massive torrent of water, transforming the mountainside of Moonshadow Mountain into a swamp in one fell swamp.
The water, appearing out of nowhere, rushed down the mountain due to gravity, causing widespread mudslides on the mountain peaks.
The ravages of water and fire completely destroyed the natural ecology of the mountains, turning the forests into lakes and swamps boiled by flames, while the large flow of water also divided my sea of fire.
I had no time to worry about environmental protection; I was focused on finding a way out of the predicament—the first thing that came to mind was "weapon crafting."
The fact that the alchemy talent of the naval Xuanwu didn't grow through breaking the mechanism of the Mountain Yin-Yang Ritual, but was innate to the Xuanwu Seed, is indeed surprising to me. However, since he can amplify his combat power through the art of inner alchemy, could I enhance my combat power through my weapon-refining talent? For example... by treating my own soul as a weapon and then refining and strengthening it?
This idea is the easiest to come up with, but I don't know if it's feasible. However, to put it another way, I haven't even figured out the most basic ability to refine other people's souls, let alone refine and strengthen myself.
More than a dozen black water cannons bombarded from the Marine Genbu and his clones. As before, I dodged them, simultaneously firing a flame cannon to try and neutralize one of the black water cannons that I couldn't avoid. This time, through the feedback, I was confirmed—my power had increased in the battle to a level sufficient to barely neutralize the black water cannons from the Marine Genbu, despite the elemental advantage.
The balance of power has shifted less in favor of the naval force, Xuanwu.
However, it's far from enough to secure my victory. I can only fire one of my full-force fire cannons at a time, while my opponent can fire over a dozen simultaneously using the "Golden Core" within his body. Add to that his hidden Great Impermanence Domain technique… Perhaps I should try to conceal the evolution of my power and stall until I truly have a chance of winning.
With this in mind, I deliberately pretended that I couldn't counter his black water cannon, causing my body to be severely damaged again, and then regenerated at super speed with the help of the surrounding sea of fire.
Unfortunately, no matter how brilliantly one acts, it's mostly difficult to conceal under the keen observation of the naval commander, Xuanwu. Sure enough, the situation escalated to its worst possible state.
The naval commander Xuanwu suddenly frowned.
"...Your power has suddenly increased dramatically...No, that's not it...I see!" He then revealed an incredulous expression, "So you didn't have any spare power, but evolved at high speed during the battle?"
"How is this possible? Could it be that my knowledge is wrong? The power corresponding to the Vermilion Bird Seed is not for weapon forging, but for becoming stronger the more you fight? But even Shan Liangyi himself does not have such an ability. How could you, as the successor of Liangyi, possibly have it?"
His gaze swept over my entire body, his eyes flashing with a sharp light, as if he were using his eyesight and intuition to search for the most likely answer.
"Could it be... that this isn't some special ability, but simply because your potential is exceptionally deep and is gradually being unleashed?"
What a troublesome level of observation! He actually saw right through me!
I tried to make a final struggle.
"I didn't expect you to see through my acting. But you overestimate me. Actually..."
Before I could finish speaking, the naval commander Xuanwu suddenly roared, "Since that's the case, then I must finish this quickly and unleash my strongest attack!"
"The wheel of fortune really does turn. Zhuang Cheng, I admit I underestimated you before. Even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit—I said those things at the beginning, yet I was still holding back, not immediately unleashing my most powerful move..."
"It was my carelessness, but it's not too late. I will no longer underestimate you, but will treat you as an enemy of the Great Impermanence level... Prepare to be attacked!"
As he spoke, he canceled all his clones and flew rapidly to a high altitude, suddenly raising his right arm.
In my perception, the "golden core" inside his soul disappeared and then appeared in the palm of his right hand, which he held high.
An indescribable aura, like an abyss, swept across all directions, even wiping out the vast sea of fire, leaving only countless broken sparks and scattered, red-hot charcoal embers.
“This is my ‘inner core,’ which contains hundreds or even thousands of times more magical power than I possess. Such a vast amount of magical power exceeds my control limits; even I, as its master, cannot fully control it. I can only gradually transfer the power within to the outside world,” said the Water Master Xuanwu, looking down at me. “And only under one condition can I fully unleash all the power within it.”
He clenched his right hand suddenly, and his inner core shattered on the spot.
An incredibly deep, pitch-black magical light emanated from his clenched right fist.
In ancient times, black represented water. It is said that the First Emperor's dragon robe was black, symbolizing the virtue of water. In some historical periods, black was also called "xuanse," originating from Xuanwu. The original meaning of Xuanwu is Xuanming, and "wu" and "ming" are homophones in ancient Chinese, carrying the connotations of "black" and "yin."
Among the Four Symbols, the Black Tortoise is the mythical beast closest to death.
He aimed his right fist at me.
"Die, Zhuang Cheng."
The light of the Dark Abyss transformed into an overwhelming darkness, crashing down upon me with the force of a tidal wave.
I immediately tried to dodge, but almost at the same time, I realized that I couldn't avoid this ultimate move.
It wasn't because the attack was too massive, nor because its speed was too fast for me to react to. To an ordinary person, the darkness might seem to engulf them as suddenly as turning off the lights in a room, but to me, the speed of this darkness was similar to the previous black water cannon. What truly prevented me from dodging was the elemental advantage.
This is a form of restraint on a mystical level. It not only puts me at a disadvantage when our forces clash, but it also determines my fate of being absolutely inferior in every aspect. Previously, the power he used was at the same level as mine, so this restraint was only reflected in the level of attack and defense. But now, this restraint is even reflected in the concept of "hitting the target".
The overwhelming power brought with it an overwhelming restraint, which resulted in a fate that would absolutely destroy me.
Simply put, it means "it will hit the mark and it will be worn".
It's not because the naval Xuanwu possesses the supernatural ability of "always hitting and piercing" that this effect occurs. When power reaches a certain level, it will naturally manifest all sorts of miraculous abilities.
Without a doubt, this is the ultimate technique of the Great Impermanence Realm!
In the first instant, I allocated a portion of my soul to the scattered sparks and embers on the battlefield. The next moment, the darkness of death mercilessly swallowed me up.
The unprecedented crisis caused an unprecedented surge in the progress of my power unleashing.
However, even faster than the burst of power, before even a fraction of a second had passed, my fire elemental body was completely destroyed by darkness, and my soul was shredded and extinguished.
Not only that, even those souls I had quickly dispersed to distant places, seemingly unaffected, were extinguished along with the sparks and embers. The sheer power and restraint of this extent made the darkness seem like an unreasonable curse, utterly annihilating my entire body and soul.
This immense dark force went further, destroying everything in its path. Like a high-pressure water jet blasting a sandcastle built by a child, half of Moonshadow Mountain was shattered by the overwhelming dark and mysterious power.
And for some reason, I can still see all of this.
I think... I'm not dead yet.
(End of this chapter)
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