Before the rosy glow had faded and the heavens were still reciting the legendary tale of the "Twin Spiritual Talismans," Mu Xiyao's twin lotus seal on her fingertips had not yet cooled when a strange chill suddenly crept up her spine.
The star-shaped mark between her brows suddenly darkened, as if it had been stained with ink; in the same instant—
"Thump!!!"
The Heavenly Ranking of All Realms hummed without wind, and crimson ripples spread from the ranking itself.
Before the rosy glow had faded and the heavens were still reciting the legendary tale of the "Twin Spiritual Talismans," Mu Xiyao's twin lotus seal on her fingertips had not yet cooled when a strange chill suddenly crept up her spine.
The star-shaped mark between her brows suddenly darkened, as if it had been stained with ink; in the same instant—
"Thump!!!"
The Heavenly Ranking of All Realms hummed without wind, and crimson ripples exploded from its base, shooting straight into the sky. The elder guarding the ranking coughed up blood and flew backward, screaming hoarsely, "Something... is coming against the light of merit!"
At the Huashizong Star Gazing Platform, Lu Yichen suddenly stood up, his hand on his sword. The "Listening Tide" sword beside his ear, even before it was drawn, emitted a sharp whistle—the most instinctive tremor of a sword cultivator.
He looked up and saw a dark crack torn open in the northern sky, its edges cracked with crimson lightning, like the blinking of some giant pupil. Accompanying the crack was an overwhelmingly nauseating aura of "negative merit"—
The most evil energy in the world feeds on the faith of the common people, and can corrupt people's spiritual roots and erode their moral character!
“Evil creature…” Lu Yichen’s voice was low, his pupils shrinking to pinpoints, “No, it’s the ‘World Devourer’.”
Behind the Moonflower Sect, Su Jinxiu's newly consecrated divine talisman exploded into a shower of cinnabar with a "snap," causing her to stagger backward, blood seeping from her fingertips. Mu Xiyao reached out to support her, but felt as if all six of her spiritual roots were being simultaneously doused with ice water—
The wind spirit root shrieked, the lightning spirit root trembled, and the fire spirit root extinguished itself!
"It's devouring my spiritual power?" Mu Xiyao's face turned deathly pale.
Using her blood as a guide, Su Jinxiu hastily drew a "Purification Talisman," but the talisman was immediately corroded to ash by the black mist. She gritted her teeth: "It's not swallowing... it's 'reverse-flowing' negative Heavenly Dao!"
At the same time, a sticky, contemptuous laugh echoed in the hearts of all the cultivators—
"Merit? Heaven's will? They are nothing but my sustenance."
"My name is Wujiu. I came from the Chaos Sea and have come here to seek a karmic settlement from the new Heavenly Dao."
Before the words had even faded, a gigantic hand formed from the countless wailing faces emerged from the black rift, reaching straight towards the Moonflower Sect—its target was none other than the "Star Pattern Heavenly Dao Seal" between Mu Xiyao's brows!
Lu Yichen shattered the Star Gazing Platform with a single step, his black robes fluttering, the radiance of his six spiritual roots fully cultivated soaring into the sky, his icy voice resounding throughout the heavens:
"Wu Jiu? — You dare to talk about cause and effect!"
"Ah Yao, hold on tight."
"This time, I will slay the heavens!"
As soon as he finished speaking, "Listening to the Tide" was drawn from its sheath, and the sword light transformed into a rainbow that stretched for thousands of miles, slashing straight at the giant hand that blotted out the sky!
Throughout the myriad realms, a deafening sound was simultaneously heard—
"Clang!!!"
The light of merit and the fire of negative merit collide head-on for the first time.
The great battle has begun. A black rift tore through the sky, and a giant hand formed from billions of wailing faces crashed down, its target the star-patterned Heavenly Dao Seal between Mu Xiyao's brows at the back of the Moonflower Sect.
"The Seal of the Holy Maiden, the Core of the Heavenly Dao, possessing it can overturn the universe."
Sticky whispers entangled the consciousness of all beings, and Wu Jiu's laughter spread like poisonous vines throughout their minds. "New Holy Maiden, I borrow your merits to help me overturn the turbid sea and the heavens."
Before the giant hand arrived, the negative merits had already turned into a torrential downpour of black rain. Wherever it fell, the spiritual veins there emitted a corrosive hissing sound, the grass and trees turned to ash, and the disciples collapsed to the ground clutching their heads.
Mu Xiyao rose into the air, her six spiritual roots unfurling a magnificent halo behind her, resembling a six-colored moon crown. She raised her hand, and the Saintess Scepter condensed from the void, its tip adorned with twin lotus blossoms, showering down a radiant white holy light that forcefully evaporated the black rain.
"You want me?" The girl's eyes were cold and clear, her voice piercing the heavens. "Then step over my dead body before you talk about overthrowing the heavens!"
Su Jinxiu wielded her brush, and a blood-red talisman appeared in the sky—"Holy Radiance Purification Realm," with ten thousand feet of talismanic patterns transforming into a light curtain that blocked the five fingers of the giant hand.
Lu Yichen was even more direct, stepping in front of Mu Xiyao, the tip of his Listening Tide Sword pointing directly at the giant hand's palm, his sword intent soaring to the sky: "Ask my sword first, then you can touch her!"
The giant hand clenched its five fingers, and black mist condensed into pitch-black lightning, which struck down.
Mu Xiyao raised her scepter high, and the golden light of merit transformed into countless runes, flowing upstream against the lightning and exploding into a dazzling sea of light in mid-air with the black lightning.
Blood trickled from the corner of her lips, yet she did not retreat an inch, the star-like patterns in her eyes burning like silver torches.
"The Holy Maiden can save all things, and she can also judge all things."
"Wu Jiu—" the girl's voice was clear and cold, echoing throughout the heavens, "In the name of the Holy Maiden, I sentence you—"
"May you be forever condemned to the cycle of reincarnation, never to be reborn!"
The sea of light surged back, transforming into a giant dragon with six spiritual roots. It coiled around the giant hand, carrying the holy light of judgment, and crashed headlong into the black crevice!
Heaven and earth fell silent, and all worlds held their breath.
From the depths of the rift came Wu Jiu's first painful roar—
"Heavenly Saintess...you will eventually...belong to me!"
Before the storm had subsided, Mu Xiyao fell, only to be caught in Lu Yichen's arms.
She raised her hand, her blood-stained fingertips lightly touching his brow, her voice low yet firm:
"Yi Chen, next strike—"
"Take his life."
The boy nodded, his eyes shining like cold stars:
"Yes, my... Heavenly Way."
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