Blue Lead stood with his arms crossed, his narrow eyes observing Crimson Soul.
Whilst Crimson Soul stared at him too, but he did so with a wide smile on his face.
"Heavenly Court only has two Dao Guardians: he and Duke Long. But Duke Long's lifespan has almost run its course.
Even when I lose my Cicada, he will be no threat to me. Even if they bring him, I simply can remain in the two heavens until the old dog bites the dust." At that thought, he could not help but laugh heartily.
Blue Lead raised his eyebrows.
"That look in your face.
You have an awful amount of confidence for somebody using a borrowed blade.
Then again, I have seen hundreds, hundreds of demonic scum who thought just like you do, in my long life.
Regardless, despite everything. In a way, we should be thankful to you." A tiny smile appeared on his face.
"Whilst we still had a few backup plans to force the use of Divine Travel Gu, we were not too confident that they would appear where we wanted them to.
A Fated Venerable's luck is far too strong, and Kao Dao Ji far too unpredictable.
But with your help, we finally caught them.
If we reverse engineer the method by which he was brought to such a state, the gains would be immense for us!
And you could contribute even more to humanity, if so you wished..."
Then he stared at Crimson Soul with a cold expression.
"This will be your last chance to turn over a new leaf. Give your Spring Autumn Cicada in your possession, and not only will we forgive your past transgressions, but we will make you the new Heaven Overseeing Lord.
And on top of that, we will give you two thousand years of Lifespan Gu." Despite repeating those words, one could hear the utter disdain in them.
"Please. Cut your speeches. We both know this is not going to work."
Blue Lead sighed.
"I know. But I was told by the current lord to at least give it a try." He shrugged.
"Very well. You have been a useful tool for far too many, Giant Sun, Spectral Soul, us, and now even to the Anomaly.
But tools eventually break." He snapped his fingers.
A myriad of barriers appeared, stretching in all directions.
Those barriers were stacked together like a myriad of spider webs interconnected with each other, in three-dimensional patterns.
And that was just the beginning; dozens of Immortals revealed their location.
And they, too, began to add even more layers onto the Formation.
The patterns were so intricate and wondrous that they shone as brightly as the stars in the night.
The Primeval Energy flowing through was so unbelievably rich that if a Rank 5 Gu Master were to be inside the formation, they would automatically break through in a matter of minutes.
Whereas those from Ranks below would have their apertures automatically exploded.
Crimson Soul stared at those myriad barriers.
Spring Autumn Cicada opened its mouth, followed by an overwhelming Blood Qi Wave that directly collided against the myriad of barriers.
The attack easily pierced through the first layers, but the following ones stopped its advancement.
Not only that, but just as quickly as those 'threads' were sliced through, they rapidly began to mend.
Yet instead of feeling bewildered and hopeless, his expression actually seemed relaxed and tranquil.
"The more complicated a Formation is, the harder it is to repair it. Whereas stacking complex Formations on top of another becomes nightmarish. The fact that it possesses both qualities means that it must be almost devoid of other properties other than preventing me from escaping.
Against this much, I can fig-"
A blue beam was shot towards Crimson Soul whilst he was distracted.
He raised his palm to block the attack.
He did not expect this to work on its own; he just intended to use this to gain a bit of time to use Cicada, and yet.
Contrary to his expectations, as if attacking a pile of loose soil.
It shattered into dust, exploding in all directions.
Crimson Soul knew that the dust carried dangerous properties, and so.
[Red Cell Oxygen Burst Release] The red cells in Crimson Soul's body exploded, producing tides of wind that drove away the dust.
But that only gave Blue Lead another opening.
A pair of spherical projectiles was shot, one at each hand.
One aimed at his heart, the other at his head.
Crimson Soul's eyes widened; Spring Autumn Cicada activated itself once more.
A river stream appeared, pointing upwards, deflecting the two projectiles.
Yet.
That was the opportunity Blue Lead hoped for.
His eyes shone brightly.
"Spring Autumn Cicada can either exhale or inhale.
When it inhales, it absorbs water from the river of time, and while it can be used in other ways, it is mostly useful to empower other Time Path Methods.
Whereas the exhalation is by far more powerful and explosive, useful at amplifying the output of any Killer Move.
Now that its stomach is empty, the time is ripe for a counterattack!"
With this conclusion, he charged.
He raised his fist and prepared to collide, yet.
At the last moment, Kettle Gu was summoned.
Even so.
Both Kettle Gu and Crimson Soul were shot at divine speed.
Like a pinball, they began to bounce around the myriad of barriers. During those instants, the expression of Crimson Soul looked disoriented.
Yet his gaze regained its clarity as he realized that a portion of the blue lead had attached itself to the Gu's surface.
But he had no time to clean it.
From the side.
Blue Lead opened his jaw uncannily.
Using those precious instants, he prepared yet another devastating move.
Purple electricity flew across his mouth.
Which was then shot towards him.
Crimson Soul retaliated; his Spring Autumn Cicada had already charged.
He shrank his Kettle Gu and put it on his hand, then unleashed a devastating blast towards his opponent.
Blue Lead merely snorted coldly; he did not even bother to pretend he could contend in strength against him.
So instead, he flew away.
Crimson Soul frowned, but then.
His eyes widened.
He turned his head.
A small gap had appeared in several of the formation's webs, enabling a single projectile to be shot towards him.
A light beam, small but deadly.
It reached his heart.
Crimson Soul's expression was distorted by the pain.
But he held on, even without his heart; his blood could still flow adequately.
But the method he used to do so took time to prepare, and so, using that momentary distraction.
Blue Lead Immortal struck once more.
He raised his middle and index fingers.
Another beam was unleashed of concentrated might.
Once more, Kettle Gu expanded to protect the attack, yet the beam immediately turned into a viscous liquid upon collision.
Before rapidly solidifying.
Crimson Soul frowned.
Whilst he would like to stop the damage from spreading further, he knew that his situation was urgent.
Thus.
A dense red fog began to spread inside the Gu.
Whereas the Gu once more began to retract itself.
Naturally.
Neither Blue Lead Immortal nor several Immortals from the Heavenly Court would let him.
Once more, several gaps appeared in the formation as several Rank 8 Killer Moves were unleashed one upon another, covering every direction.
The red fog stretched towards the Heavens as Crimson Soul raised his arms.
Spring, Autumn Cicada shone once more.
A massive explosion surged as the wind was pushed away in all directions.
And from the fog, one could see thousands upon thousands of Blood Phantoms.
The intensity of the explosion was such that Blue Lead was forced to retreat, but his expression did not look worried.
On the contrary.
The attack of Crimson Soul's Move was quasi-divine, evaporating his blue lead instantaneously, but the sheer force made it bounce back towards Crimson Soul once more as it reached the barrier.
Toxic gas surrounded him from all angles.
The blood phantoms dutifully acted as human shields, blocking every angle.
But Blue Lead did not give up there, using his momentary weakness, as Cicada had just been used, as well as the blindness of his opponent.
He silently shot a small projectile towards Crimson Soul.
Crimson Soul reacted as quickly as he could, diverting his body, yet.
Another gap appeared in the formation and then.
He was pushed ever so slightly towards the projectile.
Crimson Soul turned his body slightly, even so.
His arm was sliced from the elbow.
Without any other choice.
He was forced to expand Kettle Gu once more, whilst his Blood Phantoms protected him.
From a distance, Blue Lead shouted.
"You believed yourself to be above the law! To be above the world itself, for what? Because you had a Rank 9 Gu in your hands?
Hmph! Without it, you would not even last ten seconds against me, and today you will find out that even with it. You will not last ten minutes against me!"
Whilst those words were not transmitted to the outside world just yet, they were recorded nonetheless.
Once Heavenly Court won, the sheer reputation of defeating a Rank 8 Immortal holding a Rank 9 Gu would have great dividends.
Of course, those words were not entirely accurate; not once had Crimson Soul activated its effect. He was relying on an indirect effect, far weaker than the real deal.
But who would care about such details once he was dead?
He opened his mouth; blue flames came out of his mouth.
Inside those flames, the blue lead was mixed, within those flames, making the attack both poisonous and overwhelmingly hot.
Kettle Gu was struck fiercely by the flames.
Rapidly, a burning spot appeared.
It seemed that in just a few more seconds.
The Gu would be destroyed, and the outcome would be settled.
"Hahaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah!" Crimson Soul laughed heartily.
At that moment, Blue Lead Immortal retreated as he was chased by several Blood Phantoms.
But he did not care much about this.
But rather, he turned his gaze from where Spring Autumn Cicada's Aura shone intensely, as it inhaled deeply.
His eyes widened.
As Kettle Gu repaired itself in mere instants.
Even the adhered blue lead disappeared without a trace.
The Gu shrank down again, and one could see Crimson Soul standing there.
Spotless.
Not even a trace of dust could be seen on his body, let alone blood.
"You cannot kill me!" He raised his arms as he proclaimed those words arrogantly.
[Man as Before] [Gu as Before]
…
A few moments ago.
Thunder Ghost True Monarch flew towards Kao Dao Ji and the others.
The real Kao Dao Ji widened his eyes in bewilderment.
"Le Tu use Dreaming Gu!" He shouted.
"Not so quickly." The woman snorted coldly as she noticed the building Immortal Aura inside Kao Dao Ji's Aperture.
[Body and Soul Dissonance]
A blue pulse was shot towards the aperture, which then directed itself towards the trio.
Le Tu and Uru Hong Jing immediately lost control over their bodies, whereas Kao Dao Ji felt a deep chill in his back.
"Still conscious, huh? Figures, you are a freak after all, so the usual rules do not apply to you.
Well. It hardly matters, you are going to reveal everything we want to know, anyway." Thunder Ghost True Monarch muttered before Kao Dao Ji could say anything.
She raised her palm.
A blue sphere appeared around his body, trapping him completely.
"Now that you are all quiet, let us finally see what you've been hiding all this time…" Thunder Ghost True Monarch narrowed her eyes as she spoke those words.
But as she triggered her methods to try to scan him.
And as she began to read his mind, her eyes widened.
She felt a deep tremor in her soul and a deep backlash as her move failed.
She coughed blood, and the sphere shattered.
Freeing Kao Dao Ji.
Using that rare opportunity, Kao Dao Ji roared.
He struck with his full strength.
Unfortunately, the gap was a deep chasm.
As his attacks collided with her armor, her body was pushed backwards a few meters.
"Was that supposed to hurt?"
Her lips curled up into a smile.
Then.
She appeared, grabbing him by the hair.
"Let me show you how to throw a proper hit."
She clenched her fist.
"It's supposed to be more LIKE THIS!" He punched his face with so much force that one of his teeth went flying, and a lot of blood flew out of his mouth.
"OR LIKE THIS!" She threw an upper hit, aiming at his jaw, and even more blood came out of his mouth.
"OR THIS!"
"OR THIS!"
"OR THIS!"
"OR THIS!"
"Hah…Did you get the right idea now?" Thunder Ghost True Monarch smiled at Kao Dao Ji, whose whole face was covered in blood.
Truthfully, in his current state, he was prevented from even using a single Gu.
Thus, to not accidentally kill him, she healed him during the whole process.
Even so, he still looked badly hurt.
Thunder Ghost True Monarch lowered her head to meet his gaze.
"Heh…I would like to kill you for your insolence, but that would disrupt our great plans." Then she communicated with another Immortal from Heavenly Court.
"There is an issue with him. When I tried to read his memories, I felt a deep backlash. There is something inside him that is preventing me from peering into his thoughts. I don't know what, though, but I heavily suspect that is a Venerable's arrangement, so I request backup both to be able to read his memories, as well as protection in case a…
Mishap occurs."
She stared at Kao Dao Ji as she said those last words.
"Oh? The others? Well…I suppose I could try to read their memories too." She muttered to herself.
Whilst still keeping Kao Dao Ji trapped with one arm, she began to read the memories of Le Tu and Uru Hong Jing.
…
Kao Zha Ji's body was covered in deep wounds that had yet to properly heal.
One of his eyes was even missing.
Yet, his expression remained unflinching.
The pain in his body was nothing in comparison to the pain of his heart.
Hatred and regret blocked every other sensation.
And yet.
His expression changed immediately as he stared in shock at the horizon.
Kao Yu Hun stood there with a calm expression on his face.
Whilst waving his hand at him.
"Heya."