Laozi's heart shook with a violent tremor; his Taiji Diagram was being utterly suppressed by the weight of Ling Xiao's cauldron. The two Magic Treasures were now hopelessly entangled, their powers canceling each other out and preventing him from utilizing the Diagram for his absolute defense. In an instant, the eldest of the Pure Ones fell into a crushing disadvantage.
Even more inconceivable was the realization that Ling Xiao's magic power was denser and more robust than his own.
How is this possible?
Could this man truly be ahead of him, even without having sat through the lectures of the Dao?
He remembered Mount Buzhou vividly; back then, Ling Xiao's cultivation had been clearly inferior to his own. Had it not been for the presence of that mysterious cauldron, Laozi would have dealt with him then and there.
"What, then, did I listen to during those three Great Dao lectures?"
Laozi began to suffer a profound doubt of his own existence. He even began to wonder if there was some fundamental flaw in the Dao preached by the Dao Ancestor. Why would Ling Xiao—a man who had never once stepped foot into the Purple Fortune Palace—possess a strength that eclipsed his own?
If this was not a problem with the teaching, then what was?
Ling Xiao gave him no luxury of further contemplation. He had already arrived.
In a state of mounting panic, Laozi recalled the Heaven and Earth Profound Yellow Exquisite Pagoda and unleashed the Off-Ground Blazing Light Flag to bolster his shielding.
Seeing the defensive wall rise, Ling Xiao showed no trace of mercy. With a sharp flick of his wrist, the Hongmeng Measuring Ruler materialized in his grip. It radiated a light as vast as the Milky Way as he lashed out with a fierce, sky-splitting strike.
The Taiqing Immortal Light flared around Laozi's body in a desperate bid to protect him, yet the force of the blow was so absolute that he was sent flying horizontally across the void like a broken doll.
Laozi pointed a trembling finger toward the heavens. In response, Taiqing Divine Thunder blanketed the sky and earth, shaking the very foundations of the universe as if the bolts were falling directly from the primordial Chaos to submerge Ling Xiao in a tide of white light.
This was a terrifying Divine Thunder, capable of annihilating a Grand Unity Golden Immortal's body and soul in a single heartbeat. The horror of ten million such bolts striking simultaneously was a sight beyond mortal imagination.
A flicker of desperate joy appeared on Laozi's face. Without a defensive Magic Treasure currently protecting his person, what could Ling Xiao possibly use to block such a move?
Chi!
The expected annihilation did not occur. Instead, a bizarre change took hold. The surging, violent Lightning Tribulation suddenly became as docile as a pet, continuously shrinking and condensing until it transformed into a small, dense ball of Thunder Essence resting quietly in Ling Xiao's palm.
"This..."
Laozi's expression froze into a mask of disbelief. Why had the Divine Thunder he summoned chosen to obey Ling Xiao?
"Returning it to you!" Ling Xiao gave a cold, thin smile and flicked his finger. The sphere of Thunder Essence tore across the gap, and wherever it passed, the Void Realm did not merely crack—it transformed into a black hole of absolute nothingness. The aura of total destruction caused every living being across the Three Islands to tremble with a primal fear, their backs turning cold as they felt the breath of the void.
"You... do not come any closer!" Laozi's pupils constricted to pinpricks. In his sheer desperation, he actually let out a shout of warning.
Boom...
With a world-shaking thunderclap, the Thunder Essence detonated, swallowing a massive portion of the surrounding Void Realm. The resulting raging lightning shredded countless star systems in the deep space above.
From the heart of this great destruction, Laozi came rushing out, the Heaven and Earth Profound Yellow Exquisite Pagoda still hovering over his head. His once-immaculate Daoist robes were now tattered rags, his skin was charred black, and there were several spots of fresh, undried blood staining his form.
Witnessing this scene, Yuanshi and Tongtian both felt a surge of genuine panic.
Their eldest brother—the strongest among them—had actually been beaten into such a state?
Was it that their brother's cultivation was lacking, or was Ling Xiao simply a monster beyond their reckoning?
Should they attempt to switch opponents to save their brother's face?
"Yuanshi! You dare to let your mind wander while fighting me?" Tai Yi's shout broke the tension. The Chaos Bell smashed down from high above. As a divine object with the specific power to suppress the world, its descending might was a cataclysmic event.
With a resounding boom, Yuanshi was struck and smashed into the East Sea like a falling star, kicking up a monstrous wave that made it look as though the entire ocean floor was being overturned.
Yuanshi was consumed by a white-hot fury. With a violent shake of the Pangu Banner, he cleaved the waters of the East Sea asunder and charged back into the sky.
Tai Yi met him head-on, his body radiating an immeasurable, blinding divine light. The Golden Crow Divine Fire ignited the very fabric of the Void Realm, spanning hundreds of millions of miles in an instant. It was a flame with the power to incinerate heaven and earth, and it was currently seeking to reduce Yuanshi to ash.
the watching powerful beings stood in a stunned daze. Following Ling Xiao's thrashing of Laozi, it appeared that Yuanshi was also incapable of defeating Tai Yi.
Two of the legendary Three Purities had already been humbled.
"For some reason, seeing the Three Purities get beaten like this makes me feel exceptionally comfortable," the Ancestral Witch Gonggong said with a booming laugh. His voice was undisguised and intentionally amplified, nearly causing Laozi and Yuanshi to vomit blood from sheer indignation.
"What a group, these Three Crows; they are perhaps barely qualified to be considered our opponents," Xi Zi said in a deep, gravelly voice. His use of "our" was a clear reference to the full might of the twelve Ancestral Witches.
He then turned to the nearby Qiang Liang and asked casually:
"Qiang Liang, that Golden Crow named Ling Xiao—he also wields the thunder. How does his lightning compare to your own?"
Upon hearing the question, Ju Mang laughed and cut in, "Aren't you asking the obvious? Qiang Liang is the Ancestral Witch of Thunder; who in this world could possibly understand the techniques of lightning better than him?"
"Is that not right, Qiang Liang?"
"Uh... should we... should we start trying to grab that mirror now?" Qiang Liang stammered, his words stumbling over each other as he blurted out a nonsensical suggestion to seize the treasure.
The other carefree Ancestral Witches had no idea why he was acting so strangely, but Hou Tu seemed to sense the truth. She fell into a deep, silent thought as she fixed her gaze upon Ling Xiao.
"The Fellow Daoists of the Three Crows are actually this fierce?" Somewhere else on the Three Immortals Island, Zhenyuanzi and Hong Yun were observing the battle, unable to suppress a sigh of genuine admiration.
Following the previous occasion where Dijun and Tai Yi had humiliated the Two Sages of the West, this display was even more excessive—the Three Crows were actively beating the Three Purities.
"Fellow Daoist Ling Xiao is truly too strong!" Hong Yun said, his voice thick with amazement. Compared to the power they had witnessed at Mount Buzhou, the difference was like that between the high clouds and the deep mud.
"Sigh, forget it, forget it. This is not a struggle we can hope to participate in. Let us put the Grand Void Mirror out of our minds. We should focus on finding materials to take back and nourish the Ginseng Fruit tree!"
Zhenyuanzi was a man of open-minded pragmatism and immediately abandoned any illusions of claiming the supreme treasure.
"While they are occupied with their war, let us gather what treasures we can..."
"Yuanzi, when exactly are you planning on moving house?" At the mention of the Ginseng Fruit, Hong Yun couldn't help but ask the question that had been lingering in his mind.
Zhenyuanzi: "..."
Boom!
The battle between the Three Purities and the Three Crows reached a fever pitch. Realizing that a victory in single combat was proving elusive, Laozi, Yuanshi, and Tongtian drew closer, choosing to fight side by side.
They shared the same primordial origin and had navigated the myriad changes of the world together since their first transformation; their rapport was instinctive and extraordinary.
"Fight however you wish; I shall ensure you are all utterly convinced of your inferiority by the time we are done," Tai Yi clamored, looking at the Three Purities with blatant disdain—especially Yuanshi, who received the brunt of his mocking attention.
"Bastard! What kind of look is that? Do you truly believe I am inferior to you?" Yuanshi was enraged, feeling the weight of a great humiliation. The fact that he had indeed been at a disadvantage just moments ago only made the sting sharper.
But how could a man of his pride generously admit to such a staggering loss of Face?
"You are wrong! It is not just you—it is that all three of you are inferior to the three of us!" Dijun added his voice. Although he had not technically defeated Tongtian yet, both of his brothers had secured clear wins.
Two victories outshone one stalemate; in his mind, the Three Crows had already won the day.
"Boastful talk!"
Boom!
A chaotic, world-shaking battle erupted. Between heaven and earth, the Daoist fires spread without bound, lightning fell in jagged sheets, and the brilliance radiating from the collision was too dazzling to look upon. The Great Dao Laws were forced into a tangible order, manifesting as shocking thunder and boundless chaotic flames.
The heavens themselves trembled as various beams of prismatic light flew in every direction.
There was a Golden Crow whose body appeared to be cast from solid gold, traversing the heavens with a terrifying speed, striking upward at the Nine Heavens and reaching down into the Nine Serene Lands, fighting with a ferocity that defied the world!
Boom!
Yuanshi was struck squarely by the weight of the Hongmeng Cauldron, and his entire body exploded into a mist of blood and light. His Pangu Banner was a tool focused entirely on offense and lacked the absolute defense provided by the Taiji Diagram; facing a direct assault from Ling Xiao, his form quickly collapsed.
The Yuqing Immortal Light burned with a desperate intensity as his shattered body attempted to reassemble itself. He looked like cracked porcelain, his form covered in glowing, jagged Dao marks where the strikes had landed.
Ling Xiao stood atop his cauldron, his body radiating a golden dawn-light that looked like burning liquid flames. Looking down upon his foes, he appeared peerless and unique. His frame was tall and straight, his black hair flowing like a river of shadow, his pupils deep as the abyss. His heroic spirit was world-shaking—he stood as if he were the sole Dominator of the world.
The scene was one of magnificent, unparalleled grandeur!
As the Hongmeng Cauldron drew in the surrounding essence, phantoms of one world after another rotated in a slow, majestic orbit around it. Above the mouth of the cauldron, there was even a miniature star system, incomparably brilliant, dancing in rhythmic harmony with the vessel.
Yuanshi's mind shook with a sudden, icy clarity. He sent a frantic voice transmission to Tongtian:
"Third Brother! Quickly! Set up the Immortal Slaying Sword Formation!"
Want to read +100 chapters ahead! Support me on patreon and unlock early access!
patreon.com/c/Daredevil_05