Within Yuqing Heaven, the gathered Great Powers watched with bated breath. They had come for a sermon but stumbled into the greatest duel in the history of the Honghuang World.
The sudden appearance of Ling Xiao, whom many believed had perished in the Chaos, completely shifted the atmosphere. From his dialogue with Yuanshi, the experts could piece together a startling truth: the Sanqing had known he was alive and had been hunting him.
"Ling Xiao, did you ever imagine that I would Achieve Sainthood (achieve sainthood)?" Yuanshi stood with his hands behind his back, his eyes flashing with arrogance. "Now that all three of us are Saints, you stand alone. What do you have to fight us with?"
Despite his boastful words, Yuanshi was not careless. Above his head, the All-Auspicious Cloud of the Heavens (auspicious cloud) manifested—the ultimate defensive treasure. Once activated, it was said to repel all evil and remain untouched by all laws, granting immunity to all spells and weapons.
Yuanshi knew Ling Xiao had ascended earlier; he assumed their magic power was roughly equal, but he intended to win a decisive, flawless victory to restore his "Face."
In his hand, the Pangu Banner (pangu banner) appeared, its slight tremors carrying the power to tear through Chaos and remake heaven and earth. With the Cloud for defense and the Banner for offense, Yuanshi had reached the pinnacle of tactical readiness.
The Clash of Realms
"Yuanshi, words are useless," Ling Xiao said plainly. "If talking made one strong, you would have been number one long ago. Strike with everything you have. Let me see if becoming a Saint has actually changed you."
Ling Xiao took a single step forward. The entirety of Yuqing Heaven groaned, nearly collapsing under the weight of his invisible majesty. This pressure was supreme, transcending anything the audience had ever felt.
"Arrogance! Last time you suppressed me with your Realm; this time, you won't have your way!" Yuanshi roared. Inside his Auspicious Cloud, a miniature Chaos World flickered into existence, illuminated by sun, moon, and stars. Five-colored lights saturated the heavens, accompanied by the eight tones of celestial music.
"Die!"
Ling Xiao let out a cold shout. With a sudden jolt of his hands, half of Yuqing Heaven was erased, replaced by boiling Chaos. The space around them shattered into a million pieces. Both combatants controlled their leaking power to avoid vaporizing the audience, turning a small area into an apocalyptic battlefield.
The Hongmeng Cauldron (hongmeng cauldron) flew forth, radiating light across countless worlds, seeking to suppress both the Banner and the Cloud. Under the pressure, the Auspicious Cloud erupted with divine brilliance—countless golden lamps, lotuses, and pearls fell from the sky like an endless curtain of rain.
"Is this your only trick, Ling Xiao?" Yuanshi's voice boomed like thunder, intended for the whole world to hear. "I told you, as Saints, there is no longer a gap between us. My past defeat was merely a matter of Realm!"
For a fleeting second, Yuanshi felt triumphant. He sensed that Ling Xiao's power was on par with his own—manageable, perhaps even underwhelming.
"You celebrate too early," Ling Xiao sneered.
The Shattering of a God
Ling Xiao raised a hand and struck out. In that instant, infinite time and space were obliterated. This was the ultimate manifestation of the Law of Strength (Law of Strength). Within Ling Xiao, every cellular space was a world unto itself, fueling his strike with the concentrated blood-essence of a universe.
This palm strike bypassed the eons, carrying an unthinkable divine power. It slammed directly into Yuanshi.
"This! Impossible!"
Yuanshi's eyes bulged. His physical form—the body of a Saint—erupted. He turned into the most brilliant firework in cosmic history. A torrential rain of blood splattered across the shattered void of the Chaos.
RUMBLE...
Terrifying anomalies filled the sky. The heavens seemed to weep with a mournful sound.
"What happened?" "A Saint... bled?" "Is he dead?"
The audience below was paralyzed with terror. Just moments ago, Yuanshi was boastful, claiming equality. In the next breath, he was reduced to mist. No one could comprehend what they had just witnessed. Their Divine Souls (Divine Soul) trembled with a fear that reached their very core.
"Yuanshi... is dead?"
They couldn't wrap their heads around it. A Saint was an eternal, transcendent being. How could he end like this? Even more terrifying was the realization of Ling Xiao's strength. What Realm had he reached to treat a Saint like a common mortal?
The Harvest
Ling Xiao ignored the onlookers. He reached out, and the splattered rain of blood converged into a single, glowing orb of light.
"Saint Essence Blood (Saint Essence Blood)... quite a prize."
The energy within was more potent than any Spiritual Root or immortal fruit. Ling Xiao sealed the orb and tossed it into the Chaos Pearl.
As for Yuanshi, he wasn't truly "dead." As a Saint of the Heavenly Dao, his Primordial Spirit was anchored to the Heavens. As long as the Dao existed, he could return. However, resurrection was not free; it would cost him a significant portion of his Origin (Origin).
Ling Xiao then reclaimed his cauldron, snagging the All-Auspicious Cloud as a trophy. The Pangu Banner had vanished into the void the moment Yuanshi exploded.
"A decent treasure," Ling Xiao noted, stowing the Cloud before stepping into the void and vanishing.
The Aftermath
In their respective Dao-sites, Laozi and Tongtian felt the shockwave of Yuanshi's "death." Their hearts filled with a cold, piercing dread.
"Ling Xiao has appeared!"
Laozi's face was pale. He had feared this, but the speed of the defeat was incomprehensible. By the time they sensed the battle, it was over. How could Yuanshi be so fragile?
"Let's go, Brother! We must avenge Second Brother!" The fiery-tempered Tongtian cried out.
"Calm yourself. Ling Xiao is likely already gone," Laozi sent a message. "We will wait in our Dao-sites. He will likely come for us next. When he does, you must deploy the Immortal Slaying Formation immediately. We cannot give him the chance to pick us off one by one."
"Understood!" Tongtian replied.
Meanwhile, at another location, Jieyin and Zhunti had received the news.
"Senior Brother..." Zhunti stammered, his earlier confidence evaporated. "Ling Xiao... he isn't coming here next, is he?"