Chapter 739: Lin Dong’s Breakthrough

Amid the raging storm, even the void itself fractured. Waves surged sky-high as Lin Dong once again soared into the air.

His breathing was ragged. Ever since breaking through to the Ancestor Realm, it had been a long time since he'd been this battered. Not even when facing the Demon Emperor had he looked so miserable.

Of course, Lin Dong hadn't used any ultimate techniques. Judging from the one-sided beating, even if he unleashed the martial art that once crushed the Demon Emperor, he wouldn't be able to so much as ruffle Liu Xi's robe. And if he did use it—did anyone really think Liu Xi lacked techniques of even greater might?

Besides, Lin Dong could tell Liu Xi's control was terrifyingly precise—his blows always carried just enough force to cripple him without truly killing him.

Still, it was too damn humiliating.

So instead of resting, Lin Dong continued to channel all the Spiritual Energy within his body. Under Liu Xi's immense pressure, the once-awkward energy grew smoother and more refined, flowing through him as naturally as Yuan Power once had.

The instant Lin Dong steadied himself in midair, Liu Xi appeared before him again.

"Your potential is extraordinary," Liu Xi said calmly. "Even greater than mine when I first arrived in the Great Thousand World. But right now, you're far from unleashing it fully."

It wasn't an empty compliment. As a Child of the Plane, Lin Dong's innate potential truly surpassed what Liu Xi once possessed. Yet Liu Xi had since acquired the Chaos Stone and the Nine Turn Profound Art, pushing his foundation far beyond ordinary comprehension.

Step by step, Liu Xi advanced through the air. Though his pace was unhurried, his figure blurred like a phantom. A twist of his palm rippled space itself, sealing the surrounding heavens into an isolated dimension.

A single palm thrust forward, unleashing a flood of overwhelming Spiritual Energy. A brilliant palm imprint coalesced in the air, radiating such destructive might that even an ordinary Heavenly Sovereign would crumble beneath it.

Lin Dong's face hardened. The pressure was unbearable.

He summoned the full might of his Eight Ancestral Symbols, his body transforming into a frame of dragon bone. Primordial power surged through him, ancient and unyielding.

Boom!

Even so, Liu Xi's palm strike utterly suppressed him. Lin Dong's dragon bones shattered one after another, and the power of his Eight Symbols nearly fractured apart.

Veins bulged on his forehead as searing agony coursed through his body. It was pain he hadn't felt in ages—like his very bones were being torn from his flesh.

Death loomed close enough to taste.

---

Outside the battlefield, Qing Yanjing remained composed. After all, it wasn't her man being pummeled senseless.

She watched Lin Dong with mild sympathy. Knowing Liu Xi's true strength, she understood just how monstrous it was.

After all, even the Buddha Clan's Grand Elder and the Maha Clan's Second Elder—both Saint Grade Heavenly Sovereigns—had been effortlessly crushed by him.

To Lin Dong, this was a lesson in despair.

Ling Qingzhu and Qing Tan were anxious beyond words. Lin Dong had never looked so pitiful, not even in his war against the Demon Emperor. But they knew better than to intervene now; rushing in would only ruin everything.

Clenching his fists, Lin Dong's indomitable will refused to break. Black light spread across his skin as his Devouring Power drew in torrents of Spiritual Energy, mending his shattered body.

Liu Xi watched him closely, eyes gleaming. A faint smile tugged at his lips. "Seems like you're on the verge of a breakthrough. In that case, let me give you one last push."

A dazzling aura burst from Liu Xi's body, countless rays of light spreading like divine wings. His presence ascended to its peak—the manifestation of the Heavenly Sovereign Spiritual Body.

An ineffable aura filled the world.

In that instant, Liu Xi became heaven and earth. His Spiritual Energy merged seamlessly with the cosmos, and his might rose to rival the heavens themselves.

At a single thought, the world trembled. The boundless pressure of the skies bore down upon Lin Dong like a divine millstone, threatening to grind him into dust.

Then—

Boom!

A deep, thunderous heartbeat echoed.

It wasn't the world's pulse—it was Lin Dong's. At the edge of collapse, he refused to be crushed. When a man could survive such pressure without breaking… he would be reborn anew.

To destroy, then rebuild. To break, and rise again.

The wind ceased. The lightning vanished.

Liu Xi slowly exhaled, letting his aura recede.

From every direction, endless Spiritual Energy flooded inward, converging upon Lin Dong like rivers pouring into an ocean. Within that ocean, a cocoon of radiant light took form—pure, condensed, mysterious.

Inside that cocoon, Lin Dong's transformation had begun. When his flesh and Spiritual Energy finally fused as one, he would awaken the Heavenly Sovereign Spiritual Body and step into the realm of the Heavenly Sovereigns.

Liu Xi's part was finished.

He floated back to the others, landing beside Qing Yanjing with a faint grin. "Done."

Qing Yanjing leaned close, eyes glinting with curiosity. "You seem to care about him more than you let on."

"Do I?" Liu Xi thought about it, then chuckled. Maybe he did.

He'd met many ascenders from the Lower Planes, but somehow he instinctively separated Lin Dong from the rest. Perhaps it was because Lin Dong reminded him of himself.

Still, Liu Xi wasn't naive. Power that wasn't held in his own hands could never be trusted. Friendship with a "protagonist" meant little—real strength meant everything.

---

Moments later, Ling Qingzhu and Qing Tan flew over, faces pale with worry.

"Senior, my husband… how is he?" Ling Qingzhu asked softly.

"He's fine," Liu Xi said warmly. "When that cocoon breaks, he'll have completed his transformation."

---

Three days later.

Above the vast ocean—

Crack… crack…

The radiant cocoon that hung suspended in the void began to fracture, thin lines spreading across its glowing surface.

All eyes turned toward it.

Boom!

The cocoon burst apart, scattering fragments of light across the sky. From the sea of brilliance, Lin Dong emerged, his crystalline body radiating a divine luster—every inch of him forged from pure Spiritual Energy.

Stepping forward through the halo of light, he bowed deeply to Liu Xi. His expression was solemn as he declared,

"Many thanks for your guidance, Senior. Lin Dong will never forget this grace. Should I succeed in rescuing Huanhuan from the Ice Spirit Clan, I will repay you with my life."

The vow was resolute.

In Lin Dong's eyes, Liu Xi had not only saved Ling Qingzhu but had told him where Ying Huanhuan's soul might lie—and had personally helped him regain his Heavenly Sovereign strength.

For Liu Xi, it had been a light exercise. For Lin Dong, it was a debt heavier than the heavens.

Liu Xi merely smiled. "Fate brought us together. But whether the Ice Spirit Clan will bend to your will—that depends on your own strength."

Lin Dong nodded firmly. Now that he had reached the Heavenly Sovereign realm, his foundation had transformed completely.

Even if the Ice Spirit Clan was a dragon's den or a tiger's lair, he would storm it head-on without hesitation.

(End of Chapter)

---

Want to read the whole thing right now?

It means a lot!