Chapter 1001 - 521: Fierce Battle with the Night Emperor (Part 2)

Chapter 1001: Chapter 521: Fierce Battle with the Night Emperor (Part 2)

Li Mu silently maintained the defensive stance of the Nine-Star Sword Array, while also noticing that the eighteen giant dragon corpses gained strong vitality under the injection of the giant dragon phantom, yet their actions were still restrained by an invisible force, seemingly not completely free. Moreover, since they were resurrected from the dead, although their internal power was strong, it also contained unstable factors.

Li Mu furrowed his brow, contemplating ways to break the stalemate, secretly calculating in his heart. With the defensive posture of the Nine-Star Sword Array, he could temporarily stabilize the situation, but in the long term, the energy of the nine puppets would eventually deplete, making it difficult to maintain the Nine-Star Sword Array. Moreover, he didn’t know what kind of trump cards the opponent might have, so he had to remain vigilant constantly, continuously deducing various possible counter strategies.

The two minds raced a hundred thoughts, yet the clash of forces did not stop for half a moment, instead, it grew even more intense, causing violent tremors across the entire star realm due to this suddenly erupted earth-shattering battle.

The remnant soul of Master Qingyang stored in the Soul Realm Pearl ’watched’ the two as they plunged into an intense battle, and his shocked emotions couldn’t calm down for a long time.

Master Qingyang hadn’t imagined that Li Mu would not only easily resist the attacks of Night Emperor - Di Tianxing, but also call out the ’Celestial Dragon Tripod,’ resulting in an evenly matched fight, with Di Tianxing unable to take down Li Mu.

Night Emperor - Di Tianxing was a famous Celestial Pride from his era, regardless of how he spent ’millennia of years’ without stepping into the Realm of Daoist Monarch, he is still a peak cultivator of the Integration Realm, sufficient proof of his profound foundation, unmatched by an ordinary cultivator.

However, Li Mu, with the status of a junior and in a lower great realm, fought this peak Integration Realm powerhouse to a standstill, even faintly holding his ground, which amazed and moved Master Qingyang.

In his heart, Master Qingyang couldn’t help but elevate his assessment of Li Mu a few more degrees, while secretly feeling anxious for him.

Though the current standoff seemed evenly matched, in actuality, Li Mu was in an extremely unfavorable position; while the puppets were strong, they had limits; although the sword array was ingenious, it required a vast amount of spiritual power for support. As for Di Tianxing, being a peak powerhouse of the Integration Realm, his True Dragon Realm was not only powerful but also contained his profound understanding and application of laws, which Li Mu found hard to reach.

"Young friend, this Night Emperor - Di Tianxing has extraordinary strength, battling him head-on is unwise; if there’s a chance, make sure to find a way to escape. He’s definitely eyeing those two Nine Nether Whales you have; let them go if need be, preserving your life comes first," Master Qingyang sent his thoughts to Li Mu, urgently reminding him.

"Understood, senior!" Li Mu acknowledged knowingly, inquiring curiously, "What is Night Emperor - Di Tianxing’s background? What cultivation technique does he practice?"

With the current situation, Li Mu remained confident in holding the stalemate, despite his unwillingness to abandon the two Nine Nether Whales. If he could learn this person’s background and information, perhaps he could find a way to counter.

Master Qingyang sighed, seemingly reminiscing about the past, before detailing: "Night Emperor - Di Tianxing was a legendary figure of my era, the Saint Heir of the Heaven-Questioning Sect, achieving Integration in three thousand years and hailed as a once-in-a-millennium genius. He primarily practiced a cultivation technique named ’Dragon Emperor Technique’, the sect’s supreme secret transmission. This technique enables communication with the dragon vein qi in the world, summoning the true dragon power, causing the cultivator to battle like a dragon entering the sea, with limitless power. Di Tianxing leveraged this technique to sweep invincibly among the younger generation, even the veteran powerhouses held him in some trepidation."

"However, his ambitions didn’t just stop within the Heaven-Questioning Sect; for this, he spared no effort to enhance his strength, even delving into forbidden skills, attempting to peep into the Heavenly Dao in pursuit of transcending the Integration Realm to enter the legendary Realm of Daoist Monarch. Millennia without achieving Daoist Monarch status, unable to transcend, barring any surprises, his current situation should be having dismantled his cultivation to switch to an even more extreme technique, having stepped onto a misguided path; although his cultivation is unfathomably deep, he has yet to cross that final threshold."

After pausing, Master Qingyang informed Li Mu of his conjecture, "As for why he’s interested in the Nine Nether Whales you have, it’s because the Nine Nether Whale is an ancient exotic beast, containing rich Nine Nether Qi internally, which is a rare treasure for cultivators like him from other species, hence his relentless pursuit."

"I see, thank you, senior, for the information."

Li Mu comprehended suddenly, while conversing with Master Qingyang, his hands were not idle, multitasking by manipulating the nine Tier Seven Puppets to continue deploying the Nine-Star Sword Array. He had taken this battle as a trial of his strength, preparing to test what he obtained from several decades of seclusion.

In the Lost Navigation Dark Realm for decades, Li Mu was never idle. With the upgrade of the Star Nebula Visualization Method, and research on the Divine Rune, with the enhancement of skills in various aspects of the Hundred Cultivation Arts, he underwent a transformation, and his combat style also diversified.

In the past combat style, Li Mu relied more on his cultivation, controlling his refined Spirit Sword, arranging sword arrays, or controlling several beasts to deploy arrays against adversaries.

Li Mu’s current methods far exceed those; with the perfection of the Star Nebula Visualization Method, his perception of the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi reached unprecedented intricacy, making the entire battlefield vividly detailed under his mind’s eye. And the research on Divine Ruins further multiplied the power of refined spiritual artifacts, puppets, spirit talismans, and even arrays, also imparting them with unique spiritual energy and transformation.

One could say, the cards Li Mu now controlled, even facing a peak Integration Realm cultivator a great realm higher than himself, he felt not an ounce of fear; even if he couldn’t win, in terms of escape methods, he was second to none.

At this moment, the Dragon Breath within the True Dragon Realm surged like substantive force, tearing through air, each impact carried heaven and earth’s destructive power, attempting to break through the Nine-Star Sword Array in a single sweep. However, the Nine-Star Sword Array seemed to possess life; the nine Tier Seven Puppets each performed their roles, interweaving sword lights to form an impenetrable defensive net, layer by layer weakening the immense power, dissolving the attacks one by one, neither water nor magic permeated.

As time passed, not only did the nine puppets not show the slightest sign of energy depletion, but under Li Mu’s skillful coordination, their cooperation with the sword array became increasingly more seamless, forming an almost perfect defense system.

Di Tianxing’s favorable calculation didn’t materialize; instead, the Nine-Star Sword Array exhibited unimaginable defensive strength and resilience. Amid the flowing sword light, the gathering of Star Power continued; the puppets controlling the Spirit Sword unconsciously replenished their spiritual power consumption.

The overall consumption of this Nine-Star Sword Array was far lower than he anticipated; it was not a static defensive system but rather like a self-sustaining ecosystem, continuously cycling and regenerating during battle. When the puppets’ spiritual power seemed to be nearing depletion, the Star Power within the sword array automatically circulated into them to replenish energy, allowing them to persistently engage in high-intensity combat.

Realizing this, Di Tianxing’s face flashed a hint of disbelief and severity, recognizing that what he faced was not merely a normal sword array, but a Heaven and Earth Array containing the mysteries of the world, capable of self-repair and strengthening.

Under such circumstances, only by force could he overcome the array, or by finding a flaw in the array hub to break it at once.

However, the framework of this sword array was extremely large and grand, its evolution incomparably complex. Even though Di Tianxing had considerable research on arrays, seeking its array hub was like finding a speck of dust in the vast Star Sea; it’s arduous and filled with uncertainty, leaving him with no choice but forceful array destruction.

Di Tianxing furrowed his brow, mind already resolved, spiritual power around him boiled like molten lava, eyes flashing with decisive and cold colors, constantly gathering force, preparing to strike at the sword array with all his might.

"Brat, die!"

Di Tianxing’s eyes flashed a hint of murderous intent, the aura surrounding him instantly surged, and both palms slammed with force, pouring overwhelming True Essence fully into the Celestial Dragon Tripod.