Chapter 504 - 446: Echoing Heaven and Earth, Twelve Venerable Ones

"Refinement... begins!"

Qi Yun slightly raised his head, his right hand gripping the Great Dao Golden Disc. It contained the twelve-colored Daoist Intent and felt as heavy as the eternal blue sky. The Great Dao Golden Disc, carrying the supreme might of the Twelve Venerable Dao Foundations, reacted like a star caught in the gravitational pull of a black hole. Its vast, boundless, and utterly pure Venerable Dao Intent transformed into twelve torrents of different colors, which the Magic Technique Panel frantically refined!

On the panel, the names and progress bars of various Magic techniques originally flowed with radiance. But at this moment, all the light dimmed. Only [Daluo Heaven] and its accompanying progress bar began to slowly inch forward.

1%... 2%... 3%...

The progress was agonizingly slow. Every minuscule step forward consumed a massive amount of Venerable Dao Intent. The power contained within the Great Dao Golden Disc was enough to cause any Great Master to explode in an instant, enough to trigger anomalous phenomena in Heaven and Earth. Yet, poured into the bottomless progress bar of [Daluo Heaven], it was like a drop in the ocean, stirring up only insignificant ripples.

"This slow?"

Sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, Qi Yun, whose Heart and Spirit were completely immersed in the Refinement process, slightly furrowed his brows. By his estimation, the convergence of Daoist Intent from twelve Venerable Dao Foundations was unprecedented. It should have been enough to propel any Divine Technique or any Realm to a qualitative leap. However, the current Refinement and evolution speed of [Daluo Heaven] was far below expectations. It was as if an invisible, heavy shackle was stubbornly dragging down the progress bar, preventing it from climbing quickly.

He wondered, "This isn’t right... With such majestic Daoist Intent being refined, the speed shouldn’t be this sluggish. Is the level of [Daluo Heaven] itself too high, with demands far exceeding my imagination? Or... is there another hurdle on this path to Supreme Unity and attaining the True Monarch stage out of the void?"

Just as doubts arose in Qi Yun’s mind and he pushed the Magic Technique Panel to its limits to accelerate the Refinement speed, a sudden change occurred!

BOOM!

The core Secret Realm of Daluo Heaven where he was located, which had been completely sealed and isolated, began to violently tremble without any warning!

"Hmm?" Qi Yun suddenly opened his eyes. Divine light flashed in his gaze like lightning, piercing through the barriers of the Secret Realm to look at the source of the tremors.

On the ten-thousand-mile-thick barrier of Daluo Heaven, where earth, water, fire, and wind flowed, twelve points appeared simultaneously and without warning! These twelve points were forcefully descending, infiltrating, and invading from an infinitely high, ethereal void!

"This is..."

Feeling these twelve incredibly strong and domineering auras—each containing a terrifying presence that rivaled or even surpassed the ordinary Great Master Peak—brazenly invading Daluo Heaven from all directions, Qi Yun was initially stunned. Then, a smile slowly curved onto his lips.

"So that’s how it is... Good, very good!"

He stood up tall. The Daoist Intent around him, still surging from the Refinement of the Dao Foundation, violently swelled. He felt no fear; instead, monstrous battle intent ignited in his eyes!

"Is this... the great tribulation I must face to prove my Dao today?"

Before his words even faded, the first invading aura tore through the barrier and brazenly descended!

BUZZ!

A bright yellow light, like the illumination of a grand sun, instantly filled this area of the Secret Realm. Amidst the light, a figure stepped out from the distorted void.

This person’s face was blurry and indistinguishable. Only a pair of cold, indifferent eyes could be seen, looking down upon all living things. He wore a bright yellow robe embroidered with the sun, moon, stars, mountains, rivers, and altars of soil and grain. Though archaic in style, it exuded a supreme, sovereign majesty that commanded all directions. He was empty-handed, yet merely standing there gave off a terrifying oppressive feeling, as if he held the absolute authority of the world and the power over life and death hinged entirely upon his single thought!

Gazing at this bright yellow figure—whose mere appearance caused the surrounding chaotic airflows to solidify and retreat—Qi Yun’s gaze flashed like lightning. Having already recognized the figure’s origins, he chuckled softly, his tone carrying a trace of realization and battle intent.

"The Grand Emperor Profound Vault Dao Foundation... As expected, you are the first?"

The bright yellow figure showed no reaction to Qi Yun’s words. His blurry face turned toward Qi Yun, locking onto his target with those freezing eyes. The next instant—

BOOM!

The Grand Emperor’s avatar took a bold step forward! This step carried a tyrannical Realm of absolute sovereignty, as if the space of the entire Secret Realm was submitting to him and making way! Endless, brilliant yet cold bright yellow light came crashing down, resembling an inverted silver river from the nine heavens, or a divine punishment brought forth by the wrath of a Celestial Dao!

Wherever the light passed, even the surging Daoist Intent around Qi Yun seemed to suffer under the pressure of imperial power, its circulation turning sluggish! Even more terrifying was the horrifying killing intent contained within that bright yellow light!

[Grand Emperor Divine Technique—Death by a Thousand Cuts!]

Facing this peerlessly tyrannical, conceptual killing attack that struck directly at the origin, divine light exploded in Qi Yun’s eyes. He neither dodged nor evaded; the curve of his lips even lifted a fraction higher!

"The pressure of imperial power? The authority over life and death?"

Taking a corresponding step forward, the suppressed Daluo Dao Intent around him violently rebounded, becoming even more condensed and unyielding! At the same time, Qi Yun brought his right fingers together like a sword. With a backhand strike, he brazenly countered with a bright yellow light whose color, form, and even Daoist Intent were almost identical to his opponent’s!

[Grand Emperor Divine Technique—Execution!]

It was a killing Divine Technique derived from the same Grand Emperor Dao Foundation, but performed by Qi Yun, it lacked the decay and suppression of ancient imperial power. Instead, it bore the sharpness and decisiveness of destroying the old to forge the new! It was as if the old emperor was dead, and the new emperor was meant to be crowned. All obstacles could be severed, and life and death decided in an instant!

BOOM!

Two equally bright and dazzling yellow lights, yet with fundamentally opposite cores, clashed fiercely and directly in the center of the Secret Realm like two roaring immemorial imperial dragons!

There was no sound. There was only a patch of extreme, blazing white light capable of instantly blinding a Great Master. Accompanied by a destructive shockwave, it frantically expanded in all directions in a circular pattern!

CRACK!

Wherever the shockwave passed, the incomparably solid spatial barrier of the Daluo Heaven Secret Realm emitted the teeth-gritting sound of shattering, buckling under the overwhelming weight like colored glass struck by a heavy hammer! Crisscrossing, bottomless pitch-black spatial rifts spread wildly. The chaotic airflows were completely evaporated and annihilated, and the evolution of earth, water, fire, and wind was forcibly interrupted, turning into the Returning Ruins.

The entire Secret Realm seemed to be split in two by this terrifying collision! The mere aftermath of a single exchange possessed such might! This was the terror of an avatar manifested from a Daoist Foundation Origin of the Venerable.

Amidst the blazing white light and chaos, Qi Yun’s figure remained entirely unmoving. His robes fluttered fiercely, and the battle intent in his eyes burned like fire. Meanwhile, the Grand Emperor’s avatar was hit by the will of "forging the new" contained within the [Execution]. The bright yellow light around his body dimmed slightly for a moment, and his blurry face seemed to ripple.

"He is nearly a single step away from becoming a True Monarch..."

Feeling the force behind this figure’s attack, Qi Yun’s gaze narrowed slightly. The next instant!

Mastering All Skills!

The Daluo Heaven Daoist Intent around him erupted violently. A supreme Realm of dominating and controlling ten thousand kinds of Daoist Skills and Divine Techniques permeated the air.

The Grand Emperor’s avatar blasted out another strike, [Imperial Extreme Heavenly Might], which transformed into ten thousand layers of mountains pressing down upon Qi Yun. Immediately after, Qi Yun opened his hand and made a grasping motion toward the incoming imperial mountains, effortlessly throwing them right back with a flick of his wrist.

Under the augmentation of Mastering All Skills, these imperial mountains expanded rapidly against the wind. In an instant, they grew ten times larger. The continuous, merciless mountain range crushed downward, its terrifyingly extreme suppressive force almost sealing away Heaven and Earth and the passage of time itself. A sharp glint flashed in his eyes as the Grand Emperor’s avatar stomped heavily. His figure suddenly swelled, becoming even more majestic and colossal than the imperial mountains in an instant.

"Forbidden Celestial Rules!"

Just a split second before the Grand Emperor’s avatar’s aura peaked and a new Divine Technique was about to erupt, Qi Yun’s eyes abruptly turned into an indifferent silver-white. He pressed his hand toward him from afar!

A terrifying force—formless and intangible, yet so heavy it solidified the Laws of all things—crashed down! This force did not target the physical body nor did it damage Magical Power; it struck directly at the foundation of the Great Dao!

The boiling imperial Qi Yun around the Grand Emperor’s avatar, the surging killing Daoist Intent, the terrifying Divine Technique that was about to gush forth... Under this single press, as if shackled by a ten-thousand-ton lock, they instantly solidified, fell silent, and were sealed away!

The majestic and colossal figure also reverted to its original size. Seizing this opportunity, Qi Yun moved like lightning, instantly appearing before the Grand Emperor’s avatar. Infused with the insights gained from their brief clash and his own Daluo Dao Intent, his fist smashed cleanly and plainly right into the avatar’s chest!

THUMP!

Amidst a muffled boom that sounded like the beating of a heavenly drum, the bright yellow light around the Grand Emperor’s avatar exploded like shattered glass. His blurry figure shook violently, becoming somewhat transparent. Then, struck by an immense force, he was sent flying backward, smashing through large swathes of unhealed spatial rifts. His aura visibly weakened.

However, just as Qi Yun landed his strike and prepared to follow through in one vigorous effort to completely scatter the Grand Emperor’s avatar—

SWISH!

A minute yet incredibly sharp bright yellow light bizarrely refracted from the fingertips of the Grand Emperor’s avatar the moment he was sent flying. Moving faster than thought, it slashed across the back of Qi Yun’s raised right hand blocking the way!

A faint golden bloodstain instantly surfaced. But a trace of pure and ancient Emperor’s Will contained within acted like a lingering curse. It stubbornly corroded the wound, preventing it from healing and bringing bursts of piercing pain.

Qi Yun lowered his head and glanced at the shallow bloody mark on the back of his hand. Far from being angry, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, and the battle intent in his eyes burned even fiercer.

"Interesting..." He shook his hand. The invading Emperor’s Will was forcibly eradicated by the even more majestic Daluo Dao Intent within his body, and the wound instantly healed.

He raised his head. His gaze was no longer just locked onto the weakened Grand Emperor’s avatar who was regathering his power. Instead, he swept his eyes over the other eleven figures on the barrier of Daluo Heaven. His voice suddenly rose, carrying a mighty, dominating arrogance that looked down upon the entire world:

"What’s the point of coming at me one by one?"

"If you want to come—"

He took a step forward, and the void beneath his feet trembled. The vast, tyrannical Venerable aura around him, which dominated everything, erupted like a volcano that had been dormant for eons, soaring into the sky.

"Then come at me together!"

RUMBLE!

THUD!

THUD!

THUD!...

Like the footsteps of an immemorial Divine Demon stepping on the drum of destiny, heavy and terrifying sounds of footfalls echoed from the infinite heights. Right after, under Qi Yun’s watchful gaze—

One, two, three... eleven figures with vastly majestic auras stepped out! Distinct currents flowed around each of them, yet they all possessed the same absolute supremacy of a Venerable! With every person that stepped forward, the pressure within Daluo Heaven doubled! Space let out a wail, and the chaotic airflows were completely pushed aside, turning the surroundings into an empty, hollow void.

These were all the strongest among the past generations of Venerable Cultivators! In this moment, they resonated with Heaven and Earth, manifesting as the great tribulation for his Dao realization!

But when Qi Yun’s gaze swept over the eleventh figure to appear, distinct ripples formed in his eyes for the first time. It was a tall, straight-backed figure wearing a simple, dark Daoist Robe, his face shrouded in a faint mist. He didn’t deliberately exude any pressure. He just stood there quietly, yet he gave off a peculiar feeling of being entirely detached from the world.

"It’s actually... him?"

Looking at this figure he had seen not long ago, Qi Yun’s pupils contracted slightly, and waves of shock surged in his heart.

Shen Yi Preaching True Monarch! The oldest, most mysterious, and most powerful Great Success True Monarch of the Holy Sect!

He was actually a Venerable Cultivator too? But why hadn’t he used a Venerable Dao Foundation to achieve his Dao?

Countless questions instantly flooded Qi Yun’s mind. He faintly felt that he had seemingly touched upon an earth-shattering secret. But now was clearly not the time to delve into it. He took a deep breath, firmly etching this discovery into the bottom of his heart, as his gaze once again turned as sharp as a blade.

With the appearance of Shen Yi at the Foundation Establishment Stage, the pressure within the entirety of Daluo Heaven almost reached its absolute limit! The spatial barriers let out an overwhelmed CREAK, as if they would completely shatter at any moment.

Right at the instant the pressure peaked and the Realm Heaven was on the verge of collapse—

TAP.

With a footstep so soft it was almost inaudible, the twelfth figure stepped down. This footstep was very light, yet it caused the apocalyptic combined pressure to stagnate for a moment. And as this figure stepped out! Daluo Heaven, which had been on the verge of being torn apart and shattered, suddenly solidified and stabilized, becoming even sturdier than it was at the very beginning.

Gazing at this final figure to take the stage and looking at that familiar Deep Blue Daoist Robe, Qi Yun was stunned at first, but then couldn’t help shaking his head and laughing.

"This time, things have gotten a bit out of hand."