HSSB1096: Two madmen are worse than one
The Brocade Emperor stumbled backwards, no longer able to suppress the pitch black Buddha that Yan Zhaoge was manifested as.
He frowned as black and white light intermittently flashed across his face, doing so countless times in a matter of seconds.
His soul which had already been unstable in the first place seemed about to be ripped apart at this moment.
The Heart’s Will Thunder exploded at the very core of his being, stimulating that heart devil of his.
One’s cultivation base no longer mattered at a time like this as it fully depended on them conquering and dispelling the devil in their hearts.
The Brocade Emperor’s current problem had been caused by cultivation deviation as it was now as if oil had been added to the fire.
Even though he had already attained the Emperor realm a thousand years back, it was still tough for him now.
Yan Zhaoge said calmly, “You should not get so worked up, Brocade Emperor. This is the Nine Underworlds, after all, while the Heart Devil has always been in existence.”
The ‘heart devil’ that he spoke of was not the inner devil of martial practitioners.
Instead, he was referring to the Heart Devil of the Six Supreme Devils of the Twelve Devilish Gods, one of the most powerful devils in the universe.
The Heart Devil had always existed since its birth as a great Devil that was destined never to be extinguished completely.
As long as lifeforms that possessed intelligence still existed within this world, there was the possibility of the Heart Devil being nourished and reborn.
Just from this point alone, it was more terrifying than even the Six Ancestral Devils as an existence that could only ever be suppressed and never fully exterminated.
The Heart Devil would live eternally unless all lifeforms were extinguished.
No one knew if the Heart Devil was presently within the Nine Underworlds.
Still, if it was currently in the Nine Underworlds, the cultivation deviation of the Brocade Emperor, a True Immortal, with his inner devil running amok, might possibly attract this ancestor and source of all inner devils.
The Brocade Emperor was acting unpredictably and different from usual due to his unstable mind.
Still, whether it was his feeling side or his unfeeling side, neither would be willing to see that great Devil descend before their very eyes.
Gazing at Yan Zhaoge, he ceased to attack.
He flicked the sleeve of his robe which expanded, a flag appearing.
That large flag had Grand Commencement as its pole, Bright Emptiness of Grand Beginning as its flag surface and several streams of plain cloud qi surrounding it along with a gigantic black and white yin yang Taiji diagram that coiled around in the air.
As the great flag swayed, a majestic force manifested which virtually disrupted this devilish domain to send it back to earlier heaven times.
That majestic, graceful phenomena resembled the gap between the human and Immortal realms, with one only able to gaze yearningly towards it as it was impossible to get close to and touch it.
Even monarchs amongst Sacred Artifacts like the Extreme Yang Seal and the Extreme Yin Crown were incomparable to it.
While the Grand Longevity Banner was also in the form of a flag and possessed a concept that was not really inferior to it, the quality of the artifact itself was on a different level, with such a gap being like a heavenly gulf which seemed impossible to surpass.
This was the Brocade Emperor’s Immortal Artifact, the Four Grands Earlier Heaven Flag!
Back in his battle with Mars Halberd that year, he had originally been at a disadvantage, unable to defeat his opponent who had already been around thousands of years ago.
Afterwards, he had retrieved the Four Grands Earlier Heaven Flag, only then reversing the situation and ultimately defeating Mars Halberd as the victor of the contest.
Now, the great flag waved, enveloping the heavens and earth of the region in guarding the Brocade Emperor.
The Brocade Emperor entered the meditative position with his eyes closed, stabilising his mind and suppressing his inner devil.
Seeing this, Yan Zhaoge gave up on any further action as he dissipated the surging devilish qi.
He could do nothing against the Brocade Emperor who was guarded by the Four Grands Earlier Heaven Flag.
While the Brocade Emperor was currently undergoing cultivation deviation, if he truly ignored the potential crisis that was the descent of the Heart Devil, going all out even at risk of the consequences, he could still possess immense destructive power nevertheless.
Now that he had prevented the Brocade Emperor from attacking any further, his initial goal was basically already achieved.
The pitch black Buddha vanished within the devilish domain of the Nine Underworlds, several streams of devilish qi dissipating as Yan Zhaoge’s form reappeared.
He did not let down his guard, though. Now was still far from the time when he could relax.
That cloud of Grand Illusory Spatial Thunder instantly approached once more now that it was no longer being obstructed by the Brocade Emperor.
Still, because it had previously been suppressed by the Brocade Emperor’s Grand Beginning Bright Emptiness Form and the Brocade Emperor had suddenly retreated after being struck by Heart’s Will Thunder, the thundercloud was affected by this as it instantly showed signs of exploding!
Yan Zhaoge grabbed Meng Wan and shot towards the side.
Yet, the Grand Illusory Spatial Thunder exploded before they could fully get away.
The thundercloud did not explode completely. Still, bolts upon bolts of thunder that had originally folded in on themselves as they were compressed within a tight space now expanded outwards.
Within a mere instant, countless dimensions of space expanded non-stop both internally and externally, spreading like ripples of water as they seemed infinite and endless.
The surrounding space grew chaotic as even Yan Zhaoge was only able to barely withstand it despite being versed in the Immortal Trapping Sword.
The Brocade Emperor still sat in the meditative position with his eyes closed beneath the protection of the Four Grands Earlier Heaven Flag, relying fully on it to guard himself. Even so, beneath the multi-layered explosion of Grand Illusory Spatial Thunder, it was barely able to remain afloat.
Yan Zhaoge similarly stabilised himself at his present location lest he and Meng Wan be swept off to who knew where.
The explosion of that Grand Illusory Spatial Thunder seemed endless as it went on without pause, showing no signs of stopping whatsoever.
Yan Zhaoge was not concerned about this, though.
While the Brocade Emperor might be able to stabilise his mind as time went by, suppressing the restless inner devil within his heart and regaining his offensive capabilities, Yan Zhaoge would be able to protect himself in the Nine Underworlds so long as he possessed the Heart’s Will Thunder.
Protected by the Four Grands Earlier Heaven Flag, the Brocade Emperor was much less threatened by the Heart’s Will Thunder. Yet, he was still hard pressed to withstand this power which came from within.
After all, the source of this was his mind which had already been unstable in the first place.
It was just that there were still many other threats in the Nine Underworlds besides the Brocade Emperor at the end of the day.
The aftershocks of their conflict and the disturbance caused by the Grand Illusory Spatial Thunder would definitely alert the numerous devils of the Nine Underworlds to their presence.
The movements of the two Sovereigns of the Immortal Court a distance away were also of concern to them.
Yan Zhaoge stabilised himself amidst the chaotic layers of space caused by the Grand Illusory Spatial Thunder, attempting to distinguish directions.
The heavens and earth of the Nine Underworlds were ripped apart alongside the spreading of the expanding space, forming numerous spatial crevices leading to unknowable locations all about the Nine Underworlds.
Still, the cloud of Grand Illusory Spatial Thunder had not exploded completely at the end of the day.
Therefore, the chaotic flows of space slowly weakened as time passed, gradually falling still.
Yet, Yan Zhaoge’s heart suddenly jolted as he looked towards one of the spatial crevices.
A powerful aura suddenly surged from within.
A figure slowly flew out from that distorted spatial crevice.
He was a relatively handsome youth who was garbed in purple and had pale skin, appearing lazy and uninterested towards everything.
Struggling out from the spatial crevice and scanning the scene before him, his gaze suddenly lit up with some satisfaction.
“Oh, the paths that cross in life!” This youth exclaimed emotionally.
This was none other than the Upper Exalt, Chen Qianhua, who had previously entered the Nine Underworlds!
From him, Yan Zhaoge could clearly feel a powerful aura that was comparable to those of the Brocade Emperor and the Encompassing Emperor!
Now that he was in the Nine Underworlds and not a lower world, the Upper Exalt was that most powerful Martial Saint who presided arrogantly over the entire World beyond Worlds.