Dugu Qiu moved with the ease of a gentle breeze, stepping on the flowing water, surrounded by lightning, appearing as if he were immortal.
"Stop him!" Prince Pingbian spotted Dugu Qiu's movement and shouted.
As Prince Pingbian's words fell, a dozen divine lights flew up, blocking Dugu Qiu's path.
"All are eighth-tier deities!" Xie Xuan looked at the dozen divine lights, a serious expression in his eyes.
An eighth-tier Divine Dao master possesses the power to alter heaven and earth; their divine power can move mountains and overturn seas, certainly not inferior to the ninth-rank Yang God of the Divine Soul Dao.
But when cultivators of the Divine Soul Dao ascend to ninth-rank Yang God, they can in turn suppress ninth-tier deities.
Ninth-rank is a critical juncture where strengths and weaknesses of both sides are reversed.
"Divine spirits, huh? Things that shouldn't exist in this world, disrupting the balance of the realm." Facing the divine lights, Dugu Qiu showed no panic; instead, he calmly took down the long spear from his back. Holding it, the tip of the spear flickered with thunder, fearlessly charging into the crowd.
Instantly, lightning burst forth with terrifying brilliance, the lake water rippled for a hundred meters, and after thirty breaths, a scream echoed as both sides parted. Dugu Qiu stood silently on the water, a body pierced on his longspear, golden blood dripping down the crimson tassel, staining the blue lake.
"So strong!" Zhang Chen gasped.
Beside him, Xie Lingyun spoke: "Although divine spirits wield the authority of heaven and earth, enabling them to mobilize the power of heaven and earth, they do not truly understand the laws of heaven and earth, knowing only what they are but not why. Yang God experts may lack the authority over heaven and earth, yet they've begun analyzing these laws, developing their own insights, understanding both the nature and the essence, a stark difference in comprehension. Moreover, Dugu Qiu wields a twelfth-tier mysterious artifact, further amplifying his combat power to astounding levels."
"Kill!"
Dugu Qiu flicked his longspear, tossing the figure from his spear, and in the next moment charged once more into the midst of the gods.
Eight breaths later, the battlefield parted again, another figure hanging from Dugu Qiu's spear, another deity fallen.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
Roars of fury resonated by the lakeside, with both sides locked in fierce combat, neither willing to retreat, as bodies of divine spirits continually fell from the void into the lake, creating ripples.
Just over a hundred breaths passed, leaving only eight divine lights on the field; those lights fled in haste, vanishing into the misty rain. Dugu Qiu stood quietly on the water with his spear, showing no intent to pursue the fleeing deities, steadily walking towards Zhang Shicheng, who was in Dragon Transformation.
"Too strong! His breath isn't even disturbed." Zhang Chen watched the figure in the crimson robe, his face showing rare seriousness.
"This old eunuch is hailed as the Imperial Palace's top master. A century ago, he obtained the Visualization Technique, entered the Dao in three years, broke the Yin Spirit in another three, and three more years reached Yang God status, maintaining that state for fifty years. Imagine how formidable his strength truly is," Xie Xuan remarked beside him.
"Entering Yang God in less than ten years, is that possible?" Zhang Chen paused.
That's a Yang God! It's akin to someone saying they'll become immortal in less than ten years, such a dreamy and unbelievable occurrence.
"It's said that the Imperial Palace once unearthed an Alchemy Furnace, containing unimaginable creations. The old eunuch, ordered to test the elixir, consumed a pill, leading to today's creation." Xie Xuan explained.
Listening to Xie Xuan, Zhang Chen secretly marveled: "The Great Thousand Worlds indeed hold countless wonders. I already defy the heavens with my own skills, yet there exists someone even more extraordinary."
Zhang Chen increasingly felt the world's depths were unfathomable; despite possessing some means, he must proceed cautiously to avoid disaster.
Close by, Dugu Qiu, holding the longspear, approached Zhang Shicheng's dragon form step by step, the spear in his hand flickering with divine light, mysterious runes illuminating as he began to activate the Spear of Celestial Punishment, gathering the vast momentum.
The Spear of Celestial Punishment inherently wielded the Power of Celestial Thunder, and Zhang Shicheng's Walking Flood Dragon and Dragon Transformation summoned the power of thunder from the void, fulfilling Dugu Qiu's Spear and enhancing its might.
"Old mudfish, who can save you now? You're doomed!" Dugu Qiu's Spear of Celestial Punishment was fully activated, radiating a formidable aura from his hand.
Zhang Shicheng, who had been rolling around in pain, stopped his writhing. His body ceased its movements, his head hovering above the water's surface as he glared angrily at Dugu Qiu: "Why make things difficult for me? If you spare me today, I promise to repay you in the future. With your incredible abilities, why serve others as a servant in the palace? Why not join me in the Northern Land? I offer you land and a title, making you a noble ruler, enjoying all the riches of the world. Isn't that a beautiful prospect?"
Upon hearing Zhang Shicheng's words, the old eunuch shook his head: "Loyalty and righteousness are my principles, ingrained in my heart. They are my guiding laws, and I would never commit such a traitorous act."
"You old leech, stop trying to argue. No matter what you say, today is the day you meet your doom." Dugu Qiu's voice was firm, and in the next moment, man and spear became one. His entire body aligned with the spear, attracting countless bolts of lightning to follow, forming a waterfall of electricity, thrusting toward Zhang Shicheng.
Zhang Shicheng stood atop the water's surface, his massive dragon head gazing at the incoming lightning spear with a hint of tension in his eyes. In the next moment, he raised a dragon claw toward the Celestial Punishment Spear: "I am a king born to command thunder and lightning. How could your Thunder Punishment Spear harm me..."
Puchi~
Before Zhang Shicheng could finish speaking, the lightning spear had already pierced through his dragon claw. As Dragon Blood sprayed out, leaving a large hole, it then thrust toward Zhang Shicheng's Reverse Scale.
"What the hell! How is this possible!" Zhang Shicheng cursed, his voice full of panic. In the next moment, he quickly spat out a pearl glowing with purple light. The pearl blocked the Celestial Punishment Spear, and upon impact, it unleashed a massive energy, causing Hundred Li Lake Water to surge, the waves swept through the surrounding mountains like a shaking bowl, spilling water.
"Heh, so the Twelfth Tier Mysterious is nothing special after all!" Zhang Shicheng saw his Dragon Pearl block the Celestial Punishment Spear, his eyes showing a hint of pride.
"Again!" Dugu Qiu adjusted the spearhead and, with a 'whoosh~,' soared into the sea of clouds, devouring the Power of Thunder from within. The lightning on the Celestial Punishment Spear grew brighter and more numerous, then the spear shot out from the cloud's edge, targeting Zhang Shicheng once more.
Zhang Shicheng fully mobilized the Dragon Pearl, which emitted a purple light, flying toward the Celestial Punishment Spear. As the two opponents clashed back and forth, those watching saw lightning constantly colliding with the Celestial Punishment Spear, releasing bursts of dazzling energy fluctuation, leaving them dizzy and unable to see the situation clearly.
Beside them, Zhang Chen also opened his Dharma Eye, trying to follow the two masters' battle trajectory, but their movements were too fast. Zhang Chen could only catch glimpses of shadows, unable to see clearly.
"Can you see it? Who's winning between those two?" Zhang Chen, unable to discern the scene, turned his head to ask Xie Xuan.
Xie Xuan scratched his head: "I can't see anything at all! My strength is far inferior to theirs; I can't see how they're fighting at all."
Although everyone was at the Yang God realm, Xie Xuan felt that compared to Dugu Qiu, holding a Twelfth Tier Mysterious, he was on a completely different level.
And Zhang Shicheng, who had just begun Dragon Transformation, was far superior to him, at least starting at the Tenth Tier. Otherwise, he would have been cut down by Dugu Qiu's spear without any resistance.
Xie Xuan thought his previous plan was too naive. Without Zhang Chen's assistance, if he had rashly engaged, he would have been slapped to death by Zhang Shicheng.
"Bang~"
While the two were speaking, the clashing sounds abruptly stopped. As the smoke and clouds dissipated, Dugu Qiu stood silently at the center of the battlefield, spear in hand, confronting Zhang Shicheng.
"Puh~" Dugu Qiu spat a mouthful of blood, then, without a word, transformed into a bolt of lightning, shooting into the sky and disappearing into the sea of lightning.
Dugu Qiu fled!
"It seems Dugu Qiu has failed!" Zhang Chen muttered to himself.
"You think you can come and go as you please? Leave that Twelfth Tier Mysterious behind." Zhang Shicheng laughed coldly, about to pursue triumphantly, when suddenly a cracking sound came from the Dragon Pearl in front of him. The pearl, like shattered glass, displayed vicious cracks.
"No!" Zhang Shicheng hurriedly swallowed the Dragon Pearl back into his maw to nurture it. The Dragon Pearl was his life source, his foundation. If it broke, he would face a terrifying calamity.
"Great Victory Royal Family!!!" Zhang Shicheng roared to the sky, his voice filled with rage, causing the thunderclouds above to churn violently, countless lightning bolts falling like a waterfall, enveloping him completely.
The Dragon Pearl was his foundation, and although it hadn't shattered yet, it was already cracking, damaging his foundation, leaving a flaw in his cultivation, severely limiting his potential. The Twelfth Tier was now a distant dream.
"If I can successfully endure the calamity, I will personally go to Kyoto to settle this score!" Zhang Shicheng's voice was filled with fury. With this rage, he transformed into a stream of light, charging into the thunderclouds, actively accepting the Celestial Thunder's tempering to complete his tribulation. If time allowed, he might intercept Dugu Qiu before he could escape and seize that Twelfth Tier Mysterious, compensating for his loss.
With his Twelfth Tier foundation, if he only aimed for the Eleventh Tier cultivation, the transformation would take no more than an hour. Then he could catch and crush that damned wretch, seize his treasure, and barely recover his losses.