The white-robed youth asked in surprise, "Celestial Venerable Xu, whatever makes you say that?"
Xu Ying chuckled. "Nothing at all, just a passing joke. Does Sixth Young Master Su recognize me?"
Inside Yingzhou, Qingfeng felt rather indignant and fumed, "This Su Yeqing is full of nonsense! How could our Patriarch, as the Ancestor of Earth Immortals, fail to comprehend those four subtle Dao truths?"
Xu Ying did not answer. The Ancestor of Earth Immortals truly had not comprehended Life and Death, Dao Power, Void, and Hunyuan. Had he done so, he would have grasped the Taiyi, and the one who summoned the Taiyi Cave Abyss would have been him rather than Emperor Haotian.
The Ancestor of Earth Immortals held achievements of his own that were no less grand than Emperor Haotian's; there was no need for him to dispute whether he had mastered those four subtle truths.
The white-robed youth, Su Yeqing, remarked, "Celestial Venerable Xu's name rings loud and clear across the Immortal Realm. The premier rebel of the Immortal Realm, the top enforcer of the Immortal Court—domineering, flamboyant, and exceptionally gifted. Few people wouldn't know of you."
A stream of clear qi flew from the crown of Xu Ying's head, manifesting into three Xu Yings clad in green, yellow, and white robes. He sent them to contemplate the Heavenly Immortal bodhimanda while he laughed heartily and said, "The me of today is a coarse fellow with no talent to speak of."
Secretly sending a voice transmission into Yingzhou, he instructed, "Divine Mother, calculate this Su Yeqing's origins for me!"
Su Yeqing continued, "I see that Celestial Venerable Xu has cultivated ten cave-heavens, which is truly astonishing. The subtle Dao truths the Ancestor of Earth Immortals never comprehended have already been grasped by you. If Celestial Venerable Xu comprehends the Ancestor of Earth Immortals' Heavenly Immortal bodhimanda and adds these four Dao truths to it, your present life will surely surpass your past."
Xu Ying sighed with emotion. "These days, I harbor no extravagant hopes of surpassing my past life. I only wish to defeat the Imperial Monarch and avenge the tens of thousands of years of suffering I endured. I have no grand ambitions."
Su Yeqing smiled. "On the contrary, I feel your path of cultivating ten cave-heavens is one that leads straight toward becoming a Supreme. If you obtain another top-grade cave abyss on top of that, your road to the Supreme realm will essentially be smooth sailing."
Xu Ying blurted out, "That's easy for you to say, but cave abysses are strictly limited in number. How rare is a top-grade cave abyss? Even in my past life, when I served as the top enforcer of the Immortal Court, I only managed to secure the Yingzhou Cave Abyss, and it was broken and incomplete at that. How many Yingzhou Cave Abysses would one need to become a Supreme?"
Su Yeqing replied, "Ten thousand Yingzhou Cave Abysses cannot compare to a single Supreme cave abyss. As far as I know, there are still unowned Supreme cave abysses in this world waiting to be summoned."
Xu Ying shook his head. "Though those cave abysses are unowned in name, countless pairs of eyes are watching them in secret. Entities like the Imperial Monarch and Heavenly Venerables are all eyeing them like hungry tigers. Even the Immortal Emperor Supreme is likely watching for an opening. What virtue or capability do I have to compete with them?"
He sighed wistfully. "My greatest wish in this lifetime is simply to restore the Yingzhou Cave Abyss, elevate it to the level of a Heavenly Monarch, fight the Imperial Monarch to the death, and wipe away this grievance!"
The Divine Mother's voice transmission came through: "Immortal Master, I cannot divine anything!"
Xu Ying's heart stirred slightly. "You can't divine it?"
The Divine Mother turned pale. "Not a shred of information regarding Su Yeqing can be calculated! It is as if... as if this person never existed at all!"
Xu Ying's heart skipped a beat, but his face remained impassive. "Is Sixth Young Master Su not tempted by a Supreme treasure? Why haven't you gone after the Landscape Heaven-Measuring Ruler?"
Su Yeqing chuckled. "A Supreme treasure possesses boundless might; who wouldn't be tempted? It is just that I know pursuing it is walking straight into a trap, so I prefer to sit atop the mountain and watch the tigers fight."
Xu Ying probed, "Could it be that Sixth Young Master Su knows the master of the Landscape Heaven-Measuring Ruler?"
Su Yeqing smiled faintly. "Though formidable in strength, that person is cautious by nature and excels at trickery and toying with human hearts. He deliberately activated the Supreme treasure multiple times precisely to lure his opponents forward and catch them all in one net. His goal is to monopolize the Ginseng Fruit Tree and the Dao fruits."
He sighed. "He is wildly ambitious. The Ginseng Fruit Tree is a heaven-and-earth spiritual root of the Earth Immortal Realm—how could he not be tempted? How many people in this world wouldn't be? Therefore, no matter what, he intends to slaughter every single person who entered this place."
Xu Ying's expression shifted unpredictably. Suddenly, he barked, "Number Six, that person is you, isn't it?"
Su Yeqing froze for a moment.
Xu Ying sneered. "You activated the Landscape Heaven-Measuring Ruler to draw everyone ahead into your ambush, intending to wipe them out all at once! You remained here, calm and composed, driving the Supreme treasure from afar. What a devious scheme!"
Su Yeqing gave a half-smile. "If I were him, and you stood before me having seen through my disguise, do you think I would still tolerate your presence?"
Xu Ying laughed aloud. "I am now invincible within Wuzhuang Temple! You were wounded by Qingfeng and Mingyue, and your injuries are severe—you are no match for me! Do you think you can survive before me?"
Right then, the Dao attendant Qingfeng quietly sent a voice transmission: "Senior Brother Ying, Junior Brother Mingyue and I have never crossed paths with this person."
Xu Ying's heart lurched as he cursed inwardly.
The Dao attendant Mingyue had already awakened as well, two bloody swellings protruding from his forehead, and sat in a daze inside the Yingzhou Cave Abyss.
Su Yeqing's expression suddenly darkened, and he said chillingly, "The moment you spoke those words, you were already a dead man. Fortunately for you, I am not him."
With an amused smirk, he said leisurely, "Right now, he has already made his move."
The moment his words fell, the Heaven-Measuring Ruler abruptly appeared in the distant sky. It unfurled across the firmament, splitting from one into two, two into four, four into eight, and eight into sixteen—in an instant, blanketing the entire heavens!
The Supreme treasure unleashed its might, and that expanse of sky collapsed into near annihilation, sweeping everything away into nothingness!
This sight caused the muscle at the corner of Xu Ying's eye to twitch relentlessly. Under the destructive force of such a treasure, even his Indestructible Primordial Spirit would not be able to hold out; it would be shattered to pieces!
The power of a Supreme treasure was truly terrifying!
Su Yeqing remarked, "That person would not come in his true body. He cultivated a strand of an avatar and dispatched it here. Along the way, he has deployed the Supreme treasure as many as forty-nine times. During the final strike in particular, he exerted his full power. Now, the strength of his avatar is far diminished from before."
Xu Ying rubbed his twitching eye and probed, "Sixth Young Master Su seems to understand him quite well."
Su Yeqing laughed. "Only a little. Although his avatar's cultivation is severely depleted, hunting down the remnants is still well within his capability. After this battle, aside from you and me, no one left in Wuzhuang Temple can threaten him. Even so, he will not rest easy."
He smiled faintly. "He does not know I have come here, so he will direct the Mountains and Rivers Heaven-Measuring Ruler's final strike at you."
Xu Ying's face changed instantly.
Su Yeqing's figure flickered and vanished into thin air, his voice echoing elusively from nowhere: "Killing the Imperial Monarch's avatar drew his attention. Only after you are dead will he feel safe enough to seize the Ginseng Fruit Tree."
Xu Ying composed himself. Suddenly, a bloodcurdling shriek rang out in the distance, followed closely by another scream not far from the first.
Unease surged in Xu Ying's heart. A third scream pierced the air, noticeably closer than before!
The master of the Mountains and Rivers Heaven-Measuring Ruler had begun eliminating the fish that slipped through the net, rapidly approaching his location!
Without a second thought, Xu Ying shot into the sky, fleeing toward the outskirts of the Jade Capital in a rush.
The moment he took flight, his figure was exposed to the ruler's wielder. The Mountains and Rivers Heaven-Measuring Ruler soared up, hurtling toward Xu Ying like a streak of light!
This was the final strike Su Yeqing had spoken of!
Even though its master was at the end of his rope, the power of the Mountains and Rivers Heaven-Measuring Ruler remained extraordinarily terrifying, descending upon Xu Ying with an all-destroying force.
As the blow landed, the sky where Xu Ying was situated collapsed in a massive section. Wisps of chaotic qi fell from the caved-in sky.
This primordial qi of heaven and earth was unimaginably heavy; though it was a gas, it crashed to the ground with thunderous, reverberating roars.
Beneath this single strike, Xu Ying was utterly obliterated. Neither his physical body nor his Indestructible Primordial Spirit remained.
The Mountains and Rivers Heaven-Measuring Ruler flew back, vanishing into the strange domain woven of Golden Immortal Dao chains.
Resonating with clear Dao tones, the ruler orbited a tall man once before gently settling into his hand.
"The last threat has been eliminated."
The man had short, curly hair, exuding an aura of wild, unbridled arrogance.
Just as he uttered those words, footsteps suddenly echoed. Looking up, he saw a broad-framed youth walking slowly toward him, stepping through chains of the Dao until he stopped a dozen yards away.
The youth stood still.
The short-haired man showed a look of astonishment. The youth's skin was somewhat dark—it was none other than Xu Ying, who had supposedly died at his hands, blasted into chaotic qi by the Heaven-Measuring Ruler!
He clearly had not anticipated this outcome.
"How did Celestial Venerable Xu accomplish this?" he inquired.
Xu Ying said nothing. Suddenly, a plume of clear qi soared from his head and transformed into a white-robed Xu Ying that streaked through the air and away.
"One Qi Transforming into Three Pure Ones."
The short-haired man sighed, murmuring softly, "Your One Qi Transforming into Three Pure Ones has become so refined that even I could not distinguish truth from illusion. Seeing you take flight, I assumed it was your true body, never expecting it to merely be your Heaven and Earth Primordial Spirit."
Xu Ying replied leisurely, "When I heard from a friend that your magic power had only enough strength left for one final strike, I already devised a countermeasure."
"A friend?" the short-haired man asked, puzzled. "What friend?"
Xu Ying visualized Su Yeqing's appearance and smiled. "His name is Su Yeqing. Do you know him?"
The short-haired man shook his head. "Never met him. Never heard of him."
Xu Ying raised an eyebrow; Su Yeqing was most likely a pseudonym.
The short-haired man said, "This person gave you pointers and told you I only had one strike left? Were you not afraid he was deceiving you? If I could still activate the Landscape Heaven-Measuring Ruler, wouldn't you have walked straight into your death?"
"We'll know once we try!"
Xu Ying abruptly circulated the Taiyi Indestructible Scripture. A Taiyi Golden Bridge crashed down, spanning the space between the two men.
Xu Ying charged onto the golden bridge. The short-haired man stepped onto it with the Heaven-Measuring Ruler in hand. Across a bridge measuring barely a dozen yards, even under the suppressive weight of the golden bridge, the short-haired man still managed to fight his way right in front of Xu Ying with the ruler!
Bare-handed, Xu Ying executed a rapid flurry of fists, palms, fingers, hooks, taps, seals, and chops, clashing with the short-haired man in fierce close combat. Divine powers erupted from his hands, meeting the short-haired man and the Heaven-Measuring Ruler with overbearing ferocity!
Their exchanges were blazingly fast yet each move was crisp, precise, and solid. In a mere split second, Xu Ying was struck dozens of times by the ruler, while the short-haired man absorbed twelve heavy blows from Xu Ying. Unable to endure any longer, the short-haired man finally collapsed off the bridge.
"Your divine powers aren't bad."
The short-haired man revealed a smile as his body crumbled, dissolving into streams of Xuanhuang qi that were thoroughly refined to death by the Taiyi Golden Bridge.
Standing upon the bridge, Xu Ying recalled the dozens of blows the short-haired man had landed on him, his brow furrowing deeply. In terms of martial skill alone, had the short-haired man possessed any strength to spare, Xu Ying would have died dozens of times over.
In their close-quarters brawl, Xu Ying had only managed to wound the man twelve times—all severe injuries, but none fatal.
*His attainment in divine powers is superior to mine,* Xu Ying mused in silence.
Raising his hand gently, the Landscape Heaven-Measuring Ruler slowly levitated into his grasp. Tossing the ruler lightly in his hand, Xu Ying's eyes flickered, and he stowed it into the Yingzhou Cave Abyss.
The Divine Mother looked grave. "Immortal Master, this treasure will not be easy to take outside. Without refining away that man's imprint, the moment we leave, he will sense it. When that happens, total annihilation will be upon us."
Xu Ying said calmly, "Rest assured, I have my own way to handle it."
The Divine Mother frowned slightly, gazing at the ruler with deep unease lingering in her heart.
"Divine Mother, can you divine this man's origins?" Xu Ying inquired.
The Divine Mother shook her head. "I cannot. It is as though he has no past, no future, and bears no karmic ties whatsoever. He is just like someone who appeared out of thin air. For a figure of this caliber..."
She shuddered, not daring to speak further.
Xu Ying murmured, "Just like Su Yeqing. Who on earth is this Su Yeqing?"
A faint suspicion stirred in his heart, though he could not be certain.
*Harvesting the Ginseng Dao fruits is what matters most!*
Suppressing his stray thoughts, Xu Ying immediately set off toward the bodhimanda formed by the Ginseng Fruit Tree.
Not long after he departed, the white-robed youth Su Yeqing stepped out slowly, arriving at the spot where Xu Ying had slain the short-haired man.
The youth examined the damage Xu Ying's Taiyi Golden Bridge had inflicted upon the Golden Immortal Dao chains and mused thoughtfully, "Connecting Taiji to Wuji, this golden bridge is exquisitely profound. He already displays the bearing of a Supreme. Xu Ying can now be counted as a Little Supreme; in the same realm, I could achieve no more than this at best."
A "Little Supreme" referred to someone possessing combat prowess on par with a Supreme of the same realm.
Su Yeqing slowly raised his head, gazing in the direction Xu Ying had gone, and muttered under his breath, "Killing an avatar of Emperor Changsheng with his bare hands... Such an achievement is indeed something to be proud of."
Chapter 521