Taking in their expressions, Xu Ying smiled and said, "Rest assured, I am thoroughly loyal and devoted to the other shore. Dao Master Hua was even rescued by my own hands when I went to Tianjing, so how could I possibly do him in? However, if someone were to learn that he has yet to recover from his heavy injuries and stormed Qionghua Island to finish him off, that would have nothing to do with me."
A Dao Master was like a centipede with a hundred legs—dead, yet never stiffening.
Even a severely wounded Dao Master was no match for Xu Ying. Thus, while Dao Master Hua had no leisure to attend to other matters, reviving more of the other shore's Dao Masters was the right move.
Among these Dao Masters of the other shore, there would always be someone willing to try killing Dao Master Hua.
Even if they failed to finish him off, it did not matter. His original intent was simply to plunge the other shore into utter chaos so that they would have no time to search for and attack the Three Realms.
"Dao Master Xuanhong wanted to dispose of even me, his savior, so he ought to be interested in killing Dao Master Hua as well. Then there is Ji Cang; now free of calamitous destiny, he can come charging back for vengeance. As long as Dao Master Hua fails to kill me, his enemies will only multiply."
Xu Ying's eyes gleamed as he thought, *If we can't compete in who is better, we'll compete in who is worse. As long as the other shore rots worse, the Three Realms will have hope.*
Just then, Li Xue gave a crisp shout and activated the Lingxing Gate. An incomparably ponderous Dao might erupted from within it!
The Lingxing Gate was a mature innate numinous treasure. While the Four Innate Banners formed a set of four, the Lingxing Gate was a complete standalone whole, its power far exceeding that of the Chaotic Dao Apricot Yellow Banner alone.
When this treasure was hoisted, a surging sea of stars could be seen inside the gateway, harboring hundreds of millions of celestial bodies. When their stellar power erupted in unison, it was as if all the stars across dozens of galaxies burst forth with light and heat simultaneously, concentrating that radiance and warmth together to gush out from the gate as a beam of sword light!
The Lingxing Gate had a wooden structure shaped like the character "井", resembling the mouth of a scabbard; when the sword light shot from that throat, its might was truly domineering beyond compare!
Li Xue struggled immensely to brandish this peerless sword; with her cultivation as a Dao Lord, she could barely activate it.
Yet the might contained within that sword light was already enough to obliterate any Dao Lord!
Xu Ying's expression changed abruptly. He dared not take the Lingxing Gate's sword light head-on; he feared even a Grand Dao Lord would fail to withstand it!
He immediately hoisted the Chaotic Dao Apricot Yellow Banner. Instantly, profound yellow qi spanned ten thousand li, incomparably ponderous, rising to meet the gate's sword light.
Among the Four Innate Banners, the Chaotic Dao Apricot Yellow Banner possessed the greatest might and stood at the head of the four. Yet the moment the banner clashed with the sword light, it faltered immediately; the twin profound and yellow qis shattered one after another, and the banner cloth whipped back!
The great banner shook violently, swirling around Xu Ying in a semicircle to shield him within.
Xu Ying braced the flagstaff with both hands to steady the cloth. As the sword light blasted past, the mountain ranges and earth flanking both sides of the banner evaporated simultaneously. The ground vanished, leaving only two vast chasms from whose bottomless trenches specks of starlight rose drifting upward.
Shaken until his blood and vitality churned violently, Xu Ying slid backward. Whatever ground ahead entered the sword light evaporated on contact!
Within his body, his Martial Dao cave abyss took the form of a Hongyuan, and his nine Great Daos assumed a structureless state. Pushing the apricot yellow banner with all his power, he was still overwhelmed until blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
Fortunately, Li Xue had only just obtained the Lingxing Gate and could unleash merely ten percent of its power, whereas Xu Ying had refined the Chaotic Dao Apricot Yellow Banner for nearly two hundred years. Although the banner's innate might fell far short of the Lingxing Gate, Xu Ying could draw out thirty percent of the banner's strength.
Li Xue's strength waned. Seeing that the apricot yellow banner remained unbroken, her expression flickered, and without a second thought, she urged the Lingxing Gate once more.
At that exact moment, Xu Ying leapt up and swept the great banner with all his might. The space-time surrounding Li Xue and the others shattered, and everyone felt their respective Great Daos strain under the pressure, threatening to be torn to shreds!
"Get behind the gate, quickly!" Li Xue shouted.
Li Jie, Li Song, Li Xiao, and the others hurriedly took cover behind the portal. Together, they drove the innate numinous treasure, kindling the sword light anew to slash toward Xu Ying!
Concealed beneath the great banner, Xu Ying darted around the Lingxing Gate, profound yellow qi flooding the air wherever the banner swept.
Meanwhile, the Lingxing Gate maneuvered nimbly through the air, wiping away everything the sword light touched!
With Li Jie, Li Song, and the rest joining forces, the star gate could now unleash over thirty percent of its power—several times greater than before!
After clashing with Li Xue and her companions for a brief moment, Xu Ying realized that the Lingxing Gate grew stronger by the second. As the portal spun, the sword qi shifted with it, moving with such agile grace that victory was impossible. He immediately melted into the void, vanishing without a trace.
With a sharp whistle, the Lingxing Gate's sword light pierced through thirty-six layers of the void, cleaving them wide open!
Only upon reaching the thirty-seventh layer did the sword light finally dissolve into nothingness.
Even so, that ray of sword light had grazed the banner, sending it tumbling wildly and flinging Xu Ying out of the void wrapped within its cloth.
"He's injured—he won't get away!" Li Xue and the others rallied their spirits, preparing to give chase. Yet they suddenly realized their magic power was drained so heavily that taking flight was nearly impossible. Alarm washed over them.
"Activating the Lingxing Gate consumes far too much magic power. It cannot be sustained for long, or we won't be able to keep going."
Li Xue and the others rested, channeling their cave abysses to replenish their cultivation.
"The direction Xu Ying fled is toward the forbidden ground, Longxing Temple!"
Xu Ying hit the ground, his footing unsteady. The Lingxing Gate's graze against the apricot yellow banner had left him severely wounded, though his Dao injuries were not critical. Fortunately, his Great Dao was structureless; though his cultivation had taken a hit, it could quickly be restored.
*Thanks to the protection of the apricot yellow banner, or else I wouldn't have escaped this disaster.*
Slowing his pace, he tended to his wounds as he walked toward Longxing Temple.
"Xu Ying!"
A shout suddenly rang from atop a cloud bank ahead. Xu Ying looked up and saw several striking men and women standing on the clouds, peering down at him while cross-checking the portrait scrolls in their hands.
Xu Ying inquired, "I am Xu Ying. Do you gentlemen and ladies have any guidance for me?"
One of the Immortals beamed with delight and said, "You've brought calamity upon yourself! Dao Master Hua wants your life! Xu Ying, a wise man submits to circumstance—why haven't you surrendered and awaited death?"
Xu Ying chuckled wryly, shaking his head as he brushed past them. "I'm heading to Longxing Temple to temper myself. I have no interest in entertaining your antics!"
Suddenly, he felt the vitality within his body draining away at terrifying speed. Stunned, he looked around and spotted a mirror gleaming brilliantly, casting its rays toward him.
*The Great Dao of Life and Death!*
Detecting the shifts in Dao methods within the bright mirror, Xu Ying recognized the Dao of Life and Death. He immediately channeled his Hongyuan, converting it into the Taiyi Great Dao and letting the mirror shine upon him unhindered.
The bright mirror pinned Xu Ying in its beam. Inside the mirror, a reflection of Xu Ying appeared, and behind him stood the striking men and women unleashing their magic treasures and divine powers to strike him down!
Xu Ying did not look back, allowing their attacks to rush in while his gaze stayed fixed on the mirror. Within the reflection, the magic treasures hurtling toward him seemed to pass through tens of millions, even hundreds of millions of years in the blink of an eye, rapidly decaying. The underlying patterns upon the treasures blurred into obscurity, their power drastically depleted.
By the time they reached Xu Ying's back and met the slightest resistance, they crumbled into ash.
The divine powers of those men and women also shrank swiftly, their potency scattering harmlessly into thin air.
In the mirror, Xu Ying's appearance remained unchanged, whereas those men and women aged at terrifying speed. Even as they charged toward Xu Ying, they transformed from youths to young adults, then middle-aged, then elderly, and finally into decrepit husks whose physical forms withered and blood vitality dried up.
In the next breath, the figures in the mirror crumbled into piles of dry bones one after another, their Great Daos aging and dissolving, their flesh rotting away, their skeletons breaking apart and clattering down.
"The Great Dao of Life and Death is indeed extraordinary," Xu Ying marvelled at the sight. "That the Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death ranks among the Four Grand Dao Lords is by no means an empty reputation. That the Grand Dao Lord came to capture me in person honors me greatly."
Just then, an arrogant voice echoed from behind the mirror: "Why would my master come in person? Xu Ying, you flatter yourself too much!"
Xu Ying glanced over and saw that the speaker was Rongkuzi—Dao Lord Rong Ku of the Life and Death Dao Sect. Disappointment washed over him.
He had assumed the owner of this Life and Death Mirror was the Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death himself, only to find it was merely Dao Lord Rong Ku.
"Rongkuzi, back when you were at the Taiyi Dao Sect, catching sight of a single Dao pattern of mine nearly turned you to Dao ash," Xu Ying remarked with a shake of his head. "Who gave you the audacity to come hunting me down?"
Dao Lord Rong Ku sneered, "Does hunting down a brat at the Dao Realm eighth layer require audacity? To counter that peculiar Dao pattern of yours, I specifically borrowed the Life and Death Mirror from Master to restrain your patterns."
Xu Ying examined the mirror, surprised. He promptly focused his divine consciousness, visualizing the Three Realms' new Dao patterns.
In his current structureless Dao state, he possessed no Dao architecture and therefore produced no Dao pollution. However, the moment the Three Realms' new Dao patterns were exposed, Dao pollution would form.
Yet as the new Dao pattern of the Three Realms was exposed before this Life and Death Mirror, the power within it aged at rapid speed. The Great Dao power represented by the pattern decayed as well, swiftly collapsing into Dao ash!
Xu Ying was astonished and praised, "The Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death is truly worthy of being a Grand Dao Lord. Truly admirable!"
He had originally kept over a hundred emerald rock multi-decked vessels carved with new Dao patterns, intending to release them upon the other shore should they invade the Three Realms—an eye for an eye, unleashing a world-destroying catastrophe!
Yet the Dao methods of the Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death might very easily dismantle his plan!
*The Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death had best be eliminated as soon as possible! His Great Dao is too destructive toward Dao patterns,* Xu Ying thought to himself.
Dao Lord Rong Ku repeatedly directed the Life and Death Mirror to shine upon Xu Ying, yet Xu Ying showed no change whatsoever, failing to wither and die of old age as Rong Ku had hoped.
Standing within the mirror's light, it was as though endless time flowed past around him while he remained untouched, just as before.
Alarm seized Dao Lord Rong Ku. He realized in an instant that he was far from a match for Xu Ying, and the urge to retreat surged within him.
Xu Ying smiled faintly. "Rongkuzi, why don't you bring a divine power back with you to show your master, the Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death? I'd like to ask for his pointers."
Dao Lord Rong Ku was baffled. "Bring a divine power back to see my master? How?"
Xu Ying raised a hand. The surrounding space-time suddenly shuddered violently, as if he were an expanse of chaos itself, and the space-time all around collapsed toward him!
Dao Lord Rong Ku was pulled toward him involuntarily. Terror gripping him, he turned and fled!
Though his cultivation was in the Great Dao of Life and Death rather than Space-Time, his cultivation base was profound and his speed was by no means sluggish!
Yet no matter how swift he was, he could not break free of Xu Ying's chaotic space-time!
"The divine power I want you to bring back is called Blooming Lotus Illuminates the World. It is the first divine power born of my Hongyuan Inverse Attainment."
Between Xu Ying's hands, it appeared as though he cradled a lotus Hongyuan, stamping it down toward Dao Lord Rong Ku.
Dao Lord Rong Ku's face drained of color. Whirling around desperately, he channeled his life and death divine powers, attacking Xu Ying with frantic abandon!
Yet some of his arts suddenly veered off toward other directions as if space-time had been tangled; some annihilated mid-air, turning to Dao ash stripped of all potency; while others turned right back toward himself, as if karma had been inverted.
Dao Lord Rong Ku directed the Life and Death Mirror to shine upon Xu Ying's Blooming Lotus Illuminates the World, but the mirror appeared completely useless against this technique!
Tumbling uncontrollably toward Xu Ying, Rong Ku crashed right into the palm seal. The lotus-shaped divine power sank into his chest, fading away in an instant.
"No need to worry. Being struck by this move won't kill you right away," Xu Ying said gently. "You can still return to the Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death and show him my divine power."
In a hoarse voice, Dao Lord Rong Ku asked, "And after showing it to him?"
Beaming with an amiable smile, Xu Ying replied softly, "After that, it's no longer your concern."
Dao Lord Rong Ku let out a breath of relief.
Xu Ying kindly reminded him, "If he can unravel my Blooming Lotus, you'll survive. If he cannot, your body will perish and your Dao will dissolve. Off you go. Don't linger along the way, or you won't make it to the Grand Dao Lord in time."
The surrounding space-time snapped back to normal. Dao Lord Rong Ku's face turned pale; clutching the Life and Death Mirror, he fled at top speed.
Xu Ying watched him vanish into the distance, murmuring softly, "Whether Rong Ku lives or dies, the Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death won't be able to stomach my provocation. How could he possibly sit still then?"
Suddenly, Xu Ying's expression shifted slightly. In a flash, he dissolved into the void. Barely had he vanished when the Lingxing Gate plummeted from the heavens, slamming into the ground with a thunderous boom.
Li Xue and her companions stood within the gateway, scanning the surroundings before the gate tore through the air and sped off.
Xu Ying emerged from the void. Tending to his wounds, he continued unhurriedly toward Longxing Temple.
Before long, he encountered several more waves of other shore Immortals attempting ambushes, all of which he effortlessly evaded.
Hearing that he was heading for Longxing Temple, they set off one after another.
*In the past, I had to lay traps using Lord Lotus and the Hongyuan to bait the masters of the other shore. Now, with Dao Master Hua's kill order, I am the biggest bait of all. I wonder if I can fish up a Grand Dao Lord this time?*
The Life and Death Dao Sect.
Rong Ku soared in, bypassing all announcements to barge straight into Yingcui Hall.
The Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death was in secluded cultivation within Yingcui Hall. Daoist acolytes stood guard outside; upon seeing him rush up, they scrambled to stop him, calling out, "Senior Brother Rong Ku, the master is in seclusion—"
Rong Ku shoved the acolytes aside and burst into the hall. Seeing the motionless Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death seated within, he threw himself to the ground and wailed, "Master, save me!"
Behind the Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death, the twin qis of life and death cascaded like a waterfall. Within the torrent, countless cave abysses of life and death swirled and drifted. The Grand Dao Lord slowly opened his eyes and asked, "Rong Ku, what is the cause of this panic?"
Rong Ku violently pulled open his robes, baring his chest. A lotus imprint rested upon it—a tightly closed bud whose stem and roots sank deep into Rong Ku's heart, seemingly drawing power from within it.
"Master, receiving the Dao Master's kill order, your disciple went to hunt down Xu Ying, only to have this divine power branded into my chest!"
Rong Ku recounted the entire incident, kowtowing repeatedly as he pleaded, "Master, I beg you, save my life!"
The Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death was rather astonished. "Was Xu Ying possessed by Taiyi? To have you carry his divine power to see me—how audacious."
His gaze fell upon Rong Ku's chest. Inspecting the lotus mark closely, his expression shifted slightly. "A chaos divine power!"
He slowly extended a hand, marshaling his immense Dao power and cultivation to suppress the lotus's transformations, preventing Xu Ying's technique from detonating.
Wisps of chaos qi seeped from the lotus imprint.
Growing ever more cautious, the Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death asked, "Did Xu Ying mention what cultivation art or divine power this is?"
The lotus imprint suddenly trembled gently. Amazingly, it shifted from a flat mark into an actual physical lotus, detaching from Rong Ku's chest while its root system remained embedded in his thoracic cavity.
Seeing this, Rong Ku let out a sigh of relief and said, "He said this divine power is called Blooming Lotus Illuminates the World, and that his cultivation art is called Hongyuan Inverse Attainment or something like that..."
"Hongyuan Inverse Attainment?"
Hearing those words, the Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death's expression changed abruptly. In his hand, the lotus quivered as its petals blossomed of their own accord, and at the exact same moment, the Hongyuan hidden within Rong Ku's body detonated!
Dao Lord Rong Ku blew apart with a deafening roar—his fleshly body, primordial spirit, and Great Dao cave abysses blasted completely open!
The Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death shielded his face with his sleeve to weather the shockwave of this grand divine power. When the tempest subsided, Dao Lord Rong Ku and the front half of Yingcui Hall were gone. In their place stretched a starry cosmos resembling a freshly opened universe, only miniature in scale!
With a dark expression, the Grand Dao Lord of Life and Death strode through the stars, heading outside Daoji Heaven.
"Xu Ying, you will die for this!"
Chapter 815