Such were the ways of the world.
Most of the time, the strong still cared about saving face.
Yet past a certain point, everything changed completely.
That was especially true when they foresaw that an enemy posed a grave threat to their plans.
The four Heavenly Rank Immortals from the two great factions could afford to disregard the people of the Heavenly Court entirely. From the very beginning, they had maintained an attitude of a cat toying with mice, knowing that no matter how those ants struggled, the end result would be the same.
Lu Yuan, however, was different. His strength had grown vastly greater than before.
Moreover, a Heavenly Rank Immortal was suspected to have already fallen by his hand.
Under such circumstances, they had to take him seriously.
There was another critical factor as well.
If they failed, the core figures present from both great factions—and even their very foundations—would be completely destroyed by this man. That was an outcome they could never accept.
They had to join forces and nip all danger in the bud.
At that moment, the four Heavenly Rank Immortals stepped forward in unison.
Their auras surged without restraint, violently running wild.
"Four Heavenly Rank Immortals are actually joining hands against Lu Yuan?"
"How strong is he now? Can anyone even tell?"
"I don't know, but he definitely isn't weak."
Seeing this, the onlookers all around were shaken to the core and could not help retreating.
They knew full well that a clash between Lu Yuan and four Heavenly Rank Immortals would not be like before. A battle between them would likely drag in many bystanders, so the farther away they stayed, the better.
Sure enough, just as that thought crossed the minds of the beings of various races—
*Rumble!*
A tremendous roar rippled out in wave after wave.
Lu Yuan attacked, but he did not brandish the Daluo Sword Embryo; he simply threw a punch.
A formidable, supreme aura surged forth, shaking heaven and earth.
In a mere instant, the two sides clashed in battle.
Four against one.
And they were four Heavenly Rank Immortals.
In any corner of the cosmos, such a presence was terrifying beyond measure. Now united, their combined might was enough to wipe out ninety-nine percent of the living beings in the starry sky, for they were truly too powerful.
Yet Lu Yuan showed no fear. First, he extended his palm, and ancient shrines and temples manifested.
It was the Buddha Kingdom in the Palm, locking down the surrounding domain entirely.
It formed an independent space of its own.
Within this Buddha Kingdom, even the overwhelming might radiating from the four Heavenly Rank Immortals was prevented from leaking out.
Seeing this, the four felt a jolt of surprise, but they said nothing and struck at Lu Yuan again.
"King Lu wants to protect us—to protect Earth."
In the distance, Zhu Qingyu realized his intention almost immediately.
She knew that Lu Yuan had deployed the Buddha Kingdom in the Palm precisely so that the shockwaves between Heavenly Rank Immortals would not endanger the surrounding area.
After all, this was Earth, home to countless living beings and the members of the Heavenly Court.
Even so, she could not help feeling nervous, wondering whether doing so would prevent him from fighting with his full, undivided focus. But seeing Jiang Ningxian beside her remain as calm and composed as ever, Zhu Qingyu knew her worry was likely unwarranted. In the end, Jiang Ningxian was the one who had traveled the cosmos alongside King Lu.
She was the favored daughter of the Jiang clan; Zhu Qingyu truly could not compare to her.
A peculiar mix of emotions stirred in Zhu Qingyu's heart.
*Boom!*
On the other side, within the Buddha Kingdom in the Palm, the fierce battle was already underway.
The four Heavenly Rank Immortals attacked with abandon.
Divine lights surged across their bodies, making the world of the Buddha Kingdom rumble.
Only because Lu Yuan himself was exceptionally strong could the Buddha Kingdom he constructed remain so solid; otherwise, it would have been shattered long ago.
The four Heavenly Rank Immortals realized this as well. It only deepened their conviction that Lu Yuan was remarkably powerful, possessing far more horrifying combat strength than before, or they would have broken through this Buddha Kingdom by now.
Yet that did not matter. In their eyes, all they needed to do was defeat and slay Lu Yuan.
The four brought out their strongest techniques at that moment.
In the short term, they even managed to suppress Lu Yuan to a certain extent.
They were Heavenly Rank Immortals, after all, endowed with terrifying might.
At this stage, it was virtually impossible for someone in the same realm to completely crush an opponent.
Furthermore, the four of them were joining forces.
Thus, deep down, they were quite confident in dealing with Lu Yuan.
Lu Yuan did indeed feel the pressure.
Yet not the slightest shift appeared in his gaze. If anything, his movements grew even fiercer.
Formidable power churned and surged ceaselessly, sending rays of divine light bursting forth to flood the entire Buddha Kingdom in the Palm.
*Boom!*
The two sides clashed.
Forces of every kind rushed forth until space itself seemed on the verge of fracturing.
Yet no matter how much power the four Heavenly Rank Immortals channeled, they realized that the man before them had merely fallen into a slight disadvantage, showing no sign of impending defeat.
*This...*
Seeing this, the expressions of the onlookers changed.
Four people joining forces, all of them Heavenly Rank Immortals!
Yet against a single man, they could not secure a decisive edge.
"Is this the full extent of your combined strength?" Lu Yuan spoke calmly. His voice was not loud, but it resonated with immense majesty. From the start of the battle until now, he had not unleashed his greatest power, wishing only to see what these four Heavenly Rank Immortals were truly capable of.
From the looks of it, they were not as formidable as he had imagined.
Upon hearing his words, the experts of the two factions were inwardly shaken.
A sudden doubt crept into their minds: had waging war against Lu Yuan been a mistake?
Just as that thought arose, an endlessly terrifying surge of power erupted from Lu Yuan's body.
His aura transcended everything he had displayed before as myriad lights converged.
Behind him, grotto-heavens emerged one after another—the Ancestral Dragon Breathing Method enhancing his combat strength.
At the same time, golden blood-vitality spread out, billowing in surging waves until it covered the entire Buddha Kingdom.
The methods Lu Yuan displayed now were simply too overwhelming.
He seemed invincible.
Facing four Heavenly Rank Immortals, he threw a punch without the slightest hesitation.
*Rumble!*
A tremendous roar erupted.
A terrifying force seemed to shake heaven and earth.
Boundless light flooded the space, preventing the spectators outside from making out what was happening within.
The faces of the four Heavenly Rank Immortals shifted drastically, and without hesitation, they all struck in unison, desperately channeling the strongest power in their bodies to mount a defense.
*Thud!*
Even with the Buddha Kingdom in the Palm containing it, the moment the powers of both sides collided directly, everyone outside felt a terrifying force sweep outward, bearing down heavily upon every heart.
Chapter 543