Breaking the Deadlock

A battle among rulers could shake the entire Immortal Realm with every gesture. Were it not for the power of the Gate of Fate nearby binding the three thousand Grand Daos and barely keeping the Ancient Immortal Realm from collapsing, the destructive force unleashed by the clash between the Nine Rulers and Yaoguang would have shattered the Immortal Realm before long, reducing all of its high-energy matter to nothingness—devastation that would take untold myriads of years to recover from. Even so, when the Nine Rulers realized Yaoguang's terrifying strength and went all out, wielding tens of thousands of Grand Dao shares to unleash world-ending immortal arts, the terrifying shockwaves of energy still spilled past the suppressed boundary of the Gate of Fate. The tempest whipped up by mere aftershocks swept across nearly half the Immortal Realm. That torrent of supremely compressed energy uprooted the nearest immortal cities and realms of immortals, grinding everything on the land into oblivion. In the face of such a tempest, whether one was a Dao Lord or a True Immortal, simply preserving one's life was a testament to extraordinary divine ability. Only the Immortal Venerables and Immortal Kings, having retreated beyond the perimeter of the Gate of Fate, were able to ensure their own safety. *** "The Ancient Immortal Realm secretly cultivated a powerhouse of this caliber?! Incredible. I always assumed the so-called Immortal Kings and Immortal Venerables of the Ancient Immortal Realm were merely dried bones in a tomb, easily eradicated whenever we pleased." "Information cocoon! You belong to the Hunyuan Realm camp, so all you see is information from the Virtual Immortal Realm. Naturally, you thought our war against the Ancient Immortal Realm was an unstoppable series of glorious triumphs. But think about it: how could the Ancient Immortal Realm have held out for 3,360,000 years without total defeat after losing the frontlines if they had no means of resistance at all?" "The moment the Nine Rulers went more than three million years without descending upon the Ancient Immortal Realm in person, I realized the Ancient Immortal Realm wasn't as weak as we imagined. That's why I've always acted with utmost caution, which is why I'm still just an Immortal Venerable today. Even so, I never expected such a terrifying entity to truly exist here! Just look at how many Immortal Kings from the Seven Great Groups have fallen recently. They serve as cautionary tales." "Wait, that's not right. The only reason this entity is so powerful is that he was originally an immortal spirit from our Hunyuan Realm! Combining the strengths of an immortal spirit and a Dao Ancestor is what granted him such might. If he weren't an immortal spirit to begin with, how could he have grown this strong?" "His origin doesn't matter. What matters is which side he stands on! And right now, as someone fighting for the Ancient Immortal Realm, he is our enemy." The numerous Immortal Venerables who had retreated beyond the radiant reach of the Gate of Fate conversed ceaselessly. Naturally, Immortal Venerable Penglai, who had arrived upon hearing the news, was among these onlookers. With a complex expression, she gazed toward the core of the Gate of Fate at the towering figures capable of casually stirring tens of thousands of Grand Dao shares. That was... a power far beyond anything she could fathom. All along, she had regarded Yaoguang as Immortal King Yuxiao, an immortal spirit just like herself. Only now did she realize that Yaoguang had belonged to the native camp of the Ancient Immortal Realm from the very beginning. Everything between them had been nothing more than false pleasantries and an act. Only today had he revealed his true identity, striking out against the Nine Rulers of the Hunyuan Realm as the supreme powerhouse of the Ancient Immortal Realm! From this moment on, the gulf between them had turned into an unbridgeable chasm, separating them by worlds, forever cutting off any chance of future contact. *** Deep within the boundless chaotic void. Sensing his other self fighting against the Nine Rulers in the Ancient Immortal Realm, Yaoguang let out a long sigh. "So this is the truth of it all? Once the battle against the Nine Rulers concludes, my scene will wrap up completely. Likewise, the contest between the Hunyuan Realm and the Ancient Immortal Realm will be decided the moment victory and defeat are settled between the Nine Rulers and me." He still could not foresee whether the Hunyuan Realm would devour the Ancient Immortal Realm, or if the Fate Dao Ancestor would assimilate the Lord of Yuanxi to reverse the tide and swallow the Hunyuan Realm. Yet... no matter what, his part was destined to end. Whether victorious or defeated, his self in the Ancient Immortal Realm was marching toward death. After playing the protagonist in this grand drama for fifty thousand years, his performance was about to draw to a close. "Shaohua of the Ancient Immortal Realm will die under the identity of Yaoguang, allowing the Time Dao Ancestor and Void Dao Ancestor who nurtured him to be reborn through him and close the karmic loop. When that happens... it will be my turn to take the stage." As Yaoguang spoke, he turned his gaze toward his Chaos World. Through the passage of time and its evolution, his volume had doubled once again compared to before. If he had previously been twice the size of either the Ancient Immortal Realm or the Hunyuan Realm, now... his volume had reached four times that of the Ancient Immortal Realm or the Hunyuan Realm. Such an advantage... could already be described as overwhelmingly distinct. Descending upon the Ancient Immortal Realm or the Hunyuan Realm with such power, he possessed ample confidence to halt this war between the two realms. He could even integrate both worlds entirely into his Chaos World, perfecting it while allowing the living beings of both realms to coexist in harmony from then on. United in cooperation under the leadership of the "Lord of Heavenly Dao," they would expand and strengthen the Chaos World, looking forward together to the twenty-first or even twenty-second levels that the Lord of Yuanxi and the Fate Dao Ancestor so fervently pursued. Amid these thoughts, Yaoguang's chaotic universe—an entity vast enough to be considered a behemoth even within the chaotic void—shifted slightly. The moment it moved, he immediately noticed a problem. *Does it feel... a bit "fat"? Moving around isn't as nimble as before, and moving even slightly seems to make me "tired" easily?* Yaoguang was taken aback. He had not completely shed his habits as a "human." His words, deeds, and thoughts were still steeped in mortal perceptions. Through that lens, he genuinely felt as though he had put on quite a bit of weight. *Next, I can either choose to "work out" and adapt to this state, or... simply stick to the original plan and overpower them with sheer mass... A ten-meter-tall giant weighing hundreds of tons couldn't possibly lose to a little figure under two meters tall.* Yaoguang weighed his options, in no rush to decide. With the "Lord of Heavenly Dao" assisting him in operating the Chaos World, his agility had merely dropped slightly; it was not as if the "fatness" truly impaired his mobility. It was simply a matter of moving a bit slower. At this rate... by the time he reached the Ancient Immortal Realm and the Hunyuan Realm, his volume would swell once more, reaching eight times that of either realm. With that, he steered his chaotic universe—several times larger than the Ancient Immortal Realm or the Hunyuan Realm—and traveled toward them at an unhurried pace. *** The outside world remained completely oblivious to events unfolding in the chaotic void. No rules existed within the chaotic void. Neither the three thousand Grand Daos nor spiritual energy could truly penetrate its depths. Only when an enormous "presence" drew near or made contact would the rules of the three thousand Grand Daos and dispersed spiritual energy take notice. By then, however, it would generally be too late. At this moment, the two supreme beings—the Fate Dao Ancestor and the Lord of Yuanxi—remained locked in an intractable stalemate, mutually constraining each other. The Fate Dao Ancestor continuously poured the power of the three thousand Grand Daos into the Lord of Yuanxi, forcing the latter, whose spiritual energy had been largely diverted by the battle of rulers, to exert every effort to digest that power. During this process, He was naturally unable to offer the Nine Rulers any support. Similarly, with all of his power directed toward the Lord of Yuanxi, the Fate Dao Ancestor could not lend Yaoguang any aid either. This battle had truly come down to Yaoguang alone. When facing the Lord of Creation and the Lord of Tianyuan two-on-one, Yaoguang had held a clear upper hand. But now... with all Nine Rulers striking at once, he was utterly suppressed. The ruler bodies constructed from tens or even hundreds of thousands of Grand Dao shares granted these rulers earth-shattering might with every gesture. In theory, any single blow landing on Yaoguang could inflict severe damage. However, by drawing upon the computing power of the "Lord of Heavenly Dao," Yaoguang could pinpoint the exact flaws in the techniques displayed by the rulers. As a result, even when their attacks landed, the actual damage dealt remained extremely limited. Furthermore, as Yaoguang used his "Dao Lord" power to absorb more and more shares... finally, at a certain moment, both the Grand Dao of the Void and the Grand Dao of Time reached a complete state. His share in both Grand Daos climbed to one hundred percent in a single breath. In other words, his shares caught up to his 10,000/10,000 realm of perfection. This complete share, coupled with the Dao fruit powers of the Time "Dao Lord" and Void "Dao Lord," elevated his comprehension and application of both Grand Daos to a state of flawless perfection. If he wished, he could even choose to transform into the Gate of the Void or the Gate of Time, dragging out the battle for another tens or hundreds of thousands of years. Yet doing so held little meaning. Because the moment his Grand Dao of the Void and Grand Dao of Time reached one hundred percent, he clearly sensed something gestating within the Dao fruits. The Dao fruit of the Time "Dao Lord" in particular seemed utterly impatient. That was... the consciousnesses of the Time Dao Ancestor and the Void Dao Ancestor. "Hahaha, wait your turn! I haven't had my fill of fun yet!" Without hesitation, Yaoguang suppressed the thoughts and consciousnesses that were resurfacing within the two Dao fruits alongside the returning power of the void and time. With both Grand Dao powers perfected, his combat strength surged to a brand-new level. Even though his form was not as colossal as the Nine Rulers who could mobilize tens or hundreds of thousands of Grand Dao shares, at this moment, he overturned the disadvantage with overwhelming force. Paying almost no heed to defense, he began clashing head-on with the Nine Rulers. When the Lord of Creation hurled an immortal art at him, Yaoguang shattered it and immediately fired an immortal art right back into his face, battering the Grand Dao power across the ruler's body into fragmented disarray. Spinning around the next instant, he brought another immortal art smashing down onto the crown of the Lord of Shenluo, who was charging forward, instantly disintegrating the upper half of his Grand Dao ruler body. Then he shot forward like a flash, closing in on the Lord of Changsheng in an instant, and planted a kick square into his chest, sending the entire ribcage flying. In exchange, an immortal art from the Lord of Xiyu struck his body, jolting his form violently. Yet Yaoguang ignored it entirely, his mind set solely on close-quarters brawling. Even though he could achieve the same results with ranged immortal arts, he insisted on engaging in melee combat, targeting heads and faces in particular. For the rulers, their bodies were composed entirely of Grand Dao shares; they possessed no true vitals. Yaoguang's deliberate attacks on their heads and faces actually made it easier for them to defend. Yet after suffering repeated hits, this habit of aiming straight for the face—especially in front of countless watching Immortal Venerables and Immortal Kings—left the Lord of Shenluo fuming with rage. "Yaoguang, are you a child?!" "Who cares if it's childish? As long as it feels great, that's all that matters!" "You..." The Lord of Shenluo started to snap back. However, the Lord of Xingri, who cared little about losing face, said in a deep voice, "Enough, stall no longer. To avoid prolonging this stalemate... seek the aid of the Hunyuan Realm's living spirits and summon the spiritual energy of all beings in the Hunyuan Realm to descend!" "Summon all living spirits?!" The Lord of Tianyuan, the Lord of Creation, and the others froze momentarily. Their eyes involuntarily shifted toward the Lord of Yuanxi. Still... better a fellow Daoist perish than oneself! "Let the Lord of Yuanxi suffer a little first. Once we eliminate Yaoguang, we can naturally free up our hands to assist Him against the Fate Dao Ancestor," the Lord of Xingri said. Hearing this, the other rulers nodded without hesitation. A consensus was reached.