Chapter 223: The Gatekeeper

“Right beside me?” Dongbo Xueying was greatly alarmed. Because of the Black Dragon’s warning, he had been cautiously checking his surroundings ever since entering this grand hall. The Black Dragon had previously said, ‘The white mist contains deadly danger,’ which made Dongbo Xueying’s investigation even more cautious.

He had detected no enemies!

Yet the divine weapon of the God Realm sensed something!

“Boom!” Without a moment’s hesitation, Dongbo Xueying unleashed the full might of his Gravitational Domain. A torrential surge of repulsive force erupted, attempting to thrust away everything in its vicinity. Yet, neither the towering, unyielding pillars nor the ethereal white mist yielded to the gravitational onslaught. The mist merely rippled faintly before settling once more, as though the very fabric of reality refused to be displaced by such forces.

“This isn’t right. My gravity can kill even a demon at the peak of the Saint level! How can this mist resist it?” Dongbo Xueying was astonished.

Buzz~~~

Suddenly, part of the swirling white mist coalesced into a figure—monkey-like in form, wielding twin ethereal curved blades.

“Die!” The white mist monkey’s body remained ethereal, but its eyes faintly glimmered with lightning.

Rip——

The two misty curved blades slashed with terrifying speed, leaving a trace of lightning in the air before reaching Dongbo Xueying.

Though it seems slow, from the moment the white mist monkey condensed and swung its dual blades, it was all a split-second occurrence.

“Clang!”

Dongbo Xueying, extremely cautious, reflexively thrust his spear forward. Where the spear passed, a black line appeared in the space itself! However, the surrounding space was completely sealed and could not be truly torn open. When the spear collided with the white mist blades, it emitted a metallic clanging sound, and the force was so great that Dongbo Xueying involuntarily took a step back, though he continued to attack while retreating!

Swish! Swish! Swish!!!

In an instant, hundreds and thousands of black thread-like traces appeared. the Starstone Fire Cloud Spear transformed into a dense array of spear shadows, furiously enveloping the white mist monkey!

Fast, faster, fastest! They pushed speed to the extreme.

Dongbo Xueying had no time to think, purely relying on instinct to thrust his spear again and again. His ‘Ultimate Penetration’ was already astonishing in terms of speed, and now it was fully displayed.

Retreating steps, advancing steps, turning steps—all were accompanied by spear strikes.

Each black thread-like trace was like a heaven-spanning net!

“Clang! Clang! Clang!” The sound of weapons clashing was extremely dense. The white mist monkey’s dual blades furiously slashed as well. The blade edges formed from the white mist had a sense of etherealness, yet also carried lightning, and their speed was equally astonishing.

They matched each other in speed!

Enduring a single strike of Ultimate Penetration was nothing. What was truly astonishing was being able to withstand hundreds of direct attacks.

“Actually managed to block.” Dongbo Xueying was surprised. “This white mist monkey’s strength surpasses mine. My Ultimate Penetration is more profound than its blade techniques, yet it can still resist head-on. And its speed is too fast, its blade techniques also incorporating the power of mist and lightning. The Black Dragon has a large body and immense strength, but its combat techniques are too crude.”

Whoosh.

Suddenly, the white mist monkey retreated and stopped, its lightning-filled eyes still staring at Dongbo Xueying. “Human Transcendent, your spear techniques are indeed strange. That penetrating force kept drilling into my blades, greatly reducing my blade speed. Otherwise, I would have already defeated you.”

This made Dongbo Xueying secretly astonished.

So its speed could actually be even faster? Indeed, although it blocked the Ultimate Penetration, the force contained within it still greatly affected its blade techniques.

“One of me you can barely handle… how about four of me?” The white mist monkey suddenly sneered.

Its figure began to split.

It divided into four shadows.

The four shadows gathered the surrounding white mist, forming four white mist monkeys! Each of these four monkeys wielded dual curved blades in their hands, staring at Dongbo Xueying.

“Four?” Dongbo Xueying’s expression changed.

“Kill!” The four white mist monkeys attacked simultaneously, their speed terrifyingly fast as they instantly closed in.

As the saying goes, fists can’t match four hands.

Defending against four attackers was extremely difficult.

Maintaining the Gravitational Domain’s repulsion, Dongbo Xueying changed his spear techniques. The Starstone Fire Cloud Spear’s countless spear shadows danced wildly, sweeping, breaking, parrying, guiding, entwining, lashing, and sealing… In an instant, the entire visible range was filled with a rolling red cloud. This rolling red cloud faintly resembled stars and earth rotating, defense impenetrable!

The True Intent of Stars was like the earth embracing fire, water, and wind. Although it lacked the terrifying penetrating power of ‘Ultimate Penetration,’ it was vast and boundless, embracing all things. The spear techniques were also all-encompassing, flowing like clouds and water without a single flaw or pause.

With just one spear…

In an instant, he actually blocked the four white mist monkeys’ encirclement!

“What!”

“This human Transcendent, even his defense is this strong?”

The white mist monkeys were astonished.

“Boom!”

While defending, Dongbo Xueying’s spear also contained surging power. With a sweep of his spear, three white mist monkeys were sent flying backward.

“You split into four, making defense more difficult. But your strength and speed have both decreased! You’re still no match for me!” Dongbo Xueying swept away three white mist monkeys, immediately advanced, and fiercely unleashed the Ultimate Penetration, directly piercing through the last white mist monkey’s body. The white mist monkey widened its eyes in shock before completely dissipating. Then, at a distance, it reformed again.

They were formed from mist, able to gather and scatter at will, essentially immortal! At least, not even Demigods had the means to kill them.

“I refuse to believe a Saint-level Transcendent like you can defeat me! No Saint-level Transcendent has ever defeated me!” The white mist monkey roared furiously.

Whoosh.

The four monkeys furiously surrounded and attacked Dongbo Xueying.

Sometimes they attacked together!

Sometimes they merged into one, forming the strongest white mist monkey for a powerful assault!

Even splitting into two, each white mist monkey’s strength only slightly decreased while they attacked together.

But it was useless. No matter what techniques the white mist monkey used, Dongbo Xueying could block them all. And as the battle continued, Dongbo Xueying gained more insights into his spear techniques. His understanding of the Ultimate Penetration and the True Intent of Stars deepened further. ‘Combat’ was the practical verification of his spear techniques, continuously improving Dongbo Xueying’s skills.

“You’ve bested me,” the white mist monkey, retreating to a distance, said somewhat despondently. Standing within the hall, its voice was low. “I can’t defeat you or stop you… I never thought I’d lose to a Saint-level Transcendent! From my creation until now, over eight million years have passed, and I’ve never lost to a Saint-level Transcendent! Never!”

From the moment of his creation until now.

This was the first time he faced a Saint-level Transcendent helplessly. Although Dongbo Xueying hadn’t destroyed him, his body was formed from mist. Even Demigods or even divine beings like the Longshan Emperor couldn’t destroy him. So, if he couldn’t deal with an enemy… it meant he had been defeated.

“But kid, I’m just a gatekeeper. A guardian of the palace gates.” The white mist monkey’s lightning-filled eyes looked at Dongbo Xueying. “Within the Heifeng Divine Palace, the others are all stronger than me. And the deeper you go, the stronger they become! Your strength is still too weak. I advise you to give up. For a Saint-level Transcendent to be this strong, your potential is astounding. Wait until you become a Demigod and come back then. Only then will you have a chance to truly reach the deepest part of the Heifeng Divine Palace!”