The tip of the Fengchi Heijin Spear condensed a point of flame, bean-sized and eye-like, flickering unstably like a candle struggling in the wind. Yet even before it approached, Meng Qi felt a sense of extreme danger he hadn’t experienced in a long time. His skin burned, his internal organs felt scorching hot, and his soul seemed to be scorched. If struck, both his spirit and body would be utterly destroyed, leaving no chance for rebirth.
All the surrounding heat seemed to be absorbed by this tiny flame. First, cold winds arose, then snowflakes began to fall. Soon, the air currents solidified into ice, forming layers of crystalline ice prisons that trapped Meng Qi inside, interfering with his ability to traverse through the void and leaving him nowhere to escape.
Even without a wielder, the Yaosheng Spear displayed a prowess nearly equal to that of a Celestial Immortal.
No wonder I feel exhausted, while that sly fox remains at ease. It turns out the Yaosheng Spear is like a shot of adrenaline for me! Meng Qi thought, feeling especially relieved that he had rationally refrained from using the “Karmic Entanglement” technique with his Lingbao Fire Saber earlier. Otherwise, the Yaosheng Spear would likely have been enraged and awakened to a legendary level!
At this critical moment, Meng Qi summoned his remaining strength and once again employed the Fatiang Xiangdi technique, his body rapidly expanding.
His Lingbao Fire Saber radiated brilliant light, transforming into an orange-yellow sun. He himself became a giant chasing the sun, ancient, solemn, and mighty, grabbing the “tail” of the sun and slicing forward with all his might. In an instant, nine slashes were unleashed, each wave of flame overpowering the last, forming a golden-yellow wall of fire that devoured the heavens and the earth, rushing toward the Yaosheng Spear.
The surrounding ice, whether pale blue or colorless, began to melt, and white mist filled the air, obscuring vision. The saber and spear collided silently.
In that instant, there was no wind, no color—only flickering flames and rapidly shifting scenes. Meng Qi saw himself step by step slaying the Flesh Mountain Demon General. He saw the Star Monarch of Ziwēi and others turning toward Channing City. He saw Qi Zhengyan conversing with an old man.
Is Senior Brother Qi here in this world too?
He had actually been forcibly thrown backward through the river of time by the Yaosheng Spear!
The flickering scenes resembled rippling waves flowing around Meng Qi. Originally, he could have remained for five heartbeats, but now he had regressed from the time before the demon tide approached to the moment he and his companions sealed the first of the Nine Nether fissures. And before him, the Fengchi Heijin Spear pierced through the waves once again!
Meng Qi clenched his teeth, lifted his long saber for an overhead strike, and unleashed the technique “All Things Return to Void.”
A pitch-black vortex emerged, tearing at the various scenes and slowing them down, causing many memories to blur!
This enabled the radiance of the Seven Killing Stele to erupt in time, safeguarding both his body and soul.
Otherwise, under the relentless erosion of the river of time, both his physical form and spirit would quickly wither, as if enduring ten thousand years of solitude!
Dang!
The Yaosheng Spear struck the black vortex. The flowing illusory river and flickering scenes suddenly accelerated. Meng Qi saw himself using “Return All to Void” to tear and destroy the fissure. He saw the intact black mountain. He saw Qi Zhengyan wandering within Channing City.
Boom! A thunderous, illusory sound erupted. Meng Qi felt a sudden weight beneath his feet, and both his body and soul regained a sense of reality. Then he saw the demon peak, now half-destroyed. He saw the small fox opposite him, whose mere glance could topple a kingdom. He saw the Fengchi Heijin Spear thrusting toward him, and that tiny, bean-like true flame!
He had returned to the present—not because the effect of the Seven Killing Stele had ended, but because the Yaosheng Spear had forced him back step by step from the river of time!
At this very moment, barely an instant had passed since the two had first attacked. Truly, it had been swift as a hare leaping or a falcon diving, lightning-fast and thunderous.
The Fatiang Xiangdi technique was still active, but Meng Qi already felt a sense of emptiness. Using divine weapons and treasures consecutively in battle against the Yaosheng Spear had drained him greatly, even if his body were made of iron.
He still had two or three saber strikes remaining—the Tianxin Woyi Formula, the Yellow Spring Skeleton, and the latent power of the Great Dao Tree and the eerie Peach. At this juncture, overwhelming his opponent was out of the question. His sole chance lay in striking to break free—or waiting for the cunning fox to exhaust herself. Though she had only just stepped into the Master realm, even with the Yaosheng Spear’s amplified force, the toll of wielding it would weigh heavily upon her. Her current state ought to mirror his own!
Meng Qi strategized, then horizontally swung his long saber. His inner scenery changed, emitting countless beams of light that solidified into golden lotuses and golden lamps midair. These golden lamps and lotuses radiated countless rays of light, making him appear like a Celestial Immortal descending from heaven, his orange-yellow fire saber glowing with sanctity.
First, block this spear strike with the Wuge Saber, then launch a counterattack to seize a sliver of hope!
High above the secret realm, Qi Zhengyan and the Black-Armored Demon General had already arrived, silently observing the battlefield:
Yanmo was merely a manifestation of flesh and will, easily suppressed by the Sun True Fire of Xi and the Five Virtues’ power. It wouldn’t be long before he was destroyed.
Jiang Zhiwei seized the opportunity to temporarily suppress the Star Monarch of Ziwēi, who lacked the will to fight. However, the 365 divine beings and brilliant stars had formed the Grand Star Array, their every breath in sync with the Star Monarch’s cosmic fist strikes, creating a vast and swaying force that temporarily prevented her from breaking free and coming to Meng Qi’s aid.
The Northern Dipper Star Ruler, affected by the Langhuan Twelve Divine Melodies and the Earth-Shattering Heaven-Tearing Tune, was being pushed to the brink by Zhao Heng. His treasures were exhausted, his movements sluggish, and his demise seemed imminent.
Meng Qi had used a time-related artifact, but the Yaosheng Spear had pierced into the river of time itself, forcing him back out.
The Demon Emperor’s Claw descended upon the shattered mountain peak, and the ancient bronze coffin sank into the Nine Nether Abyss.
Meanwhile, far away in Channing City, five beams of light—red, cyan, yellow, white, and black—rose into the sky!
“Tai Li…” Qi Zhengyan murmured expressionlessly, sounding almost like a sigh.
Then he extended his hand. Behind him emerged a crimson Dharma image, humanoid with a dragon’s body, six arms, each holding symbols of destruction, slaughter, blood pearls, filth, icy flowers, or crimson flames—an aura of heretical might radiating outward.
This Dharma image stepped forward, merging with Qi Zhengyan himself. A lotus-petal-shaped crimson mark formed at his brow, brimming with overwhelming demonic will.
Wu!
The Demon Emperor Claw trembled slightly, flying up on its own, piercing through space, and flying toward Qi Zhengyan’s outstretched hand.
Wu! A hair-raising sound reached their ears. Both Meng Qi and the small fox simultaneously sensed the approaching presence of the green-robed Qi Zhengyan and the flying Demon Emperor Claw.
Senior Brother Qi!
The Demon Emperor Claw!
A sudden urgency surged in Meng Qi’s heart. The Demon Emperor Claw was the most heretical and defiling artifact. Those who used it were easily tainted, their personalities twisted, their views warped, ultimately descending into world-destroying evil. How could Senior Brother Qi even consider seizing it? Didn’t he fear losing himself?
Qi Zhengyan showed no emotional fluctuation, his eyes fixed on the Yaosheng Spear as his right hand reached for the Demon Emperor Claw.
The Yaosheng Spear emitted a faint, prolonged hum. The surrounding atmosphere grew heavy, as if two ancient rivals had met—equal in strength!
Seeing Qi Zhengyan’s expressionless face and sensing the hidden concern in his gaze, Meng Qi suddenly had a realization in that split second.
The Demon Emperor Claw was marked as “existing” by the Master of the Six Realms. And now it had appeared here…
The world where they completed their mission intersected with Senior Brother Qi’s, and the mission itself was unusually simple, allowing them to finish quickly without complications…
And they just happened to encounter the small fox, who bore a deep grudge and possessed a peerless divine weapon…
All these clues connected, and the purpose became clear. Meng Qi now understood the truth.
After accepting the Demon Monarch’s inheritance, Senior Brother Qi had drifted further from the Six Realms, gradually losing control. It was likely he had found a way to escape its control. Thus, the Six Realms had orchestrated today’s situation, using the bond of life-and-death friendship to force Senior Brother Qi to accept the Demon Emperor Claw—the very artifact that once belonged to the Six Realms—and become the seventh-generation inheritor, once again shackled under its control!
“The Demon Emperor Claw is a trap! Don’t accept it!”
Meng Qi cried out in urgency, his soul vibrating through the void, his voice ringing out instantly.
Even if Senior Brother Qi refused the Demon Emperor Claw, Meng Qi still had the ability and hidden cards to fight for a sliver of hope.
Upon hearing Meng Qi’s warning, Qi Zhengyan’s lips curled into a rare smile, yet his right hand remained firm as it grasped the Demon Emperor Claw.
With a thunderous boom, his right hand grew massive, pitch-black and defiled, covered in eerie patterns, each fingernail like a sword, radiating chaotic, extreme sensations. The Yaosheng Spear responded with a long, resonant cry.
Countless demonic shadows manifested around him, eerie and sinister. Qi Zhengyan’s hair scattered, flowing backward. His body appeared slightly stronger, his face paler, exuding an indescribable aura of heresy. Yet at his brow, a radiant light gathered, the crimson mark expanding into a crimson star. Under its glow, all things were equal.
He stood proudly in midair, his green robe turning black, his hair wildly flying backward, harmonizing with the dark, shifting illusions. He smiled faintly and said, “Rest assured, Junior Brother Meng. I have my own means of resistance.”
“Life is red—the red of ceaseless striving, self-improvement, and the renewal of the old. All beings are red. This is the ‘Blood-Covered Heaven.'”
“When crimson banners flutter across the cosmos and rivers of red surge between heaven and earth, I shall manifest my ‘Blood-Covered Heaven’ Dharma Body. Even the most formidable demonic will shall struggle to corrupt me. Even now, I can still maintain my rationality!”
As he spoke, his right hand extended, and five rifts tore through the void, spewing forth endless darkness toward the Yaosheng Spear.
The small fox’s expression turned grave. Around her, five illusions—Heavenly Yellow and Earthly Black Linglong Pagoda, the Black-and-White Taiji Diagram, and others—coalesced into a soaring phoenix, attaching itself to the Yaosheng Spear.
With a cry, the phoenix unleashed true flames, burning through the void, swallowing the Demon Emperor Claw.
The spear and claw clashed without a sound, yet the secret realm started to crack and crumble, fissure after fissure. The Nine Nether Rifts began to shrink.
Suddenly, Meng Qi and the others heard the indifferent voice of the Master of the Six Realms echoing in their ears: “All fissures are sealed. Main quest completed. Return.”
At that moment, five beams of light—red, cyan, yellow, white, and black—swept through, barely managing to expel the small fox.
Meng Qi’s vision blurred, seeing only Qi Zhengyan holding the Demon Emperor Claw, standing in the darkness, slowly sinking into the Nine Nether.
Suddenly, a voice erupted in his mind—the solemn words of Qi Zhengyan:
“The Master of the Six Realms truly can resurrect the dead.”
“He holds either the Wheel-Seal or the God-Enshrining Tablet in His hands!”
Truly resurrect? The Wheel-Seal, the God-Enshrining Tablet? Meng Qi stood stunned.
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