Chapter 36: Shadow of the Divine Sword, Comprehension of Slaughter

In an instant.

The entire prefecture transformed into a sea of thunder.

The great formation of the entire prefecture was directly broken and ceased to operate.

……

And just then, Chen Daoxuan suddenly sensed that the Divine Transformation female sword cultivator's Dharma Aspect, form, and aura had all vanished without a trace.

At this, Chen Daoxuan's heart tightened slightly, but he did not stop, continuing to strike without the slightest change.

The Heaven-Connecting Thunder Bamboo enveloped and suppressed the entire prefecture.

Within the enormous Blessed Land, nearly one hundred thousand li in diameter, at the core of the prefecture, countless bolts of thunder manifesting in the shape of green bamboo also began to flood it at this moment.

High above the heavens, the vast bamboo-shaped thunder converged, manifesting Chen Daoxuan's countenance.

Composed of thunder, it looked somewhat rough and ancient, yet there was a mysterious, special sacred majesty about it.

He gazed at the Guqi Prefect, who stood at the center of the Blessed Land, his Primordial Spirit damaged and Dharma Body on the verge of destruction amidst the endless thunder.

"Fellow Daoist, your fate is spent. Please depart in peace."

Within Chen Daoxuan's words, the dao rhythms of the Five Elements, Yin and Yang, Four Symbols, and Cause and Effect circulated within the vast green bamboo thunder.

In the mysterious beyond, with thunder as its surface, the Wushan Wuhai emerged, forming an unfathomably profound Mountain-Sea Thunder Diagram imbued with the不朽 and Pure Yang.

But in the blink of an eye, this Mountain-Sea Thunder Diagram did not head directly toward the Guqi Prefect, whose aura had suddenly erupted around him.

Instead, it enveloped the entire Blessed Land of nearly one hundred thousand li, and even beyond the Blessed Land.

This was the fundamental great art of the Mountain-Sea Immortal Scripture that Chen Daoxuan had initially mastered over the past century: the Mountains and Seas Diagram.

It corresponded to the True Mountain and Mysterious Sea condensed by the Mountain-Sea Immortal Scripture; one could say they were two sides of the same whole.

The stronger the True Mountain and Mysterious Sea, the stronger the might of this fundamental great art, the Mountains and Seas Diagram, in tandem.

"Crash-rattle!"

As this Mountain-Sea Thunder Diagram gathered in.

Apart from the Guqi Prefect.

There were also five Nascent Soul cultivators wearing the immortal official robes of the Zhenqi Kingdom, as well as the Divine Transformation female sword cultivator who had just vanished.

All of them appeared out of thin air within this Mountain-Sea Thunder Diagram at this moment.

"No, True Lord, spare me!"

"You rebel, you'll die a terrible death!"

The five Nascent Soul cultivators and the Guqi Prefect, feeling the boundless pressure of the Mountains and Seas Diagram scroll, their bodies suppressed and utterly powerless to resist, were filled with despair.

All of their expressions changed drastically.

Some knelt on the ground begging for mercy, some cursed Chen Daoxuan viciously.

……

At this.

Chen Daoxuan did not look at them, but instead gazed at the Divine Transformation female sword cultivator.

Because under the suppression and grinding of the Mountains and Seas Diagram, this Divine Transformation female sword cultivator still possessed the power to resist, manifesting endless sharp radiance around her that formed a Ten Zhang Sword Domain.

Her expression was calm and indifferent, cold as iron.

Silently, she withstood the suppression and grinding of the Mountains and Seas Diagram.

……

After several breaths of time, the five Nascent Soul cultivators died one by one, and the Ten Zhang Sword Domain manifested by the Divine Transformation female sword cultivator was also compressed and shrunk by one zhang.

After another dozen or so breaths of time had passed.

The Guqi Prefect's Primordial Spirit was also destroyed and his Dharma Body annihilated; within the Mountains and Seas Diagram, he perished and his Dao vanished.

As for the Sword Domain manifested by the Divine Transformation female sword cultivator, it had shrunk to only a little over one zhang.

It seemed as if in the next instant, the Sword Domain would shatter and the female sword cultivator would be suppressed.

But Chen Daoxuan could clearly sense.

That this Divine Transformation female sword cultivator's aura was at a mysterious critical point, using him as pressure, as a whetstone, wanting to break through some bottleneck.

At this, Chen Daoxuan's expression remained unchanged, but he murmured slightly in his heart.

"Sword cultivators are truly so annoying; under life-and-death crisis, this kind of breakthrough state often appears."

"But will you succeed, or fail?"

Regarding this Divine Transformation female sword cultivator's situation, a thought arose in Chen Daoxuan's heart.

He did not forcibly stop her, but merely maintained the Mountains and Seas Diagram's current might.

After another several breaths of time.

Sensing that the Divine Transformation female sword cultivator's Sword Domain, now only three chi remaining, on the verge of breaking yet unbroken, and feeling her aura begin to boil, about to successfully break through the bottleneck.

Chen Daoxuan let out a faint sigh.

Although this female sword cultivator, even after breaking through, would not pose any pressure to him, if she truly broke through, it would make him look like a villain.

In the span of a thought, the full set of Soul Separation True Treasure he wore was activated by Chen Daoxuan for part of its might, empowering the Mountains and Seas Diagram.

"Boom!"

The might of the entire Mountains and Seas Diagram, manifested with thunder as its surface, suddenly surged upward at extreme speed, as if without limit.

Before that Divine Transformation female sword cultivator could react, her breakthrough was violently interrupted; the Sword Domain that had been barely holding on was utterly shattered.

Her Flesh Dharma Body directly transformed into a mist of blood.

Her Divine Sword Dharma Aspect held on for only an instant before breaking into dozens of segments.

Her Natal Sword Pellet trembled, emitting a wail.

The portion of her Great Dao Primordial Spirit that had already partially transformed into Pure Yang also began to show signs of shattering.

At that moment, a trace of change in expression finally surfaced on the Divine Transformation female sword cultivator.

Among the Dharma Body, Dharma Aspect, and Primordial Spirit, only the Great Dao Primordial Spirit remained—its pair of eyes radiated divine light, gazing beyond the Mountains and Seas Diagram, watching Chen Daoxuan.

In an instant, the entire Great Dao Primordial Spirit merged with her life-bound sword pellet.

In a flash, the female sword cultivator's aura plummeted to an extreme low, yet a shadow of a vast divine sword descended from the unseen.

Protecting the Great Dao Primordial Spirit, flickering like a candle in the wind, and the life-bound sword pellet.

Then this shadow of the divine sword manifested a streak of sword light.

A gap was torn open in the Mountains and Seas Diagram.

In an instant, the Divine Transformation female sword cultivator's remaining Great Dao Primordial Spirit and life-bound sword pellet escaped through the gap in the Mountains and Seas Diagram along with that streak of sword light, vanishing without a trace.

……

"That aura far surpassing the Guiyuan Heaven Seal, yet without a trace of supreme immortal charm—could it be a Great Vehicle (Great Universe Crossing Tribulation Stage) treasure of this realm?"

Watching the Divine Transformation female sword cultivator flee, Chen Daoxuan paid it no heed, merely pondering the shadow of the divine sword from moments ago—vast as heaven, like the Dao itself, yet bearing no hint of transcendence—as he guessed in his heart.

With a shift of thought, Chen Daoxuan retracted the Mountains and Seas Diagram.

Sensing the cluster of Fate and merit that had descended from thin air three feet above his head after he had slain five Nascent Soul cultivators and one Divine Transformation cultivator of the Zhenqi Kingdom.

As well as the wisps and strands of Heaven-Earth-Man three-talents killing intent automatically gathered within the Innate Gourd.

And the sparse Cause and Effect tied, as though he had merely slain Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining cultivators.

"Wield the mandate of heaven, descend tribulation in heaven's stead!"

In the unseen depths of his heart, an insight into a certain Great Dao welled up within Chen Daoxuan.

Not fate, not tribulation—but the Slaughter Dao.

"Mm, why would I gain insight into the Slaughter Dao?"

Amidst his thoughts, Chen Daoxuan immersed himself within it.

……

Just as Chen Daoxuan had slain five Nascent Soul immortal officials and the Governor of Guqi Prefecture.

The Fate of all Guqi Prefecture fell into violent upheaval.

Above Qinglei Mountain.

Yuan Xundao, who jointly controlled the Mountain Gate grand formation and commanded the sect's Fate alongside dozens of Core Formation elders and over a thousand Foundation Establishment cultivators, immediately sensed it.

In an instant, he understood that the Divine Transformation Governor of Guqi Prefecture had perished.

Unable to spare attention for the terror in his heart, he took control of the Fate Dharma Realm he had opened decades ago, and began following Chen Daoxuan's instructions.

Suppressing and taking command of the Fate of all Guqi Prefecture.

……