Chapter 631: The Son of Heaven

Li Yi watched the White Water Goddess, who looked like a fishergirl on the small boat, her expression brimming with lethal intent; his own expression grew serious. As a cultivator who had crossed worlds multiple times, he never underestimated any expert from another realm—even though he had now reached the third layer of the Five Qi Realm, he was still far from a top-tier expert and had much room to grow.

Therefore, caution and vigilance were essential.

So as he faced the White Water Goddess, he continued sensing the surrounding celestial and terrestrial energies.

He discovered no other powerful spirit deities nearby.

Clearly, the White Water Goddess had been driven to act only after Li Yi arrived in Taihu City and destroyed her temple, leaving her no choice but to confront him directly—she had not waited for other experts to gather. Perhaps in her view, her thousand years of cultivation and accumulated power were more than enough to handle a Daoist.

This arrogance stemmed not from personality, but from centuries of being revered as a divine being above all.

After a simple bow, Bai Shuixue's eyes flashed with divine light, and she merely extended one finger—immediately, the waters of Taihu surged into waves.

In an instant, the lake water erupted into countless water spears, tearing through the sky, crisscrossing yet converging into a single point aimed straight at Taiyi.

This strike was merely a probe.

Yet even as a probe, its power was formidable, for it carried the force of incense belief—though seemingly simple, it held the might to pierce through mountains, far from ordinary.

Boom!

But the next moment, Li Yi suddenly raised a fist—a palm imprint blazed across the sky, the roar of Dragon and Tiger energy erupted, and with one blow he shattered the incoming water spears into countless misty droplets, spreading thick fog across the city and lake surface in the blink of an eye.

"This Daoist—"

Bai Shuixue's gaze shifted slightly; from that single strike, she glimpsed the man's astonishing physicality and godlike strength—his blow carried the power to shake mountains, truly inhuman.

"So this is it. You are indeed different from other spirit deities. They rely solely on the strength of incense to form their divine bodies, their methods shallow. But you have comprehended the path of cultivation, understand magic arts, and wielded through incense power, your techniques are extraordinary."

Li Yi suddenly smiled—he now understood why the White Water Goddess had become the top expert of this world.

The reason was simple: over these thousand years, she had awakened to cultivation and magic arts, blending them with incense, which is why her title as White Water Goddess had endured for so long, and no one dared destroy her temple.

The Guardian General of the State, in life, was merely an ordinary general, trapped in the capital with no chance to encounter cultivation—no matter how much incense he had gathered over twelve dynasties, he was still an empty shell, a silk-pillow ornament: beautiful but useless.

Only when incense power fell into the hands of a true cultivator could its immense potential be unleashed.

"You saw through me at a glance." Bai Shuixue now sounded astonished.

She had indeed mastered the art of heart cultivation—gleaned over years of seclusion by Taihu, observing how water spirits evolved and took form, then internalized it. Her body was no longer a spirit form; she had cultivated a true physical vessel and mastered numerous magic arts. With the advantage of Taihu's terrain, she had no rivals.

Even the Yin Son of Heaven dared not provoke her in Taihu.

"I understand the path of cultivation better than you. But precisely because of this, you are worth fighting." Li Yi spoke, and beneath his feet a golden auspicious cloud rose—he vanished from his spot in an instant.

A streak of golden light flashed through the air, and suddenly he appeared before Bai Shuixue.

Bai Shuixue's pupils shrank sharply.

This speed was absurd—he had crossed the city wall of Taihu and reached her in the blink of an eye.

"No good."

Bai Shuixue sensed danger, but before she could react, a hand had already clamped around her throat—Dragon and Tiger divine power erupted, and the roars of dragon and tiger echoed in her ears.

"Pity. You understand cultivation, but not combat. You're too close to me." Li Yi's cold voice echoed, and his hand tightened.

Boom!

A thunderous explosion rent the air—and simultaneously, Bai Shuixue's neck shattered.

Blood sprayed, staining the lake surface.

A delicate body slumped limply.

Li Yi waved his hand, tossing the corpse into the lake, letting the water swallow it.

The blood-stained lake surface remained still at first—but within moments, dark winds howled, monstrous waves churned, the sky darkened with storm clouds, as if a deity had been enraged, altering the heavens and shaking Taihu's waters, threatening to flood Guanghu City.

"I merely destroyed one body. No need to rage so. After all, you're still alive, aren't you?" Li Yi stood atop the auspicious cloud, unmoved, letting the waves crash and the wind howl around him.

"Taiyi True Person." An angry voice rang out from Taihu.

The waves surged, rising and falling like ten thousand cavalry charging—the force of each wave carried millions of catties, enough to shatter mountains and flatten the earth. The waves grew larger and larger until they reached a height of a thousand meters, blotting out sun and sky; even Guanghu City looked minuscule before them.

The citizens within the city were thrown into panic—even the Embroidered Uniform Guards were stunned.

This power of heaven and earth was beyond human resistance.

"Run! Run! The White Water Goddess is furious!"

"The court destroyed the White Water Goddess's temple—she's going to flood the whole city with Taihu's waters!"

"My heavens—is that even a wave? I've never seen a wave that can block out the sun!"

Screams and cries of terror echoed endlessly.

Hearing the city's panic, Li Yi looked at the thousand-meter wave and spoke: "You just accused me of excessive slaughter, violating heaven's harmony—yet now, at the slightest anger, you're ready to drown an entire city without blinking. Spirit deities are spirit deities—after long enough, they truly believe themselves divine." "Enough. Let me show you a new magic art I've recently learned."

He channeled Daoist law, magic power surging, and pointed at the towering waves: "Shrink."

The magic art he used was the Great and Small Transformation.

This technique was infinitely profound—had it not been for Xiang Xiangzi's help, using incense power to guide his understanding, he might never have mastered it in twenty years.

As soon as the Great and Small Transformation activated, the monstrous wave that had blotted out the sky and threatened to drown the city suddenly reversed its nature—shrinking inexplicably. At first a thousand meters high, it dwindled to a hundred meters as it surged forward, then ten meters by the time it reached Li Yi.

By the time it struck the city wall, it was reduced to just one meter.

Merely an ordinary splash—its power had been drastically diminished, causing no damage whatsoever.

"Impossible."

This sight filled Bai Shuixue, hidden within Taihu, with utter disbelief.

She could not fathom that such a magic art existed—one that could directly shrink her summoned waves.

"Split the River!" Li Yi sensed her location and swept his hand—a concentrated beam of divine light slashed out.

One word, one strike, one single content! 【Note: This line appears corrupted or nonsensical in source; translated as literal as possible.】

In an instant, the waters of Taihu were violently split open, a jagged rift torn through to the riverbed, unable to heal—and the force struck Bai Shuixue with pinpoint accuracy.

In the blink of an eye, her incense body was torn apart, severed into two pieces.

Yet the severed body merged back into Taihu's waters, and she instantly summoned a massive wave, scattering widely—as if unharmed.

But the point of impact retained a heavy residue of incense energy.

Clearly, she had paid a heavy price.

"Taiyi."

Yet Bai Shuixue did not retreat or fear. She shouted sharply—the nearby waters surged, and her figure lunged forth again, this time wielding an ancient, simple sword inscribed with the four characters: "Eternal Dominion Over Mountains and Rivers." It was wreathed in the incense power of all under heaven and entwined with Dragon and Tiger energy—uncommon indeed.

She slashed down—the sword strike resembled mountains and rivers overturned, a blow designed to end all life, aimed at Li Yi's life.

Li Yi, amid the roars of dragon and tiger, punched forward—his fist radiated brilliant light, entwined with three-colored magic power.

The power of this strike erupted again, stirring up colossal waves across the lake.

"This sword… is heavy." Li Yi's expression shifted slightly.

His punch could shake mountains, yet could not shatter this sword. On it, he felt the collective will of all living beings, the unity of mountains and rivers—this immense force suppressed his fist, restrained his magic power, giving him a sense of retreat.

"This is the Son of Heaven's Sword. Of course it's heavy. How could a Daoist possibly oppose the belief of all under heaven?" Bai Shuixue glared at Li Yi. She herself had never imagined this Daoist was so powerful—he had forced her to draw the Son of Heaven's Sword.

This sword was not the current Emperor's weapon—it was once wielded by an ancient monarch who lost it to her in a wager while boating on Taihu.

Boom!

The swordlight faded.

Li Yi's fist retreated.

The clash ended in a stalemate.

"See how many more blows you can block." Bai Shuixue swung the sword again.

"How naive."

Li Yi stared coldly at her. As she slashed again, his body instantly dissolved into mist, spreading everywhere, covering all directions.

Hm?

Bai Shuixue brandished her sword, scanning frantically.

But the next moment, the mist coalesced—Li Yi reappeared, a punch flashed through the air, and her body exploded again. Lake water and incense mist filled the air, and the Son of Heaven's Sword flew from her grasp—Li Yi caught it in one hand.

It was not a consecrated magic treasure—so easily taken.

"Give me back the Son of Heaven's Sword!"

Bai Shuixue was horrified. She reformed her body, summoning a water dragon whirlwind to trap Li Yi and reclaim the sword.

For this sword posed a grave threat to spirit deities.

But Li Yi's form dissolved again into mist, vanishing into the heavens—when he reappeared, he stood beside Bai Shuixue, the Son of Heaven's Sword already raised.

Bai Shuixue turned her head—and for the first time, fear flickered in her eyes.

The Son of Heaven's Sword descended.

A head flew upward, severed.

(End of Chapter)