Chapter 1344: Stalemate

Hehe, Gu Yuan, if it were before, you could indeed have possibly sealed me just like the Pure Lotus Demonic Fire from thousands of years ago. But now, you don't have that ability.

Sensing Gu Yuan's thought, Wu Nie Tun Yan immediately sneered.

After all, after advancing to the Emperor realm soul, even when facing Gu Yuan, a Nine-Star Peak Dou Saint, he still had confidence to escape from the opponent's hands.

Of course, while speaking, Wu Nie Tun Yan's body suddenly swelled.

Boom!

Then, accompanied by a thunderous roar, his body instantly turned into a sky-filling black flame, covering the sky within a radius of a hundred li.

And just as Wu Nie Tun Yan finished transforming his form, Gu Yuan's attack suddenly descended from the heavens, landing where he had just been standing.

Bang!

In the next instant, the vast and violent Dou Qi exploded in that sky, instantly releasing all of its power.

Under this terrifying attack, the space within a radius of a hundred zhang almost simultaneously became like glass.

It violently shattered into countless fragments, then fell from the sky.

At the same time, the thick black flame that covered the sky.

Under the powerful shockwave generated by Gu Yuan's Dou Qi explosion, a wide void was instantly blown out.

However, although the black flame was blown apart and scattered.

But whenever the residual Dou Qi touched those flames, it was as if they fell into a black hole's field of view, instantly vanishing without a trace.

And while Gu Yuan was attacking Wu Nie Tun Yan, a pallid-faced, uninjured living dead stood in the distance.

Its figure flickered, and it instantly appeared behind Gu Yuan.

After all, facing a Nine-Star Peak Dou Saint, although it reminded him of the terrifying scene when he was killed by Xiao Xuan.

But he, whose combat experience was extremely rich, also knew that if he did not help Wu Nie Tun Yan deal with Gu Yuan, once the former fell.

Those consequences were not something he could bear.

Death God's Finger!

And as he arrived behind Gu Yuan, a deathly aura as black as ink coiled around his entire right index finger in the blink of an eye, then he fiercely pressed it against the latter's back.

Accompanying the old man's movement, instantly a huge black mist finger shot out from his fingertip, piercing the air and pointing straight at Gu Yuan.

Get lost!

Sensing the living dead's movement, the latter let out a cold shout, quickly turned, and then struck down with a powerful palm.

And at the moment Gu Yuan's palm fell, an energy giant palm instantly formed.

Immediately, it carried a thunderous roar like exploding thunder, howling out and fiercely grabbing the black giant finger of the living dead.

Next, the immense force, strong enough to inspire awe, crushed that black giant finger.

It exploded into rolling black mist, spreading across the sky.

Whoosh!

However, just as that giant finger collapsed, instantly a spatial ripple occurred, and a huge black stone pillar shot out from the thick black mist, piercing straight toward Gu Yuan's chest.

However, although this black pillar was obscured by the black mist generated from the living dead's fighting technique collapsing, it still could not escape Gu Yuan's detection.

Therefore, at the instant that stone pillar appeared, a tremendous soul impact surged forth from Gu Yuan's mind, heavily striking together.

Rumble...

For a moment, the earth-shaking thunderclap suddenly rang across the horizon, long unable to fade.

However, just as one wave had not yet subsided another arose, at the moment Gu Yuan dealt with the stone pillar thrown by another living dead.

Unbeknownst to him, a mass of black flame had silently appeared behind him.

Next, the black flame suddenly writhed, quickly turning into a black rune that attached itself to Gu Yuan's back.

Oh no!

Soon Gu Yuan noticed the movement behind him, his pupils instantly constricted slightly, and he secretly thought, 'Not good.'

The next moment, that rune, like sticky explosive, attached to the latter's back and detonated.

Bang

The rune exploded, and instantly a mass of black fire cloud mixed with a terrifying deafening roar spread across the sky.

"Clan Chief, should we intervene to help?"

Seeing the astonishing aftershocks of the explosion wildly spreading in the distant sky, the fire spirit that had not yet acted looked toward Yan Jin and asked.

Upon hearing that, the latter immediately shook his head, signaling her not to act rashly.

After all, he did not believe that Gu Yuan, a Nine-Star Peak Dou Saint, could be defeated by Wu Nie Tun Yan.

"Your matter of advancing to Eight-Star Dou Saint, the Soul Clan likely still doesn't know; for now, don't expose it, wait a moment then look for an opportunity to act."

While speaking, Yan Jin's gaze also fixed on that distant mass of black fire cloud.

Fortunately, as he expected, Gu Yuan soon rushed out of that fire cloud and continued his attack on the three of Wu Nie Tun Yan.

Obviously, taking advantage of the gap while Gu Yuan dealt with the two living dead, Wu Nie Tun Yan succeeded in a sneak attack.

But his attack did not inflict any injury on Gu Yuan, a Nine-Star Peak Dou Saint.

Even his clothing remained unharmed in the slightest.

However, facing Gu Yuan's attack, the three of Wu Nie Tun Yan could only barely cope.

Not to mention defeating the opponent, even resisting was somewhat strained.

And after Yan Jin confirmed that Gu Yuan was unharmed, he immediately turned his head to look at the living dead opposite who had been staring at them.

Obviously, the reason he had not made a move there all along was because he, this Eight-Star Peak Dou Saint, likewise had no intention to act.

Otherwise, that person opposite would surely immediately call for reinforcements from the living dead fighting Gu Yuan.

After all, the current Wu Nie Tun Yan, even alone, could likely withstand Gu Yuan for a period of time.

The reason he brought those two living dead was merely for insurance.

However, when Wu Nie Tun Yan was mentioned, Yan Jin couldn't help but flash a grim look in his eyes.

Originally, he thought that relying on the thing he had newly forged, he could block Wu Nie Tun Yan for a few strikes, buying Gu Yuan a sliver of time.

But now Wu Nie Tun Yan has advanced to the Imperial Realm Soul; it seems he no longer has that chance.

At least, he dares not risk facing Wu Nie Tun Yan, which now combines the Imperial Realm Soul with a Nine Star early‑stage Dou Saint, alone.

And as his thoughts shifted, Yan Jin's gaze swiftly swept around the various battlefields.

At this moment, the fierce war around them almost spanned the entire Heijiaoyu sky.

The raging Dou Qi, amid hundreds of figures clashing, continuously spread outward.

This caused the newly formed magma sea below to repeatedly splash up waves of molten surge.

Because the battle was stalemated, the Heijiaoyu sky at this moment resembled a massive meat grinder.

At intervals, a strong from either the Soul Clan or the Ancient Joint Forces would vomit blood and fall, ultimately landing in the magma.

However, the Soul Heavenly Emperor was unaware of this, merely continuing his own affairs.

"Is this… Tian Mu?"

While in Heijiaoyu the Soul Clan and the Ancient Alliance were fighting tooth and nail, far away in the Ancient Realm of the Eastern Central Plains, Lin Feng stood within the Ancient Clan Forbidden Zone deep in the Ancient Sacred Mountains, gazing at the sky before him and couldn't help whispering softly.

Although the sky before him seemed empty, as a Nine Star Dou Saint and Imperial Realm Soul, he—

naturally could perceive that beneath this view hid an extremely strange small space.

After sighing, Lin Feng immediately swung his hand, and the heavenly and earthly energy within a hundred‑mile radius roared and surged, converging toward him.

As the energy between heaven and earth wildly converged, a massive amount gathered in one spot, instantly forming a dense fog around Lin Feng that was hard to see through.

And as this continual convergence persisted, around him, faint sounds of surging waves could even be heard.

"What… is this? Why has the heavenly and earthly energy suddenly erupted?"

At the same time, the Ancient Clan members within the Ancient Realm, looking at the sky's disturbance over the Ancient Sacred Mountains, couldn't help letting out a series of exclamations.

"Could it be that some Elder is breaking through?"

"It doesn't look like it; this commotion actually resembles the celestial energy tide caused when the former clan chief acted before."

"I think it's correct, but isn't the clan chief currently absent from the clan?"

"That direction is the Ancient Sacred Mountains; shall we go take a look?"

"Better not. The Dou Saint Elder has already gone out; we should just stay put. Even if there's a problem, we'll wait for the clan chief and others to return."

With the heavenly and earthly energy deep in the Ancient Sacred Mountains beginning to rage, for a moment the entire Ancient Realm was startled.

However, since Gu Yuan was absent, these remaining personnel, whose strength topped out at half‑saint, dared not act rashly.

So for a while, no one impeded Lin Feng's plan.

Of course, even if they went up to confront him, the outcome would surely be very satisfying.

After all, a half‑saint battling a Nine Star Dou Saint would be immensely exhilarating.

While those Ancient Clan members were uncertain, the space deep within the Ancient Sacred Mountains suddenly began a violent, unannounced fluctuation.

Immediately, the dense heavenly and earthly energy around Lin Feng writhed rapidly, morphing into two energy giant hands a thousand zhang tall.

At the same time, his hands stretched out, tearing forcefully before him.

And as Lin Feng made that tear, the energy hands in the distant sky suddenly performed the same ripping motion.

"Screech!"

The two giant hands tore; the terrifying force instantly ripped that space open as easily as tearing a woman's stocking.

The space shattered, and a jet‑black fissure was violently torn open in an instant.

Simultaneously, within that fissure lingered an unusually ancient and wild aura, slowly spreading outward.

As for Lin Feng, upon seeing Tian Mu forcibly broken open, he instantly shifted, becoming a streak of light that plunged straight into the fissure, vanishing in an instant.

After he disappeared into the spatial fissure, the massive jet‑black crack began to slowly close again, eventually returning to its original state.

This was a misty, bizarre land where occasional eerie lights would suddenly flare in the distance, only to vanish instantly, plunging the area back into darkness.

At the same time, death‑like silence enveloped this unfamiliar ground.

Here, it seemed as if no life existed, causing extreme discomfort.

"Hiss!"

Yet the silent heavens and earth, somewhere a space suddenly twisted.

Immediately, a hand stepped slowly out of the space, arriving onto this lifeless ground.

"Is this… Tian Mu?"

Stepping into this world utterly different from the outside, Lin Feng instantly looked around, his gaze curiously surveying everything.

This Tian Mu, although he possessed numerous records about it.

Yet entering it personally, today was still his first time.

"The scenery here may not compare to the outside, but the heavenly and earthly energy is unusually dense, far stronger than that of the Ancient Realm."

After surveying the surroundings, Lin Feng promptly grasped a handful of the misty air with his palm, and sighed.

Within this fog, an extremely dense heavenly and earthly energy was contained.

Moreover, its purity far surpassed that of other places outside. "That's right, I almost forgot; the energy entities here seem to vanish as time passes. The reason the energy in this fog is so dense and pure is likely because they are the remnants of those energy entities after they 'die', spreading as energy throughout this land."

As he spoke, Lin Feng laughed and shook his head.

In the original work, Xiao Yan and his party, since they could seize the energy cores obtained after slaying energy entities and directly absorb them.

It follows that the energy inside those entities is extremely pure.

And much of the energy in this land originates from energy entities that have 'died' and transformed.

So, how could it not be pure?

"Fine, we'll study these matters later; for now, erase its original imprint and secure control of the Tian Mu."

Thinking of what he needed to do this time, Lin Feng immediately cast aside the distracting thoughts in his mind.

Then, his vast soul power radiated from his forehead, instantly enveloping the entire Tian Mu and beginning to search for its imprint.

"Huh, it seems Xiao Yan never plays fair when trading—he even dupes Gu Yuan!"

Soon after, noticing something amiss, Lin Feng shook his head and, in a tone of complaint, said.

Because in his perception, the Tian Mu now has no master.

However, since Gu Yuan has received approval from the former owner Xiao Yan, he can perform some manipulations.

Thus, even after he refined that fellow's soul, he can still control the Tian Mu.

But because he is not the true master, Gu Yuan's control over the Tian Mu is heavily limited.

And that is why, even after gaining control of the Tian Mu, the latter has not been able to exert much effect.

"Fine, Xiao Yan's cheating Gu Yuan doesn't cost me anything; in fact, he didn't let Gu Yuan leave an imprint on the Tian Mu, which actually works to my advantage. After all, this makes it much easier for me to control the Tian Mu!"

As he spoke, Lin Feng immediately recalled the tutorial for controlling the Tian Mu.

After mentally rehearsing it, he promptly set to work, beginning to control the Tian Mu.

Hoo hoo!

While Lin Feng was focused on controlling the Tian Mu, far away on the Heijiaoyu battlefield of the Northwest Continent, the crimson magma beneath the Dou Saints' combat suddenly shifted.

Across that vast sea of magma, waves suddenly rose.

Soon after, an enormous vortex began to slowly form on the smoldering sea below.

The sudden disturbance on the magma surface instantly drew the attention of the strongmen on both sides.

At that moment, everyone's faces showed shock as they stared bewildered at the magma below.

They then discovered that a vortex tens of thousands of zhang wide had suddenly appeared in the magma beneath them.

And within the accelerating vortex, something seemed about to manifest.

"Gu Di Dong Fu is finally about to see daylight; it seems the plan to stop the Soul Heaven Emperor from opening this thing has failed."

Seeing this, the two smoldering figures in the distance grew bitter in their eyes.

They had calculated everything beforehand, yet they never expected Wu Nie Tun Yan could breach the Imperial Realm Soul.

Otherwise, he could have stepped forward to strike Wu Nie Tun Yan a few times, giving Gu Yuan a chance to stop the Soul Heaven Emperor.

But now, he certainly wouldn't dare to do that.

After all, sending him against either Wu Nie Tun Yan in the Imperial Realm Soul or the Soul Heaven Emperor is undoubtedly a suicidal act.

He doesn't know whether Gu Yuan will be able to stop the Soul Heaven Emperor then.

But this old bone of his probably won't get to see tomorrow's sun.

Wah-lah-lah!

As the crowd stared in amazement at the massive magma vortex below, its rotation grew ever more violent, and the earth‑shaking Wah‑lah sound echoed across the sky.

During this time, a subtle, strange ripple quietly spread through heaven and earth.

Bang!

When that odd ripple expanded, the four Gu Yuan combatants still fighting in the distant sky, after a simultaneous exchange, abruptly ceased fighting and instantly separated.

However, when they split, the Gu Yuan who was alone against the three Wu Nie Tun Yan remained steadily suspended in the sky.

The other three figures flailed backward for a considerable distance before finally halting.

As for the two living corpses among them, their condition was even more tragic.

The death aura that once enveloped them has now almost completely dissipated.

Having lost those, their combat power has been reduced by several folds.

But this is normal; with their strength, trying to block Gu Yuan is simply impossible.

After all, when a peak Eight‑Star Dou Saint‑level attack hits them, they would sustain serious injuries.

If Wu Nie Tun Yan weren't there, the two would have already been instantly killed by Gu Yuan.

"Lord Wu Nie, we truly cannot continue fighting Gu Yuan!"

After a brief respite, a living corpse enshrouded in thin death aura lifted its pale face, gazed at the flickering Wu Nie Tun Yan of black flame beside it, and spoke in a very weak tone.

After all, fighting Gu Yuan with Eight‑Star Dou Saint power for so long is already quite impressive.

If they hadn't been late‑stage Eight‑Star strongmen in life, with prior combat experience, their strength compared to ordinary peers would have already collapsed!

Hearing this, the flame in Wu Nie Tun Yan's pure black eyes flickered, a hint of resentment passing through.

He hadn't expected that, even after entering the Imperial Realm Soul.

Under Gu Yuan's full assault, he could barely endure less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea.

Most importantly, the Soul Heaven Emperor is about to successfully summon Gu Di Dong Fu.

Regardless, he must hold off Gu Yuan to buy that final sliver of time for the former!

Realizing this, Wu Nie Tun Yan immediately told the two beside him, "You two retreat and watch the smoldering, while the other comes to aid me."

"Yes!"

Upon hearing this, the two living corpses erupted in joy and quickly turned to fly away.

At the same time, a perfectly intact living corpse in the distance seemed to receive some command.

After a moment's hesitation, it rushed toward Wu Nie Tun Yan.

While the front few were relaying, in the sky several li ahead of the three, Gu Yuan's cold gaze fell upon them.

Had it not been for these few troublesome foes blocking him, he would have already disrupted the Soul Heaven Emperor's plan to summon Gu Di Dong Fu, and wouldn't be standing here idly!

Of course, what he hates most is the main force that just dealt with him, namely Wu Nie Tun Yan, who has entered the Imperial Realm Soul.

If it weren't for this fellow, Gu Yuan would have slain the other two living corpses on the spot long ago, and wouldn't have been delayed until now.

But he also understood that Wu Nie Tun Yan and its few members, even if they gave their all, could at most only slightly hinder his actions.

If he kept fighting, he was sure he could deal with these guys who were obstructing him from breaking the Soul Heavenly Emperor.

"Soul Heavenly Emperor!"

But when it came to the mastermind, Gu Yuanmeng lifted his head, his cold eyes gazing at the figure in the distant sky manipulating the Tuoshe ancient jade.

Immediately, a cold gleam flashed in his eyes; he took a step forward, intending to attack the Soul Heavenly Emperor who was now controlling the Tuoshe ancient imperial jade.

Accompanying Gu Yuan's movement, in an instant the tides of heaven and earth surged violently.

However, before these energy tides could coalesce into an attack aimed at the Soul Heavenly Emperor...

Wu Nie Tun Yan rushed in, and then its body swelled, forcibly absorbing Gu Yuan's attack.

At that moment, from afar Yan Jin saw the undead staring at him fly toward Gu Yuan, while the two who had stepped back, not yet arriving here, suddenly had a flash of sharp light in their eyes.

"Go!"

Then he seized the moment, swung his large hand, forcefully hurling a shield edged with red spikes, which whirled and flew toward Wu Nie Tun Yan.

After all, he knew this was his only chance to hold back Wu Nie Tun Yan and give Gu Yuan the opportunity to interrupt the Soul Heavenly Emperor's actions.

"Yan Jin, bold!"

The two arriving undead, seeing this, instantly let out a cold shout filled with anger.

After all, they weren't foolish; they quickly guessed Yan Jin's plan.

At the same time, they also knew that if the opponent succeeded, it would disrupt their clan leader's summons of Gu Di Dong Fu.

Then the two of them would be finished!

"Hmph"

Wu Nie Tun Yan, noticing the rotating shield flying toward it, let out a cold snort from its nostrils.

Immediately, its eyes widened slightly as a fierce, substantial soul shock burst from its brow and surged straight toward the incoming shield.

"Boom!"

In the next instant, the soul shock and the shield collided precisely in the sky.

At the moment of collision, Wu Nie Tun Yan's expression changed slightly, then it stared in astonishment at the shield Yan Jin had thrown.

Because it realized that the strange shield had absorbed most of its soul shock.

Such a situation was truly bizarre.

After all, the power of devouring was his specialty.

But now, someone was using that ability against him.

This truly left him at a loss for words.

"Swoosh!"

And while the former was stunned in amazement, the shield that had absorbed most of its soul shock immediately continued to spin and fly toward him.

"Playing with devouring power before me is a joke!"

But soon, Wu Nie Tun Yan reacted, letting out a cold laugh.

Then, with a shift of thought, a massive black flame surged at will, whistling as it swirled toward the shield.

"Boom!"

In the next moment, the black flame explosively burst, adding another raging black fire cloud to the sky.

As for the shield Yan Jin threw, this time it could not devour anything.

It was quickly flung haphazardly outward by the explosion of the black flame.

Nevertheless, the shield's effect had already been realized.

Although Wu Nie Tun Yan took less than five breaths from being startled to flinging that strange shield away.

But Gu Yuan seized that brief interval; with a swift movement, he darted past Wu Nie Tun Yan's interception and launched a fierce assault on the Soul Heavenly Emperor! (End of chapter)