Chapter 439: The Saint-to-be

Zhenyuanzi’s sleeve swept across the sky, and as the Inner Cosmos unfolded, all light over the Duanchun Mountains dimmed.

Deep within the sleeve’s mouth, there was no fabric texture—only boundless void.

Mountains and rivers hung upside down, stars rose and sank; as if Zhenyuanzi wished, he could swallow even this sky.

Kunpeng stood atop the ink-black demonic sea, his face showing not a trace of fear.

“Inner Cosmos,” he sneered. “Zhenyuanzi, after all these years, you still rely on these same tricks.”

Zhenyuanzi raised his dust whisk, expressionless.

“As long as it can trap you, that’s enough.”

No sooner had the words left his lips than the sleeve’s mouth exploded outward, unleashing boundless suction.

The demonic qi, blood curses, and shattered array patterns above the Duanchun Mountains were all sucked into the sleeve.

Though Kunpeng mocked Zhenyuanzi’s signature technique, he dared not underestimate it—he rose and his Dharma Body instantly transformed.

The phantom great roc folded its wings, then instantly became a colossal black kun, which merged with the roc to reveal Kunpeng’s true Dharma Body.

Kunpeng’s Dharma Body stretched across the heavens, its body countless miles long, its back like a mountain range, its belly like an abyss.

The next instant, Kunpeng’s Dharma Body opened its abyssal maw.

“Northern Abyss Swallows Heaven!” Kunpeng’s voice boomed.

From within Kunpeng’s Dharma Body emerged a dark, swirling vortex.

As the vortex spun, spiritual energy across heaven and earth ceased to flow, space fragments reversed, and even Zhenyuanzi’s Inner Cosmos was forcibly held back by its devouring force.

The two supreme techniques collided in the heavens.

“Boom!”

The two supreme techniques clashed above the Bei Ju Lu Continent, shaking heaven and earth.

A tens-of-thousands-zhang-wide void fissure appeared above the Duanchun Mountains; along its jagged edges, broken laws flickered wildly.

Starlight from beyond the realms poured down through the fissure, falling upon the earth protected by the Earth Book’s radiance.

Zhenwu the Great Emperor gripped the Demon-Slaying Sword, his gaze darkening.

“Are they trying to shatter the Bei Ju Lu Continent?”

The Earth Book hovered above Zhenyuanzi’s head, its earth-yellow shield spreading to fiercely guard the land.

Without the Earth Book’s protection, this strike alone would have severed the earth veins across a million li around the Duanchun Mountains.

Zhenyuanzi’s expression remained unchanged.

“Kunpeng, you once murdered Hongyun; today you bring chaos to Bei Ju Lu.”

“Old debts and new crimes—settled together.”

Kunpeng narrowed his eyes but said nothing.

Zhenyuanzi fell silent as well.

He took one step forward—and as his foot landed, a thousand miles of the Bei Ju Lu Continent trembled.

The Earth Book flipped open, and countless mountain shadows rose from the void, sealing Kunpeng’s front, back, left, and right.

Each mountain shadow was tied to the earth veins, heavy beyond measure.

Kunpeng’s form wavered as he activated spatial laws.

But the moment he sought to escape, yellow light surged from beneath his feet, crushing his spatial passage outright.

“I told you,” Zhenyuanzi raised his hand. “As long as you remain in the Earth Immortal Realm, where can you run?”

Kunpeng’s face turned cold; he shook his sleeve, and an ancient palace emerged from the ink-black demonic qi.

The palace was entirely dark, inscribed with demonic script; its gates were sealed, yet the sound of ten thousand demons paying homage echoed from within—voices that pierced through time, carrying the lingering might of the ancient demonic court.

This treasure was Kunpeng’s supreme primordial spiritual treasure: the Demon Master Palace!

As soon as it appeared, all demons who had fled beyond the Duanchun Mountains looked up.

Some ancient demons knelt on the spot.

Zhenwu the Great Emperor stared at the palace, his brow furrowed.

The Demon Master Palace was Kunpeng’s core treasure for his Dao path—clearly, this was Kunpeng’s true body.

Yet Zhenwu recalled Su Chen’s earlier words, and still felt uneasy.

Kunpeng’s actions were too strange—but the Demon Master Palace was here, making doubt impossible.

Zhenyuanzi saw the Demon Master Palace, and his killing intent intensified.

“You brought this treasure with you—so today, you mean to settle our karmic ties.”

Kunpeng pressed his palm against the Demon Master Palace.

“Zhenyuanzi, you cannot kill me.”

Zhenyuanzi flicked his dust whisk, and in his palm appeared a yellow-earth seal.

The seal was no larger than a palm—but the moment it appeared, every peak in the Duanchun Mountains resonated in unison.

This treasure was called the Mountain-Shaking Seal.

Unlike the Earth Book, a supreme defensive treasure, the Mountain-Shaking Seal was designed solely for offense—it could harness the power of mountains and earth veins to suppress enemies.

Zhenyuanzi raised his hand and hurled the Mountain-Shaking Seal; it grew with the wind, transforming into a ten-thousand-zhang mountain, crashing toward the Demon Master Palace with the force of the earth veins.

Kunpeng activated the Demon Master Palace; its gates opened, and countless demonic characters flew out, forming ancient demonic court array patterns to block the way.

Boom!

The Mountain-Shaking Seal struck the Demon Master Palace; the demonic characters shattered, the earth veins churned.

The void fissure in the heavens widened again; starlight and chaotic spatial currents poured down. Had the Earth Book not held the four directions firm, this region would have become wasteland.

This clash had fully awakened the Three Realms.

In the West, at Lingshan, in the Great Thunder Sound Temple, Maitreya Buddha was delivering a sermon.

Golden lotuses covered the ground, chanting echoed—but the next instant, the sutra recitation ceased.

Maitreya Buddha looked up toward Bei Ju Lu, his smile fading slightly.

“Why are Kunpeng and Zhenyuanzi fighting now?”

All the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the hall were startled.

One Bodhisattva whispered, “The Demon Master has lain dormant for years—why would he suddenly fight Zhenyuanzi to the death?”

Maitreya Buddha said nothing; his eyes glowed with Buddhist light, revealing the shattered heavens of Bei Ju Lu, the Demon Master Palace revealed, locked in stalemate with Zhenyuanzi’s Mountain-Shaking Seal.

Deep in the Blood Sea, the Ancestor of Blood sat atop the Twelve-Petal Karma Red Lotus, blood waves churning, countless Asuras kneeling in silence.

He opened his eyes and gazed northward.

“What is that old devil Kunpeng up to now? Such commotion doesn’t suit his nature.”

Behind him, the swords Mutu and Anbi trembled gently in the blood sea.

The Ancestor of Blood soothed the two supreme weapons of slaughter, then chuckled.

“Fight. The more chaotic, the better. Best if it drags the Heavenly Court and the Buddhist Sects into it.”

In the Heavenly Court, in the Lingxiao Palace, the Jade Emperor sat upon his throne, his face grim.

The Hao Tian Mirror hung in the hall, its surface showing the battle in Bei Ju Lu.

Zhenwu’s Dharma Body was wounded, Zhenyuanzi and Kunpeng clashed, the Demon Master Palace loomed in the sky, the void fissure tore open the heavens.

The immortals in the hall fell silent.

Taibai Jinxing stepped forward and whispered, “Your Majesty, Kunpeng openly shattered the earth veins and fought Zhenwu the Great Emperor—he has defied the Heavenly Court.”

Li Jing, the Tower-Bearing Heavenly King, spoke solemnly: “Your Majesty, issue the decree—deploy heavenly troops to seal off Bei Ju Lu!”

The Jade Emperor did not speak immediately; he stared at the Demon Master Palace in the Hao Tian Mirror.

Kunpeng was no fool—the more composed he seemed, the more suspicious it was.

Yet the Demon Master Palace had appeared, Zhenyuanzi had personally intervened, and Zhenwu’s Dharma Body nearly perished.

If the Heavenly Court took no action, what remained of its authority in the Three Realms?

The Jade Emperor raised his hand, his voice echoing through the hall.

“Command the Dou Division—send Doumu Yuanjun and the Dou Division’s true deities to seal off Bei Ju Lu. Do not let Kunpeng escape.”

The celestial messenger bowed and departed to deliver the order to the Dou Division.

In Bei Ju Lu, on the Duanchun Mountains, Kunpeng still wore a smile despite Zhenyuanzi’s relentless assaults.

Seeing Kunpeng’s smile, Zhenyuanzi moved faster—his Mountain-Shaking Seal fell again.

The Demon Master Palace blocked it head-on; the two spiritual treasures clashed back and forth, neither gaining advantage.

At this moment, Zhenwu the Great Emperor stood within the Earth Book’s shield, his Dharma Body mostly restored.

He had been watching his surroundings all this time, yet still found no trace of Su Chen.

“Where has Su Chen gone?” Zhenwu the Great Emperor wondered inwardly.

Meanwhile, beyond the Three Realms, in the Outer Void.

Su Chen, with the Chaos Bell hovering above his head, walked among shattered star continents.

Here, there was no sun or moon, only broken laws and violent chaotic currents.

Fragments of continents floated in the void—some burned with black fire, some coated in frost, others ground to dust by spatial storms.

The Chaos Bell cast down dark-yellow light, concealing Su Chen’s aura; the chaotic spatial currents struck the bell’s radiance, emitting dull thuds.

Su Chen looked ahead—his Heavenly Mechanism Mirror’s vision gradually merged with the scene before him.

The Star Fragment Abyss lay just ahead. He halted on a broken meteor, spreading his Primordial Qi to sense the aura.

Soon, a thread of cold demonic qi was plucked from the chaos.

“Kunpeng,” Su Chen’s eyes flashed with light. “I’ve found you.”

He followed that thread of qi as he traced its path.

Before him, deep within the Shattered Star Abyss, lay a vast dark zone—no starlight, no spiritual energy, not even spatial currents could approach without vanishing, as if swallowed by some unseen force.

Su Chen frowned ahead; a place so dangerous that the Peng would risk losing his split soul, deploy two Great Luo, and ignite chaos across the Northern Continent could not be ordinary.

He suppressed his impatience and remained alert to his surroundings, avoiding disaster.

At that moment, across the Three Realms, a vast torrent of starlight surged skyward—brilliant starlight cascaded from the nine heavens like a celestial net, engulfing the entire Northern Continent.

A commanding female voice echoed throughout the Three Realms.

“Peng, you have shattered the earth veins, torn open the heavens, and disrupted the order of the Three Realms.”

“Today, you shall be sealed!”