Chapter 620: Independent Small World

"I, for one, don't think it's slow; it's just right."

Hun Xuan laughed aloud.

The many Sacreds and Venerables who had originally been suppressed by Li Heng felt their hearts stir; had the Alliance Leader finally returned? Now, they were about to set things right and restore peace to the Multiverse Alliance.

Taiyuan Daoren's pupils shrank, his heart shaken violently.

Ever since he had been forced to betray the Multiverse Alliance, the one person he least wanted to face was this mysterious former Alliance Leader before him, both in terms of sentiment and strength.

Sentimentally, he considered himself a traitor and was already in the wrong. As for strength... back then, Hun Xuan had defeated the penultimate Alliance Leader with a casual wave of his hand, without the slightest effort; one could see just how terrifying his strength was.

"Taiyuan, why are you doing this? Why are you standing by this Great Venerable? Come, come, come over to my side. Rest assured, I know your difficulties; I won't make things hard for you."

Hun Xuan cast his gaze upon Taiyuan Daoren and said with a smile. The attention of the crowd shifted accordingly, their gazes fixed upon him, leaving him in a dilemma.

Taiyuan Daoren only felt his entire body burning, as if he were tied to a fire rack being roasted; he was incomparably embarrassed, unable to face anyone. What should he do now? What on earth was he supposed to do?

At this moment, he would rather Hun Xuan had cursed him as a traitor the moment he opened his mouth and attacked him directly; that way, he could have clearly defined his stance and stood on Li Heng's side with a dead heart.

But now... a glimmer of wishful thinking had arisen.

Naturally, he knew how ridiculous this wishful thinking was; he shouldn't have had such thoughts in the first place. Even if he were to defect again and throw himself under Hun Xuan, he reckoned he wouldn't have any good days ahead.

Even a three-year-old child understood this point.

But... thinking of Hun Xuan's mysterious nature, thinking of the various methods he had laid out, and his mind-boggling grand plans, plus the prestige accumulated over all this time, he couldn't help but wonder: could Hun Xuan really be dealt with by just one Great Venerable?

Li Heng smiled without a word, remaining silent, also watching the fun as he waited for the Third Elder's choice, while simultaneously observing this former Multiverse Alliance Leader, Hun Xuan.

Interesting.

This Hun Xuan, like that Forbidden Object in the Abyss Sea, was not a Great Venerable yet could give him a sense of threat, like a sharp blade hidden in the mist; although in essence he was not as strong as Li Heng, a human, he could still wound, or even kill him?

Finally, Taiyuan Daoren made his choice.

"Apologies, Fellow Daoist Hun Xuan, it is still more comfortable on this side."

He said helplessly, his words causing an uproar. Was this Taiyuan Daoren really determined to betray the Multiverse Alliance and stand on the side of this Great Venerable? If it were before, that would be one thing, but the Alliance Leader had already returned, hadn't he?

"I had thought you would make a wise choice. It is a pity; you and I can be considered old friends of many years, yet your choice now chills my heart, and chills everyone's hearts."

Hun Xuan shook his head in disappointment.

Many Sacreds and Venerables felt this was true, nodding in their hearts.

Seeing everyone so disdainful of his choice, Taiyuan Daoren felt some irritation in his heart and spoke without holding back.

"Fellow Daoist Hun Xuan, I truly dare not stay on your side any longer. Even the Great Elder and Second Elder went to their deaths at your command, but I do not wish to die; I ask Fellow Daoist Hun Xuan to forgive me."

The tone of these words was helpless, yet seemed somewhat sarcastic.

Many Sacreds and Venerables were startled.

Could the rapid fall of the Great Elder, the Second Elder, and the Sacreds and Venerables of their faction have something to do with the Alliance Leader? Thinking of it this way, it seemed many questions could be answered.

Most of them were still feeling confused and bewildered because the position of Alliance Leader had suddenly changed hands, and just as they wanted to investigate, the Great Elder and Second Elder's side had started fighting.

Moreover, they had mobilized numerous Forbidden Weapons, setting off a huge disturbance that nearly broke the Great Dao Ark. But this might have been like a storm that comes and goes quickly; just as they were about to react, the Great Elder, the Second Elder, and that whole group were all dead.

Yet, given the craftiness of the Great Elder, the Second Elder, and the Sacreds and Venerables of their faction, they shouldn't have been so headstrong. If a major change were truly to occur, they should have been the ones hiding the deepest; it shouldn't have been so fast.

But if there was someone behind them giving the orders, then it made sense.

"Taiyuan, sometimes words cannot be spoken recklessly. I was not in the Multiverse Alliance before; I was far away, beyond countless eras. If I had not borrowed the path of the Void Balance, I fear I would not have returned so quickly. How could I have let them go to their deaths?"

Hun Xuan stood with his hands behind his back, shaking his head.

"It seems your mind has been blinded by this Great Venerable, and you can no longer distinguish between friend and foe, truth and falsehood. Since that is the case, then I shall help you."

He extended his palm, and an invisible, mighty force descended.

At first, Taiyuan Daoren felt nothing, but soon his face revealed horror as he discovered that everything in his field of vision was contracting toward him. The Void, space-time, and even Fate were all constantly contracting, pressing in on him, trapping him, just like a scroll being slowly rolled back up.

And he was unable to break this strange state.

"Tsk, consider yourself having escaped a First Tribulation, old Daoist."

Li Heng shook his head and spoke.

The words echoed in Taiyuan Daoren's ears, turning into a heavy hammer. Amidst what sounded like a 'Crack!', the contracting state Taiyuan Daoren was suffering was broken, and everything before his eyes returned to normal.

Cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and he gasped for air.

What on earth had just happened? He couldn't understand it at all; there was no fluctuation of the Great Dao or laws, but an unreasonable contraction, binding everything—he had almost been trapped to death.

"Many thanks to the Alliance Leader for intervening."

Regaining his senses, he felt lingering fear and bowed to Li Heng, thanking him. He knew that if not for Li Heng's words just now, he would either be dead by now or reduced to a prisoner, no longer himself.

"Fellow Daoist Li's methods are quite good. I have seen ordinary Great Venerables before; they might not have recognized the essence of my method, nor might they have been able to break it. You can be considered an exception."

Hun Xuan was neither angry nor annoyed, smiling calmly.

"But you do not count as an exception in my eyes."

Li Heng shook his head.

"Perhaps so, but since that is the case, why has Fellow Daoist Li not made a move? Could it be that you are afraid?" Hun Xuan responded with a smile.

Li Heng raised his eyebrows slightly and spoke calmly.

"What makes you think I haven't made a move?"

In an instant, the surrounding scenery turned into glass shards and flew away; in the blink of an eye, they arrived in another Heaven and Earth, no longer the environment of the Multiverse Alliance, the Great Dao Ark, or even the Great Void.

This was the projection of Li Heng's Heaven and Earth Dharma Form, with shadows covering everything.

Hun Xuan was slightly stunned, somewhat surprised.

"It seems I underestimated Fellow Daoist Li? You can actually evolve a small world independent of the Great Void? But if it is only this, then Fellow Daoist is really only a little bit stronger, not enough to be feared."

He took a step forward, his power erupting.