Chapter 760: The Saint's Heart Tribulation, The Universe Cloth Bag

The space swayed and trembled, the vast sky vibrating.

Under the might of this single palm, the entire firmament seemed to begin tilting and collapsing, crashing down toward the earth with a boom.

Facing this Heaven Collapsing and Earth Splitting strike, Kongque King and the other two also took action.

As Kongque King moved his hand, five pill-like beads flew up around him, each appearing no larger than a walnut.

The five pills were of different colors. The first was bright red like blood, containing many flame-shaped runes and emitting a scorching aura.

The second was brilliant gold, its golden light so intense it seemed as if it would blind a person's eyes, like the most terrifying divine weapon.

The third was ink-black, exuding vigorous vitality, as if all things were breeding and multiplying within it.

The fourth was the color of crystal, with many tiny runes flowing within it like water, and one could faintly hear the sound of rushing water.

The fifth was earthy yellow, giving a feeling of thickness and vastness; it was a sword pellet condensed from the essence of earth.

——Five Elements Sword Pellet.

This was the famous Five Elements Sword Pellet.

The technique Kongque King used was precisely the magic of the Five Elements Path from back then; a hundred years ago, the Five Elements Path could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Great Zen Temple and the Supreme Path, but unfortunately, it was destroyed during the change of dynasties, and its lineage no longer exists.

It was only because Kongque King obtained the supreme classic of the Five Elements Path, the Five Elements Heavenly Book, that he finally cultivated to become the leader of the demon immortals.

At this critical moment, he brought out his trump card.

As Kongque King's thoughts turned, three hundred and sixty sword auras erupted from the sword pellets; each of these sword auras was several zhang long and incomparably sharp. The blade, spine, hilt, and guard were all lifelike, and they contained a hint of the aura of ancient sages, giving one the feeling of breaking through thorns and tempering one's original heart.

As Kongque King's intent shifted, the three hundred and sixty sword auras moved in a regular pattern, forming a vast sword array to meet the giant palm.

Tianshe Wang Xingmou and the Mysterious Heaven Pavilion Master looked at each other, their expressions incomparably grave.

Both of their lips opened simultaneously, and a strange scripture was chanted from their mouths. It seemed like a prayer, yet also like a curse.

At the same time, both forced out a drop of essence blood from their hands. The two drops of essence blood merged in the air and then transformed into a bright red rune.

The rune expanded continuously, growing in the wind, until it was finally a full several dozen zhang in height, meeting the giant palm with an overwhelming momentum.

Boom!!

Boom-boom-boom!!

Amidst the thunderous explosions, this palm that suppressed the heavens finally descended, colliding with the Five Elements Sword Array and the blood-colored rune, erupting into clusters of wild wind and air waves.

Kongque King and the other two were at the very least top-tier figures who had undergone three Heavenly Tribulations; the three of them attacking at once had unimaginable power, enough to even wrestle with a Creator.

Yet the true realm of Champion Marquis was Peak Martial Saint, equivalent to an expert who had undergone three or four Heavenly Tribulations.

Logically speaking, he could at most contend with one of them. With the three joining forces, he should have been suppressed and obliterated in an instant.

But Champion Marquis did not purely practice the Martial Dao of this world; instead, he used the Gui Cang Nine Paths from his memories as a foundation for his cultivation.

Under the blessing of the Gui Cang Nine Paths, he could even exert the combat power of a human immortal.

And this "Tathagata Divine Palm," which fused the "Thirty-Two Appearances," was one of his ultimate trump cards. Once unleashed, it was peerless in the world, suppressing the nine heavens and ten earths.

Kongque King's body trembled, cracks appearing on his shell, and fresh blood flowed from the fissures, soaking his clothes.

The Mysterious Heaven Pavilion Master and Tianshe Wang were the same.

Their spirits might still be able to hold on, but their physical bodies were suffering wounds under the pressure of the vast and boundless palm force, appearing as if they could be crushed to pieces at any moment.

Crash!!

Finally, the three could no longer hold on.

The sword aura array and the blood-colored rune collapsed simultaneously.

The next moment, the divine palm imprinted itself down with overwhelming force.

Boom!!

Amidst the earth-shattering roar, violent energy raged and swept across the world. The ground for dozens of miles around trembled violently, with large swathes of land collapsing and sinking. The power of this strike was as if the heavens were collapsing and the earth splitting; human strength appeared as insignificant as ants before this palm.

When the palm lifted, three streaks of light soared from the deep pit imprinted by the Tathagata Divine Palm, transforming into three rays of light that scattered and fled.

These three streaks of light were, of course, Kongque King and the others; their auras were somewhat weakened, and it was clear that taking this palm was not pleasant.

"Heh, why are you leaving so quickly? Let this Marquis properly entertain you."

Champion Marquis beckoned with his hand, and the Shangmang Divine Spear instantly appeared in his grasp: "Take this!!"

As Champion Marquis released his intent, his Qi and Blood stirred the vast sky, and the figure of an ancient War God appeared behind him. That majestic and upright posture stood between the nine heavens and ten earths, and the surging battle intent rushed out like a tide, as if once it descended into the world, it would turn this time into an Avici killing field.

The ancient War God held an identical Shangmang Divine Spear in his hand.

Champion Marquis raised his spear, and the ancient War God made the same movement.

As the spear shaft swayed, it was like a Flood Dragon soaring into the sky. As the spearhead trembled, it actually manifested thousands of spear-star points of light, piercing through the sky and covering Kongque King, Tianshe Wang, and the Mysterious Heaven Pavilion Master indiscriminately. Even though the three fled in three different directions, they absolutely could not escape the range covered by the spear momentum.

"Avici Killing Path, it is the Avici Killing Path of War God Shang."

The Mysterious Heaven Pavilion Master recognized the move Champion Marquis used, and his expression changed instantly.

The Avici Killing Path was the strongest of War God Shang's seven great killing moves.

Being able to use this move meant that the user had already become a human immortal, or was infinitely close to being one, and could break through the membrane at any time to become an Opening Aperture Human Immortal.

A fourteen or fifteen-year-old human immortal could be called stunning throughout the long river of time.

"You go quickly, leave this move to me."

Tianshe Wang Xingmou turned her delicate body, the galaxy within her pupils rapidly birthing and dying, and her entire body was shrouded in thick Darkness, which turned into substance like a tide.

As the Darkness rose, it vaguely transformed into a "Mysterious Heaven Dao Venerable." This Mysterious Heaven Dao Venerable carried a profound and ancient charm and stood a full hundred zhang tall. In his hand, he held a pitch-black, strange weapon; it looked like an altar, yet also like a tray, but it possessed a weight like a mountain. Afterward, Tianshe Wang forced blood from her fingertips, which fell onto the strange weapon, giving the weapon a bloody and dark quality.

The "Mysterious Heaven Dao Venerable" roared and met the countless spear rays with the strange weapon.

The Mysterious Heaven Pavilion Master's eyes showed hesitation, wanting to go back to rescue his Dao companion, but he was pulled away by Kongque King: "Go quickly, otherwise all three of us will perish here."

Having said that, Kongque King erupted with five-colored light from head to toe, completely wrapping the two of them within it, and then fled toward the edge of the sky at an incredible speed.

Bang bang bang bang bang!!

The spear rays collided with the strange weapon that resembled both an altar and a tray, emitting sounds like muffled thunder exploding.

The strange weapon grew increasingly dim, and then, with a "boom," the spear rays pierced through it, and the force surged out in all directions like a gale.

The remaining spear radiance pierced toward Tianshe Wang Xingmou.

Xingmou, however, was well-prepared and once again employed the Profound Heaven Pavilion's strongest sealing technique, the "Darkness Mandala Womb Great Barrier."

Yet this time, it was not to seal the Champion Marquis, but to wrap the darkness around his own body, attempting to resist the "Avici Killing Path" with the indestructible sealing technique.

But unfortunately, the power of this strike of the Avici Killing Path was truly too strong; the spear radiance tore through the darkness in an instant, and then a spear thrust pierced into Tianshe Wang's chest.

The Champion Marquis retracted his spear, fresh blood gushed out from the wound, and Tianshe Wang's body plummeted from the air, blood falling like rain.

"I only just thrust once, and you're already done for."

The Champion Marquis shook his head, flicked his sleeve, and layers of darkness surged out, instantly wrapping around Tianshe Wang.

If Tianshe Wang were still conscious, he would likely be greatly shocked, because the sealing technique the Champion Marquis used was actually similar to the Mandala Great Barrier.

"Those two fellows, they ran really fast."

The Champion Marquis's gaze looked again toward the place where Kongque King, the Profound Heaven Pavilion Master, and others had left, and finally, he placed his gaze back onto the battlefield.

The Yunmeng Guo soldiers on the battlefield were putting up a desperate struggle, making their final resistance; defeat and destruction were already a matter of time.

The Champion Marquis, however, did not wish for his Kirin Army to suffer more deaths and injuries; a divine light flashed in his mind, and he suddenly remembered a martial art called the Four Tribulations of the Holy Heart.

And among the four tribulations, the Heavenly Heart Tribulation seemed very suitable for the current situation.

The Champion Marquis closed his eyes, True Qi circulating within his body; a wisp of True Qi coiled around that constantly beating heart, and even more True Qi spread out like thousands of threads, shrouding the battlefield like a great net. This great net ingeniously bypassed the Kirin Army and drilled into the hearts of the Yunmeng Guo soldiers, silent and soundless.

"Watch this, Marquis—Holy Heart Art!"

The Champion Marquis's eyes snapped open, and his heart began to beat violently.

Bang! Bang-bang! Bang-bang-bang!

Each heartbeat was more violent than the last, and every heartbeat was faster than the one before. In a short span of time, his heartbeat sounded just like thunder.

The Heavenly Heart Tribulation could link the opponent's heartbeat with one's own; the Champion Marquis was a Peak Martial Saint, his physical body naturally incomparably strong, so he remained calm and composed even as his heartbeat sounded like a beating drum.

But the Yunmeng soldiers were far from able to withstand the power of the Heavenly Heart Tribulation; they only felt a wave of heart palpitations, as if their entire hearts were about to jump out of their chests, feeling uncomfortable to the extreme. Their movements naturally became sluggish, and some even felt faint and dizzy.

The Kirin Army, each a veteran of a hundred battles, naturally would not let this once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity slip by. Blade light flashed continuously, and one soldier after another was killed or captured.

Before long, this battle drew to a close.

In this battle, the Kirin Army won a complete victory with very few casualties.

As for the high-level figures on the Yunmeng Guo side, most were dead, and the soldiers were either captured or killed.

……

Qingzhou.

Champion Houfu.

Inside a secret chamber.

The Champion Marquis stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the Heavenly Pillar Divine Stone before him.

After reporting his merits to the Imperial Court, he prepared to refine this avatar.

The Divine Fetus within the Divine Stone had already surpassed an ordinary Martial Saint and would sooner or later reach the level of a Human Immortal.

If given enough time to grow, this Divine Stone might even achieve the level of a Yang God, just like the ancient Sage Emperor "Hong" who also popped out of a stone back in the day.

However, for the Divine Stone Spirit Fetus to become a Yang God, the required coincidences and Heaven and Earth fortune were also massive and unimaginable.

"Although I could refine you slowly, I don't have that much time to let you gestate."

The Champion Marquis looked at the Heavenly Pillar Divine Stone; he had a premonition that perhaps before long, this world would be stirred by turbulent waves, and he needed the Heavenly Pillar Divine Stone to be born early to serve as his assistant.

"But with the massive resources of my Champion Houfu piled up, I should be able to push you to the level of a Human Immortal."

The Champion Marquis did not blindly pour resources into the Divine Stone Spirit Fetus, but instead spread his palm, and a drop of blood flew from his fingertip.

This blood actually carried a faint golden hue and had a rich fragrance, and it contained an unimaginably vast life force.

If one were to take this drop of his blood to refine medicine, it could even create several Grandmaster powerhouses. Of course, this drop of blood was the essence of a person, and if consumed recklessly, he himself would suffer a deficit.

The blood landed on the Divine Stone, and amidst the stone's humming vibration, it was immediately absorbed.

The Champion Marquis did not skimp, and drop after drop of blood flew from his fingertip into the Divine Stone. The Divine Stone then used the pure power contained within the blood to improve its own cultivation and wash its entire body.

In reality, every drop of the Champion Marquis's blood contained his own mental intent. Every time the Divine Stone absorbed a drop of blood, it was equivalent to being branded with a mental mark.

And although this Divine Stone Spirit Fetus had intent, this intent was incomparably pure and empty, like a blank sheet of paper, allowing others to paint and write upon it. In other words, as long as a cultivator had some knowledge and enough time, they could refine the Divine Stone Spirit Fetus into their own avatar.

Having transported over a hundred drops of essence blood in one breath, even the Champion Marquis's face was slightly pale. He sat cross-legged, the acupuncture points all over his body opened, and he began to absorb Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi.

Just at this moment, a knock on the door sounded.

"Come in."

The secret chamber door was pushed open, and the Goddess of the Moon appeared before the Champion Marquis.

The Champion Marquis glanced at the Goddess of the Moon and smiled slightly: "It seems that building temples and spreading faith is indeed very beneficial to you."

As the local Emperor of the twenty-five provinces across the seven states of the eastern border, it was not difficult for the Champion Marquis to establish a faith.

With one order from him, countless people would work for him.

Currently, there were tens of thousands of temples for the Goddess of the Moon, with incense burning every day, and the Faith Power was becoming increasingly dense and continuous.

As the number of believers increased, the Goddess of the Moon's own cultivation also continued to grow. The image in the believers' hearts could even influence the appearance of the Goddess of the Moon.

The current Goddess of the Moon was graceful and slender, floating on the wind, her beauty such that she seemed like someone who had stepped out of the Moon Palace and descended into the human world.

"It is all thanks to Young Master's grace." The Goddess of the Moon, Yue Qingxian, bowed slightly: "I wonder what business Young Master has with Qingxian?"

"I have a task for you to do," the Champion Marquis said calmly. "In the past, the Great Zen Temple was destroyed, but no one found the Great Zen Temple's treasures. In the previous battle, we captured the old Iron Pagoda general Tai Mang'er and forced an important piece of news out of him."

"That is, the countless remaining treasures of the Great Zen Temple, and even the three great scriptures of Past, Present, and Future, were all taken away in the Universe Bag. They were stolen and brought away by the Great Zen remnant, Jingren Heshang, one of the one hundred and eight Bodhisattvas, and hidden overseas. What I want you to do is to retrieve the Universe Bag."

……