Chapter 428: The World Knows, The Profound Army Moves

Still as a maiden, moving like a thunderclap.

In this instant, Li Yuan, having gathered momentum for a long while, saw the true qi swirling around his body simultaneously embody the forms of wind, cloud, thunder, and lightning!

Formless and shadowless, swift and ferocious!

Having lain dormant for a long time, he erupted violently; seeing the ink dragon surge up the heavenly ladder, Li Yuan dared not hold back even a fraction, layering the Six Kouzhong Hammers, the Crimson Blood Pattern Dragon Armor, and the Divine Fire Hundred-Beast Boots upon his body!

Erupting in one strike, when he reached the ink dragon's surroundings, he ruthlessly activated the Sea-Splitting Hai Whale Hammer.

How fierce was this strike!

Long Long Yingchan, watching from afar, felt his eyelids twitch, as if the strike had stung his eyes; Brother Zhongli Wang Luan suddenly rose, his beard and hair bristling, a flicker of dread crossing his rugged face!

All the Dao Sect elders were visibly moved!

At this moment, even in their eyes, Li Yuan had vanished; they saw only the hammer crashing down like thunder, a strike containing power that would make a Grandmaster turn pale!

More terrifying was that such a ferocious, swift hammer strike produced no sound whatsoever, nor any fluctuation.

It was as if wind blew and clouds moved, a wandering dragon spreading rain and clouds in the sky... wielding thunder and lightning naturally, perfectly blending with the surrounding environment, with nothing abrupt!

"That is..."

Pei Pei Xingkong, Long Long Xinglie, and others who were pursuing also keenly sensed something was wrong, mainly because the ink dragon's reaction was too extreme, as if a celestial dragon whose reverse scale had been touched!

"Who?"

The crowd watching from afar could only feel awe, while the ink dragon, the first to be struck, saw its pupils shrink to a needle point!

A chill exploded in his heart... rapidly spreading to his entire body, making every hair on his body stand on end, like countless beans clinging tightly to his skin!

This was an assassin of peerless caliber.

"Boom."

In a flash of lightning and spark, Li Yuan heard a tremendous roar!

The sound of the heavy hammer striking like a drumbeat, incredibly vivid, transmitted to his ears and heart; instantly, he felt his qi and blood circulation severed!

This heartbeat completely covered his own, subsequently affecting his body!

"Fierce."

The thought "Fierce" flashed through Li Yuan's mind, and his Hun Tian Bing Ji Hammer, poured with all his essence, qi, and spirit, had already pierced through the true qi blade aura swirling around the ink dragon!

Crack!

The ink dragon's eyes turned blood-red; a vast area of crisp cracking sounds erupted from the Golden Body, not from bones grinding, but from the violent surging of blood, colliding and rubbing against each other!

His blood was like heavy stone beads, colliding and rubbing; under the suppression of the Life-Nurturing Furnace, it erupted with a heaven-shaking counterattack.

His clothes and hair were blown back together; facing this art of peerless assassination, his palm suddenly rose, vanished instantly, and reappeared as a dragon claw covered in scales, imbued with the demon-subduing intent of the blade, reaching straight for Li Yuan's brow, or... to crush his skull.

In this instant, the crowd watching from afar all felt the ferocity and dominance rushing toward them!

This spiritual manifestation of the number one under heaven, caught off guard by Li Yuan's peerless assassination strike, could still display astonishing decisiveness in a flash of lightning and spark!

Neither evading nor dodging, using attack as defense.

Wooo.

Inside the Dun Tian Zhou, in a dim study, a pin drop could be heard!

Watching the blurred and distorted image in the Great Sun Heaven-Watching Mirror, Wan Wan Zhuliu's hand on the sword paused slightly!

"Having a long arm isn't that impressive..."

Li Yuan's eyelids twitched; this dragon claw was fully ten zhang long, covered in qi and blood and true aura, and he had no doubt that a single claw could crush his skull!

But...

"The importance of a surprise attack."

This thought flashed through Li Yuan's heart!

The ink dragon's counterattack was undeniably fast, its methods undeniably fierce; Li Yuan even felt as if the number one demon-subduing blade was pressed directly against his brow, but ultimately, he had struck first.

More impressive than a long arm is naturally the initiative!

Since he struck first, how could he possibly arrive later?

"Aaaah!"

The vibration of the heavy hammer, like a thunderous roar from a dragon's throat; in the instant the Shan Xuan Whale true qi poured out, Li Yuan's hammer was like a thunder dragon revealing its true form amidst clouds and mist!

Even as strong as the ink dragon, when suppressed to the brink of blood exchange, could not dodge; struck by that Yi Shi Zhong hammer from top to bottom, hitting the shoulder and chest, and also encompassing half the lower abdomen!

The heavy hammer was not only heavy, but also huge.

Boom!

As the heavy hammer fell, the ink dragon's already blood-red eyes were dyed a deeper crimson; that immense, overwhelming force suddenly descended!

In an instant, he even heard the sound of bones and tendons exploding; the true qi and qi-blood interwoven outside his body, the armor worn beneath, and the hardened flesh were pierced as if by a withered branch being broken!

When it crashed heavily to the ground, the massive heavenly ladder itself trembled!

Pei Pei Xingkong and others, separated by a hundred or so steps, felt their hearts tremble too; this was the first time someone had blocked the ink dragon's path since it reached the thousandth step!

Not only blocked.

Watching the mushroom cloud suddenly rise and expand in circles, Long Long Xinglie keenly smelled the scent of blood; not only him, but everyone else smelled it too!

Overwhelmingly strong, as if a thousand incense sticks had been lit!

Then, the gathered, undispersed air wave finally erupted completely, surging like a wild wind, blowing sand and stones flying across dozens or even a hundred steps!

"Ah!"

A heaven-shaking roar, Yu Yu Xuanji, echoed around; that sound was like a true celestial dragon, sharp and high-pitched!

A figure plummeted from above at extreme speed, visibly piercing through that layer of the heavenly ladder, having been hammered down from the upper levels to the lower levels, and even lower.

To the lower levels, and even lower.

"Good."

Seeing the heavy hammer land on the fourteenth level, the hearts of the Dao Sect elders finally settled... Long Xi Xiang suddenly rose, clapping his hands in praise, a flush of red rising on his youthful face, as if he had drunk fine wine!

Long Long Yingchan's fingers pinching his long brows also trembled slightly, then released!

"Refreshing!"

Under one hammer strike, Li Yuan only felt as though an electric current shot from his tailbone straight to the back of his head!

This was the strongest hammer strike he had ever thrown, and, without the slightest waste, all of it poured into Mo Long; that feeling of hammer hitting flesh was simply more wonderful than the sound of forging iron!

The only thing to regret was that the man's physique was outrageously strong to a hair-raising degree—such a heavy hammer strike from him had actually failed to kill him!

"Ah!"

The roar echoed within the cauldron!

Under one strike, Mo Long was like a falling meteor, smashing through at least ten-odd steps; amid the billowing dust, he crashed down heavily, gouts of fresh blood nearly spraying out, landing with a 'crack-crack-crack,' like hailstones striking the ground!

"The pain is killing me."

Blood poured from all seven orifices of Mo Long; his entire vision went black then red. Under this hammer strike, his right arm along with his left chest had been smashed into mush!

True Qi, inner armor, horizontal training—none could withstand it!

The heavy hammer's armor-piercing strike did not shatter the inner armor draped over his body, yet it shook his flesh and bones into powder!

"You!"

The voice cut off abruptly. Mo Long suddenly rolled over, retreating violently; the thunderbolt-like heavy hammer, along the layers of steps it had smashed through, came once more in an explosive killing blow!

"It was you who drew the blade."

Amid his violent retreat, Mo Long's heart was shocked and furious, yet also felt it was inconceivable!

At this moment, through the fog, he still could not see the appearance of the person within, but relying on the Dragon Tiger Nourishing Cauldron's suppressive force upon himself, he already knew the Wu Gong of the person opposite!

Mere Viscera Refining, mere Viscera Refining!

Mo Long's eyelids twitched wildly. After dodging this strike with a violent retreat, he pounced forward to kill once more; with a flick of his left arm, like a divine edge, he sliced through the rolling dust!

"Too tough to beat."

Between strides, the heavy hammer swept horizontally, like lightning tearing through the sky, the hammer's sound like sudden thunder; Li Yuan felt a touch of astonishment in his heart!

After he unleashed that strike, his own viscera and meridians suffered tremendous shock, yet Mo Long, who had taken the full force head-on, had only lost half his body!

Moreover, he still maintained extremely powerful combat strength!

However, under this hammer strike, even the fleshly body of a Grand Master would have lost half its body; no matter how overwhelmingly strong Mo Long was, he could not resist the suppression of the Nourishing Cauldron.

At this moment, he had just now fallen to the Viscera Refining realm!

"A fair fight."

The hammer shattered that blade strike coming from afar; Li Yuan's aura also momentarily dipped—the augmentation of the Li Hai Shan Xuan Jing Hammer placed too great a trial on his physique.

Boom.

Boom.

Mo Long raged furiously, striking with all his might; Li Yuan seized the hammer and charged horizontally to meet him!

Every move a head-on clash, every move lethal!

In an instant, the two had already exchanged dozens of moves; the battlefield spread from one step to dozens of steps, the interwoven shockwaves of their clash like one hurricane tornado after another!

It made the distant spectators like Pei Pei Xingkong all shudder!

Those two fiercely clashing amid the dust and hurricanes—whether in technique and skill, strength and qi-blood, or True Qi reaction—had all reached an extremely high level!

Compared to before, the Mo Long of this moment was finally displaying his true methods!

Dragon God True Qi, Fu Mo Dao Fa, Wei Shen Zhang Yin, Wu Yang Jian Sha Fa, Yi Xian Ge Shi… one divine art after another wielded with perfect ease, all at Great Perfection, and linked together without any delay!

Any move, any stance, caused the surrounding Dao Sect true disciples, Dao Sons, and even a group of elders to wear solemn expressions!

Yet compared to Mo Long, the hammer-wielding figure shrouded in fog, not revealing his true face, not only did not fall at a disadvantage, but instead displayed a crushing superiority!

Wind and clouds intertwined, thunder wielded and lightning ridden, like the legendary Thunder God; every move and stance was in grand mastery; no matter what divine arts Mo Long unleashed, he simply could not shake him!

Boom.

On the Heavenly Staircase, tremendous booms echoed unceasingly!

Yet among Pei Pei Xingkong, Shi Shi Qingyi and the others there was a death-like silence; several wore dazed expressions, for the moment unsure which one was the challenger!

The one being crushed—was that truly the Ling Xiang of the Number One Under Heaven, Wan Wan Zhuliu's Wu Gong?

"Who is this?"

Pei Pei Xingkong looked toward Long Long Xinglie; the latter was somewhat dazed, steadied himself, then shook his head: "Don't know!"

Several looked toward Xin Xin Wenhua; the latter's face was full of shock, and he too shook his head: "Never seen him!"

The group inwardly found this hard to believe, but did not press further; many people's gazes never left the two combatants. This kind of pinnacle duel in technique was of too great a benefit to them!

It was like a mirror, reflecting all their own flaws and shortcomings!

Silence.

In the Imperial City, the Piandian was utterly still; even the reporting attendant momentarily forgot to speak!

In midair, the Great Sun Monitoring Heaven Mirror's light flickered, yet the scene within was extremely blurry, as if covered in layers of gauze; but everyone present was a pinnacle master of the age, and through these blurred light and shadows could reconstruct the original scene in their minds!

Mo Long had actually been suppressed to this extent!

"Who is this person?"

At a certain moment, the Qian Emperor spoke!

"Qi forming wind and clouds shrouding the body—this person should have mastered Wind Tiger Cloud Dragon, and his hammer technique should be Dragon Tiger Heavenly Hammer, along with multiple mid-grade and upper-grade hammer techniques…"

Shen Shen Qisheng spoke, but looked toward Wu Wu Yingxing, who kept fiddling with the jade in his hand—

coins—the latter's brows tightly furrowed; back at that very first strike, he had already begun divining and deducing!

"This person…"

Wu Wu Yingxing deliberated for a long while before raising his head: "In that strike, a trace of qi leaked out—it should be Daoist Tianyun Daoist Tianyun Xuanbing…"

"Not that old ghost?"

The Qian Emperor spoke up to interrupt, asking!

"No!"

Wu Wu Yingxing shook his head: "That old ghost cultivates the Bai Shen Fa and the Dragon Demon Heart Sutra, and has also stolen the royal secret transmission 'Nine Suns in the Sky' and the three secret divine arts of the Three Caves, the 'Great Sun Golden Form'. Yet this person bears no similar aura!"

"Not that old ghost..."

The Qian Emperor was slightly stunned. As he pondered, he suddenly heard footsteps outside the door. A guard bowed and reported: "Your Majesty, someone has arrived outside the Imperial City requesting an audience with Your Majesty. He says, he says he comes from beyond the heavens..."

"Hmm."

The Qian Emperor's gaze sharpened. Over there, Shen Shen Qisheng had already risen abruptly:

"Beyond the heavens?"

Boom.

Upon the Sky Ladder, figures intertwined, fierce winds never ceasing. In a short time, the two had already exchanged dozens of moves. Accompanied by another thunderous roar, the Ink Dragon's figure was knocked flying!

This time, under a direct clash, after dozens of moves, he was struck back and knocked flying.

Blood sprayed into the air!

Ah.

A roar like a dragon's cry echoed. The Ink Dragon, shaking his blood-drenched left hand, trembled all over. A vast expanse of black mist suddenly surged upward, and his figure vanished instantly!

In the next instant, a pair of crimson eyes lit up within the churning black mist. A hideous dragon head slowly emerged, carrying rage and killing intent!

"The Subduing Demon Dragon God Form."

Seeing this, the onlookers' expressions all tightened, but they immediately sensed something amiss!

This was not the Subduing Demon Dragon God Form, but the Ink Dragon's true form.

"Crack."

As if lightning had flashed, Li Li Yuanba, wielding his hammer, moved. He had seen the Subduing Demon Dragon God Form countless times; one glance revealed the deception. Amidst the churning black mist, he charged in with a thunderous roar!

Roar.

A cry of pain and rage echoed. The Ink Dragon, not yet fully transformed into a spiritual form, was smashed down the Sky Ladder by a single hammer blow, blood splattering everywhere!

"Who are you?"

The Ink Dragon coughed blood. In that instant, he felt a chill of terror!

This person seemed to know him incredibly well; before he could even transform into a spiritual form, his process had already been interrupted!

Boom.

While questioning in shock and rage, his heart sank completely. The pressure of the Dragon-Tiger Life-Nurturing Furnace descended. Having missed that instant of explosive power, he could neither bypass the Daoist Tianyun Daoist Tianyun Xuanbing nor manifest his spiritual form's true body!

Roar.

Bearing a dark green dragon head, the Ink Dragon rose from the ground, blood dripping, and charged upward again: "Who exactly are you?"

The old loach has reached its limit!

Years of experience drawing his blade had given Li Li Yuanba deep knowledge of the Subduing Demon Dragon God Form. Seeing the Ink Dragon erupt in fury, he felt a sense of relief instead, then leaped into the air!

After dozens of moves back and forth, he had completely seized the upper hand!

This Ink Dragon, aside from his physical body, was far inferior to Wan Wan Zhuliu's sword intent; the latter at least didn't talk so much nonsense!

Hum.

Sweeping upward, Li Li Yuanba activated the Art of Commanding Weapons once more. Various weapons, along with the blessings of the Sea-Splitting Dark Whale Hammer, descended upon him. As the heavy hammer fell, a torrent poured forth like a flood!

It pierced through the rolling dragon god true qi, the crisscrossing Subduing Demon sword net, and then descended!

Thud.

The heavy hammer struck flesh, emitting a bone-jarring sound of tendons and bones exploding!

This strike was aimed straight at the forehead. The dark green dragon head shattered accordingly, and vast amounts of flesh and blood scattered in all directions. Echoing alongside was the Ink Dragon's roar: "Who exactly are you?"

Such a boring question; in times past, Daoist Li would have deemed it unworthy of an answer!

But now, looking at the Great Sun Heaven-Monitoring Mirror, which had been thrown flying and shimmered with faint light, his heart stirred. He answered loudly: "I am Li Li Yuanba."

Bang!

Seeing the scattered flesh and blood, all the onlookers fell into a momentary silence!

In an instant, Li Li Yuanba felt his brow burning. Pillars of incense scent rose from the Land of Spiritual Light, but he had no mind to count them then, nor even to notice!

Almost the instant the Ink Dragon's aura cut off, his vision was filled by an extremely dazzling dark light!

Hum.

The dark light, like a tide, filled everything within sight!

Li Li Yuanba dazedly looked up, feeling a crimson cauldron spinning giddily within the tide of light, emitting a low yet joyful trembling sound!