Chapter 324: A Moment, a Hundred Years Pass [Today's 6,200-character goal achieved; tomorrow]

With Yuduan Jushi's words, the righteous faction immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

That's right, with the hundred-year lifespan limit in place, even if Dongfang Wuji hadn't died, what could he do?

Because of this world's hundred-year lifespan limit, almost everyone calculated their own heavenly lifespan.

After all, no matter how they lived, they could not surpass the hundred-year lifespan limit.

And precisely because lifespans could be calculated, they naturally had estimates for Dongfang Wuji's lifespan as well.

Ever since he left behind the legend of a single Qi breaking through two thousand six hundred armors over a dozen years ago, the jianghu had heard no legends of Dongfang Wuji—not even a rumor.

They had estimates for the Mo Sect Sect Leader's lifespan—only another ten-odd years at most. If he were still alive, it would be impossible for there to be no movement for so many years.

After holding back for over a decade, they roughly estimated Dongfang Wuji's end was near, and only then prepared to besiege Bright Summit.

Looking at this Mo Sect Sect Leader before them who could not even take care of himself, the righteous faction's newly suspended hearts immediately settled.

Although the sect leaders present were also in their sixties or seventies.

But relying on the vitality of life, they could easily maintain their appearance unchanged before death, each one could be called beautiful and dashing.

And this Dongfang Wuji before their eyes could not even maintain his own appearance, already showing signs of death—how much of his peak-period power could he possibly retain?

Facing the righteous faction's gazes, Yang Xiao coldly explained:

"Sect Leader Dongfang's skill has reached the pinnacle of creation. Although his end is near, he has already successfully comprehended the Qi Kun Da Nuo to its highest seventh layer, and has now stepped into the half-immortal realm of 'no technique surpasses having technique.'"

"Although his lifespan is now ending and his spirit is scattered, he only has the waking clarity of a single incense stick's time each day."

"But dealing with you hypocrites is still more than enough!"

'Half-immortal?' At these words, the righteous faction's expressions froze.

But the next moment, He Chong had already leapt high, his body transforming into raging flames as he charged straight at Dongfang Wuji.

"You don't even bother drafting your lies before you tell them—an immortal is an immortal, what half-step nonsense? Get past the hundred-year lifespan limit first before you talk."

As his words fell, his body transformed into a five-meter-tall fire-man, his right arm slamming down violently.

With the surging explosion of air, a fire fist of tens of thousands of degrees smashed toward the crown of Dongfang Wuji's skull.

Several Mo Sect Sect masters had long since retreated, leaving Dongfang Wuji alone sitting blankly in his wheelchair.

This punch was like a falling meteor; the fierce gale swept through, pressing a fist-shaped crater several meters deep into the ground.

But only the wheelchair Dongfang Wuji sat in remained unmoved and unshaken, like a single leaf—a boat ferrying across the world.

Boom!

A metallic clang of collision rang out.

He Chong only felt his right fist smash into dark iron, and his whole body suddenly retreated backward.

But with this retreat, he sensed killing intent fully revealed within three zhang around his body.

Out of nowhere, threads of chill seeped out from within He Chong's body, and she stared in astonishment at her own Flame Demon God body.

On her five-meter-tall blazing body, slashes from blades, axes, fists, kicks, palms, and fingers—over a dozen cuts drowned it.

In an instant, her body was divided into several segments.

Wounds of every kind—waist-severance, decapitation, severed hands, exploding chest—drowned her body, and the several-meter-tall frame burst apart in an instant.

The largest chunk of flesh coalesced into a human shape midair, retreating with an incomparably pale face.

In the span of just one move, she was instantly defeated, her mind-form greatly depleted; a few more times and she would be unable to maintain elementalization.

And beside her, a muffled grunt rang out, and fresh blood sprayed into the void.

Yuduan Jushi, who had intended to launch a sneak attack, withdrew from his invisibility form.

Clutching his right arm, which had a large swath of flesh torn open, he said in disbelief: "What kind of demonic art is this!"

Yes, in the eyes of the righteous faction, this was simply demonic art.

From beginning to end, Dongfang Wuji sat blankly in his wheelchair in a stupor, unaware and unfeeling, not even shifting his body once.

Yet in a single exchange, they were defeated.

"It is the Qi Kun Da Nuo…" Wudang's Zhang Yuanqiao gathered the divine light in her eyes and said with solemnity: "I'm afraid he truly has comprehended the seventh layer of the Qi Kun Da Nuo."

"Zhang Sect Leader, what is the effect of the Qi Kun Da Nuo?" a member of the righteous faction asked in a panicked tone.

"The first two layers of the Qi Kun Da Nuo can achieve the shifting of mind-form, with qi and meridians flowing long, a single breath circulating endlessly."

"The third and fourth layers can shift force, sending the enemy's attacks back through the circulation of force exactly as they came."

"As for the fifth and sixth layers, they can shift illusion, achieving 'no sword in hand, yet a sword in the heart.'"

Xuan Xu sighed lightly and said: "Back then, when the imperial court besieged Dongfang Wuji, facing the encirclement of a great army, he was clearly unarmed, but afterward, wounds from blades, spears, swords, and halberds of every kind were found on the bodies of those imperial guards."

"Clearly, the Dongfang Wuji of those days had already reached the point of being able to shift illusion into reality."

"But even the sixth layer absolutely could not achieve what we see before us. Could it be that the legendary seventh-layer realm of 'no technique surpasses having technique' truly exists?"

With Xuan Xu's words, the hearts of the demonic path surged with excitement, but the righteous path was struck with fear.

The absolute pinnacle of martial technique!

The true meaning of 'no technique surpasses having technique'!

Not the kind of 'no technique' that requires one to strike in order to break the opponent's moves.

But a 'no technique' where one does not move at all, standing in place and invisibly killing the enemy!

Clearly his consciousness was not clear, his body could not be controlled, lying in a wheelchair, yet he easily repelled the enemy.

This was simply a myth!

I'm afraid even a true immortal could not achieve this.

For a moment, everyone looked at that hunched figure in the wheelchair, yet seemed to see a colossal martial giant.

"Hahahahaha! It seems you also know there is no way to turn things around." Wei Yi Xiao laughed wildly and said: "But understanding it now is too late—don't even think about escaping."

The next moment, the Mo Sect Sect followers all dropped to one knee toward Dongfang Wuji in the wheelchair and said in unison:

"We respectfully welcome the Sect Leader's returning soul, to aid us in eradicating the demonic villains and defeating the righteous faction's experts."

As he spoke, Dongfang Wuji's eyes gradually cleared from their turbidity, and a murmur escaped his saliva-dripping mouth: "Masters... where are the masters?"

Speaking thus, once fully clear, her eyes fixed upon the righteous crowd before her like those of a hawk.

In an instant, everyone's hearts constricted; it was a deathly illusion as if being stared down by a vicious python.

At the same time, the leading Grand Masters of the Mo Sect wore malicious smiles upon their faces as they looked at the eight Grand Masters.

"Not good, the Demon Path is strong; everyone, struggle against the enemy with me!" Xuanxu thought silently, and a five-meter-tall Buddha phantom appeared above his body.

But in the next moment, the Golden-Haired Lion King roared and rapidly transformed into a giant beast with a lion's body and a human face.

It was not inferior to Xuanxu in size at all and lunged at Xuanxu of its own accord.

In the next moment, Yang Xiao sneered, his body splitting into seven, his gaze locking onto He Chong and He Miao of the Kunlun Sect in the distance.

A black lightning bolt swept past him, carrying waves of leering laughter: "My strength is slightly lacking; the chickens below Grand Master level are left to me."

As he spoke, the White-Browed Eagle King's coiled right claw struck out at Guan Weiliang of the Kongdong Sect.

In an instant, soldier against soldier, king against king; four Dharma Kings and one Vice Envoy pinned down five righteous Grand Masters.

As for the remaining three, cold sweat broke out on their backs as they stared at Dongfang Wuji's turbid eyes.

In this situation of three against one, the pressure on them now was actually greater than that on the other five combined.

Time merely froze for an instant; in the next moment, the two forces clashed immediately, and an unprecedentedly bloody slaughter erupted above Bright Summit.

Originally, the righteous forces on the mountainside, after the clamor appeared at the summit, charged toward the peak one by one, howling.

At the same time, inside the Universe Qi Bag, Fang Can yawned lightly and woke up just in time.

'Sleep is mostly done; time to go out,' Fang Can thought, extending his right fist forward gently.

Immediately, he felt his hand touch a wall that was formless and substance-less.

'The internal space of a ritual vessel? How much force is needed to shatter it?'

Fang Can muttered to himself; without space-teleportation abilities, the only way to break this layer of space was through pure brute force.

After all, the internal spaces of these ritual vessels were not as stable as the present world; a Second-Transformation space vessel could be forcibly blasted open by brute force if used by a Third- or Fourth-Transformation practitioner.

Although the strength of martial artists within this world was currently weakened, these ritual vessels were naturally so as well; thus, one only needed to display strength exceeding what the vessel could withstand.

Feeling the power accumulated within his body, since he was in total darkness, his flesh received no amplification without sunlight.

'Although there is no real sun, what about the sun in my heart?' Fang Can thought, and the massive sun within his Sea of Consciousness swallowed and exhaled blinding light.

Before long, a faint glow actually appeared on Fang Can's skin, illuminating this five-meter-square space.

With the radiance emanating from his body, his muscles, affected by the placebo effect, began to climb step by step in strength, like an ancient primordial giant beast awakening.

"Relying on the light of the mind, let the strength increase to roughly the level of the rising morning sun in reality."

But through his premonition, he knew it was not enough.

To break the spatial blockade of the ritual vessel before him, the strength currently possessed was far from sufficient.

'Tsk... even conventional Fourth-Transformation level strength is not enough to break it?' A hint of conquest flashed in Fang Can's eyes.

The more challenging something is, the harder it is to break through; the more satisfying it is to tackle!

"In that case, let's just wager my life."

In the next moment, a jade pendant carved with dragons and painted with phoenixes appeared in Fang Can's palm.

It was the apology given to him by the Pure Heart Studio back then, the Fourth-Transformation ritual vessel 【Dragon and Phoenix Heart-Linking Pendant】!

Its effect was that upon use, it would make a person of the opposite sex fall in love with oneself unconditionally, but it would shorten one's lifespan by one hundred years.

Although it shortened the lifespan by one hundred years, that century did not simply vanish in vain.

According to the descriptions by Xi Xing and others in bed that night, the body would skip a hundred years of time after use.

If a martial artist grew stronger with age, using it would greatly reduce their lifespan, but they could crazily increase their strength.

Fang Can had now reached the Second Transformation, with a lifespan of three hundred years; losing a hundred years meant one-third of his life would disappear.

'But compared to a hundred years of lifespan, it is indeed more satisfying to break this wall with pure violence.'

Under the state of arrogance, Fang Can's willful words echoed in his heart.

(End of this chapter)