Du Yun and You Beixuan's duel swept through the Primordial Realm like a gust of wind, pushing this Dao Discourse Conference to its climax.
Everyone within the Primordial Realm began rushing toward the Primordial Dao Field, eager to witness the battle firsthand.
Swish—
Zhao Xing and Ai Miaomiao were transported via the Thousand-Star Vine's green leaf corridor. As they traveled, they saw countless leaf-scrolls flowing beneath the starry sky, like a meteor shower raining down.
"There's so many people," Ai Miaomiao exclaimed. "Du Yun and You Beixuan's duel really drew a crowd."
"It did." Zhao Xing had been in the Primordial Realm for two thousand years, and aside from the final evaluations during the Primordial Conference, he had never seen it so crowded.
Du Yun and You Beixuan were both peerless prodigies. Many at the Reincarnation Realm had come to watch.
After all, the secret arts they cultivated were among the top-tier in the world.
One cultivated the Reincarnation Chapter of the Void Ancestor, the other the Feather Emperor's Sword Technique.
Even among those at the same stage, few had foundations as solid as Du Yun or You Beixuan.
So of course people wanted to see it with their own eyes.
"Junior Brother, we're here."
Walking on green leaves, Ai Miaomiao and Zhao Xing passed through a curtain of starlight and saw a vast sea below. Above the sea floated numerous uniquely shaped islands.
Some resembled cacti, others looked like dandelions...
As a level-nine Thousand-Star member, the Five Venom Emperor possessed an independent mushroom-shaped floating island within the Primordial Dao Field.
Swish— The two of them arrived on the mushroom island.
At the moment, the Five Venom Emperor wasn't there. Inside the Viewing Hall was only a man in a dark green robe.
It was the other disciple of the Five Venom Emperor—Wei Lan.
He was sitting cross-legged on a meditation cushion, seemingly unaware of their arrival.
"Greetings, Senior Brother Wei," Ai Miaomiao and Zhao Xing said in unison.
Wei Lan didn't respond, eyes still closed in meditation.
It was Zhao Xing's first time seeing Wei Lan. Seeing him like this, Zhao Xing frowned slightly.
They were both disciples of the same master. The Five Venom Emperor did favor Zhao Xing more. Could this senior brother be trying to show him who's boss?
"Senior Sister Ai, what's going on with Senior Brother Wei?"
Ai Miaomiao looked him over, then took a few steps forward and examined him from all angles before lightly tapping Wei Lan's forehead with her finger.
Plop—
Wei Lan toppled backward, blood seeping from his orifices. His body began to sprout with multicolored plants.
Zhao Xing: "..."
The sudden sight gave Zhao Xing a fright.
But Ai Miaomiao just smiled and said, "Senior Brother Wei's fine."
"This is fine?!"
"Totally fine. He's cultivating."
"May I ask what technique this is, Senior Sister?"
"The Five Viscera Sprouting Technique. Every day at mao hour, a companion seed grows from the five viscera, breaks through the body, and sprouts from the seven apertures."
"At you hour, the sprout withers and reverts into a seed, returning to the five viscera. During this period, his vitality and spirit become extremely faint—like he's dead."
She explained cheerfully, "It cycles like this. As long as nothing goes wrong, the first stage should be completed in about five hundred years."
"If you don't believe me, use your divine sense to check—he's not actually dead."
Zhao Xing, hearing that, threw etiquette aside and immediately used a spell to scan Wei Lan's condition.
Sure enough, just as Ai Miaomiao said, Wei Lan looked dead—but actually...
"Wait, no, Senior Sister. Senior Brother Wei's heart flame is almost extinguished, and his life core is incredibly weak." Zhao Xing was stunned. "This—this is dying, isn't it?"
"Tut, seems like it really is."
"Stop mumbling and help him already, Senior Sister!"
Zhao Xing was already numb—how could she be so calm?
Ai Miaomiao quickly pulled out a set of wooden spikes, sliced open Wei Lan's chest, and drove the spikes into his body. Then she stitched him back up with practiced ease.
Her hand was now stained with black blood. She licked her fingertip and nodded. "Mm, now he's really fine."
Sure enough, Wei Lan soon woke up.
Seeing his own condition, he didn't seem to mind at all. He summoned water droplets to clean his body, flipped over, and stood up.
"Junior Sister Ai, thanks again. I didn't expect the new sprout strain to produce such intense poison during refinement. Bit of a miscalculation... This must be Junior Brother Zhao, right?"
Zhao Xing: "..."
Seeing how casual they were, Zhao Xing didn't know how to react.
Only when Wei Lan called him a second time did he snap out of it and return the greeting. "Greetings, Senior Brother Wei."
"Haha, don't be so polite," Wei Lan laughed heartily. "I didn't scare you, did I?"
"A little," Zhao Xing answered honestly.
"Don't worry, you'll have to learn Master's Sprouting Technique too someday." Wei Lan's grin showed a mouth full of large black teeth. No matter how he smiled, he looked sinister.
Watching the two chat so casually, Zhao Xing couldn't help wondering what kind of experiences they'd gone through together.
Even with mental preparation, he still felt a chill deep down.
"So, what are you two here for again?" Wei Lan walked over to the side, picked up a bottle filled with a thick, murky liquid, and drank it.
As he talked, he handed another bottle to Zhao Xing.
"Master told Junior Brother to come watch Du Yun and You Beixuan's match," Ai Miaomiao reminded.
"Oh, right—plop."
Wei Lan had just finished drinking when he suddenly collapsed onto the meditation cushion and entered a meditative state.
At the same time, his body hair began to grow, and his life force and soul weakened drastically.
Zhao Xing stood there holding the crystal bottle, his hand frozen mid-air. He didn't know whether to drink it or not.
Ai Miaomiao drank hers with a satisfied smile and floated her bottle back to the platform.
Zhao Xing then noticed that there were seven or eight vine tips dripping liquid into containers nearby.
"Junior Brother, why aren't you drinking it?" Ai Miaomiao turned around and saw him still holding the bottle. "This is good stuff. Master usually rations it."
Zhao Xing glanced at Wei Lan. Ai Miaomiao chuckled, "Don't worry about him. Something went wrong earlier, so he drank the 'vine sap' to make up for lost time."
Make up for lost time? What, rushing to the afterlife?
Zhao Xing muttered inwardly, but still held his nose and drank it.
To his surprise, it tasted really good.
Zhao Xing felt his mind grow sharper and more alert.
Just as he put the bottle down, Ai Miaomiao shouted from behind him, "Junior Brother, hurry up and look—Du Yun and You Beixuan are entering the field!"
The Primordial Dao Field—an isolated combat arena.
Above the vast ocean, two figures appeared on the sea surface.
"You General!"
"You General!"
Cheers erupted from all directions throughout the combat space.
"You Beixuan's popularity is insanely high," Ai Miaomiao said. "He's the undefeated general of the Empire's Glory Duels. That one thousand four hundred and eighty-match win streak among Dao Domain cultivators over the past three hundred years? That's all him."
Zhao Xing naturally knew of the Glory Duel. The first time he met Jing Yan, the guy had challenged him through a Glory Duel.
Originally a trend among the Imperial nobility, Glory Duels later became a staple even in the military.
"Quite the celebrity," Zhao Xing murmured, eyes locked on the silver-armored, long-haired man above the sea, a longsword on his back.
Compared to him, the cheers for Du Yun were far quieter.
This duel, though it drew immense attention, had a completely one-sided crowd. Practically everyone was rooting for You Beixuan—even Reincarnation Realm cultivators were watching closely. The pressure on Du Yun had to be immense.
But when Zhao Xing shifted his gaze to Du Yun, the man looked totally relaxed.
He even picked Zhao Xing's gaze out from the sea of eyes and returned it calmly.
"Zhao Xing." Du Yun gave a small nod and a faint smile.
"Brother Du," Zhao Xing replied. "Where's your Twilight Cloud Sword and Sunset Armor?"
Those were Du Yun's two most famous origin divine weapons, but he wasn't wearing either. He had on a plain gray-yellow bodysuit.
"No need," Du Yun said calmly, shaking his head.
"In this match, Du Yun won't be using any weapons," the Five Venom Emperor said, watching the sturdy figure above the ocean. "You Beixuan, on the other hand, will be using both sword and armor."
"Even so, the Great Derivation Armament's predictions still favor Du Yun for a solid win."
"This kid's terrifying."
Zuo Qiyu frowned as he looked down. "The gap is really that big? No wonder the Origin Heaven Palace agreed to such extreme terms."
The Five Venom Emperor muttered, "Don't mess this up, or we're both getting crushed if this goes south."
Zuo Qiyu couldn't even be bothered to respond.
Above the ocean, Emperor Tianwu, the Sovereign of Tianyou Kingdom, Zhanze, and others all watched the two on the water.
"Hahaha, they underestimated him. Sure, Du Yun isn't allowed to use any divine weapons—but he's a Qi Sect martial artist. Weapons? Just external tools."
"You Beixuan's Feather Emperor Sword Technique probably won't even scratch Du Yun's skin."
As the duel neared its start, Emperor Tianwu finally smiled.
After so much scheming, Du Yun had finally been sent onto the battlefield.
Despite the many restrictions, he still had absolute confidence in Du Yun.
The boundless sea below shifted as heaven and earth transformed!
You Beixuan hadn't even drawn his sword, yet countless sword auras already engulfed the ocean.
Pure white sword qi, shaped like sword tips, drifted down like feathers—formless, intangible.
The surface of the sea responded, water droplets rising up in sword shapes, all pointing at the heavens.
It was as though the dueling platform had become a world of swords.
Even You Beixuan himself seemed to turn into a razor-sharp blade.
And in that world, Du Yun stood alone.
"It's starting," Zhao Xing focused completely, even jumping into the center of the island's Soul Tree just to get a better view.
"His sword technique is nearly Dao-level. I can't even sense You Beixuan's life force—just an overwhelming sword aura."
"The Feather Emperor Sword Technique really lives up to its name as one of the Five Emperor Sword Techniques."
"You Beixuan must've walked countless steps down the path of the sword."
"He's even suppressing his life fluctuations. If I were facing You Beixuan, I probably wouldn't even be able to find him," Zhao Xing said, watching the feather-like sword qi drift down, marveling at the technique's profundity.
Compared to the Qi Sect, Sword Sect techniques were far more refined and had much greater visual impact.
Rip!
In a flash, Du Yun's plain outfit was completely shredded.
But streams of light immediately flowed across his skin, forming a new set of clothing woven from spiritual energy.
The densely packed sword qi bombarded Du Yun's golden body, seeping in from every angle.
Yet Du Yun stood firm, unmoving. His golden body alone withstood the entire onslaught.
"You Beixuan, draw your sword," Du Yun said, staring at the white-robed swordsman. "Just this Feather Emperor Sword Domain can't even shake my golden body's aura—let alone hurt my true form."
You Beixuan said nothing, as if Du Yun's words hadn't registered at all.
Du Yun stopped talking. He opened his mouth and inhaled sharply, swallowing large amounts of sword qi.
The sea below calmed again. Only the sky continued raining down sword energy.
Thump!
Du Yun puffed his cheeks, and from within him came a powerful heartbeat.
Clang!!
The sword on You Beixuan's back trembled violently, almost breaking free from its scabbard.
"Du Yun's own divine ability—Heartquake Pulse," Zhao Xing muttered, scanning with his spiritual interface and catching key details. "Just one pulse, and You Beixuan's Sword Heart wavered."
Now, all of Du Yun's divine abilities—Thousand Star Fall, Void Severance, Obscure Purple Light, Wailing of the Lost Soul, and Heartquake Pulse—had reached the level of full mastery.
"You Beixuan's sword techniques are also perfected divine abilities."
"But Du Yun was able to shake You Beixuan's Sword Heart, and that proves Du Yun's overall attributes are higher."
"If You Beixuan is forced to draw his sword, then as a sword cultivator, he might not have any chance left," Zhao Xing judged calmly.
Divine abilities tied to the physical body and sword techniques were all types of martial abilities—but even among divine abilities, there were varying strengths.
In the Three Thousand Divine Abilities, divine abilities were divided into innate and acquired, and they were ranked accordingly.
For example, Yu Tianqing's Eye of Truth-Breaking ranked ninth among innate divine abilities.
Of course, Yu Tianqing's Eye of Truth-Breaking didn't enhance direct combat power but instead granted immunity to all illusions and allowed dissection of the Dao's essence. That's why he could progress so freely in the Transmission Realm, upgrading at lightning speed.
Thump!
The second heartbeat echoed out. You Beixuan still hadn't drawn his sword.
After the third beat, he finally spoke.
"Du Yun, activate your Reincarnation Golden Body, or you'll die."
He gripped the sword hilt in reverse, steadying his blade. Suddenly, all fell silent.
You Beixuan's aura dropped sharply, but his sword grew ever brighter.
"You want me to show my Reincarnation Golden Body?" Du Yun's eyes shifted to the jeweled sword. Noticing the seven embedded gemstones, his brows lifted slightly.
"So that's it."
"You've nurtured your sword for ten thousand years. If you're drawing it now, I suppose you are qualified to see my Reincarnation Golden Body."
As he spoke, the golden body's aura around Du Yun shifted from earthy yellow to bright yellow. The aura surged upward, as though some transformation in his physical body had just completed.
Immediately after, his physique grew again. The golden aura turned to dark gold. The golden body's essence compressed inward, then began an unrestrained expansion.
A giant appeared between heaven and earth.
His towering form far exceeded what anyone could have imagined.
"Good heavens! What level of golden body is that?"
"Even among normal Life and Death Dao Domain cultivators, a ten-extreme golden body is already peak-level. But Du Yun's... could be hundreds of extremes high?"
"Crude brute! All he knows is 'bigger, bigger, bigger!' Damn it, my megalophobia is acting up."
"Wait... why is his golden body black?"
From the floating spectator islands, exclamations burst out. Du Yun had completed a third transformation.
His golden body aura erupted again from within, now pure black.
The black aura dyed the sea, making Du Yun's form completely unseeable—only his eyes remained visible, floating in the void.
As for You Beixuan, he had vanished from view—he was just too small to be seen in comparison.
Zhao Xing pushed the Soul Tree's power to the limit and finally caught a glimpse of the scene.
Under the dark starry sky, two deep eyes appeared. Beneath them, tiny specks of starlight began to shimmer and gradually grew.
The moment Du Yun activated his Reincarnation Golden Body, You Beixuan's sword finally left its sheath.
The sword light expanded rapidly. Both figures were soon engulfed by its brilliance, making it impossible to tell them apart.
Eventually, Zhao Xing only saw a feather drifting toward those deep, dark eyes beneath the starry sky.
The next second, the void shattered.
The entire view trembled violently and broke into countless fragments.
Zhao Xing was hit by an intense wave of vertigo and felt horribly unwell.
He had observed the clash too closely—his mind couldn't withstand the Dao resonance from their battle.
When his vision finally cleared, the sea had calmed once more, and the void had returned to normal.
"It's over? Damn it, I should've watched through the Void Straw Puppet's perspective instead." Zhao Xing smacked his thigh in frustration.
Ai Miaomiao looked over, puzzled. "Junior Brother, why are you hitting my leg?"
"Uh—sorry, Senior Sister, I got too excited."
There was only one Soul Tree on the island, and both of them were inside it, seated quite close together.
"Did you see anything?" Zhao Xing quickly changed the subject.
"No." Ai Miaomiao withdrew from the Soul Tree's heart space. "If I'd known it'd be like that, I would've used the Great Dao Mirror to watch."
The Great Dao Mirror was a derivative of the Great Derivation Divine Armament. It could analyze scenes too difficult to observe directly and translate them into viewable images.
Of course, that process came with "distortion," so you couldn't see the true nature of the Dao.
For casual spectators, it was a solid option.
But for anyone hoping to comprehend something deeper, watching with their own senses was far better.
"Who won?" Zhao Xing also exited the Soul Tree and pulled out his Star Mirror to watch the replay.
"Du Yun." Ai Miaomiao sounded just a bit disappointed.
The Star Mirror was replaying the final moments of the battle.
As You Beixuan's Feathered Sword struck toward Du Yun, it began to burn.
The white feather was covered in black flame, looking incredibly eerie.
The deep eyes expanded, which meant You Beixuan had entered Du Yun's golden body aura and was approaching his true body.
Then, the screen froze.
Those dark eyes bled red, and the white feather was completely consumed by flame.
Above the sea, Du Yun had returned to his normal size. Blood streamed from his right eye, and strands of sword qi were being pulled out from within.
This part of the footage was deliberately slowed down, making it seem like Du Yun had taken a serious hit.
You Beixuan, on the other hand, had vanished without a trace.
"Original Realm still cares about saving face, huh?" On another floating island, the Sovereign of Tianyou Kingdom laughed. "They slow down the part where Du Yun gets wounded, but don't show You Beixuan being rescued by Emperor Chenjiu. That kind of injury? For Du Yun, it's just a flesh wound."
"After all, we're on someone else's turf," Emperor Tianwu chuckled. "Doesn't matter—what matters is that we won."
"If this is what they call a loss, then it's a useless one," the Five Venom Emperor cursed. "Ten thousand years without drawing his sword, and all he could manage was a superficial wound. So much for the Empire's martial prowess. It's completely declined."
"A Reincarnation Golden Body approaching a thousand extremes... You Beixuan didn't lose unfairly," Zuo Qiyu said. "It's not that he's weak—it's that Du Yun is too strong."
"You Beixuan lost. Call Zhao Xing over."
"Du Yun has started breaking through," said Emperor Yuanding from the spectator section of the Reincarnation Divine Palace, eyes fixed on Du Yun above the sea. "His source is stabilizing, and the blood and aura of his golden body are beginning to convert into Dao Force."
"How many extremes will he reach in the end? Can he break one thousand?" asked another Reincarnation Realm cultivator nearby.
"No," Yuanding Emperor shook his head. "At this stage, only the Void Ancestor has ever reached a thousand extremes. Du Yun ranks fifth in history. His physical refinement count is one hundred million and eight times, more than thirty million short of the Void Ancestor. So, his golden body should stabilize at nine hundred ninety-six extremes."
"Even so, he's a Heaven-favored son," someone nearby sighed. "It's been so long since anyone like this has appeared."
In the spectator section of the Academy City, Scholar Bowe looked at Du Yun's dazzling golden body. A flash of excitement gleamed in his eyes as he murmured, "Such a precious physical form... truly a treasure of the heavens."
The Grand Scholar shot Bowe a glance, then warned in a low voice, "Bowe, whatever it is you're thinking, don't bring trouble to the Academy City!"
Reprimanded, Bowe immediately restrained his expression and returned to a calm demeanor.
"Master Zhixin, please rest assured. I won't cause trouble for the Academy City."
The Grand Scholar gripped the Wisdom Scepter in his hand and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
"Bowe, you're my most prized student. The Wisdom Scepter and the Academy's future will one day be in your hands. Don't make me regret this decision."
Bowe nodded, sat up straight, and said nothing more—but there was still a glimmer of danger flickering in his eyes.
When Zhao Xing was teleported before the Five Venom Emperor, he was still a bit dazed.
At that moment, he had no idea that Zuo Qiyu would be taking his place. He thought he really had to rely on his own strength to fight Du Yun.
So the first thing he said when he saw the Five Venom Emperor was, "Master, do I really have to fight Du Yun?"
"Can't you show a little backbone?!" the Five Venom Emperor snapped. "You've got two arms and two legs too—what's there to be afraid of?"
Zhao Xing was speechless. He wasn't afraid of Du Yun. He was afraid that the hard-won Void Straw Puppet would get destroyed in the process.
It had taken so many materials. If he had to collect them all himself, who knew how many years it would take?
"Not only do you have to fight," the Five Venom Emperor said, this time with a meaningful tone, "you have to fight beautifully! If you're really that scared, then as soon as you get up there, provoke him—no, curse him out. Say the nastiest things you can think of."
"Like, 'You brainless slab of meat!'"
Zhao Xing: "…"
Teaching your disciple trash talk before a fight... Master, you really are something else.
Rumble—
The world changed colors. Du Yun's breakthrough had triggered a massive disturbance.
As everyone had predicted, once he broke through, he stepped into the Life and Death Dao Domain Realm.
His golden body reached nine hundred ninety-six extremes, and his whole body burned with a dark aura, looking like a true demon god.
But the spectacle didn't last long, as Du Yun's breakthrough ended swiftly.
"Still lacking something."
After returning to his normal size, Du Yun's injuries were gone. He moved his body a bit and prepared to leave the arena.
Just then, another figure suddenly appeared over the sea.
A familiar silhouette.
"Du Yun, don't you walk away!"
"I, Zhao Xing, Shennong of the Original Realm, challenge you to a duel!"
"If you've got guts, accept it!"
His voice echoed across heaven and earth like thunder.
With lightning flashing all around him, Zhao Xing stepped onto the stage of the Original Dao Arena.
In the shining light, Du Yun's expression was clearly confused.
"Zhao Xing? What are you doing up here?"
"Obviously, I'm here to spar with you!"
At this point, Lord Zhao had no choice. Even without dignity, he had to pretend he had some.
Because this was the Five Venom Emperor's command.
And refusing… well, that would not end well.
"You want to spar with me?" Du Yun couldn't help but laugh. "Hahaha!"
"What the hell are you laughing at?!" Zhao Xing snapped through voice transmission. "Just say yes already!"
"Don't joke around. You should let me cool off somewhere else," Du Yun replied in kind. "I came here with a mission. I just finished this fight. I need to rest."
"If I beat up everyone in the Original Realm, it won't be an exchange—it'll be a declaration of war."
"Who's joking with you?" Zhao Xing's figure flickered, and a second figure appeared beside him. "Accept the challenge!"
Du Yun's laughter gradually faded as he looked at Zhao Xing's serious face—and especially at that plain-looking second figure.
Because he could sense it.
The Void Straw Puppet was not ordinary. It actually gave him a sense of pressure.
"This… is the legendary Void Straw Puppet?"
"That's right!"
"Very well. I accept your challenge."
Zhao Xing pulled out a Star Fortune Coin from his sleeve and tossed it into the air.
"If I can't knock you down before this coin hits the ground, you win!"
"Zhao Xing went up?" On the floating viewing platform, Jing Yan's eyes widened. "Damn, he even copied me!"
"Brother Zhao, your timing for showing off couldn't be worse. You dare say that to Du Yun?"
It wasn't just Jing Yan. Many people within the Original Realm were baffled.
"There's a round between Du Yun and Zhao Xing?"
"Never heard of that."
"Isn't this just asking to be beaten?"
"The Void Straw Puppet might be a legendary technique, but come on, this is Du Yun."
"Shameful! One embarrassing performance wasn't enough—they're adding another?"
"Truly shameless!"
Although Zhao Xing had gained considerable fame in recent years, it was still limited to the Original Realm.
Outsiders might have heard of the Void Straw Puppet, but few believed Zhao Xing was qualified to clash with Du Yun.
"What's he doing?" Han Qianye looked at his friend Daoist Miaosong with some confusion. "Has he lost his mind?"
Daoist Miaosong shook his head. "No idea. Let's just keep watching."
Out on the sea, Du Yun looked at the tossed Star Fortune Coin, momentarily stunned.
"You… you're serious?"
Seeing Zhao Xing remain silent, Du Yun didn't say more. He just stood there calmly and said, "Then come."
Zhao Xing dove into the Void Straw Puppet, slipping into the soul-core space inside its head—an interior formed from a shard of the Extreme Intent Soul Tree Core.
In the next moment, an aura that felt as though it came from the primordial wilderness surged from the Void Straw Puppet's body.
As the aura rose to a critical point, Du Yun's expression began to grow serious.
Seven-Colored Void Ancestor Crystal, Celestial Demon Spirit Gourd, Extreme Intent Soul Tree Core, Star-Devouring Sand, Earth Core Blood Nucleus, seven pieces of Void Ancestor's Molted Bone—these ultra-rare, source-grade divine weapon materials used to craft the Void Straw Puppet hit Du Yun with a heavy impact.
As the Void Straw Puppet continued to expand, Du Yun had no choice but to grow larger as well, elevating his Golden Body once more.
In the viewing stands, Zuo Qiyu was about to close his eyes when the Five Venom Emperor stopped him. "Don't be so hasty."
"What for?"
"If you step in now, it'll raise suspicion," the Five Venom Emperor explained. "Let Zhao Xing go a few rounds first. Let everyone see what the Void Straw Puppet is made of. Once they think they've seen through it, they'll drop their guard."
"Just say you want Zhao Xing to get some practice," Zuo Qiyu snorted. Still, he listened to the advice.
Because the current Void Straw Puppet Zhao Xing was using had reached a critical threshold. Built with divine weapon-level source materials, it was worlds apart from the ragged ones used in training.
Though it still couldn't defeat Du Yun, it wouldn't be crushed quickly either.
At first, Zhao Xing's appearance didn't attract much attention from the Reincarnation Divine Palace, Source Heaven Palace, or the Ancient Kingdom Alliance of the Barren Domain.
Even though Emperor Tianwu knew Zhao Xing's name was on the battle list against Du Yun, he didn't think much of it.
He simply assumed the Original Realm was letting Zhao Xing fight for experience.
He hadn't even bothered to mention it to Du Yun.
But when the Void Straw Puppet was revealed, Emperor Tianwu and the others were clearly surprised.
"The Void Straw Puppet... he used source-grade divine weapon materials?"
"This kid really has some skill."
To be able to wield a Void Straw Puppet built from divine weapon-grade materials—Zhao Xing was no joke!
"To control something of this level, both his soul and willpower have to be at the threshold of the Life and Death Dao Domain Realm," said Emperor Mangya of the Ancient Kingdom Alliance, clearly impressed. "Zhao Xing's talent... is actually on the same level as Du Yun?"
"Zhao Xing?" A gleam of sharp light flashed through Emperor Yuanding's eyes. "He's the key figure in Qing Yuzi's ascension…"
It was Emperor Yuanding who had coordinated with Qing Yuzi during the Xuanling Conference and was also the one who sealed Ji Si inside the lantern.
"A battle that looks casual on the surface might actually decide the allocation of exploration resources for the Barren Domain," he muttered. "And now he appears again—let's see where this leads."
After You Beixuan lost, Emperor Yuanding thought the matter of resource division had already been settled.
But Zhao Xing, wielding a puppet of this caliber, had completely changed the situation.
"A heaven-gifted treasure—another divine boon!" Scholar Bowe's expression stayed calm, but inside he was practically screaming with excitement.
"This is something heaven placed before me! A sign of destiny!"
"If… if I could just—"
A wild and daring plan began to take shape in Scholar Bowe's heart.
Boom boom boom boom boom boom—
The Void Straw Puppet and Du Yun's body expanded together. As they grew in size, they clashed constantly.
Of course, most of the time, Du Yun was defending while Zhao Xing was on the offensive.
When they reached around one hundred extremes, both of them paused.
For Zhao Xing, this was a comfortable range for maintaining control.
Du Yun, on the other hand, was going easy on him.
Although the Void Straw Puppet did exert some pressure on him, it was only a little.
It was still far from being a true threat.
"Zhao Xing, that Star Fortune Coin is about to hit the ground."
"Your Grain-Sized Heaven-Distorting Technique, Demon God Earth Palace, and Five Finger Mountain—they're all pretty good," Du Yun said. "But you're still nowhere near beating me."
Zhao Xing was about to respond when his vision suddenly blurred. A figure appeared inside the Extreme Intent Soul Tree Core.
Zuo Qiyu stood with his back to Zhao Xing, sending his voice directly into his mind. "Focus."
In that instant, Zhao Xing understood everything.
Well damn… teacher's taking over!
So this was the plan all along between the Five Venom Emperor and Zuo Qiyu.
Of course, Zuo Qiyu could take full control of the Void Straw Puppet. It was a hereditary trait of their lineage and extremely well-hidden—virtually undetectable unless one was in the Divine Realm.
"Keep going." Zuo Qiyu was a man of few words but ruthless efficiency. He motioned for Zhao Xing to continue the fight as usual.
Boom—
With his confidence surging, Zhao Xing immediately used the Grain-Sized Heaven-Distorting Technique to smash through Du Yun's Obscure Purple Light, briefly breaking out of the battle.
"Giving up already?" Du Yun looked over at Zhao Xing.
"Give up?" Zhao Xing raised his hand and struck the falling Star Fortune Coin, sending it flying back up again.
Then he said coolly, "Du Yun, have you ever tasted defeat?"