Essence Devouring Art

WHOOSH~

Pristine white snow stretched out as the cold wind howled.

”Hah! Yah!”

Amidst the wind and snow.

A young boy, clad in thin clothes, stubbornly practiced his sword forms in the courtyard. He clutched a wooden sword, his little face blue with cold.

COUGH COUGH~

Inside the humble thatched hut.

The weak coughs of a young girl could be heard intermittently, mingling with the wailing wind and snow in a heart-wrenching symphony.

CREAK~

The dilapidated wooden gate opened.

”Ye Xuan, practicing your sword again?”

Mo Chen’s breath plumed in the cold air. He cupped a bowl of watery vegetable porridge, his whole body trembling.

”Mo Chen.”

Ye Xuan put down his wooden sword and hurriedly ushered Mo Chen into the drafty hut. His eyes fell on the clear porridge, and he swallowed hard, bowing his head as tears welled up.

”Mo Chen, you didn’t have to. Things are hard for you too.”

PAT!

Mo Chen patted Ye Xuan’s head and chuckled, chiding him gently. ”Quick, take this to your Sister Hong. This isn’t for you. You can have this.”

As he spoke,

he pulled a steaming sweet potato from his robes and waved it in front of Ye Xuan’s eyes.

”Heh heh.”

Ye Xuan took the sweet potato, puffing out his chest with the bravado of a child pretending to be an adult. ”Don’t worry, Mo Chen! When Sister Hong gets better, I’ll make her marry you!”

COUGH COUGH...

The coughing from inside the hut grew louder.

”What nonsense are you spouting?”

Mo Chen chuckled, pinching Ye Xuan’s cheek. ”You’re wise beyond your years. Careful, or your sister might just give you a thrashing for that.”

”Hey, don’t be fooled by my sister’s cold expression. She’s actually warm-hearted, and there’s no one prettier in any of the surrounding villages.”

Little Ye Xuan continued his sales pitch.

”Alright, that’s enough of that. Tomorrow I’m heading On the Mountain to look for some medicinal herbs. You take good care of your sister.”

”Mo Chen, I promise I’ll make something of myself one day and repay you.”

”Su Chen said the same thing. I don’t need repayment from any of you. Just stay safe.”

...

The wind and snow raged.

After that night,

Ye Xuan never saw Mo Chen again.

Or perhaps, he had simply forgotten about the kind young man who had brought warmth to his childhood.

RUMBLE—

The turbulent, boiling waters of a billion rivers,

and a supreme killing intent that crushed and tore through every inch of space, shattered the hazy, dreamlike memory of that snowy night.

”You... Mo Chen...”

Ye Xuan snapped out of his daze.

He stared in disbelief at the towering figure of Wu Dao, who stood before him like a Demon God. The stark disconnect from reality left him bewildered, shocked, and terrified.

’Why did those images appear?’

’Was it real, or just an illusion?’

’If it was real...’

’...then wasn’t he, Ye Xuan, a vile, ungrateful wretch who had feasted on the very bones of his benefactor? And what about his master and his father? Behind their kind and affable facades...’

’...how much darkness was hidden?’

”There’s no need for guilt. You’ve done nothing wrong.”

Wu Dao spoke indifferently, without any anger or vengeful ferocity. His voice was so calm it sent a chill down Ye Xuan’s spine.

”Because this is how the World is. The strong have absolute dominion over the weak.

Mo Chen died.

It only proves one thing.

He lacked the Power to protect the destiny he was blessed with. You obtained his Creation, which proves you were stronger—in one way or another.

Just like this very moment...”

Wu Dao’s voice remained calm as he looked down on Ye Xuan. ”I want to kill you. If you want to live, your only way out is to be stronger than me.”

Indeed, Wu Dao made no effort to hide the karmic link between them.

At this point,

it no longer mattered.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!—

The Heart Lake Alarm Bell pealed wildly.

Ye Xuan felt an overwhelming sense of death closing in. He had no time to ponder the truth. His eyes burning with fury, he roared:

”What’s so great about a giant picking on a child? If we were at the same cultivation level, I could slaughter you like a dog!”

In his perception,

Wu Dao was a Little Cosmos pressing down upon spacetime itself. His combat power was, at the very minimum, at the Great Saint Level. Ye Xuan had no Power to resist whatsoever!

”The same level...”

Wu Dao’s gaze was an abyss, devoid of any emotional ripple, yet Ye Xuan could clearly see the sheer contempt within it.

It was the look one gave a clueless ant.

”Sigh. It seems you’re truly a fool.”

Wu Dao sighed.

He had lost interest in talking with Ye Xuan.

Because,

The two Extreme Dao Bells within his body had merged and were now fully charged!

VMMMMM~

In that instant,

Everything in Ye Xuan’s perception seemed to vanish. He could hear nothing, feel nothing. A dead silence fell over everything!

A black bell, like a demonic sun from the Abyss.

Its entire surface was entwined with the celestial patterns of the supreme Great Dao.

Within the bell, amidst the roar of crimson Chaos, countless Grand Cosmoses were born and annihilated. It commanded the torrent of Hongyuan’s myriad Daos, crushing the eons and shaking All Heavens as it rose slowly from the very font of destruction!

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!—

Before the bell even tolled,

the Emperor Dao Patterns within the frozen Ye Xuan automatically activated under the immense pressure, only to whine and then shatter, completely unable to withstand the Extreme Dao Bell’s might.

RUMBLE—

Inside the Extreme Dao Bell,

Wu Dao heard a clap of thunder from the very Dao Root Source. It carried an ancient killing intent, vowing to annihilate all who dared defy it, seeking to overthrow all existence beneath the Great Dao.

Formless, soundless, colorless.

And without any warning.

Celestial Punishment descended the moment the Extreme Dao Bell’s recovering power surpassed the Forbidden Emperor Level!

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!—

Wu Dao could clearly feel it.

Under the pressure of that indescribable power that sought to destroy everything and return it to the Great Dao,

the countless Dao Patterns on the outer surface of the Extreme Dao Bell!

From the Macroscopic to the microscopic, like collapsing building blocks or a sandcastle eroding in the wind, they rapidly disintegrated and annihilated on their own, returning to their primordial state!

Celestial Punishment!

A deconstructive strike from the Great Dao itself!

The Essence, Qi, and Spirit of all things within the Dao are granted by the Great Dao itself. The penalty of Celestial Punishment is the Great Dao tracing all things back to their origin—a reaving of all that it has given!

The power of the Dao Root Source.

No wonder no one within the Dao dares to defy it!

At best, one’s realm falls; at worst, one’s Dao is extinguished!

VMMMM!!

It all happened in the span of a thought.

The Chaos Mother Liquid burned rapidly to power the Extreme Dao Bell. Under the Celestial Punishment, Wu Dao advanced instead of retreating, unleashing the Divine No Evil Lotus, rapidly reviving the Extreme Dao Bell’s might.

In its peak state, the Extreme Dao Bell

was only One Step away from achieving Attainment Dao alongside the Slaughter Emperor.

Even though it was incomplete,

for a short while,

resisting the Celestial Punishment was not a problem.

VMMMM! VMMMM! VMMMM!—

The Chaos Mother Liquid charged it without regard for consumption. The Energy burned in an instant could have brought about the Creation of countless Grand Cosmoses!

The Mighty Power of the Extreme Dao Bell,

also climbed frantically in the span of a thought, reaching the first critical point—

Thirty-Three Heavens Emperor!

BOOM!

As expected,

the eye of the calamity, the Burial Realm, was triggered by the power of a Peak Great Emperor. The accumulated Tribulation Qi erupted like a billion ancient volcanoes, frantically battering the seal left by Emperor Hong Shi!

And in that instant,

Wu Dao clearly felt what terrifying Power was charged within the Extreme Dao Bell. If he were to strike it, the released Energy would annihilate thirty-three Grand Cosmoses in a flash!

”You dare!!”

In that same instant,

it was as if a Supreme God of the Nine Heavens opened its eyes within Ye Xuan’s body. Outside Daluo Heaven, Chaos churned into a furious tide. A voice of supreme authority, accompanied by the torrent of Celestial Destiny Sword Light, boomed across All Heavens!

At this moment,

if one were to step into Chaos,

it would be clearly visible.

After the Extreme Dao Bell had been struck in the Great Zizai Heaven, one after another, towering figures had stood like dams outside Daluo Heaven.

Sensing the anomaly in the Burial Realm,

in the instant Ye Xuan was on the brink of life and death!

Emperor Hong Shi drew her sword!

One sword drawn, ten thousand Daos followed, Celestial Mandate stirred!

All existence in All Heavens!

All sentient beings could feel it!

The ever-flowing river of fate in the unseen world changed its course, turning into a boundless, brilliant sword light that plowed through Chaos, slashing towards the Daluo Sky Burial Realm!

””How audacious!””

And it wasn’t just Emperor Hong Shi!

In the Sea of Chaos beyond Daluo Heaven,

numerous Primordial Chaos beings also opened their eyes and roared in anger. Like Judgement Heavenly Gods, they raised their swords to pierce through Chaos and suppress the rampaging Burial Realm!

If the Burial Realm explodes!

The Three Tribulations Tribulation Qi will detonate!

The impact on the future fortune of the Daluo Celestial Domain would be immeasurable. It would very likely never recover and fall into decline!

”What’s happening?”

”Heavens, is this the end of the world?”

”A Primordial Chaos being has acted, and more than one!”

In that same instant,

the Dao Essence of many Primordial Chaos beings erupted.

It caused the infinitely vast Daluo Celestial Domain to tremble and shake. The laws and order were in disarray, whining as if they could collapse at any moment. Countless living beings were terrified, not knowing what was happening.

BOOM!

A clap of thunder exploded!

It resounded throughout the Hongyuan Great World and even the Mountain and Sea beyond the domain, through endless dimensions and spacetimes. All living beings felt the fury of the Great Dao!

Celestial Court Profound Sky.

A supreme gaze descended.

Divine Ruins Heaven and Earth.

The sound of surging waves was heard again.

Mountain and Sea Realm Jun Tian.

Two chaotic figures playing Go glanced over indifferently, as if watching a good show, anticipation in their eyes.

Buzhou Heaven, Profound Yellow Heaven, Cyan Nether Heaven, Fuguang Heaven...

Giants were also startled at the same time.

They all cast their gazes towards the Burial Realm.

”Ha! The kid’s really going for it!”

In an unknown place,

the Slaughter Emperor, wreathed in bloody light, was also surprised. He looked towards the Burial Realm again and smiled in admiration, not expecting Wu Dao to be so audacious!

But soon,

he wouldn’t be smiling for long.

DONNNG!!!

The Extreme Dao Bell tolled, and All Heavens shuddered in fear!

Under the gazes of the giants of All Heavens,

a crimson demonic sun, one that had once dragged Hongyuan into a dark Abyss, rose once more in Daluo Heaven after hundreds of thousands of years!

””He really dares!!””

The old fossils of the Nine Heavens were horrified.

The familiar blood-red demonic sun reminded them of the fear that had dominated them for hundreds of thousands of years, the shadow left by that madman!

Hundreds of thousands of years later,

who was it that was now ringing this death knell?

Did it mean...

...that the madman was about to return?

Soon,

they would have their answer.

”I dared. So what?”

Wu Dao’s indifferent and tyrannical voice,

spread through the Extreme Dao Bell, resounding throughout the All Heavens and Universe as his abyss-like gaze met the gazes of the towering giants in Chaos.

A strange, weak, and insignificant aura.

Yet at this moment, it overshadowed all the great lights of the world, causing countless beings to look on in horror, a single thought appearing in all their minds—

The madman’s successor is also a madman!

A Great Saint at most!

Challenging the Primordial Giants of All Heavens!

He even ignored Emperor Hong Shi and actually struck the Extreme Dao Bell. If this isn’t madness, what is?

VMMMM—BOOM!

Beneath the Extreme Dao Bell,

as expected,

Ye Xuan was like dust crushed by the heavens, turning to ash and smoke. Only three strands of Mixed Element Dao Pattern light remained, protecting the last glimmer of his Divine Soul!

”You... court death!”

BOOM!!

And in that instant,

Emperor Hong Shi’s Celestial Destiny Sword Light arrived!

A boundless torrent pierced through everything. The fates of innumerable living beings were woven into the sword as it cleaved through the vast expanse of spacetime and struck the Extreme Dao Bell!

A Primordial Strike!

Even with the restraints of Celestial Punishment!

Before it was completely annihilated, it could still heavily damage the Extreme Dao Bell and kill Wu Dao within it from the shock!

But!

At this moment of life and death,

Wu Dao’s expression remained placid, so calm that even the giants of All Heavens were astonished.

CRACK—

In a billionth of a second,

a faint sound of a cocoon shattering,

resounded in the heart-seas of the giants of All Heavens.

Along with it...

...came a sacred, free-flowing divine light that drowned everything. It surged up from the Celestial Kingdom, weaving together the form of a towering Divine Spirit whose upper body rose into Chaos!