C1367 The Giant Beast Appeared
Ji Ningshuang's icy gaze suddenly burst with astonishment. After fending off Ciara with a swift sword strike, she looked up towards the extraterrestrial heavens. There, she witnessed the River of Swords left by Nie Qingtian spring to life, transforming from inert to animate before her eyes. She was acutely aware that each River of Swords was dozens of times broader than the vastest rivers and lakes of the Everlands. Moreover, these Rivers stretched for millions of miles, pulsing with astonishing psionic power. This power, cradled within the sword light, had evolved over centuries into the River of Swords. At the heart of the River lay the core teachings of the Sword Sect—numerous intricate sword spells and the enigmatic sword's will. Yet the original masters of these sword lights and wills had long since vanished into the annals of history. Without a successor to resonate with and awaken the sword's will, the formidable sword force within the River of Swords would remain dormant.
She had spent ages deciphering just one River that corresponded directly with the Stardust Blade. Who, then, could rouse more than a dozen Rivers of Swords in such a brief span, causing them to blaze with such intense brilliance? Initially, she suspected the Snow Bear, assuming it was once again demonstrating its power. But she quickly realized that above the River of Swords, amidst the dense cold fog, the Dragon Slaying Stage loomed, growing ever larger. Ningshuang's delicate features shone with a radiance mirroring that of the Rivers of Swords.
Elsewhere, a colossal Divine Visage, thousands of feet tall and cloaked in starlight, emerged from a mundane Frost Star. The Divine Visage's numerous acupoints swirled with nebula-like currents, as if countless cores had been assimilated into his very flesh and bone. Behind him, a massive Death Crane fixed Alonso with a gaze filled with lethal intent. Jun Chen, the enigmatic first counselor of the Skyreach Consortium, held a bamboo flute and with a casual flick, summoned a deluge of starlight that descended upon the Shura, brandishing his silver lance with a ferocious air. Yet, Alonso's true adversary was neither Jun Chen nor the Death Crane. It was the Ghost King Tian Zang, who, standing upon the Blood Altar in his true form, wielded the Spawn of Chaos to relentlessly blunt the edge of the silver lance.
The golden sacred light and the silver lightning were significantly diminished within the Spawn of Chaos.
Tian Zang alternated between an illusory form and a formidable physical presence, preventing Alonso from getting anywhere near him.
In the midst of this, Jun Chen and the Death Crane were covertly exerting their strength to ensure that the Shura commander could not swiftly conclude the battle.
Alonso spoke with a chill in his voice, "Youqian, I pity you."
Tian Zang ignored him completely.
As the battle intensified, Alonso, Tian Zang, Jun Chen, and Bai He simultaneously sensed something and turned their attention towards the River of Swords.
"Yu Yuan!"
Tian Zang's grin twisted into a strange laugh.
"Yu Yuan! The Dire Bear!"
The unassuming rare stone, having bid farewell to Mo Baichuan's Abyssal Leviathan, also turned its gaze to the outside world. After using the mystique of the cosmic giant beast to sense its surroundings, it let out a soft, deep cry.
Its expression darkened, and its eyes slowly turned a deep red, brimming with violence.
Boom!
The core of the Frost Star, where it lay hidden, shook violently, and an unimaginable surge of power instantly blanketed the entire world.
Within mere seconds, every Shura clansman, bird, insect, and alien beast in this world perished.
The small stone pierced through the star and shot away in the blink of an eye.
"Roar!"
The Snow Bear, perched on the surface of the star where Yu Yuan was concealed, let out a ferocious roar and immediately pinpointed the Abyssal Leviathan's hiding place.
It fixed its gaze on the stone that had already escaped the Dead Star.
Its vision cut through all the haze, directly perceiving the Abyssal Leviathan and the peculiar world fashioned after the Embers Sea.
It also caught sight of Lin Zhuyun and the docile Ghoul King.
"Hehe, how many years has it been since we last saw each other?"
The Abyssal Leviathan, within the world of the rare stone, waved casually as if greeting an old friend, "You always seem to be at odds with me, ruining my plans. Why bother?"
As he spoke, he did not show his true form. Instead, appearing in Ming Kun's human guise, he stepped out from the rare stone.
The gaunt elder, clutching the totem-pole adorned rare stone, strode effortlessly through the void, his cold visage betraying nothing as he traversed countless miles in a moment.
He drew ever closer to the star that moved sluggishly toward the River of Swords.
No longer did he conceal his tracks or skulk in the shadows.
For he had sharply sensed that Yu Yuan's Solar Spirit Body was on the verge of completion.
He had waited so long for this moment; how could he possibly allow Yu Yuan to succeed?
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Nine streaks of sword light burst forth from the distant River of Swords, speeding like arrows piercing through daylight.
Each sword light, a deep crimson hue, carried the boundless essence of the "Moonfall" sword's will.
"Nine Celestial Slashes, Moonfall Strike!"
Du Yuan, wiping the blood from his mouth, gasped in astonishment as the sword lights streaked across the starry sky.
Yue Mu and Ji Ningshuang distanced themselves from the platinum Shura, their eyes tracking the path of the sword lights.
Boom!
The Dragon Slaying Stage expanded a millionfold, resembling a colossal silver sun suspended in the void. Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit loomed even larger than Jun Chen's Divine Visage.
Every formidable presence, whether openly or covertly within the Glimmerdrift Nebula, had their gaze captivated by this spectacle.
"What is that?"
"Yu Yuan!"
Death Crane and Jun Chen exchanged words in a mix of bewilderment and uncertainty.
One man and one archdemon, transfixed by the immense Lunar Spirit of Yu Yuan, were at a loss.
Across the dazzling starry sea, they beheld the Dragon Slaying Stage, now in the extraterrestrial, radiating divine might. Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit seemed to swell with an unstoppable momentum!
And then, they witnessed Yu Yuan wielding his sword with his Lunar Spirit!
In the next moment, the Moonfall Strike materialized. Nine crimson sword lights shot from the River of Swords, tearing through the fabric of space, and descended upon the Abyssal Leviathan.
"Heh!"
The formidable cosmic giant beast, in its primal form, nonchalantly appeared just as the first crimson sword light drew near.
Suddenly, the Glimmerdrift Nebula was illuminated by an additional crimson sun and a moon of white jade!
These were the Abyssal Leviathan's otherworldly eyes, having fused a true sun and a frigid moon within its sockets.
Rip!
Sword-like fins erupted from the back of the Abyssal Leviathan, shattering the first crimson sword light to pieces.
The fins alone towered thousands of meters high, rivaling the grandeur of Jun Chen's Divine Visage!
The Abyssal Leviathan stretched its massive body, continuing to grow at a rapid pace. Below it, an ice-cold star appeared no larger than a watermelon.
Its belly fins, sharp as sawteeth, swept across the star, ripping open another world in their wake.
Crack! Crack!
A second and third wave of crimson sword light struck the scales on its back, scattering a shower of light that mingled with the billions of points of starlight, cascading down either side of its spine.
The luminescence fell toward the dark, icy expanse of the Star Sea.
Its eyes—one a fiery red, the other a luminous white—watched over the River of Swords and the locations of the "Dire Bear" and Yu Yuan's true form.
Next to the Abyssal Leviathan, the two-thousand-meter-long "Dire Bear" was inconsequential.
The "Dire Bear" was like an infant taking its first steps compared to an ancient colossus, unable to even reach the giant's knees.
"Cosmic giant beast!"
"Abyssal Leviathan!"
Terrified shouts echoed from across the Star River. Powerful Shura, visitors from the Everlands, and the esteemed cultivators from the Skyreach Consortium and Boulderdawn were all astounded.
The Abyssal Leviathan had revealed its primal form, a body larger than the stars of a Domain, something that seemed to belong only in the realm of dreams.
It was a rare privilege for anyone in the Star River to witness a Cosmic Giant Beast in its original form.
Several more sword lights fell, but the Moonfall Strike, capable of gravely wounding an Unbound cultivator, merely left faint marks on the Abyssal Leviathan.
"Yu Yuan, without the true Titanblade, how could you possibly harm me?"
As the Abyssal Leviathan spoke, its voice thundered across the world.
Every living creature in the Glimmerdrift Nebula, whether in the sky, on land, or in the deep sea, could not escape the sound of its voice.
Though it spoke in the human tongue of the Everlands, every being could comprehend its words.
It was as if the gods had shared their secret language, audible and intelligible to all.
"Too strong!" Ji Ningshuang exclaimed, her eyes wide with admiration. She had just witnessed an incredible display of swordsmanship from Ciara, whose sword light danced like the River of Swords itself.
Lin Zhuyun, a skilled huntress, tracked her prey through the Embers Sea, her eyes never leaving the Ghoul King, Ming Kun. She clutched her totem-pole tightly, knowing that the Solar Spirit Body it bestowed could be the key to her victory.
