C2396 One Sword after Another!
"He actually chose Lin Daoke."
Bertain, the Great Demon God, watched in astonishment as the master of the Sword Sect stood below, a figure both familiar and foreign to him.
He had always held Lin Daoke in high regard, yet he couldn't fathom why Lin would be a more fitting choice for the Spirit of Creation than the little Primal Beast.
Why Lin Daoke?
Yu Yuan, too, was perplexed by the Spirit of Creation's selection, unable to grasp why this unremarkable Sword Sect master had garnered such favor.
"There are still vulnerabilities before he fully integrates with Lin Daoke."
The demise of an Undead Sovereign did not dampen the Primal Soul's spirits. Its phantom, within the green-black eyes, tempted Bertain, Tan Xiaotian, Ji Ningshuang, and the rest, saying, "In its early period, it is at its most vulnerable. Whoever among you can seize the moment to destroy it might gain a portion of its essence."
"Perhaps, you could become the new Spirit of Creation."
The Primal Soul whispered seductively, like a devil tempting mortals.
"Its essence?"
Bertain's eyes sparkled with interest, and Tan Xiaotian inhaled sharply, both clearly intrigued.
In that moment, Lin Daoke, wielding the primordial spirit sword, ascended slowly into the sky after vanquishing Yu Yuan's Undead Sovereign form with a single stroke.
His face was devoid of emotion, his eyes reflecting nothing but indifference – this was his constant demeanor.
He did not resemble Dickinson, overtaken by the Disaster Spirit, nor did he mirror the other deities and exalted beings who had been possessed.
Perhaps it was his innate disposition that made him appear so naturally attuned to the Spirit of Creation.
"Lin Daoke!"
Tan Xiaotian's voice erupted in a sudden shout.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Demon Lord unleashed the Six Great Darkness Curtains. Descending from Yu Yuan's colossal form, he revealed a Divine Transcendence towering 30,000 meters high.
Tan Xiaotian's Divine Transcendence was awe-inspiring, with the Six Great Darkness Curtains unfurling behind him, each like a gateway to a paradise.
The Spirit of Creation's choice of Lin Daoke over him left Tan Xiaotian discontented.
The audacious and prideful master of the Devil Palace had hoped to capitalize on the Spirit of Creation's arrival, seeking any advantage he could find.
From his perspective, Yu Yuan, who had been overtaken by the Primal Soul, was already weaker than the Undead Sovereign's body, so his instantaneous death didn't necessarily attest to the Spirit of Creation's might.
Moreover, the Primal Soul had mentioned that the Spirit of Creation required time to properly bond with a host body.
He was curious to see if there was a chance to exploit the situation before the Spirit of Creation and Lin Daoke could fully synchronize.
Considering that the Primal Anima, which governed the Land of Origins and wielded dominion over countless worlds, still needed a flesh-and-blood vessel to manifest its true power—and was vulnerable outside the Land of Origins and beyond the reach of the All Spirits Ban—Tan Xiaotian believed it was worth the risk.
After all, what's the worst that could happen? Death!
"Origin!"
Unexpectedly, before Demon Lord Tan Xiaotian could act, it was the Death God, Kurkova, who struck first.
With a whoosh, her formidable essence of death dispersed, and the colossal Wraith Tree materialized, enveloping her flawless figure.
This Sylph woman from the Otherworld, already striking in appearance, merged her remnant soul and divine power with each Wraith Tree in the forest. She truly resembled a divine being presiding over life and death.
As the forest of Wraith Trees and her form descended, it seemed as though she was beckoning everyone into an Otherworldly domain of demise, advancing towards Lin Daoke, the master of the Sword Sect.
The overwhelming desire for death affected Bertain, Tan Xiaotian, and even Ji Ningshuang profoundly, instilling in them a bizarre sense that death was the ultimate release.
Tan Xiaotian, poised to strike, felt the six Heavenly Barriers behind him resonate with a whisper of oblivion.
"This woman is more powerful than Harris!" Tan Xiaotian exclaimed uncontrollably.
Suddenly, a myriad of death symbols emerged on the trunks of each Wraith Tree. As the forest descended, a multitude of dark flames burst forth from the depths of the Death God Kurkova's eyes.
They were the flames of destruction!
She had unraveled many secrets of the destructive truths her husband, Galuba, mastered. In this unrestrained assault, she unleashed her most potent forces, aiming to pull Lin Daoke into the realms of death and destruction.
Lin Daoke, with a vacant gaze, was already on an ascendant trajectory. As the sea of trees plummeted from the heavens, he found himself unprepared, plunging into the forest formed by the Wraith Trees.
Whoosh!
The death symbols etched into the branches of the Wraith Tree transformed into millions of birds with ashen wings, all swooping toward Lin Daoke.
The Wraith Tree morphed into a Mysterious Realm of death, a dojo for those seeking the end, unleashing a massive tide of energy.
"Death!"
The voice, capable of shattering one's spiritual wisdom, thundered around Lin Daoke, threatening to obliterate his very soul.
At that moment, a chilling hue washed over the Primal Soul's face, peering through Yu Yuan's eyes.
He gazed at Kurkova as though she were already a corpse.
Whoosh!
A sword light, with the power to cleave heaven and earth, burst forth from the depths of the Wraith Tree!
This blindingly bright sword light, infused with Thunder, Lightning, Metal, Extreme Cold, Flame, and various other forces of the Primal Anima, cleaved through all chaos and barriers!
The myriad birds, born from the death runes, were pulverized by the might of the sword light, vanishing in an instant.
The sword light snaked through the forest of Wraith Trees like a dragon devouring landscapes, obliterating everything in its path.
Kurkova, at the heart of the Wraith Trees, was reduced to dust in a flash, her blood, flesh, and soul thread annihilated.
The sword light, after a serpentine dance of destruction, returned to Lin Daoke's palm, reverting to his primordial spirit sword.
His face remained stoic, his eyes empty, as he ascended further.
Kurkova, the Death God from the Otherworld, was utterly extinguished by Lin Daoke's blade.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Behind Demon Lord Tan Xiaotian, the six great curtains of darkness he had cultivated began to stir wildly.
Tan Xiaotian screamed, exclaiming, "Dark Spirits are at play!"
As Lin Daoke ascended, six black lines writhed within the blade of his gleaming primordial spirit sword.
These squirming lines tugged at the six great curtains of darkness, refined by Tan Xiaotian, causing the World of Darkness, akin to a celestial haven, to descend beyond his control.
Simultaneously, Tan Xiaotian's towering Divine Transcendence, fused with the six curtains, plummeted alongside them.
Lin Daoke raised his sword, the once crystal-clear primordial spirit sword now as black as ink.
Contained within the blade's pure blackness were the laws of metal, wood, water, fire, earth, sun, moon, stars, ice, and lightning—all elements that were palpably present to those around.
The Divine Sword, black to its extreme, emitted a sword light that seemed to swallow all light, charging towards Tan Xiaotian and the six great curtains of darkness.
Rip!
The World of Darkness, akin to six vast drapes, was shredded by the sword light. The dark magic concealed within was dissolved, and in an instant, it all turned to nothingness.
With a single thrust from Lin Daoke, the six great curtains of darkness behind Tan Xiaotian were declared void.
The sword light, black to its core, pierced through the now nonexistent curtains and aimed straight for Tan Xiaotian's forehead, between his brows, where he stood immobilized.
Puff!
The beam of ultimate blackness, still devouring the light source and laden with numerous Primal Anima laws, struck the palm of a massive outstretched hand.
This colossal hand, resembling a wall of multicolored jade, revealed clearly the flesh and blood within, composed of numerous delicate blood crystals.
Innumerable bloodline chains, like lightning, darted through these blood crystals, dazzlingly arranged into various arrays within.
The hand, as resplendent as colorful jade, emerged before the rigid Tan Xiaotian, halting the pitch-black Divine Sword in its tracks.
Rip!
Where the sword tip met the palm, a shower of sparks erupted, combining Lin Daoke's sword light with the blood crystal brilliance from Yu Yuan's palm.
Both the sword light and the blood light were infused with the profound intricacies of the Way of Heaven from across the cosmos.
"Yu Yuan!"
Tan Xiaotian, drenched in a cold sweat, realized that without this hand, as sturdy as a multicolored giant shield before his forehead, he would have been penetrated by the sword light.
Had that happened, he would have met the same fate as the Death God, Kurkova, his form and spirit utterly annihilated.
"You're saying he hasn't yet merged?"
Tan Xiaotian spun around, his gaze burning with fury as he stared at the phantom within the blood crystal's eyes. "Each of his swords is imbued with the profound truths of the Primal Anima from the Land of Origins! He has already achieved perfect mastery. How well it must resonate with him!" he exclaimed.
The Demon Lord became aware that the Primal Soul's seductions were a ploy to sacrifice them in order to gauge the extent of Lin Daoke's divine power.
"I certainly don't care whether you live or die," the Primal Soul nestled within the dark eye responded with icy indifference.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Demon God Bertain, Ji Ningshuang, the Secular Bird Queen, and a fortunate Tan Xiaotian, who had narrowly avoided disaster, swiftly took their places on the massive, multicolored shoulders of Yu Yuan.
They, too, recognized that Lin Daoke, cherished by the Spirit of Creation, was not someone they could easily contend with. To heed the Primal Soul's words would be to share the fate of Yu Yuan, the Undead Sovereign, and Kurkova.
Chi!
The Divine Sword, black as the void, pierced only a small hole in Yu Yuan's palm. Lin Daoke's expressionless eyes lingered on the puncture before withdrawing the primordial spirit sword.
The Divine Sword, previously a conduit for the essence of numerous Primal Animas, was intended solely to execute Tan Xiaotian, not to combat Yu Yuan. Thus, the blade could only penetrate the hole in Yu Yuan's palm, unable to ravage his flesh and blood.
As Lin Daoke sheathed his sword, the once pitch-black Divine Sword began to gleam once more, its inner swordsmanship no longer governed by the laws of darkness. The Divine Sword flared with brilliance, as dazzling as when it first vanquished the "Undead Sovereign," blinding to behold.
