The white-robed figure's robes fluttered away with the wind, revealing his true face.
Though his palm was cut open by the blade, a smile remained in his eyes.
"Heaven's will is like a knife, and human hearts are unfathomable."
Qing Ling retracted "Zhan Shen," a smile gracing his face. "Senior Hong Jun, why did you intervene?"
Hong Jun's good-natured avatar chuckled, his palm wound closing and disappearing. "Fellow Daoist, your actions are too defiant of heaven, compelling me to act."
Black Phoenix Holy King's expression turned grim, her eyes filled with shock. Hong Jun was an existence far superior to Ancestor Phoenix, yet his avatar could not withstand that single blade strike.
"Thank you for your assistance, Fellow Daoist."
Hong Jun nodded. "I shall only intervene this once. The rest depends on you."
Black Phoenix Holy King nodded, her eyes blazing with fighting spirit.
Qing Ling met the good-natured avatar's gaze. "Has Heaven's Dao gained control over you, Senior?"
The good-natured avatar smiled and shook his head. "Heaven's Dao can control me, but not Hong Jun. You have been defying heaven for a long time. Heaven is angered. You must be careful."
As his words faded, the figure vanished.
Qing Ling's heart jolted, a sudden realization dawning upon him.
Heaven's will is like a knife, and human hearts are unfathomable.
Zhan Shen is a knife, a knife that slays gods.
By wounding Hong Jun's good-natured avatar, he had wounded Hong Jun himself, and Hong Jun was the guardian of Heaven's Dao.
The blade had offended heaven's will. The ultimate offense to heaven's will was the will of the blade itself.
Under Heaven's Dao, there would be no ultimate blade!
Henceforth, in the Primordial World, there would only be the renowned Four Immortal Slaying Swords, the terrifying God Slaying Spear, the Qing Ping Sword, and so on.
But no nameless blade, no ultimate blade.
Qing Ling's blade had wounded a drop of heaven's blood, and heaven in turn had suppressed it with a decree.
The Dao of the Blade, from this point on, would have no ultimate peak in heaven and earth.
His Zhan Shen, forged with countless efforts and nurtured over an immense period, would be the only ultimate blade under Heaven's Dao, the progenitor within the Dao of the Blade.
For it was the only blade to have ever wounded and broken heaven itself.
Qing Ling could not fathom Hong Jun's intentions, lacking the cosmic perspective of the Primordial World. He could only accept Hong Jun's meaning and be enlightened, not fully comprehend it.
He raised Zhan Shen. The blade had been sharpened, its edge radiant, its power overbearing.
This was a supreme treasure he had painstakingly refined over countless ages, then nurtured for an even longer time, settling in the flow of time, slumbering in yin and yang, and lingering between life and death.
Its origin could be traced back to primordial chaos, and its intent could rival heaven itself.
It was sharpened by the blood of a Dao Ancestor, tempered into a progenitor by heaven's suppression. Zhan Shen was the progenitor of all blades, its status within the Dao of the Blade equivalent to Immortal Slaying.
Qing Ling raised his blade again. Behind him, a colossal phantom image raised its blade in unison.
The blade's edge was cold and white, pointing towards the source of the deathly fire.
Black Phoenix Holy King's expression turned solemn, but her eyes blazed with insane fighting spirit. She wielded her twin swords, and myriad black phoenixes flowed back, all the deathly fire returning.
The Burning Sword struck, fire scorching the void.
The Silent Sword struck, annihilating a region.
The Burning-Silent Swords struck together, phoenixes' cries resonating, their souls stirring, life's essence extinguished!
But just as the power of the twin swords reached its zenith, the Roselle flower, still nascent within the Holy King's heart, violently erupted, along with threads of dark energy.
Her heart severely damaged, her twin swords faltered.
Meanwhile, in the sky, the giant phantom raised its blade. The blade's edge swept across the firmament. My will merged with the blade's will. If the blade's will defied heaven, it would rule this domain.
At this moment, I am the butcher, and you are the meat.
Prepare to be beheaded!
Zhan Shen descended, its edge cleaving through the cycle of time and life, fixing true spirits.
"Boom~"
Black Phoenix Holy King's primordial spirit froze, all her calculations and deductions ceased.
The light of the Burning-Silent Swords shattered, the blade's edge slicing across her neck.
Heaven and earth rumbled, rain fell incessantly, and all beasts trembled.
Black Phoenix Holy King stood motionless, as if frozen.
Chong Ming's aged eyes were blinded by the blade's light; he thought he was seeing an illusion.
The ferocious nine-headed bird collapsed, falling from the sky. Having endured the wind, snow, fire, earth, and lightning of the seventeenth heaven, it had already lost its senses.
And at this moment, no one would notice the prison beneath the nine-headed bird.
Black Phoenix Holy King was dead!
This was what Black Phoenix Holy King believed.
In that world-shattering blade light, she saw her true spirit being shattered. That simple blade, which spanned time and life and death, had shattered her Great Dao.
Black Phoenix Holy King stumbled, her eyes vacant, muttering to herself, "I'm dead!
I'm dead!
I'm dead!
..."
After a long while, she suddenly collapsed.
Her body turned into deathly fire, scattering everywhere, a sky full of heat and ashes.
Qing Ling's face turned pale for a moment, then it was concealed.
This was the blade he had poured all his being into. The power of Zhan Shen had surpassed imagination.
But it was impossible to obliterate a peak existence with a single blow.
Black Phoenix Holy King, even when heavily injured, would have brought him more peace than this scene.
Qing Ling sat cross-legged atop Jianmu, the power of Jianmu flowing into him ceaselessly.
The spiritual energy within the Great Luo Dao Treasury world surged, transforming into magical power, replenishing his庆云 (Qing Yun - auspicious aura).
Chong Ming fled in panic, the myriad birds scattered, as if it were all over.
The great powers from all directions were shocked. Even knowing that Black Phoenix Holy King could not perish, the scene before them was enough to shake their souls.
From this day on, Qing Xuan Dao Master was listed by many great powers as someone not to be provoked.
The rain fell for a night, and the dark clouds dispersed.
Flames ignited in the sky once more.
However, this time, they were black and red flames.
The black and red fire burned fiercely, surrounding Dugguang.
Everyone knew that Black Phoenix Holy King had returned.
In the East Forest Secret Realm, the Azure Dragon coiled, seated thirty heavens high.
Before him, the White Tiger Ancestor also sat cross-legged.
White Tiger smiled and said, "Can you remain calm?"
Azure Dragon glanced at him. "Why shouldn't I be calm?"
"Black Phoenix's origins, others may not see, but how could you and I not know?
Even with extraordinary talent, the seventeenth heaven cannot hold her back," White Tiger Ancestor shook his head.
"Whether it can be held back or not is our Dragon Clan's affair. You don't need to worry about it," Azure Dragon indifferently picked up a cup of fragrant tea from the cloud table before him, sniffed it, and drank it down.
White Tiger Ancestor laughed heartily and drank his tea. "Indeed, if you are not worried, then I am happy to watch the show and not intervene."
On the edge of the West Sea, thirty heavens high, the Black Dragon Ancestor faced off with a cold expression, remaining silent.
Opposite him, the Golden Peng Ancestor also snorted silently. Both looked as if another word would lead to a fight.
In the East Forest Secret Realm and along the West Sea coast, countless beast roars and cries echoed, massive waves surged, and the Dragon Clan and Qilin Clan's Great Luo experts descended, rivers of blood flowed, and corpses stretched for thousands of miles.
In the fields of Dugguang, with a high-pitched cry, all fires flowed back, and Black Phoenix Holy King returned.
Her countenance was the same, but her demeanor had changed, transforming from seductive to solemn.
Behind her, a towering black phoenix phantom spread its wings, transforming into an immortal phoenix phantom.
The deathly fire in the sky instantly became the fire of immortality.
Black Phoenix Holy King sneered, "Interesting. The great powers of heaven and earth can extinguish my immortal body once.
I wonder how many more times you can extinguish me with your remaining abilities?"
Qing Ling let out a wry laugh. "Not once more."
The Dao of Zhan Shen lies in the "Shen" (spirit/divinity); it slays the primordial spirit, not the physical body.
Black Phoenix Holy King had suffered his Zhan Shen strike, her primordial spirit already shattered, her mind damaged.
But she possessed a form of rebirth, akin to Nirvana, willing to undergo it to remove the influence of Zhan Shen on her primordial spirit, and to remove the Roselle flower.
He had once stated that the Roselle flower seed could not be easily dissolved by anyone less than a peak great power.
But she was already a peak existence. Although his realm had also advanced, if she was on guard, it would be difficult for him to plant it.
Now, his primordial spirit was depleted and had not recovered. He feared he could no longer unleash a blade intent of such power.