Sisui's sigh did not last long.
Because soon, he raised his head and looked at the Dark Void outside the seal. There, he felt an intense gaze that could not be ignored.
The Primordial Saint.
'How far has he reached.'
Thinking of this, Sisui seemed to return to that Heaven, Earth, and Man Dao struggle of the past. True, he defeated the Primordial Saint in his understanding of [Heaven].
However, this did not mean the Primordial Saint's Dao was inferior to his. At least in Sisui's eyes, the Primordial Saint's Dao was equally stunning. It was just that his deduction wasn't as far-reaching, making him slightly weaker in the end. Yet now, 129,600 years later, the situation was different.
Their positions had reversed.
'Times have changed.'
'This time, I am probably the one lagging behind.'
Sisui lowered his eyelids, recalling the [Path of Deity Transformation] the Primordial Saint had once shown him. It was a path entirely different from his own.
His Dao lay in self-cultivation.
Using the Dharma Body to accommodate [Yin and Yang], integrating the Primordial Spirit. Seeking everything internally, not focusing on the external, ultimately seeking transcendence. He had walked very far on this Dao.
The Primordial Saint was different. His Dao lay in seeking externally.
Forging [Paramita], scheming across the past and present. He was not fixated on self-cultivation, but his goal was equally transcendence. In terms of efficiency, he was actually much faster.
There was no such thing as an unstable foundation here.
After all, as long as one could reach the destination, whether by swimming there oneself or building a boat to sail across, the final result would not change.
More importantly, these two methods were not mutually exclusive.
A good swimmer could also steer a boat, and a boat captain could learn to swim. These were fundamentally interconnected. Layering the two would also increase the chances of success.
Then the question arose.
Since the two methods could be unified, and even elevate the success rate of breaking through, would the Primordial Saint not consider it? He had ample time to cultivate.
'The worst-case scenario...'
Sisui lowered his eyelids. He suddenly reached out his hand, grasping a radiantly flowing book. It was precisely the [Heavenly Scripture] used to forge the false history.
With the collapse of [Paramita], the profound methods sealing this [Heavenly Scripture] gradually lost their lofty stature. Now, as Sisui pondered it, he could already discover a few flaws. Once the seal completely shattered and he retrieved his past time, he was confident he could thoroughly crack it.
'When that time comes, this might be a way out.'
"Rumble!"
In the Dark Void, the exploding brilliance flared like successive bursts of fireworks, flickering within that infinitesimal space where Lu Yang's sword met the Sword Lord's finger.
Yet this space, though no larger than a seed, had already shed all notion of scale. It seemed to unfold into a boundless expanse—vast, immeasurable, and beyond reckoning. With each passing second, fragments of past and future surfaced around them, only to shatter in turn, each echo exerting its subtle weight upon the outcome of their clash in the present moment.
"Whoosh..."
In this Dark Void where time was undefined, it seemed as if millions of years had passed, yet also seemed like a single instant. That sword and finger finally separated from each other.
Under the gazes of the other Dao Lords, that streak of sword light encompassing the myriad phenomena of the sea of light abruptly dimmed.
On the other side, the Sword Lord's finger utterly unmoving with unrivaled posture. It brazenly descended, striking the sword light down into the Dark Void bit by bit.
Within the sword light, Lu Yang's figure gradually surfaced.
Facing the gradually tilting battle situation, there was no fear in his eyes. And within his body forged by the sea of light, immeasurable divine light gradually flowed out.
Patriarch Nether Whisper, Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon, Feixue, Ling Xiao, the Six Dragon Lords, Pan Huang, Pill Cauldron Peak, Bu Tianque... Besides the World Honored One and Dao Tianqi, everyone erupted at this moment.
"Rumble!"
An indescribable Dao sound instantly reverberated through the Dark Void. Spreading out alongside it was a swath of dim light and color, submerging all brilliance in an instant.
Thus, myriad things fell silent.
Only after a long time, like the ebb and flow of a tide, did the dim light fade. The two figures resurfaced, standing opposite each other, revealing the result of this battle.
"Bang!"
Lu Yang exploded first. The mustard seed transformed into mount sumeru, re-manifesting the boundless scene of the sea of light. And deep within the sea of light, Lu Yang's main body also surfaced.
"Hoo..."
At this moment, a deep breathing sound was exhaled from Lu Yang's mouth and nose. And within the spiritual qi tide stirred by this breath, there was a pungent smell of blood.
Meanwhile, the [Heavenly Palace] also surfaced above Lu Yang's head. This brilliant, towering palace had collapsed by more than half at this moment. Jade terraces and pavilions were reduced to dust, and its concepts had mostly dispersed. Only five fundamental profound wonders remained to support it, barely maintaining its existence.
This was merely the tip of the iceberg.
At this moment, the entire sea of light and countless world realms all ushered in a super-massive earthquake. A large number of mountains and rivers collapsed and crumbled because of it.
The anomaly lasted for a full quarter of an hour before stopping.
Of course, this quarter of an hour as "time" was only defined within the sea of light. Outside the sea of light, in the Dark Void where the Sword Lord was, it was but a single instant.
"...Formidable indeed."
Exhaling a breath fully, Lu Yang finally propped his body back up. Even with the sea of light sharing the mighty power, he still suffered injuries that could not be ignored at this moment.
"However, you aren't doing too well either."
Profound wonder transformations ultimately have an end.
In that final collision, Lu Yang still successfully dragged the Sword Lord into the awkward situation of a head-on clash, and then went all out to deal her a ruthless blow.
At this moment, within the Dark Void.
"..."
The Sword Lord stood sternly. Her cold and clear face showed no change. However, the finger that had just collided with Lu Yang was now hidden inside her sleeve.
Drip, drop.
Inside the sleeve, concealed by layers of light and color, a streak of crimson flowed out unstoppably. The piercing pain made the Sword Lord's beautiful eyes become increasingly icy and chilling.
She won, but she also lost.
In this battle, she was the undeniable victor. Though Lu Yang had managed to hold her at bay for a time, he was ultimately no match; the gap in their strength remained immense.
And yet, she had also lost.
[Paramita] lay completely shattered, but Lu Yang still lived. She had failed to return to the Sea of Light, and she had not seized the chance to destroy the Netherworld or cripple Dao Tianqi.
Not a single objective was fulfilled.
If that is not defeat, then what is?
Having failed to harness the cataclysmic force of [Paramita] to break the blockade in one decisive surge and return to the Sea of Light, every passing instant now only increased the risk of losing her way.
"Amitabha!"
In the Dark Void, as the gravely injured Lu Yang withdrew, the figures of the World Honored One and Dao Tianqi stepped forward in his place. Their auras surged forth, once more sealing off the Dao Lords beyond the Sea of Light.
"Senior Nian Yao, this junior will be your opponent."
Dao Tianqi advanced without the slightest hesitation, intercepting the strongest among them—the Sword Lord. With the Netherworld not yet fully destroyed, he stood as the foremost figure within the Sea of Light at this moment.
At the same time, the World Honored One moved to block both the Dao Lord of Dao Arts and the Spiritual Power Dao Lord.
After all, Dou Xuan's injuries were far from light. The World Honored One, having conserved his strength and now facing already wearied opponents, was in the best condition among the three. Even taking on an additional Myriad Laws posed no real burden.
Meanwhile, Lu Yang gathered himself once more. Dragging his wounded body, he stepped forward to face Cang Hao.
Indeed, in terms of condition, Lu Yang, the World Honored One, and Dao Tianqi were all injured. The Sword Lord's side not only held the advantage in numbers, but were also in far better shape.
Should a true battle erupt, the defeat—and deaths—of the three would only be a matter of time.
However… they did not need to win.
'I only need to stall', Lu Yang thought.
So long as they could drag this out—until the four Dao Lords, Sword Lord included, could no longer withstand the erosion of the Dark Void and were lost one by one—victory would come without the need for a decisive clash.
Except—
Thinking of this, Lu Yang looked up at the dim Dark Void, feeling somewhat uneasy.
'Gone...'
[Paramita] had already fallen. The Sword Lord, Cang Hao, Myriad Laws, and Dou Xuan—the four Dao Lords had successively appeared. But what about the Primordial Saint? Where was the Primordial Saint?