At this moment, flowers bloomed on three sides across the entire sea of light.
Regarding the intentions of the Sword Lord and Cang Hao—or more accurately, the Sword Lord's intentions alone—Lu Yang, already well-acquainted with her style, had naturally long anticipated them.
'That vile woman will never be content being kicked out of the game'.
'To that end, she will surely exhaust every means.
'The greatest chips in her hand are Bu Tianque and the drained [Five Elements]; a single collapse of the [Paramita] is enough to buy her an opportunity'.
'And with problems arising on the [Paramita] side, the Primordial Saint loses his suppression over the False History. Once Myriad Laws and Du Xuan see the opportunity, they will not give it up. This is a chain reaction! The False History, the [Paramita], and the Great Karmic Net—blooming on three sides. With you unable to attend to everything, let's see how many you can manage'.
"RUMBLE!"
In the spark of a flint, the Primordial Saint reached a decision. Originally standing on the sixth layer, he, who was still somewhat ethereal and high, crashed downward, landing upon the fifth layer.
This time, his silhouette was no longer mysterious.
In stark contrast to his previous tiny stature, he was now inexpressibly massive. His face remained obscured, towering to an incredible degree, his gaze saturated with chilling cold.
Immediately following this, he struck.
With a beckoning wave of his hand, the [Refining Arts Secret Realm] from deep within the Primordial Saint Sect in Jiangbei of the Immortal Nexus flew out, taking the place of the disintegrated [Foundation Establishment Realm].
The originally shaking reality instantly grew steady, and the falling momentum of the [Paramita] quickly stabilized. Then, the karmic dharmic light flashed as the World Honored One's silhouette emerged. Rather than looking grim, a laugh broke across his face: "At least it made you take another step down!"
The Primordial Saint did not respond.
On the other side, Lu Yang was equally unsurprised. After all, the method of using the [Refining Arts Secret Realm] to substitute for the [Foundation Establishment Realm] was something the Primordial Saint had demonstrated before.
Moreover, Lu Yang had long seen through it.
'The [Refining Arts Secret Realm] is like a brick to the Primordial Saint; he moves it wherever it's useful. It's a universal trump card he specifically forged'.
'Forcing him to use it here keeps it under control'.
'Rounding up, this counts as dealing with a troublesome backup plan. Otherwise, if left for the future, heaven knows what kind of trouble it could stir up'.
At this thought, Lu Yang's gaze burned brightly.
The "blooming on three sides" involved more than just the [Foundation Establishment Realm]. The [Five Elements] and the False History were the main concerns, each being a drastic, high-threat maneuver.
"Thinking a single [Refining Arts Secret Realm] can solve this?"
"It is not enough!"
As if in response to Lu Yang's words, the stability of the [Paramita] lasted less than fifteen minutes before the visible trend of collapse reappeared.
In fact, it went further than that.
"CLANG—!"
With a sword chime, the Sword Lord on the fourth layer of the [Paramita] violently raised her aura. With the reinforcement of the [Heavenly Dao], she strikingly stepped into the fifth layer!
By stepping onto this layer, the Sword Lord now stood on the same level as the Primordial Saint. Even if her scheming was inferior, her strength was now sufficient to enter the game!
"Slash!"
Her cold voice echoed through the [Paramita]. A bright sword-light surged like a long river, lighting up the future and illuminating the Dark Void, pointing directly at the Primordial Saint on the fifth layer!
In an instant, sword-light filled the Primordial Saint's pupils, manifesting countless future possibilities. Each future image showed him being struck by this sword; the images gathered and stacked, finally constructing a vast ocean that spanned the universe, making the real world appear illusory.
Yet the Primordial Saint remained unmoved.
His cold eyes held no ripple, and his voice remained indifferent: "Daring to draw a sword against me while standing on the same fifth layer... Nian Yao, you are too arrogant".
Having spoken, he pointed a finger.
But before that, a five-colored precious lock leapt out, hanging in the sky like the sun and moon. Situated above the [Paramita], it clamped shut upon the Primordial Saint.
"CRACK!"
The distinct sound of a lock clicking rang out. The Primordial Saint, who was about to erupt, suddenly stumbled. His infinite wonder and vast majesty strikingly came to a halt.
The [Heavenly Heart Seal]!
A treasure of the Ancestral Dragon and the only Dao Artifact in the current world, it was one of the foundations of the [Heavenly Dao]. Deployed now by the Sword Lord, it strikingly achieved an extraordinary effect!
Furthermore, on the fourth layer of the [Paramita], Cang Hao revealed his form. A boundless light-color spread before him, transforming into a long scroll. He took up a pen to write, and one shimmering talismanic script after another surfaced from his brush, surging toward the Primordial Saint.
Decay, Weakness, Crippled, Old, Sickness, Death...
Simultaneously, he wrote characters for the Sword Lord, though the concept was entirely different: Flourishing, Strong, Fierce, Hegemony... these were all reinforcing talismanic scripts.
These were both [Characters] and [Fortune].
Under this "waxing and waning".
The gap between the Primordial Saint and the Sword Lord, which had originally resembled a chasm, narrowed at high speed. The collision erupted thunderously from the [Paramita] at this very instant!
Thus, a dazzling light illuminated the Dark Void.
Beyond the sea of light, Lu Yang also narrowed his eyes.
When the light dimmed, the Sword Lord's silhouette was pushed to the absolute distance. Her body shook, nearly falling back to the fourth layer, but she managed to barely stabilize herself.
On the other side, the Primordial Saint lightly flicked his sleeve and stepped back. However, upon his pale finger, a speck of crimson color strikingly appeared. Though it vanished in a blink, it fell into the eyes of every Dao Lord, intensifying the chaos atop the [Paramita].
"Heh heh".
From the distance, the Sword Lord's voice drifted hollowly: "It seems Fellow Daoist can bleed after all. Having fallen to the fifth layer, your state is indeed far from what it used to be".
"..."
The Primordial Saint did not respond. Instead, his gaze shifted to the side, looking at the karmic threads of the False History which were gradually manifesting light and shadow due to the drop in his majesty.
There, a rosy light entirely constructed from Dao Arts, reinforced by an ocean of spiritual power, was equally strong. Breaking through Karma, it intended to follow the False History straight to the source. From that source, muffled sounds of impacts drifted out.
That was the sound of Sisui's fists.
The Primordial Saint took one look and ignored it. The Sword Lord, however, backhanded a sword-strike into the False History, intercepting the two Dao Lords within the karmic threads.
Sisui was also a foundation of the [Heavenly Dao].
Therefore, even without the Primordial Saint acting, the Sword Lord could not sit by and watch Myriad Laws and Du Xuan rescue Sisui. Thus, the anomaly in the False History assisted the Primordial Saint!
'Was this move a mistake on his part?'
The Primordial Saint's gaze turned toward the heavens, subsequently shaking his head: 'No, Myriad Treasures is on his side. Even if he didn't know the relationship between Sisui and the [Heavenly Dao]'.
'Myriad Treasures would know perfectly well'.
By now, the Primordial Saint had a clear concept of Lu Yang—in his eyes, Lu Yang was undoubtedly a cultivator of the same type as himself.
'I would never make a mistake with this move'.
'Therefore, neither would he'.
'Since that is the case, it was intentional—the False History, he also wants to rescue Sisui? It makes sense; although Nian Yao is decent, she ultimately harbors her own sinister designs'.
The Primordial Saint pondered and soon had an answer: 'This person has sufficient planning but lacks strength. Furthermore, his essence is unique, making him afraid to raise his cultivation before me. His refusal to cooperate with me regarding the eighth secret realm was likely due to strength as well, so he urgently needs a reliable helper'.
Looking across all current Dao Lords, that helper could only be Sisui.
In other words:
'The [Paramita] is just a front; this person's target is the False History—to rescue Sisui!'
In the next instant, at the same moment the Primordial Saint reached his conclusion, Lu Yang beyond the sea of light finally moved. His target was exactly as expected—the karmic threads of the False History!
(End of Chapter)