Chapter 53: The Creation of Heaven and Earth

"Hmph." The Evergreen Sword Immortal felt completely at one with the Dao Ancestor puppet, and he could sense the immense power it possessed.

"That strongest Punishment Heaven's aura is indeed not weak. No wonder it's a grand formation formed by nine thousand celestial immortals and eight hundred ten thousand loose immortals. Just its aura alone is no less than this Dao Ancestor puppet of mine." The Evergreen Sword Immortal was not flustered at all; instead, he was disdainful. "Flashy but insubstantial. What use is it to look formidable? This Punishment Heaven's power is strong, but mobilizing that power is as hard as reaching the sky! Even the simplified Punishment Heaven is difficult for Heavenly Gods and True Immortals to fully command, let alone this strongest Punishment Heaven."

Punishment Heaven had three levels.

One thousand celestial immortals and one hundred thousand loose immortals was the simplest level.

Three thousand celestial immortals and three hundred thousand loose immortals was considered very powerful.

Nine thousand celestial immortals and eight hundred ten thousand loose immortals was the truly perfect form, with inconceivable power. Even if Ji Ning was a Pure Yang True Immortal, if he had only achieved great mastery in the Heartforce Soul Technique and the third level of heartforce, being able to mobilize one-tenth of the power would be remarkable. This shows how difficult it is to mobilize the power of the strongest Punishment Heaven.

"I am different from them!"

"This is a Dao Ancestor puppet; I have absolute control over all its power. That Ji Ning is no threat. Instead, that Seven Luminaries Heavenly God, though its aura seems weaker than mine, is formed by the union of seven Heavenly Gods and also has absolute control." The Evergreen Sword Immortal manipulated the Dao Ancestor puppet, moving at the highest speed.

Swish, swish, swish~~~

In the air, there were twisting streams of light, like a spider crawling on the web of heaven and earth, taking the lead and charging straight toward the Crimsonbright Territory's side.

…

In this battle, besides Crimsonbright Dao Ancestor, the God King, and Ink Bamboo Dao Ancestor, over ninety percent of the Dao Ancestors in the Three Realms were observing this battle.

The Heavenly Realm.

Western Mount Meru.

The Buddha sat high on his throne, radiating boundless light, dazzling and brilliant. If one looked closely, one could faintly discern the colors of the Five Elements. Below sat Amitabha, Kshitigarbha, Maitreya Buddha, and other great Buddhist figures.

Buddha Tathagata, the supreme leader of Buddhism in the Three Realms, possessed inconceivable power. His divine abilities, such as 'Vairocana Body' and 'Buddha's Palm,' were renowned throughout the Three Realms. In ancient times, he was already at the pinnacle of the Three Realms, surpassed only by Nuwa.

The Buddhas below were all extraordinary.

For instance, Amitabha had manifested countless incarnations, continuously spreading the Dharma in both ancient times and the current era of the Three Realms. It could be said that many powerful figures in Buddhism had received guidance from Amitabha. There was a saying: 'More than half of the Bodhisattvas and Arhats in Buddhism were guided and cultivated by Amitabha.'

Countless Bodhisattvas and Arhats naturally felt gratitude toward Amitabha Buddha.

Thus, Amitabha Buddha held a very special position in Buddhism. He was called the 'Teacher of Buddhas' and also the 'Buddha of Guidance,' meaning he guided sentient beings to the Western Paradise of Ultimate Bliss. The precious light radiating behind Amitabha Buddha was a kind of immeasurable precious light, gentle and restrained, making one feel inner peace and an irresistible urge to kneel and listen to his teachings.

"There have already been several territory wars in the Three Realms. The great powers have all been troubled and exhausted." Tathagata Buddha's gaze pierced through the endless void, seeing the battle in the Grand Xia world. "Crimsonbright has exhausted every means for his territory. This territory war is even more remarkable than the previous ones. Jieyin, who do you think will win?"

Amitabha Buddha, with a kind face and benevolent eyes, pressed his palms together and said, "The key to this battle lies in the Dao Ancestor puppet and the Punishment Heaven and Seven Luminaries Heavenly God commanded by Ji Ning and Red Snow Heavenly God of the Crimsonbright Territory."

The other great Buddhist figures also watched.

Of course they cared.

The change of the Heavenly Court's Jade Emperor was a trivial matter, but territory wars truly affected fortune. Now it was a struggle for fortune. When both sides realized that the struggle for fortune had a result and it was difficult to reverse, it would probably be the final decisive battle. Then these great Buddhist figures would have to fight desperately one by one.

"I wonder how many of Mount Meru will remain after the great calamity." Tathagata Buddha looked below, sighing silently in his heart. He could not forget the bloodshed at the end of the ancient era. Even he had nearly fallen before the Lord of All Things, barely surviving thanks to his 'Six-Foot Golden Body,' managing to hold off the Lord of All Things.

That battle was very惨烈.

More than half of the Buddhist patriarchs had died in battle. Fortunately, Nuwa finally broke through and turned the tide!

…

The Heavenly Realm.

The East, the Dao Palace.

The Three Pure Daoist sat high above. Unlike Tathagata Buddha, the Three Pure Daoist's aura was more restrained. Facing the Three Pure Daoist, one might occasionally have terrifying hallucinations of the Three Realms being destroyed.

Below sat many great Daoist figures.

"This territory war is also about to reach a conclusion." The Three Pure Daoist said softly, "Zixiu, who do you think will win or lose?"

An old man with a wide robe and long beard sitting below said softly, "Fifty-fifty."

This old man was the Carefree Dao Ancestor, also known as Zhuang Zhou, Zhuang Zixiu!

In the beginning, in chaos, two True Gods were born and had a very close bond.

One was Yuanshi Tianzun, and the other was the Carefree Heavenly Venerable.

Later, they both cultivated arduously. Yuanshi Tianzun mastered the 'Yang Heavenly Dao' and the 'Destruction Heavenly Dao.' However, among the ten great Heavenly Daos, the Chaos Heavenly Dao was supreme, followed by Life and Destruction being opposite, Yin and Yang being opposite, and finally Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. To achieve a fundamental breakthrough, one had to comprehend the opposing Heavenly Dao—this was extremely difficult. After comprehending the Life Heavenly Dao, it would affect the cultivator, making it impossible to calmly comprehend the Destruction Heavenly Dao.

Take the Five Elements Heavenly Dao.

Suppose one fully comprehended Metal, Wood, Fire, and Earth. When finally comprehending 'Water,' one would be disturbed. Thus, fully comprehending the complete Five Elements, or the complete Life and Destruction, or the complete Yin and Yang, was very difficult.

For example, Tathagata Buddha had fully comprehended the entire Five Elements Heavenly Dao, which was why he could become the leader of Buddhism!

Yuanshi Tianzun had great perseverance and great determination.

In ancient times, he set a restriction in his true spirit: he must comprehend the 'Yin Heavenly Dao' to awaken his memories. Then he directly entered the Six Paths of Reincarnation and simultaneously committed suicide, allowing his true spirit to be reborn directly.

Rebirth after rebirth, in his ninth life he became Laozi! In this life, he finally continuously broke through until he mastered the 'Yin Heavenly Dao' and became a Dao Ancestor. At that time, his complete memories awakened... The combination of Yin and Yang caused his power to skyrocket, placing him at the pinnacle of the Three Realms! At that time, Nuwa had not yet become Pangu.

He comprehended the technique of 'One Qi Transforming Three Purities,' which allowed him to divide into three incarnations: Shangqing, Yuqing, and Taiqing. The divine bodies of the three incarnations each had their own differences, each most suitable for their respective Heavenly Dao.

Yuqing Daoist was his original true body, governing the Yang Heavenly Dao.

Shangqing Daoist was Lingbao Tianzun, governing the Destruction Heavenly Dao.

Taiqing Daoist was the reincarnated Laozi, governing the Yin Heavenly Dao.

Back then, the Three Pure Daoist used the technique of 'One Qi Transforming Three Purities,' and the combined power of the three incarnations was simply inconceivable. He once fought for a long time against the 'King' of the Palace of No Form.

Committing suicide and reincarnating the true spirit was very dangerous. For example, if one cultivated to become a celestial immortal after reincarnation but was suddenly killed and had their soul destroyed, the true spirit would directly enter the 'River of Fate.' That would be true death! So this was a great gamble. Yuanshi Tianzun, with his astonishing perseverance and determination, dared to do this.

The Carefree Heavenly Venerable did not have such determination, but he also sent an incarnation to reincarnate and experience everything. However, this kind of reincarnation naturally could not allow him to comprehend the opposing Dao! Yet the Carefree Heavenly Venerable still did not care, and his strength still ranked in the top five in Daoism.

Lü Dongbin truly had two teachers: one was the Three Pure Daoist, and the other was the Carefree Heavenly Venerable.

…

At the same moment.

Within the palace of the ancient imperial clan, and in some places in the chaos, beings like Shennong and even the ancient Suiren, one ancient existence after another, even the old recluses of the Three Realms, all watched this war. They had been in hiding before, but now that the great calamity had arrived, they could not avoid it and had to join the battle.

Each of them hoped that their own side would win.

Likewise...

The mighty ones of the Heartless Gate camp, scattered across the Three Realms, some ancient existences also watched. At this moment, it was a struggle for fortune, so they let the God King lead the Heartless Gate. But when it came to the final stage, these old fellows would emerge. They had followed the King in those days... Compared to them, the God King was actually still a junior.

"The key to the war lies with the three of them." Many mighty ones understood this.

...

On the battlefield.

The Dao Ancestor puppet was the fastest, while the Seven Luminaries Celestial God and the strongest Punishment Celestial God of the Crimsonbright Realm were also the fastest.

The three of them were like the daggers of the two camps, charging toward each other.

"Whoosh."

As this enormous spider darted forward, two of its slender legs swung, and two hazy beams of light shot toward the army of the Crimsonbright Realm camp.

"Block them, be careful."

The distant area immediately struggled to respond.

Boom, boom, boom~~~

Although three Punishment Celestial Gods and one Yinglong joined forces to resist, one Punishment Celestial God was shattered. Fortunately, the Dao Ancestor puppet had only attacked from a distance, so the casualties among the immortals within that Punishment Celestial God were minimal.

"Such formidable power. Ji Ning, let me test him first." Red Snow Celestial God transmitted.

Swish.

The Seven Luminaries Celestial God, wielding a long spear, with snowflakes swirling around him and spacetime twisting, surged in speed and charged straight at the Dao Ancestor puppet.

If Ji Ning unleashed the power of this strongest Punishment Celestial God, his speed would likely be no less than that of the Seven Luminaries Celestial God in burst mode. However, Ji Ning understood that if he erupted now, the Dao Ancestor puppet, Evergreen Sword Immortal, would become alert. So the best strategy was to wait until the moment of contact, then suddenly burst forth, catching him off guard to maximize the results.

"Red Snow, with such little strength, you dare to confront a Dao Ancestor puppet? Die!" Evergreen Sword Immortal's voice, transmitted through the Dao Ancestor puppet, resounded across the battlefield.

"Damn Evergreen."

"It's Evergreen."

Emperor Xia and the others gritted their teeth, but they also watched closely.

"Break." The Seven Luminaries Celestial God swung his long spear, and in midair, even the spear shaft bent, showing the immense power of this strike.

The Dao Ancestor puppet directly swung its two forelegs to block the incoming spear.

Boom~~~~

A terrifying shockwave forced the Seven Luminaries Celestial God to retreat involuntarily. Around him, time twisted, and he instantly fled hundreds of li backward, barely avoiding the attack of the four limbs that the Dao Ancestor puppet pursued with.

"Don't be so arrogant." As the Seven Luminaries Celestial God retreated, Ji Ning stepped forward to meet the enemy.

"I'm killing you!" The Dao Ancestor puppet Eternal Sword Immortal was full of momentum. He had easily repelled even the Seven Luminaries Heaven God, so why fear a Ji Ning who was outwardly strong but inwardly weak? This strongest Heaven Punisher might seem impressive in aura, but how much of its power could Ji Ning actually wield?

Ji Ning ran barefoot, holding two enormous Ananda World-Swords.

"Chop."

The raised Ananda World-Sword came chopping down as if Pangu were splitting heaven and earth. This sword strike was the twelfth stance of the Three-Foot Sword, which Ji Ning had created after comprehending the entire Dao of the Sword and achieving its Great Perfection. He had kept his identity as a Pure Yang True Immortal hidden, so he had never used this move before. Now, he finally unleashed it.

The twelfth stance of the Three-Foot Sword—Heaven and Earth Split Apart!

The entire Three-Foot Sword was now complete. From the beginning to the Great Perfection of the Dao of the Sword, all twelve stances were fulfilled. When he had first named it 'Heaven and Earth Split Apart,' Ji Ning had been in high spirits, his heart at the 'Dominator' level, full of domineering confidence.

"Get lost." The Dao Ancestor puppet Eternal Sword Immortal sneered, raising his two forelimbs again to block, intending to send Ji Ning flying.

"Boom~~~"

The long sword struck the two forelimbs.

"Don't take it head-on."

"Be careful."

Though described slowly, it happened in a flash. The Seven Luminaries Heaven God had just retreated when Ji Ning's sword struck. This alarmed Red Snow Heaven God and the others. They had seen the Seven Luminaries Heaven God fight the Dao Ancestor puppet, and they believed Ji Ning could tell how terrifying the puppet's power was. Why would he foolishly clash head-on?

"Die—uh, how is this possible!"

The Dao Ancestor puppet Eternal Sword Immortal, who had been brimming with overwhelming momentum, felt an inconceivably surging power transmitted from that long sword. The force was so strong that even his Dao Ancestor puppet felt it could barely withstand it.

Strong.

Too strong.

"Bang." Ji Ning, running barefoot, struck down with one sword in a furious chop, directly forcing the Dao Ancestor puppet downward! The surrounding earth sank in.

"What?"

"The Dao Ancestor puppet is at a disadvantage?"

"This, this is impossible."

The entire battlefield was stunned. The Abyss Alliance side had full confidence in the Dao Ancestor puppet's power, as it was one hundred percent controlled. The might of the strongest Heaven Punisher was indeed terrifying, almost comparable to a true Ancestor of the Dao. But how much of that power could Ji Ning, as the strongest Heaven Punisher, actually wield? How could he suppress the Dao Ancestor puppet?

"Impossible!!!" The Dao Ancestor puppet Eternal Sword Immortal was furious, straining upward with all his might while also using two of his limbs to resist Ji Ning's long sword. Four long legs supported the ground, and four limbs resisted—this was the limit of the Dao Ancestor puppet's power output.

"Get down!"

Ji Ning's other long sword came chopping down again.

The same Heaven and Earth Split Apart stance! In a daze, it was as if one saw Pangu in the chaos, swinging his giant axe downward.

"Boom~~~"

The Dao Ancestor puppet, using all four limbs to resist with all its might, felt as if the weight of an entire continent was pressing down. The four limbs supporting its body gave way, and it collapsed to the ground.

Silence.

The two armies, which had been charging forward without yet engaging in true battle, suddenly fell into deathly silence. Both the Crimsonbright Realm side and the Abyss Alliance side stared in disbelief at this scene.