After the Great Dao Died

Chen Lingxi headed straight for the Heavenly Gate Sea.

He rode the Azure Cloud laced with pale-golden lightning, the deep, surging fluctuations of Dao Origin surrounding him fully retracted into his body.

The Hidden Edge Method circulated silently within him, completely concealing the auras of his Plundering Dragon Dao Platform and Thunder Prison Profound Root.

Yet within his deep eyes, two miniature clusters of lightning slowly pulsed.

Deep within his pupils, countless fine lightning patterns flowed, exhaling a chilling light that made the heart pound.

He pressed forward, flying until he was a thousand li away from the Heavenly Gate Sea, when his expression suddenly shifted.

”Someone?”

Chen Lingxi raised an eyebrow. He circulated the Method of Qi Observation and looked into the distance, where he saw a faint, barely discernible thread of qi slowly drifting.

Chen Lingxi was no stranger to that thread of qi.

’Liu Chengfeng, an elder of the Dragon-Revering Sect’s Sword Audience Peak, a Dao Foundation avatar,’ he reflected silently.

This person had once trapped him in a sword formation as part of Bai Lingze’s layout, blocking his path on Bai Lingze’s behalf.

At that time, his Dao Platform had only just formed and his profound root had yet to be planted. He had charged left and right within Liu Chengfeng’s sword formation, yet failed to break through even a single barrier of sword qi. He could only watch helplessly as Bai Lingze arrived unhurriedly, leaving him entirely at their mercy like a fish on a chopping block.

Later, he established his Dao Foundation and defeated Bai Lingze atop the Ancestral Mountain, but he never caught sight of Liu Chengfeng again.

He hadn’t expected to sense this person’s aura again today on the road to the Heavenly Gate Sea.

’Liu Chengfeng is also heading to the Heavenly Gate Sea,’ Chen Lingxi realized.

Since this person was a projected avatar from the Dragon-Revering Sect, he naturally wouldn’t miss the emergence of that complete cauldron vessel.

Chen Lingxi stood at the head of the cloud, silent for several breaths before slowly shaking his head.

’When I first met Liu Chengfeng, I carved a sliver of his aura into the Enemy-Slaughtering Spirit Wall,’ he reflected silently, the two clusters of lightning pulsing slowly in his eyes. ’At the time, I only considered this Cauldron Vessel Fragment a life-saving reliance to keep Liu Chengfeng and Bai Lingze from attacking simultaneously. But thinking about it now... it was actually a waste of a name-carving opportunity on the Enemy-Slaughtering Spirit Wall.’

With a shift in his thoughts, the ancient aura on the Enemy-Slaughtering Spirit Wall abruptly flared.

’Liu Chengfeng’s direction is merely a thousand li away from me.’

Chen Lingxi narrowed his eyes, his thoughts racing.

This Liu Chengfeng was a Dao Foundation avatar.

Yet Chen Lingxi had already achieved Profound Root Transforming into a Tree and cultivated the Great Sage Precious Phase. His combat power had skyrocketed compared to when he defeated Bai Lingze.

More importantly, Liu Chengfeng’s name was currently emitting a cold, eerie luster upon the Enemy-Slaughtering Spirit Wall.

The profound Dao power brewing within it had long since completely locked onto Liu Chengfeng’s qi. With a mere thought, he could trigger the cauldron vessel’s mighty power inside the spirit wall.

”This person once trapped me in a sword formation and nearly caused me to die at Bai Lingze’s hands.” The lightning in Chen Lingxi’s eyes condensed slightly as a faint sneer surfaced on his lips. ”Now that we are both heading to the Heavenly Gate Sea, since we are rivals with past grievances, intercepting and killing him halfway means eliminating a highly troublesome variable before the struggle for the cauldron vessel.”

He looked up toward the Heavenly Gate Sea, then lowered his head to glance at Liu Chengfeng’s name on the Enemy-Slaughtering Spirit Wall.

”Since that’s the case, I will peacefully wait for him here.”

With a shift in his thoughts, the Azure Cloud laced with lightning beneath his feet descended silently, landing atop a nameless mountain peak.

The peak wasn’t tall, but it was incredibly steep. A protruding rock perched at the summit, jutting dozens of zhang out from the cliff face like an eagle’s beak over a bottomless abyss.

Chen Lingxi sat cross-legged on that rock and closed his eyes to focus. The lightning around him slowly faded, allowing his entire being to blend seamlessly into the mountain and the churning sea of clouds.

Though he sat in meditation, his divine sense had already unfurled like a tidal wave.

His divine sense was completely silent. Like a night of spring rain seeping into the earth, it left no trace, yet it was omnipresent.

A long while later, Chen Lingxi slowly opened his eyes.

He saw a jade-green sword light piercing the sea of clouds on the horizon hundreds of li away, speeding rapidly in his direction.

The sword light was incredibly fast. Like an azure meteor tearing across the sky, it dragged a long tail behind it, stirring the surrounding clouds into a violent churn.

Within the light, a slender figure could faintly be seen standing atop the sword with his hands clasped behind his back, his robes snapping fiercely.

It was none other than Liu Chengfeng of the Dragon-Revering Sect.

The man looked exactly as he had before. Dressed in azure robes with a longsword at his waist, the branched, coral-like deer antlers on his forehead emitted a faint luster within the sword light, adding a touch of demonic eeriness to his presence.

Yet right now, his previously unhurried face was etched with a deep frown, and a hint of urgency flickered in his eyes.

Most likely, he had also sensed the terrifying fluctuations coming from the Heavenly Gate Sea and knew the complete cauldron vessel had already emerged. With every second counting, he didn’t dare delay in the slightest.

Chen Lingxi took in his expression completely. The two clusters of lightning pulsed slightly in his eyes, but he didn’t attack immediately.

He merely sat cross-legged on the rock, circulating the Hidden Edge Method to its absolute limits to tightly wrap and conceal the auras of his Plundering Dragon Dao Platform and Thunder Prison Profound Root.

Liu Chengfeng’s sword light drew closer and closer.

Three hundred li, two hundred li, one hundred li...

The piercing shriek of the sword light tearing through the air was already clearly audible, and the jade-green sword intent coiling around it rushed against his face.

Right at that moment, Chen Lingxi snapped his eyes open.

In his eyes, two dazzling clusters of Weiji Thunder Radiance abruptly flared.

An indescribably terrifying pressure erupted from his body in that instant. Like divine lightning striking the earth, all the clouds within a ten-li radius completely stagnated!

Liu Chengfeng’s sword light ground to a sudden halt.

He jerked his head up, astonishment flashing through his narrow eyes. His gaze pierced through layers of the void, landing atop the mountain peak and locking onto the dark-robed figure sitting cross-legged there.

”Chen Lingxi?”

Liu Chengfeng’s voice carried a hint of astonishment.

He naturally knew about Chen Lingxi defeating Bai Lingze.

However, he had run into Bai Lingze later on, and Bai Lingze had claimed that Chen Lingxi had merely relied on the might of the Killing Power Cauldron Vessel Fragment to win through sheer surprise at the time.

’This person possesses a Killing Power Cauldron Vessel Fragment. I might not be his match.’

As Liu Chengfeng pondered, he saw that Chen Lingxi had already opened his eyes, staring at him across the vast distance.

A bone-chilling killing intent flashed across Liu Chengfeng’s body.

He stood on the sword light with his hands clasped behind his back, looking toward Chen Lingxi.

”Daoist Friend Chen, what is the meaning of blocking my path here?” he asked slowly.

Chen Lingxi slowly stood up. In that moment, the deep, vast fluctuations of Dao Origin around his body blossomed without the slightest reservation.

The Plundering Dragon Dao Platform spun madly, and his Thunder Prison Profound Root trembled violently. Countless streaks of dazzling Weiji Thunder Radiance erupted from the profound root, wildly churning and condensing around him.

He stood atop the mountain peak, raising his head to meet Liu Chengfeng’s gaze.

”Daoist Friend Liu, the past grievances between us remain unsettled,” he said calmly. ”Since we happen to meet here today, we might as well settle the score.”

Liu Chengfeng furrowed his brows, a glint of sword light flashing in his narrow eyes.

He was an elder of the Dragon-Revering Sect’s Sword Audience Peak, boasting a Dao Foundation Late Stage cultivation. Although he had only come as a projected avatar, the innate pride of a sword cultivator in his bones hadn’t diminished in the slightest.

Intercepted halfway by a junior who had only just formed his profound root and kept harping on about ”settling past grievances,” he let out a cold sneer.

”Chen Lingxi,” he said, resting a hand on his sword, his voice as deep and heavy as before. ”You once defeated Bai Lingze by relying on that Killing Power Cauldron Vessel Fragment. Do you plan to defeat me with it now?”

Chen Lingxi didn’t answer. At that very moment, the Plundering Dragon Dao Platform within his body abruptly lit up.

Atop the Dao Platform, the Thunder Prison Profound Root that had already grown into a large tree trembled violently. An extremely deep and overbearing surge of Weiji thunder erupted from the profound root, flooding his limbs and bones and pouring straight into the Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword slowly being drawn in his right hand.

Upon the Enemy-Slaughtering Spirit Wall, Liu Chengfeng’s name suddenly lit up. An ancient aura permeated from the spirit wall, shrouding Chen Lingxi’s entire body!

The Killing Power Cauldron Vessel possessed astonishing might!

Chen Lingxi unleashed his full strength the moment he struck!

The Longevity Bridge beneath his feet crashed forward! Tearing across the sky, the spiritual bridge resembled a roaring thunder dragon as it viciously collided with the sword light beneath Liu Chengfeng’s feet!

Chen Lingxi stood upon the Longevity Bridge, his robes snapping wildly. The cauldron vessel’s overwhelming pressure around him surged forward, pressing down on Liu Chengfeng.

Liu Chengfeng’s sword dao divine abilities were equally extraordinary.

He slashed down with his sword. In the void, the sword light transformed into tens of thousands of sword shadows that flooded toward the Longevity Bridge like a tidal wave.

He forcefully withstood Chen Lingxi’s first wave of attacks—attacks backed by the deep Dao Origin of a Profound Root Transforming into a Tree—causing his face to darken.

”Chen Lingxi... do you insist on stopping me here?” Liu Chengfeng said. ”That complete cauldron vessel has already appeared. I’m afraid Zhao Duanxuan, Bai Lingze, and the others have already reached the Heavenly Gate Sea by now. If you entangle with me here, both of us will suffer, and neither will gain any advantage! Why not stay our hands for now?”

Chen Lingxi did not answer.

The Longevity Bridge crashed forward once more. At the same time, the Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword abruptly flew out, splitting into dozens of streaks of sword qi that shot toward Liu Chengfeng in a concentrated barrage!

Liu Chengfeng’s expression changed drastically. He flipped the longsword in his hand, and the Dao Origin around his body surged wildly!

He opened his mouth and spat out a streak of pale-golden light. The light expanded against the wind, transforming into a sword curtain that stretched across the sky to block in front of him!

However, the sword qi split from the Abyssal Heaven Spiritual Sword was far too sharp. The pale-golden sword curtain trembled violently under the bombardment of those dozens of streaks of sword qi, yet it ultimately did not shatter.

However, the radiance on the sword curtain had dimmed considerably, making it obvious that Liu Chengfeng had expended an enormous amount of Dao Origin to maintain it.

Meanwhile, Chen Lingxi surged forward!

Thunder Prison Heaven Immortal Smiting Thunder Pool!

The pale-golden lightning churning across the sky was compressed to the absolute limit, transforming into a thunder pool merely a few chi square. Wrapped in apocalyptic, destructive thunder killing power, it plummeted straight toward Liu Chengfeng’s head!

Liu Chengfeng gritted his teeth, knowing that ordinary divine abilities were completely incapable of matching this level of power.

In the next instant, the Dao rhythm of his Dao Foundation Great Divine Ability unfurled around him like a tidal wave.

The Great Divine Ability he cultivated was named [Dormant Dragon’s Cry].

This divine ability originated from Profound Fetus Peaceful Nurturing Heaven. It involved sealing a streak of sword light, profound light, or a divine ability into one’s Dao Platform, nourishing it with spiritual energy day by day and refining it with killing power month by month, while contemplating the Dao profundities of a dormant dragon.

Just like a dormant dragon in hibernation, it hid its edge in the abyss. While it appeared silent, in truth, it was accumulating boundless killing intent with every breath.

The longer it was nurtured, the more terrifying the might of the sealed divine ability became. When the time came for it to be unsheathed, it would be like winter ending and spring arriving, startling the dormant dragon from its slumber. With a single sword strike, the earth would shatter and the heavens would tremble.

Within the Thunder Pool, there were senior cultivators who had used this method to nurture a sword for three hundred years without unsheathing it.

After three hundred years of time—refined by thunder and nurtured by killing intent day and night—when the sword finally struck, the world changed colors. A sea of clouds spanning a thousand li was severed in a single slash, and even the stars in the firmament swayed.