Chapter 564

“No wonder the Ninefold Venerable couldn’t locate this mysterious space.”

Lin Yuan observed for a while, a thoughtful look on his face.

This mysterious space was deeply fused with the fabric of time and space. Although it didn’t reach the level of the Devil Jade Space, achieving such a feat would at least require comprehension of the Ninth Layer of Time and Space.

The Ninth Layer of Time and Space—only Chaos Great Saints could generally reach that level. As for the peak of the Ninth Layer? Even many Supreme Saints might not be able to attain it.

One of His Majesty the Mysterious Venerable’s proudest accomplishments was precisely his comprehension at the peak of the Ninth Layer of Time and Space.

“This mysterious space must have been left behind by a Chaos Great Saint. Based on Cang Yulong’s description, this is likely a land of inheritance left by such a Saint.”

Lin Yuan came to a conclusion.

“That Chaos Tree…”

Lin Yuan also saw, deep within the mysterious space, a swaying tree exuding boundless chaotic energy.

“This move was worth it.”

Lin Yuan was now certain.

Even without this inheritance space, just obtaining that Chaos Tree alone would justify offending an enemy at the level of a Venerable.

Venerables rarely engaged in combat with each other—simply because there weren’t usually treasures worth fighting over. But the Chaos Tree? Just looking at the Ninefold Venerable imprisoning the Stonefolk Clan made it clear how valuable it was.

“Refining this space will take time. I’ll wait until after the duel.”

Lin Yuan locked in the space-time coordinates of the inheritance space. That way, no matter how the other side moved it, it couldn’t be hidden from him.

“You stay here for now.”

Lin Yuan glanced at Cang Yulong.

Dueling with the Ninefold Venerable would definitely require fusing his two primordial spirits to form the Tai Chi Primordial Spirit. A single primordial spirit alone would have a hard time winning.

Of course, even if Lin Yuan lost, there wouldn’t be much consequence.

But losing to the Ninefold Venerable would create a series of complications. For example, it might make the Venerable believe Lin Yuan was weaker and thus begin tracking his movements after the duel.

Therefore—

Lin Yuan was aiming to win against the Ninefold Venerable if possible. Even if he couldn’t win, he needed the Venerable to realize he was not someone to be trifled with.

As for leaving Cang Yulong here? Lin Yuan wasn’t worried about him running away.

Now that the mysterious inheritance space was in hand, the greatest opportunity had already been obtained—Cang Yulong had no reason to flee.

Outside the Ninefold Secret Realm.

One gathering site after another began migrating into the secret realm.

These sites housed many races and lifeforms who relied on the Ninefold Venerable for protection. Naturally, every cosmic era, they offered him abundant treasures and chaos stones.

The Venerable’s protection was not free.

Even the many “fragment worlds” outside the Guming Chaos Continent required massive amounts of chaos stones to purchase.

“What? The Ninefold Venerable is about to duel another Venerable outside the secret realm?”

The Ninefold Venerable hadn’t hidden this matter.

In fact, it couldn’t be hidden. Once he and Lin Yuan began their duel, the battle fluctuations from Venerable-level combat would be impossible to conceal.

“The Ninefold Venerable is dueling another Venerable? Which Venerable?”

“Doesn’t matter who it is—we need to hurry into the secret realm. Once the duel begins, if we’re still out here, we won’t survive the shockwaves of their battle.”

Many powerful beings outside the secret realm were panicking. Even Dominance-stage cultivators trembled. A fight between Venerables was a disaster waiting to happen for anyone nearby.

“Sigh… We can take the treasures, but the outposts we’ve spent so long building—there’s no time to move them. Hopefully something will survive.”

“Survive? Just being alive is good enough.”

“Quick, into the secret realm. Any later and we’ll be locked out.”

Fortunately, many of the Ninefold Venerable’s subordinates were helping with the evacuation and even opened the great formation outside the secret realm. Otherwise, it would’ve been impossible to finish moving in just half an hour.

“No idea what grudge the Ninefold Venerable has with this other Venerable. Why insist on this duel?”

“Yeah… Whatever the Venerables are doing, we shouldn’t pry. Just in case…”

The migrating groups of powerful beings whispered carefully among themselves.

Outside the secret realm.

The Ninefold Venerable had been waiting for some time.

Whoosh—

Moments later—

Lin Yuan’s figure silently appeared not far away.

At this moment, Lin Yuan’s Yang and Yin spirits were fused into one—forming the Tai Chi Primordial Spirit.

“Hmm?”

The Ninefold Venerable frowned as he looked at Lin Yuan. Something about him felt different than before. Although the burning, overwhelming aura was gone, the Venerable sensed an even greater threat.

“To reach the Chaos Realm, one must have made a name for themselves. But I’ve never heard of you.”

The Ninefold Venerable voiced his confusion as he stared at Lin Yuan.

He even began reviewing every Dominance-stage powerhouse he knew—perhaps Lin Yuan had recently advanced to Chaos. But there were no matches among them.

The growth of a powerhouse always left traces. Especially those who advanced to Chaos Realm—before reaching that level, some intel would always leak out.

What the Ninefold Venerable didn’t know was that Lin Yuan was currently only in the Path-Clearing stage. His presence in the chaotic void was minimal. After leaving his universe, he’d been staying in the Guming Chaos Continent.

Aside from the Guming Venerable and the Eye of Ten Thousand Laws, no one else had any information on Lin Yuan.

So no matter how much the Ninefold Venerable thought about it, he couldn’t uncover Lin Yuan’s true background.

“Hahaha, the Chaos Void is vast. What’s one more Venerable?” Lin Yuan replied casually.

Though the Ninefold Venerable didn’t agree, he didn’t dwell on it. What mattered now was defeating Lin Yuan.

Only by winning could he avoid walking away empty-handed. Gaining an inheritance that could guide his own path—now that would be a real reward.

“Since stepping into the Chaos Realm, I’ve trained for ten cosmic eras and created ten killer techniques,” the Ninefold Venerable said solemnly. “If you can withstand them—I’ll admit defeat.”

As his words fell—

Boom—

He launched a punch.

The terrifying shockwave instantly ripped through tens of thousands, millions, then tens of millions of light-years. Time and space were torn like glue, all power rushing toward Lin Yuan.

“Time-Space Millstone.”

With a thought, Lin Yuan condensed time and space into tangible form. Endless time-space force began grinding down the power behind that punch, scattering it across layers of space-time.

“What a refined use of time-space”

The Ninefold Venerable’s expression turned serious.

His punch also contained time-space rules.

For Lin Yuan to block it using the same laws showed he had superior mastery in pure time-space.

“So what if your comprehension is better?”

The Ninefold Venerable wasn’t concerned.

This wasn’t a battle of who could run better—it was a duel. Mastering time-space didn’t mean he could win.

“An offensive Venerable?”

Lin Yuan analyzed as well. That punch had immense destructive power. If he hadn’t used his Tai Chi Primordial Spirit, a solo Yang or Yin spirit might’ve been injured.

“Threefold Mystic Breaks the World.”

The Ninefold Venerable’s aura surged as three completely different forces emerged from within him and lashed toward Lin Yuan.

“Boundless Void.”

Lin Yuan no longer defended. He stepped forward, and the surrounding void was replaced by a new, vast power.

The Thirteenth-Rank inheritance “Infinite Void” was a foundational one, focused on building an unmatched base and overwhelming power. Over the years, Lin Yuan had derived several killer moves based on his inner universe. Boundless Void was one of them.

Rumble—

Two vastly different forces clashed and intertwined, their shockwaves spreading to the ends of space.

The Ninefold Secret Realm’s defensive array went into overdrive, blocking as much of the aftermath as possible.

This battle between two Venerables caused such immense chaos that it quickly drew the attention of other Venerables across the Myriad Phenomena Void Region.

“Hm? A Venerable is fighting?”

“That’s the Ninefold Venerable’s location, isn’t it?”

“Who’s the other one?”

“No idea. Never sensed such an aura before.”

One after another, Chaos Venerables observed from afar. None of them made a move—instead, they began chatting.

“The Ninefold Venerable was known for his aggression even at the Dominance stage. Still the same after advancing.”

“That unknown Venerable fighting him to a draw must have quite the background.”

“Becoming a Venerable is never simple.”

“Indeed. Let’s just watch.”

The Chaos Venerables watched with interest. Unless absolutely necessary, Venerables rarely interfered with one another.

But they quite enjoyed watching other Venerables battle.

After all, it didn’t affect them—and the drama wasn’t about them either.

Who doesn’t enjoy a good show?

The solidified void spread and engulfed the surroundings. Lin Yuan’s “Boundless Void,” based on the “Infinite Void” inheritance, gave him impressive control over the space—though not quite at the level of the divine technique “World,” it was about one-third as powerful.

And unlike “World,” which lasted only seconds, Boundless Void could persist as long as Lin Yuan willed.

“Such terrifying void suppression.” Even the Ninefold Venerable felt stifled.

Under Boundless Void, his every move was hindered—as if trapped in a spider’s web, deeply uncomfortable.

“But it’s useless to me.”

“Sixfold Mystic Suppresses All.”

The Ninefold Venerable’s expression grew grim. Six brand-new forces erupted from his body, sweeping in every direction.

To defeat Lin Yuan and avoid walking away empty-handed, the Venerable had already used most of his killer moves.

Rumble—

The formless Sixfold Mystic Force began tearing apart the void. Lin Yuan’s Boundless Void trembled.

“Hmm?” Lin Yuan’s expression shifted slightly.

The Sixfold Mystic Force might not have broken Boundless Void yet, but it was only a matter of time.

It was proving difficult to suppress the Ninefold Venerable’s full-strength assault.

“Using the Tai Chi Primordial Spirit to duel a Venerable... is still a bit forced.” Lin Yuan reflected.

After all, he was still only at the Path-Clearing stage. Crossing two major realms to battle a Venerable? Even a direct descendant of a Thirteenth-Rank being wouldn’t normally be able to do that.

Only through tremendous fortune and foundation had Lin Yuan reached this level.

“In that case, time to use the trump card.”

Lin Yuan made his decision. Against the Venerable’s displayed strength, ordinary tactics wouldn’t cut it.

“World.” (Za Warudoooooo)

Lin Yuan closed his eyes slightly—then opened them.

In that instant—

The surrounding void changed.

A vast, indomitable aura filled the area.

Within this range, time and space were fully affected. Lin Yuan was the sole creator of this realm.

At this moment, the millions of light-years of surrounding space were fully enveloped by Lin Yuan’s external universe.

“What is this?”

The Ninefold Venerable felt an unprecedented pressure. His once-unstoppable Sixfold Mystic Force was now completely suppressed, rapidly contracting.

“Suppress.”

Lin Yuan looked down indifferently and began channeling the power of his external universe to crush him.

The external universe’s power was overwhelming, but it had a limited duration—so Lin Yuan held nothing back.

“Arghhh!”

The Ninefold Venerable immediately felt searing pain in body and soul. The crushing pressure was unstoppable.

His flesh began to shatter, his soul to disintegrate. Under this force, all resistance was meaningless.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Under the relentless suppression, the previously invincible Ninefold Venerable had his arms shattered and twisted, flesh torn open, and even his internal universe began collapsing.

He staggered backward, terror in his eyes, and hastily activated a stronger life-saving technique.

“Ninefold Mystic Bodyguard.”

Nine new forces clashed and formed a shield around him, resisting the oppressive force from the void.

Boom! Boom! Boom!!

Lin Yuan continued suppressing with the full might of his external universe. The Ninefold Venerable’s barrier, formed from nine forces, twisted and deformed but didn’t shatter, holding on stubbornly.

“Troublesome.”

Lin Yuan frowned. This Ninefold Venerable was indeed difficult. Though newly advanced, his life-saving trump cards were on par with more seasoned Venerables.

One must understand—within the range of Lin Yuan’s external universe, even typical Venerables would feel dread.

“One second left.”

Lin Yuan sensed that the duration of his external universe was nearly up.

“Explode!”

Without hesitation, he detonated it.

Since it would dissipate anyway, might as well unleash its full power.

Rumble—

The void began collapsing. The annihilation force engulfed the Ninefold Venerable.

“What?!”

The Venerable was horrified. He was already struggling to withstand Lin Yuan’s suppression—and now the pressure doubled.

Venerables across the Myriad Phenomena Void Region continued watching.

“Looks like things got real between them.”

“Wonder what made them fight like this?”

“That mysterious Venerable’s detonation attack is extremely lethal.”

“Yeah, might force the Ninefold Venerable to use his last cards.”

They commented as they watched.

Seeing two Chaos Venerables go all out was rare. Even more so when one was a complete unknown.

Whoosh—

The void shattered, chaos split.

Millions of light-years of space were collapsing.

Even the distant Ninefold Secret Realm was half ruined. If not for its strongest core formation, it might have been erased entirely.

Lin Yuan stood calmly amidst the void, his aura clearly weakened.

Detonating his external universe came at a cost, but with some rest, he’d recover.

Buzz!

Suddenly, from the broken void, an aura gathered—then rapidly solidified.

“Hahahahaha!”

The Ninefold Venerable appeared, battered but not much weaker, laughing heartily.

“That was your trump card? Can’t use it again soon, and you’re weakened?”

He saw through Lin Yuan’s condition instantly. To survive that explosion, he’d used a life-saving item—not a technique.

Techniques could be reused. Items couldn’t.

He had paid a price to survive.

“Now it’s my turn.”

The Venerable stretched out his hand—an enormous palm grabbing at Lin Yuan.

He wouldn’t give Lin Yuan a chance to recover. He wanted to force him to admit defeat.

“Still lacking a little…”

Lin Yuan shook his head slightly, watching that palm approach.

Far away in layered time-space.

Cang Yulong was also paying attention to the battle.

Of course, with his level, he could only sense the shockwaves—he couldn’t see any details.

But deep within his sea of consciousness, the childish voice from before was narrating what it saw.

“It’s over. The Ninefold Venerable survived? That senior of yours is going to lose.”

Came the voice, full of regret.

“He’s going to lose?”

Cang Yulong was dazed. Though he’d expected this, he still felt disappointed.

“Losing is normal. After all…”

The voice was about to comfort him, but suddenly fell silent—as if it sensed something, and didn’t dare speak further.

“After all what?”

Cang Yulong asked, confused, trying to get it to continue.

But the voice was completely silent.

“Huh?”

Cang Yulong finally realized something was wrong. He instinctively looked around—

And what he saw made his eyes widen.

A figure stood beside him—he hadn’t even noticed when it appeared.

The figure was a young man—bearing a resemblance to the senior he’d met before.

“You’re not—”

Cang Yulong was stunned. Wasn’t the senior still dueling the Ninefold Venerable? How was he here?

At this moment, he faintly sensed that this version of the senior was different—his body seemed heavier, like he could crush time and space just by standing there.

Cang Yulong opened his mouth to speak—

But before he could say anything, he saw Lin Yuan raise his right arm, fingers spread in a grasp, and gently tear toward the Ninefold Secret Realm.

Whoosh—

Five deep, compressed rifts flashed and vanished from view.

Cang Yulong instinctively felt an overwhelming terror just from seeing them.

Outside the Ninefold Secret Realm.

The Ninefold Venerable was about to suppress Lin Yuan—

But then his pupils contracted as he saw a hand tear through heaven and earth.

...

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