Chapter 785

If given the choice, Lord Zhuohe wouldn’t want to clash with Lin Yuan.

But this is a fight for transcendence—a struggle for hope.

Forget Lin Yuan—even if it were beings like Lord Fantian or Lord Haotian who’ve endured over three hundred million tribulations…

Lord Zhuohe would still dare to fight.

“Hmm?”

“Lord Zhuohe, you want to make a move on me?”

Lin Yuan sensed Zhuohe’s killing intent and paused, watching him calmly.

This came as no surprise—he’d expected it.

With the speed at which he was climbing, he was bound to catch up to the leading Legendary Lords.

Most Legendary Lords might hold back from acting, knowing that one more or one less Lin Yuan wouldn’t significantly affect their chances of transcendence.

But the few at the very front?

They absolutely wouldn’t let go of their slim hope for transcendence.

“Lord Milky Way, if you choose another white jade staircase, consider it a favor owed. Treasures, rare items—name what you want, as long as I have it.”

Lord Zhuohe spoke solemnly. “But if you insist on continuing up this staircase, don’t blame me for going all out.”

He fixed his gaze on Lin Yuan.

“Change staircases?”

Lin Yuan chuckled. “Why don’t you just tell me to give up this path to transcendence?”

The 33,333 white jade staircases were spread across the Infinite Dimensional Multiverse, and Legendary Lords had gathered a great deal of information.

One of the known facts: a Lord can only climb one white jade staircase at a time.

In other words, if Lin Yuan gave up this staircase and chose another, he would have to start from the beginning.

A slow step means falling behind forever.

Lin Yuan had already started slightly behind the first wave of Legendary Lords.

Starting over on another staircase?

Even with his speed, he'd catch up eventually, but—

Why bother?

Were the other staircases free of Legendary Lords?

Anything involving transcendence—other Lords would make the same choice as Zhuohe.

They’d try to block him too.

“In that case—”

Lord Zhuohe’s form suddenly exploded, transforming into a vast, mighty turbid river.

His true form was a colossal Zhuo River born within the Infinite Dimensional Multiverse. When he first gained “spirit,” he was already a peak twelfth-rank being, capable of rivaling true time lifeforms.

In terms of foundational might, Lord Zhuohe surpassed peers by hundreds or thousands of times.

“Lord Milky Way, let’s see if your reputation matches your strength.”

His voice rumbled across the churning waters of his true form, oppressive and boundless.

“That’s…”

“Lord Zhuohe’s making a move!”

“Not surprising. Lord Milky Way’s climbing speed is too fast—he was bound to meet Lord Zhuohe.”

“Hahaha, let’s see if he can keep going!”

From below, countless Legendary Lords noticed the disturbance and looked up at Lin Yuan and Zhuohe’s location.

These Lords didn’t have much hope for transcendence themselves. But seeing a clash between Milky Way and Zhuohe? That got their interest.

On his way up, Lin Yuan had passed them all—they’d stepped aside. Now they were eager to see his true strength.

“Fight, go ahead and fight.”

“The more time you waste, the further I get.”

High up on the staircase, a figure shrouded in shadowy aura glanced down, then resumed climbing.

This was Lord Anxing, a being no weaker than Lord Zhuohe—perhaps even stronger.

Though he’d been ahead of Zhuohe, he wasn’t entirely confident he could stay in the lead.

But now—

Zhuohe and Lin Yuan were fighting. That was exactly what he wanted.

Both were incredibly powerful.

A clear victor wouldn’t be determined quickly.

“What a strange lifeform…”

Lin Yuan observed the vast river and nodded slightly. “It’s said the Zhuo River isolates karma and suppresses everything. Today I see it for myself.”

“Lord Milky Way, you still have a chance to turn back,” Zhuohe’s voice echoed again.

“No need.”

Lin Yuan shook his head and raised his right hand. Four powers—the Supreme Forces of Taiyi, Taichu, Taishi, and Taisu—intertwined and collided.

“Suppress.”

Zhuohe didn’t hesitate. His vast Zhuo River power surged forth to crush Lin Yuan.

Since Lin Yuan wouldn’t back down, Zhuohe saw no reason to hold back either. He had to subdue him as quickly as possible, catch up, and surpass Anxing again.

Buzz, buzz, buzz— The four “Tai” powers wove together in Lin Yuan’s fingers, spreading outward.

Where they passed, all things were erased—matter, immaterial, rules, Daos—everything was annihilated beyond recovery.

All except for the eternal white jade staircase—everything else vanished, including the mighty Zhuo River power.

“This—” Lord Zhuohe’s confident expression twisted into horror. In an instant, over 70% of his true form was annihilated.

The river, refined to its peak—where even a drop could suppress an ordinary Lord—was utterly helpless against the Four Tai Powers.

“Stop! Lord Milky Way, stop—I yield! I yield!”

Zhuohe cried out, fear lacing his voice.

If he’d known Lin Yuan was this powerful, he wouldn’t have dared block him even with ten times the courage.

“Too late.”

Lin Yuan’s eyes were calm as he watched the massive river vanish.

In less than half a breath, all of Zhuohe’s river waters turned to ash, as if they had never existed.

Lin Yuan looked up—Zhuohe, who had once blocked the path ahead, had vanished.

“At my current level, if I go all out, even a Legendary Lord like Zhuohe—who’s survived 250 million tribulations—is far from my match.”

Lin Yuan thought to himself, evaluating his own power.

To finish the fight quickly and return to climbing, he hadn’t held back.

He unleashed the power of four of the Five Supreme Tai from the 《Innate Five Tais》.

The result was clear—Zhuohe hadn’t been able to resist at all.

Of course, Lin Yuan’s strength was one reason for the swift victory.

The other was the unique nature of the white jade staircase—many defensive and escape abilities couldn’t be used here.

The staircase stood above all—even the will of the Supreme Law Dao couldn’t interfere. On the staircase, there were only two directions: up or down.

And to go up required withstanding intensifying pressure and comprehending Dao transformation.

Zhuohe couldn’t escape upward.

And downward?

Lin Yuan was already blocking the way.

So—

Zhuohe had no choice but to take Lin Yuan’s full power head-on.

Outside the staircase, if Zhuohe realized he wasn’t a match, he could still run or evade.

But here? He had to endure.

That’s why the battle ended so quickly.

Had they been outside, Lin Yuan might still have won—but it would’ve taken longer.

“He left behind quite a few weapons.”

Lin Yuan glanced at the spoils left after Zhuohe’s demise.

“Transcendence is far more important than any opportunity in the Wanwei time-space.”

He shook his head slightly.

Lords rarely carried important treasures when venturing into the Wanwei time-space.

No point risking their core bodies for a few opportunities.

But on the white jade staircase?

It was far more dangerous—but the rewards were far greater.

With the chance of transcendence on the line, every Legendary Lord would arm themselves to the teeth.

Losing treasures could be tolerated—they could be replaced.

But missing this transcendence opportunity? That might never come again.

The difference was clear—Legendary Lords knew what mattered most.

Somewhere else in the Infinite Dimensional Multiverse—

“Lord Milky Way… how is he this strong? Even Lord Haotian and Lord Fantian couldn’t…”

Lord Zhuohe was in disbelief.

Haotian and Fantian—those who’d endured over 300 million tribulations—were indisputably the strongest in this timeline.

But compared to Lin Yuan…

Zhuohe could clearly feel that Lin Yuan’s pressure on him was far greater than even theirs.

Even if he couldn’t beat Haotian, he should’ve been able to resist. But Lin Yuan? He hadn’t even lasted a breath!

“Who… who said Lord Milky Way’s strength lies in the future?!”

Zhuohe burned with resentment.

Most rumors said Lord Milky Way’s power lay in his future.

Which meant he wasn’t yet strong.

But looking at it now—

This was “not strong”?

“The white jade staircase isolates all. Not even the future can interfere here—Lord Milky Way relied on his own strength, not some future version.”

Zhuohe’s mind raced. If even the Supreme Law Dao’s will couldn’t interfere, how could a future self?

“I need to hurry and pick another staircase.”

He calmed himself and immediately sent another core body to climb a different staircase.

“If I’d known, I wouldn’t have tried to block him.”

Regret filled his heart.

Had he stepped aside, he might’ve remained in the top three on this staircase—far better than starting over.

And even if he had yielded, Lord Anxing—ranked first—would likely have made a move. If Anxing had lost, Zhuohe would’ve been second.

On the endless white jade staircase—

Many Legendary Lords stood stunned.

The clash between Milky Way and Zhuohe had drawn many eyes.

They’d all been looking forward to it. Zhuohe was no small figure—250 million tribulations survived.

Such beings rarely fought.

Opinions had varied about the outcome.

But the result—

Was shocking to all.

It wasn’t that no one expected Lin Yuan to win—

It was just that it ended far too fast.

Zhuohe, in front of Lin Yuan, was utterly helpless?

“Zhuohe’s strength…?”

“It’s not Zhuohe’s weakness—it’s Milky Way’s power.”

“That’s right. Even after revealing his true form, Zhuohe was still annihilated. That kind of power…”

Some Legendary Lords felt a chill. The stronger they were, the more they could sense how terrifying Lin Yuan was.

It was absolute domination—a being who could crush a 250-million-tribulation Lord with ease.

“Thankfully… I let him pass before he caught up. Otherwise I’d be starting over too.”

Many Lords were deeply relieved.

Some had felt regret when they yielded to Lin Yuan. Now, they realized how wise that choice had been.

Above the white jade staircase—

Lord Anxing, who had been climbing with full focus, suddenly turned around.

“What…?”

His heart shook.

Especially seeing Zhuohe’s true form vanishing—his shock was indescribable.

“Milky Way’s power… is definitely above Lord Haotian and Lord Fantian!”

Compared to those below, Anxing could see even more—he directly compared Lin Yuan to the strongest.

And the conclusion made his heart tremble.

Stronger than Haotian and Fantian?

“This Milky Way… wasn’t even a Legendary Lord 100,000 years ago?”

His mind spun.

One hundred thousand years ago, not even a Legendary Lord.

Now? Stronger than the strongest?

Time passed.

After defeating Zhuohe, Lin Yuan resumed his climb.

Only half a day later—

He caught sight of a darkly glowing Legendary Lord.

“Lord Anxing?”

Lin Yuan stopped and looked at him.

Among all the Lords on this staircase, Anxing was the strongest.

Even Zhuohe had been a bit weaker.

Anxing was ahead not just because he started first—but because of his own strength.

“You going to try and stop me too?”

Lin Yuan looked at him calmly.

“Stop you?”

Anxing’s heart quivered. He forced a smile. “With your power, Lord Milky Way, how could I dare?”

Even when transcendence was on the line—when any Lord would normally fight to the death—

They still needed hope.

Facing Lin Yuan, with Zhuohe’s example fresh in his mind—

What could Anxing use to stop him?

There was no way.

No chance.

“Please, go ahead.”

Anxing stepped aside immediately.

Lin Yuan glanced at him—then continued climbing.

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