Ji Changkong and Ji Du joined forces, one constantly corroding with power while the other unleashed a furious barrage using his physical body and the sheer might of the Sky Master.

These two streams of power relentlessly battered the fiery light shield, finally instilling fear in the white-bearded elder. He slowly realized he was being overwhelmed.

The speed at which he could gather energy had fallen significantly behind the rate at which he expended it.

During this process, he no longer had the capacity to aid Yan Shi Yan; all his focus was dedicated to fending off Ji Changkong and Ji Du.

While he lacked the spare energy, Ji Changkong could divert mental power to assist Ji Yuan.

The Sky Master profound truth Ji Changkong cultivated differed from that of this elder; his power required mental force as its primary source, his spiritual energy being the key to condensing the power of heaven and earth, just as crucial as the vital essence Ji Changkong used to slay foes.

Ji Changkong was different; his power sprang from vital essence and the strength within his blood, making spiritual energy secondary in importance.

Therefore, even while bombarding the elder relentlessly, he could spare a portion of his mental energy to support Ji Yuan.

As a result, Ji Yuan, who had been in grave peril, managed to hold his ground after receiving Ji Changkong’s power infusion. Conversely, Yan Shi Yan, deprived of his master’s aid, began to falter, and even the silver light shield started to show distinct, spider-webbing cracks.

Though formidable, Yan Shi Yan was merely a singular flame, its life evolution not having reached a very high stratum. Ji Yuan, however, was a fusion of five source flames. While any single source flame before fusion was far less potent than Yan Shi Yan, the combined strength of the five fused flames was more than a simple addition.

The greatest benefit of merging the five flames for Ji Yuan was the evolution and sublimation of his life form!

Following the evolution of his life imprint, Ji Yuan had surged far ahead of Yan Shi Yan.

Consequently, Ji Yuan grew steadily stronger. Yan Shi Yan, cut off from his master’s aid, began to lose his source of power, gradually showing signs of defeat.

“Push harder!” Ji Changkong roared sharply.

Ji Du understood and the smoke he manifested grew even denser. Any heaven and earth energy present in the vicinity, once enveloped by Ji Du, was being fragmented, causing the speed at which it flowed towards the elder’s fiery shield to slow considerably.

Gradually, the various strange energies nearby seemed to slip from the elder’s control. Even his incantations struggled to gather power swiftly.

The elder within the flame shield looked utterly horrified. His power was derived from the expanse of heaven and earth; wherever energy existed, he could wield it, and the more potent the locale, the stronger his power.

However, the elder’s body contained very little power; his frame was merely a medium, not a reservoir of stored strength. His cultivation method was diametrically opposed to Ji Changkong’s. Once he lost the ability to manipulate the surrounding energy, he would weaken progressively.

The white-bearded elder panicked and suddenly pulled a scroll from his robes. The scroll was etched with an exquisite magic array, which sprang to life under his chant, emerging from the parchment to settle at his feet.

As the array materialized, it cast a brilliant radiance beneath him. Filaments of energy within that light instantly became hyperactive, flooding the shield and restoring the fiery barrier to formidable defensive strength once more.

The elder’s body could not store energy, but his scroll could. With the scroll deployed, the elder visibly relaxed, a hint of a smile returning to his lips.

“Let’s see how many scrolls you have!” Ji Changkong scoffed, telling Ji Du, “Keep blasting! Blast until he runs out of every last scroll!”

Ji Changkong and Ji Du continued their relentless assault. Ji Changkong further unleashed the profound secrets of the Heavenly Star River Art and the principles of Primal Chaos power. Every divine ability and profound truth stored within the Seven-Colored Soul Imprint in his sea of souls that he understood was deployed, hammering the shield condensed by the elder without pause.

Strangely, amidst the frantic assault, Ji Changkong actually entered the State of Self-Awareness (You Wo Zhi Jing), his mind holding only the singular obsession of shattering the shield completely. He manifested every technique and power he had mastered, unleashing them one by one upon the elder’s fiery barrier.

Ji Changkong appeared crazed, his eyes bloodshot, bombarding the fiery shield like a madman. Various previously unseen powers erupted, clashing and merging within the combat. Unknowingly, the very manner of his striking began to subtly transform.

The white-bearded elder inside the flame shield looked on with heartache, producing one scroll after another at intervals.

Every time a new scroll was drawn, the elder’s face grew paler, etched with an expression of profound agony—as if physically pained. These scrolls contained terrifying power; in his home universe, a single scroll of this kind could annihilate a nation.

Yet, in this place, facing the relentless bombardment of this maniac, Ji Changkong, one scroll could only sustain a few minutes before its power was completely depleted.

Every scroll in his hand was a priceless treasure. In his own cosmos, the creation of one such scroll could drive an entire nation to frenzy, but here, they seemed suddenly cheapened beyond measure.

Ji Changkong transitioned from the State of Self-Awareness into the State of Non-Self (Wu Wo Zhi Jing) in a sudden instant.

He became vacant, bewildered, like a sleepwalker, yet in this state, he became terrifyingly potent!

Not only was the elder stunned, but Ji Du, who was allied in the siege, was also frozen. He decisively broke off their cooperation and swiftly retreated from that position.

In the State of Non-Self, his consciousness was blank, yet various bizarre profound truths were manifesting as beams of light, bolts of lightning, bursts of flame, or ice shards descending from the void…

The bizarre phenomenon unfolded: any energy unleashed from his hands, upon touching other energy in the void, would immediately fuse, regardless of whether it was lightning, flame, ice, or water, or light waves and strange gleams. Upon contact, they instantly merged into a novel form of energy.

This new power, upon encountering any other power—whether unmerged or already a composite—would fuse again, creating an even newer force!

Every time two different energies merged, the resulting power multiplied its potency severalfold. After one fusion, the energy would surge, as if endlessly escalating.

Ji Du sensed the constantly merging power and felt a chill of dread. When he called out to Ji Changkong and received no response, he was compelled to withdraw from his vicinity.

At this moment, Ji Changkong filled Ji Du with fear.

And the elder within the flame shield with even greater terror!

Because the fusion of just three bizarre magical techniques had instantaneously exhausted the power of all seven of his scrolls!

With just a brief test, the white-bearded elder knew this venture was doomed. The merged energy had amplified its strength by several tens of times! It was no longer something he could possibly resist.

What broke the elder’s spirit further was that this fusion of three energies was still merging with other powers. The energy contained within the fused body kept growing, potent enough to obliterate several stars.

The white-bearded elder completely collapsed. He frantically pulled out all the scrolls he had been hoarding, enveloping himself in the resulting magic arrays. He gave up fighting Ji Changkong and instead channeled the flame shield, rapidly fleeing into the distance, forgetting even Yan Shi Yan.

Boom!

A violent wave of energy exploded nearby, tearing apart black holes and solar flares alike. The power contained within the wave shredded the surrounding condensed energies. This wave was sufficient to annihilate several life-bearing stars—it was world-ending power!

The mere shockwave from the explosion utterly pulverized the white-bearded elder’s shield. All the scrolls he had deployed were instantly drained of their energy. The elder spat a mouthful of blood, flung far away, drifting endlessly within the vast smoke.

Ji Changkong finally awoke.

“What… what happened to me?” Ji Changkong looked at the distant, retreated Ji Du, utterly confused, and asked, “What on earth occurred?”

“Master, you helped me, thank you.” Ji Yuan’s voice sounded. Ji Yuan suddenly arrived, brimming with excitement: “Master, with your assistance, I finally absorbed Yan Shi Yan! Now, as long as I fully digest him, I can be of even greater help to you.”

“Surrender! I surrender!” The white-bearded elder, far in the distance, finally regained consciousness and quickly raised his hands. “That little fellow is yours; I don’t want anything else!”

“What exactly happened?” Ji Changkong looked to Ji Du, bewildered.

“Uh, well…” Ji Du also looked visibly shaken.

In the Chaotic Sea of Abyss, near a black hole entrance an unknowable distance from Ji Changkong, a beautiful woman clad in white robes embroidered with patterns of the sun, moon, and stars, wearing a strange coronet, suddenly opened her eyes from a state of meditation.

Beside her, a young maid who looked no older than fifteen or sixteen smiled sweetly, “Daoist Friend Ling Meng, why did you wake up so suddenly? The time hasn't come yet?”

“Daoist Friend Zihan, I awoke for another reason.” The woman called Ling Meng frowned, her expression strange. “I think I sensed the existence of the ‘Tai Xu’?”

“What?” The fifteen or sixteen-year-old maid’s expression shifted dramatically. “The Heavenly Venerate Tai Xu disappeared long ago. How could he be here?”

Shaking her head, the slightly older woman also looked perplexed. “I do not know.”