It was as if the heavens were cracking and the earth splitting, the void being continually crushed and shredded. In the span of a mere flick of the fingers, this colossal peak had already occupied hundreds of miles of space.
However, the mountain's expansion had not ceased!
Bang! Bang! Bang...
Sensing the continuous, rapid shattering of the "Medicine King Incarnations," Nie Kong couldn't help but be greatly startled, instantly losing more than ten of his incarnations.
Immediately after, Nie Kong detected a boundless, overwhelming aura pressing down upon him.
"Hoo!"
The surrounding space shattered, and Nie Kong was forcibly squeezed out of the void. He then saw an immense, boundless red shadow crushing down towards him.
"Chongxu!"
Nie Kong's expression drastically changed, and the name burst from his lips; that red shadow was actually the mountain manifestation of the Grand Venerable Chongxu.
"Nie Kong, so you were hiding here. Your methods of concealment are indeed brilliant."
A leisurely voice sounded, and the mountain abruptly stopped expanding. Chongxu's face emerged from within the mountain body, his eyes profound, resembling two massive black holes.
Nie Kong instantly calmed down, sighing, "I had thought that relying on a large number of 'Medicine King Incarnations' would be enough to confuse your senses and allow me to find an opportunity to escape. But I never expected your power to have expanded to this degree after refining Pangu. Chongxu, I still underestimated you."
He now understood clearly: Chongxu must have only been curious when he kept shattering Nie Kong’s 'Medicine King Incarnations.' If Chongxu had expanded like this from the beginning, Nie Kong would have had absolutely nowhere to hide, not even by fleeing to the edge of the Secret Realm.
Grand Venerable Chongxu definitely possessed the ability to make his manifestation fill all the space here.
At that point, the entire "Nihility Secret Realm" would be occupied by his mountain body. If there were still the power of Nihility within this space, there might have been a chance to remain hidden.
Unfortunately, all the power of Nihility within the Secret Realm had already been absorbed by Nie Kong.
"However, I am not that old fellow Pangu."
Letting out a self-mocking laugh, Nie Kong's tone shifted abruptly, "Though your strength far surpasses mine, refining me will not be so easy." As he spoke, Nie Kong's body suddenly dissolved completely, transforming into a large mass of pale, almost transparent chaos, drifting outwards like mist.
"Is that so?"
Chongxu's lips moved slightly. The already halted giant peak resumed its terrifying expansion. In an instant, that mass of chaos was enveloped by the colossal mountain body...
...
To the west of the Grand Venerable Spirit Realm, at the Pantian Palace.
"Crack! Crack..."
In the dim hall, a string of sudden bursts sounded.
This sound actually originated from a black jade sculpture in the center of the hall. At this moment, the sculpture's surface was covered in dense, crisscrossing cracks.
"Crash!"
A few seconds later, the entire sculpture suddenly burst open, its fragments scattering onto the floor.
Amidst the hazy debris, a dark figure strode out. His body was tall and straight, his skin fair, his facial features sharply defined, as if his countenance had been chiseled by a carving knife.
This person's appearance was extremely similar to Pangu's, yet he looked no older than his twenties.
A living, breathing younger version of Grand Venerable Pangu!
"Chongxu!"
Pangu's face twisted, his eyes blood-red, filled with rage and hatred as he squeezed out the two words from between his teeth. Just now, his Grand Venerable main body in the "Nihility Secret Realm" had been completely refined by Chongxu. Only after the soul there perished did this clone he kept in the Pantian Palace awaken from its slumber.
His current strength had plummeted drastically, now equivalent only to a Ninth-Rank Star God.
"Vile, treacherous villain, I swear I will never let you off!"
Pangu cursed coldly, a look of uncontrollable fear suddenly flashing across his expression.
He knew too well that once his main body perished, the "Chaos Immortal Spirit" and Nie Kong would inevitably be refined. Chongxu’s path to ascending to "Grand Heavenly Venerable" could no longer be blocked. By then, he, a mere Ninth-Rank Star God, wouldn't even be worthy of carrying Chongxu’s shoes, let alone opposing him.
But how could Pangu accept such a sacrifice of his main body in vain?
Furthermore, he was also aware that although Chongxu would spare his Ninth-Rank Star God clone in the "Nihility Secret Realm," once Chongxu returned to the Grand Venerable Spirit Realm, this clone would still face the fate of being refined by Chongxu.
He had known Chongxu for over ten thousand years and understood his nature perfectly. Chongxu often appeared harmless, but in reality, he was a ruthless character who never left loose ends.
When the time came, his death would be certain.
"Chongxu, even if your achievement of the Grand Unity state is settled, I will never wait around to die!" Pangu muttered between gritted teeth, seemingly trying to bolster his own courage. In an instant, Pangu took a deep breath and sat down directly in the Pantian Palace, his mind gradually calming...
...
Heavenly Spirit Continent, Heavenly Wolf Mountain Range.
One black figure and one red figure collided, then separated, then collided again...
The void shattered in vast swathes, the booming roar shaking the heavens, while the mountain range below was scarred with ravines and riddled with craters, utterly devastated.
"Panling, Chilien, fighting on won't bring any resolution. Stop for a moment and rest first." A rough, booming laugh echoed through the heavens. He was an extraordinarily tall man, surrounded by shimmering purple light and crackling lightning. At this moment, he stood with his hands behind his back, suspended thousands of meters in the air.
This was the Thunder Dragon Grand Venerable, while the one engaged in the fierce battle, the black silhouette, was Panzu Clan's Panling Grand Venerable, and the red silhouette was Chilien, the Great Elder of the newly promoted Chixing Clan.
Not far from the Thunder Dragon was a churning expanse of blood mist.
Within the blood mist, the "Hui Mou Grass" was faintly visible, with two eye-shaped flowers blooming on a single stalk. Two identical, beautiful faces occasionally surfaced from the "Hui Mou Flower."
They were the Spirit Venerables Taiyan and Dayan.
Now, half a month had passed since the boundary gate was forcibly opened. Panling, under Pangu’s command, had gone to kill Chilien, but unexpectedly, Chilien had managed to achieve the Grand Venerable realm by relying on her power. Subsequently, Chilien and Panling engaged in a fierce battle, fighting and retreating, finally leaving the Netherworld, crossing the sea, and arriving at the Heavenly Spirit Continent.
Chilien had only recently broken through; her realm was not yet stable, and her strength was slightly inferior to Panling's. When their battlefield shifted to the Heavenly Wolf Mountain Range, Chilien was already extremely exhausted.
Of course, Panling was not in much better shape.
Thunder Dragon, who had been observing the fight, found an opportunity and was about to intervene when Taiyan and Dayan, who were in a state of fusion, suddenly broke through the spatial barrier of the Yin Ruins and appeared at the edge of the battlefield.
Their arrival managed to hold back Thunder Dragon, giving both Chilien and Panling time to rest.
After that, Thunder Dragon continued to play the role of a spectator. Due to the irreconcilable ancient grudge between the Chixing Clan and the Panzu Clan, Chilien and Panling fought fiercely almost every day.
Initially, Chilien could barely hold off Panling by relying on the "Fire Feather Celestial Bamboo."
But he fought with increasing ferocity, his strength rising with astonishing speed. Over the course of half a month, he was actually able to fight Panling to an even draw, his strength now equal.
...