Lu Yuan glanced at the Chuanzheng Immortal Tome. Cracks marred its surface. Indeed, the Tome was flawed. Immortal-grade weapons were useless in Civilization-level combat; they simply couldn't withstand the surge of Civilization-level mana and were easily destroyed. Back then, his Yangwu Immortal Sword, which was of a much higher quality than the Chuanzheng Immortal Tome and was melded with him through sword-man unity, still shattered repeatedly during Civilization-level battles. Even though Righteous Qi restored it multiple times, it eventually buckled, forcing him to switch to the Yuanji Divine Sword and abandon the Yangwu until he upgraded the Yangwu to a divine sword later in the Artifact Scripture era.
The Chuanzheng Immortal Tome began to crack the moment it engaged in Civilization-level sparring. This was despite him using only a minuscule amount of mana. When he applied mana equivalent to one Epoch, he realized the Tome couldn't hold, so he retracted the rest of his power, preserving it. Thus, Lu Yuan’s recent strike had cost him merely one unit of mana.
Silence descended upon the entire field! Li Taishi had broken through the First Heavenly Threshold, reaching the Civilization Realm.
The Vice Sovereign of the Extinction Civilization was momentarily stunned, then let out a sneer. “Li Taishi, I must admit your talent. Yes, truly, I never expected you to reach the Civilization Realm. You are indeed worthy of being called a Child of Darkness. Though not quite matching the Child of Desolation or Lu Yuan, you are still quite formidable.” “Given enough time, you might actually have posed a genuine obstacle to our Heavenly Principle Civilization, perhaps even birthing a small Confucian Civilization. It’s a pity you delivered yourself here, deliberately avoiding the Central Celestial Dynasty and choosing instead to barge into the Collapsed Zone of the Lost Lands.” The phrase, You deliberately avoided the Central Celestial Dynasty only to barge into the Collapsed Zone of the Lost Lands, was quite popular within the Central Celestial Dynasty, the Extinction Vice Sovereign sneered, “What a shame. You only possess the mana of one Epoch, and now you must fall into my hands.”
The Extinction Vice Sovereign was brimming with absolute confidence. Furthermore, he employed tactics to shatter Li Taishi’s morale: “Moreover, your weapon, the Chuanzheng Immortal Tome, is ruined. You now lack a proper weapon, let alone a Divine-grade one…” Divine-grade weapons were not easily acquired. It was entirely normal for someone who just reached the Civilization Realm to be without one.
The Extinction Vice Sovereign maintained complete faith in his position: he commanded the mana of two Epochs, possessed vast experience, and wielded his suited Divine-grade weapon, the Annihilation Divine Tome.
And Li Taishi? He possessed the mana of only one Epoch, was newly ascended to the Civilization Realm—likely completely inexperienced in its combat dynamics—and owned no conventional weapon whatsoever.
Comparing the two, it was immediately clear that the Extinction Vice Sovereign held the decisive advantage.
Those who had just been elated by Li Taishi’s breakthrough into the Civilization Realm, their minds clouded by that sudden surge of ecstasy, now realized with chilling clarity the sheer magnitude of Li Taishi’s disadvantages. The overwhelming superiority lay with the Extinction Vice Sovereign.
If the Vice Sovereign of Integrity Civilization had been completely unharmed, a two-on-one confrontation against the Extinction Vice Sovereign might have offered a slight chance. But now, alas, the Integrity Vice Sovereign was too severely wounded to intervene.
The Extinction Vice Sovereign clearly felt a stutter in Li Taishi’s aura—the perfect moment to strike. He raised his Annihilation Divine Tome, unleashing an attack of absolute extinction. His mastery lay in the ultimate expression of 'Annihilation,' as Civilization-level combat demanded the pursuit of absolutes. Although he hadn't truly reached the zenith of Annihilation, it was more than enough to deal with a mere newcomer who had just entered the Civilization Realm.
The Extinction Vice Sovereign’s current offensive was of the Heaven-Collapsing level. Under its assault, the Heaven of the First Epoch had already crumbled! Within that Heaven, time and space had utterly disintegrated.
This was the might of a two-Epoch cultivator. Witnessing the attack launched by the Extinction Vice Sovereign, the Integrity Vice Sovereign could only sigh deeply. His defeat was no injustice; the Second Epoch truly stood leagues apart from the First. Pity—must Li Taishi truly perish here? Was Heaven truly set on destroying the Confucian Civilization?
HEAVEN! WISHED! TO! DESTROY! CONFUCIANISM!
Facing the Heaven-Collapsing assault of the Extinction Vice Sovereign.
Li Taishi merely extended his hand.
Li Taishi was handsomely featured, with long, slender, fair hands.
This single, elegant, pale-skinned right hand moved to collide directly with the Annihilation Divine Tome.
Li Taishi was mad! He intended to meet the Divine-grade weapon, the Annihilation Divine Tome, with his bare hand! A divine weapon conferred substantial benefits; this move was suicidal. It seemed Li Taishi, having lost all his weapons and possessing no true grasp of Civilization-level combat, had resorted to this frenzied act.
Li Taishi was finished!
He was certain to be grievously wounded by this strike!
The Extinction Vice Sovereign’s Annihilation Divine Tome and Li Taishi’s fair, slender right palm finally met.
A dazzling brilliance erupted instantly.
A sneer blossomed on the Extinction Vice Sovereign’s face—presumption! Everyone else also assumed Li Taishi was about to be annihilated. Yet, at that moment, the Vice Sovereign’s sneer warped into utter shock. He felt a vast, boundless power surging from Li Taishi’s pale, slender, crystalline hand. It was a power of incomparable force, one far exceeding the standard Heaven-Collapsing level. The Extinction Vice Sovereign strained every fiber to block the attack, summoning his maximum strength and activating his defensive scripture, the Lun Chang Heart Sutra. This Heart Sutra, embodying the tenets of the Three Bonds and Five Constants, comprised eight defensive layers. These eight lines of defense were notoriously difficult to breach. The Three Bonds were: ruler as minister's bond, father as son's bond, husband as wife's bond. The Five Constants were Benevolence, Righteousness, Propriety, Wisdom, and Trust. In the Heavenly Principle Civilization, these Confucian doctrines had been developed to a pathological degree, twisted into a terrifying philosophy of defense, rendering it unimaginably resilient. These eight layers could shackle thought and annihilate ethics.
BOOM!
The defense of 'Ruler as Minister's Bond' shattered!
BOOM!
The defense of 'Father as Son's Bond' broke!
BOOM!
The defense of 'Husband as Wife's Bond' fell!
BOOM! Benevolence broken!
BOOM! Righteousness broken!
BOOM! Propriety broken!
BOOM! Wisdom broken!
BOOM! Trust broken!
Impossible? The Extinction Vice Sovereign watched in disbelief as his prideful Eightfold Defense of the Three Bonds and Five Constants disintegrated. His Lun Chang Heart Sutra, famed for its defense, was incredibly hard to break even for a Third Epoch cultivator, requiring myriad strategies and techniques. Yet, Li Taishi had dismantled it all with a single, gentle palm strike. Simultaneously, an immense surge of mana pierced through every defense and struck the Extinction Vice Sovereign squarely in the heart. With a deafening KRAKOOM, he was flung backward, vomiting blood profusely. Six-tenths of his Extinction Minor Thousand World had been annihilated.
This was the power of a single palm strike!
How could a "palm force" be this terrifying? As the Extinction Vice Sovereign continued to vomit blood, he stared at Lu Yuan with boundless horror: “Li Taishi, you… you… how do you possess such terrifying mana? Three Epochs? No, Four Epochs, Five Epochs, perhaps even Six Epochs?”
“Just how many Epochs are you? How can you be this terrifying?” The Extinction Vice Sovereign’s eyes bulged.
Lu Yuan smiled faintly. “What business is it of yours how many Epochs I have? You sought to destroy the Confucian Civilization; today you die here.” Lu Yuan’s calm words settled the matter. If the Extinction Vice Sovereign had doubted Li Taishi’s potential before, he now fully affirmed it. From that single attack, he recognized Li Taishi’s true terror, and immediately tried to flee, instantly activating the Heavenly Principle Civilization’s unique movement technique, the Extinction of Emotion Evasion.
Extinction of Emotion Evasion: Severing emotion, discarding sentiment, being without attachment allowed for the fastest escape. The Extinction Vice Sovereign believed this technique was quite remarkable and fast. His figure vanished instantly five thousand li away. After a few steps, he was already over ten thousand li distant. He figured Li Taishi couldn't possibly catch him and finally let out a breath of relief.
“Oh, is this your speed? Truly slow,” he sighed, just as Li Taishi’s voice reached his ears. His heart clenched. At that moment, a colossal, peerless hand of mana descended upon him. This mana-hand contained power higher than the heavens and deeper than the deepest abyss; a single downward stroke could easily crush countless stars. BOOM! The Extinction Vice Sovereign was rendered helpless, struck squarely by this massive mana palm. Instantly, he was completely obliterated by the blow. His Extinction Minor Thousand World was utterly destroyed. The Vice Sovereign hadn't possessed many stellar treasures, after all; he was only a two-Epoch Vice Sovereign.
A Civilization Vice Sovereign had fallen. Lu Yuan showed no reaction, moving back outside the Confucian World in a single step. Outside the Confucian Minor Thousand World, nearly everyone stared at Lu Yuan, mouths agape, asking the Integrity Vice Sovereign, “Where is the Extinction Vice Sovereign?”
“Dead. His speed was too slow,” Lu Yuan stated casually.
Li Taishi’s return was utterly astonishing. Upon his initial reappearance, everyone assumed he stood no chance against the Extinction Vice Sovereign. Yet, he immediately displayed strength at the Civilization Realm. When they assumed his breakthrough meant he possessed the mana of one Epoch, he instantly demonstrated the power equivalent to at least five, perhaps six Epochs.
He defeated the Extinction Vice Sovereign with the first move, and slew him with the second.
This power was too dominant, too overwhelming!
The Civilization Heavenly Threshold was the foremost barrier in existence, yet Li Taishi had overcome it with such ease and simplicity. Advancement after reaching the Civilization Realm was difficult; look at how hard the Vice Sovereigns of the Three Books Civilization and the Integrity Civilization struggled to advance. Even the Extinction Vice Sovereign took immense pride in rising from one Epoch to two. But for Li Taishi, it was simpler: he effortlessly jumped to five or six Epochs. How did he cultivate so quickly?
This Child of Darkness, Li Taishi, was too monstrously gifted.
For a long time, no one could process what they had witnessed.
“Li Taishi, may I ask what title you will bear as Vice Sovereign of Civilization?” the Integrity Vice Sovereign inquired.
(The Gentle as Jade Li Taishi makes his debut; this will require some time to develop. Ahem, requesting monthly votes; we are nearly in the top ten in our category, only three votes short.) (To be continued.)