The sight of the Sky City being violently flung back by that single, golden staff strike sent a shockwave through Xuanyuan Jing’s spirit. He spat out a mouthful of essence blood, his face instantly paling to the color of ash.
When the Sky City was originally forged, the Five Great Immortal Sages refined it in the manner of a magical artifact, and furthermore, it was forged as Xuanyuan Jing’s true name artifact. The purpose of this was naturally to solidify his absolute authority within the Heavenly Alliance, and it was precisely because of this connection that he could summon the Sky City with such ease.
Yet, the exterior of the Sky City was protected by the Five Elements Grand Array set up by the Five Divine Artifacts, granting it absolutely astonishing defensive capabilities. At its core lay the Primal Chaos Pagoda of Lao Tzu—a supreme artifact of the same caliber as the East Emperor Bell, capable of suppressing all evil demons. A Sky City formed by the combination of these two supreme treasures, setting aside its offensive power, boasted the foremost defense in the Three Realms; even the East Emperor Bell could not compare to the Sky City in its current state.
But now, it had been swept away by that single golden staff shadow! Although the Five Elements Grand Array hadn't been broken, the tremendous recoil force instantly vaporized the Heavenly Soldiers and Generals on the upper nine levels into dust. What manner of terrifying power was this? Never mind Xuanyuan Jing himself, even his Master surely did not possess such strength!
Could it be the three figures from the Earth Alliance have arrived? The thought paralyzed Xuanyuan Jing. He dared not linger, swiftly recalling the Sky City, drawing forth the Xuanyuan Sword, and transforming into a streak of sword light that shot eastward.
At his current level of power, he absolutely could not withstand such a terrifying powerhouse.
His escape was swift; he even lacked the focus to reclaim the Seven-Jeweled Wonderful Tree, which now hung suspended vertically in mid-air, emitting a faint, seven-hued radiance.
The scene quickly returned to silence. Once the auras of both Xuanyuan Jing and Yuan vanished, a seven-colored cloud drifted down. The monkey, whose entire body shimmered with golden light, grinned wide and snatched the Seven-Jeweled Wonderful Tree into his grasp.
“This belongs to the Teacher. You guarded it for the Teacher for so many years; Old Sun saving your life counts as settling that karma. From now on, whether you live or die has nothing to do with Old Sun. Forget it, let this karmic tie dissolve. I should go check on that Ye family brat. That fellow Xingchen is truly something—creating such a monstrous cultivation method yet not practicing it himself, instead leaving it for his descendant. Is this even human? Hmm, that brat should be nearing the completion of the final stage now, shouldn't he? I truly want to see what that fully realized Chaos Body, praised by all the Sages, actually looks like…” As the monkey spoke, he tucked the Seven-Jeweled Wonderful Tree away, summoned his seven-colored cloud, and slowly drifted toward the distance—the very direction from which he had originally come, the direction of Jianmu…
Ye Jingyu had been within Jianmu for nearly a month. The colossal Jianmu, soaring tens of thousands of feet high, was nearing desiccation. It wasn't just Jumang, who was naturally close to the tree, but even Hanba and the others felt it was too great a pity.
The cultivation technique Ye Jingyu practiced was simply too perverse! The amount of Wood Spirit Qi required to absorb for his Wood Golden Core was astronomical—at least several times that needed for other Golden Cores? They failed to grasp that Wood inherently fosters life, the very foundation of all existence. Furthermore, the energy required for Ye Jingyu to condense his ninth Golden Core demanded several times the energy of the previous eight, necessitating a massive influx of Wood Spirit Qi.
Just as Jianmu was on the verge of withering, and just as the Kaiming Beast’s body emerged fully from the tree, a brilliant golden light suddenly burst forth from within Jianmu’s core. Immediately following this, a silhouette shot out from the tree trunk…
It was Ye Jingyu, who had been meditating within Jianmu for thirty days…
At this moment, his entire body radiated streaks of golden light—the brilliance of the Tyrant Primordial Force. From afar, he resembled a Golden Arhat.
But closely following this, the golden light began to dim, slowly giving way to a silver radiance that spilled forth. The entire figure looked like a humanoid sun emitting light. Then, even this silver glow gradually faded, transforming into a faint green, followed by cyan, white, red, blue, yellow, purple, and black. Lights of every color continuously erupted, corresponding to the Star Power, Wind Power, Wood Power, Metal Power, Fire Power, Water Power, Earth Power, Thunder Power, and Netherworld Power surging within him.
When the final thread of black light slowly dispersed, Ye Jingyu had returned to normal. From a distance, he appeared utterly unchanged—he was simply himself.
Jiu Feng and Xi Yang, the two women, moved to greet him, but they were met by an overwhelmingly strong energy field that barred their path, preventing them from taking a single step forward.
“Do not approach! His cultivation is not yet finished!” Zhu Rong’s voice resonated, his expression heavier than ever before, yet shaded with a flicker of expectation—a faint yet intense anticipation…
Hanba, Tianwu, Jumang, Houyi, and even Xuan Ming displayed the exact same look as Zhu Rong—gravity mixed with that subtle expectation.
What were they anticipating? The full completion of Ye Jingyu’s Chaos Body?
Nibo and Taotie were equally stirred, though unlike Zhu Rong and the others, their excitement stemmed from a genuine hope for Ye Jingyu’s power to take a monumental leap.
As for Bing Ming, his gaze had never left Ye Jingyu since the beginning. Even in his icy eyes, a sliver of joy flickered. Seeing his sworn brother achieve such divine completion naturally brought him immense happiness.
His ancient iron sword was gripped tightly in his right hand, while the Kongtong Seal, shimmering with five-colored light, was clenched in his left. He stood ready to counter any sudden development; at this critical juncture, he would absolutely not allow anyone to disturb Ye Jingyu.
Even the Dragon-Devouring King, whose injuries had fully healed, watched Ye Jingyu with absolute focus. Although Ye Jingyu was not intentionally projecting his might, that omnipresent, tyrannical aura still emanated from him—an aura of ultimate, absolute dominance…
The very aura of 'I alone am supreme under heaven and earth'…
Within Ye Jingyu’s body, the nine Golden Cores spun incessantly. Nine distinct elemental energies continuously jetted forth, refining his physical form. Whether it was hardness, agility, or resilience, all aspects had reached their peak state. He even felt capable of effortlessly executing a single-strike kill against a peak Cosmos-level master.
Yet, he also understood that the Chaos Body had not yet fully formed. To achieve the final stage of the Chaos Body, he had to take that final step—shatter…
To shatter all the Golden Cores. This was a step that demanded immense willpower, unyielding endurance, and boundless courage to undertake…
If he succeeded, he would become one of the most powerful entities between Heaven and Earth, truly becoming the Undying Battle Physique. If he failed, he would be utterly annihilated, leaving not a trace behind…