"However, only this way can I truly gauge the gap between myself and the pinnacle entities among the Universe Masters," Luo Feng thought, a fierce fighting spirit igniting within him. He stared at the darkness ahead, where six figures stood, his attention fixed solely on the Lord of the Star River, completely disregarding the other five Universe Masters beside him.
"He didn't flee!" the Dark Void uttered.
"Neither did you," Luo Feng retorted, locking eyes with his opponent.
"Hahahaha…" The Dark Void burst into earth-shaking laughter. "Interesting. Lord of the Blood Cloud Hall, it is no wonder the major powers across the universe seek your demise. At the very least, your courage is immense, and your arrogance even greater."
"If you want to fight, fight. Stop the nonsense; my time is precious," Luo Feng commanded directly, his eyes flashing with visible, substantive light. Since he was inheriting the mantle of the 'Lord of the Blood Cloud Hall' on behalf of Teacher Sitting Mountain Guest, he naturally needed to meet the standard. The Lord of the Blood Cloud Hall was known throughout the cosmos as fearless, sinister, arrogant, and utterly insane.
"Worthy of the Lord of the Blood Cloud Hall."
Suddenly, an arm-like projection of the void extended from the Dark Void. In its hand materialized a square, mace-like supreme treasure weapon. Simultaneously, another void arm emerged, also wielding a mace-like weapon. Both long maces were bronze, their edges tinged with gold.
"This pair of supreme treasures is named 'Kun Ye.' They are the absolute finest among pinnacle supreme treasures," stated the Lord of the Star River.
"The absolute finest among pinnacle supreme treasures?" Luo Feng understood. Treasures of the same tier still had rankings. The supreme treasures wielded by the Lord of the Star River were clearly just below the level of ultimate supreme treasures, equivalent to the mace weapons used by the Ancestor God Sect's dual-faced Ancestor God. Merely by observing the treasures he used, one could deduce his status and strength.
The other five Universe Masters present dispersed to the surroundings, watching from afar. They remained silent, neither interfering nor participating.
They placed immense faith in the Lord of the Star River's might!
"Take my three moves. If you withstand them, I will not stop you."
"First move…"
As the Lord of the Star River's voice faded, he moved instantly. During the preceding exchange, the Northern Frontier Alliance forces had already closed to within ten million kilometers. Now, as the Lord of the Star River acted, a streak of black phantom light instantly tore across the sky, rushing directly toward Luo Feng.
"Come then."
Luo Feng gripped the Star Tower long shuttle, took a step, and transformed into a streak of light, charging forward as well.
"Blood Light!"
Luo Feng first inflated his divine body to ten thousand kilometers, then immediately unleashed his strongest ultimate move. Burning divine power surged into the long shuttle in his hand. Whoosh~~~ The tens of thousands of kilometers-long shuttle possessed terrifying power. He thrust it straight ahead, instantly creating a swirling vortex that shredded the surrounding space.
The sheer power made the five distant Universe Masters change color.
And the dual maces held by the Lord of the Star River moved like lightning striking—
Crack!
Two streams of black light shot out, striking the Star Tower long shuttle simultaneously. The collision of immense power caused the 'Dark Void,' holding the twin divine maces, to be hurled backward instantly. Even Luo Feng retreated several paces consecutively.
"That was the first move—'Curtain.' " The Dark Void, holding the pair of divine maces, radiated oppressive might. "I underestimated you. This ultimate secret technique of a Universe Master alone is clearly not enough to suppress you. Instead, it leaves me at a slight disadvantage. Based on this move alone, you are qualified to stand among the pinnacle of Universe Masters."
"Take my second move next. This is the strongest secret technique I created as a Universe Master."
The voice drilled directly into Luo Feng's mind.
The Lord of the Star River moved again.
Silently, the black phantom light lunged at Luo Feng.
"Rumble~~~~" The dual maces struck as one, and the surrounding heaven and earth instantly plunged into pitch darkness, forming a dark world.
"A Miniature Universe?" Luo Feng secretly marveled.
It resembled a Miniature Universe, yet held subtle differences.
"Boom!"
Carrying the boundless might of that dark world, the twin maces struck Luo Feng as if they were two worlds descending.
"Break for me!" Luo Feng roared through gritted teeth, meeting the attack head-on. He fiercely stabbed forward with the Star Tower long shuttle, pouring the Way of the Beast God into it entirely.
Peng!
Luo Feng felt a tremor run through his entire body. A powerful impact struck his Tribulation Armor, but after being weakened, it posed no real threat. However, the sheer force of the impact still sent Luo Feng plummeting downward. By the time he reached the ground below, he had managed to halt his descent.
...
"This is the first form of the ultimate secret technique I created as a Universe Master back then—'Black Night,'" the Lord of the Star River explained. "It seems the long shuttle in your hand is at least a pinnacle supreme treasure. Otherwise, you wouldn't just be at a slight disadvantage."
Luo Feng merely glanced across the distance at the Dark Void.
A pinnacle supreme treasure?
What a joke. His clan possessed many general pinnacle supreme treasures—pinnacle domain treasures, pinnacle soul treasures, and several others of that tier! As for ultimate supreme treasures… they occupied an entirely different stratum, absolutely superior. Despite the weakness of his divine body and secret techniques, he had relied on the immense advantage of the Star Tower long shuttle over those two pinnacle supreme treasures to merely be slightly weaker.
"Hmm, his first move was a Universe Master ultimate secret technique, and the second was the strongest Universe Master secret technique. What about the third?" Luo Feng wondered internally.
Could it be…
Something stronger?
But that didn't make sense; the strongest Universe Master secret technique should be the Lord of the Star River's ultimate capability.
"You are worthy of taking my third move, my ultimate killer move," the Lord of the Star River announced.
The five distant Universe Masters instantly held their breath.
"Look, it's the Star River Lord's killer move."
"We get to witness it again."
"Last time, the Lord of the Star River used this move alone in the Cosmic Sea, causing one Universe Master to perish and two others to flee in terror," the five murmured amongst themselves via telepathic transmission, filled with anticipation. After all, the Lord of the Star River rarely deployed this true ultimate technique unless the situation was critical.
...
The starting posture was the same.
When the Lord of the Star River's dual maces came together, the surrounding primal star environment was once again plunged into night. Within the endless darkness, a dense dark power permeated the area. Following this, a completely opposing force manifested on his dual maces—the twin maces became blindingly bright, white, and intensely dazzling.
Their brilliance surpassed that of ten thousand suns combined.
One black, one white…
"Whoosh!"
The twin maces blurred instantly, and an incomparably dazzling river of light pierced through the black night. This radiant river flowed, appearing slow, yet it was already upon Luo Feng.
"Rumble~~~" This seemingly slow river of light made Luo Feng feel as if he were facing a surging tsunami.
"Break!"
Even as he faced it, Luo Feng felt a twinge of despair. He fiercely suppressed this negative emotion—this wasn't a soul attack, but an attack so perfect in its execution that it invoked a sense of insurmountable heights and hopelessness. Of course, Luo Feng’s will was resolute; he instantly purged the negative emotion, gripped the long shuttle tightly, and thrust out again fiercely~~~
Boom~~
One thrust shook heaven and earth!
"Boom-boom-boom~~" The luminous river furiously impacted the long shuttle. The massive shuttle, however, thrust forward with immovable resolve, managing to resist the river's onslaught.
The long shuttle stood firm as Mount Tai.
Yet, Luo Feng, wielding it, was rocked by the overwhelming impact. Even after being weakened to one ten-thousandth by the Tribulation Armor, every fiber of his divine power trembled… The tyrannical impact sent Luo Feng flying backward violently, as if struck by a meteor, only stabilizing mid-air far in the distance.
Everything dissipated…
The primal star remained calm, everything serene.
"My divine body actually sustained two-thousandths depletion?" Luo Feng’s heart churned with shock. He was truly stunned. He had used the Star Tower long shuttle to intercept the attack first, and then relied on the Tribulation Armor for defense, yet he still lost two-thousandths of his divine body! If he hadn't used the Star Tower to block and had instead used the Blood Shadow Saber, the impact would likely have been amplified by another level.
Wiping out 50% of his divine body in one move?
...
He was shocked, but he didn't know that the Lord of the Star River was even more astonished.
"What!" The usually serene Lord of the Star River was genuinely shaken. He currently stood at the absolute peak of Universe Masters. The strongest secret technique of a Universe Master—he had initially created two such techniques, and then spent endless effort, sharpening them through countless trials in the Cosmic Sea, eventually fusing the two strongest secret techniques into this single move. While it appeared simple, executing two strongest secret techniques simultaneously and concentrating their power into one move was an incredibly arduous feat.
This move!
It was what truly established his renown across the universe, giving him the foundation to face even the most formidable experts without fear! He had always believed that among the vast Universe Masters, while a few monstrous geniuses might rival him, none could surpass him.
"This move consumes an enormous amount of divine power, yet his divine body seems barely damaged?" The Lord of the Star River was baffled.
He did not know that Luo Feng possessed the ultimate supreme treasure, the 'Star Tower,' and the upper echelon pinnacle supreme treasure, the 'Tribulation Armor'—two layers of defense! If he had known the defeat was due to an ultimate supreme treasure, the Lord of the Star River might have found solace. But… he was unaware that the Lord of the Blood Cloud Hall opposite him held an ultimate supreme treasure.
"What is this move called?" the distant Lord of the Blood Cloud Hall inquired.
"River Beneath the Night," the Lord of the Star River replied.
"Impressive, truly impressive. I admire it," the Lord of the Blood Cloud Hall voiced.
Luo Feng was genuinely impressed. Having endured three moves, he recognized that the second move was named 'Black Night.' It was clear to Luo Feng that the supposed third move, 'River Beneath the Night,' was the fusion of 'Black Night' and 'River,' concentrating their full power into one terrifying attack.
Luo Feng himself had only mastered the ultimate secret technique, 'I Am the Universe,' which was a gift bestowed by the universe!
He had not created any of them himself.
Yet, his opponent had created several and could even fuse them.
"Worthy of the Lord of the Star River," Luo Feng mused privately.
"You withstood my ultimate move, and your injuries are minimal. You may leave!" the Lord of the Star River stated, instantly retracting the boundless starry river that permeated the surroundings. He then transformed into a streak of light and departed swiftly.
"Lord of the Star River."
"Lord of the Star River."
The other five Universe Masters called out, then shook their heads in resignation. They shot Luo Feng a final, unwilling glance before reluctantly following the Lord of the Star River in quick retreat.
The five of them understood clearly… Having withstood the legendary ultimate move of the Lord of the Star River, the Lord of the Blood Cloud Hall might not possess strength overwhelmingly superior to theirs, but even if they fought desperately, they probably couldn't inflict significant further harm upon him. Since the Lord of the Star River had left, they might as well depart together.
"Lord of the Star River," Luo Feng murmured, finally having witnessed the pinnacle existence among Universe Masters!
Whoosh!
He immediately transformed into a streak of light and vanished rapidly toward the distant edge of heaven and earth.
Five chapters updated, fulfilling all promises for bonus chapters~~~ Well, Tomato will release a separate appreciation chapter shortly. Also, an announcement: updates tomorrow will again be delayed until the evening. My apologies to everyone. RO