Chapter 1208 - How Can I Endure This?

Clang!

The Dark and Gold Fortune Vine shot out of Su Yi’s sleeves, already transformed into a four-foot, three-inch sword.

Its charm was reserved, and it was simple and dull.

But as Su Yi’s qi rumbled and boomed, the sword emanated waves of a chaotic aura, and its hum swept forth.

A chill rippled through the hemp-clad elder’s gaze.

The Dark and Gold Fortune Vine!!

As the strongest sword cultivator under Venerate Flooding Heavens’ leadership, how could he fail to recognize the third greatest Divine Chaos Lifeform of the ancient era?

“Letting this divine treasure fall into this boy’s hands is no different from letting a radiant pearl gather dust,” sighed the elder in hemp.

Boom!

Su Yi swung his sword.

The illusory wheel of the Six Paths revolved behind him. At the sword’s edge, that aura of chaos seemed to have transformed into a boundless, dark abyss intent on swallowing up all of heaven and earth.

The mysteries of reincarnation!

The Dark and Gold Fortune Vine!

Both combined with Su Yi’s unbelievable attainments in the Dao of the Sword, sweeping through the air.

The entire stretch of heaven and earth was thrown into upheaval. The power of the Laws rumbled and boomed.

The dark-robed man and spirit sparrow couldn’t help but look stunned.

He was a Profound Unity Realm cultivator, yet he’d unleashed such a powerful slash. This was unquestionably heaven-defying!

But the elder in hemp just expressionlessly pressed on the air.

Boom!

Su Yi’s streak of sword qi was blocked, then destroyed with an audible blast when it was still a hundred feet away from its target.

The elder in hemp clothes suddenly raised his right hand and swept it through the air.

As if waving his hand in farewell, an easy, natural gesture.

Yet abundant, unstoppable sword force swept toward Su Yi like a tidal wave or avalanche.

Bang!!!

Su Yi was forced several hundred feet back.

Terrifying power of the Dao of the Sword burst forth, churning his qi. He almost couldn’t help but cough up blood.

If not for his sword instantly transforming into a vine shield, neutralizing that strike would have taken almost half of his power, and he would have been injured!

“He blocked it!?” The sparrow cried out.

This was a direct confrontation with no room to maneuver.

Yet Su Yi, a Profound Unity Emperor, had blocked a Cosmic Enlightenment World King’s attack!

Even in the lost ancient era, no one had ever achieved such a thing!

“Old Peacock, you sure didn’t show any mercy!” The dark-robed man’s expression darkened. He could tell that the Third Officiant had held nothing back.

Off in the distance, the hemp-clad elder said expressionlessly, “I oversee this trial. I promised that if the trial-taker could block three of my attacks, it would count as passing. I naturally won’t go back on my word.”

In truth, he too was startled!

The Profound Dao and the Path of Heaven’s Ascension were on entirely different levels!

Even though his opponent had reached the pinnacle of the Profound Dao, making him an Imperial Apex expert...

They were on a fundamentally different level. There were still three realms between them!

Despite this, Su Yi had blocked his attack. How could he not have been startled?

“Fellow Daoist, there’s no need to clash with him directly. A battle like this is fundamentally unfair to you. It’s enough so long as you can hold out for three strikes,” said the man in dark robes.

He couldn’t convince the Third Officiant to let up, so he could only warn Su Yi not to try clashing with him head-on.

“‘Hold out for three strikes?’” Su Yi laughed. “Let’s just wait and see.”

Clang!

His sword trembled and let out an impassioned hum that reverberated throughout the nine heavens.

Su Yi attacked once more. He had no intention of dodging or avoiding this conflict whatsoever. Just like before, he took the initiative to attack.

His sheer domineeringness was entirely unexpected.

Despite himself, a hint of admiration appeared in the hemp-clad elder’s eyes. How could he fail to realize that even in ancient times, an Emperor like Su Yi would have been unparalleled and unprecedented?

How could he fail to realize that a young man like this was strong enough to make even some World Kings sigh over their own inferiority?

But admiration was ultimately just admiration. The old man wouldn’t hold back on account of it.

“It’s a pity...” said the hemp-clad elder. His sleeves billowed around him, and he used his fingers and a sword to thrust into the air.

It was a light, airy attack, yet it struck like a beam of light piercing the dome of heaven. It seemed unstoppably forceful, and the Laws imbued within it made even heaven and earth dim by comparison.

The dark-robed Officiant’s expression shifted dramatically.

The old bastard is seriously attacking to kill!?

But a moment later, his heart shook. He sensed an aura rife with taboo power emanating from the edge of Su Yi’s sword.

Boom!!!

Heaven and earth were in upheaval. The Laws surged explosively.

Explosive, destructive power ran rampant. The hems of the hemp-clad elder’s clothes danced like mad, and his topknot came undone, making his long white hair flutter around him.

His defensive aura took a massive blow, and he felt a prickling pain on his skin.

Off in the distance, Su Yi staggered a full nine steps back.

Every time his foot hit the ground, the air trembled, and the mountains and rivers shook.

By the time he steadied himself, his handsome face had paled.

He looked wretched.

But he wasn’t wounded!

“This...” The sparrow was dumbstruck.

“So, it’s a mysterious power that can sever the Laws.” The dark-robed man understood, but his heart quivered.

What kind of power was that? It actually neutralized a Cosmic Enlightenment Realm sword cultivator’s full-force attack!

“So, is this your killer weapon? Alas, it still isn’t enough,” the elder said indifferently.

“Killer weapon? No, this is a Law of the Grand Dao I’ve only recently grasped, and I'm barely at the treshold.” Su Yi took a deep breath and suppressed his churning blood and qi.

A Law of the Grand Dao he just learned? And he's barely touched it?

The others almost didn’t believe their ears.

What level of Law was this, to be so startlingly strong at such a basic level of mastery?

“That so? Try taking my third slash, then.” The elder’s eyes flashed with cold light.

Boom!

Blood-red sword intent soared from his bony figure, rising into the firmament. It was as dazzling and radiant as the morning sun.

The explosive, concentrated power of the Laws transformed into mysterious symbols that floated amidst the blood-red sword intent.

It was indistinct, but it felt as if the elder were a sovereign suppressing this entire stretch of stars. He stood beyond the nine heavens, gazing down on the human world!

𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

This was the strength of the Cosmic Enlightenment Realm.

What was Cosmic Enlightenment? It was perceiving the wonders of space and controlling the strength of a star realm!

Every movement and every gesture seemed like an act of nature and the Dao. When they spoke, the Laws obeyed!

“Old Peacock! Are you really trying to kill him!?” The dark-robed Officiant was furious, his gaze terrifyingly icy. He could tell that the elder in hemp was using the strongest methods at his disposal to defeat Su Yi with this third strike!

Boom!

He stepped forward, a bronze shortsword silently appearing in his grip. His eyes flashed like cold lightning, his aura terrifying.

The elder in hemp frowned. “I’m acting in accordance with the rules, but what about you... Do you intend to violate them?”

“And what if I do?” The dark-robed man seemed ready to go all out, and his voice frosted over. “Even if I violate my Grand Dao Oath and shatter my Dao Heart, I won’t let you do this!”

The spirit sparrow was already completely frantic and unsure of what to do. Even it would never have guessed that the Second Officiant would step forth to defend Su Yi at a time like this!

He was even willing to violate his oath!

The elder in hemp frowned even deeper.

Su Yi took all of this in. He couldn’t help but find it surprising.

Before this, the Second Officiant and I didn’t know each other at all. There’s no bond between us.

Even if he hadn’t helped at all, I wouldn’t have criticized him.

Who’d have thought he’d step forth at a time like this, even if it meant casting aside all pretenses of cordiality with the Third Officiant?

It really is surprising.

“Earlier, I guessed that this incident would lead to conflict between us. Now, it seems that really is the case...” the old man sighed.

“Throughout all of history, he’s the only trial-taker to have mastered the power of reincarnation. Way back when, Venerate Flooding Heavens even said that there was a reason that the Infernal Monarch didn’t help us resist that catastrophe,” the dark-robed man said coldly. “So why are you so stubborn? Why not let this go and see what happens next?”

“You say I hold a grudge,” the old man said indifferently, “But in my eyes, it’s justified. If I simply let it go, what would remain of my Dao Heart?”

With that, he said emphatically, “Out of my way!”

His voice clanged like the hum of a sword, reverberating throughout heaven and earth.

The dark-robed man stood there, unmoving.

He was just about to say something when Su Yi’s voice rang out from behind him. “You should step aside. Although I appreciate the thought, in my eyes, you’re realy just stopping me from teaching that old fart a lesson.”

“????” The dark-robed Officiant didn’t know what to make of that. The spirit sparrow gasped, completely dumbstruck.

And the hemp-clad elder let out an uncharacteristic burst of laughter. “Hear that? The boy is displeased with your behavior!”

His voice was rife with mockery.

The dark-robed man whipped around and looked at Su Yi. He said with displeasure, “Was my intervention unnecessary?”

“I wouldn’t call it that,” said Su Yi. “Instead, I’d say your concern has overcome your rationality.”

The dark-robed man’s expression was still unsightly. “Should I leave?”

Su Yi subtly inclined his head. “For now, just watch the battle.”

The dark-robed man rubbed his face with an air of self-deprecation. “I went so far as to have a falling out with the old peacock, and now you’re telling me to step aside. It seems I’ve showered affection on someone who doesn’t appreciate it. How embarrassing.”

With that, he swooshed his sleeves and stepped aside. Anyone could have seen that he felt stifled, dejected, and upset.

The sparrow’s expression was complicated.

What’s wrong with this guy? Doesn’t he realize that the Third Officiant’s final strike is sure to be terrifying beyond measure?

Boom!

The Third Officiant attacked directly, as if afraid something else might go wrong.

He waved his sleeves through the air, his right hand gripping the void. Blood-red sword intent condensed into a ten-foot streak of sword qi, which he swung through the air.

Heaven and earth were instantly enveloped in endless blood-colored light.

It was like the sudden descent of purgatory bearing explosively down.

That endless sword force made the Laws throughout that entire stretch of heaven and earth churn violently.

A slash like that could have threatened even the life of a World King at the same realm of cultivation!

Practically simultaneously, Su Yi attacked.

The sword manifested of the Dark and Gold Fortune Vine now contained a portion of the Sword of the Nine Hells’ aura in addition to the mysteries of Profound Ruin. It was mysterious and grand.

Su Yi unleashed the full extent of his cultivation base, holding nothing back. He poured it all into his sword.

Clang!!!

The humming of a sword reverberated throughout the nine heavens, intimidating the ten directions.

When Su Yi struck, heaven and earth dimmed, creation was thrown into upheaval, and time and space seemed to stop beneath his slash.

Then——

The blood-red sword intent filling the sky caught ablaze, as if the flames of heaven had set an icy tundra on fire. It instantly melted, then fell apart.

That terrifying, blood-red vision of purgatory popped like a soap bubble in the face of a hurricane, gone in a flash.

Unstoppable sword force swept outward practically instantaneously, blasting toward the distant hemp-clad elder with seemingly unstoppable momentum.