Chapter 1213: Different Paths, Same Destination

Just as the Law of Order activated on Xinghuanzi's body, and chains pierced through the void, Xu Qing's eyes suddenly narrowed. He let out a low cry, "Forward!" while simultaneously pointing a finger towards Xinghuanzi.

Almost immediately after Xu Qing spoke, Xinghuanzi reacted with incredible speed. All the chains of order moved in unison, forming a barrier in front of him, but it was still a little too slow.

A terrifying power erupted in front of the chains, like stars exploding or galaxies churning. The sound was deafening. Xinghuanzi's face suddenly turned pale, and he spat out blood, his body recoiling like a kite with a broken string. All the chains of order before him crumbled and shattered into fragments.

Where the chains had shattered, a blurry figure was revealed. It flickered and was about to pursue Xinghuanzi, but as Xu Qing's finger descended, the Law of Space invisibly rose, transforming into a sealing force to block it.

The spatial seal couldn't truly restrict the figure's terrifying speed, but combined with Xinghuanzi's previous resistance from the Law of Order, it bought Xinghuanzi a crucial moment. This allowed the recoiling and bleeding Xinghuanzi to activate his Law of Balance, granting him enough speed to temporarily evade the life-or-death crisis!

Consequently, the figure paused in the starry sky, revealing its full form. It was none other than the middle-aged cultivator in the red robe, who had been outside the palace gates!

However, the figure still standing outside the palace gates was now blurry, a mere afterimage. His true body had appeared in front of Xinghuanzi with such extreme speed, shattering everything. Had it not been for Xu Qing's warning and assistance, Xinghuanzi would likely have been severely wounded, if not killed.

"You can actually perceive my speed," the middle-aged cultivator said calmly, turning to look at Xu Qing. "No wonder you have the courage to steal my master's divine grain."

Xu Qing narrowed his eyes, a cold glint appearing within them. This individual was arguably the strongest Quasi-Immortal he had ever encountered. His Law wasn't strange at all; in fact, it was incredibly simple: speed. It was an extreme speed that even transcended time. Laws didn't have inherent strengths or weaknesses; their power depended on who delved deeper and comprehended them more thoroughly.

"I had intended to kill that person, to make you retreat and return what you stole," the middle-aged cultivator continued. "But since you're obstructing... then I'll just kill you instead."

The middle-aged cultivator looked at Xu Qing, his voice still echoing, yet his figure had already appeared three zhang (approximately 10 meters) in front of Xu Qing! His speed was beyond perception. His right hand rose, poised to strike Xu Qing, while the starry sky around Xu Qing was suddenly controlled, forming a vortex from which a tearing force was about to erupt.

But the next instant, the middle-aged cultivator's eyebrows shot up, and he let out a soft exclamation. His body retreated instead of advancing. At this moment, killing intent erupted in Xu Qing's eyes. He was naturally prepared; the moment the opponent spoke, his Law of Space had layered itself, his Law of Time had caused chaos everywhere, and they had even fused into the Law of Space-Time, becoming a seamless, gapless domain.

Therefore, the opponent's arrival and the sudden vortex that appeared, with its tearing force, directly collided with Xu Qing's space-time. Silently, it was annihilated in an instant. Xu Qing's body trembled, and blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, but he raised his hands and abruptly formed a hand seal forward.

"Suppress, Freeze, Seal!" Xu Qing commanded, suppressing space, freezing time, and sealing space-time.

The next instant, the middle-aged cultivator's figure stiffened in the starry sky. The timeline he was on suddenly solidified, and the resulting space-time naturally formed a seal, encasing his entire being and surroundings as if in amber. Simultaneously, Xu Qing's body shone with silver light. His soon-to-be-complete Immortal Embryo manifested in that instant, expanding infinitely to form a true body like a deity, standing tall in the starry sky.

He raised his right hand, spreading his five fingers to embody the Five Elements. Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth—these five ultimates all transformed into primordial essence, appearing like five stars, his palm resembling a galaxy. It was as if five deities were descending! With ultimate power, he brought it down directly upon the suppressed, frozen, and sealed middle-aged cultivator!

At the same time, Xinghuanzi acted without hesitation. His Law of Balance instantly activated, unleashing its full power without reserve, causing the starry sky to transform into a set of scales. It was not to empower himself, but to empower Xu Qing. At his own expense, he amplified Xu Qing, causing Xu Qing's combat power to surge dramatically at that moment, continuously rising to bridge the gap with the Quasi-Immortal Peak expert.

Immediately after, the Seaweed also emitted a dazzling roar, all its leaves rapidly extending to fully activate its clan's innate ability. Its clan's talent was sealing, but not space; it sealed primordial essence! At this moment, they all acted, one side boosting Xu Qing, the other side reinforcing the seal.

With their combined efforts, Xu Qing's raised five fingers descended with the might of heaven.

The sealed middle-aged cultivator, however, slowly raised his head at this moment. Looking at Xu Qing, a strange, profound look appeared in his eyes, and he spoke in a hoarse voice, "I think I know who you are. You are... Xu Qing!"

As he spoke, the middle-aged cultivator licked his lips. He also raised his right hand, placed it in front of him, and squeezed hard. With that squeeze, cracking sounds suddenly echoed. Space shattered, time shattered, and space-time collapsed.

Then, he slowly released his hand and squeezed again with force. This time, Xinghuanzi's body trembled violently, and he spurted blood. The scales formed by his Law of Balance also began to collapse. But Xinghuanzi was no ordinary person; lines of starlight immediately appeared around his body, each originating from a Star-Ring Tower!

All the Star-Ring Towers activated, causing the starlight to shine brightly, providing supporting power that slowed the collapse of the scales. This allowed the balance enhancement on Xu Qing to continue.

Meanwhile, all of the Seaweed's leaves tore, and its entire body trembled. From those torn leaves, countless red tendrils immediately grew, winding towards the middle-aged cultivator, changing from sealing to binding!

Not only that, the Mud Fox also appeared in the starry sky. The golden light from its Divine Platform formed a colossal divine statue, erupting with full power. This caused the middle-aged cultivator's body to turn to mud, and countless stars shone above his head, also suppressing him.

They were all creating an opportunity for Xu Qing! The middle-aged cultivator's speed and combat power were truly astonishing. He was a Quasi-Immortal at his peak, just one step away from becoming a Xia Immortal!

Although this step was extremely difficult to cross, it had to be said that once a cultivator reached the Quasi-Immortal Peak, conventional power could no longer obstruct or destroy them. Especially since this person's Law was the simple yet terrifying Law of Speed. Its simplicity stemmed from its ability to connect with many other Laws, offering numerous paths, and the middle-aged cultivator had clearly only displayed a portion of it.

Therefore, since this battle had begun, Xu Qing, as the strongest among them, was naturally the sharpest blade. Creating opportunities for that blade was their chosen strategy.

While all this sounds slow, it actually happened in a flash. The next instant, amidst the desperate containment by Xinghuanzi, Seaweed, and Mud Fox, Xu Qing's five fingers had fully descended.

The starry sky roared, and all directions trembled. Those five fingers, like deities or stars, propelled by a palm like a galaxy, pressed down on the middle-aged cultivator's location. Yet, there was no deafening roar!

The moment the fingers and palm descended, the Five Elements within immediately intertwined. This seemingly fatal palm strike was not a killing blow; it was also a seal!

This was Xu Qing's strategy: using the Five Ultimates and Five Elements—the very foundation of the lower planetary ring—combined with time, space, the balance of order, and the binding of primordial essence, to achieve the ultimate seal!

This scene caused the middle-aged cultivator's pupils to contract for the first time. He instinctively sensed danger, so his body blurred in an instant, and he unleashed his Law of Speed without hesitation, bringing it to another level.

It was a path that transcended time, space, and space-time—a path that was not parallel! To some extent, his Law was similar to Xu Qing's, achieving the same goal through different means. However, he chose not the complex parallel paths, but rather a direct, unstoppable advance!

A Lower Immortal could comprehend all of this, but anyone below a Lower Immortal, only Xu Qing, whose ultimate direction was aligned with this, gained an understanding, and the turmoil in his heart roared like a storm. "His path, his path..." Xu Qing's breathing quickened. He had been searching for his Tenth Ultimate but had always lacked direction. Until this moment, he had a feeling as if light had appeared in a dark world! Unfortunately, the current situation didn't allow him to ponder too much; he could only store this inspiration for later.

Then, his true killing move finally erupted at this moment: the sound of a bell. It was a bell sound containing a trace of divine lord's power, capable of quieting or breaking all laws!

As soon as this sound emerged, the starry sky went blank! The Quasi-Immortal Peak middle-aged cultivator also trembled.

Next, came the iron skewers, imbued with natural laws, embodying parallel paths, embodying Xu Qing's perfected Immortal Body Law, and perfectly matching his Immortal Embryo! Returning from various parallel space-times, a total of four hundred and seventy-nine skewers, like streaks of meteors, transformed from illusory to real. Finally appearing in the current reality, as Xu Qing raised his hand, the four hundred and seventy-nine became one, forming a lethal strike that whizzed straight towards the middle-aged cultivator!

The middle-aged man retreated. His speed was extreme, retreating through space, retreating through time, retreating from past and future, from destiny, from karma, from traces, and even from memory—retreating from all directions!

But that unified iron skewer, guided by the bell sound, swept all before it! It broke space, shattered time, collapsed past and future, pierced destiny, penetrated karma, and swept through traces and even memories! From all directions, it pursued, until it caught up and pierced his glabella.

But the instant the iron skewer touched the middle-aged cultivator's glabella, ripples appeared there, as if it had turned into a water surface, revealing a blurry reflection. More precisely, it was a back view, and the moment it appeared, an aura surpassing that of a Quasi-Immortal immediately made the entire universe roar. That was an Immortal! It was a life-saving shadow planted by this middle-aged cultivator's master.

This back view slowly turned its head at this moment and glanced at the iron skewer. With that glance, the iron skewer violently trembled and recoiled. Xinghuanzi spurted blood, the Mud Fox's Divine Platform became unstable, the Seaweed continued to shatter, and Xu Qing's mind echoed with thunder.

Seizing this opportunity, the middle-aged cultivator finally evaded the brink of death. He instantly retreated, widened the distance, and stared intently at Xu Qing. While his heart pounded from the previous scene, a sense of apprehension also arose within him.

So, he suddenly spoke, "Emperor Huntian, I command you and your clan to assist in this attack!"

Emperor Huntian's expression changed, and hesitation filled his heart. If it were merely attacking the human race, he would dare. But clearly, today's matter, this envoy, was not as simple as just making a move. This was about killing!

And just as Emperor Huntian was inwardly conflicted, Xu Qing had already dispelled the roaring in his mind and coldly looked at the middle-aged cultivator. "You have no chance now," he declared, then raised his gaze towards the starry sky.

Almost the instant he looked, the starry sky roared, and a gigantic, invisible rift was instantly torn open. Figures whizzed out from within. Leading them was none other than Zhou Zhengli! Behind him were Yuanshan Su, Li Mengtu, Xielingzi, and others. All the Ascendants, all the Provisioners, had arrived at this moment!

This was an order Xu Qing had given to Zhou Zhengli on the way here. To be safe, and also to later break the seal on the True God, Xu Qing had instructed Zhou Zhengli to gather everyone here. Now, under Zhou Zhengli's lead, they had torn through the starry sky and were descending one by one!