Chapter 1399: One Punch Penetrates the Divine in the Human World, The Five Elements' Birth Phases are Bold and Fearless

“It’s broken!”

“It’s broken!”

In Gui Zhe Sheng Shan, within Sheng Huan Dian.

Dao Qiong Cang, who had returned from Tian Ti, fiddled with Tian Ji Si Nan using one hand. As strange visions swirled upon it, his gaze flickered, and he shook his head repeatedly:

“Sheng Di merging with the Dao, ghost power forming naturally, but fate is against us, forcing a tilt toward Zhong Nan…”

“Yet this was displayed in full view of the public, and these aren’t ordinary people. Even if their memories can be erased afterward, what effort will it take?”

“Even if the memories of ordinary folk can be wiped, how can those with abilities who witnessed this easily let it go? All eyes will converge on you—stepping from behind the scenes to the front, unwise, so unwise!”

“I never imagined that a mere Tan Shen could stir such greed in you, exposing yourself like this. How did it come to this, how did it come to this!”

Dao Qiong Cang paced restlessly in the grand hall, wandering back and forth like an ant on a hot pan.

But after just a short while, he settled into the main seat at the silver table, and the smile he could no longer suppress bloomed across his face like a radiant flower.

“How did it come to this…”

His soft murmur echoed through the vast Sheng Huan Dian.

Dao Qiong Cang blinked, and the joy in his eyes vanished, replaced by endless worry.

“What am I to do now!”

“Oh dear, oh dear.”

He glanced around, but no one was there.

Even Ai Cang Sheng was gone, leaving Dao Qiong Cang feeling utterly bored.

“Shen Du, Shen Du…”

He composed his expression, placed Tian Ji Si Nan on the table, and gazed into the distance toward the southern part of the continent.

After pondering for a long time, Dao Qiong Cang spoke to himself with infinite anticipation:

“It’s time to emerge, time to make a grand entrance…”

“So, what should I call it?”

He wet his finger with water and couldn’t help but trace shapes on the table, leaving faint water marks that formed words:

“Tian… Ji… Shen…”

But at that moment, Dao Qiong Cang paused his finger, stopping his unconscious movement, and wiped away all the water marks on the table.

His expression turned subtle, laced with expectation.

“Tian Ji cannot be revealed.”

Gong Yang Shan.

“Woo—”

The cry of Sheng Di echoed in all directions.

Gong Yang Shan rumbled and shook, on the verge of collapse.

“You insignificant insects, how dare you challenge Sheng Di?!”

When the Sheng Di Qilin emerged, its deep blue eyes streaming with black tears and its body emanating the aura of Bei Huai’s divine soul, that was the moment.

When that lofty, mocking voice issued from the Sheng Di Qilin’s mouth, that was the moment.

Shen Yi fully understood what Xu Xiao Shou had meant.

He could see this was the so-called “perfect fusion”!

“Is this the second Sheng Di you provoked?”

“Is this the thing that Bei Huai, even at the cost of being torn apart by me, fled with a remnant soul to possess?”

Shen Yi pointed at the colossal Qilin that blocked out the sky, pondering aloud: “Gui Shou parasite?”

“Exactly!”

Xu Xiao Shou gazed at the emergence of Sheng Di Qilin, his expression equally shocked.

Through his “perception,” he saw that the Qilin’s own will was almost nonexistent, and its divine soul fluctuations were nearly zero.

All its will had been completely replaced by Bei Huai.

It was truly a possession!

“But I didn’t expect it to develop like this…” Xu Xiao Shou marveled.

He had originally thought that if the Qilin was a Gui Shou, it would likely provide a body at least at the half-saint level for the Gui Shou.

Yet Bei Huai had done the opposite, choosing to directly take over the true body of Sheng Di Qilin.

Now, the situation was…

Bei Huai was the Gui Shou.

And Sheng Di Qilin was his Gui Shou parasite!

A Sheng Di of the divine soul path, combined with the body of an ancient sacred beast—this was Bei Huai’s research?

Or perhaps, one part of his research?

Xu Xiao Shou swallowed hard, turned to Shen Yi, and prodded with a clumsy taunt: “Afraid?”

“Ha ha ha ha…”

Shen Yi threw his head back in laughter, his voice swallowing the cosmos.

“As martial cultivators, we know no fear. If you want to learn, I’ll accompany you with my life!”

“Little brat, watch closely…”

With that shout, Shen Yi released Ren Jian Dao, transforming into a spectral form.

In an instant, tears streamed down his face, and his spectral form nearly shattered under the emotional influence carried by the power of Bei Huai’s Sheng Di, on the verge of collapse.

Yet at the same time, Shen Yi inhaled sharply.

“Swoosh!”

In that moment, the essence of all things in heaven and earth, the profound truths of the sun, moon, and Dao laws, seemed to be drawn into his body with that breath, merging into his muscles, bones, blood, and flesh, radiating endless wonders.

“Ren! Jian! Dao!”

Shen Yi’s eyes burst with brilliance, and his spectral form gradually solidified.

Xu Xiao Shou widened his eyes, summoning Shen Dao Pan beneath his feet and entering a state of unity with heaven and man.

He had seen Ren Jian Dao among the Liu Dao before.

He knew it could draw in the essence of all living things in the world, incorporating it for one’s own use, even solidifying a spectral form into nearly a real body…

If Shen Yi used his true body, who knew how many times it could amplify his own power.

But the previous times he had seen it were hasty, and he had mostly reviewed it afterward through Shen Dao Pan. Though he gained some insights, he hadn’t grasped its essence.

This time, Shen Yi deliberately slowed down, giving Xu Xiao Shou time to prepare and revealing the mysterious changes as he activated the Liu Dao without reservation.

Like a thirsty sponge, Xu Xiao Shou, in his state of unity with heaven and man, frantically memorized, absorbed, and digested the transformations of Liu Dao’s Ren Jian Dao.

What he saw now was that all the spiritual energy in the heavens and earth was being plundered by Shen Yi for his own use.

As he pondered the true meaning within, how to deduce the essence from the process and turn others’ knowledge into his own…

A thunderous voice, like enlightenment striking his mind, exploded in Xu Xiao Shou’s thoughts:

“Heaven as the crown, earth as the roots, the mortal world as the self!”

“All things as seeds, mountains and rivers as flesh, rivers and seas as blood…”

“What one desires brings life, what one thinks brings awareness, what one schemes brings divinity…”

“Lift an arm and the knees sink, the waist tightens, the chest rises, the head lifts—this is moving the whole body with a single hair, the self of the mundane me…”

“Move that self and mountains shake, seas roar, thunder crashes, winds howl—this is gathering force with the whole body in motion, the self of the Liu Dao…”

“The mundane self is false, the Liu Dao self is true…”

“The Dao contemplates the mortal world, false becomes true in me…”

It was as if something in his mind had shattered.

Xu Xiao Shou stared in astonishment as Shen Yi’s form solidified before his eyes, comparing it to the thunderous words in his heart, suddenly overcome with fear.

He finally understood why, even after seeing and comprehending it, and even studying it with Shen Dao Pan, it still felt like he could never grasp its essence—as if he were copying answers but always missing the point.

Liu Dao’s Ren Jian Dao actually treated the entire mortal realm as a single person!

And those who cultivated Ren Jian Dao were merely one arm, one leg, or a single hair of that person.

When that part needed to move, mountains, rivers, seas—like knees, waist, chest, and head—would naturally lend their strength.

The so-called “plunder” was just an illusion!

Trying to comprehend Ren Jian Dao this way would lead astray!

True Ren Jian Dao was seamless with nature, merely borrowing and utilizing—it wasn’t even “borrowing,” just naturally accessing the power one desired.

“Ren Jian Dao, man is the mortal world!”

The thunderous voice in his mind rolled on, culminating in that final phrase.

Xu Xiao Shou felt as if a rock had split open, his understanding clear and profound, his entire body glowing with light.

“I’ve got it! I’ve understood!”

He was overjoyed. When he looked at Shen Yi again with his new insight, he saw the solidified human form with laws flowing within.

Shen Yi wasn’t isolated!

He stood on Gong Yang Shan like one of the most important organs, such as the heart, mobilizing the power of all things in heaven and earth for his use!

People…

Their power was borrowed.

Trees…

Their power was borrowed too.

Everything was the same, and so were the Dao laws!

Even the opposing Sheng Di Qilin, upon appearing with its immense presence, seemed like a “knee” lending strength to an “arm” when Shen Yi activated Ren Jian Dao. A small portion of its power flowed into Shen Yi’s body.

For Sheng Di Qilin, this loss was negligible.

But for Shen Yi in spectral form, it was vast, instantly filling him and nearly bursting his state.

Xu Xiao Shou realized why he had only aimed for the E Gui Dao, yet Shen Yi insisted on activating Ren Jian Dao again.

Because last time, the power he borrowed—or rather, drew from the heavens and earth in the Si Xiang secret realm, a small world—wasn’t enough to support him against the fusion of Sheng Di Qilin and Bei Huai’s divine soul.

Since the process had to be repeated and Xu Xiao Shou wanted to learn, Shen Yi held no hope but wasn’t stingy; he openly revealed the method entirely.

Xu Xiao Shou felt an urge to try it but restrained himself.

“Liu Dao?”

In the void, Sheng Di Qilin suddenly lifted its gaze, and the sky shattered.

A human-like glint flashed in its eyes; in that moment, it and he seemed indistinguishable.

The Qilin’s lips curved mockingly, its pupils filled with scorn:

“Ancient Gu Wu’s Liu Dao—after decades, the six paths yielded nothing. How could it be comprehended in a mere instant?”

“You childish game, I’ll play along as an adult, but save your make-believe for that connected underworld. Don’t flaunt it before me; it’s laughable!”

As all things trembled in fear, Sheng Di Qilin spoke in human tongue and struck down with one claw.

This strike was simple and unadorned, yet as it fell from the heavens, it stirred winds and clouds, invoked the great Dao laws, and drew upon the profound energies of heaven and earth.

“The power of Tu Xing Sheng Di…”

Xu Xiao Shou’s pupils contracted.

He sensed a similar power being drawn, but from Sheng Di Qilin itself.

This was purely the method of a Lian Ling Shi; the Qilin was drawing from the earth’s power.

It could be Gong Yang Shan.

Or the entire Qi Lin Jie!

“Boom…”

With a earth-shaking roar, the peaks of Gong Yang Shan trembled in terror, rocks tumbling down.

Suddenly, they shattered and exploded, shaking heaven and earth.

The Qilin’s claw, now charged with that strike’s full force, hurtled toward Shen Yi, who had activated Ren Jian Dao.

Clearly, Bei Huai saw that as long as Shen Yi lived, he couldn’t get near Xu Xiao Shou or Tan Shen.

“Can he withstand it?”

“Sheng Di Qilin is weakened, Bei Huai’s divine soul is just a trace, but Shen Yi is only a spectral form…”

“Damn, they’re all wrecks, but why does it feel so overwhelming?”

Xu Xiao Shou felt like a fragile boat in a stormy sea, on the brink of capsizing.

Shen Yi was even more so.

As the claw approached, he stepped into the void and shot upward, his dual fists thrusting toward the sky, their force piercing through time.

“Shen! Guan! Tong!”

This explosive shout seemed to condense the power of the gods, resounding across Qi Lin Jie and making all within it look up in awe.

With that, Shen Yi’s momentum reached its peak.

“Gu Wu also borrows momentum…”

Xu Xiao Shou’s eyes widened as he watched Shen Yi’s tiny fists challenge the claw like an ant shaking a tree.

“Thud…”

A force like the deep drum of an ancient battlefield rippled outward beyond Qi Lin Jie.

But on Gong Yang Shan at that moment, the world fell silent.

A vacuum spanned thousands of miles, with no explosive sounds to be heard.

Time seemed to slow.

Xu Xiao Shou’s cry was soundless.

He felt his facial skin pulling back, his eye sockets shaking, his lips twitching, and his mouth filled with wind.

Even his passively activated Bao Ti was struck by the claw’s impact, causing waves of skin to ripple and surge from afar.

Under the backlash of Sheng Di, Xu Xiao Shou couldn’t steady himself and retreated half a step.

“Rumble!”

Finally, sound returned to his ears.

The clash had its result.

Shen Yi stood unmoving, but his back exploded with endless blood.

Sheng Di Qilin’s claw was halted in midair, yet its upper body, due to the strike’s inertia, continued pressing downward!

“Crack, crack…”

The sound of bones shattering echoed endlessly in the sky.

Visibly, the Qilin’s claw was shattered by the fists, as if an invisible pillar had pierced through it.

That formless Gu Wu force penetrated, starting from the wound on the claw and spreading upward in circles, swelling and exploding.

When the force pillar pierced through the front claw, broke the front body, and burst through the back, blood rain scattered, mixed with flesh.

“Roar—”

A cry of agony naturally arose.

Sheng Di Qilin’s pupils flashed with unnatural shock, and its entire body was flung away.

The colossal ancient sacred beast was directly blasted away by human fists!

“Holy crap…”

“Can it really be knocked flying?”

Xu Xiao Shou watched in shock, his pupils trembling.

Shen Guan Tong…

What is true penetration?

This is true penetration!

The burly Shen Yi, with one punch, had pierced through and crippled one of Sheng Di Qilin’s front claws—and this was against a strike enhanced by Sheng Di’s Tu Xing power!

“What kind of combat strength is this?”

“What level is Shen Yi exactly?”

“Is Gu Wu’s path truly just considering him a half-saint, not a Sheng Di?”

“If that’s the case, doesn’t that mean he has room to grow? If a half-saint can rival a Sheng Di, then a Sheng Di could rival the Ten Ancestors?”

In that moment, Xu Xiao Shou even thought he didn’t need to learn E Gui Dao. Shen Yi had just been modest; with only Ren Jian Dao, he could cripple the fusion of Sheng Di Qilin and Sheng Di Bei Huai.

But…

Xu Xiao Shou focused and saw that Shen Yi wasn’t unscathed.

After that punch, his back was completely mangled, his form flickering as if about to dissipate into a spectral state.

“Oh my, my dear Yi Bao!”

Xu Xiao Shou hurriedly ascended, offering sacred medicine with both hands. “Eat this, quick! It’s a great tonic— even Tan Shen covets it!”

Shen Yi glanced at him.

He was probably injured quite badly; his cheeks bulged as if to speak, but he spat out blood instead.

After glaring fiercely at the brat, Shen Yi didn’t refuse and swallowed a healing sacred medicine in three gulps.

“Woo…”

Sheng Di Qilin’s wail echoed everywhere.

The next second, the shackles on its front claw glowed, bearing the virtual shadow of Qing Long from the Si Xiang seal.

“What superb Gu Wu!”

Bei Huai’s voice of undisguised surprise rang out.

At the same time, the Qing Long shadow wailed in grief but manifested Mu Xing Sheng Di’s power, madly injecting it into the Qilin’s wounds.

“Sizzle…”

Visibly, the injured body of Sheng Di Qilin was recovering at an alarming speed.

And Bei Huai, using it as a parasite, wasn’t affected at all by that heavy punch.

“This is freaking monstrous…”

Xu Xiao Shou looked at the Qing Long virtual shadow, now also under Bei Huai’s control, and sighed inwardly.

Not only Tu Xing power, but since Sheng Di Qilin could use Mu Xing power to heal, it likely commanded the other three elemental powers as well.

“Wu Xing Qilin…”

Xu Xiao Shou realized something.

The Si Xiang seal had long been broken by Bei Huai!

The Si Xiang powers had been mastered by Sheng Di Qilin even earlier!

Shen Yi faced not just a Tu Xing Qilin, but a weakened yet infinitely powered Wu Xing Qilin with the other four elemental forces!

“Clang—”

Another shackle on a claw rang, and Bai Hu wailed.

Simultaneously, Sheng Di Qilin seemed coated in golden scales, its claws razor-sharp, tearing heaven and earth.

Bei Huai’s voice drifted down:

“Sheng Di Qilin now has the cycle of Wu Xing. It’s not in peak condition, but its power can be endless.”

“Your fists are strong indeed, but right now, how many more can you throw?”

The deep blue eyes of the Qilin turned to Xu Xiao Shou, as if peering through time and space, mockingly saying:

“Even if you have the medicines from Shen Nong Drug Garden, you can’t become the living Drug Ancestor Shen Nong providing endless supplies for a Gu Wu practitioner, can you?”

Shen Yi swallowed the sacred medicine, his gaze flickering.

But he wasn’t moved by Bei Huai’s words. Ignoring him, he looked straight at Xu Xiao Shou behind him.

“How’s your insight?”

“Quite rewarding.”

“Then continue?”

“Continue!”

(End of chapter)