Chapter 921: Interlocking Links, Eight Revered Masters of Dao Clashing Across the Void

“How audacious!”

The onlookers from the Great Void were stunned by the Dao Lord’s incredibly domineering remark.

Facing the Black Dragon Devil Emperor’s sword, Dao Qiongcang made no other moves after uttering that sentence, seemingly content to let the Devil Emperor cleave him in two.

However, just as the demonic sword was about to strike, barely a hair's breadth away, the Black Dragon Devil Emperor truly stopped!

“You rascal…”

The Black Dragon Devil Emperor, shrouded in black mist, looked amazed, his lips twitching slightly. He said, “Indeed, you live up to the praise even he bestows. You even dare to scheme against this Emperor!”

Dao Qiongcang smiled faintly, his expression unchanged, and calmly said:“Whether it’s the Golden Dragon of Fortune or the Ten Epochs Sacred Spirit Array, these are all uncertain factors. In your plans, you might have anticipated Ai Cangsheng shooting an arrow, but you didn’t know what the Sacred Palace’s follow-up move would be after Ai Cangsheng’s action…”

“It’s you!” the Black Dragon Devil Emperor interrupted, landing in front of Dao Qiongcang. The two of them began to converse peacefully.

Dao Qiongcang smiled and said softly, “Perhaps it’s me, or perhaps something else. But the Golden Dragon of Fortune was also an unexpected factor. This Saint presumes that your appearance relies on devouring powers similar to the Golden Dragon of Fortune… If Rao Yaoyao hadn't intervened, you would have devoured this Saint’s power, perhaps from the Ten Epochs Sacred Spirit Array, or perhaps half-saint power, correct?”

The Black Dragon Devil Emperor’s eyes showed surprise, and he fell silent, speechless.

Images of everyone discussing battle plans while on Void Island flashed through his mind…

Ba Zun’an had summoned the leaders of the Black and White Factions, meticulously outlining the battle plan. This included the earlier clashes involving Dragon Scale, the Demonic Sword, Ai Cangsheng, and Rao Yaoyao. According to his calculations, there were no mistakes or omissions.

At the end, he specifically instructed him further:“Black Dragon Devil Emperor, as soon as your remnant spirit manifests, you only need to ‘bewitch’ the spiritual refiners in Dongtian Royal City and the Yunlun Mountain Range. You must understand that given the Sacred Palace’s disposition, they will not allow ‘innocent civilians’ to die. As long as you don’t target individuals of Rao Yaoyao’s status, those dignified people will not break their final veneer of civility and resort to shameless tactics. As for external forces, if they wish to remove the influence of your Black Dragon power on ordinary spiritual refiners, there are three ways: first, the Fortune Power of Rao Yaoyao’s Profound Azure Divine Sword; second, Dao Qiongcang’s Heavenly Mystery Power; and third, other half-saints on Gui Zhe Sacred Mountain taking action… However, the third option is highly unlikely. Regardless, as long as they act to rescue the spiritual refiners, they will fall into the trap. You just need to fully devour the fortune, half-saint power, and so on, to restore one or two tenths of your strength, and then you can execute the ‘final plan’.”

“But remember!”

The Black Dragon Devil Emperor vaguely recalled how serious Ba Zun’an’s tone was when he spoke that final sentence.

At that time, he had said:“Perhaps you will face Dao Qiongcang, perhaps you will face Hua Changdeng. But please remember that to you, they are mere juniors. If you still get enraged by them and waste excessive power to attack, thereby causing the ‘final plan’ to fail… your remnant spirit will die on the Sacred Divine Continent, and your true body will die ‘here’!”

‘Here’ referred to the inner island of Void Island, the ground pointed to by Ba Zun’an’s finger as he spoke those words.

His thoughts flickered, and the Black Dragon Devil Emperor regained his composure.

He stared at Dao Qiongcang, who was so close yet impassive, a hint of dread entering his eyes. He muttered, “Humans, your hearts are truly foul. While sacred beasts perfect their bodies, you evolve your minds…”

He paused, then, unable to resist his curiosity, asked, “This Emperor truly wishes to crack open your skull and see what else you have divined?”

Dao Qiongcang waved his hand, instantly crushing the ‘ambition’ and ‘leopard’s courage’ in front of him. His lips curled upwards as he said, “This Saint believes you are stalling for time.”

Astonishment appeared in the Black Dragon Devil Emperor’s eyes.

He couldn’t strike because it would waste power.

But Dao Qiongcang had no such reservations!

Facing the Black Dragon Devil Emperor, who was just a breath away, Dao Qiongcang flipped his palm, and the Ten Epochs Sacred Spirit Array hummed with a tremor.

“Heavenly Mystery: Saint Slaying Light!”

In the blink of an eye, a seven-colored glow descended from the sky, instantly engulfing the Black Dragon Devil Emperor, who, struck by the sudden attack, had no time to react.

At the same time, Saint Emperor Dragon Scale, far away in another location, was also submerged by another ray of light.

Both trembled simultaneously.

Decomposing…Disintegrating…

Everyone watched in wide-eyed astonishment as the Black Dragon Devil Emperor’s body and Saint Emperor Dragon Scale gradually disintegrated under the Saint Slaying Light.

“Just like that… dead?” Everyone found it hard to believe.

The Saint Slaying Light continued its execution until its power waned.The Black Dragon Devil Emperor and Saint Emperor Dragon Scale were completely shattered along with it.

However, on the scene, a demonic sword remained, struggling violently in the void.

Named Sword Twenty-One, renowned since ancient times, had existed for an unknown number of centuries.If speaking solely of hidden power, few treasures in the world could rival such an ancient supreme treasure.Naturally, even saintly power could not pulverize the Myriad Blades Demonic Lord Sword!

Without the Saint Slaying Light’s shroud, the Black Dragon Devil Emperor was completely gone. Yet, at this moment, no one understood why the demonic sword was still struggling.

Only Dao Qiongcang’s face showed a hint of realization, and his eyes grew more solemn. He murmured, “So, it wasn’t Dragon Scale. The demonic sword is the true vessel for your remnant spirit?”

“Cackling…”

A strange cackling sound suddenly drifted down from all directions.The Black Dragon Devil Emperor had clearly been pulverized by the Saint Slaying Light, yet his voice now emerged:“If he hadn’t told me to be wary of you, little Daoist, this Emperor might truly have fallen into your trap and wasted a bit more power… Dao Qiongcang! It must have taken considerable time to secretly accumulate an attack of this magnitude using a Saintly Thought Avatar, correct?”

The Black Dragon Devil Emperor sneered.Although he hadn’t noticed any signs of Dao Qiongcang accumulating power beforehand, he had committed Ba Zun’an’s words to memory, as his life depended on them.

“If the Sacred Palace’s follow-up move involves other people, you don’t need to dally with them; proceed directly with the ‘final plan’,” Ba Zun’an had said.Then he added with a chuckle:“But if, after you emerge, the person targeting you is Dao Qiongcang, remember: this individual is extremely clever. You just need to act stupid enough… no, you just need to maintain your usual demeanor, and he will naturally begin to scheme against you. Dao Qiongcang is a dignified person. He won’t easily leave Gui Zhe Sacred Mountain in his true form. At most, he’ll send a Saintly Thought phantom; a half-saint avatar won’t even appear. At that point, if he wants to harm your Saint Emperor remnant spirit with a single strike, he will definitely need time to accumulate power. Given your intelligence, you won’t notice when he makes his subtle moves. But as for when you should strike… well, you are called the Black Dragon Devil Emperor and possess the combat awareness of the Three Realms. You will naturally realize when you need to act at the most critical moment.”

The Black Dragon Devil Emperor had been somewhat worried before, because Ba Zun’an hadn’t explained things entirely clearly.But now, he knew when that “critical moment” was.It was now!It was this window of opportunity, right after Dao Qiongcang's cleverness had backfired, failing to achieve his goal with one strike and needing to accumulate power for the next!During this interim, with no half-saints personally present, who could possibly end the Black Dragon Devil Emperor?

“Cackling…”

The source of the sneering laughter emerged from within the demonic sword’s blade.Then, despite the demonic sword’s resistance, under the influence of the Saint Emperor’s power, it couldn’t help but soar upwards, piercing the sky and penetrating the Ten Epochs Sacred Spirit Array.

“Roar——”

A loud dragon roar erupted from the sword’s body.What materialized next was a massive illusory form of the Black Dragon Devil Emperor’s true body, coiled amongst the Nine Heavens, obscuring the sun and sky.This black dragon phantom was not as emaciated as the Saint Emperor’s remnant spirit form; a single one of its scales was the size of half of Dongtian Royal City!

As the black dragon’s true body phantom uncoiled and expanded, nearly all the spiritual refiners within the entire Eastern Heaven Realm saw the monstrous creature suddenly appearing in the sky!

“What is this?”

Far away in the Heavenly Mulberry Spirit Palace, Qiao Qianzhi had been agonizing over the imitation Heavenly Mystery Puppet in front of him in his dilapidated hut just a second ago. The next moment, feeling something, he walked out of the hut.He looked up and was horrified to see that the sky had turned dark!And in the darkness, a dragon claw faintly floated, tearing apart the firmament.

“What the hell…”Qiao Qianzhi was terrified.He tried to follow the direction of the dragon claw to find its body but was horrified to discover that the entire sky was filled by the dragon’s body. He couldn’t even see a ten-thousandth of the monster’s true form!

“A black dragon?”“The Black Dragon! Is it that Black Dragon?”

After only a brief thought, Qiao Qianzhi was frightened by his own conjecture.Coming from the Sacred Palace, he naturally knew that the Sacred Divine Continent’s only two true dragon bodies were one trapped in the Sacred Profound Gate and the other on Void Island.Apart from spiritual techniques that could manifest true dragon forms, there was absolutely no other way for spiritual refiners on this continent to materialize something similar.

But a spiritual technique manifestation…“What level of spiritual technique could manifest a black dragon capable of obscuring the sky and sun?”“Could it be the one from Void Island?”

Qiao Qianzhi was severely startled.He gazed in the direction of Dongtian Royal City, a faint unease growing in his heart.“Ye Xiaotian, I can take on the mess of your inner courtyard dean, but Old Man Sang has already played himself out. You absolutely, absolutely must not get into trouble again…”

Yunlun Mountain Range.

Three figures in pure-colored long robes—one gold, one blue, and one purple—walked aimlessly on the mountain path. The golden-robed figure led, with the other two following behind.None of the three seemed to emit any special fluctuations; their appearances were unremarkable, and even their height and cultivation were ordinary.If there was anything unusual discernible from their appearance, it might only be the golden mask worn by the leading golden-robed figure, and the pair of crossed saber and sword carried on his back.The saber and sword were wrapped in sealing bands, their exact appearance obscured, only a faint outline visible…A Tang saber, and a longsword!

“Lord Huangquan, when will this aimless walking end? Things are so chaotic up there; aren’t you really going to get involved and demonstrate your power?” the blue-robed man asked, rubbing his leg as he walked.He was a young man with a handsome face, bandages wrapped around his eyes. His tone carried the fearless swagger common among the younger generation – he dared to say anything.

“The Yunlun Mountain Range has a Cloud Realm World. I’ve told you that some things can be said, and some cannot. How do you keep forgetting?” the purple-robed youth beside him turned his head. His face was obscured by a large hood, leaving no discernible features.

The blue-robed youth’s hood was down, as he was tired and hot. Hearing this, he merely chuckled, “With Lord Huangquan here, forget about the Cloud Realm World’s prying. Even if we walk right up to the Red Coats, would they even notice us?”

The purple-robed youth sneered, “Why don’t you try walking in front of Rao Yaoyao and see what happens?”

Their bickering grew louder.

The golden-robed masked man in front, carrying the saber and sword on his back, suddenly stopped. The sounds behind him immediately ceased.Just then, the sky suddenly turned dark, as a black dragon phantom obscured everything.

“Holy crap!” The blue-robed youth looked up, exclaiming in shock, “Th-th-this is way too big…”“A dragon?” The purple-robed youth was also astonished. “Is the battle up there really that intense?”

The two, following the golden-robed masked man, couldn’t actually perceive the battle situation outside due to their sealed cultivation.Only occasionally did Lord Huangquan offer a few explanations to help them pass the boring time, allowing them to understand the battle’s progress.

“Jiuyou, Bi’an, no need to be impatient. What we’re waiting for is coming soon…” Huangquan also looked up at the black dragon phantom and said calmly.

The blue-robed youth, Bi’an Huakai, couldn’t hold back after hearing this. He asked, “So, Lord Huangquan, what exactly are we waiting for? We’ve been waiting for over ten days; are we just going to keep wandering around?”

The purple-robed youth also cast a sideways glance, clearly curious about the same question.

“It’s coming soon…” Huangquan merely murmured to himself.

Bi’an Huakai covered his face, letting out a soft sigh in his heart, then calmly ventured a guess, “Aren’t we only looking for…”He seemed to realize that what followed shouldn’t be said, but with Lord Huangquan before him, he had no qualms and continued, “Aren’t we only looking for the Tear Clan’s pupils? Could it be that this time, Void Island will spew out pairs of Tear Clan pupils?” He let his imagination run wild.

The purple-robed youth, Jiuyou Guiying, shot him a cold glare.“What nonsense was that?”At that moment, he almost wanted to forge Bi’an Huakai into an iron man!

Huangquan, however, wasn’t angry at all. He just let out a light laugh and softly said, “It’s not the Tear Clan’s pupils this time, but it is the opportunity you need. After all, the Sky City’s path to sainthood isn’t just an empty promise.”

The two behind him were suddenly moved.So, Lord Huangquan had personally intervened just to help them contend for the path to sainthood?But…“We are only at the Throne Realm!”

Bi’an Huakai and Jiuyou Guiying exchanged glances.They knew that there was a long journey from the Throne Realm, through the Dao Severing and Great Void realms, to the final “Sainthood.”

Huangquan seemed to know what they were thinking. He said, “Once you master the Throne Dao Realm, if you can successfully sever your Dao, the path to sainthood will naturally follow.”

Bi’an Huakai and Jiuyou Guiying looked at each other again, deeply moved.But then they suddenly thought: for a Throne Realm cultivator who had perfected their Dao, severing it was already incredibly difficult. How could they possibly aspire to the “path to sainthood”?

“It’s very simple…”Huangquan suddenly spoke, gazing at the Black Dragon Devil Emperor’s phantom above. He murmured, “Just be a fisherman and wait quietly.”

Outmaneuvered!

Above the void, just as the thought crossed Dao Qiongcang’s mind, the Black Dragon Devil Emperor’s phantom had already grown to an unstoppable, sky-encompassing size.

“A miscalculation. I shouldn’t have considered this from the perspective of the Black Dragon Devil Emperor, but rather from his perspective…”As Dao Qiongcang accumulated power, his thoughts drifted, recalling the battle for the Ten Venerable Seats in his youth.In that battle, if Cao Yihan hadn’t suddenly achieved profound enlightenment and unleashed the epoch-making “Divine Punishment and Tribulation” — the First Generation Thorough Divine Thought — the head of the Ten Venerable Seats would undoubtedly still have been Ba Zun’an, the man who had crushed an entire era.Now, after decades apart, in this first confrontation, he had been negligent and made an error simply because his opponent was a dragon form, not a human form.Fighting the Black Dragon Devil Emperor with the mindset of scheming against him meant falling deeply into the schemes of Ba Zun’an, who was behind the Devil Emperor. This was almost inevitable!Regrettably, only now did Dao Qiongcang realize this.That person, even when not present, could, like himself, plan strategies within his tent and win battles a thousand miles away!

“Roar——”

As he pondered, the black dragon phantom in the sky had already revealed its complete, terrifying form.Beneath its resounding dragon roar, a scorching spherical pearl, like a black sun, slowly flew out from its dragon mouth…