Chapter 2125: Suppressing Kong Shi's Clone

Gods and False Gods are two fundamentally different types of beings; they cannot be compared.

Even with the aura of a God, and the ability to break through smoothly, mastering such power still takes an unknown amount of time.

This certainty was why, even after seeing the other party absorb the aura of a God, he wasn't overly anxious...

But that certainty was shattered by the other party in the blink of an eye!

"Nothing is impossible!" Zhang Xuan said calmly, his hands clasped behind his back.

Having broken through to godhood, he now understood the immense power involved. No wonder the other party could tear through space and move at will; False Gods were ten times weaker, if not more, by comparison! If he wished, Zhao Ya and the others combined wouldn't be able to stop him for even a single breath.

"I don't believe it!" Teacher Kong charged forward again, unleashing his power wildly.

Previously, he had intended to capture Zhang Xuan alive and extract something, but now that Zhang Xuan's strength matched his own, extraction was impossible. His only option was to find a way to kill him to survive.

He unleashed his full power with his first move. Space tore, and the world crumbled. Although the space within the God Temple was more stable than the Firmament, it still couldn't withstand the full might of a God-level expert.

Zhang Xuan did not retreat. Instead, he smiled faintly, meeting each attack. A few minutes later, Teacher Kong's body stiffened, suppressed by an overwhelming force. The Grand Profound Mirror from his storage ring and the Ethereal Boots on his feet were also taken, leaving him unable to escape.

After comprehending "If the Heavens Have Feelings," even his own clone was no match for him at the same level. Though this Teacher Kong was not weak, he was at most only slightly inferior, so how could he possibly resist? Moreover, he had already sustained severe injuries from successive attacks by Little Yellow Chick, the Book of Heaven's Path, and Zhao Ya, among others.

After trapping him, Zhang Xuan looked over again with a faint smile. He had already demonstrated his strength; whether the other party believed it or not was irrelevant, as the outcome was clear.

"Breaking through to godhood and consolidating your cultivation in such a short time... Even he couldn't do that..." Teacher Kong's gaze was unfocused, as if he were on the verge of madness.

"He?" Zhang Xuan noticed the unusual emphasis in his words. "Who is he?"

"Like you, he controls a part of the Heaven's Path, but he doesn't cultivate this fast..." Teacher Kong stopped mid-sentence.

"It seems you're admitting you're not Teacher Kong..." Zhang Xuan smiled faintly, looking at him. "How should I address you then? Teacher Kong's clone, or something else?"

After the Path to Heaven Bridge, Teacher Kong's actions against him had struck him as odd, making him suspect the person before him might be an impostor. Later, upon entering the God Temple, where clones were barred, he again encountered an entity with Teacher Kong's thoughts, capable of using Heaven's Path cultivation techniques... If he still didn't understand what was happening, he would truly be a fool!

The person before him should be Teacher Kong's clone, just like his own.

The Heaven's Path is unique. Under the same Heaven's Path, even if a clone splits its soul, it still cannot use Heaven's Path cultivation techniques or martial arts. Because of this, his clone's thoughts were clearly different from his main body, even allowing for conversations, like two separate individuals. If this was true for him, it must also be true for Teacher Kong!

It was even possible that this individual was a manifestation of Teacher Kong's evil thoughts. That would explain why, upon learning Zhang Xuan possessed a part of the Heaven's Path, he so desperately wanted to acquire it. Being from the same source, the clone would immediately deny it if Zhang Xuan said he wasn't Teacher Kong.

"Hmph, why is it that with the same soul, he can possess the Ordered Heaven's Path, learn and cultivate at extreme speeds, be known as the Teacher for All Ages, enjoy countless honors, and be revered by countless people... while I can only hide in the shadows, suppressed for thousands of years?" Teacher Kong's clone gnashed his teeth.

"You should know why yourself!" Zhang Xuan shook his head with a sigh. It certainly seemed that this individual was the evil thought split from Teacher Kong.

Teacher Kong became the Teacher for All Ages, revered by many, not through overwhelming cultivation or tyranny, but through benevolence, righteousness, and a magnanimous spirit. If you only sought personal gain, disregarded the lives of others, and resorted to any means to achieve your goals... how could you possibly earn respect?

"As long as I kill you, and kill everyone who opposes me, I too can be flawless and revered by future generations..." Teacher Kong's clone's face contorted grotesquely.

"It seems you still don't understand..." Zhang Xuan shook his head. "Suppression can make people submit for a short time, but as time passes, this rebellious sentiment will accumulate more and more, eventually becoming a fuse that blows people to smithereens!"

Absolute power might rule for a time, but not forever. Stopping people's mouths is harder than stopping a river, let alone their spirits.

"Teacher Kong is such a great man, yet his clone is so evil. Why isn't my clone like that?" As he pondered this, a thought suddenly emerged.

He had also spent a long time with his own clone. Although the clone liked to show off and could be a bit lecherous, he had always been well-behaved and had no other ulterior motives. So why... had Teacher Kong's clone changed?

"Perhaps it's... a heart devil! My cultivation technique, Heaven's Path Imperfection, has no flaws, so heart devils are almost impossible to generate. Teacher Kong's cultivation, Ordered Heaven's Path, although it grants the ability to decree laws and create rules, and also seems flawless... that, in reality, is its biggest flaw!"

Ordered Heaven's Path could alter established laws, making them conform to one's will. While seemingly powerful, it actually meant changing laws that had existed for countless years and were incredibly stable, which could easily give rise to heart devils. The clone before him was very likely formed from such negative emotions.

Teacher Kong was suppressed before him; he didn't dare think too much. Once Teacher Kong left the Firmament and entered the God Realm, not appearing for thousands of years, coupled with this clone's mastery of absolute power and authority... A change in temperament became not so difficult to understand.

"If this clone split off Teacher Kong's evil thoughts, what did my clone split off?"

One thought for evil, one thought for good. A clone, by splitting off a part of the soul, effectively also splits off a part of one's own personality.

Just like the person before him, Teacher Kong must have retained his magnanimity and benevolence, while his evil thoughts were separated, creating this individual. If this was true for Teacher Kong, then what about his own clone? It seemed... that fellow, apart from loving to show off and being a bit of a poser, didn't have many bad habits!

"It must have split off... my love for showing off. That's why, after having a clone, I became much more low-key..." He suddenly realized this.

The clone extremely enjoyed showing off, while the main body was dedicated to being low-key... He hadn't realized this before, but understanding that the person before him might be Teacher Kong's clone made it clear. Although... his main body sometimes showed off a little, being low-key was still deeply ingrained in his bones! It was his best quality.

"To the victor go the spoils; what you say, goes!" Not intending to argue with Zhang Xuan, Teacher Kong's clone looked at him coldly. "I still don't understand how you managed to break through so quickly! Could it be...?" He thought of something, his eyebrows furrowing. "Is it... the Spring and Autumn Annals?"

Teacher Kong's main body had once refined a special artifact based on the space and time principles within the Ordered Heaven's Path: the Spring and Autumn Annals! Although its rank was inferior even to an Immortal Lord's weapon, it possessed special abilities, just like the Celestial Profound Crystal and the Ethereal Boots. However... he knew clearly from the contingencies Teacher Kong left on the Master Teacher Continent that this item had been taken by a God named Luo Ruoxi, hadn't it? How could it be in Zhang Xuan's hands?

If he had known the Spring and Autumn Annals was in Zhang Xuan's possession, he definitely wouldn't have allowed him so much time. Perhaps from the moment he saw Zhang Xuan absorb the aura of a God, he would have directly used his strongest power to kill him.

"Indeed, it's the Spring and Autumn Annals!" Zhang Xuan smiled faintly. "The flow of time within the Spring and Autumn Annals is ten times that of the Master Teacher Continent, which means one hundred times that of the Firmament!"

"So that's it..." Teacher Kong's clone's face turned pale as he finally understood.

The other party originally needed a full day to break through, which translated to 12 hours, 1440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds! With a hundredfold difference, cultivating in the Firmament would allow one to break through in about fourteen minutes. While fast, it was still not enough for Zhang Xuan. So, he used the God-Connecting Hall to enter its headquarters. There, the flow of time was one-tenth that of the Firmament. If the Spring and Autumn Annals remained constant, what would normally take fourteen minutes to break through would be completed in just over a minute. But even that, the other party felt, wasn't fast enough! So, he directly entered the space where the true God Temple was located. The flow of time there was even slower, about one hundred times that of the Firmament. This meant that ever since he entered that barrier, the time difference between the Spring and Autumn Annals and the outside world was a staggering ten thousand times! What originally needed 86,400 seconds to break through now only required 8 seconds! That's why the other party counted down ten seconds... Ten seconds was nothing in the outside world, but inside the Spring and Autumn Annals, not only did he successfully break through to become a God, but he also took the opportunity to completely consolidate his cultivation! He just hadn't thought of it at the time!

"Since I've lost, do what you must!" After struggling for a moment and failing to break free from Zhang Xuan's restraint, Teacher Kong's clone said no more, his face serene. He had originally thought he could seize the Heaven's Path Imperfection from Zhang Xuan's body and thus not be weaker than his main body, but... he had failed! As expected of someone recognized by the Heaven's Path; each possessed extraordinary abilities.

"You are Teacher Kong's clone. Whether to kill you or what to do is for him to decide. I will seal you now and deal with you when I have a chance to meet him..." Too lazy to say more, Zhang Xuan flipped his wrist, and his full power pressed down. Teacher Kong's clone was instantly sealed, his cultivation completely restrained. Regardless, the other party was Teacher Kong's clone. How to deal with him was a decision for the Teacher for All Ages himself; Zhang Xuan saw no need to overstep.

"Now that I've broken through to godhood, it's a good time to go see what that black vortex guarded by the God Temple really is..." After placing the suppressed Teacher Kong into his folded space, Zhang Xuan was not in a hurry to return. Instead, he looked down, his eyes seemingly piercing through an unknown distance, landing on the unmoving God Temple.