Chapter 2373: Grant Me a Defeat

In the hall, the martial dao grandmaster, Ji Jinglu, faced north and sat, his voice echoing far into the sky: "A hundred-year grand event, I should personally witness it!"

He turned back and looked around: "I wish to go. Do any of you have the leisure?"

Lu King, Ji Baiyear, stood tall and laughed: "The world's scenery, how could this king miss it!"

Changyang Princess, Ji Jianrong, also brushed her cloud sleeves: "I should offer wine to enhance Lou Zhenren's journey."

Ji Jinglu looked toward Rui King, Ji Qingnv.

"Court matters are numerous, I will not go," Ji Qingnv said. "I sincerely wish all of you a beneficial observation of the ceremony."

Ji Jinglu did not force him, laughed loudly, and went out the door.

North Heavenly Master, Wu Daoyou, sat quietly, not speaking a word. His expression was difficult to discern, and no one knew what he was thinking.

Not until the figures of the several people had all disappeared at the door did he slowly open his mouth: "Rui King, are you not interested in this world's first true battle?"

Ji Qingnv played with the teacup in his hand: "A fight with no suspense is nothing to see."

Wu Daoyou looked at him: "Rui King's words just now were intense and shocking. I truly didn't think Rui King would be the one most confident in Jiang Wang."

As a prince who had fought his way to the final stage of the Central Empire, if Ji Qingnv were truly completely unaware of Jiang Wang, then he would not be qualified!

In the past decade, as long as one had eyes on the world, it would be impossible to miss Jiang Wang's name.

As long as one had ambition in the world, it would be impossible not to understand Jiang Wang as a person.

To speak grandly, he was almost a contemporary figurehead of the human dao.

To speak simply, he was also the world's recognized foremost human talent, the only existence who, though not affiliated with any force, could be listed in the Taixu Pavilion.

Not even understanding such a person means not having opened one's eyes to see the world at all.

Ji Qingnv said carelessly: "If it weren't that Heavenly Master and this little king saw slightly similarly, how would I know that this 'no suspense' battle is a situation where a certain person is guaranteed to win?"

Wu Daoyou chuckled softly: "This old man originally thought Rui King always wanted to eliminate this great trouble for Jing Country."

Ji Qingnv said in a low voice: "A person like Jiang Wang is not a great trouble for Jing Country. He will be, at the time Jing Country truly wants to eliminate him."

He placed the teacup on the tea stool, then stood up: "Heavenly Master, please rest here. Dou E has become newly dead, and the Long River has many waves. I will go to the Shuai mansion to take a look."

These three imperial heirs of the Great Jing Empire had fought their way through the unseen cruel battlefield of blood to reach this point, becoming the only three who had reached this stage. Naturally, each had their own talents. Their styles of action also varied greatly.

Among them, Lu King Ji Baiyear was the eldest, Changyang Princess Ji Jianrong was second, and Rui King Ji Qingnv was the youngest.

Of course, even Ji Qingnv was already over forty years old, far older than Jiang Wang who had come to the Central Domain to display his power today.

One looking at the scenery, one looking at a pre-arranged meeting, one looking at the deceased Yu Que, and attending to the family of the deceased Wang Kun. Truly intriguing.

Watching Ji Qingnv's thin back, Wu Daoyou leaned back and sat there, quietly lowering his eyelids, seemingly about to fall asleep.

How many years had the Central Empire continued?

The history books recorded it stroke by stroke, but he could not remember it so clearly.

Sometimes he also felt himself growing old.

But there were always young people.

Young people on the road.

A male performed the capping rite at twenty, signifying reaching adulthood and the need to shoulder responsibility.

Usually, a respected elder of the family presided over the capping rite, and the recipient's father personally bestowed the cap. After receiving it, the recipient also had to pay respects to his mother...

Jiang Wang did not quite remember how his twentieth birthday passed, likely in cultivation.

He wore the cap himself.

On an ordinary day, he bought a jade cap, tied up his hair himself, and declared himself an adult.

Consider it an instant he fixed for himself within his day-after-day cultivation. On the journey under the stars and moon, enduring wind and rain together, he left such a point of luxurious ceremony.

Then, at the end of his twentieth year, he shocked the world in the Qi Xia war, earning the title "Wu An." He became the youngest military merit marquis of a world hegemon country, leaping to become a high-level official of the empire, stepping onto the peak of present-day power.

Now, he was more than halfway through his twenty-ninth year. If one calculated the time lost in Mirror Lake, then he was already in his thirties.

He wanted to "add a crown" for himself in his "standing firm" year.

This matter of "adding a crown" required receiving the world's rite and the world's name. It was not something one could do by closing the door and giving oneself a title.

The emperor of the Central Great Jing Empire was necessarily seated in the center, welcoming challenges from all sides. The emperor of Great Fengxi Town would not be challenged, yet no one would admit that Fenglin City's Jicingsi could casually send a person to exterminate them.

Jiang Wang had already arrived in the Central Domain.

Stepping one foot into the Central Domain counted as stepping into Jing Country's sphere of influence.

Nearly four thousand years of world history had already made the entire Central Domain stand in awe of "Jing's" majesty. Occasionally, a few would jump, but they could not escape its grasp.

Jiang Wang was not coming for the first time.

Revisiting the old place, the mood was not the same as before.

He also didn't pave anything. After flying here, he directly raised his hand and pointed, raising a sword rainbow that hung across the red sun, and a sound of sword cry pierced through the Central State!

He responded to Ji Jinglu with this sound, and within the continuous endless lingering whistle, he declared to the entire Central Domain—

"Jiang Wang, at twenty-three years old in the border wilderness, chopped demons and became a True Person, all calling him 'Qing Shi first'. Jiang Wang is ashamed to receive this name, and is truly uneasy in his heart. The so-called Qing Shi first should match both name and reality, far surpassing all worthies. How can one only compete in cultivation time, comparing with children to discuss one word's speed? If one cannot suppress the world, how can one claim this foremost name?"

"Although Jiang Wang is shallow in talent and thin in virtue, ordinary in aptitude, he does not dare to disappoint the world's great hope. The world has given a name, and it must be shouldered. So, he roused his spirit for seven years, grinding one sword at dawn, finally achieving something today."

"Taiyuan Zhenren!"

He called out: "From the beginning of my cultivation, I knew your honor as the Central State's first, a True Person who covered a generation! Today, I purify my hand and wash my sword, running ten thousand li, to meet you, to knock on your door. With sincere heart, I only wish you to know—I sincerely seek a grant of one defeat!"

Lou Yue truly did not think that he had already returned to Jing Country, avoiding for a time near the sea, and still been sought out.

In Huai Island, it was understandable, counting as being in enemy territory, having psychological preparation to welcome challenges.

How could someone who was already home, whose Jinghai plan had already admitted defeat, still be chased from the sea to the Central State?

Truly... endless!

"Father." Standing in front of the half-closed door, just about to push it open, Lou Junlan immediately turned around, her extremely heroic eyebrows showing several strands of worry.

She held a jade bowl in her hand. Behind that half-closed door, it was as if it were deep within a thick fog, with dim light unable to penetrate.

"You should not worry about me," Lou Yue said, standing on the long corridor. "True Persons stronger than me, I have only heard of them in history, not seen them in reality."

He turned and walked down the courtyard steps, his tall figure leaving a cluster of dim shadows in the courtyard.

"Take good care of your sister, and tell her to take her medicine on time."

Leaving only this sentence, he then disappeared without a trace.

And at the same time, in the high sky of Jing Country, above Ying Tianfu, a group of deep, dark chaotic holes suddenly appeared.

The entire sky also darkened by three points!

Lou Yue, with his long cloak trailing, walked out from the chaotic holes and strode towards the far sky.

His voice rolled in the long sky: "Jiang Zhenren has sincerely come here, how can Lou someone not follow!"

Lu Shuanghe was numbered as the foremost killer force of Cave Zhen, but only a certain sword at a certain instant bursting out its limit kill force could be called not world-invincible.

The four great martial dao grandmasters, at the time they fought with Jiang Wang, were all only half a step away from deriving the dao. But between martial dao and existing dao cultivation, there were still long years, countless strong cultivators' accumulation. They could not be considered true Cave Zhen limits.

Up to now, among the opponents Jiang Wang had defeated, he, Lou Yue, had also not lacked similar battle records.

Two proving heaven-human, two times breaking free, were indeed rare and unique in ancient times. But truly performing in battle had not been witnessed by anyone.

He also had not heard that the heaven-human in the history of the Cave Zhen realm was an invincible Cave Zhen!

In this life, he pursued the name of the strongest, how could he decline a fight!

At that time, ten thousand paths of dawn light shone, and red clouds wiped the sky.

That male in green shirt with a hanging sword stood alone in the cloud sea. Like a wisp of light hanging down from the sky, like a green pine in a frost sea.

Upright, high-banked, isolated.

Decadent as if not yet awake, and properly dressed, exquisitely adorned white jade xias, each stood on an idle cloud, scattered at the edge of the sky, occupying the best viewing positions.

Suddenly, three pieces of flowing cloud floated over again, and on the clouds stood Ji Baiyear, Ji Jianrong, and Ji Jinglu respectively.

Although no one else rose to the sky for a closer look, one could imagine that within the entire range of Jing Country, no strong cultivator would miss this fight.

Changyang Princess had originally prepared two cups of celebratory wine, wanting to simultaneously congratulate the two fighting True Persons. But after stepping on the clouds and reaching here, she did not speak a word. Because at this moment, anything said would spoil the scenery.

Hearing is not like seeing.

The two top True Persons had not yet formally fought, but the collision of their momentum had already swallowed the sky and covered the moon.

Ten thousand li of cloud sea rolled.

Lou Yue gazed at Jiang Wang's eyes, using only three steps to push his intent and momentum to the peak, walking from a distant place to up close.

This person walked in the cloud sea, as if an ancient giant walking in the vast wilderness, making all the clouds heavy with his steps. Every step was a heaven-shaking rumble.

"The comer is a guest. On the path of cultivation, you have walked quite a few years less than I." Lou Yue, with his dragon-like walk and tiger-like steps, his voice like a great bell, said: "Where to fight today, how to fight, you say! Above the sky, below the ground, all sides' fighting methods, Lou someone will respond to none!"

This was indeed the confidence of the Central State's first, daring to welcome all opponents, not fearing any challenge.

Also like the Central Empire, sitting like a tiger overlooking all directions.

Jiang Wang calmly made eye contact with him: "Lou Zhenren was born tall, older than me, these are all naturally given. Jiang someone will not find reasons, will not feel any unfairness. Strong is strong, weak is weak, there are not so many words to say. Lou Zhenren was not early to arrive, Jiang Wang was not late to be born! Meeting here today is only for the dao. Between you and I, it is an absolutely fair fight."

He also moved forward, spreading his hands! "What restrictions are there in the sky, what limits on the ground? Jiang someone seeks nothing else, only seeks to kill to the fullest. Willing to not be at the absolute peak in this body, willing to see a higher place on the dao path!"

If you want to fight, then fight without restriction!

He hoped Lou Yue could fully display himself, embody the absolute peak of the Central State's first.

So that he would not waste coming here ten thousand li away.

Observing, Ji Baiyear's eyelids twitched.

Such arrogant words!

Willing to not be at the absolute peak in this body!

Since ancient times, who has dared to say such a thing?

"For the name of thousand ancient! Lou someone also wants to know, where is the limit of this realm, whether there is still a road to walk ahead, what kind of being is truly invincible—"

Between Lou Yue and Jiang Wang, it was as if there was infinite distance, forever unable to truly approach. But Lou Yue continued to walk forward in large strides, saying as he walked: "You and I will use this cloud sea as a platform, all sides are infinite, the sky is not the absolute peak, as a life and death struggle!"

Struggling life and death is fine, struggling anything is fine.

Lou Yue deriving the dao on the spot is also fine.

He had already said this was an unlimited duel.

So Jiang Wang said no more, only watched Lou Yue with his eyes, saying: "Please!"

Heaven and earth changed.

An extremely terrifying power naturally occurred.

All things changed in an instant.

The sky rose, the ground sank. The eight winds pushed open, the sun and moon shifted positions. Everything seen, everything perceived by divine sense, all infinitely expanded!

And oneself, as if infinitely shrinking.

A tiny body parasitic in the universe, like dust.

The cloud sea under the feet of the two people, all the cloud gas annihilated, illusory transforming into a star river.

Day became night, the moon broke into stars.

The void was vast, the universe boundless.

Time was silent, the star sea flowed.

This was not a mirage.

It was real and not false, truly possessing great power. It was Lou Yue's Palm Universe!

Formerly, the Great Qi prince Jiang Wuqi had picked up this divine ability.

But the god descended and killed him, and he was not able to truly embody the ultimate power of this divine ability.

Lou Yue indeed gave Jiang Wang the highest regard, taking out his strongest means the first time he opened war. His Palm Universe had already evolved into a universe, not stopping at one world or one day.

It was hard to imagine, what kind of scene this one flip of the palm would be when he proved the dao to the absolute peak.

Heaven and earth were originally infinite, and the universe was in his palm.

Allowed to come but not to leave, allowed to die but not to live.

This heaven gave birth to all things, everything within the universe was also your dao enemy.

Voice here actually existed, all rules were reordered.

A grain of star seed manifested into a star.

In the vision, it nearly infinitely enlarged, crossing the vast void, crossing the illusory sea, and crashing down towards Jiang Wang.

The star was Lou Yue's fist.

Jiang Wang was a speck of dust in the universe.

This was an extremely tense painting scroll. The young True Person stood with his hands behind his back in the void of the universe, facing the crash of a single star alone.

In the midst of the high-speed crash, this star was suddenly ignited by fire—

It originally burned with fiery red fierce flames.

But at this moment, these fierce flames were also being burned, instantly covering the entire star. They were the three colors of gold, red, and white true fire.

Burning fire with fire!

The fierce flames suddenly expanded, then returned to the dark void.

Only a single point of black ash, like a star residue, floated before the young True Person, and was then rolled away by the frost wind.

Immortal persons are clean, not stained by fine dust.

Lou Yue held this universe in his grasp, of course, he did not make Jiang Wang wait long.

One star was burned, and another star flew over.

Boom boom boom boom!

The booming sounds connected into war drums.

Suddenly, there was star light paving the void, as if the entire universe was flickering, stars forming a vast river.

The terrifying star force was already like substantial river water flowing, capable of annihilating all fires in the world.

No one could simultaneously analyze so many stars.

Even if it was Jiang Wang, who commanded immortal thought star river and possessed three flavors of true fire.

This strip of star river surged with giant waves, suddenly turning, and the entire star river pounced towards Jiang Wang.

The star light was dazzling without limit, shining throughout the universe.

Truly like a ten-thousand-zhang divine dragon, soaring through the void.

Compared to it, the young True Person was so tiny, simply negligible.

But he lifted his eyes to look at the star river, his gaze so calm.

All the stars collapsing at high speed seemed to find rest in this pair of quiet, sea-like eyes.

Everything in his vision became slow, the booming sound of falling stars seemed also very far away.

He seemed not to be facing any terrifying attack, not fighting with anyone, but like standing in a picturesque scene... quietly looking at the star river for ten thousand years.

This kind of composure was undoubtedly a provocation to the controller of the universe.

So the star light became more blazing, the stars more dense, the star river more vast. It not only filled his vision, but also truly filled the void.

In a trance, at a certain moment, Jiang Wang's eyes, quiet as a deep sea, slightly rippled, and he "woke" up. As if only at this time did he realize that he was not on an excursion, but in slaughter, in battle.

So he lifted one index finger, horizontally across his front—

From the fingertip, section by section it reached down, jade light turned, sky light moved.

The finger of the Ten Thousand Immortals True State was also immortal.

Of course, it did not mean his finger had also cultivated into an immortal person, but the power of the Ten Thousand Immortals True State flowed between his fingers.

That finger seemed to possess infinite great power. With a distant press, it was a sword.

The index finger moved horizontally across his eyes, and all the sky's star river was actually clear and empty—

Jiang Zhenren used one finger to chop the dragon!

In the depths of the universe, Lou Yue's voice resounded. At this time, it was high and vast, possessing supreme emotionlessness: "Taking me as the last opponent on the extreme true road is your eyesight, and also the most wrong decision of your life!"

The vast universe, except for the void, was just stars.

One strip of star river was wiped away, but more star rivers surged forth.

Vast and surging, surging and majestic.

Penetrating from ancient times to the present, connecting the upper and lower directions.

Ten thousand strips of star rivers danced together, countless stars howled.

The void moved ten thousand dragons!

This was indeed an inconceivable power. The entire universe changed, all within one thought of Lou Yue.

Ten thousand strips of star river dragons danced here, time and space could not restrain it.

So Jiang Wang lifted another hand.

He lifted sword fingers with both hands, as if holding double swords, and just like this, he went forward, welcoming the ten thousand dragons. His fingers drew the universe.

Every time he drew a finger, one dragon fell, countless stars were chopped down.

He strolled in the void, stepping out a sword rainbow that belonged to himself and penetrated through it, crossing the universe. Along the way, stars fell like rain!

When he lifted that pair of calm eyes, through all the star rain in the sky, he already saw the person who controlled this side of the universe after the endless void.

His red-gold eyes turned, the immortal person in his eyes sat among them, and so he had already made eye contact with Lou Yue.

"It seems I indeed made a wrong decision."

Jiang Wang's clothes fluttered, walking forward in the brilliant star rain. Occasionally, star glory sprinkled on his shoulders, like pear flower petals. He walked leisurely, one step ten thousand li, just like this, approaching the place where the void returned. His voice had no waves: "If your skill stops at this, then I regret coming to the Central State."