Chapter 362: Capturing the Saintess Alive

Ye Fan charged forward, his golden fist unleashing a fierce gale that tore through the earth. The power of that single punch was like an ancient giant star falling and striking the ground, illuminating the entire ice field.

No one could articulate the immense power of that punch; the entire ice field trembled.

Numerous wide fissures, each over half a meter across, erupted from the earth beneath Ye Fan's feet, spreading in all directions.

He was radiant golden all over, dazzling to behold, like an ancient golden war god, crushing the void.

"The Desolate Saint Body at the fifth level of the Dao Palace!" The Saintess of Zifu showed a ripple of emotion for the first time. She had not expected Ye Fan to reach this realm on his own, knowing that in the past, only Sacred Lands could cultivate such an achievement.

With a rustle, the scroll unfurled, and the Painting of Mountains and Rivers vibrated, revealing the entire real world within it. This world merged with the greater cosmos, shielding the Saintess of Zifu at its center.

The scenery was like a painting, and the beauty was like a flower—a perfect depiction of the scene before them.

Even if Ye Fan's golden fist was incredibly hard, it surely couldn't damage this Painting of Mountains and Rivers, which was a weapon left by Zifu's deceased old Saint Lord.

Ten thousand golden rays burst forth, as if the sky had been torn apart, and thousands of stars were falling and striking the earth.

Boulders shot through the air, and snow swirled everywhere. This land was riddled with holes, almost completely ravaged by Ye Fan's attack, yet he could not breach the Painting of Mountains and Rivers.

When everything settled, inside the Painting of Mountains and Rivers, magnificent peaks stood tall, immortal rivers flowed gracefully, and the scenery was captivating.

The Saintess of Zifu stood within the painting, alone on an ethereal cliff, enveloped by mist, transcending the mortal world and becoming the most enchanting feature of the artwork.

Pang Bo roared, striking with the "Form Annihilation" technique of the Nine Slashes of the Demonic Emperor. Silver light burst from his eyes, shooting into the scroll and sweeping towards the peerless beauty on the cliff.

The Saintess of Zifu stood still, allowing the dragon-shaped silver light to enter the scroll. The Dao Mark on her brow radiated purple brilliance, rising to meet the attack.

This was an astonishing grand duel: the divine art of the Demonic Emperor's Ancient Scripture against the profound art of the Sacred Land's Ancient Scripture.

Pang Bo's combat strength was formidable, his black hair disheveled, and his eyes shining brightly. The Nine Slashes of the Demonic Emperor were sharp and unstoppable; he exuded an aura of unrivaled dominance, as if proclaiming, "Who else but me?"

The Saintess of Zifu was naturally close to the Great Dao, achieving unity between heaven and man. Her spiritual realm was terrifyingly profound, allowing her to wield the power of the Great Dao.

The Painting of Mountains and Rivers was like a pure land beyond the world. She stood on the ethereal cliff, her brow revealing the Dao Mark, which pulsed with purple light, making her appear even more transcendent and otherworldly, as if she did not belong to this mortal realm.

Swish!

Eventually, the silver light in Pang Bo's eyes vanished. His "Form Annihilation" technique from the Nine Slashes of the Demonic Emperor had been unleashed, yet it failed to affect the transcendent beauty within the painting.

Moreover, she remained calm and composed, completely unperturbed, clearly still retaining strength, unlike Pang Bo, who only ceased his attack when the first slash of the Demonic Emperor's technique was exhausted.

What was the stature of the Nine Slashes of the Demonic Emperor? They could be said to shake the past and illuminate the present, being the strongest set of divine arts created by a Demonic Emperor.

The expressions of the group shifted in shock. The Saintess of Zifu was far more powerful than they had imagined, with astonishing strength that no ordinary saintess could rival!

"She's comparable to the Saint Son of Yaoguang!" Tu Fei exclaimed. During their initial exchange, he had almost met his demise, and that was just a single encounter!

"I don't believe her combat strength is superior to mine!" Pang Bo strode forward, preparing to strike again.

"I know now, she possesses the Innate Dao Fetus!" the big black dog suddenly exclaimed.

"What?!" The group was startled. Although they didn't understand what this physique entailed, the name alone indicated something extraordinary.

Hearing these words, the Saintess of Zifu remained utterly serene, showing no reaction whatsoever, as if she transcended the mortal world.

"Is this physique very powerful?" Tu Fei asked.

"Didn't you just see? She is naturally close to the Dao, almost able to merge with heaven and earth, imprinting herself in the void and wielding the power of the Dao."

All of them felt a chill in their hearts. Besides exerting her own power, the Saintess of Zifu was also drawing upon the power of the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, making her almost inherently unbeatable!

The big black dog seemed very excited. "I thought she was merely close to the Dao, but I didn't realize she was an Innate Dao Fetus. Once such a person becomes a Saint Lord-level figure, merging their body with the Dao, even if someone of their generation possesses immense magical power, they will be suppressed!"

At this moment, Ye Fan, Pang Bo, and Tu Fei all gasped, completely astonished. Such a physique was truly astounding, absolutely monstrous!

In the face of all this, the Saintess of Zifu remained silent. Such was her nature, inherently close to the Great Dao, as if nothing in the world could stir even the slightest emotional ripple within her.

"How have I never heard of this physique before?" Tu Fei asked.

The Black Emperor replied, "Because it's extremely rare, almost never seen. But I can give you an example: among the ancient Great Emperors, one possessed the Innate Dao Body."

"What? Which Great Emperor?" Even Ye Fan was surprised.

"The Western Empress of Yaochi," the big black dog answered.

"What are you waiting for, brothers? She's very likely a future female Great Emperor; capture her and make her your wife!" Tu Fei shouted.

"This Emperor is willing to take you as a disciple, not a human pet. Are you willing?" the big black dog shamelessly barked.

Boom!

Pang Bo attacked with the "Deprivation" technique of the Nine Slashes of the Demonic Emperor. Its divine power was unparalleled and incomparable. He aimed to forcibly remove the Saintess of Zifu from the Painting of Mountains and Rivers, and silver light shimmered, turning the entire world a blinding white.

The Saintess of Zifu's pressure intensified. Even though she was in a wondrous state, almost achieving unity between heaven and man, she felt waves of danger and had no choice but to gather all her Dao power to resist with full force.

Pang Bo's ability to resist an Innate Dao Fetus demonstrated his immense power, allowing him to stand proudly among the younger generation of their era.

Buzz!

At the same time, Tu Fei unleashed his Heaven-Devouring Pot, and the big black dog shook his large golden bell to suppress the Painting of Mountains and Rivers, both attacking with full might.

It had to be said that the Painting of Mountains and Rivers was incredibly mysterious, its power immeasurable. It was one of Zifu's foremost sacred artifacts, utterly impenetrable.

Clang!

Ye Fan also launched the Vajra Bracelet. This artifact, another important treasure of a Sacred Land, transformed into a silver bolt of lightning with tremendous power, almost piercing through the sky.

The mountains and rivers were magnificent; it was a real miniature world capable of spatial manipulation, allowing the Vajra Bracelet to pass through without hitting its target, thus evading this terrifying blow.

Clink!

Green light shot skyward, turning half the sky and even the ice and snow green. A divine lotus attached itself to the Painting of Mountains and Rivers and began to spread into it.

Pang Bo struck, unleashing a weapon forged by a powerful entity, sending it into the miniature world and temporarily immobilizing the painting.

A flicker of emotion finally appeared on the Saintess of Zifu's face. The fact that all four possessed powerful artifacts imbued with interwoven laws greatly exceeded her expectations.

"Innate Dao Fetus, take this blow!" Tu Fei roared. Black mist surged from the Heaven-Devouring Demonic Pot, transforming into a demonic mountain that pressed down.

Clang!

The big black dog activated his golden bell; its lingering chime resonated through heaven and earth, striking inside the Painting of Mountains and Rivers.

Simultaneously, Ye Fan launched the gleaming ring-shaped bracelet again. It shone with brilliant silver light, expanding to the size of a millstone, and instantly surged into the miniature world.

Boom!

The ground of the miniature world collapsed, continuously spreading and shattering. Within a thousand-zhang radius, boulders shot through the air, and raging waves, eight to nine hundred meters high, surged wildly.

On the ground, a bottomless pit a thousand zhang in diameter appeared, a gaping black maw, utterly terrifying.

The Vajra Bracelet, transformed to the size of a millstone, possessed immense power. After destroying an area, it shot skyward, aiming for the Saintess of Zifu on the cliff.

Lights and shadows flickered as Ye Fan, Pang Bo, Tu Fei, and the big black dog, all wielding their powerful artifacts, entered the Painting of Mountains and Rivers, intending to collectively destroy it and capture the Innate Dao Body alive.

The Saintess of Zifu slightly furrowed her delicate brows. She had already considered retreating, but ever since entering this area, she realized she had been sealed within the ice field.

The group had clearly been ambushing her for a long time, and the dense Dao patterns made it difficult for her to break out. With four such powerful experts currently overwhelming her, she found it hard to resist alone.

"Nine Slashes of the Demonic Emperor—Divine Injury!" Pang Bo, capable of resisting the Innate Dao Fetus, was naturally the primary attacker.

Furthermore, the divine art he unleashed was remarkably ingenious, targeting spiritual consciousness to disrupt the Saintess of Zifu's Dao realm of unity with heaven and earth.

Tu Fei and the big black dog also stepped forward, both wielding powerful artifacts to suppress her.

Even as powerful as the Saintess of Zifu was, she struggled greatly against the formidable enemy that was Pang Bo, having to concentrate most of her Dao power.

With Tu Fei and the big black dog joining forces, her difficulties were compounded, and she was hard-pressed to cope. The Painting of Mountains and Rivers was suppressed by the Heaven-Devouring Pot and the large bell, preventing it from unleashing its full power.

Boom!

The millstone-sized Vajra Bracelet struck, instantly shattering the ethereal cliff and narrowly missing the Saintess of Zifu.

Simultaneously, Ye Fan swiftly rushed closer, swinging his golden fist to strike, while the God-Beating Whip in his left hand also slashed forward.

At this moment, as Ye Fan engaged in close combat with the Saintess of Zifu, her expression finally changed. There were countless legends about the formidable power of a Saint Body's physical form.

Boom!

While resisting the other three powerful figures, she imprinted herself within the Painting of Mountains and Rivers' world, using the Dao Mark to suppress Ye Fan.

This was the Innate Dao Fetus: if her own power was insufficient, she could borrow the power of the Great Dao, merging her body with heaven and earth to unleash supreme pressure!

An earth-shattering roar erupted. Golden light filled the sky, purple radiance was everywhere, and the God-Beating Whip struck the Dao Imprint in the void, causing the sky to collapse.

Meanwhile, Ye Fan's golden fist struck close to the Saintess of Zifu, unleashing overwhelming power!

The terrifying aura was chilling. Ye Fan's physical body was incredibly formidable, and the Dao Mark failed to suppress him.

The golden fist struck forth, advancing irresistibly and courageously. Purple robes fluttered as one of the Saintess of Zifu's sleeves turned to dust, revealing a snow-white arm.

The Desolate Saint Body, though still within the Dao Palace secret realm, possessed physical divine power sufficient to look down on the younger generation, utterly unstoppable.

Unfortunately, it was just a fraction off; his fingertips failed to brush that arm, otherwise, the Innate Dao Fetus would have suffered broken bones and torn tendons.

The moment the purple mist was dispersed, Ye Fan finally saw the true face of the Saintess of Zifu—a beauty so profound it was breathtaking.

The opportunity was fleeting. The Saintess of Zifu transformed into a purple cloud, her body merging with the Dao, breaking through the blockade and escaping the encirclement of the four.

The big black dog exclaimed, "This Emperor is seeing a Saint Body contend with an Innate Dao Fetus for the first time! Kid, I have high hopes for you. Hurry and reach the Four Extremities secret realm to challenge her."

"We can't let her escape! When she becomes a Saint Lord-level expert in the future, her body will merge with the Dao, suppressing all masters of the same rank, making her unstoppable," Tu Fei also shouted.

Pang Bo, fearless, advanced with the divine lotus, quickly giving chase.

Ye Fan was almost parallel to him, with the Myriad Manifestation Mother Qi Cauldron above his head, the Vajra Bracelet in his left hand, and the God-Beating Whip in his right, moving like a golden lightning bolt as he approached.

Swish!

However, at this very moment, the void dissolved, and the group was thrown out of the Painting of Mountains and Rivers, appearing back on the ice field.

The Painting of Mountains and Rivers shrank, becoming a beautiful scroll that merged with the Saintess of Zifu. The picturesque scenery and the beautiful maiden complemented each other perfectly.

The Dao Mark on her brow projected light, searching for weaknesses in the formation patterns on the ice field, intending to escape.

"This is bad! This Dao Fetus is too formidable; she's drawing on the Great Dao to try and decipher the mysteries of the formation," the big black dog exclaimed, continuously launching Star Stones to significantly increase the difficulty of the formation patterns.

"This time, she can't escape even if she had wings. I don't believe she can break these Dao patterns. We just need to keep her surrounded," the Black Emperor stated confidently.

The Saintess of Zifu subtly furrowed her brow. Finally, she became ethereal, imprinting herself in the void, growing increasingly indistinct, while simultaneously, the Painting of Mountains and Rivers radiated intense light.

"Quick, stop her! The Painting of Mountains and Rivers possesses spatial law power!" Tu Fei shouted.

All four attacked simultaneously. The Vajra Bracelet, the divine lotus, the Heaven-Devouring Pot, and the large bell struck together, tearing the void apart.

However, their attack landed on empty air!

The Saintess of Zifu spat out a mouthful of vital blood, activating the Great Dao, and unleashing divine power from the Painting of Mountains and Rivers that she normally couldn't command at her current realm. The painting transformed into a spatial gate, which flashed and vanished, taking her with it into the air.

This was not merely inscribing formation patterns on a profound jade platform to cross the void, but rather using Dao power to forcefully activate a treasure and travel through space—a feat countless times more difficult.

"Damn it, the formation patterns this Emperor laid down were useless, they didn't work!" the Black Emperor fumed.

Tu Fei shouted, "The Painting of Mountains and Rivers is a divine artifact left by Zifu's previous old Saint Lord before his passing. She can't truly activate it, so even if she tore open a spatial gate, the distance she could travel would be limited."

"Chase her! She must be severely injured from forcefully opening that spatial gate just now."

The big black dog was an expert in Dao patterns and void traversal. Based on the fluctuations from the spatial gate, he instantly determined the correct direction.

Ye Fan, Pang Bo, Tu Fei, and the big black dog split up, fanning out to encircle her. According to Tu Fei's conjecture, the Saintess of Zifu absolutely couldn't have gone far.

As soon as they soared into the sky, they saw a flash of light several miles away: the Saintess of Zifu burst out of the void. They transformed into streaks of lightning and gave chase.

Pang Bo, almost capable of matching the Saintess of Zifu in strength, also possessed terrifying speed, rapidly closing the distance.

As for Ye Fan, it went without saying: after advancing to the fifth level of the Dao Palace, his speed had significantly improved. Among the younger generation, almost no one could compare to him, except for a select few.

The Saintess of Zifu was indeed heavily injured. Using a single blow to activate a treasure and tear open a spatial gate was truly defying the heavens for someone at her realm.

Although she could leverage the power of the Great Dao, her injuries were considerable, and she was caught by Ye Fan and Pang Bo. The gleaming Vajra Bracelet, expanded to the size of a millstone, struck her with the force of a thousand thunderbolts.

Boom!

Heaven and earth shook, the firmament trembled as if countless stars were about to be knocked down. The ring-shaped bracelet struck the Painting of Mountains and Rivers.

Simultaneously, Pang Bo's divine lotus shot green light skyward, sweeping over the painting, causing the miniature world within to intensely vibrate, and the Nine Slashes of the Demonic Emperor were unleashed.

At this moment, Tu Fei and the big black dog also caught up, and the Heaven-Devouring Demonic Pot and the golden bell vibrated together, suppressing her forward.

The Saintess of Zifu's expression finally changed; she lost her usual Dao-attained serenity, and her emotions flickered. In her current predicament, she subtly furrowed her delicate brows.

Swish!

With a flash of light, she disappeared into the Painting of Mountains and Rivers. The painting's divine radiance flared brightly, then quickly dimmed, drifting down from the sky to the ground.

"What's going on?" Pang Bo asked, puzzled.

"She's hidden herself inside the divine painting, intending to avoid this calamity," Tu Fei replied.

Ye Fan stepped forward, protected by the Myriad Manifestation Mother Qi Cauldron, holding the Vajra Bracelet in his left hand, and using the God-Beating Whip in his right to pick up the Painting of Mountains and Rivers.

At this moment, the divine painting was unadorned, yet its depicted mountains and rivers were magnificent, with a woman enveloped in purple mist at the deepest part of the scenery.

Tu Fei frowned and said, "There were rumors in the past that when Zifu's old Saint Lord was pursued by a formidable enemy, he hid inside the Painting of Mountains and Rivers. Although the divine painting was seized by his enemy, they couldn't do anything to him, and he eventually escaped."

"So, you're saying we can't break through this painting?" Ye Fan asked in surprise.

Pang Bo, however, burst into laughter. "No matter what, we've got her! Are we going to give her a chance to escape now?!"

"The Saintess of Zifu will likely become a female Great Emperor in the future, yet we've captured her alive," Tu Fei remarked, quite pleased with the outcome.

"You, boy, are a Saint Body, and she possesses an Innate Dao Fetus. Have you considered conceiving an Innate Saint Body Dao Fetus? If so, this Emperor would reluctantly take a small apprentice and teach them the legendary 'Unstarting Scripture'."