Chapter 1463: Bright Moonlight, Radiant Morning Sunlight

Ghostly Heavenly Venerate bled heavily as his body violently crashed into the starry sky. He floated up and down like a stone dropped onto calm water, creating ripples across the cosmos.

His Primordial Spirit was entangled by the Primordial God of Taiji, immediately exposing his weakness.

Unlike his Primordial Spirit, his physical body was not as formidable. His Primordial Spirit, having mastered the Great Dao of Youdu and reached the 25th Heaven of Dao enlightenment, unfolded 25 layers of the Youdu world, each layer of its Dao arts and divine abilities proving deeper and stronger than the last.

Furthermore, he was continuously comprehending more profound Dao realms, making it impossible for even the Primordial God of Taiji to overcome him for a time.

Even when the Primordial Gods of Taiji combined and transformed into the form of Tu Bo, roaming freely within his Youdu world, they could, at most, only keep pace with his Primordial Spirit, unable to inflict any harm upon it.

Although the two Primordial Gods could transform into various forms like Heavenly Duke or Tu Bo, they were somewhat lacking in their understanding of the deeper Dao realms of the Heavenly Dao and the Youdu Great Dao.

However, Ghostly Heavenly Venerate's physical body's weakness became apparent, providing an opportune moment for Heavenly Consort Yan and Heavenly Venerate Gong.

He was not a Heavenly Venerate renowned for close-quarters combat; physical brawling was something he had always disdained, and he had never had the opportunity to engage in such combat with others.

Heavenly Consort Yan and Heavenly Venerate Gong attacked, one after the other. Heavenly Consort Yan, with her slender hands, flicked a hairpin in the wind, transforming it into a sharp sword. As sword light flashed, Raging Abyssess immediately appeared in front and behind Ghostly Heavenly Venerate, tearing his body in different directions and pinning him alive in the starry sky.

Heavenly Venerate Gong leaped forward; her long whip, with a flick, transformed into a large spear, striking towards his glabella.

The great spear, formed from the Ancestral Court Dragon Veins, pierced Ghostly Heavenly Venerate's glabella. Blood appeared, and the spear tip penetrated his skull, piercing inward.

Ghostly Heavenly Venerate struggled violently but could not break free from the Raging Abyss divine art. His expression became disheartened.

"Mu, I've done my best."

He desperately activated his magic power to resist the spear's penetration, but he could not resist it at all. The dragon spear slowly pierced into his head.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't fulfill your trust. You asked me to live, but I can't do it anymore."

At this moment, a magnificent sword light surged forth. A single sword stroke split yin and yang, forcing the two Primordial Gods of Taiji to separate, one to the left and one to the right, to avoid this world-shaking sword light.

The two Primordial Gods were startled. They immediately recognized this sword: it was Emperor Kaihuang Qin Ye's.

Emperor Kaihuang's sword at this moment was different from the one they had seen recently. The difference wasn't in the sword technique but in the Dao realm.

Previously, when they encountered Emperor Kaihuang in the Heavenly Court, his sword had pierced through the Taiji Diagram; his strength was formidable, but not yet a significant threat to them. Now, however, Emperor Kaihuang's single sword stroke, splitting yin and yang, made them feel an extremely terrifying threat.

If the two of them were separated and fought individually, they would be inferior to beings like the Ten Heavenly Venerates. Only by combining their forces did they possess limitless combat power.

It hadn't been long since they last parted, yet Emperor Kaihuang had grown to the point of discerning their weaknesses, which was truly astonishing.

After the Primordial Gods of Taiji separated, Ghostly Heavenly Venerate's Primordial Spirit immediately broke free and rushed directly towards its physical body.

Meanwhile, the sword light that had split yin and yang and forced back the two Primordial Gods continued its relentless thrust, directly aimed at Heavenly Venerate Gong. Its speed was so great that Heavenly Venerate Gong felt caught off guard.

A sword wound at her back seemed to faintly explode again; this was where Emperor Kaihuang had left a sword wound on her during their last encounter in the Heavenly Court.

However, Emperor Kaihuang's sword wound had long been healed by the Goddess of Grand Primordium. Why was she now feeling the wound throbbing faintly again?

Heavenly Venerate Gong suddenly realized, "His sword imprinted on my Dao Heart, causing a sword wound in my Dao Heart."

Emperor Kaihuang had severely wounded her with an immensely powerful Dao realm, and Grand Primordium could heal such injuries. However, while injuring her, Emperor Kaihuang also used his immensely powerful Dao Heart to defeat hers.

And this type of injury was beyond Grand Primordium's ability to heal.

The injury to her Dao Heart could only be healed by herself. But though her Dao Heart was strong, it had not yet reached Emperor Kaihuang's level.

At this moment, Heavenly Consort Yan sneered and unleashed a sword strike. The sword light transformed into a Raging Abyss behind Heavenly Venerate Gong, and Emperor Kaihuang's world-shaking sword, with a swoosh, shot into the Raging Abyss and vanished.

Just as Heavenly Consort Yan relaxed, the next moment, sword light surged like a tide, passing through one Raging Abyss after another, causing each abyss to collapse and disintegrate.

She had not trapped Emperor Kaihuang's sword; on the contrary, Emperor Kaihuang's sword had shattered her Raging Abyss divine art.

The sword light shot out from the last abyss and had already reached Heavenly Venerate Gong.

Heavenly Venerate Gong pulled out her dragon spear and quickly retreated. The dragon spear transformed into a long whip, coiling like a dragon, to block the sword light.

Sword light filled her vision. The long whip formed from the Ancestral Court Dragon Veins, like a series of interlocking rings, continuously clanged and collided with the Carefree Sword. Huge divine mountains and stones were sliced apart by the Carefree Sword, and soon only the hilt of the whip remained in her hand.

The power of the Carefree Sword finally dissipated, whistling away.

Heavenly Venerate Gong was drenched in sweat. With a strong shake of the whip hilt in her hand, the Ancestral Court Dragon Veins, shattered by Emperor Kaihuang's sword, immediately flew back with a whoosh. Large mountain fragments quickly reassembled in her hand, reforming into a divine whip, completely intact.

Heavenly Venerate Gong felt a wave of lingering fear. Emperor Kaihuang's single sword had successively broken through the divine arts of the Primordial Gods of Taiji, Heavenly Consort Yan, and herself—four Heavenly Venerate-level beings—before its power finally dissipated. It was truly terrifying.

She spun around sharply, only to see Emperor Kaihuang stepping forward. Although the two Primordial Gods of Taiji had separated, yin and yang attraction caused them to revolve around each other in a beautiful arc, like the yin and yang fish flowing within a Taiji Diagram, with Emperor Kaihuang at its center.

This point was incredibly ingenious.

Although Emperor Kaihuang had separated them, he had fallen into their formation diagram. A supreme strike from the two of them awaited him.

Emperor Kaihuang walked with a leisurely stroll within this forming and brewing Taiji Diagram, seemingly unaware of the fierce attack he was about to face.

He raised his hand, and the Carefree Sword flew back. He held the sword hilt in his right hand, while his left hand drew the scabbard from his waist.

A prolonged sword hum resonated as the Carefree Sword was sheathed in front of him. The hum was crisp and pleasant, imbued with the Dao rhythm of swordsmanship.

And at this moment, just as Heavenly Venerate Gong looked in their direction, the sword hum entered her ears. Her expression changed dramatically as the sword wound in her Dao Heart suddenly erupted.

Her body trembled as hundreds of sword wounds erupted from within, piercing her body and splattering blood.

Heavenly Venerate Gong let out a muffled groan, then roared. Her Heavenly Palaces glowed brightly, and the Heavenly Court's horns blared long and melodious, attempting to resist the sword's resonance.

Emperor Kaihuang raised an eyebrow. He drew his sword, lifting it three inches, then sharply pressed it down again. The sword hum intensified greatly as the two sword hums converged and clashed.

Heavenly Venerate Gong's Heavenly Court exploded with crackling sounds, as if countless sword qi swept through her Heavenly Palaces.

Heavenly Venerate Gong spat blood and knelt on the ground.

Heavenly Consort Yan was startled and hesitated. Emperor Kaihuang's sword hum sounded ordinary to her ears, just a common Dao sound, but when it entered Heavenly Venerate Gong's ears, she was severely wounded, which was truly bizarre.

She did not know that the Dao injury on Heavenly Venerate Gong's Dao Heart was so severe.

However, she had no time to ponder the reason, because Ghostly Heavenly Venerate's Primordial Spirit had already arrived.

At the same time, the Taiji Diagram of the two Primordial Gods had formed and was rotating. At this very moment, sword light flared again. With a single sword strike, the two Primordial Gods immediately felt yin and yang separated; their connection had actually been severed by Emperor Kaihuang's sword.

"His presence is blazing, like the brilliance of the rising sun; his sword is radiant, like the splendor of the bright moon."

The two Primordial Gods of Taiji looked at Emperor Kaihuang within the Taiji Diagram and simultaneously praised, in unison: "Emperor Kaihuang Qin Ye, in just a few days, you have drawn even closer to achieving Dao enlightenment. This is truly commendable and fills us with envy!"

Suddenly, the two Primordial Gods both roared, activating the Taiji Sand Table. The sand table soared across the sky, spreading out into a vast desert.

These two sword strikes by Emperor Kaihuang forced them to use their birth-bound artifacts.

Since their emergence, their first battle had forced back Heavenly Consort Qiang and Shi Qiluo, compelling the two Heavenly Venerates to admit defeat and retreat. But even then, they had not used their birth-bound artifacts.

But now, Emperor Kaihuang's two sword strikes greatly increased their pressure; only by using their birth-bound artifacts did they have a chance of victory.

Emperor Kaihuang stepped forward, walking through it as sand and dust filled the sky. Countless particles of sand and dust assaulted him; these particles were individual planets. The moment they came into contact with Emperor Kaihuang, they transformed into countless planets, whistling past him, some hurtling directly towards him.

However, before these stars could impact Emperor Kaihuang, they seemed to encounter invisible sword qi, spontaneously splitting in half and whistling past him on either side.

"Daoist friend!"

The bodies of the two Primordial Gods of Taiji coiled in the center of the galaxy and bowed to Emperor Kaihuang across the endless starry sky, saying, "Last time, we recognized you as one destined for Dao enlightenment, and thus we yielded somewhat, not wishing to trouble you, Daoist friend. Today, meeting again, we hope you will not trouble us."

Emperor Kaihuang sheathed his sword and raised the Carefree Sword to return their salute. In front of him, countless galaxies suddenly parted to either side, as if pushed aside by an unseen force.

"Your deference, esteemed Daoist brothers, Qin deeply appreciates," Emperor Kaihuang said. "Another day, I will yield to you two esteemed Daoist brothers again."

Emperor Kaihuang's tone was calm as he said, "Today I am here to save someone; you two only need to yield one more time. Another day, I wouldn't mind yielding to you two an extra time."

The two Primordial Gods of Taiji exchanged glances. Goddess Taiyin said, "We have already yielded to him once, out of respect for his cultivation. His Dao realm is profound, preceding ours, so he can be considered our elder brother. For a second time, there is no reason to yield."

Primordial God Taiyang nodded and said, "Indeed, this time there is no reason to yield to him. Forgive us, Daoist friend, but we siblings must offend you."

Emperor Kaihuang said, "Have you two seen Heavenly Venerate Gong's injury? This injury is a Dao injury. If you two esteemed Daoist brothers are injured by my sword, I fear you will end up like her."

The two Primordial Gods of Taiji exchanged smiles. "We entered the world precisely to temper our Dao Hearts and to comprehend the path to Dao enlightenment from this bustling mortal realm," they said. "If we can be injured by your hand, Daoist friend, it would be our fortune!"

Emperor Kaihuang frowned. The power of the Taiji Sand Table was growing stronger. This battle, he feared, might be his most terrifying since his debut.

On the other side, a large hole had opened in Ghostly Heavenly Venerate's glabella. He swayed as he stood up, his mind muddled. The ghostly mask on his face had also been shattered by Heavenly Venerate Gong's spear, splitting into two halves.

His face was covered in blood. He frantically picked up the mask, trying to cover his face with it, but he couldn't put it back together.

Tears streamed down his face, mixing with the blood and dripping into the starry sky.

"The dignified Ghostly Heavenly Venerate, actually crying after being beaten. You're truly losing your Heavenly Venerate decorum," Heavenly Consort Yan chuckled.

"Don't underestimate him," Heavenly Venerate Gong said, gritting her teeth and forcibly suppressing her injuries. She struggled to stand, her voice hoarse as she continued, "I saw this mask in a hallucination; it's the only keepsake his mother left him."

Heavenly Consort Yan felt a chill down her spine.