433 - Senior Sister Is on Top

Chao E instantly grasped the situation, understanding that there was no further time to delay. No matter what, the Lotus Throne must be brought to the present world. "I will hold them off here. You focus on condensing the divine artifact!" With those words, he took on the attacks of Jiang Yin, Tang Muxi, Wen Dai, and Xun Yi—all four powerful cultivators—alone. "Delusional! Let's see if you can withstand this strike!" Jiang Yin's eyes sharpened as he summoned his Yin Pole, refining chaotic power and imbuing it onto his artifact. At the same time, he activated the devouring power of the Demon-Suppressing Blade, attempting to forcibly seize Chao E’s soul force with a dual assault. Simultaneously, Xun Yi unleashed invisible wind blades, Wen Dai expelled her true flames of life, and Tang Muxi channeled her ethereal arts. Their combined attacks barreled towards Chao E from all directions. Yet, Chao E remained motionless, a smile playing at his lips as he stood his ground. Just as they thought success was within reach, they were shocked to find Chao E’s body emitting a ferocious ghostly aura. In the next instant, he split into four entities, each countering their assaults. Surprisingly, each duplicate possessed nearly the same strength as the original. The faces of the opponents grew heavy with concern. "I've heard that the Ghost Clan depends on soul flames for life. As long as the flame burns, they live; when it extinguishes, they die. The black soul flame is the strongest, capable of splitting into ten parts, each as powerful as the original. It seems this is absolutely true," Wen Dai said sombrely, her face severe. "But splitting the soul fire directly reduces lifespan. The Ghost Emperor dividing himself into four—is he not afraid of dying by tomorrow?" This power was indeed formidable, but its drawbacks were glaringly apparent. Using it reduced one's lifespan proportionally to the number of splits. Splitting into four, Chao E’s remaining years would shrink by three-fourths. Even if the split soul fires were reclaimed later, the lost years would not return. A cultivator in the Mahayana stage only has about 1,500 years of life at most—wasting it like this, he wouldn’t have much time left. Such resolve. Chao E laughed heartily, "No wonder you’re the Demon King, to even know such secrets. So what if it reduces my lifespan? After today... there will no longer be any need to cling to this mortal flesh! Shackled by the laws of Heaven!" His tone was almost mad, but recalling the recent question posed by the god, everyone roughly understood the Ghost Emperor’s intent. Immortality? Utterly absurd. Besides a few primordial divine beasts and deities, no other creature in this world lived as long as Heaven itself. However, with the fall of the divine beasts, the only one left with any significant lifespan damage was Ming She, whose remaining life force was uncertain. As for the so-called notion of eternal life, nowadays only Tang Muxi might possess such a privilege. Chao E, having ascended to his throne for seven to eight centuries if not a thousand years, now had his lifespan reduced again, leaving at most a century to live. Such ruthlessness indicated a determination that could not be quashed. Wen Dai furrowed her brows, charging forward without hesitation to clash with the original entity. The remaining three duplicates engaged Jiang Yin, Tang Muxi, and Xun Yi. Though Jiang Yin and Tang Muxi had only just reached the tribulation stage, one wielded an artifact, and the other was the primary deity of this place—with the assistance of Yin-Yang Polarity, their powers far surpassed those of their peers. Fighting solo, they were not completely outmatched. Given sufficient time, they might rely on the Everlasting Lamp to miraculously win. Unfortunately, time was what they lacked most. Yin Sheng hadn’t anticipated the Ghost Emperor to possess such a desperate move. Seeing him truly holding off his adversaries, his eyes darkened. He swallowed several pills to recover his strength and alleviate fatigue, and immediately immersed himself in the task of condensing the Lotus Throne. With no further distractions, Yin Sheng quickly entered a state of deep concentration. The Lotus Throne, long stalled by its shape, had made the aggregation process exceedingly arduous. But noticing the lotus blossoms on the Sovereign’s Chart and Scroll, he instantly understood. These lotuses were identical to those of the Everlasting Lamp, crystalline and radiant, cold mist billowing—a clear contrast to the lotuses here. So what form did the Heavenly Dao initially use for casting its shape? If his memory served correctly, the Deity Emperor’s true form was an ice lotus. Yin Sheng's eyes sparkled with keen insight. He speculated all of this related to the ice lotus. Given the Heavenly Dao’s evident preference for ice lotuses, as the only conduit for communicating the will of Heaven, the Lotus Throne would likely share the same shape. Yin Sheng promptly reshaped it, using the lotuses on the Sovereign’s Chart and Scroll as references, slowly guiding the inky sand to condense. His guess was extremely audacious but hit the mark perfectly. In under fifteen minutes, the form materialized successfully. Though not yet fully revealed, its divine essence and might were emerging. Even a mere afterimage exuded such powerful authority that even he dared not rashly approach. That’s it, the Lotus Throne! Yin Sheng was ecstatic, infusing the afterimage with dense demonic energy, striving with all his might to make it fully manifest. Tang Muxi noticed the overwhelming heavenly aura emanating from above the Sovereign’s Chart and Scroll, causing her heart to tremble, and even her skeletal sword faltered for a moment. It was just an illusion, not yet taking physical form. But the aura of this treasure was unmistakable. Were it not for her own hand in the original destruction of the Lotus Throne, she might have believed it still existed. This unique aura engendered an irresistible, intimate longing—the authenticity was undeniable. Once revealed, the road linking the mortal world to the Heavenly Dao would reopen. Chao E’s duplicate sensed Tang Muxi’s increasingly frantic strikes, as though she sought to break free quickly, and he couldn’t help but sneer. Seizing upon her distraction, he drove his blade through her shoulder. With a fierce slash, blood splattered. Tang Muxi grunted in pain, but in the next instant, the blood suspended in the air rapidly reversed its flow, returning to her body. The powerful healing force mended the wound, leaving no trace on her pristine skin except the tear in her clothing. "Your Majesty should be cautious—if a sword pierces your heart, even you might not escape unscathed." "You insolent wretch, do you truly think I can’t take you down?" Incensed by his provocation, Tang Muxi gritted her teeth and plunged the skeletal sword into her own abdomen in retaliation. Though a thrust through the waist would normally lead to an exit wound in the back, this time, it did not pierce through her body. Instead, the skeletal sword seemed to merge seamlessly with her flesh and blood. This was no illusion or sorcery but because the skeletal sword “Phantasmal Divinity” was forged from Tang Muxi’s celestial bones, infused with divine power, enabling it to take shape. Therefore, in essence, it was a part of her being.