257: A world within a painting, nowhere to escape.

Inside the scroll, a terrifying suction force, indescribable in words, erupted like a collapsing star!

This force was incomparably domineering, ignoring all the chaotic Laws within the annihilation space storm, forcibly pulling and devouring everything around it into the scroll's miniature Small World.

Those pitch-black space blade currents, capable of easily tearing through the defensive Domain of a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator, were forcibly smoothed out and suppressed by an invisible, magnificent power the moment they approached within a hundred zhang of the scroll.

All the rage and destruction, in the face of this power, turned into the gentlest Spiritual Qi and were swallowed by the scroll in one gulp.

In just a few breaths, centered on the scroll, a Domain of a thousand zhang in radius—orderly and with all Laws submissive—was forcefully carved out amidst this storm that represented absolute destruction and chaos!

Shen Yuanmo, situated at the edge of this Domain, saw his expression instantly turn incredibly ugly.

He felt that the faint and mysterious connection between himself and this annihilation space storm had been ferociously severed by this magnificent heavenly might, in an indisputable manner!

He could no longer borrow even a shred of power from the annihilation space storm, nor could he perceive the trajectories of those deadly space blade currents.

His greatest reliance had been completely crippled by this incomparably domineering royal treasure!

"Ant, in the face of my heaven and earth community map, those little tricks you are so proud of are nothing more than the comical performances of a clown!"

Ji Changkong, bathed in the ten thousand zhang of golden light emitted by the heaven and earth community map, looked arrogant, his voice filled with the supreme pleasure of controlling everything.

He seemed not like a Cultivator, but like a supreme monarch who held the power of life and death over billions of living beings, acting as the heavens' agent of punishment; wherever his gaze fell, it was all royal territory.

Before his voice had even faded, the scroll in his hand shook once more, emitting a dull, thunderous roar like a celestial drum.

"Roar—!"

A high-pitched, resonant Dragon roar, as if from the primordial wilderness, soared from the scroll, shaking the entire Void Realm until it hummed!

Within the scroll, that towering mountain range, originally just a background feature winding and coiling, had actually come to life!

Rocks crumbled, and dust flew!

A ferocious Dragon, thousands of zhang long and entirely composed of the purest golden mountain rock, roared as it thrust its incomparably massive head out from the scroll!

It was not formed by demonic power, nor was it condensed from magical power.

Its very existence was a Law!

Each of its scales was a miniature of a towering mountain peak, shimmering with the heavy luster of the earth.

Its Dragon whiskers were two great rivers surging endlessly within the painting, and its eyes were none other than the rising sun and the bright moon of the scroll's world!

This was the manifestation of a Law! It was the embodiment of the concept of mountains within this Small World!

The Dragon's golden eyes, devoid of any emotion, coldly locked onto Shen Yuanmo, whose figure was as insignificant as dust before it.

Opening its maw, which was large enough to swallow a majestic city, it bit down with a supreme power capable of suppressing and crushing everything!

Facing this strike that transcended the scope of understanding, Shen Yuanmo's pupils suddenly constricted to the limit.

He could feel that he had been locked onto by an indescribable force.

It was not an aura, nor was it Divine Sense, but a Law-based lock from a higher-level world.

The moment he was locked on, he felt that he had completely lost contact with the surrounding world, as if he had been forcibly stripped from this world and become an isolated island floating in the Void Realm.

There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide!

"Break for me!"

A flash of resolute ruthlessness crossed Shen Yuanmo's eyes. He squeezed out every last bit of the weak magical power he had just recovered via a Medicinal Pill, pouring it entirely into the [great evolution immortal slaying sword] in his hand!

Holding the sword with both hands, he used the last ounce of his strength to slash out at the roaring mountain Dragon!

A gray, incredibly condensed streak of Sword Intent tore through the space shrouded by the heaven and earth community map's golden light, carrying a destructive dao rhyme that ended all life, and slashed fiercely toward the Dragon's head!

However, a scene occurred that was so eerie it chilled one to the bone.

That terrifying Sword Intent, capable of severing a soul transformation dao fruit, passed directly through the Dragon's head the instant it made contact, causing no damage, as if it had struck a void phantom.

"What?!"

Shen Yuanmo's heart shook violently, and an unprecedented chill surged from the soles of his feet straight to his crown.

This was not a physical entity!

His invincible destructive Sword Intent, which could even cut through the Ancestor Xuan Ming at the Great Perfection of Soul Transformation, was actually ineffective against it!

"It's useless!" Ji Changkong's wild laughter, filled with mockery and disdain, exploded in Shen Yuanmo's ears.

"In my heaven and earth community map, I am the heavens, I am the Law! All your Divine Abilities are nothing but illusions in the face of my Laws!"

Just as Shen Yuanmo was momentarily stunned, the mountain Dragon that had passed through the sword light was already right before him.

It was not without attack power.

On the contrary, what it carried was the entire weight of the concept of mountains within the whole scroll world!

Boom—!

Shen Yuanmo didn't even see the Dragon's movement; he only felt an indescribable, terrifying force, as if he had been hit head-on by the entire Tianyuan Continent, slam fiercely into his chest!

Crack! Crack-crack!

A dense, teeth-gritting sound of shattering erupted frantically from his chest!

The [great five elements destruction glazed armor] on his body, already on the verge of shattering, saw the cracks on its chest instantly expand upon this impact, spreading across his entire body like a spiderweb!

"Pfft!"

Shen Yuanmo was sent flying like a kite with a broken string, knocked back over a thousand zhang by this irresistible power!

A mouthful of scalding blood mixed with fragments of his internal organs traced an arc in mid-air. He felt as if his internal organs had been displaced, and all the bones in his body groaned under the unbearable strain, with at least dozens breaking on the spot, as if they would completely fall apart the next moment.

"Hahaha! Do you see? Little Beast! This is the gap between you and me! It is the gap between a Mortal and a god!"

Ji Changkong laughed wildly in triumph. Holding the scroll, he walked through the air step by step; with each step he took, golden lotus flowers of order bloomed beneath his feet, setting him off like a god inspecting his own kingdom.

"In my heaven and earth community map, you don't even have the qualifications to struggle! Next, let me watch with my own eyes how you are ground up, refined, and eventually turned into dust by this world!"

He looked at Shen Yuanmo, who had been knocked away and was struggling to get up but failing repeatedly, the pleasure in his eyes almost overflowing.

He liked this feeling.

The feeling of completely trampling a Prodigy who had created countless miracles under his feet, playing with him at will, and watching him go from hope to despair, eventually dying in endless pain!

Shen Yuanmo forcibly endured the heart-wrenching pain, using his sword to support himself in the Void Realm, barely steadying his tottering figure.

He raised his head, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and stared fixedly at the [heaven and earth community map] suspended in the sky, his face as calm as water.

He understood that he had lost.

It was not a loss of schemes, nor a loss of combat power, but a loss of foundation.

His greatest trump card was this already shattered fifth-rank Low Grade Dao Artifact armor, and that Flying Sword comparable to a fifth-rank mid-grade one.

Yet the opponent could produce a fifth-rank High Grade Dao Artifact that was a replica of a national treasure!

This was the bottomless, uncrossable chasm between the Shen Family and the Immortal Dynasty's royal family!

Conventional combat methods were already completely ineffective.

To survive, he had to find the core flaw of this Dao Artifact!

"See through it for me!"

Shen Yuanmo roared in his heart, disregarding the tearing pain from the depths of his Divine Soul, and frantically activated the [Delusion-Breaking Dharma Eye] in the depths of his brow!

[Insight into Origin] activated!

Hum—!

A golden light, brilliant to the extreme, as if it could pierce through the ages of time and space, shot out from his brow, looking directly at the scroll world, attempting to analyze the complete and Advanced Law structure within!

However, this time, his Golden Finger failed.

The Laws within the scroll world were too complete, too Advanced, and the amount of information they contained was unimaginably vast.

In his current state of being critically wounded and having a damaged Divine Soul, trying to force an analysis was like trying to pry a star with a small wooden stick!

"Pfft!"

Having only peeked for an instant, Shen Yuanmo was struck as if by lightning; his Divine Soul shook violently, and he felt as if his Divine Sense was being pierced simultaneously by billions of steel needles!

He spat out another mouthful of blood, stars exploded before his eyes, and the [Delusion-Breaking Dharma Eye] even shed a shocking line of golden blood tears due to overloading.

In the short term, it was impossible to analyze!

Just at this moment, Ji Changkong's second wave of attacks arrived!

He seemed to have grown tired of the cat-and-mouse game, and an expression of extreme impatience appeared on his face.

"It is over!"

He suddenly unfolded the [heaven and earth community map] in his hand completely!

Within the scroll world, the wind and clouds changed dramatically!

The high-hanging golden sun and silver moon rose simultaneously at this moment, blooming with the divine light of Laws—two completely opposite, yet perfectly fused, forces of scorching heat and icy cold!

On one side was the scorching heat that could burn mountains and boil seas, and on the other was the bitter cold that could freeze ten thousand miles; both forces crushed toward Shen Yuanmo simultaneously!

Above the sky, the billions of dotted stars all lost their brilliance at this moment, turning into streaks of meteor fire rain dragging long tails of flame, smashing down toward him!

Each meteor contained a terrifying power capable of piercing through the Physical Body of a Golden Core Cultivator!

Sun and moon rise together, Yin and Yang grind and destroy!

Ten thousand stars fall, heavenly punishment descends upon the world!

Countless attacks composed of pure Laws covered the sky and earth, sealing off the heavens and the earth, from all directions, blocking all space where he could have dodged!

Shen Yuanmo was completely trapped in a desperate situation with nowhere to run!