498: The two rulers appeared, revealing their true strength.

With the destruction of the Purple Cloud Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Grand Array, the heavens and earth changed color.

The sensation was like a balloon inflated to its limit suddenly being punctured.

The boundless Spiritual Qi that the Zixiao Holy Land had gathered and locked away over countless eons through ninety-nine Dragon Veins and its mountain-protecting Formation found an outlet at this moment.

It transformed into a visible tide of Spiritual Qi, wildly pouring out in all directions, sweeping across the entire Central Continent Divine Land.

Those palaces and pavilions that originally floated above the sea of clouds, wreathed in immortal light,

having lost the support of the Formation and Spiritual Qi, like giants with their bones removed, emitted successive dull cracking sounds.

First, tiles fell, then beams and pillars broke.

Finally, one beautiful immortal mountain after another disintegrated with a thunderous crash, turning into countless fragments of rock.

Falling from a height of ten thousand zhang, they smashed into the already riddled earth below.

The mountain gate of the Zixiao Holy Land collapsed, the immortal realm reduced to ruins.

Countless Spirit Medicines and Immortal Plants withered and perished in the Spiritual Qi turmoil, precious birds and Auspicious Beasts cried mournfully, scattering and fleeing in all directions.

"Pfft!"

From within the ruins, two figures staggered and shot into the sky—Ancestor Lei Xing and Ancestor Zi Yun.

Both had blood trickling from the corners of their mouths, their hair disheveled, and their robes stained with dust.

Not a trace of the immortal grace of Mahayana Saint Lords remained; they were utterly disheveled.

They hovered in mid-air, gazing from afar at the figure standing before the ruins of the Thunder Pool, their eyes filled with terror and resentment.

Behind them were tens of thousands of core members of the Holy Land who had survived the collapse of the grand array.

They were either Elders or Disciples, without exception.

All had faces ashen as death, their Divine Souls trembling, unable to even stand steadily.

They looked up at that man as if gazing upon a demon god bringing about the apocalypse.

It's over!

The Zixiao Holy Land is finished!

This thought alone remained in everyone's minds.

The Zixiao Holy Land's strongest trump card, the Purple Cloud Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Grand Array, said to be capable of trapping and killing Mahayana Perfection Cultivators,

before the other party, was dismantled piece by piece in a few moves, like a child's toy.

How could they possibly fight?

In the deathly silence, Ancestor Zi Yun took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his surging Qi and blood and the fear deep within his Divine Soul.

On his withered face, he forced out an expression uglier than crying.

His voice hoarse, he spoke, each word seeming to drain all his strength.

"Your Excellency... please show mercy."

"My Zixiao Holy Land, with a Legacy of billions of years, does not only have this much hidden strength."

"Today's matter is my Holy Land's blindness, offending Your Excellency's heavenly might. We... admit defeat."

He paused, as if organizing his words, his posture extremely humble.

"My Holy Land is willing to offer half of the accumulated treasures from countless ages—all divine metals, Spiritual Plants, Medicinal Pills, and Cultivation Techniques—for Your Excellency to choose from."

"We only beg Your Excellency... to leave a single thread of Legacy for my Zixiao Holy Land."

"From this day forward, my Zixiao Holy Land will forever seal its mountain gate, never setting foot in the Central Continent Divine Land again."

Ancestor Zi Yun's words could not be said to be anything but humble, anything but humiliating.

An Old Ancestor of an immortal Holy Land, bowing and begging for mercy before the world, willing to cede territory and pay reparations, just to cling to life.

The great powers from afar who were spying through Divine Sense all sighed inwardly upon hearing this.

The Zixiao Holy Land, this once overwhelmingly domineering behemoth that looked down upon the Central Continent, had finally reached this point.

However, Shen Yuanmo merely listened quietly, his expression unchanged.

He put away the now plain and unadorned innate thunder soul, his gaze sweeping over Ancestor Zi Yun.

Finally, it settled on the group of trembling Disciples behind him.

His voice was very calm, as if casually asking a question.

"When you exterminated your former enemies, did you ever think of leaving them a single thread of Legacy?"

These words, like an invisible heavy hammer, struck Ancestor Zi Yun's heart.

His already pale face instantly drained of all color.

Indeed, how domineering the Zixiao Holy Land's actions had been.

When a subordinate Family was destroyed, they would slaughter the entire clan.

The slightest defiance, and they would crush mountain gates, uprooting everything, never leaving anyone a thread of Legacy.

Now, these words of begging for mercy seemed utterly laughable and ironic before the other party.

All illusions were shattered at this moment.

"Aaaah—!"

Ancestor Lei Xing could no longer suppress the fury and despair in his heart. His eyes bulged with rage, appearing like a mad demon, he let out a heaven-shaking roar.

"Too much! This is too much!!"

"This old man has cultivated for who knows how many years, roaming the Central Continent Divine Land unopposed, never suffering such humiliation!!"

"Do you truly think my Zixiao Holy Land has no one left? Do you truly think you have us cornered?!"

His eyes bloodshot, he stared fixedly at Shen Yuanmo, each word seeming to be squeezed from between his teeth.

"Today, it's either your death or mine! Let this Devil Head know what the hidden strength of a Holy Land truly is! Pay with blood for blood!!"

Before his words faded, Ancestor Lei Xing abruptly formed an ancient and complex hand seal before his chest.

"Boom!"

In the center of his brow, a purple lightning mark suddenly split open, transforming into a vertical eye.

Within the vertical eye, there was no eyeball, only a pure, seemingly world-destroying world of purple lightning.

A purple thunder seal containing his Origin Dao slowly flew out from the vertical eye.

Simultaneously, the Void Realm behind him twisted.

A ten-thousand-zhang-tall Thunder God Dharma Form, holding a thunder hammer and lightning halberd, with a majestic countenance as if presiding over all punishments in the world, manifested with a thunderous crash.

The terrifying pressure of the Late Stage Mahayana, at this moment, held back no longer, like a bursting flood, swept across the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths.

The entire ruins of the Zixiao Holy Land trembled violently again under this pressure, countless mountains and rocks turning to dust.

Seeing this, Ancestor Zi Yun beside him revealed a bitter, sorrowful smile.

He knew that today, there was no chance of survival, only a fight to the death.

"Very well, Senior Brother, today I will... join you in the Yellow Springs!"

He sighed deeply, the Aura around him also surging dramatically.

A gourd, entirely purple-gold, radiant and colorful, emitting a vast Aura, flew out from the top of his head.

An eighth-tier Medium Grade Dao Artifact, the Purple-Gold Heaven-Devouring Gourd.

The mouth of the gourd opened, like a black hole connecting to the netherworld, emitting a terrifying devouring force.

The two Mahayana Saint Lords, one focusing on attack, one on control, instantly formed a pincer Formation.

Two distinct yet equally terrifying Mahayana dao rhymes intertwined, causing the heavens and earth to lose color, the sun and moon to dim.

However, facing this combined might sufficient to make any Cultivator of the same level pale with fear,

Shen Yuanmo's expression remained as calm as a stagnant pond.

He didn't even manifest a Dharma Form, only the thin layer of Chaos dao rhyme around him glowed faintly.

The two vast pressures, washing over to a point three chi before him,

melted away silently like spring snow meeting the sun, unable to even stir the hem of his robe.

Not only did he not retreat, but he took a light step forward against their pressure.

As his foot landed.

Thump!

It seemed not to step on the Void Realm, but on the hearts of Old Ancestors Lei Xing and Ziyun.

Both felt an indescribable, irresistible terrifying pressure crushing back toward them.

Their protective divine lights flickered violently, their Qi and blood churning; they were actually forced back half a step by this single step.

Shen Yuanmo raised his eyes, sweeping a faint glance over them.

"Too weak."

He uttered two words, as if evaluating, or stating a fact.

"Since you refuse to die with dignity, I will help you achieve it."

"You brat! Seeking death!!"

This evaluation was more heart-piercing than any humiliation.

Ancestor Lei Xing was thoroughly enraged. He exchanged a glance with Ancestor Zi Yun, seeing the resolve in each other's eyes.

Without any further hesitation, both simultaneously opened their mouths and spat out a large mouthful of purple-gold Vital Essence Blood.

The two streams of Vital Essence Blood did not attack Shen Yuanmo but transformed into two blood lines, shooting toward the deepest part of the Holy Land ruins below.

Rumble—!

The earth trembled violently. In the center of an already broken mountain range, the ground split open a huge fissure.

A stele, mottled all over, of unknown age, carved with ancient runes, slowly rose from the depths.

The moment the two streams of Vital Essence Blood splashed onto the stele.

Hum—!!!

The stele erupted with unprecedented soaring light, a faint immortal shadow flickering indistinctly.

An Aura surpassing this world, towering above all Daos, descended with a thunderous crash.

The final hidden strength of the Zixiao Holy Land.

Left by the Founder, a True Immortal Decree!