168: Ultimate sublimation
As Lin Dao's voice fell, the three terrifying auras in the starry sky suddenly solidified.
The elderly man in hemp robes who had been singled out, his muddy eyes instantly became sharp as an eagle's.
The black heart at the tip of the White Bone Staff in his hand suddenly accelerated its beating, emitting a dull "dong... dong..." sound, like a war drum summoning death.
The black runes on his face seemed to come alive, beginning to slowly writhe.
"Junior, how arrogant!" The Hemp-Robed Elder's voice was dry and hoarse, like two bones grinding together. "Even if you are somewhat strange, before us, you are nothing more than a slightly stronger ant!"
He stopped wasting words and pointed the White Bone Staff forward.
There was no brilliant radiance, nor the roar of Laws.
Only an invisible and intangible gray ripple, imbued with the meaning of ultimate decay, decline, and termination, instantly spread out at a speed surpassing perception, enveloping Lin Dao and Lin Huan.
Wherever this power passed, the debris of stars floating in the Void Realm silently turned to dust, leaving not even an speck of residue, as if the "time" of their existence was instantly accelerated by hundreds of millions of years, reaching its end.
This was the Law of Deathly Silence, pointing directly to the end of all things!
Lin Huan only felt an irresistible weariness and Death Qi approaching. The circulation of the Primal Origin within his body became sluggish, and his vitality rushed out of him like floodwaters released from a sluice gate.
He groaned, his face instantly turning pale. His Saint King Realm cultivation was like paper mache before this power.
Just as Lin Huan felt his Lifespan rapidly draining away and his Divine Soul was about to sink into eternal deathly silence, Lin Dao moved.
He didn't even make any defensive or counterattacking movements; he simply stood there, allowing the gray deathly silence ripples to wash over him.
*Hiss—*
It was like cold water dripping into boiling oil.
The deathly silence ripples, which were powerful enough to extinguish stars and decay Quasi-Emperors, upon touching Lin Dao's body, seemed to encounter an absolutely uncorrodable existence, emitting a faint scorching sound before... spontaneously disintegrating and dissipating, failing to even lift the corner of Lin Dao's clothes.
The Hemp-Robed Elder's pupils suddenly contracted.
The Soul Fires within the death-gray mist of the other two Supreme Beings of the Forbidden Zoness violently leaped, and the Twisted Shadow also stopped changing, revealing a solemn posture.
"Impossible!" The Hemp-Robed Elder roared hoarsely.
The Law of Deathly Silence contained in this staff strike was part of his Imperial Dao Foundation. Even if the opponent were an Emperor of the same rank, it would be absolutely impossible to take it head-on so effortlessly!
Lin Dao patted his sleeve, as if dusting off non-existent dirt.
The look he gave the Hemp-Robed Elder carried a hint of... interest?
"A little interesting, but not strong enough," he commented. "The three of you, come at me together. Let me see how much skill is left in these old antiques who crawled out of their coffins."
The contempt in his words completely infuriated the three Supreme Beings of the Forbidden Zoness.
"Seeking death!"
The entity within the death-gray mist was the first to erupt.
The faint green Soul Fire surged, and the mist churned, forming a sky-shrouding gray Ghost Claw. Its tip was entangled with countless wailing Soul Phantoms, fiercely grabbing down toward Lin Dao!
This claw directly attacked the Divine Soul, capable of tearing apart a Quasi-Emperor's Primordial Spirit!
At the same time, the Twisted Shadow emitted a sharp shriek, its form suddenly expanding to transform into a Domain of Chaos, completely enveloping the space around Lin Dao.
Within this Domain, the sense of direction was lost, Laws were disordered, energy ran wild, and all order was heading toward collapse!
It itself was concealed within the Chaos, waiting for an opportunity to deliver a fatal blow.
The Hemp-Robed Elder's face was gloomy. He heavily struck the White Bone Staff against the Void Realm.
*Boom!*
The black heart abruptly exploded, turning into a sky full of viscous Black Blood Rain.
Every drop of blood rain contained malicious curses and corrosive power. Like living things, they shot toward Lin Dao from all directions, sealing off all avenues of evasion.
The three Supreme Beings of the Forbidden Zoness immediately unleashed killing moves!
Divine Soul attack, Domain suppression, and Law curses—they cooperated tacitly, clearly intending a single, fatal strike!
Facing this siege, which was capable of instantly destroying the body and soul of any Peak Quasi-Emperor, Lin Dao finally stopped just standing still.
He took a step forward with his right foot, lightly stomping down.
*Boom!*
Centered beneath his foot, an invisible yet vast and majestic surge of Chaos Qi erupted, like a star plunging into a calm sea, stirring up monstrous waves!
The gray Ghost Claw that had grabbed toward him, upon touching the Chaos Qi surge, was like snow meeting the blazing sun. The Soul Phantoms upon it let out mournful shrieks and rapidly melted away. The entire Ghost Claw shattered inch by inch, reverting back into death-gray mist, but it was now more than half dissipated!
The enveloping Domain of Chaos was forcibly pried open and stabilized by this erupting Chaos Qi surge.
The twisted and chaotic Laws were like child's play before the higher-level Chaos Order. The Domain violently trembled, showing signs of instability!
The sky full of cursing black rain was swept up by the Chaos Qi surge and vanished like a clay ox entering the sea. It was completely devoured and purified without even raising a ripple!
With one step, all three killing moves were shattered!
"What?!"
The three Supreme Beings of the Forbidden Zoness changed expression simultaneously.
This time, they were truly shocked.
The opponent's power completely exceeded their expectations!
This method of shattering their killing moves with a mere wave of the hand was absolutely not something a Quasi-Emperor could possess!
"You... you have become an Emperor?!" The Hemp-Robed Elder's voice trembled slightly as he stared intently at Lin Dao. "Impossible! The Emperors Road is unopened, and the Heavenly Dao is incomplete. It is absolutely impossible for anyone in this era to become an Emperor!"
The entity in the death-gray mist and the Twisted Shadow also had fluctuating auras, clearly stunned by this conjecture.
Lin Dao did not reply.
He provided the answer through action.
He raised his right hand, spread his five fingers, and clenched his fist in the Void Realm toward the Domain of Chaos where the Twisted Shadow resided.
"Shatter."
*Crack!*
The Domain of Chaos, which had been forcibly stabilized, emitted an unbearable cracking sound, like a crystal ball gripped by an invisible giant hand, and then violently exploded!
The Twisted Shadow hidden in the Domain let out a mournful shriek, its form forced to materialize.
Countless cracks appeared on its constantly shifting body, and its chaotic aura sharply declined.
"Chaos... this is true Chaos power! Who exactly are you?!" The Twisted Shadow shrieked in terror.
Lin Dao still did not reply.
He joined his fingers like a sword and slashed through the air toward the death-gray mist.
A hazy gray Chaos Sword Qi, condensed to the extreme, tore through the starry sky, ignored spatial distance, and appeared directly before the mist.
The entity in the mist roared fiercely, and dense Law of Death condensed into a thick Bone Shield, blocking it in front of its body.
*Hiss!*
The Chaos Sword Qi swept past, cutting the Bone Shield open like tofu.
The Sword Qi did not slow down, directly plunging into the depths of the death-gray mist.
"Ah—!"
An even more mournful shriek rang out.
The mist violently churned, and the two clusters of faint green Soul Fire within it suddenly dimmed, nearly extinguishing.
The mist rapidly contracted, revealing a figure as shriveled as a skeleton, draped in tattered black robes.
A large, transparent hole appeared in his chest. Chaos Qi lingered around the edges, preventing the wound from healing and continuously eroding his vitality.
In the blink of an eye, two Supreme Beings of the Forbidden Zoness were injured—one heavily, one lightly!
The Hemp-Robed Elder watched, terrified out of his wits.
He finally confirmed that the person before him was absolutely a living Great Emperor!
A Great Emperor who achieved his status by being Heaven-Defying in an era where becoming an Emperor was impossible!
Flee!
This thought uncontrollably surged into his mind.
Pitting themselves against a contemporary Great Emperor in perfect condition, these self-severed Supremes had no chance of victory unless they performed the Ultimate Sublimation!
And the price of Ultimate Sublimation was something they could not bear.
However, Lin Dao clearly did not intend to give them a chance to escape.
His gaze locked onto the Hemp-Robed Elder, whose aura was declining.
"Your turn."
Lin Dao took a step, his figure like a phantom, instantly crossing the distance between them and appearing before the Hemp-Robed Elder.
He did not use any Divine Ability, just a simple punch, smashing toward the opponent's face.
This punch looked slow, yet it seemed to encompass the entire starry sky, sealing off all paths of retreat.
Chaos Qi condensed on the fist edge, evolving Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind, as if a miniature Universe was being born and destroyed.
The Hemp-Robed Elder's expression drastically changed.
He could feel the terrifying power contained in this punch, enough to shatter his Supreme body!
He let out a furious roar. The black runes on his face burst forth with dazzling black light, and his shriveled body inflated as if pumped full of air. The remaining Great Emperor Laws erupted without reservation.
The White Bone Staff in his hand transformed into a pale stream of light, striking toward Lin Dao's fist, attempting to break the surface with a single point.
The staff tip collided with the fist edge.
*Puff!*
The White Bone Staff in the Hemp-Robed Elder's hand shattered inch by inch, starting from the tip, turning into bone dust filling the sky!
Next was the arm holding the staff; its bones were completely shattered, and the flesh was mangled!
The terrifying fist power spread up his arm, and the bones of half his body were emitting ear-splitting cracking sounds!
"No—!" The Hemp-Robed Elder let out a desperate roar, his eyes filled with madness and unwillingness. "You forced me! Ultimate Sublimation!"
*Boom!!!*
An Imperial Might ten or even a hundred times more terrifying than before suddenly erupted from the Hemp-Robed Elder's broken body!
His hunched body straightened, and his shriveled flesh became plump once more.
The black runes on his face were forcibly expelled and shattered.
A complete and flawless Great Emperor aura, transcending the Ten Thousand Dao, swept across the starry sky!
He burned his final Life Origin, temporarily returning to the Great Emperor Status!
Although the duration was limited and he would inevitably be destroyed in body and soul afterward, at this moment, he possessed genuine Great Emperor battle strength!
"Ant! Feel the true Imperial Wrath!" The Hemp-Robed Elder—no, he should now be called Great Emperor Guyu—his voice was grand, filled with endless malice and killing intent.
He raised his hand and clenched it. The shattered White Bone Staff powder condensed, forming a White Bone Imperial Sword wreathed in endless Death Qi, which he slashed out!
This sword strike contained the complete Imperial Law of Death.
Where the sword light passed, all things withered, and space-time froze, as if intending to drag this entire Star Domain into an eternal Death Kingdom!
Facing this sword strike from a figure who had undergone Ultimate Sublimation and returned to the Emperor Status, Lin Dao's eyes showed not solemnity, but rather... excitement!
"Now this is more like it!"
He laughed loudly. The aura around his body, which had been suppressed all this time, finally stopped concealing itself and erupted violently!
*Rumble!!!*
An Imperial Might even vaster, deeper, and more terrifying than that of Great Emperor Guyu, like a Primordial Behemoth that had slept for hundreds of millions of years awakening, instantly filled the entire starry sky!