Shackles Crack

The Mount Li cave, the bone altar already reduced to ruins.

The dark gold giant egg had completely shattered, its viscous fluid flowing across the ground, emitting a nauseating stench. In the center of the broken egg, an indescribable, terrifying behemoth struggled, raising its ferocious head from the filth!

Its main body resembled a demonic lizard amplified a thousandfold, covered in dark gold scales, but its head was twisted like a dragon's, yet bore three curved horns like those of a goat! Six enormous, blood-red evil eyes were irregularly distributed on its head, filled with chaos and greed. On its back, a row of twisted, writhing bone spurs broke through the scales, their tips dripping with corrosive black liquid. A long tail covered in barbs thrashed wildly behind it, tearing the air with each sweep, emitting sonic booms!

This was the "Holy Lord" worshipped by Lu Buwei and the black-robed demonic person—the Chaos Demonic Lizard, Shadow of Sargeras! Though merely a projection of a true Demon God, the aura of chaos and destruction it exuded had already distorted the very space of the entire cave!

"Roar—!!!"

The demonic lizard's six evil eyes instantly locked onto Cheng Xi, who was kneeling on one knee, his aura weak! It let out a deafening roar, filled with the rage of being injured by an ant! A giant claw, covered in thick scales, carrying a wind that tore through space, slammed down towards Cheng Xi's head! Before the claw even arrived, the terrifying pressure caused Cheng Xi's bones to groan under the unbearable strain!

"It's over..." Lu Buwei, watching from a distance, saw this world-destroying claw. The color drained from his face, leaving only despair. The black-robed demonic person was so terrified he collapsed to the ground, soiling himself.

Cheng Xi's pupils contracted sharply! The Chaos Sword Essence within him was nearly depleted from his previous strike, his meridians felt like they were about to split, and the light of the Tongtian Origin Mark had dimmed to its absolute lowest! Facing this utter catastrophe, he barely had the strength to lift his hand!

"No—!" A roar of unwillingness erupted in his heart! Was his nascent Dao path to end buried beneath a demonic claw?!

At the critical moment!

Whoosh—!

A stream of dark gold light, carrying the roar of wind and thunder, like lightning tearing through the night sky, suddenly pierced the hole in the cave ceiling and descended with immense force! The light faded, revealing Ying Zheng in his black robes with dragon patterns, holding the Tai'a Sword, his Dragon Eyes burning!

"Evildoer! How dare you harm my Royal Brother?!"

Ying Zheng's voice was like a dragon's roar from the nine heavens, majestic and vast! Without even looking, he swung the Tai'a Sword in his hand towards the descending demonic lizard claw, unleashing a strike from afar!

"Roar—!"

A dark gold dragon-shaped sword energy, condensed into a tangible form and entwined with purple lightning, roared from the tip of the Tai'a Sword! While not as unpredictable as Cheng Xi's chaos-gray sword aura, this sword energy was righteous and grand, carrying the supreme majesty of Human Dao imperial power and the boundless might of the Ancestor Dragon splitting the heavens! The dragon-shaped sword energy, striking later but arriving first, fiercely collided with the side of the demonic lizard's giant claw!

Boom—!!!

A colossal sound like clashing metal reverberated through the cave! The violent energy shockwave instantly sent Lu Buwei and the black-robed demonic person flying, smashing them hard against the rock wall, breaking their bones!

The demonic lizard's descending claw was forcefully deflected by this strike imbued with the Ancestor Dragon's true power. Its scales at the tip of the claw cracked, and black blood splattered! It let out an even more enraged roar in pain, its six evil eyes instantly locking onto the newly appeared Ying Zheng!

"Ying Zheng?!" Cheng Xi looked at the dark gold dragon-patterned back standing in front of him, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes. He mustered a breath, propping himself up with the Qingping Sword Sheath.

"Can you still fight?" Ying Zheng didn't turn around, his Dragon Eyes fixed on the enraged demonic lizard, his voice icy.

"Can't die!" Cheng Xi spat out a mouthful of blood. The depleted Chaos Sword Essence within him, under the pressure of the Tongtian Mark, painstakingly condensed a trace once more. The Chaos Origin Point spun wildly, absorbing the surrounding chaotic energy.

"Good!" Ying Zheng uttered just one word. No need for more, their common enemy was right before them!

The Shadow of Sargeras, the demonic lizard, was completely enraged! The two minuscule beings before it, one had injured its eggshell, the other had severed its claw! Its six evil eyes simultaneously lit up with crimson light. Its massive maw opened, and deep within its throat, a mass of Chaos Demonic Flame, viscous like lava and radiating an aura of annihilation, was furiously condensing!

"Roar—!!!"

A beam of destructive demonic flame, carrying the terrifying power to incinerate souls and pollute laws, like a torrent from hell, erupted towards Ying Zheng and Cheng Xi!

"Human Emperor Sword Seal!" Ying Zheng shouted, gripping the Tai'a Sword hilt with both hands. The purple-gold dragon energy and dark gold Ancestor Dragon true power on the sword merged, transforming into a dark gold sword screen as heavy as a mountain, blocking in front of them!

"Chaos Sword Wall!" Cheng Xi also roared, injecting the last trace of condensed Chaos Sword Essence into the Qingping Sword Sheath, activating the Tongtian Mark, and erecting a distorted barrier in front of him, shimmering with chaos-gray light and Sky-Severing Edge!

Rumble—!!!

The Chaos Demonic Flame fiercely collided with the dark gold sword screen and the Chaos Sword Wall! The terrifying annihilating energy surged wildly! The sword screen and sword wall trembled violently, distorted, flickering! Ying Zheng grunted, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, the ground beneath his feet cracking inch by inch! Cheng Xi was hit even harder, spitting blood again, his body swaying precariously! Even with their combined strength, they were being pushed back under the impact of the demonic flame!

"Heh heh heh... Die! All of you die!" From a distance, the heavily injured Lu Buwei watched this scene, letting out a mad and venomous laugh.

Just as the situation was precarious—

A change occurred!

Buzz—!!!

A grand, vast will, filled with compassion and heavy weariness, pierced through infinite space without warning, descending once more! This time, it wasn't from the Pangu Hall Projection, but from... the deepest part of the Mount Li Imperial Mausoleum! This will seemed to have been stirred by the power of the Chaos Demonic Lizard and Ancestor Dragon true power erupting here, carrying an anger of desecration!

"Imperial Mausoleum... Earth Veins... How can... demons... defile..."

The ancient will, like the whisper of a sleeping giant god, directly echoed in the sea of consciousness of all living beings in the cave!

Boom!

The entire main vein of Mount Li trembled violently! A majestic, pure, and unimaginably heavy Dragon Vein Earth Energy, like an enraged giant dragon, erupted from the depths of the Imperial Mausoleum! This Dragon Vein Energy was no longer being forcibly drawn by the demonic cave altar; instead, with a will of purification, it surged like a golden torrent, ignoring space, and instantly poured into the Tai'a Sword in Ying Zheng's hand!

"This is... the protection of the former king?!" Ying Zheng's Dragon Eyes erupted with unprecedented brilliance! The Tai'a Sword instantly became scorching hot, its body humming, the entwined dragon energy surging tenfold! The previously precarious dark gold sword screen instantly solidified, becoming as thick and heavy as a true Great Wall!

At the same time!

Another faint yet tenacious fiery aura also crossed space! This aura carried the will to burn away filth, originating from Yan Lingji, who was resisting the chaotic will within Pangu Hall! It didn't attack directly but, like a spark, precisely integrated into the Chaos Sword Wall erected by Cheng Xi!

Hiss—!

The dark gold sword screen, empowered by the purifying Dragon Vein Earth Energy, and the Chaos Sword Wall, infused with the will of the Witch Fire that burns demons, their power surged! The incoming Chaos Demonic Flame, like snow hitting boiling water, was forcefully held back and repelled!

"Roar?!" For the first time, a look of surprise appeared in the demonic lizard Sargeras's Shadow's six evil eyes! It felt its power being restrained by a higher-level earth vein will and the fire that burns demons!

"Now!" Ying Zheng and Cheng Xi roared almost simultaneously!

"Ancestor Dragon... Smites Evil!"

Ying Zheng raised the Tai'a Sword above his head. The sword body gathered the majestic purifying Dragon Vein Energy and Ancestor Dragon true power, transforming into a dark gold lightning strike that tore through the cave's darkness, fiercely cleaving towards the demonic lizard's head!

"Chaos... Intercepting Heaven!"

Cheng Xi, ignoring the excruciating pain of his shattered meridians, poured all his remaining strength, along with the lingering power of the Tongtian Mark within the Qingping Sword Sheath, into his sword finger! A more condensed, more dangerous, gray-blue sword thread, blending chaos and the Sky-Severing Edge, struck later but arrived first, like a venomous snake, bypassing the demonic lizard's frontal defense and piercing directly towards the center of its six evil eyes—the core node of its chaotic will!

"No--!!!" Lu Buwei's desperate howl echoed from afar.

The demonic lizard felt a fatal threat! It twisted its body frantically, trying to dodge! But Ying Zheng's Ancestor Dragon Smites Evil sword light had sealed off all space for evasion!

Squelch!

Cheng Xi's Sky-Severing Edge, condensed with all his will and power, struck first! Silently, it pierced the center where the demonic lizard's six evil eyes converged!

"Rooooar--!!!"

The demonic lizard let out the most piercing, most agonizing scream of its life! Its entire massive body seemed to freeze, twitching violently! The six scarlet evil eyes instantly dimmed and scattered! Its condensed Chaos Demon Flame dissipated in an instant!

Immediately after!

Boom--!!!

Ying Zheng's Ancestor Dragon Smites Evil sword light, like heavenly punishment thunder, fiercely cleaved the demonic lizard's head!

Blinding dark gold light instantly engulfed the demonic lizard's massive body! A terrifying energy shockwave swept through the entire cavern! The bone altar turned to dust! Large sections of the rock walls collapsed!

The light dissipated.

The demonic lizard, Sargath's Shadow, stood rigidly in place, its head cleaved more than halfway by the terrifying sword light! Dark gold demonic blood gushed out like a waterfall! Its six evil eyes had completely lost their luster. Its massive body swayed a few times, and with a lingering hiss of unwillingness and malice, it crashed down! Raising clouds of dust and foul blood!

Source of Demonic Calamity, Mount Li Demonic Lizard, vanquished!

"Pfft!" Cheng Xi could no longer hold on. His vision went black, and he completely fainted, his body slumping softly.

Ying Zheng leaned on his sword, breathing heavily. The light in his Dragon Eyes had also dimmed considerably, clearly having expended immense energy. He looked at the unconscious Cheng Xi with a complex expression.

However, neither the unconscious Cheng Xi, nor the exhausted Ying Zheng, nor the dying Lu Buwei in the distance, had noticed--

The moment the demonic lizard was slain and the projection of that Chaos Demon God's will completely dispersed!

Boom--!!!

An invisible, vastly clearer ripple than before, centered on Mount Li, instantly swept across the entire Primordial Era world!

High in the nine heavens, within Zixiao Palace, the blurry Daoist silhouette that sat on the cloud bed, seemingly unchanging since ancient times, shuddered violently! On the edge of the cushion beneath it, condensed from pure Heavenly Dao rules, an extremely subtle, yet truly existing--crack, quietly appeared!

In the Netherworld Blood Sea, the wails of countless resentful souls abruptly stopped! Deep within the blood sea, a pair of immensely large, blood-red eyes, filled with filth and greed, snapped open, gazing towards the void, letting out a silent roar!

Inside Fire Cloud Cave, the invisible barrier imprisoning the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, fluctuated violently!

And in the closest Xianyang City, all survivors, whether mortal or cultivator, felt the invisible, heavy shackles on their hearts... seemed to have... loosened for a moment, very noticeably! An indescribable sense of ease, accompanied by a deeper unease, spread.

The Heavenly Dao Shackles... had cracked!