The figure that emerged from the void rift caused Taichu's pupils to shrink sharply.
The man was dressed in a moon-white robe with flowing clouds, and a bronze compass hanging at his waist was spinning wildly.
"The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets?"
The crystal on the Taichu Right Arm suddenly emitted a blinding light. "Not seen for three hundred thousand epochs, you've certainly gotten better at picking your Shi Chen."
The newcomer brushed away the dust of time and space from his clothes, revealing a lean and handsome face.
The compass in his hand emitted nine-colored rays of light, weaving a star map in the Hundun: "Taichu Daoist Taichu, back then you insisted on casting the Primal Chaos Dao Embryo into reincarnation, did you ever foresee this day would come?"
Six-Eared Macaque suddenly covered his forehead, and the Golden Lotus Mark resonated with the compass.
Countless hexagrams surged in his sea of consciousness, and he saw himself kneeling on the Execution Platform in his previous life, with three hundred and sixty Soul Locking Nails piercing through his collarbone.
"Heavenly secrets... cannot... be revealed..."
Six-Eared Macaque uttered these words with difficulty, and the phantom of the Zhou Tian Star Formation appeared around his body.
The Taichu Daoist robe suddenly billowed like sails, and the Quasi-Emperor's aura swept across the star field. "Old scoundrel! You set up the Heavenly Evolution Killing Array at the Execution Platform back then, do you really think I didn't know?"
The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets chuckled, and twelve blood-red copper coins flew out from the compass.
The true names of the Twelve Divine Demons were clearly engraved on the surface of those copper coins!
"And look at this!" Copper coins formed a six-way killing formation in the air. "You think the White Emperor's fall was truly because of the people's rebellion?"
A violent tremor suddenly came from the depths of the sea, and the once calm Sea of Life and Death was stirred up into a huge wave.
Six-Eared Macaque was shocked to realize that the Star Dao Seed in his hand was resonating with the blood-red copper coins. The true names of the gods and demons on those copper coins corresponded one by one with the memory fragments in the Dao Seed!
"Master, be careful!"
Suddenly, Six-Eared Macaque sprang up, his Demon Ape True Body smashing three copper coins.
When one of the copper coins engraved with "Zhuyin" exploded, the aura it released was actually the same as that of the Guixu Demon Shadow!
Taichu, the crystal on the primordial right arm extended into the Pangu Axe Blade, cleaving the void in two. "So, Twelve Divine Demons participated in that betrayal back then!"
The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets's figure began to blur, but his voice grew clearer. "Taichu, do you think you're protecting the righteous path? Back then, when the White Emperor sensed the anomaly in the Void, it was the twelve of us who joined forces to..."
Before he could finish speaking, nine beams of blood-red light suddenly shot out from the direction of Guixu.
The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets let out a miserable scream as his left eye turned into Black Hole and his entire body was covered in scarlet runes.
"Master, he's being attacked by some kind of backlash!"
The Six-Eared Macaque Chaos Eye saw through the illusion, "Those incantations... are the restrictions of the First Generation Heavenly Emperor!"
Taichu awoke with a start. "The Heart-Piercing Curse left behind by the White Emperor when he fell! So all of you Twelve Divine Demons swore a blood oath to the Heavenly Emperor!"
The Sea of Life and Death suddenly boiled, and countless white bones coalesced into a bridge.
At the bridgehead stands a broken stele, its Blood Letter of gods and demons. "Those who defy Heaven, their souls shall fall to the abyss, forever..."
The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets suddenly burst into maniacal laughter, and all the remaining copper coins exploded.
Each copper coin reflects a memory: the Twelve Divine Demons swore a blood oath at the Guixu Sea Eye, leading the White Emperor into the Immortal Slaughtering Formation;
To protect the remnant soul of the White Emperor, the Demon Ape Clan Chief was willing to bear eternal infamy.
The final scene freezes on a single Chaos Tear sliding down the corner of the eye of the First Generation Heavenly Emperor as he self-destructs his Dao Embryo.
"Do you understand now?" The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets bled from all seven orifices. "The so-called Demonic Shadow is nothing but..."
Nine blood-red phantom images suddenly appeared above his head, and the voice of the demonic entity descended across time and space. "Talkative worm, you must not be allowed to live."
The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets instantly turned into a blood mist, while the bronze compass fell into the hands of Six-Eared Macaque.
On the back of the compass, the totem of the First Demon Ape Clan is clearly engraved!
Taichu suddenly pressed down on the trembling Star Dao Seed: "Not good! He's using causal threads to corrupt..."
The underwater bone bridge collapsed with a roar, replaced by a vortex formed by the laws of time.
The compass in Six-Eared Macaque's hand automatically deduced that the scabbard of the White Emperor's sword, the Tai Xu Severing Dao Sword, was hidden deep in the Sea of Life and Death!
"Follow the causal thread!" The Taichu burned its essence blood, cleaving a passage through the vortex of time. "The demonic shadow wants to use the scabbard to activate the true form of the Tai Xu Sword; we must stop it..."
Taichu and Six-Eared Macaque followed the vortex of time and fell into the depths of the Sea of Life and Death.
The surroundings were pitch black, with only the bronze compass in Six-Eared Macaque's hand emitting a faint light.
"Master, the flow of time here is wrong."
Six-Eared Macaque frowned and said, "I feel like with every step I take, a year has passed in the outside world."
The crystal on the Taichu right arm extended into the Pangu Axe Blade, drawing a golden line in the void. "The demonic shadow is accelerating time, trying to trap us here. Follow the golden line closely; it's a spacetime beacon left behind by Pangu when he created the world."
Six-Eared Macaque suddenly stopped, his Chaos Eye rippling. "Wait... I heard a sword's cry!"
A long, drawn-out sword cry drifted from afar, sounding both sorrowful and furious.
The bronze compass spun wildly, its pointer pointing directly in the direction of the sound source.
Taichu's expression changed drastically. "Not good! The scabbard of the Tai Xu Severing Dao Sword is summoning its true form. Once the sword returns to its original position, the demonic shadow will be able to break the Gui Xu seal!"
The two quickened their pace, only to find a spatial rift appearing ahead.
Within the crack, a long sword, its entire body gleaming with crystal, is slowly taking shape, its blade radiating the Daoist essence of creation.
"That's a projection of the Tai Xu Sword!" Taichu hissed. "The scabbard must be destroyed before the sword fully manifests!"
Just then, twelve illusory figures suddenly appeared all around.
Each phantom exuded a terrifying aura; they were none other than the Twelve Divine Demons who participated in the killing of the White Emperor!
" In the Taichu, you have finally come."
The leading Zhu Yin Divine Demon sneered, "Back then, the White Emperor self-destructed his Dao Embryo, trapping us here for 300,000 epochs. Today, it's time to settle things."
The demonic ape bloodline within Six-Eared Macaque surged, and the golden lotus mark radiated boundless light. "You traitors, how dare you utter the name of the White Emperor?"
Zhu Yin Divine Demon raised his hand, and a blood-red chain shot straight at Six-Eared Macaque: "Young man, the bloodline of the Demon Ape flows in your veins. You should be on the same path as us. Why are you so stubborn?"
Taichu wielded Pangu Axe Blade, severing the chains. "Six-Eared Macaque, don't be misled by them! The truth behind the White Emperor's fall is far more complex than it appears!"
The Twelve Divine Demons attacked simultaneously, their terrifying pressure distorting even space and time.
Taichu burned his life essence to create the Pangu Barrier before him. "Six-Eared Macaque, I'll hold them off. You go and destroy the sword sheath! Remember, the Tai Xu Sword Sheath holds the secrets of the primordial chaos!"
Six-Eared Macaque and nodded, transforming into a streak of Liu Guang as he rushed toward the sword sheath.
A deafening roar came from behind. Taichu- handedly confronted the Twelve Divine Demons, and the power of a quasi-emperor shook the entire Sea of Life and Death.
Just as Six-Eared Macaque was about to touch the scabbard, a familiar figure suddenly blocked his way.
"Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets? Aren't you already..." Six-Eared Macaque stared at the person in front of him in shock.
The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets revealed a sinister smile, "You thought I was really dead? That was nothing but a trick by the demonic shadow. Now, hand over the compass!"
Six-Eared Macaque then noticed that the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets's eyes were flashing with the same blood-red light as the Demon Shadow.
He suddenly realized. "You've already been controlled by the demonic force!"
The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets suddenly sprang into action, striking Six-Eared Macaque in the chest with a palm strike.
At the critical moment, the golden lotus inside Six-Eared Macaque's body bloomed, Twelfth Grade Lotus Platform protected his body.
At the same time, the bronze compass flew out automatically, unfolding a star map in the air.
"This is... a backup plan left by the White Emperor!" Six-Eared Macaque was pleasantly surprised to discover that the star map contained a method to break the seal on the sword sheath.
Enraged at this sight, the Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets unleashed a surge of Demonic Qi: "Don't even think about succeeding!"
Six-Eared Macaque had already deciphered the secrets of the star chart. He formed hand seals, drawing upon the power of the demonic ape bloodline and the golden lotus within his body.
The two forces converged at his chest, transforming into a Hundun rune.
"Break!"
The runes disappeared into the sword sheath, instantly bursting forth with dazzling light.
The projection of the Tai Xu Sword began to disintegrate, and the phantoms of the Twelve Divine Demons also disappeared.
The Pavilion Master of Heavenly Secrets roared in resentment, his body gradually turning to ashes. "Lord Demon Shadow will not let you go..."
Taichu, dragging his broken body, approached Six-Eared Macaque and said with satisfaction, "Well done, disciple. But this is only the beginning. We must find the true form of the Tai Xu Sword as soon as possible and completely seal the Demon Shadow."
Six-Eared Macaque nodded, about to say something, when he suddenly felt a surge of power within his body.
The golden lotus mark shone with unprecedented brilliance, and the Twelfth Grade Lotus Platform began to transform!
"Is this... another breakthrough coming?" Taichu exclaimed in surprise.
However, at that moment, a deafening roar came from the depths of the Sea of Life and Death.
A dark shadow, obscuring the sky, slowly rose, and nine blood-red eyes opened simultaneously.
"Taichu, Six-Eared Macaque, do you think destroying the scabbard will stop me?"
The demonic voice resounded throughout heaven and earth, "I have already refined the Tai Xu Sword. Now, I will show you its true power!"
Taichu's expression changed drastically. "This is bad! Let's go!"
But it was too late. A blood-red sword light ripped through the sky, heading straight for the two of them.
The Sea of Life and Death was instantly split in two, revealing the Guixu Sea Eye deep in the seabed.
The power within Six-Eared Macaque's body surged wildly, and the bloodlines of the Golden Lotus and the Demon Ape merged perfectly.
He suddenly opened his eyes, his pupils swirling with Chaos Stardust: "Master, let me do it!"
Taichu looked at his disciple's retreating figure, he seemed to see a reflection of himself from years ago.
He smiled with satisfaction and handed over the Pangu Axe Blade: "Go, let the Shadow Demon see what true power of the Void is!"
Six-Eared Macaque took the axe blade, and his aura surged.
The golden lotus mark transformed into armor, and the demonic ape bloodline coalesced into a cloak.
He stepped forward, facing the demonic shadow head-on. "This battle is for the White Emperor, for all living beings, and for... myself!"
Sea of Life and Death, two figures collided with a deafening roar.
The Tai Xu Sword intertwined with the Pangu Axe Blade, unleashing a power akin to splitting the heavens and earth.
The entire star field trembled, and countless stars paled in comparison at that moment.
Taichu stood at a distance, the crystals on his right arm beginning to disintegrate. He knew this was the last glimmer of the Pangu's Mark.