Black Mist Appears, Heavenly Dao's Shadow, Cang Ming Seal's Might Resists Origin

The tremors on Immortal Sinking Island grew more intense, black runes spreading like a spiderweb. The originally azure sky was instantly shrouded in dark clouds, and the waters of the Meteor Sea began to flow backward. A terrifying pressure, far exceeding the Void Refinement Realm, surged from beneath the island, leaving Chen Fan and his companions breathless. This was not the aura of any living being, but a suppression originating from the world's rules—the power of the Heavenly Dao's will made manifest.

"Boom!"

A massive fissure suddenly split open at the heart of the island, spewing forth black spiritual mist. Within the mist, a vague human figure gradually materialized. Twisted spiritual energy of heaven and earth swirled around the figure, and with every breath, ripples spread through the surrounding space. This was indeed the avatar of the Heavenly Dao's will!

"Chen Fan, you've found this place after all," the avatar's voice whispered like countless people speaking in one's ear, carrying a cold indifference. "I thought the Spiritual Root factions and the sea demons could stop you. It seems I underestimated the resilience of the Martial Path."

"Are you the avatar of the Heavenly Dao's will?" Chen Fan's Earth Immortal Bloodline Power surged, his earthy-yellow blood essence connecting with the Earth Vein Power of Immortal Sinking Island, forming a solid barrier. "You manipulate the Spiritual Root system and plunder the world's origin, all to turn all living beings into puppets under your control?"

"Puppets?" The avatar let out a cold laugh. A tentacle extended from the black spiritual mist, reaching for the Spiritual Root Warship that hadn't fully sunk yet. The black spiritual energy within the tentacle instantly devoured the warship. Lei Qianjue, who had been dead, "stood up" again, but his eyes were filled with black patterns, and his spiritual energy became twisted and violent, like a walking corpse. "These are not puppets, they are 'Order.' The Spiritual Root system allows all beings to depend on spiritual energy, and spiritual energy depends on this will to operate. This is how the world should be—absolute control, absolute stability."

Su Muxue's expression changed drastically. The Evil Suppressing Jade Pendant in her hand flashed with white light. "You are distorting the world's origin! The Martial Path is the orthodox way that coexists with the origin. By forcefully replacing it with the Spiritual Root system, you will only lead the world to collapse!"

"Collapse?" The avatar's figure flickered within the spiritual mist. "This will is the world's will. This will's choice is the world's choice. As for the Martial Path..." He waved his hand, and countless streams of black spiritual mist surged towards Chen Fan. Wherever the mist passed, the Earth Vein Power of Immortal Sinking Island began to dissipate. "It's merely an outdated 'impurity.' Today, this will shall purge it completely!"

The black spiritual mist, with its power to devour all, instantly broke through Chen Fan's blood essence barrier, heading straight for his chest. A sharp glint flashed in Chen Fan's eyes as he reached out and grabbed the floating Cang Ming Seal. The moment the blue jade seal entered his hand, a surge of immense Earth Vein Power flowed into his body along his arm, merging with his Earth Immortal blood essence to form a light blue armor.

"Cang Ming Battle Codex—Sea Suppressing!"

Chen Fan shouted, and the Cang Ming Seal hovered in the air. Blue runes flew from the seal, transforming into a boundless "virtual ocean." The virtual ocean connected with the real Earth Vein Power of the Meteor Sea, and countless water pillars shot into the sky, colliding with the black spiritual mist.

"Sizzle!"

The black spiritual mist hissed as it was struck by the water pillars, much of it being purified by the seawater and turning into nothingness. But the avatar's power was far beyond imagination. He extended another tentacle, and the black spiritual mist instantly swallowed the water pillars, even beginning to absorb the Earth Vein Power of the virtual ocean in reverse.

"This will can control spiritual energy, and naturally, it can control Earth Veins and Sea Veins," the avatar's voice carried a hint of mockery. "Your power originates from the world's origin, and this will is the controller of the origin!"

Chen Fan felt the Earth Vein Power within him becoming chaotic, and the light of the Cang Ming Seal dimmed. He gritted his teeth and poured all his Earth Immortal Bloodline Power into the Cang Ming Seal, simultaneously recalling the commonalities between the Xing Tian's Battle Codex and the Cang Ming Battle Codex—the power of the Martial Path, though originating from the world's essence, contained the power of "will," which was the key that the Heavenly Dao's will could not control!

"The power of the Martial Path is not just in its origin, but in the heart of man!" Chen Fan roared. The blood essence around him suddenly became scorching hot. The light blue Earth Vein Power and the earthy-yellow Earth Vein Power intertwined, forming a "Martial Dao Tai Chi Diagram." Within the Tai Chi Diagram, countless tiny points of light flickered, each representing the will of a Martial Path cultivator—the inherited will of ancient Martial Immortals, the companionate will of Lin Xiaohu and Su Muxue, and even the will of countless beings oppressed by the Spiritual Root system, yearning for freedom!

"What is this?" For the first time, a fluctuation appeared in the avatar's voice, and the black spiritual mist churned violently. "Impossible! How can the will of mortals contend with the power of the origin?"

"Because what we desire is not controlled 'Order,' but freely chosen 'Life'!" Chen Fan pushed the Martial Dao Tai Chi Diagram towards the avatar. The points of light within the Tai Chi Diagram erupted instantly, forming a dazzling radiance. "This is the true meaning of the Martial Path—to use one's own will to defy destiny and create life!"

The radiance collided with the black spiritual mist, and Immortal Sinking Island let out a deafening roar. The fissures continued to expand. The avatar's blurry figure contorted within the light, clearly heavily wounded, yet he did not retreat. More twisted spiritual energy surged from the black spiritual mist, attempting to devour the Tai Chi Diagram's radiance.

"Brother Fan, I'll help you!" Lin Xiaohu suddenly charged forward, injecting his internal Bloodline Power into the Tai Chi Diagram. Although his blood essence was weak, it carried the purest belief, causing the Tai Chi Diagram's radiance to brighten further.

Su Muxue, Li Mo, and other disciples from the sect also stepped forward, injecting their blood essence or spiritual energy (purified by the Evil Suppressing Jade Pendant, no longer controlled by the Heavenly Dao's will) into the Tai Chi Diagram. The combined power of everyone converged, making the Tai Chi Diagram's radiance as dazzling as the sun, completely suppressing the devouring of the black spiritual mist.

"No! This will shall not lose!" The avatar let out a furious roar. The black spiritual mist suddenly contracted, forming a massive black fist that slammed towards Chen Fan—this was a portion of the world's origin power he had mobilized, his strongest attack!

A resolute glint flashed in Chen Fan's eyes. He pressed the Cang Ming Seal to his chest, simultaneously mobilizing the last traces of Earth Immortal blood essence and Earth Vein Power within him. "Xing Tian's Battle Codex—Mountain Shatter! Cang Ming Battle Codex—Sea's Wrath! Two codices combined—Martial Path Unity!"

The earthy-yellow Earth Vein Power and the blue Earth Vein Power merged within his body, forming a golden and silver intertwined beam of light. This beam, superimposed with the radiance of the Tai Chi Diagram, transformed into a colossal "Martial Path Spear" that thrust towards the black fist.

"Bang!"

The golden and silver spear collided with the black fist. The entire Meteor Sea trembled, and waves ten thousand feet high surged. The fissures on Immortal Sinking Island expanded to their limit, on the verge of collapse. Light and black mist intertwined, forming a massive energy storm that swept everything around them into its vortex.

Chen Fan was thrown back repeatedly by the storm's recoil, spitting out a mouthful of blood. Yet, he stared intently ahead—under the impact of the spear, the black fist began to crack, and the blurry figure of the Heavenly Dao's will avatar became even more transparent.

"This will... will return," the avatar let out a roar of unwillingness. The black spiritual mist suddenly dissipated, completely withdrawing from Immortal Sinking Island. The terrifying pressure that had suppressed everyone vanished, the seawater returned to normal, and the dark clouds in the sky gradually dispersed.

Chen Fan slowly retracted the Martial Path Spear. His body went weak, and he almost fell. Su Muxue quickly stepped forward to support him. He looked at the Cang Ming Seal in his hand. The blue light on the seal had become softer, clearly indicating that his connection with the Cang Ming Seal had become closer during the battle, and his control over Earth Immortal power had further improved.

"He... he escaped?" Lin Xiaohu looked at the now calm Immortal Sinking Island, his eyes filled with surprise.

"Not escaped, but temporarily retreated," Chen Fan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his eyes grave. "His power originates from the world's origin. As long as the origin exists, he can continuously recover. Our current strength is not enough to completely eliminate him."

Su Muxue nodded, the Evil Suppressing Jade Pendant in her hand lighting up again. "But today's battle has proven that the will of the Martial Path can contend with his origin power. As long as we gather all Nine Seals of Martial Arts and awaken the Martial Path power in more people, we can gather enough will to completely break his control."

Chen Fan looked towards the distant sea horizon, his heart filled with determination. The appearance of the Heavenly Dao's will avatar made him understand the difficulty of the final battle, but it also strengthened his resolve to gather the Nine Seals and revive the Martial Path. He tucked the Cang Ming Seal into his embrace and turned to the others. "Immortal Sinking Island is not a place to linger. We must leave here as soon as possible and search for the next Martial Path imprint. As long as we persevere, one day, we will be able to let the light of the Martial Path illuminate the entire world, freeing all beings from the shackles of Spiritual Root Destiny!"

The group boarded the Qi and Blood Ship and slowly sailed away from Immortal Sinking Island. The island behind them gradually grew smaller, eventually disappearing into the mist of the Meteor Sea. But Chen Fan knew this was not the end, but the beginning of their true confrontation with the Heavenly Dao's will. The road ahead was still long, with seven more Martial Path imprints awaiting them, and countless challenges to face.

But he was no longer alone—he had companions fighting alongside him, the inherited will of the Martial Path spanning millennia, and the support of countless beings yearning for freedom behind him. He believed that one day, he would stand at the pinnacle of the world, using the might of the Martial Path to sever the shadow of the Heavenly Dao, returning all laws to their true essence, and granting mortals the right to defy fate.

The Qi and Blood Ship sailed slowly on the surface of the Meteor Sea, heading towards the next ancient ruin. Chen Fan, at the bow of the ship, had his Earth Immortal blood essence intertwined with the Earth Vein Power of the Cang Ming Seal, forming a faint halo. It was like a lighthouse in the darkness, illuminating the long road of "Martial Dao Against Heaven."