The Demon Emperor Withdraws, the Dao Ancestor Acquiesces

Clang—!!!

The sound of the Chaos Bell spread throughout the Primordial World, and the mountains and rivers for a million li east of Buzhou Mountain trembled in unison.

Outside Wuzhuang Temple, Eastern Emperor Taiyi hung high in the Nine Heavens, the Chaos Bell in his hand. Its body was ancient and vast, and every tremor seemed capable of returning heaven and earth to chaos.

At the first toll, Longevity Mountain's innate Earth Element Great Array had already cracked.

Blood seeped from the corner of Zhen Yuanzi's mouth. Thirty percent of the mountain-and-river phantom manifested by the Earth Book had been shattered. Hongyun faced the three Great Demon Sages alone—Ji Meng, Ying Zhao, and Jiu Ying. Though he temporarily remained undefeated with the Nine-Nine Soul Scattering Gourd, he was still in grave danger.

Qingfeng Mingyue lay before the temple gates, their fate unknown.

Taiyi looked down coldly, lightly tapping the bell with his fingertip as he prepared to strike it a second time.

"This toll will send you on your way."

Just as the bell was about to ring—

"Taiyi! Your bell is mine now!"

A streak of black light appeared at the far edge of the sky. It had seemed to be ten thousand li away at first glance, yet arrived before them in the blink of an eye!

It was a brick!

A massive brick three chi long, pitch-black from end to end, with dark gold and blood-red demonic patterns flowing across its surface!

Wherever it passed, space collapsed layer upon layer, producing a roar no weaker than that of the Chaos Bell!

"Hm?" Taiyi frowned slightly and turned the Chaos Bell toward the Black Brick.

Clang—!!!

At the instant the brick and bell collided, the entire eastern region of the Primordial World seemed to have been frozen.

There was no imagined shockwave capable of destroying heaven and earth. There was only an incomparably muffled impact, along with cracks in space silently spreading outward from the point of collision.

The Black Brick flew back and landed in the hand of a figure who had just appeared.

Lu Chen stood upon the void, holding the brick in his right hand. A tiny crack had appeared on its surface, but Golden Light of Merit repaired it in an instant.

Taiyi staggered back three steps. The Chaos Bell hummed without cease, and a shallow dent had actually been smashed into its body!

The entire scene fell silent.

The countless demons stood dumbstruck. The three Great Demon Sages halted their assault. Even Zhen Yuanzi and Hongyun were stunned.

"Little Friend Lu Chen... you..." Hongyun opened his mouth, not knowing what to say.

Taiyi stared at the brick in Lu Chen's hand. His expression shifted from surprise to gravity, then to burning desire. "This brick... is an Innate Supreme Treasure?"

He recognized at a glance that this brick's rank was no lower than that of the Chaos Bell!

"So what if it is?" Lu Chen grinned, weighing the brick in his hand. "Your bell is pretty nice. Mind lending it to me for a few days?"

"Arrogant!" Taiyi laughed in fury. "You think that obtaining one supreme treasure lets you contend with me? Today, I'll show you what it means to be the strongest beneath the Saint Position!"

The Chaos Bell rang again!

This time, Taiyi activated it with all his strength. The bell's sound became tangible golden ripples, and wherever they passed, all things returned to ruin!

Rather than retreat, Lu Chen charged forward. Black light surged from the Chaos Brick, and the phantom of Pangu opening the sky and splitting the earth appeared across its surface.

Strength Pierces the Primordial Era!

This was the third move from Pangu's Spine Fragment. Unleashed through the Chaos Brick, its power was multiplied many times over!

The brick's shadow towered like a mountain as it crashed head-on into the bell waves.

Boom—!!!

This collision finally erupted.

Centered on the impact point, everything within a thousand li instantly transformed into chaos! Earth, wind, water, and fire replayed their creation; space shattered, and time descended into disorder. The demon army was like fallen leaves swept up by a violent gale, screaming as they were hurled backward.

Zhen Yuanzi spread the Earth Book wildly, shielding the core area of Wuzhuang Temple.

Hongyun's gourd sprayed out red mist, wrapping around Qingfeng Mingyue.

At the center of the collision, Lu Chen and Taiyi were sent flying at the same time.

Lu Chen spat out blood, his internal organs seemingly displaced, but the light in his eyes grew even brighter—he had blocked it! With the cultivation of a peak Grand Unity Golden Immortal, he had forcibly received the full-strength strike of a peak Quasi-Saint wielding the Chaos Bell!

Taiyi did not fare well either. The web between the thumb and forefinger of his right hand, which held the bell, had split open, and golden blood dripped down. What alarmed him even more was that the dent in the Chaos Bell had deepened. One of the innate restrictions within the bell had actually been shaken into forming a faint crack by that brick strike!

This brat... cannot be allowed to live! Taiyi's killing intent surged.

Just as he was about to attack again, a long dragon roar suddenly came from the heavens.

"Fellow Daoist Taiyi, stop."

A Nine-Clawed Golden Dragon burst from the clouds, transforming into the golden-robed Di Jun, who landed beside Taiyi. Behind him, Kunpeng, Fuxi, Nuwa, and the other great powers of the Demon Clan had all arrived.

"Big Brother, this brat stole treasures from our Demon Clan and damaged the Chaos Bell. He must die today!" Taiyi said sharply.

But Di Jun waved a hand. His gaze fell upon Lu Chen, carrying deep meaning. "Little Friend Lu Chen, did the brick in your hand come from Treasure Distribution Cliff?"

Lu Chen's heart tightened, but he smiled on the surface. "So what if it did? So what if it didn't?"

"If it did, then this is interesting." Di Jun spoke slowly. "Treasure Distribution Cliff was established by the Dao Ancestor, and every treasure within has its ordained fate. As far as I know, the brick in your hand was not on the list."

He paused, speaking each word distinctly. "Unless... you entered the core forbidden ground of Treasure Distribution Cliff and took the Dao Ancestor's private collection."

The moment those words fell, even Taiyi was stunned.

The Dao Ancestor's private collection?

Lu Chen's heart also pounded wildly. He had indeed entered the core region, but he had assumed it was simply part of Treasure Distribution Cliff. Could it be... that the three items on the stone platform had been Dao Ancestor Hongjun's own collection?!

"Fellow Daoist Di Jun, do you have proof of this?" Zhen Yuanzi flew forward, standing shoulder to shoulder with Lu Chen.

"Proof?" Di Jun smiled and raised a hand. A phantom of the River Diagram and Luo Book unfolded, deducing the Heavenly Secrets. "Three days ago, the core restrictions of Treasure Distribution Cliff were triggered. A living being took three items: first, the Kunlun Mirror Diagram; second, a Chaos Bead; third, a Chaos Brick. At this moment, the Kunlun Mirror Diagram is in Queen Mother of the West's possession, the whereabouts of the Chaos Bead are unknown, and the Chaos Brick—"

He looked at Lu Chen. "Is in your hand."

The entire crowd erupted in uproar.

Stealing ordinary treasures from Treasure Distribution Cliff would have been one thing, but he had actually dared to steal even the Dao Ancestor's private collection?!

This was no longer mere boldness. It was madness!

Yet Lu Chen suddenly threw back his head and laughed.

"Fellow Daoist Di Jun, you say I stole the Dao Ancestor's private collection. Then let me ask you—what level of cultivation does the Dao Ancestor possess? He is a Saint, the embodiment of the Heavenly Dao. Could a mere Grand Unity Golden Immortal like me enter his private forbidden ground? Even if I did, would the Dao Ancestor not know? And if he knew, would he not stop me?"

He fixed Di Jun with a sharp gaze. "Unless the Dao Ancestor did it deliberately. Deliberately allowing me to take those three items."

"Nonsense!" Kunpeng shrieked. "What status does the Dao Ancestor hold? Why would he indulge a petty thief like you?"

"Is that so?" Lu Chen turned to Kunpeng. "Then tell me, why has the Dao Ancestor not appeared even now? Why has the matter of my treasure theft spread throughout the Primordial World while the Purple Cloud Palace remains completely silent? Why—"

He raised the Chaos Brick. A faint phantom of violet qi suddenly surfaced across its body.

It was the aura of half a strand of Primordial Violet Qi!

"Primordial Violet Qi has fused into this brick! If the Dao Ancestor had not acquiesced, how could I have obtained the violet qi? And how could I have fused it into the brick?!"

Those words were half true and half false.

He had obtained the violet qi from the Demon Abyss, but using it to bluff them now produced remarkable results.

Sure enough, Di Jun, Taiyi, and the others all changed expression.

Primordial Violet Qi! The foundation for becoming a Saint!

The Dao Ancestor had indeed bestowed violet qi before, but only upon the Three Pure Ones, Nuwa, Jieyin, Zhunti, and Hongyun—seven people in total. Where had the violet qi in Lu Chen's hands come from? Could it truly have been granted privately by the Dao Ancestor?

If the Dao Ancestor had truly acquiesced, then their attempt to surround and kill Lu Chen today would be tantamount to slapping the Dao Ancestor in the face.

Di Jun's thoughts raced, and he suddenly smiled. "So that is how it is. It seems we misunderstood. Since Little Friend Lu Chen is someone valued by the Dao Ancestor, the Demon Clan naturally will not make things difficult for him."

He waved his hand. "Withdraw."

"Big Brother!" Taiyi said anxiously.

"Go." Di Jun gave Lu Chen a deep look, then transformed into golden light and departed.

Taiyi glared unwillingly at Lu Chen, then left as well with the Chaos Bell.

The demon army retreated like a tide.

In the blink of an eye, calm returned outside Wuzhuang Temple, leaving only devastation across the ground.

Zhen Yuanzi and Hongyun let out long breaths, but the looks they gave Lu Chen became even more complicated.

"Little Friend, what you said just now..." Hongyun hesitated.

"Half true, half false." Lu Chen gave a bitter smile. "The violet qi is real, but the Dao Ancestor's acquiescence... I made that part up."

The two men sucked in sharp breaths.

"You are far too bold!" Zhen Yuanzi shook his head. "What if the Dao Ancestor holds you accountable..."

"He won't." Lu Chen looked toward the sky. "If my guess is right, the Dao Ancestor is watching us at this very moment. If he intended to hold me accountable, he would have appeared long ago."

Just as he had expected, deep within chaos, inside the Purple Cloud Palace.

Dao Ancestor Hongjun sat cross-legged upon a Cloud Bed. The scene outside Wuzhuang Temple was reflected in the water mirror before him.

After a long while, the corner of the Dao Ancestor's mouth moved almost imperceptibly.

"Clever little fellow."

He raised a hand and wiped across the surface, causing the water mirror to vanish.

"Forget it. Those three items were meant for those fated to receive them. Since he was able to take them, they are his fortune."

"It is only that... Luohu's Demon Abyss Token, the Witch Clan's Ancestor Witch Token, the favor owed by the Queen Mother of the West, and now the Demon Clan's wariness as well... this little fellow is entangled in more and more karma."

The Dao Ancestor closed his eyes and paid no further attention.