Life and Death Illusionary Realm

Grand Xuan Daoist felt a force within the formation that opposed his own. It was growing increasingly difficult for him to control the formation, and a sense of helplessness was becoming clearer by the moment. But he had to keep control of it if he wanted any chance of relying on it. His opponent was far too powerful to confront head-on.

Though Grand Xuan Daoist was anxious, he still hadn't used his divine ability. That was his true trump card.

"Illusion Technique—Life and Death Illusionary Realm!"

Pangu saw Grand Xuan Daoist turn into a boundless mass of Black Qi and rush toward him. His vision blurred at the sight of it, and he found himself inside a dark space.

The sky was black, the ground was black, and black currents of air swirled through the space.

Then the earth changed. A volcano rapidly formed beside him and erupted, its thunderous roar exploding in his ears. Black lava surged toward him, while boundless heat scorched him.

As the volcano erupted, the ground rapidly split open, belching clouds of Black Smoke laced with countless poisonous fumes that shot straight into the sky.

Pangu quickly dodged the Black Qi and the lava, but with every step he took, poisonous heat rose from beneath his feet, while heat also seared his skin.

"Thirsty... So thirsty." Thirst welled up inside him as the water in his body rapidly dwindled. His skin began to crack, and blood spurted from the fissures, which dried and flaked away almost instantly.

It felt as if his entire body were about to catch fire. A flame kindled within him, burning him from the inside, and it grew beyond his control. Heat pressed in from without and within, coursing along his meridians and draining his body's warmth and vitality with every passing second.

He felt exhausted. His body bent forward as he gasped heavily. Every breath was an ordeal; the scorching air burned his throat and seared his internal organs.

His steps slowed, and his eyelids grew heavy. The lava began to melt his feet. He was powerless to stop it; he couldn't even lift his feet anymore, and he could no longer feel the pain.

But I want to live. I can't die. He struggled to straighten up and roared at the sky, "Even if I die, I'll die on my feet!" The will to live surged within him, like a cool stream flowing into his withered body, and his vitality suddenly returned. The Chaos Golden Body Art began circulating rapidly within him, quickly repairing his scorched skin as the pain faded away.

"You have been abandoned by the Great Dao. It will destroy you. Heavenly punishment." Pangu, now somewhat clearer-headed, heard a voice in his mind.

The Black Qi drifting through the sky rapidly gathered into a series of sky-locking ropes. They rattled as they lunged toward Pangu. In an instant, chains bound his limbs, head, and torso. Mysterious patterns appeared across them, and the more Pangu struggled, the tighter they grew. The chain around his head was especially tight, nearly crushing his skull.

"These are Sky-Trapping Ropes. They can bind the sky, seal the earth, and imprison the spirit. The more you struggle, the tighter they become."

Pangu drew upon his primordial spirit, only to find it sealed inside a vast net. His spirit twisted and writhed within it, and he couldn't draw even a trace of his magic power.

"Since the Great Dao has abandoned you, perish along with this space."

As the voice fell, a rift that cleaved through heaven and earth appeared out of nowhere. The ground rapidly collapsed. The volcanoes erupted and then crumbled, and the earth gradually vanished bit by bit.

The sky was collapsing and disappearing, too. The space left to him shrank little by little. Once the rift that had split heaven and earth reached him, he would vanish into nothingness along with this space.

He struggled. Was he really going to do nothing but wait for death? Even his divine abilities couldn't repair the space as it began to collapse.

What should I do? I can't die here. I haven't even comprehended my own Dao yet. There's still so much information about the Dao within the Chaos Green Lotus that I haven't had time to study. Right—the Chaos Green Lotus!

A stream of green light shot toward his brow, bringing a cool sensation. The net sealing his primordial spirit vanished. This was only a space. As long as he broke through it, he could escape. What did its collapse have to do with him? If you're a sky, then I'll open you.

"Sky Opening!"

Pangu used his primordial spirit to control the Sky-Opening Axe. One swing cleaved across the entire sky, splitting the spreading rift in two as well.

When he opened his eyes, all he saw was a sea of red Killing Qi.

Xuanhuang's concerned voice rang out in his mind. "Daoist Brother Pangu, wake up! You've fallen under that man's illusion!"

Pangu looked at Xuanhuang, still fighting nearby, and felt deeply moved. What more could one ask for than a friend like him?

Scenes of his cultivation with Xuanhuang came to mind.

"The Dao is within the heart. Comprehend it with your heart, and its truth will reveal itself."

"Daoist Magic follows nature. Go with the flow; when the Dao is in your heart, it will reveal itself."

Pangu listened intently to Xuanhuang's thoughts on comprehending the Dao. He knew that his birth had come with a certain mission, one connected to the Three Thousand Demon Gods born within Chaos.

What connection did he have to the Three Thousand Demon Gods? Why had the Three Thousand Chaos Demon Gods come into being? Why had they been born, each possessing the power to reach heaven and earth?

He quieted his mind and listened.

"When the Great Dao first took shape, heaven and earth were incomplete, all things nonexistent, and everything was lifeless. What meaning was there in that? I shall evolve you all through myself, perfect myself, then have you evolve yourselves and perfect the Great Dao."

"All things exist within heaven and earth, but where did heaven and earth come from? What laws govern them, and how do those laws operate?"

"To evolve all things, I must first resolve the problem of the Chaos Demon Gods. I am no Chosen One, but I am the Tribulation Bearer. It isn't that the Great Dao fears us Chaos Demon Gods. It needs to find the Chosen One among us to help it evolve and become complete."

"Since that's the case, I'll help you along. We'll see whether someone else comprehends the Dao first, or I do."

Pangu opened his eyes and glanced at Xuanhuang, who was still meditating with his eyes closed. He sighed inwardly. Perhaps the one before me is the Chosen One.

He woke Xuanhuang and told him what he had been thinking.

Xuanhuang was startled, then seemed to gain some insight as well. "Good. My Dao is to follow the natural course of things. Then I'll pursue the Great Dao together with you, Daoist Brother."

Pangu and Xuanhuang fought their way through the Chaos Demon Gods, one attacking and the other defending. Their teamwork was flawless. Few Demon Gods could survive a single swing of Pangu's axe intact.

But they had also accumulated a great deal of Killing Qi. As their slaughter grew, the Killing Qi showed signs of condensing into a physical form. The resentment of the innocent Demon Gods they had killed also drifted around Pangu without ceasing, gradually merging with the Killing Qi.

The Demon Gods in Chaos gradually perished, and the Killing Qi gradually took on a tangible form. It usually remained hidden around Pangu, but from time to time, it influenced him.

Xuanhuang was unaffected, protected by the Xuanhuang Qi surrounding him. But as he watched Pangu gradually change, he had a bad feeling. He sensed a tremendous threat.

"Daoist Brother Pangu, I think something is strange. Those Demon Gods are all too weak. It seems we've fallen into someone else's scheme."

Pangu frowned. "What's strange about that? They're nothing but minnows. Who could scheme against me? There are only one or two Demon Gods left. Once we deal with them, we'll be able to attain the Great Dao."

With that, he strode ahead, leaving Xuanhuang, who was still deep in thought, far behind.

It was a strange space, unlike the endless expanse of black and white. It had light and color, with white clouds drifting and lush greenery reflected in the sky. Flowers and grass grew everywhere; verdant pines layered the slopes, and red blossoms shone brightly. Mountains and waters abounded, with deep green peaks and crystalline streams. There were adorable creatures he had never seen before: deer called, cranes danced, tigers roared, and apes howled. There were even grotesque, hideous creatures, with poisonous insects rustling and ferocious beasts snarling.

Pangu's mind went blank. What kind of place was this? Why was it so beautiful? He even felt disgust for the Chaos he lived in—so monotonous, dull, and boring.

"No, this is wrong. How can I allow such a beautiful place to exist? I must destroy it." His peaceful face suddenly twisted into a savage expression, and he shrieked madly, "Yang Mei, I'll destroy your Daoist sanctuary!"

Yang Mei's Law of Space was extraordinary. He could transform it into a space of his own, and his true form was the Hollow Willow Tree, which could absorb all the magic treasures in the world. Unfortunately for him, the power of the Sky-Opening Axe was his bane. Faced with Pangu's Three Sky-Opening Axes, his true form was shattered, and his Great Encompassment Immortal realm proved no match. He perished on the spot.

Just then, a thunderous peal rang through Chaos. Pangu, now calm, received a piece of information in his mind. His consciousness struggled fiercely. Why? Why was this being done to him?

Pangu glared into the depths of Chaos, a boundless hatred rising within him.

It turned out that the Great Dao had given Pangu a message: he had to eliminate Xuanhuang to attain the Great Dao and become the supreme ruler.

Xuanhuang was his friend of countless millions of years. How could he bring himself to attack him?

Then Pangu's head began to throb as if it would split apart. A voice echoed in his mind. "If you want to achieve great things, how can you afford to be indecisive? If he doesn't die, he'll be nothing but an ant in Chaos."

"No, no. I won't do it."

"You've cultivated for countless eons. What was it for? You fought the Three Thousand Demon Gods. What was it for? You know what your mission is. You can't deceive yourself. You must destroy the other Chaos God Demons, split open Chaos, and evolve a perfect world with immortals and spirits, all things and every kind of life. You can't escape it."

"No! I won't do it!" Pangu clutched his head and roared. "Who are you? Show yourself!"

Pangu pounded his head with all his might. His iron fists, strong enough to fight the heavens, struck his skull again and again. Compared with the pain in his mind, the pain in his body was negligible.

"I can help you. You don't have to resist. Just give in, and it'll all be so much easier."

A pair of enormous hands suddenly appeared in Pangu's mind. They seized half of his primordial spirit and wrenched it out of his body. He spat out a mouthful of blood, then stared at the writhing black spirit in his hands and chuckled foolishly. "I'd rather be incomplete than let you control me. Go!" With that, he used his Law to destroy it.