Divine War

Su Ye caught the Lotus War Goddess, whose dharma body had been sent flying backward.

Looking at the transcendently beautiful Lotus War Goddess in his arms and feeling that sensation as if she were truly flesh and blood, Su Ye's expression shifted. In particular, the damage to her silver battle armor revealed her fair, delicate arms, sending a jolt through him like an electric shock.

How can this be so real?

Su Ye was filled with doubt. From the very beginning, he had assumed the Lotus War Goddess was merely a phantom, a condensed dharma body, and not real.

Yet, looking at her now, it was not so. The Lotus War Goddess in his arms was no different from a real person, especially given that her touch was incredibly lifelike.

The Lotus War Goddess looked somewhat unnatural at this moment. With a flash, she vanished from Su Ye's arms, though she did not move too far away. She looked at Su Ye with a calm expression, her eyes carrying a trace of bewilderment.

Just a moment ago, a special power had surged through her—the same power God Emperor Qimu had used to grievously wound her. Its might was sufficient to crush those in the Heavenly Passage Realm, yet the man before her had remained completely unscathed.

Seeing the Lotus War Goddess looking at him, Su Ye felt a bit awkward. Could it be that his previous actions were considered impolite, and she was going to blame him for it?

The Lotus War Goddess merely glanced at Su Ye without a word, then turned her gaze toward the God Emperor who had stepped out from another dimension. The God Emperor before them was the true one, whereas the previous one had been nothing more than an avatar.

"God Emperor Qimu."

The Lotus War Goddess recognized who this God Emperor was, her gaze turning icy and filled with a frigid intent to kill.

There were no records of God Emperor Qimu in these Lower Realms, for he was not a god of the Eight Lower Realms, but one who hailed from the Three Thousand Provinces of the Upper Realm.

In the ancient era, the gods of the Upper Realm invaded the Lower Realm, sparking a war of gods that shattered the laws of heaven and earth in the Eight Lower Realms. Since then, the Eight Lower Realms had fallen into decline, making it nearly impossible for anyone to ignite their divine fire and become a powerhouse.

God Emperor Qimu, whose cultivation was at the peak of the Heavenly God Realm, had been one of the main forces behind the invasion, and countless gods of the Lower Realm had perished at his hands.

"Indeed."

God Emperor Qimu looked at the Lotus War Goddess with an indifferent expression and smiled. "Many beings covet you. Although you have transcended, your essence remains that of a divine herb. I imagine that after your transcendence, your medicinal efficacy is even more astonishing.

However, I did not expect you to be so heaven-defying. I recall that even a Cult Master once moved against you, yet failed to capture you completely."

A divine herb was an supreme treasure even in the Three Thousand Provinces of the Upper Realm, enough to incite Cult Master-level existences to fight over it. Whether refined or cultivated, it could bolster one's own foundation.

The Lotus War Goddess remained cold and silent. She drew more power from the Divine Moon, the radiance cascading down like a waterfall, making her appear incomparably sacred. Bathed in the light of the Divine Moon, her silver armor shimmered with divine brilliance, radiating majesty and strength.

She struck out with a palm, and the heavens and earth roared and trembled, as if unable to withstand that terrifying power and on the verge of collapse. One could see just how formidable this strike was.

Clatter, clatter...

God Emperor Qimu made his move. A wheel of light emerged behind him, from which chains flew out toward the Lotus War Goddess. Simultaneously, he formed strange hand seals, causing patterns to emerge upon the chains. As light permeated them, the chains transformed into powerful ferocious beasts—Suanni, Bian, Ying Dragon, Golden Peng...

They let out terrifying roars, their fierce aura chilling, causing the firmament to shake.

"That is?"

Runes swirled within Su Ye's eyes. Although his Samsara Eye was not particularly outstanding in terms of insight, it was still a Heavenly Eye. Furthermore, God Emperor Qimu's methods were not overly profound, and he could see the peculiarity of those chains; they were not merely simple precious techniques, but chains that imprisoned the beasts themselves.

His precious technique must be those chains. As for the beasts, they are likely controlled by the technique—they appear real, but in truth, they are merely puppets.

Su Ye quickly analyzed the essence of God Emperor Qimu's technique, though being able to analyze it did not mean he could break it.

Facing the surging torrent of beasts, the Lotus War Goddess showed no fear. She charged directly into their midst, her jade hands sweeping through to instantly suppress dozens of powerful beasts.

However, the suppressed beasts recovered quickly; after all, they were not true beasts, but tangible forms manifested from runes.

The Lotus War Goddess realized that simply shattering the beasts was useless. A flash of light appeared in her hand, revealing a battle halberd. She swung it, severing the chains one by one.

Once the chains were broken, the beasts bound to them dissolved into rain of light and vanished.

Facing the incredibly formidable Lotus War Goddess, God Emperor Qimu felt no concern. He now possessed nearly inexhaustible power, enough to wear her down.

The broken chains recovered quickly, manifesting new, powerful beasts that charged toward the Lotus War Goddess.

"Hum."

"Boom."

"Roar."

These beasts manifested from the chains were not merely empty shells; they could unleash precious techniques and divine abilities. For a time, that region of the world became a sea of runes, with various powerful techniques blooming incessantly.

Seeing the Lotus War Goddess entangled, Su Ye considered whether he should go up and help. Although he was very weak now, he could see that the strength of the two combatants was not actually that high.

That's right, not that high.

Whether it was the Lotus War Goddess or God Emperor Qimu, they had both been incredibly powerful in their lifetimes, far surpassing ordinary gods, but they were no longer who they once were.

The Lotus War Goddess was reduced to a small section of her root system, while God Emperor Qimu was nothing more than a remnant soul clinging to life within a Totem Pillar.

The current strength of both sides was at the Marquis Level. Of course, one could not truly treat them as ordinary Marquis-level beings, as the precious techniques and divine abilities they mastered were extremely terrifying; even a Venerable fighting them could be killed if they were the least bit careless.

As for why they could unleash such world-destroying power despite being only at the Marquis Level?

That was obvious: this world was not the true world, but a mental realm constructed by God Emperor Qimu, where space was naturally very fragile.

Time flowed on.

Although the Lotus War Goddess was currently entangled, her power had not diminished significantly, and she still possessed immense combat strength.

"Puff."

God Emperor Qimu's body was blasted apart once again.

The shattered remains quickly dissolved into a rain of light, reforming into a new soul body as he glared at the Lotus War Goddess with a grim expression; he could not fathom why his opponent possessed such an inexhaustible supply of power.

Could it be that her true form was still alive?

The Little Dream God Lotus before him was merely a small root segment, not her true self; if her original body were still alive, it would naturally be able to channel power to her without end.

But if the true body were still alive, why not come to reclaim this small root segment?

It couldn't possibly be that she looked down on it.

It was not just him who was confused; at this moment, the Lotus War Goddess herself was equally bewildered.

One knows one's own affairs best, and the Lotus War Goddess knew that her true body had long since perished in the ancient era, leaving behind only this small, remnant root.

The reason she could channel a constant stream of power was because someone—or to be precise, two people—were continuously providing her with the power of faith.

What was going on with those two?

Did they have infinite energy?