The Nine Great Dao Lords

Those points of light were gray-gold, drifting slowly from where he had vanished like countless glowing butterflies.

The disintegration spread upward.

Calves, knees, thighs, waist and abdomen, chest.

He watched his hands dissolve, watched those motes of light drift from his fingertips.

Even as his face dissolved, it remained calm.

"Fake."

Two words.

So soft, soft enough to sound like he was talking to himself.

But the instant those two words fell, the entire void began to shatter.

The darkness, the eyes, that enormous palm—all of it shattered like mirrors.

The shards whirled through the air, and every fragment reflected Abyss Great Lord's ferocious face.

Those faces twisted, warped, and broke apart within the fragments.

Everything vanished.

Chu Ming opened his eyes.

He was still sitting atop the chessboard.

The one hundred and eight fragments of time on the board had all disappeared.

Only he and the old man holding the hourglass across from him remained.

Elder Time looked at him, his eyes full of approval.

That approval was utterly undisguised, written plainly across his face.

"A thousand years of time, one hundred and eight fragments—you broke through every one."

His voice was hoarse, yet every word carried deep emotion.

"I have lived for so long, yet this is the first time I have seen someone with such an unwavering Dao Heart."

He raised his hand.

The sixth fragment rose from his palm and slowly drifted toward Chu Ming.

The fragment traced an arc through the void, leaving behind a faint golden trail.

That trail lingered in the darkness for a long while, like a fleeting bridge connecting Elder Time and Chu Ming.

Chu Ming raised his hand and caught it.

The moment the fragment touched his palm, a warm sensation flowed through him.

That warmth was pure, identical to