"You're bullying the tree too far!"
Feng Yue roared. An eye manifested upon his enormous trunk, built from the power of Great Dao runes and fused with the supreme mysteries of the Chaos Bell.
Faced with the Five Elements Demon God's sudden attack, Feng Yue began to fight back. The moment the Chaos Bell invaded his body, it was directly broken down and refined, turning into a pure force of the Great Dao.
At that moment, the light around him grew ever more intense. He had even comprehended quite a bit of the mysteries of the Five Elements Laws. Compared with before, he had become more noble, already beginning to show the majesty of a Demon God.
"Time Stop!"
The Five Elements Demon God was shocked, his pupils suddenly contracting. All around them, everything fell silent; even the wind abruptly ceased. Everything was frozen in that instant.
"You can even use the power of time and space from the Chaos Pearl?"
At that moment, the Five Elements Demon God felt he had violated some taboo of the Dao and provoked an unfathomable existence.
He wanted to leave this place as quickly as possible, but found that he couldn't move his beastly body at all. Time was sealed, space was confined, and even the power of Chaos could no longer flow.
It was said that the Chaos Pearl controlled boundless time and infinite space. It was a supreme treasure of time and space, immensely powerful, capable of allowing someone to attain the Dao by an unorthodox path.
He never expected that today it would be devoured and refined by a Chaos spirit root, which had gained intelligence and learned how to cultivate.
The Five Elements Demon God grew somewhat timid. Deep in his heart, he called upon the Five Elements Laws to manifest, but it had no effect.
Feng Yue had effortlessly blocked his attack just moments ago.
"I was born with a kind heart and no desire to fight for the path to the Dao. But you, Demon God, have forced me again and again. Since that's the case, I'll set foot on the path of immortality, attain immeasurable Dao arts, and wage war across Chaos!"
As Feng Yue spoke, the sounds of the Dao rang out. The aura of the Great Dao flowed around him, and his entire trunk carried an ancient, uncanny aura of laws.
He cultivated no Great Dao Laws, yet his very being carried the power of the Great Dao. In the boundless Chaos, he breathed in the power of Chaos every day, sometimes absorbing the elements of earth, water, fire, and wind to temper his body.
Only today had Feng Yue finally understood what his talent was.
He had no desire to comprehend the Three Thousand Laws, yet he could absorb the power of any law in Chaos—including the power of the Five Elements Laws that the Five Elements Demon God had driven into his body over the years in an attempt to refine him. He had refined it all, turning it into his own comprehension.
In fact, according to Feng Yue's Dao Heart, his understanding of the Five Elements Great Dao Law had already reached around thirty percent.
However, after accidentally eating the Chaos Pearl, his true form—the Chaos Tree—had mutated into the Spacetime Chaos Tree. He cultivated the Great Dao of Time and Space as his primary path, with the Five Elements Dao as a secondary path. If he could absorb other Great Dao Laws in the future, he could cultivate those as well.
Hearing a Chaos Tree explain itself, the Five Elements Demon God was even more confused.
This Chaos spirit root seemed unlike any he had encountered before.
"Forget it! You bizarre tree, I'll destroy you today, no matter what!"
"Five Elements Great Dao, heed my command!"
"Reverse Five Elements Dao—generating, overcoming, annihilating!"
"Great Dao Forbidden Art: Chaos Source Severance, Five Elements Technique!"
The Five Elements Demon God had gone somewhat mad. To exterminate a single Chaos spirit root, he was willing to invoke the Five Elements Great Dao Law and unleash a Great Dao forbidden art...
This was a method that injured the enemy by a thousand while inflicting eight hundred wounds on oneself.
A Great Dao forbidden art was the trump card of every Chaos Demon God. They would never unleash it unless they were facing life or death.
As a Great Dao Golden Wheel inscribed with the Five Elements Great Dao appeared, it grew even larger than the Five Elements Demon God, whose body stretched a million li. The Great Dao Golden Wheel was an illusory projection summoned by the Demon God, hovering behind him.
The Great Dao Golden Wheel shone brilliantly, surrounded by endless Great Dao Radiance and inscribed with the rune power of the Five Elements Laws. It resembled a great formation, yet was not one.
"Five Elements, take your positions and unleash the might of the Great Dao!"
"Azure Dragon of the East, the utmost of wood!"
"White Tiger of the West, the utmost of metal!"
"Black Tortoise of the North, the utmost of water!"
"Vermilion Bird of the South, the utmost of fire!"
"Qilin of the Center, the utmost of earth!"
Five divine-beast phantoms stepped out from the Great Dao Golden Wheel behind the Five Elements Demon God. They stood there in silence, exuding supreme majesty.
The Five Elements Demon God's true form was itself a fusion of the five divine beasts. Standing at the very front, he was undeniably imposing.
The Time Stop Feng Yue had unleashed was torn apart with ease.
The Five Elements Demon God regained his freedom. At that moment, he seemed like an emperor at the pinnacle of the cosmic Chaos, looking down upon Feng Yue's towering tree form.
Before the Great Dao Golden Wheel, even Feng Yue's ten-million-li trunk seemed insignificant. The Golden Wheel's reach was simply too vast. The surrounding air was filled with the aura of the Five Elements Laws, and even the power of Chaos was tainted by the power of the Five Elements.
"I'll give you one last chance. Erase your soul and intelligence yourself, and I'll spare your Chaos spirit-root body!"
"Get lost!" Feng Yue roared. Even now, this Demon God was still scheming to take him.
The Five Elements Demon God pursed his lips. A thread of blood slowly trickled from the corner of his mouth. That was the price of unleashing a Great Dao forbidden art and summoning the Five Elements Great Dao: to bear a pressure one shouldn't bear in order to use a divine ability one shouldn't use.
"Be annihilated!"
As he spoke, the five divine beasts behind the Five Elements Demon God all spat out the origin of the Five Elements Great Dao. It was the most primordial power of the Five Elements, and it all poured into the Five Elements Demon God.
In the next moment, Feng Yue watched as the Five Elements Demon God was enveloped from head to toe in a wondrous radiance. His aura surged, far surpassing that of a newly transformed Primordial Daluo Golden Immortal, and even approaching the Limitless Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal without limit.
According to the inheritance memories of the Great Dao, every Demon God and every Chaos lifeform—even spirit roots like Chaos Flowers and Chaos Grass that had gained intelligence—understood the realms of the Dao and the path of comprehension.
Chaos Demon Gods who bore the Three Thousand Great Dao Laws had to endure the tempering and baptism of the Great Dao Tribulation on the day they transformed, as well as its ultimate trial. Only then could they successfully transform and reach the realm of Primordial Daluo Golden Immortal.
Ordinary Chaos lifeforms, on the other hand, were merely Chaos spirit roots, Chaos Stones, and other Chaos treasures that had taken human form. Upon transforming, they could only reach the mere realm of Primordial Origin Golden Immortal, equivalent to a Quasi-Saint in the Primordial World.
Feng Yue didn't know if he could withstand this time. At any rate, as things stood, everything had a beginning and an end.
He had devoured the Chaos Pearl, one of the five great treasures of Chaos, absorbed the power of Chaos over countless years, and endured the ceaseless tempering of the Chaos Gale and the elements of earth, water, fire, and wind. On top of that, the Five Elements Demon God had poured three kalpas' worth of Five Elements power into him. Feng Yue felt he might just be able to withstand this fellow's forbidden divine art.
"Come on! Let me see the most terrifying power of the Five Elements Demon God, so I can understand the gap between myself and a top-tier Chaos Demon God!"
Feng Yue shouted toward the Five Elements Demon God in Chaos, then involuntarily summoned every last ounce of his strength and condensed the power of time and space.
The laws of time and space were supreme laws, formed from defying the heavens through time and space. They were nothing as simple as one plus one equals two.
"Time-Space Devouring!"
"Dimensional Overlap!"
Feng Yue spoke, and time and space behind him began to change violently. Even the surrounding Chaos was pulled onto a sheet of paper.
"Die!" the Five Elements Demon God cried. He poured out the power of the Great Dao in his entire body, unleashing a streak of supreme light that charged toward Feng Yue.
Faced with this, Feng Yue said nothing. Whether he lived or died was still unknown.
And the unknown meant there was still hope.
He had yet to transform, and his strength was feeble. Against a Primordial Daluo Golden Immortal, all he could do was fight head-on.
As the power of time and space spread across Feng Yue's trunk, its vast aura was no weaker than the Five Elements Demon God's.
By combining time and space, he created a dimensional devouring field that could form a specific dimension around them.
The two of them seemed to be fighting on a flat plane. Whether the gale howled or water and fire raged, none of it could exist there.
Both divine abilities were terrifying. Each time they manifested, the cosmic Chaos trembled.
The Five Elements Demon God's attack was directly neutralized by Feng Yue. The five-colored arcane light remained dazzling, but could only hang in midair like a thin sheet of paper, reduced to two dimensions.
This was the phenomenon caused by the power of time and space, powerful enough to surpass any Great Dao Law.
"Interesting!"
"Since I've already unleashed the forbidden divine art of the Great Dao and summoned the Five Elements Great Dao, I'll kill you, you freak, today no matter what!"
The Five Elements Demon God spoke with scorn. The pride of a top-tier Chaos Demon God wouldn't allow him to make even the slightest mistake.
"Five Elements Divine Sword, fight by my side!"
The Five Elements Demon God raised his hand and summoned a giant sword wreathed in five-colored light from across the void. Countless runes swirled around it, making one's back go cold.
He was solemn and arrogant, domineering and mighty. Breaking through the vast Chaos universe, his sword arrived in an instant.
Seeing this, Feng Yue hurriedly unleashed Space Blade, turning numerous branches into space runes and striking out with them all at once.
"Boom..."
Explosions thundered one after another, rumbling out for thousands of li.
"Again!"
Feng Yue saw that his divine abilities weren't bad at all. Though he couldn't move, his entire trunk, branches, and even tender leaves could unleash brilliant power of the Great Dao.
"Spatial Severance, Void Blade!"
As he spoke, two more divine abilities clashed fiercely with the Five Elements Divine Sword. Sparks flew everywhere. Tens of millions of branches, each one a Chaos spirit treasure, rang out with a roar whenever they collided with the Five Elements Divine Sword. It was the manifestation of the Great Dao's sound; Chaos spirit treasures were infused with the power of the Great Dao.
The pounding sounds of battle even drew over some tiny Chaos lifeforms: a Stone Man and a Chaos Flower.
From far away, they watched the two terrifying beings fight. They could even glean a trace of their own Dao from the battle.
Feng Yue had no idea.
The Five Elements Demon God, however, reacted with lightning speed.
"Wretched Chaos lifeforms! You dare glean insights from the Chaos phenomena revealed by my battle? You're courting death!"
"Chaos Divine Fire, Soul-Scorching Extinction!"
The Five Elements Demon God casually flicked a purple-gold flame from his hand. It blasted a Chaos Stubborn Stone more than three hundred thousand li away into dust.
The two Chaos lifeforms hiding behind it were burned to ashes as well, turning into the power of Chaos and returning to Chaos.
"How can you be so cruel?"
Feng Yue glanced over, indignant. Could this Demon God really be so bloodthirsty?
"Cruel?"
"This is Chaos, where the strong rule. What place is there for talk of cruelty?"
"I am a Chaos Demon God, born noble, a child of the Great Dao, heir to its laws. How could I let a bunch of ants spy on me?"
After speaking, the Five Elements Demon God gave Feng Yue a contemptuous look, thinking, This Chaos spirit root is rather compassionate, but that's not a good thing in Chaos.
At that moment, Feng Yue understood just how unbelievably dangerous Chaos was. Even a single glance could earn someone a death sentence.
It also proved just how vast the gap was between ordinary Chaos lifeforms and Chaos Demon Gods—not by a little, but by a chasm.
It was the difference between a Saint and an ant. No wonder the myths said that beneath the Saints, all were ants. A Primordial Daluo Golden Immortal was no different from a Saint, and could proudly stand throughout Chaos.
"Space-Time Annihilation!"
Feng Yue was somewhat angry. An ancient and uncanny aura filled his entire body, resembling the Great Dao, yet somehow not the Great Dao.
"Chaos really is so chaotic. There's no order at all!"
After unleashing his divine ability, Feng Yue couldn't help feeling despondent. Coming here through the clouds really hadn't been a good idea.
Not everyone in a novel gets to be the protagonist.
"Sole Sovereign Sword!"
The Five Elements Demon God swung his sword and charged. His colossal body carried the Great Dao Golden Wheel of the Five Elements Great Dao, making him look like a Chaos deity whose radiant form could cow countless demons. A pair of Vermilion Bird feathers on his back bore a sea of divine fire; wherever he passed, everything was set ablaze. Even the power of Chaos could not withstand it.
"Damn it, I have to buy time to transform. Otherwise, if this drags on, I'll never win. I'll be held back until my power of Chaos runs dry and I die!"
Feng Yue's thoughts raced. He looked around. Aside from the boundless Chaos, there wasn't another living being in sight. But their battle had scattered plenty of laws that he could absorb.
The power of Chaos within him wasn't enough to carry him through the tribulation of transformation. He also needed a great deal of time to cultivate in the stillness of the ages.
Now, his only option was to fight while absorbing the power of Chaos and the scattered laws, preparing to transform.
Feng Yue's only choice was to endure. It was difficult, but it held undeniable value for the future: suffer for a time, and enjoy ease for a lifetime!
The battle continued in Chaos for a million years, spanning dozens of epochs. Feng Yue and the Five Elements Demon God still fought back and forth, with neither showing any sign of defeat.
"You won't last much longer. You're just a Chaos spirit root. So what if you devoured the Chaos Pearl? The power of Chaos within you won't hold out for long. Once your origin withers, you'll disappear from this world."
Feng Yue, by contrast, looked rather pleased...
"Big words. Do you think a Chaos Demon God can unleash a forbidden divine art and summon the manifestation of the Five Elements Great Dao without paying a price? You're the one who'll run out of strength before long!"
Feng Yue taunted him. In the time it had taken to pass through a dozen or so epochs—nearly one kalpa—he had built up the equivalent of nearly one kalpa's worth of magic power. He had even absorbed and digested the remaining power of the Chaos Pearl, and through battle, his comprehension of the laws of the Great Dao of Time and Space had deepened considerably.
The Five Elements Demon God lifted his head and gazed down at Feng Yue, a hint of puzzlement in his eyes. "This Chaos Tree really is special. It absorbs the power of Chaos incredibly quickly, and is far more mysterious than an ordinary Chaos Tree!"
Then he gripped his longsword once more and burst into laughter. "I am the master of the Five Elements Great Dao. Through the power of my divine abilities and the interplay of the Five Elements, I can continuously absorb the power of Chaos and convert it into the power of the Five Elements to replenish my strength. I'm already invincible. How can you possibly fight me?"
Keep talking, you bluffer! Feng Yue grumbled inwardly. With a forbidden divine art this powerful, you must have been choking back blood, spitting it out, then swallowing it again.
A forbidden divine art was no longer an ordinary law-based divine ability. It was a last-ditch measure, and the Five Elements Demon God had to be at the end of his rope. He was definitely running on empty, just putting on a brave face.
Both of them kept trying to guess how close the other was to collapsing, each convinced the other was nearing his limit. But neither of them could have imagined that Feng Yue's performance was about to begin.
Before you continue