A jumble of Space-Time spikes crisscrossed the Astral Realm Void, intertwining and entwining to form a constantly shrinking cage.
The spikes pierced the Lord of Truth Lord of Truth from all directions, some aiming at his head, some at his chest, and some at his limbs, as if trying to pierce him completely, nail him to the Void, and bind him there, unable to move.
The Lord of Truth will certainly not sit idly by and wait for death.
Within His chest, a deep Black Hole slowly emerged.
The Black Hole, initially only the size of a pinhead, expanded and multiplied wildly in an instant. A strange gray light emanated from Black Hole core—the "Void Devouring" effect, a result of the fusion of chaotic and Samsara forces, capable of pulling everything in its vicinity into a separate Space-Time layer.
Then--
With a loud bang!
The Black Hole suddenly exploded!
The explosion was silent, yet it triggered a terrifying chain reaction at a conceptual level.
The spatial folding effect caused by the explosion of Black Hole is like a portal that has been violently pried open, and on the far other side of the Astral Realm, at the same time, an identical Black Hole opening appears.
The figure of the Lord of Truth transformed into a gray-white streak of light amidst the shockwave of the explosion, disappearing from one end and calmly emerging from the other, completely unharmed!
The Space-Time spikes affected by the Black Hole explosion were instantly pulled, twisted, and Crush by the expanding Black Hole's gravity, turning into countless silver-blue fragments that could no longer pose any threat.
The Black Hole had just exploded—having lost the Lord of Truth as its energy core—expanded wildly in the Void, instantly transforming into a terrifying celestial body with a diameter of thousands of light-years!
The Black Hole was like an unfillable Abyss, tearing, swallowing, and annihilating large swathes of the surrounding Void, with even starlight unable to escape its gravitational pull.
The structure of the Astral Realm has collapsed and crumbled on a large scale in this region, like a wooden structure that has been hollowed out by giant insects, and it may collapse completely at any time.
The Lord of Truth stood at the far end, his face slightly pale.
That move, "Black Hole Traversal," though seemingly effortless, actually consumed a large amount of His Chaos Origin and Samsara Power. In the Trinity state, this consumption was shared by the power of all three, but even so, His aura still showed a noticeable decline.
And just as He regained His footing—
"Stars: Doomsday!!"
The Mother of the Stars's hammer is hurtling down!
That speed far exceeded the Lord of Truth's expectations. The attack of the Space-Time spikes was merely a prelude, and the escape from the Black Hole explosion had already been calculated by the Mother of the Stars.
From the moment the Space-Time spikes rained down, the Mother of the Stars had already foreseen all possible ways for the Lord of Truth to escape, and the instant the Lord of Truth emerged from the Black Hole, she precisely delivered the final blow of the Hammer of Earth to Him!
With this hammer blow, the entire Astral Realm trembled violently!
That terrifying, invincible power seemed capable of destroying everything.
Wherever the hammer passed, Space-Time were torn apart inch by inch like thin paper, laws broke apart like rotten wood, and cause and effect shattered like spider silk.
Everything that stood in the way of the Hammer of Earth —whether matter, energy, laws, or concepts themselves—was crushed, flattened, and reduced to dust before that pure, ultimate "heaviness"!
The Mother of the Stars at this moment is the complete opposite of what she has shown before.
The previous Mother of the Stars was a perfect, all-encompassing being—possessing profound Law of Earth, exquisite manipulation of matter, vast evolution of all paths, and a dazzling realm of starlight. She displayed a grandeur and erudition that "encompasses everything," like an Endless Continent that has everything, lacks nothing, and can handle anything.
Now, all that remains is heaviness.
So heavy it was enough to crush countless Space-Time! The power concentrated within that hammerhead was so immense that it caused the River of Space-Time to bend, deform, and collapse. It was as if the entire River of Space-Time spanning the Astral Realm could not bear this weight, groaning under the hammer's force.
A starting point heavy enough to shrink a super-universe to the size of a marble! Even the vast cosmic structures composed of billions of galaxies are like insignificant dust before this hammer blow, easily compressed, condensed, and collapsed into an Infinity small singularity.
It was so heavy that even the realm itself could not bear it! The power that the Mother of the Stars was unleashing at this moment had already subtly surpassed the realm of the first or Second-Step Eternity, touching the edge of that higher level.
This power can no longer be defined by "realm" but is something more essential - it is the original heart of the earth that has been condensed over countless years, the Endless foundation that it has accumulated all the way from the oldest era of the Astral Realm, and the ultimate glory that it bursts out by compressing everything into this one hammer!
The sense of extreme danger has returned!
The Lord of Truth's pupils contracted sharply. Before He could even fully adjust His posture, He instinctively raised the Spear of Truth in His hand. A sharp golden light also appeared on the blade—unlike the previous dark gold, this golden light was now fully revealed, as if the purest sword intent had solidified into a substance, and every ray of light carried a sharpness that could pierce through everything.
"Endless Sky-Piercing!!"
The Lord of Truth unleashed a devastating strike!
The moment the spear swept across, the entire Astral Realm began to tremble violently. Countless gray chaotic patterns bloomed along the trajectory of the spear blade, like a grand scroll unfolding across the Astral Realm sky.
Those patterns contain the ultimate Daoist intent of "breaking through all constraints and severing all ties," Lancelot's most triumphant killing move in the Spirit Ruins domain.
But strangely enough, the shot pierced the Mother of the Stars ' chest without causing any damage.
The spearhead pierced through the body of the Mother of the Stars, as if passing through a phantom. The heavy will condensed in the hammer of "Stars of Doomsday" underwent a subtle shift at the moment of contact with the spearhead—She deliberately allowed the spearhead to pass through her own illusion, concentrating all her power on the crashing hammer!
Boom--!!!
The Hammer of Earth's terrifying and heavy blow struck the shaft of the Lord of Truth head-on!
The impact of that instant far surpassed any attack the Lord of Truth had ever endured. He transformed into a golden beam of light piercing through the Astral Realm, and was blasted away along the direction of the hammer's force! The golden light darted wildly through the Void of the Astral Realm, shattering, annihilating, and evaporating everything in its path under the terrifying impact.
His flight speed increased and became more and more ferocious, leaving a trail behind him that was darker than darkness itself—an absolute Void that even starlight could not fill, a permanent scar left after the spatial structure was completely crushed!
The Lord of Truth was like a pebble flung by immense force, piercing through countless star planes, penetrating layers of Space-Time folds, and shattering countless fragments of the Astral Realm in its path. His speed was so great that even he could not control it, and could only watch helplessly as he was swept up by that terrifying power and crashed madly toward the edge barrier of the Astral Realm!
The Mother of the Stars ' purpose is now crystal clear.
He will temporarily banish the Lord of Truth from the Astral Realm!
Beyond the Astral Realm, the Lord of Truth will lose the resonance and blessing of the Astral Realm laws, will no longer be able to borrow the power of the Astral Realm origin, and will no longer be able to use the network of laws within the Astral Realm as his battlefield advantage.
The Mother of the Stars can then use this time difference—even if it's only a few breaths—to accelerate her suppression and control of the Astral Realm Will.
Once He has completely taken control of the Astral Realm Will, the entire Astral Realm will become an extension of His power. At that time, even if the Lord of Truth were to return, he would still have to face a Mother of the Stars is several times more powerful than she is now!
It seemed the Lord of Truth was about to break through the edge of the Astral Realm and be completely engulfed in the vast chaos of the outside world—
Spiderwebs suddenly unfurled behind Him!
The spiderwebs had a silvery-gray sheen, and each thread was woven from pure sealing power and Law of Space, making them extremely tough.
Like enormous cushioning pads, they spread out layer upon layer behind the Lord of Truth. The first layer was shattered, the second torn apart, the third pierced through, the fourth, fifth, sixth... countless layers of spiderwebs shattered one after another under the Lord of Truth's impact, but each layer reduced His frenzied speed by a negligible fraction. Thousands upon thousands of layers of spiderwebs piled together, finally slowing down, buffering, and bringing His extremely fast impact speed to a halt, bit by bit.
The Lord of Truth landed smoothly, his feet touching the Void. He staggered slightly before regaining his balance.
He raised his hand and gently wiped away the golden blood seeping from the corner of his mouth with his thumb. The blood shimmered faintly at his fingertips, containing the essence of the Triune origin.
Then He raised His head and looked toward the Mother of the Stars, who was gazing at Him from afar.
"Mother Goddess..." the Lord of Truth spoke, his voice slightly hoarse, yet still calm and composed, "As expected, you are not as calm as you seem."
He slowly straightened up, Spirit Saint Domain on his shoulder shone even brighter, replenishing the power he had lost from the devastating blow.
"You want to temporarily banish me from the Astral Realm so you can have time to dominate the entire Astral Realm Will? Haha..."
The Lord of Truth laughed.
The laughter carried a hint of knowing He had seen through His opponent's intentions, a hint of fighting spirit that only fueled His excitement at being cornered, and a hint of certainty—as if all of this was still within His expectations.
"What a pity," He said softly, raising the Spear of Truth once more. The Eye of Truth at the tip of the spear shone with an even more dazzling purple light. "Your move was skillful, but it was still a little lacking."
"What's the difference?" The voice of the Mother of the Stars came from afar, still steady and profound.
"The difference lies in—" The smile of the Lord of Truth vanished abruptly, replaced by a resolute glint. "You've forgotten what I'm carrying on my shoulders."
On His shoulder, the Spirit Saint Domain suddenly burst forth with boundless brilliance. Within that brilliance, the golden veins of the Heavenly Net spun wildly, the gray wheel of the Heaven-Bearing Reincarnation Disc rotated madly, and the will of countless immortals and gods surged like a tsunami. The entire realm was supplying Him with the final and strongest primal force.
"Even if you drive me away," the voice of the Lord of Truth echoes throughout the Astral Realm, "I can bring my realm back and fight my way back."