It was clear now—Fang Han had no choice left.
If I don't go all out, I'll die here.
These two deranged women… once I rise further, I'll capture them both, break their wills, forge them into living artifacts, and make them suffer for eternity.
Gritting his teeth, Fang Han forced himself to endure. More than once his magic nearly collapsed; if not for the World Tree bracing his Golden Core from within, he would've already been shattered to dust.
His Golden Core was powerful beyond comparison—ninety divine abilities woven into a single radiant sphere. But even a furious tiger can be torn apart by two wolves. Both women matched him blow for blow—and one of them surpassed him outright.
Especially the blind woman, Brahma Qingying.
Her strength was above his. Her nameless sword could summon endless torrents of Great Chaos Lightning with the smallest flick. Its destructive force rivaled the final calamity of a dying world, tearing matter down to formless primal qi. Even the Five-Emperor Canopy trembled violently under her strikes.
Meanwhile, Yan Shuiyi maintained the Myriad Immortal Sword Array, trapping him within a world of blades. The Canghai Divine Pearl at its core suppressed the entire formation—no matter how Fang Han struck, he could not break free.
And the Universe Seal she burned was even worse—it completely locked away his connection to the Five-Element Talisman. Escape was impossible.
Then she unleashed her true horror.
Her Calamity Spirit, her natal avatar, descended again and again—waves of apocalyptic force hammering Fang Han until he wished for death. With the pearl and the calamity spirit alternating, the pressure never stopped. Like waves battering a cliff, one tide after another… and eventually, all cliffs crumble.
BOOM!
Another blast of Great Chaos Lightning struck Fang Han's crown. The Five-Emperor Canopy buckled. Brahma Qingying's sword sent tens of thousands of blade-shadows lashing out, clashing directly with the Eight-Part Pagoda, piercing into its interior and striking at the eight artifacts within. A pulling force surged from her blade—she was trying to seize the pagoda itself.
She had seen its worth.
A treasure on the verge of becoming a Dao artifact—mysterious, powerful, not yet awakened.
Break its seals, and she could claim it.
Fang Han's eyes widened. He couldn't let that happen.
Ignoring the assault on his Golden Core, he snapped his finger. The Blood Skyblade spun into countless crimson arcs, weaving a net of blades to intercept Brahma Qingying's sword-qi. If he didn't stop her, she might actually steal the pagoda.
But the collision was catastrophic.
Chaos sword-qi shredded all his blade-light in an instant. Blood Night—the spirit within the Blood Skyblade—shuddered, nearly torn apart.
"What monstrous sword-qi!"
A voice surged through Fang Han's mind:
"You are still only a low-grade Dao artifact, and barely refined for a year. You cannot fight this sword—whatever demon-forged thing it is. It can unleash Great Chaos Lightning! You must merge my power with the Eight-Part Pagoda. Become one with it. You and the pagoda must fuse!"
Fang Han retreated under her assault—but in retreat found an opening.
He pressed a finger to the Blood Skyblade.
The blade dissolved into countless blood-runes and surged into the highest tier of the Eight-Part Pagoda, merging into the blood-colored Buddha within.
"Blood Night! Today you ascend to Buddhahood—become the Buddha of Endless Blood and Salvation!"
Thunder cracked.
The blood-Buddha's body solidified. It swelled, radiating a twisted holiness—divine light interwoven with blood-light. Its face shifted into Blood Night's visage.
Which was, of course, Fang Han's own.
He had fed the blood-Buddha to Blood Night, merging the Blood Skyblade and Eight-Part Pagoda into one, forcing the treasure to evolve.
Originally, the Blood Dragon Crystal Mountain had strengthened the Blood Skyblade. But after forming his Golden Core, Fang Han used that mountain to refine the Eight-Part Pagoda instead—accidentally merging in the Five-Element talismans, birthing a strange treasure no one could classify.
He had never dared push it further.
What if he'd poured years into refining it only for it to break free and abandon him?
But today?
He no longer had the luxury of caution.
The Eight-Part Pagoda exploded with power.
A crimson Buddha manifested atop it, draped in a radiant kasaya embroidered from the Five-Element talismans. The six sacred syllables—Om Mani Padme Hum—flowed endlessly across its robe.
The Buddha reached out.
A giant hand of blood-light and divine radiance seized Brahma Qingying's body, momentarily halting her Great Chaos Lightning.
"Now!"
Fang Han roared.
He opened his mouth wide, pouring his magic power and Immortal World essence into his Golden Core. The core condensed, blazing brighter—shrinking a thousandfold before detonating outward in a surge of raw force.
It blasted Yan Shuiyi's Calamity Spirit apart.
The Great Devouring Technique erupted—bridges to the netherworld extending out, Heaven-Abyss portals tearing open. The sword array's barriers were smashed aside as he surged toward the edge of the formation—
Only to find towering fleshy pillars sealing the heavens and earth, locking space itself.
The Universe Seal.
Even the Five-Element talismans were suppressed.
I'm finished.
Fang Han felt it in his bones.
This was the deadliest calamity of his life.
Yan Shuiyi's voice echoed from all directions:
"Fang Han, you cannot escape. Unless you survive for half an hour—once the Universe Seal fades, you can leave. But you will not last that long."
Her tone sharpened.
"And your treasure—the Eight-Part Pagoda. Yes, that is its name, stolen from Panlong Star. You actually merged it with the Five-Element talismans and the Blood Night spirit, twisting it into something neither artifact nor Dao artifact. Strong, yes—but incomplete. Only a Longevity expert can truly fuse such things. You have forced it far too early!"
Yan Shuiyi recovered fully.
Her Calamity Spirit re-formed.
The sword array spun once more, pressing down on him with renewed fury.
Brahma Qingying said nothing—she never did. Her black hair lifted like rising smoke, each strand glowing with azure light, transforming into pulsing blue thunder-hearts.
Heart-Thunder Law.
Fang Han's expression changed instantly.
He'd studied thunder arts with Fang Qingxue—he knew their hierarchy well.
The three deadliest:
Void God-Thunder
—the lightning that falls when a Longevity titan tears open the gates of the Immortal Realm.
Great Chaos Lightning
—the primordial thunder the ancient gods used to forge worlds.
Heart-Thunder True Law
—a divine immortal art, moving with one's will, detonating from all directions, endless, inescapable.
BOOM.
Hundreds of thunder-hearts pulsed around him—
And all detonated.
Fang Han was engulfed entirely.
His Golden Core cracked.
"Gh—!"
He almost vomited blood.
No choice left.
I have to detonate the longevity-gift Golden Core—the one meant for Linglong Immortal Venerable. Only by exploding it can I carve out a path. But I must hold on until the Universe Seal weakens… half an hour…
Poisonous thoughts churned in his mind.
He bellowed:
"You're forcing me! If you keep pushing, I'll blow my Golden Core and drag you both to hell! A Golden Core forged from ninety divine abilities—with the Five-Emperor Demon Gods' power—do you understand how terrifying that explosion would be?!"
Both women hesitated.
Even with their might, a Golden Core blast at Fang Han's level would doom them. Even a Longevity giant might perish in it.
Yan Shuiyi whispered coldly:
"Hmph. I have the Canghai Divine Pearl. The moment you self-detonate, I can hide inside it. At worst, you'll break the pearl—I can always refine another."
But as she spoke—
A great tremor shook the world.
HUMMMMM—
Reality rippled.
The sword array shattered.
The fleshy pillars of the Universe Seal crumbled to dust.
Even the Universe Seal—crafted by Taihuang Heaven's Supreme Emperor—was broken.
What power could do that?
A Longevity titan?
A god?
Then a voice rang out—cold, effortless, disdainful.
"So. You intercepted my messenger halfway?"
"Even Taihuang Heaven stoops to scheming against a mere junior? How utterly shameful."
Yan Shuiyi froze.
Her face drained of blood.
"Linglong Immortal Venerable…"
She trembled like a mouse before a hunting cat.