Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Hum -

Hum -

The entire space started to shiver. Black clouds surged out from nowhere and weaved together. With a rumble of thunder, rain poured down.

The rain was crimson, as if the heavens broke down - this was the sorrow of the world when the mighty perished!

The Ancient was without expression. He suddenly flicked his sleeves. In an instant, the rain stopped and the black clouds in the skies were directly torn apart. All phenomena disappeared.

When mighty beings fell, they galvanized a resonance with the heavens and earth, giving rise to all sorts of phenomena. But such fluctuations were likely to be detected by the outside world.

While the Ancient displayed an incomparably formidable power right now, he was far from being restored to his peak state. So, he didn't want to create unnecessary troubles.

But that time wasn't too far away!

The Ancient turned and looked all around. The nebula formed from the super dragon rumbled and roared as it spun. The Dao Monarch's Great Dao was suppressed by his hand. Everything was going according to plan.

If things went as expected, then once Qin Yu fused with the strength of the super dragon he would have the qualifications to absorb the Dao Monarch's Great Dao. At that time, a genuinely strong mortal body would appear.

He would possess a nearly perfect Ancient physique and have a transcendent Great Dao beneath his feet…and most importantly, after passing through this samsara, the final traces of the brand mark from his hometown would be thoroughly erased.

At that time, he could begin to complete his mission…and this mission concerned everything.

He took a deep breath, suppressing his surging thoughts. The Ancient smiled. After patiently waiting and enduring for hundreds of thousands of years, the time for the harvest had arrived.

But at this moment, the Ancient furrowed his eyebrows together. His eyes fell on the revolving nebula. Several breaths of time later, he smirked. As expected, this was a crafty little kid. There was no way he wouldn't do anything and simply offer up his mortal body.

But it seemed he had yet to realize that in front of absolute strength, all schemes and tricks were nothing but a joke.

Rumble -

Rumble -

The nebula spun faster and faster. A black hole seemed to appear deep within its center, wildly swallowing up the nebula's strength.

It shrank at a speed visible to the naked eye. Soon, a figure was faintly visible. When the Ancient looked down, the figure also opened its eyes. As if sensing something, the figure looked up and two pairs of eyes met each other.

The power of the nebula grew increasingly small and thin. The eyes on both sides were calm, without any fluctuation of emotion.

But within this calm, there was an icy coldness that was enough to freeze everything.

The Ancient chuckled. "I knew I couldn't hide the truth from a junior like you. But I am curious. In this current situation, where did you find the courage to oppose me? Is it just because you have absorbed the strength of the super dragon?

"Not to mention how much of the super dragon's strength you can control right now, but even if you were able to control all of it completely, what meaning is there? After all, you are nothing but a puppet under my control. With just a thought, I can make you abandon all resistance."

He raised a hand and a rune appeared in his palm. Its connection to Qin Yu instantly reached into his heart.

Absolute power over another person's life and death - it was all within a thought!

Shua -

The last bits of the nebula vanished into Qin Yu's body. There was no longer any barrier between the two sides. Qin Yu directly faced the Ancient's question. He took a deep breath, the Ancient's heart in his chest rapidly beating.

Thump -

Thump -

Thump -

Across from Qin Yu, the Ancient furrowed his eyebrows as if he was surprised by something. He looked down at the rune in his palm.

Pa -

With a light sound, the rune shattered. Its pieces tumbled and vanished from sight.

"So that's what happened." The Ancient's complexion was a bit strange. "From the very beginning, you had discovered Dorelis' petty actions and even my own. So you believed everything was in your control? So from the very start, no one controlled you and you have been free all along."

Qin Yu nodded, "That's right."

The strange look on the Ancient's face became even heavier. He looked over Qin Yu and said, "I am confused. Why did you reveal yourself? If you had continued hiding it then you would have obtained the Dao Monarch's Great Dao. If you were to take action at that time, you would have had a much greater chance of success."

Qin Yu lightly said, "I don't believe senior would be so negligent. Before you allowed me to fuse with the Dao Monarch's Great Dao, you would surely erase my consciousness as you did to his so that I vanished from this world first."

"Hahahaha! Qin Yu, you are indeed a smart child. I acknowledge that I am finally beginning to appreciate you." The Ancient laughed, the traces of surprise long since gone. "But you should know that in front of me, you have no chance of success. So what if you are free? If I want to kill you, it is easy. Perhaps you believe that you have the qualifications to fight me after fusing with the super dragon's strength?"

Qin Yu shook his head. "This junior would not dare! Senior has an unfathomably deep cultivation. By myself, I am far from being your match."

The Ancient raised an eyebrow. "You have a helper?"

Qin Yu lifted a hand and punched out, "Of course!"

This fist didn't target the Ancient but instead targeted the suppressed holy mountain that had been fused with the web of darkness.

The Ancient's eyes flashed. He didn't stop Qin Yu's punch. He wanted to see just where Qin Yu's confidence came from. Moreover, the suppression method he arranged wasn't as simple as it seemed. Since Qin Yu had attacked it, he had to be prepared for the inevitable backlash.

Bang -

The holy mountain shook. The black lines of the brand mark were like venomous snakes waking up from hibernation. They instantly followed the punch back and locked onto Qin Yu.

The invisible imprisoning strength spanned over space. It wanted to catch Qin Yu and imprison him inside!

But suddenly, the black lines on the surface of the holy mountain violently shook. They were like tight strings being strummed by an invisible hand.

Then, not only did the imprisoning strength that was spanning across space disappear, but the Dao Monarch's Great Dao also obtained a short reprieve.

At this time, a second accident occurred.

At the summit of the holy mountain, the empty-eyed Dao Monarch whose consciousness had been erased suddenly 'revived'.

To say that he was revived wasn't completely accurate. From the beginning, he hadn't been truly killed off. A trace of his soul had hidden deep within the holy mountain, avoiding the consciousness-erasing finger of the Ancient.

Now, this trace of soul had snuck back into its body after the imprisonment momentarily lifted. It regained control of the holy mountain for a brief time.

"Qin Yu, I will give my life's Great Dao to you. You must do everything in your power to kill the Ancient, otherwise there will surely come a day when a great disaster sweeps through the myriad heavens!"

As the voice fell, the entire holy mountain began to ignite with light. It broke through the loosened brand markings, howling into the air as it shrank. When it turned into a mote of light the size of a grain of rice, it submerged itself between Qin Yu's eyebrows.

Bang -

Qin Yu's clothes swirled around him and his hair was sent flying backwards. At this time, his aura started to rise at an astonishing speed, like a demon god being awakened.

Crack -

Creak -

His bones and flesh popped and crackled as his mortal body rapidly grew. In a breath of time he was over 10,000 feet tall, but his rate of growth showed no sign of slowing down.

A black suit of armor appeared, falling atop his body. When Qin Yu stopped growing he was almost 100,000 feet tall.

A pitch black set of armor covered his body. The helm concealed his face, with only an icy cold pair of eyes shining from behind, surging with killing intent!

"Ancient God Armor…" The Ancient furrowed his eyebrows together, a bit of emotion in his expression. It seemed as if he was thinking of something that happened many years ago. "Qin Yu, I have to acknowledge that I have been underestimating you all this time. With your current level of strength, you are able to summon the Ancient race's holy relics. It seems that you are hiding an enormous secret within you. But I also have an intuition that if I can make use of your secret, the result will surely be incredible."

He took a step forward, his body crazily growing. In a few blinks of the eye, he grew as tall as Qin Yu. The same black suit of armor covered every inch of his body.

Thus, in this space, a scene appeared of two black-armored giants facing off against each other. An invisible suppression swept out, turning the air thick and viscous. Just standing here made one feel as if they were caught in a swamp, making even breathing difficult.

He lifted a hand. Rich dark light erupted between the Ancient's fingers. It flowed outwards, extending into a sky-reaching spear. The spear was black in color with simple and plain textures covering its surface. It looked fierce and vicious, with a killing intent that soared to the heavens!

The Ancient said, "Sleeping within each of the Ancient race's three Holy Mountains is a divine relic. Any mighty existence of the Ancient race can call upon them to borrow their strength. The Ancient God Armor can be simultaneously summoned, but the Ancient God Spear of destruction and slaughter will only appear in one person's hand."

He raised a hand. The Ancient God Spear pointed out into the distance, locking onto Qin Yu. Even though he was silent and still, a terrifying slaughter aura still completely enveloped him. Placed in this slaughter aura, it was like being dropped into the pits of hell. Bitter screams and sorrowful cries filled the ears, reaching into the depths of one's soul. It caused one to inexplicably give rise to their greatest fear, almost causing their mind to collapse.

Behind his black armor, Qin Yu stuffily coughed. But, his eyes remained cold and indifferent without any change. Facing the Ancient God Spear, he raised a hand. His five fingers clenched into claws as he grasped at his own face. Beneath his hands, an invisible thread seemed to be pulled. The other end of this thread was deeply burrowed into his own flesh. As he pulled back his hand, a burst of pain exploded, almost overwhelming his mind.

His face paled and his 100,000 foot tall body started to shake. But his hand was steady and slow as he pulled back more and more. As he did, a small and thin dragon shadow was pulled out from his body. It howled, furiously trying to run away, but it was forcefully suppressed in his hands.

He lifted his other hand. A figure rose up in the distance and started flying over to him, falling into his armored palm. At this time, when contrasting each other, this figure seemed as delicate as a moth. Zhou Li had lost her soul. Although she still had an exquisite appearance, she was like a flower without water. There was nothing beneath that beauty of hers.

Qin Yu slowly brought his hands together. The dragon shadow that had been pulled out was suppressed by his formidable strength and forced to fuse with Zhou Li. In the next moment, her still and motionless chest began to slowly rise up and fall down. Light sounds of breathing came from between her lips and her face filled with ruddiness.