Upon hearing Xu Zimo’s words, Qiong Qi stood up and grinned wickedly.
His laughter was loud, shaking the surrounding space with visible ripples.
“If you can defeat me, the Heaven-Unity Record is naturally yours. I wouldn’t have a choice anyway,” Qiong Qi said. “Though I’m not at my peak, I remain unmatched in the Eternal Lands.”
“Is that so?” Xu Zimo replied with a faint smile and stood up as well.
Behind Qiong Qi, waves of blood-red spiritforce surged into the sky, reflecting off the earth and heavens.
The red aura churned violently, as if something was struggling to break free from within it.
“Come then, let me see what you’re made of,” Qiong Qi extended his hand and said calmly. “If you disappoint me, you probably won’t leave here alive.”
Xu Zimo smiled and shook his head. He could sense that Qiong Qi’s strength hadn’t returned to the Immortal Path.
He was likely at the level of a Godly Monarch. Still, in terms of spiritforce density, other than the Sky Shroud War God of the True Martial Sacred Ground, this man was the strongest he had seen.
Xu Zimo slowly drew the long blade from his back, and his aura steadily intensified.
“The so-called Seven Fears. First is Ravage,” Qiong Qi stretched out his right hand, and the phantom of a fearsome beast burst forth from the red energy behind him.
It stepped into the air and stood behind him.
This beast, Ravage Bull, looked like a bull with four horns, and its fur was long and draped over its body like a rain cloak.
Qiong Qi swung his arm, and the beast’s phantom attached itself to his left arm, exuding a terrifying aura as he charged at Xu Zimo.
“Since you know about the Seven Fears Cult, you should understand what the Seven Fears are,” Qiong Qi said coldly.
With a single strike, space collapsed, and the power increased hundreds of times. Xu Zimo barely blocked it, but was forced several steps back.
“To take that hit, you're not bad among Godly Monarchs,” Qiong Qi said indifferently.
“Keep going,” Xu Zimo smiled.
“The Seven Fears were gathered by our ancestor based on the seven great fear beasts. Watch carefully,” Qiong Qi said.
“Second is Dread Wolf. This beast has five tails and one horn, its roar like thunder splitting stone, and it feeds on other fierce beasts.”
As he spoke, another beast phantom appeared and attached itself to Qiong Qi’s right arm.
He charged forward and engaged Xu Zimo in close combat.
His fists, infused with the power of two beasts, were wide, forceful, and ferocious.
Xu Zimo handled the fight with ease. Qiong Qi seemed to suffer from some hidden illness and was unwilling to use certain moves.
“Third is Venom Hawk, Fourth is Power Hound,” two more soft roars rang out, and two more phantoms attached themselves to Qiong Qi’s legs.
This time, not only did his strength increase greatly, but his speed also doubled.
Qiong Qi moved through the void with every step, appearing and disappearing without a trace. Even the afterimages he left behind were hard to follow.
“Interesting,” Xu Zimo chuckled.
The long blade in his hand burst with immense blade intent as he unleashed the Ninth Form of Dao-Seeking: Deepblue World.
The surroundings became enveloped in a layer of deep blue spiritforce. Within this small world, only dozens of meters in size, Xu Zimo could sense every movement.
“Dao-Seeking Twelfth Form: Heaven Blood,” he slashed again.
Blood began seeping from the blade itself. With one swing, the weapon, unlike his usual Baying Blade, started to show cracks under the immense force.
Qiong Qi was forced several steps back, appearing slightly short of breath.
“You seem to be at your limit. Still putting on a show?” Xu Zimo said with a light laugh.
In truth, Qiong Qi had never recovered. His body was still weak.
Ever since Xu Zimo entered the core area, Qiong Qi had manipulated the skeletons to test him.
Upon realizing he wasn’t a match, Qiong Qi immediately gave up the attack and waited calmly for Xu Zimo to arrive.
Everything he said was merely to confuse Xu Zimo. He was in no condition for battle.
“Aiya, you figured it out. What a pity,” Qiong Qi said with a sinister grin, still unfazed.
Looking at Xu Zimo, he said, “How about a deal?”
“What right do you have to negotiate with me?” Xu Zimo asked as he approached step by step.
“You want the Heaven-Unity Record. Do you even know what it is?” Qiong Qi asked.
“Give it to me, and I’ll find out,” Xu Zimo replied.
“If you kill me, you won’t get the Heaven-Unity Record either. Let’s call it even. I’ll tell you the secret,” Qiong Qi said.
“No need. I’m guessing it’s in that bone house behind you,” Xu Zimo smiled and pointed.
Qiong Qi’s expression tightened. He squinted, staring at Xu Zimo.
As Xu Zimo walked toward the bone house, an energy wave suddenly surged at him from behind.
Turning around, Xu Zimo saw Qiong Qi’s body glowing faintly blue.
He seemed to have entered a special state.
The dark affliction within him was rapidly healing, and energy surged through him in waves.
His power grew stronger and stronger, as if reaching the absolute limit of what his body could handle.
His entire form felt hollow and strange.
“You wanted to know what the Heaven-Unity Record is? I’ll tell you now,” Qiong Qi said calmly. “One of the Ten Primordial God-Scriptures, Heaven-Unity Three-Gates God-Scripture.”
Xu Zimo could clearly sense that Qiong Qi’s aura had suddenly risen back to the Immortal Path.
And it was still climbing, with even more room to grow.
The surrounding blood-red spiritforce went berserk. He rose into the air, and with a wave of his hands, the sea of blood gathered above, coiling and roaring.
“Chaos, go play with him,” Xu Zimo said as he waved his right hand, releasing Chaos from the God World.
A vast beastly aura spread across the land. When Qiong Qi saw Chaos appear, his expression changed.
He immediately asked, “Who are you really? You can’t be from this world.”
“If you survive, I’ll tell you,” Xu Zimo said with a smile.
With that, he strode directly into the bone house.
Chaos unfolded its enormous wings that blotted out the sky and charged at Qiong Qi.
...
Inside the bone house, the space was not large. At its center stood a high platform.
The pillar of red light originated from this platform.
Floating above the platform was a book.
A book with a blue cover, clear and radiant, slowly rotating.
“The Heaven-Unity Three-Gates God-Scripture, one of the ten divine scriptures,” Xu Zimo muttered to himself.
He hadn’t even reached the Outer Heavens yet, and already he was encountering more and more artifacts from that higher world.
When he reached out for the Heaven-Unity Three-Gates God-Scripture with both hands, a powerful backlash erupted from the book, forcing Xu Zimo’s right hand away.