He Li, carrying the blood saber, pointed it at the Lord of Time with unparalleled dominance, his booming roar declaring his true mastery over the laws of time. Standing on the same platform as the Lord of Time in terms of these laws, his vision became even clearer.
He took a step, each stride spanning ten thousand feet, descending along the waterfall of blood. He had never been adept at close-quarters combat, finding it foolish when superior methods of victory existed. Why court danger? But now, close-quarters combat was his forte. As Fei Ge had said, the thrill of a blade slicing through skin, cutting flesh, and shattering bone was something firearms could never provide.
He still couldn't comprehend that thrill, but it didn't matter. As long as he could win, anything was acceptable.
The old man, seeing the formidable He Li, dared not underestimate him. He mobilized myriad laws of time, attempting to use their power to touch He Li, as if returning his heart to his body, thereby creating a weakness in He Li.
Once a person has a heart, they become exceptionally vulnerable.
Indeed,
Startled, He Li chose to evade, changing direction and attacking the old man.
The old man repeated his tactic and attempted to send He Li into the past, using the supreme power of time's rules to crush him.
But He Li seemed to anticipate the old man's intentions, always narrowly evading. He was like a phantom assassin, circling the Lord of Time and launching constant attacks.
The Lord of Time flickered, intending to enter a past temporal node to personally alter the path He Li had taken, thereby changing the future. He sought to eliminate He Li through this method.
How could He Li allow him to succeed? He dispersed all his temporal law power, instantly filling every past and present node of the entire river of time, blocking the Lord of Time's path.
At this moment,
The Lord of Time suddenly changed direction. For the first time, he initiated an attack, closing the distance to He Li. This was the moment he had been waiting for. He understood that as long as he harbored the intention to travel to the past, He Li would inevitably stop him. The best way to stop him was to block his path with the power of temporal laws.
However, by doing so, He Li himself would be left without the protection of temporal laws. The Star God Power that enveloped his body was like paper before him, easily shattered upon contact.
*Chih!*
He Li stared at the Lord of Time in astonishment, then looked down at the hand that had pierced his chest. He felt as though his heart was being tightly gripped, held in a palm, and the flow of blood throughout his body ceased.
"You schemed everything, even deceiving the laws of time to return my heart to me, all for this moment?"
A barely perceptible smile touched the old man's lips. "He Li, you will not lose. Your future self has already proven that. But the present you is no match for me. Although the answer lies two epochs later, the process requires billions of years. Over such a vast expanse of time, the future might change."
He Li listened quietly to the Lord of Time's words without refuting, simply saying softly, "Yes, the answer is there, undeniable for both of us.
We are both wielders of time's laws, controlling time, traversing the past and future.
But we cannot change what has already happened in the future.
A fledgling tiger is fearless, possessing the might to swallow mountains and rivers. But as strength grows and the journey lengthens, one becomes cautious, observing the world with reverence.
In the end, we are merely slaves to the laws of time. We control them, yet cannot break free from their chains.
Old man, you have lost. Just as you said, the answer is there, undeniable for both of us, and we cannot change it."
He Li seemed to enter a state of profound emptiness.
The Lord of Time, that old man, watched He Li with horror. "You... you have willingly merged with time!"
He Li was a special existence, not merged with the laws of time, not accepted by time, nor eroded by it. But at this moment, he chose to willingly merge with time. Since he was not accepted by the laws of time, he would actively embrace them, content to be eroded by time.
He Li's body dispersed into countless starlike specks, transforming into a brilliant cascade of light. These were temporal nodes, the past of Yan Si from the previous epoch, the Barren Ancient Epoch. He had willingly relinquished that past which time refused to accept.
Abandoning the past, accepting the future.
As people often say: One must always look forward.
He Li had previously struggled, believing he could resist everything, but in the end, he compromised. It wasn't just for himself, but also for Xiao Yue and Huai Xi living in the Divine Realm, and for Kuer and Willow living on Earth.
His heart had never been vast; it held only the warmth of a small corner. He had poured all his tenderness onto those he cared about.
"Old man, everything you conceived was what I allowed you to conceive. Everything you did was according to my plan.
You have done very well."
These words struck the old man's heart like a piercing awl. The old man looked at He Li, tightening his grip on He Li's heart.
*Pfft!*
He Li spat out a mouthful of blood, his face turning paler.
"Even if you willingly merge with time, even if you fully control the laws of time, what of it? Your heart is in my hand. In a moment, I can shatter the barrier of your heart, and then I can crush your heart. Your life will ultimately perish by my hand."
The Lord of Time crushed the divine power barriers on He Li's heart layer by layer. Once all these barriers were broken, he could easily crush He Li's heart and take his life.
This was the weakness he had bestowed upon He Li, and his final trump card.
"Is that so?"
He Li grinned, his blood-splattered face making the smile appear ferocious and terrifying. Trembling, he raised his right hand, placing the long saber gently on the Lord of Time's shoulder.
The Lord of Time ignored the saber. He Li's divine power was immobilized by him, and his law power was blocked at the past nodes of the river of time. Such a powerless blade could not even scratch his clothes.
"You truly haven't fought in a long time."
He Li suddenly said something nonsensical with a laugh.
The Lord of Time was momentarily puzzled, looking at He Li with confusion. He increased the force in his hand. Only the last two layers of divine power barriers on He Li's heart remained. Once these were broken, He Li would die in his hands.
He Li smiled, simply raising his empty right hand.
"Old man, where did my other saber go?"
"The other saber?"
The Lord of Time froze, then his face contorted in shock. He turned to look in Cheng Xilin's direction. The blood-red saber, named Corrupted Blood Forest, was lodged in Cheng Xilin's chest.
And Cheng Xilin was lifeless. He was dead.
Following that,
A dark purple chaotic power surged from the deceased Cheng Xilin, enveloping his body.
The next moment,
Cheng Xilin slowly raised his head, his white hair shrouded in dark purple chaotic power, an eerie sight.
Cheng Xilin raised his hand and pulled the blood-red saber from his chest, chuckling softly:
"Bastard, couldn't you have been a little gentler?"
...