464: Chapter 479 True Monarch's Skull!

On the other side, seeing Lu Ming's extremely grave expression, a cold sneer curled at the corner of Bone Underworld's mouth.

"Scared?"

His raspy voice was filled with mockery.

"A pity... it's too late!"

Bone Underworld raised his hand, and that mass of black mist condensed in his palm, transforming into a pitch-black pillar of light that shot straight into the sky!

Within the pillar of light, a phantom faintly emerged.

It was an existence seated upon a throne of white bones; its figure was blurred, yet it radiated a pressure that made the heavens and earth tremble.

This was the phantom of the skull's owner from when they were alive—a form manifested from the resentment of a deceased Nascent Soul True Monarch!

Although it was only a phantom and possessed the power for only a single strike, it was, after all, the power of a Nascent Soul True Monarch!

It was a level that a Golden Core Cultivator could never hope to reach!

Bone Underworld was confident that he could directly grind this annoying fellow into dust, leaving not even a single hair behind!

However, he did not strike immediately.

Despite his arrogance toward Lu Ming and the fact that he now held the absolute upper hand, his internal vigilance had not relaxed in the slightest.

This person was too sinister. From that bizarre human emperor banner to those Banner Spirits that retained their full consciousness, everything about him felt wrong.

Bone Underworld was also afraid that complications might arise if he delayed, so he intended to kill him first before worrying about anything else.

However, activating this True Lord's skull required a certain amount of time to brew.

That Nascent Soul-level power was not something he could easily wield; he had to use himself as a vessel, slowly guiding and building up the momentum.

This process seemed long but was actually only a few breaths of time. Yet, in a Life and Death struggle, every breath felt exceptionally long.

The pillar of light was condensing, the pressure was climbing, and Bone Underworld's gaze remained fixed firmly on Lu Ming across from him.

...

Feeling that oncoming aura of destruction, alarm bells rang wildly in Lu Ming's heart.

But he did not retreat, nor could he retreat at all.

Under the frantic warnings of his spiritual senses, he realized he had been firmly locked on; there was nowhere to run.

Now, there was only one choice: to fight!

His hands quickly formed seals, and then he pointed his joined fingers toward the sky.

In an instant, the human emperor banner spanning the sky changed once more, slowly unfurling like a scroll painting.

On the surface of the banner, there had originally been only the ethereal phantom of Fengdu City.

But at this moment, the Yellow Springs river, the Naihe Bridge, the Wangchuan Road... various phenomena began to emerge one after another, as if a complete Netherworld world was slowly unfolding between heaven and earth.

As these scenes appeared, Lu Ming's consciousness also began to become lofty and ethereal.

He slowly closed his eyes, his mind and soul sinking into the scroll within the banner.

Lu Ming was already very familiar with the Netherworld Space by now.

Like returning home, he directly merged his mind into the core of the Netherworld Space.

That place was the source of the human emperor banner and the foundation of the entire Netherworld world.

The moment his mind sank in, Lu Ming saw those two powers.

One occupied the upper part of the Netherworld Space, like the sun and moon hanging high in the sky, circulating with black and white colors, rotating alternately in an endless cycle.

That was the Yin-Yang Law left behind after Yun Chenzi was refined.

Extreme Yin and Extreme Yang, a unity of opposites, the fundamental basis of heaven and earth.

The other power was buried deep in the bottom layer of the Netherworld Space, like the pulse of the earth, quiet and heavy, containing the mysteries of Life and Death.

That was the Law of Life and Death that the human emperor banner had possessed since the birth of the Netherworld Space.

The living return to the Netherworld, the dead enter the Netherworld; all spirits have a destination, and all things eventually reach extinction.

These two powers usually operated independently, not interfering with each other.

The Yin-Yang Law was in the heavens, and the Law of Life and Death was in the earth, together maintaining the balance of the Netherworld world.

Lu Ming had felt it before—if these two powers could be fused, perhaps they could condense that supreme Law: Reincarnation.

But previously, constrained by his own strength, he had never been in a hurry to try.

Now, however, the situation was critical. Facing the attack of a Nascent Soul True Monarch, he had to make this risky decision and stake everything on one throw.

Otherwise, relying solely on his current strength, using either Law alone would only result in being ruthlessly crushed.

Only by combining them would he have a chance to fight.

Lu Ming took a deep breath, his Divine Thought transforming into an invisible giant hand that reached toward those two powers.

He first "touched" the Yin-Yang Law.

That power was like flowing water, sliding through his fingers, warm and profound.

He carefully lifted it, guiding it to slowly descend from high in the heavens.

Then he touched the Law of Life and Death.

That power was like the earth, heavy and steady, containing endless vitality and deathly stillness.

He likewise lifted it, guiding it to slowly rise from the depths of the earth.

One descending, one rising.

The two powers slowly approached each other in the center of the Netherworld Space.

Lu Ming did not dare to be impatient; he adjusted the rhythm of the two powers bit by bit, letting them approach at the same speed and vibrate at the same frequency.

For every rotation of the Yin-Yang Law, he made the Law of Life and Death respond accordingly.

For every pulsation of the Law of Life and Death, he made the Yin-Yang Law resonate in turn.

Like playing a zither, where the strings have different thicknesses and pitches, only by tuning them to the same frequency can a harmonious melody be played.

The moment the Yin-Yang Law and the Law of Life and Death made contact, the human emperor banner jolted violently!

It was an indescribable resonance!

As if the world was first opening, Yin and Yang were first dividing, Life and Death were first being determined, all things were being born and extinguished, and Reincarnation was beginning to flow!

The two powers were like two rivers that were originally rushing in the same channel, now merging into one place.

Yin and Yang rotated, Life and Death alternated.

When Yin is exhausted, Yang is born; when Yang is exhausted, Yin is born. When death is exhausted, life returns; when life is exhausted, death arrives.

These were no longer two independent Laws, but a complete circle—from life to death, from death to life, from Yang to Yin, and from Yin to Yang, repeating in a cycle, round and round.

The prototype of Reincarnation was taking shape.

On the surface of the banner, the phantom of the Six Paths Roulette began to slowly rotate.

At first, it was very slow, so slow that almost no change could be seen, but as the Yin-Yang Law and the Law of Life and Death continued to fuse, the rotation of the disk became steadier and more profound.

With each revolution, it gained a bit more mystery and developed a bit more weight.

Upon that disk, the patterns of the Six Paths appeared faintly, as if they had existed since the dawn of time, eternal and unchanging.

Every pattern contained endless mysteries of Life and Death, and every pattern carried the destiny of the Reincarnation of all things.

...

Just as Lu Ming was attempting to fuse the Law of Reincarnation, the aura emitted by the human emperor banner began to become mysterious and eerie.

That aura was different from the depth of the Yin-Yang Law and the heaviness of the Law of Life and Death; it was a more ancient, more primal power.

It seemed to come from the end of time, rising from the destination of all things—formless and signless, yet omnipresent.

And Bone Underworld, who was currently exerting all his effort to stimulate the True Lord's skull, suddenly had his expression change.

He felt that something seemed to be awakening within that banner!

"Reincarnation... that is the Law of Reincarnation!"

He cried out in shock, his voice trembling.

If it were anyone else, they might not have recognized what this was, but he was very clear about it.

Simply because the Soul-Devouring Demon Lord had comprehended this very path.

Having been by the Demon Lord's side for many years, he knew better than anyone what the Law of Reincarnation meant.

It was one of the Nine Supreme Laws, ranked alongside Karma, Creation, and Time-Space—the most fundamental power in heaven and earth.

It wasn't just that it was difficult to comprehend; there was simply no way to even enter its door. After all, the prerequisite for comprehending a Law is to have the Opportunity to come into contact with it.

And what is Reincarnation? It is the destination of all things, the alternation of Life and Death, and the cycle of Karma.

It does not exist in some specific place between heaven and earth; rather, it runs through the beginning and end of all things, omnipresent yet untraceable.

The Dao of Reincarnation is formless and signless, without beginning or end.

Those who enter Reincarnation forget their past lives, sever their Karma, extinguish their Karma, and lose their sense of self.

If even the 'self' is lost, how can one talk about comprehension?

The Soul-Devouring Demon Lord had spent hundreds of years comprehending it, consuming countless resources and even splitting off his own Divine Soul to throw it into the cycle of Reincarnation before he barely managed to touch the threshold.

And even that slight touch had already given the Demon Lord's strength a qualitative leap.

But now, in the Magic Treasure of a Golden Core Cultivator, the aura of Reincarnation had actually appeared?

How was this possible?!

Bone Underworld's mind spun rapidly, countless thoughts colliding in his head.

Was Jiang Wunian's sudden appearance here truly a coincidence?

Was that Magic Treasure in his hand, which looked so much like a soul devouring banner, also an accident?

Or could it be... that Jiang Wunian was also sent by the Demon Lord?

As soon as this thought emerged, Bone Underworld's heart sank.

The Demon Lord's actions were always inscrutable; it was not impossible for him to send out multiple pawns at once to compete with and balance each other.

Bone Underworld had already ignored the fact that Jiang Wunian came from the Six Desires Demonic Sect.

Because that wasn't important—who hadn't planted pawns in another's forces!

He just began to doubt himself.

Could it be that he was no longer the Demon Lord's favorite child?

Bone Underworld's expression changed several times, but he quickly rejected this idea.

No, that's not right!

As a direct disciple of the Demon Lord, he understood his Revered Master very well.

With his Revered Master's exquisite egoism... and his calculating style, such a supreme treasure containing the Law of Reincarnation would not even be enough for the Demon Lord himself, let alone something he would easily give to someone else.

Therefore, there was a very high probability that this was not the Demon Lord's doing.

In that case... was this Jiang Wunian's own Opportunity?

Bone Underworld's eyes changed at this moment.

It was unmasked, naked greed.

The Law of Reincarnation within that banner would be a massive Opportunity whether he snatched it to offer to the Demon Lord or kept it for himself.

If he offered it to the Demon Lord, at this critical juncture of the Demon Lord's comprehension of the Law of Reincarnation, this Magic Treasure would be enough to let him break through his Bottleneck again.

At that time, the Demon Lord would surely bestow enough resources, and those resources might save Bone Underworld many years of bitter cultivation, or even allow him to directly break through to become a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

And if he refined it himself, he could use it to comprehend the Law of Reincarnation.

Once successful, he would break through to Nascent Soul True Monarch using the Law of Reincarnation.

At that point, he didn't even dare to imagine how strong he could become.

After all, this was something even the Demon Lord had not achieved!

The Soul-Devouring Demon Lord had only switched to the path of Laws after breaking through to Nascent Soul True Monarch, but if he could Revered Master the Law of Reincarnation while still in the Golden Core Stage...

However, doing so would inevitably anger the Demon Lord.

Given the Demon Lord's personality, if he pocketed such a heavy treasure for himself, the Demon Lord would never let him go.

He would then face the infinite malice of a Late Stage Nascent Soul Great True Lord.

But compared to the gains, he felt that this consequence was bearable. At worst, he would just abandon this mission and hide in the outer realms!

In any case, without a Dao Venerable of Spirit Transformation to restrain the Heavenly Dao, with the way Nascent Soul True Monarchs were currently 'imprisoned,' it wasn't so easy for them to move around at will.

Regardless of which path he took, he would profit immensely.

Bone Underworld slowly raised his head and looked at Lu Ming. His gaze was no longer cold, but as scorching as two balls of fire.

At the same moment, Lu Ming was also sizing up Bone Underworld.

In Bone Underworld's eyes, he saw the same thing as in his own.

It was the willingness to use any means to achieve one's goals, and also the same... inherent greed!

The two of them locked eyes, and the air seemed to freeze at that moment.

They both wanted to devour the other and turn everything the other had to their own use.

Lu Ming wanted to devour Bone Underworld's soul devouring banner to feed his own human emperor banner, allowing it to cross that threshold and transform into a true Nascent Soul Spirit Treasure.

He even more so wanted to devour Bone Underworld's Laws to add another brick to his own path of Hunyuan Laws.

And Bone Underworld wanted to devour Lu Ming's human emperor banner to trade it for the Demon Lord's rewards or to comprehend the Law of Reincarnation within it himself.

Neither spoke.

But they both understood that what came next would be a fight to the death.

"Go!"

Bone Underworld no longer hesitated and gave a low shout. That long-condensed pitch-black pillar of light came crashing down toward Lu Ming!

Everywhere the pillar of light passed, the void distorted violently, as if it could not withstand this power and would shatter at any moment!

A chasm like an abyss was plowed into the ground, rocks were turned to powder, and even the earthly fiend astral wind was torn to shreds by this terrifying power!

The pitch-black pillar of light descended from the heavens, carrying the power of a single strike from a Nascent Soul True Monarch as it bore down on Lu Ming.

That was not a power a Golden Core Cultivator could comprehend.

It could no longer be summarized simply as 'strong'; it was the crushing weight of a higher-level existence upon a lower dimension.

Like a Mortal looking up at the firmament, or like a frog watching the sky from a well.

Knowing of heaven and earth, yet not knowing what heaven and earth truly are.

Wherever the pillar of light passed, the void was not torn apart, but 'erased'.

It wasn't shattered or broken; it completely vanished, as if that patch of space had never existed.

Lu Ming looked up, the pillar of light reflected in his pupils.

His body was trembling, and he understood more clearly than ever that this strike was not something he could withstand.

But he did not retreat.

The human emperor banner unfurled before him, and upon the banner's surface, the phantom of the Six Paths Roulette was slowly taking shape.

The Yin-Yang Law and the Law of Life and Death intertwined, like two swimming fish following each other's tails, sketching the prototype of Reincarnation within the Chaos.

However, it was still a bit short!

The Law of Reincarnation was too profound, and Lu Ming was not familiar with it; moreover, it was not something his puppet clone could wield.

The Yin-Yang Law was vibrating, the Law of Life and Death was roaring, and the two powers were clashing frantically in his palm, as if they might lose control at any moment.

Lu Ming gritted his teeth, the veins on his forehead bulging.

"Hold on... hold on for me!"

But the condensation of the Law of Reincarnation was teetering.

It was like a clay sculpture without a skeleton; every time it took shape, it would collapse in the next moment, repeating in an endless cycle.

"Is it still not working..."

Seeing that the pitch-black pillar of light was closing in and that he was about to be reduced to nothingness beneath it, a look of determination flashed in Lu Ming's eyes.

He suddenly raised his hand, his five fingers clawing at the air toward the human emperor banner, and chanted softly.

"The Heavenly Mandate is my Revered Master, I dwell only within myself; the old edicts are burned, the new Laws shall be established; let the Heavens' Overseers of Transgression come quickly to receive their orders!"