583: Battle begins on Jin'ao Island

Zhao Gongming, the Three Xiao sisters... they were his most favored Disciples, the cream of the crop among the outer sect, and elites of the inner sect.

They might be arrogant, perhaps impulsive, but they were definitely not the type of unruly fools who "do not understand the Heavenly Dao."

More importantly, Primordial Heavenly Venerate... had actually made a move.

Bullying the weak with his power, using his status as a Saint to commit such an act of extermination!

"He is no longer afraid of me flipping the table!"

Sect Leader Tongtian sat down slowly; all twelve Golden Immortals had died, one was in Reincarnation, and eleven were on the investiture of the gods list.

Under Primordial Heavenly Venerate, only two lone sprouts remained: Antarctic Immortal and Yun Zhongzi.

That shameless old fellow, Ran Deng, did not count.

As for his side, Jinao Island, he could still scrape together ten thousand Disciples.

Thinking of this, Sect Leader Tongtian's anger dissipated quite a bit.

If someone were to kill eight or nine thousand of his Jie Sect Disciples, he would go crazy too.

Above the East Sea, that streak of qingping sword Sword Qi that split the clouds, though blocked by the invisible Heavenly Dao barrier and scattered into falling light rain, contained the Saint's fury and the true meaning of Sword Intent, acting like a spark thrown into boiling oil, instantly igniting the boundless Spiritual Qi of the vast East Sea.

"Boom—!"

The vast green waves no longer stilled but instead boiled frantically; a thousand layers of giant waves rose from nothingness and crashed toward the Void Realm, each drop of seawater seemingly transformed into a sharp, peerless tiny sword light, slicing through the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi and emitting billions of sharp hissing sounds.

Above Jinao Island, the ever-present immortal mist and auspicious clouds were completely stirred away, revealing the island's true form and the towering Biyou Palace, which bore the Dao of "teaching without discrimination" to intercept the heavens.

On the jade steps, Sect Leader Tongtian stood with his hands behind his back, his green robes fluttering without wind, snapping loudly.

The anger in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a coldness that was as silent as an abyss yet peerlessly sharp.

The Second Senior Brother's sect was almost completely destroyed, so he was coming to flip the table!

"He is here."

Sect Leader Tongtian suddenly raised his eyes, looking toward the northwest direction of Kunlun, his voice calm, yet it caused those standing by his side...

...such as Daoist Duobao, Holy Mother Jin Ling, and other direct Disciples, who had already been shaken to their cores by the previous Sword Qi and the Saint's pressure, to feel a bone-chilling cold.

Almost the instant Sect Leader Tongtian's voice fell.

Outside Jinao Island, on the shores of the East Sea, Heaven and Earth suddenly fell silent.

The boiling waves, the hissing Sword Qi, the chaotic Spiritual Qi, and even the breathing of the terrified living beings on the island were forcibly pressed on pause at this moment.

An incomparably vast and orderly pressure spread silently yet irresistibly.

Above the sky, clear Qi flowed, evolving earth, water, fire, and wind, redefining the Yin and Yang and Five Elements.

In the center of the clear Qi, the figure of Primordial Heavenly Venerate slowly condensed.

He remained in his simple Daoist robe and Yuqing lotus crown, his face without sorrow or joy, his gaze as deep as an ancient cold pool, quietly looking down at Jinao Island and Biyou Palace below.

Without any procession or regalia, just one person, one gaze, and a patch of clear Qi were enough to make the entire Jie Sect dojo feel as if it were facing an abyss.

"Junior Brother Tongtian."

Primordial Heavenly Venerate spoke:

"Attacking without notice is against etiquette. However, matters have their priorities, and laws have their sequence."

"Zhao Gongming and the Three Xiao sisters did not respect their elders, did not understand the Heavenly Dao, started a Formation without authorization, slaughtered their fellow Disciples, and caused the killing tribulation to intensify, leaving living beings in misery."

"As their Senior Brother, I manage the laws of the Chan Sect, act in accordance with Heaven, and apply minor punishments and major warnings to serve as a deterrent; does Junior Brother agree?"

Sect Leader Tongtian's figure took a step and appeared above Biyou Palace, facing Primordial Heavenly Venerate from across the air.

"Senior Brother, what a great 'act in accordance with Heaven,' what a great 'minor punishment and major warning'!"

"Let me ask you, what is the Heavenly Dao? Is it determined by your Jade Void Palace?"

"The investiture of the gods list killing tribulation arose from the shortage of personnel in the Heavenly Court, and The Three Teachings discussed and signed it, relying on their own abilities to resolve Karma!"

"When was it ever stipulated that only your Chan Sect Disciples are allowed to kill my Jie Sect members, and my Jie Sect Disciples are not allowed to resist or fight back?"

"Zhao Gongming going down the mountain was for the sake of camaraderie; the Three Xiao sisters leaving the island was for the sake of sibling affection!"

"They relied on Formation and Magic Treasure to fight openly and honestly; where is the 'lack of respect for elders'? It is you, Senior Brother!"

Sect Leader Tongtian's tone suddenly turned sharp: "As a Primordial Saint with a body that survives ten thousand tribulations, you disregarded your dignity and personally entered the fray to ruthlessly kill Junior Disciples!"

"Bullying the weak, using your power to oppress, reversing Karma, and sophistry! Primordial, can your actions today still live up to the name of 'Orthodox Xuanmen'? Are you still worthy of the dignity of the 'Chan Sect Leader'?"

"The twelve Golden Immortals are dead, but the killing tribulation of the investiture of the gods is not yet over, and the divine positions have not been filled!"

"What they failed to finish needs to be completed by me."

"Heaven's will is such, and I have no intention of distinguishing right from wrong; I am simply acting in accordance with Heaven!"

"Junior Brother Tongtian, will you do it, or shall I?"

Once these words were spoken, time itself seemed to freeze above Jinao Island.

Countless Jie Sect members, from the inner sect true transmission Disciples like Duobao and Jin Ling, to the seven attendant immortals, the ten thousand outer sect immortals, and even the Spirit Beasts and servants, all felt a chill rise from the depths of their Primordial Spirit, spreading through their limbs and bones.

"Fill the investiture of the gods list?"

Sect Leader Tongtian laughed in extreme anger, his voice shaking the East Sea, "What a great 'fill the investiture of the gods list'; my Jie Sect Disciples have managed to survive the tribulation and won a chance at destiny, only for you, Senior Brother, to personally send them down."

He took a step forward, lotuses blooming in the Void Realm under his feet, and his qingping sword Sword Intent spontaneously condensed into an invisible sword domain, silently colliding and cutting against the clear Qi field of Primordial Heavenly Venerate that redefined earth, water, fire, and wind, emitting a hissing sound that made Heaven and Earth tremble.

"My sect's Disciples, even if they have ten thousand faults, are for me, Tongtian, to discipline! Since when was it your turn, Primordial, to overstep your authority and commit such acts of extermination? Let alone,"

Sect Leader Tongtian's eyes flashed with cold light like lightning: "To ask me to personally arrange for my Disciples to fill those unfinished divine positions? Primordial, you are delusional!"

"Delusional?" Primordial Heavenly Venerate shook his head lightly:

"Junior Brother, you dote on your Disciples and indulge their arrogance, causing the killing tribulation to drag on and Karma to entangle, losing your responsibility as a Sect Leader."

"Today, it is not I, your Senior Brother, forcing you, but the Heavenly Dao that has a vacancy that needs to be filled. Your Jie Sect has many members, so it is only fitting that they meet the tribulation."

His gaze dropped, sweeping over the thousands of figures on Jinao Island below, all with different auras but trembling due to the Saint's might, and he said indifferently:

"Since you are unwilling to arrange it, then let the Heavenly Dao choose for itself."

Before the words faded, Primordial Heavenly Venerate stopped speaking with Tongtian, lifted the three treasures jade ruyi scepter in his hand, and made a seemingly casual swipe toward Jinao Island.

Wherever it passed, space was no longer space, time was no longer time, and the "Dao" of the existence of all things was redefined, rearranged, and even erased.

"Primordial! How dare you!!!"

Sect Leader Tongtian was furious; he never expected that Primordial would dare to directly attack Jinao Island and the Jie Sect Disciples right in front of him!

This swipe seemed directed at the island, but in reality, it enveloped the Luck and the Karma of the entire Jie Sect lineage!

"Qingping, slash!"

Sect Leader Tongtian held nothing back, pointed his fingers like a sword, and slashed vaguely toward Primordial Heavenly Venerate!

The qingping sword hanging by his side let out a clear and impassioned sword cry; although its main body did not move, a streak of primitive Sword Qi, condensed to the extreme and resembling the first ray of light before the creation of the world, burst forth,

slashing directly at the core of Primordial Heavenly Venerate's "correcting" trajectory, and even more, aiming to sever the "hand" that Primordial had reached out toward the Jie Sect!

The methods of the two Saints collided silently above Jinao Island.