It must be said that although Gong Xuan was not as formidable as Ye Chen, he truly possessed the capabilities befitting a Minor Overlord of the Ancient Path. He was extremely powerful, charging directly forward and unleashing a torrent of powerful Great Dao laws to bombard both opponents.
The nine massive serpent heads of the Nine-headed Great Serpent spewed forth nine distinct beams of Great Dao light, blanketing the heavens and earth as they cascaded down. However, Gong Xuan intercepted them all directly.
His formidable dao techniques surged forth, flooding the starry sky. Under the collision, the Nine-headed Great Serpent was completely outmatched and quickly fell into a disadvantageous position.
On the other side, Abenue soared through the void like a True Dragon, her sinuous dragon body winding through the starry sky. A clear, resounding roar echoed forth, faintly carrying the supreme majesty of the dragon race and the ruling authority of a Mother Queen.
The countless, densely packed Insect Warriors scattered throughout the starry sky suddenly shuddered, then heeded the call, swarming forth in overwhelming numbers to attack Gong Xuan.
Among them were no small number of Heavenly King-level Insect Warriors, who charged forward ferociously.
"Trouble! We can't let it keep calling out. It's a variant Insect Race Mother Queen; it might be able to summon all Insect Warriors to its service," Gong Nanshan's expression shifted slightly on the other side. Facing such a multitude of Insect Warriors, even someone as powerful as him had to be wary; it would be very troublesome.
Individually, each one could be easily exterminated, but when they numbered in the thousands, tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, that was a different matter entirely.
When quantity reached a certain level, it could produce a qualitative change!
Boom—
He too charged forward, heading straight for Abenue.
Because Abenue posed the greatest threat, capable of summoning the endless Insect Warriors emerging from the eighteen stellar nests. Especially now, while the other Insect Race Mother Queens were focused on besieging the Battle Saint King, Abenue had the greatest potential to command this boundless sea of Insect Warriors for her own use.
Rumble—
However, countless Insect Warriors first formed layer upon layer of encirclement around Abenue, creating a barrier. Moreover, vast numbers of Insect Warriors charged directly at Gong Nanshan, with at least over fifty Insect Race Heavenly King Warriors among them.
"Hmph, mere Insect Race dares to block this seat!" Gong Nanshan snorted coldly. Although the Insect Warriors were numerous, who was he? A proclaimed Minor Overlord of the Ancient Path, having stepped into the Great Power realm for at least a century, his cultivation profound and unfathomable. He took the initiative to attack, erupting with boundless Immortal Fire, all woven from pure Great Dao runes that spread outwards.
Visibly, countless Insect Warriors were swept up by the Immortal Fire and instantly ignited, many burned to ashes on the spot.
"Immortal Fire of the Immortal Realm's Dao, truly terrifying!" Many Heaven's Pride of the Ancient Path had sharp eyes and recognized it. This was the undying immortal fire of the Primordial Immortal Realm, said to be capable of incinerating all things.
Naturally, Gong Nanshan had not reached that level; only the Immortal Fire of a Supreme Immortal could truly burn through all realms. But Gong Nanshan was a Great Power of his generation, sufficient to burn and slay other Great Powers. Now, as it spread out overwhelmingly, how could these Insect Warriors possibly withstand it?
However, Abenue controlled a sufficient number of Insect Warriors—dense, countless, endless, as if infinite. No matter how much Great Dao Immortal Fire Gong Nanshan rained down, it could not burn them all away. On the contrary, more and more Insect Warriors were being summoned.
Furthermore, many Insect Warriors stood poised in the air, capable of launching terrifying attacks.
Perhaps the assaults of one, two, ten, eight, or even dozens or hundreds of Insect Warriors could not harm Gong Nanshan. But thousands, tens of thousands, or even more Insect Warriors attacking together—that kind of offensive power was absolutely devastating. Even an ordinary Great Power, if submerged by such a collective assault, would only meet the fate of being crushed to dust, body perishing and dao extinguished.
Gong Nanshan was immensely powerful, continuously unleashing swathes of Great Dao Immortal Fire to neutralize the attacks of these Insect Warriors. Yet, he was also struck by attacks from time to time because they were too dense to completely block.
Although they couldn't truly harm him much, it made him appear quite disheveled, infuriating him. His attacks grew even more violent. With a wave of his hand, he unleashed a brilliant expanse of immortal light, containing the Great Dao laws of the Primordial Immortal Realm, sweeping across all directions. In the blink of an eye, he annihilated over a hundred Insect Warriors, including two Heavenly King-level ones.
Swish—
At this moment, Abenue also made her move.
Shaped like a True Dragon, she traversed the starry sky. Her dark golden dragon eyes fixed on Gong Nanshan at the center. Her entire form suddenly shot forward with a swish, condensing into a massive golden streak of light that soared across the void, actually taking the initiative to attack Gong Nanshan.
This scene immediately left many spectators dumbfounded.
After all, although an Insect Race Mother Queen was a king among its peers, its main body was relatively weak. Its greatest asset was its ability to birth endless Insect Warriors to fight for it. An Insect Race Mother Queen taking the initiative to attack was something they were witnessing for the first time.
Swish—
Abenue descended head-on, delivering a sweep of her divine dragon tail. It seemed simple, but golden light surged, containing terrifying dao principles that an ordinary Great Power could not face directly.
"Hmph, so what if it's a variant Insect Race Mother Queen? Daring to engage in close combat? Pure suicide!"
Gong Nanshan's expression was icy. After slapping away dozens of Insect Warriors with one palm, he suddenly raised his hand to meet the collision, erupting with vast golden light.
Boom—
The starry sky was torn asunder. Both parties were forced back, but Abenue retreated farther, her massive True Dragon form tumbling through the void, rumbling as it crushed through the starry sky, shattering who knows how much space—a truly intense clash.
Clearly, in a direct confrontation, Abenue was no match for Gong Nanshan either. But this was not her fault. Abenue had only just awakened; although powerful, she had not yet fully familiarized herself with many of her abilities. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been in such a sorry state.
Yet, this caused Gong Nanshan's eyes to narrow slightly, a hint of surprise in his voice. "As expected of a variant Insect Race Mother Queen, truly extraordinary. Even stronger than I imagined, allowing me to sense the aura of a True Dragon. Could it truly have the potential to grow to the level of a pure-blooded True Dragon? What a pity. Even if a pure-blooded True Dragon arrived, it would have to submit before me, let alone an impure-blooded variant Insect Race Mother Queen. Submit under my command."
He charged forth ferociously, fully displaying the true strength of a Minor Overlord of the Ancient Path. His entire body erupted with surging immortal light, endless and torrential, rumbling as it shook the heavens and earth, tearing through the void—truly terrifying.
Boom! Boom! Boom!—
In a few brief collisions, Abenue was completely overpowered. However, due to possessing Dragon Source and the essence of Ye Chen's Saint Body blood, her physical body was far stronger than other Insect Race Mother Queens, so she wasn't severely injured.
But sensing the danger and knowing she was no match, Abenue quickly retreated into the sea of Insect Warriors. She continuously let out long cries, summoning vast numbers of Insect Warriors to charge forward and form a defense.
Yet, Gong Nanshan was indeed astonishingly powerful. He struck repeatedly, continuously tearing through the starry sky. With waves of his hand, he annihilated swathes of Insect Warriors, charging ever closer to Abenue, difficult to stop.
At the same time, the Nine-headed Great Serpent clashed with Gong Xuan and immediately fell into a disadvantage because Gong Xuan was immensely powerful, completely suppressing it. However, thanks to Abenue summoning large numbers of Insect Warriors to charge over, it avoided mortal danger.
But both Minor Overlords of the Ancient Path were extremely powerful, both being Great Power-level young supremes. Over time, even a sea of Insect Warriors would be insufficient, as these warriors were not truly infinite.
At this point, in the eyes of countless Heaven's Pride on the Ancient Path, the two were merely struggling in their death throes.
Without the protection of the Battle Saint King, they simply could not resist the suppression of the two Minor Overlords of the Ancient Path.
"Master!"
Both Nine Snake and Abenue were anxious in their hearts, also worried about Ye Chen.
Meanwhile, within the light barrier prison, inside the eighteen Mother Queens' refining formation, endless destructive forces of various Great Daos continuously flooded the Chaos Great Cauldron at the center. This cauldron, possessing the potential for Dao attainment, also seemed on the verge of collapse. Cracks continuously interwove and spread across its surface, and as time passed, these cracks grew increasingly numerous.
Although the eighteen Insect Race Mother Queens all felt their power couldn't fully cycle, with large amounts of destructive energy disappearing without a trace—which was very strange—they suppressed their doubts upon seeing this scene.
As long as the Battle Saint King was exterminated, that was enough, for he was the greatest scourge.
However, unknown to all, within the Chaos Great Cauldron, Ye Chen sat cross-legged in meditation, completely unharmed, his entire body flowing with resplendent radiant light.
Within the dantian source point at his lower abdomen, blazing brilliance erupted. Accompanied by rumbling roars, the damaged Chaos Small Universe inside was completely repaired at this moment, flawless and perfect.
Rumble—
Simultaneously, the moment the Chaos Small Universe was successfully repaired, a vast and mighty Great Dao divine power surged forth from within, flowing through Ye Chen's limbs and bones, immense and astonishing.
Originally requiring at least several more months of cultivation, Ye Chen's aura now suddenly skyrocketed, breaking through the barrier and forcefully advancing into the second level of the Great Power realm.
This brought a faint smile to Ye Chen's lips.
Probably no one expected that being trapped in this starry sky prison would ultimately turn misfortune into fortune.
Moreover, the moment the Chaos Small Universe was fully repaired, a great deal of chaos comprehension also surged into his heart, granting him sudden enlightenment. His understanding of the "World Creation" fist suddenly rose to a higher level.
"Such a siege and killing not only allowed me to repair my Chaos Small Universe and successfully break through to the second level of Great Power, but also enabled that kind of breakthrough. Truly, the more of this, the better," Ye Chen thought to himself.
If the eighteen Insect Race Mother Queens knew, they would probably be so frustrated they'd vomit blood. They had painstakingly trapped the Battle Saint King in this starry sky prison with the sole purpose of exterminating this human Heaven's Pride. Who would have thought they'd end up helping him instead.
Rumble—
The eight divine power clones sat cross-legged in eight directions, forming a cyclic source point, devouring vast amounts of external energy and storing it.
Ye Chen had already achieved Chaos Great Power status; his divine power reserves were far more immense and vast than before, allowing him to nearly infinitely devour large amounts of external energy, store it, and drive the continuous perfection of his Chaos Small Universe.
However, at this moment, he also witnessed the scene of Nine Snake and Abenue being pursued. If it were an inconsequential matter, he wouldn't mind continuing to devour this energy to further perfect his Chaos Small Universe. But now, he clearly couldn't truly sit idly by.
"Enough. There will be plenty of opportunities later. Now, it's time to go out."