The Heavenly Dragon True Emperor and his crew were formidable in their own right, each blessed with extraordinary fortune—possessing either exceptional treasure bodies or special bloodlines, and additionally bearing the Mandate of Heaven. Although their Original Sin Dharmakayas were obtained through possession, making their Original Sin Power not particularly pure...
But that was all.
One must know that, according to legend, Original Sin Power is the most mysterious and terrifying force between heaven and earth throughout all ages, bar none.
Even a counterfeit Original Sin Dharmakaya is still an Original Sin Dharmakaya. Even impure Original Sin Power is still Original Sin Power.
Its terrifying nature from the very beginning is simply unimaginable to ordinary people.
However.
That being said.
Elder Tongbei was certainly no pushover either. After all, he was once hailed as one of the Taixu Nine Swords during the Primordial Era, his cultivation profound and unfathomable. Moreover, he possessed a Great Dao treasure in his hands—the 'Life-Transformation Sword'.
It is said that the Taixu Sword Saint, who dominated the Ancient Era, left nine swords to the Taixu Grotto, which became the famous Taixu Nine Swords.
And the Life-Transformation Sword in Elder Tongbei's hand was one of those Taixu Nine Swords.
To be honest.
If it were just a joint siege by over twenty counterfeit Original Sin individuals, given Elder Tongbei's cultivation and strength, he wouldn't be afraid.
Even adding three Great Dao Star Lords and two Great Dao Thrones—all five bearing the Mandate of Heaven and possessing counterfeit Original Sin Dharmakayas—Elder Tongbei could still escape with the others even if he couldn't defeat them.
But among these people was the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor.
Dark Bloodline.
Heavenly Dragon Supreme Body!
Great Dao Emperor Seal.
Plus a pure and profound Original Sin Dharmakaya.
The terrifying level of the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor's cultivation and strength far exceeded Elder Tongbei's imagination. The injuries on his body were inflicted by the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor. Left with no choice, he could only rely on the Life-Transformation Sword to activate the Taixu Sword Formation, using it to protect himself and the others.
Fortunately, his cultivation was profound enough, the Life-Transformation Sword powerful enough, and the Taixu Sword Formation mysterious enough, so they were temporarily safe.
However.
It was only temporary.
The Heavenly Dragon True Emperor and his group clearly had no intention of letting them go. Moreover, with over twenty Original Sin Avatars continuously besieging the Taixu Sword Formation, no matter how profound Elder Tongbei's cultivation was, he could hold on for a while, but not forever.
Outside help?
He had none.
The other fellow disciples of the Taixu Grotto had long been scattered, impossible to contact, their fates unknown. Where would outside help come from?
Boom! Rumble!—The over twenty Original Sin Avatars continued relentlessly unleashing various divine abilities and wondrous techniques, attempting to forcibly break the Taixu Sword Formation. Unfortunately, no matter how powerful their Original Sin Avatars were, no matter how profound their fortune, no matter how mysterious their divine abilities, they simply could not shake the Taixu Sword Formation.
That Taixu Sword Formation stood like a sword peak on the Ancient Era ruins, utterly motionless. The sword bodies shimmered with mysterious runes, the sword light flowing as if containing a kind of ancient, mysterious power.
In the distance.
The Heavenly Dragon True Emperor, the three Great Dao Star Lords, and the two Great Dao Thrones were still watching quietly, but impatience was written on their faces.
However.
None of them charged forward to personally break the formation.
Not that they didn't want to, but they had already tried to break this Taixu Formation before. Even after exerting all their strength, they not only failed to break the Taixu Sword Formation, they couldn't even shake it.
This left them utterly bewildered. After all, their own cultivation was already formidable, they bore the Great Dao Mandate, and possessed powerful bloodline treasure bodies—their strength could be said to be extremely powerful. Back in the Great Wilderness, even when encountering profoundly cultivated old seniors, even those with Great Dao Emperor Seals, they had the qualifications to fight.
Later, with the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor's help, they achieved Original Sin Dharmakayas. Although they were counterfeit Dharmakayas obtained through possession, it still caused their strength to skyrocket. Relying on their Original Sin Dharmakayas, they now feared no existence.
At the very least.
After achieving Original Sin Dharmakayas, neither the two Great Dao Thrones nor the three Great Dao Star Lords had ever met a match.
What made them immensely frustrated was that today, they couldn't even break a single sword formation.
This gave them a sense of defeat, and they were very unconvinced in their hearts.
However.
Defeated or not, unconvinced or not.
Both Great Dao Thrones and the three Great Dao Star Lords had heard of the fame of the Taixu Nine Swords.
They knew Elder Tongbei was one of the famous Taixu Nine Swords of the Taixu Grotto.
They also knew the Life-Transformation Sword in Elder Tongbei's hand was one of the Taixu Nine Swords forged by the Taixu Sword Saint who dominated the Ancient Era.
Yes.
They knew.
They just hadn't expected Elder Tongbei's cultivation to be so profound, nor had they expected the Life-Transformation Sword in his hand to be so powerful.
The five exchanged glances, then all looked toward the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor.
In their eyes, the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor was a being of vast supernatural powers, capable of anything. He was even an existence that could stand shoulder to shoulder with the Great Sun Radiant Emperor and the Western Heaven Buddha Emperor Miao Rulai. They had witnessed the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor's abilities; precisely because they had witnessed them, they had betrayed their own sects to follow him.
In their minds, if they couldn't break this Taixu Sword Formation, given the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor's abilities, breaking it should be as easy as blowing away dust, right?
Yet the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor had never made a move from start to finish, hadn't attempted to break the formation, just kept staring at the Taixu Sword Formation without saying a word.
This puzzled the five. Could it be that the Taixu Sword Formation was truly so formidable that even the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor couldn't break it?
This was their inner doubt, but facing the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor, none dared to voice the question.
Just then.
The Heavenly Dragon True Emperor, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke, roaring: "A bunch of trash!
All of you, get out of This Emperor's way!"
Such a domineering roar truly shook heaven and earth, like the roar of a dragon and the cry of a tiger. It not only dizzied the five Great Dao Mandate bearers beside him but also sent the over twenty people besieging the Taixu Sword Formation flying sideways.
The Heavenly Dragon True Emperor strode forward slowly, fixing his gaze on Elder Tongbei inside the Taixu Sword Formation, and said: "Old thing!
This Emperor advises you to speak up about the whereabouts of that pearl. Otherwise, today I will make you wish you were dead!"
Inside the Taixu Sword Formation.
Elder Tongbei sat cross-legged, his hands forming seals. Floating between his palms was a silver-gray longsword—this was precisely the Life-Transformation Sword, one of the Taixu Nine Swords, and also the life-bound treasure Elder Tongbei had nurtured his entire life.
He looked somewhat disheveled, with disheveled hair, an old face full of vicissitudes, his complexion somewhat pale, a trace of blood still at the corner of his mouth. Yet his turbid eyes were filled with determination. He raised his head, met the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor's gaze, and responded.
"This old man's answer remains the same: I simply do not know what pearl you speak of, so how could I tell you its whereabouts!"
Elder Tongbei truly did not know.
Ever since encountering the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor in Kan Palace, the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor had been asking him about the pearl's whereabouts. But he had no idea what pearl the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor was looking for, nor did he know why the Heavenly Dragon True Emperor was asking him about it.
"Heavenly Dragon True Emperor, is it?
This old man believes you must have misunderstood something. We truly do not know what pearl you are looking for!"