ISWI Chapter 699-700

Chapter 699: Immortal-Slaying Gourd!

Under the gaze of countless eyes, Ye Chen's massive hand closed around the Holy Prince's shrunken, one-meter-sixty frame. The monkey's heads had yet to regrow. Terrifying destructive power churned in his palm. He was going to erase the Holy Prince completely.

The Holy Prince's body was monstrous, forged by the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art. He would not die easily. Any other king-level cultivator would struggle to seize this chance and finish him in his broken state. But Ye Chen was different. His grip tightened. The Holy Prince thrashed wildly. Yet inch by inch, his flesh was annihilated.

High above, a mighty expert from the Victorious Fighting Ape clan struck in fury. Since each side held half the array discs, neither could open the formation unilaterally. The great power hammered the barrier madly. Blue light rippled violently across the array. He roared threats, demanding Ye Chen stop.

Ye Chen ignored him completely and continued grinding the Holy Prince into nothingness. The array shuddered but held firm. After all, the Victorious Fighting Apes had spared no expense on materials, precisely to prevent interference from Heavenly Evolution experts during their prince's debut battle. Even a Great Saint would need half a day to break it. A Ninth Heaven Quasi-Immortal would still require dozens of breaths.

At that moment, a cosmic cauldron vast enough to contain the heavens themselves materialized above the Heavenly Evolution forces. It smashed down toward the ape expert.

Realizing he could not save the Holy Prince, the ape roared in powerless rage. He threw a punch at the cauldron. The two Great Saints clashed and rapidly vanished into the depths of the starry void. Clearly, he was venting his helpless fury.

Great Saints stood at the Seventh Heaven. They were among the absolute peak existences of the cultivation world. Capable of plucking stars and wearing moons as crowns, of shattering worlds with a wave. When two such beings fought, their auras alone were cataclysmic. Divine light flooded the void, blinding and supreme. Even the shockwaves leaking from their battle threatened to collapse the entire realm.

Every onlooker's gaze was involuntarily drawn upward. Even Ye Chen couldn't help glancing skyward. And right then—Prince Lu Ya, who had been waiting patiently for this exact moment, moved. In a flash, he slipped inside the grand array.

The formation only barred those above the Third Heaven. He entered without resistance. Attacks from outside could not penetrate the barrier. To ensure a one-hit kill, to give Ye Chen no chance to react, Lu Ya had long since produced a crimson gourd. Golden divine runes crawled across its surface, mysterious and ominous. The mouth of the gourd was already open.

Lu Ya chanted under his breath. The instant he entered—a blinding white light shot from the crimson gourd like lightning. It was a flying blade. But an extraordinarily strange one. It bore a faint illusory face with five features, and a pair of wings sprouted from its back. The moment it appeared, its phantom eyes fired two beams of even sharper white light. Like physical arrows that transcended space itself, they struck Ye Chen in an instant.

Ye Chen's body froze.

Joy flashed across Lu Ya's face. The Immortal-Slaying Gourd could seal the enemy's primordial spirit and Qi completely. They could neither move nor resist.

Seeing success, Lu Ya no longer hesitated and shouted, "Treasure, turn around!"

At his command, the bizarre flying blade with its ghostly face spun wildly. It whipped the air into eerie shrieks. Faster and faster—until it became a blurred white streak. Carrying boundless killing intent, it slashed toward Ye Chen's neck.

Wherever the blade passed, space cracked like spiderwebs, fissures spreading in all directions. Its might was unimaginable, only now did the spectators realize Prince Lu Ya had entered the field. Shock rippled through the crowds. When they saw the Immortal-Slaying Gourd unleashed, their eyes widened further.

The timing was perfect!

Luo Bingling's expression changed. The vertical pupil in her forehead began to open. Her slender waist twisted. Her enchanting figure shot toward the sky battlefield, killing intent blazing. She would not let Ye Chen die!

The Little Peacock King had still been hesitating. But seeing Lu Ya commit, he gritted his teeth and stepped onto his tri-colored divine light, streaking toward the battlefield. If Lu Ya went in and he stayed out. He would be the only one humiliated. So he had to enter.

But Lu Ya already seemed to have succeeded—the Immortal-Slaying Gourd was out. The Little Peacock King knew its terror better than most. Once locked on, spirit and Qi were sealed. No dodging, no blocking—only the flesh could resist.

Ye Chen's body was strong, true. But compared to a supreme Extreme Dao Weapon like the Immortal-Slaying Gourd? A mantis trying to stop a chariot. Perhaps… he wouldn't even need to lift a finger…

With these thoughts swirling, the Little Peacock King flew into the one-way sky battlefield.

The sudden reversal stunned the entire sea of onlookers. Prince Lu Ya had actually made his move. And he had successfully unleashed the Immortal-Slaying Gourd!

Joy surged through every cultivator of the myriad races. The human cultivators paled as one. The Immortal-Slaying Gourd's infamous reputation was known to all. As a supreme Extreme Dao Weapon, its effects were simply too terrifying. It could seal the enemy's primordial spirit and Qi completely.

No divine abilities, no techniques, no escape. And the blade itself was no less fearsome. Once it severed a head, even the most tenacious life force would struggle to recover. How does one fight without a head? Death was the only outcome. Even if Lu Ya's cultivation was insufficient to wield its full might, a sneak attack made it lethally dangerous.

Everyone marveled at how exquisitely Lu Ya had seized the moment.

Yao Yuekong narrowed his eyes.

Yao Yuezhi's beautiful gaze flashed. In that instant, she made her decision. Her willow-like figure left the immortal skiff without hesitation and shot toward the battlefield.

Yao Yuekong's eyes nearly popped out of his skull. He knew his sister too well. She was obviously not flying in to gang up on Ye Chen. So… she believed Ye Chen could survive Prince Lu Ya's ambush?

…

Chapter 700: Regret, Deep Regret!

Under countless watching eyes, Ye Chen, momentarily distracted by the clash of Great Saints above, sensed the change and whipped his head around. He saw Lu Ya inside the array, the Immortal-Slaying Gourd already unleashed.

A strange sealing force ignored his flesh completely and bore down directly on his primordial spirit and dantian. It sought to lock both away utterly. The power was profound and insidious. It bypassed all defenses—impossible to guard against.

Yet Ye Chen's expression remained calm. His body trembled ever so slightly. Endless bloodline power roared to life, shattering the suppression in an instant. Without pause, he continued refining the wailing Holy Prince in his left hand. With his right, he activated the Indestructible Scripture, reached out, and caught the incoming Immortal-Slaying Blade bare-handed.

The scene left Lu Ya's face drained of color. Why wasn't Ye Chen sealed? The gourd was never meant for direct confrontation—its strength lay in absolute sharpness and the seal first, the strike second. It had never failed before. And now, under the stunned gazes of tens of thousands, Ye Chen simply closed his fingers around the streaking blade. The Immortal-Slaying Blade thrashed violently. A massive gash split open across Ye Chen's palm. A few drops of blood trickled down.

Prince Lu Ya's eyes bulged until they threatened to burst. He caught the Immortal-Slaying Blade with his bare hand? His hand wasn't severed—only a cut? Are you kidding me?

At this moment, Prince Lu Ya completely panicked. Ye Chen himself raised a brow in mild surprise. He was actually wounded? A curse of "no healing" lingered at the gash. His physique was truly heaven-defying. The Holy Prince's body had been strong enough, hadn't it? Yet in front of him, it wasn't even qualified to carry his shoes. This Immortal-Slaying Gourd actually had some real bite. Still, the Indestructible Scripture could suppress any no-healing curse. Combined with his monstrous natural recovery, he didn't even need the Healing Secret or the True Phoenix Treasure Technique. The wound sealed itself in the blink of an eye.

Ye Chen's interest in the gourd deepened. It had some real stuff. The Armament Secret surged. A strange power instantly flooded into the blade's core. The Immortal-Slaying Blade, which had been thrashing wildly in his palm, desperate to return to Lu Ya, instantly fell still.

Ye Chen's lips curved into a smile. His gaze swept across the sky battlefield. Four people had rushed in all at once.

Lu Ya had dared to ambush him—his fate was sealed.

The tri-colored Little Peacock King radiated thick origin essence; he would be a fine harvest. As for Luo Bingling—she had already engaged the Little Peacock King, keeping him occupied. Though Ye Chen knew full well she only feared losing all chance at the Dao Cauldron if he died. Still, charging in fearlessly like this to help him. He accepted the favor. He could treat Luo Bingling a little better from now on. But the one who truly shocked Ye Chen was that five-thousand-times beauty, Yao Yuezhi! She had come too. To kill him?

Ye Chen narrowed his eyes in speculation. Then he saw the delicate, willow-like girl raise a hand. Brilliant divine light blossomed like petals, ethereal and breathtaking. It slammed down toward Lu Ya with overwhelming force.

While attacking, she even explained with an apologetic, gentle voice, "Prince Lu Ya, Fellow Daoist Ye once spared my brother. He bears great kindness toward our Heavenly Demon clan. I cannot stand by and watch him be besieged! I mean no offense! But if you are willing to cease and leave, I will stop at once!"

Ye Chen's smile widened the instant he heard those words.

…

Whether it was Ye Chen catching the Immortal-Slaying Blade bare-handed, or Yao Yuezhi suddenly turning on Prince Lu Ya, or Luo Bingling clashing with the Little Peacock King, everything happened in the space of a single heartbeat.

The entire Endless Sea exploded into uproar. But the most astonishing sight of all was still Ye Chen. Terrifying beyond belief. The sealing power of the Immortal-Slaying Gourd hadn't affected him in the slightest. He had even blocked the blade itself with his flesh, suffering only a shallow cut. That was a supreme Extreme Dao Weapon! Had the Heavenly Emperor's heir truly reached a realm with no weaknesses?

Everyone was lost in stunned admiration. Yet beneath that admiration. Countless male cultivators stared at Ye Chen with unconcealed envy. As the Heavenly Emperor heir, he was the born enemy of nearly all the myriad races. Yet in this situation, two supreme beauties from the myriad races had, without hesitation, stood firmly on his side. That charm was simply too devastating.

…

Under the gaze of the masses, Ye Chen did not rush to attack. He calmly continued erasing the Holy Prince in his grasp.

Moments later, amidst the Holy Prince's final roars of unwillingness, despair, and fury, everything fell silent. The Holy Prince, unsealed after tens of thousands of years, had ended his journey on the path to immortality mere moments after beginning it.

Ye Chen summoned the Dragon-Subduing Yellow Spring Diagram. He tossed both the soul and origin of the Holy Prince into the yellow springs to be refined. Only then did he turn his tranquil gaze toward Prince Lu Ya and the Little Peacock King. The killing intent he fixed on Lu Ya was noticeably deeper.

No wonder. He had acted for three full days—three days of flawless performance. Yet because of this idiot's sneak attack, he had been forced to take a full-powered strike from a supreme Extreme Dao Weapon head-on. Just look at the reverence and awe on everyone's faces. All his exquisite acting had gone to waste.

From now on, far fewer people would dare come deliver their heads. And the one who had ruined everything was Lu Ya. This bird absolutely could not be allowed to live!

With that thought, Ye Chen exploded forward, murder blazing. The Movement Secret pushed to its limit, combined with the profound spatial comprehension gained from the Minor Space Technique, his speed now resembled living lightning. In the blink of an eye, he was directly in front of Lu Ya.

Lu Ya had already been panicking the moment he lost his connection to the Immortal-Slaying Blade. In that instant, he understood—Ye Chen possessed the Armament Secret. The Armament Secret was one of the most famous of the Nine Secrets. It allowed one to wield weapons of far higher realms in advance. To adapt to them at a terrifying speed. And most critically, once the enemy's weapon was seized, it could effortlessly erase the original brand and claim it as one's own.

In other words, practitioners of the Armament Secret were the natural nemesis of all flying treasures. A single moment of carelessness, and the weapon would be stolen. If he had known, he would never have used the Immortal-Slaying Gourd against Ye Chen. He would never have foolishly charged into the battlefield. Alas, there was no medicine for regret in this world.