Chapter 2100: An Outstanding Person

"Di Dao Fu Xi." Taotie's face paled, as if he recognized this formation and knew its overwhelming power.

Without a second thought, he transformed into his true Taotie form, enormous beyond measure. From a distance, it looked like a towering mountain, majestic and imposing. His eyes alone were as big as wine vats, making Ye Chen seem like a tiny insect that could be crushed with one hand.

No wonder he was called a Honghuang-level Quasi-Emperor—his instincts were sharp. He charged straight through the formation with sheer force.

"Damn, is he really that outstanding?" Ye Chen grunted and stepped back.

"Die!" Taotie reverted to human form and channeled thousands of secret techniques into a single finger. The attack was devastating, capable of obliterating anything in its path, aimed straight at piercing a massive hole in Ye Chen’s skull.

But Ye Chen was clever. He swapped his usual weapon for a massive door-like board, thick and heavy, made of Di Zang Yun Tie—a pitch-black metal that was incredibly tough. He held it up in front of him.

Clang!

The sound of metal colliding rang out as Taotie’s finger struck the Di Zang Yun Tie dead-on.

In an instant, Taotie’s finger exploded into ash. What good was being a Quasi-Emperor, even a Honghuang-level one? It couldn’t break the Di Zang Yun Tie. The facts proved it: the meteor iron was harder than flesh and bone.

"Go on, poke away!" Ye Chen unleashed his might, wielding the Di Zang Yun Tie like a club, roaring as he charged forward. He didn’t bother with divine powers or secret techniques—just used the board to smash his enemy senseless.

The scene was brutal. A mighty Quasi-Emperor was forced to cower under the relentless blows.

"Don't even talk about taking a hit—watching it hurts." Yang Xuan peered over the cauldron’s edge, wincing and clicking his tongue.

"What a stubborn old man-in-law!" Tang San Shao wiped his nosebleed, his blood pumping with excitement. Fights should be like this—smash when you can, and keep smashing until the end.

"Call him that again, and I'll kick you to death." Ye Ling scolded.

"How about calling him dad, then?"

"Get lost."

"A person who's slain Great Emperors is truly terrifying." In the distant starry sky, Hua Jian Xin gazed quietly, sighing in admiration. The Eucharist's battle spirit in this era was unmatched, honed through wars with emperors. Fighting someone like that, even a moment's distraction could decide victory or defeat. Taotie was a perfect example right now.

Withdrawing her gaze from that direction, she glanced elsewhere and spotted Ji Ningshuang's shadow, hidden in the void, waiting for the perfect moment. This was their unspoken understanding.

Ah!

Taotie was driven to madness, roaring in fury. He endured another blow from Ye Chen’s board, then activated a forbidden seal on his forehead, etching a divine mark there. His combat power surged instantly, his shattered body healing in a flash. With a single palm strike, he sent Ye Chen flying thousands of miles.

"You've angered me." Taotie bellowed, his face twisted in grotesque rage. He gathered a demonic light sphere, expanding it infinitely like a dark sun, radiating eerie demonic rays laced with destructive force. A hit from this could overwhelm even an ordinary Quasi-Emperor.

In the lower starry sky, Ye Chen steadied himself and glanced at the black sun. For some reason, whenever he saw a round sphere, he thought about shooting it down—just like in his past battle with the Jinwu, when they played with balls and he countered with arrows, pulling it off flawlessly.

"Forcing me to go all out." Ye Chen halted, summoning immortal fire and heavenly thunder. He shaped the immortal fire into a divine bow and the heavenly thunder into a divine arrow, drawing it back like a full moon, aiming at Taotie, and releasing the string.

This arrow was far beyond his previous ones, thanks to his enhanced cultivation, the reborn immortal fire and heavenly thunder, and most importantly, his path now carrying an extraordinary essence within the ordinary.

A wisp of star wind blew by as the black sun descended from above, and the thunder arrow shot upward against the heavens. Both carried destructive power, colliding in the starry sky with a thunderous boom that echoed through the domain.

A wave of annihilating light spread endlessly, vaporizing more stars and meteorites into dust. Everywhere the light touched, the space in the starry sky crumbled inch by inch.

High above, the sun shattered, pierced by the thunder arrow.

Blood sprayed next. Taotie wasn’t spared, struck through by the arrow.

"How is this possible?" Taotie spat blood, stumbling backward, his eyes veined with red, turning crimson. The gaping wound in his chest gushed blood, and Ye Chen’s arrow was too powerful—the lingering killing intent even overwhelmed a Quasi-Emperor like him.

This defeat was unacceptable. A Quasi-Emperor at the eighth heaven, outmatched by a Saint King? And the opponent only had Quasi-Emperor weapons. If Ye Chen had an Emperor weapon, the loss would be even worse.

As he retreated, a chilling wind hit from behind, sending a icy sting up his spine.

When he turned, he saw a slender jade finger thrusting toward his forehead.

It was Ji Ningshuang, striking with a finger wreathed in destruction—a fatal blow.

Taotie’s eyes bulged. In the split second before impact, his Yuan Shen and true form escaped his body. Otherwise, that finger would have killed him—it was an Emperor Dao immortal technique.

Splash!

Scarlet blood splattered across the starry sky. Taotie’s Yuan Shen fled, but his physical body’s head was pierced. Ji Ningshuang wasted no time, crushing his body with a palm to prevent any return.

"Impossible, this can't be." Taotie’s pupils contracted as he stared at Ji Ningshuang in shock. How could he not recognize her? She was the Eastern God of Xuan Huang, the Yao Chi Goddess.

He had been there when Ji Ningshuang was buried, witnessing her soul scatter. Seeing her alive now was unbelievable.

"Spacing out again? Time to end this." In that moment, Ye Chen arrived, firing waves of Shen Shang arrows aimed at the Yuan Shen. Still in shock, Taotie was hit repeatedly. Even as a Quasi-Emperor-level Yuan Shen, he couldn’t withstand the heavy blows, nearly splitting apart.

Ji Ningshuang didn’t idle, activating another forbidden seal to bind Taotie’s Yuan Shen.

"Bon voyage." Ye Chen manifested a Dao sword, slashing down from the heavens.

"Break for me!" Taotie roared, burning his Yuan Shen power to forcibly shatter the bindings and teleport a thousand miles away, barely dodging the killing blow.

"You're really outstanding, aren't you!" Ye Chen laughed in frustration—this guy could still escape.

With his body destroyed and Yuan Shen gravely wounded, Taotie didn’t dare fight on. He turned and fled.

He had no choice; any longer, and he’d be done for.

He had underestimated Ye Chen and Ji Ningshuang. Even without an Emperor weapon, they could slay a Quasi-Emperor. Only a peak Quasi-Emperor could handle them.

"Where do you think you're going?" Ye Chen snorted coldly, pursuing with Ji Ningshuang, one on the left and one on the right.

Taotie was desperate. He summoned a pagoda, not to attack, but to self-destruct it.

"Shit!"

Ye Chen cursed and froze in place, pulling Ji Ningshuang into the Dust Space. A Quasi-Emperor-level artifact exploding was no joke.

Indeed, the blast was ferocious. They had just entered the Dust Space when it shattered, hurling them thousands of miles in opposite directions. Their divine bodies nearly burst.

"You're something else." Ye Chen stabilized himself, spitting blood. Ji Ningshuang fared no better, her immortal robes stained red. They had underestimated Taotie’s tactics. Good thing they dodged fast—if they’d been a second slower, they’d be heading to the underworld together.

"A mere Saint King, daring to block me?" From afar, Taotie’s voice boomed. He had blasted Ye Chen and Ji Ningshuang back but was now blocked by Hua Jian Xin, who landed a sword strike on him.

Unfortunately, Hua Jian Xin wasn’t on Ye Chen’s level; she lacked that insane combat power.

But her brief delay let Ye Chen and Ji Ningshuang catch up again.

Taotie didn’t stop, burning more Yuan Shen power to boost his speed, fleeing for his life without looking back. Another moment of hesitation, and he’d be finished.

"Today, I won't let you go, or I'll take your surname." Behind him, Ye Chen grumbled nonstop, covered in soot and dirt, his face thunderous with pent-up rage.

Ji Ningshuang was just as furious, her beautiful eyes blazing with flames, her killing intent overwhelming.

"Save me! Save me!"

"Run? Keep running?"

In a chase across swaths of starry sky, Taotie desperately called for help, while Ye Chen pursued, attacking all the way. Too many desolate ancient stars were destroyed in the process.

The commotion stirred the entire star domain, drawing crowds of nearby cultivators.

When they saw Taotie, they were stunned, thinking they’d miscounted. For years, the Honghuang clans had been the aggressors, usually hunting human cultivators.

This sight was fresh: a Quasi-Emperor-level Yuan Shen being chased across the stars. Clearly, his body was gone, and his Yuan Shen was nearly transparent.

The curious human cultivators turned to look at Taotie’s pursuers. Whoever could beat a Honghuang Quasi-Emperor this badly must be impressive—truly a credit to the heavens.

One glance, and they were collectively shocked.

"Did I see that right? The Eucharist Ye Chen?"

"And the one next to him—is that the Eastern God Yao Chi?"

"Wait, the Eastern God is still alive? How?"

The human cultivators' expressions were a mix of surprise. Seeing Ye Chen was unexpected but not shocking—he was the Honghuang clans' old nemesis. But Ji Ningshuang’s survival was a real bombshell.

"Save me! Save me!"

Under everyone's gaze, Taotie crossed another stretch of starry sky, still shouting. He hoped nearby Honghuang members would come to his aid or that those aligned with them would help.

But he had the wrong crowd. Asking human cultivators for help was asking for trouble.

"Run? Keep running?"

Ye Chen shouted at the top of his lungs, speeding like thunder and lightning, his escape technique bold and dominant. His pursuit was full of swagger, and his mouth never stopped.

Hearing his loud curses, the human cultivators didn’t need to check—it had to be Ye Chen. In all the heavens, who else had such a distinctive voice?

The human cultivators didn’t save Taotie, but the Honghuang forces emerged.

From afar, waves of Honghuang aura surged, bringing hordes of ancient beasts, all radiating terrifying energy. Like a snowball, their numbers grew, forming a massive black swarm.

Taotie latched onto this lifeline, teleporting into the Honghuang ranks in a few strides.

"The Eucharist?"

"The Eastern God?"

The newly arrived Honghuang powerhouses were just as stunned as the human cultivators.

"Anyone who blocks me dies."

Ye Chen roared, charging in and carving a bloody path with his sword, ignoring the other Honghuang members as he targeted Taotie. That guy was on his last legs—he couldn’t escape.

The Honghuang formation chaos from his assault. Before they could regroup, Ji Ningshuang arrived, unleashing the Yao Chi vision and sending them into disarray.

"Kill! Kill them for me!" Once they recovered, the Honghuang powerhouses launched their attacks.

Not only that, more of them activated transmission stones to call for reinforcements.

Over a hundred years, and Ye Chen finally showed up—they had to eliminate him. And Ji Ningshuang, too, though they didn’t know how she was alive, she couldn’t be spared. Talents like them were too monstrous; letting any escape would be a disaster.

The star domain trembled as nearby Honghuang forces converged.

Some even sent word to their clans.

Soon, Emperor Dao portals lit up the sky, at least hundreds of them, as various Honghuang races charged from all directions. Each brought armies, forming an unprecedented force of over fifty million, sweeping across the stars inch by inch.