Chapter 2362: Heaven and Earth Receive the Mandate

“I think we will meet again.” When Tian Anping left this sentence at the front of Tianya Terrace, probably no one thought that this sentence would come true so quickly. People thought that the scene he described was only his true mood. No one could figure out why Tian Anping, who had already been advised by Cao Ji to return to Jueming Island to recuperate from his injuries, and who had indeed been severely injured by Lou Yue, would mysteriously run to the Ghost Face Fish sea area again. He ran in front of Jiang Wang and provoked his displeasure. If one had to say, it was more like a “bad child” who secretly and deliberately caused trouble, wanting to continue the conflicts that were inconvenient to continue in front of his parents. Jiang Wang did not indulge him. A single word, “Get out,” exploded into ten thousand zhang of turbulent waves. Killing intent rose with a single thought, then drove the sound pattern as a sword, chopping out ten thousand peaks. Ten thousand crystal-clear, transparent, sharp small swords, like light boats skimming the water, sped through the waves, shuttled through the sky and sea, each displaying a different sword style, interwoven into unparalleled killing! Each sword style was a peak that ordinary cultivators could not reach in a lifetime. The Yanfu Sword Prison rose with the sound, like waves chasing and running. It displayed all the sword techniques and killing methods that Jiang Wang had practiced every day, accumulated continuously, and innovated along the way. Whether complex or simple, all were in the Dao. Tian Anping was not afraid but happy, raising his shackles and whistling, “Right! It should be like this! Your last battle before losing yourself, leave it to me, Tian Anping! Don’t disappoint me!” Whether you say he was crazy or mad, at least at this moment, compared to those purely malicious guys, he was more like a pious seeker. Or perhaps, a pious seeker was originally just another name for a madman! He spread his ten fingers, holding them up to the sky, his long hair flying back! “From ancient times to the present, heaven and man, all have forever fallen! I come with a ‘Pillow Weapon,’ not hesitating to consume my life, only fearing to miss out!” He was impatient! Because Jiang Wang was already on the verge of sinking, he had to immediately restore his strength no matter what, and seize the time to conduct this battle. Seize the last opportunity before heaven and man forever fall, to research, to explore—even, he not only restored his peak. After painstakingly seeking that one needle of “Startling Hong,” he solved the soul problem that had been troubling him for a long time, and his strength had more breakthroughs! Jiang Wang once asked Tian Anping how he wanted to understand him. Where were there other answers? Only life and death reveal true colors! Along with Tian Anping’s hand movements, the long space in front of him suddenly settled. There were no wind ripples, no wave patterns, as if solidified. The surging sword lights like a school of silver sea swordfish, the suddenly rising towering mad waves, just stopped in mid-air, as if frozen forever into a glacier. Because he killed Liu Shentong and had his realm sealed, confined for ten years, Tian Anping, although he always had a terrifying reputation, his real strength was always a mystery. He sat year-round inside that Fu Bi Building in the center of Ji City, rarely contacting people. Even after being unsealed, he had made moves many times, but no one had truly forced out all of his combat power. Initially, on the Fa Xia battlefield, one battle shocked the world, but almost all the people who saw his true power were killed. The enemy army was exterminated, and our army also had few survivors. Every battle he made a public move in was considered important intelligence. Just for example, in the previous battle with Lou Yue, he seemed to only show divine powers related to space. Starting with the “Secret Method · Move Dragon,” connecting with the “Forbidden Method · Virtual Birth Calamity Gap,” it shocked a crowd of spectators, almost making them think that Lou Yue was about to die on the spot. This performance of raising the sky and fixing the sea was also quite similar to He Tian! Jiang Wang was a step late in going to sea and missed that True Person battle, so he had never seen it either. But fighting a Tian Anping, what did he need to know? Today, the two proved heaven and man, and he, who was already drowning more than half in the deep sea of the Heavenly Dao, could tell with just a look that what Tian Anping had grasped was not space, but the “lines” that constructed space. One horizontal line, one vertical line, then frame out the plane range on a white paper. If there is another vertical line, then the so-called “space” appears! Tian Anping’s grasp of “lines” had delved into the fundamentals of Dao principles, weaving space with Dao principle lines, locking space gap patterns, and achieving an effect close to controlling space. He certainly had a very profound understanding of “space” to be able to do this. At least Jiang Wang himself could not. But now was not the time to sit down and compare understandings of space, nor did he need to discuss space cognition, as long as he understood, it was enough. Probably these “lines” were where Tian Anping’s Dao path lay. In front of the still “glacier,” Jiang Wang was only a “moving scene.” He coldly brought his double fingers parallel, letting the corner of his clothes fly, and just drew a line in front of him— Peng! It was as if a string had broken with a light sound. It did not ring in the ear, yet it cracked open the heart lake. Those “lines” that only existed in the eyes of Jiang Wang and Tian Anping, and perhaps Zhao Wuyan could also see, broke one after another, making silk threads fly. Sword finger chopped the Dao! Hua hua hua! The waves continued to surge. Ten thousand sword forms and sound patterns continued to rush. It was as if no obstruction had ever occurred. A huge black shadow rose above Tian Anping’s head, instantly stirring up a strong wind, spreading cloud shadows, vaguely gathering into a Peng form, covering the sky. That was an extremely terrifying virtual shadow, representing the powerful martial arts of the first generation Zhongyong Bo, who swallowed dragons and chewed wasteland. The Great Marsh Tian Clan’s secret technique, Night Peng Swallowing Dragon Gong! The Great Peng spread its wings and wanted to fly high, overturning the green sea, flipping the blue sky, turning hills into great marshes! Zhongyong Bo Tian Wenxi, the first ancestor of the Great Marsh Tian Clan, was the one who personally founded this family. In former years, a remonstrating official said that this gong was greatly disrespectful, daring to say swallow dragons, and had suspicion of rebelling against his superior. Zhongyong Bo appeared before the platform to plead guilty, wanting to abolish this gong himself. The Martial Emperor laughed, saying what was a true dragon? What kind of inferior thing could suit my respect? Let Zhongyong Bo swallow the sea, for my martial arts! He again rewarded the remonstrating official with a hundred gold, praising his courage to speak. He again punished the remonstrating official with a hundred sticks, fining his absurd speech. Throughout the Martial Emperor’s dynasty, the Great Marsh Tian Clan held the main positions in the Qi Country’s navy, and their sealed land was also named “Great Marsh,” often contending in the treacherous realms. Zhongyong Bo Tian Wenxi was relatively young and only began to make a name for himself after the Martial Emperor had already restored the country, fixed the tripod, and stabilized the court, missing the easiest merit of the restoration war. But this person was brave beyond compare, with a loyal heart. In that era when the famous exploits of restoration already occupied the court, he still carved out a bloody path and achieved countless merits. It was with his founding and the accumulation of merits by later generations that they had today’s position among the first-class noble families in Qi Country and the title of “Gaochang Hou.” It was also because later generations were unworthy that they were stripped of their military power. Until now, Tian Anping has held Zhan Yu. When this Night Peng Swallowing Dragon Gong unfolded, it truly brought rain in all directions and drummed up wind between heaven and earth. It was as if it had swallowed all the heavenly light, turning a sunny day into night. It made people almost glimpse the bravery of the first generation Zhongyong Bo. But the night color only lasted for a short moment, as infinite sword lights, like heavenly light, had already torn it apart! The so-called “Night Peng,” which was rumored to have extremely terrifying killing power, was almost destroyed before it could fully spread its wings at the moment it took shape. Ten thousand crystal-clear, transparent, sharp small swords easily tore through all defenses, swept away the night color, and like surging waves and rushing tides, instantly submerged Tian Anping. At this time, Jiang Wang hadn’t even drawn his sword. If the sword was not drawn, ten thousand people blocking the Dao would die! “Jiang Wang, it’s not possible!” “Brother Jiang, stay!” “Qing Yang!” Among the crowd, no one had a good feeling towards Tian Anping, but almost simultaneously they spoke out, all urgently stopping Jiang Wang in panic. No matter what, Tian Anping was also a Nine Die Commander of the Great Qi Empire. How could he be beaten to death with a verbal dispute? Even if they were unwilling, they had to admit—the death of a Tian Anping was much more serious than the death of a Li Longchuan. Jiang Wang today could not bear it! The worries of these friends were not without reason. Jiang Wang, however, only pushed with the back of his hand—no matter Yan Fu, Wen Tinglan, Li Fengyao, or Zhao Wuyan, Xu Xiangqian, all were pushed far away by this palm, flying a thousand zhang away. This was to avoid further interference and also to avoid splashing blood on them. And he stepped forward. With just one step, the long sword was unsheathed, and he was already close. The sword tomb formed by the ten thousand crystal-clear small swords collapsed inwards at this moment, being completely swallowed. Iron chains entwined his body, twisting into a set of iron armor. Tian Anping was still in that strange armored posture from the front of Tianya Terrace, standing straight in the aftermath of the scattered sword qi. Jiang Wang stabbed with one sword! Such a simple action, yet there was no room for reaction at all. Jiang Wang drew his sword only to unleash it, and unleashed it only to kill people. Everything was just right, as if Tian Anping was just waiting for this sword. Dang! Although there was a crisp sound of metal striking. Long Xiang Si still drove straight in. Rather than saying that sound was the sword tip being obstructed by something, it was better to say that this sword intentionally sent out a warning sound. Ka cha! Ka cha! On Tian Anping’s body, the armor formed by iron chains actually made a clear sound like ice cracking. In an instant, it shattered into pieces, and half-angle chain rings flew. Only a few remaining chains hung on Tian Anping’s ragged body! The black iron chains moved like snakes, but at this time, they were also like dead snakes, completely deprived of their spirituality. Zhan Yu Commander’s disheveled hair actually showed a withered color. Only his own eyes were still clear and bright, and his life force was still present. Pa! He reached out his hand like lightning, single-handedly grasping the sword blade! Although it didn’t stop the long sword from entering his abdomen, it stopped it from going further. His palm was injured by the sword qi, and fresh blood burst out. The fresh red instantly turned black, and the blood qi became a faint light. His palm was as if it had caged a group of black holes, and with this black hole as a sheath, it clamped down the world-renowned sword, Long Xiang Si. The remaining chains tied to his wrist grew madly at this moment, constantly intertwining several times. Along with the hand that grasped the sword, they entwined the entire sword body and spread upwards, towards Jiang Wang’s arm. A burst of sparks exploded from the air! Just like that, it cut off the advance of the iron chains. The chain heads of the iron chains suddenly rose, like living things fearing and retreating. Yet, several sparks still splashed on them. Peng! Fierce flames roared, instantly swallowing the two people in close combat. The True Source Eternal Burning Flame world just spread out in this area of the sea. Outsiders might see it as just a huge fireball several thousand zhang square. Being inside it, one could see how vast this world was. Heaven was infinitely broad, and fire had infinite waves. A thousand kinds of fire beasts ran in it. A hundred kinds of flame birds soared in the air. Inside this flame world, there was a huge, steel-surrounded city. Tian Anping, in ragged clothes and with disheveled hair, was embedded in the door opening of this city, as if supported by some terrifying power. Originally should be curled up but was straight, originally should be weak but was blazing, originally should be painful but was grinning! And Jiang Wang, in a set of blue clothes, unstained by dust, was separated from him by only a line, just outside this city. His sword had already entered the city, still inserted in Tian Anping’s abdomen. The two people faced each other in the flames, each able to see the other’s appearance. It should be said that both pairs of eyes were calm. But the calm of the person outside the city showed coldness. The calm of the person inside the city contained madness! Tian Anping grasped the sword edge tightly, using force on his hand, letting fresh blood flow down, letting the black hole deepen. He just stared at Jiang Wang, grinning, and said, “As early as that time, when you came to Ji City with that piece of broken paper, I just wanted to invite you into the city and have a proper chat with you.” How he used his own fresh blood to urge it into a power similar to a black hole was another complex study. Jiang Wang didn’t care. This was absolutely a terrifying genius, who seemed to have an innate ability to penetrate the essence of things. He certainly had a profound enough understanding of this world, deep enough cognition, to reach the truth of the world, which he would not have approached through various tortuous ways. Jiang Wang also didn’t care. From inside Tian Anping’s body, it was as if a cover had been lifted, and pure power burst out. This instantly gave him terrifying strength, and the locks entwined around the Long Xiang Si sword body suddenly tightened! Long Xiang Si trembled along with it! At this moment, he was inside Jiang Wang’s True Source Fire Realm, and Jiang Wang was outside his Ji City. And he wanted to pull Jiang Wang into his Ji City, achieving a kind of relative fairness. At this time, Jiang Wang finally felt a little pressure. It had been a very long time since he followed orders to go to Ji City to take away Liu Xiao. He didn’t enter the city at that time because he had absolutely no confidence. Today, he still didn’t want to enter the city, because he had no interest. He lifted his eyes, gazed at Tian Anping in front of him, and coldly said, “Do you know, Tian Anping? At this moment, I really dislike you.” In the coldness, there was a slight confusion, and he had a moment of blankness: “I can’t say whether it’s He who dislikes you, or I who dislikes you.” “He?” Tian Anping showed a very interested appearance, his body muscles undulating like mountains, wriggling like strange spirits, bursting with terrifying strength. And he looked up at the sky: “You mean him?” On the edge of the sky in this True Source Fire Realm, which seemed to stretch endlessly in the burning clouds, there was a demon ape wearing a skull necklace, just sitting in that cloud sea, baring its fangs, overlooking this square city tower. True Source Fire Realm, Heart Ape Town. “He he he…” Tian Anping withdrew his gaze, laughing strangely: “Or… the Heavenly Dao?!” “It’s not important,” Jiang Wang said. As he spoke, his five fingers clenched. The originally trembling Long Xiang Si also suddenly fixed in place. Although Tian Anping had terrifying strength, he could no longer pull Jiang Wang a millimeter further! He grasped the sword edge, pulling inwards with force, in order to make Jiang Wang a little closer to him, not hesitating to let Long Xiang Si pierce through his abdomen and out his back. In this extreme pain and endurance, he burst out even more powerful force. But Jiang Wang did not move at all. He just stood there, and the distance between him and this Ji City was only a line from the beginning. And that line that Tian Anping could not cross was called “unwilling.” Jiang Wang was unwilling, so Tian Anping could not. Tian Anping’s power, like mountain calls and sea roars, fundamentally could not find a point to land. All his struggles were within a cage. He understood that he was fundamentally not wrestling with Jiang Wang; he wanted to break through the insurmountable iron rule set by Jiang Wang. This was already at the level of world rules, beyond the struggle of power. The so-called True Person, thought moves and law shifts, heaven and earth receive orders, ten thousand laws are true. But who could so strip another True Person of authority and imprison and ban it? Drip! A drop of red liquid dripped down, falling on the back of Tian Anping’s hand—of course, it first touched the iron chains entwined on the back of his hand, making a “zi zi” sound. Tian Anping looked up at this time. He only saw that above the city tower, on the iron plaque, the word engraved as “Ji”… suddenly turned into a burning fireball, which just fell down. After falling, it turned into a drop of red molten iron, as full as amber. In his line of sight, it drew a red trajectory, dripping towards his eyes. It constantly enlarged, enlarged, as if he himself had fallen into a lava lake. The entire Ji City was melting! Red molten iron constantly dripped down, and in the end, it was like a waterfall, surging down. This gloomy and terrifying, majestic and towering iron chain city, which even Lou Yue needed to prepare before entering, was like a mass of melting wax. It was actually so soft and fragile. Its mystery and terror were all crushed into paste. And Tian Anping, embedded in the door opening, suddenly straightened his body at this instant, almost unconsciously looking up at the sky, letting out an ear-piercing, meaningless whistle, like a slaughtered pig!!!