Chapter 622: Damn Merciless

In the Chaos Sea, several streaks of light darted through the void in hot pursuit.

At the forefront was a small gray bell, fleeing desperately without any spirit controlling it.

Through the faint glow, one could see that the bell was adorned with intricate patterns on all sides, patterns that embodied profound truths of heaven and earth, evoking layers of insight with a single glance.

Following behind were two other streaks: a golden roc soaring with wings spread wide, and a young Daoist wielding a sword as he flew through the air.

Surprisingly, the golden roc's speed offered no advantage; both the small bell and the young Daoist were faster than it.

On the golden roc's back stood Zhao Gongming and Jin Ling Shengmu side by side.

Zhao Gongming channeled the Ding Hai God Pearls to the fullest, smoothing out the turbulent Chaos Qi and clearing obstacles for the roc's flight.

Jin Ling Shengmu, meanwhile, fully activated the complete set of "saddle gear" on the roc, maintaining a steady supply of magical power.

Even so, after the roc's earlier lateral slide and interception attempt, it was gradually falling behind the young Daoist and the bell.

Saints stand at the pinnacle of all beings, with no weaknesses of their own.

Of course, there are still differences in strength among them.

Zhao Gongming glared at the Chaos Bell gliding effortlessly through the Chaos Sea, nearly blurting out some crude Jie Jiao curses.

Was there really no spirit inside controlling this thing?

Was an Innate Supreme Treasure truly this powerful?

Zhao Gongming believed his earlier strike had been perfectly timed and angled, calculated in detail and coordinated seamlessly with his master.

Yet, in that split second, the Chaos Bell had suddenly veered away just before the roc could collide with it, moving at a speed that neither Zhao Gongming nor Jin Ling Shengmu could comprehend, slipping out from right in front of the roc's beak.

The maneuver was so fluid and natural, without any awkwardness.

This left Zhao Gongming and Jin Ling Shengmu with the illusion that their calculations had been mistaken.

Fortunately...

The current situation hadn't strayed beyond the plan set by Li Changshou.

Zhao Gongming kept Li Changshou's instructions in mind, exerting all his effort to resonate his Great Dao outward, piercing through the Chaos Qi's interference to envelop the fleeing Chaos Bell in his Dao's radiation field.

Then, feigning gritted teeth and indignation, he grumbled,

" We were so close just now!"

Beside him, Jin Ling Shengmu let out a heavy huff, using her immortal power to form a protective barrier around Zhao Gongming, and said,

" If we can't even help our master, what's the point of us as disciples?"

" Has this Chaos Bell actually become sentient?"

No sooner had Zhao Gongming spoken than the Chaos Bell ahead swayed gently, as if a child in a battle skirt was wiggling its hips with all its might.

Zhao Gongming's eyes widened. " It's mocking me!"

Jin Ling Shengmu asked in confusion, " How is that mocking you?"

" It's telling me to come and get it! And saying we should all gang up on it with our master!"

" We're losing it... Sigh!"

This was the first step of the bell-capturing plan after the interception failed—

Indirectly praising the bell to lower its guard.

Receiving feedback from the Chaos Bell meant this step had worked.

But what Zhao Gongming and Jin Ling Shengmu hadn't anticipated was that the effect was a bit too broad.

Tong Tian Jiaozhu, who was slightly closer to the Chaos Bell, had veins bulging on his forehead, his Saintly Dao Rhymes swirling around him as he suddenly accelerated, charging straight toward the bell.

The Chaos Bell trembled slightly, its speed surging dramatically.

In just two breaths, the golden roc was left far behind.

" Ah, this..."

Zhao Gongming and Jin Ling Shengmu exchanged glances, both a bit stunned.

How were they supposed to execute the rest of Li Changshou's plan?

At that moment, a trace of Dao Rhyme appeared in their spiritual senses—it was Tong Tian Jiaozhu marking out a path for them.

Tong Tian Jiaozhu was planning a second wave of interception, forcing the Chaos Bell off its straight path to create opportunities for them.

The Great Dao resonated, and Dao Rhymes flowed.

In the area enveloped by the Saint's Dao Rhymes, the originally chaotic Chaos Sea briefly formed a fragile order.

Zhao Gongming quickly assessed the situation and realized his master's plan didn't conflict with Li Changshou's, so he communicated with the golden roc and began speeding through the marked route.

Meanwhile, beyond the scene of Tong Tian Jiaozhu chasing the Chaos Bell, a dark shadow darted through the Chaos Sea, biding its time—this was Li Changshou piloting the Kun Peng ark.

The pursuit grew more intense.

The golden roc, carrying Zhao Gongming and Jin Ling Shengmu, swooped in from the side for another precise interception, but once again, the Chaos Bell dodged it effortlessly.

The bell's eerie lateral shift seemed calculated...

Its speed neither increased nor decreased, yet it perfectly evaded the roc's beak.

Zhao Gongming and Jin Ling Shengmu ground their teeth in frustration as the Chaos Bell swayed leisurely ahead, deliberately sending out faint spiritual senses:

' Come on, try to catch me!'

Zhao Gongming glared and almost charged forward, but Jin Ling Shengmu held his arm, and the two prepared for another blocking maneuver on the roc's back.

Tong Tian Jiaozhu seemed truly provoked by the bell, with the Zhu Xian Four Swords manifesting around him, radiating killing intent.

The Chaos Bell quickly fled in panic, but it couldn't fully escape the pursuit of this Heavenly Saint.

As everyone knew, the Chaos Sea also exerted a restraining force.

Though the Chaos Sea lacked rules, it contained matter that existed between illusion and reality, imposing a limit on ultimate speed.

Heavenly Saints, not being Great Dao Saints, couldn't exceed this limit once beyond the Heavenly Dao's boundary.

The Chaos Bell, as an extraordinary treasure, could approach this limit through its own powers.

The golden roc, aided by various saddle gear and Ding Hai God Pearls, was slightly slower overall, but a full-speed Kun Peng...

Represented that very limit.

On the Kun Peng's back, Li Changshou sat quietly in meditation, jotting notes in a small book before him and occasionally pondering deeply.

Beside him, Gui Ling Shengmu grew increasingly anxious, constantly scanning the surroundings, barely able to sense Tong Tian Jiaozhu's presence.

Gui Ling Shengmu asked uneasily, for the sixth time,

" Changshou, when do we make our move?"

" Not yet. Our master won't lose track of the Chaos Bell."

Li Changshou replied without looking up,

" This supreme treasure is acting far too casually in the Chaos Sea, which means it can't detect things too far away. Otherwise, it wouldn't be so relaxed.

But it has full sentience, like a living being, which creates a vulnerability.

Still, we need to figure out why it can change direction in an instant. We must observe more to devise a counterstrategy.

We're the trump card. If even we fail, then the Chaos Bell is truly beyond reach.

So, we need more certainty."

Gui Ling Shengmu nodded slightly and continued watching the distance.

Zhao Gongming and Jin Ling Shengmu, relying on the roc's speed, made several interception attempts, each time being evaded, leaving Zhao Gongming fuming and the Chaos Bell shaking with delight.

This was the second step of the plan—showing weakness to the bell to make it overconfident.

However...

Tong Tian Jiaozhu suddenly let out a cold snort and swung a sword strike, like a bolt of lightning cleaving through the primordial chaos.

The patterns on the Chaos Bell glowed brightly, leaving several afterimages as it shifted sideways by an unknown distance, barely dodging the sword light.

Then, the bell rang out twice, its meaning clear even without spiritual senses—it was like saying,

" Do you even want me anymore? Attacking me before you have me—who does that? If you catch me, it'll be even worse!"

Tong Tian Jiaozhu's mouth twitched wildly as he pressed forward.

The Chaos Bell rang chaotically and fled desperately.

On the Kun Peng's back, Li Changshou rose to his feet, a Dao Rhyme circulating as it linked with the Saintly Dao Rhyme around him.

' Master, drive it toward this position.'

' Understood.'

The Kun Peng ark, which had been flying parallel in the distance, suddenly turned, while Tong Tian Jiaozhu's Zhu Xian Four Swords blazed with sword light, blocking the Chaos Bell's escape routes.

The golden roc, Zhao Gongming, and Jin Ling Shengmu joined in the blockade, forcing the bell to ring warnings repeatedly.

Each toll seemed to convey:

' Is this how you seek a treasure?'

' With this attitude, you still want to drag me in to suppress your Jie Jiao fate? Hah!

Can Jie Jiao even handle its fate? How many disciples do you have? And you expect us treasures to suffer for it!'

' Don't come any closer!'

' We worked together back in the day! I'm part of the Sky-Opening Axe, and you're from Pangu's primordial spirit—why are you fixated on me? We have no destiny! This obsession leads nowhere!'

' Ah! Tong Tian, that's enough! Believe me, I'll go work for the Heavenly Dao and sabotage Jie Jiao!'

Tong Tian Jiaozhu's face darkened as his Zhu Xian Four Swords struck more accurately, leaving the Chaos Bell in utter distress.

Earlier, when Tong Tian Jiaozhu had chased it before, he had drawn his sword a few times, but only to vent, never intending real harm.

But now...

It seemed he was truly angered, with each strike aimed at its precious body!

Was the primordial world going to hell?

Even the Chaos Sea was oppressive to Innate Supreme Treasures!

The bell grew furious, ringing wildly as it sent out spiritual senses:

' Even if you catch me, if I don't want to follow you, there's nothing you can do...

Hmm? What's this?'

The latter part sounded startled, as the Chaos Bell suddenly noticed that in the "void direction" above and below, a realm seemed to be closing in!

Dark and domineering, filled with boundless pressure...

A void rift appeared ahead, pulling with immense suction!

In an instant, the Chaos Bell realized its predicament, its form flickering strangely as it shifted sideways in rapid bursts, leaving a trail of afterimages.

Tong Tian Jiaozhu blocked forward, and the golden roc appeared from another side.

The Chaos Bell doubled back, nine rings materializing on its body as gray light flared, causing it to flicker continuously.

This was the power of the Great Dao of Time, or more precisely, a limited version of it.

The Chaos Bell accelerated its own flow of time, so that for every instant outside, it experienced two.

In the Chaos Sea, without complete Dao principles to suppress it, it could freely alter its time flow and blend that temporal discrepancy into the surrounding Chaos Qi, achieving maximum speed at the limit and enabling short-distance flickers.

This was the key to how the Chaos Bell had evaded Tong Tian Jiaozhu's pursuit.

Such a ability could only be used in the Chaos Sea.

In the primordial world, with the full Great Dao of Time in place, the Chaos Bell couldn't manipulate its time flow arbitrarily.

Now, the bell was truly desperate, ignoring its own energy consumption, but under the blockade of Tong Tian Jiaozhu and the golden roc, it could only flee to one side.

On the golden roc's back, a graceful figure in a light green short skirt had now appeared—it was Gui Ling Shengmu.

Behind her materialized a massive turtle shell, dotted with twenty-four Ding Hai God Pearls, completely sealing off a vast expanse of space.

Even with its time manipulation, the Chaos Bell couldn't pass through walls...

That wasn't its domain.

"Heaven" and "earth" closed in rapidly, the pressure intensifying.

What kind of realm was this?

Clearly, it was a enormous maw shutting tight!

The maw had opened so wide that it had lulled the Chaos Bell into complacency, allowing it to enter the Kun Peng's mouth. But its vast size also gave the bell a chance to escape...

Wait, this familiar Dao Rhyme!

Tai Ji Diagram!

The Chaos Bell's flickering form suddenly changed direction, brushing past the massive Tai Ji Diagram that had just appeared, hundreds of miles in diameter.

The bell rang chaotically, its spiritual sense crying out in despair:

' Diagram! We're sisters! Er, no.

We're siblings! Wait, that's not right either...

Darn it! Even you're against me!'

The Tai Ji Diagram slowly rotated, responding with a mere cold hum.

As the two treasures passed each other, a wisp of yin-yang energy wrapped around the Chaos Bell.

In the shadows, Li Changshou swiftly moved his right sword fingers.

Yin and yang of the universe, suppress!

The wisp of yin-yang energy turned into mist, unfolding the complete Great Dao of Qian Kun. The Chaos Bell's forward speed wasn't affected, but its path was now crystal clear.

The Kun Peng's maw was about to close, and the edge was drawing near.

The Chaos Bell's light blazed as it sensed the crisis, unleashing all its power.

To escape and remain a masterless supreme treasure!

"Balance exists among all things."

A voice with a light laugh came from the side, as the Great Dao of Qian Kun and yin-yang energy around the bell slowed its speed dramatically.

An Innate Supreme Treasure couldn't be balanced,

But the yin-yang energy binding it became the handle for balance.

While the Chaos Bell could influence the Great Dao of Time, it was helpless against Qian Kun.

If the bell had eyes, it would see a young Daoist in a green robe, surrounded by blue light, chasing from the rear—it was Li Changshou.

Li Changshou used the Escape Void Technique, aligning his speed with the bell's via the Great Dao of Balance, and activated the compact saddle gear on his back, the Kun Peng model. Seizing the moment, he darted past the bell and exited the maw's edge first.

The Kun Peng's maw was closing, and the bell was about to escape.

Li Changshou turned calmly, facing the bell with a faint smile, his right hand extended as if to give it a push.

The Chaos Bell 'saw' this and panicked, its tolls turning into frantic bell rings as waves of spiritual senses surged toward Li Changshou.

The senses only conveyed meaning, but in Li Changshou's mind, they translated to:

' Damn, what are you doing? Move aside, okay? We're all bros here—who the hell are you? I'll shatter you...'

Li Changshou's forehead was lined with black lines. Timing it perfectly with the bell's rush, he swung his extended hand vigorously, spinning on the spot as his robe malfunctioned instantly.

Just as the Chaos Bell was about to cross the maw's boundary, Li Changshou delivered a crisp whip kick!

The Qian Kun Ruler sealed the space, entangled by yin-yang energy, and the bell flickered again—but only within the mist.

Dong—

In that instant, Li Changshou didn't kick the Chaos Bell itself, but the Qian Kun surrounding it.

Ripples like water waves appeared on the bell's surface, as if it were a ball kicked straight back hundreds of feet.

The maw closed, and Chaos Qi surged like a tsunami, trapping the Chaos Bell, Tong Tian Jiaozhu, the golden roc, and the three Jie Jiao Saint disciples inside.

Li Changshou, however, felt no excitement—only deep thought, his gaze tinged with worry.

This bell wouldn't be easy to claim.

As expected...

" Hah, just you lot?

So you caught me—what can you do with me now?

Stare all you want, are you happy? And you thought I'd suppress your Jie Jiao fate? No chance!

Ugh, I'm so mad!

Who the hell are you, kid? Kicking me like that—how heartless!"

Half an hour later, in the stone hall inside the Kun Peng.

Li Changshou's face was dark as he looked at the faint, yard-high shadow of the great bell before him, listening to the bold female voice in his mind, his mouth twitching slightly.

Tong Tian Jiaozhu sat cross-legged on a cushion, eyes narrowed, admiring the bell with satisfaction.

A long-held wish finally fulfilled.

Whether it could be used was another matter—catching it was satisfying enough.

Zhao Gongming, Gui Ling Shengmu, Jin Ling Shengmu, the golden roc, and the Four Plum Generals observed from a distance, not approaching.

Li Changshou sighed and bowed to the Chaos Bell, saying, " I am Li Changgeng, second disciple of Tai Qing. Today, by our master's order, I aided in intercepting you."

Dong dong!

The bell's shadow rang a few times, its spiritual sense turning into an angry female voice in Li Changshou's mind:

" Make the Diagram come out! How could it treat its sister like this?"

" Hmm? I'm here."

The Tai Ji Diagram's shadow appeared on its own before Li Changshou, offering only a faint response.

The Chaos Bell fell silent at once, grumbling pitifully,

" If not for the Diagram, they never would've caught me."

" Hmph."

The Tai Ji Diagram transformed into a black-and-white stream of light, retreating into Li Changshou's chest to rest near the Xuan Huang Pagoda.

Li Changshou said, " Master, it's your turn next."

But Tong Tian Jiaozhu waved it off, saying, " As I said, after the great calamity, the Chaos Bell is yours. Once you subdue it, you can lend it to me."

Li Changshou quickly replied, " Master, the bell has sealed itself—only a Saint can break this ability."

Tong Tian Jiaozhu smiled slyly. " That's tricky for me too. You're full of ideas, Changgeng—just find a way to persuade it.

Such a treasure must be willing to serve before it can be truly used."

Li Changshou: ...

Hadn't he just offended it?

The Chaos Bell was still manipulating the Great Dao of Time in a more profound way, reversing its own timeline to 'always exist in the previous instant.'

Though confined by Qian Kun, it could evade the present.

The Sky-Opening Axe's three treasures lived up to their name, with such abilities making them viable as defensive treasures too.

Jin Ling Shengmu said, " The Sky-Opening Axe became three supreme treasures, and Pangu's primordial spirit became the three teachers—this is all corresponding.

Now that our master is here, why won't this bell submit?"

The Chaos Bell's spiritual sense spread everywhere, as if a poised and elegant elder sister was leaning against the bell's wall, arms folded, face cold as she snorted dismissively:

" Back then, we three scattered. The banner and the diagram were caught, that's it.

Your master just didn't catch me all those years ago—simple as that.

We all have sentience. The sky-opening is over—can't we each go our way? Why force us together?"

Zhao Gongming frowned. " Then why did you help Di Jun and the Golden Crows?"

The Chaos Bell replied, " They're like cubs I watched grow—can't help but feel attached.

As for you, forget it. You can't even touch me, let alone make me serve.

With Jie Jiao's fate, I'd lose myself if I suppressed it. Do you think I'm that Gold Lotus, specially suppressing the sect's destiny yet still struggling in battle?"

For a moment, the immortals exchanged uneasy glances, and even the Saint was stumped.