Chapter 342: Chapter 65: The Man Who Steals from Heaven, In Turn Invaded by Heaven
The light shimmered slowly yet rushed forth intensely, obliterating sword silks wherever it passed, unstoppable by anything. This single point seemed to harbor a Great Sun within, filled with the might to steamroll all creation.
Yet this Great Sun was also condensed within one finger, an extreme concentration that made even the Five Vile Qi drawn by Jiang Li difficult to dissolve.
Because it was too dispersed.
After all, the Five Vile Qi was merely attracted by Jiang Li and did not constitute his true strength.
Ji Jiji had long schemed, and this one finger was enough to penetrate any defense, also hidden within it were the profound mysteries of nature, like the Great Sun rising in the sky, akin to the cyclical Heavenly Dao, certain to hit its mark.
Before the Great Circle Sword could pierce Ji Jiji, his finger would first touch Jiang Li.
Once touched...
Death was certain.
Ji Jiji had patiently waited for so long for this moment, to deliver the final blow, so the power of this finger was naturally as great as possible.
Even the Jade Ruyi had made Jiang Li laugh in reverence four times, indicating the terrifying extent of its power.
Theoretically, aside from using a life-saving trump card, this move was unstoppable. Yet using it would undoubtedly expose his identity. Setting aside Ji Jiji’s perspective, the powerful Qi fluctuations of a fourth-grade killing move were strong enough to be sensed even by Divine Capital.
’But...’
In that instant, Jiang Li’s mind became unprecedentedly calm, even cold.
He was like a machine, swiftly processing data, as the Karma Collection frantically updated with information, ’It is not invincible.’
Demon Cleansing True Qi surged through his limbs and body, a radiance flickering faintly at Jiang Li’s Heavenly Spirit, as acupoints connecting heaven and earth were opened. In that moment, he merged with heaven and earth, achieving Unity of Heaven and Man.
His consciousness transcended, touching upon the trajectory of the revolving cosmos, the sun, moon, stars, mountains, rivers, and vegetation—never had Jiang Li and his spirit been so close to heaven and earth.
Naturally, Jiang Li also sensed the decay filling heaven and earth, constantly feeling the process of deterioration, as the Five Vile Qi between heaven and earth swarmed towards him, pouring into his body.
Ji Jiji saw it as if a black hole had opened behind Jiang Li, where Five Vile Qi, like tidal waves, were sucked in like water by a gushing whale.
This place wasn’t a Cave Heaven Blessed Land where Jiang Li, in Unity of Heaven and Man within, could more smoothly harness Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy. Here, Unity of Heaven and Man could only yield the Five Vile Qi.
As the Five Vile Qi entered Jiang Li’s body, it immediately began to corrode his acupoints, causing his meridians to wither and his flesh to decay. Yet within acupoints and meridians, there was a thin layer of Demon Cleansing True Qi.
Jiang Li spread Demon Cleansing True Qi throughout his body, controlling it with extreme precision, so that it covered even within the acupoints and meridians, keeping the Five Vile Qi entering the acupoints isolated from the meridians. It seemed to have entered his body, but there was no contact with his flesh.
Jiang Li also used the sword finger, countering sword with finger, his fingertips emitting a deep, dark Sword Light, with all the decay of heaven and earth contained within that one finger.
’Your Heavenly Dharma is formless and pure, then I will counter with the utmost evil and filthy Qi.’
After obtaining the Yin Talisman Scripture, Jiang Li had gained an understanding of the Heavenly Dharma and realized why Ji Jiji chose to cultivate under the ginseng fruit tree.
For Ji Jiji, ginseng fruit was not only for life extension and vital energy, but also an essential item for cultivating the Yin Talisman Scripture. Ginsengfruit removed the Precelestial Five Elements Qi, bringing the body closer to a state of ultimate purity, fitting Heaven’s might, and only thus could one cultivate the formless and pure Heavenly Dharma.
Jiang Li had refined five ginseng fruits, his body now also in a state of ultimate purity, and had experienced the attraction of Dirt Qi to his flesh, naturally knowing how to counter the Heavenly Dharma.
That was with the Five Vile Qi!
For a brief time, the Five Vile Qi truly served Jiang Li, as he drew in the ubiquitous Evil Qi, as if he were the embodiment of this Five Turbid Evil World. The murky, putrid Qi enveloped him, the Sword Qi sparked from his fingertips, colliding and intertwining with the Light of the Great Sun, the black and white clashing and swallowing each other.
Just then, the Great Circle Sword had reached behind Ji Jiji, its sword tip made contact, causing a flaw to appear in Ji Jiji’s Qi Mechanism.
Facing the dark Sword Light, Ji Jiji used all his might, now confronted by the Great Circle Sword coated in the Five Vile Qi, the brilliance at his fingertips wavered and was suppressed by the murky Sword Light.
Jiang Li spurred the flow of Five Vile Qi within his meridians, releasing it in its entirety without reserving a sliver, the murky Sword Light like a malignant dragon, voraciously devouring the shimmering light, and darkly staining Ji Jiji’s fingertips, extending to his palm and arm.
"Hiss--"
The Great Circle Sword pierced through Ji Jiji’s body, its vibrant light instantly collapsed, and the surging Five Vile Qi burst forth. The murky Sword Light pierced through Ji Jiji’s sword finger, the sword tip slashing through flesh and blood, corroding.
"Hmph."
Ji Jiji let out a muffled grunt as runes appeared at the end of his arm, automatically detaching from his body.
He wanted to retreat, but the Great Circle Sword had already pierced him through.
Jiang Li let go of the murky Sword Light and reached out to grasp the sword tip that had impaled Ji Jiji. The Great Circle Sword transformed on its own, the sword tip becoming the hilt and the hilt at the other end becoming the new sword tip.
Holding the sword, he also struck with his palm, his left handprint landing squarely on Ji Jiji’s chest, perfectly aligned with the handprint branded upon Ji Jiji.
At that instant--
Heaven and earth, sun and moon, mountains, and rivers, a myriad of anomalies appeared in Jiang Li’s perception, as if the hand held a world within it, a complete Heaven and Earth.
"Boom!"
The Heaven and Earth within exploded inside Ji Jiji’s body, as if a realm was being birthed, wondrous phenomena manifesting all around.
Ji Jiji’s body was rapidly disintegrating, transforming into these wondrous phenomena, from where the sword had entered to the remaining limbs, then the neck, and then...
A sudden sense of nothingness appeared all around, and Jiang Li once again caught a glimpse of the elusive Karma Collection, also feeling an invisible gaze upon him.
Ji Jiji’s face, with only his eyes remaining, was fading, gradually vanishing.
"Emperor..."
He let out a low chant, then that head had lost its face.
No eyes, no ears, no mouth, no nose; even the head itself was fading away.
As if merging into the space, into the Heaven and Earth.
"So that’s how it is."
He left behind a faint voice, and the head disappeared from Jiang Li’s view.
Just like that, it was gone, vanished.
Not disintegrated into anomalies, but vanished out of thin air.
’That handprint... must be left by a practitioner of the Form Tomb.’
Jiang Li, sensing all those anomalies, speculated in his heart, ’The person who killed Ji Jiji was also from the Ji Family and had an extremely advanced cultivation in Form Tomb.’
Thinking of those erased texts, Jiang Li almost instantly locked onto the likely persons.
--The Emperor.
Or rather, the Emperor who reigned two hundred years ago.
It was he who killed Ji Jiji, severing his lifeline while also erasing any related records.
And now Ji Jiji...
"Heaven."
Jiang Li floated in midair, gazing into the sky, "A man who stole from Heaven is, in turn, invaded by Heaven."
Ji Jiji had become an incarnation of Heaven, and this Heavenly Incarnation... most likely hadn’t died.