Sundering Nature

“Where are you getting your courage from?” Ying Mei stepped forward with a venomous glare. 

“Kill him!” A loud roar was heard from the crowd.

“Yun Yiyuan, kill him!” Ying Mei turned around and looked at Yun Yiyuan. Upon hearing his name, Yun Yiyuan turned back, as this was not part of his plan. 

“Yun Yiyuan?” Ying Mei repeated with a threatening tone. 

“So be it. We’re bound to fight sooner or later.” Yun Yiyuan sighed as he levitated into the air. 

“A guardian?” The crowd was surprised at the appearance of a guardian as the rally was not only formed to condemn Li Yiming, but to denounce every other guardian. 

“Kill him! Avenge my son!” 

“Kill him! Avenge my brother!” 

The crowd continued to shout incessantly. It did not take long before their cries turned to cheers, supporting Yun Yiyuan since they deemed his actions to be less damnable than Li Yiming’s. 

Li Yiming stared at Yun Yiyuan and slowly pulled back his right hand. 

“Die!” Yun Yiyuan launched himself toward Li Yiming like a cannonball with his silver spear trailing behind him. 

Li Yiming remained expressionless and slowly closed his eyes. As Yun Yiyuan closed in on Li Yiming, his spear suddenly gained speed, and he shot it toward Li Yiming’s head. Li Yiming opened his eyes wide, erecting his Boundary and dodged Yun Yiyuan’s attack with ease, sending his spear flying toward the sky. 

“Where did they go?” 

Murmurs were heard from the crowd as Li Yiming and Yun Yiyuan suddenly vanished from sight. Unbeknownst to them, Li Yiming had put down his barrier for the purpose of protecting them, as only a few blows exchanged between two sages could spell their doom. 

Ying Mei performed a hand seal, and a giant curtain of light appeared in the sky, showing the fateful duel between Li Yiming and Yun Yiyuan. 

“I didn’t win fairly last time. I’ll let you have the first move today,” Li Yiming said as he raised his right hand, the glyph on his wrist radiating a golden light. 

The statement was oil on fire for Yun Yiyuan. In a single day, not only had he been forced to obey the commands of a woman who was formerly his plaything, but even Li Yiming, who he used to consider to be as weak as an insect, dared to disrespect his strength. 

Yun Yiyuan let out an enraged roar and extended both of his hands forward. Blinded by his hatred, his eyes lit up with a silvery glow as his spear suddenly shattered into pieces. He could tell Li Yiming had grown much stronger ever since their last battle, and that he had to wager everything into a single attack if he wanted to even have a chance at winning. 

“Roaring ocean!” Yun Yiyuan’s voice resonated within the Boundary. Even outside of it, a blustering wind raged on, leaving the crowd unable to keep their eyes open. 

“Really? He sacrificed his weapon at the start?” Big Beard sneered at the sudden suicidal move.  

“This again? Come on!” Bai Ze said, unimpressed by the spectacle while munching her chips. 

As Yun Yiyuan retracted his hands, a new spear came out of his forehead, colored by his own blood and carried the power he had accumulated over a lifetime. Yun Yiyuan’s body slowly melted as his entire being became absorbed by his weapon. 

Li Yiming was taken aback by the move for a moment, before showing a firm expression. He slowly raised his right hand, and his wrist flashed with a golden light, materializing a giant blade. 

“I will match your spear with my own weapon.” 

Li Yiming remained respectful in their battle to the death by answering his opponent’s attack with his own strongest attack. 

As Yun Yiyuan’s spear accelerated toward Li Yiming, the fabric of space was torn apart. Yun Yiyuan called upon the materialization of Heaven’s Laws, forming a giant finger around his weapon, just like Li Yiming was able to do with the giant eyeball in the sky. 

‘Too bad…’ Li Yiming sighed — if this was their first encounter, he would have no chance of survival.

Li Yiming kept his composure as Yun Yiyuan’s attack neared. Only at the last moment did he swung his blade toward the silver spear. The swing itself was nowhere near as flashy as Yun Yiyuan’s attack, but it immediately cracked the finger upon impact. The crack quickly turned into a tenebrous fissure, and the blade returned to his wrist in a flash of golden light. 

The finger now shattered, and Yun Yiyuan fell from the clouds. He closed his eyes as he waited for his final moment to come, having his Heavenly Vein destroyed and his life marks completely zeroed. 

A loud thud was heard in the crowd as Yun Yiyuan crashed back down to the ground, causing a splash of blood and a few screams. 

“That’s it?” 

“It’s over?” 

“Li Yiming won?”

The crowd was let down, expecting much more from Yun Yiyuan’s mighty attack. 

“Useless trash!” Someone spat on Yun Yiyuan’s corpse.

“Useless indeed,” Ying Mei said with a smile, unsurprised. 

“Anyone else wants to try?” Li Yiming asked. 

“Impressive. To be honest, you’re second only to your wife. Impressive that he couldn’t even last one move.” 

“Are you going to fight me, or are you going to call him down?” Li Yiming pointed at the sky. He now realized that Ying Mei had obviously been colluding with Mr. Kong, as there was no way she could have changed the mind of an entire nation by herself. The only question that remained was why did Mr. Kong choose her? ‘Is it only because she has a grudge against me…?’ 

“I don’t need to bother him just for that,” Ying Mei performed several hand seals. 

Just as Li Yiming readied himself for Ying Mei’s attack, she put her hand to the ground, and a low chant was heard.

“Disasters and blessings have no entry gates of their own; they are summoned by people. The effects of good and evil are like shadows following their forms. And so, Heaven and Earth have spirits who record crimes, and in proportion to the severity of their crimes, they shorten human lives appropriately. Because of this, not only may a person’s life be cut short, but he also becomes poor or destitute, his calamities are many; People all hate him; punishments and disasters follow him. Good fortune avoids him while evil stars persecute him. And when his span of years is complete, he dies.”

The chanting progressed, and thick layers of clouds suddenly formed in the sky. 

“If no mortal can best you, then what about gods?” Ying Mei said as she retracted her hand and looked at the sky. 

“What is that!?” Just as panic was about to spread through the crowd, a ray of golden light pierced through the clouds. 

“It’s a Bodhisattva!” 

A golden beam spread, and a god-like figure formed at its center. 

“Kneel to the Bodhisattva!” 

“Kneel to the Bodhisattva!” 

Yells of wonderment were heard as the masses knelt down, begging the deities that appeared for divine justice. 

“There’s more!” 

One by one, multiple rays of golden light gleamed from the clouds, showering the entire city. Even those living outside of Shangbei could witness the scene in bafflement from their window. 

“It’s begun.” Li Huaibei raised his hand, creating a barrier in front of Li Yiming’s parents. 

“Please stay here. I don’t know how long he’ll be able to hold them off.” Li Huaibei smiled and turned around. 

“I’ve spent half of my life playing as the queen of the Emperor. It’s about time to go for a divine-themed show.” Fang Shui’er stretched out as her colorful armor covered her body and she drew back her bow, aiming at a golden apparition nearby.