Taiyi Dao Fruit

Although King Shu was considered a talented individual, he was severely injured and his foundation damaged when he advanced, courtesy of Jiang Li. Yet, with the help of the Heavenly Monarch whom he submitted to, he still managed to have the basic combat power of a third grade.

If in the future, the Heavenly Monarch could support him in unifying Great Zhou's Jiangshan Mountain, King Shu might be able to enhance his power using Dao Fruit Divine Power just like the Emperor.

Unfortunately, that's only a possibility in the future.

The future is the future, now is now. Now, King Shu is dead.

While they were conversing on this side, on that side, life and death were already determined. In line with the Daoist Lord's words, it truly felt like, 'as the departed pass away, no one can escape the fate of mortality.'

The starlight flickered, the Star Domain from the Magic Realm descended, and then there was suddenly a sense of illusion. The connection with the Cycle Stars was abruptly severed, and the realm itself seemed to vanish like a bubble, about to disperse.

"Daoism Rules the World..."

A light whisper came from the dispersing realm, and an elegant figure stepped out, towering and ethereal, but holding half a corpse in her hand, forming a stark contrast with her demeanor.

"Senior Brother."

Tianxuan slowly descended, threw the half corpse in her hand over, and said with a smile, "Your person."

The body was only the upper half, with a ferocious face, yet a remnant of dignity and majesty could still be seen, the corpse of King Shu.

The body floated towards the Heavenly Monarch and suddenly stopped, then under an invisible force, it slowly dissipated, turning into flying ashes.

"Not my person, just a corpse," the Heavenly Monarch said indifferently, "Since it's a corpse, let dust return to dust, earth return to earth, don't forcefully keep it in the world."

The corpse turned to ashes, but no Dao Fruit was seen emerging from within, likely already taken by Tianxuan beforehand.

If the Yu King Dao Fruit was still there, given the means of the Heavenly Monarch and the state of the world today, it might be possible for the Dao Fruit to have a new master. Among the kings of the Ji Family, there would surely be those willing to pay the price to ascend to the third grade.

A King Shu dies, but another King Shu might not be impossible.

Tianxuan watched as King Shu's corpse turned to ashes, sighed lightly, and said, "Senior Brother truly makes Junior Sister sad, as if Junior Sister would hide a killing move in King Shu's corpse, or is Senior Brother afraid that the corpse would dirty his hands?"

"Junior Sister still has such sharp words," the Heavenly Monarch heard this but was not moved at all, and merely said blandly, "Since Junior Sister's defeat back then, you've hidden your edge; it's been many years since I've seen you speak like this."

Whether it was probing or provoking, regardless of Tianxuan's intentions, this remark served as the best counter.

—You lost to me back then.

This single implication was enough.

"Pfft—"

A ghost-faced man couldn't help but laugh and then met Tianxuan's cold gaze.

"The past and present are different; hasn't Senior Brother also suffered losses at the hands of my Palace's disciples?"

Gazing coldly at the Great Venerable, Tianxuan showed no sign of losing composure, only responded casually while her figure landed beside Jiang Li.

At the same time, Tianxuan's thoughts, via perception, transmitted into Jiang Li's mind, "No trace of that person in the dark was found."

Besides dealing with King Shu, Tianxuan also searched in secret, attempting to find the Heavenly Monarch's collaborator. Unfortunately, the other side was hidden so deeply that even Tianxuan found no clues.

With these thoughts, Jiang Li contemplated the current situation.

Daoist Lord's 『Daoism Rules the World』 was simply bullying, causing a significant reduction in their side's combat power, which originally had the advantage. Especially for Sun Wukong, whose foundation lay in the Dao Fruit; once restricted, the foundation's strength faltered, rendering even the highest realm just an illusion.

Although he had called out the Great Venerable, Jiang Li certainly didn't view this good brother as his own.

In dealing with the Heavenly Monarch, Jiang Li and the Great Venerable are united; if against another, it would be a superficial brotherhood.

The Great Venerable cooperated with Karma Tathagata, and even the current image of this ghost-faced man was that of the Fourth King of the Fire House Buddha Hell.

If a fight ensued, the Good Brother had a fifty percent chance of loafing around, a fifty percent chance of attacking the Heavenly Monarch. If Jiang Li could cause trouble for the Heavenly Monarch, it might increase the chance of the Great Venerable attacking the Heavenly Monarch.

Thinking of possibilities in his mind, yet remaining unruffled, while his spiritual sense spread out, secretly observing the rest of the enemies.

It seemed as though the meeting had paused, but in truth, all used spiritual sense to observe the enemies in secret. If each person's spiritual sense were to manifest at this time, it might form a vast net here, covering everyone.

Moreover, in the shadows, some Sixth Brothers also hid, observing the place with their spiritual senses.

However, they could only observe through spiritual senses now; entering the arena was probably impossible. With 『Daoism Rules the World』 having emerged, few would wish to enter and enjoy such a rogue power.

Without the Dao Fruit Divine Skills, the struggle would be fiercer, especially for those whose Dao skill couldn't match their grade.

"I thought I could shake Fellow Daoist Jiang's mental state; unexpectedly, even facing such a situation, Fellow Daoist remains unmoved and calm."

The Daoist Lord looked at Jiang Li from atop the bull's back, clapping his hands as he spoke, "Are you not afraid, Fellow Daoist, that the one behind the East Sun Princess will threaten the Awakened one's ascent?"

He mentioned how the Drought Demon Ba went mad in the past, causing those present to ponder deeply.

Is the Daoist Lord a figure from eight hundred years ago?

The Drought went mad and is now being controlled; is there a connection between these two events?

This simple speech hides some riddles that provoke deep reflection, perhaps this is the skill of the riddler.

Using these riddles to divert attention.

But from the current view, this speech seems ineffective against Jiang Li.

"To stop the Daoist Lord alone is already a favor from the heavens, surely I can't block all enemies of the Awakened one."

Jiang Li spoke, with a knowing smile, "I believe it's better to have a little more faith in the Awakened."

He came to assist, even if he was to protect Jiang Li's Buddha Country; it was impossible to truly risk everything for the Awakened. No matter how much the Awakened trusted Jiang Li, he couldn't just shut his eyes and focus solely on fighting the Karma Tathagata, leaving the rest for Jiang Li to handle.

Similarly, Jiang Li could block the Daoist Lord, which is already an act of benevolence and righteousness. The Awakened would marvel at how much value he got out of his investment. If it ultimately fails, Jiang Li wouldn't be to blame.

Thus, Jiang Li's current target is only one person, leaving the rest to the Awakened's future moves.

The cards that the Awakened can play on the surface have all been played, like Jiang Li, like Sun Wukong, but what about secretly?

Jiang Li spoke while gesturing behind his back; seeing this, Sun Wukong grinned and bared his teeth, but ultimately snorted lightly, riding on an auspicious cloud, retreating.

Staying here would mean he's only a minion; retreating out of the Daoist Lord's divine skills range, he regains his status as the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, the Victorious Battle Buddha.

Thus, even though he felt unwilling, Sun Wukong could only withdraw, retreating out of the Awakened's Buddha Land Space.

As he left, Sun Wukong glanced at the bull-riding Daoist, vowing internally to seek vengeance once his Dao Fruit fully merged with this body and Primordial Spirit.

"Fellow Daoist, you are so earnest; it is truly a great honor for this humble Daoist."

Seeing this, the Daoist Lord did not stop him, just chuckled, still appearing calm and composed, "There is still time; this humble Daoist is not unwilling to spar with you, Fellow Daoist, once more."

As he spoke, the Daoist Lord raised his hand lightly to adjust his Dao Crown, the Yin Yang Qi appearing and disappearing, the pure and impure circulating, streams of spiritual mechanism transforming into Golden Flowers, countless blossoms blooming in an instant, along with Yingluo dangling with pearls, appearing endlessly, with auspicious clouds manifesting outside, golden light enveloping the body.

Such an extraordinary scene, however, is not the manifestation of divine skills but bestowed by special Magic Doors.

[Daoism Rules the World, its Ghosts Lack Divinity]Though unruly, it is somewhat fair, in that this divine skill suppresses Dao Fruit divine powers indiscriminately, affecting anyone within its range, including the Daoist Lord himself.

One might say, this is the domineering aspect of my Dao Fruit, where even my own Dao Fruit is subject to equal suppression.

Though the Daoist Lord might not possess other Dao Fruits, anyway...

Previously, Jiang Li heard from the Primordial Lord Rain Master that the Daoist Lord might be one to ascend instantly, directly bearing a third grade Dao Fruit with foundations comparable to the fourth-rank. If this information is true, the Daoist Lord would have only one Dao Fruit on him.

"Flower Blossoms In An Instant!"

Coming closer, Daoist Guang Cheng's eyes focused, speaking sternly, "Fellow Daoist, this is one of the Taoist Heavenly Gang Thirty-Six Techniques before the End of Dharma — Flower Blossoms In An Instant, an ultimate protection skill."

Speaking, Daoist Guang Cheng looked at the Daoist Lord, his gaze landing on the scene of auspicious clouds surrounding, golden light flourishing, Yingluo pendant pearls, sighing softly.

"Flower Blossoms In An Instant's Magic Door is passed down in Yuxu Temple, but throughout the generations of disciples, at most they have only practiced entry-level; to achieve as the Daoist Lord does — manifesting auspicious clouds, Flower Blossoms In An Instant — no one can reach it."

The simplest standard — Power, has become a major challenge in the world after the End of Dharma.

Next is Realm, which means Daoist practice.

The system based on Dao Fruit cultivation is to Fake to Real, but most people practice treating the fake as real, so their Daoist practice advances slowly. Moreover, the higher the Realm, the more one senses the decline of this Five Turbid Evil World, facing long-term mental trials, with the chance of deviation gradually increasing.

Multiple factors compounded result in Dao Fruit being prioritized, with Realm secondary.

And those able to elevate both Dao Fruit and Realm simultaneously, reaching the utmost, are these supreme third grade individuals.

As for the Daoist Lord, among the supreme, his Realm is also top-tier. He relies on Daoist practice to crush his enemies.

"Fellow Daoist, please." The Daoist Lord sat atop the Green Bull, extended his hand as a gesture of invitation.

Jiang Li, hearing these words, exhaled slowly, black and white coloration swirling around him, forming Taiji, the Five Vile Qi pouring forth, continuously refined into Essence Qi, forming a field.

That day he annihilated one of the Daoist Lord's Three Pure Ones Primordial Spirit, facing the true body now feels incomparable. However, Jiang Li has now ascended to third grade; even if the Dao Fruit Divine Power is limited, he might still be able to fight a battle.