Full level of enlightenment: I achieved Daozu by ascending to the lower realm

Chapter 379 The Hundred-Character Heavenly Stele
Several incredibly condensed sword energies, like laser beams or bullets, streaked across the void.

They struck the phantom images that the Holy Ancestor had just summoned with unparalleled precision, instantly annihilating them all.

Ning Qi teleported back to appear in front of the Sword Ancestor.

“I told you, I’ll handle him.”

Ning Qi glanced back at Zhao Yujun.

This glance instantly stopped Zhao Yujun, who was preparing to deal with the Holy Ancestor's clone, in his tracks.

She gazed at Ning Qi's back, and a strong sense of security made her remember Ning Qi's back.

Seeing Ning Qi escape, Gong Tiandao breathed a sigh of relief.

After all, as long as Ning Qi is there, he can at least relax a bit.

He was also very unsure of himself if he were to face Jiang Yingchu alone.

It wasn't that he was afraid of Jiang Yingchu, but rather that the lack of one person to deal with the Holy Ancestor's clone made him somewhat frightened.

That Holy Ancestor's avatar was truly terrifyingly strong. He and Zhao Yujun, who had been in constant contact with the two ancestors of the Mountain and Sea Realm for many years, were the most aware of the ancestors' strength, and thus had a very deep impression of it in their hearts.

Ning Qi turned around and faced the Holy Ancestor directly.

The Holy Ancestor sighed.

Ning Qi has now grown to the point where he can break free from his clone technique. Even he has to admit that Ning Qi has grown too fast!
So fast it's like an ant. Yesterday it was struggling to even handle its own things, but today, an ant can shake a tree!
The Holy Ancestor stopped what he was doing, his eyes flashing with divine light.

The image of Ning Qi's previous sword aura flashed through his mind.

The Holy Ancestor has always loved to delve into things. The reason he was able to achieve the position of Holy Ancestor in the Vast Realm was not only due to his talent, but more importantly, it was because of this ability to delve into things that he achieved it step by step.

The previous images flashed before his eyes and slowed down in his mind.

Ning Qi's sword energy could no longer be called ordinary sword energy; it was as small as a bullet and as bright as silver.

The sword energy simultaneously struck the illusory image he had just summoned, which is a detail.

Another detail is that the Holy Ancestor noticed that after the sword energy projectiles hit each Dao Integration illusory figure, no excess energy was released to destroy more areas.

Most cultivators don't pay attention to these details when fighting; many of them always exert as much force as they can, neglecting the control of microscopic power.

For example, there are often cultivators who, in order to kill a person, would pour all their strength into creating a forty-meter-long blade of rules, just like using an anti-aircraft gun to kill a mosquito.

This may kill the enemy, but it will cause massive damage to other things.

Therefore, through the sword energy, the Holy Ancestor realized that Ning Qi's control over his own power had reached an extremely terrifying level.

He summoned the Dao Integration Phantom to make up for the lack of combat power among the Dao Integration cultivators in the Vast Realm.

Those phantom images of the Dao appear the same, but they are not.

Those were phantoms created by the Holy Ancestor using the Hundred Images Diagram, specifically for use in major battles. In order to deal with different enemies, the Holy Ancestor also differentiated the strength and specialization of these Dao-integrating phantoms.

Some excel at defense, some at attack, some at assassination, some at trapping enemies, some at combined battles, and so on...

Without exception, Ning Qi's seemingly casual strike of several sword energies eliminated them almost simultaneously without damaging anything else.

Isn't that terrifying?
Ning Qi's casual strike was considered by the Holy Ancestor to be extremely skillful. This was not accidental, but rather a cultivator's pursuit of self-improvement.

From these details, the Holy Ancestor deduced Ning Qi's current strength. Ning Qi had already surpassed his disciple, Jiang Yingchu, the sect master of Haoran Immortal Sect, and naturally also surpassed Zhao Yujun and Gong Tiandao.

The Holy Ancestor's clone naturally compared Ning Qi's strength with his own.

A sense of helplessness swept through his heart. The Holy Ancestor's clone realized that he would have to expend a great deal of power to trap Ning Qi.

If he doesn't deal with Ning Qi first, he won't have enough time to do other things.

As for why the Holy Ancestor's avatar didn't directly use his great power to annihilate the cultivators of the Mountain and Sea Realm?
One reason is his status. As a dignified Holy Ancestor, it would be a loss of face for him to personally take action against cultivators from the Mountain and Sea Realm who are not on the same level as him.

Secondly, the Holy Ancestor also knew that the cultivators of the Mountain and Sea Realm did not voluntarily want to wage war against their Vast Realm.

Without the impetus from the Mountain Ancestor, Sea Ancestor, and the will of the Mountain and Sea Realm, these cultivators would be insane to want to start a war in the Spirit Realm.

Regardless of winning or losing, the benefits they gain are limited; instead, their lives contribute more to the interests and glory of those above them.

Thirdly, the Holy Ancestor's personality also determined that he would not take action against ordinary cultivators, as he believed in the mysterious laws of Heaven.

He can allow himself to summon other things to fight, but he must never do it himself; this is a red line he cannot cross.

Even if he really did act recklessly, wouldn't the two patriarchs of the Mountain and Sea Realm do the same?
The scene he recalled in his consciousness ended, and the Holy Ancestor's clone looked at Ning Qi again.

In the blink of an eye, his recollection had barely taken a moment, yet he had already deduced what he needed to do.

"Since you want to fight me, then I will grant your wish!"

Something flew out of his sleeve and he held it in his hand.

The Holy Ancestor's avatar opened it, and the world instantly changed.

Ning Qi was slightly taken aback. When he looked at the Holy Ancestor again, he found that he and the Holy Ancestor had appeared in a peculiar independent space.

In this space, only the two of them exist.

Ning Qi looked around. This space was not monotonous at all. On the contrary, it had mountains and water, and the occasional sounds of chickens and dogs could be heard, making it seem like a paradise.

"Is this the space created by your painting?"

The Holy Ancestor showed great patience towards Ning Qi, and replied calmly, "That's right, this scroll is called Peach Blossom Spring, and it was built based on my hometown when I was young."

The Holy Ancestor glanced at Ning Qi and said in a deep voice, "You and I will fight here, but I will only give you twenty breaths."

"Then come on, it'll be a good opportunity to settle scores with those who caused me trouble three times before!"

Ning Qi directly used the items he had dealt with the Holy Ancestor in the previous three encounters as evidence that the Holy Ancestor was indirectly causing him trouble.

After saying that, Ning Qi quickly raised his hand and pointed directly at the Holy Ancestor.

This is a new divine power he created, called the Great Dao Sword Condensation.

Instantly, countless sword energy projectiles, like shimmering silver bees, slashed towards the Holy Ancestor from all directions.

These sword energy projectiles were even stronger than the power he had used to kill the phantom before.

Each sword aura condensed different powers of Ning Qi.

They formed a sword energy array, resembling a swarm of bees or a large net, completely blocking any possibility of the Holy Ancestor's escape.

Among them, there are spatial sword pellets that can seal off space, and they also have the ability to cut through the air.

The sword pellet, which contained elements of earth and gravity, transformed into a giant meteorite and crashed towards the Sword Ancestor.

There are also sword pellets that employ various methods of sealing and binding, using a variety of binding and sealing techniques.

A fire sword, an ice sword, a lightning sword—in short, layers of power of rules all rushed toward the Holy Ancestor to annihilate him.

Upon seeing this, the Holy Ancestor's pupils contracted almost imperceptibly.

He admitted that he had overestimated Ning Qi's strength before, but seeing these thousands of sword pellets, he realized that he still underestimated Ning Qi.

In an instant, the Holy Ancestor realized that Ning Qi had mastered at least a hundred kinds of rule power, a new situation that he had not noticed before.

However, even amidst this overwhelming attack of various forces, a hundred large characters of different colors also flew out from within the body of the Holy Ancestor's clone.

The characters were of various colors and sizes, but they were clearly the same as Ning Qi's sword pellets.

Each character represents a power of the Holy Ancestor, and also contains the Holy Ancestor's will.

The hundred characters released light and emerged from the body of the Holy Ancestor.

Each word twisted and turned, transforming into a protective shield that enveloped the Holy Ancestor. Bang! Bang! Bang!
The next second, the sword pellet collided with the Hundred-Character Divine Power.

It emitted a dense, rain-like sound, as well as the sound of weapons clashing, and even the roar of a surging river and ocean waves, the sound of the earth shaking and thunder rumbling, all kinds of sounds resounding through the void.

Those who don't know the situation might think that all the voices in the world have gathered here.

Ning Qi also controlled his sword with his mind, and all the sword pellets impacted the Sword Ancestor's Hundred Word Divine Power.

The moment they made contact, the battle became extremely intense.

Besides the two sides' mastery of the power of rules, their ability to utilize various forces, their strategic planning of troop deployment, and their understanding of the enemy, all these factors were condensed into this battle.

They used almost all their strength when they made their move, at least openly.

Puff puff!
After one round of attacks, the sword pellets did not dissipate, but instead floated in the air and all retreated, waiting for the next round of attacks.

Ning Qi looked toward the Holy Ancestor's clone.

The hundred-character protective shield on the Holy Ancestor's body was pitted and torn in many places, with terrible cracks appearing from the impact.

But in an instant, the Holy Ancestor repaired it.

Therefore, fundamentally, this round of attacks did not cause any substantial damage to either side.

Ning Qi glanced at his own sword pellet again.

The sword pellets were arranged in the void, their surfaces also pitted and uneven, appearing as if they had been worn down.

The two have just clashed, and it was not only a clash of strength, but also a clash of their wills.

"Very good, to have driven me to this point, I can say that you are the only one in tens of thousands of years!"

The hundred characters on the surface of the Holy Ancestor's body suddenly expanded and began to rotate around him.

Those words were quite mysterious, flying around the Holy Ancestor's avatar. At least at a glance, they made the Holy Ancestor appear to be a cultured person.

The sword pellet beside Ning Qi swayed and fell, making him seem more like an unorthodox sword cultivator.

Ning Qi stared at the shadowy words, and was slightly startled.

As the strongest cultivator in the spirit realm, he certainly has some skills.

His sword pellets were indeed powerful, but compared to those word shadows, they lacked some unpredictability.

Well, in comparison, the Holy Ancestor was able to contend with him using only words and shadows, so the Holy Ancestor was definitely a cut above the rest.

This time, the Holy Ancestor did not wait for Ning Qi to make a move.

He flew straight towards Ning Qi at lightning speed.

Accompanying him was, naturally, the shadow of the hundred-character poem.

Ning Qi was moved, and the sword pellet, like a great river flowing into the sea, once again rushed towards the Holy Ancestor.

Rumble!
The next second, Ning Qi's pupils contracted.

This time, however, the Holy Ancestor did not choose to use the Hundred-Word Divine Power to withstand the attack.

He simply stretched out one hand, and the hundred characters combined to form a colossal, unparalleled celestial monument, which slammed down upon all the sword pellets.

"This world belongs to me!"

At the same time, the Holy Ancestor's clone let out a cold shout.

The paradise he created seemed to come alive.

All the spatial power was compressed towards Ning Qi.

In an instant, Ning Qi's sword pellets were all knocked away, and even Ning Qi himself was hit by the Holy Ancestor's series of attacks.

The celestial monument stood tall, directly suppressing Ning Qi beneath it.

The hundreds of characters on it flowed, each one shimmering with light, much like the decree issued by Buddha on the Five Finger Mountain to suppress the Monkey King.

The Holy Ancestor looked at Ning Qi, who was suppressed by the Hundred-Character Heavenly Stele, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

Ning Qi was pressed down on the Heavenly Stele, unable to move his entire body or even speak.

He looked up at the Holy Ancestor, his eyes becoming somewhat vacant.

"I'm sorry, I brought you here, but I still do it to suppress you."

Seeing that he had suppressed Ning Qi, the Holy Ancestor turned sideways and disappeared into the Peach Blossom Spring space, as if he had entered a spatial wave.

He knew that with Ning Qi's abilities, it was only a matter of time before he broke through the Hundred-Character Heavenly Stele.

But a little time is enough!

The normal fighting lasted exactly ten breaths.

The Holy Ancestor appeared outside the Peach Blossom Spring space and returned to the Central Region.

He scanned the entire arena and immediately grasped the overall battle situation.

Zhao Yujun and Gong Tiandao were pressing Jiang Yingchu's defenses, and the usually refined Jiang Yingchu was now in a rather disheveled state.

The situation further below caused the Holy Ancestor to narrow his eyes slightly.

To his surprise, in just a short while, his Vast Realm army was forced to retreat a third of the distance by the Mountain and Sea Realm army from the south.

In other words, the territory of the Central Region is divided equally between the two realms, and currently one-third of it has been occupied by the army of the Mountain and Sea Realm.

The Holy Ancestor immediately summoned the Dao Integration Phantom again, which continuously descended downwards to replenish the combat power of the Vast Realm.

Upon seeing the Holy Ancestor reappear, Zhao Yujun and Gong Tiandao's expressions changed once again.

"How could this be?" Zhao Yujun was stunned and couldn't believe it.

Ning Qi was able to break free from the Holy Ancestor's restraints just now, so how come he's been trapped by the Holy Ancestor again?

Gong Tiandao gritted his teeth, "Damn it, he's practically killed me! If you can't handle it, just say so! Why do you have to spout such nonsense!"

Zhao Yujun didn't have time to refute Gong Tiandao, but decisively said, "Quickly suppress Jiang Yingchu. As long as we suppress him, we still have a chance!"

Gong Tiandao nodded as well.

The two had never cooperated like this before. Although they had great conflicts in the Mountain and Sea Realm, they were now giving it their all for survival.

But now that the Holy Ancestor's avatar has appeared and Ning Qi has been suppressed, how can things be allowed to go as they wish?

From within the Holy Ancestor's body, the Hundred-Character Divine Power once again flew out.

While summoning the illusory image of the Dao Integration Realm, he manipulated the Hundred Words Divine Power to attack Zhao and Gong.

Therefore, the subsequent battle went extremely smoothly.

In just a few dozen breaths, the Holy Ancestor's clone completely turned the tide of the battle.

But as time went on, he felt more and more that something was wrong. According to his calculations, Ning Qi should have broken free by now, so why hadn't he appeared yet?
"Have you finally realized something's wrong?"

Suddenly, a voice rang in the ears of the Holy Ancestor's clone.

"Ok?"

The Holy Ancestor was stunned, and a cold sweat suddenly broke out on his forehead, as if he had finally realized something.

"Oh no, this is an illusion! I've fallen for that kid's illusion attack! When did he do that?"

(End of this chapter)