Chapter 189: Chapter 117: A Sword Arising from the Heart-Sea Slashes Both Others and Myself

BOOM!

The Great Sun hung high in the ninth heaven, its light blazing for leagues, its Divine Power overwhelming. It instantly captured all his attention. At this moment, his pupils reflected nothing but that Great Sun.

At the same time, the boundless and infinitely powerful Great Sun made Zhuo Feng acutely aware of his own insignificance. The immense gap in strength involuntarily gave rise to a sliver of fear in his heart.

Deep within his Divine Soul, a Demon Sound seemed to whisper:

’Just give up. He’s too strong. We can’t win.’

’Why are we making an enemy of him?’

’He can’t be stopped. Run, run now....’

It was as if the Great Sun had reflected all the cowardice, fear, and other negative emotions in his heart, transforming them into a Heart Demon that chattered endlessly within him.

Fortunately, Zhuo Feng’s will was firm enough that he wasn’t affected by these distracting thoughts.

’I won’t lose, and I certainly won’t run! Even if I die, I’ll die on my feet!’

The Divine Thought that flashed through his mind made his Dao Heart shine even more brilliantly.

But just as his Dao Heart had solidified, his Heart Spirit trembled as he discovered the Great Sun was not just a Sun Wheel, but also a dragon—a majestic, coiling dragon.

CLANG!

Yet the dragon was not the Great Sun’s true form either. An instant later, the great dragon in Zhuo Feng’s eyes transformed again, becoming a sword—a Divine Sword shimmering with endless brilliance.

And all the power of the magnificent Great Sun and the Candlelight Dragon manifested upon this Divine Sword.

CLANG!

The moment he saw the Divine Sword, a soft sound, like a sword being drawn, echoed out. The Divine Sword had already traversed an infinite distance through their eye contact, transforming into a brilliant streak of light that slashed toward his Divine Soul.

A sword born from the Heart Sea, it slays the other, and it slays the self!

This was the power of Zhong Ming’s longsword—or rather, his Dao Fruit.

The first layer of his ability was the Great Sun’s reflection, which activated the Heart Demon.

Through the Illusion of the Great Dream of Thousand Years, Zhong Ming could seize control of his opponent’s vision, forcing their Heart Spirit to see nothing but the Great Sun. He could even magnify the Great Sun’s Divine Power several times over.

Gazing directly at the magnificent Great Sun, a person would feel their own insignificance. This vast difference would also make the enemy cower in fear.

And because of his experience simulating a Buddha’s enlightenment within the Great Dream of Thousand Years, that extraordinary trial didn’t just allow Zhong Ming to eliminate his distracting thoughts and purify his Heart Spirit.

It also taught him how to use the Power of Dreams to stir up distracting thoughts and transform them into a subconscious Heart Demon.

When this technique was combined with the reflection of the Great Sun’s Divine Power and the "Life" Dao Rhyme, even weaker individuals would find their Heart Spirit dominated by fear just by meeting Zhong Ming’s gaze. This fear and cowardice, catalyzed by the Great Dream of Thousand Years and the Rhythm of Life, would then evolve into a Heart Demon that would fight the host’s will for control of their body.

Previously, Zhu Hao had stood motionless, but the aura around his body was in constant conflict. This was caused by the Heart Demon.

Of course, this move was only truly effective against those with a weak will. Zhu Hao... he could have actually resisted the first transformation.

But then, the third transformation arrived.

Zhong Ming’s Morning Star: Candlelight Dragon transforming into the Morning Star: Candlelight Sword was more than just a simple change in form.

It came with its own ability. For now, this ability gathered all of Zhong Ming’s insights, Heart Spirit, and Thoughts into a single point. Then, through eye contact, it transformed the Divine Sword into light, slashing directly at the enemy’s Heart Sea Divine Soul.

This was a strike with all of Zhong Ming’s power, capable of directly annihilating an enemy’s Divine Soul.

Even if the enemy was powerful, it could still inflict grievous injuries.

Afterward, a heavily wounded Divine Soul would naturally be unable to suppress the Heart Demon. At that point, their body would still be thrown into chaos.

Hmm... one thing worth mentioning is that Zhong Ming’s Divine Sword Soul Slash did not need to first transform into the Great Sun, then the Candlelight Dragon, and finally the Divine Sword.

The build-up for the three transformations could be done in advance within Zhong Ming’s Sea of Consciousness.

Adhering to the core principles of the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique—"ambush and One-Hit Kill"—he was capable of turning the Divine Sword into light and annihilating an enemy’s Divine Soul the very instant their eyes met.

This was exactly what he did when dealing with Zhu Hao.

This was why his opponent was grievously wounded before he could even react.

If not for the fact that he came from a Major Sect and possessed an Exotic Treasure that protected his Divine Soul, that single strike from Zhong Ming would have directly annihilated his Divine Soul.

That said, he wasn’t in good shape now either.

An injury like that couldn’t be healed in less than three to five years. It would take half a year just for his Divine Sense to regain clarity.

And in three to five years, Zhong Ming would have long since reached Foundation Establishment, or even Golden Core.

...

Against Zhu Hao, who had been the first to show hostility, Zhong Ming could have used lethal force. But Zhuo Feng was different. Although he had challenged him, he had not displayed a completely hostile attitude.

And Zhong Ming—he could be wild, he could be arrogant, he could proclaim himself the best in the world, but he couldn’t just kill indiscriminately.

For the former, others would only gossip about Zhong Ming a little.

In fact, because of the admiration for the strong embedded in human nature, they might even gather around him, speak up for him, and follow him.

But if he killed wantonly, the situation would be entirely different.

If he killed too many people, he would easily find himself deserted by everyone and become a Demon King condemned by all.

Unwilling to let that happen, Zhong Ming could only hold back a little.

This was also a form of deception. If someone thought Zhong Ming’s Divine Sword could only be unleashed after the three transformations and made plans based on that assumption, Zhong Ming would give them a huge surprise when they truly became enemies.

’First transformation, Great Sun—slash!’

...

Although Zhong Ming had many thoughts as he squinted at Zhuo Feng, in reality, it all happened in a brief instant.

At this moment, Zhong Ming’s Divine Sword transformed into light and slashed right into Zhuo Feng’s Heart Sea.