Taiyi Dao Fruit-Chapter 1352 - 98: Tai Chu Finger, Four Heavenly Pillars

Afterward, The Queen Mother of the West had the Heaven and Earth Furnace, and Shakyamuni Tathagata had the Seven Treasures Miao Tree. Neither of them alone might be able to defeat Jiang Li, but if they joined forces, with two Second Grade great powers along with two First Grade Dao Artifacts, they could balance Jiang Li.

Because Jiang Li had used the Three Pure Dao Artifacts to seal Emperor Xi, he no longer had any First Grade Dao Artifacts at hand.

On his side, only Karma Tathagata still had a First Grade Dao Artifact. Unfortunately, Karma Tathagata only possessed a third grade Lotus Platform, which was insufficient to unleash the power of the Amitabha Buddha Dao Fruit. Moreover, the Buddhist Taoist Tool did not align with Jiang Li.

Although there was a First Grade Dao Artifact, it was difficult to dominate the battlefield.

In this way, they could prevent Jiang Li from becoming overwhelmingly powerful and prevent him from sweeping across the world.

Even though it was only for a very short time and in the midst of a fierce battle, the Great Venerable had understood the Queen Mother of the West's intent and was forced by the situation to make a decisive move.

As expected, the Queen Mother of the West turned her attention toward Jiang Li, just as the Great Venerable had anticipated.

Star lights bombarded the three large hands, and the Circulation of Cycle Stars turned, transforming the rolling Essence Qi into a tangible torrent, surging toward the Three Emperors' Avatars.

This scene looked as if the Tianhe had descended into the Mortal World, with the vast river formed from Star Essence crashing toward the Three Emperors' Avatars.

Meanwhile, Emperor Yan had already taken the Great Venerable out of the Star River and continued flying eastward.

The Red Sun Wheel's speed far surpassed wind and thunder, covering countless miles in an instant. The vast scenery of the sea continuously whisked past, left behind, and Divine Country was tens of thousands of miles away.

Time was passing. Theoretically, it was already nearing dusk, approaching night, yet the surrounding sky showed no sign of darkening; instead, it was as bright as dawn.

Finally, they seemed to have reached the edge of the eastern world.

In their sight, the seawater shimmered with a golden hue, carrying a dazzling yet subdued brilliance. The Sun Qi wandered through every inch of space, turning the air into golden currents.

It is said that at the East Sea's extreme end, there lies a place called "Tanggu," the land of sunrise. If Tanggu truly existed, it should be here.

The Red Sun Wheel accelerated again; Emperor Yan drove the Innate Qi to its limits to reach extreme speed.

The destination was in sight, and now, regardless of cost, he aimed to accelerate into it. However—

"So, this is your destination."

An eerie voice suddenly rang out, as if emerging from beneath the Nine Netherworlds. Even the Yang Qi of this place where the sun rises couldn't dispel the ensuing chill.

"Jiang Li!" Emperor Yan couldn't help but exclaim.

He had actually chased them here...

How did he break free from the two Second Grade interceptors and pursue them to this place?

"Simple, I used the Sun Star to stand in for me, to hold off Shakyamuni Tathagata."

It seemed Jiang Li had discerned the surprise and doubt in Emperor Yan and the Great Venerable and provided an answer. The invisible threat swiftly approached, and the chill inside grew increasingly intense.

However, it was not devoid of opportunity.

The reason Jiang Li was able to claim supremacy through power was that the power of the Sun Star was entirely at his disposal. Now that he had diverted the Sun Star's power to restrain Shakyamuni Tathagata, he was no longer invincible, let alone with the Three Emperors' Avatars outside...

The reason he had remained silent until now was to exclude the Queen Mother of the West's interference.

At this moment, there were no other Second Grade powers to intervene.

When this thought flashed through Emperor Yan's mind, his vigilance surged to its peak.

In the next moment, the sense of crisis exploded. In a daze, it was as if a silhouette emerged from the unseen, and a finger pointed forth.

This finger was formless and shapeless, invisible to the eye, inaudible to the ear, even the form of the finger was but an extreme visionary Spiritual Sense imagination, not true perception of the opponent.

This strike was unblockable, impossible to parry, only to endure!

Since Jiang Li had only acted now, it meant that while the finger seemed unbreachable, it wasn't impossible to withstand.

The simplest method was to counter with force. As long as the strength was great enough, a larger force could be applied, a tactic Jiang Li had always employed to opponents, also preventing other Second Grade cultivators from interfering.

With this thought, the Great Venerable suddenly howled to the sky, transforming into a dragon in a single thought.

The thousand-mile-long Candle Dragon Body manifested on the sea's surface, spanning the golden light, enveloping the Red Sun Wheel formed by Emperor Yan below.

Illusory dragon shadows roamed the sky, overlapping with the Candle Dragon, unifying all Primordial Qi, Divine Thought, and blood vitality.

Dragon Roar, merging Fuxi Daoist Body and Dragon Form, swallowing the Book of Luo River Map into the body, evolving into an Array.

All means were exhausted, and under Cosmic Light Divine Ability, everything unfolded in less than an instant.

Then, that "finger" came.

The Great Venerable, following the crisis sensation, fiercely struck out a palm, pushing against space, shaking Cosmic Light, force erupting forcefully.

And then...

Silently, the arm began to shatter, turning to ash, further disintegrating into void; from arm to body, the void continued to spread, fracturing.

In an instant, the Candle Dragon's silhouette shattered like an illusion.

However, in the next instant, the Great Venerable reappeared.

A phantom replaced him and shattered, while several phantoms still overlapped on him.

The Great Venerable's avatars converged into one at this moment; one life was taken, but another remained.

Yet, that formless strike had never dissipated, continuing forward.

Layer upon layer, one after another, then four, five, six, seven; in a blink, seven phantoms shattered, turning to void. All of the Great Venerable's avatars perished under this strike.

"Tai Chu Finger."

Jiang Li's voice only then slowly emerged.

In the Tai Chu realm, there was neither time nor space. To Jiang Li, the Cosmic Light Divine Ability was completely ineffective, and his means had no obstruction.

Finally, that strike landed on the Great Venerable's body.

Eight phantoms shattered front and back; time seemed infinitely long, long enough that a lifetime couldn't span it, but in truth, it happened in an instant.

From the Great Venerable's full resistance to eight bodies being annihilated, all occurred in a moment.

When the finger descended upon the body, the Great Venerable felt all Arrays within collapsing, all flesh and blood turning to void.

He let out a roar, unleashing infinite might, erupting with all his strength like a battle dragon in the wild, the Qi waves shaking the heavens and the earth.

"Boom—"

Over the sea, layer upon layer of air currents exploded as if a destructive storm descended. The Great Venerable seized the Red Sun Wheel and forcibly resisted the invisible force to move forward.

In the most extreme eruption, he crossed an immense distance; the thousand-mile Dragon Body breached the sea realm, rushing under a mountain at the sea's end.

"Hmm?"

An astonished voice came from the air, flowing light flickered, with Jiang Li's figure following closely behind.

He reached this place where Yang Qi was most intense, as the sun's incarnation, Jiang Li had an indescribable familiarity. Sun Qi from all directions automatically merged into Jiang Li's body, nurturing his form, aiding his recovery from foundational wounds.

However, Jiang Li couldn't act here.

He couldn't even approach that mountain to decisively root out the Great Venerable.

Jiang Li raised his gaze toward the mountain, his sight unable to capture the summit.

Rather than a mountain, it was more an immense peak reaching the heavens. Only because of this peak's extreme vastness did it appear as a mountain.

Below this peak, an invisible and grand force was sheltering the Great Venerable and Emperor Yan, yet repelled Jiang Li's approach.

The reason Emperor Yan and the Great Venerable escaped to this place was likely because of this peak.

"I sensed a familiar aura..."

Jiang Li's gaze fixated on the mountain.

Elevating his view, using the Sun Star's perspective, he regarded the mountain. Finally, he saw the mountain's full extent and detected where that aura originated, from what entity it came.

"It was Wa Emperor, so this place..."

"Four Extremes Heavenly Pillars?"

Legend has it that when Wa Emperor mended the sky, a giant turtle was slain, its four limbs replacing Buzhou Mountain, holding sky and earth. If not mistaken, this peak should be one of the Heavenly Pillars.