“The Tathagata knows the thoughts of other beings as they truly are.”

This is the Buddha Gate’s peerless divine ability, the heart’s deep understanding.

And Guan Yan had spent five hundred and thirty-seven years researching the Dragon God.

How terrifying are these four words, “as they truly are”?

All along, the Dragon God’s greatest efforts had been focused on capturing Yu Heng and controlling Yu Heng. It never once cast a glance at Guan Yan, or even the entire Sen Hai Yuan Realm, including the world’s will.

Even if its divine handle was seized, even if the speed of devouring the world’s will was delayed, these were merely superficial deceptions to mislead others.

It did not wish to be too conspicuous, to create too much commotion, and attract other competitors.

The reason it painstakingly concocted the Dragon God Response Seat tasks, fashioned Dragon God Messengers, and occasionally bestowed rewards was all to cover up its designs on Yu Heng Star.

This was the only crucial point.

It had laid down numerous long-term stratagems, so many that it itself had difficulty remembering them all. How could it possibly care about Guan Yan, a mere monk who had only just entered the Sen Hai Yuan Realm with a meager Inner Mansion cultivation?

All the stalemates, all the deadlocks, were intentional. When the time came, it would reveal its true strength, naturally crushing its opponents like dry weeds underfoot.

But it had not anticipated…

It seemed all its stratagems had been anticipated.

Even some means it had not yet deployed were extinguished one step ahead of time.

Capturing Yu Heng Star was too grand an undertaking; it had invested too much energy into it.

Now, turning its attention to casually eliminating Guan Yan…

Yet, from the direction of Yu Heng Star, to the Sea of World Origin in the Sen Hai Yuan Realm, to the Forest of Xuan Lu… there was not a single place where it held the upper hand!

What kind of opponent was this?

Only at this moment did the Dragon God truly confront the monk standing atop the World God Tree.

“Who exactly are you?”

It began to suspect that all of this was a pre-planned scheme. Had its designs on Yu Heng Star been discovered long ago?

“Who am I?”

Guan Yan stood at the peak of the World God Tree, his might unrestrained, in almost every level of confrontation, he utterly suppressed the Dragon God.

“If not for you, for your Dragon God Response Seat, for your perverse actions. Perhaps I would have already attained the Golden Body…”

He looked down at the Dragon God from his elevated position, his right hand clenched into a fist: “And now I am merely a person who will not become a Buddha in this life.”

One fist smashed down!

His fist was so small, yet as it descended, it was so vast.

The fist traversed a great distance.

It even… faintly resonated with the surging expansion of the distant Yu Heng Star.

The Dragon God’s head was directly smashed away by the single fist, but its tail was still fixed by the World God Tree and could not fly too far.

Utter humiliation.

This was utter humiliation!

The Dragon God was so enraged that golden flames burned in its eyes, the golden flames boiling into… the shape of a throne.

At the same time.

In the tree altar of the God Yin Ground, light penetrated from beneath the wood grain of the altar, extending infinitely and casting towards the sky.

And the wood grain on the altar, magnified by the celestial map, formed the shape of a throne, suspended in the air, radiating with glorious light!

In the distance, the golden flames of the burning scripture house flickered, and dense crowds of Sen Hai Holy Clan members gathered, praying.

The Dragon God Response Seat shone in the night sky, but not a single person in the entire Sen Hai Holy Clan, from the priests downwards, looked at it again.

This was not important.

As the tree altar exhibited this anomaly, in the depths of the universe, a massive divine seat also manifested in the void.

The divine seat appeared precisely beneath the expanding Yu Heng Star, as if waiting for Yu Heng to descend upon it!

The Dragon God Response Seat was more than just a simple ceremony; it connected the Seven Star Building Secret Realm, the Sen Hai Yuan Realm and the present world, and was also the Dragon God’s countless attempts to approach Yu Heng Star over the years.

Jiang Wang, Su Qi Yun, and the others had once seen…

Yu Heng upon a divine seat!

The roots of the World God Tree, which were nailed into the Dragon God’s tail and had been spreading towards the middle of its body, suddenly stopped their invasion.

And then they broke inch by inch!

Golden Body shattered, emerald patterns cracked, the Dragon God raised its head and howled.

The entire World God Tree, thousands of zhang high, violently shook.

At this moment, it could actually achieve this step by relying on the “Dragon God Response Seat” and borrowing the power of Yu Heng Star!

If no one obstructed it, controlling Yu Heng Star was only a matter of time.

To the former Sen Hai Holy Clan, the “Dragon God Response Seat” was a divine miracle.

To the so-called Dragon God Messengers, the “Dragon God Response Seat” was the process of proclaiming divine oracles.

But in the void of this universe, the “Dragon God Response Seat” was actually a ceremony to shake Yu Heng Star.

While borrowing the power of Yu Heng Star, it was also further controlling Yu Heng Star!

Just at this moment, Guan Yan sat down.

When he sat down, the space beneath him was still empty, but as he settled, infinite starlight condensed, also forming a brilliant throne that perfectly supported him.

This throne was far less brilliant than the Dragon God’s throne, and certainly not as massive.

But simply standing there, it established an invisible connection with Yu Heng Star.

This was the Yu Heng Divine Seat!

Guan Yan had never neglected his research and utilization of Yu Heng Star. He was very clear where the true battlefield lay; how could he possibly ignore Yu Heng?

This included borrowing the power of Yu Heng Star, descending to the Star-Moon Realm, and multiple exchanges with Jiang Wang. It also included directly using the power of Yu Heng Star as his foundation against that mysterious expert from the Equality Kingdom… all were manifestations of his contact with Yu Heng.

Just like on the path of the gods, he arrived later but surpassed others. In his exploration of Yu Heng Star, he was not inferior to the Dragon God.

Guan Yan, clad in moon-white monk robes, sat upon the brilliant starlight of the Yu Heng Divine Seat, adding to his majesty.

With this single act of sitting, the shaking of the World God Tree stopped once again!

Both the Dragon God and Guan Yan were borrowing the power of Yu Heng Star at the same time, but their methods were not the same.

The Dragon God was supporting Yu Heng Star, requesting Yu Heng to descend upon the seat. While Guan Yan, on this side, was guiding the light of Yu Heng Star, allowing Yu Heng to request him to descend upon the seat!

These two paths were determined by their initial power. Guan Yan was weak at that time, destined to be unable to support Yu Heng, only able to carefully guide it, starting small and growing. The current harvest was actually not much different.

If one were to compare, the Dragon God was like building a golden mansion to house a beauty, demanding Yu Heng Star’s return… Guan Yan was then eating the soft rice of Yu Heng Star.

This contrast almost made the Dragon God spit blood in frustration. It had expended more power but did not receive a greater return, especially since Guan Yan’s Yu Heng Divine Seat had clearly been inspired by its Dragon God Response Seat.

A thief standing on the master’s head, how could it tolerate this?

Of course, more importantly… even inducing the power of Yu Heng Star could not overturn this monk!

Looking at Guan Yan on the distant Yu Heng Divine Seat, the Dragon God’s voice boomed like a drum—

“I originally did not wish for this, but how else?”

Its golden yellow dragon pupils closed for the first time.

The void seemed to tremble!

No, what trembled was the World God Tree, the divine handle of the Sen Hai Yuan Realm.

In the Sea of World Origin of the Sen Hai Yuan Realm, the True Dragon Yuan Spirit, which was struggling with Guan Yan’s split spirit, suddenly swung its tail, pulling itself into the air and leaving the Sea of World Origin.

But it naturally did not give up the struggle.

Because immediately after, a vast golden wave surged into the sky, leaving the Origin Sea, following the departure of this True Dragon Yuan Spirit.

At this moment, the Dragon God chose to drain the Sea of World Origin!

Unlike the act of gradually controlling the Sen Hai Yuan Realm by massacring its inhabitants, its current action was to directly destroy the foundation of the Sen Hai Yuan Realm’s existence! It could almost be said to be a world-ending evil, an act that would incur the wrath of both gods and men, which is why it said it did not wish for this.

But at this time, for the final victory, it had no reservations.

Terrifying power descended upon the void, and the True Dragon Yuan Spirit returned to its position.

The Dragon God opened its pupils, and its aura was no longer the same!

Though the universe was vast, it seemed as if there was only one of its kind.

Though the stars were numerous, their light all gathered for it.

The pounding power of the world origin, which it had carried away, condensed into a golden armored divine being several thousand zhang tall in the void, grasping the World God Tree with a single hand!

It began to pull it up inch by inch from the place where it had penetrated the dragon’s tail!

No matter how much power Guan Yan infused, no matter how much he suppressed, he could not stop the World God Tree from leaving.

The Dragon God was unusually calm at this time, only lifting its pupils to look, watching the increasingly distant Yu Heng Divine Seat, and Guan Yan with his palms pressed together on the divine seat.

That gaze seemed to ask—what will you do?

Drawing away the power of world origin, this matter naturally required unimaginable power. But at this time, Guan Yan could also do it. Because the world will of the Sen Hai Yuan Realm had already been completely delivered to him. Using the power of world origin against the power of world origin was a straightforward method…

But how could he do this?

If the Sea of World Origin were completely drained, the entire Sen Hai Yuan Realm would collapse immediately.

Not only could he not do this, but he had to immediately mobilize the power of world origin under his control to repair the Sen Hai Yuan Realm.

This led to…

In this battlefield deep in the void, he was isolated and without aid.

The Dragon God waited quietly for a while, not for the scene of the Sen Hai Yuan Realm’s collapse, not for Guan Yan’s split spirit to bring the other half of the world origin, not even for Guan Yan’s split spirit—which was still remaining in the Sen Hai Yuan Realm to remedy the situation.

It waited for the golden armored divine being to finally pull the World God Tree to its end.

Guan Yan still sat atop the tree peak.

Golden dragon blood dripped into the void, the roots of the World God Tree, already entangled with flesh, caused excruciating pain as they were forcibly separated.

But there was no pain in the Dragon God’s eyes.

It looked at Guan Yan, a strange sigh in its voice: “You are such a powerful being, yet you made this choice… I feel great regret.”

By this point, it had recognized Guan Yan’s strength. To display such a performance in a struggle with it, this person was undoubtedly a powerful being.

It had originally prepared itself for a battle with Guan Yan, who would bring the other half of the Sen Hai Yuan Realm’s world origin power… that would undoubtedly be a brilliant collision.

In its calculations, the collapse of the Sen Hai Yuan Realm had two benefits. One was to interrupt Yan Xiao’s constant rebirth and drain of its divine power, and the other was to end Guan Yan’s power of faith.

The evil of exterminating a world, it and Guan Yan would share it.

And the result after the collapse of the Sen Hai Yuan Realm was obviously very unfavorable to Guan Yan. Therefore, this matter was mostly beneficial to it.

It had not anticipated that… Guan Yan would not make that choice.

In such an intense battle, in the struggle for a cosmic star, Guan Yan’s split spirit chose to remain in the Sen Hai Yuan Realm, not taking away a single bit of origin power.

Was this worth it?

For that monotonous world, for those weak ants in that world?

“You will die today, and I will remember your name!” the Dragon God thus declared.

The golden armored divine being, reaching several thousand zhang high, suddenly pulled forcefully, and the entire World God Tree was pulled up by its roots, leaving the dragon’s body!

The wound left by the World God Tree’s departure was gruesome and blurred… but it had gained freedom!

Body free, heart free, god free, intent free.

A true dragon should soar in the universe.

The Dragon God let out an angry howl, shaking its body to several tens of thousands of zhang.

Its breath was like heavenly thunder, its dragon body stretching endlessly.

One claw tip rested on the massive Dragon God Throne. Another claw fell towards the infinitely expanding Yu Heng Star.

With one claw resting on one side, it possessed a majesty that seemed to control everything.

Divine light shone in myriad beams, brilliant and dazzling.

It was as if it were the master of this part of the void, the only true god at this time and place.

And in front of it, seemingly even smaller than an ant…

Was Guan Yan.

This divinely handsome monk in moon-white robes sat upon that square Yu Heng Divine Seat, a drop of tear sliding down the corner of his eye, falling into the endless void.

Rumble!

After all, it was an opponent it had fought for over five hundred years, and after all, this opponent had pushed it to this extent.

The Dragon God couldn’t help but ask: “Why do you shed tears?”

Guan Yan said softly: “I have some regrets.”

“A dying person inevitably has regrets!” the Dragon God said: “Your mistake was in not knowing the decree of heaven, in not respecting the true dragon!”

“And you?”

The Dragon God was somewhat curious: “This Seat?”

Guan Yan did not look at the Sen Hai Yuan Realm again; heaven knows how much he wanted to look at it one more time.

But he only lifted his head, looking at the vast, ten-thousand-li dragon god: “You are such a true dragon, a being born with great power… what regrets do you have, before your death?”

The Dragon God’s golden vertical pupils narrowed.

Only to see Guan Yan, sitting upon the Yu Heng Divine Seat, his right hand still resting on the armrest, his left hand covering his face.

The Buddha covers his face, unable to bear the sight of common people!

At the same time, his body began to emit jade light.

Burning jade together to form “jade”!

He had cultivated bitterly for over five hundred years, only just opened the path of True Spirit cultivation, only just condensed this True Spirit body.

However, at this moment, it was burning!

Burning his body with jade flames, daring not to ask for a next life.

Some regrets… no longer asked.

He suddenly removed the hand covering his face, and his entire being abruptly stood up from the Yu Heng Divine Seat.

With this stance, he became a ten-thousand-zhang jade Buddha.

Its body was like white jade, its quality like white jade.

Its spirit was like white jade, its virtue was like white jade.

The jade-colored giant Buddha stood steady in the void, its hands grasping the Dragon God’s two dragon horns, holding it firmly!

“Ah!”

Guan Yan, who had always been elegant and composed, glared and roared at this moment. He held the Dragon God’s body, tens of thousands of zhang long, and actually pushed it backward! Constantly pushing it towards the deeper void!

His feet stepped on the void, rumbling and booming, emitting a muffled thunder-like sound.

He pushed forward!

While the Dragon God constantly retreated.

Powerful as the Dragon God, it roused its divine power, angered and resisted the horns. One claw grasped the Dragon God Throne, one claw rested on Yu Heng Star. With that magnificent jade Buddha, it engaged in the most primitive and most intense collision.

Terrifying power collided, no manifestations appeared, but it almost annihilated everything around them. Divine power, will, yuan spirit, dao principle… colliding inch by inch!

However, the distance between the dragon claw and Yu Heng Star was still growing.

The Dragon God Throne was also being moved by it.

Yu Heng Star was temporarily locked in this area of the void; it had been locked by the Dragon God with a dragon clan secret transmission array beforehand. Otherwise, creating such a large commotion, even in the depths of the void, could not guarantee that no powerful beings would see and intervene.

Guan Yan’s current action was clearly to push it out of this area of the void, to break the great array that trapped and locked Yu Heng Star. It intended to push it into the truly exposed universe, to decide life and death with it.

No, it was to exchange death with it.

Guan Yan’s spirit body was burning, his body had become a jade Buddha; he already had the determination to die.

How could the Dragon God allow him to have his wish!

The dragon horns still opposed the jade Buddha’s massive hands.

As the body of several tens of thousands of zhang retreated, that golden armored divine being formed by the Sen Hai Yuan Realm’s half world origin power leaped up fiercely, turning into a brilliant golden guandao, chopping down towards Guan Yan’s head.

But just at this moment, the World God Tree, which had been casually thrown away by him, suddenly flew back, turning into a green giant python that firmly bound the golden armored divine being.

It was the world will of the Sen Hai Yuan Realm!

This existence, whose position could not be specifically described, after the short period of stability in the Sen Hai Yuan Realm, manipulated the World God Tree and made a move at this crucial moment.

Using the World God Tree as a giant python, it bound its own world origin that had been plundered by the Dragon God.

As the Dragon God retreated, it let out a long howl. The golden armored divine being formed by the world origin completely exploded, severely injuring the green python formed by the World God Tree.

This single act almost consumed over half of the world origin.

But endless golden waves rolled, falling upon the dragon’s body.

The remaining world origin was all absorbed by the Dragon God.

For a time, the golden scales were brilliant, its state completely recovered, even surpassing its peak, instead forcing Guan Yan, who had turned into a jade Buddha, back three steps!

“Borrowed power, how can it last long?” the Dragon God roared: “A gift of fate, ultimately must be repaid!”

Guan Yan’s heavy footfall in the void almost created ripples, barely stabilizing his body.

Exhausting all his strength, he said: “You and I… must both repay!”

But…

He retreated again!

Retreated again and again!

He was fundamentally unable to resist the Dragon God at this moment.

And how long could this jade Buddha body persist?

Thirty breaths? Fifty breaths?

Guan Yan had no answer in his heart. He only knew that he had to persist, to persist again.

Absolutely not… absolutely could not retreat again!

“Ah!”

He roared as he stopped his feet, once again holding the Dragon God.

The jade-colored giant Buddha and the golden divine dragon stood opposed in the void, becoming a static painting.

The Dragon God’s golden vertical pupils gazed at him, looking at this divinely handsome monk…

For some reason, it wanted to sigh.

In its long life, it had never seen such a monk, such a person.

Even being his opponent, it felt amazed.

If everyone in the human race were like this, it seemed the dragon race’s defeat and departure to the vast sea back then was not wrong!

But…

This was its era.

“Stop here,” it said.

Calm as a conclusion after the dust settles.

Stop here…?

The jade Buddha body gradually developed cracks.

Guan Yan glared, but his divine color gradually faded.

In his life, he had very few expressions of such anger, such distortion.

No matter what thing, no matter what situation, he could face it, he could solve it.

But…

Stop here?

Five hundred and thirty-seven years of struggle, only an illusion, finally only achieving the Dragon God’s grand dream awakening?

The bitter endurance of those long years, ultimately failing to wait for the flower to bloom?

Stop here?

Just at this moment, a clear and bright voice suddenly sounded in the void.

More accurately, it sounded above the infinitely expanding Yu Heng Star.

“At five years old, I had ambition in cultivation!”

A point of starlight rose from the lightless Yu Heng Star.

That point of starlight also shone into Guan Yan’s pupils.

“At nineteen, not yet crowned, but crowned the world!”

Countless points of starlight, like fireflies, surged out from beyond Yu Heng.

Guan Yan heard whose voice it was, felt whose light it was!

“Traveled ten thousand li, because of a promise to draw the sword!”

Starlight gathered, forming an outline.

“Went far into a confused world, to stand up the word ‘human’!”

The starlight vaguely converged into a shape, resembling a building.

This was…

The Starlight Holy Building!

Who, at this time and place, was constructing the Star Building?

Today, there was no second choice.

This was Jiang Qingyang’s Starlight Holy Building!

That young man who, because of a single plea for help, had put down everything in the present world and decisively come to a distant world.

In this endless void, outside this Yu Heng Star, a towering high building!

Although it was only an outline, it already possessed endless glory.

That glory was brilliant, it was firm, it was tempered step by step on solid ground.

Originally, that many confused young man, that young man carrying heavy burdens and stepping with difficulty, now actually in this endless universe, transmitted his path!

In the void, there was a heavenly stair, connected by some mysterious contact, crossing time and space.

Below the brilliant golden heavenly stair, there was a young figure in green robes, pressing a sword, walking with big strides.

Since ancient times, those who erected Star Buildings in the present world would first anchor a star point in the distant star dome, constantly transmitting power and accumulating starlight, and then gradually erect the Star Building.

Naturally, there were also those who achieved it in a single day, directly sensing remotely and instantly erecting the Star Building.

But it had never been heard of anyone who, at the time of erecting the Starlight Holy Building, was actually nearby!

It was simply face to face, personally building the Star Building in the star dome!

Fundamentally, there was no need for any anchoring; the person was right in front of the Star Building, where would there be any worry of getting lost?

What made the Dragon God’s eyes twitch even more was that the divine power constructing this heavenly stair came from itself!

Or, more accurately, it came from Yan Xiao’s “borrowed” divine power.

That useless, cheap seed had actually betrayed it!

At this moment, Yan Xiao was flying in front of it, his movements inexplicably agile.

Guan Yan was surprised, the Dragon God was angry.

But for Jiang Wang…

When the Sea of World Origin was drained by half by the Dragon God, the entire Sen Hai Yuan Realm instantly became riddled with wounds.

The connection between Yu Heng Star and the Sen Hai Yuan Realm had never been so clearly manifested in front of people.

He had seen some information and understood some truths in the Dragon God’s “Origin God Temple.” But more importantly… in that place, he had witnessed the moment the world seam broke open.

Guan Yan’s split spirit’s rapid world repair prevented the extinction of beings in the Sen Hai Yuan Realm.

Jiang Wang also thus preserved his life, and in the Sen Hai Yuan Realm, he safely “saw” the universe.

This was not the kind of looking up at the star dome in the present world, but looking up at the truth of the universe through a gap opened in a world.

And with Yan Xiao by his side, Yan Xiao could precisely sense the remote void Dragon God and clearly know Yu Heng Star’s current trapped position.

Jiang Wang had originally seized the first place in the Seven Star Building Secret Realm and obtained the secret realm reward after passing through the Tian Shu world, which happened to be a method of building the four holy buildings using the Big Dipper Seven Stars as beacons.

It was the supreme wonderful law “Seven Star Holy Building.”

The Big Dipper Seven Stars refer to Tian Shu, Tian Xuan, Tian Ji, Tian Quan, Yu Heng, Kai Yang, and Yao Guang.

All of this came naturally.

So he built the building in Sen Hai.

Although this Star Building was only a prototype, the moment it appeared, it was already changing something.

The Seven Star Holy Building was originally a supreme secret law for connecting with the Seven Stars.

Generally speaking, even with the wonderful law of the Star Building using the Seven Stars as beacons, erecting a Star Building only meant within the range of influence of a certain cosmic star in the star dome.

But Yu Heng Star was currently captured by the Dragon God, trapped in this area of the void, and Jiang Wang had precisely stepped here on the divine stair.

This Starlight Holy Building was directly on Yu Heng Star!

Its nature was comparable to the Sen Hai Yuan Realm’s relationship with Yu Heng Star; once it descended, it itself had a connection.

If one were to say that Yu Heng Star was still choosing between the Dragon God and Guan Yan before, now it leaned towards Guan Yan without hesitation.

Neither Jiang Wang nor the Starlight Holy Building he erected were significant in the fight between the Dragon God and Guan Yan.

But in the struggle between the two for Yu Heng Star, it added a crucial weight!

The Dragon God Throne, which was trying to support Yu Heng Star, was almost immediately repelled by Yu Heng Star.

While the Yu Heng Divine Seat, which Guan Yan had already left, shone brightly!

The Yu Heng Divine Seat flowed with jade-colored Buddha light, connecting with and bathing the entire Yu Heng Star, which was already soaked in jade light.

Guan Yan, supported by Yu Heng Star, saw the cracks in his jade Buddha body begin to heal.

Infinite great power poured into his body; he even directly threw the Dragon God’s body, tens of thousands of zhang long, with one hand!

Rumble!

The dragon head smashed heavily into the void, creating cracks in the void!