Volume One: The Cloudmist Immortal Palace Arc, Chapter 133: Star Wars

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Chapter 133: Star Wars

Behind the shattered mirror, a stunning woman appeared, clad in crimson armor and wreathed in flames, as if a goddess of fire had descended.

"A mere mid-stage Great Immortal, do you truly believe this King cannot kill you?" Luo Tianyi, who now appeared as a graceful young maiden, was clearly incensed; her delicate, lovely face was cold as frost.

"Your true form was already executed in the Great Immortal’s dwelling. All that remains is this lingering remnant soul you left as a contingency, clinging to life until today. What power do you have to act so arrogantly here?" Yu Nan’s eyes shone like divine lamps, seemingly piercing through the heart as she rebuked the maiden who called herself "this King."

"Heh, have you underestimated me? Thirty thousand years ago, I did lose to Deng Tu-lang. That yellow-skinned gourd is truly a legendary treasure. I left this shred of my soul attached to the Sea-Suppressing Pearl to escape, all for the sake of one day returning for revenge. Yet, I never imagined this wait would last a full thirty thousand years. Had I not gathered enough power to awaken my remnant soul today, I might have had to wait another thirty thousand years," Luo Tianyi said with a self-deprecating laugh.

"The dead should not return to stir up trouble. Even if you were once an Immortal King, so what? In the passage of thirty thousand years, even a true body would have its cultivation suppressed and diminished, let alone a remnant soul. Even if you were not sealed, you could not exert a fraction of an Immortal King's true majesty," Yu Nan said coldly.

"Indeed, as you say, all beings are equal before time. An Immortal King cannot defy the heavens, let alone a mere fragment of one. However, this does not mean you are my match. A King cannot be insulted; the consequence of you shattering my mirror is—death!" Luo Tianyi slowly lifted her feet, stepping from the magma into the air, her aura becoming overwhelmingly oppressive.

Luo Tianyi flicked her finger, and a blue beam tore through the void like a falling star, moving with such speed that even the eyes of an Immortal could barely track it.

Fortunately, Yu Nan was prepared and dodged the attack with a swift movement, but an Immortal mountain hundreds of miles behind her was instantly reduced to dust.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Seeing this, Luo Tianyi flicked her finger three more times. Yu Nan evaded them all, but terrifying explosions erupted at the edge of the sky behind her; she had pierced the firmament of the Immortal Palace’s pocket dimension, revealing the infinite, pitch-black void of outer space.

"This won't do. Fighting here will surely destroy the Yunmiao Immortal Palace entirely. I must lure her out," Yu Nan thought, feeling deeply anxious. In truth, her concern was misplaced; the Yunmiao Immortal Palace was already on the brink of destruction, and its total collapse was only a matter of time.

Instantly, she transformed into a streak of fire and soared toward the gate of the Yunmiao Immortal Palace. Luo Tianyi sneered, remaining silent as she gave chase.

At the gate, the two "loyal" death guards were gone. Yu Nan rushed out, and as Luo Tianyi flicked her fingers, the stone gate was blasted into dust by blue light.

Once outside, the two emerged into the starry sky—a world where cold and darkness coexist, with stars scattered throughout the universe like an eternal painting. They chased and fled at incredible speeds, like two streaks of lightning cutting across the cosmos.

Finally, Yu Nan stopped. She had found a suitable battlefield to go all out. Facing the eerie blue light flicked again by Luo Tianyi, she fired a small fireball, which contained energy more pure and potent than the sun.

With a thunderous boom, the blue light and the fireball collided. An invisible shockwave rippled out, causing the nearby space to tremble violently, turning numerous small planets into particles of dust.

Under the vast starry firmament, two Great Immortal-level powerhouses engaged in a cataclysmic duel. The mere pressure emanating from their bodies swept through the void and shook the stars, causing planetary cores to shift and magma to erupt in spectacular pillars of fire, a sight to behold.

Yu Nan dove, pushing her palms against a small asteroid below that looked like it was setting off fireworks. With a powerful thrust, the asteroid hurtled toward Luo Tianyi like a cannonball, its momentum immense and speed blinding, completely ignoring the laws of physics in space.

Luo Tianyi responded with a kick, and the asteroid in front of her was struck with such force that it spun in place, the erupting magma pillars drawing vortices in the void.

One was an unstoppable force flying in a straight line; the other was a spinning top, incredibly stable.

When they collided, there was only one result—an explosion!

The heavens and earth shook. Debris and dust filled the air as energy ripples raged outward, leaving only two pillars of fire intertwined like dragons, which finally dissipated into smoke long after.

While this exchange seemed like a draw, Yu Nan had actually lost, for she was the aggressor while Luo Tianyi defended. The latter could have chosen not to defend; by blocking instead of striking, she was lowering her status, winning against a stronger opponent with ease.

However, neither had the heart to quibble over such trifles. The battle of Great Immortals continued unabated. The starry sky became their battlefield, and with a silent understanding, they began to "play ball"—but these were no ordinary balls; they were planets!

The two kept a distance of a thousand miles, the range visible to an Immortal's eye, with the space between them acting as the court. Planet after planet was kicked into the fray, colliding and detonating, leaving behind one roaring blast after another and streaks of fire reaching into the heavens.

This region of space dimmed rapidly during the "Star Wars." Fortunately, no life-bearing planets were affected; Yu Nan had flown far enough that, despite the abundance of asteroids, it remained an uninhabited zone.

Yu Nan had her reasons for this planetary warfare. Though both were Great Immortals, Luo Tianyi had once been a Dragon King; her experience and techniques were so profound that ten Yu Nans could not defeat her. The only advantage left was to exhaust her immortal energy. Though Yu Nan’s cultivation realm was lower, Luo Tianyi had only just awakened from the Sea-Suppressing Pearl. Since the pearl was merely a treasure and could not provide too much power, and Luo Tianyi was only a remnant soul, dragging out the fight would eventually tip the odds in Yu Nan's favor!

*Thump!* Yu Nan, seemingly bathed in fire, threw both fists, batting two asteroids toward Luo Tianyi’s head. The latter sneered and waved her hand, summoning nine asteroids to form a "planetary shield" three hundred meters above her head.

The stars rumbled and scorched with brilliant light. The shield held firm against the impact of the two asteroids. In the next moment, the nine stars shifted formation, surrounding the two asteroids in the center, making the whole structure look like a single massive planet composed of eleven asteroids.

"Go!"

Luo Tianyi swung her palm, and a giant handprint materialized in the void, striking the massive planet. The planet then crushed the firmament with incomparable, overwhelming power, hurtling toward Yu Nan. The latter remained calm, as if this had nothing to do with her.

When the massive planet was only a hundred meters away, the two smaller asteroids trapped within it suddenly began to vibrate, rotating around each other like binary suns. Their speed reached its limit in an instant, and the massive planet abruptly changed direction, charging back toward Luo Tianyi.

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Luo Tianyi’s relaxed expression, which had suggested everything was under control, finally shifted into a slight frown. Looking like a young girl, she now appeared very unhappy and annoyed, like a little princess ready to throw a tantrum.

*Clang!*

A trembling sound resonated, as if space itself had been severed. Luo Tianyi threw a deep blue long-halberd—the signature weapon of the Sea Dragon race: the Trident. The shaft was forged from Luohai precious blue gold, and the prongs were cast from dawn-light gold. It was a peerless Immortal weapon; only two existed, one male and one female. The male was held by the Luohai Dragon King, and this female one was a gift given to Luo Tianyi when she ascended to Immortal King. Strictly speaking, however, this was a replica made of concentrated energy, as the original had been destroyed by the sword light from the Void-Severing Gourd during her battle with Deng Tu-lang.

A brilliant golden light flashed in space, emanating from the tips of the trident, truly like the morning sun rising from the horizon. Where the light shone, all things seemed to bow in reverence! The long-halberd swept through the void, piercing the massive planet that had turned back. A deafening roar followed, and both the planet and the trident exploded.

At this moment, both Great Immortal powerhouses fell silent. Yu Nan had achieved her goal, forcing Luo Tianyi to expend significant immortal energy, but the situation remained dire; the opponent’s momentum was still above hers!

In the blink of an eye, Yu Nan ended her "ball-kicking" tactic. She brandished her Immortal sword, and a crimson sword light, a thousand meters long, slashed downward, aiming directly for Luo Tianyi’s head.

On the other side, the deep blue halberd reappeared. The center prong fired a thousand-meter golden beam toward Yu Nan. Like two rainbows, they were as fast as lightning, crashing together to spark snakes of electricity and fire. The flames rebounded like a tidal wave, surging toward Yu Nan.

Before she could react, Yu Nan was struck by the lightning and fire. Her skin was charred and torn, and electric arcs wove across her body, forming a cage that refused to dissipate.

Yu Nan gritted her teeth, her mind filled with images of Zhou Hao. She forced herself to endure, driving the lightning snakes out of her body. Then, person and sword danced in unison; sword light fell like rain and lightning, turning the void where Luo Tianyi stood into a disaster zone.

Except for Luo Tianyi, who could parry the sword light with her trident, everything else suffered lethal strikes, and countless asteroids were sliced into pieces. Finally, Luo Tianyi manipulated the halberd to counterattack. The golden, razor-sharp light sliced through the void, causing a terrifying scene of star destruction. The two were now locked in a long-range battle using their weapons.

The star-destroying war lasted for a full hour. The entire starry sky grew increasingly dim. In the dark universe, the two fought faster and faster, transitioning from long-range to close-quarters combat. Yu Nan was a Fire Rakshasa, while Luo Tianyi was a Sea Dragon; their battle reached a white-hot intensity—water and fire could not coexist.

*Clang!*

Yu Nan struck down with her sword, and Luo Tianyi immediately raised the deep blue halberd to parry. The metallic ring echoed through the stars, throwing off a dazzling stream of sparks.

The blade deflected, sliding sharply to the left; clearly, Yu Nan intended to sever Luo Tianyi’s right arm. The latter, furious, flew up and kicked toward Yu Nan’s face. Yu Nan backflipped to dodge, and in the next moment, she used the momentum to slash at Luo Tianyi’s right arm. Seeing this, Luo Tianyi unexpectedly raised her right hand, attempting to seize the sword barehanded.

Yu Nan put all her strength into that strike, but to her surprise, Luo Tianyi’s right hand caught the sword directly, without a single drop of blood spilling.

Luo Tianyi’s slender, delicate hand had become like a steel vise at that moment. No matter how hard Yu Nan struggled, she could not break free. Having been closed in upon, and refusing to release her sword, Yu Nan was in a completely passive position.

A cruel smile appeared on the maiden’s face as Luo Tianyi raised the deep blue halberd high with her left hand, stabbing fiercely toward Yu Nan.

"Go to hell!"

The tip of the deep blue halberd shone with cold, lethal light. Just as it was about to pierce Yu Nan’s swan-like white neck, the latter’s lips curled into an eerie arc.

*Hum!*

The halberd descended, the surrounding void trembling. It was hard to imagine how powerful that strike was, but unfortunately, the target vanished in that instant.

The halberd stabbed at empty air...

It turned out that the moment Luo Tianyi said the words "Go to hell," Yu Nan had let go of her sword, her figure transforming into a streak of red light that shot into Luo Tianyi’s mouth.

The red light traveled downward, exploring the corners of Luo Tianyi’s body, the light illuminating the layers of flesh. Yu Nan wanted to find Zhou Hao, who had been swallowed by Luo Tianyi.

"Zhou Hao, can you hear me? It’s Yu Nan. You wouldn’t die so easily. I believe you are still alive!"

Yu Nan’s body bloomed with crimson light. She had reached the inside of Luo Tianyi’s body, but could not see a soul. She called out Zhou Hao’s name in desperation.

"Zhou Hao, where are you? Were you really killed by Luo Tianyi? I don’t believe it, I don’t believe you would die!"

"Zhou Hao, it’s Yu Nan, where exactly are you?"

"Zhou Hao, Zhou Hao, Zhou Hao..."

"This won't work, I can't find him like this. I must sense his presence, trace his aura!" Yu Nan patted her smooth forehead, then closed her eyes, her Immortal sense spreading to every inch of Luo Tianyi’s flesh.

"Damn it, we are both Great Immortal bodies; our Immortal senses repel each other. I can't detect him at all!" She had barely released her sense when a force drove it out, and her eyes snapped open.

Yu Nan began to pace, searching for a way. She had to save Zhou Hao quickly; Luo Tianyi would soon discover she had entered her body.

"No choice now, I’ll just have to deal with her from here!"

With her sword unsheathed, Yu Nan was once again wreathed in flames. The temperature inside Luo Tianyi’s body rose instantly. The next moment, Yu Nan swung her sword down, and a crimson flame sword-qi sliced the flesh wall beneath her feet, causing blood to flow like a stream.

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Outside, Luo Tianyi instinctively clutched her stomach in pain, her face twisting as she snarled, "You tiny Rakshasa woman, how dare you act so recklessly inside my body! I will not forgive you!"

As she spoke, a blue dragon appeared before Yu Nan inside her stomach, roaring as it charged. Yu Nan slashed out another sword-qi, only for the blue dragon to swallow it whole.

Then, a battle between woman and dragon unfolded in the small space of the stomach. The sword-qi was peerless and fierce, yet it struggled to penetrate the blue dragon’s invincible scales.

*Slash...*

The crimson Immortal sword and the blue dragon’s scales threw off a shower of sparks, like metal grinding against metal. Yu Nan gripped her sword with both hands, fighting the dragon, but the creature’s strength was such that it smashed her into the wall of flesh behind her.

Yu Nan was embedded in the wall, her body feeling as if it were falling apart. The flesh wall was actually harder than rock—clearly a result of Luo Tianyi’s "turning flesh into gold" technique.

Yu Nan shook her head and struggled to rise, but what she saw before her was a giant dragon claw lunging at her.

Unable to dodge in time, Yu Nan was seized. The dragon claw pierced her limbs, and blood gushed out. She gritted her teeth, her face deathly pale.

Though she had recovered to the Great Immortal realm, she was no match for Luo Tianyi. Even after falling from the Immortal King throne, the latter remained a late-stage Great Immortal, while she was only at the mid-stage—the gap was far too wide.

The blue dragon gripped Yu Nan tightly, speaking in a human voice, "Ignorant of the heights of heaven and earth, what do you have to oppose me? The consequence of angering me is the destruction of both body and soul!"

It was Luo Tianyi’s delicate, girlish voice, yet it sounded so jarring, making one feel as if they had fallen into an ice cellar, trembling with fear.

The blue dragon finished speaking and extended its other claw, reaching for Yu Nan’s head. The latter closed her eyes, resigning herself to fate.

"Zhou Hao, I’m coming to join you. Su Qing, I know why I hated you so much back then. You are an Ice Rakshasa, and I am a Fire Rakshasa; we were destined to be incompatible. But it doesn’t matter now..."

The dragon claw was like a hook, flashing with a chilling light. With Great Immortal power unleashed, never mind a head, even a star would be reduced to ash under this one strike.

*Whoosh!* *Roar!*

At this critical juncture, a sound of piercing through the air erupted inside Luo Tianyi’s stomach, followed by the sound of a dragon’s roar—a howl of soul-deep agony.

In that moment, inside this biological space, intestines were shredded and blood sprayed everywhere. A young man appeared, holding the red-clad woman he had just snatched back from the blue dragon’s claw.

Looking at the blue dragon, its two incredibly thick upper claws had already been shattered by sword-qi, reduced to a pile of minced meat.

"The Void-Severing Gourd again? Hasn’t Deng Tu-lang disappeared entirely yet?" The blue dragon turned to look at the man and woman, speaking in a voice filled with anger and a hint of confusion.

The seven-inch-tall yellow-skinned gourd hovered in the air, spraying snow-white sword-qi from its mouth. Three feet below the gourd, the youth in white stood gracefully. Yu Nan, saved and held in the youth’s arms, didn't even look at the blue dragon; she gazed infatuatedly at the delicate, handsome face so close to hers. "Zhou Hao, it’s really you. I knew you wouldn’t die so easily!"

"Yu Nan, I must thank you too. Without your call, I might not have broken free from Luo Tianyi’s restraints so quickly. And..." Zhou Hao also looked at Yu Nan with a sunny smile before shifting his gaze to the blue dragon.

"And for awakening the secret weapon left behind by Senior Deng Tu-lang inside the Void-Severing Gourd!"

"Oh, a secret weapon? Then I, Luo Tianyi, would like to experience it. Let’s see what medicine you’re really selling in that gourd!" The blue dragon sneered upon hearing this. Suddenly, flesh and blood began to squirm at the site of the severed dragon claws, and in mere moments, new, menacing dragon claws covered in dark blue scales grew back.

"Impressive. To be hit by the Void-Severing sword-qi and still be able to regrow limbs without consequence—it must be because of that Sea-Suppressing Pearl. Truly worthy of being an Immortal King-level treasure," Zhou Hao said, his eyes showing a flash of surprise before turning to understanding.

"Hmph, Deng Tu-lang was at best a late-stage Great Immortal. Even if he left a secret weapon, so what? Last time, my true body was caught off guard just after breaking free, and my power hadn’t fully awakened. This time, I have the Sea-Suppressing Pearl in hand. Even if I remain at the Great Immortal realm, I can block the Void-Severing Gourd. What do you have to fight me with?" the blue dragon jeered.

Zhou Hao ignored Luo Tianyi’s contempt. He whispered a few words to Yu Nan, then pointed at the blue dragon to declare war. "Luo Tianyi, believe me, you will lose again this time—and it will be the kind of loss from which you will never recover!"

"You are courting death!" The blue dragon roared and lunged, claws and teeth bared. At this moment, Zhou Hao and Yu Nan were only the size of half a thumb compared to the dragon, which was as large as a palm.

Seeing the blue dragon flying toward them with its claws waving, Zhou Hao and Yu Nan showed no panic. They even exchanged a glance and nodded. The next instant, the two transformed into streaks of immortal light and shot upward. The blue dragon pursued them relentlessly, but what greeted it was a sky-filling deluge of white sword-qi.

"This is my body, you cannot escape!" the blue dragon roared, suppressed by the sword-qi.

"I never said we were going to escape. The secret weapon is about to make its debut. You’d better open your insect eyes wide and watch carefully." Zhou Hao’s irreverent laughter echoed from above.