Chapter 1953: Dao Seeking and Strife
The death knell seemed as if it would never cease, sounding across the Human Emperor Platform. The power of death shrouded the entire space, and figures frantically stepped down from the Human Emperor Heavenly Pillars. They clearly had not anticipated that Lin Feng could sound the tenth bell. At this moment, a terrifying storm of death raged within Ji Shang's body. Ji Shang's entire being was bathed in a dreadful annihilating Dao intent, frantically destroying the death force that eroded his body, both his soul and his flesh.
At the same time, the Azure Dragon Totem halo blazed brilliantly, making Ji Shang shine like an ancient Azure Dragon King. His life force surged with overwhelming vigor. As long as the Azure Dragon remained, his vitality would not be extinguished, and the power of death could do nothing to him.
"Arrogant words." Ji Shang spat out a cold voice that echoed through the air, issuing a challenge to Lin Feng across the distance.
Lin Feng closed his eyes. At this moment, he was at the center of that storm. That Dao intent made him feel as though he was already a dead man, that his life was about to dissipate and be destroyed, that everything was drifting further and further away from him.
Yet within his body, it seemed as if there was always a trace of indestructible life force, like a bright lamp, guarding his existence.
"Upon hearing the Dao in the morning, one may die in the evening. I have heard my own Dao, teetering on the brink of death. Yet how could I truly die? This is my Dao." A voice emerged in Lin Feng's heart. Then, under the horrified gaze of the crowd, Lin Feng's palm once again struck forward. At that moment, the hearts of the crowd all leaped.
"Get lost!" With a furious roar, the twelfth death knell sounded. The rumbling power of death surged like a tsunami into Ji Shang's body, making him feel as if he was about to die. His body suddenly retreated explosively, directly leaving the Human Emperor Heavenly Pillar, his face pale.
Having left the Human Emperor Heavenly Pillar, Ji Shang escaped death. Yet he felt no joy of survival, only coldness and humiliation. He had knocked Lin Feng off the Human Emperor Heavenly Pillar, but now he had been knocked off by Lin Feng as well. He still held no advantage. To him, this was a failure.
"The Dao of life and death is difficult; it is hard for men to comprehend death and life. Yet since I control life and death, how could I be killed by the power of death? If that were so, what use would the Dao be?" Lin Feng murmured to himself, stepping forward again. The death Dao intent struck the Human Emperor Bell. At this moment, the entire Human Emperor Platform howled. Endless pillars of death light pierced down toward the hundred Human Emperor Heavenly Pillars. In that instant, not a single figure remained on the hundred Human Emperor Heavenly Pillars of the Human Emperor Platform—all had withdrawn. Only Lin Feng still stood on the Human Emperor Platform, before the Human Emperor Bell. That destructive power of death surged like an ocean into his body, causing everyone to fix their gaze solely on Lin Feng's figure.
"The thirteenth bell. Is he committing suicide?" The crowd stared at Lin Feng. At this moment, his face was ashen, motionless, standing like a dead man in the midst of that death storm.
"Dead?" The crowd's expressions froze as they stared at Lin Feng's figure before the Human Emperor Bell.
"I've long heard that on the day of the Emperor's List Dao Seeking, some would perish in pursuit of the Dao. I never thought I would witness it today. To die like this is truly a pity." The crowd sighed inwardly. Lin Feng had managed to sound twelve bells, already a terrifying talent with a profound understanding of the Dao. Yet in his pursuit of the Dao, he had sounded the thirteenth bell, ultimately dying under his own Dao might.
But at that moment, a trace of life force suddenly emerged, and then it became unstoppable. Terrifying, vigorous vitality soared upward, rushing into the void, as if reborn from Nirvana. On Lin Feng's body, a dazzling green light suddenly burst forth—the aura of life—dispelling all the power of death.
This scene caused the pupils of the crowd to contract. He wasn't dead. Lin Feng, using the Dao of death, had sounded the thirteenth bell, driving everyone off the Human Emperor Heavenly Pillars, yet he himself remained alive.
At this moment, Lin Feng suddenly opened his eyes, brilliant and dazzling. The infinite death energy of heaven and earth seemed to transform into the aura of life, frantically surging into his body. Then, Lin Feng stepped out and returned to his own Human Emperor Heavenly Pillar, causing heaven and earth to fall into silence.
The others also stepped back onto their Human Emperor Heavenly Pillars, but their hearts were unsettled. They looked at Lin Feng. This guy had a very deep understanding of the Dao, and his Dao might was powerful—definitely not inferior to the top ten figures on the Emperor's List, perhaps even stronger. It seemed he was also a rival, one who could threaten the positions of the top ten on the Emperor's List.
The experts of the Human Emperor Palace also had flickering eyes, somewhat surprised that Lin Feng could sound the Human Emperor Bell thirteen times. Ren Tianxing stepped forward and said to the crowd, "Is there anyone else who wants to sound the Human Emperor Bell?"
The crowd fell silent. After Gui Li, Ji Shang, and Lin Feng had sounded the bells, few could match their level. Especially Lin Feng, who had sounded it thirteen times. There was no need to continue seeking the Dao from the Human Emperor Bell.
On the golden Emperor's List, there were already more than twenty vacant seats, all belonging to fallen experts—a shocking sight. This Emperor's List Dao Seeking seemed extremely brutal. But those who had not died all felt they had gained some insight. After experiencing the powerful might of various Daos, their understanding of the concept of Dao became clearer. Especially Lin Feng's Dao of death, which made them feel the power of death and deeply realize what a terrifying force the power of the Dao was.
The experts of the Human Emperor Palace moved, taking away the Human Emperor Bell. Then Ren Tianxing said, "Excluding those who have fallen, the fifty people ranked at the bottom of the Emperor's List will lose their qualification for the next round of Dao Seeking. The rankings are set."
Ren Tianxing's words caused many to sigh. With more than twenty fallen experts and the bottom fifty, that meant more than seventy people. In the next round, where they would seek and prove the Dao against each other, only about twenty people would remain. All of these twenty-plus experts would be those who had comprehended the power of the Dao. This situation made even the watching crowd sigh. Even some who had comprehended the power of the Dao had lost their qualification. This Emperor's List Dao Seeking was a stage for peerless geniuses.
"Junior Brother Donglai, you will preside over the next part." Ren Tianxing's gaze fell on Pei Donglai as he spoke to him.
Pei Donglai nodded slightly, stepped forward, and looked at the crowd. "Seeking the Dao, seeking the Dao. Since it is seeking the Dao, one must naturally experience the Dao of others. Anyone can release their Dao power against those ranked higher on the Emperor's List. Whoever is knocked off the Human Emperor Heavenly Pillar first, that person and everyone after them will have their positions shifted backward accordingly. Your ranking will be determined by which position you manage to knock down. If you cannot knock down anyone, you will be placed directly at the last position."
"Now, let the person ranked last begin the Dao Seeking." Pei Donglai pointed to the expert ranked twentieth on the Emperor's List and spoke. That person stepped forward and stood before the crowd. If he could not knock anyone down, he would remain at the twentieth position on the Emperor's List.
Lin Feng and the others stood on the Human Emperor Heavenly Pillars. They saw the expert's aura frantically rising. In an instant, a trace of terrifying battle intent wildly swept across heaven and earth, descending upon everyone.
"Such a strong spirit will. Could this person be a disciple of the Eternal Ancient Academy?"
"Boom!" Suddenly, the crowd saw a phantom figure rolling and smashing toward one of them, like a terrifying battle king. A cold snort rang out. That person radiated dazzling golden body light, and in an instant, the forces before him violently exploded, stirring up a terrifying airwave.
"Annihilate!" The attacked expert roared, and those phantom figures seemed to shatter.
This made the attacking expert's expression freeze slightly. His gaze swept over the others, then settled on Lin Feng. Although Lin Feng's Dao intent was strong, his cultivation level was relatively low, and he could not leave the Human Emperor Heavenly Pillar. If he left, it would count as a victory for the attacker—that was the battle rule.
"Boom!" This person stomped forward, and in an instant, Lin Feng felt battle kings rolling toward him, slaughtering with terrifying battle qi, as if to massacre heaven and earth.
A cold smile flashed in Lin Feng's eyes. Was this person bullying him for his low cultivation?
Suddenly, Lin Feng's pupils turned ashen gray. His death eyes were terrifying to the extreme. With a thought from Lin Feng, countless illusory death swords slaughtered across heaven and earth. Those battle kings were branded with death Dao seals and instantly destroyed, vanishing without a trace.
"Kill!" Lin Feng roared, his pupils tightly fixed on the opponent. From his eyes, it seemed as if a death demon lord charged out, rushing toward the opponent's eyes, clashing and intertwining with a battle king in the opponent's gaze. At the same time, endless illusory death swords twisted and killed, causing the man's expression to change drastically as his body frantically retreated.
Streams of gray energy frantically burrowed into the opponent's body, while his life force drained away. Lin Feng waved his hand, and a roaring river of death surged, slaughtering toward the opponent.
"Boom!" Battle kings stepped forward, but they were directly drowned by the river of death. The death intent in Lin Feng's eyes became even more terrifying. The man's face turned ashen. With a sharp, hissing sound, endless illusory death swords burst out from the opponent's head. In an instant, the man's eyes lost focus and luster, and his body fell downward.
"Those who provoke me, I execute!" Lin Feng snorted coldly, warning those behind him not to provoke him. Otherwise, execution!
The crowd saw the icy death and killing aura in Lin Feng's pupils, their hearts trembling slightly. This guy's Dao was indeed very strong. He had directly used the Dao to kill, slaying the expert ranked twentieth on the Emperor's List.
"Lin Feng!" From the distant crowd, killing intent spread. The dead man was a member of their clan, ranked in the top twenty of the Emperor's List, yet he had been killed by Lin Feng.
But Lin Feng's pupils were icy cold. In the strife of Dao seeking, how could there be mercy? In times of great contention, the strong live and the weak get lost. Ji Shang had angered him earlier and had still been knocked off the Human Emperor Heavenly Pillar by him. How much more so for those ranked behind?