Chapter 676: A Single Stone
The eyebrows that Old Eunuch Lin had raised slowly lowered, but the corners of his mouth slowly lifted.
This was a sigh, and also self-mockery, but in the final analysis, it was a mockery of Chen Changsheng.
Old Eunuch Lin had grown up in the imperial palace since childhood. His talent was extremely high, his knowledge vast, and the cultivation methods he practiced were exceptionally profound. Many years ago, he had already entered the peak of Star Gathering. If it hadn't been for the extremely perilous situation at court during the late years of Emperor Taizong, when he had castrated himself and entered the palace at the most critical period of his cultivation, becoming a mutilated man, he might even have entered the Divine Domain.
No matter how high Chen Changsheng's cultivation talent was, even if he possessed all kinds of precious treasures and countless techniques, and had nearly killed Zhou Tong that night, he still couldn't possibly be his opponent.
—He was only seventeen years old, and he had failed to gather stars at Han Mountain.
Earlier, outside the National Academy, Su Moyu, worried about Chen Changsheng's safety, had stopped Old Eunuch Lin's attendants, saying that one person delivering the imperial edict was enough.
Old Eunuch Lin's reply was that if he wanted to kill Chen Changsheng, one edict and he alone would be sufficient.
This was not an empty boast, but the truth.
At this moment, Chen Changsheng asked him very seriously, "Can you kill me?"
Old Eunuch Lin's smile gradually faded. He looked at Chen Changsheng and said, "Having left the capital for twenty years, it seems the young people of today have already forgotten who I am."
Chen Changsheng did not speak, but used his actions to show his intentions.
Two trails of dust rose from beneath his boots, representing power. Then the dust suddenly became chaotic, and his robes also became chaotic, turning into several lines that pulled afterimages through the space of the Scripture Depository.
He vanished from his original position.
On the pitch-black, shiny floor, over a dozen extremely faint footprints appeared.
Those footprints seemed to appear all at once, without any order of precedence.
If someone were to carefully examine the positions of those footprints at this moment, they might be able to associate them with the positions of some stars in the starry sky, or with the lines on the Zhaojing Stele.
Extremely complex star positions, difficult-to-calculate star charts, representing positions and sequences, containing positional shifts that surpassed speed.
It was the demon clan's secret technique, the Yashi Step.
The space at the main entrance of the Scripture Depository slightly distorted.
A sword shadow pierced through the daylight streaming in from outside the building.
Chen Changsheng's figure followed.
At this moment, he had already arrived in front of Old Eunuch Lin.
His speed was incredibly fast, even giving one the feeling that even lightning was no match.
Perhaps it was because, while using the Yashi Step, he had also thrust out his most powerful move, the Burning Sword.
The sword light illuminated the main entrance of the Scripture Depository, suppressing even the daylight streaming in from outside.
A scorching aura enveloped the space, then rapidly spread outward.
The already yellowed grass outside the Scripture Depository instantly became even more wilted. The edges of the books on the shelves inside curled up at a visible rate, as if they had lost all their moisture.
Flames burned on the Stainless Sword as it thrust toward Old Eunuch Lin's brow.
Old Eunuch Lin's expression tightened slightly, as if somewhat surprised.
He had not expected the power contained within this sword strike to be so strong!
Contrary to some rumors, Chen Changsheng's true essence reserves were so abundant that they were in no way inferior to those of powerful cultivators who had trained for hundreds of years.
Or was it because of this sword technique? It was said that Su Li had taught Chen Changsheng a sword technique that could violently increase true essence in a short period of time. It seemed this was it.
As he was thinking about these things, Old Eunuch Lin's sleeves had already flown up.
Extremely pure starlight radiated from his body, pouring into his sleeves. Like two stone mountains flying in from beyond the sky, they clamped Chen Changsheng's sword between them!
Faced with a divine weapon from the Hundred Weapons List, the incredibly sharp Stainless Sword, Old Eunuch Lin had actually split his own star domain in half and used it as a weapon!
What a genius response this was, and how overbearing and unmatched!
Battles between cultivators depend on comprehension, such as battle awareness, adaptability, and experience, but what truly matters most is strength itself.
Old Eunuch Lin was a peak Star Gathering powerhouse. His star domain was nearly perfect, his true essence reserves were incredibly abundant, and his understanding of the principles of heaven and earth far surpassed Chen Changsheng's. Naturally, he could control the entire battle situation.
Would this battle end here? Of course not. Both Old Eunuch Lin and Chen Changsheng knew that this was only the beginning.
Inside the sword sheath called Cangfeng, thousands of peerless famous swords were still hidden.
With the protection of those peerless famous swords, Chen Changsheng could make Zhou Tong bleed all over, or at least hold off Old Eunuch Lin for a moment. Old Eunuch Lin was well aware of this. He did not intend to give Chen Changsheng a chance to draw his sword, which was why he had chosen to split his star domain earlier—a seemingly powerful but actually somewhat dangerous move, one could even say a contemptuous tactic.
Old Eunuch Lin wanted to ensure his hands were free.
At this moment, his sleeves, carrying the star domain, sealed Chen Changsheng's sword blade, while his hand shot out from within the sleeve and landed on the middle section of the sword.
Chen Changsheng's sword was a combination of the Stainless Sword and Cangfeng. The place where Old Eunuch Lin's hand landed was precisely the opening of the sword sheath.
Since he dared to grasp it there, Old Eunuch Lin naturally had the confidence to deal with the swords within the sheath, or rather, he had already prepared himself.
Suddenly, Old Eunuch Lin's pupils contracted, and an expression of disbelief appeared on his face. With a sharp shriek, he tried to retreat backward.
What came out of the sword sheath was not a sword.
It was a small black stone.
...
...
Logically speaking, an insignificant small stone could never make Old Eunuch Lin treat it as a great enemy, let alone make him want to retreat.
But Old Eunuch Lin had deeply studied the Dao and his comprehension of the rules of heaven and earth had nearly reached the realm of transformation. The moment he saw this black stone, he sensed something was wrong.
He could feel a power that transcended the mundane world arriving with this black stone.
Since it had already transcended the mundane world, it was naturally impossible to avoid.
Old Eunuch Lin's fingers scattered like flowers, crushing the air within the Scripture Depository, and grabbed the black stone in his hand.
With a crackling sound, three of his finger bones broke into thirteen pieces, followed by his wrist bones shattering.
It was only then that he understood that this power that transcended the mundane world did not come from a divine staff, nor from some unknown divine artifact.
This power was weight, an unimaginable weight.
A weight like the sky itself fell upon Old Eunuch Lin.
His face turned deathly pale, his body trembled, and countless cracks split open in the floor beneath his feet.
...
...
That black stone was a Heavenly Book Stele left behind by Wang Zhice.
The Heavenly Book Stele itself was very heavy, but the weight of this black stone at this moment was because it was also a door.
A door leading to the Zhou Garden.
Three days ago at the Heavenly Book Mausoleum, Chen Changsheng had personally witnessed the Pope pluck a green leaf, and a world-shaking force had struck the Holy Empress.
From that scene, he had comprehended something.
The black stone was not the real Zhou Garden; it could only carry a trace of the Zhou Garden's aura, or rather, a very small part of the Zhou Garden. But Old Eunuch Lin was not the Holy Empress either.
Since you use this world to suppress me, then I will use my world to strike you.
The Zhou Garden was larger than the Green Leaf World, but the Green Leaf was a complete world, while the Black Stone was merely a door to a world. Moreover, Chen Changsheng's realm and cultivation were far inferior to the Pope's.
Old Eunuch Lin was only caught off guard by this unprecedented technique, which was why he was so passive.
If he could hold on for just a moment, he would surely find a way to counter it.
But a moment was enough to do many things.
The Black Stone emerged, and a great autumn wind swept through the Scripture Depository. The daylight suddenly dimmed.
Old Eunuch Lin seemed to be pressed down by the starry sky, unable to move.
From Chen Changsheng's sword sheath flowed ten thousand beams of sword light, surging forward.
The sword light tore through the starry sky, cut through the autumn wind, and seized the daylight.
Countless sword intents rose up in all directions, countless sword hums clanged without end, interspersed with Old Eunuch Lin's furious roars and the violent sounds of his attacks.
Suddenly, all sounds within the Scripture Depository vanished, and those sword intents also disappeared. It was utterly silent.
Boom! Countless fragments burst out from the Scripture Depository, forming an extremely wide cloud of dust in the National Academy.
The autumn wind swept through the hall, carrying away the dust and debris, leaving behind a clear scene.
All the doors and windows of the Scripture Depository were gone, leaving it looking empty, with only two figures remaining.
One stood, one sat.
Standing was Chen Changsheng, holding his sword, silent and calm.
Old Eunuch Lin was covered in blood, sitting slumped on the ground.