Cultivating with Top Enlightenment Chapter 993 - 427: Brute Force Falls Short of Insight_2

A Divine Sword finds its ultimate purpose and greatest strength only when wielded by a true swordsman.

Ning Qi found himself pursued by celestial bodies, black holes and stars, yet with each critical moment, he executed a teleportation, evading destruction with growing ease and confidence.

Across the void, the Mountain Ancestor observed Ning Qi’s fluid movements, his brow furrowing slightly.

"Do you truly believe I am nothing, proceeding with your enlightenment right before my eyes?"

The Mountain Ancestor unleashed another torrent of starlight towards Ning Qi’s predicted position.

This particular beam shimmered with an unfamiliar intensity, as if a convergence of countless meteors and comets had exploded, illuminating the expanse with a blinding white radiance.

Whoosh!

A stellar silhouette streaked through the cosmos, vanishing in the blink of an eye, leaving no trace behind.

Ning Qi, immersed in his enlightenment, suddenly erupted in an unbounded divine luminescence.

The 360 apertures encircling his form coalesced into swirling nebulae-like clusters, spinning in perpetual motion.

Each aperture pulsed with a formidable gravitational pull, subtly resonating with the Ancient Road Sacred Map suspended above the Mountain Ancestor.

Whoosh!

At this precise instant, an innumerable host of silent comets materialized from the surrounding space, aiming to obliterate Ning Qi.

These celestial projectiles were monstrous, obscuring the very heavens, hurtling with incredible velocity, concealed within pockets of darkness, executing a stealthy assassination.

However, the 360 apertures surrounding Ning Qi now unleashed a fearsome suction, instantly engulfing the approaching comet legion.

From a vantage point, Ning Qi’s locale was initially veiled by stellar phenomena, but the subsequent moment, it was starkly revealed as empty.

Moments later, the very starlight the Mountain Ancestor had initially launched arrived in pursuit.

Interspersed within this onslaught were black holes and stars; the apertures around Ning Qi once again projected Star Power.

Instantly, the swirling starlight transformed into a formidable dragon plunging back into the sea, channeling entirely into Ning Qi’s slender form.

Witnessing this spectacle, the Mountain Ancestor’s pupils dilated in shock, nearly causing him to bite his own tongue.

"Unthinkable! Is he absorbing the Stellar Inheritance? How can this be so swift?"

The Mountain Ancestor was profoundly shaken to his core.

Even when he had received Buzhou Mountain’s own inheritance, his emotional response had not been this turbulent.

He had acknowledged Ning Qi’s exceptional talent, recognizing it surpassed his own and that of the Sea Ancestor, particularly demonstrated by the unprecedented Celestial Tribulation. This was one undeniable fact.

Later, during their confrontation, Ning Qi’s capacity for rapid combat enhancement became apparent. This was another significant observation.

But it was only now that the Mountain Ancestor truly grasped the terrifying extent of Ning Qi’s innate potential!

Despite the fact that he had claimed the Ancient Road Sacred Map and it hovered directly above him, it now felt as though Ning Qi had effectively usurped it!

Even his unwavering confidence began to falter.

"I refuse to believe you can comprehend this so rapidly!"

The Mountain Ancestor’s scar-marked visage contorted further, inadvertently betraying an intense surge of envy.

It felt as if something intrinsically his had been pilfered by Ning Qi.

In the ensuing second, he propelled himself towards Ning Qi.

"Fallen Star Hand!"

The Mountain Ancestor bellowed in fury.

The entirety of the surrounding space convulsed, and the ambient light rapidly diminished.

Enveloped in absolute darkness, one could not even discern their own fingers.

Ning Qi instantly perceived his spiritual sense becoming utterly disoriented.

Not merely his sight, but his spiritual perception and hearing were completely nullified.

A silent rift materialized high in the expanse above.

From the Stygian heavens, akin to a gaping maw of hell, myriad colossal dark claws descended, reaching for Ning Qi below.

Ning Qi’s mind remained remarkably lucid, projecting boundless starlight from his physical form.

This starlight caused an ancient scroll, hidden within the pervasive darkness, to emit its own stellar glow.

Answering each other’s call, the starlight emanating from the scroll swiftly surged towards Ning Qi.

The two sources of starlight merged into a singular, potent entity!

Rumble!

The multitude of shadowy, colossal claws stretched towards Ning Qi’s location, but in the ensuing moment, upon mere contact with the starlight enveloping Ning Qi, they dissolved as readily as snow under the sun, or darkness yielding to light.

A chamber steeped in darkness for a millennium was illuminated by a single, brilliant point of light!

Within the oppressive gloom, only a voice, laced with shock, fury, and profound resentment, echoed:

"This map resides in my grasp, the inheritance is also mine, why, insignificant Ancient Saint, did you choose to abandon me?"

Ning Qi, adorned in Yin and Yang robes and draped in an endless cascade of starlight, became the sole luminous beacon, illuminating the entire darkened expanse.

As Ning Qi’s gaze shifted towards a distant corner, he perceived the Mountain Ancestor, teeth bared in rage, clutching the Ancient Road Sacred Map above his head with a visage contorted in malediction.

The spectral form of the Ancient Saint, previously entwined with the Mountain Ancestor’s being, now detached itself from him.

With what seemed like a heavy, drawn-out sigh, the Ancient Saint’s shadow cast a final glance upon the Ancient Road Sacred Map held tightly in the Mountain Ancestor’s grip.

He then emerged, unexpectedly appearing beside Ning Qi. Without Ning Qi's consent, the figure directly merged into Ning Qi's body.

"Boy, you who inherit my legacy must journey to Star City within the Sea of Realms in the future! If you fail to do so, on any world illuminated by stars, you shall face a curse!"

A faint echo of a voice seemed to reach Ning Qi.

Subsequently, a vast amount of information flooded his mind – all the cultivation methods of the Master of Stars.

Ning Qi's body shuddered.

In the following instant, he knitted his brows.

It appeared he had acquired the complete inheritance from an Ancient Saint's shadow within the Ancient Road Sacred Map with ease, a process far quicker than his previous attempt to obtain the Saint Ancestor's inheritance.

Ning Qi's thoughts raced, and he grasped everything instantaneously.

It turned out this True Copy of the Ancient Road Sacred Map, unlike the replica previously bestowed by the Saint Ancestor, did not necessitate self-comprehension. Merely by establishing a connection with the Ancient Saint's shadow housed within, its inheritance would be granted.

Ning Qi remained uncertain; the Ancient Saint's shadow from the stars had merged into the Mountain Ancestor's body, yet it had suddenly chosen him instead.

As for the lingering voice from the starry Ancient Saint, Ning Qi paid it no heed whatsoever.

"Star City within the Sea of Realms? Beneath the heavens, where stars illuminate, I shall be cursed?"

What ridiculous nonsense! He currently neither had the time nor the inclination to entertain such matters.

In a pocket of space.

The Mountain Ancestor still clutched the Ancient Road Sacred Map tightly, his gaze fixed upon Ning Qi.

At this moment, Ning Qi bore a striking resemblance to the starry Ancient Saint's shadow. Starlight flowed around him, with each luminous trail appearing to contain the infinite mysteries of the cosmos.

Upon closer examination, each particle of starlight was a miniature reflection of a star, collectively forming an image akin to the galaxy.

Ning Qi stood amidst myriad rivers of stars, peering through the boundless expanse of the cosmos, his gaze meeting that of the Mountain Ancestor.

This spectacle was brief, vanishing without a trace shortly thereafter. Ning Qi reverted to his former self.

However, the Mountain Ancestor no longer dared to underestimate Ning Qi.

Ning Qi had delivered a profound shock to him, and the Mountain Ancestor became acutely aware that Ning Qi was now the sole obstacle preventing him from achieving immortality!

Ning Qi must be eliminated!

"Continue. Can you still summon the saint shadow from the Ancient Road Sacred Map?"

Ning Qi inquired casually of the Mountain Ancestor.

His demeanor was serene, yet his eyes betrayed a flicker of expectation.

Hearing this, the Mountain Ancestor almost retched blood in sheer fury.

The Ancient Road Sacred Map was indeed an immensely precious artifact, something any individual would treasure beyond measure.

Yet, the Mountain Ancestor now harbored a burning desire to tear it to shreds.

He pulled on it with all his might, but alas, it was impossible to determine the nature of the threads woven within. Even with his Near-Immortal strength, he could not destroy it!

The Mountain Ancestor glanced at the Ancient Road Sacred Map, only to discover that one saint shadow was conspicuously absent.

His face contorted, turning ashen, as he put away the Sacred Map and fixed his gaze upon Ning Qi once more.

"It seems that to vanquish you, I must rely solely on my own might!"

The Ancient Road Sacred Map spun in his grasp before being stowed away within his Storage Space.

"Boy, if you desire the Ancient Road Sacred Map and wish to save the Saint Ancestor and Sea Ancestor, come forth to Buzhou Mountain."

Employing some unknown technique, he unleashed a beam of black light that tore through the spatial fabric Ning Qi had mended with the Seed of Jianmu.

In the subsequent moment, the Mountain Ancestor vanished from his original position.

Ning Qi's gaze followed his retreating form, directed towards the obscured silhouette of Buzhou Mountain.

Within the shadow of Buzhou Mountain, two manifestations of the Mountain Ancestor appeared.

One remained hovering at the apex of Buzhou, while the other proceeded into the mountain's depths, advancing towards the Saint Ancestor and Sea Ancestor.

The Mountain Ancestor apparently decided to temporarily forgo confronting Ning Qi alone, opting instead to settle matters with the Saint Ancestor and Sea Ancestor first.

As the two avatars of the Mountain Ancestor returned to Buzhou Mountain, the mountain's shadowy form expanded once more, exuding a formidable and sacred aura.

Ning Qi observed the shadow of Buzhou Mountain, and in that very instant, he too vanished into the spatial void.

From the perspective of the Sea of Realms, this particular region now displayed a terrifying Divine Mountain floating within, while the former Mountain and Sea Realm and the Vast Realm had ceased to exist.