Although Fan Qingying was hailed as the strongest beneath the Longevity Realm, Fang Han had long since surpassed her.
After surviving the Wind–Fire Tribulation, subduing Wood Daoist, and refining the Eightfold Pagoda, Fang Han's strength had already reached a level where he could contend head-on with ancient Longevity Realm giants. With Yan Shuiyi at his side, the two of them together were more than capable of killing a true eternal powerhouse.
Under such circumstances, Fan Qingying was never going to be his match.
Worse still, Fang Han struck at the perfect moment—an ambush prepared long in advance.
Thus, the number one figure on the Longevity Candidate List was suppressed almost instantly, without even the chance to struggle.
The moment Fan Qingying was sealed deep within the Yellow Springs Diagram, Fang Han did not hesitate. He immediately released his Golden Core, combined it with his half-immortal body, and drew upon the power of Wood Daoist and the Eightfold Pagoda, reaching straight toward the Great Chaos Thunder Sword, which Yan Shuiyi was barely restraining.
This top-grade Dao artifact was ferocious beyond comparison. Even with its master suppressed, the sword trembled violently, detonating waves of Great Chaos Divine Thunder throughout the void. Even Golden Core cultivators would be forced to retreat before its edge. Its destructive power exceeded that of the combined Sun–Moon Essence Wheels, and even surpassed the Eightfold Pagoda without Wood Daoist presiding over it.
The Great Chaos Thunder Sword was a weapon of pure annihilation—destruction incarnate. It possessed no storage space, no subtle transformations, no tricks. It didn't need them. With a single movement, endless chaos lightning poured forth, shaking the heavens and obliterating all resistance.
Fan Qingying had coordinated well with the sword, but even she had never been able to unleash its true might.
If this sword were in Fang Qingxue's hands, with the Indestructible Lightning Talisman embedded into its body, its power would be unimaginable. Fang Han was determined to claim it. A top-grade Dao artifact was something only the supreme leaders of the Ten Immortal Sects were qualified to wield. Once obtained, it could be subdued with Great Salvation Zen Light and placed within the Eightfold Pagoda—or wielded personally, amplifying the killing power of his Golden Core to terrifying levels.
Yan Shuiyi was already pushing her Azure Sea Divine Pearl to its limit, trying to suppress the sword and claim it for herself. But a top-grade Dao artifact was not so easily subdued.
Back when Fang Han suppressed the Sun–Moon Essence Wheels, he had paid an enormous price—and that was after killing their original master.
Now, Fan Qingying was still alive. With its master not yet dead, suppressing the Great Chaos Thunder Sword was far more difficult. Even with the Azure Sea Divine Pearl, it would take days and nights of refinement, and require a life-burning explosive technique to succeed.
At that moment, Fang Han arrived.
Golden Core.
Eightfold Pagoda.
Half-immortal body.
All three forces erupted together. Boundless pressure swept the heavens, forming a colossal hand as if forged from the entwined bodies of countless primordial dragons. It tore apart the chaos lightning by brute force and seized the sword's true body.
Buzz—!
The Great Chaos Thunder Sword resisted violently, shaking once more. A hundred thousand thunder pearls burst forth from its surface, each swelling to hundreds or thousands of times its original size.
At the same time, the sword's artifact spirit finally manifested clearly—a towering giant condensed from chaos mist, human above and serpent below, with a beard stretching hundreds of feet. Its massive hands moved ceaselessly, forming countless seals in rapid succession.
The artifact spirit was fighting for its life.
Ordinarily, artifact spirits never fought desperately. They cultivated themselves and relied on their masters' energy, sometimes even siphoning that energy to compensate for their own deficiencies. In battle, many would even slack off deliberately.
But now, with its master suppressed and itself on the brink of being sealed, the Great Chaos Thunder Sword's spirit began burning its own essence, unleashing truly terrifying techniques.
Fang Han had encountered this situation before. How could he allow it to unleash its full power?
Puh!
He spat out a mouthful of blood.
Once again, he used the forbidden art that consumed sixty years of lifespan—the Immortal-Slaying Technique.
Amid the blood rain and the wailing of countless ghosts and gods, every bolt of chaos lightning was extinguished. Fang Han surged forward, radiating incomparable authority. His hand moved like a dragon seizing prey, forcing its way through the fading thunder to grasp a vast, brilliant mass of sword light.
The moment he seized it, the sword revealed its true form.
A five-foot-long ancient greatsword, carved with mysterious runes. Endless streams of chaos energy flowed across its blade, exuding an aura of primordial antiquity—vast, desolate, eternal. From those markings poured a presence that felt as old as the universe itself.
"Eightfold Pagoda!"
With a violent heave, Fang Han hurled the Great Chaos Thunder Sword straight into the pagoda.
Instantly, all the experts and Dao artifacts within the Eightfold Pagoda activated the Great Salvation Zen Light, flooding the sword with purifying radiance. The Sun–Moon Essence Wheels exploded into a golden arc, pressing down upon the blade with overwhelming force.
"Suppress it together with Fan Qingying," Fang Han commanded. "Yan Shuiyi—send your Azure Sea Divine Pearl into my Yellow Springs Diagram as well. Help me seal this sword and your old friend. I've already refined four God Kings into Divine Ability Fruits and obtained their full essence and four True God Seeds. If you help me suppress this top-grade Dao sword, I'll immediately transfer that essence to you and help you refine a half-immortal body!"
Fang Han's divine sense thundered into Yan Shuiyi's mind, making it ring violently.
Yan Shuiyi shuddered. She knew how difficult the Great Chaos Thunder Sword was to suppress. Without hesitation, she sent her Azure Sea Divine Pearl into the Yellow Springs Diagram.
She had no fear of Fang Han trapping her artifact. And more than that—she wanted to glimpse the secrets hidden within the Yellow Springs Diagram.
Yellow Springs Diagram.
Eightfold Pagoda.
Azure Sea Divine Pearl.
And Wood Daoist, whose strength had surged after acquiring a God King's body.
These terrifying forces intertwined, finally suppressing Fan Qingying and the Great Chaos Thunder Sword—at least for the moment.
Fang Han and Yan Shuiyi clasped hands once more, joining forces. Vast torrents of primordial energy poured into the Yellow Springs Diagram without restraint, flooding their treasures as if cost were meaningless.
"You—traitors!"
Hatred-Heaven Daoist roared in fury.
Fang Han and Yan Shuiyi's sudden strike had slain five God Kings and sealed Fan Qingying in an instant. Hatred-Heaven Daoist was locked in battle with the Human Emperor's Brush, struggling to withstand the supreme ferocity of this peerless artifact. Unable to spare even a fragment of attention, he was blindsided by the sudden reversal.
Rage erupted within him.
His purple robes billowed, his eyes split open, blood streaming down his face. Fury blazed so intensely that smoke poured from his ears, nose, eyes, and mouth—smoke from all seven orifices.
What level of rage did it take for such a sight?
"Human Emperor's Brush," Fang Han's voice suddenly rang out, vast and resonant. His divine sense swept across the battlefield, reaching both the brush and Hatred-Heaven Daoist. "We have met before. The great calamity has arrived. The God Race is invading the Xuanhuang World once more. I lured them here precisely to borrow your power—to kill this God Emperor. This is the Hatred-Heaven God Emperor!"
"So it was all a scheme!" Hatred-Heaven Daoist howled. "You're Fang Han! I was deceived—lured here so you could kill me with the Human Emperor's Brush!"
As Fang Han activated the Yellow Springs Diagram, the Reincarnation Disguise Art lost its effect. His form shifted openly—from "Prince Ula" back to Fang Han.
"Indeed, the calamity has come," the artifact spirit of the Human Emperor's Brush hummed. "By my reckoning, it is exactly on time. The God Race has recuperated long enough. A God Emperor, no less—hidden well."
It continued, its voice resonating with ancient authority. "Fang Han. Yes, we have met before. You are the one destined to bear this calamity. When the God Race invades the Xuanhuang World, you cannot avoid responsibility. Save this world. Accumulate boundless merit. Rescue countless lives. If you succeed, your future achievements will be beyond measure."
As it spoke, the brush quivered continuously. Stroke after stroke carved through the void—iron hooks and silver lines imbued with supreme Dao principles. Heaven and earth's laws bent. Space twisted. Even the flow of time was subtly disturbed.
Each stroke pressed down upon Hatred-Heaven Daoist, nearly freezing the entire void. Chaotic currents and spatial storms erupted everywhere.
Within these storms, Fang Han and Yan Shuiyi could only barely protect themselves. For the time being, they were completely unable to assist the Human Emperor's Brush in attacking the Hatred-Heaven God Emperor.
They could not intervene at all.
All of their top-grade Dao artifacts were occupied suppressing the Great Chaos Thunder Sword and Fan Qingying. Without treasures, relying on raw cultivation alone, they simply could not participate in a battle of this level.
"The Human Emperor's Brush is terrifying," Yan Shuiyi said grimly, summoning her Calamity Origin Avatar to shield both herself and Fang Han. "It rivals even the Eternal God Furnace of the Taiyi Sect. But the Hatred-Heaven God Emperor hasn't revealed his true strength yet. As a God Emperor of the God Race, his mana is boundless. Their bodies are the most mysterious and powerful in all the heavens. What do we do?"
"At least I've revealed my identity," Fang Han replied calmly. "The Human Emperor's Brush won't attack me."
As he spoke, he circulated his Golden Core in harmony with the Calamity Origin Avatar, quietly gathering power. Deep in his heart, another thought burned.
If the Human Emperor's Brush can kill the Hatred-Heaven God Emperor…
I can seize his essence and refine a Longevity Fruit.
In ancient times, when the World Tree absorbed God Lords or God Kings, it condensed Divine Ability Fruits—one pill enough to enter the Divine Ability Realm.
Absorb a God Emperor, and it would form a Longevity Fruit.
Consume it, and one would step directly into the Longevity Realm—becoming an eternal giant.
With a God Emperor standing right before him, Fang Han would never let such an opportunity slip by. He knew how difficult it would be for him to break into the Longevity Realm on his own. Even with the Seven-Life Profound Gate Pill, he would only have a fifty-percent chance.
With a Longevity Fruit, it would be absolute certainty.
Achieving the Longevity Realm meant an undying body, true freedom, and supreme ease—nothing like the constant struggle of the Divine Ability Realm.
"Since you already know my true identity," Hatred-Heaven Daoist roared again, the sound of chains snapping echoing from his body, "then I'll show you the true power of a ruler of the God Race!"
With a thunderous crack, the seals on his body shattered.
The terrifying form of a God Emperor began to emerge.