"Is that all you have to offer? If so, then let us not waste any more time," a domineering voice echoed through the skies. It was Truth's voice, calm, steady, and filled with disdain.
He stood silently in mid air, hands clasped behind his back, his entire figure shimmering faintly, as if he existed halfway between reality and illusion. He was both present and not, as if the world itself struggled to contain his form.
"You should all know," he continued, "that while my Dao is indeed weaker than yours for now, I am already on the verge of the Law Ascension Realm. I have formed my Law Foundation. In just a few more moments, I can break through, if I choose to."
Hearing this, the eleven shadows fell silent.
They did not attack.
They all understood the weight of his words. Truth, for all his arrogance, had always been precise. And they knew, despite their numbers, if they pushed too hard now, they would not be able to prevent his escape. His spiritual essence, though weakened, was still deeper than all of theirs combined.
Still, despite the dire situation, a few of them sneered arrogantly, unwilling to acknowledge defeat.
But Seer did not sneer.
He chuckled.
A dry, knowing sound.
"Reaching the Law Ascension Realm? Forming your Law Foundation?" Seer echoed mockingly. "Please, Truth. You're not so foolish as to push forward now. If you truly ascended to the Law Realm, how would you build the kind of foundation needed for the realm that comes next, one far more important to those of us who once stood at the peak of the Dao?"
He narrowed his eyes.
"But I'll admit you're not lying, not entirely. You're drawing upon this prison's last vestiges of spirituality to sustain your Dao, aren't you? While we... we rely only on our own cultivation. But the cost to hold you here has already been too high. It's time we use our hidden cards. We've waited long enough."
"Indeed, that is true," said the silver chained shadow coldly. "Let's use our hidden weapons now. There's no point in holding back anymore."
"Yes! Why waste any more time?" Desire's voice followed instantly, her tone filled with sharp eagerness. "Right, Mo She?"
She turned toward the shadow known as Mo She, who merely nodded, a cold glint flashing within the chains that bound him.
But she wasn't the only one. After a brief moment of silence, the others also nodded, each shadow dipping its head in grim agreement. One by one, they began preparing their Dao attacks.
Truth didn't wait for death to come. Instead, he looked at them, calm, composed, his gaze brimming with confidence. Then, he extended a hand toward the old pavilion that had once been his prison cell.
With a subtle motion of his fingers, the pavilion began to tremble and then transform.
In an instant, it shrank and twisted, reshaping itself into a small, old umbrella, no longer than an ordinary longsword. The transformed pavilion flew through the air and landed gently in Truth's open palm.
The umbrella was forged entirely of stone, crafted from the same aged yellow and black stone that had once formed the ancient prison. The rough, weathered material gave the umbrella a distinct, ancient presence.
Truth didn't even glance at it.
But the chained shadows did.
The moment they saw the old umbrella, their expressions shifted. Wariness replaced arrogance. They recognized it.
Without hesitation, Truth began channeling his spirituality into the umbrella. As the energy flowed into it, the dull stone began to transform, gradually taking on a sheen, like yellow and black jade. The once crumbling creation now radiated an otherworldly brilliance.
Holding the jade like umbrella in one hand, Truth whispered its name:
"Reality Shielding Dao Creation Umbrella."
With those words, the umbrella resonated with his Dao, the Dao of Truth and False. It began to glow brighter, its form shimmering, as though it existed both here and elsewhere.
Now, the Reality Shielding Dao Creation Umbrella looked just like Truth himself, partially real, partially illusory. Something that shouldn't exist, yet undeniably did.
Meanwhile, the eleven chained beings completed their preparations.
They had formed a Grand Source Formation. As it activated, all living beings within its reach were drawn into it. In a single, horrifying instant, millions of lives were extinguished. Their essence was consumed, fueling the formation.
The sky blazed with eleven radiant colors.
Blue, Red, White, Pink, Green, Yellow, Purple, Black, Gold, Gray, and Silver.
As the colors intensified, the ground was littered with corpses, silent, still, and cold. They lay like they were sleeping.
But they were dead.
Utterly, unquestionably dead.
"KILL!"
With that single thought shared by all eleven shadows, they activated the Grand Source Formation.
And from within it... emerged a being completely black, formless and immense, an embodiment of raw annihilation.
It had two massive pairs of black horns, four thick, pillar like legs, and a long tail ending in a jagged spike. But the most horrifying feature of the creature was its eyes, eyes that defied comprehension.
They were empty.
In those eyes, there was no Dao, no law, no spirituality, and no trace of spiritual essence. Within its gaze, nothing existed. And the world reacted accordingly.
All around it, spiritual energy and even fragments of pure spirituality were being pulled inward, devoured completely by this being. It consumed everything.
Seeing the familiar entity, Truth chuckled lightly and shook his head."You truly believe that a mere Void Being could kill me? You eleven really do underestimate me."
At that moment, Mo She responded, his voice carrying cold amusement."Do you think we would summon a lowly Void Being? Look into its eyes again, Truth. Perhaps you'll realize this is no common void beast… this is a Royal Void Being."
Truth's expression faltered for the briefest moment as he looked more carefully at the creature's eyes.
There were twelve irises.
His eyes narrowed in genuine surprise.
It was indeed a Royal Void Being. An existence so rare, so terrifying, it was believed even the Chaos Realm itself refused to acknowledge their birth.
And now it stood before him, feasting on the world's very essence.
This changed things. His Dao was already weakened, his spirituality nearly drained from breaking the seal and now, the surrounding essence he needed was being devoured by the beast.
He was severely handicapped.
But it wasn't over yet.
A calm smile crept across Truth's phantom like face. Slowly, he lifted the Reality Shielding Dao Creation Umbrella, raising it high until it pointed toward the heavens. His slit shaped eyes locked onto the Royal Void Being as his gaze began to shine with brilliance.
The ancient umbrella responded.
It began to open on its own, its stone and jade surface blooming outward like a divine flower.
And then, it expanded.
It grew and grew, until it became as vast as the sky itself. Its form blocked out the heavens above, casting a shadow that covered the world. The Grand Source Formation was obscured. The eyes of the heavens themselves could no longer see the land below.
And in that moment, all beings beneath it felt the pressure, a deep, suffocating suppression unlike anything they had ever known.
Truth's voice echoed like thunder."You look down on me far too much. Did you forget that, in the infinite realms of Chaos, my Reality Shielding Dao Creation Umbrella is one of the most invincible creations to exist? After all… I forged it myself, its foundation is my Dao."
"You can still use its true function even though your Dao is broken? How is that possible? That doesn't make sense! How can you use true Dao essence without having a True Dao?!"
The golden chained shadow was stunned. Not just him, even the other chained shadows were shaken. But he was the only one who failed to suppress his shock.
Truth, calm and composed, replied with a faint smile.
"Indeed, Soul Devourer, under normal circumstances, it would be impossible. But I found my way out. Now then… it's time to suppress this Royal Void Being."
With those words, the vast pressure of the Reality Shielding Dao Creation Umbrella began to concentrate, locking fully onto the Royal Void Being.
Sensing the oppressive force descending upon it, the creature let out a thunderous roar that shook the winds themselves.
But the space did not shatter.
This realm, the prison, was too resilient to be broken by a mere void being. Even a Peak Dao cultivator could not tear through this space, so how could a beast, no matter how rare or royal, possibly manage it?
Realizing this, the Royal Void Being faltered. It froze for a split second and that was enough.
It was already fully suppressed.
Truth blinked once, and in the same moment, the sky above cleared.
The heavens could once again peer down upon the world.
The Reality Shielding Dao Creation Umbrella had returned to his hand, and the Royal Void Being had been sealed within it, silent and contained.
Truth turned his gaze toward the eleven stunned shadows.
"Is there anything else?" he asked coolly."Or would you all like to join it? Be trapped within my umbrella until I leave this prison?"
He paused, his tone darkening.
"But if you do enter… don't expect to ever see the light again. Only endless darkness will await you."
None of the eleven dared to answer.
They had lost, utterly and completely.
Any further action would only trigger the prison's laws, chaining them even tighter and condemning them to eons of suffering. They were powerful, yes, but not fools. They knew when defeat was absolute now.
And this… was absolute.
They could only accept reality and fade back into their silent prison cell.
The world, still trembling in shock, remained silent. Corpses lay scattered across the land, as if in eternal slumber, fallen by the millions in a calamity they could never hope to understand.
But slowly, the skies cleared.
The countless swirling colors had faded. The heavens returned to a single shade of blue.
Calm returned.
If only for a moment.
"Did it end now?"
This question echoed in the hearts of all mortal beings, cultivators and common folk alike. Regardless of their power or status, all had suffered equally on this single, catastrophic day.On this day, the entire world and even the Twelve Heavens, had changed.
Now, a dark era would begin.
An age of recovery, of rebuilding. An age where both mortals and cultivators would have to rise again from the ashes.
But Truth…Truth no longer cared for the fate of this prison world.
He simply rose, flying silently, higher and higher into the sky, until he reached the very edge of the heavens.
There, above all things, he found it, an immense black ceiling, endless and absolute.
Truth reached out and touched it.
Nothing happened.
No matter how many times he struck it, lightly or with force, it remained unchanged. Immovable. Untouched. It was like an ant striking a dragon in full flight.
This was the true nature of the prison that held them. A world designed to imprison twelve Peak Dao Beings, each one once a sovereign of their own Divine Realm.
But when Truth raised the Reality Shielding Dao Creation Umbrella and let it touch the black ceiling, something changed.
The ceiling trembled, just a little.
After all, this umbrella was no ordinary weapon. It had reached the absolute peak of its realm, nearing even the mysterious next tier of Dao Creations.
Still, even so, the prison was immense. Trying to pierce it was like a mortal trying to reach the heavens. Nearly impossible.
But Truth did not stop.
He poured the last of his Dao Essence into the umbrella. Every remaining drop of power, every last thread of truth and falsehood.
And then, he used the sealed Royal Void Being within the umbrella. He drew on its Dao and merged it with his own.
Combining their essences, he twisted the laws of reality itself.
And finally, reality broke.
A small hole appeared in the black ceiling. A false Space and at the same time it was an True space.
It wasn't real. But it didn't matter.
It was enough.
His Dao essence was empty.
But the way was open.
Truth passed through the hole and left the prison.
He didn't look back.