Start from a baby to become a Taoist

Chapter 531 Divine Court
Chapter 539

The soldiers on the ship looked at the figure at the bow with an expression that went beyond mere worship.

That is... a god who embodies both creation and destruction!

It was another two-star-and-moon voyage.

Along the way, they encountered several groups of ignorant space pirates and some scattered cosmic beasts, but without exception, they were all used as whetstones by the high-spirited Pioneer Guard and were cleanly and decisively killed.

Through continuous battles, the two divine generals, Zhenshan and Cangshi, have thoroughly stabilized their own realms.

Finally, at the end of the third star and moon.

The bronze fragment floating in front of Xu Ran shone brightly.

"We've arrived," Xu Ran said softly.

Everyone perked up and looked ahead.

At the edge of the dark universe, a magnificent ruin, beyond description, floated silently.

At the edge of the dark universe, a magnificent ruin, beyond description, floated silently.

It was a sight that shook the soul.

It is not the death of a single star, nor the withering of a star field, but the graveyard of a civilization, a once glorious and supreme power that dared to call itself "Divine Court".

As the Pioneer slowly approached, everyone on board, including the Heavenly Stone God and the Prison-Suppressing Bone King who had already ignited their divine fire, held their breath, their expressions solemn, their eyes filled with undisguised shock.

This is a ruin built upon star debris and shattered continents. There are colossal, broken divine weapons, their fragments still wreathed in an aura of slaughter that has endured for countless millennia, slicing dark cracks into the surrounding void. There is the collapsed Southern Heavenly Gate, its two towering pillars broken into several pieces, each larger than an ordinary star. The dragons, phoenixes, and qilin carved upon them, though broken, still exude an aura of majesty that suppresses all heavens.

Countless palace complexes stretched endlessly, transforming into a floating forest of steel and divine jade. Some palaces were cleaved in two by a giant axe that came from beyond the heavens, the cuts as smooth as mirrors, their laws still fading to this day. Others were shattered by a colossal hand that blotted out the sky, turning into billions of dust particles that slowly rotated around a giant palm print, forming a strange nebula.

The Milky Way seems to have stopped flowing here, and time seems to have frozen. In the eternal silence, flows a tragic, iron-willed, and indomitable spirit.

"This... is this the Divine Court?" a Dao King murmured to himself, his voice hoarse. He had thought that the Bone King realm was already a powerful realm, but seeing these ruins, he realized how insignificant he was. Here, even a random tile from a palace contained fragments of laws far more profound than his own.

"No, this is just one of the countless outposts of the Divine Court guarding the dark universe." Xu Ran's voice rang out, calm yet tinged with a hint of reminiscence and emotion. "The seventh outpost of the Divine Court buried three Divine Lords, eighteen Divine Generals, and three million Heavenly Soldiers and Generals."

His words were learned from the information in the bronze fragments, but when he spoke them now, it was as if he had personally witnessed the bloody battle that buried an era.

These words shocked everyone even more.

If a mere outpost is this terrifying, how prosperous and glorious must the true divine court have been? What kind of enemy could have brought such a supreme power to its knees, leaving only ruins that silently recount its former glory in the cold universe?
"My lord, we..." Cang Shi stepped forward. He could sense that within these ruins lay both great opportunities and immense terror. The undying fighting spirit and remnants of laws were deadly poison to beings below the Divine Fire Realm.

"Enter." Xu Ran said succinctly.

He raised his hand and pointed, causing the Guixu Grand Array surrounding the Pioneer to blaze with light, and gray chaotic energy swirled, enveloping the ship even more tightly. This ark, which embodied the collective efforts of the entire Guixu Domain, was itself a mobile fortress, capable of withstanding the erosion of the laws of this place.

"Zhenshan, you will lead the Hundred Kings as the vanguard to explore the ruins of the 'Broken Army Hall' ahead. Cangshi, you will provide support from the center, using divine fire to protect the great formation. Remember, everything here may be dangerous; do not touch any seemingly intact restrictions."

"As ordered!"

Following Xu Ran's command, the Pioneer, like a giant whale swimming in the deep sea, slowly sailed into this vast ruin.

Zhen Shan was already bursting with fighting spirit. He stood at the bow of the ship, the Throne of Calamity hovering beneath his feet, his eyes like lightning, scanning the surroundings. Behind him, a hundred newly promoted King-level powerhouses each led a small team, forming a battle formation, their murderous aura soaring to the sky, ready to deal with any unexpected situation at any time.

The ark passed through a collapsed rainbow bridge, and a relatively intact grand hall appeared ahead. The plaque of the hall was long since broken, but the two characters "Po Jun" could still be discerned. The characters were strong and bold, full of the killing aura of war, as if one could see an unparalleled general commanding his troops in this hall, wielding power and authority.

"This is it." Zhenshan shouted in a low voice, about to lead his men off the ship to investigate.

However, at this moment, a sudden change occurred!
hum-

Inside the ancient, silent Po Jun Hall, a tiny, crimson light suddenly appeared. Then, hundreds and thousands of points of light, like will-o'-the-wisps, lit up one after another.

A cold, brutal will, driven only by pure killing instinct, swept in like a storm!

"Be on guard!" Zhenshan roared, the Bone King Battle Axe already in his hand.

From the enormous shadow of the Broken Army Hall, illusory figures slowly emerged.

They wore tattered armor, wielded broken weapons, and their forms blurred the line between reality and illusion, devoid of flesh and blood, merely shells formed from obsession and malevolent energy. Crimson flames burned in their eye sockets, filled with hatred and a destructive urge towards all living beings.

"It's a battle spirit!" Cang Shi's expression changed. "The soldiers who died in the Divine Court, their undying will combined with the killing aura of this place, were corrupted by the deathly power of the dark universe, and transformed into monsters that only know how to kill!"

These battle spirits are largely unaffected by ordinary physical attacks, but their attacks can strike directly at the soul, making them impossible to defend against.

"Roar!"

The leading war spirit was a size taller than the others, and his armor clearly indicated that he was a captain. He let out a silent roar, raised the broken spear in his hand, and pointed it directly at the Pioneer.

In an instant, thousands of battle spirits transformed into streaks of light, rushing over like locusts, fearless of death.

"Form the formation! Return to the Void - Reincarnation!" Zhenshan remained calm in the face of danger and shouted.

The hundred kings and three thousand Dao soldiers behind him moved almost instinctively. With the kings as the core and the Dao soldiers as the base of the formation, gray millstone phantoms appeared above their heads.

This is a battle formation deduced by Xu Ran based on the "Primordial Return to the Void Scripture," specifically designed to counter enemies of the soul and will. The Void is the end point of all things, and also the beginning point of all things, most adept at erasing all attachments and imprints.

Chi Chi Chi!
The dozens of battle spirits at the forefront crashed into the range of the Reincarnation Battle Formation. The gray millstone phantom slowly rotated, emitting an invisible suction force that gradually ground down and decomposed the killing intent and obsession on the battle spirits, transforming them into the most primordial soul power, which was then fed back to the Dao soldiers presiding over the battle formation. "Ah—"

A mournful scream echoed in everyone's hearts. The figures of those battle spirits, under the gray millstone, melted rapidly like ice and snow under the scorching sun, eventually turning into a wisp of green smoke and completely dissipating.

"It works!" one of the kings exclaimed with delight.

"Kill!" Seeing this, Zhenshan's fighting spirit intensified. He did not use his Bone King power, but instead, like his soldiers, he controlled the largest Reincarnation Millstone and took the initiative to meet the army of war spirits.

In an instant, the area in front of the Pioneer was transformed into a gray, millstone-like inferno. The battle formations formed by the Guixu Dao soldiers were well-organized, combining offense and defense, resembling a sophisticated war machine that efficiently reaped these ferocious battle spirits.

Xu Ran watched all of this quietly and nodded slightly.

Over the past decade, he not only enhanced the overall strength of the Guixu Domain, but also forged them into a truly battle-hardened army. Facing this bizarre enemy, they showed no panic, no fear, only absolute discipline and highly efficient execution. This was his greatest source of confidence in daring to venture into the starry sea.

The battle lasted for about an hour.

Thousands of battle souls were completely annihilated. Although the Guixu Dao soldiers suffered considerable losses, thanks to the support of the battle formation, not a single one of them was injured or killed. They divided up the pure soul power left behind after the battle souls were annihilated, and each of them had become much more refined in their aura, their eyes gleaming with excitement.

Fight to sustain war! That's the fastest way to grow!

"Well done," Xu Ran praised.

Zhenshan sheathed his battle axe, but there was no joy on his face. He said in a deep voice, "My lord, these are just wandering souls on the outer perimeter. Inside that main hall, there is an aura that is more than ten times stronger than all these battle souls combined!"

His gaze was fixed on the deepest darkness within the Broken Army Hall.

The moment he finished speaking, a series of heavy footsteps echoed from the darkness.

Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Each step seemed to tread upon everyone's hearts, causing their souls to tremble. A pressure far more terrifying, more solid, and even carrying a hint of "divinity" than before slowly spread out.

It was a pure, iron-willed soldier's spirit, which, even when corrupted, still carried an invincible and domineering aura that could sweep away all enemies!
Under the solemn gazes of everyone, a tall figure emerged from the darkness.

He wore a set of golden divine armor, though it was damaged in many places and covered with knife marks and sword holes, it still could not conceal his former majesty. In his hand, he held a golden spear that was eighteen feet long. Although the tip of the spear was broken in half, the sharpness of it, which could pierce through the stars and destroy all laws, seemed to pierce through people's souls.

His face was hidden beneath a cold visor, revealing only a pair of eyes burning with golden flames. Half of those flames were filled with frenzied killing intent, while the other half held a chilling...loneliness and unwavering determination.

"Golden Armor Battle Spirit!" Cang Shi gasped. "This is at least a peak Divine Fire Realm being! Perhaps... even touching the threshold of the Divine Furnace!"

This golden-armored battle spirit was clearly the former master of this Broken Army Hall, a divine general of the Divine Court! His obsession after death was so strong that he retained some of his power from his previous life, becoming the most terrifying guardian of this place.

"Anyone who dares to trespass into the Po Jun Hall... shall die!"

The golden-armored battle spirit uttered dry yet authoritative syllables. Unlike the other battle spirits, it didn't pounce directly, but instead assumed a starting stance.

A simple yet flawless starting stance.

In an instant, his entire aura became subtly connected with the desolate and lifeless Broken Army Hall, and even with the ruins of the entire Seventh Outpost. He seemed no longer an independent individual, but rather the embodiment of the will of this divine cemetery!
"Such a strong fighting spirit!" Zhen Shan's pupils shrank. He felt that his proud fighting spirit was like a stream meeting a vast ocean in front of this golden-armored battle spirit.

"I'll take him on!" Zhen Shan advanced instead of retreating, his fighting spirit reaching its peak. He handed over his battle formation to the Hundred Kings Generals, while he himself rode the Throne of Calamity, transforming into a streak of blood-red light and soaring into the sky.

"The Bone King commands the prison, punishing heaven and earth!"

With a thunderous roar, the divine fire that had just been ignited transformed behind him into a monstrous spectacle of mountains of corpses and seas of blood. The Bone King Battle Axe in his hand, imbued with boundless laws of punishment, slammed down fiercely towards the golden-armored battle spirit!

This axe strike is enough to cleave stars and judge gods!
However, faced with this earth-shattering axe blow, the golden-armored warrior simply raised the broken spear in his hand slowly.

"Break...the formation!"

He uttered two words, and the broken spear in his hand rose slightly upwards in an ancient and mysterious trajectory.

Ding!
The axe blade and the spear tip collided precisely.

There was no earth-shattering roar, only a clear, metallic clang.

The next moment, Zhenshan's expression changed drastically. He felt that the power of punishment on his axe, which was enough to suppress everything, had been struck at its weakest point by the opponent's spear, and was instantly disintegrated and shattered!
An unparalleled force rebounded from the battle axe.

puff!
Zhenshan spat out a mouthful of divine blood, and his entire body, along with the Throne of Calamity, was sent flying tens of thousands of feet away by the spear, crashing heavily into the protective shield of the Pioneer before finally coming to a stop.

one move!
The Prison King, who had just advanced to the Divine Fire Realm and whose fighting spirit was unparalleled, was actually defeated by the opponent in one move!

"This..." Everyone was shocked.

“His Dao is complete and pure.” Xu Ran’s gaze narrowed slightly. “The divine fire that suppresses the mountain is newly born, but his battle spirit fire has burned for countless ages and has long been integrated with the laws of heaven and earth here. Here, he is an invincible war god.”

"Let's go together!" Cang Shi said without hesitation.

He took a step forward, and divine fire transformed into a blue sky curtain, enveloping the golden-armored battle spirit. Within the sky curtain, towering rocks stood and flowing stars swirled, forming his "Heavenly Stone Divine Path," possessing both suppressive and protective power.

"Kill!" Zhenshan steadied himself, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. Instead of fear, his eyes burned with an even more ferocious fighting spirit. He once again took control of the throne, and together with Cangshi, they attacked from the left and right.

Two newly ascended Divine Realm experts join forces to besiege a battle spirit from countless ages ago!

In an instant, before the Hall of Breaking Army, divine light and battle intent intertwined, and laws and killing intent clashed. Cang Shi's Heavenly Stone Divine Path, incomparably heavy, continuously weakened the connection between the golden-armored battle spirit and this world. The Punishment Battle Axe of the Mountain-Suppressing Army grew increasingly ferocious, each strike aimed at the opponent's vital points.

(End of this chapter)