Heroes Return

A tremendous force erupted from Lin Jie's hand, and in an instant, Dao Qizhan was sent flying backward by Lin Jie's gaze. Several planets were pierced through by the attack, and the two men were thrown an unknown distance. Dao Qizhan's entire body crumbled under Lin Jie's sword strike; countless wounds appeared on his body, as if he would completely collapse at any moment. But Dao Qizhan ultimately refused to be defeated by Lin Jie.

For the first time, cracks appeared on the Extinction Sword. It looked like it was about to give way. But Lin Jie understood the moment he met Dao Qizhan's eyes. This man hadn't lost.

"So, even destroying the Dao won't work?" A faint voice sounded, as if speaking to Lin Jie, and also as if speaking to himself: "Then, it's time to put it down."

As Dao Qizhan spoke, he actually let go. Behind him, Lin Jie's longsword was thrust towards him, but Dao Qizhan released the Extinction Sword.

Chapter 25

As Dao Qizhan lowered the Extinction Sword, something astonishing happened at that moment. Dao Qizhan actually grabbed Lin Jie's Guixu with his bare hands.

"Damn! This guy's cheating!" Lin Jie muttered helplessly, then flew backward. At the same moment, Dao Qizhan looked at Lin Jie again. His eyes were devoid of any emotion, and the Dao that had destroyed everything in this world beside Dao Qizhan had completely vanished at that instant.

Indeed, the Dao of Destruction of Dao Qi Zhan vanished completely with the lowering of the Dao Extinction Sword. In its place were eyes gleaming with a sharp light, and an appearance completely undetectable as if injured.

At the crucial moment when he was stabbed to death by Lin Jie's sword, Dao Qi Zhan broke through once again.

With this breakthrough, what Dao Qizhan saw was no longer simply the destruction of everything. Following the cataclysmic destruction of Zhu Tian, ​​the new path Dao Qizhan forged was the Path of Transcendence, surpassing all. Undoubtedly, this was the very thing his neighbors least wanted to see. The Great Dao that Dao Qizhan mastered was the legendary, most powerful Great Dao in the world—the Path of Transcendence. No matter how strong the enemy, he would surpass them all!

"In a sense, this is the strongest Dao!" Lin Jie sighed upon seeing Dao Qislash. The Guixu Sword in his hand disappeared once again at this moment. In the battle to come, even Guixu could no longer be of any help: "Just do it this way. I've spent my whole life perfecting the Dao of the sword, and now I'm just letting it go. Is it a pity?"

"You just casually let go of the Dao Sword you worked so hard to obtain, do you feel it's a pity?" Dao Qizhan directly asked Lin Jie's question, and Lin Jie could only sigh helplessly upon hearing it.

"I was hoping to avoid any deaths, but it seems this time, they might hate each other to the death." After saying that, Lin Jie walked towards Dao Qizhan.

Dao Qizhan simply took a step in the void, instantly appearing beside Lin Jie. The two exchanged a palm strike simultaneously, then both retreated a distance.

No one could have imagined that the two most powerful swordsmen in the world, who had reached the highest level in swordsmanship, would both put down their swords at the peak of their careers!

This was a battle that could not be recorded by anyone, could not be noticed by anyone, and could not be witnessed by anyone. Because the two of them vanished from this universe the moment they laid down their swords.

The battle space where the two are currently located is completely dark, filled with bizarre shapes made up of many special colors. It is absurd and completely different from the universe known to humankind.

And in this very space, the ultimate showdown between Lin Jie and Dao Qizhan finally began.

The path of letting go, representing true freedom, and the path of transcendence, representing endless obsession, clashed fiercely in this space. In the real world, no one, or rather, no civilization, could fully comprehend their battle. But to everyone's surprise, even under these circumstances, countless bizarre changes began to occur in the real universe.

First, all life in the universe vanished, and the streets were in ruins. But after a few minutes, time returned to normal for everyone in the universe, and no one knew what had happened. All anyone noticed was that five minutes had suddenly passed, as if five minutes of everyone's time had been taken away.

The Earth Astronomical Bureau, an organization that uses planetary motion to precisely calculate time, was in an uproar at this moment. Of course, they weren't the only ones in an uproar; people from all advanced civilizations throughout the universe were in an uproar.

Immediately afterwards, a completely undetectable planet appeared simultaneously in the skies above every planet in the entire universe. It was a translucent, crystal-like planet, visible to the naked eye from the ground. It was constantly changing, its shape altering, and exhibiting unusual features. At times, it would also emit energy outwards.

However, because it was a translucent white, it couldn't be identified as a celestial body like the sun. Neither humans nor other civilizations could confirm its true nature, because while such a planet could be seen on every celestial body in the universe, it was impossible to perceive or investigate it. Of course, once all the necessary exploration tools were ready, this planet vanished, as if it had never existed.

Reality is being rewritten time and time again, but it is also being repaired time and time again.

Of course, these are not the only strange things that have happened.

On Earth, many people find themselves inexplicably transformed into different identities. Some paupers find themselves millionaires, while some millionaires find themselves as couch potatoes. Some couch potatoes find themselves handsome men and even reunited with their former crushes. Others simply die, while still others who should have died mysteriously come back to life.

Some people were even shocked to discover that their father, mother, or a relative had become someone else.

His identity and everything else were undergoing strange changes. Even Xiao Zhan was shocked to find himself having dinner with his parents, who were affectionately discussing his marriage to Bu Feiwu, as if they couldn't wait to have a grandchild.

"Holy crap! What kind of new form of demon is this?! My parents have become the founders of a charitable medical organization!! And they're still alive!!" Just as Xiao Zhan was about to be driven mad by these sudden changes, everything returned to normal. Then Xiao Zhan noticed that the sky had turned pink.

The surrounding sky was filled with strange, irregular colors, and none of the original celestial bodies could be seen. It was as if the Earth was no longer there, but rather in a lonely, hellish dye factory-like space.

However, when Xiao Zhan opened his eyes again, this scene was constantly changing. The reality of the world was being constantly altered, but at the same time, it was being constantly repaired.

Inside the Hero Association, Leng Yan was giving Gear a good scolding, but the next second, Gear saw that Leng Yan had turned into a petite, cute loli girl. Her scolding manner had become soft and adorable. Although she was still wearing the original outfit, she had become a shrunken girl.

"Pfft!!!" A mouthful of water almost sprayed onto Leng Yan's face, but the next second, she found that Leng Yan had already returned to his original form.

Along with the spatial distortion, a temporal distortion was also discovered. The memories of people from 1990 to 2000 vanished, along with all records and related information; no one even noticed it. Of course, everything was immediately restored to normal, except that some people saw the figures of certain ancient people leaving this world during this period.

……

Within the original space, the battle between Lin Jie and Dao Qizhan continued unabated. With a casual wave of their hands, a section of the surrounding space transformed into a giant sword, slashing towards each other. Correspondingly, each time such an attack occurred, reality was altered.

However, there is still a slight difference. When Dao Qizhan's sword passed by Lin Jie, it completely reverted to its original form.

"You've practiced swordsmanship for so long, you probably don't know how to fight, right?" Lin Jie's voice suddenly rang in Dao Qizhan's ears, followed by a punch aimed at Dao Qizhan. Unlike Dao Qizhan, Lin Jie knew more than just swordsmanship.

Facing Lin Jie's attack, Dao Qizhan still used his sword, but just as his sword was about to strike Lin Jie, it was completely neutralized by Lin Jie's power. Conversely, Lin Jie's power was also neutralized by Dao Qizhan's merciless slash.

Caught off guard by Lin Jie's sudden punch, Dao Qizhan was sent flying. However, he quickly adapted to Lin Jie's attack. While the two forces were constantly neutralizing each other's power, Dao Qizhan began to launch a counterattack under Lin Jie's fist attacks. Although he eventually fell into a disadvantageous position.

Once again, Dao Qizhan was punched in the face by Lin Jie, and flew backward a considerable distance. However, to everyone's surprise, the space they were in had no concept of distance or proximity, and Dao Qizhan, who had been knocked away, remained beside Lin Jie.

However, with the help of this power, Dao Qizhan had already blocked it.

In that instant, Dao Qizhan mobilized all his power, directing it entirely towards Lin Jie before him. A prolonged battle with Lin Jie would be futile, lasting millions of years. Therefore, it was more prudent to unleash his strongest power and settle the matter once and for all. Moreover, only a clash of supreme power might truly allow Dao Qizhan to see that gate.

Lin Jie saw through Dao Qizhan's thoughts, but faced with Dao Qizhan's power attack, Lin Jie could only choose to attack with all his might.

In an instant, the entire world seemed to transform into two vortexes, converging towards the two ancient beings.

"The Seven Slashes of the Great Dao - Annihilating Heaven and Destroying the Dao".

"No style - zero".

A giant sword hurtled straight toward a person, but the person being attacked simply extended a finger and touched the giant sword.

However, at this point, the greatsword began to disappear, but then it returned to its original, condensed form.

In an instant, the entire space collapsed and disappeared. Then the two of them arrived in another different space, followed by the collapse of that space. After that, the space collapsed again. The two of them entered a microscopic space that resembled molecules, atoms, and particles from a textbook. However, the next second, this space also collapsed.

A monstrous and unchanging darkness descended upon this world.

However, the next second, the shattered space began to recover layer by layer, eventually returning to the starry river where Lin Jie and Dao Qizhan were fighting.

As he vanished, Lin Jie unleashed a straight punch towards Dao Qizhan. Dao Qizhan, amidst the starry sky, repeatedly suffered from collapsing and shattering of his body, with most of it dissipating into space.

However, his eyes widened once more. His indomitable will, the Great Dao that transcended all essence, allowed Dao Qizhan to survive even as his body was shattered by Lin Jie. His will had not died, and he had not surrendered.

In a daze, a series of sounds rang out once again.

"Holding a sword for three hundred years to reach the pinnacle, one chance leads to enlightenment and laughter across three lifetimes."

Seven strikes annihilate all paths under heaven, then ascend to immortality for eternity.

Chapter Twenty-Six: Epilogue

The poem was very simple, but Lin Jie understood it the moment he heard it. It described Dao Qizhan's life. And the poem's source was none other than Dao Qizhan himself.

As his shattered body recovered under the light, Dao Qizhan underwent another subtle change in front of Lin Jie.

"Finally, I've seen it." A faint sound rang out from Dao Qizhan's hand at that moment. And at that very moment, the gate to the Realm of Transcendence opened before Dao Qizhan.

Seeing this, Lin Jie's expression turned solemn. He absolutely could not allow Dao Qizhan to continue. Therefore, Lin Jie circulated the power within his body to a level he himself could barely withstand. It was as if the next strike would destroy Lin Jie himself. But in fact, Lin Jie was already prepared for this.

In order to stop Dao Qizhan from opening the door to transcendence, Lin Jie had to try, even if it meant mutual destruction. This time, Lin Jie used a completely reckless attack style.

In the blink of an eye, Lin Jie had arrived beside Dao Qizhan, his fingers forming a sword shape as he pointed at Dao Qizhan.

In an instant, all the power struck this spot, ready to explode and destroy everything in its path. It was almost like a self-destruct attack, the only difference being that the power was concentrated at the fingertips of two fingers, exploding in one go.

However, at the very moment Lin Jie made his move, he witnessed an unbelievable scene.

Looking at Lin Jie, Dao Qizhan actually smiled.

The Sword God smiled! Time seemed to stand still at that moment! Dao Qizhan, who never smiled before, actually smiled at this moment.

The two should have lost all sense of time, but at this moment, it was as if time had stopped. Facing Lin Jie's deadly attack, Dao Qizhan simply extended a finger and flicked it lightly at Lin Jie.

In the blink of an eye, Lin Jie felt time, space, and everything else rapidly reversing. When he finally came to his senses, he was lying on a grassland on Earth, staring blankly at the sky, speechless.

What exactly was that? Lin Jie couldn't see it, and he couldn't understand it at all. What exactly did Dao Qizhan do? Lin Jie couldn't understand it either. It was as if he had just stretched out a finger, yet it had sent Lin Jie flying back to Earth, hundreds of light-years away. And the image that ultimately remained in Lin Jie's mind was merely the image of the Sword God's smile.

"Is this the realm of transcendence? What exactly did Dao Qizhan see? What did he understand? I really can't figure it out." Lin Jie said, trying to sit up. "But back then, Dao Qizhan could have easily killed me with a flick of his finger..."

Just as Lin Jie was muttering these words to himself, a flash of light appeared in his mind once again. It was the last message Dao Qizhan had left him, and when Lin Jie turned around, he also saw a wooden sword stuck beside him. Lin Jie wasn't quite sure what the two ancient characters on it were, but he could guess that they read 'Destroy the Dao'.

"So that's how it is! I really escaped a disaster! Thank goodness." With a sigh, Lin Jie lay down on the ground once again.

"Hehe, did you win? Since you came back alive, you must have won." A demon girl appeared beside Lin Jie and sat down on the grass with her knees drawn up.

"Are you mocking me? I clearly lost! I got a severe slap in the face and a lesson learned." Lin Jie sighed helplessly, "This guy is a monster!"

"Hehe, that person, I doubt there will be another one like him in the whole world! In your old saying, he's unprecedented and will never be seen again. Although he's still a little bit short in some ways."

"Huh? There are people stronger than him?"

"Hehe, of course I was just kidding. If he can't even beat you, then there's no one in the world stronger than him." The girl said with a smile, "But it's really a pity that you didn't die."

"That's just a lie to me too," Lin Jie suddenly said upon hearing the girl's words.

"Honestly, I really can't spend too much time with one person." The girl said helplessly, "That's right, I was worried! Worried to death! Are you satisfied now? But if you hadn't won, the universe should have been destroyed, right? Why are we still okay? Even after transcending, do we still not have that kind of power?"

"At least in my opinion, it's just a matter of lifting a finger. Destroying the universe or something." Lin Jie smiled and said to the girl, "But thanks to his transcendence, the world doesn't actually need to be destroyed."

"Huh? Why is that?"

"Because transcendence means surpassing everything in this world! Simply put, everything in this world no longer has any meaning for him! After obtaining something of a higher order, everything in this world, even concepts and ideas, loses meaning for Dao Qizhan. This is the last message he left me. Since it has lost its meaning, he naturally has no interest in doing such things. To put it simply, would you be so bored as to bother with a grain of sand? Moreover, the concept of destruction itself has no meaning for Dao Qizhan! Not only physical objects and rules, but even the concepts and imaginations that humanity has created have lost their meaning for Dao Qizhan."

In fact, it's impossible to imagine the current Dao Seven Slashes using our existing concepts. If our brains could imagine it, then it wouldn't be transcending a realm; transcending everything naturally includes imagination.

"Hehe, that sounds really impressive! What kind of realm is it?" Hearing Lin Jie's words, the girl became curious instead.

"If I could imagine that kind of realm, I would have transcended it as well," Lin Jie sighed helplessly.

"But I really didn't expect that you, who have practiced the True Martial Hundred Battles, would actually lose to Dao Qi Zhan in the end." The girl suddenly said to Lin Jie.

"Thinking about it carefully, isn't it only natural that I lost?" Lin Jie laughed instead: "One is a martial arts fanatic who is brave and determined to move forward, even if it means abandoning everything, while the other is a lazy person who doesn't want to continue and just wants to stay where he is. No matter how you look at it, the one who keeps striving to improve should win, right?"

"Hehe, that doesn't seem wrong!" The girl said, standing up. "Alright, now that I see you're safe and sound, I should go and explore the world."

Are you really leaving?

"The world is so big, wouldn't it be interesting to see more of it? Besides, with my strength, do you think there's any danger in this world?"

"That's true." Lin Jie said helplessly, and in the end, he only watched as the girl left in front of him.

……

When Lin Jie returned home, his house had been cleaned up, as if the previous farce had never happened. Looking at the time, Lin Jie realized that only a few hours had passed.

"You're back? Let's eat. I cooked today." Seeing Lin Jie return, Tian Xiaoshu said to him, then went to the kitchen to bring out the food. Now, only Lin Wan, Lin Mumu, Cui Siti, and Tian Xiaoshu remained in Lin Jie's house.

"Brother, you're such a troublemaker! All you ever do is cause trouble. Cleaning up the house took so much effort!" Lin Wan complained, serving Lin Jie a bowl of rice.

"Alright, it's not Lin Jie's fault," Tian Xiaoshu couldn't help but say.