On either side of a gate that had existed since the dawn of eternity, the world's first light and its original darkness were born.
The difference was that the light represented everything beautiful in the world. After its birth, it departed, and in its wake gave rise to the myriad wonders of this heaven and earth.
But the darkness behind the gate remained, sealed away by it. Day after day, year after year—even as that original darkness birthed its own consciousness, it could not break free. It could only sink deeper into that endless void and silence.
And yet, even as the original darkness, it craved and yearned for the light!
If not for Mu's mercy and countless years of relentless effort, it would have remained sealed behind that gate forever, unable to escape.
Why should it!
They were born at the same time—why could the light leave while the darkness had to remain and endure that loneliness?
Mo threw down a fist, and the question was not directed at Zhang Ruoxi, but at the unjust heavens.
Zhang Ruoxi held the Heavenly Punishment Sword before her and blocked the furious blow. Her body was sent flying instantly, reduced to a speck of white light.
But she returned just as quickly, standing before Mo, her brow furrowed as she studied him.
She could tell something was off about Mo's current state.
Just as Mo had said during his confrontation with Mu's shadow earlier, Mu and the others had been right to seal him within the Primordial Heaven Great Seal all those years ago.
As his power grew ever greater, the consciousness born from that very power was losing its ability to control it. If Mu and the other ten had not sealed him back then, the human race would have ceased to exist long ago.
Yang Kai had traversed over two thousand universe worlds and sealed away thirty percent of his source power. While that weakened his strength, it had also, in a roundabout way, helped him—allowing his consciousness to remain dominant over his power.
But the moment he saw Zhang Ruoxi and felt the opposing force within her, the power of Mo overwhelmed his mind.
Light and darkness had always been opposing forces.
Only because of the gate's barrier could they both come into being at the same time.
Now, with the two forces facing each other head-on, an irreconcilable battle was born in an instant!
Boundless Mo power surged and gathered into a sea, as if to shroud the entire void. The dark power churned and writhed, wrapping around Zhang Ruoxi, swallowing her form in an instant.
The wings behind Zhang Ruoxi fluttered gently, and the Heavenly Punishment Sword tapped lightly forward. Where its tip made contact, light erupted, dispelling the darkness's hold.
But seizing the opening, Mo closed the distance in a single step, both fists transforming into a sky full of fist shadows that descended upon Zhang Ruoxi.
Zhang Ruoxi raised her sword to block, retreating step after step, her heart gripped by horror.
After years of bitter cultivation in the Chaotic Death Domain, harmonizing the Solar and Lunar powers through her Heavenly Punishment bloodline, her own strength had undergone an earth-shattering transformation.
In terms of sheer individual might, she was more powerful than even the Divine Titans. Mo Clan sovereign-level powerhouses could not last three moves against her.
Yet now, facing Mo's frenzied assault, she was completely outmatched—not his equal at all.
The world's first light had departed after its birth, splitting into the Solar and Lunar powers before crashing into the Sacred Spirit Ancestral Ground, giving rise to the many Sacred Spirits and, ultimately, the Heavenly Punishment bloodline.
If she could gather the Solar and Lunar powers along with the strength of all the Sacred Spirits, then harmonize them through her Heavenly Punishment bloodline, Zhang Ruoxi should be able to recreate the power of that first light.
But throughout the vast stretch of history, too many Sacred Spirits had perished. Those that remained were but a small fraction of the original whole.
So even if Zhang Ruoxi had the will, she could no longer recreate the first light's full power.
In other words, the power she wielded now was incomplete.
Conversely, Mo's power was equally incomplete. She could sense that much of his source was missing.
Both existed in an incomplete state, and yet Mo still held an absolute advantage—for over these countless years, Mo had never stopped growing stronger.
After only a brief exchange, Zhang Ruoxi knew she was outmatched. In her current state, she could delay defeat for at most the time it took an incense stick to burn. After that, she would inevitably fall.
And seeing the savage, murderous look on Mo's face—the look of someone who would kill her without a shred of hesitation—defeat meant only one thing: death!
There was no other choice!
Zhang Ruoxi let out a soft sigh. Seizing the brief gap between blocking Mo's attacks, she reached out toward a certain direction with an open hand and murmured, "Come!"
Outside the Primordial Heaven Great Seal, a brutal battle had already erupted.
When Zhang Ruoxi had been present, her solitary power had been enough to keep the entire Mo Clan too afraid to act rashly—all of them had hidden within that boundless darkness, not daring to show themselves.
But once she was gone, the Mo Clan simultaneously sensed the resurgence of their supreme power. No longer held in check by fear, they began to stir.
They emerged from the darkness to face the Little Stone Clan's army.
In an instant, unbroken flames of war erupted across the entire void.
The Little Stone Clan still commanded an army of several hundred million, but the Mo Clan that poured out of that boundless darkness numbered far beyond that—this was Mo's accumulation over a million years, and the sheer quantity was beyond imagination.