1062 Reasonable Stubborness
Lightning Fist gathered all her Immortal Qi and converted them into Lightning and thunder that surrounded her hands. Then, with unparalleled speed, she rushed toward Xu Shi and punched her a billion times in less than an attosecond.
Meanwhile, the Void Time Empress calmly evaded these punches without a single piece of perspiration on her forehead, looking as elegant as always. Additionally, Xu Shi raised her two fingers and, with a swift motion, blocked Qian Heng's ax, pushing him a dozen meters away.
Snake Saber perfectly times his attack. According to his calculations, Xu Shi should not have had time to respond as her focus and strength were on someone else. So, his eyes glowed with excitement as he envisioned the beautiful sight of his saber cutting through her beautiful flesh. Sadly for him, his saber passed through her as if she had never existed.
He then remembered that this woman controlled a powerful law: time. He clicked his tongue before retreating to the back; his way of fighting involved fighting his opponent's flaw and attacking at the perfect opportunity.
"You should understand that this battle is pointless," said Xu Shi, her voice calm yet powerful. "So, why don't you listen to my words before fighting?"
"It seems you've become even more arrogant since we last met," sneered Qian Heng.
"I'm just showing you the vast difference between us," replied Xu Shi. "And my power still pales in comparison to him. You can talk to me, but no one can resist once he descends."
Qian Heng and the others frowned, but the ax wielder's facial expression soon returned to his resolute self, "It doesn't matter who our enemy is. Our Martial Hegemony World has enough of foreign powers intervening in the sovereignty of our world. So, we will fight until the last one stands."
"Then you will all die as fools."
"Death is better than subjugation," countered Qian Heng as he raised his axes. "I've prepared this technique for you. I hope you can block it."
[Space-Time Cleaving]
He rushed toward him, and his long right arm swung the ax with such ease that it was as if it were made out of air. More importantly, the ax contained a unique momentum with the sole purpose of cleaving time itself into two.
Xu Shi did not bat an eye. Over the past 10,000 years, her strength has reached the peak of the 4-Fold Battle Realm and almost reached 5-fold. After years of study, she has also changed her battle style, incorporating her musical talent and aesthetic from her younger years.
A string that resembled one from a guqin materialized before her, but this thing was far from simple; in simple terms, it was not a string, but time itself manifested in the shape of a string.
Clink!
Qian Heng's ax hit the string, but nothing happened; he did not cleave time as he wished. The Ax Overlord Emperor (a title used because Duel Ax Emperor was already taken) facial expression contorted before releasing his second ax. His martial art and even law followed a unique principle: the second ax is always more powerful than the first one - unless he needs to use faint and prevent his enemy from reading his attacks.
Clink!
Qian Heng mobilized his Grand Dao Source and all his boosts for the second ax, and his effort was rewarded - by bending the string slightly due to the force of his attack. However, that was the extent of his attack.
"Impossible."
Xu Shi did not say a word. A string is naturally fragile, but there are ways to increase its tensile strength, like coiling it. So, she applied the same idea to this String of Time. A regular string of time was enough for Qian Heng's 2-Fold power, let alone this one.
Lightning Fist did not give up. She rushed toward Xu Shi with lightning dragons around both her arms. Madness flashed in her eyes, indicating she was willing to sacrifice her life for a clean hit with devastating effects. Alas, the difference between them was too vast.
Xu Shi plucked her string, releasing a terrifying vibration that extinguished her lightning and sent her flying a few thousand light years away. Snake Saber also took this opportunity to attack; he went above and beyond, using his best technique.
His saber not only attacked at the best opportunity but also targeted his opponent's weak spot. In Xu Shi's case, where there were no obvious weak points, his technique allowed him to create one. Xu Shi glanced at him: [Weight of Time]
Does time have weight? No, but in the hands of this Empress, its fundamental laws can be twisted or weaved as she sees fit. So, she changed time itself to behave like physical objects with the proper density, mass, and weight and had Snake Saber bear the brunch.
The evil-looking young man was forced to kneel in the void as his face contorted harsher than a twister. In the end, he exploded his body and regenerated in the distance to get away from her and this technique.
"Do you understand now?" asked Xu Shi. "This is a losing fight. Why don't you listen to me first before we start fighting?"
"Am I still breathing?" asked Qian Heng, and Xu Shi did not answer. "Then this fight is over."
"At this point, your stubbornness is annoying," Xu Shi frowned.
"You see it as stubbornness, but we see it as fighting for our world's rights, for the people's voice - for the right to control our fate, no matter what it eventually becomes."
"No one will take your rights," countered Xu Shi. "I'm here more of a business opportunity."
"Before the Celestial Harmony World invaded us, they said they only wanted to spread Taoism. But what happened? They controlled us for an entire era, committing who knows how many tragedies," sneered Qian Heng.
"It seems I have to restrain you before you can talk," Xu Shi sighed.
"Finally showing your conqueror mindset?" sneered Lightning Fist, who had returned to her position. Xu Shi was calm, and with one thought, all the chaotic space-time energy in the Endless Void became docile and available for her use. These martial artists became frightened as they realized the world around them had drastically slowed down, and they could not move no matter what they tried.
With her hands behind her back, Xu Shi slowly walked toward them, her step bouncing off the void. Less than a meter from their faces, she pointed her jade-like fingers, and a rune appeared on their forehead, sealing all their strength and power. Without her control, they would have fallen off from the void as they lost their ability to fly.
"Now we can talk properly," uttered Xu Shi. "For starters, why don't you tell me where you heard the words we were going to invade your world?"
"I have nothing to say to you."
"Qian Heng, you should understand I have shown enough restraint," continued Xu Shi. "Otherwise, I could get the information from your soul, and there is nothing you can do to stop me. So, don't make things harder than they have to."
"You!" Qian Heng looked at her with pure hatred.
"It's from the Commerce Hub, isn't it?" asked Xu Shi.
"So what if it is?"
"Don't you see they are using you as pawns?"
"Of course I do. I'm not stupid," replied Qian Heng. "After knowing the importance of the Myriad Emperor World, I knew many eyes would be on us because of our locations. However, this does not change the fact that their information was correct."
"For the last time, we're not here to invade."
"Then, why are you here?"
"Have you heard of the Heavenly Court?"
Qian Heng frowned, "I've heard some information, but the Commerce Hub seemed determined to limit the spread of this information."
"That's not normal since they don't want his majesty to get more powerful through the patent fee," nodded Xu Shi. "Let me explain."
She told them about the court and its setup, explaining that their world would not intervene in their court or hold any positions. However, they must work together to spread things like the Mortal Civilizations, Demon School, Dream World, and Enlightening Temple.
"These are just the obvious effects of our alliance, but there are more," finished Xu Shi.
"Why do we need your help to do all these things?" asked Qian Heng.
"Because they are our ideas - our inventions," countered Xu Shi.
"Fair point," nodded the Ax Overlord Emperor. "Let me say in another way: why should our world change? What if we want to preserve our way of life and our culture?"
Xu Shi stopped herself from saying because her ways were better and more developed. "Don't you think about the benefit?"
"I am indeed tempted, but I care more about preserving our martial way of Life-especially after those Taoist priests tried to eradicate us. The world does not need rapid changes but recuperation of our culture and ways."
Qian Heng knew future Emperors might feel differently and establish a Heavenly Court, but this path was not for him; it went against his ideals and beliefs of how the world needed to recuperate.
Xu Shi looked at him before looking at the other two; she saw the same convictions in those eyes, meaning it would be pointless to bypass Qian Heng. She sighed heavily, "I admire your conviction. Sadly, his majesty is determined to bring the lower dimension to the Heavenly Court Era."
Xu Shi waved her hand to free them.
"Consider this a gift for granting me the opportunity to prove the Dao," she said. "And as a last act of kindness, I won't participate in this upcoming war. But be warned, our world has more than 4 Eternal Emperors, all of whom are close to my strength or vastly surpass me. Be prepared."
She disappeared from their sight, returning to the Myriad Emperor World.
