Consuming Earths, Devouring Skies

Yan Zaizen remained adrift in the vast nothingness. He wasn't being propelled by any force, neither his own or belonging to this realm. Typically, even in outer space, the body would shift slightly due to faint traces of gravity imposing its rules onto the object. However, Yan Zaizen remained unmoving.

His mind had already regained its stability and calm; his eyes looked like amber-gold lava flowed within. Only by utilizing his False Grand Dao amplification was he capable of sustaining thought, but this left him bewildered. This place seemed to contain nothing. There was nothing for billions of li in distance, and likely nothing further.

"Why does this place exist?" Questioning, Yan Zaizen felt it odd that an inter-heavenly spatial formation would produce a door into a location such as this. He had some guesses, but even then...it didn't explain why this place existed. It contained no heavenly law, no essence, and stifled the mind, cells, and soul. It was as if it contained no force, and that lack of a force was imposing an irrefutable force!

The entire scenario felt contradictory and surreal.

Pinaka was currently unconscious. Shockingly, Pinaka couldn't maintain her consciousness due to this force that was no force. It was as if her mind shut down in protection of itself. Likely, the only reason she lasted initially was due to the Dao Link they established.

"Would a bestowed dao wielder be able to maintain their consciousness?" He wasn't particularly bothered by Pinaka's unconsciousness. Her soulforce was still vibrant and lively, and only her consciousness seemed to have undergone a period of slumber.

"Haaa...enough," Yan Zaizen shook his head. He decided to reprioritize his focus - figuring out a way back to the 27th Heaven. Somehow, the inter-heavenly spatial formation tunneled from the 27th Heaven to the 7th Heaven, and he had to figure out how.

Standing upright, or at least what he thought was upright, spread out his arms. From his hands, strings of black heavenly might suffused with dark-grey wind surged outwards. They lashed here and there, penetrated through one area and another, and continued to travel for many li. These strings remained connected to his hand, feeding him information through them.

After several hours, his eyes brightened with exceptional brilliance. "So my original guess was correct. If the Border Expanse is sea, then the realms are the islands or continents. The heavens function on the same logic. This area is the thirty-three heavens Border Expanse, the area that segregates them. Despite this, it seems like the heavens are more so sub-realms, hidden within this Border Expanse...so is it different?" However, the moment his thoughts truly reached this point, he subconsciously shivered.

He recalled the hairy mouth-balls.

His pupils turned sky-blue, while his irises remained amber-gold lava flowing within, and his eyes became exceptionally beautiful. By channeling the characteristics of his soul regalia infused into his brain, he looked about with a new set of eyes. However, what startled him even further was what he found…

Nothing.

The solemness in his eyes intensified.

"Escaping isn't an issue, this entire area is connected to the 7th Heaven. A single spatial vortex connector would easily allow me to re-enter the 7th Heaven, but...where's the 27th Heaven?"

BOOM!!!

A loud explosion occurred nearby. It was ear-splitting and even caused Yan Zaizen's ears, which were refined using the Immortal Herculean Method, to bleed immediately! His head felt as if it was being pounded. "What the?!" Yan Zaizen was truly startled. Luckily, his healing factor restored the damage instantly.

A man-sized hole formulated nearby. This hole was black. It was too noticeable because this place had no color. It had no distinctions and seemed as if it didn't even exist. Nothingness wasn't defined by the color black, but by nothingness. This black hole looked as if it was a stain on a white dress, completely noticeable!

From this man-sized hole, a grey-robed figure appeared. Within the eyes of this figure was startling silver light. However, this dense silver light was restricted into his irises like flowing lava. When Yan Zaizen saw those eyes, his heart trembled. Those eyes were the eyes of a Grand False Dao Wielder!

"Who are you?!" Yan Zaizen directly asked.

However, the masked man didn't respond. Instead, he proceeded to summon a sword. There was a longsword in his right hand. This longsword gave off an aura of utter chaotic, its color being indeterminate. It was pure white, but it seemed as if it was only that because the myriad colors of the world were intermingled endlessly. It gave one a sensation of vertigo, as if they had stepped into the world of chaotic spiraling colors.

This blade was one meter long. Its edges were exceptionally sharp and terrifying. As it just stayed there in the vast nothingness, it seems as if nothingness was being cut!

Yan Zaizen grew vigilant. With a wave of his hand, Sky Shatter appeared! As it did, ripple surged from its hammer head, and the nothingness seemed to be crushed!

The masked man's eyes narrowed dangerously. His intent was pure yet intensely murderous.

Yan Zaizen didn't even bother asking another question. This man was intent on reaping away his life.

SWOOSH!!

The masked man advanced with sharp momentum. His blade at his side, it seemed as if he was ready to fight the world. The dao aura of his exuded matchless dominance of the ages!

Yan Zaizen's actions were nearly instinctual. With a step, he penetrated through the spatial void. His figure grew indistinct, but only a line of images remained as he propelled forward at breakneck speeds. The masked figure wasn't startled, this action was replied with a finger point of his free hand. The space surrounding Yan Zaizen grew chaotic!

BOOM!!

Yan Zaizen was blasted out of the spatial void, his afterimages dissipated like dust as a result. Startled, he was shocked by two things! One, the afterimages in the vast nothingness! When one shifts through the spatial void, their aura should still be prevalent, but their image was in another space entirely. An afterimage shouldn't exist!

However, in this vast nothingness, his afterimage was as clear as his own image. His brows knitted so deeply that it looked vertical. The second was the man's technique! It was as if a wall of chaos had surged in his path, pushing him out of the spatial void! The profundity of this was exceptional, beyond explainable.

Yan Zaizen's five floors erupted in brilliance, and his heavenly might surged forth in a violent momentum. It was like a grand tsunami of spacetime intent or consuming millions of li! All things it passed by seemed to be subjected to its immense force but also an undeniably powerful ripping force and instability of time. This was the spacetime-attributed heavenly might in full.

The eyes of the masked man widened slightly, but only slightly! With a calm flourish of his blade, a wave of his blade seemed a white light that seemed to embody the essence of chaos. Before a single blank occurred, the white light embedded itself in the vast tsunami of spacetime. Like sand to the wind, the heavenly might collapsed and turned into countless specks of dust!

Slowly advancing, Yan Zaizen didn't waste time linger in confusion or shock. His eyes emitted heart-pounding, steel-rending battle intent. This battle intent eclipsed the vast nothingness above, creating a sky of amber-gold that radiated the aura of his dao! His momentum continued to rise. With Sky Shatter in hand, he barreled forth with the intent to crush all before him.

Calmly watching this, the masked man softly chuckled. This chuckle was soft but echoed an incalculable amount of distance. Within the sound of this chuckle was a trace of absolute dominance! As it reached Yan Zaizen's ears, his False Grand Dao avatar, the amber-gold egg, started to tremble. Even the battle intent that painted the fake sky faded slightly.

ROAR!!

Thunderously roaring in violent reply, Yan Zaizen revealed the aura of a sovereign, of an imperial existence that could not be defied! It contained endless ferocity and unbreakable confidence. It directly whittled the influence of that chuckle to nothingness. In fact, the sky above was emitting a brilliance more magnificent than before!

"An upper-tier False Grand Dao? Even a peak one…" The masked man quietly muttered. "Humph!" His eyes that contained sharp, silver brilliance shifted. No longer did it merely contain an unmatched sharpness, but dominance! This dominance was overpowering, imperialistic, and undefiable! An eruption of light shrouded the sky, releasing intense that wasn't battle intent, but a sovereign's intent!

Yan Zaizen's eyes widened, "A Sovereign's Dao?!" This dao's strength was similar to his own, fearsome and incomparable! As these two daos clashed, the fake sky was divided into silver and amber-gold light. They clashed violently, releasing soul-shaking, ear-splitting sounds!

"He also has a False Grand Dao?!" Feeling completely shocked, oddly enough he didn't feel shocked, but excited! His stance changed, no longer did he slowly barrel forth with indomitable momentum, but remained standing upright as a steel pillar! His eyes no longer contained ferocity, but an intent that gathered all that was his dao and became complete!

Sovereign's Intent!

This intent shot into the sky from those eyes!

The battle of intents surged above in the false sky, both of their daos clashing endlessly to obtain absolute superiority! This was a battle between two sovereigns!