Journey to the West: Signing in for 500 Years-Chapter 610 - 604: Lord Yuan Shi’s Strong Attack on the Flowing Sand River [Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets]_1

Lord Yuan Shi was once again speechless. Sha Chen's words cut deep, attacking not just his actions but his very intentions. Moreover, Sha Chen showed him absolutely no deference, yet Lord Yuan Shi could find no reason to refute him. Because, as Sha Chen had asserted, even if he were to comply, Lord Yuan Shi wouldn't simply let him off the hook.

His demand for the peach and ginseng trees, along with the Innate Earth, was merely an excuse. If Sha Chen really gave them to him, Lord Yuan Shi would press on relentlessly, demanding even more. If Sha Chen refused, he would have an excuse to deal with him. Alternatively, he could feign a retreat and demand less, which would still serve as a future opening to demand more. In short, it was merely a pretext and an opportunity for him, a gambit that allowed him to advance or retreat as he saw fit.

But Lord Yuan Shi had absolutely not expected Sha Chen to be so unyielding and to ruthlessly expose his true colors. This forced Lord Yuan Shi into a direct confrontation. This wasn't his primary objective; otherwise, he could have made his move years ago. Why else would he have laid out so many plans and investigated for so long, only to come here now? Yet, he had been fully confident, certain that Sha Chen would comply obediently, never anticipating such firm resistance.

What he least expected was that his martial brothers, the Tongtian Hierarch and Laozi, had long intended to accept Sha Chen as a disciple. Consequently, his own status as a Saint seemed far less impressive. Furthermore, his words no longer held any threat; Sha Chen did not seem to fear him initiating an attack at all.

In fact, Sha Chen was indeed worried that Lord Yuan Shi would forcefully attack the Flowing Sand River. But he understood that worry was futile. If Lord Yuan Shi truly intended to storm the Flowing Sand River, Sha Chen couldn't stop him. The only thing he could do was rely on his own formidable strength to keep Lord Yuan Shi out of his cave abode.

Lord Yuan Shi also knew that continuing to exchange pointless words with Sha Chen was futile. The only thing left to do was to smash Sha Chen's cave abode and drag him out.

"Since you are so blindly obstinate and dare to speak insolently to me, then don't blame me for showing no mercy!" Lord Yuan Shi bellowed. "Take this!"

He condensed Imperial Gods' Thunder in his palm—one of his signature abilities from among the Three Thousand Dao Techniques. Sha Chen had learned this Divine Power long ago and had even Cultivated it to the Great Perfection Realm. However, he didn't use the Imperial Gods' Thunder to confront Lord Yuan Shi, because this Divine Power had been developed by Lord Yuan Shi himself. Even if Sha Chen had achieved Great Perfection, he couldn't contend with its creator in this specific art.

BOOM!

The Divine Thunder struck the Flowing Sand River Cave but had no effect whatsoever. It didn't even cause the cave to tremble. Lord Yuan Shi had seemingly anticipated this. Although the Imperial Gods' Thunder was formidable and one of his signature techniques, it was not his most powerful Divine Power. Indeed, after he became a Saint, this particular Divine Power was but a minor technique to him. He usually passed this technique to his disciples as a signature Divine Power of their sect, but it certainly wasn't his strongest offensive ability.

Lord Yuan Shi continued to employ other Divine Powers, gradually probing the strength of the cave abode's defenses. After bombarding it relentlessly for an hour, Lord Yuan Shi's expression slowly turned grave. He likely realized that the Flowing Sand River Cave was impenetrable. He ascertained after attempting it himself that relying solely on Divine Powers was likely insufficient to breach the cave. Zhenyuanzi, Tathagata, and Saint Zhunti had undoubtedly tried before him, all to no avail. Now, his own attempt had similarly failed.

Despite his solemn countenance, he was still full of confidence. Everything had a weakness. Even if the Flowing Sand River Cave was impregnable and his Saintly Divine Powers couldn't break through by force, if brute force was ineffective, he could resort to cunning. Finding the cave's weakest point would reveal its vulnerability. Then, with clever Divine Power techniques, a breach might be possible. His unrelenting attacks just now served not only to probe but also to locate this weak point.

He possessed a Divine Power that could detect weaknesses. Furthermore, in his hands, he held the Heavenly Measure, an artifact that could break anything. It was used to measure the expanse of heaven and earth and was capable of finding the weaknesses in all things. He had now spotted a weak point in the cave's defenses, but it was constantly shifting, making it difficult to target. So, Lord Yuan Shi took out the Heavenly Measure and began to track and lock onto that weakness.

Inside the cave abode, Sha Chen frowned deeply upon seeing Lord Yuan Shi's confident demeanor and the appearance of the Heavenly Measure. He sensed danger.

Siti quickly said, "That is the Heavenly Measure, forged from the Tongtian Tree and Heaven-mending Stone! It can measure the vastness of heaven and earth and also find the weaknesses in all things." She continued, "Though the Flowing Sand River Cave is said to be impregnable, everything has its weaknesses. I've also heard that Lord Yuan Shi possesses a Divine Power capable of perceiving these weaknesses. Combined with the Heavenly Measure, he'll be like a tiger that has grown wings!"

Yao Yue stepped forward as well. "I've heard of this too. Master, we must be cautious."

The three Phoenix sisters immediately transformed into their true phoenix forms, ready to fight to the death if necessary.

Sha Chen had already gone all out, manifesting his three heads and six arms, and held various Divine Powers and Magical Tools in his grasp. At the same time, he began to prepare to claim his system reward, intending to acquire the Heavenly Measure for himself. However, the system's rewards weren't always immediate; the process could be long or short, though he hadn't experienced any overly lengthy waits before.

But now that Lord Yuan Shi planned to use the Heavenly Measure against the Flowing Sand River Cave, if he indeed found a weakness and broke in, then even Sha Chen acquiring his own Heavenly Measure would be useless.

BANG!

Lord Yuan Shi unleashed the power of the Heavenly Dao, wielding the Heavenly Measure to strike hard at that weak point in the Flowing Sand River Cave's defenses.

CRACK!

Indeed, he found it. With a Saint's unique perception, he struck the weak spot precisely, instantly shattering the cave's outer defensive layer.

Sha Chen frowned intently, his body wreathed in lightning and flames.

A faint smile touched the corners of Lord Yuan Shi's mouth. "Sha Chen, this first layer of defense is only the beginning. Once I break through all your subsequent defenses, the Flowing Sand River will be as accessible to me as my own backyard."

He continued searching for vulnerabilities, and this time, the Apricot Yellow Flag of Wuji was targeted. The Apricot Yellow Flag of Wuji was renowned as the second-strongest defensive Magical Tool in the Three Realms. Having been repeatedly Refined and strengthened by Sha Chen, its defensive capabilities were now on par with the Eight-Treasure Exquisite Pagoda. But whether it could withstand the Heavenly Measure in Lord Yuan Shi's hands was truly uncertain.

A moment later, Lord Yuan Shi struck again. The Heavenly Measure smashed down, splitting the Apricot Yellow Flag of Wuji in two. Myriad lotuses bloomed forth, only to be instantly shattered. The Apricot Yellow Flag of Wuji was also broken.

Yao Yue and Siti grew even more anxious. The three Phoenix sisters began to cry out, prepared to fight the Saint to the death, even if it meant their mutual destruction.

Sha Chen's eyes glinted. "The system still hasn't given me the Heavenly Measure," he said grimly. "It seems I can't wait any longer. I must strike first! Otherwise, by the time he attacks the innermost defenses, even if he can't break through immediately, my cave abode will be reduced to ruins!"