Summoning the Outer Path Statue did not bring Uchiha Madara much joy; instead, he muttered a displeased "Tsk" under his breath.
"Two useless fools. After all these years, not even a single tailed beast was captured. But no matter—this Outer Path Statue alone is enough for me to secure victory."
Madara leapt high into the air, landing atop the head of the Outer Path Statue. He clasped his hands together in a seal.
There was no immediate reaction, but this calm lasted only a few seconds. The eerie statue let out a piercing roar and, with a powerful flex of its arms, shattered the chains binding its hands.
Once freed from its restraints, the Outer Path Statue unleashed its terrifying power. A single stomp caused the earth to wither, crack apart, and split open. Even the perpetually overcast sky, which had been drenched in endless rain, began to clear gradually.
The cause of all this was the Outer Path Statue absorbing the natural energy of the world—or rather...
"Primordial essence, innate divine light—the very source of life that constitutes a planet's existence. This is what the Ōtsutsuki clan seeks.
How terrifying, the Ten-Tails. If left unchecked, the ninja world would be completely drained within a few thousand years, turning into a dead star. I cannot allow you to continue like this, Uchiha Madara."
Ye Wen murmured softly, then prepared to act. After all, this planet served as the bridgehead for the Douluo God Realm's war efforts—it could not be lost.
Though Madara was the true master who summoned the Ten-Tails, even he couldn't fully bear the cost of wielding such an abomination. Instead, he relied on the Outer Path Statue to draw upon the natural energy of the world as its power source.
Watching Kakashi charge toward him, Madara's eyes flickered with mockery. It was already too late for them to act against him now.
"Kill him!"
The Outer Path Statue opened its grotesque maw wide, energy gathering and glowing purple. A chakra dragon formed from pure chakra surged forth, hurtling straight toward Ye Wen.
Seeing this, Ye Wen frowned. This ability had originally been used by Nagato when he first summoned the Outer Path Statue. Though it didn't have a specific name, Ye Wen clearly remembered its effects: upon touching a living being, it forcibly stripped away their soul and chakra—a perfect combination of the Human Path and Preta Path abilities.
Moreover, this technique also possessed physical attack capabilities.
Ye Wen quickly realized why Madara had chosen this move. It was aimed at countering his Interdimensional Space, which rendered him immune to physical attacks. By targeting his soul directly, Madara sought to bypass this defense.
It also served as a test to see if Ye Wen possessed the ability to traverse dimensions completely, like Obito.
Madara's confident demeanor was undeniably impressive, but alas, having never fought external beings beyond his native world, his perspective remained limited.
Facing the charging chakra dragon head-on, Ye Wen neither dodged nor retreated. He raised his right arm, and a white circular halo appeared.
"Spatial Shockwave!"
The atmosphere shattered at this moment. The chakra dragon clashed fiercely with the powerful shockwave, neither side yielding.
For a moment, the immense forces were locked in a stalemate.
Ye Wen hadn't expected the Outer Path Statue, despite having most of its chakra drained, to still possess such formidable strength—it had already reached the threshold of a third-tier god.
But even so, it wasn't enough to defeat him.
Unwilling to play fair, Ye Wen's left hand also began to glow as he swung it forward.
"The waves of the Yangtze push forward," he thought. At this moment, two powerful spatial shockwaves converged into one, widening and intensifying the cracks in the atmosphere. The chakra dragon faltered and began to crumble piece by piece.
A gale far stronger than a Category 10 typhoon blasted forward. Even Madara had to channel chakra into his feet to anchor himself firmly to the head of the Outer Path Statue.
Madara's eyes narrowed slightly, his deep gaze fixed intently on Ye Wen.
As a member of the Uchiha clan, one of the ninja world's most ancient and prestigious families, Madara knew—even though many of the clan's historical records had been lost—that the ninja world had never seen a bloodline limit like this. Not even the Dust Release techniques mastered by the Second Tsuchikage or the Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki, could compare to the Spatial Shockwave just used by Kakashi.
"What has happened to the ninja world during my absence? My ultimate 'All-Creation' power feels… inadequate against this man."
Watching Ye Wen charge toward him once more, Madara rose to his feet, his eyes filled with pride.
"A worthy opponent indeed. It would be dull if my resurrection were solely for executing the Infinite Tsukuyomi Plan.
Come! Let me witness your strength, brat!"
At this moment, though Madara and the Outer Path Statue had not yet achieved the complete unity of a Ten-Tails jinchūriki, they had truly synchronized.
A blue Susanoo enveloped the entire body of the Outer Path Statue. Six Paths: Beast Calamity activated!
Though it was the same old technique, Ye Wen keenly noticed that this Beast Calamity was not as simple as it seemed. The seemingly ordinary Susanoo chakra carried the traits of both the Human Path and Preta Path—any contact would harm the soul and drain chakra.
Even someone as proud as the Warlord of the Ninja World had resorted to subtle tricks when facing an opponent like him. It was almost an honor.
Ye Wen grinned, seemingly oblivious to Madara's hidden moves.
A mountain-like fist descended, but Ye Wen neither dodged nor retreated, charging straight upward.
This time, Ye Wen didn't use Spatial Shockwave. Instead, he used Kakashi's physical body to clash head-on with the Outer Path Statue.
Inside the crystalline structure, Madara's expression changed. He realized that his Rinnegan's abilities were ineffective against this man.
Before Madara could process this, the immense force sent the Outer Path Statue stumbling backward several steps. Seizing the opportunity, Ye Wen leapt through the air, heading straight for Madara.
With life and death cast aside, Madara showed no trace of panic or anxiety. With a wave of his hand, he materialized two long swords and swung them toward Ye Wen in midair.
"You think you can take me down like this? Who do you think I am?! I am Uchiha Madara, the Warlord of the Ninja World!"
With a thunderous roar from Madara, the Outer Path Statue unleashed an intricate and precise sword technique. Even against an opponent as small as Ye Wen, the precision was terrifyingly sharp.
Ye Wen couldn't help but admire the sheer skill of the Warlord of the Ninja World.
Such a person—if he were to die here—would be a waste.
In terms of combat technique alone, Madara, with a thousand years of accumulated knowledge, was undoubtedly the strongest. Neither the future taijutsu master Might Guy nor the Ōtsutsuki clan members of the future could surpass him in skill.
Alas, human strength had its limits.
Madara was strong, but Ye Wen, with thousands of years of accumulated power, was stronger still.
A divine punch shattered the Susanoo—
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