Blood Sword Immortal Si Nan paced back and forth for a while before exiting this level of the heavenly prison and ascending to the higher floors. Although he was ordered to guard this place, he also wanted to witness the impending great battle. The Snow Mountain Immortal Sect deploying nearly the entire force of their sect to besiege the Blood Sword Sect was truly no small matter. Si Nan now understood the reason: the son of the Snow Mountain Old Ancestor, the sect master of the Snow Mountain Immortal Sect, had been encountered by the Blood Sword Old Ancestor, who ruthlessly drained him of his entire essence and blood until death. The Snow Mountain Old Ancestor had many sons, but only this one had received his utmost effort and countless elixirs. At barely one hundred and eighty years old, he had already reached the Fourth Level of Longevity, a terrifying rate of progress, nearly matching the finest disciples of top-tier sects like the Wudang Immortal Sect. And for such a son, countless efforts and precious elixirs had been expended. Yet now, he had been utterly drained by the Blood Sword Old Ancestor. The Snow Mountain Old Ancestor was naturally enraged, but under normal circumstances, even his immense anger would be useless against the Blood Sword Old Ancestor, as he couldn't locate him. However, this time, fate intervened: an elder of the Snow Mountain Immortal Sect accidentally stumbled upon the Blood Sword Sect and reported back, leading to this massive escalation. The entire Snow Mountain Immortal Sect had launched an attack. In truth, the Snow Mountain Old Ancestor's son, cultivated with untold spiritual medicines, was an immense lure. The Blood Sword Old Ancestor lusted after him, and draining him was like absorbing countless spiritual elixirs. Disciples like Lu Yuan, who relied less on external medicines for advancement, would not attract such intense desire. Thus, the method the Snow Mountain Old Ancestor used to advance his son was rarely employed by others. The Snow Mountain Old Ancestor had convinced himself that, given the scarcity of cultivators and low danger in the Western Regions, this approach was viable. The result was that his painstakingly nurtured son became a meal for the Blood Sword Old Ancestor.

Returning to the immediate incident, Blood Sword Immortal Si Nan had reached the topmost level of the heavenly prison. Using the Water Mirror Art, he observed the great battle raging within the Blood Sword Sect. The Blood Sword Sect was deeply embedded within the mountain belly, which had been reinforced to be thousands of times sturdier than ordinary cavern walls. Through the Water Mirror Art, he saw utter chaos within the mountain hollow: countless flying swords streaked about, several Spirit Swords carving paths, shattering the cavern walls. Great clouds of crimson mist were sliced apart by the myriad flying and spirit swords. A vast expanse of white snow illuminated the cavern, creating a scene of extreme brightness, extreme chaos, extreme chaos.

Si Nan felt that the fighting was impossibly disorganized. Spirit Swords! Si Nan was only at the Sixth Level of Longevity; even using the Blood Sacrifice Sword Art, he could barely match the Seventh Level. Watching the sword immortals of the Eighth Level command their Spirit Swords with such freedom filled him with a degree of envy. Seeing the Blood Sword Old Ancestor stir, causing millions of blood bubbles to float, demonstrating the divine might of a Dao Realm figure, intensified his envy, jealousy, and hatred. If only he could force the Yan Cangtian secret manual from Lu Yuan's hands, he too could certainly reach the Dao Realm. Once one reached the Dao Realm, everything changed; one could become a sovereign lord within the Great Jin Kingdom. Damn it! He absolutely had to devise a way to extract Yan Cangtian's secret manual from Lu Yuan. In the Demonic Path, there were various soul-searching techniques, but these methods were useless against cultivators who had reached the Body Tempering stage, and even less effective against those whose minds had been tempered through rigorous training. If soul-searching techniques worked, how could the secret manuals of various sects maintain any secrecy? One would only need to capture an elder to extract all their profound arts. Soul-searching methods were primarily useful against mortals. In fact, these soul-searching arts were utterly overrated; despite their great fame, they provided almost no practical results.

This level of the heavenly prison emitted a faint, soft glow. The Nascent Soul within Lu Yuan's Dantian flickered with a subtle radiance; he was preparing to act.

Yu Renhao had already entered the heavenly prison. Yu Renhao, with his sharp, thin face, gave a sinister sneer: "Gentlemen, you are aware that our Blood Sword Sect is experiencing a minor disturbance. However, be sensible now, or my Blood Sword will not spare you." Yu Renhao grinned wickedly; within these very cells, he was the living Yama.

As Yu Renhao walked down the corridor, he noticed that the prisoners in the adjacent cells automatically lowered their heads as he passed, clearly having had their spirit broken by his tortures. Yu Renhao couldn't help but laugh loudly, pacing step by step as if he were the emperor of the prison, his heart swelling with self-satisfaction. Then, as he reached Lu Yuan's cell, he saw Lu Yuan radiating an intimidating aura, showing no fear whatsoever. This instantly enraged him. He had never been able to do anything to Lu Yuan, and a knot of resentment had long been building: "Brat, you still dare to be arrogant? Let me teach you a lesson." He thought to himself that as long as he didn't beat Lu Yuan to death, Senior Brother Si would not make things difficult for him. The moment he opened the cell door, a dazzling white light suddenly erupted.

What astonishing sword qi! If one word had to describe it, it would be: A Glimpse of Astonishing Sword Light.

Yu Renhao could never have anticipated Lu Yuan suddenly drawing his sword. He should have been poisoned within the heavenly prison—how could he suddenly attack? He was caught completely off guard, and Lu Yuan’s strength surpassed his own. Moreover, the White Emperor Sword Dao boasted incredible speed. This initial thrust was impossibly swift. Although Yu Renhao desperately tried to dodge, half of his left arm was severed.

Yu Renhao was an experienced veteran. Though he didn't understand how Lu Yuan had recovered his spiritual power, he knew this was a moment for survival. If his left arm was cut at the elbow, then so be it—he severed it and tried to retreat from the cell. In truth, this retreat was partly because he already held a deep-seated fear of Lu Yuan, having been defeated by him multiple times before. But fate cruelly dictated that he could not retreat. If he had resisted head-on, with his current strength, he might have weathered a few more exchanges. But this retreat completely shattered his momentum. Coupled with the loss of his arm, Lu Yuan moved like lightning, virtually merging man and sword, driving his blade straight at Yu Renhao. The momentum of this strike had reached its absolute peak—a peerless, unmatched sword thrust. Yu Renhao only managed to scream out a sound intended to alert the entire prison, but the long sword had already pierced directly through his throat, unleashing a massive surge of spiritual power that rapidly destroyed his body from within.

Yangwu Sword was suddenly withdrawn and sheathed. Yu Renhao’s corpse tumbled down like a withered weed. While one should show restraint toward fellow righteous cultivators, there was no need for leniency toward such scum from the Blood Sword Sect.

The death of Yu Renhao by the sword naturally drew the attention of the neighboring inmates. Their eyes widened in shock, wondering how Lu Yuan had regained his power and slain Yu Renhao, who had lorded over the heavenly prison. These prisoners were remarkably cooperative; not a single one cried out. The heavenly prison fell into profound silence.

Lu Yuan smiled and stepped out of the cell. Men were descending from the upper level—it was Xi He. Si He shouted, "What's all the commotion?" When Lu Yuan killed Yu Renhao, some noise had been made, and Si He had come down to investigate, arriving just as he saw Lu Yuan standing outside the cell. Si He was startled to see Lu Yuan standing outside the cell, and then, noticing Yu Renhao’s corpse lying not far away, he exclaimed in shock, "You killed him?"

Lu Yuan smiled faintly: "In the Snow Valley, you caused me trouble many times." Lu Yuan rarely killed, having never slain a righteous cultivator, and having injured very few. But Si He had tormented him repeatedly in the Snow Valley. To show mercy now would be sheer idiocy. Heaven cherishes life, it is true, but not for scum like Si He. Lu Yuan shot forward like a streak of light. Si He instantly turned to flee, knowing full well that the claim of him, the second true disciple of the Blood Sword Sect, defeating Lu Yuan was false—it was only after his father had defeated Lu Yuan that he dared to torment him. Now that Lu Yuan was free, Si He was no match for him.

Si He fled, and Lu Yuan pursued. Si He flew using Qi manipulation. The major weakness of Qi flight is that it is slower than sword flight. Just as Lu Yuan was about to catch up to Si He, ready to cut him down with his sword, a great roar echoed: "Spare his life!" It was the Blood Sword Immortal Si Nan, alerted by the disturbance below and coming to investigate. His arrival coincided perfectly with Lu Yuan pursuing his son, and they were too close. At this distance, even if Si Nan flew on his sword, it was likely too late. Thus, he bellowed, hoping Lu Yuan would pause, giving him a chance to save Si He. Father was coming to save him—Si He’s heart leaped with joy.

The critical moment arrived! In that hair-trigger instant, Lu Yuan's long sword pierced Si He’s heart. Yangwu Sword struck heavily, puncturing the vital organ. Those in our Righteous Path—immortal heroes—must eradicate evil completely; leaving such a person alive only permits them to harm the world further. Immortal Heroes—to be both immortal and heroic. Petty compassion that allows villains to escape and plague others is neither immortal nor heroic. Just as the Buddhist sect practices subjugation and mercy, the Righteous Immortal Sects must destroy demons to save the world. Given Lu Yuan’s nature, he dislikes hunting monsters everywhere, but when evil presents itself on a silver platter, why leave it alive? With his heart pierced, the light in Si He’s eyes rapidly faded. This man has incredible audacity, daring to kill me in front of my father! His final thought was that he did not want to die. Then, he heavily crashed onto the ground.

Blood Sword Immortal Si Nan stared in disbelief; his son was murdered right before his eyes. A terrifying murderous rage swelled in his chest: "I will kill you!" But after a moment, the anger was forcibly suppressed: "Lu Yuan, you killed my son. I should kill you, but if you are willing to give me what I desire, we can consider the debt settled." What a man, Blood Sword Immortal Si Nan! The pain of his son's death was less important than Yan Cangtian's secret manual. What a ruthless character—truly deserving of the title of a fiendish path cultivator.

Lu Yuan took a deep breath. The time for revenge had finally arrived. These past few months, he had been indebted to Blood Sword Immortal Si Nan for his 'care.' Now it was time to repay him, and furthermore, Blood Sword Immortal Si Nan, I want your Blood Cloud Spirit Beast as well.