The aura of the Primordial Chaos spilled everywhere. This was, by nature, an aura of absolute, supreme power.

“So you are Lu Yuan.” The young man with a square jaw, clad in the Black Jade Qilin battle armor, fixed his gaze on Lu Yuan, completely ignoring everyone else from the Sword Gate. In his eyes, they were nothing but ants; only Lu Yuan warranted attention. “I hear you have some accomplishments, defeating that good-for-nothing, the Son of the Sword, and showing some performance in low-level contests like the Sect Ranking Wars.”

Who was this man? What arrogance! To call the Son of the Sword trash right away, and then to dismiss the pinnacle combat of a supreme sect like the Sect Ranking Wars as ‘low-level’!

Yet, the way this man spoke did not convey mere arrogance; it sounded as if these things were simply his due. As if he were born inherently entitled to such status.

“Who are you?” Lu Yuan questioned, bearing down under immense pressure.

“The Son of the Desolation, or you may call me the Son of the Epoch. This epoch is the Epoch of Desolation, so naturally, I am the Son of the Epoch,” the young man in the Black Jade armor stated dismissively.

Son of the Desolation! The foremost of the Seven Sons of Destiny.

Lu Yuan recalled the words the Son of the Immortal had spoken to him. “You had better not go to the Sacred Land of Civilization, or if you run into the Son of the Desolation, he will kill you.” At that time, the Son of the Immortal had shown a flicker of genuine dread on his face. The strongest among the Seven Sons of Destiny! A figure that even the Son of the Immortal, who had triumphed over the Son of the Sword, recalled with lingering fear. The man who intended to kill him had finally appeared before him.

Lu Yuan had also gathered intelligence on the Son of the Desolation. He knew that this man’s Fortune was unparalleled; nearly everything he set out to do succeeded without fail. What was the Son of the Sword compared to the Son of the Desolation? Nothing but dog dung. Though both belonged to the Seven Sons of Destiny, the gap between the Son of the Sword and the Son of the Desolation was vast beyond measure.

Meanwhile, everyone in the Sword Gate was going insane. The Son of the Desolation, the foremost of the Seven Sons of Destiny, had actually arrived, and his presence was so terrifying it seemed capable of effortlessly annihilating all existence. Desolation (Huang) was inherently the bane of the Sword, and the Son of the Desolation was the bane of banes. Such a person could seemingly destroy everything.

“I had indeed heard of your reputation before and assumed you were merely an ant, so I paid you no mind,” the young man in the Black Jade armor gently swayed the Fangtian Halberd in his hand. “But since you managed to defeat the Son of the Sword, perhaps you are not entirely an ant and warrant my direct action. Today will be your death day. If you blame anyone, blame yourself for being a practitioner of the Sword Path.”

“This Halberd is the Primordial Chaos!” As the Son of the Desolation swept his hand, the Primordial Chaos Divine Halberd hurtled directly toward Lu Yuan. It manifested as an immense torrent of Primordial Chaos energy. Lu Yuan, almost instinctively, drew his Nurturing My Immortal Sword and, in this single strike, imbued it with the factor of the Sword that Counters Desolation, achieving an effect identical to the Sword that Counters Desolation.

Hiss!

The Son of the Desolation’s thrust was exquisite in its precision. But had Lu Yuan truly blocked it?

In an instant, Lu Yuan heard a screeching sound emanating from his Nurturing My Immortal Sword. Clang! The Sword shattered! That was right, the Sword shattered! At that precise moment, a massive chip was broken off the Nurturing My Immortal Sword! Moreover, immense Primordial Chaos power slammed fiercely into Lu Yuan. The Sword that Counters Desolation could indeed counter Desolation, just as water counters water—but a cup of water cannot extinguish a raging inferno. The principle was the same now.

Lu Yuan’s entire body was violently struck by this incomparably vast force of Primordial Chaos, and that terrifying power penetrated deep into his physique. How immense was this power!

Although Lu Yuan possessed the Supreme Body of Softness and Hardness, he was still impacted deeply within his body. Simultaneously, this force began to wreak havoc inside him. Lu Yuan tried to activate the Sword that Counters Desolation, but found it fiercely suppressed. What manner of terrifying magical power was this? Lu Yuan’s meridians were instantly riddled with severe, repeated injuries.

Defeated in one move! This was the Son of the Desolation! The foremost of the Seven Sons of Destiny! Or the Son of the Epoch. Facing the Son of the Desolation, even with the Sword that Counters Desolation, he was defeated in a single exchange!

Lu Yuan abruptly spat out a mouthful of blood.

Of course, he had no time to ponder these matters now; he had to survive. He absolutely could not die here. A fierce fighting spirit surged within Lu Yuan’s heart.

The Son of the Desolation seemed slightly surprised. “Oh, you actually survived my first strike without dying. You do possess some skill. Now, for the second strike.” An ancient, primordial divine dragon burst forth from his halberd, charging directly at Lu Yuan. At that precise moment, Ancestor Jianmie immediately activated the Sword Gate’s Ultimate Defense Formation.

This Ultimate Defense Formation of the Sword Gate was no ordinary structure! Back when the Mad Sect’s power surpassed the Sword Gate, it still took them over a month to blast through the Sword Gate’s ultimate defense array, even deploying ultimate weapons in the process. This demonstrated the formidable might of the Sword Gate’s grand formation.

Ancestor Jianmie inwardly believed the Sword Gate’s Ultimate Defense Formation should be able to withstand the Son of the Desolation’s attack for a while, but in just an instant, facing the blow from the Primordial Chaos Divine Halberd, the Sword Gate’s Ultimate Defense Formation was pulverized into dust! What? Destroyed into smithereens by a single strike?

And the residual force continued toward Lu Yuan. Lu Yuan brought up the Nurturing My Immortal Sword to block, but this defense only caused the breach on his sword to widen further. Simultaneously, Lu Yuan’s injuries worsened; he could barely muster any energy at all. Lu Yuan had never imagined that facing the Son of the Desolation would result in such a state—severely wounded by just two strikes, nearly unable to fight back.

The foremost Son of Destiny, the Son of the Epoch, was truly terrifying.

The Son of the Desolation gripped the Primordial Chaos Divine Halberd. “It seems you are destined to perish under my third strike. The third strike.” He unleashed the third blow, which transformed into a roaring, ancient divine dragon hurtling towards Lu Yuan. At that instant, a gigantic palm materialized in the void, forcefully grasping the roaring ancient divine dragon.

However, the roaring divine dragon thrashed incessantly, forcing the enormous hand to retreat several steps.

Simultaneously, a middle-aged man materialized in the void, completely imbued with the profound mysteries of magic. This man’s countenance radiated majesty, and his entire being pulsed with arcane subtleties, representing the very essence of sorcery. It was the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage from the Dharma Ancient Civilization. When the Desolation Imperial Son had intended to kill Lu Yuan in the past, it was the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage who arrived; and this time, it was the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage who reappeared.

The Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage had happened upon this area by chance and intervened upon witnessing the situation.

After intercepting the Son of the Desolation’s third strike, the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage spoke, “Son of the Desolation, Son of the Epoch, grant this Imperial Son some face, won't you?” The Dharma Ancient Civilization was slightly stronger than the Desolation Ancient Civilization, and the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage was a key figure in the Dharma Ancient Civilization. This time, he was intervening to plead for Lu Yuan.

“Grant you face? On what grounds?” the Son of the Desolation sneered. “The Desolation Imperial Son may owe you face, but that doesn’t mean I do.” The Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage paused, hearing this. “In that case, we shall see just how strong you, the Son of the Epoch, truly are.” The Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage knew the Son of the Desolation’s potential far surpassed his own, but having lived for so many years, his accumulated strength made him unafraid of the Son of the Desolation. Furthermore, Lu Yuan was practically his semi-brother-in-law, so he was determined to protect him.

In a flash, the Son of the Desolation and the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage engaged in a flurry of clashes in the void. This exchange was arguably the fiercest battle below the Civilization Realm.

After the time it takes half an incense stick to burn, the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage fell back with a thud onto the Sword Gate Star, causing the star to shake violently. The Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage was defeated!

Yes, facing the Son of the Desolation, even the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage was vanquished.

It must be noted that the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage was a veteran of the Half-Step Civilization Realm.

The Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage rose again, his face pale. “Son of the Desolation, your strength has advanced again. Your current power is nearly enough to place you within the Fifty Heavenly Ranks.” The Fifty Heavenly Ranks referred to fifty individuals who had long since achieved the Half-Step Civilization Realm and were poised to challenge the true Civilization Realm. Within the Fifty Heavenly Ranks, there were not only Half-Step Civilization Realm experts but also ancient monstrosities possessing a Civilization Realm heart, Civilization Realm hands, Civilization Realm eyes, and so on. Once one reached the Civilization Realm, they were fundamentally different from those below. Those who could borrow a part of a Civilization Realm body were all unimaginably formidable.

These figures were collectively known as the Fifty Heavenly Ranks!

Moreover, very few people knew about these Fifty Heavenly Ranks; the average person had no qualification to even hear the term. Since the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage had remained long in the Half-Step Civilization Realm, and the Evil Extreme Heavenly Venerable in the Tenth Heaven of the World Realm, they had the knowledge. Now, the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage realized the Son of the Desolation’s power was so high that he was subtly strong enough to squeeze into the Fifty Heavenly Ranks.

“Indeed, my strength has progressed. Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage, you think you can stop me? Even if the Son of Dharma joined you, you could not stop me.” Such confident words, yet his confidence was backed by substance. He was the Son of the Epoch, and he had just defeated an established figure like the Imperial Son of the Dharma Sage.

The Son of the Desolation held the Primordial Chaos Divine Halberd, advancing step by step toward Lu Yuan. Countless dimensions of space and time vibrated beneath his feet; he seemed to represent the sole, ultimate truth between heaven and earth.

“Lu Yuan, today I will have your life. It is your honor to die by the hand of this Epoch’s Son. No matter who it is, above or below, no one can stop me from killing you, because I am the Son of the Epoch.” The Son of the Desolation spoke each word deliberately, unleashing his full might.

Lu Yuan abruptly coughed up another mouthful of blood!

The gap in strength was too vast! Damn it!

Since entering the Central Heavenly Dynasty, his journey had been smooth sailing; he had never encountered an opponent who could so thoroughly dominate him. And throughout this entire progression, he had admittedly grown somewhat arrogant, especially after defeating the Son of the Sword, one of the Seven Sons of Destiny. He had truly become conceited. Now, facing the foremost of the Seven Sons of Destiny, the Son of the Desolation, he had suffered an enormous, crushing defeat. This level of oppression was unprecedented in his life.