This single sword strike had already slain three and severely wounded one. Among those slain was Jiuhuang Zhui, who was at the peak of the World Realm, tenth heaven.

And the momentum of this sword strike had not yet dissipated. Normally, a sword strike of this nature would have ended long ago, but the pressurized energy accumulated in the Lake of the Stomach for so many years, coupled with the suppression caused by his Yangwu Sword being broken, and the further pressure of more than two years, had never truly erupted.

Therefore, this sword strike did not end. The inexhaustible strike surged directly towards the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son.

The cold edge of the sword, the bright blade. A resolute, decisive strike.

Just then, the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son, hanging in the void, paused his great hand and carved out an incredibly powerful saber technique. It was a technique reminiscent of the primordial dawn, a saber art that was simultaneously holy and enlightened.

This intensely concentrated saber energy instantly shattered the final vestiges of Lu Yuan’s sword momentum, and the sword's might finally ceased. The Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son was indeed worthy of his title; even such a formidable sword strike was effortlessly blocked by him.

However, Lu Yuan clearly understood that it was relatively simple for the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son to achieve this. His sword momentum had essentially been spent when slaying Jiuhuang Zhui.

The sword intent remained, but the force was gone, which is why the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son could so easily cleave it apart with a single saber strike. Naturally, the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son himself was sufficiently powerful, otherwise, he could not have managed it.

The Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son then unleashed a terrifying blow from the void: "Great Desolation's Impasse!" He fiercely propelled this strike downward towards the Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son. This move represented the passing of sorcery from the Great Desolation era.

The Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son, already at a disadvantage, was finally struck heavily and sent plummeting to the ground, suffering grievous injuries. The first confrontation between the Two Saint Emperor’s Sons ended with the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son winning; the second time, it was the Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son who lost.

The Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son laughed heartily, hands clasped behind his back: “Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son, this time you have lost.” He and the Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son had always been separated by the narrowest of margins, but after receiving the aid of the Son of Desolation, his strength increased, allowing him to crush the Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son’s defense. After defeating the Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son, the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son finally turned his gaze to Lu Yuan.

The situation abruptly pivoted. Initially, the Desolate Ancients held the advantage, but after Lu Yuan suddenly displayed his formidable killing power, the Dharma Ancients gained the upper hand.

However, no one expected the situation to shift again. The Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son severely wounded the Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son, causing the tide to turn once more.

After all, the most crucial battle in these contests was the clash between the two Saint Emperor’s Sons; no matter how fierce the fighting was among others, it couldn't compare to this dual confrontation. Now that the Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son, who was at the Half-Step Civilization Realm, was losing ground, the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son held the ascendancy and could sweep through the rest of the battlefield.

The sons Fa Xiaodi and Fa Qiangdi both wore expressions of utter dismay. Meanwhile, Yuan Chixin, Yuan Chijue, and the heavily wounded Jiuhuang Ba all let out a long, shaky breath.

The Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son could now settle the outcome. After crippling the Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son, the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son landed above the lake and casually flicked his fingernails twice.

Bang, bang! The two sons, Fa Xiaodi and Fa Qiangdi, were sent flying, spitting blood.

Their innate strength was already far inferior to the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son, and they had sustained devastating injuries in earlier fighting, so they were easily repelled and gravely wounded by just two flicks of the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son’s nails. And now, of the combatants remaining on both sides, only one was left standing on each.

The Desolate Ancient side retained the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son. The Dharma Ancient side retained Lu Yuan.

This brutal battle had ground down to this agonizing climax, leaving only the final two combatants. However, it was glaringly obvious that the remaining two were unevenly matched: the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son was vastly superior to Lu Yuan.

The sheer power radiating from the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son made heaven and earth tremble, while Lu Yuan’s aura seemed visibly insufficient. The Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son was at the Half-Step Civilization Realm, the strongest being below the Civilization Realm, whereas Lu Yuan still fell considerably short.

. .

. .

. .

The Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son looked at Lu Yuan: “The first time I wanted to kill you, the Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son stopped me, allowing you this much growth—enough to actually kill Jiuhuang Zhui of the World Realm, tenth heaven. It has been a long time, and you have matured considerably, but sadly, your growth ends here.” The Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son fixed his gaze on Lu Yuan: “I rarely desire to truly obliterate someone; I merely crush countless lives away casually.

But you are different. I genuinely wish to destroy you, so just submit and be annihilated by me.

I will kill you, and then I will find the location of the Sword Gate and massacre its entire sect. Oh, and that outer domain sect you hail from, I will eradicate that entirely as well.” His killing intent was monumental.

“Now, die for me.” The Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son let out a long, cold snort and drew his saber: “You possess some skill now, so know the name of my saber before you perish. My saber is named the Desolate Beast Saber.” His saber was six zhang and five fen long.

The blade was smooth and bright, and the hilt was adorned with the pattern of a wild beast, a pattern that seemed to embody the very essence of the wild. “You are powerful, Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son, but in this battle, you will lose,” Lu Yuan said softly, resting his hand on his sword.

The blade shone with pure righteousness. After gaining the Initial Text of Purity, his Yangwu Immortal Sword displayed an ever-increasing divine majesty; the sword itself seemed to possess a hint of the divine and enlightened.

Lu Yuan stated this with complete calm. What!

Lu Yuan actually thought he would win! How utterly ridiculous!

What did the Half-Step Civilization Realm signify in the Central Celestial Dynasty? Did he understand?

The Half-Step Civilization Realm signified proximity to true Civilization, holding immense authority even in the ancient civilizations. Half!

Step! Civilization!

Those four words carried absolute might! “Do you know what my saber technique is called?” the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son asked Lu Yuan.

“My saber technique is called the Desolate Beast Civilization Saber Technique—a Civilization-grade move that synthesizes the traits of Desolation and the Beast. My technique has grasped the true meaning of Desolation and the true meaning of the Beast; Civilization flows subserviently beneath my saber.” In fact, the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son had managed to defeat the Dharma Saint Emperor’s Son just now precisely by employing this Desolation-based Desolate Beast Civilization Saber Technique.

His Desolate Beast Saber slid from its sheath, and as it emerged, one could sense an aura of raw Desolation—the breath of the ferocious beasts of the Great Desolation. This saber stroke cut through the void like lightning, aiming directly at Lu Yuan.

Space seemed to be cleaved apart, and time appeared to halt under the force of this single slash. Was this truly just one strike?

As this saber moved through the void, onlookers witnessed extraordinary phenomena. They seemed to see the agile Desolate Birds soaring across the Great Desolation during the Primordial Era—their curves were graceful and perfect.

Simultaneously, they seemed to glimpse the Desolate Wolves of the Primordial Era, their movements brutal yet flawless. They saw the Nine-Headed Primordial Tigers, their actions domineering yet perfect.

At the same time, they seemed to see the Thousand Snow Whales of the Primordial Era, their movements elegant and perfect. They seemed to see the Dark Night Serpent of the Primordial Era, its motions cruel, insidious, and perfect.

They seemed to see the White-Backed Monster of the Primordial Era, its form vast and perfect. They saw the Ground-Crawling Beast of the Primordial Era, its stealth peerless and perfect.

This single saber strike manifested countless forms of perfection. Yes, perfection.

Perfection in myriad forms. The greatest characteristic of a Civilization-grade technique is perfection, and not just a single facet of perfection, but multiple perfections.

A Civilization-grade technique seemed not to be a singular move, but a composition of perfect elements. Because it was a sequence of perfect applications, it was terrifyingly effective: if you could block elegance, you could not block brutality; if you could counter vastness, you could not counter stealth; if you could guard against dominance, you could not guard against nimbleness.

Within one strike resided endless advantages—this shared a striking similarity with the Sword Eight: Myriad Swords Return to One created by Lu Yuan. Moreover, the combination of so many beasts fused into a single method formed a technique characterized by madness, terror, recklessness, arrogance, fearlessness, and absolute perversion.

This was the nature of the Great Desolate Beasts, this was the Desolate Beast Civilization Saber Technique. The Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son had truly brought the atmosphere of Civilization to this saber art, unlike Jiuhuang Ji, who had utterly wasted its potential.

With such a technique unleashed, combined with his Half-Step Civilization Realm strength, Lu Yuan found himself at a disadvantage. Indeed, despite Lu Yuan possessing the spiritual power of the World Realm, ninth heaven, coupled with his six Iron Laws and the Sword Against Desolation, he was still overwhelmed.

Lu Yuan inwardly marveled; although the opponent's Desolate Beast Civilization Saber Technique was not yet fully unleashed, it was still profoundly powerful. Lu Yuan planned to counter later; he certainly did not fear the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son and was certain he would ultimately triumph.

Lu Yuan intended to wait before counterattacking, but gradually, a powerful intention began to flow within his body. This was a potent will spontaneously generated by the Lake of the Stomach.

The Lake of the Stomach, in its prime before the Chaos Civilization Beast, was magnificent, having devoured countless delicacies, including those fit for a Half-Step Civilization Realm entity. The Chaos Civilization Beast had perished, and since then, the stomach had received no such magnificent fare.

Then, time was measured in eons. Eons broke, and eons were reborn.

What kind of reaction would an intention suppressed for eons produce? It was truly an esoteric matter.

And now, this intention manifested. Simultaneously, this intent was transmitted to the Crystal of Chaos Gastric Acid—that is, to Lu Yuan.

Furthermore, Lu Yuan’s Yangwu Sword erupted with a surge of fury. Yes, the Yangwu Sword was also enraged; it had nearly been snapped, and it still remembered the aura of the Half-Desolation.

Since the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son carried the aura of the Son of Desolation, fury ignited! The suppressed rage of more than two years was now ready to burst forth, combined with the lingering anger from nearly being killed by the Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son back then.

These three currents merged, with the eons of accumulated pressure from the Lake of the Stomach being the strongest. Suppression built over long spans demands explosion!

And this time, the suppression had lasted too long; it demanded a wild, unrestrained outburst. At some unknown point, Lu Yuan’s once clear, bright eyes turned completely blood-red: “Desolate Saint Emperor’s Son, your Desolate Beast Civilization Saber Technique embodies the madness of the beast, but now I will show you that I am infinitely madder than you!

To fight me was your greatest mistake! Aaaaaaahhhhhhh!” With this long roar, Lu Yuan seemed to gain a measure of release.

Previous battles had all been about skillful technique. Now, it was time to unleash a spree of pure insanity.

This was his first time playing the 'madness' style in his life.