Zhu Tianren, radiating murderous intent, was engulfed in a swirling aura of bloody light that lashed out fiercely.

Wang Xueze perched atop a colossal human head, simultaneously launching countless smaller heads in attack.

Both men had been stockpiling their killing intent for this moment.

As two Heavenly Ranking masters, their natural bloodlust was immense, and breaching the first thirty empty defensive formations without killing a single soul had utterly ignited their murderous fervor.

With the thirty-first formation shattered, there were indeed one or two experts at the peak of the World Realm Tenth Heaven within, but such figures were insignificant to Fifty Heavenly Ranking masters like them. Zhu Tianren and Wang Xueze looked down upon the masses from their superior vantage points.

Zhu Tianren remarked coolly, "Wang Xueze, how about we have a killing contest? Let’s see which of us can take more lives."

Wang Xueze shook his head. "A killing contest sounds good, but it shouldn't just be about quantity. Purely counting bodies is too dull."

"Very well, we’ll compete on both quantity and quality. Let’s see whose spoils are richer once the Confucian Civilization is wiped clean," Zhu Tianren said dismissively. What the two were about to embark upon was a brutal slaughter competition. Zhu Tianren moved like lightning, arriving directly above Ge Yitianzun, a peak World Realm Tenth Heaven expert.

Ge Yitianzun was a key figure in the Confucian Civilization, not specializing in offense but renowned for his impenetrable defense.

Seeing Zhu Tianren suddenly materialize before him, he felt as though he’d plunged into an ice cellar. He was merely an ordinary expert at the World Realm Tenth Heaven, leagues beneath a Fifty Heavenly Ranking master. Terror gripped his heart, and he immediately summoned the San Zi Jing (Three Character Classic). He was a master of this text; the triangle formed by three points was the most stable, making the San Zi Jing a supremely reliable defensive measure.

The San Zi Jing wielded by Ge Yitianzun was vastly superior to the one held by Ling Qingyun.

Speaking of which, Ling Qingyun had recently also been among the Confucian Civilization. However, Lu Yuan had spent too little time there to interact much with that individual; otherwise, given Lu Yuan’s temperament, he would have long since eliminated him. It should also be noted that Ling Qingyun was a disciple of Xun Tong, which explains why Ling Qingyun’s entire demeanor differed significantly from other members of the Confucian Civilization—yes, Ling Qingyun was also a pawn of the Heavenly Principle Civilization.

Back to Ge Yitianzun, despite summoning his San Zi Jing, he realized it could not withstand Zhu Tianren’s bloody light attack. In that instant, a human head appeared bizarrely, intercepting the bloody beam. Ge Yitianzun’s mind was momentarily chaotic; he only knew someone had saved him, and he managed to cup his hands in thanks: "Many thanks, Daoist friend—" He didn't finish speaking before a head descended, instantly shattering his San Zi Jing. That descending head struck and killed Ge Yitianzun instantly.

Whoosh! Two heads returned to Wang Xueze’s hand: the one he had just launched, and Ge Yitianzun’s head. Wang Xueze looked at Zhu Tianren. "There was only one World Realm Tenth Heaven expert in this thirty-first defensive formation. I took the first kill." Zhu Tianren let out a soft 'hmpf'; he hadn't paid attention and had been preempted in the killing contest.

But Zhu Tianren wasn't overly concerned. The contest had just begun. There were still eighteen defensive formations ahead, filled with countless experts of the Confucian Civilization ripe for slaughter. His competition with Wang Xueze was only starting; why rush? Furthermore, Zhu Tianren understood this was a rare opportunity. He rarely gathered so many high-level expert lives and blood essences. Collecting these essence souls would certainly propel him higher in the Heavenly Ranking and bring him closer to the Civilization Realm.

Wang Xueze was already on a rampage, harvesting lives. His heads moved stealthily and unpredictably, and with a mere flick of his hand, numerous heads would detach themselves and obediently fly into his grasp.

Zhu Tianren also let out a long shout, his bloody light flashing, transforming into countless blood-red arrows that shot into the surroundings.

The killing contest between Zhu Tianren and Wang Xueze raged on.

Zhu Tianren’s count reached one hundred—no, instantly, one hundred and seven.

Wang Xueze’s count was one hundred and six—no, now it was one hundred and fifteen. Thanks to his head start, Wang Xueze held a slight advantage.

Enjoyment!

This feeling of mass slaughter!

This feeling of a killing contest!

Both Zhu Tianren and Wang Xueze were, in truth, psychological deviants.

Zhu Tianren and Wang Xueze simultaneously locked onto a woman—a Cloud Mist Celestial Venerable at the Seventh Heaven of the World Realm. Cloud Mist Celestial Venerable possessed an ethereal beauty and was one of the more famous beauties of the Confucian Civilization. The reason both masters targeted her was simple: beauty. Killing such a beautiful person yielded a subtle thrill.

Both Zhu Tianren and Wang Xueze struck at once, neither yielding, each unleashing their ultimate techniques. For a moment, they seemed evenly matched. The most likely outcome appeared to be the two Heavenly Ranking masters tearing Cloud Mist Celestial Venerable in half. Just as the beauty was about to be rent asunder by the two great masters, a beam of righteous light manifested. This light solidified into the shape of a book, instantly blocking the combined assault of Zhu Tianren and Wang Xueze.

Both masters were violently repelled. The two Heavenly Ranking experts were equally startled: "Who?!" "I am." A handsome youth in white appeared.

"It's you, Li Taishi, that brat. The Book of Civilization and the Character of Righteousness," Zhu Tianren hissed, his eyes blazing with envy. However, his greatest concern was Wang Xueze; he didn't believe Li Taishi was a match for him, but Wang Xueze was a difficult problem.

Wang Xueze sneered, "Li brat, you actually showed yourself to court death. Ridiculous." Wang Xueze was equally wary of Zhu Tianren.

Zhu Tianren addressed Wang Xueze, "Wang Xueze, this mutual obstruction achieves nothing but lets Li brat benefit. Last time, our distraction allowed him to escape. How about this: I take the Book of Civilization, and you take the Character of Righteousness?"

"Agreed." Wang Xueze nodded instantly. In reality, this division was superficial; this alliance would last only until Li Taishi was killed, after which they would immediately turn on each other. Both Zhu Tianren and Wang Xueze knew this perfectly well.

"Actually, you two don't need to divide anything, because you are both about to die by my hand," Lu Yuan stated calmly.

Silence!

A deathly quiet descended!

What had Lu Yuan just said?

Zhu Tianren thought he must have misheard; he rubbed his ears.

Wang Xueze also thought he had misheard, staring intently at Lu Yuan.

All the others within the thirty-first defensive formation had heard Lu Yuan’s words too. They had been frantically fleeing the savage pursuit of Zhu Tianren and Wang Xueze. It was only after Lu Yuan emerged that things settled down, yet they couldn't escape. Too many Heavenly Principle Civilization members were watching their surroundings; they had no way to flee into the thirty-second formation. They could only hope Li Taishi would win, though deep down they knew it was impossible. After all, the opponents were figures on the Fifty Heavenly Ranking—each a monumental figure whose achievements echoed through the ages. There was no way to defeat them. Therefore, when they heard those words, they were utterly shocked.

On the side of the Heavenly Principle Civilization, there was also dead silence, everyone stunned by Lu Yuan’s statement. They truly hadn't expected Li Taishi to have such audacity. How ignorant, how brazen could one be to speak of slaying two Fifty Heavenly Ranking giants? This was an unimaginably grand boast. After a long moment of silence, it erupted into unending bursts of laughter. It was genuinely hilarious.

Zhu Tianren stood with his hands clasped behind his back. "Li Taishi, I heard that achieving the Tenth Layer of Righteous Qi was your greatest feat. Now I realize I was wrong. Your greatest skill isn't the Tenth Layer of Righteous Qi at all; it's your thick skin."

Wang Xueze, still seated on his human head, roared with laughter, nearly convulsing. He believed he had encountered the most comical event of his entire life. In truth, he had. He had never seen such a laughably delusional junior, indulging in sheer fantasy. If the fifty titans of the Heavenly Ranking could be killed so easily, they wouldn't have remained firmly entrenched above the list for countless millennia.

The Fifty Heavenly Ranking represented the pinnacle honor beneath the Civilization Realm.

How many who tried to challenge them had ended as piles of bleached bones?

Across millions of years, perhaps only the Son of the Desolation had succeeded.

But the Son of the Desolation was a Child of the Epoch, blessed with innate, grand destiny. What was Li Taishi, to dare compare himself to the Son of the Desolation?

Lu Yuan sighed. In reality, after successfully breaking through to the Half-Step Civilization Realm, his strength already surpassed Wang Xueze and Zhu Tianren. After that, absorbing the sword qi from the Twin God Swords had further elevated his power.

Wang Xueze and Zhu Tianren truly didn't know the severity of their situation, especially Wang Xueze. Lu Yuan possessed an ultimate killing strike, described as inescapable if the opponent was caught unaware at extremely close range—a true, absolute finisher with no possibility of evasion. Yet, Wang Xueze was laughing maniacally, clearly careless.

This was practically inviting death!

Though he was currently operating under the guise of Li Taishi and couldn't deploy the ultimate killing sword strike, he could use the ultimate killing book—swapping the weapon for the text.

Of course, a book wouldn't possess the same destructive power as a sword; the force would be somewhat diminished, and some vulnerabilities would appear.

But it would still be an absolute kill.

He just hadn't tried replacing the sword with the book before. He briefly simulated the conversion from the ultimate killing sword technique to the ultimate killing book in his mind. Changing the weapon required minor adjustments to the technique itself. Lu Yuan, being a master of techniques and a supreme Grandmaster Giant, finalized the plan after his mental simulation.

Wang Xueze continued to laugh, finding Li Taishi's declaration of slaying Fifty Heavenly Ranking giants utterly laughable. He laughed wildly, leaving himself wide open.

And at that very instant, Lu Yuan struck.