Wuyan, the Deputy Chief, and Zhou Qingxuan stood wounded and utterly drained, left with no choice but to watch Lu Yuan fight four opponents alone.

It was one Deputy Chief from a First Epoch Civilization facing challenges from four others who were, for the most part, also Deputy Chiefs of civilizations.

It was highly probable that since the dawn of this epoch, such an unfair battle had never been witnessed. One against four—the latter held an overwhelming advantage.

However, sometimes the world cares little for fairness.

Zhou Qingxuan’s swordsmanship was profound, certainly not inferior to the Deputy Chief of the Sword Circle Civilization. Yet, upon witnessing Lu Yuan’s tenth sword technique, Tian Yuan Di Fang (Heaven Round Earth Square), he couldn't help but gasp in shock. That single strike was too magnificent, nearing the prowess of the Sword Master of the Apex Civilization.

But developments moved swiftly, and in an instant, they reached the critical juncture.

The Civilization Sky Lock was invoked, and Lu Yuan’s inherently agile figure was instantly snared.

Fu Sheng Ru Meng (Life is like a Dream) was broken!

The Deputy Chief of the Eight-Prism Civilization breathed a sigh of relief. Confronting Lu Yuan one-on-one had been terrifying. With Fu Sheng Ru Meng active, Lu Yuan had ignored all other attacks and focused solely on him. Now that this relentless assault had ended, just as the Eight-Prism Deputy Chief relaxed, a sword light a hundred million times more venomous than a serpent flashed forth.

In the span of one ten-thousandth of a second, Lu Yuan had switched to the Meteor Immortal Sword, unleashing his ultimate strike.

Solitude! Coldness! Desolation! Death! Annihilation! Speed! Decisiveness! Swiftness! Singularity!

The Eight-Prism Deputy Chief, having only just let down his guard, had no time to react. He tried to defend, but the Gate of the Sword Dao pinned him down completely. In that ten-thousandth of a second, the strike pierced his heart. Simultaneously, the incomparably sharp sword qi utterly annihilated the Eight-Prism Deputy Chief, and as this happened, a rare phenomenon appeared between heaven and earth: countless streams of vital energy violently dispersed from his body.

And then, throughout the surrounding cosmos, a solemn music began to play—a music of profound sorrow that compelled the eyes to well up with tears. As this song resonated, the sky seemed to weep, the earth appeared mournful, and the wind sobbed. Heaven and Earth grieved together.

This was the Civilization Dirge!

Beings below the Civilization Realm were vastly different from those within it.

Those beneath the Civilization Realm, when they died, simply died; it was not a monumental event.

But the death of a being in the Civilization Realm was a major cosmic affair, triggering the Civilization Dirge. It seemed as if Heaven and Earth held a moment of silence for the passing of a Civilization Realm entity. Whether a new entity ascended to the Civilization Realm or one fell, it was always a momentous occasion for the cosmos.

The appearance of the Civilization Dirge confirmed that this Deputy Chief of the Civilization Realm was truly dead! And once the Dirge began, it was nigh impossible for any living thing to intervene.

The Eight-Prism Deputy Chief looked at Lu Yuan: "I... I actually died by your hand. I am not reconciled." How could he be reconciled? The journey to reach the Civilization Realm was arduous. Among countless trillions upon trillions of lives, perhaps only one could achieve it, requiring monumental talent, fortune, opportunity, and effort.

Innumerable geniuses across the eons had failed to reach the Civilization Realm.

The Civilization Realm: the first great threshold.

Those who crossed it could survive even as an epoch collapsed.

He certainly never expected to die here.

"Of course, you had to die by my hand. From the very beginning, you were being calculated by me. Didn't you know? Initially, I deliberately placed immense pressure on you until you were severely injured. Even so, killing you was difficult. Only when the Civilization Sky Lock finally materialized and you let your guard down did my prearranged killing blow emerge. You truly fell to that final move. Now, you may perish." Lu Yuan flicked his hand, instantly drawing the remains of the Eight-Prism Deputy Chief into his nascent Sword World, along with all his accumulated inheritance.

This was his first trophy from the Civilization Realm! Furthermore, he had purged a traitor from the Sword Dao; the Mace Civilization was unequivocally a traitor. It was just that, in this epoch, the traitors held too much sway, allowing them to suppress the orthodox path. Now, balance had finally been restored once.

The Civilization Dirge abruptly ceased!

Everything around seemed to freeze in that very instant.

The Deputy Chief of the Eight-Prism Civilization, a being of the Civilization Realm, had perished.

The fall of a Civilization Realm entity was astonishing!

The Deputy Chief of the Soaring Eagle Civilization, the Son of Immortality, and the Deputy Chief of the Martial Sage Civilization were stunned; they genuinely had not expected such a powerful being to vanish so completely while seemingly healthy. Even the allied Deputy Chief of the Wuyan Civilization and Zhou Qingxuan, representing two civilizations, were shocked by the demise of the Eight-Prism Deputy Chief.

A single thought echoed in everyone’s mind: The Collapse of Civilization!

Throughout the history of this epoch, few Civilization Realm entities had ever fallen, and now one more had joined that count.

After a long, long silence.

The Deputy Chief of the Soaring Eagle Civilization roared, "Lu Yuan, you were only arrogant because of that damned, ghostly Fu Sheng Ru Meng! But now, there are no such pleasantries. Your Fu Sheng Ru Meng is countered, and you will die here. Now, it is a true three-on-one." Indeed, the situation had drastically changed; without Fu Sheng Ru Meng, it was three against one.

So, although Lu Yuan had slain the Eight-Prism Deputy Chief of the Civilization Realm, the circumstances had actually turned more perilous.

"I will kill you, Lu Yuan! I will turn you into meat paste and mash under my Sky-Coiling Divine Axe, then mix you into my meals and consume you!" The Deputy Chief of the Strength Saint Civilization, already possessing a volatile temper, was now enraged that Lu Yuan, fighting four against one, had killed the Eight-Prism Deputy Chief right before his eyes. He vowed to mince Lu Yuan.

The Deputy Chief of the Soaring Eagle Civilization struck again with his ultimate technique, the Twin Kill of the Eagle and Swallow Civilizations, intending to utterly destroy Lu Yuan. The Civilization Eagle and the Civilization Swallow appeared simultaneously.

The Son of Immortality remained silent and offered no clear stance; he preferred subtle maneuvers. Though mute, his One Hundred and Fifty Heavens Immortal Arts descended, completely enveloping the area.

Meanwhile, the Strength Saint Deputy Chief’s Sky-Coiling Divine Axe transformed into an extremely concise line, possessing the aura of world-creation, slicing directly downward, aiming to slay Lu Yuan. The three ultimate killing moves from the three civilizations converged upon Lu Yuan. Now that Fu Sheng Ru Meng was unusable, surely Lu Yuan would find these attacks extremely difficult to withstand.

As the three ultimate techniques arrived collectively, Lu Yuan casually presented his Round Apex Divine Sword. His blade traced incredibly intricate movements in the void—a defensive posture centered on the Circular Sword Dao, interwoven with over three thousand one hundred and forty precise techniques. It was a display of unparalleled finesse.

Clang!

The three attacks from the Civilization Realm entities were all blocked by this single sword strike from Lu Yuan.

Lu Yuan held the Round Apex Divine Sword with utter composure and spoke serenely, "Who said I only rely on Fu Sheng Ru Meng? I can block all three of you using my true skill." This seemingly light remark carried tremendous weight. He could defend against all three without Fu Sheng Ru Meng. After deflecting the offensive of three Civilization Realm entities with one sword, Lu Yuan looked toward the Deputy Chief of the Soaring Eagle Civilization. "Next is you."

The Round Apex Divine Sword in Lu Yuan’s hand shifted ceaselessly, adhering to the principle of 'roundness.' The Circular Sword Dao was inherently the strongest defensive path, yet Lu Yuan’s previous techniques lacked dedicated defense. After mastering the Circular Sword Dao, his defensive capabilities had multiplied tremendously. A casual block from him was textbook perfection in defense.

......

While fighting here, Lu Yuan noticed faint strands of sword qi subtly dispersing throughout the surrounding space. Each strand was incredibly potent, suggesting its original wielder was exceptionally powerful. This made sense; this location was the Ancient Swordsman's Tomb. It was originally intended as a true burial site, where the ancient swordsmen had made extensive preparations should they fail in their battle against the heavens. However, due to various reasons, it became a false tomb, housing only the Deputy Chief of the Sword Circle Civilization, with the real tomb located elsewhere.

The foremost swordsmen of that era had all left their sword qi here.

These sword qi strands were sweeping wildly.

And previously, Lu Yuan had created a technique: Sword Six, Ba Dao She Tian (Hegemony Terrifies Heaven)! This technique could absorb all surrounding energy onto his blade for release. Lu Yuan roared, "Sword Six, Ba Dao She Tian!" Instantly, countless sword qi streams surged forth—his own, the sword qi of the strongest swordsmen from the previous epoch, and even a portion of the mace qi from the Eight-Prism Deputy Chief of the Mace Civilization were absorbed, all unleashed in a single sword strike.

While unleashing this torrent, the dynamic of the battle naturally shifted. At that same moment, Lu Yuan also unleashed Sword Eight, Wan Jian Gui Yi (Ten Thousand Swords Return to One!), and Sword Ten, Tian Yuan Di Fang! Every inch of the sky and ground was saturated with the most terrifying sword qi. Lu Yuan seized the upper hand completely.

Of course, this advantage could not last long. Lu Yuan instantly teleported beside the Deputy Chief of the Soaring Eagle Civilization and thrust his sword directly forward. Seeing this, the Deputy Chief of the Soaring Eagle Civilization showed no fear, invoking the Twin Kill of the Eagle and Swallow Civilizations to meet Lu Yuan head-on. Lu Yuan sneered, "Die." What a joke! He had seen that technique used at least three or four times before him; how dare he use it now? Did he truly believe his Myriad Phenomena Sword Dao was toothless? While Civilization-level techniques were not easy to replicate, Lu Yuan was perfectly aware of their flaws. Moreover, Lu Yuan now unveiled an ace in the hole: the 'Constraint' clone, which had already reached six-tenths strength.

Lu Yuan intended to deliver a decisive blow to the Deputy Chief of the Soaring Eagle Civilization in this instant.

A wave of overwhelming killing intent enveloped the Soaring Eagle Deputy Chief.

Naturally, the sword Lu Yuan used for this strike was the Sword of Constraint against the Soaring Eagle.

Furthermore, to ensure the death of the Soaring Eagle Deputy Chief, he had prepared another ultimate skill.

This secret technique had been transmitted to him just moments ago via sound transmission from Zhou Qingxuan—though it wasn't Zhou Qingxuan's own creation, but rather conceived by another figure, Yan Cangtian.

This matter, however, was tied to yet another incident.