What a potent assassination strike.

Lu Yuan had, after all, been too careless.

The Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization had about a sixty percent chance of success with this blow, primarily because the timing was exquisite, and the strike itself was frighteningly sharp and keen.

“You were careless, so, you die,” this voice was uttered at such a high frequency that ordinary ears could not perceive it at all.

Just as the razor-sharp edge of the blade neared Lu Yuan’s heart, Lu Yuan extended a hand.

Two fingers flicked towards the blade. The Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization inwardly scoffed, thinking how absurd it was that two fingers could possibly intercept his strike.

Clang!

The blade was forcefully clamped between the fingers.

In that instant, the power of the Myriad Star Diagram that the Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization had imbued into the blade was entirely blocked. The Myriad Star Diagram Mana was a truly bizarre form of energy; it could pierce in from ten thousand angles, making it incredibly difficult to defend against—a sharp and insidious mana. Yet, this mana was firmly stopped between those two fingers, within which resided an eternal essence.

The Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization exerted more force, channeling deeper, heavier mana. However, even this deeper, more substantial mana was smoothly neutralized by Lu Yuan’s power.

Are you kidding me? Lu Yuan was already operating at seventy-five percent severe injury, and he was caught completely off guard. To still so effortlessly parry the supreme assassination technique from the supreme assassination master like the Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization—in all his years of assassination, the Vice-Lord had never encountered such a situation. He was so shocked he didn't know what to do.

Lu Yuan offered a faint smile. “You might be mistaken; this isn’t carelessness. This is called composure.” It truly wasn't carelessness; it was poise. This was because Lu Yuan had repeatedly studied the assassination techniques of the Star Civilization beforehand. Thus, when the Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization unleashed this blade strike, Lu Yuan had understood sixty-six percent of its potential the moment it was launched. Combined with Lu Yuan's current mana level of nine and a half Eons, plus a touch of 1.6 percent Eternal Force, such composure was achievable.

Boom! A torrent of mana exploded outward, blasting the Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization away. That overwhelmingly powerful mana detonated across the Vice-Lord’s body. He immediately sustained minor injuries, but at that moment, he inwardly cried out, Good. Being blown away gave him an opportunity to retreat. He now understood Lu Yuan’s terrifying capability—to calmly defend against his assassination while in such a state. The Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization desired nothing more than to flee. With his Starry Sky Movement technique, he could merge with the cosmos; just a few more breaths of time, and he could complete the merge, after which Lu Yuan would never find him—this was the Vice-Lord's ultimate confidence.

At that precise moment, Lu Yuan let out a long cry, and his Meteor Divine Sword struck instantly. It was an ultimate killing blow. The Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization was focused only on quick escape, using his Starry Sky Movement technique, which exposed a weakness. Furthermore, in terms of pure assassination execution, Lu Yuan’s ultimate killing sword likely surpassed the Vice-Lord’s blade strike.

A sword through the heart!

The Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization was wounded by this sword, then driven deeper by Lu Yuan’s mana into his body, bringing him to the brink of death.

“This sword of yours?” the Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization asked, stunned.

“Yes, my sword isn’t bad, is it?” Lu Yuan asked casually.

The Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization sighed in resignation, exhaling a breath. “To think that after a lifetime of assassinating others, I die by an assassination-natured sword. Is this karma, or the proverb: he who spends all day chasing geese finally gets pecked in the eye? Your sword is truly remarkable; its capacity for assassination surpasses my own assassination blade technique. What is this sword called?”

Lu Yuan replied, “Ultimate Killing Sword.”

The Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization burst into laughter. “What a crude name, completely unfitting for the stunning nature of this sword.” After speaking, the Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization finally coughed up a mouthful of blood and died.

Lu Yuan gave it no thought; he had slain another Nine-Eon figure.

Lu Yuan then turned his gaze to the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization. “You are the strategist for the Desolate Immortal Buddha Alliance. Very well, today I shall execute you, the strategist, leaving the Desolate Immortal Buddha Alliance headless.” Lu Yuan’s presence now radiated an almost terrifying authority. Several others who had intended to assassinate Lu Yuan and assist the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization saw how the Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization, a Nine-Eon powerhouse, seized such a perfect opportunity, only to be so easily slain by Lu Yuan even from a disadvantaged position. The sight of Lu Yuan blocking the Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization’s attack with just two fingers had paralyzed countless others. These remaining assassins dared not move.

In truth, Lu Yuan’s current combat power had reached a terrifying echelon.

The Son of Desolation, in his time, possessed combat strength capable of defeating figures like the Vice-Lord of the Ice Civilization—those at the Nine-and-a-Half Eon mark.

And Lu Yuan? He had long surpassed the Son of Desolation’s peak strength, advanced to the Nine-and-a-Half Eon realm, and elevated his Eternal Force to 1.6 percent.

Slaying a Nine-Eon figure with Lu Yuan’s current mana was, truthfully, far too simple.

A casual swing, an effortless obliteration.

Lu Yuan casually switched to a Broken Water Divine Sword—one of the eight divine swords obtained from slaying a Vice-Lord of the Qin Civilization in the past. Lu Yuan sometimes swapped swords just for variety, to refresh his palate. After changing to this blade, Lu Yuan lunged directly at the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization. The sword body enveloped all directions, encompassing countless spaces and infinite time.

Crack!

The Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization was struck.

No, this was a decoy.

Lu Yuan immediately recognized it as a duplication technique. His true body was likely not even on the battlefield. This was, in fact, simple enough: the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization had already substituted a clone when bombarding Lu Yuan with talismans. After all, it was only a talisman barrage. As the saying goes, a wise man does not stand under a crumbling wall. How could someone as adept at planning and calculation as the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization place himself in danger? However, from afar, the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization was secretly alarmed. Lu Yuan’s combat power had reached a terrifying height, nearing that of a Civilization Lord. The Vice-Lord immediately issued orders: transmit the news to every corner of the Solidified Star Domain.

“What? Lu Yuan is this ruthless?”

“Lu Yuan has already killed the Son of Desolation, the Vice-Lord of the Fox Civilization, the Vice-Lord of the Qin Civilization, the Vice-Lord of the Miao Civilization, the Vice-Lord of the Fire Civilization, and the Vice-Lord of the Star Civilization. He has killed so many!”

“He is truly on a massive killing spree.”

“Lu Yuan’s current strength is terrifyingly boundless.”

“Following the final plan—the Formation Script Interception Plan—retreat.”

“Understood.”

“Begin executing the final plan.”

At this juncture, everyone felt a measure of relief. Fortunately, the Vice-Lord of the Formation Civilization was not dead. If the Vice-Lord of the Formation Civilization lived, they could enact the ultimate escape plan: achieving total rout when the two major formations clashed. Escaping calmly and completely under normal circumstances would not have been so easy. And the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization had prepared for this long ago—this was the Formation Script Interception Plan.

Immediately, over a hundred Vice-Lords of the Desolate Immortal Buddha Alliance inputted the primordial script they controlled into another ring in their possession. In the Solidified Star Domain, a middle-aged man with a pale complexion nodded. He also held a crystal sphere, similar in material to the one held by the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization, though with slight differences. This man was none other than the Vice-Lord of the Formation Civilization. He had not directly engaged his opponent; the Vice-Lord of the Holy Light Civilization he was supposed to be fighting was currently trapped in a strange formation he had set up. The Vice-Lord of the Formation Civilization stated, “Time to withdraw? Very well, activate the Formation Script Interception Plan.” This was an incredibly complex grand battle that both sides had prepared for over a long period. Every faction had poured forth their ingenuity, considering every conceivable contingency. Now, even the method of escape had been pre-planned—this was meticulousness.

The pale-faced middle-aged man roared, “Formation preparation!”

“Yes!” Numerous figures instantly appeared behind him and dashed out. These figures had actually been prepared long before the battle commenced; they were simply being deployed now. In an instant, nearly a thousand formations lit up within the Solidified Star Domain, each releasing a fierce radiance, clearly indicating their extraordinary nature. Moreover, each of these thousand formations spanned a distance of a thousand li, each intricately complex, and most terrifyingly, each one was utterly unique. In moments, these thousand formations connected with streaks of chaotic light, coalescing into one massive formation.

This grand formation was named the Unitary Prohibitive Star Domain Planar Array.

The function of this array was quite simple: to allow members of the Desolate Immortal Buddha Alliance passage while simultaneously preventing the members of the Martial Law Alliance from crossing. This involved numerous layers of extremely complex principles. Naturally, this formation required the support of many scripts; the one hundred-plus Vice-Lords each contributed an average of one primordial script, which were brought forth to power the Unitary Prohibitive Star Domain Planar Great Array. At this moment, it was the glory of the formations, the luminescence of the scripts. The members of the Desolate Immortal Buddha Alliance had also been notified in advance: as this grand array activated, they abandoned their pursuers and fled toward the formation.

The members of the Martial Law Alliance, who had finally gained the upper hand, naturally tried to give chase, but they slammed headlong into the Unitary Prohibitive Star Domain Planar Array, unable to pass.

The current situation was starkly clear: the Desolate Immortal Buddha Alliance had been defeated due to the singular power of Lu Yuan, and now they were in full retreat. However, during their withdrawal, they erected this Unitary Prohibitive Star Domain Planar Array, preventing the Martial Law Alliance from pursuing, allowing them to escape with minimal casualties.

This was the final resort of the Desolate Immortal Buddha Alliance.

Yet, it seemed ludicrous that the entire reason for the Desolate Immortal Buddha Alliance’s retreat was due to Lu Yuan alone.

One man achieving this level of consequence—he was truly a peerless prodigy.

More than a dozen Civilization Lords of the Desolate Immortal Buddha Alliance ground their teeth in fury, but for the moment, they had no recourse against Lu Yuan.

(First update delivered.)