The Lord of the Lost Civilization, though tricked by Lu Yuan’s Fúshēng Ruòmèng and struck a blow, paid it no mind, his entire being radiating a lost and bewildered aura: "Lu Yuan, you are seeking death. Die." The Lord of the Lost Civilization did not resort to assassination, instead directly blasting Lu Yuan away with the magical power of the Nineteenth Epoch.

The Blade of Loss reappeared in his grasp.

Wielding the Blade of Loss, he brought it down heavily upon Lu Yuan, utilizing the limit of eighty-eight techniques and fifty-one percent of his Eternal Essence.

At this moment, he seemed to represent the Supreme Being.

Banishment!

Oblivion!

Die!

This aura of utter loss instantly pierced downward.

Lu Yuan retaliated instantly, surging forward.

To fight? Who fears whom?

Lu Yuan’s Yǎng Wú Immortal Sword countered immediately, carrying within it endless sword energy—energy capable of cleaving the firmament, extinguishing the heavens, slaying gods, and destroying all things. It also held an extreme sharpness, the very breath of Pò (Break), while simultaneously containing the limit of two hundred and fifty-two techniques, sixty percent of the Dao Character Clone, and sixty percent of the Iron Rule of Destiny, all integrated within.

Boom!

The two collided violently in the void, the Blade of Loss and the Yǎng Wú Divine Sword intersecting heavily.

Hua! A breach opened in the Blade of Loss, and sharp sword energy surged straight in. The Lord of the Lost Civilization’s expression changed: "Break! You can use Pò!" He was genuinely shocked. Wasn't this technique only mastered by the Sword Ancient Civilization’s Lord, who was notoriously troublesome and hailed as the foremost under heaven? The Sword Ancient’s claim to supremacy was largely thanks to the power of Pò.

And now, Lu Yuan also wielded Pò, and a complete version at that.

In just one exchange, Lu Yuan had inflicted two shocks upon the Lord of the Lost Civilization. First, Lu Yuan actually possessed the magic power of the Nineteenth Epoch. Reaching the Nineteenth Epoch was no small feat; regardless of talent, it was difficult for anyone to attain it. Otherwise, there wouldn't be so few Nineteenth Epoch beings in existence—only about five. Even Ancestral Dragon, a genius and an Eternal genius, took an extremely long time to reach the Nineteenth Epoch. However, Lu Yuan arrived so quickly. This wasn't necessarily because Lu Yuan's innate talent surpassed Ancestral Dragon’s; Ancestral Dragon had no one to pave the road, whereas Lu Yuan had the Sword Ancient Civilization paving the way for him.

Borrowing momentum, Lu Yuan was drawing upon the established foundation.

The second shock was Pò.

While the Lord of the Lost Civilization was bewildered, Lu Yuan’s attack arrived once more.

It was still sword light, but this was almost the most terrifying sword light the Lord of the Lost Civilization had ever witnessed. He even suspected that Lu Yuan's current sword light, and the power behind his blade, subtly surpassed that of the Sword Ancient Civilization’s Lord. Indeed, the Sword Ancient’s Lord had clashed with the Lord of the Lost Civilization in the past, but the feeling he conveyed was not as terrifying as Lu Yuan’s strikes now. Had Lu Yuan officially surpassed the Sword Ancient Civilization’s Lord?

The second exchange, and again the Lord of the Lost Civilization was at a disadvantage.

The combat between Lu Yuan and the Lord of the Lost Civilization continued.

Third strike!

Fourth strike!

Fifth strike!

Tenth strike! Every exchange between these two Nineteenth Epoch titans shook the heavens and the earth. With deafening roars, countless surrounding areas of space were pulverized by the impact, innumerable stars shattered, and endless celestial collapses ravaged the vicinity. Lu Yuan remembered being terrified by such collapses when he first arrived at the Lost Land. When the heavens fall and the earth shakes, to be caught within meant death. But now, his physical body had long since achieved the state of "The Epoch collapses, yet I remain undestroyed," so he paid these fluctuations no mind. What did collapsing space or the annihilation of worlds matter if they couldn't affect him?

In every clash, Lu Yuan gained the upper hand. The Lord of the Lost Civilization tried to counterattack, but despite exhausting all his methods, he could not push back; he could not reverse the tide in any way, forced only to watch as Lu Yuan incrementally widened the advantage.

Fifteenth strike! This time, the Blade of Loss erupted with immense power—this was the Secret of Loss, capable of transporting a person to the Lost Paradise, one of the Lord of the Lost Civilization’s ultimate moves. Having already fallen behind in the fourteenth exchange, it was almost too late to turn things around, and he hoped to use this to stage a comeback. However, Lu Yuan’s sword light sliced through everything like a startling rainbow, and his attempt to regain control failed once more.

Twentieth strike.

Twenty-fifth strike.

Thirtieth strike.

Thirty-seventh strike. By this point, due to the accumulated disadvantage from the preceding thirty-six exchanges, the Lord of the Lost Civilization’s deficit was staggering.

Forty-fifth strike. By now, even a formidable figure like the Lord of the Lost Civilization could not manage a single counterattack.

Fiftieth strike.

Lu Yuan’s sword light swept lightly through the void: "The Great Derivation is fifty. Killing a Nineteenth Epoch Civilization Lord like you now requires exactly fifty moves." Lu Yuan’s sword light pierced into the heart of the Lord of the Lost Civilization, who let out a long breath: "I do not lose unjustly." He understood he was defeated fairly. Lu Yuan had completely overpowered him, crushing him bit by bit through sheer strength. Over those fifty exchanges in the middle, he hadn't managed a single successful retort. Lu Yuan was too strong; to lose to such a powerhouse left him with no grievances. The Lord of the Lost Civilization said, "My defeat is not unjust, but Lu Yuan, you truly are disadvantaged. If the Eternal Lord had not emerged, your current power would already surpass the foremost expert of the previous epoch, the Sword Ancient Civilization’s Lord, enabling you to suppress all heavens and myriad worlds. But now, the gap between your strength and the Eternal Lord’s is a vast, insurmountable chasm."

"What a pity." The Lord of the Lost Civilization tilted his head and died.

Lu Yuan rested the sword on his shoulder, another voice affirming that he could not match the Eternal Lord. Moreover, Lu Yuan noticed that the Lord of the Lost Civilization had spoken with complete sincerity just now, which confirmed that, from the perspective of his Nineteenth Epoch magic power, he still perceived a significant gulf between Lu Yuan and the Eternal Lord.

Never mind that. Regardless, he had to fight.

He must destroy that bald monk.

The Lord of the Lost Civilization had numerous inheritances, such as high-tier Divine Artifacts, but Lu Yuan no longer needed them. Advancing from the Nineteenth Epoch to the Twentieth Epoch required no amount of high-tier artifacts; this was the final step, the most difficult one to cross. Since antiquity, only the Ancient Eternal Lord had achieved this step. Now, it was up to him whether he could cross it. Among the Lost Civilization Lord’s legacy, Lu Yuan found the method to control the mechanisms, and utilizing these mechanisms, he finally captured the Dao Character True Body. This True Body still struggled, but Lu Yuan’s Nineteenth Epoch magic power surged forth, forcibly suppressing it.

Lu Yuan was quite experienced in suppression, having subdued the Unyielding Glimmer in the past.

Several months passed before he finally quelled the Dao Character True Body.

After suppressing the Dao Character True Body, Lu Yuan immediately realized he could see through all techniques, and the quality of his own magic power had greatly increased. What was once two-tenths Eternal Essence now manifested as ten-tenths Dao Force and six-tenths Destiny Force. These three forces of power surpassing civilization continuously fused within Lu Yuan, creating increasingly potent magic.

The void within his body merged.

It seemed as though endless magic power was exploding and fusing.

This was the tenth color, distinct from the color of Eternal Essence, yet it was definitively the tenth hue. Describing this color in words was difficult, as no one had ever used it before, naturally lacking corresponding vocabulary. Lu Yuan could only strain to describe it as magnificent or stunning, but these were far from sufficient.

Furthermore, its quality was exceptional.

The Lord of the Desolate Dao Civilization and the Lord of the Lost Civilization, whom Lu Yuan had fought, possessed Eternal Essence levels of five-tenths and five-point-one-tenths, respectively; the quality of their magic power was high. But now, Lu Yuan felt that the quality of his own magic power was even higher than theirs. Of course, it definitely did not match that of the Ancient Desolate era, but it was still very high. He roughly estimated it to be equivalent to the strength of six-tenths or seven-tenths Eternal Essence, perhaps even stronger—though this was mere conjecture, as he had never encountered anyone whose magic power reached such a high caliber.

With the Dao Character True Body secured, only one question remained: where were the remaining four-tenths of the Iron Rule of Destiny? Only by finding those four-tenths could he possibly stand a chance against the Ancient Eternal Lord.

Lu Yuan walked casually through the Lost Land and soon exited. Upon leaving, he immediately intercepted a piece of news.

"What, the Destiny Passage has appeared?"

"The Destiny Passage is directly above the Eternal Heavenly Palace."

"The Ancient Eternal Lord is currently opening the Destiny Passage."

"It is rumored that four portions of the Iron Rule of Destiny are within the Destiny Passage."

"The Ancient Eternal Lord already possesses the Gate of Eternity; with four more portions of the Iron Rule of Destiny, he will be invincible."

The news originated from the Eternal Heavenly Palace, initially a secret of the Ancient Desolate Dynasty, but the Ancient Desolate Dynasty’s spies had leaked it, allowing Lu Yuan to learn the secret. Upon learning this, Lu Yuan trembled, for he had just conceived the key to defeating the Ancient Eternal Lord: the remaining four portions of the Iron Rule of Destiny. Merging the Iron Rule of Destiny with the Dao Character, combined with his own power, might allow him to defeat the Eternal Lord—it was his only possibility, his last hope.

Therefore, Lu Yuan had been pondering where to find the Iron Rule of Destiny.

And now!

Now!

The Destiny Passage had appeared. If that bald monk obtained the final four portions of the Iron Rule of Destiny, the unimaginable would occur: the final chance to surpass the Ancient Desolate era would be lost.

No, this cannot happen.

Lu Yuan suddenly understood: he must immediately go to the Eternal Heavenly Palace and seize the remaining four final portions of the Iron Rule of Destiny.

Though this battle would be difficult and might result in his death, he had to go.

If he didn't go, even the last sliver of hope would vanish.

He must depart immediately; there is no room for delay.

Wait, there was one last thing he needed to do before embarking on this final battle.

Life or death, success or failure—it all rested upon this last confrontation, and his emotions surged.

(First update delivered. The final battle approaches.) (To be continued) RQ