With just a glance, Shunyi knew a fight was coming, and without a word, he dissolved into a shadow. At that exact moment, the shadow that had been closely trailing him embedded itself into the ground, becoming a patch of absolute blackness.

"Be careful, his weapon should be this dark shadow." Ye Xiu recalled the Upper God mentioning Shunyi's abilities—a Shinigami who reached the initial stage of the Dongpo realm could summon a soul-energy clone to fight for them, and Shunyi's clone was this very shadow.

"Clang! Clang!" Suddenly, the shadow submerged beneath Old Liu's feet, enveloping him completely. In an instant, it transformed into black spikes, stabbing upwards toward Old Liu. Fortunately, Old Liu's Pomo Seven Swords were brimming with spiritual energy, tightly swirling around him for protection.

Ye Xiu looked at the ground; Shunyi's shadow was also racing rapidly into his own feet. He channeled his purple flame into one hand, leaped, and slammed downwards.

"Rumble!" With a deafening roar, numerous stones beneath the surface were blasted away by the purple flame. Shunyi's shadow, emanating black mist, was flung into the air. Yet, in the next moment, the black mist descended, landing directly on Ye Xiu’s back.

"Die!" Shunyi’s eyes widened, and a black light sliced across. The light, sharp as a thorn, grazed Ye Xiu’s arm, managing to draw out the dark blood beneath his skin.

"Ah!" Ye Xiu gritted his teeth and spun toward Shunyi with his scythe. But unexpectedly, thick black smoke erupted beneath Shunyi’s feet. In the blink of an eye, he retreated several zhang, evading Ye Xiu’s attack.

Shunyi’s speed was too great. He nimbly flipped himself over and stopped atop the mountain cliff. He licked a trace of blood from his hand and sneered, "So your soul-energy cultivation is still limited to your weapon. Like this, you’ll never touch me."

"Master, be careful! The Su-Hun energy hidden within that Shinigami's body is too potent. At your current speed, you simply can't hurt him." Su Su naturally sensed Shunyi’s power. She warned Ye Xiu, "This is a meaningless duel. Master, you should find a way to escape."

"Damn it…" Ye Xiu focused his gaze on the distant Shunyi. Although he held the Shinigami Scythe, he couldn't match Shunyi’s speed, leaving him helpless.

"What’s wrong? Envious of my speed, hahahaha!" After gauging Ye Xiu’s true capabilities, Shunyi burst into laughter. He extended a hand into the air, and streams of black energy rushed from his shoulders into his palm. The black essence accumulated more and more, shining like dark fire. "Do you know where this Su-Hun comes from? It is the soul of Humma, the fastest king from the depths of the Death Domain Forest. Who else in heaven or earth can match the Leopard King's speed?"

"Strike!" Suddenly, several sword lights flashed past. Old Liu's Pomo Seven Swords swept forward, knocking another dark shadow directly in front of Ye Xiu. Mid-air, he muttered an incantation, manifesting the technique of Yujian (Sword Control). His true sword body morphed into seven separate blades, all plunging down toward the black shadow.

"Whoosh!" The shadow’s speed was only half of Shunyi’s, but how could the might of the Pomo Seven Swords be rivaled by a mere phantom? Unable to dodge completely, it was wounded by the seven blades, and lively spiritual energy drifted out from within the shadow, floating into the air.

"Master, a great opportunity! That is also Su-Hun energy!" At this moment, Su Su grew anxious and involuntarily directed Ye Xiu to raise his arm. The jade ring on his finger emitted a green radiance, and a current of energy instantly formed a vortex, intending to suck in that spiritual essence.

Shunyi watched the scene unfold, his mouth agape in surprise: "How is this possible? You can absorb soul energy? Have you perhaps reached the Shiyin realm?"

Ye Xiu only knew this was Su Su’s ability. He could only watch helplessly as the black streams of energy were drawn into the jade ring. As that soul energy traveled through the ring, it entered his body, causing him to feel dizzy.

"Leave the rest to the scythe. Concentrate all that Su-Hun you just absorbed into the scythe," Su Su transformed into purple smoke, coiling around Ye Xiu. She guided the soul energy to empower the scythe. The originally purple scythe, now mixed with the black essence, began to flash with hints of blood-red.

"Hey... Ah!" Ye Xiu had intended to strike a pose, but the scythe suddenly surged forward toward Shunyi as if it had been injected with a stimulant. By the time it carried Ye Xiu close enough to Shunyi, it spontaneously formed a chopping arc and leaped down, aiming to take Shunyi’s life.

"So... so fast…" Since absorbing the Su-Hun of Leopard King Humma, Shunyi had not encountered such a formidable force in terms of speed. Now, Ye Xiu, merely by absorbing the soul energy from his clone, achieved instantaneous close combat. He shuddered involuntarily and leaped away in a clumsy scramble.

"Qijing Dao Black Talisman!" At this critical juncture, Old Liu was not idle. He pulled out a black runic spell and chanted softly. The meridians throughout his body instantly swelled with double speed. He then snatched up the seven swords and flew toward the spot where Shunyi had landed. "Taste the power of the Holy Sword, Shinigami!"

"Ah!" Shunyi, having been forcefully repelled from above, had no time to prepare mentally. He rolled to escape, but ultimately couldn't dodge completely and was slashed across the thigh by the Pomo Seven Swords. At that moment, the Su-Hun spiritual energy flowing from him scattered continuously. He cursed under his breath and retreated back into the black shadow, burrowing into the earth.

"Suck some more, Su Su!" Ye Xiu was nearly knocked unconscious by the scythe's sheer speed, but he now knew that the lingering soul energy in the air was beneficial. He hurriedly raised his jade ring and roared, "More! Give me more…"

The air was still. A gust of wind swept through, scattering the lingering souls. The jade ring showed no reaction whatsoever. Su Su materialized, looking quite embarrassed, and bowed before Ye Xiu: "I am sorry, Master. I cannot fully control my own abilities. Perhaps it was because of the extreme danger that it functioned so smoothly just now. How is your injury? Let me take a look."

"Hoo…" Old Liu was exhausted from mobilizing his meridian power. He placed the seven swords on his back and wiped his sweat, saying, "Turns out he’s just a fraud. Luckily, I used the Black Talisman earlier, or if that fellow had known our secrets, we’d all be dead."

Ye Xiu rubbed his wound and looked at the spot where Shunyi had vanished, sighing, "It seems there are many things about the Shinigami that I don’t understand. That Leopard King Su-Hun within him is quite tempting."

"Stop making sarcastic remarks. You know the recovery ability of Shinigami. We should hurry inside." Old Liu impatiently pulled Ye Xiu along. "If that guy realizes Su Su's knock-off ability, we are finished."

Su Su smiled sweetly and stuck out her tongue at Old Liu: "Let’s go slowly. Although his wound isn't severe, he lost some soul energy. If he forces another battle, it won't benefit him. Excessive soul energy loss is not a good thing for a Shinigami."

"Then why did he recover so quickly last time, able to re-enter combat shortly after being injured?" Old Liu didn't fully grasp the affairs of the Shinigami lineage.

"Nonsense, Master didn't have any soul energy in his body back then!" Su Su realized she had clearly offended Ye Xiu with this statement and sheepishly returned into the jade ring.

Ye Xiu glanced back at where the shadow disappeared, then turned to walk toward the broken section of the Dragon Bone Seven Inches. Heaven knew what waited for him within the Seven Star Trapped Dragon Deadly Ground.