"Pfft..." To everyone's utter surprise, as Ye Xiu materialized after diving into the earth, he was pierced clean through the heart by the Seven Swords from behind.

"Ye Xiu..." Jia Yunxin's heart hammered against her ribs, and she frantically leaned over the railing. The scene was too brutal for her to bear. "Big Brother, stop this contest quickly! If this continues, Ye Xiu might actually be killed by Bai Cheng."

"Nonsense! When it comes to the Jian Bing Terrace, life and death must be set aside." Jia Ye was utterly engrossed, realizing Bai Cheng was no ordinary opponent. The might of the Seven Long Bones Swords seemed to rival his own Heavenly Bone Sword Art. "If he is defeated due to inferior skill and dies on the stage, he has no one to blame. Moreover, this matter is far from decided!"

"Exactly. Once a martial contest begins, it cannot stop until a victor is determined." Jia Nan’s stance naturally favored Bai Cheng. "Bai Cheng represents the royal lineage of our Huang Gu City; his victory is inevitable."

"Little sister, there is no need to worry. Look, Ye Xiu hasn't fallen yet." Jia Louluo gently pulled Yunxin back to her seat, just as gasps erupted from the crowd below.

"Hoo..." Ye Xiu, moments ago impaled by the Seven Long Bones Swords, suddenly dissolved into a cloud of thick, black blood mist that rapidly enveloped the entire plaza.

"What... how can this be?" Bai Cheng, terrified by the sudden, chilling atmosphere, stumbled several steps back. He controlled the Seven Swords to descend from the sky, circling protectively around him—a defensive tactic born from his inability to fathom Ye Xiu’s intentions.

"Can that fellow actually command those afterimages freely?" Jiu Liansheng sat relaxed, seemingly sensing Ye Xiu’s presence with every sip of his wine.

"Swish, swish, swish!" With the sound of rapid swordsmanship, Ye Xiu's afterimages flickered within the black mist. They plummeted like meteors, and every descending strike collided violently with Bai Cheng's Seven Swords. At this moment, those afterimages were no longer mere shadows; each one possessed a tangible reality.

Jia Louluo knew the ultimate technique, Tian Miao Luo Ying, but he never expected the afterimages to materialize. It seemed Ye Xiu's cultivation level surpassed his wildest estimations. Could it be an illusion created by sheer speed?

"Hahahaha, hahahaha." Riding the dark mist, Ye Xiu battered the myriad sword lights down onto the Seven Swords. Meanwhile, he secretly infused the Tian Miao Sword with Black Flame, incinerating Bai Cheng's serpentine sword formation. Bai Cheng's body was instantly exposed to the blade’s edge.

"Ah..." Bai Cheng finally ceased his movements, bright red blood flowing from his chest. The blood dripped down the Tian Miao Sword still lodged in his body, staining the ground. The Seven Swords, previously flying in a serpentine pattern, clattered to the ground in disarray.

"Hoo..." Suddenly, the black mist dispersed. Ye Xiu landed, clutching his wound, but a distinct green luminescence shone in his eyes—the Jade Eye of the Fox Spirit, Bi Yan Hua Rong. It was this green gaze that allowed him to push Tian Miao Luo Ying to its absolute extreme. "You have lost!"

A Bi, being a member of the Fox Spirit Palace, instantly recognized that gaze. But how could Bi Yan Hua Rong reside within this youth? He was clearly not of the Fox Spirit lineage.

Jia Ye’s heart tightened, yet he was thrilled. "I never expected Ye Xiu to possess Fox Spirit cultivation! That one green eye carries a profound origin!"

"Damn it!" Jia Nan burned with rage, furious that Bai Cheng was so incompetent as to be bested by a nobody.

"Bi Yan Hua Rong!" Jia Louluo gripped the Heavenly Bone Relic Scripture and recognized the legendary artifact. "One of the top-ranked Ability Eyes within the Fox Spirit lore. Though I do not know its detailed function, possessing Bi Yan Hua Rong places one at the pinnacle of cultivation in the Boundless Realm."

"Indeed." Jia Ye nodded. He hadn't misjudged; this Death God named Ye Xiu was truly the legendary Anomalous Birth Body, his anomaly already far surpassing the records in ancient texts.

"Wow... I didn't know you had this trick up your sleeve!" The momentum shifted dramatically on the stage. Bai Cheng kept his head down, seemingly drained of all energy, but as he delicately raised a finger, the Seven Swords trembled and resounded, soaring back into the air. "I will not concede like this! The one who becomes part of the Huang Gu City royalty must be me, Bai Cheng!"

Ye Xiu sucked in a sharp breath, watching Bai Cheng’s movements from a slanted angle. The murderous intent in Bai Cheng's eyes had spread to his cheeks, and a single tear of blood marked his resolve.

"The true profound essence of the Seven Long Bones Swords!" Bai Cheng declared, ignoring his wound and forcibly ejecting the Tian Miao Sword from his body. He slid rapidly toward the edge of the plaza, commanding the Seven Long Bones Swords to move without pattern or discipline across the land and sky. These swords looked vastly different from before; each blade emanated a vibrant blue-violet light.

Ye Xiu dared not be careless. He gathered the Nine Dragon Black Flame, preparing to attach it to his Tian Miao Sword, ensuring that if he didn't directly deploy the Death Realm Black Flame, it wouldn't be detected by outsiders.

"Strike!" Bai Cheng clapped his hands shut, urging the tips of the Seven Swords toward Ye Xiu. At that moment, the majestic purple light from the blades converged at a single point before slowly expanding to form a circular zone.

Ye Xiu flipped backward in alarm. Facing the tracking of the bizarre Seven Swords, he had no choice but to use the Hundred Insect Soul technique to take flight, gliding between the earth and sky.

"Brother Ye, I admit your techniques are formidable, but..." Bai Cheng pointed a hand toward the sky while clutching the sword wound on his chest, a sinister smile playing on his lips as he spoke. "But today ends here. Do not blame me for my ruthlessness."

Ye Xiu dodged the continuous barrage of the Seven Swords and hastily plunged toward the ground. He knew Bai Cheng wasn't joking. Yet, at this moment, the nine heavens suddenly experienced a feeling like wind sweeping away clouds; the bright, clear sky instantly became overcast, and the radiance of the Seven Long Bones Swords shifted from blue-violet to the tragic crimson of a setting sun.

"Ah... is it going to rain? Lightning..." The spectators below looked up, pointing at the sky. Many assumed this was the precursor to a thunderstorm, and several cultivators showed expressions of fear.

Jia Louluo stared into the heavens and sighed. "Big Brother, have you ever seen the true profound essence of the Seven Long Bones Swords?"

"It is merely a legend; I have only heard the Guard Bai Cheng mention it." Jia Ye was unaware of the true reason, only feeling that he had seriously underestimated Bai Cheng all along. "Legend says the Seven Long Bones Swords can summon heavenly lightning, achieving the apex of cultivation with the power to shatter the sword and destroy the earth."

"Impressive!" Jia Nan clenched his fists. He hadn't expected that within the Boundless Realm, besides the Heavenly Bone Sword Art, there was another sword technique capable of influencing seasons and weather. He truly hadn't misjudged this Bai Cheng.

"Rumble! Rumble!" The weather changed abruptly. Black clouds pressed down, and thunder and lightning converged amidst the clamor of the plaza.

"Aah!" Bai Cheng’s hair scattered wildly, whipped by the wind. His maniacal roar echoed as a jagged bolt of lightning, accompanied by a piercing thunderclap, shot directly toward the Seven Swords that had leapt high into the air, forming a blade of forged lightning.

Ye Xiu activated his Jade Eye of the Fox Spirit. The world as he perceived it naturally differed from that of others. At this moment, wind, clouds, and lightning were nothing more than slow-motion movie clips to him. "Hmph. I only fear this move won't harm me. I'll take care of the spectators in the stands instead."

"Worry about yourself first. Seven Bones Thunderous Strike!" Bai Cheng snarled, commanding the Seven Swords with one hand. At this instant, the intense light on the seven blades formed seven magnificent sword edges. After absorbing the power of the lightning, they all shot out toward Ye Xiu’s body.

Suddenly, the entire world flickered with lightning, the light blinding. This was the moment Ye Xiu had been waiting for. He summoned Su Su to draw upon the lightning power stored in the Jade Ring. At that moment, the Tian Miao Sword and the two streams of lightning reacted to each other, causing crackling sounds all around.

"It's still not enough!" Bai Cheng directed the descending lightning from the nine heavens with one finger, while his other hand waved wildly left, right, up, and down. The Seven Swords, entangled with lightning, flew chaotically while being blocked by Ye Xiu’s Tian Miao, causing the ground of the plaza to shatter, leaving it scarred and desolate.

"Boom! Crash!" The sword lights were disorganized and chaotic; most shots flew toward the defenseless audience. With a massive explosion, many onlookers were skewered and collapsed to the ground, leaving the scene in utter ruin.

"Not good! Bai Cheng's swordsmanship is out of control!" Jia Nan leaned out, trying to see the situation beneath the Tiantiange Pavilion, only to have a beam of light from the Seven Swords shoot directly in front of him, heavily striking and shattering a supporting pillar of the pavilion.

"Heavenly Bone Sword Art, Thousand Bone Killing Intent!" Jia Ye slammed the table, causing his Qian Tian Treasure Sword to tumble into the sky. His body followed, soaring up. Several hundred meters above the ground, he intercepted the sword, calmly waving out several golden sword lights that struck down the sword light from the Seven Swords one by one. "Hahahaha! It's been a long time since I've witnessed such a fierce duel! This contest cannot end here; I must see how deep the mastery of these two truly runs!"

"But if this continues, the people below..." Jia Louluo couldn't believe that Jia Ye would sacrifice the lives of others for the sake of a contest. As the Grand Sect Master, Jia Ye truly lived up to the saying: A man without poison is not a true hero.

Jia Ye paid them no mind, continuously unleashing the sword moves of the Heavenly Bone Sword Art to counteract the dangerous edges of the Seven Swords threatening the common folk. "Second Brother, Third Brother, if you can, lend Big Brother a hand. We cannot abandon this contest, but we must also protect the people to the greatest extent possible."

"Yes, Big Brother!" Jia Nan also didn't want the match to conclude prematurely. He leaped onto the high platform and deployed the Heavenly Bone Sword Art to shield the innocent. "Third Brother, you just sit back and enjoy the show; Big Brother and I are enough."

"Sigh..." Jia Louluo was long accustomed to being overlooked by his two elder brothers. But perhaps this was better; his focus had always been on Ye Xiu. However, he had never anticipated Bai Cheng possessing such formidable strength, and this fellow Ye Xiu seemed to be holding back some power for himself.

"Su Su, absorb the lightning from his sword light for me!" Ye Xiu growled, his eyes blazing. The Soul Stone Jade Ring on his finger suddenly activated. The direction of the lightning from the Seven Long Bones Swords shifted abruptly, channeling into Ye Xiu’s Tian Miao Sword. At this moment, intense, fierce flames erupted around the Tian Miao Sword, powerful enough to awe the entire world!

"Seven Long Bones Swords, Thunderous Strike!" Bai Cheng was fighting with his eyes bloodshot; at this point, he could not listen to any advice. All life before his Seven Swords was destined for ruin. Grinning maniacally, he controlled the seven blades to merge one last time, determined to fight Ye Xiu to the death. "Hahahaha, your fate ends here."

"Since you desire death so much, I shall grant it to you." Ye Xiu felt his life severely threatened by that intense radiance. A killing intent surged in his heart—the instinct of the God of Death, the will of a powerhouse, or perhaps the obsession of the Tian Miao Sword. This strike, once unleashed, would mean the end of a life.