Birdman sucked in a sharp breath. With internal strife and external threats surrounding them, his duty as the Sunless Clan's most promising disciple was to save the entire lineage: "How can you take the Pillar of Sky-Shock with you! Spirit Hawk Assault!"

"Aah..." The feathers on Birdman's body instantly erupted, and the Spirit Hawk revealed its might right from the start. The entire sky turned blood-red in an instant, and the undying bird had locked its gaze firmly upon its prey.

Yan Shangcheng leaped up, intending to snatch the deadly Heaven Needles hovering mid-air. Just then, two blades flashed, and a crimson figure darted forward, seizing the Heaven Needles: "What!"

"Heh, I recall I have another friend who needs this thing." Jun Bugu's speed was noticeably sluggish; the moves he employed lacked the sharp malevolence of the Maple Leaf. "Your task is to have a good fight with that flying thing."

"Damn it!" Yan Shangcheng pushed his strength to the limit trying to catch up to Jun Bugu. Unexpectedly, the Spirit Hawk Fire Phoenix charged directly at him. The searing flames fiercely engulfed his whole body, slamming him heavily onto the Forbidden Isle.

Birdman didn't remain idle either. He rushed toward Jun Bugu, grabbing his arm: "You are still a prisoner of the Sky Cloud Machine. Where do you think you're going?"

"Aah..." Jun Bugu glared, and purple flames ignited on his Dual-Colored Absolute Blades. In a flash, the fire repelled Birdman. "Strange, why has my power weakened!"

"Hmm!" Birdman had sparred with Jun Bugu before. In his estimation, Jun Bugu's cultivation level should have been above his own. But now, it was indeed peculiar; although his strength was significantly diminished, it carried an inexplicable hint of Death's aura. "Where is your Maple Sword? Where is your speed!"

"I don't need those; I can still evade you, hehe!" Although surrounded by peril, Jun Bugu remained stubbornly defiant. He sprinted towards the edge of the Forbidden Isle but found himself unable to escape. "Blast it!"

"Hand over the Heaven Needles!" Birdman extended his hand, victory assured. But at that moment, Yan Shangcheng hurtled forward with the Fire Phoenix, stirring up a dense mist. Through the haze, Yan Shangcheng managed to wound Jun Bugu with a single sword strike, seizing the Heaven Needles from his grasp.

"What!" Birdman hadn't expected Yan Shangcheng to evade the entanglement with the Fire Phoenix. He turned back, drawing the Spirit Hawk back onto his body. "Just how high is this fellow's cultivation!"

Jun Bugu clutched his chest, enduring agonizing pain. Logically, he shouldn't be this defeated, but precisely now, the other personality that could wield the Maple Leaf's abilities at will had vanished somewhere. "Hah... am I destined to die here today?"

"Three Primal Heaven Needles, the Three Primal Heaven Needles!" Yan Shangcheng's mouth gaped as he raised the three divine needles high. Suddenly, a brilliant, multicolored glow illuminated the entire world, and under an inexplicable attraction, the three needles merged into one, forming another, finer and sharper divine needle. "I finally have it, the Three Primal Heaven Needles!"

"Yaha!" At that moment, a streak of crimson ribbon sliced through the white clouds above the Sky Cloud Machine. Old Liu, carrying Ye Xiu, swiftly darted onto the Forbidden Isle. He thrust his Ghost-Slaying Sword directly into Yan Shangcheng's abdomen, grievously wounding his opponent. "Brat, I didn't think you were still alive!"

Ye Xiu vaulted down from the Ghost-Slaying Sword, landing perfectly to grasp the Three Primal Heaven Needles firmly in his hand. As he touched the ground, he stood directly facing Birdman and Jun Bugu: "I never expected the Three Primal Heaven Needles I needed would fall into my hands just like that!"

"This fellow!" Elder Tianyuan had originally planned to wait until Birdman had exhausted Yan Shangcheng before making a move, but Ye Xiu's sudden intervention unsettled him. "This is the victor from the Heavenly Bone Mirroring Platform battle at the Celestial Citadel—a mysterious youth."

"Ah!" Yan Shangcheng roared in fury. The mark on his forehead had turned deep crimson. With a mere sweep of his longsword, he blasted Old Liu flying to another corner of the Forbidden Isle. "All of you must die!"

"Ye Xiu, Ye Xiu!" Jun Bugu hadn't seen Ye Xiu for a long time. Seeing him now, he momentarily forgot his own injuries and lunged toward Ye Xiu. "Didn't you want these Three Primal Heaven Needles? You finally got them."

"Jun Bugu." Ye Xiu sized him up. He had heard some things from the Witch Maiden. "Jun Bugu, haven't you noticed any change in your own body?"

"A change? I feel better and better now, does that count as a change?" This Jun Bugu had always been the type who cared little for trivial matters and ignored major issues. He caressed his body with a look of sheer delight.

"Aah!" Yan Shangcheng charged in a rage, kicking up dust across the entire island. "Die!"

"You still have the mood for catching up in a time like this?" Old Liu conjured an Ice Crystal Curse with Daoist power. That thin sheet of ice managed to block Yan Shangcheng's fierce onslaught. "It seems the power of the Grand Profound Daoist Curse is effective."

"The techniques this Daoist uses—they are so similar to the former Boundless Dao Master," Elder Potian and Elder Tianyuan watched the activities of the young figures on the Forbidden Isle from above, and Potian couldn't help but exclaim repeatedly. "What has happened to the Sky Cloud Machine? A mysterious youth who could defeat the inheritor of the Seven Swords of Long Bone, and a young Daoist possessing the strength of the Boundless Dao Master..."

"And the purple-haired fellow carrying the Mad Vein Heavenly Pivot, the strange kid wielding dual absolute blades, and Yu'er, who grew up alongside the Fire Phoenix Divine Beast from the start," Elder Tianyuan sighed deeply, a breath mixing relief and resignation. "The future of the Boundless Realm is destined to be rewritten by these few youths. We can only observe the changes."

Ye Xiu knew Old Liu's capabilities, but he continued questioning Jun Bugu: "What about the other you? Has that fellow appeared? Wasn't he determined to kill me? Tell him to