Though the boundless sword energy was formidable, it amounted to nothing to the Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord and the Heavenly Fire Feather Lord. The true form of the Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord was indeed a rare, ferocious beast in this world, its hide thick and its scales impervious to ordinary blades. Now transformed into human form, although the Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord’s body lacked scale protection, it was equally overwhelmingly powerful. As long as he was careful not to let the sword energy strike certain vital areas, he could simply ignore the torrents of energy, treating them as nothing more than an irritating itch. The Heavenly Fire Feather Lord beside him was even more nonchalant. He merely stood there, squinting and letting out cold sneers. The successive waves of sword energy were treated as a gentle breeze brushing against his face. Despite the sharp clanging sounds as the energy struck him, not a single trace of injury was left behind. After a prolonged display, the two saw the sword energy dissipate and burst into laughter: "Is that all..."

Unfortunately, they choked on the words just as they began. While surrounded by the sword assault, they couldn't see their surroundings clearly, and the Heavenly Fire Immortal Lord had also been momentarily affected by the sudden, fierce brilliance of the Glazed Fire. Thus, none of them saw exactly what had transpired. By the time the Immortal Lord regained his senses, the sword energy had already vanished. The Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord and the Heavenly Fire Feather Lord also saw the scene before them.

"Uh..."

Looking up, they saw an endless expanse of long swords before them. Every single sword radiated an identical purple radiance. Because the swords were packed so densely, the purple light seemed to merge into one solid entity—at that moment, it resembled a sky-piercing pillar of purple light containing countless long swords.

"This... what in the world is this?"

The Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord and the Heavenly Fire Feather Lord were utterly aghast. Although they were confident in their unparalleled physical strength, these purple longswords left a profound impression on them. The purple flying swords Ye Wen unleashed at the beginning had failed to wound him, but they had served to show him the sharpness of these weapons. At the time, he hadn't thought much of it, assuming that even if the flying swords were terrifying, they weren't insurmountable. But the sight before him now caused cold sweat to pour down his forehead. No matter how he racked his brain, he couldn't fathom how there could be ten thousand of those terrifyingly potent flying swords.

The Heavenly Fire Immortal Lord, standing slightly further back, had a clearer view. After squinting intently for a moment, he immediately discerned the nature of the flying swords: "Those flying swords are not physical objects; they are the condensation of the Shu Mountain Headmaster's entire cultivation!"

This statement seemed intended to boost the morale of the other two, but the information revealed only increased their panic. All condensed from cultivation? Just how terrifying was the cultivation of this Shu Mountain Headmaster to be able to condense so many formidable flying swords?

"Perhaps even though the number of flying swords is immense, their individual power has been greatly diminished?"

He couldn't believe Ye Wen could conjure ten thousand flying swords, each possessing that level of terror. The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed, and his shock slightly subsided.

Little did he know that Ye Wen, on the opposite side, was equally astonished. He thought to himself, Since mastering the Hun Tian Bao Jian and achieving the Heavenly Immortal rank, this Myriad Sword Art is being used for the first time. I didn't expect it to be so effortless? Ever since ascending to Heavenly Immortal, Ye Wen hadn't had many chances to employ the Myriad Sword Art. Ordinary opponents didn't warrant such a grand move, and the few formidable foes—counting only Apollo—were faced in circumstances that precluded its use. Thus, today marked the first deployment of this ultimate killing technique. He hadn't realized until using it: ever since the Hun Tian Bao Jian reached completion, forming an internal universe, his true qi seemed limitless. Though he had expended the energy of his entire body to condense the Purple Heaven Swords, within a single thought, the internal universe shifted and cycled, and his cultivation recovered almost instantaneously.

"It seems that upon the Great Accomplishment of the Hun Tian Bao Jian, not only was the recovery rate of my Innate Purple Qi not diminished, it was actually strengthened to an even more monstrous degree!"

After cycling through the process a few times, Ye Wen understood. With this newfound confidence, there was no need for restraint! In the past, when condensing the Purple Heaven Swords, he usually ensured that one out of ten swords possessed the greatest power, with the rest being slightly weaker 'defective products.' The truly deadly flying swords were all 'genuine Purple Heaven Swords,' but he had only unleashed them fully once against Kong Xuan, after which he was completely drained, unable to recover in a short time even with the aid of Innate Purple Qi. But now, with this bottomless well of power, he naturally had no need to hold back. He could waste his true qi recklessly, knowing it would never deplete.

He even noticed that a sliver of chaos residing within his internal universe began exhibiting peculiar phenomena as his true qi circulated rapidly and his internal universe shifted swiftly. The purple aura contained within it seemed to establish some sort of connection with the qi surrounding Ye Wen. In a daze, Ye Wen unconsciously established a link with that trace of purple qi. Instantly, the ten thousand swords already condensed vibrated in unison. The sky-piercing pillar of purple light trembled violently, then settled back into calm!

From the outside, nothing seemed to have changed, but the expressions of the Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord and his copies opposite him turned ashen. The Dragon Lord's pair of golden pupils contracted sharply, elongating into the slit-like eyes of a snake!

"This feeling? Not good! Move!"

Although the appearance of the Purple Heaven Swords hadn't changed, their aura had undergone a colossal shift. Ye Wen, standing amidst the ten thousand swords, sensed this but couldn't articulate why. The only certainty was that the power of the Myriad Sword Art seemed to have increased further.

"Why dwell on such thoughts? Killing this scum is the immediate priority!"

With a mere thought, the ten thousand flying swords, like soldiers receiving an order, instantly swiveled their blades to aim at the three figures nearby. Ye Wen made no gesture; only a sharp glint flashed in his eyes, and the ten thousand Purple Heaven Swords instantly erupted in a dazzling purple light, almost dyeing the entire sky purple.

Looking from afar toward Shu Mountain, one could see the world washed in a brilliant shade of violet. Upon the snowy peaks north of Shu Mountain, a man stood tall amidst the wind and snow, gazing south at the sky with an absorbed expression: "Headmaster Ye's cultivation has grown so much stronger again! Such might is practically comparable to Heaven and Earth!"

It is often said that the power of Heaven and Earth is unparalleled; even enlightened immortals sometimes sigh at its irresistibility. That Ye Wen’s sword strike could now be likened to the might of Heaven and Earth illustrates just how terrifying this technique is!

Returning to Shu Mountain, as Ye Wen unleashed his strike, the Purple Heaven Swords rained down like torrents. The continuous, booming sounds echoed ceaselessly, as if a series of Nine Heavens Divine Thunderbolts were constantly pounding Shu Mountain. Fortunately, Ye Wen, concerned that Shu Mountain might not withstand the full force of this move, activated the Nine Provinces Tripod while striking, enveloping the entire peak. Thus, though Ye Wen's swords appeared to strike Shu Mountain, they were actually absorbed by the Tripod. At that moment, he paid no mind to whether his barrage of destruction might damage the Nine Provinces Tripod. At all costs, Shu Mountain could not be harmed; it was the symbol of his sect. Though less functional than the Tripod, its significance was paramount. Through this chaotic bombardment, Ye Wen could only perceive flickering sword light and energy wildly discharging everywhere. Even with his Glazed Divine Pupils, he could not discern what was happening within the ensuing explosion.

The disciples on Shu Mountain stared dumbfounded towards the rear mountain. Some with higher cultivation ascended to vantage points and caught sight of the situation, only managing to cry out: "Grandmaster Headmaster seems to be using the Myriad Sword Art! But who is he fighting?"

Xu Xian, Ning Ruxue, and the others had already arrived nearby. However, the sheer terror of Ye Wen's current Myriad Sword Art rendered them incapable of approaching; even watching from a distance caused waves of heart palpitations.

Artemis, witnessing the sky full of purple flying swords and an attack that terrifyingly rivaled Zeus's divine lightning, also turned deathly pale, murmuring internally, So he was always holding back against me...

Even Xu Xian, who had been in secluded cultivation recently striving for a breakthrough, flew out. He stood suspended in the void with his wife, Huang Rongrong, staring at Ye Wen in the distance and the terrifying Myriad Sword Art, pondering deeply: "Senior Brother's Myriad Sword Art seems to have improved again. This feeling... it's as if something is within reach, yet entirely intangible?"

After frowning in thought for a moment, a stray sword energy shot out toward Xu Xian. He casually swatted away the residual energy wave, but upon doing so, he suddenly froze. A profound realization struck him. He grabbed Huang Rongrong, ignoring her startled cry, and urgently said, "Come with me quickly! I've had an insight; breakthrough is imminent!"

If Ye Wen had witnessed this scene, he would surely have muttered complaints and perhaps even mocked Xu Xian. But at this moment, he had no capacity to notice peripheral matters, focusing solely on the dazzling purple light and the swirling smoke and dust.

Fortunately, as the force of the impact lingered, the dust dissipated quickly. Almost as soon as the ten thousand flying swords finished their assault, the smoke cleared. With the lingering sword energy no longer obstructing his vision, Ye Wen’s eyes could finally function effectively. Thus, even before the dust fully settled, he clearly saw the situation in the fray.

But the moment he saw it, his expression drastically changed. He waved sharply toward those watching him from a distance and shouted, "Retreat immediately!"

Seeing his demeanor, everyone understood that the opponent had not been eliminated. While astonished that an enemy could survive such an assault, they knew that battles of this magnitude were beyond their participation. Accordingly, they took flight, erupting in various lights as they fled into the distance, even ordering disciples not to venture out recklessly.

In the short time it took them to retreat, the lingering force of the dust had scattered. As they flew back, everyone glanced over their shoulders, only for their faces to turn instantly pale and grim. For where the Myriad Sword Art had just laid waste, the figures of the Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord and his copies were gone, replaced instead by a monstrous, terrifying creature.

The monster resembled a giant serpent, yet it possessed eight heads, each on a long neck, all converging onto a single body, with only one massive tail. Furthermore, its back was covered in mossy, emerald-green growth, and as it fully manifested, faint clouds of red rain drifted above its heads.

"Gah!"

One of the giant heads suddenly opened its maw and emitted a grating sound that scraped at the soul, making Ye Wen, who faced it directly, dizzy, nauseated, and utterly miserable.

"Damn it, what kind of monster is this fellow?"

Honestly, he could recall only one monster fitting this description, but he couldn't fathom how such a creature could be associated with the Grand Supreme Elder (Taishang Laojun). However, as his gaze swept over the creature again, observing its blistered, blood-red belly and eight slightly confused heads, he finally confirmed the identity of this thing.

"Yamata no Orochi?"

He muttered the name to himself, not expecting an answer, but to his surprise, one of the monster’s tongues flickered, then it turned and flicked its forked tongue toward him. It opened its cavernous mouth and spoke in human language: "You possess some insight to recognize my true form!"

This statement was tantamount to confirming its identity. Moreover, Ye Wen noted that the speaker’s vocal tone was identical to that of the Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord, confirming that this monster was indeed the true form of the Dragon Lord. Realizing this, several preceding events suddenly clicked into place for him! Setting aside the inherent serpentine nature, it made sense that the Yamata no Orochi would seek to capture Dongfang Kui, who cultivated the Phoenix Clan's techniques, for dual cultivation. The Yamata no Orochi was inherently a creature of Water, not Fire! It was likely that after transforming into human form, he had diligently practiced numerous fire-control immortal techniques to pursue the path of Yin-Yang union. After all, in the Five Elements system governed by Yin-Yang and the Eight Trigrams, Fire belongs to Yang and Water belongs to Yin! Since the Yamata no Orochi was Yin, it naturally had to meticulously practice Yang Fire immortal arts to achieve Yin-Yang harmony. Furthermore, the monster’s notorious reputation allowed it to travel under the name Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord, likely avoiding a great deal of trouble! Ye Wen had never imagined, however, that this creature had been subdued by the Grand Supreme Elder and even accepted as a disciple—that old man was truly bold, possessing both supreme skill and immense daring. Ye Wen himself wasn't afraid of this little serpent, nor was he concerned about its ability to overturn the heavens.

But now, Ye Wen was deeply troubled. Just because the creature was accepted by Laojun didn't mean Ye Wen could easily subdue it. Facing this thing now... he wasn't at all certain of his chances of victory. In that brief moment, the remaining snake heads of the Yamata no Orochi seemed to awaken. They shook their massive skulls, then glanced at the head that had just spoken. They appeared to communicate amongst themselves, but in the blink of an eye, all the large heads turned in unison to glare at Ye Wen suspended in the air.

At this moment, the Yamata no Orochi exuded a terrifying aura, and following a strange fluctuation, its massive body, previously sprawled on the ground, began to float. Its belly, which looked nearly decayed, expelled clouds of blood-red mist that supported it aloft. Once fully airborne, the giant head speaking with the Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord's voice spoke again: "In eighteen hundred years, you are the first person to see my true form. You should feel honored!"

Hearing this, Ye Wen nearly tumbled from the sky: "Where did this eighteen hundred years pop up from? Besides, I'm just one person; there's no red-haired musician or black-haired, straight-haired shrine maiden team to grind down a big boss like you! And I'm certainly not a thousand-year-old delinquent high schooler!"

He grumbled internally while remaining extremely cautious. He squinted at the monster, his pupils shifting through seven colors as he searched for a weakness to strike a fatal blow. The great serpent opposite paid no attention to Ye Wen, merely holding its head high and continuing its monologue: "Finally able to reveal my true form, this time I shall revel to my heart's content!"

But before it could finish speaking, it felt a sharp pain on its forehead. The speaking serpent head was thrown violently backward by the force of the impact, freezing the scene momentarily! Returning its head to its original position, the tongue flicked as the golden pupils flared in anger: "You seek death!"

Ye Wen, seeing that his Heaven Heart Lotus Ring strike had only managed to make the giant serpent rear its head, knew that its hide was tougher than ordinary energy could penetrate. This meant he would likely have to rely on internal force or piercing sword energy to inflict damage.

The Yamata no Orochi had eight heads, and the most critical issue was that it possessed eight entirely independent minds. The Heavenly Fire Dragon Lord's head was merely a 'representative' from when it assumed human form; all other personalities had been dormant. Originally, the Yamata no Orochi's ultimate plan was not for the Dragon Lord to take the lead, but for all personalities and thoughts to eventually merge into the Heavenly Fire Immortal Lord—indeed, to the Yamata no Orochi, the Heavenly Fire Immortal Lord was the ninth snake head it was diligently nurturing. Once this ninth head formed, the other eight would vanish! At that point, it would shed its serpentine body, achieve the Golden Immortal Great Way, and become a true Ascended Immortal. No one would ever suspect that the highly respected Heavenly Fire Immortal Lord, disciple of the Grand Supreme Elder, was in fact the evolved Yamata no Orochi. But now that all eight heads were awake, their thoughts were no longer unified. As Ye Wen took action, the eight heads had to hold a discussion before finally coordinating to destroy the 'little insect' first!

This delay provided Ye Wen with another opportunity to strike. This time, Ye Wen dispensed with pretense. Facing such a monster, his other moves were merely tickling it; using them now would be a pointless waste of energy. Therefore, just as the eight heads reached a consensus and prepared to attack, they were shocked to see the little figure opposite them enveloped in a purple radiance, with clusters of purple-glowing longswords appearing in circles around him.

Though the seven serpent heads of the Yamata no Orochi had never witnessed this technique of Ye Wen's, the pain radiating from their bodies and the instinctual sense of mortal peril told them that if this 'stinky bug' were allowed to unleash this move, even if they didn't perish, they would suffer greatly. Consequently, all eight heads launched an attack simultaneously. Instantly, ice, poisonous water, and swamp gas flooded toward Ye Wen, almost completely enveloping the rear mountain of Shu Mountain, obscuring Ye Wen's purple sword light entirely.

But just a few seconds later, a beam of purple radiance burst forth, like a column of light shooting out of darkness, forcefully carving a path. Simultaneously, Ye Wen's calm voice rang out: "Let everything return to naught!"

Under the purple radiance, Ye Wen’s black hair streamed, his pupils emitted seven-colored divine light, his long robe fluttered without wind, and he held a sword manual in his hand, finally chanting: "Ten Thousand Swords Return to One!"