The black and white sword shadows clashed and collided continuously in the void. This entire pocket of space-time had been completely severed, creating a vast, dark fissure.

Within a thousand zhang radius, all the spirits of heaven and earth had vanished. Only where Zong Shou stood—the space spanning ten zhang around him—remained intact. Even when momentarily shattered by massive impacts, it would instantly restore itself, piece by piece returning to its original state.

However, Zong Shou relied primarily on the black hole within his body to directly draw spiritual energy from the very source of the cosmos. Though limited, this minimized his consumption.

Across from him, Jue Yu no longer depended on the spirits of heaven and earth at all. Instead, he constantly integrated the black, minute rifts of the temporal storm into his own sword, achieving immense power in a similar manner.

As sword strikes interchanged, Zong Shou gradually found himself unable to attend to anything else. He was forced to focus all his attention solely on responding to Jue Yu's onslaught. It became almost mechanical, losing all sense of the passage of time.

After countless exchanges, the light emanating from the swords in both their hands emitted a faint crack almost simultaneously.

Subsequently, both the black broadsword and the Fire Yin Sword seemed unable to withstand the intensity of the continuous fierce battle. After one final clash, they shattered, abruptly disintegrating!

Zong Shou’s expression froze for a moment, but he immediately dismissed thoughts of the broken weapons. Without hesitation, he reached out into the void, instantly gathering the Spirits of the Five Directions. In an instant, a silver spiritual sword materialized.

Jue Yu, equally swift, instinctively reached out and drew the spatial rifts together, forging them into a sword shape, and thrust it at Zong Shou once more.

“Peng!”

An explosion as resounding as any before shook the entirety of the hundred thousand zhang space. The two ‘swords’ disintegrated the moment they collided!

And just moments later, two beams of silver and black sword light reformed yet again.

Constantly colliding, constantly shattering! A thousand strikes passed in the blink of an eye. It was only then that the speed at which the sword light coalesced began to slow down simultaneously.

Lei Dong noticed it immediately. A moment later, Su Chen, standing nearby, also frowned.

“The rhythm seems to have slowed!”

The speed of the two men’s swords had clearly dropped considerably. Jue Yu now required more time to complete a single strike.

And on Tan Qiu’s side, the speed at which he gathered the silver spiritual sword was slowing in response.

This was precisely what puzzled Su Chen.

Tan Qiu slowing down his spiritual sword formation clearly indicated that his soul power was slightly depleted. Under this fatigue, his True Form Manifestation was showing signs of instability and collapse.

He was currently pouring forth all his effort, grasping every opportunity to allow his primal spirit to recover.

Yet Jue Yu, conversely, clearly remained in peak condition. Though his consumption was vast, he could still sustain it.

At this juncture, he was not pressing the advantage to secure victory. Instead, he was proactively slowing the tempo, giving Tan Qiu a chance to breathe. Moreover, every thrust seemed labored to an extreme degree. It was truly baffling.

“What’s so strange about that?”

Ruo Tao shook his head with a slight smile, a peculiar brilliance flickering in his eyes. “Jue Yu isn't doing that by choice! The reason is that Tan Qiu has almost deciphered his Great Annihilation Sword. Didn’t you notice that with every exchange earlier, Tan Qiu’s consumption was decreasing? When dealing with Jue Yu’s Great Annihilation Sword, he grew noticeably smoother, able to break it midway. He has clearly calculated Jue Yu’s sword path—”

Su Chen’s frame trembled as he recalled the events carefully. It was indeed the case for the subsequent seven hundred strikes. However, during that period, because Tan Qiu was suffering from insufficient soul power, every sword clash appeared arduous, which is why he hadn't noticed.

Lei Dong scoffed at this moment. “While Tan Qiu may be running out of reserves, Jue Yu must also be far more cautious, compensating for the flaws in his swordsmanship and desperately altering the trajectory of his sword paths to avoid being defeated in one blow!”

Su Chen suddenly understood; Jue Yu was being more cautious. The slowing rhythm required more time for calculation and deduction.

But if he didn't attack, allowing Tan Qiu to fully recover, defeat was still the likely outcome.

These two men were pushing each other to the tightest of predicaments.

Ruo Tao beside them also drew his conclusion. “They will decide the victor within ten more exchanges! If I hadn't seen it myself, I would never believe that anyone in this world, aside from that individual, could push Jue Yu into such a state—”

Lei Dong snorted but did not refute, clearly agreeing wholeheartedly with the statement.

Indeed, after just seven more strikes, another muffled sound echoed in the void.

Jue Yu’s figure retreated a full thousand zhang. This time, he stabilized himself in mid-air and did not press forward with a ferocious attack. His brow was deeply furrowed, and his expression was one of extreme solemnity.

Zong Shou made no move to pursue, remaining rooted in place. His eyelids were slightly lowered, as if he were conserving spirit and essence.

The silver spiritual sword in his hand dissipated, and he made no move to reform it for the moment, simply remaining still.

Jue Yu was also deep in thought, seemingly replaying the recent exchanges. After several breaths, a slight smile touched his lips.

“We have already exchanged nineteen thousand four hundred and forty-two strikes. This battle has been exhilarating. Regardless of victory or defeat, I, Jue Yu, am completely satisfied today. How about we decide the victor with the next strike?”

Zong Shou’s eyebrows lifted as he opened his eyes. His soul power was nearly exhausted. At this moment, even his physical form was merely a faint shadow, and speaking was extremely difficult. He gave a concise, slight nod.

“Agreed!”

The instant his voice fell, the black sword radiance ahead suddenly flared to life, a surging river of the sword, brimming with destructive power, swept over him.

This strike was clearly Jue Yu expending his absolute utmost, mobilizing all his strength—

The Non-Life of the Great Annihilation Sword!

Yet, it was far more adept than when first displayed, incorporating countless more variations! It absorbed more temporal storms, more true power.

To the eye, there was nothing but endless black sword shadows, inspiring no courage to resist or defy. This strike felt inherently unstoppable, born to obliterate the surrounding space—

Zong Shou’s brow furrowed slightly as he stood his ground, observing the immense tidal wave of swords before him. Inside his Sea of Consciousness, his mind operated frantically, analyzing and deciphering.

Only when the foremost point of the black sword shadow approached within ten zhang did Zong Shou’s intent explode outward. It was like a dormant volcano erupting.

A surging battle intent surged once more. The martial will, already at its absolute zenith, seemed to ascend even higher in that instant.

Without hesitation, a silver spiritual sword materialized in his hand again, and he thrust it out fiercely!

The conviction residing in his heart, already unshakeable, became even firmer and more powerful.

In this battle, he was destined to triumph!

The silver sword light pierced out, colliding with the black tide of swords precisely ten zhang away. Another dull peng sounded, and both lights scattered.

However, this time the black sword only wavered slightly before continuing its inexorable surge. The silver spiritual sword, however, instantly reformed, like a persistent maggot clinging to bone, weaving through the gaps in the sword tide.

After two thousand strikes, for the first time, it breached the ten-zhang boundary!

The first nineteen thousand four hundred and forty-nine strikes were defense; only the final strike was offense!

The Primordial One Yang Sword!

Like mercury spilling across the ground, it infiltrated everywhere. The sword light seemed to seek out every crack, continuously penetrating deeper. It was like a master butcher carving an ox, constantly decomposing and cleaving the black sword tide, driving straight toward its core.

Jue Yu on the other side resisted with all his might, equally composed, constantly shifting his sword light. While blocking the silver shadow, he continued his torrent, striving to utterly engulf Zong Shou’s form.

At this moment, the more than one hundred thousand spectators held no further discussion. They watched silently, save for the sound of clashing sword qi, there was nothing else.

Su Chen’s pupils constricted to pinpricks. His soul sense spread out. Even as it was being severely wounded by the wandering black rifts, he ignored it, desperate to imprint every minute change on his consciousness.

So fast!

Zong Shou had truly mastered the Great Annihilation Sword to the point of utter familiarity, dismantling and shattering the sword tide at a near-frenzied pace!

Jue Yu was also exerting his peak strength. The vast sword tide was ceaseless; often, after one wave dissolved, more sword shadows sprang forth, seemingly endless. You break one sword, and I produce another!

You can shatter my ten, my hundred, but you cannot shatter my thousand, my ten thousand!

Su Chen’s fists clenched! Since beginning his martial practice, this was the first time he had witnessed such a spectacular sword battle! The collision of two geniuses at the pinnacle of sword intent and swordsmanship was truly dazzling!

He knew this was the final juncture, yet he still couldn't predict the outcome, his heart filled with suspense.

Will Tan Qiu finally succumb to exhaustion? Or will he utterly shatter Jue Yu’s Great Annihilation Sword before his soul power is completely spent?

The sword lights intertwined, with very few direct collisions occurring. Jue Yu’s expression remained stern, his eyes intensely focused, desperately trying to pinpoint the true body of the silver sword shadow.

When Zong Shou was running low on reserves, every clash of sword energy increased his odds of victory!

At this moment, Jue Yu’s figure was steadily retreating. Ten zhang, a hundred zhang, a thousand zhang!

Under the pressure of the silver sword light, he could only retreat! Unable to hold the line, he poured all his effort into increasing the distance.

Zong Shou, meanwhile, found his Sea of Consciousness nearly darkening. The last vestiges of his strength continued to drain away.

Instinctively, he controlled the sword in his hand, pressing forward! Instinctively deflecting every sword style Jue Yu unleashed.

And within his mind, his belief remained like an inexhaustible mountain.

Sword Emperor Tan Qiu, having endured over nine thousand battles without a single defeat. Today, he would not lose here!

Up in the mid-air, Fang Wen abruptly took a step forward. A moment later, he realized his lack of composure. His fists remained tightly clenched, suppressing the tension in his chest as he gave a self-mocking laugh.

“—This battle truly is epic and soul-stirring!”