The woman in green frowned, an involuntary flutter stirring within her heart, laced with deep annoyance. —This youth was not merely Boundless Light and Endless Dark; he was the union of spirit and martial arts, possessing the Sword Soul Realm!

How could this be? If not for this boy, how would she have fallen into such a predicament?

A miscalculation— Yet, she did not regret the decision she had made; her only mistake was not being ruthless enough. Then, the woman in green settled her composure once more.

She offered a bright, charming smile: "What are you talking about, Sister Yuanjing? We are the sovereigns of a realm, naturally holding ourselves to absolute impartiality.

I was just about to intervene a moment ago, just a bit too late—" "Absolute impartiality? Hmm.

Do you recall how my senior brother was suppressed by you all the moment he entered the realm? Yet, this Shenxiao of the Shangxiao Sect has been indulged by you to such an extent.

Is this the impartiality you speak of?" Lin Yuanjing’s voice boomed with laughter: "If it weren't for my sister's personal disciple proving capable, he would likely already have been killed by Shenxiao, fallen victim to his poison, correct? That's precisely what the four of you wished for, isn't it?" The old man sighed at this point: "Daoist friend Yuanjing.

Why stir things up? Several of us merely delayed our intervention for a moment.

I know that your Cangsheng Dao still harbors resentment toward us over the fall of Xi Zi. However, the six of us were truly compelled at the time.

Your persistent entanglement is meaningless. Furthermore, your martial nephew today has not suffered the slightest injury.

As the saying goes in the mortal world, show mercy where you can, leave room for maneuver in all things—" "I am familiar with that saying, but why did none of you leave any room for my senior brother to advance? Today, my Imperial Nephew is indeed unharmed, but if we do not mete out some punishment to serve as a warning, what recourse will the disciples of my Cangsheng Dao have should they face such matters in the future?

Must they simply wait for death?" The Daoist frowned, about to argue further. Lin Yuanjing’s voice turned cold again: "Therefore, Yuanjing requests an explanation from the four of you—" The final two words were uttered with detached clarity, yet they pulsed with a heart-stopping murderous intent and resolution.

The woman in green raised an eyebrow, then simply ceased her defense with a cold laugh: "An explanation! Why should there be an explanation?

You, woman, must be utterly insane. You are being unreasonable, basing everything on conjecture, and condemning the four of us just like that?

This is tantamount to fabricating a crime where none exists! I shall not argue with you, but withdraw quickly!" "Is this brazen self-assurance?

Indeed. Ever since Senior Brother Xi Zi perished, the six of you have never again feared our Cangsheng Dao." Lin Yuanjing's voice carried a light chuckle: "Very well, if you are unwilling, then I shall come and take it myself; it amounts to the same thing!" The four, excluding the monk, exchanged wary glances.

The woman in green pondered deeply, reviewing everything, and found no apparent flaw in her confidence. The only surprise was that Lin Yuanjing had ascended to the Ultimate Realm, yet still posed no real threat to her.

Since this woman had set a trap, she must have some reliance. But with the item she held, no matter what means that person employed, she had no need to fear.

She suppressed the unease churning in her chest and, with a cold expression, continued to watch the youth still lingering in the darkness below. This Zong Shou must be dealt with somehow; he could not be allowed to live.

Just as this thought arose, the woman abruptly heard a faint, unusual sound. It made her heart leap once more.

It was the air-burst from a penetration a hundred zhang away. Utterly minute, like the whine of a mosquito, yet in her ears at that moment, it exploded like a thunderclap.

With a sharp gasp, she instinctively flashed away from her spot, stamping her foot to instantly freeze the entire ten-thousand-zhang radius. But even that could not stop the approaching danger.

It was silent, undetectable by spiritual sense; even now, she did not know what it was. With a soft reprimand, the woman waved her wide sleeve again.

Twelve immortal treasures resembling jade slips flew out and began circling her body. But in the very next instant, astonishment bloomed on her face.

She urgently clamped her hands together, instantly wrenching forth a strange, endless, and boundless force from the very origin of heaven and earth, enveloping herself for protection. This was the power that a Realm Sovereign could wield, drawn from the deepest essence of this Cloud Realm.

As long as this realm existed, so did she. Thus, even without supreme longevity treasures like the Mysterious Fate Golden Scroll, the lifespan of a Realm Sovereign was often many times that of other cultivators!

Yet, in merely one-thousandth of a breath, a single streak of golden light pierced through with unstoppable force. Even the primal power of the Cloud Realm could only halt it for the briefest moment.

The woman in green was now bordering on panic and bewilderment. She finally saw what the object was: a golden needle.

In that fleeting moment, she also 'perceived' the Laws and Great Daos contained within it. 'Annihilation,' 'Frost Cold,' 'Blazing Flame,' 'Void,' 'Instant,' 'Concealment,' 'Sharpness'— She could discern seven types at a glance.

Two more Great Daos were things she had never seen or heard of. "It's the Nine Extremes Annihilation Needle!

Where in the blazes did you get this? You madwoman—" The last two sentences were filled with a desperate hysteria.

Her beautiful features turned pale, and she hastily retrieved a talisman to sacrifice before her, simultaneously crying out: "I beg my Daoist brothers to aid me!" The other three faces paled, but moments later, the youth let out a light chuckle, and the monk remained silent. The old man, however, reached out a hand, and suddenly another sword light flashed, cleaving through the void.

"Lin Fanmeng—" With a sigh, the old man turned back, flicked his finger lightly against the sword’s tip. And the source of the sword light seemed to have no intention of meeting his attack head-on.

It shifted from tangible to illusory, vanishing softly back into the void with a mere touch. A light, crisp laugh echoed from a distance.

Then, in the next instant, there was a resounding explosion. Before the woman in green, the talisman's light collided with the golden needle, causing that small pocket of heaven and earth to instantly collapse.

Although the display was vast and terrifyingly potent, the sound traveled quite well. One could only see the location cracking apart inch by inch, the disturbance even penetrating the void and affecting countless layered dimensions of time and space.

But when the spiritual talisman was completely shattered, the golden needle finally dissipated. Just as the woman in green was letting out a sigh of relief, casting an annoyed glance toward the monk and the youth, her eyelids suddenly twitched again.

A spark of golden light, even smaller than before, suddenly manifested before her eyes. "—A needle hidden within a needle!" These four words flashed through her mind, but this time, the woman had no time to react whatsoever.

The shadow of the needle pierced directly into the center of her brow. For a moment, the old man was stunned, the youth’s face turned deathly pale, and the monk broke his silence.

With a sigh, he began chanting a true mantra. It was the Ksitigarbha Sutra, the Buddhist mantra of transcendence.

Chanted by one possessing the karmic fruit of a Bodhisattva, its merit was immense— The souls of mortals who heard it could be reincarnated. High-minded cultivators hearing it could unravel the mysteries of the womb and gain memories of past lives.

Even knowing clearly that the woman who had been by his side day and night had now completely perished—body and soul utterly annihilated—the sutra was essentially useless, yet he continued. After a few passages, the woman’s body began to turn to dust, starting to dissipate.

Without the power to sustain it, it was instantly torn to shreds by the turbulent void. At that moment, Lin Yuanjing's laughter echoed from all directions.

"Indeed, a needle hidden within a needle! Since I knew I might be a pawn for that person, how could I not know he would leave you a means of self-preservation?

How do you find this needle? I spent three thousand years refining artifacts; hiding one within the Nine Extremes Annihilation Needle—the taste must be quite delightful!

My senior brother's millennia of blood debt have finally been repaid today—" Her voice was filled with madness and elation. The joy of avenging a great wrong saturated her words.

Even though she knew the woman in green was dead and could not hear her, she spoke with excitement. The youth’s expression turned ashen.

Seeing the monk still chanting, he grew even more irritated: "Stop chanting! Since you refused to help her earlier, why put on this pretense of piety now?" Even the elder cast a reproachful glance.

If the monk had intervened just then, the woman in green might not necessarily have died in this battle. The latter let out a bitter sigh.

He did have reasons he could not explain, but he refused to justify himself, merely closing his mouth and remaining silent. The youth then turned his gaze toward the void: "Now that Han Yue is dead, does Daoist friend Yuanjing truly intend to defy the entire world by keeping the three of us here?

Ten thousand years ago, we were merely performing our duties out of necessity. Today’s matter was due to Han Yue’s personal bias; it was our fault.

If the Immortal Maiden seeks an explanation, the three of us will provide one—" Lin Yuanjing scoffed again upon hearing this, but the deep-seated hatred and chill in her tone did diminish slightly. "If that is the case!

Then I request the three of you to sever one of your own arms—" The youth’s expression immediately turned frigid. The monk’s face grew even more mournful, and the old man erupted in fury.

While the two were speaking, tens of thousands of li away, in a cloud-covered realm resembling a celestial paradise, two figures sitting opposite each other in discussion both frowned. Then, the one who appeared slightly younger spoke with sadness.

"It is Han Yue; it seems she has perished!" The other person was older, yet looked to be only around forty. "It’s the Nine Extremes Annihilation Needle!

Well done, Lin Yuanjing; we truly underestimated her back then. Han Yue was careless, truly believing that talisman made her untouchable.

Her death is not undeserved—" He sighed slightly again: "This is likely revenge for Xi Zi’s matter from back then. We already said it: we were too extreme!

It’s impossible for the Cangsheng Dao to simply forget; when our strength was lacking, fine, but now that our vitality has recovered, they certainly won't let it go!" "What do we do now? Of the six protectors of the realm, only five of us remain, and we cannot stop one at the Ultimate Realm.

That Yuanjing does not seem like the type to let this rest, and now she has caught us on a crucial point—" "Suck it up! It means enduring.

This heretical path passed down by Xi Zi cannot overturn the heavens! This world, ultimately, must still be governed by our kind.

We might as well inform that person; since this trouble originated with him, he should be the one to resolve the complications he stirred up!" (To be continued…)