Alone, Zong Shou sat at the stern of the massive ship. Thirty-six Star Dragon Pellets flickered around him, their positions constantly shifting.

In truth, they could no longer truly be called Dragon Pellets; they were genuine stars now. They had thoroughly merged with the points of light within Zong Shou’s Primordial Spirit.

Two full months had passed since he reunited with this fleet. The twenty-four Dragon Pellets refined earlier had long since completed their transformation between the illusory and the real.

It was only because he simultaneously had to painstakingly carve the Dragon Fangs into the Ten Absolutes Dao-Governing Sword Artifacts that the increase in number was far less than he had anticipated. Partly due to divided attention, and partly because for the first initial twenty-four stars, Zong Shou had started with the Great Daos he was most familiar with and had encountered most frequently.

The subsequent stars proved somewhat more difficult. Zong Shou’s simultaneous work on the remaining twelve stars only concluded their virtual-to-real conversion at this very moment.

His strength advanced again! Two months prior, the might of his Zhou Guang Sword was slightly inferior to the Killing Dao Sword Intent.

Two months later, it had surpassed it. Harnessing the thirty-six stars, a single strike could now surpass the murderous sword Dao of the Soul Realm of Sword Intent!

Zong Shou could now shift his presence to any single point among these thirty-six stars, guided only by his thought. These stellar points existed in a state between illusion and reality, projections of the Heart-Image Void Dharma Aspect onto this world.

Unless one possessed a Soul Power far exceeding his, or simultaneously mastered the Dao of Time and Space, they could hardly inflict the slightest harm upon him. With this set of stars, he finally possessed the true confidence to safely extricate himself from any situation or crisis.

And apart from these stellar points, a sword formation circled around him. A total of twelve Ten Absolutes Dao-Governing Dragon Fang Swords danced in the air, following a specific trajectory.

The Fang Swords were unsharpened, their appearance incredibly crude due to Zong Shou’s unskilled crafting. They appeared utterly harmless and unremarkable.

It was unclear if it was coincidence or Zong Shou’s intent, but a Tier Seven spirit beast commonly found in the Boundary River—a Carp Dragon—stumbled blindly into the area. Instantly, the sword formation sprang to life.

Streaks of sword qi erupted, sweeping left, right, inside, and out. In a mere blink, the pitiful Tier Seven Carp Dragon was utterly pulverized by the dense rain of sword shadows.

Only a splatter of blood mist remained, diffusing across the Boundary River. The palace structure was far too confining.

Within the great ship, Zong Shou dared not act recklessly as he had when at Qian Tian Mountain. If he wished to test his divine abilities, he could only do so here at the unmanned stern, or after leaving the air vessel.

Even if there was some commotion, it would not damage the hull. However, due to this specialized environment, there were naturally a few onlookers nearby.

“Truly spoils the view! Speaking of which, I hear Carp Dragon meat is the most delicious, especially after Tier Seven, its flavor unparalleled.

What a pity.” The Ten Absolutes Dao-Governing Annihilation Sword Formation truly lived up to its name, reducing the large Carp Dragon instantly to mincemeat. The lineage of true dragons harbors an intense hatred for these pseudo-dragons of inferior bloodline, viewing them as things to be slain on sight.

His twelve Ten Absolutes Dao-Governing Dragon Fang Swords had inherited this trait. Ci Fang and Feng Taiji, listening nearby, were struck dumb.

What scenery could there be in the dark void? And the one who turned the Carp Dragon into that mess was himself!

Jing Yin closed her eyes, continuously chanting ‘Primordial Buddha’ and then admonished him, “My Lord, you must know that all sentient beings are equal. Although worldly affairs often boil down to the strong preying on the weak, and all things in heaven and earth possess a natural cycle of existence, life cannot be so casually discarded.

This Carp Dragon did not provoke us. Supplies on the ship are plentiful; there was no need to consume it.

How could you slaughter it so cruelly merely for sport?” Zong Shou listened and felt she had a point, harboring a faint sense of shame. But he would never admit that he could not completely control this Ten Absolutes Dao-Governing Annihilation Sword Formation.

It seemed that since the formation’s initial refinement, it possessed a form of ‘life’ that did not entirely heed his orders, instinctively extinguishing all foreign objects within the formation. Strangely, despite extensive probing, Zong Shou detected no artifact spirit within the twelve Dragon Fang Swords.

He was filled with confusion and wished to question Shen Yuexuan. Unfortunately, they were now too far from the Tian Fang Realm; he couldn't possibly rush back across the vast distance.

Fortunately, after careful analysis of the sword formation, he was largely certain that these artifacts held no power to turn against their master. However, some of the spiritual patterns within the array diagram were slightly peculiar—not extraneous, but perhaps not strictly necessary in their current configuration— He could only conclude that whoever passed down this sword formation likely held a deep, profound feud with the living beings of this world!

Or perhaps they had succumbed to madness before achieving the ultimate realm. Zong Shou was helpless about the matter for now.

Setting aside the fact that the formation posed no threat to him upon completion, even if it did possess the power to betray its master, he needed to drink the poison to quench the thirst—he needed to secure a certain level of strength first. Speaking of which, the ancient talisman Shen Yuexuan sold him had been degrading at an increasing rate recently.

The person who placed the curse upon him must be pouring all their effort into frantically tracking his location. He had initially expected to hold out for half a year, but now it seemed the limit was four months at most.

The Cloud Realm was guarded by the Dao of the Common People, so Zong Shou was not worried about his family’s safety. What truly concerned him were Ruo Shui Ruo Lan here, and the 300,000 soldiers following his command on this expedition to conquer domains beyond.

In other words, he had to break the stalemate in the shortest possible time and then dedicate himself fully to resisting the frantic pursuit of that individual until one of them met their demise! A flash of killing intent crossed his eyes, then Zong Shou smiled, returning to his usual demeanor, sighing again, “It’s an even greater pity that my sword formation cannot find a suitable opponent to test its capabilities—” Simultaneously, his gaze drifted sorrowfully toward his back.

Ci Fang remained utterly still, seated in meditation. Feng Taiji, however, shivered violently, a chill seizing his entire body.

After forging his tenth sword, Zong Shou had been seeking someone to test the formation. At that time, he also had a challenge: to see just how far the gap was between himself and the unrivaled expert of the Cloud Realm.

The result of that encounter, however, was devastating. The process lasted only ten breaths, yet it once again severely wounded his confidence.

If Zong Shou hadn't stopped at the final moment, Feng Taiji would have been completely dismembered by the formation. Since then, a psychological shadow remained; upon seeing that sword formation, he instinctively kept a wide berth.

Now, he watched the flickering stellar points around Zong Shou with curiosity. In the few instances Zong Shou had displayed the sword formations before, these starlights only appeared externally and were not actively utilized, always veiled by a layer of mystery that made their true power impossible to gauge.

It bore some resemblance to the Daoist Zhou Tian Secret Stellar Descent technique. Zong Shou had presumably acquired some inheritance of this Daoist secret art while rampaging through the Central Lands a few months ago.

Could it be that this fellow had switched his cultivation path to this technique? This could indeed compensate for Zong Shou’s shortcomings in spiritual arts.

However, the core essence of this technique must reside within the Firmament Realm of the Common People. For Zong Shou to pursue this path, he would either have to perfect it himself or forcibly seize it—both endeavors were immensely difficult.

Ci Fang and Feng Taiji pretended to be deaf and mute, and the other Spirit Realm experts certainly wouldn't volunteer. Ruo Shui had shown willingness, but Zong Shou himself refused.

The group at the stern fell silent. Only Zhao Yanran snorted coldly, “Showing off!” Zong Shou was indeed feeling rather pleased.

The sword formation, in its nascent stage, already possessed the power to suppress a Spirit Realm expert independently. What would it be like when the full set of 10,800 Dragon Fang Swords was complete?

Just as he was about to speak and mock them in return, Zong Shou’s eyebrows arched, and he gave a wry, half-smile. “Never mind, if you are unwilling, I won't force you.

The one to test the sword has already arrived.” After months of sailing, they had finally reached this place he remembered as a land of chaos! In the very next instant, a cold shout echoed from a distance.

“This is the Yuan Lian World! From where do you esteemed guests hail, and for what purpose have you come?” Following this call, dozens of intentions descended through the air, probing with spiritual consciousness.

Zong Shou remained silent. He held no airs regarding his status as a Sovereign.

However, at this moment, for him to speak personally would be somewhat inappropriate. Someone else had already spoken before this giant ship.

“We are soldiers of the Great Qian from the Cloud Realm! We come here to expand our territory!

We hear the Yuan Lian Realm has long been unclaimed, so we have come to take it!” Before the words finished, several wild laughs erupted from the opposite side. “Great Qian of the Cloud Realm?

I wonder what power that is. Turns out they are country bumpkins from the Cloud Realm, finally crawling out of their shell after ten thousand years?” Another voice chimed in, “This area is already jointly occupied by us.

Return from whence you came, or if war breaks out, do not blame us for showing no mercy and slaughtering you all!” “This is the ground where heroes contend for supremacy! How can there be room for the likes of you?” As this statement was delivered, both Feng Taiji and Zhao Yanran’s faces turned pale.

No one enjoys being called a bumpkin without reacting internally. Ci Fang’s expression was also exceedingly grim.

Although Buddhism was an outsider sect in the Cloud Realm, he himself was a citizen of the Cloud Realm. In other words, he was one of the ‘bumpkins’ these people spoke of.

The fleet continued to advance steadily toward the Yuan Lian World. Feng Taiji and the others, about a dozen individuals, returned to their respective positions, their intent and might surging forth, enveloping the ship to display deterrence.

Finally, several figures emerged in the distance. Dozens of large ships of varying designs appeared one after another, rushing in from all directions, faintly forming a pincer attack.

“Fifteen Spirit Realm experts—they actually possess some strength. But just relying on you lot, I’m afraid it’s still not quite enough.” The words had barely faded before a slash of blade light pierced the void, arriving like a collapsing mountain, its aura majestic and intense.

Zong Shou, at the stern, smiled with satisfaction. These few parties blocking their path were clearly there to test them.

He hadn't expected someone would actually make the first move. Shen Yuexuan had mentioned that all the swords of the Ten Absolutes Dao-Governing Annihilation Sword Formation needed to draw blood to be considered officially opened.

So far, only three swords had drawn blood. He hadn't expected so many people would be available to consecrate the swords at this juncture.

As the blade light descended, Feng Taiji also shot up from the ship with a sword strike. The weapons clashed, instantly sending a fierce shockwave through the void.

Feng Taiji’s figure plummeted like a broken kite, but the giant vessel remained unharmed. The opponent laughed heartily, “Spiritual-Martial unity—I underestimated you!” At that very moment, the twelve white Dragon Fang Swords before Zong Shou rose into the air in unison.