Pear blossoms numbered in the tens of thousands, yet they all halted abruptly ten zhang before Zong Shou.

It was as though a heavy, unyielding bedrock stood firm, allowing the surging tide to crash and scour against it ceaselessly, yet remaining utterly unmoved.

The shockwave of qi hammered the void until it fractured completely. Only then did the youth let out a cold snort.

“Dust Annihilation!”

The spear shadow instantly transformed, and the silver-white expanse of pear blossoms overhead suddenly contracted.

Tens of thousands of silver-white streaks of light converged into a single thread, piercing forward violently.

It was still overwhelmingly potent, seemingly capable of destroying anything it touched.

Beneath that spear shadow, everything was destined to be annihilated into dust!

Zong Shou’s pupils constricted as he stared intently. Yet, he saw that this single spear thrust split into ten within his vision, those ten became a hundred, the hundred a thousand, and the thousand multiplied into ten thousand.

Though it was clearly only one direct thrust, it seemed to contain ten thousand possible outcomes.

Taking a deep breath, Zong Shou gathered every ounce of his strength in that moment.

The twenty-four Extinguishing Dragon Tooth Swords of the Imperial Path swirled around him, whipping up a tidal wave of countless blades.

Then, these too coalesced into a single point, a sword stroke soaring into the sky.

When a resounding ‘clang’—a sharp noise nearly deafening enough to shatter eardrums—reverberated through the void,

Zong Shou felt his sword intent crumble and dissipate piece by piece, the sword shadows scattering wide.

The twenty-four Dragon Tooth Swords were the first to scatter. Then, the nameless sword in his hand was violently thrown away by that colossal, surging force!

The skin between his thumb and forefinger tore open, and his entire body’s surface cracked, blood gushing forth like a spring.

In an instant, his entire form dissolved into a bloody mess.

So strong!

At this moment, Zong Shou felt his meridians being shredded by the spear qi that had forced its way inside.

It wasn't just him utilizing the method of the Black and White Apertures to borrow and return force.

The man opposite him was doing the very same thing. In terms of exerting and utilizing power, he might have been somewhat inferior to Zong Shou. But after those hundred strikes, this single thrust carried three to five times the power of his initial attacks!

The path of inquiry he had chosen was seen through by this man so easily—

This thrust aimed directly at the foundation of his primordial spirit!

Zong Shou managed a wry smile. Fortunately, his manifestation of the Black and White Duality remained concealed within the void of his Sea of Consciousness.

And the eighteen-character True Talismans, along with the scores of Star Dao Seeds, were infinitely more complex.

Before simplifying the profound into the simple, these were his true foundation.

However, continuing like this meant certain defeat, with no path to victory—

Innumerable thoughts flashed through his mind, yet he could not locate even a sliver of a chance to win. Zong Shou couldn't help but sigh and shake his head.

He truly was no match for this man yet; his current strength was far from sufficient to contend with such a uniquely gifted individual.

It was truly vexing, and utterly unwilling to concede, but a difference of one realm meant the difference between heaven and earth.

If they were in the same cultivation stage, a battle could still be fought.

To defeat this man, he absolutely had to break through to the Spirit Realm first!

As this thought crossed his mind, Zong Shou resolved to retreat.

Their spears and swords exchanged several more clashes in the void of the Boundary River. Just as the youth opposite thrust out another spear, the weapon vibrating intensely, the last of the ten Dragon Tooth Swords of the Imperial Path surrounding Zong Shou was shattered and scattered.

The expression on the youth’s face grew more ferocious.

“Zong Shou, you granted Zi’er a swift death when you killed her. Considering you are my Fourth Aunt’s son, and a kinsman of the Lu Clan, I will refrain from torturing you with methods that flay the heart and scrape the bone. I will simply let you, Zong Shou, be her burial companion today!”

As the words fell, millions of pear blossoms followed. Countless spear shadows rained down,

Carrying fierce external qi, they completely bored through the space where Zong Shou stood, leaving no quarter.

Zong Shou remained suspended in the void, making no attempt to resist. At this point, his nameless sword had fled, and besides a few escorting beasts yet to materialize, he genuinely lacked the power to resist any further.

Yet, his expression was serene, as if life and death held no meaning for him.

He merely expanded his consciousness, establishing a distant resonance with the Star Dragon Pills.

“Is that so? But you’ve spoken too soon, sir. Today, I, Zong Shou, have been defeated, and I admit it wholeheartedly—”

If he couldn't win, he should leave.

Since being reborn in this era through the power of the Zhou Shu, this was the first time he had been driven into a corner where his only recourse was a desperate flight.

Before his words had fully finished, his entire silhouette was utterly pierced and torn apart by the myriad spear shadows.

However, moments later, the spear-wielding youth was angry rather than pleased.

With a roar, the spear shadows converged in the void, seemingly venting the fury and resentment boiling within his chest.

Before him lay neither Zong Shou’s corpse nor the spiritual energy residue after a primordial soul’s disintegration. In that final moment, Zong Shou had escaped beneath his spear.

A moment later, when the void of the Boundary River settled back into stillness,

The youth’s face showed confusion.

He had no idea how this young man had activated his void-shifting technique during their exchange.

With a mere flash across the void, the youth had vanished without a trace.

All he knew was that it was some form of spatial-temporal transference, carrying a faint trace of the aura of the Instantaneous Space Dragon.

It had been utterly sudden, with not the slightest premonition or sign beforehand.

He truly could not fathom how this person had managed it.

His brow furrowed slightly, the spear-wielding youth’s gaze sharpened, sweeping across the surroundings.

His entire body was burning with a pale white flame, and a flush appeared on his cheeks.

This was the telltale sign of his bloodline being pushed to its absolute limit.

This void-teleportation technique left him completely clueless about its origin.

However, since this person’s divine sense and vital energy had already been locked onto by him, escape from his spear was impossible!

As long as he remained within forty worlds, he could never escape the sensing of his divine thought, the call and resonance of his Blazing Void Bloodline!

In just a brief moment, the spear-wielding youth looked toward one side of the void. His vision pierced through space, focusing on a distant location.

Then, he let out a cold sneer, pacing toward that spot without haste.

He had found him!

Currently, several hundred stages of immortal-grade speed away, Zong Shou swallowed a pill.

As wisps of medicinal power seeped in, restoring his physical body and meridians, a trace of color finally returned to Zong Shou’s face.

But before his injuries had recovered even twenty percent, he felt that malevolent vital energy from afar closing in again.

He couldn't help but frown, and without hesitation, his figure flickered once more, moving toward the location where another Star Dragon Pill had manifested.

Then, with a casual beckoning motion, he snatched the nameless sword back into his hand.

With a casual sweep, he summoned a dazzling sword shadow. A simple strike, yet it contained profound Dao resonance.

The Great Dao is simple; it is truly so—

“Master Dragon Shadow’s sword path is not one of addition, but of unification. I, Zong Shou, nearly walked the wrong path. The sword of Primordial Unity, the path of merging one, is neither stacking nor the simple concept of joining one and one. It is rooted in my own fundamental method—the Dao character is key!”

A sharp gleam flashed in Zong Shou’s eyes, followed by a light chuckle.

Though the recent battle was a catastrophe, it was not entirely without benefit.

Things he had failed to grasp over months of accelerating time with the Zhou Shu were suddenly resolved by this single confrontation.

Imagining something out of thin air is no match for witnessing it firsthand. A thousand years of quiet contemplation is not worth one moment of sudden enlightenment.

If given sufficient time now, Zong Shou could fuse four or more Instantaneous Space Dragon Pills within a month!

In just a year or a year and a half, he could step into the Spirit Realm!

“Since this is the case, I shall use this man as the whetstone for my sword, Zong Shou!” (To be continued)RQ