That silver lance of shadow sprang back sharply before the great shield. A muffled sound of surprise escaped the void; this was the first time in their duel that Zong Shou had deployed the power of his guardian spirit beast.

Zong Shou's sword momentum, now hidden behind the massive shield, had accumulated to its absolute peak, bursting forth with fierce intent! Guided by his will, the sword light suddenly erupted.

But just as Zong Shou's form was about to pierce through space, the light struck directly into the void. The myriad silver lances suddenly retracted, vanishing without a trace.

And Lu Wushuang’s vital energy also retreated rapidly toward the distance. This prevented Zong Shou’s Nameless Sword from ever locking onto him.

A moment later, Zong Shou let out a cold snort and settled back onto the turtle’s shell. Sure enough, in the very next instant, those nearly vanished lance shadows turned from waning to flourishing, smashing toward him once more.

Temporarily avoiding the sharpest blow, evading the solid and striking the void. When his strength waned, the counter-attack arrived.

And the force of this single spear thrust surpassed the previous one by thirty percent! Zong Shou raised an eyebrow; Lu Wushuang no longer held even a shred of contempt for him.

This man clearly regarded him as a true opponent now, utilizing every trick and stratagem in their engagement to the extreme. This was the consequence of their repeated clashes where Zong Shou could only hold on momentarily before making a narrow escape.

He used this man as a whetstone for his sword; yet, was Lu Wushuang not doing the exact same to him? Treating Zong Shou as a hurdle on his path of martial arts, the root of his internal struggles, the embodiment of his inner demon.

Overcoming him meant taking a guaranteed step into the Divine Rank. The chasm between them was far deeper than the enmity stemming from Lu Zi’s demise at his hands.

Should he take pride in that? Zong Shou shook his head with a faint, wry smile, though his heart was filled with a profound sense of helplessness.

This attempt, once again, had failed. Although he still held back some trump cards, none of them offered him even a fifty percent chance of victory.

Even months later, upon reaching the Immortal Realm level, Zong Shou’s winning odds against him would only creep up to twenty percent at most. This man was simply too formidable!

Among all those Zong Shou had encountered, only Shi Yue, Jue Yu, and Yuan Wushang perhaps possessed comparable innate talent. Yet, this individual had been born decades earlier, already standing at the pinnacle of the Immortal Rank!

In the end, he had to flee—a truly frustrating realization! With a shimmer, Zong Shou and the Azure Flame Profound Turtle vanished from that location.

All he could rely on now were these Void-Jumping Dragon Pills and the Three Thousand Starfall Shifting Method. Though the lance shadow struck with lightning speed, it only hit empty air.

Mere moments later, the silhouette of a young man appeared within this illusory sea. He scanned the surroundings, then let out a cold snort, his face grim, before continuing the pursuit along the thread of connected bloodline energy.

He could sense it—in these past few encounters, Zong Shou had grown stronger with every battle. But what of it?

Lu Wushuang’s martial path had also been forged in the crucible of life-and-death combat. His progress during this period might not be inferior to his pursuer's.

That technique of instantaneous void shifting was indeed wondrously unpredictable. This person was also extremely cunning, always concealing himself where Zong Shou least expected, scheming to recover his strength.

However, the day would surely come when he would be forced into a desperate corner! His figure flickered continuously through the void, altering his trajectory.

Pouring forth all his strength, he managed to widen the distance between them once more. Zong Shou’s nerves remained taut, daring not to make the slightest error in his calculations.

Unaware of the passage of time, as if in the blink of an eye, twenty more days slipped by. At this point, Zong Shou ceased refining the Imperial Dao Dragon Tooth Sword and instead focused entirely on assimilating the Void-Jumping Dragon Pills.

The Imperial Dao Dragon Tooth Sword was a weapon, an external tool. Therefore, the more profound the Great Dao, the stronger the weapon required to bear it.

With his current cultivation, he was far from sufficient; this had to be postponed. The Star Dao Seed, however, was the opposite.

These Dragon Pills were condensed essence blood from dragons, mingled with the purest vital energy of Heaven and Earth. They could be nourished within a dragon's body, and equally, within Zong Shou’s Sea of Consciousness, they could be advanced through daily cultivation.

Thus, the closer a Dao was to the world’s origin, the better it was to condense it sooner. Nurturing it personally meant greater ease of command later on.

Yet, these dozen or so days had been fraught with mishap. Lu Wushuang had caught up three times in succession, leading to fierce clashes where Zong Shou narrowly escaped grievous injury.

This fiftieth Void-Jumping Dragon Pill also presented numerous obstacles and complexities. Despite racking his brains these past days, managing to shake Lu Wushuang off by half a day’s journey, it was still far from enough for Zong Shou.

“Control versus Command. The former seems more tyrannical, forcibly reigning over everything.

However, it only governs, and in terms of utilizing the power of all things and methods, it is slightly inferior to the Command method. As for the Command method, it is much weaker, only capable of directing things already under control.

The two are intrinsically linked, inseparable—” Two talismans were sketched in the air, solidifying before Zong Shou. Examining them closely, Zong Shou shook his head again.

Though they shared the same source and root, there were still many differences, many subtleties he could not yet grasp. This matter was not one to be rushed— “This Lu Wushuang must have cultivated some secret art; not only is his detection of my location stronger, but his escape speed has also increased significantly, and he still travels with ease!

Even with forty-nine Star Dragon Pills available, it feels strenuous—” His own strength had greatly advanced, but the same was true for this man. To think he could shake him off using conventional methods now seemed almost impossible.

Currently, Zong Shou was surrounded by Void Storms. The closer they got to that specific world, the more violent the power of spacetime became, visible everywhere in the illusory sea.

This was also why Zong Shou had thus far remained unharmed, barely managing to sustain himself. This location was the 'edge' of this domain, where many nascent worlds would first come into being.

Tens of thousands of years ago, the Cloud Realm and the Primordial Lotus World were also born in similar environments. Only after the spacetime stabilized were they gradually discovered by others.

With Zong Shou’s current strength, maintaining himself here was insufficient; often, he needed to employ the Demon-Slaying Divine Shuttle just to navigate the void. Reaching this point meant that the world, likely born less than ten thousand years ago, was not far now.

As the thought formed, Zong Shou summoned the Cosmic Chronicle from his Primordial Soul. If ordinary methods could not secure his escape, it absolutely did not mean he was entirely without recourse.

Using the power of the Cosmic Chronicle would, at most, only consume some Spirit Stones or Immortal Stones, but it could secure him about half a month’s lead. As spiritual energy poured in, the Cosmic Chronicle immediately radiated brilliant light.

Causing the time surrounding Zong Shou to freeze completely. Just as he was about to transform into a beam of light and depart, Zong Shou let out a sound of surprise, stopping abruptly.

He felt a sound calling out to him. When Zong Shou paused to listen more closely, it became increasingly distinct.

And threads of invisible power were gathering toward him. Zong Shou identified them slightly, and his expression shifted to one of utter strangeness.

These were powers he knew intimately—the Divine Power he had sought everywhere within the Cloud Realm that day. (To be continued)RQ