Laughter pierced the void, tearing at the eardrums. The spirit of that man was utterly bizarre at this moment—contorted and grotesque, as if in agonizing pain, yet also ecstatic in a malicious glee, boundless and unrestrained.

Zong Shou paid no mind, his gaze intent, fixed upon the incoming arc of sword light.

“Exquisite swordsmanship!” Not only was the technique masterful, but it was steeped in profound mystery. That sword intent was sharp yet elusive, subtly harmonizing with the Dao’s rhythm, achieving a peak of sublime artistry.

It was clearly a Soul Realm sword intent, at the very least mid-stage.

“It’s a pity…”

A pity that the one wielding the sword was not the true body, but a vessel whose heart and mind had been usurped—a puppet animated by the control of the Formless God-Demon. It mimicked the swordsman’s technique to perhaps ninety percent of its former glory, but that final ten percent was missing.

Zong Shou sighed softly, a genuine sense of loss lingering in his heart. Such a formidable swordsman, for reasons unknown, had fallen victim to these Shadow Demon clans, their very consciousness extinguished to take over the body.

Thus, this sword ought to be peerlessly formidable, capable of slaying any contemporary Divine Realm expert in a mere few passes.

However, in his eyes now, it was scarcely worth a scornful glance. Moreover, when it came to the arts of manipulating the mind and spirit, the Nine-Tailed Mystic Fox lineage held the true mantle of illusion.

With the Illusory Heart Mirror present, every member of the Shadow Demon clan would have their power immediately halved! With a thought, the Illusory Heart Mirror ascended again, rising a hundred zhang above Zong Shou’s head.

Like a bright moon, it scattered sheaves of cyan light in all directions, like flowing water. More beams directed themselves toward the current positions of the three Divine Realm auras.

The unstoppable sword momentum that had been aimed at him immediately faltered, its flow momentarily choked. The transcendent sword intent could no longer be sustained, and before the strike even reached him, it showed signs of weakening.

Zong Shou was just preparing to strike—to shatter it with one blow—when he narrowed his eyes, a warning flashing in his mind again. High above, beyond the blind spots of the cyan mirror light, a burst of spiritual energy erupted, diving down from the air.

“Your capabilities were long foreseen! The remnant of the Nine-Tailed Mystic Fox shall perish with you!”

This time, countless slivers of light shot out like a torrential storm, impacting the Illusory Heart Mirror.

Behind those tiny darts was a figure grasping a long staff. It smashed down from the air with incomparable ferocity! It was unknown how many immense powers of Mount Sumeru were unleashed within that tiny space. He was already a Divine Realm cultivator, much closer to the Illusory Heart Realm than Zong Shou.

In a mere three-thousandth of a breath, one-hundred-thousandth of a blink, he reached the Illusory Heart Mirror.

Around them, Feng Taiji and the others turned ashen-faced. Their already slightly arrogant laughter grew even more unrestrained.

The Formless God-Demons currently besieging Zong Shou, those whose presence had been revealed, totaled a full four! Whether there were other Divine Realm Shadow Demons lurking around this boundary river remained unknown.

Zong Shou’s lips curled upward, and bloodlust flared in his eyes. If it weren't for the Blood Eye of the World-Burning, which allowed him to perceive the hiding spots of these foes,

Perhaps they would have succeeded this time in destroying that Illusory Heart Mirror.

While he had anticipated all their reactions,

Had they not also fallen squarely within his expectations?

Every anomaly was illuminated by the Gaze of the World-Burning Blood Eye!

He inwardly chuckled—these Shadow Demons truly thought highly of him.

To mobilize a full five Formless God-Demons just for him and his single mirror, going to such elaborate lengths merely to destroy the Illusory Heart Mirror in his possession.

Should he feel honored by such attention?

It was simply a boon for Xiao Jin; this time, it could feast thoroughly.

It was just a pity the quality was lacking. Compared to the peak Divine Realm Formless God-Demon sealed in the Eighth Layer of the Death Prison, these ones were incalculably inferior!

As the staff and the darts rushed downward, Zong Shou showed no reaction. But just as the storm of darts collided with the cyan mirror, the Illusory Heart Mirror merely rippled once. Then, without waiting for the staff impact, it dissolved into nothingness.

This caused everyone present to freeze in astonishment. Had that supreme Immortal Treasure, once famous in the Cloud Realm’s Desolate Era, which made the Shadow Demon clan fear it like a tiger and whose power approached that of a divine artifact, shattered so easily?

Then, they saw another identical cyan treasure mirror materialize to the side, about three breaths' distance away.

“An illusion?” The observers from afar understood the reason after a single glance, their expressions growing strange.

What kind of illusion was this? It could even deceive the Formless God-Demons of the Shadow Demon clan.

Did that mean this mirror, the true Illusory Heart Mirror, was the one currently in that location?

But immediately after, they saw more Illusory Heart Mirrors appearing in the void.

One became two, two became three, three became ten, and then from ten to a hundred, from a hundred to a thousand. More cyan lights scattered in all directions, enveloping the entire boundary river space, leaving not a single dead angle remaining.

Whether it was fluctuations in spiritual energy or changes in aura, they were perfectly identical, making it impossible to discern the true from the false.

This caused the face of the staff-wielding figure to turn ashen.

He immediately discarded the notion of destroying the Illusory Heart Mirror. The momentum of his staff shifted, turning to strike down viciously upon Zong Shou’s head!

Since he could not distinguish the true form of the Mystic Fox clan’s inherited treasure mirror,

Attacking Zong Shou, the wielder of the mirror, would yield the same result!

But just as the encirclement was complete, and the combined force of four figures was about to crush Zong Shou, the four Formless God-Demons, each stationed in a cardinal direction, felt the scene before them blur.

The young man they had locked tightly with their divine sense had also vanished without a trace.

“Spatial Shift!”

Almost instantly, four surges of immense Divine Realm awareness washed outward like tides.

First, they used overwhelming force to lock down and suppress the spatial shifting laws throughout the entire boundary river and the surrounding void.

Then, inch by painstaking inch, they began to search this space, not missing even the slightest fluctuation in temporal or spatial spiritual energy.

“Found him!”

It was the staff-wielder again who first responded to the resonance.

“Trying to flee? Where can you possibly run from us?”

Amidst a cold sneer, the long staff transformed into a rainbow, slamming toward a specific location. It violently shattered the void, obliterating all the space within several Immortal Realm speeds of that spot.

Zong Shou’s silhouette reappeared. He stepped out of the nothingness, his expression cold, standing before the Divine Realm cultivator holding aloft the massive mountain.

At that instant, the loud laughter echoed once more: “Wasn’t the Demon Lord quite domineering earlier? Saying we were sending ourselves to death? Why flee now, Blood Sword? To witness your demise personally, perhaps my nephew, who died miserably beneath your sword, can finally rest in peace after today…”

Nephew?

Zong Shou paused, thinking, no wonder. So this madman had a relative killed by him. It explained the manic and irritating tone of his words.

He couldn't recall which one it was, as the number who had died by his hand was simply too vast.

Shaking his head, Zong Shou’s gaze settled back onto the Divine Realm cultivator before him, the one holding the giant mountain.

Even suppressed by the Illusory Heart Mirror, even though the Formless God-Demon occupying the body was not a perfect fit,

Immortal Spirit energy still surged within him, his aura reaching the heavens, his spiritual pressure so immense that looking up was difficult.

He clearly perceived the joy blooming in the man’s eyes, as if victory was already assured.

The giant mountain rose again, dissolving its structure, and in the man’s hand now appeared a purple-green treasure shield. Following closely behind the mountain, it hurtled toward him across the distance.

Zong Shou let out a light laugh, grasping the nameless sword in his hand.

He had used Spatial Shift and to appear here; it was certainly not to escape the Spatial Shift Dragon!

The Azure Dragon of Profound Yellow!

The Ice Chi Dragon!

The Dragon of Wind and Cloud!

With a hum, dragon shadows manifested along the sword body. In a moment, they merged, coalescing into the Primeval Dragon form.

And last came the White-Gold Dragon!

This caused the illusory projection of the dragon form to manifest claws and teeth, looking both real and unreal—simultaneously driving Zong Shou’s aura to its absolute peak and then contracting it to an extreme point.

Following this, a ball of black flame ignited on the sword.

It was the Thousand Flower of Thunder’s Fury! Just a slight flicker of the flame’s tip shattered the underlying structure of the nearby spacetime.

At first, those around him didn't understand, thinking Zong Shou was simply fighting desperately in desperation.

But after only a moment, the three Formless God-Demons still lingering in the distance behind Zong Shou all changed expression drastically.

“Mid-stage Soul Realm! This child’s sword intent actually contains all the subtleties of the Sword Intent Soul Realm! Hong Kui, you cannot withstand this strike!”

The middle-aged cultivator controlling the giant mountain and the purple-gold shield also showed sheer horror.

He immediately tried to flash away and retreat.

But then he realized he was already tightly bound and entangled by the sword intent. He felt that even if he propelled himself ten thousand li away,

This single sword strike would still pursue him!

The Spatial Shift Sword Intent had reduced billions of li to the size of a single square inch.

After that, he considered forcing his soul out of the body, abandoning this puppet shell.

However, as soon as the thought arose, he saw the myriad treasure mirrors all turn simultaneously.

Every beam of mirror light focused entirely upon him.

Never mind fleeing the soul body; even within this physical form, he felt the unbearable pressure.

With no choice left, he could only exert his full force of vital energy, blood, and soul power, preparing to rely on the two treasures for defense.

At this moment, the bloodlust in Zong Shou’s eyes gathered again, and profound spiritual runes appeared.

“Die!”

With a sharp shout, the sword in his hand transformed into a rainbow and shot out. Like a bolt of silk, a streak of blood-light flashed and vanished.

The trajectory of the sword light carried not a trace of earthly dust; it was transcendent and ethereal. The sword intent condensed, focused into a single, unbroken line.

With a faint clink, almost inaudible,

The giant mountain, which had only expanded to about a thousand zhang, was severed at its peak by a single sword strike!

Causing the countless restrictive formations and precious talismans within it to collapse one after another.

Behind the giant mountain was the purple-gold treasure shield.

Just when everyone expected the sword momentum to be slightly hindered,

The bloody sword shadow accelerated even more. It became sharper, striking the jade shield head-on without evasion, manifesting sheer, overwhelming dominance.

Another soft thwack, and this treasure also broke apart.

The cut was smooth, as if it were naturally formed that way.

In the eyes of ‘Hong Kui,’ there was only stark terror. He frantically twisted his body, constantly shifting his trajectory, flying backward in a desperate attempt to escape the lock of the sword light.

In his panic, he couldn't even control his vocal cords to produce a clear sound, only managing choked gurgles. (To be continued)