Chuxue's voice still echoed in his ears, and Zong Shou stared at his own hand in a daze. He opened it and then clenched it, clenched it and then opened it again, reaching out slightly. He wondered how he had ended up grabbing Chuxue's breast so casually? Was he really a pervert, as Chuxue claimed, unable to control his own hands? His mind was filled with confusion, yet the sensation was undeniably pleasant. Soft, with a full resilience. Slightly larger than when she was fourteen, which made him linger. Unknowingly, the peaches had ripened. Xue'er, she had grown up. This flower was now ready to be plucked—

As the suggestive thought arose, Zong Shou violently shook his head. At the moment of the sect's life or death, what was he thinking about? Touching Chuxue's breast must have been fate, a damnable karmic entanglement! Heaven was playing a cruel trick! Shifting the blame onto innocent fate, Zong Shou wandered through his chaotic thoughts and stepped out of the cave dwelling allocated to him by Wei Xu.

At this time, everyone within the entire Cangsheng Qiong Territory was tirelessly busy. Zong Shou was no exception; during yesterday's meeting, he was assigned two tasks.

One was to command a Sword Array. Xiu Guan and Wei Xu both knew of his past achievements. He, single-handedly, had defeated five Formless God-Demons. They also knew that in the Cloud Realm, Zong Shou, leveraging the Kingly Martial Arts, possessed strength comparable to the Saint Realm. Therefore, they relied heavily on him. The Cangsheng Dao, aside from the Dao Soldiers, had prepared a total of nine large Sword Arrays to counter the Dao Sect. One of these was entrusted to Zong Shou, named the Vast Sea of Origin Nine Palaces Sword Array. It comprised three thousand two hundred and eighty-five people. Nine Palace Arrays were formed for every three hundred and sixty-five people as a cohort. Within this array alone, there were as many as twelve Divine Realm cultivators. His assigned deputy was the Taiyuan Fairy, Shui Lingbo.

The other task was patrolling everywhere, checking if there were any flaws or vulnerabilities in the various protective restrictions. Zong Shou was not skilled in the way of arrays. However, he possessed the World-Burning Blood Pupils, capable of penetrating the void. Every weakness in the spatial wall of the Cangsheng Qiong Territory could be perfectly reflected by his Blood Pupils. Wei Xu and the others were deeply aware of his ability. They were reluctant for Zong Shou to rush back at this time, but even having returned, how could such a divine ability be ignored?

Zong Shou did not need to worry about drilling the grand array. He was only responsible for anchoring it, serving as the core of the entire formation. During wartime, he would be responsible for unified command and coordination, streamlining the energy channels, and gathering strength into one. He needed to ensure the Sword Array exerted its maximum might. Simply put, he was to act as a humanoid amplifier, stationed within the array. The Sword Array provided the power, the sword energy. He was the one to unleash it. The actual command of the Vast Sea of Origin Nine Palaces Sword Array belonged to someone else; Zong Shou was not needed for that. Naturally, he was not required to lead the drills either, only needing to visit daily to familiarize himself with the operational mechanics of the Sword Array.

Often, this meant simply sitting within the array, doing nothing of consequence. After all, the Cangsheng Qiong Territory had limited space, and every piece of land was extremely precious. Furthermore, the outer regions were heavily guarded by restrictions. There was no place for them to frequently test the might of this Sword Array. At most, they could experience the flow and circulation of the energy conduits within the array.

Thus, the only thing Zong Shou needed to do every day was to take strolls inside and outside the Cangsheng Qiong Territory, accompanied by Chuxue and Shui Lingbo, checking which restrictions needed reinforcement.

About four days later, Lin Xuanshuang finally returned quietly, arriving in tandem with Long Ying. Accompanying them were Ao Kun and Ao Yi. The former looked quite dejected, suggesting his endeavor to seize the Universe Creation Book had ended in failure.

Upon their arrival, the four did not even have time to speak with Zong Shou before quickly entering a quiet chamber with Lin Yuanjing. With Xiu Guan standing guard, they commenced secluded cultivation. Zong Shou, like everyone else, understood this clearly: they were preparing to restore Yuanjing's Dao foundation. Yet, the extent of this restoration remained unknown. What was strange, however, was that when he parted from Lin Xuanshuang, his Master still carried a hidden worry. But upon meeting her now, she appeared cheerful and resolute, seemingly unconcerned by the impending calamity from the Cangsheng Dao. Especially the way she looked at him was quite peculiar; Zong Shou sensed an unusual meaning beneath it. But he could not discern the reason. Could it be that his Master Xuanshuang had already found a strategy to break the deadlock? She seemed utterly confident, but what kind of trump card lay hidden?

For several consecutive days, Zong Shou's mind was a jumble of questions.

"Junior Brother, you seem quite pessimistic about this coming battle?"

As Shui Lingbo asked this, the three of them were pacing through the void, inspecting a spiritual array. Zong Shou, deep in thought, casually swung his Nameless Sword. Instantly, countless surges of spiritual energy followed the blade, stirring the surrounding restrictive formations into a chaotic mess. Then, he answered nonchalantly, "Otherwise, why would I call it our Cangsheng Dao's great calamity? I have a feeling that old fellow Qing Xuan will go all out this time. Also, call me Senior Brother!"

After disrupting that restriction, Zong Shou simply departed, completely ignoring the near-tears expressions of the surrounding Cangsheng Dao cultivators. He was only responsible for finding the flaws in the formations; as for the effort others invested in the restrictive runes, and how much time they'd need to repair them later, Zong Shou paid no mind—

"Going all out does not mean they can extinguish our Cangsheng Dao."

Shui Lingbo shook her head, though she also felt pity for her fellow disciples. She had already realized that Zong Shou's character was detestably vile! The flaw just now was actually negligible, with only a minuscule chance of being exploited by the enemy during combat. Yet, simply because Zong Shou was in a foul mood, he deliberately tormented everyone.

"Junior Sister, do you really think so?"

Zong Shou gave a cold sneer and continued forward. In the outer region, the cultivators of the Cangsheng Dao skilled in talismans and arrays all looked over with apprehension. Especially at the blood-red longsword in his hand; they feared Zong Shou would swing it again. That would inevitably lead to several days of nonstop labor.

Shui Lingbo paused in silence, then said in a deep voice, "After that joint discussion a few days ago, I heard Master sigh continuously three times. That night, she went to the Ancestral Hall and sat alone for half a day. I suspect Master is also not very optimistic. However—" Her voice trailed off for a moment: "When Martial Aunt Xuanshuang returned that day, I don't know what she said to Master. This is the first time I've seen Master smile in the past year. Perhaps Martial Aunt Xuanshuang brought back a countermeasure."

Zong Shou raised an eyebrow; this was precisely what puzzled him. His own restlessness stemmed from this. Normally, he wouldn't be this impatient. But he inexplicably felt that this matter likely involved him, and he felt inexplicably anxious. The Nameless Sword in his hand instinctively prepared to strike. However, just before he could shatter that restriction, Zong Shou's peripheral vision caught the intensely mournful expressions of more than a dozen fellow disciples nearby. Zong Shou snorted coldly, finally showing mercy and retracting his sword. "This spot is unsuitable. Continue with the adjustments."

Ignoring the ecstatic relief on their faces, Zong Shou moved on. "Sisters meeting naturally brings joy. Without knowing the specific reasons, it's hard to feel truly at ease. Isn't that right, Junior Sister? Trying to probe something out of me, Junior Sister, you're wasting your effort. Your Senior Brother himself is equally bewildered."

Shui Lingbo offered a wry smile and swiftly changed the topic: "Senior Ao Kun is currently repairing Master's Dao foundation. I wonder what the final result will be?" Her words were full of anticipation, even knowing that a foundation of the Ultimate Realm could not be perfectly mended in one go. Ao Kun's cultivation had not reached that level yet, but the prospect still excited everyone immensely.

Regarding this, Zong Shou could make some rough estimations. "At least seventy percent—"

It could compensate for seventy percent of the deficiencies, but the remaining thirty percent was the most crucial part. Yet, even with just seventy percent, it would be enough to grant Yuanjing the qualification to face an Ultimate Realm cultivator head-on. Lin Xuanshuang's physical body had not yet recovered, and she couldn't have spent these last few months just sightseeing. There might be other methods she possessed to aid her sister; one couldn't be sure.

After speaking, Zong Shou immediately felt something was amiss again. He noticed Chuxue beside him tilting her head, looking curiously at a certain spot in the void. Zong Shou casually glanced in that direction—nothing. Blood-red light flickered in his eyes, still seeing nothing. So, he grabbed Chuxue’s fluffy cat ear: "Little Xue'er, what are you looking at? I told you observing the changes in this restriction is quite beneficial for your cultivation. You dare get distracted on me?" Chuxue’s wide, watery eyes immediately filled with mist. She regretted it immensely in her heart; how could she have thought so highly of her Young Master, who was both lecherous and violent?

And at the very spot where Chuxue had been looking, a voice inaudible to others sounded leisurely. "As expected of the peak Martial Battle Physique; this intuition is truly terrifying!" If Zong Shou were present now, or if his Phantom World Blood Pupil ability could pierce the illusion here, he would surely discover that the speaker was none other than Xiu Guan, who was currently guarding Ao Kun and Yuanjing in seclusion.

"This kid, his temperament is quite vile."

Beside Xiu Guan, Long Ying and Lin Xuanshuang stood with their hands behind their backs. The former, like many Cangsheng Dao cultivators nearby, kept his gaze fixed on the blood-red longsword in Zong Shou's hand.

"This sword, is it truly the transformed spirit of the God-Refining Sword?"

"I can only surmise, I cannot confirm it yet."

Lin Xuanshuang shook her head: "Whether it is true or false, we must ask Senior Brother Xiu Guan."

"It's as good as certain!"

Xiu Guan smiled and nodded: "It indeed carries the aura of Senior Brother Xi Zi. The Soul-Refining Sword was originally formed from one of his residual souls."

Long Ying opened his mouth to speak, then paused, unsure of what to say. After a long while, he let out a dry laugh: "If it is true, then the Dao Sect and the Demon Sect attacking your Cangsheng Qiong Territory will truly be asking for trouble—"

He had witnessed the might of the Seven Swords Merged Assault before. Even a pseudo God-Refining Sword allowed that Sword Array to suppress the Ultimate Realm. Even he, resisting it alone, would surely be utterly trapped and killed by those seven swords. If the pseudo version was this formidable, the true God-Refining Sword would be beyond imagination. To fight five Ultimate Realm masters single-handedly was no exaggeration.