The Sword Spirit’s uncontrollable fury ignited precisely when Han Qing was discarding the corpse, and when Xing Xie made his appearance. As if confronting an enemy of life and death, the Nameless One’s rage boiled to the heavens. No one could say whether this sword was incensed by the bullying of the Mortal Path, or if it held some ancient grudge against this Demon Lord who trod the world. It was only a pity that he himself could not fulfill the spirit’s wish to slay Han Qing.

The Nameless Blood Sword hummed faintly, a response perhaps, before sinking back into silence, seemingly even more dejected.

Zong Shou shook his head, paying it no mind. Recently, the shifting moods of this artifact spirit had worn him thin. Turning his head, he saw Chu Xue beside him, clutching her small fists tight, her expression a picture of righteous indignation, much like a frantic little cat. Zong Shou let out a faint chuckle, then a sliver of cold light pierced his eyes. The day of the decisive battle was set; that forbidden art could finally commence.

The only regret was that he still hadn't found a way to break the deadlock. All he could think of was a fight to the death. Any subtle weaknesses in the ordinary restriction formations he might have devised, which the opponent could exploit, had either already been repaired or concealed to the utmost. After all, no formation in the world was perfectly flawless.

From this day forward, Zong Shou stopped his daily inspections, instead locking himself and Chu Xue within the quiet chamber. He had originally planned to enter solitary seclusion, but Chu Xue clung to him with unusual intensity, unwilling to leave his side by so much as half a step. Zong Shou could only sigh and allow it. The process began with exposing his body, using the Saint Realm Dragon Blood he had collected previously to draw blood markings across his skin.

There were generally only three types of forbidden techniques in this world capable of briefly surging a person's combat power. The first was to trigger one's own potential, which meant mild overdrafting of True Essence or, in severe cases, damaging one’s life force. The second was to borrow the power of elixirs. The third was the art most favored by the demonic path: blood sacrifice, using the lives of millions of innocents to harvest the vital essence of others for personal use.

Zong Shou considered himself no upright gentleman, but he truly could not bring himself to perform the last type, nor did he possess any suitable elixirs. Thus, he could only proceed with a combination of the first two paths. From this moment on, his entire body’s vital energy would be sealed; for ten days, he would be unable to utilize even a fraction of his inner breath or soul power. He would be as vulnerable as an ordinary person, killable by any immortal cultivator capable of shattering his physical body. In return, this would purchase an explosion of strength ten days hence. At that time, supplemented by elixirs, he should be able to overdraft some True Essence, granting him brief Saint Realm strength without further consuming his lifespan.

This was a profound secret art Zong Shou had obtained from Liu Mu Chen, exquisitely subtle. However, sealing the energy pathways was inherently perilous. If not for the protection of several Ultimate Realm experts within the Mortal Path Dome, Zong Shou would never have dared attempt it. He had originally intended to offer this secret art to the Mortal Path. Yet, several days prior, he had learned that unscrupulous cultivators had already begun practicing the Source Sea Spirit Transformation Art. When it came to inspiring potential and boosting combat power, this military secret art left behind by the Scholar Zi would only be stronger than the forbidden arts he himself mastered.

Zong Shou abandoned that thought, choosing instead to use the secret art himself, coordinating it with elixirs he had confiscated over the years that could replenish vital life force.

The talisman array drawn upon his body was a different secret technique. It could maximize one aspect of his strength to an extreme degree at the cost of weakening others. Zong Shou’s choice was the Mortal Path Killing Sword, which allowed him to simultaneously integrate the sword intents of Slaughter and Annihilation. Although this sword art was only at the Tenth Grade, Saint Spirit Level One, through his comprehension of the Supreme Demon Slaying Record, he was confident he could elevate its might by another full level, reaching the Eleventh Grade Divine Ability! Wielded by sword intent at the peak of the mid-Soul Realm, it could contend with any expert in martial arts or spiritual techniques.

Slaughter and Annihilation, while not as vast as the great thoroughfares of 'Dao' or 'Law,' nor as fundamental as Yin-Yang and the Five Elements, possessed an unparalleled, crushing power in their pure focus on 'Slay' and 'Annihilate.' As long as the opponent’s realm was insufficient or their martial cultivation slightly inferior, they could not withstand his sword. In that case, Han Qing would have no choice but to flee in disarray. The Great Rebellious Heavenly Demon and the Ten Thousand Things Reversal—he could not reverse Zong Shou’s Swords of Annihilation and Slaughter. Contact meant instant withering and death from annihilation.

The array drawn upon Zong Shou’s body at this moment could further boost the might of his Mortal Path Killing Sword by fifty percent! The cost was that techniques like the Primordial One Sword, Dragon Shadow Sword, or Instantaneous Void Sword would have their power nearly halved, even if he managed to deploy them.

However, just as Zong Shou finished drawing the array and sealed his entire network of energy pathways with the imprint method, he saw Chu Xue opposite him looking over with ill intent. A strange light flickered in her watery eyes, tinged with a certain yearning. Why does the Young Master look so easy to bully at this moment?

Zong Shou was wondering what she was thinking when Chu Xue suddenly lunged forward, knocking him down, and then threw her arms around him—specifically wrapping them around his several snow-white fox tails, rubbing her small face against them with evident satisfaction. It was only then that Zong Shou realized that due to the forbidden art, he could no longer control his demonic form. A headache bloomed in frustration; thankfully, since it would end in ten days, staying within the quiet room should prevent his identity from being exposed.

Speaking of which, his few fox tails truly were universally adored. Not only did Ruo Shui like them, but Ruo Shui Yi Ren did as well; even Kong Yao often stroked them unconsciously.

Feeling slightly vexed and embarrassed, Zong Shou prepared to reach out and grab Chu Xue’s cat ears. But then he saw that Xue'er was blushing deeply, secretly glancing at his exposed body. Zong Shou looked down himself and felt a pang of awkwardness. Because his True Essence was sealed along with his energy streams in the Dantian, there was unmistakably a towering erection pointing skyward.

Chu Xue’s eyes held suspicion, but her hands unconsciously tightened their grip on the fox tails, nearly embedding them into her chest. However, the structure, which resembled a massive pillar, then gave a violent twitch, making it look even more grotesque. Chu