Within the Cloud Realm, the entirety of the space spanning hundreds of li where the battlefield lay fell into a state of suspended animation.
Tens of thousands of the Azure Dragon Riders of the Myriad Beings Sect simultaneously halted their mounts, staring fixedly at the scene before them. Initially, there was sheer disbelief; only after a breath did they manage to pull themselves back to reality. They confirmed what lay before them was no illusion: those nearly three hundred thousand Dao Soldiers, whose combined fighting strength was equivalent to six or seven peak Saint Realm masters, had genuinely been reduced to dust and grit by a single sword stroke!
The military discipline of the Myriad Beings Sect’s Azure Dragon Riders was ironclad. No one dared speak, so they could only exchange glances, communicating solely through their eyes.
“One strike, just one strike?”
“Could the Seven Swords of the Myriad Beings have finally merged?”
“Why haven't Dao Lord Qingxuan or Saint Zhu of the Confucian School intervened? Has the battle in the Firmament Realm already been won?”
“Most likely so, otherwise, how could they have the strength to aid us here?”
“Weren't there supposed to be at least seven Apex Realm experts and five Divine Sovereigns? Have they already been defeated?”
“Three hundred thousand Dao Soldiers—the Yuan Chen Emperor of Great Shang must be spitting blood!”
“Spitting blood? The very foundation of Great Shang might shake from this. If I were him, I doubt I’d sleep soundly for months.”
An infinite tide of ecstatic joy, mingled with the elation of surviving a catastrophe, began to sprout and grow within their hearts.
And then, following a beat or two of dead silence, came a resounding boom.
Across the field, the two million-plus cultivators standing arrayed suddenly disintegrated. It was as if an apparently unbreakable dam had dissolved and collapsed on the spot for no apparent reason—utterly, cleanly, and completely.
Almost everyone deployed every skill they possessed, unleashing escape techniques to flee either far away or into the void.
Anyone with even moderate cultivation noticed that the astonishing sword strike just delivered was a display of overwhelming dominance, leaving those three hundred thousand elite Dao Soldiers virtually no room to resist!
If that sword were to strike again, even if the two million cultivators assembled here were truly united and formed a defensive array, they likely couldn't withstand even three blows from it.
Not to mention that the two million cultivators gathered here hailed from the inherently discordant Dao, Confucian, and Demonic schools?
It wasn't just the cultivators; the remaining Dao Soldiers who had miraculously survived also swiftly turned their direction and fled at full speed.
It was at that very moment that Zong Shou's second sword swept across the firmament.
This time, it was even more practiced than the first; he had already grasped key principles and subtleties.
Using the Divine Refining Sword to guide and control the energy, he easily condensed the Will of Heaven and Earth drawn down into sword force in mid-air.
And this sword strike remained within the Cloud Realm, outside the Myriad Beings Firmament Realm!
The vast sword aura tore through everything, pursuing the millions of Three School cultivators who were in flight.
This was retaliation in kind, blood for blood!
Since Dao Lord Qingxuan was Wei Xu undergoing his tribulation, using the lives of tens of thousands of Firmament Realm disciples to force Xiu Guan and the Myriad Beings Dao Sect into a direct confrontation—
Then Zong Shou would use the same tactic against him!
If they wished to spare the nearly nine hundred thousand Dao Sect disciples from a miserable death beneath his sword, then the three Saints of the Dao Sect had no choice! They had to meet this sword head-on!
Qingxuan seemed to grasp Zong Shou’s intent immediately. His eyes instantly flashed crimson, his hair and beard standing on end. His robes fluttered wildly despite the lack of wind.
Killing intent flared in his gaze, brimming with rage and resentment, yet now, there was an overlay of helplessness.
He strained his body once, breaking free from the fetters of the Thirty-Three Heavens Array, and then hurled out another exquisite treasure pagoda to intercept Xiu Guan’s grasping, eternal power.
Finally escaping cleanly, having completely left the Myriad Beings Firmament Realm, Qingxuan simultaneously spat out a mouthful of purplish-gold blood.
Without daring to delay for an instant, he flickered into the Cloud Realm. The five treasure flags unfurled, positioning themselves at the cardinal directions above, below, left, right, and center.
Immediately, an immensely thick spiritual barrier, covered in talismanic seals, materialized, blocking the path of the immense sword light and the two million-plus cultivators behind it. A piercing sound—hiss—like silk cloth being ripped, immediately assaulted the ears.
The Heavenly Dao Sword collided with the flag array without hesitation. There was a brief stalemate, and then, with the ferocity of a maddened tiger, it violently smashed inward!
It forcefully pierced the spiritual barrier! Destroying every inscribed pattern!
All five treasure flags were violently flung back in the end, cracks faintly visible on their fabric.
Qingxuan himself felt his vital energy weaken, his face turning almost ashen.
The power of the Heavenly Dao channeled by this set of the Seven Swords of the Myriad Beings, left by Xi Zi, was akin to a cultivator's heavenly tribulation.
Even he found dealing with it extraordinarily arduous.
And at this moment, he could vaguely see the youth standing atop the thirty-third golden tower in the Great Overarching Heaven, staring coldly across with eyes stained crimson. Clearly, the look of someone who would not cease until all were slain and annihilated!
The third sword was already being prepared, the power about to be unleashed.
Here, his flag array was scattered, and new strength had not yet manifested. Behind him, tens of thousands of Dao Sect disciples had not yet managed to escape.
Catching a glimpse from the corner of his eye, he saw Dao Lord Tai Huang clutching the Mysterious Ancient Banner, rapidly approaching, seemingly intending to help him—but a silver axe gleam followed immediately behind!
“If I can see Qingxuan reduced to utter annihilation here today, avenging my senior brother, Xiu Guan will certainly invite friends for ten days of feasting to celebrate! Say that again!”
It was Xiu Guan’s voice. That silver axe gleam clung to him like a malignant tumor, preventing Tai Huang from focusing entirely.
Qingxuan’s chest turned ice-cold. He could easily evade this Heavenly Dao Sword, but those ninety-odd thousand Dao Sect disciples would stand absolutely no chance.
However, if he tried to meet it head-on, it would guarantee a severe injury. The outcome of a severe injury would certainly be Xiu Guan’s relentless pursuit, leading to Qingxuan’s eventual annihilation!
Was he truly going to ‘die’ here today?
Although he could reconstitute his soul body relatively soon, there were too many variables, and it was too troublesome. He was even more worried about being sealed, like Xi Zi before him.
His gaze flickered; he hesitated.
Zong Shou, however, thought nothing, knowing that the one outside the Firmament Realm truly had no choice.
Those ninety-odd thousand were not just elite disciples of the various Dao Sects; they were the foundation. Some of them managed thousands of Daoist temples across the Myriad Realms.
If this foundation crumbled, the two Divine Sovereigns they sustained would inevitably drop in rank within a few years.
Restoring them would require an unknown amount of effort.
The Myriad Beings Dao Sect’s fierce defense here was, at least in part, intended to protect the Great Unity Azure Essence Emperor. The Dao Sect could not afford the consequences of the Divine Sovereigns disintegrating either!
Thus, even if Qingxuan ultimately evaded the strike and refused to meet it, the Myriad Beings Dao Sect would gain nothing from it!
As the thought formed, that vast sword intent roared through the void once more, charging mightily into the Cloud Realm. Its sharp edge was aggressive, its momentum magnificent. The silver-white sword light, laced with scattered starlight, resembled a falling river of stars—brilliant and dazzling to behold.
Qingxuan’s pupils constricted, followed by a long, drawn-out sigh; his face looked even more defeated.
But just then, a figure suddenly burst forth, forcefully interposing himself before Qingxuan.
“The power of this sword formation is irresistible; please, Master, leave quickly!”
“Kunming?”
Dao Lord Qingxuan was clearly stunned. Looking at the figure, it was indeed Kunming. He must have paid some terrible price to escape the Azure Firmament Realm so early and forcefully place himself in the path.
And the Heavenly Dao Sword struck at that instant.
Before Kunming, clusters of light erupted, attempting to obstruct the blow. Initially, they could resist, but soon, they were overwhelmed. The spiritual lights burst apart, one patch after another, vanishing!
Finally, the vast sword light, like a colossal dragon, slammed into Kunming’s body.
Qingxuan’s rage intensified, his eyes nearly splitting open, watching almost through open eyes as Kunming’s body shattered and collapsed piece by piece under the impact of that peerless Heavenly Dao Sword.
He knew that Kunming’s death here, his annihilation in this battle, was certain.
Not daring to delay another moment, he flashed away, appearing above the millions of cultivators. He swept his sleeve once more, forcefully drawing in almost all the Dao Sect disciples, enveloping them entirely within his sleeve.
Apex Realm cultivators possess the ability to create their own worlds; the universe within a sleeve can contain the sun and moon. Only by entering his sleeve did these ninety-odd Dao Sect disciples have a slim chance of survival.
The brief confrontation, lasting only a few lightning-fast moments, concluded. Meanwhile, inside the Firmament Realm, Xiu Guan frowned slightly. After a moment, he let out a soft sigh, tinged with regretful, bitter laughter.
“Qingxuan truly has a fine disciple!”
If not for Kunming, today was supposed to be a guaranteed kill. Even if they couldn't execute Qingxuan, they could have dropped his prestige within the Dao Sect to rock bottom.
Now, he could only watch helplessly as this man escaped. Only Kunming, the weakest of the three Dao Sect Saints, had been slain.
“Hmm?”
His gaze shifted slightly, and a look of surprise reappeared on Kunming’s face.
“Self-destroying his primordial soul? What fortitude—”
It turned out that before being completely annihilated by the Seven Swords of the Myriad Beings, Kunming had intentionally detonated his own primordial soul.
This action, though coming at a terrible cost—destroying almost everything—allowed him to avoid the danger of having his very origin injured by the impact of the Heavenly might.
The Seven Swords of the Myriad Beings could indeed slay Apex Realm experts; that was no idle boast—
The Heavenly might channeled by the sword formation was one of the rarest forces in existence, a method capable of damaging an indestructible primordial soul of an Apex master.
Some weaker Saints who had only recently entered the Apex Realm risked immediate demise.
But Kunming’s action would at least shorten the time needed to reconstitute his primordial soul from thirteen thousand years down to seven thousand.
However, this time, it was a worthwhile trade. Not only was it a gain, but it was a loss that the Dao Sect would feel deeply!
The Dao Sect had Kunming; the Myriad Beings Sect had Wei Xu, had Zong Shou—
Looking beyond the Firmament Realm, Dao Lord Tai Huang had already diverted some of his attention, beginning to collect the remnants of Kunming’s shattered soul.
Xiu Guan let out a cold laugh, ignoring it. He turned his attention to Zong Shou, who stood alone in the Great Overarching Heaven Realm.
He was curious whom his junior nephew would aim his next sword at.
Zong Shou, at this moment, was wildly drawing in the power of the Thirty-Three Arrays, like a great whale gulping water.
A breath later, it seemed his accumulation was complete. Then, his eyes snapped open.
Even the mighty Xiu Guan felt a jolt in his chest.
It was the World-Burning Blood Pupils!
Instantly, formless fires erupted, burning wildly within the Firmament Realm. They spread, causing all spatial barriers and dimensional walls to combust with pale, white flames.
In that single instant, Dong Zhongshu, Xing Xie, and the others, still entangled by Xiu Guan’s dragon shadow and unable to escape the Firmament Realm, looked utterly defeated!