"Those who hide their heads and tails dare not face a true battle," Chu Xue huffed, clenching her small, pink fists. She looked back, realizing the presence of the subordinate sword was gone. Annoyance flared hotter; in a head-on clash, Gong Yuan was surely no match for her.

Yet, he was like a slippery loach, impossible to catch or hold.

"It was just shy of working!"

"That was the Heaven-Evasion Parent-Child Sword pair; you couldn't have held it."

That subordinate sword was specifically deployed to lure him into an ambush. Since that goal failed, it naturally phased out far away.

Zong Shou secretly shook his head. In later generations, the name of this sword set would be infamous, shaking an entire era.

This sword could travel the world unimpeded. Its mastery over the principles of Virtuality and Reality was a perfect match for the 'Dun' (Evasion) Divine Incantation.

This was why Gong Yuan, in the future, could hold the Million-Strong Army of the Divine Emperor at bay single-handedly.

One man and one sword—nearly enough to rival the Divine Emperor himself.

Though that Parent-Child Sword set was not yet fully unsealed, it was already extraordinary. Paradoxically, because of the seal, it was slightly easier to wield than Chu Xue's Blood Moon Saber.

Even his Instantaneous Void Dragon Core and World-Burning Blood Eye could not stop the divine power of this sword. Chu Xue managed to injure him only through the peerless predictive ability granted by her Martial Body of Combat, which pinpointed the trajectory of his evasion. Anyone else, even those nearly twice his cultivation level, would have been completely helpless. Furthermore, his cultivation speed was truly astonishing; he had already broken through to the Immortal Tier.

Besides the Heaven-Evasion Parent-Child Sword, he must possess another rare treasure to survive Zong Shou's attack unscathed.

Zong Shou wondered where Gong Yuan had obtained these treasures, along with the inheritance for the Void-Reality Immortal Slaying Art. The last time he saw him, Gong Yuan was merely at the Seventh Tier, possessing none of these sword arts capable of challenging him.

Only five years... Could it be through sacrificing his lifespan?

Zong Shou narrowed his eyes, falling into deep contemplation. He possessed the complete Inheritance of the Source Life Spiritual Breath Art, allowing him to sense vitality. Gong Yuan, having reached the Immortal Tier, should naturally have at least four thousand five hundred years of life remaining. But based on his current appearance, he seemed to have only three hundred years left at most.

Zong Shou, however, had the life-sustaining power of the symbiotic Holy Fire Ants, which gave him confidence. This man, however, would meet his doom the moment his three hundred years were spent. This revealed the sheer depth of his obsession with revenge.

Though his strength did not match Zong Shou's, he was certainly a formidable opponent deserving of respect!

"My true essence was consumed by that World Observation Apparatus. I wonder what fortune this man encountered..."

He flicked his sleeve, collecting the silver ants, the stars, and Xiao Jin back into his robes. A sharp focus flashed in Zong Shou's eyes.

This time, although Gong Yuan harbored killing intent, his true objective was merely reconnaissance—to probe the true level of Zong Shou's divine sword arts.

His next move would certainly not be this simple.

Zong Shou realized he needed to forge a countermeasure. He already had paths available. He could return to the Lu Family and master every divine technique of his World-Burning Blood Eye that couldn't be passed down through bloodline inheritance, evolving the Blood Eye's powers further. Or, he could evolve his Three Thousand Star Fall technique to the level of the Three Great Heavenly Cycles, at least constructing the framework of the Three Enclosures.

However, either path required significant time—cultivation spanning centuries. There was a third option: pre-laying the Ten Ultimate Dao-Extermination array to restrict the Heaven-Evasion Divine Art.

But he knew the chances of luring Gong Yuan into that formation were slim to none.

Zong Shou felt a headache coming on, and his thoughts drifted to Xing Xie.

More accurately, to Xing Xie's demonic core.

In this battle, only Xing Xie had left behind relics among the three Supremes slain.

Zong Shou had courteously left those other items alone. But Xiu Guan and Wei Xu had both bequeathed him that most precious Supreme-Tier Demonic Core.

If he refined this core into his Three Thousand Stars, then even if Gong Yuan possessed heaven-defying escape methods, he would never get away again.

Yet, Zong Shou sighed softly immediately afterward.

This Supreme Demonic Core contained residual divine intent from Xing Xie. Like the flesh and blood left by the other three Supremes when their bodies shattered, it was immensely troublesome, perhaps even more so. If he didn't want Xing Xie's divine will to invade him, or worse, to seize his body, it was best to keep his distance for now.

Xiu Guan had advised him to carry the core on his person for suppression, tempering and refining it daily. Only after a hundred years would there be a possibility of integrating it into his Dharma Body.

Temporarily, there truly was no way to restrict the Heaven-Evasion Parent-Child Sword set, meaning Gong Yuan couldn't harm him either.

His only lingering concern was his family and friends. At this moment, Zong Shou felt an unusual wave of gratitude toward the shadowy dragon nestled within his Asura Emperor's Seat.

"After I return this time, I might have to give that fiend dragon some substantial rewards to ensure it works harder."

Putting the matter of Gong Yuan aside for now, Zong Shou’s consciousness swept once more into the void of his sea of souls.

The sensation had been clearer when he used the Boundless Light divine ability earlier. His Black-and-White Dharma Body seemed to have achieved further progress.

Not a massive leap, but discernible, and the control felt even more fluid than before.

Examining it closely for a moment, Zong Shou was completely reassured.

These two Qilin of Virtue and Sin were improving the structure of his Black-and-White Dharma Body through their own power. It seemed to be instinctual—refining the underlying laws of the black and white voids.

This wasn't a bad thing; both the black hole and the white hole felt noticeably more stable, and the efficiency of their energy conversion was higher.

They were competing between themselves, influencing and opposing one another. The White Qilin clearly held the upper hand, almost completely suppressing its counterpart. But the Black Qilin, despite having just suffered severe injuries, had fallen from the peak of the Saint Realm and could still sustain itself.

"They say the Ancestor of the Qilin, much like the Primordial Dragon, was born concurrently with the genesis of this domain. They might have even survived the destruction and rebirth of a realm. I suspect this saying holds truth..." Zong Shou had a sudden realization. Xiu Guan placing the Black Qilin inside his primordial soul was likely not just to purify his Royal Dao Qi, but carried a deeper intention of completion.

"Taichu achieved Dao ten millennia ago, yet he went to such lengths to find this Black Qilin; there must be a reason..." In the library of the Common People's Dao, Zong Shou had once read several heretical ancient cultivation miscellaneous notes.

These weren't from the Cloud Realm but were transmitted from other worlds. They claimed this domain had not been without supreme beings in the 'True Realm.'

The Primordial Dragon, the Qilin Ancestor, the Phoenix Ancestor, and even the Ancestor of the Human Race were rumored 'True' beings who survived from the previous realm that existed before this one manifested.

Because they cultivated the Dao of that realm, not the Dao of this one, they gradually vanished after leaving descendants millions of years ago.

Perhaps they perished, or perhaps they fell into deep slumber. (To be continued)