Though he never considered Su Xiaoxiao his woman, Zong Shou could not help but feel gratitude for how she risked her life at a critical juncture, allowing him to keep his final trump cards concealed until the most opportune moment.
Even against his will, the unique power of the Yuan Mo Qi Qing Jue had undeniably stirred an unusual emotion within him toward Su Xiaoxiao.
Chu Xue, too, had suffered a severe injury this time, nearly taking a blade meant for him.
In today's battle, Zong Shou had barely managed to protect his own woman—what kind of man was he?
A profound rage burned within him, a killing intent swirling in his heart. Only by utterly annihilating Dao Xuan could this feeling be quenched—
Zong Shou had no desire to suppress it now!
Yuan Wushang was equally furious. His throat was restrained, rendering him speechless. Yet, his face was flushed crimson, veins bulging, his eyes fixed on Zong Shou with a warning glare.
He was a man of immense pride. Even if Zong Shou spared him today out of friendship, he would feel no relief or gratitude; only utter humiliation. A humiliation greater than any in his life!
Zong Shou merely glanced at him once before lowering his eyelids.
“Brother Yuan, rest assured in your departure. On every anniversary of your death hereafter, Zong Shou will never forget to offer incense! I dare not forget—”
Within the Primordial Soul Sea, another Sheng Si Ming Hua (Life and Death Nether Flower) was silently unfurling. A colossal surge of vital energy was leaking out with the unfolding of its petals.
Dao Xuan froze. Could it be that the Zong Shou before him was not the pedantic, relationship-focused man described by Mo Lian, but rather a ruthless overlord who cared nothing for the lives of his friends and subordinates?
Yuan Wushang, however, cracked a smile, silent yet mirthful. Then, his entire body violently exploded. He had self-detonated his Golden Core Primordial Soul, instantly affecting a radius spanning a hundred li.
“You madman!”
Dao Xuan, who bore the brunt of the blast, let out a frustrated snort of anger. He instinctively loosened his grip, his form shifting rapidly as he fled high above the Altar of Heaven.
But due to the extreme proximity, his intact left arm was also ripped apart by shrapnel and blood, revealing stark white bone.
Just as he assumed Yuan Wushang’s soul must have scattered following the self-detonation,
a colossal wave of vital energy suddenly erupted in the distance, enveloping Yuan Wushang’s flesh and spirit.
In an instant, a complete human form materialized before his eyes.
Though severely weakened in vital energy and spirit after his resurrection, Yuan Wushang still couldn't help but let out a wild, triumphant laugh, a mix of resentment and schadenfreude on his face.
“Idiot!”
Dao Xuan’s face contorted, but he no longer had the leisure to concern himself with Yuan Wushang’s fate.
Following the vital energy, a wave of death aura spread out, resonating with the ambient corpse qi of the area. This caused the nether power to permeate the surroundings, bringing all distant Sha Shi (Corpse Fiends) to a standstill.
Their vacant eyes turned toward the Altar of Heaven. Some of the less mentally stable Sha Shi even emitted piercing shrieks,
as if bowing in worship to a king, they collapsed to their knees.
Even the Corpse Generals exhibited expressions of shock and confusion.
Zong Shou’s body withered rapidly. Behind him, the Nether Gate opened wide, and vast death qi poured forth, surging like the River Styx—
Zong Shou’s Lian Shen Sword was now coated in a layer of ashen white.
Combined with the sanctity of the World-King, and this purest form of death qi, Zong Shou was imbued with an extremely unique aura,
one that instinctively signaled extreme danger!
“—Congregation of the Yin River, Gate of the Nine Hells. This sword pierces the Nether, announcing your demise! Now, the River Styx’s Sword of Death—”
The ashen-white sword light drifted forward with the immense, sweeping torrent of the River Styx.
Ignoring the laws of space and defying the order of time; death itself was never something time and space could impede.
When Dao Xuan reacted and attempted to evade desperately, the pallid sword had already materialized inexplicably before his eyes.
Blood vessels burst within Dao Xuan’s pupils. This Zong Shou possessed yet another twelfth-grade, world-ending divine ability, nearly reaching the supreme level!
His Dao Xuan Duo Shen Da Fa (Dao Xuan Soul-Snatching Great Art) was utterly useless now, unable to shake the rapidly approaching death energy in the slightest!
He could only watch powerlessly as the Sword of Death pierced his throat, cleaving his head from his body. The ashen-white energy instantly spread throughout his form,
combining with the immortal-slaying power to purge the life force from his body!
I have lost? I am dead?
Dao Xuan’s severed head stared, bewildered, at the ashen-white sword light,
and at the figure holding the sword, whose lips curved into a mocking sneer.
Dao Xuan, who reigned supreme over the Cloud Realm six thousand years ago, subjugating billions of cultivators. The Great Calamity of Dao Xuan wiped out nearly one-third of all cultivators above the Spirit Realm. His demonic flames were so overwhelming that the six great sects feared him like the plague.
Now, he was defeated by a junior whose cultivation had not yet reached twenty years—
What kind of monster was this?
The Wu Liang Zhong Shi Shen Tong (Boundless Beginning and End Divine Ability), the Six Gods Immortal-Slaying Flying Dagger, and now the River Styx’s Sword of Death.
A total of three twelfth-grade, world-ending divine techniques. Especially the second one—thinking back now, even with precautions, success in evasion would have been uncertain.
He was virtually immune to conventional rank differences—
He had envisioned casually crushing this youth like an ant, then seizing his wives and concubines for his pleasure and humiliation.
Yet, he was slain as easily as cutting down grain.
How could he accept this? How could he give up?
Silence descended upon the four directions. All the surrounding divine senses that had been pressing in now recoiled violently.
Without exception, they all developed a profound sense of dread toward the youth standing armed on the Altar of Heaven.
Even Dao Xuan, the Demon Lord who ravaged the Cloud Realm six thousand years ago unopposed—was he truly fated to perish by this young man's hand today?
Truly worthy of the title Blood Sword Demon Lord, the invincible one of the Cloud Realm—
A figure such as this appears perhaps once in billions of years!
At the same time, about one hundred and seventy li away, a young girl watching among the crowd of corpse armies gazed at the Altar of Heaven with complex emotions.
“Holy King, the Death Sword—”
The nether fire flickering in Gu Mie’s eye sockets sparked. “Why did I just feel that Zong Shou was more noble and authoritative than our own Majesty? As if he were my master, Gu Mie?”
“It was because he suppressed our Corpse Cores just now!”
Lian Er’s already pale complexion darkened further.
It wasn't just the two of them; the Corpse Generals within Xianyang City were likely in the same state.
“Now I finally begin to understand why Emperor Ming Di sent you and me to this realm to find him! This person—”
Before the latter half of the sentence could be spoken, Gong Xinran’s cold gaze swept over. Lian Er gave a sheepish laugh and promptly fell silent.
And then, the entire world suddenly began to shake violently.
Dao Xuan’s primordial spirit had unexpectedly not dissipated; his physical body was forcibly pinned in the void.
Beneath him, across dozens of li of land, countless Sha Shi collapsed one after another for no apparent reason.
Streams of black, misty corpse qi rose up, surging toward the sky and pouring into Dao Xuan’s body.
The laughter of a nearly maniacal Dao Xuan filled the space between heaven and earth.
“You think with just that one sword strike, Dao Xuan will perish here? Wishful thinking! The divine power of the Dao Xuan Duo Shen Da Fa is not something you can fathom!”
More and more corpse qi converged. Innumerable flesh buds sprouted from Dao Xuan’s severed neck, reconnecting his head. His arms also regenerated completely, and his eyes, now tinged with a hint of ashen gray, burned with even greater madness.
Yuan Wushang and Shen Yuexuan stared dumbfounded at the scene unfolding in the sky.
It had been nearly half an hour since the Demon Lord Dao Xuan appeared, yet only now did they witness the true might of his Dao Xuan Duo Shen Da Fa deployed at full strength.
Dozens of li, millions of Sha Shi, had their essence of corpse qi forcibly plundered.
This included at least two hundred thousand Heavenly Gang Battle Soldiers, which had previously posed them a significant challenge.
Now, under Dao Xuan’s suppression, they were powerless to resist as this world-ending divine ability stripped them of their very reason to exist in this world.
Lin Xuanxuan also frowned slightly, muttering, “Simply a monster—”
Dao Xuan at this moment seemed more like the undead than the living; he couldn't even be described as half-dead or half-alive.
Forcibly plundering vast amounts of corpse qi to sustain his existence and wear down the death intent fused with Zong Shou—it was uncertain what Dao Xuan would ultimately transform into.
“This state I’m in now, like a corpse but not human, is all thanks to you, Zong Shou!”
The Demon Lord Dao Xuan’s gaze was savage as his figure continued to flee into the distance.
“If this enmity is not repaid, I shall no longer be called Demon Lord—”
Zong Shou’s expression was indifferent; he wasn't particularly surprised. His own physical bones had been pulverized into a near-muddy state by Dao Xuan’s bombardment, forcing him to slump down. He was only kept from collapsing entirely by the constant influx of vital energy from the Nine Apertures Vital Stone.
After unleashing the River Styx’s Sword of Death, his condition worsened, making further fighting impossible.
Fortunately, he would not need to rely on his physical body for the next phase.
“I ask Martial Uncle to guard me!”
Zong Shou closed his eyes, and his True Form Incarnation burst forth from his cranial aperture.
Boundless Buddhist power now enveloped the True Form of his primordial spirit, radiating brilliant golden light. Beneath his feet rested the twelve-petaled Golden Lotus.
Harnessing the power of the Star Dao Seed to traverse the void, he shot toward the fleeing Demon Lord Dao Xuan at a speed that was certainly not inferior to Dao Xuan’s, perhaps even superior—a speed of light!
The speed of immeasurable light was meant to be the ultimate limit in this world. And the Star Dao Seed could manipulate space and time.
Clothed in this Golden Body of a Sage, Zong Shou was confident his speed of escape was second to none among the Venerables.
Especially while Dao Xuan was still severely injured!
Could he truly restore his injuries completely just by borrowing the energy of billions of corpse qi? Impossible.
With a lift of his hand, the seventy-two Sacred Fire Silver Ants in the distance were forcibly pulled behind him using his Spatial Shifting Divine Ability.
The seventy-two Silver Ants immediately shifted according to his will, using their spirit armor to form an array behind him.
Arranged in a circle, each unfolded three pairs of pure white wings, each spanning several zhang in length.
Sacred white flames coiled around them, emitting boundless silver radiance, both powerful and holy.
This not only accentuated Zong Shou’s Zhong Shi (Beginning and End) Buddha Golden Body but also magnified his majesty,
directly expanding the reach of the Buddhist light to cover an area of a hundred li!
Zong Shou paused in astonishment. His original intention in having the seventy-two Silver Ants form an array was to enhance his escape speed.
However, aided by this formation, Zong Shou felt that the boundless Buddhist power of Beginning and End he could control and utilize had increased by a massive thirty percent!
In fact, augmenting his speed with a Dao Soldier formation had been one of Zong Shou's goals all along.
It was just that he hadn't had the chance to demonstrate it before Dao Xuan launched his attack. Only now, at this critical juncture, did Zong Shou finally get to experience it.
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