On Yingzhao's back, Ye Jingyu had completely lost consciousness. Even though his heart was still beating, and he was still breathing, the man showed absolutely no response, entirely inert like a corpse, completely motionless…

Jiu Feng sat upon Yingzhao’s broad back, cradling Ye Jingyu’s head in her arms. Gazing at his hair, which had turned an ashen white, crystal-clear tears tracked down from the corners of his eyes, one after another…

“A’Yu…” Her slender, delicate, and smooth hands gently caressed Ye Jingyu’s face, as if trying to wake him, but at this moment, Ye Jingyu remained completely unresponsive.

Whispering the name "A’Yu" softly, Jiu Feng didn't know what else she could say. She had witnessed his soul being cleaved into fragments by that single sword strike. Even if he were a Soul Immortal, surely he must have been utterly annihilated by now?

His essence would soon dry up, and his life would vanish completely from this world, wouldn't it?

Tears drenched her cheeks, soaked her clothes, and saturated her own heart, which felt equally shattered…

Memories surfaced of the first time she met Ye Jingyu. Back then, he had been so insolent, so utterly roguish. She recalled the times he protected her, the time he accepted the challenge from Chi Yixiu, the foremost warrior of the Southern Wastelands, all for her sake. She remembered every single moment spent with him in the Southern Wastelands…

Later, when she went out searching for him, she unexpectedly fell into a deep valley. Fortunately, her Master rescued her, imparting to her a profound mastery of martial arts cultivation, which gave her another chance to be near him again…

That time, in Blazing Flame City, she saw him once more. However, Mingyan Tower was only in its nascent stages of development then. She couldn't defy her Master’s command, so she could only watch him from afar in silence.

In the ensuing days, Mingyan Tower's influence flourished, its intelligence network expanded exponentially, and her status within the sect rose ever higher, yet her yearning for him only deepened.

When she discovered he had actually come to Medicine City seeking trouble with the Gongsun family, her worry became unbearable. She rushed to Medicine City immediately…

Last night, upon learning he was being hunted down by members of the Gongsun family, she implored Gui Jianchou, her senior brother who was also in Medicine City, to join her, hoping they could save Ye Jingyu.

But who could have imagined that after they finally managed to rescue him, he would have his soul cleaved apart by a single sword strike simply to secure a slim chance for their escape? Was this truly the fate intertwined between them?

Must the two of them always be separated by life and death?

No, no, it couldn't be. It wouldn't happen. He was Ye Jingyu. He was the disciple of Dugu Bachen. He absolutely would not die…

Feeling the steady beat of Ye Jingyu’s heart, sensing that his aura hadn't weakened in the slightest, Jiu Feng suddenly rejected the notion she had held so dearly. Whether it was self-deception or sheer obstinacy, she believed that as long as a single breath remained, he would live…

Gui Jianchou, standing aside observing all this, remained expressionless. Yet, his eyes were filled with an indescribable emotion—a touch of jealousy, certainly, but within that jealousy lay a faint sense of relief. If he were truly annihilated, what was there left for him to contest? If Ye Jingyu were dead, his junior sister might grieve for a time, giving him the perfect opportunity to care for her. Perhaps then, in the future, she would pledge her devotion entirely to him…

The sight of Jiu Feng’s exquisite figure and her peerlessly beautiful face sent a surge of heat through Gui Jianchou’s blood.

Yet, none of them understood that although Ye Jingyu’s Heaven and Earth Souls had been shattered into fragments, they had transformed into the purest form of energy, returning directly to his body…

The pain he endured at that moment was unimaginable, as if a person were being hacked into pieces, blade by blade, minute by minute. The most agonizing aspect was that he remained fully conscious throughout the torment—a suffering far more unbearable than even slow dismemberment…

A person possesses three Souls and seven Spirits. The Life Soul is paramount, but the Heaven and Earth Souls constantly drift externally while also being primary components. For ordinary individuals, even Soul Immortals, should their Heaven and Earth Souls be torn asunder, the person, even if they survive, would become an imbecile, just as Xuanyuan Jing had predicted, incapable of any further advancement.

But Ye Jingyu was different. He was not ordinary, or rather, the cultivation technique he practiced was anything but common—it was the supremely dominant Tyrant Origin Art.

The final stage of its Body Nurturing Chapter involved completely shattering the Three Souls and Seven Spirits within the body, allowing them to fully integrate into the physical form, achieving a perfect fusion. When the body perishes, the soul perishes with it.

This shared a parallel with a Martial Saint ascending to Martial God, except one involved shattering the True Core, while the other required shattering the entire soul…

If the soul were shattered, how could one remain alive? Such a technique, even if known, no ordinary person would dare cultivate it. The crux was that Ye Jingyu had no prior knowledge of this, just as he couldn't know the contents of the Battle Skill Chapter or the Divine Ability Chapter beforehand.

These were restrictions left for him by his ancestor; everything unfolded naturally, step by step. Until he reached a certain threshold, he couldn't possibly know what the next stage entailed.

Following his normal rate of cultivation, reaching the level required to shatter the soul for body refinement would have taken at least one to two years. However, now, aided by Xuanyuan Jing, his Heaven and Earth Souls had been forcibly shattered ahead of schedule…

Admittedly, the power of his current Three Souls and Seven Spirits could not compare to the might achieved upon full completion. But one must not forget that within his Qiankun Bracelet, there resided the Demon Core of a Saint Beast…

The energy derived from the shattered Heaven and Earth Souls surged directly into Ye Jingyu’s body, compelling the complete fragmentation of his Seven Spirits as well. Seven distinct energy fields violently erupted, finally resolving into the purest energy that merged with his Life Soul, fusing it perfectly with his physical self…

Furthermore, the Demon Core hidden in the Qiankun Bracelet was instantly drawn into his Dantian. The overwhelmingly fierce energy was instantaneously devoured and absorbed entirely by his Life Soul…

Finally, his Life Soul itself exploded in a final burst, transforming into power of unimaginable magnitude yet absolute purity, which began tempering his very being…

That was the Great Annihilation…

And following the Great Annihilation, there was only boundless chaos…

This power was the most primal Chaos Force in existence…

Ye Jingyu’s physical form was now being refined by this Chaos Force into the most terrifying Chaotic Body known to the world.

Yes, it was the Chaotic Body capable of containing all things.

All of this transpired silently and seamlessly. As his Life Soul shattered, Ye Jingyu temporarily lost all awareness. His consciousness, or rather, his divine sense, now existed as a detached observer, quietly witnessing everything unfold.

He “saw” his physical body—he saw his skin, his muscles, his flesh, his bones, his cells, and even the tiniest atoms composing those cells.

And the electrons orbiting the nucleus of those atoms followed specific trajectories, resembling the distant stars scattered across the vast cosmos…

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