"Heavenly Dragon... Roar..." A great shout escaped Huangfu Buyue's lips, his figure twisting violently. Then, with a miraculous extension of his palm, the jing qi of his entire body erupted, and a golden dragon shadow burst forth from within him—a shadow far larger and clearer than the one before, a constantly roaring phantom that seemed utterly alive...

This dragon shadow shot into the sky, then immediately reversed direction, plunging downward. Its massive jaws emitted a deafening shriek, the intense kinetic force causing the Jiang River below to churn wildly. The trees, flora, and rocks on the peak where Ye Jingyu stood shattered under the sound; even the stone beneath Ye Jingyu's feet fractured as if a great earthquake had struck...

Before the dragon shadow had even fully descended, the sheer force of its kinetic energy had utterly pulverized everything around Ye Jingyu. Even the hem of his robe whipped and snapped furiously. Any person, even a Martial Saint, facing such an onslaught would have their expression drastically change, daring not to meet it head-on, only seeking distance...

Yet, Ye Jingyu showed no intention of dodging, nor any inclination to resist. He allowed the colossal dragon shadow to hurtle toward him...

"Rumble..." With a deafening impact, the massive dragon shadow slammed directly into Ye Jingyu, instantly exploding into a mushroom cloud. Golden light blazed across the entire landscape. The ground where Ye Jingyu stood was blasted into fragments, stones and sand flying everywhere, debris scattering, dust rising in thick plumes...

Nearly half of the mountain peak was annihilated by this single strike...

Countless stones tumbled into the Tianjiang River below, causing the water level to rise incessantly...

Staring at the mountain half-destroyed by his attack, Huangfu Buyue was stunned. Why hadn't he moved? Even if he hadn't dodged, he could have blocked it. Why hadn't he moved at all? Had that previous blade strike drained all his strength? But that was impossible, wasn't it?

"So much dust..." A faint, indifferent voice echoed from within the swirling haze. Immediately, a figure ascended into the air...

Hair as white as frost, robes as dark as night, and eyes like distant stars—who else could it be but Ye Jingyu?

Seeing Ye Jingyu completely unharmed, Huangfu Buyue felt an almost frantic urge to scream. This was one of his strongest moves. Ye Jingyu had absorbed the entire assault without even a scratch. Was he even human?

Especially that final comment about the dust—it struck a deep blow to Huangfu Buyue. He had painstakingly developed the 'Heavenly Dragon Roar,' yet to use it for the first time only to receive such a dismissive evaluation, how could he possibly continue living?

Even if you are a genius, there’s no need to play like this...

"Brother Buyue, must we continue this fight?" Ye Jingyu gently reminded Huangfu Buyue, who hung stunned in mid-air.

"Fight? Why not? I have only witnessed the first stance of your Startling Thunder Blade Art; two more remain. How could I possibly stop now!" Huangfu Buyue snapped back from his shock, forcing a strong composure. He absolutely could not admit defeat here, even if Ye Jingyu’s current power felt utterly absurd...

He still held his ultimate move in reserve. The victor had not yet been decided; how could he concede?

"If that is the case, then Brother Buyue, behold this move of mine: Thunder Edict Shatters Heaven..." Ye Jingyu’s expression remained placid as he softly called out. In an instant, his figure shot upward. He raised the Tianzun Blade high with both hands, channeling all the Bao Yuan Li within him into the blade...

In a flash, a purple bolt of lightning tore across the sky, descending straight down to transform into a gigantic blade wreathed in violet electricity, slashing toward Huangfu Buyue...

This blade light was far smaller than the previous one, yet for some inexplicable reason, Huangfu Buyue felt it was exponentially more powerful than the last. Especially the crackling, hissing purple lightning—it seemed capable of obliterating everything in existence...

At this critical juncture, Huangfu Buyue dared not meet the attack. His Zhen Yuan Li stirred, his body dissolving into an afterimage, sweeping him hundreds of zhang away—it was the peak movement technique of the Qin Long Sect, Floating Light Skimming Shadow. Even Ye Jingyu's formidable strike failed to connect...

Having barely evaded Ye Jingyu's attack, Huangfu Buyue didn't wait for Ye Jingyu to recall his blade. He swept past and appeared instantly beside Ye Jingyu...

"Brother Ye, witness my strongest technique: Dragon's Roar Shakes Nine Heavens, Shattering Wind and Cloud!" As Huangfu Buyue finished speaking, his figure warped violently. He threw out a punch, followed instantly by a second, then a third, and a fourth. His body rotated ceaselessly, a terrifying storm coalescing around his form. His fist energies converged and overlapped, vaguely suggesting several divine dragons breaking free and spiraling together, rushing toward Ye Jingyu at full speed...

As this fist shot out, the very air began to fracture audibly. Wind, being formless, how could it shatter? It was impossible, yet Ye Jingyu distinctly felt the wind breaking apart...

Even the Wind Aperture in his left foot struggled at that moment to draw in the power of the wind...

Furthermore, the clouds overhead began to break apart, transforming into raw energy that flooded into the illusory dragons. Even the void itself started to crack, and the immense energy within the void was swept in, integrating entirely into the myriad of dragon shadows...

This was the power of the strike: it shattered the wind, it shattered the clouds...

And sought to shatter the very heavens and earth...

Overpowering roars erupted from the void. Under the influence of these sounds, the river below churned violently, as if a pot of boiling water...

Or perhaps like a divine dragon on the verge of resurrection...

The two mountainsides began to shake incessantly, seemingly unable to bear the immense pressure and on the brink of collapse...

Faced with such overwhelming power, the first trace of true gravity appeared in Ye Jingyu’s calm eyes. The blade strike he had already launched suddenly recoiled. The Bao Yuan Li within his body exploded outward completely. The body of the Tianzun Blade flashed with violent purple light, sending dazzling arcs of violet energy soaring toward the sky...

And in his throat, he forced out a heavy cry: "Raging Thunder Purgatory..."

In that instant, lightning flickered across the heavens...

"Crack..." A thick, arm-sized purple bolt of lightning plunged downward...

"Crack, crack..." Two more streaks of violet electricity followed...

Then came the fourth, the fifth, and each subsequent lightning strike grew thicker. In a moment, a full thousand streaks of purple lightning descended from the sky, appearing as if bent on destroying the entire world...