Every word pierced the heart!
One sentence, from “Third Young Master Xie” to “Fellow Daoist”—such a simple change in address, yet hidden within that calm tone was a fact that would shake all cultivators of Shijiu Zhou to their core—
Kill me to prove dao!
A person already killed, standing alive before her killer, calmly asking with a smile: Fellow Daoist, has your Great Dao been achieved?
How light it sounded?
Yet how venomous the words?
Like raising a knife to instantly stab into one’s heart, stirring up a mess of bloody flesh.
Has your Great Dao been achieved?
If his Great Dao had been achieved, why would he need to stand here confronting her, going through such great trouble?
Xie Buchen’s thick, long lashes trembled slightly as his misty rain-touched eyes lifted to gaze at Jian Chou.
That seemingly benevolent face still vaguely resembled the past.
Under Jian Chou’s peaceful gaze, he smiled with near self-mockery, casually flipping his hand to hide the half-scroll of “Qingfeng Hermitage Forty-Eight Records” in his sleeve.
“Since you haven’t died, how could my Great Dao be achieved?”
“…”
Since you haven’t died, how could my Great Dao be achieved!
So calm, so indifferent!
She had indeed underestimated him!
In that instant, even Jian Chou, who had asked that question, hadn’t expected to receive such an answer!
The meaning in those words—how decisive, how ruthless!
He absolutely required her death to achieve his supreme Great Dao!
“What a pity!”
In that moment, Jian Chou finally burst into laughter, transforming from extreme stillness to extreme motion in just a blink!
“I didn’t die cleanly and thoroughly—I’ve disappointed Fellow Daoist Xie!”
The Dijiang Wind-Thunder Wings dormant on her shoulder blades reopened the instant her laughter rang out.
Wings seemingly forged from pure gold, feather by feather, extremely hard, flickering with flowing golden light, surrounded by electric serpents. The moment they opened, they slashed toward Xie Buchen with lightning speed!
Wings like blades—in an instant, Xie Buchen recalled the five black-feathered arrows that had recently pierced his body!
His reaction was not slow at all. In fact, the moment he opened his mouth to answer Jian Chou’s question, power had already accumulated between his five fingers, ready to counterattack at any moment!
A gray line like a long snake extended from his palm, with strength refined to the extreme condensed in this single line. Just looking at it made one’s heart tremble.
Unfortunately…
Too slow!
The advantage of Jian Chou’s Wind-Thunder Wings lay in their “swiftness.”
When the Dijiang Wings rose, Xie Buchen’s Hidden Sword Intent was just condensing. When her wings reached his face, his sword intent had barely arrived.
Though it seemed like an insignificant thin line, when it collided with the Dijiang Wings, it erupted with fierce power!
“Boom!”
A thunderous sound as countless electric serpents flowed from the wings, striking that thin gray line—or rather, the Hidden Sword Intent!
The layered clouds and flowing winds in the high sky were almost severed by this wing in that instant, their connection broken.
Xie Buchen’s palm shook violently as he instantly felt that thunder-like force transmitting through the sword intent like something tangible!
His tiger’s mouth immediately split open, blood splattering everywhere.
After all, Jian Chou had struck faster, and the Dijiang Wings were far superior to his Hidden Sword Intent.
In this first exchange after their brief pause, Xie Buchen was directly at a disadvantage.
The massive Wind-Thunder Wings pressed down like an overwhelming force!
Without the narrow pagoda’s obstruction, beyond the Buddha statue lay the vast sky.
Unable to withstand the Wind-Thunder Wings, Xie Buchen felt his body sink after the initial clash, actually pressed by that force to fly backward beyond the Buddha’s crown!
“Bang!”
Struck down again!
Xie Buchen couldn’t control his form, directly crashing into the Buddha statue’s shoulder.
The blazing golden light almost made it impossible for him to open his eyes.
From that intense golden shadow, the only thing he could see was Jian Chou’s approaching figure once more!
Perhaps it was time for a final resolution.
Whether it was the revenge she sought or the dao he pursued!
Master Buyu’s manuscript had been found, with no third person around to see, and they were in a hidden realm with no other obstructions.
When killing was needed, kill!
Intense killing intent also surged in Xie Buchen’s heart.
In their previous exchanges, he had already experienced Jian Chou’s various abilities, especially that astonishing combat talent.
Now the Human Emperor Sword wasn’t in his hands, she bore the advantage of the Dijiang Wind-Thunder Wings, and had the Red Sun Slash—if they fought hard, it would likely be mutual destruction.
This thought flashed through his mind. Seeing the Dijiang Wings coming at him again, carrying a terrifying power that didn’t belong to ordinary cultivators, that doubt in his heart suddenly arose again—
Even for a heaven-sent genius, her cultivation had risen too quickly after the gathering.
But the next moment, as the wings struck, this thought was scattered from his mind.
Xie Buchen narrowly dodged by leaning aside, and the Dijiang Wings crashed thunderously into the great Buddha’s shoulder.
“Boom!”
A huge crater suddenly appeared within the wing’s attack range.
The entire great Buddha was carved from giant stone with a golden exterior coating.
When Xie Buchen dodged, the wings instantly struck down like a giant axe, chopping off countless stone fragments!
“Crash…”
Stone fragments rolled down the Buddha’s shoulder continuously, finally falling into the calm lake below.
After consecutively dodging Jian Chou’s fierce strikes, Xie Buchen finally got a chance to breathe. His Hidden Sword Intent instantly withdrew as he released his form, letting himself fall madly downward!
While falling, Xie Buchen’s palm with the split tiger’s mouth had already reopened, as if trying to grasp something…
How could Jian Chou, pursuing from behind, not know what he was planning?
In battle, having a dao seal didn’t guarantee absolute victory.
Even in war, there was the saying “right time, right place, right people.” The same dao seal could have various changes depending on the environment.
Xie Buchen had three sword intents.
Outstanding Sword Intent focused on momentum; Hidden Sword Intent focused on meaning; River-Flow Sword Intent focused on “form”!
Any place with water was perfect for unleashing River-Flow Sword Intent.
This thought flashed through Jian Chou’s mind. She should have quickly moved forward to stop him, severing his hands and feet, crippling all his limbs to see what techniques he could still use.
But at the last moment, she let out a cold laugh!
With River-Flow Sword Intent and the calm lake below, he thought he could win?
Xie Buchen had forgotten—not everyone would be restrained by him!
In that instant, just a fleeting thought, Jian Chou had already spread her wings and leaped directly from the thousand-ren Buddha crown!
Below, red lotus bloomed across the entire lake.
Xie Buchen’s palm aimed at the lake surface, but his gaze remained fixed on Jian Chou. With just one thought, waves suddenly rose in the calm lake below!
“Splash!”
A water dragon, as if stirred by something, rose from the lake surface, floating upward on the wind, accurately catching Xie Buchen’s falling form and lifting him up!
The giant dragon soared, its head turning to face Xie Buchen in mid-air, opening its massive jaws!
“Roar!”
A water dragon’s cry!
Waves surged!
The entire lake was filled with lotus, the entire sky with splashing water.
Xie Buchen reached out, actually extending straight into the giant dragon’s mouth, gently shaking as if drawing a giant sword from the dragon’s mouth, or as if that gentle shake transformed the dragon into a long sword!
Splash.
Countless water droplets fell.
In the blink of an eye, that mighty dragon had disappeared.
In Xie Buchen’s hand was a sword condensed from lake water.
Transparent water drops refracted the heavenly light above, the Buddha’s golden light, and reflected by the surrounding karma fire red lotus, it seemed like burning fire, extremely magnificent!
Standing with sword in hand, suspended in mid-air, with countless blooming karma fire red lotus below, Xie Buchen in his azure robe suddenly looked up at her—
She leaped from the high Buddha crown, like falling from the ninth heaven.
The oncoming wind was bitter and bone-piercing, yet she seemed enveloped in a layer of fire!
Swift as lightning, fast as a meteor!
The ancient Dijiang Wings opened behind her, cutting through the void, the blazing golden light creating an illusion of burning!
She looked down at him from above, rapidly approaching him.
That was burning battle intent, cold killing intent!
She hadn’t stopped him from using River-Flow Sword Intent, even watching coldly as if she didn’t care at all, as if she felt he had no chance of winning.
As if…
She had already transcended!
How confident, yet how arrogant!
In that moment, reading her expression, Xie Buchen couldn’t help but laugh inwardly.
It was her!
Without such confidence, without such arrogance, without that strange resemblance to him, how could she have disturbed his mind and become his beloved?
Unfortunately, beloved was also deadly!
Xie Buchen’s thoughts suddenly grew heavy, and in that instant, his gaze at Jian Chou seemed strange.
It was love, it was unattainable, it was about to kill!
The more one loved, the more one killed—that was all!
Thus, when Jian Chou struck, his spiritual energy surged madly, and the entire boundless calm lake rose with towering waves!
Above the river flow, a sword with one’s back to the water!
The giant sword in his hand was a sword, and the endless waves rising behind him were also swords!
In that instant, Jian Chou, diving down from mid-air, felt the calm lake below had transformed into a sword lake!
Thousands and thousands of sword intents hidden in the lake all came alive at this moment, surging toward her amid the roaring waves!
That feeling was like dust to thick earth, a grain to the vast sea!
What rolled toward her seemed no longer just a sword, but the entire vast ocean!
But in Jian Chou’s eyes, there was no fear, only overwhelming excitement!
Nearly boiling killing intent!
As the overwhelming waves struck, the Dijiang Wings suddenly shook, actually breaking through limits at this moment, emitting a tooth-aching “creak”!
“Boom!”
Thunder crashed, falling from the sky from nowhere.
Wild winds arose from all directions, swirling around the Wind-Thunder Wings!
The massive Buddha statue radiating golden light stood between heaven and earth, compassionately watching below.
The entire huge domed lake seemed lifted by Xie Buchen’s single sword.
He had all the geographical advantages, moving with the lake’s waves, raising his giant sword high to strike at Jian Chou above with earth-shaking might!
Jian Chou, bearing massive wings, seemed like a lone goose compared to these waves that could shake Yueyang City—too small to withstand a single blow.
But strangely…
She shot into the giant waves like a sharp arrow!
In that moment, Xie Buchen’s expression changed dramatically!
The Dijiang Wings carried wind and thunder as they entered, like long wind rolling waves!
The thousand-li waves that swept heaven and earth seemed to be torn apart by the hurricane carried on her wings after Jian Chou entered!
“Crash!”
The sound of giant waves breaking, the sound of angry wind howling!
The original giant wave like a high wall reaching the sky collapsed and shattered at this moment.
Jian Chou formed hand seals, and countless wind blades whistled in the gale, piercing into the waves, condensing into what she had once used against Zhou Chengjiang—
River full of lotus, river full of swords!
She was like a lone sail flying from the Buddha crown, riding the long wind, breaking through ten thousand li waves!
The Dijiang Wings surged upward against the current, her spiritual energy flowing around her with a thickness completely inconsistent with her form, pouring out madly like a thousand-li dam bursting!
The ten thousand li wave crests were instantly shredded!
Thus the giant lake waves scattered with the wind, and lake water fell like rain from the sky!
Xie Buchen’s form shook violently. The River-Flow giant sword he held faintly showed an ice-blue color after this strike, as if completely frozen.
An ice lotus emerged from the sword hilt, making a “crack” sound as it suddenly bloomed!
It was a subtle sound, also like thunder.
As if the King of Hell had opened the book of life and death, ready to strike out someone’s name.
In that moment, Xie Buchen only felt pain in his palm as a long sharp sword actually pierced out from the blooming ice lotus!
Rip!
His flesh palm was instantly penetrated.
Blood immediately stained the ice sword, flowing into the calm lake, the color spreading—a deep and shallow eerie purple.
Too thick!
In terms of “technique” alone, Xie Buchen was not inferior to Jian Chou by even a fraction, and his River-Flow Sword Intent was even superior.
But when Jian Chou rode the wind and broke the waves, pressing forward with all her strength, she relied on “power”!
Unbelievably thick spiritual energy!
Only at this moment did a terrifying idea form in Xie Buchen’s mind: the spiritual energy stored in her body far exceeded what a normal Golden Core cultivator should possess!
Even…
Far exceeded his own!
How was this possible…
Xie Buchen almost couldn’t believe it, even temporarily forgetting the pain in his palm, gazing ahead—
Through the fierce wind and sudden rain, she broke through the waves!
Too fast—the raindrops striking her were scattered by her form, turning into a layer of mist that dampened her flowing robes.
In Xie Buchen’s eyes, this sudden rain carried a desolate color.
As if the entire sky had darkened with it, as if the compassionate great Buddha’s golden light beside them had dimmed!
Dark winds howled angrily, turbid waves emptied the sky.
Jian Chou moved through the rain, the Human Emperor Sword somehow already in her palm.
Her gaze at him was so cold, so emotionless.
No past love and affection, no past entanglements—only the decisiveness of final resolution.
One hand gripping the scabbard, one hand holding the hilt.
She exerted force with both hands, drawing the sword in the wind and rain!
“Clang—”
A sharp sword cry!
Like a giant dragon dormant in the deep abyss finally awakening, soaring from the abyss bottom, majestically gazing at the human world, making all people bow their heads in submission.
Only the sword bearer stood supreme!
The wind and rain throughout the sky paused, and the three thousand heads bathed in rain all turned toward the Human Emperor Sword, as if bowing in worship!
The sword was not the emperor—only the sword bearer was the human emperor!
It was a fine sword, but not one that Xie Buchen could possess!
Jian Chou drew the sword, her speed not slowing by half.
The aftermath of her previous strike still echoed in mid-air. With just one glance, she could clearly discern Xie Buchen’s chaotic spiritual energy state—
Not worth a single blow!
He stood directly in front of her sword’s path, his palm pierced by the ice sword, pain showing on his face, yet his gaze locked straight on her, as if wanting to see clearly her every expression, every movement, even seemingly wanting to see through every thought in her heart.
That was a gaze carrying memories, neither dodging nor avoiding, endlessly long…
Unfortunately, in Jian Chou’s eyes, it only brought infinite mockery!
When she first entered cultivation, she had only heard of his ten-day foundation establishment, thirteen days to have his name inscribed on the Nine Heavens Tablet.
How glorious for Kunwu?
How stunning in talent?
But now—
In spiritual energy, she and Xie Buchen both had two-zhang five-dou compasses, evenly matched;
In realm, she was about to enter mid-stage Golden Core, still a fine line above Xie Buchen;
In trump cards, looking among peers now, who could surpass her?
In character, she believed that reborn from a solitary tomb, cultivating against heaven, even if Soul Departure meant certain death, she would not stop—she surpassed rats like Xie Buchen who killed wives to prove dao by countless times!
She hadn’t stopped Xie Buchen from using River-Flow Sword Intent, only waiting for him to exhaust all his abilities for an honorable battle!
All grudges and resentments would be settled by life and death!
Countless thoughts, countless cries from the heart…
The confusion that had been floating in her mind for so long finally received baptism at this moment, becoming completely clear, completely enlightened.
She didn’t need to know what dao she practiced, only that Xie Buchen’s dao was definitely not the righteous dao!
Among all daos under heaven, what I affirm is right, what I deny is wrong—that was all!
Kill wife to prove dao, extinguish human desire?
Had Xie Buchen been willing to prove this dao?
A smile suddenly bloomed on Jian Chou’s cold lips—
Rising with sword in hand, her form was like the Five Sacred Mountains rising from flat ground!
Sword momentum towering, sword energy magnificent!
On the Human Emperor Sword, rivers and mountains lit up like blood vessels, the imperial achievements and royal charts delivered to this single sword with laughter!
One sword, piercing through the burning chest!
“Today, I will kill you—to prove my dao!”