High in the sky, two sword intents collided.
One churned like a sea of blood, carrying endless killing intent, its crimson sword intent overwhelming.
The other was as sharp as thunder from the heavens, its silver-white sword light piercing the sky—no unnecessary variations, only an unstoppable sharpness that pierced and cut through everything.
The moment the two sword intents collided, space shattered. A kilometer-long stretch of sky collapsed like a broken mirror, black cracks spreading in all directions.
But any keen observer could see that the silver-white sword light had the upper hand.
The crimson sword intent was continuously cut by the silver-white edge, retreating step by step. Each wave of impact was split in two, scattering to both sides.
And the silver-white sword light only grew fiercer, driving against the blood sea, heading straight for the source of the sword intent.
BOOM!
With a loud crash, the crimson sky exploded.
A man, about forty years old, thin as bamboo with a stern face, was sent flying backward from the burst of blood mist. He landed heavily on the ground, stumbling back several steps before steadying himself.
This was Ji Xuanqiu's opponent—Xue Wuhen, a Three-Word Battle Armor Master, Level 98 Super Douluo!
He was the strongest on the Holy Spirit Cult's side, aside from the Killing God and the Demon Empress.
His martial soul was a sword called the Blood-Weeping Demon Sword, equally skilled in the sword path, with combat power reaching above the quasi-semi-divine level—comparable to an early Limit Douluo.
This was precisely why Ji Xuanqiu had chosen him.
Though Ji Xuanqiu wasn't as battle-hungry as Ji Juechen, if he encountered a sword-path expert, his fighting spirit would ignite.
He'd already faced most of the sword-path experts on the Douluo Continent. This one from the Holy Spirit Cult was a first. Eager to test himself, he'd selected this opponent.
After several exchanges, Ji Xuanqiu had formed a judgment.
The other's sword was indeed formidable—dense with killing intent, fierce in momentum. By any standard, it was top-tier.
However,this sword intent felt familiar.
Ji Xuanqiu's three-foot blade in hand, he glanced briefly at the battle between Huo Yuhao and the Killing God high above. That killing sword intent surged like a tidal wave, far surpassing the man before him.
Then he lowered his gaze, watching Xue Wuhen rise back into the air to face him, and said flatly, "I see the shadow of the Killing God in your sword. You followed his path, didn't you?"
Xue Wuhen hadn't expected Ji Xuanqiu to engage him in conversation. His eyes narrowed, but he didn't refuse to answer.
"Correct. I once had the fortune to observe Lord Killing God's cultivation and stepped onto the path of killing."
He was different from the other Holy Spirit Cult evil soul masters. His origins were special.
He was originally a soul master native to the Douling Continent, not initially a member of the Holy Spirit Cult. Even when the Cult took control of Douling, he'd held some private reservations—he just hadn't shown them.
But everything changed after the Killing God appeared.
With a true deity in the Cult, if one wanted to reach the divine level and learn its secrets, joining the Holy Spirit Cult was certainly an option.
After all, he was never a match for the Cult in the first place. If you can't beat them, join them—nothing to be ashamed of.
After joining the Cult, though he hadn't accessed divine-level secrets, he'd gained an unexpected boon: witnessing the Killing God's cultivation sessions as he recovered his strength.
This was undoubtedly an opportunity for him. And perhaps because his martial soul was particularly compatible with the Killing God's path, he'd grasped its essence before long.
However, as a result, his originally non-evil martial soul had mutated into the Blood-Weeping Demon Sword. By then, he no longer cared.
Through studying the Killing God's path, he'd advanced rapidly.
Now forty-five years old, he was a Level 98 Super Douluo—the strongest below the Limit level in the Holy Spirit Cult. With a bit more time to settle, he would have become the Cult's next Limit Douluo—if not for today's calamity.
Truly, rise by the Cult, fall by the Cult.
"Heh—"
Xue Wuhen glanced at his Cult comrades being routed on all sides, a mocking smile curling at the corner of his mouth—not for himself.
To hear the truth in the morning, one could die in the evening.
He had no regrets.
Soon, he cast aside all thoughts and refocused on Ji Xuanqiu.
"You're curious about my sword path. Are you perhaps also interested in the Killing God's path? Your path sword is already accomplished,why not join the Holy Spirit Cult and seek your future from Lord Killing God?"
Ji Xuanqiu frowned.
At a time like this, inviting an enemy to join the Holy Spirit Cult—were you insane, or was I hallucinating?
Right—this person was ultimately an evil soul master. Trying to understand his thought process was his own mistake.
He didn't respond, simply raising his three-foot blade slowly.
Seeing this, Xue Wuhen narrowed his eyes, raising his Blood-Weeping Demon Sword as well, coldness flashing in his gaze.
"I've often heard that the Ji clan of the Spirit Transmission Tower is the foremost sword martial soul family in the world—a clan full of sword-obsessed cultivators. But now I see, it's nothing special. If you were truly obsessed with the sword, why would you care about distinctions of good and evil? Why would you care about your own life?"
"Now, the Killing God's sword path is the pinnacle of the Douluo Continent. The path ahead is right before you, yet you refuse to advance,how ridiculous."
He wasn't exaggerating.
Just as most divine-level experts also cultivated spatial power, the Killing God, though primarily walking the path of killing, was equally accomplished in the sword path.
After all, the Asura God and the Killing God lineage all entered the path through the sword, embarking on the road of killing.
The sword was, after all, an instrument of killing.
So their comprehension of the sword path was by no means weak—they just hadn't made it their primary focus.
And as a former super-divine existence, the Killing God's height in the sword path was clearly beyond Ji Xuanqiu's current reach.
Ji Xuanqiu conceded this point.
In the battle above, that killing-charged sword intent was indeed far above his own.
But—
"The Killing God's path is not my path! The Killing God's sword proves the path of killing. My sword proves my own path. No matter how high his path, what does it have to do with me?"
He looked up at Xue Wuhen, his gaze calm yet carrying an indifferent superiority. "You don't even have your own sword path—you've lived your whole life in another's shadow—and you dare to discuss the path with me?"
Xue Wuhen's expression shifted drastically. Killing intent surged in his eyes. The hand gripping his sword bulged with veins.
Ji Xuanqiu continued his attack: "I only asked you these questions to confirm whether your sword was connected to the Killing God. If so, there's no need to waste more time on you."
He'd engaged Xue Wuhen hoping to learn from others' strengths to supplement his own weaknesses. But since the other was merely a shadow of the Killing God, the battle held little meaning. Better to end it quickly and watch the duel between the Killing God and the Ancestor—far more worthwhile.
"Then let's see if you have the ability!"
Xue Wuhen's cold words had barely faded when his Blood-Weeping Demon Sword blazed with fierce light. Holding nothing back, his form flickered, transforming into dozens of blood-colored afterimages that swarmed Ji Xuanqiu from all directions.
Eighth Spirit Ability—Blood Shadow clone Slash. Each afterimage carried real killing intent and sword qi; wherever the blade passed, void was torn open with bloody gashes.
Ji Xuanqiu held his blade before him. Silver-white sword light rippled outward like water. Invisible threads of sword qi spread from him in all directions, shredding the incoming blood shadows one by one.
Xue Wuhen's true body burst through the afterimages, his Blood-Weeping Demon Sword thrusting straight at Ji Xuanqiu's heart.
Before the blade arrived, the blood-colored killing intent was already there.
Ji Xuanqiu's gaze sharpened. Instead of retreating, he advanced. His blade turned sideways, the silver-white light on its edge suddenly fading—not dissipating, but condensing to the extreme.
This time, he held nothing back.
Sword qi, sword soul, Sword God.
Essence, energy, spirit—the three united.
On the blade, a nearly invisible silver line lit up. It was the embodiment of Ji Xuanqiu's sword path—all his cultivation, will, and sword intent compressed into a single line. No spirit abilities, no techniques—only one sword stroke.
"Sever!" Ji Xuanqiu uttered the word, and the silver line swept horizontally.
Xue Wuhen saw only a flash of white light. The overwhelming power and deadly crisis struck him—this sword had definitely reached the quasi-divine level, and among quasi-divines, it was among the most lethal!
If before, Ji Xuanqiu's sword qi at semi-divine level could be resisted by Xue Wuhen's early Limit-level hard power, then this strike was something he couldn't block no matter what.
But retreating now was also too late.
Gritting his teeth, he instinctively mobilized all his sword intent, raising his blade to counter, while twisting his body desperately to reduce the damage.
In the end, the silver line swept past. The Three-Word Battle Armor's shoulder guard tore like paper. His right arm was severed at the shoulder, blood spraying as the severed arm and blade spun into the air.
"Ugh!" Xue Wuhen grunted, retreating rapidly from Ji Xuanqiu.
But Ji Xuanqiu wouldn't let him go. The next sword light was already coming.
Seeing death approaching, Xue Wuhen's face turned cold.
"I was saving this for a better occasion. Since you're so eager to die, you can have it!"
His left hand rose, the Blood-Weeping Demon Sword reappearing in his grip, upon which rose a world-shaking killing sword intent.
This was a gift from the Killing God.
The reason the Killing God had bestowed this strand of killing sword intent on him was twofold: first, because he'd entered the path of killing and caught the Killing God's favor; second, as a Cult expert and a native of Douling, he'd contributed greatly to providing faith and aiding the Killing God's recovery, thus earning this boon.
The reason his martial soul had become an evil martial soul was partly due to this strand of sword intent. After all, the current Killing God had fallen—his killing aura was too evil. As the vessel for this sword intent, Xue Wuhen's martial soul couldn't help but be affected.
Since receiving this strand of sword intent, Xue Wuhen had used it daily to comprehend the Killing God's path, constantly refining himself.
But that wasn't its only use. Even though it was something the Killing God had casually given and hadn't reached the divine level, its power was no weaker than a Divine Origin realm quasi-divine's full-force strike—capable of heavily wounding a quasi-divine and killing a semi-divine with ease!
"Die!"
Xue Wuhen roared, swinging his left blade. The killing sword intent surged like a blood-colored flood, rushing toward the approaching Ji Xuanqiu.
This was the scene Xiong Jun witnessed.
And Ji Xuanqiu, caught in its path, felt himself completely locked by this sword intent. His brow furrowed.
He couldn't block this sword. He couldn't dodge it either.
But he wasn't panicked.
In fact, as the killing sword intent was about to strike, a sudden realization dawned on him, his eyes blazing bright.
"So this is the true meaning of 'sword intent becomes law'!"
Though he'd long understood the path ahead, turning sword intent into law was easier said than done. He'd been stuck at this step for years, unable to find the door.
But now, this strand of the Killing God's sword intent was like a key, forcibly prying open a crack.
After all, the Killing God walked a similar path! His killing intent had reached the level of laws!
Even if killing wasn't the Killing God's specialty, the principle was the same—his sword intent had also reached the level of "sword intent becomes law."
Crack!
Watching that sword light, Ji Xuanqiu felt as if he'd been enlightened. Something within him shattered. His cultivation broke through in that moment, stepping into the quasi-divine level.
At the same time, he raised his blade and struck.
Silver-white sword light suddenly condensed. A sword intent approaching the level of laws burst forth!
BOOM!
The two sword lights collided. Silver-white and blood-red intertwined into a pillar of light that shot through the clouds, tearing a massive rift in the air.
And at the center of this storm of destruction, though the silver-white sword light Ji Xuanqiu had struck didn't block the blood-colored flood, it tore open a gap at the moment of impact.
He rode the recoil, slipping through the gap like a fish, narrowly avoiding the main body of the killing sword intent.
But he couldn't fully withstand the impact. By the time he escaped danger, Ji Xuanqiu was covered in wounds.
Yet his movements didn't pause. Transforming into a sword light, he swept past Xue Wuhen's neck.
The silver line flashed—silent, invisible.
"How—how is this possible?!" Xue Wuhen's savage grin froze on his face, his pupils dilating.
He instinctively reached for his neck, his fingertips touching a cold, wet line of blood. A "heh" sound escaped his throat, but no words came.
"You—"
"Thank you. This sword intent showed me the way forward."
Ji Xuanqiu sheathed his blade, his body a mess from the power of the Killing God's sword intent. The left shoulder of his Four-Word Battle Armor was completely shattered, revealing torn flesh; the shoulder guard was gone. Hardly a spot on him was unscathed.
But the light in his eyes was brighter than ever.
Hearing this, Xue Wuhen's eyes widened, filled with disbelief and unwillingness.
He opened his mouth to speak, but the line of blood at his neck suddenly split open, blood spurting out, choking off his voice.
His body slowly tilted forward and crashed to the ground.
Ji Xuanqiu didn't look at him again. He closed his eyes, quietly comprehending the insight that sword strike had brought.
At this moment, Xiong Jun stepped through the air, landing beside him. He glanced at Ji Xuanqiu's battered body and laughed teasingly: "You're a mess. Still, no surprise—your prize was far more dangerous than mine. I didn't expect you'd run into the Killing God's personal sword intent."
This wasn't in the intelligence from the Demon Emperor. Clearly, even the Demon Emperor didn't know Xue Wuhen possessed a strand of the Killing God's sword intent. Perhaps Xue Wuhen had kept it secret.
After all, no one would broadcast such a trump card.
But after the joking remark, Xiong Jun suddenly realized something was off.
"Holy shit, you broke through to quasi-divine?"
His eyes widened as he stared at Ji Xuanqiu in disbelief.
After carefully savoring the feeling, Ji Xuanqiu opened his eyes and nodded with a smile.
"Mm. The Killing God's sword intent gave me insight."
"To have an epiphany in the middle of a fight—you people are ridiculous."
Xiong Jun's mouth twitched. "Weren't you afraid of sinking into comprehension and getting cut down by that sword intent?"
"With Tower Master Snow Empress watching over us, why worry?"
Ji Xuanqiu smiled and shook his head.
Snow Empress hadn't joined the battle precisely to handle emergencies and reduce Tower casualties.
So though the situation looked extremely dangerous, it was actually as stable as an old dog.
"True."