Transforming into a stunningly beautiful fox spirit, leaving a scar on the heart of a prodigy.

Blood mist spread through the air.

Fine droplets of blood fell down. Half of it seeped into the cracks in the rocks beneath their feet, while the other half landed on the broken black sword at Chen Xuan's waist.

The broken sword was covered with a layer of dried, dark red blood.

The moment Chen Xuan's heart's blood touched it, the blood shell began to soften.

Blood trickled down the countless scratches and nicks along the sword's surface, filling the grooves and soaking the hilt.

A dark red light emanated from inside the broken sword.

The light pierced through the blood, turning the surrounding air, which was about half a foot in size, into a blinding crimson.

Chen Xuan lay prone on the rock, his chin pressed hard against the cold stone surface.

His arms hung limply at his sides. His forearms were bent at an unnatural angle. The bones of all five fingers were broken off at the base, the white bone fragments piercing the skin on the back of his hands and exposed to the dry, cold air of the cave.

Blood dripped down the bone fragments, drop by drop.

I can't make a fist. I can't raise my arm. My entire arm, from the veins to the muscles, is completely useless.

His eyelids closed. Blood seeping from the cut at the corner of his eye flowed down his cheek and into his neck, staining a large patch of deep red.

Deep within the sea of ​​consciousness.

There was no sign whatsoever on the previously calm surface of the divine soul body—

"Click."

It cracked.

Dozens of cracks simultaneously burst open. Golden divine soul power surged wildly from the cracks, uncontrollable and reckless, like fuel being poured out.

All the fuel is going in one direction—

The very center of the spirit body.

There lay a sword intent.

Extremely fine. Extremely short. No light. Pure black.

Like a nail that has been buried for who knows how long.

The moment the golden power collided with it, it ignited.

The sword intent shattered the barrier of the soul, surging forward violently along the broken meridians.

It rushes straight out of the body.

"Buzz—!"

The sword rang out.

The sound waves shattered the dust and debris on the rock face. More than three hundred broken chains on the ground trembled all at once with this roar, the metal scraping against the metal, creating a cacophony of clanging sounds.

The broken sword at his waist went mad.

The sword hilt struck the leather sheath. He struggled desperately.

One strike. Two strikes. The third strike caused it to detach directly from the leather sheath.

The sword hung three feet above Chen Xuan's body, its tip pointing skyward.

Black sword energy gushed out in large gusts from the surface of the sword. The sword energy tangled, intertwined, and compressed in mid-air.

A breath later.

It solidifies into a physical form.

A black sword bone, about two feet long, hovered above Chen Xuan's back. It was entirely black, with a jagged surface covered in irregular, sharp angles.

It changed direction.

The sharp tip precisely aligned with the dent in Chen Xuan's back.

That's where the spine broke.

The next moment—

The sword bone pierced down.

The black sword energy struck his back. The gray cloth shattered upon contact, exploding into fragments that flew away.

The sword bone pierced the skin.

Cut the muscle fibers.

The skin and flesh rolled up to both sides.

Blood gushed out like a dam had been opened, splattering onto the rock wall behind, leaving a large, glaring red stain.

The sword bone pierced straight into the fractured spinal canal.

The bone was crushing the flesh.

The sound was so clear in the deathly silent cave that it made one's teeth ache.

The black sword energy lodged between the severed vertebrae above and below. Then—it extended outwards. Tiny branches pierced the surrounding bones and flesh, like nails driven into the body.

They forcibly nailed a body that had rotted into mud back together.

Chen Xuan's chin suddenly shot up.

His mouth was opened to its limit.

No sound.

The veins on his neck bulged out, almost bursting through his skin.

Large spurts of blood gushed from his mouth, flowing down his chin and neck.

Both knees bent.

His kneecaps were firmly pressed against the ground.

Lift your heels. Crack your ten toes into the cracks in the rock and hold on tight.

The muscles in his thighs were taut like iron bars. His calves tensed up as well.

Supported by the black sword bone on his back—

The upper body left the ground.

He swayed slightly. His left knee slipped on the stone surface, leaving a half-inch-long bloody mark.

He stepped forward with his right foot, stepping into his own pool of blood.

Keep your knees straight.

Straighten your back.

Chen Xuan stood up.

Both arms were still useless. They hung limply, the sleeves soaked with blood and clinging to the arms. Blood flowed continuously down the ten fingers, forming a continuous stream.

He opened his eyes.

There is no white in the eye.

Pure black. The entire eye socket was filled with black. No pupil, no focus.

Two black, hole-like eyes stared straight ahead.

Three zhang ahead. A stone platform.

Before the stone platform—Li Changgeng.

Beneath Li Changgeng's feet was a shrinking gray cage of laws.

Inside the cage—in red. Su Chang'an.

Chen Xuan slightly tucked his chin in.

The broken sword hovering overhead emitted a short, sharp "hum."

Then it was shot out.

The sword trailed a ten-zhang-long black tail, moving as fast as a black lightning bolt.

Heading straight for the cage of the laws.

---

Li Changgeng stood by the stone platform.

His gaze shifted from Su Chang'an to Chen Xuan, a distance of three zhang.

His lips twitched slightly. The muscles on his right cheek twitched involuntarily. His eyelids were half-closed.

Spread your five fingers on your right hand, palm facing down.

The Quasi-Emperor Law poured out from his palm and into the gray cage in front of him.

The chains on the cage instantly doubled in thickness. The gray light became so intense it turned white, solidifying into a solid iron wall.

The broken sword crashed into it.

No shots were played.

No refund.

The tip of the sword was pressed against the intersection of the gray chains, stuck there firmly.

The dark red blood-red light on the sword suddenly exploded.

Black and red sword energy spewed out wildly from the sword's edge.

This sword energy carried the ultimate killing intent infused during the Great Emperor's rebirth and reforging in his palace. It belonged neither to the Great Sage nor to the Quasi-Emperor.

Something born purely for killing.

The sword energy gnawed at the gray chain.

The scream of metal being cut echoed through the cave.

Sparks flew everywhere from the point of contact between the sword tip and the chain.

A very fine crack appeared on the surface of the gray chain.

The forces of law at the edge of the gap desperately tried to close it—

It was shredded in one gulp by the black and red sword energy.

The cracks started from the gap and spread outwards to both sides.

The broken sword was pushed forward an inch.

The chain broke.

A three-foot-long gash tore open the front of the cage of laws.

The previously oppressive space inside the cage instantly became unbalanced. The stagnant air outside rushed in through the cracks.

Su Chang'an opened his mouth.

Fresh air rushed into my lungs.

His chest heaved violently. His left hand was pressed against his chest, his fingers clenched so tightly that his nails dug into the still-bleeding wound in his palm.

She suddenly turned her head.

A crisp cracking sound came from the neck bone.

The gaze passed through the cracks in the cage of laws, across a distance of three zhang, and landed at the entrance of the cave.

Chen Xuan stood there.

His body leaned slightly forward. The skin and flesh of his back were completely exposed. A jet-black sword bone was exposed to the air, its surface covered with bits of flesh and blood.

Blood flowed down his back, soaking his entire trouser leg. The rocks beneath his feet were covered in blood, forming a shallow puddle.

His two arms swung back and forth with the movement of his body.

Lifeless.

Those pure black eyes didn't look at her. They were fixed intently on the broken sword.

Su Chang'an's eyes instantly turned red.

It's not just redness. It's bloodshot eyes. The redness spreads from the corner of the eye inwards, covering the entire white of the eye.

The pupils shrank to the size of a pinhead.

A sharp, physical pain shot through his heart. It wasn't a backlash from his cultivation, nor was it a suppression of the laws.

It just hurts.

My breathing is disordered.

"You're crazy."

Su Chang'an spoke. His voice was so loud that it echoed through the cave.

His voice was completely hoarse. The last word trembled visibly.

His lips were trembling.

Chen Xuan did not turn around.

His chin was slightly raised.

The divine soul within his sea of ​​consciousness cracked ten more times. More golden power surged into the black sword intent.

The broken sword, stuck at the crack in the law, trembled violently. The blade pressed forward desperately, bracing itself against the gray chains on either side that were trying to close.

Chen Xuan's lips moved.

Fresh blood mixed with indescribable fragments rose up from his throat and trickled down his chin.

"Walk."

One word.

Hoarse. Deep. Indistinct—his mouth was full of blood.

Su Chang'an stood in the cage.

His right arm was useless. His left hand was clenched into a fist. Five gray-white fox tails hung motionless behind him. A dark red light flickered erratically on the seventh tail.

She didn't move.

His feet were stuck in place.

---

Li Changgeng began to close the five fingers of his right hand.

The knuckles bent one by one. The veins on the back of the hand bulged.

The gray light on the cage of laws shone again.

A tremendous force was squeezing towards the crack from all directions.

On the broken sword's blade—

A crack as thick as a hair appeared.

Chen Xuan stumbled back half a step with his left foot.

His feet sank into the blood-soaked pit, and droplets of blood splattered up and landed on his trouser leg.

The black sword bone on his back sank in a little further. More blood gushed from the wound.

It shook even more violently.

Su Chang'an took a step with his left leg.

Landed on tiptoe.

"I'm letting you go."

Chen Xuan's voice rang out again, slightly louder than before. More blood and foam sprayed out with each sound, splattering onto the stones in front of him.

The broken sword made a sharp cut forward by half a inch.

The crack had been stretched to three and a half feet.

Su Chang'an stopped.

She looked into Chen Xuan's pure black eyes. She looked at the torn flesh and blood on his back.

"I'm not leaving."

The voice no longer trembles.

Everything went smoothly and steadily.

She raised her left hand. Blood from her palm trickled down her wrist and into her sleeve.

The seventh tail is raised.

The dark red essence of the celestial fox shot out from the tip of its tail, heading straight for the crack in the cage of laws.

The source material crashed into the gray chains surrounding the broken sword.

The chains began to close more slowly.

Li Changgeng's facial muscles twitched.

He turned to look at Su Chang'an.

"You all have to stay."

Slowly pull your left hand out from behind your back.

Push forward with both hands at the same time.

The entire dome of the cave has cracked.

Huge chunks of rock have broken off over a large area.

Hundreds of gray chains crashed down from above. They were a full circle thicker than the ones from before.

They charged straight at Su Chang'an. They charged straight at Chen Xuan.

Chen Xuan looked up.

The black sword intent that had been suppressed just moments before was now released in its entirety.

nothing left.

The sword bone on his back emitted a sharp, cracking sound.

The crack spread from the middle section to both ends.

Chen Xuan's knees slammed heavily onto the rocks.

My kneecap is broken.

His upper body—did not fall.

The spine remains sturdy.

The broken sword let out a hoarse, long whistle in mid-air.

It looks like she's crying.

The sword was pulled from the crack, turned around, and met the hundred chains descending from above.

Black sword energy and gray laws collided in mid-air.

A burst of white light exploded inside the cave.