The Qinglian Sword mark at the center of Li Zhexian's brow burned fiercely, like a blood-red star throbbing with life.
Crimson divine flames rose from his body, scorching the surrounding space until it twisted and warped.
Clang—!
A clear, resonant sword cry rang out across heaven and earth.
Behind him,
an immeasurable sea of blood suddenly manifested.
This was the ultimate phenomenon born of him burning away both flesh and Spirit Power.
Within that endless blood sea were reflected countless images—Li Zhexian's first sight of a sword at six years old, the first time he grasped one, the first time he fought with a sword… all the way to every strike he had delivered since becoming an unrivaled powerhouse.
"Calamity Rebirth."
Li Zhexian's calm voice echoed throughout the boundless heavens.
The Qinglian Sword in his hand slowly thrust forward.
With that single motion,
the innumerable sword phantoms reflected within the blood sea resonated together, converging toward one point and striking down as one.
It was as if every sword strike of his past had been fused into this ultimate blow.
A sword light formed purely from the laws of Finality and Rebirth, transforming into a sword-qi bridge that spanned heaven and earth.
Where the sword qi passed, space was not torn apart—instead, all things fell silent, dissolving into the most primal chaotic energy.
On both sides of the sky, boiling blood-colored clouds were cleaved apart, leaving behind an eternal black chasm.
Bibi Dong's expression changed drastically once more, shaken by this sword.
"How dare an ant defy a god!"
She shrieked sharply.
The Rakshasa Scythe in her hand erupted with dark-purple divine light that sought to devour all things. Beneath her feet, her tenth divine ring roared into motion, drawing upon the utmost evil thoughts of the world.
She swung the demon scythe.
A Rakshasa Divine Kingdom surged forth—filled with countless wailing souls and cursed malice—violently meeting the sword-qi bridge Li Zhexian had unleashed.
The sword bridge and divine kingdom collided high in the sky, tens of thousands of meters above the ground.
—
—
At the moment of impact,
sound itself was annihilated.
What followed was the groan of the entire Douluo Continent, pushed beyond its limits.
A chaotic vortex covering more than half the continent formed at the collision's core, crazily devouring light, sound, Spirit Power, and even space itself.
Boom boom boom boom boom—!
Boom boom boom boom boom—!
Shockwaves spread outward like ripples, sweeping across the entire continent.
Mountains shifted, rivers flowed backward, and under the unimaginable impact of divine power, the continental plates themselves were forcibly displaced.
The seas boiled, and towering tsunamis roared toward the coastlines.
...
Star Dou Forest.
Beasts fled in terror, birds scattered with mournful cries.
Even the Lake of Life churned violently. Da Ming and Er Ming stared toward the horizon, their minds shaken by the chaotic energy spreading as far as the forest.
"That sharp aura…"
"It must be Brother Zhexian!"
Er Ming suddenly slammed his limbs into the ground. His massive body leapt upward as he climbed to the crown of an ancient towering tree, straining to look toward the heart of the chaos.
But the distance was far too great.
All he could see was a surging void—nothing more.
"This presence is so powerful it makes me tremble…"
A heavy look flashed through Da Ming's azure beast eyes.
"Brother Zhexian has already grown this strong? Then what kind of existence must his opponent be?"
"ROAR—!"
Er Ming threw back his head and roared, pounding his chest with thunderous blows.
"Brother Zhexian has helped us time and again, yet now that he's trapped in a life-and-death battle, we're powerless to aid him because of our beastly forms!"
In his furious roar,
he leapt down from the treetops.
Rip—!
His tattered crimson cloak caught on a branch and tore apart.
Er Ming froze, staring at the shredded cloth.
That cloak…
was made from a hundred households' cloth—something Li Zhexian had personally begged from the people of Heaven Dou for him.
...
Star Dou Underground Palace.
The clashing sound of scales rubbing against one another echoed endlessly.
Those dark-golden dragon pupils suddenly snapped open, a trace of shock flashing through them.
"A god battle?"
"On the Douluo Continent… two gods are actually clashing?"
"And one of those auras…"
"Yiya—yiya!"
At that moment,
the Three-Eyed Golden Lion suddenly let out a series of urgent, anxious cries.
Di Tian turned toward the sound.
He saw that the ice-and-fire divine light on the Divine Butterfly's wings had dimmed by nearly half. It lay weakly prostrate on the ground, its aura faint.
"Hm?!"
A surge of dark-golden draconic breath swept through the underground palace, carrying vast primordial energy of heaven and earth as it poured unceasingly into the Divine Butterfly's body.
"The Divine Butterfly's fate is intertwined with that human youth… its current condition… could it be—"
Before the thought could finish—
the Divine Butterfly wobbled and struggled into the air.
A clear yet frail voice, trembling with tears and desperation, rang through the hall:
"Brother Di Tian… please… please save Li Zhexian…"
...
Heaven Dou City.
The once-bustling city had fallen into silence.
Above the heavens,
chaos churned,
casting dim, oppressive shadows over the disordered streets shaken by the tremors.
The people spontaneously stepped into the streets, facing the spreading chaos advancing from the Heaven Dou frontier. With eyes closed and palms pressed together, they prayed with utmost sincerity.
A hero was shedding blood in battle for them.
The only thing they could do was to pray with all their faith—for the heroes' safe return.
Beneath the tea stall at the street corner, the storyteller in a green robe stood against the wind.
His eyes grew warm.
This scene…was all too familiar.
Just like years ago, when the entire city had waited for Lord Sword Wine to return from Spirit City.
He clasped his hands together and bowed solemnly toward the heavens.
Then he turned around, his steps heavy and unhurried as he walked toward home.
Life had been peaceful for far too long.
So long that the hardships of this continent had nearly been forgotten.
Perhaps…
it was time for his storytelling journey to begin once more.
He only hoped that when he returned to this city a year from now, those spirited youths—bright-clad and high-spirited—would arrive as promised for the one-year pact.
...
Spirit City.
At the summit of the Divine Mountain, the Angel God statue entwined by two Rakshasa demon statues had grown dim.
Qian Renxue sat cross-legged beneath the statue, attempting to break through the Eighth God Trial. Her consciousness sank into an indistinct haze.
Suddenly—
the color drained completely from her breathtaking face.
An indescribable terror seized her heart,
as if the most precious existence in her life were slipping away at terrifying speed.
"Auspicious Feather…"
"Where is the Auspicious Feather…?"
She opened her eyes, tears trembling violently within them.
The Auspicious Feather she had given Li Zhexian not only transmitted warmth between them, but also maintained her clear perception of him.
Yet just now—
that slender connection had snapped.
This was utterly different from years ago, when Li Zhexian had been on the brink of death at the Pope's Palace.
Back then, though faint, there had still been warmth.
Now, all that remained in her chest was a suffocating, deathly cold.
"Li… Li Zhexian… no… that's impossible…"
Her slender hands clenched tightly, nails digging deep into her palms as blood trickled between her fingers, staining the pristine white.
At the same time,
the Angel God Sword in her grasp suddenly trembled.
A vast surge of divine power erupted.
She drew the bloodstained longsword.
Light pierced through the Divine Mountain.
At that very moment,
the Angel's Eighth Trial was completed.
Qian Renxue did not even spare a glance for the divine sword in her hand.
Angel wings burst open behind her.
Her face pale as death, she shot toward the frontier of the Spirit Empire.
"Li Zhexian… I won't allow anything to happen to you… please… don't leave me behind…"
...
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