BOOM!

The moment Ye Wushuang’s body vanished through the Divine Temple’s gates, the illusion in the sky disappeared, and the Phantom Warriors were annihilated along with it.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The survivors furiously attacked the Divine Temple, venting their pent-up emotions. ’Some peerless opportunity? It was just a scheme to possess our bodies! If we had rushed in, we would have been dead for sure!’

"Wushuang!" Qiu Mo’s expression changed. His black spear shot toward the Divine Temple’s gates in an attempt to force them open, but a yellow curtain of light suddenly appeared and sent him flying back.

"Hahaha, serves you right! Good riddance, Ye Wushuang!" Seeing this, Bai Han sneered, his gaze turning vicious as he stared at Qiu Mo. "Since you want to help Ye Wushuang, we’ll send you off on your way."

With that, Bai Han brandished his Spirit Sword and slashed through the air toward Qiu Mo. Streaks of sword radiance coiled around him, descending from the sky.

"Get lost!" Qiu Mo roared in fury. With a tremor of his long spear, he pierced through the void to meet Bai Han’s attack.

"Bastard! Since you insist on standing in the way for Ye Wushuang, then face my wrath!" On the other side, Bing Yan, frustrated by his failure to kill Ye Wushuang, seized the opportunity. A murderous glint flashed in his eyes as he spread his five fingers, and a torrent of True Qi surged out, coalescing in the void into a massive palm that slapped viciously down at Qiu Mo.

CLANG!

Suddenly, the resonant cry of a sword rang out!

Jian Bufan’s figure moved. He took a single step across the void, blocking Bing Yan’s path. A terrifying Sword Intent erupted from his body, instantly obliterating the massive palm in the air.

Bing Yan’s expression changed, and he hurriedly retreated several steps.

"Why did you block me?" Bing Yan asked, his voice grim. He was utterly shocked. ’A True Essence Realm cultivator... He neutralized my terrifying attack with Sword Intent alone.’

"I didn’t like what I saw," Jian Bufan said with a faint, elegant smile. Just because he didn’t like it, he acted!

"But this has nothing to do with you!" Bing Yan said coldly, clenching his fists.

"Is that so?" Jian Bufan cradled his sword, brushing a stray lock of hair from his temple with one hand. "He is a disciple of the Ancient Spirit Sect, and so am I. You want to kill him—tell me, does that have nothing to do with me?"

As he spoke, Jian Bufan turned toward Bai Han. Bai Han had been about to attack, but when he saw Jian Bufan’s gaze fall upon him, he reluctantly stopped.

Jian Bufan was in the True Essence Realm; killing him would be effortless. He didn’t dare to fight back!

With Jian Bufan having made his move, no one else dared to act. However, those who wanted to kill Ye Wushuang continued to stare at Qiu Mo as if he were a dead man.

Qiu Mo paid them no mind. He had known from the start that this would be the outcome. But Ye Wushuang had treated him like a true, trusted friend—how could he possibly betray that!

"Thank you," Qiu Mo said, turning to face Jian Bufan. He uttered just two words.

"Don’t mention it. You’re a man of character," Jian Bufan replied with a soft smile. He gazed at the Divine Temple’s gates, a look of mutual respect in his eyes.

Meanwhile, the experts from the Feather Race, Moo Li, Yuan Chong, and the others had not left. They stood at a suitable distance, their Divine Senses locked firmly on the Divine Temple.

They would not be satisfied until they saw an outcome!

...

「Meanwhile.」

Inside the Divine Temple, nine ancient blue lanterns floated, distributed in nine different directions. The bodies of the lamps were covered in numerous mystical patterns, but they were so mottled with age that the designs were unclear.

A wisp of blue flame burned within each lantern, like nine streams of eternal fire, unquenchable since time immemorial.

The nine mysterious blue flames, like small, coiling blue serpents, converged from nine directions toward the center, forming a mystical blue altar.

Atop the altar stood the silent, majestic, illusory figure of a man.

His face was indistinct. He stood tall and straight with his hands behind his back, gazing up at the starry expanse. His profound eyes seemed capable of piercing through the cosmos to peer into its deepest reaches.

Ye Wushuang stood below, his shoulders feeling as if they were pinned by a great mountain, making it difficult to move. Facing this phantom, he felt truly insignificant for the first time in his life.

"Your aptitude is truly impressive," the phantom suddenly said, retracting his gaze to look down upon Ye Wushuang. His voice was somewhat hoarse, as if he hadn’t spoken in a very long time.

Although the phantom’s words were complimentary, Ye Wushuang knew the phantom’s true intentions. There wasn’t a trace of joy on his face, only an unprecedented sense of gravity.

’Kid, this person is terrifying. You need to be careful!’ the Dragon Cat’s voice transmitted from the Chaos Space. It, too, was grave, for it knew how formidable the being before them was.

Ye Wushuang acted as if he hadn’t heard. His attention was completely focused on the phantom as his Divine Sense stirred the Dragon Blood Killing Sword within the True Dragon Space.

This was his only trump card. If it failed, his life would end here today.

He had to bet everything on this one chance; he had no other choice.

"I know you are unwilling," the phantom spoke again, his voice so profound it was like a celestial melody descending upon the world, shaking one’s very soul.

He stared at Ye Wushuang and said, "But I have no choice. I must complete the Emperor’s mission."

"For this mission, to find ’him,’ I and my one hundred thousand soldiers fought our way out from the depths of the Star Universe. We carved a path of slaughter, shedding endless blood. Together, we suppressed billions who stood in our way, and together, we scoured this entire Star Universe."

"Along that Blood Road, they fell one by one. They paved the way for me with their blood, allowing me to cling to a wretched existence and continue the search."

"But now, I too have perished. My Dao has dissipated. All that’s left is this wisp of a remnant consciousness, and it too is about to be annihilated from this world."

"But the Emperor’s mission... is still not complete!"

"I cannot accept this!"

"I bear the Emperor’s mission, and I carry the unfinished mission of one hundred thousand soldiers. Even as a remnant consciousness, I must continue the search."

The phantom narrated his tale. His words carried the glory of his duty, the pain of watching his soldiers shed their blood, and the self-reproach of a mission yet unfulfilled...

Ye Wushuang listened quietly, deeply moved. He could tell what loyal warriors these had been. Just to uphold their Emperor’s mission, they had scoured the Star Universe, slain billions of enemies, and faced death one by one, all without fear.

But just as this phantom had an Imperial Decree to uphold, did he, Ye Wushuang, not have a sister and father to protect?

He did not lower his guard. His gaze remained grave as he asked, "And why are you telling me all this?"

"I need your body. I must continue the search until he is found." The phantom’s gaze was resolute. He added, "But rest assured, I will not extinguish your soul. Once I complete my mission, the body will be returned to you."

"What a joke!"

Ye Wushuang sneered. ’Hand over my body? Is that even possible?’

BOOM! 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

In an instant, a sharp light erupted from Ye Wushuang’s eyes. He pushed his power to its absolute limit, even frantically burning his own vital energy and blood, pouring it all into the Dragon Blood Killing Sword to form the Life and Death Sword.

A streak of blood-red Sword Light shot out from Ye Wushuang’s body. Endless blood-colored sword phantoms overlapped, transforming into a terrifying dragon of slaughter that soared defiantly toward the heavens, seeking to annihilate the phantom.

Success meant life, failure meant death. Everything hinged on this single strike!

But in the next instant, the nine silent blue lanterns in the void trembled slightly. With just that single tremor, an Eternal aura spread out, and the terrifyingly powerful Dragon Blood Killing Sword was instantly obliterated.

BOOM!

In that moment, Ye Wushuang’s heart sank to the abyss. He knew that this time, he had lost the gamble.

"The Dragon Vein Qi... It’s the Emperor’s... bloodline!" At the same time, a voice filled with extreme elation erupted from the phantom.

Immediately, the phantom descended from the void, walking step-by-step toward Ye Wushuang.

Seeing this, a look of unwillingness appeared on Ye Wushuang’s face.

’The body possession is next, I suppose,’ he thought.

But the scene that followed was something he could never have imagined. The majestic, invincible phantom who was loyal only to the Emperor in his heart... actually knelt before him!

"After searching across the entire starry sky... I... I have finally found you!" A choked cry escaped the phantom’s hoarse throat.