Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

Wan Heling remained in a ferocious, downward-striking posture, his surging blood flames and violent spiritual power surrounding him like an insect trapped in amber, firmly fixed in mid-air!

Only in those blood-red eyes remained an overwhelming sense of horror and disbelief.

The Black Hourglass—a strange magical artifact obtained from the remnant soul of a Core Formation cultivator in a secret realm, capable of creating a small Core Formation domain!

With the remaining Core Formation power within the hourglass, it could at most immobilize Wan Heling, who was in the late Foundation Establishment stage, for nine breaths!

Nine breaths, and life or death will be decided!

Lin Zhao instantly arrived above Wan Heling, who was frozen in place.

In the first breath, the Azure Lotus Sword Wings on its back suddenly disintegrated, and the seventy-two lotus leaves transformed into streams of azure light, all disappearing into the Azure Lotus Sword.

In the second breath, his internal magical power surged wildly, all of it flowing into the Azure Lotus Sword in his hand.

In the third breath, he imbued the sword with his sword intent, and at the same time, the superior-grade Azure Lotus Dao Foundation within his dantian shone brightly, and a pure and powerful Azure Lotus force surged into the sword.

In the fourth breath, the Azure Lotus Sword's radiance was reduced to its extreme, becoming transparent. Only at the tip of the sword, a single point of azure light shone so brightly that it was impossible to look directly at it, as if it could cut through space and time.

In the fifth breath, Lin Zhao gripped the sword with both hands, raised it above his head, and seemed to merge with the sword, transforming into a cyan light that seemed to open up the world.

"cut!"

The sixth breath, the sword falls!

There was no earth-shattering noise, only a soft "hiss" sound, like cloth being gently torn apart.

That perfectly condensed cyan light easily sliced ​​through the solidified stance.

Ignoring Wan Heling's remaining protective aura, powerful demonic beast physique, and tattered robes, the sword slashed down from above his head.

The sword light dissipated in the seventh breath.

On the eighth breath, the stagnation effect collapsed prematurely—not because the hourglass's mana was exhausted, but because it could not withstand the terrifying power of this sword and disintegrated on its own.

"Heh...heh..."

Wan Heling's body remained suspended in mid-air, a straight, smooth cut appearing between his eyebrows and quickly spreading downwards.

The frenzied bloodlust in his eyes faded, leaving only boundless emptiness and bewilderment, as if he couldn't comprehend what had happened.

The next moment, his body neatly split in two, slowly separating and falling to the left and right...

However, the moment the body split open, a strange change occurred!

The two severed halves of the body did not lose their vitality; instead, they burst forth with a terrifying blood-red light!

Countless twisted, blood-red runes emerged from the flesh, accompanied by Wan Heling's endlessly malevolent shriek:

"With my broken body! I will transform my blood into a curse! It will corrode bones and melt souls! I will be immortal for eternity!!!"

【Blood Soul Curse Killing Technique】! A vicious spell that leads to mutual destruction!

The blood-red light, as if alive, ignored distance and instantly pounced on Lin Zhao!

Lin Zhao's pupils contracted sharply. He activated the Yin-Yang Ring on his hand, forming a Yin-Yang Field. The blood-red light seemed to sink into mud, its speed greatly reduced, but it still pounced towards Lin Zhao.

His mind raced! The seventy-two newly returned lotus leaves instantly detached from the sword.

Layer upon layer before him, in an instant, they bloomed into an incredibly solid, slowly rotating azure sword lotus!

This is precisely the nurturing form of the Azure Lotus Sword.

Puff puff puff puff—!

The power of the crimson curse crashed wildly against the sword lotus, emitting a corrosive sound that made one's teeth ache.

The azure lotus leaves were stained with filthy blood at a visible speed, their spiritual light dimmed rapidly, and they even made a creaking sound as if they were about to collapse under the weight.

Fortunately, these lotus leaves had absorbed a massive amount of spiritual energy in the secret realm, possessing profound reserves, and were able to barely withstand the attack.

Seeing the Azure Lotus Sword Leaf teetering on the brink of collapse under the crimson curse, almost turning into a blood lotus,

Lin Zhao took a deep breath and used his last trump card.

He spread his five fingers on his right hand and made a loose fist towards the sky!

"Nine Luminaries Heavenly Dragon... Appear!"

Deep within his dantian, nine long-dormant purple lightning beads suddenly trembled and roared forth, hovering above Lin Zhao's head.

Boom! Crack!

Countless purple lightning bolts erupted from the nine lightning pearls, intertwining and expanding, spreading a destructive aura!

"hold head high--!!!"

The dragon's roar shook the heavens!

A "Nine Luminaries Heavenly Dragon" over twenty feet long, composed entirely of violent lightning, condensed and took shape in the sky!

Each dragon scale was crystal clear, shimmering with destructive deep purple lightning. The dragon's eyes were wide open, its pupils containing two compressed lightning cores. As the dragon's whiskers fluttered, tiny arcs of electricity crackled.

When Wan Heling's remaining soul sensed the lightning power of the Nine Luminaries Heavenly Dragon, which could suppress all evil spirits, it finally revealed utter despair and fear.

"No...it's impossible..."

The thunder dragon gave him no chance. Its mouth opened wide, and a thick, condensed, white-purple lightning pillar, like a sword of divine punishment, descended instantly!

The lightning bolts first engulfed the stubborn, blood-red curse.

Before the supremely yang and powerful divine thunder, the insidious blood curse was like ice meeting boiling water; it was completely purified before it could even utter a wail!

Immediately afterward, the lightning bolts continued to strike Wan Heling's still-living body as it fell. He instinctively raised the Sky-Splitting Flying Wheel to defend himself!

Crackle! Crack!—BOOM!

The flying wheel artifact held for more than ten breaths before exploding into countless fragments amidst unparalleled lightning!

The body fused with the demon beast was like being thrown into the fires of purgatory, rapidly carbonized and decomposed under the continuous and terrifying lightning... and then reborn by the powerful vitality of the late Foundation Establishment stage demon beast, emitting a tragic wail in a cycle.

Rumble...

The lightning continued to erupt for nearly a quarter of an hour, ultimately annihilating Wan Heling's remains and soul.

The thunder dragon slowly dissipated.

When the thunder subsided, the area within a hundred feet was scorched earth. In the center, a huge crater ten feet deep was still emitting wisps of smoke and tiny arcs of electricity, and the air was filled with the smell of burning.

Wan Heling, a veteran cultivator from Wanheng Market who was in the late Foundation Establishment stage, had vanished without a trace, his soul and spirit completely annihilated, disappearing into the world.

Only a storage bag, which had been thrown hundreds of feet away by the impact when his body exploded, was spared from the lightning and lay there quietly, proving that the thrilling battle just now was not an illusion.

Lin Zhao's face was pale and his breath was weak. He slowly descended from the sky. He first retrieved the seventy-two green lotus leaves and the green lotus sword, which were dim and badly damaged. He also retrieved the black hourglass, which had exhausted its core-forming power and was showing cracks.

And that storage bag in the distance.

He walked to the edge of the charred crater, gazed at the wisps of smoke rising from it, and remained silent for a moment.

This battle was extremely costly.

The Flowing Cloud Flying Boat, the Fire Cauldron, and many magical artifacts were destroyed, the Azure Lotus Sword Leaf was damaged, the Black Hourglass was ruined, and its own spiritual power and divine soul power were almost exhausted.

But it's worth it.

He raised his head, his gaze seemingly piercing through space, looking towards the direction of Jinshafang Market and Shaoyangfang Market.

A potential enemy that posed a significant threat to the family has been completely eliminated.

-----

Jinshafang Market has now truly become an isolated island.

The hundreds of outer fortresses have all been abandoned, and all forces have retreated back to the city.

The entire market town was built along the riverbank cliffs, with walls over ten zhang thick, topped with arrow towers and various complex formations.

The array was operating at full capacity, emitting pale golden array patterns that connected the entire market into a unified whole.

Nearly 70,000 mortal soldiers and more than 15,000 cultivators were scattered in various places.