The origins of the natural formation within Chaotic Stone Valley were nigh impossible to discern. Glancing in all directions, Jiang Wang found nothing he could observe. He himself held no great understanding of formations; unlike the disciples of renowned sects such as Li Longchuan or Yan Fu, who possessed broad knowledge and a firm foundation cultivated from youth, Jiang Wang’s limited time and even more limited resources forced him to prioritize. Formations, medicine, and the like were among his necessary sacrifices.

Yet, this Qi Dao Coin, it seemed, recognized the path. Weaving freely among the strange stones, leading Jiang Wang in circles left and right, until, within his line of sight, the enemy’s traces finally appeared!

The first figure Jiang Wang saw was the burly form of Huan Tao, the Decapitator Daemon. He stood by a strange stone, like a human-shaped boulder, his eyes fixed on the distance, seemingly searching for something.

Yu Beidou’s Qi Dao Coin was truly useful!

They had already exchanged blows earlier, and although the encounter was brief, he had glimpsed a portion of this muscular strongman’s power. In a one-on-one fight, Jiang Wang was fully confident. As the leader of the Yellow River Guild, in this situation, he naturally wasted no words. He drew his sword and advanced.

His body a flash of lightning, he rounded a corner, and his vision suddenly cleared!

But before Huan Tao’s towering figure stood a corpulent giant, a slender form, and a graceful figure. All three turned back in unison. Zheng Fei, Li Shou, and Yan Zi!

The two sides faced each other, and for a moment, all were stunned.

Huan Tao turned back after the fact, only to see Jiang Wang, sword in hand, advancing with fierce momentum, clearly intending to come and chop him down. He couldn’t help but open his mouth and laugh.

Within the cavern, the Soothsayer, along with the Blood Daemon, were suppressed by Yu Beidou and engaged in a confrontation with him. All three sides were unable to move. Yu Beidou was, of course, powerful, but having deeply penetrated the Blood Daemon’s origin to erase the *Emotion and Desire Extinguishing Blood Daemon Art*, he was already greatly drained. He had to exert his utmost wisdom and courage, and with the addition of the Soothsayer, he was somewhat overextended. Otherwise, he would not have spared the Soothsayer’s life, nor would he have allowed the blood bag behind his head or the ghostly blade above it to remain. The streaks of blood on his face also greatly affected his image…

One could say that in this state, all three sides were struggling to maintain their position. A small external force at this moment could very likely break the balance.

The Blood Daemon’s origin was the most terrifying, but in the current world, he was the least of their worries because there were no external forces, no variables. In this entangled state, he could be precisely calculated and held within the trap. In fact, if the Soothsayer hadn’t suddenly appeared, the *Emotion and Desire Extinguishing Blood Daemon Art*, which had been gone for at least a thousand years, would have been all but completely eradicated.

However, the Soothsayer and Yu Beidou were different.

At this moment, the Soothsayer pinned his hopes on the four powerful adult daemons he had brought, while Yu Beidou placed a heavy wager on Jiang Wang. For Yu Beidou, Jiang Wang’s record of slaying four Divine Ability Outer Tower cultivators from the Jing Country’s Purge Evil Army was no secret. He had sufficient reason to believe that, in a one-on-one situation, Jiang Wang could slay any Outer Tower-level daemon. And the innate chaotic formation of Chaotic Stone Valley could create precisely such conditions. This was a move he had planned long in advance.

But the Soothsayer laughed. “Jiang Wang has already reached Heavenly Mansion? So you have such confidence?” he asked.

“From ancient times, the peak record of Inner Mansion cultivators is the legend of the Heavenly Mansion old man slaying three long-famous Outer Tower strongmen to become an immortal. The four daemons I brought are none of them inferior to the Heavenly Mansion old man’s opponents! You think… Jiang Wang can forge a new legend?”

Yu Beidou frowned: “What do you mean?”

“What do you mean?” The Soothsayer laughed gleefully, laughing that he had finally won a step: “Not only do you understand innate chaotic formations, nor are you the only one who has set up arrangements in Chaotic Stone Valley! Your causal thread… should break!”

Outside Broken Soul Gorge, Lin Xian walked out of the gorge entrance, his soul lost and dejected. Escaping the towering and dangerous cliffs on either side, the blazing sunlight suddenly poured down, covering his body with heat and stinging his eyes. Practicing his knife for so many years, practicing so desperately, for what in the end? Could it be that some things were simply impossible from the start? Like Rong Country to Qi Country, like himself to Jiang Wang… Could it be that effort only led to greater despair?

Lin Xian lifted his head to face the proud sun, feeling the pain the blazing sun brought to his eyes. That pain woke him, and it also made him struggle. Should he lower his head and walk forward, or continue to gaze at it? Every muscle was filled with power; Lin Xian could still feel his control over his body. He could perceive his own power… but his footsteps were no longer firm.

Suddenly, he gritted his teeth, lifted his firewood knife, turned his body, and ran back into the gorge. Out of a feeling he couldn’t explain, he wanted to go and see that Yellow River Guild leader again. He wanted to know what that world prodigy named Jiang Wang had come to Broken Soul Gorge for. He wanted to see one more time; even if the proud sun was unreachable, at least he wanted to know exactly how far away it was!

Within the already activated innate chaotic formation, five figures suddenly met, facing each other.

Huan Tao was the first to grin. On his tough demeanor, this smile appeared rather comical and out of place. But having been repelled by the opponent with a single sword not long ago, and now bringing a group of strongmen back to save face, with four against one, it was truly not adhering to martial virtue… Bah! He truly couldn’t help but be happy.

However, Zheng Fei was even happier than him. This fat man, with a cleaver in one hand, was full of surprise: “Little Jiang! You came to play with me?” As he spoke, he became excited, lifted his cleaver, and with a clang, chopped a nearby strange stone, sending sparks flying. Others probably found it hard to understand his definition of “play.”

Li Shou, of course, could understand, but he had a different opinion. He softly said: “Perhaps he also came to play with me, not necessarily.”

Zheng Fei glared, his momentum fierce. He merely puckered his lips: “He came to find us two, alright!”

Yan Zi, however, paid no attention to these two fools. She only looked at Jiang Wang coldly, her voice laced with chill as she laughed: “What a coincidence, young man.” She had originally been puzzled as to why, not long after retreating into Chaotic Stone Valley with Huan Tao, this broken formation suddenly activated. After a while, Zheng old three and Li old four were also thrown in. They should have been scattered throughout the formation, yet the four of them inexplicably squeezed together, foolishly, making her annoyed.

Looking now, it was clearly all the Soothsayer’s arrangement. The Soothsayer was truly adept at calculation!

Among the five people, four were in a very good mood. Unfortunately, Jiang Wang was precisely the only one whose mood was difficult to uplift… He looked at the four daemons facing him, and for a moment, he didn’t know what to say. He couldn’t help but glance at the Qi Dao Coin. If he hadn’t misunderstood, the so-called “lead me to kill them one by one” should have meant kill one, then go find the next one, not sticking them all together one by one, right?

Now, what was this situation? Leading the way into a wolf den? Could they agree to single combat?!

He didn’t know if the resentment in his eyes was too heavy, but as soon as he looked over, wanting an explanation, he saw the Qi Dao Coin, which had been flying in the air leading the way, suddenly fall in a straight line, landing on the ground with no further reaction.

Jiang Wang: ……

Was this just playing dead in legend?

What kind of divine ghost calculation was this?! If everything could be redone, back in Linzi Street, seeing that falling swindler old man, he would only want to say three words to Flame Zhao—

“Bump into him.”

But at this moment, he could only grip his long sword tightly… He himself had to charge in!

Facing four terrifyingly strong Outer Tower realm daemons with different divine abilities. Turning back would be equivalent to giving up this round. It would be handing his life over for them to judge. Betting on whether they would be soft-hearted, whether they would miss, whether they had compassion. Jiang Wang would sometimes gamble, but never on these things. He only gambled that he could control his own fate. He only gambled that his sword could, before his own death, first kill the opponent!

Even the Heavenly Mansion old man, who had once left behind an immortal record, the situation he faced that year was not like this moment. The four daemons, every one of them infamous, even more so than the new force of Yama in Hell’s Gate.

So, should he give up? Because the limit had already been set? Because the strongest Inner Mansion-level ancient cultivator, the Heavenly Mansion old man, never challenged such opponents, so this was destined to be a hopeless endeavor? The limits were always set by people. What the Heavenly Mansion old man could do, why couldn’t Jiang Wang do it? Since he began cultivating, he had never slackened for a single day. Every time he faced life and death, he had never given up. Was it just to stand after the “limit” drawn by his predecessors and offer a word of admiration?

He charged forward!

All five Inner Mansions opened, and the light of five divine abilities shone inside and out. Making others seem like immortal gods, his sword like a roaming dragon. Inside his body, the five-mansion sea was calm, the isolated island of heaven and earth remained firm, and the immortal palace on the cloud peak was hidden in the clouds. Only a sword immortal figure in a green shirt, holding a sword, stood in the high sky of the five-mansion sea.

The divine ability of Red Heart, with its immortal color, leaped out, jumping into the sword immortal’s body.

Bang bang!

Thus, light turned into myriad forms, and heaven and earth revived. Thus, the green sea birthed waves, and clouds opened up for ten thousand miles. The other three Inner Mansions all shook, booming and colliding.

Lips parted, ears erect, the immortal figure opened his eyes!

Never before had anyone experienced Jiang Wang at this moment. Never before had anyone had the fortune to see this kind of scenery. The world knew that Jiang Wang could be called the first in Inner Mansion, but no one knew how strong Jiang Wang was today, after his sword broke the Yama Crown Prince on View River Platform!

The instant the sword immortal figure opened his eyes, Longxiangsi was already whistling. Jiang Wang drew his sword as if grasping the eternal truth of the world. At this moment, he felt unprecedentedly himself. Unprecedentedly powerful, unprecedentedly vast. Surging, surging power flowed through every corner of his body. He vaguely had a feeling that his sword could open the sky above and split the earth below. All the mundane affairs of the human world could be decided with a single sword!

Who could resist?

Thus, one sword went straight, one step forward. A pool of autumn water paved the entire vision. A stream of light connected the sky and the earth. This sword that propped up heaven and earth was for “Person!” The word “Person” with its two strokes, directly facing Huan Tao, and also directly facing the three daemons behind Huan Tao.

And in Yan Zi’s eyes, she only saw that young man in the Inner Mansion realm. Facing their four infamous Outer Tower realm daemons. He didn’t even hesitate for half a moment, directly drawing his sword and charging over. His sword was like a streak of dawn, actually giving people a feeling of surprise, seeing this light in the long night. The calmness in his eyes fundamentally could not see any determination to die, any intense anger—precisely because of this, it showed more firmness.

He took one step, shattering the green clouds, and the frost-white cloak unfolded behind him. Red flames flowed around his body. At his torso, five clusters of blazing white light sources interpreted incomparable power. That was the light of Heavenly Mansion, the highest achievement of the Inner Mansion realm! And his eyes, hidden with red-gold, actually held an immortal meaning.

He just charged forward with this sword without hesitation. This sword seemed to open up heaven and earth! What was a world prodigy? At this moment, in Yan Zi’s heart, this word had a concrete image. It made her have a moment of trance, thinking back to that spirited youth from long ago. Many years ago, she had also looked on so foolishly…

As the person most directly facing this sword, the Decapitator Daemon Huan Tao, he had no space for trance. That terrifying pressure rushed in like a tsunami. Clearly, there were people behind him, and all were strong among the strong, yet he seemed to be facing the tide head alone, sitting alone in a swaying solitary boat.

He couldn’t hold back! This was the most direct thought in his heart. From the center of his chest, a deep green, twisted, blood vessel-like ferocious ghost claw thus probed out. Five fingers spread, reversed, sticking to his chest, as if at his chest, an evil ghost flower bloomed. The five ferocious fingers forming the “petals” madly extended, like vines, instantly crawling all over his body. And amidst the “kacha,” “kacha” sounds of bones rubbing, the already very strong Huan Tao expanded even further… His eyes bulged out, the blue veins on his forehead were dense like fine snakes twisting, and three pairs of bone spines even stabbed out from his back, bending forward, like bone armor, protecting him… Finally, fangs extended, turning him into a giant ghost more than two *zhang* tall! Ghostly qi swirled around his body, and his eyes held greed.

Divine ability, Extreme Evil Hungry Ghost Body! Why was he, a mechanism master, and usually very polite, called the Decapitator Daemon? Because in this state, he fed on heads!

The heavy sword in his hand also changed at this moment. But he heard several “kaka kaka” sounds. That iron staff-like heavy sword expanded outwards with two edges, a sword tip extended from the front, and it constantly expanded, finally expanding into a large sword more than a *zhang* long, held in the grip of the Extreme Evil Hungry Ghost. The distant starry sky’s four Star Towers lit up, and the Holy Tower’s light bathed the ghost body, strengthening it and also allowing him to maintain his wisdom and sobriety.

Very early on, during a sect mission, at the moment of danger, he awakened the Extreme Evil Hungry Ghost Body, bravely killed the enemy, and escaped danger! But, obsessed with divine abilities as he was… he also swallowed and ate his fellow disciples. If he hadn’t awakened the Extreme Evil Hungry Ghost Body, those fellow disciples would have died anyway. So, what he ate were those who were already dead anyway. How could it be fixed as a death crime? How unjust this was! He bitterly begged for an opportunity, vowing to overcome the desires brought by the Extreme Evil Hungry Ghost Body, even willing to let people destroy this divine ability and stop his path himself. But precisely this opportunity, he begged for but did not get. Everyone, including his relatives and Dao companion, all demanded his execution. He would forever remember the day they set for the execution, it was the ninth day of March. He would forever remember how terrifying it was to endure those days, counting the days until his death one by one. He collapsed more than ten times!

Later, every time the ninth day of March arrived, he had to kill several people to calm himself. That year, turmoil occurred within the sect, and the prisoners held in the deepest part of the prison broke out. He also followed in the chaos, escaped prison, and has been far from Mo Gate ever since. As time passed and his cultivation progressed, he slowly became able to control this divine ability, but he was no longer willing to restrain himself. After all, heads were truly delicious…

At this moment, he looked at the powerful opponent who had come with vertical sword, feeling that incomparably fresh and brilliant aura. Hunger and greed made him unable to utter a single word.

“Roar!”

“Roar!”

He could only express himself in this way, gripping the great sword in his hand and chopping out arcs of light! Mo Gate’s secret transmission, the Nineteen Arc Style specifically designed for puppet warriors, combined with the Extreme Evil Hungry Ghost Body, what did it mean? In Huan Tao’s memory, it only meant terror and power. Among the nine great daemons, except for the Soothsayer and the eldest, no one could ignore him in this state! Before this ant, how could he be an exception?

Dense, frenzied, enormous arcs of light came at him. While Jiang Wang, with his five mansions shining in unison, only advanced with the “Person” sword! Since ancient times, facing danger, facing disaster, facing countless calamities, the word “Person,” just walk forward. So simple, yet so firm. So brave, so enduring. A person has two legs, one in front and one behind. Then walk forward, walk to the highest place, walk to the end of the sky!

Those magnificent and huge arcs of light, one after another, were chopped out, yet one after another, they shattered! This was a clash of pure power, a collision of momentum, and a struggle of killing intent. Jiang Wang advanced, thus the Extreme Evil Hungry Ghost leaned back! Even Huan Tao, who had revealed the Extreme Evil Hungry Ghost Body, could not block this one sword!

But Huan Tao had not come alone. The opponent Jiang Wang faced was never just one person.

“I’m coming, I’m coming, I’m coming! Come play with me!” A corpulent figure, extremely agile, darted before the Extreme Evil Hungry Ghost. With both hands spread wide, he seemed to want to hug Jiang Wang, completely defenseless.

The Ten Thousand Evils Daemon, Divine Ability Evil Retribution, received the sword with his body!

The Faceless Daemon Yan Zi also leaped high from behind the Extreme Evil Hungry Ghost. With both hands spread open, a ferocious red-eyed giant swallow spread its wings from behind her, casting a huge shadow.