The Prisoner Dragon Rope was evaded, a ripple of unease stirring in Hai Zongming’s heart.

Jiang Wang shouldn’t know the Prisoner Dragon Rope’s properties, should he? Was this pre-meditation, or was his martial talent so profound that he instinctively made the optimal choice?

Yet, for a cultivator of his realm and strength, mere emotions could not shake the will.

He had approached this from the outset with his full power, the four great holy towers aiding him.

With the Prisoner Dragon Rope having missed its mark, he immediately summoned the boundless might of the stars, pressing down with a direct palm strike. He paid no heed to Jiang Wang’s preparations, choosing to overwhelm technique with brute force, and suppress skill with overwhelming momentum!

The star power wielded by an Outer Tower realm powerhouse was both similar and distinct from the star power infused into Jiang Wang’s sword techniques. The similarity lay in both being derived from the stars. The difference was that the power Jiang Wang had utilized in the Life-Death Chess realm was pure star energy, accumulated from the Star Moon Plain, the power of the Jade Balance Star. The Outer Tower realm expert, however, commanded the power of the holy towers they themselves had erected within the distant starry sky.

The latter was more personal, more adaptable, and naturally, more potent!

As this palm descended, a colossal hand of starlight **crashed** down, utterly locking all of Jiang Wang’s potential escape routes.

But it was unclear whether his palm descended first, or if that whistling sword sound arose first.

Perhaps they were born simultaneously, destined to collide at the same instant.

Or was that sword too swift? Or was it… that this sword was *only* me, all other things yielding to its intent!

There was one sword, coming from the east.
It sliced through the night sky, cut through stars, severed the Azure Dragon Holy Tower, and aimed directly for the back of Hai Zongming’s skull.
This was the so-called, Spring Chop Azure Dragon.

There was one sword, coming from the west.
Its killing intent was severe, it shattered the light of the White Tiger Holy Tower, and aimed directly at Hai Zongming’s heart.
This was the so-called, Gold Kill White Tiger.

There was one sword, coming from the south.
Proud and fierce, it broke the projection of the Vermilion Bird Holy Tower, intending to cleave Hai Zongming from his left side, splitting him in twain with a single stroke.
This was the so-called, Fire Slaughter Vermilion Bird.

There was one sword, coming from the north.
Majestic and heavy, it directly suppressed the Black Tortoise Holy Tower, a heavy sword plummeting from the right side, seeking to grind him into meat paste.
This was the so-called, Collapse Extinguish Black Tortoise!

How powerful was a sword technique that once stood at the absolute pinnacle of its era?

Previously, outside Qing Yang Town, he hadn’t known his opponent’s identity, only the potential danger posed by the Jia City domain, and thus laid down a sword array reaching into the Inner Mansion realm.

But this time, he knew with certainty that his opponent was an Outer Tower peak expert.

He had ample time for preparation, allowing him to unleash the most potent killing blow he could muster within this realm.

Spring Chop Azure Dragon, Gold Kill White Tiger, Fire Slaughter Vermilion Bird, Collapse Extinguish Black Tortoise – these were the four killing swords of the Only Me Sword Dao used to cleave Outer Tower realms, known collectively as Sword Break Four Symbols.

Due to his cultivation level, he had been utterly incapable of wielding them before.
He could only borrow the power of the sword array and the flying swords themselves to temporarily evolve these techniques.

But as the sword whistle sounded, Hai Zongming’s expression shifted!

The sheer burst of killing power in that instant was enough to elicit a sigh from him, especially how it forcefully severed his connection with the four holy star towers.

He had known early on that Jiang Wang’s sword techniques were exceptional, but he had not known he possessed such a sword array, vaguely reminiscent of ancient flying sword secret arts. While it could not defeat him, it was already fearsomely strong.

Truly worthy of being hailed as a heaven-blessed talent for a time.

Hai Zongming sighed inwardly. In his youth, he had been far from this level. But this alone was still insufficient to erase the accumulation of his many years.

Talent was crucial, but diligence and time were equally indispensable!

Hai Zongming, suspended in mid-air, tautened his entire body, becoming stiff and unyielding, like a “fishing rod” planted firmly between heaven and earth.

This rod had no “line,” for space and time served as its threads. This rod had no hook, for all things and all beings were to be ensnared by it.

This was none other than the Fishing Dragon Skill, the foremost technique of the Near Sea Archipelago, a secret transmission of the Fishing Sea Tower!

Although with Hai Zongming’s cultivation, he was still unable to fully cultivate this skill and was far from possessing the momentum to truly fish a dragon,

as this skill manifested, those four fiercely attacking flying swords instantly lost their equilibrium, abruptly turning in mid-air, their tips tilting upwards.

The scene was precisely like four swimming fish whose tails had been hooked, struggling helplessly and powerlessly.

Hai Zongming lifted a hand! As if flinging the hooked fish onto the shore!

The four flying swords rapidly shot towards the high sky, only to scatter not far into their ascent. What had originally been mere collected sword shadows were now truly struck down.

Hai Zongming paid them no further mind. The connection to the four holy towers was already re-established. Holding all the advantages, he remained quite cautious, coiling the great power of the stars to protect his body, then plummeted downwards.

Within his sight, the human silhouette was utterly absent!

Where was Jiang Wang’s shadow?

He secretly activated numerous secret methods, yet still could not find any trace, as if Jiang Wang had completely vanished, or had never even appeared!

At this moment, Jiang Wang was concealed within the Red Makeup Mirror, and the Red Makeup Mirror was hidden within Qing Yang’s embrace. Qing Yang himself, meanwhile, was clad in Concealment Clothes.

The Concealment Clothes themselves were flawless, and having been reinforced by Yin Guan personally, even a God Arrival realm expert could not see through them, let alone Hai Zongming.

In truth, these Concealment Clothes were originally one of Jiang Wang’s fallback plans. If the bitter battle proved insurmountable, he intended to directly use the Concealment Clothes to escape.

“Jiang Wang! Shall we talk?”

Hai Zongming suddenly called out in a loud voice.

His body was enveloped by the starlight power of the four holy towers, providing steady protection. Simultaneously, he produced a Finger Qi Compass, confirming that Jiang Wang was still in the vicinity.

“How long can you sustain this state? Do you know what a Finger Qi Compass is?”

He shook the treasure in his hand: “Even if I cannot find you, I can follow you forever. You cannot escape.”

“I don’t want to kill you, truly. I only want to retrieve what belongs to me.”

He put away the Finger Qi Compass: “Do you know who I am?”

As he spoke, he meticulously surveyed every inch of West Camel Peak: “I am Hai Zongming. Hu Shaomeng, who died by your hand, was my direct disciple.”

“Do not misunderstand, I have not come to avenge him. I can overlook you killing him, provided you return my things to me.”

“It’s a mirror, you have an impression, right?”

“For you, it’s not of much use. You’ve also had it for a while, its effects are quite limited, right?”

He inferred that with Jiang Wang’s cultivation, it was impossible to delve too deeply into the Red Makeup Mirror.

“But for me, it holds profound meaning. It is the only relic of my deceased wife! It allows me to see the object and think of the person for the rest of my life.”

Hai Zongming’s tone was sorrowful: “That rebellious disciple, Hu Shaomeng, actually took advantage of my inattention and stole this mirror. I only recently investigated and discovered it was him, hence why I have come to find you. This item is too important to me, so my actions were somewhat urgent. But we can discuss this!”

“Shall we discuss it properly? I am willing to exchange it for treasures of greater value – secret methods, dao techniques, magic tools, anything is possible. Jiang Wang! What do you desire? I believe you lack nothing, but can you understand an old man who misses his deceased wife? The remaining life is long, yet we can never meet again. This is my only wish!”

Hai Zongming spoke with such sincerity. Had Jiang Wang not known from Chong Xuan Sheng early on that he dedicated himself to cultivation and never married, he would have almost believed him.

The Red Makeup Mirror was, of course, not his so-called deceased wife’s relic.

It was the earliest relic from a sea tower that Hu Shaomeng had discovered. After he accidentally detected it, he forcibly “helped” under the guise of master and disciple, ultimately seizing all the good things and only bestowing some scraps upon Hu Shaomeng. He considered this perfectly reasonable, as with Hu Shaomeng’s own strength, he could not even break the prohibition.

Only, he did not think that Hu Shaomeng was also not easy to deal with. While outwardly respectful and compliant, he secretly smuggled and took away the best harvest.

Had he not later found an important clue, he feared he would still be fooled to this day, believing himself to be in control of everything, the biggest winner.

Fabricating a tale of a deceased wife’s relic was not entirely to convince Jiang Wang. It was also to stir his emotions, thereby disrupting his concealment and exposing his whereabouts.

Of course, if Jiang Wang could be convinced, that would be even better.

Alas, only silence answered him.

The silent West Camel Peak!