Chapter 353: Night Ends, Dawn Breaks

Almost ten minutes later.

Xi Daoyun's aura began to visibly fluctuate and grow unstable.

His face was flushed, his breathing heavy, and with every swing of his sword, the veins on his forehead throbbed.

Evidently, maintaining this peak state placed an enormous burden on his already heavily injured divine soul and decaying physical body.

A sharp light flashed through Xu Chuan's eyes.

The time had come!

If he allowed Xi Daoyun to die from the exhaustion of his spirit power, it would inevitably leave room for gossip afterward.

Rumors might spread among the populace: "If the Xi Family Ancestor hadn't been heavily injured and nearing the end of his life, how could the Xu Family have seized Heavenly Azure Prefecture from his hands?

Just think about that Xu Family Head, only daring to hide inside the grand array, ultimately relying on a Shapeshifting Great Demon to wear him down to death."

However, they could form a slight obstacle to the Xu Family's subsequent complete control over Heavenly Azure Prefecture, their ability to win over the people, and the establishment of unquestionable authority.

Since he had already forced the Xi Family to leave with a dominant stance.

At this moment, he absolutely could not show the slightest sign of retreating.

Therefore, Xu Chuan had to strike personally, completely turning a new page for Heavenly Azure Prefecture.

After all, in the Cultivation World, only formidable strength could truly win over the hearts of the people.

Schemes were merely minor tricks.

"Moyue, keep him occupied!"

Xu Chuan transmitted his thought. Immediately after, his figure moved, passing through the City Protection Great Formation like a phantom, flying straight toward Xi Daoyun.

The Azure Dragon Treasure Umbrella appeared in his hand, slowly spinning.

An azure light screen cascaded down.

Then, a series of metallic ringing sounds echoed.

Twenty-eight flying swords shot out from the umbrella's ribs, dancing wildly in the sky. Under the control of Xu Chuan's divine sense, they formed a Sword of the Azure Dragon over a hundred meters long in the blink of an eye.

The terrifying pressure it emitted had astonishingly reached the Nascent Soul Level!

"I've been waiting for you!"

Xi Daoyun, who had been dividing his attention to monitor the inside of the array, saw Xu Chuan finally appear. The corners of his mouth curled slightly, and the madness in his eyes instantly reached its peak.

He actually seemed to have anticipated this.

Or rather, his ultimate goal had always been to force Xu Chuan out!

Before his voice faded, the natal magic treasure flying sword in his hand had been put away at some unknown point.

It was replaced by a flying sword with an even more archaic design.

This sword was entirely dark gold, its blade covered in natural cloud patterns, exuding a sharp aura that felt as if it could cleave apart a person's very divine soul!

The moment this sword appeared, the metal-attribute spiritual qi between heaven and earth grew restless.

An aura of slaughter far surpassing that of a Geng Metal flying sword permeated the air.

This was precisely Xi Daoyun's most deeply hidden trump card.

A top-tier magic treasure inherited from the Ancient Era, perfectly complementing his cultivation method!

"A mere sword formation, do you really think you can challenge a Nascent Soul expert?!"

Xi Daoyun laughed maniacally. Pouring all of his remaining mana into the Golden Absolute flying sword, he viciously slashed down at the Sword of the Azure Dragon!

A dark golden sword light, condensed to the absolute limit, instantly struck the head of the roaring Sword of the Azure Dragon!

"Screech—Crack!"

A teeth-aching sound of slicing and shattering echoed.

That awe-inspiring Sword of the Azure Dragon was actually cleaved in two from head to tail by this dark golden sword light, as if it were made of paper!

The sword formation wailed and instantly disintegrated!

The twenty-eight flying swords flew back, their spiritual light dimmed.

Several of them even had numerous cracks!

Xu Chuan was hit by the energy shockwave, forcing his body back. His face suddenly turned pale. Clearly, his mind was linked to the sword formation, and he had suffered some backlash.

"What a terrifying attack, is that the former number one person in Heavenly Azure Prefecture?!"

"True Lord Withered Glory's sword formation is clearly at the Nascent Soul level, yet it was shattered in a single strike!"

"No wonder the Mo Clan Ancestor didn't dare to openly provoke the Heavenly Azure Sect after forming his Nascent Soul!"

The crowd was deeply shaken by Xi Daoyun's resplendent sword strike and gossiped endlessly.

"You court death!"

Seeing Xu Chuan suffer a setback, Moyue flew into a great rage. Opening its massive maw, it shot out a milky-white pillar of light exuding extreme freezing energy.

This was its innate divine ability, Ice Soul Cold Light.

The cold light shot toward Xi Daoyun like a cascading silver waterfall.

Wherever it passed, the space itself seemed to freeze.

"Break!"

Xi Daoyun's aura was soaring at this moment. He spun around and launched another strike!

The dark golden sword light appeared once more!

Although not as concentrated as when it cleaved the sword formation, it still carried a momentum capable of slaying gods and demons.

The sword light collided with the Ice Soul Cold Light, resulting in an earth-shattering explosion.

Ice crystals splattered in all directions, and sword qi flew wildly.

The Ice Soul Cold Light was forcibly shattered by this sword strike, but the dark golden sword light also collapsed and dissipated as a result.

Taking advantage of this gap, a fierce glint flashed in Xi Daoyun's eyes as he swung his hand back to deliver a third strike!

The target of this strike was Moyue, whose colossal body had momentarily paused after unleashing its divine ability.

A sword aura over three hundred meters long viciously slashed across Moyue's massive waist!

"Roar—!"

An agonizing, earth-shaking dragon roar resounded through the sky!

Large swaths of incredibly tough scales shattered and flew off. A massive gash over twenty meters long and deep enough to reveal bone appeared, spraying scalding hot dragon blood like a waterfall!

This blow evidently inflicted a severe injury upon Moyue.

If it suffered a few more of those, it would likely be critically injured.

Moyue's enormous body was sent flying by the sword light.

"As expected of a fourth-tier transformed flood dragon. Its body is indeed tough!"

Xi Daoyun knew that critically injuring Moyue would not be easy. Therefore, after knocking it away, his figure moved like lightning, turning around to lunge at Xu Chuan once more!

He didn't have much time left. He had to ride this momentum to slay Xu Chuan in a single fell swoop!

Xu Chuan's face was solemn. He activated the Azure Dragon Treasure Umbrella, floating it above his head to drape streams of azure light to protect his entire body.

At the same time, he flung his sleeve robe. The high-grade magic treasure, the Heavy Profound Seal, transformed into the size of a small hill, crashing head-on toward Xi Daoyun with a heavy, all-suppressing momentum.

"Clang!" A loud boom rang out.

The Heavy Profound Seal was knocked back by the dark golden sword light, the spiritual light on its surface growing slightly dim.

Immediately after, another beam of sword light flew over, viciously striking the defensive light screen draped by the Azure Dragon Treasure Umbrella!

"Crack!"

The light screen trembled violently. It was actually cleaved with clear, spiderweb-like cracks, and not long after, it completely shattered.

The treasure umbrella itself let out a wail of an unbearable burden, its radiance instantly dimming by more than half.

True Lord Green Wood, observing the battle from afar, had an astonishing brilliance erupt in his eyes upon seeing this scene!

So the ancestor had only been showing weakness to lure Xu Chuan out from the protection of the grand array in order to kill him.

An intense sense of anticipation involuntarily swelled in his heart.

'If he really manages to kill Xu Chuan, then could our Xi Family...'

Just as Xi Daoyun slightly adjusted his breath, preparing to forcefully muster his mana once more for the next strike.

Ignoring its injuries, Moyue roared and lunged over again.

Its dragon claws tore through the void, forcing Xi Daoyun to divide his attention. He had no choice but to use his intended strike to blast it away once more.

Another bone-deep sword mark appeared!

But in that lightning-fast blink of an eye when Xi Daoyun was restrained by Moyue.

Xu Chuan's figure suddenly flickered, actually vanishing from his spot like a phantom.

In the next moment, he appeared roughly ten meters behind Xi Daoyun!

The Ghost Shadow Escape, combined with his exquisite concealment of his own aura, and the chaotic energies surrounding them, actually rendered Xi Daoyun completely oblivious for a moment.

It wasn't until killing intent surged at his back that he abruptly realized.

A ruthless glint flashed through Xi Daoyun's eyes. Ignoring Moyue, who was charging forward once again, he forcefully reversed his mana and spun around, unleashing yet another dark golden sword light!

Although this strike was hasty, its power was still enough to kill any Golden Core Cultivator lacking the defense of a high-grade magic treasure!

And Xu Chuan's defensive magic treasure, the Azure Dragon Treasure Umbrella, had just had its light screen shattered. It was impossible for it to condense another one for at least several minutes.

In an instant, the sword light arrived.

However, an archaic, giant round shield radiating bizarre magnetic fluctuations had appeared out of thin air in front of Xu Chuan at some unknown point.

"Thud!"

The dark golden sword light slashed against the translucent light screen activated by the Origin Magnetism Shield, yet it only produced a slight ripple.

Even the Azure Dragon Treasure Umbrella from earlier would have developed cracks.

"This shield..."

"So this was Xu Chuan's real trump card!"

Xi Daoyun couldn't believe it. Not even he possessed a top-tier defensive shield, yet Xu Chuan had such a magic treasure.

Even if Xu Chuan couldn't fully unleash its power, just that defensive light screen alone was something very few below the Grand Cultivator realm could easily break.

If he attacked wildly without stopping, there would still be hope.

But given Xi Daoyun's current situation...

"Time waits for no man!"

"Was I ultimately one move behind?"

In that briefest moment of distraction.

Moyue's dragon tail tore through the air, fiercely whipping over to completely shatter his magic treasure's light screen in one blow.

He coughed up blood, his entire body flying off into the distance like a cannonball.

At the same time.

Xu Chuan's figure flashed, appearing behind Xi Daoyun once more.

In his hand was a large seal that had appeared out of nowhere, emitting the profound aura of life and death.

The Origin Life and Death Seal heavily slammed into his back.

A light screen suddenly flashed across Xi Daoyun's body again. It was likely a backup mid-grade defensive magic treasure, but it failed to completely block the attack.

The light screen was ripped apart by the energies of life and death.

Although it blocked for a brief moment, the residual power still crashed into his body.

"Urgh—!"

Xi Daoyun wildly spewed fresh blood again, his body flying in the opposite direction like a kite with a snapped string.

This sudden turn of events stunned everyone present.

True Lord Green Wood's expression shifted from anticipation to pale shock, his eyes full of worry.

"Ancestor!"

The energies of life and death acted like the most venomous vipers, instantly invading his limbs and bones, spreading straight to his internal organs.

Then, they reached his dantian, before finally surging directly into his sea of consciousness.

They frantically corroded his already decaying physical body.

A Nascent Soul was unique; it could appear anywhere within the body at will.

It could occupy the dantian, or lie hidden in the sea of consciousness.

However, it was eventually found and entangled by the energies of life and death.

"Crack..."

The flawed Nascent Soul, which was already on the verge of collapse, endured the attack of the life and death energies. It was instantly covered in even more cracks, almost disintegrating on the spot!

The injuries to his Nascent Soul, which he had forcefully suppressed with the power of a secret method, could no longer be held back.

His peak combat strength receded like the tide.

The backlash of the secret method and the agonizing pain of his fracturing Nascent Soul struck simultaneously. Xi Daoyun's aura plummeted rapidly like an avalanche, his face turning an ashen hue of death.

Having succeeded in his strike, Xu Chuan didn't get greedy. His figure immediately retreated a thousand meters, simultaneously urging his mind.

The spiritual light of the knocked-away Heavy Profound Seal flashed again, appearing beside the soaring Xi Daoyun. Carrying a momentum as heavy as a mountain range, it slammed forward viciously!

Though heavily injured, Xi Daoyun's combat instincts remained. He barely managed to swing the Golden Absolute flying sword, sending out a sword light that had dimmed several times over to barely block the Heavy Profound Seal.

However, in that brief moment of blocking, the death energy lingering around his body fully erupted.

His end had come!

The cracks on Xi Daoyun's Nascent Soul expanded further, and the flow of his mana fell into total chaos.

"God-Slaying Spike!"

Xu Chuan refused to let him go. The divine sense secret method he had prepared long ago was suddenly unleashed!

An invisible and intangible spike of divine sense viciously pierced into Xi Daoyun's already thoroughly shattered sea of consciousness!

Originally, with the strength of Xu Chuan's divine sense, the divine sense secret method he deployed would have only been able to slightly injure Xi Daoyun's divine soul.

But at this moment, it was like the final straw that broke the camel's back.

"Argh—!"

Xi Daoyun let out a shrill, brief howl of agony. Black blood seeped from all seven of his orifices simultaneously. His eyes instantly lost focus, and his final shred of resistance was stripped away.

As if losing all support, his body plummeted limply downward.

Xu Chuan's eyes were ice-cold. He pointed his fingers like a sword, and a magic treasure flying sword with dimming spiritual light but unyielding sharpness suddenly shot out, aiming straight for Xi Daoyun's lower abdomen dantian!

At the same time, with a mere thought, the Origin Magnetism Shield in the distance transformed into a streak of light and flew back, protecting his front once more.

This was to prevent the opponent from attempting a desperate, mutually destructive strike!

After all, a Nascent Soul was incredibly powerful. Even if heavily injured and on the verge of death, a single wisp of divine sense could trigger self-destruction.

The falling Xi Daoyun sensed the icy killing intent transmitting from afar and also saw the shield that had ruined his success protecting Xu Chuan once again.

The last trace of clarity and complex emotion flashed through his unfocused eyes.

Self-destruct his Nascent Soul?

Perhaps he could drag the nearby Xu Chuan down with him, but with that shield... it might not necessarily succeed.

At most, it would heavily injure him.

And Xu Chuan's mastery over the wood element was far above True Lord Green Wood's. His heritage was so profound that he could even save Chen Changge back then; a severe injury was nothing to him.

If he did that, given the Xu Family's style of doing things, they would definitely fight to the bitter end afterward.

My Xi Family wouldn't find peace for long after reaching the central region of Heavenly South.

'The Xu Family holds grudges... Forget it, let it end here.'

A tired and relieved thought crossed his mind.

Xi Daoyun put up no further resistance. As the flying sword pierced his dantian.

Xu Chuan heard his weak voice ring in his ears, "Xu Chuan, you win. Let the feud between our two families end here. Heavenly Azure Prefecture... belongs to your Xu Family now."

At the same time, he also transmitted his voice to True Lord Green Wood, "Leave. Do not make an enemy of the Xu Family again!"

"Squelch!"

The flying sword passed through his dantian without the slightest hindrance, and his Nascent Soul completely shattered at the exact same moment.

Xi Daoyun's body trembled violently as his final wisp of breath quietly extinguished.

A generational Nascent Soul expert, a sword cultivator capable of clashing with a Mid-Stage Nascent Soul, fell just like that.

The great mountain that had once pressed down on the heads of all cultivators in Heavenly Azure Prefecture had been completely removed.

The last time he was in this place, he had been frightened away by Xu Chuan.

This time, in the exact same place, he perished by Xu Chuan's hand.

Xi Daoyun's body maintained a bizarrely peaceful posture as it plummeted toward the earth below.

"Roar!"

Moyue was furious. The wounds on its body throbbed with excruciating pain, and its hatred for Xi Daoyun surged to the heavens. Seeing him fall, it wanted to charge forward and swallow his remains in a single bite to vent the hatred in its heart.

"Moyue, stop."

Xu Chuan's calm voice echoed out. "Let him keep his dignity."

Moyue let out a low growl. Though unwilling, it halted its actions, simply glaring fiercely at the falling figure with its dark golden slit pupils.

Xu Chuan looked in the direction of Xi Daoyun's fall, his gaze profound.

He had vaguely sensed earlier that Xi Daoyun seemed to have given up on something at the very end.

Thinking about it now, it was likely the self-destruction of his Nascent Soul.

'Perhaps he saw the defense of the Origin Magnetism Shield and knew he couldn't take me down with him, nor did he want to bring more trouble to the distant Xi Family because of it.'

As for preventing Moyue from devouring his corpse...

The moment Xi Daoyun died, Yu Qi's faint, nearly imperceptible Nascent Soul pressure enveloped the area.

It felt as though he would intervene if they made another move.

The Xi Family was gone, and Xi Daoyun was dead. The greatest threat and obstacle had been removed. There was no need to offend another, even stronger Nascent Soul cultivator for the sake of a dead Nascent Soul's wealth.

If they had done that, it would likely have been the exact scenario Xi Daoyun had wished to see.