Chapter 1247: Second World Second Home

Can't win!

Absolutely can't win!

Even Xiao Kongdong was instantly killed by Yan Wuse, and the opponent hadn't even started to get serious yet...

"Is this the true power of Lian Ling Zhi Guang?"

As the only on-site observer, Xu Xiaoshou, who had vanished above Duoyuan, felt far more shocked than those watching through the Qianli Chuanjing Technique. He hadn't left at all.

Even when Xiao Kongdong told him to run and find the only way out from below Duoyuan, he didn't abandon his senior brother and flee on his own.

He simply tossed out a painting clone and discovered that there was no spatial passage beneath Duoyuan at all.

Instead, countless pairs of silent, waiting eyes of light all lifted upward in unison.

At that moment, Xu Xiaoshou resolved to stand and fight alongside his senior brother.

— Yan Wuse wasn't as he claimed, not pursuing those who left.

He had already hidden light angels below Duoyuan, and while their individual strength was unknown, their numbers were terrifying!

If he went down there, he might be detected by some special means... and without his life, how could he even think about finding a spatial passage to escape Void Island?

"Opportunity for survival!"

"Where is the opportunity for survival?"

Witnessing Xiao Kongdong being pierced by the Dian Liang Gun, Xu Xiaoshou's thoughts raced to their limit, images flashing wildly in his mind as he desperately searched for a way out. He transformed into a precise machine, instantly discarding all useless clutter.

What remained were only choices representing "opportunity for survival":

"Senior brother must have a trump card. Even Feng Xiaose could barely unleash the second realm of Wan Jian Shu, Da Hong Shen Zhi Nu, so his strength should be above that..."

"Yi Ren Xian Sheng is an option. If he could come, he could definitely take on Yan Wuse... but he's missing. The Tongfu Symbol can let him locate me, but I can't locate him..."

"Enlightenment! That's it. If I max out Sword Technique Mastery to the final level, maybe I'll gain a slight insight into Banruo Wu, and with Huanmie Yizhi, I could instantly kill Yan Wuse..."

"But I don't have a semi-saint status!"

"If I really trigger the Saint Tribulation without a semi-saint status, I'm doomed. Even Tianren Wushuai requires Xue Shi Zhu to substitute, could I survive?"

Thinking of this, Xu Xiaoshou nearly burst on the spot.

Once, the dean had tried to give him a semi-saint status, but he refused. Now, he regretted it immensely.

If time could rewind and life start over.

Xu Xiaoshou swore he wouldn't let that semi-saint status fall into the dean's hands.

— Who knew that after his breakthrough, his progress would be so rapid, reaching a point where he needed a semi-saint status so quickly!

"There's another semi-saint status on Void Island..."

From this association, Xu Xiaoshou thought of Tianren Wushuai.

After Jiang Buyi fell as a saint, Huangquan didn't take his semi-saint status; it remained with Tianren Wushuai.

This was an opportunity!

Find Tianren Wushuai, take his semi-saint status, or at least his Xue Shi Zhu.

That way, he'd have the confidence to max out "Sword Technique Mastery," and everything would turn around.

But then came the problem.

"After Tianren Wushuai sacrificed himself, where did he die?"

The answer was unknown, so this method was cut off. Xu Xiaoshou clutched his head, his eyes bloodshot.

"Ba Zun An!"

The only way he could think of to break the deadlock was these three words.

Because even if Xiao Kongdong could erupt again and instantly kill Yan Wuse with one sword.

The second true body hidden in Zui Yi Dian ruins had already noticed that as soon as the battle erupted here, Rao Yaoyao started heading this way. Xiao Kongdong, without the title of one of the Seven Sword Immortals and below semi-saint level, even with the second realm, how could he win?

Would Rao Yaoyao, who had reached the realm of Sword Saint and was one of the Seven Sword Immortals, lose to him?

"Only Ba Zun An can save his nominal disciple!" Hidden in his vanishing technique, Xu Xiaoshou roared "Ba Zun An" several times, but got no response.

He ascended in a single step, flashing away from the battlefield, and released the vanishing technique on one finger, holding the communication pearl toward the real world from the grass.

He remembered that when they left Zui Yi Dian, the communication pearl had connected to Ba Zun An.

Maybe a miracle would happen now.

"Oh ho!"

"Little mouse, hiding here, eh?"

Just then, Yan Wuse appeared squatting with his cheek in hand, smirking at the half-finger in the grass.

"Fuck your grandpa!"

Xu Xiaoshou's eyes nearly popped out. He vanished on the spot and teleported instantly.

But when he raised his hand, only fragments of the communication pearl remained, scorched red from intense light.

Xu Xiaoshou's thoughts ground to a halt.

"Shocked, passive points, 1."

He flashed back to the battlefield and saw Yan Wuse still leaning on Xiao Kongdong's back, saying something.

He flashed to the other side and found that Yan Wuse was still there, now standing and pacing back and forth, annoyed at not banishing him in time.

Though Yan Wuse was just one person, surveying his surroundings, Xu Xiaoshou felt surrounded by thousands of troops, utterly alone.

"Teacher..."

He desperately hoped that suddenly, from the sky, Yi Ren Xian Sheng would descend with a fan inscribed with "Are you stupid?", draw the Tai Cheng Sword, and slaughter everyone.

But no.

On this Void Island, the light called "hope" had been lost.

"Buzz!"

Suddenly, patterns of light lit up under his feet.

Seeing the light, Xu Xiaoshou jumped like a scalded cat. But he quickly realized this light wasn't from Yan Wuse; it was from sword techniques, from Dao principles, from profound array patterns.

"This is..."

Xu Xiaoshou widened his eyes and flashed back to the edge of the battlefield, seeing Xiao Kongdong, pierced by the Dian Liang Gun, with profound array patterns lighting up under his feet! No, wait!

He was standing close, but not at the center of the array.

This profound array of the second realm came from a cluster of sword intent nearby?

"Oh? So that's where it's hiding?"

"The emperor has finally waited for you!"

Yan Wuse turned his gaze as well, only to see the sword intent cluster crack open, unfolding into a figure purely outlined by sword intent. It slowly grew, eventually transforming into an exact duplicate of Xiao Kongdong.

Sword intent avatar!

But it was more than just a sword intent avatar.

Concealed within was a "Second World" technique that had been unleashed but forcibly interrupted.

Now, without the original body's constraints, this "Second World" sword continued.

This was Xiao Kongdong's trump card, able to block anyone for at least ten breaths!

The fierce sword intent solidified like a barrage of arrows, exploding with a roar, radiating from the sword intent avatar in all directions.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Even just grazing past, the sharp sword intent cut wounds on Yan Wuse's face.

He wiped his hand and saw blood, realizing that every strand of sword energy here was an absolute attack, capable of harming his elemental body!

Yan Wuse had no choice but to retreat repeatedly.

He even had to abandon the Xiao Kongdong impaled on the Dian Liang Gun for now.

Because the same level of sword energy was erupting from Xiao Kongdong, turning him into a indiscriminate, porcupine-like attacker!

After the lesson from Xu Xiaoshou's punch in Zui Yi Dian, Yan Wuse no longer underestimated anyone.

He had been waiting, waiting for Xiao Kongdong to reveal a trump card similar to Xu Xiaoshou's, possibly inherited from Shen Yi's physical power.

It might manifest differently, but Yan Wuse guessed it would come, so he never let his guard down.

Now, seeing this sword, he knew Xiao Kongdong had played his card.

"Progress— this time I wasn't hit directly."

Yan Wuse shrugged lightly, looking down at the blood holes all over his body and chuckling in self-praise.

But as his gaze lowered, he saw the profound array under his feet and retreated another ten li.

The array was enormous!

After covering the entire Duoyuan mountain range, it kept extending outward. Yan Wuse wondered how such a slow sword could hit anyone— from this perspective, it was nowhere near as good as Xu Xiaoshou's punch. But then again, this was the second realm of ancient sword techniques; for a young man, it was impressive!

A slow strike was unforgivable.

Soon, Yan Wuse realized he might be wrong.

This technique's range might truly be vast, as the profound array was chasing him!

In a flash, Yan Wuse completely exited Duoyuan.

But the array clung like a persistent shadow, following wherever he went.

"Under semi-saint level, can the attack range cover the entire Void Island?"

Yan Wuse sneered.

An ordinary person might not escape, but if caught, so what? Who was he?

He was Lian Ling Zhi Guang!

If he wanted to leave, how could he not?

He retreated from Duoyuan to Qingzhu, to Qiji Zhi Sen, to Zui Yi Dian, to Xuejie...

This series of traversals covering thousands of li was completed in the blink of an eye.

And the profound array, this time, couldn't keep up.

"Heh."

"What a laughable little swordsman."

In Duoyuan, Xiao Kongdong's original body's emotions had been carried away by the sword intent avatar's strike.

He hung his head, picked up his sword, and with full body of disarray and confusion, walked toward the sword intent avatar and stepped inside.

The two merged completely.

At that instant, far in Zui Yi Dian, thousands of spirit swords suddenly soared into the sky.

The Lian Ling Shi watching through the Qianli Chuanjing Technique looked down and saw the profound array under their feet.

Everyone's scalp tingled as they unleashed their abilities and fled frantically.

From such a distance, this sword had reached here?

What the hell!

Collateral damage wasn't supposed to work like this!

Yet, as they retreated, a bewildered murmur echoed in everyone's ears. The voice carried endless confusion, as if seeking an answer:

"Young and unknowing of sorrow or joy, a wandering white-clad hero for thousands of li."

"In old age, only loneliness remains, asking once more, where can be called home?"

Upon hearing this, everyone stopped in their tracks, their eyes filling with bewilderment.

Zui Yi Dian, once a scene of ruins, transformed instantly under the profound array's influence.

"This is... where..."

Someone landed in a small courtyard, seeing dilapidated gray walls, peeling wooden tables, and handmade chairs.

In this poor little yard, children's laughter and play filled the air.

But in the dim, lightless corner by the wall, a small boy huddled, reading a book.

Spirit, will, even soul— all were twisted in that moment.

Their vision shifted, and everyone saw the text in the book, the prominent "Eighth Sword Immortal."

They looked up.

Everyone became that small boy, simultaneously receiving the answer:

"So, my sense of not belonging here comes from the fundamental difference between me and them. How can sparrows compare ambitions with wild geese?"

The scene shifted: streets of sword practice, mastering the nine great sword techniques, eighteen sword styles, three thousand sword paths...

Another shift: a youth in fine clothes on a spirited horse, wielding a three-foot sword, righting wrongs, roaming the martial world...

Another shift: entering dimensional spaces, seeking secret treasures, slaying exotic beasts, defeating strong enemies, cultivating Dao fruits...

Another shift: at the mountain peak, a lonely immortal, left with only bewilderment, unsure of the path ahead...

Even dominating the world, without friends or family, without reliance, like a rootless duckweed, achievements mean nothing.

"Where is home?"

Accompanied by endless bewilderment, he leaped into the void.

The scene shifted back to the rundown gray courtyard from decades ago. Cobwebs hung high, a white lantern half-tattered, an uncovered coffin in the yard— but not even a body inside.

"Is this... my home?"

This sight made everyone's pupils tremble, then they hung their heads powerlessly. "Sorry, I lost all of you..."

The "Second World" ended here, and endless loneliness lulled too many Lian Ling Shi into a deep slumber, unable to bear such mental realm.

Those who barely regained their senses knew they should resist, but their eyes held only bewilderment, unsure how to respond.

Yu Ling Di's eyes were tightly shut, eyelashes trembling, two lines of clear tears streaming down.

In Qingzhu, Tianren Wushuai struggled to rise, clutching his mask, staring at the rippling reflection in the water, devoid of all strength.

Above Duoyuan, Xu Xiaoshou lifted his head, gazing at the sky.

"Spiritual Awakening" triggered repeatedly, and he sank time and again, finally barely seeing the world before him.

Not a sickroom.

Not Tian Sang Ling Gong.

It was a pure blue sky with wisps of drifting white clouds, wandering aimlessly.

"In old age, only loneliness remains, asking once more, where can be called home..."

In Xuejie, Yan Wuse lowered his head, and the Dian Liang Gun in his hand vanished unconsciously.

He reacted almost instantly, pupils contracting as he prepared to resist.

But then, a flash of crimson in his eyes made Yan Wuse pale with shock, finally realizing something was wrong with his environment.

The city was forged entirely of swords, filled with ancient sword cultivators.

This great family branched into countless smaller families, all interconnected, supporting each other when needed.

"I have a sword that needs everyone's help..."

In the Eastern Domain Sword Heaven, Ba Zun Realm.

Unexpectedly, everyone in Can Yue Xian Cheng, far beyond the dimensional space, looked up as if sensing something, then raised their swords in unison.

"Senior brother, take it!"

"Senior brother, I'll assist you!"

"Senior brother, strike! We're always your backing!"

On Void Island.

Yan Wuse's mind was suddenly shattered, cast out of this world, feeling his own endless loneliness.

Meanwhile, Xiao Kongdong, across the distance, raised his sword!

Behind him, Can Yue Xian Cheng materialized from illusion, fully embodying the essence of Huan Jian Shu's illusion becoming reality.

The entire Void Island was dense with countless spirit swords soaring and ancient sword cultivators rising.

The infinite sword power accumulated by Can Yue Xian Cheng over decades converged onto the Kongdong Wuxiang Sword.

"Above the immortal city, even semi-saints bow their heads!"

Xiao Kongdong's gaze turned stern as he swung the Kongdong Wuxiang Sword.

From north to south across Void Island, spanning millions of li, a thunderous boom erupted, tearing a chasm like a heavenly moat.

The sword light pierced through space and time, splitting the just-recovered, shocked Yan Wuse in two, spraying blood everywhere.

Void Island fell silent, leaving only Xiao Kongdong closing his eyes and falling with a smile:

"Second World..."

"Second home!"