Chapter 1644: If You Ask What the Greatest Prodigy Is, It's the Youth Who at Twenty Slays the Yin Evil

Since entering the God's Ruins, Xu Xiaoshou had only passively meditated for a few days while processing the Great Dao Disc. The rest of the time, he had been charging ahead relentlessly, never truly appreciating the subtle shifts in the essence of his power. Even though the values of his Body, Spirit, and Intent Discs had increased, his application of them remained superficial.

But now! With this single sword strike, Xu Xiaoshou profoundly felt more than just the seamless integration of the various second realms of the Sword Dao Disc. His mind opened, and he realized that power systems such as spirit refinement, ancient martial arts, swordsmanship, and giant power might not need to be so rigidly separated during combat. Could they, perhaps, even be fused?

"A beginning."

"The Desireless Reckless Sword?" Dao Qiongcang, having fallen back to the rear of the battlefield, saw a flicker in his eyes, as if witnessing Gou Wuyue at his peak during the era of the Ten Venerables. But soon, he slowly shook his head. "No, it's not like that! He's using more than just the Mo Sword Art..."

This sword strike did not, in fact, employ Xu Xiaoshou's most frequently used Prajna-less or Heaven's Abandonment techniques. Instead, he used his most familiar swordsmanship as an auxiliary, emphasizing the Mo Sword Art, which, though still somewhat deficient, was renowned for its frontal assault, and unleashed it before Cui Yin. Faintly, there was even a hint of the Empty Sword Art and Swordless Flow about it.

"What about the promised mental attack?" Dao Qiongcang was about to transmit a spiritual message but then stopped himself. Was Xu Xiaoshou truly not using a mental attack to tear at Cui Yin's greatest scar? The complexity of this sword was far from simple; it wasn't a mere singular manifestation of the nine distinct swords of the Ancient Sword Art. It was a "Mixed Sword Art," requiring real-time observation of its evolution! Furthermore, what he, as an observer, perceived would undoubtedly differ from what Cui Yin, the one experiencing it, encountered!

"He truly was hiding it!" Yue Gongli's sinister voice suddenly echoed from the Thirty-Six Divine Punishment Pillars formation plate. "Very much like the Eight Venerables!"

"You're awake?" Dao Qiongcang's saintly thought descended.

"Judging by that one sword, he's likely not just proficient in the second realms of various swordsmanship disciplines... No, he's reached the pinnacle!" Yue Gongli, for once, spoke without jest.

"Explain," Dao Qiongcang requested. He knew that not only Yue Gongnu but also his brother-in-law had a deep understanding of the Eight Venerables.

"That fellow once said that not everyone could be like him," Yue Gongli began. "Most geniuses eventually become like Gou Wuyue, Rao Yaoyao, or Mei Siren, unable to truly integrate the second realms. They can only master one and use others as supplements."

"Indeed?"

"My sister asked him how it could be done. Well, Xu Xiaoshou seems to embody what he said: 'Just thoroughly grasp the fundamentals.'"

"Thoroughly grasp..." Dao Qiongcang mused, his expression unreadable. Was Yue Gongli a frog in a well when it came to ancient swordsmanship? Although he hadn't personally mastered it, his discerning eye was exceptionally sharp. Mei Siren was his mentor, Rao Yaoyao and Hua Changdeng were his classmates, and the Eight Venerables was his brother-in-law. He hadn't eaten pork, but he had seen pigs run. His willingness to make such a statement indicated that Xu Xiaoshou had mastered seven or eight of the nine great swords of the Ancient Sword Art. Perhaps more precisely, eight out of ten, or even nearing nine!

"A terrifying individual..." Yue Gongli sighed, saying no more. At this point, he was absolutely certain of one thing: Xu Xiaoshou's intentions in the Dark Divine Court of the Infant-Creating Saint Plant were exactly like his own.

Hide, hide, hide! What was the use? In the end, he would still see it, hmph!

"Wait..." Yue Gongli's heart suddenly trembled. Xu Xiaoshou wasn't foolish. What if this was still only the superficial strength he had deliberately exposed to Dao Qiongcang? His thoughts were ultimately disturbed by the blackness that filled his vision.

"What sword is that?" "What sword is this?" Cui Yin, facing the sword light, had clearly encountered ancient swordsmanship and understood the various second realms. Yet, as the youth's sword tainted the void under the moonlight, with demonic energy overflowing from his eyes, he found himself unable to comprehend it.

"Mind Sword Art!" This must be the Mind Sword Art. He knew his consciousness was injured, so this had to be an initial Mind Sword Art, an attempt to exacerbate his wounds. But the Mind Sword Art, even in its current divine-buddha-like manifestation, couldn't harm him. No matter how Prajna-less changed from person to person, it wouldn't present itself in this manner.

"Illusion Sword Art!" The solitary tower was an illusion, the moonlight an illusion, and the sword too, an illusion. Everything was false, including his current state of mental confusion. How could a mere youth trap him? Was he trying to transform illusion into reality, to kill his consciousness within this fabricated fantasy?

"No!" "It's the Empty Sword Art!" This child was only around twenty years old. Even if he had trained since birth, it wouldn't be enough to master multiple sword arts in such a short time. In the Ancient and Modern Forget-Worry Tower, he had already wounded a Saint Emperor with a single sword; other sword arts should naturally be secondary...

But then!

"Buzz—" As the black, formidable sword light, imbued with sword intent and the power of various realms, instantly struck the Canglong Drinking Moon Diagram in front of Cui Yin—who neither wished to retreat nor to bolster his defenses—there was no resounding explosion. Instead, a peculiar wave of power fusion rippled outward. With a snap, Cui Yin felt the demonic cage trapping his thoughts shatter, and all the illusory images conjured before his eyes disintegrated.

What he saw... after the sword light struck the Canglong Drinking Moon Diagram, it actually activated the latter's wind-elemental Dao patterns. Yet, no physical contact occurred. The sword light vanished, becoming nothingness, as if it had seeped into the Canglong Drinking Moon Diagram and merged with it. Then, it emerged from the other side of the diagram! One hundred percent of its power, completely unhindered, bypassed this obstacle and closed in on him!

"It truly is the Empty Sword Art!" "It transformed from solid to void, passing through the Canglong Drinking Moon Diagram's defense!" Cui Yin's heart tightened. As his entire attention was captivated by the sword light, his muddled thoughts completely failed to consider that wind, too, could be an invisible defense.

Resolutely, he flung the Wind-Minute Scripture from his palm, no longer negligent, adding an extra layer of defense: "Art: Star Deconstructive Illusion!" The three-zhang wind boundary around him folded forward at his command, forming three layers of wind gates.

The sword light hummed, merging with and passing through the wind gates as if they were nothing. But just as it was about to strike the body of Saint Emperor Wangze, a page on the high-flung Wind-Minute Scripture flipped open. A stream of green light shot across the void. This time, it wasn't wind energy appearing directly; instead, the wind energy was deconstructed mid-flight, transforming into a scattering of starlight.

"Guide!" Cui Yin remained perfectly still; retreat was impossible for a god. He formed a hand seal, drawing it from his brow to his chest. The starlight then fell from the sky, gently sprinkling onto the black sword light, forming a star formation with an eerie, scattered pattern.

The formation activated! The starry sky outside the God's Ruins brightened... No, did it brighten twice? Regardless, it shimmered in resonance with the star formation on the sword light, borrowing its power.

"Boom!" The magnificent sword strike of night was forcibly brought to a halt before Cui Yin. No matter how fiercely the sword light resisted, it could not shake the star formation in the slightest, unable to penetrate the technique's defense.

"Sss..." The starlight began to deconstruct. The black sword light then vanished directly in front of Cui Yin's nose, dissipating like clouds and rain.

A gentle breeze brushed his face, and his taut nerves relaxed. Cui Yin's lips curled into a smirk, and his heart, which had been in his throat, settled back into his chest. He scoffed, "Nothing more than this."

Snap. Xu Xiaoshou twirled the sword in his hand, four swords returned to their sheaths, and he smiled. "If that's all it is, then you've lost this first sword."

Cui Yin's expression stiffened. He stared intently at Xu Xiaoshou, not understanding his meaning.

"You lost, I said so." This repeated declaration was as firm as iron.

Rumble! The God's Ruins suddenly trembled.

This tremor didn't originate from the ground, nor from the eighteenth heaven where the battle raged. Its reach was too vast. It came from the first heaven, and even the thirty-third heaven was affected... More than that, the entire God's Ruins were encompassed; the tremor originated from beyond the Ruins!

"Space-time shattered flow?" "Beyond the plane?" Cui Yin finally understood. With a single thought, the Ancestor God surveyed the plane. He saw residual traces of a world-spanning sword shadow passing through the dim starry sky beyond the triangular heavenly realm. The marks were fractured and scattered, severing star rivers, a truly terrifying sight. Yet, he sought the sword light, but it was nowhere to be found.

"How can this be?" Cui Yin was aghast. He had clearly blocked this sword, even deconstructing and shattering it right before his eyes. Were his three eyes mere decorations? Yet, traces unmistakably remained beyond the star river. If the sword light had truly struck in that manner, he should have been cleaved in half along the attack path by now...

Wait! Cui Yin sensed something, and his divine consciousness sharpened. The traces outside the star river were not from a strike originating from within the God's Ruins, but rather from *outside*! Cui Yin abruptly spun around, looking behind him. Within the God's Ruins, behind him, red plum blossoms drifted down. The Illusion Sword Art, which targeted the environment rather than individuals, shattered like a mirror under the Ancestor God's true vision. The sword light that had struck from outside the God's Ruins was no longer concealed; indeed, there was no longer any need for concealment.

The sky-rending green Mo Sword! It ruthlessly sliced through Cui Yin's body, right across the face of Saint Emperor Wangze!

"Impossible!" As the Saint Emperor's flesh was torn and his three eyes and six arms were diagonally cleaved in half through the middle, the heavens and earth of the entire God's Ruins echoed with his uncontrolled shriek.

Dao Qiongcang was covered in goosebumps. It wasn't Prajna-less, nor Heaven's Abandonment, nor the Second World, nor the One-Returning Extreme Sword... One frontal sword was countered, but there was still a Mo Sword hidden behind it...

"The Mo Sword Art: Desireless Reckless Sword!"

"That's right, I thought I, as an outsider, had just misseen and misheard. So there really was another Mo Sword!"

*I am the Ancestor God! How could I not have realized?! Impossible, this is impossible, he's just a waste, I refuse, this Ancestor refuses...*

As Xu Xiaoshou gazed with a faint smile, he could almost imagine the chaotic thoughts raging in Cui Yin's mind. His prediction was not wrong. Yet, he had underestimated Cui Yin. If an outsider were truly struck down, their cries of "impossible" would stem from a lack of understanding. Cui Yin, however, after enduring the pain, understood completely: The Mo Sword Art was anciently also known as the True Sword Art. This designation referred both to its capacity to inflict real damage and to the coexistence of 'True Sword' and 'Mo Sword' as two types of swords.

The Desireless Reckless Sword comprised two swords. The upper one was the True Sword, the black sword light of the Four Swords that had previously been deconstructed. The lower one was the Mo Sword, whose color, even when concealed by illusion arts, was invariably green.

But what was truly astounding was the sheer number of concepts embedded within Xu Xiaoshou's single sword! So perfectly hidden was it that the True Sword's light, from beginning to end, revealed not the slightest hint of the Mo Sword Art.

The True Sword's light passed through the attack using the Swordless Flow method. Given the precedent of Heaven's Abandonment from the Ancient and Modern Forget-Worry Tower, it was difficult not to associate Xu Xiaoshou with specializing in the Empty Sword Art. Ultimately, the sword light was deconstructed by a technique Cui Yin himself had created. *I worked so hard to block this; if I don't believe others, can I still not believe myself?* Yet, it was, in reality, only a True Sword! Certainly, it contained the power of various sword realms, but this did not preclude it from also carrying a Mo Sword.

But then another question arose: How could the Mo Sword detach from beneath the True Sword and, with a single strike, arrive from beyond the heavens?

"Desireless Reckless..." Cui Yin didn't need an explanation; he found the answer himself. As his will crumbled, he recalled the characteristics of the Mo Sword Art's second realm from his sealed memories: unbound by rules, unrestricted by the Great Dao; not limited by subjective thought, unaffected by external influences. In short, unbridled and unrestrained! The more unbridled a person, the more they could transcend themselves and execute an unbridled sword!

"All swordsmanship must follow the rules of swordsmanship, but only the Desireless Reckless Sword cannot adhere to those rules!" The sword light cannot originate from the sword; the sword intent does not grow stronger with intensity; the sword momentum must be like thunder from silence!

"It should come from the heart, arrive from beyond the heavens, be unleashed from outside oneself, have no fixed form, break free from conventional thinking, and strike from an angle no one, including oneself, could have considered before drawing the sword—this is the Desireless Reckless Sword." Dao Qiongcang gazed somewhat blankly at Cui Yin, who had been split in two, recalling Gou Wuyue's words.

At that time, that fellow was not yet arrogant enough to try to transcend the "Desireless Reckless" rule within the Sword God's Desireless Reckless Sword, aiming to achieve his desired return to simplicity. His idea was: "It should come from the sword, originate from oneself, with the momentum of startling thunder, making an astonishing move!" A grand idea, wasn't it? He bypassed the realm of 'seeing mountains as mountains, seeing mountains not as mountains,' reaching a third layer... Thus, Cliff-Diver Gou Wuyue was born. Thirty years had passed, and he was still falling, still surging. Dao Qiongcang could not yet definitively say whether the one-armed Gou Wuyue in the Sea of Bitterness had found his third realm of the Desireless Reckless Sword amidst the restraints of the Saint God Temple, or whether he had hit the tree that had blocked his momentum halfway down the cliff.

However, Dao Qiongcang had profound faith in the talent and words of Gou Wuyue, who had cultivated swordsmanship methodically during the era of the Ten Venerables and Seven Sword Immortals. His mastery of the Mo Sword Art alone was remarkable. This was evident from the fact that the Eight Venerables, who once reveled in breaking opponents' weapons with their own methods and twisting their swords with their own techniques, did not purely use the Mo Sword Art to contend against Gou Wuyue's.

"He's not like the Eight Venerables anymore, to be honest," Yue Gongli murmured from within the Divine Punishment Pillars formation plate. "His sword is a bit... subtle."

"Clang—" The Great Obedient Bell Drum appeared amidst its soul-cleansing chimes.

The notion of defending with only two items, or granting Xu Xiaoshou the courtesy of using one more technique, which were self-imposed rules that restricted him, now seemed utterly ridiculous to Cui Yin. Especially when the very body of Saint Emperor Wangze had been sliced in half.

*Damn it! Xu Xiaoshou, it's not just you who deserves to die! My past self was utterly despicable! This was my last physical body, and it was a wind-elemental Saint Emperor's body, which I had guarded so carefully during the earlier battle, neglecting all else. Who would have thought... one moment of carelessness, and a Saint Emperor cleaved in two.*

Cui Yin was enraged. He summoned the Great Obedient Bell Drum, intending to directly suppress the lingering power of the sword.

Yet, as the sword light swept through, the Mo Sword ignored the Great Obedient Bell Drum's defense. Its power seeped inside in a form between reality and illusion, dragging the two halves of the shattered body and, by extension, the Great Obedient Bell Drum itself, towards Xu Xiaoshou's position.

"Stop! Me! Stop this Ancestor now!"

Xu Xiaoshou stood in mid-air, sword in hand, but did not, as Cui Yin expected, press his advantage with more strikes. In truth, this single sword attack had almost completely depleted his energy; even the conversion of his passive abilities, his devouring power, and the Heavenly Ancestor's power within the Dragon Pearl required time. This, however, did not stop him from observing coldly:

"Scared?"

Cui Yin exploded, his composure shattered. As he was being dragged, those two words struck him like a curse, causing intense demonic energy to erupt from his two halves of his shattered body. But the youth's mocking voice continued: "This is just the beginning, not the end. Since you cannot resist, then fully enjoy this sword."

What did he mean? What was the meaning of these words? Dao Qiongcang and Yue Gongli both blanched, retreating further, moving beyond the immediate battlefield. Cui Yin, needless to say, was even more shocked.

But before he could react, with a *boom*, the Mo Sword finished its strike, and all its power exploded into sword intent as it dragged him. This sword intent, like bone-eating maggots, clung to all his wounds, as if his scars had been torn open and then doused with lava. Suddenly, the lava trembled again, each atom began to collide, and then each drop of lava erupted like a volcano once more.

"Sss, sss, sss, sss, sss..." The sword intent burst forth, and the Mo Sword's power, augmented by the Desireless Reckless Sword, mercilessly tore through the two halves of Saint Emperor Wangze's shattered body, akin to the Green River Sword Realm.

"No—" Even Cui Yin's soul cries were ripping apart.

Soul cries? He paused. Indeed, from the perspective of a soul, all that remained was the "fragile" body of Saint Emperor Wangze, which had been chopped into fine meat paste by the sword intent, turning into dust and scattering with the wind. His bones were crushed, and his ashes scattered. His newly possessed treasure, destroyed?

"Art: Inverse Reversal!"

"Art: Hundred Yue Immortal Witch!"

"Art: Evergreen Regret!"

Cui Yin's soul frantically formed hand seals, completely forgetting to conceal his soul form, forgetting his current frenzied state of mind, and even forgetting to maintain his grand demeanor as the exalted evil god on his divine throne.

He desperately wanted to restore Saint Emperor Wangze's physical body. However, with the body utterly destroyed by the sword intent, Cui Yin's myriad techniques struggled to bring it back. Xu Xiaoshou glanced over, noting the increasingly deep invasion of the Demonic Ancestor's power into Cui Yin, and couldn't help but frown slightly. The Demonic Ancestor... so terrifying? The effect of Arrogant Void was somewhat beyond what he had previously imagined.

Cui Yin's desperate efforts ultimately yielded no results. While he could technically recall Saint Emperor Wangze's fragmented remains and even piece them into a coherent shape, it would merely be an empty shell. The body was utterly destroyed, and it would be truly difficult to restore it in a short time, unless... Xu Xiaoshou was eliminated!

Cui Yin's three red eyes burned, fixed intensely on Xu Xiaoshou, a ferocious light fully exposed, and his three soul-body hands raised high. The youth, still holding his sword, seemed utterly oblivious, not even bothering to evade, as if he had given up struggling. He merely spoke in an indifferent tone: "Cui Yin, due to your carelessness, you lost your body."

"And as you are now, with only your soul and intent remaining, you are not fit to contend with me. I, Xu Xiaoshou, will not bully a god; I will grant you some respect."

"You can retract your previous words. It's not 'lose by retreating,' nor 'lose by being wounded,' and there's no longer any 'three-sword agreement'." He emphasized certain phrases, then softened his tone at the end: "Because, just as I thought, you were directly cleaved by me."

Cui Yin's soul-body head visibly swelled, and his three eyeballs seemed about to burst. Yet, his movements froze in mid-air, leaving only three zhang of green, smoky rage steaming from his head.

Xu Xiaoshou attached the Four Swords to his waist, adopting a defiant, ready-to-die stance, and continued: "Cui Yin, you are welcome to strike me as you please; this will not be considered a broken promise, nor bullying the small, and I will not resist."

"But after you kill me, remember this: for the next ten thousand, ten million years of your life, never forget this incident."

"I, Xu Xiaoshou, just turned twenty this year."

Demonic energy surged in Cui Yin's eyes, enveloping his entire soul body, but at that moment, there was nothing in his vision but the youth. No sky. No earth. And no self.

After a pause, Xu Xiaoshou took a deep breath and, to everyone's surprise, added: "Lunar age."

"Actual age: nineteen."

"Come!"

"Fight!"

He watched the soul body that had retreated to its original position in the sky. He watched Cui Yin, who, having suppressed all his fury towards Xu Xiaoshou, finally shouted, "There are still two swords!"

The entire world fell silent...

"I take back what I just said."

"He's not like the Eight Venerables at all." From within the Divine Punishment Pillars formation plate, Yue Gongli spoke through gritted teeth: "His sword isn't subtle; it's just too dirty!"

No, no, no! How was this dirty? If one were to ask what defines a true prodigy, it was a twenty-year-old youth cleaving Cui Yin!

Looking at Cui Yin, whose physical body was destroyed... Looking at Cui Yin, who remained oblivious to the fact that the sealing power outside the God's Ruins had been broken... Dao Qiongcang, a hero appreciating another, unconsciously shook his head and sighed, finally offering a remarkably fair assessment:

"Interlocking."

"He's a cunning genius."