Chapter 582: Spread Wings, Wings of Freedom

Rain pattered. From the sky, rain fell, and the land below lay barren.

Empty, shattered space, and a sky largely inked by darkness, echoed this bizarre and contradictory world of the White Cave.

People saw no hope. The world, too, was devoid of life.

"Is he dead?" Xu Xiaoshou, in his form as a dark giant, found it increasingly difficult to suppress his emotions with the continuous and abundant infusion of demonic energy from the Four Swords.

Even though he knew the most favorable and kindest option for him at this moment was to release the Four Swords he held, could he?

Looking down, as the wind whistled past, the disheveled Red-Clothed Watchman, whose body parts were scattered, suddenly disintegrated like a fleeting illusion.

Black specks floated away with the wind, scattering onto the pockmarked land without eliciting the slightest echo.

Silence. The world suddenly fell silent. Aside from the rhythmic, murmuring rain from the horizon, there was nothing else.

The Watchman was gone. If he had merely been severed by a black sword thought and died a straightforward death, he couldn't have disintegrated so completely.

At the very least, a dismembered corpse should have remained, right? That meant...

Under Watch, Passive Point: 1. Thump! As his spiritual sense caught this information, Xu Xiaoshou's heart pounded like a muffled drum, and he instantly vanished from his spot, transforming into nothingness.

"Xu Xiaoshou...""Well, well, Xu Xiaoshou!"

The voice emerged from an unknown source, suddenly coming from all directions, converging at one point, and reverberating with echoes.

The Watchman's figure did not appear. However, his emotions, filled with astonishment and shock, were fully revealed through the scattering, fading voice.

"Where are you?" Xu Xiaoshou panicked.

He didn't believe a mere sword thought could allow him to transcend so many major realms and directly kill a Path-Cutting expert.

But now, hearing the Watchman's voice yet seeing no trace of him, the other party might not even have sustained a minor injury.

That meant his so-called full-force attack was completely ineffective against him?

"Vanish, do not appear!" Xu Xiaoshou, maintaining his vanishing technique, was now cautious even when taking a step or glancing back, fearing what abilities a Path-Cutting expert might possess to break through his awakened skill.

There was no response. Fortunately, the Watchman seemed not to have detected him.

But this "Watch"... Xu Xiaoshou was panicking, truly panicking.

The other party didn't appear. His own 'Perception' seemed to have completely lost its effect at this moment, and he could no longer pinpoint the source of the fading voice.

Under Watch, Passive Point: 1.

"Xu Xiaoshou, this old man is truly startled by you," the Watchman's voice reappeared. "I must say, your growth, your strength, your spiritual skills..."

"Each and every one is rarely seen in this old man's lifetime."

"In you, this old man can even glimpse a trace of the Eighth Sword Immortal's awe-inspiring presence from back then."

"A mere White Cave, a mere Tiansang County, cannot confine you."

"Once you step out of this forgotten corner of the world, everyone will be astonished by you."

"But!" The Watchman's voice paused, echoes lingering in the void, then he changed his tone, asking, "But why must you walk this path?"

His voice was filled with a sense of frustrated disappointment:

"This old man has told you more than once: Those who were like you, who considered themselves extraordinary, already fell decades, centuries, or even millennia ago."

"Your path has long been trodden by others!"

"And not just once!"

"Why won't you awaken?" With this final thunderous roar, space rippled in a certain part of the sky, and the Watchman's figure appeared.

In a tattered red robe, with half the sky inked black, he gazed at the empty space before him. Behind him, not even a glimmer of dawn was visible.

"Oh, Xu Xiaoshou, Xu Xiaoshou..." The Watchman shook his head and chuckled with a sigh, "You are merely at the Innate stage. Do you truly believe the gap in realms can be bridged by forcefully relying on external power?"

"There!" Xu Xiaoshou swiftly took a 'Step to Heaven' and instantly swung the Four Swords before the Watchman could even react.

Only when it neared his neck did he emerge from his vanishing state. The Watchman's pupils abruptly constricted.

The next second, swoosh! Blood splattered everywhere as a single sword decapitated him.

"Hahahahaha..." But dark specks fell once more, and arrogant laughter echoed from the sky again.

The Watchman's figure reappeared, this time on the other side.

Xu Xiaoshou turned, glaring angrily, and lightly drew the Four Swords from his hand. Swish! The void suddenly fractured.

The terrifying speed of his 'Sword Drawing Technique' instantly tore through the void, directly cleaving the Watchman on the other side into two.

"Hahahahaha..." Nightmarish laughter mockingly rained down as the dark specks burst forth.

Xu Xiaoshou's mind became somewhat muddled. He felt he had fallen under an illusion.

But 'Perception' could see through illusions. After each strike, he could also feel that what he touched was a genuine, real body.

The Watchman was dead! Yet he was still alive!

"What in the world is going on?" He dared not think further.

When another Watchman reappeared, Xu Xiaoshou chose to vanish. He was scared.

If this old man couldn't be killed, then what was the meaning of his futile actions?

"Oh, Xu Xiaoshou, Xu Xiaoshou..." The Watchman said, "This old man can let you kill him, let you try, but you've exhausted all your means, and in the end, it's all for naught."

"Vanishing?" The Watchman lowered his head, chuckled with a sigh, and sneered, "How long can your vanishing technique last?"

"Such a spiritual skill, defying the Heavenly Dao, impossible for a mere Innate stage cultivator to possess—how long can you maintain it?"

"Once your spiritual energy is depleted, what will you use to withstand this old man's single finger?"

"By your glib tongue, or your so-called will?"

Xu Xiaoshou's body stiffened. He looked within his Qi Sea, and it was nearly depleted.

The vanishing technique consumed too much spiritual energy. That's why he immediately canceled it every time he used it.

But now, if he didn't use it, Xu Xiaoshou would surely die!

But if he did use it, even if he was 'full of vigor', he wouldn't be able to hold on, and when his spiritual energy was completely drained...

Xu Xiaoshou recalled the first time he experimented with 'Step to Heaven'. Back then, when his spiritual energy was depleted, he fell directly from the void.

One could imagine, once the Raging Giant's form was dispelled and his spiritual platform was undefended, he wouldn't even need to fall, nor would the Watchman need to strike. The Four Swords alone could directly claim his life!

"Xu Xiaoshou!" The Watchman's sudden furious rebuke directly interrupted Xu Xiaoshou's thoughts.

He indignantly raised his hands and slammed them fiercely into the void.

"This old man isn't killing you because he sees potential in you; this old man admires you, giving you chance after chance after chance."

"But why do you always disappoint me?"

"You can indeed catch this old man off guard and kill him."

"But..." The Watchman angrily flung his hands, and the torn strips of fabric on his body violently trembled.

"If one of me dies, thousands upon thousands more will emerge."

"This old man can give you a chance, but they won't. Do you understand?"

Amidst the boundless darkness, countless red lights suddenly illuminated the scene. Upon closer inspection, they were countless Watchmen, an endless multitude of red-robed figures.

"Innate stage?" "Path-Cutting?" The countless red-robed Watchmen, identical in expression and synchronized in movement, all wore mocking expressions and spoke with derision:

"This old man cut the Path on the Saint God Continent; the Path itself couldn't confine this old man. How can a mere Innate stage cultivator speak of killing me?"

"And you?" Tens of thousands of red-robed figures laughed uproariously, and only after a long time did they say, "You can't even break out of the White Cave's world, you need to disguise your pursuit of freedom, you haven't even transcended the Heavenly Dao's cage yet..."

"You want to kill me?" The Watchman suppressed his smile and said with a solemn expression, "If the Path isn't broken, you're a bird in a cage; if sainthood isn't established, you're a delusional dreamer... What can you, Xu Xiaoshou, a mere Innate stage cultivator, possibly achieve?"

Xu Xiaoshou took a deep breath and abruptly emerged from his vanishing state. In an instant, the dark giant, radiating dense demonic energy, reappeared in the void.

Facing the Watchman head-on once more, Xu Xiaoshou felt completely unburdened inside. "Where the heart desires, charge ahead without hesitation."

His deep, husky voice, like a subwoofer, reverberated throughout the void, its echoes lingering.

"Hahahahaha! Good! What a 'Where the heart desires, charge ahead without hesitation'!" The Watchman burst into laughter, slowly extending a single finger.

Instantly, space trembled and heaven and earth cracked, just as he had said before.

With just one finger, and merely a wisp of white mist spiraling upward, a desolate, unparalleled aura emanated from it, enveloping the dark giant across from him in a heavy gloom.

"Your words are pleasant to hear," the Watchman said softly, "but then, how can you withstand the power of this old man's single finger?"

"You wouldn't dare!" Xu Xiaoshou declared with conviction. "You wouldn't dare kill me; you wouldn't dare disturb this world."

"Given the precarious state of the White Cave, you wouldn't even dare use an extra shred of your Path-Cutting power."

"Because you're afraid!" The Watchman's face twitched upon hearing this.

Under Gaze, Passive Point: 1.

Xu Xiaoshou continued, "A battle at the Sovereign level can already affect, or even lead to the collapse of, the original White Cave world."

"And in the current state of the White Cave, even without a Sovereign-level battle, just a tiny bit of power exceeding the Sovereign level could potentially become the straw that breaks the camel's back."

"You, Watchman, might perhaps escape the White Cave's explosion."

"But what about your companions?" The Watchman's eyes narrowed, and his killing intent surged.

Under Glare, Passive Point: 1.

"Ultimately, you can't let go." Xu Xiaoshou's voice softened. "Like me, you also have attachments; it's just that our factions and choices differ."

"If the White Cave explodes, the Storyteller won't make it easy for the Red-Clothed."

"He could secretly intervene, a slight pull, and all the Red-Clothed near the great formation would be wiped out without anyone knowing."

"Therefore, you wouldn't dare!" Xu Xiaoshou raised the sword in his hand horizontally, and with a sweep of his gaze, the sword intent and aura between heaven and earth pushed back the Watchman's killing intent.

"If you, Watchman, use Path-Cutting level power to kill me, your companions will die."

"But if you use Sovereign level power to kill me, I, Xu Xiaoshou, will not die."

"The reason you're wasting so many words on me is because you're powerless to do anything but talk!"

"Hahahaha..." Xu Xiaoshou, imitating the Watchman, threw his head back and laughed. He even directly dispelled his Raging Giant form, firmly gripping the Four Swords in his hand with a spiritual energy barrier, and then said:

"Though you have cut the Path, this mere White Cave also holds you captive."

"Though I am at the Innate stage, I stand firm here, willing to die but not be defeated!"

"You, and I..." Xu Xiaoshou gestured between them, "within this small White Cave, are no different at all. It's merely a fight of trapped beasts, a clown's act with beads—nothing more."

The scene fell silent.

Under Glare, Passive Point: 1.Under Awe, Passive Point: 1.Under Admiration, Passive Point: 1.

The Watchman smiled. He smiled silently. What he most admired about Xu Xiaoshou was never the dazzling array of spiritual skills the young man possessed.

Rather, it was his eloquence, his way of thinking, and his ability to always maintain clear and rational judgment amidst chaos.

Indeed! Xu Xiaoshou was absolutely right!

The precarious White Cave could no longer withstand even the slightest damage from a Path-Cutting or Sovereign level expert.

Once the battle here escalated and caused the White Cave to collapse, feedback would reach the Sword Grasslands, and the Storyteller would undoubtedly know everything.

After all, he was pursuing the so-called 'Second Saint Servant', and the Storyteller's memory of Xu Xiaoshou still lingered on his identity as the 'Second Saint Servant'.

The feedback from this battle to that side would be that the Watchman had caught up, and the Saint Servants had intervened.

But the Watchman would certainly not be able to defeat the Second Saint Servant. That would mean a Saint Servant had killed a Red-Clothed, touching a Path-Cutting expert, a high-ranking member of the Saint God Temple!

This enmity would be forged. Lan Ling and the others would also know. And then, they would have to be silenced!

The Storyteller would never allow the Red-Clothed to return to the Saint God Continent with such information.

And even in another scenario, even if the Watchman defeated the Second Saint Servant, setting aside whether that's even possible...

The consequences of that battle would surely mean the Storyteller would have to come as reinforcement. Once the Red-Clothed and Saint Servants truly came to blows, would the Storyteller, before arriving, allow the Red-Clothed on the Sword Grasslands to plan something behind his back?

"You're too smart," the Watchman smiled and lowered his finger. "This old man sometimes even suspects that you, Xu Xiaoshou, have been possessed by some old monster."

"You flatter me." Xu Xiaoshou flipped his hand, retracting the famed sword. With a squeeze of his five fingers, five fire seeds leaped forth from his fingertips.

He continued, "You, Watchman, have concerns, but I, Xu Xiaoshou, don't have so many rules."

"You have your convictions, and I have mine."

"And my conviction is simply that I don't want to go with you; I just want to... live."

Xu Xiaoshou's gaze bypassed the Watchman and saw this dark, desolate, lifeless world.

He flipped his left hand again, and the Four Swords were put away. Then, he opened his fist, and a dazzling ice lotus bloomed in his palm.

Ice in his left hand, fire in his right. At this moment, even the Watchman was astonished again.

"Two more abilities..." The Watchman mumbled, bewildered. "The Original Ember Seed, Three-Day Frost Calamity? Are they truly all in his possession?"

The destructive aura emanating from the ice in his left hand and fire in his right resisted each other, yet, under Xu Xiaoshou's mediating influence, subtly began to merge like the Taiji symbol.

At the point where ice and fire met, gray energy intermingled, forming a misty haze. A scene instantly flashed through the Watchman's mind: the Spiritual Melting Lake ravaged beyond recognition.

Weren't these two powers precisely the dual ice and fire phenomena, forming opposing corners at the Spiritual Melting Lake?

"So that's it, so that's it..." The Watchman instantly understood, and a hint of panic finally appeared in his eyes. "Xu Xiaoshou, what are you trying to do?!"

"What am I trying to do..." Xu Xiaoshou murmured in a mocking tone. He abruptly lifted his head, his eyes filled with madness.

"I can't kill you, Watchman, but as long as I blow up this White Cave, I can still escape!"

He abruptly brought his hands together, forcibly merging the powers of the Original Ember Seed and Three-Day Frost Calamity.

Back then, he had only experimented with half of this spiritual skill in his Yuanfu and had abandoned it midway because the Yuanfu space couldn't withstand even a fraction of its explosive power.

Now, Xu Xiaoshou had nothing to worry about. Ice and fire intertwined, a mournful song filled the air.

With just a single touch between the two vastly different powers, the heavenly and earthly rules of this White Cave world, like the dao patterns of a spiritual formation, suddenly lit up and rapidly spread in all directions.

Like free wings, with Xu Xiaoshou as the center, one side blue, one side white, in heaven and earth... unfurling!