Chapter 962: Mouth Stubborn to Death "Huangquan"

Teng Shanhai was dumbfounded. He turned his head in utter shock to stare at Mu Lin. "Stop talking!" he thought. "You must be doing this on purpose!"

And sure enough, after Mu Lin's words, Gu Qing'er, who had been wavering between attacking and fleeing, unhesitatingly chose the former.

"'Swords, rise!' he bellowed. On Solitary Sound Cliff, the 129,600 golden swords, which had previously faded, glowed solid once more, responding to his command."

"'Damn it all!' Teng Shanhai slammed a fist into the air, furious beyond measure."

He couldn't roar at Mu Lin, nor could he talk the young swordsman down. After much deliberation, only one course of action remained...

"'Stop him!' Teng Shanhai roared, shooting forward."

Mu Lin, who had anticipated this, instinctively reached out, and black 'God-Annihilating Flames' ignited in his palm, intending to prevent Teng Shanhai from 'harming someone.' But the next second, he caught sight of Gu Qing'er's nervous expression. He immediately abandoned his intention and, with a knowing smile, watched the armored man sprint away.

Meanwhile, as the armored, one-eyed man charged, Gu Qing'er was already gripped by an immense sense of peril. In a sudden surge of adrenaline, he instantly commanded the 129,600 golden swords by the cliff to ascend, then rain down like a torrential storm.

"'You want to kill me? Heh!' Gu Qing'er sneered, his entire aura erupting."

Drawing upon the insights from his recent breakthrough, he willed the countless golden swords to instantly assimilate all surrounding principles, heavenly mechanisms, and elements of the world. They coalesced into a towering golden crown, then descended with crushing force.

"'Absolute Monarchy!' With a thunderous boom, space on Solitary Sound Cliff suddenly shattered, and black spatial rifts consumed everything."

Even the dozen or so Grand Void cultivators present couldn't help but avert their gaze and tremble the moment they first saw the golden crown. Teng Shanhai was no different. As the primary target, his lunging figure was slammed directly to the ground by the golden crown, pinned and unable to move.

"'Damn it, he's just a junior, not Xu Xiaoshou. How can he suppress me...'"

Pinned by the golden crown's overwhelming suppressive force, Teng Shanhai felt a surge of shame, knowing the opportunity was lost. He still had the power to rise and subdue his opponent, but it was too late. In the surrounding space, Teng Shanhai could clearly perceive the internal world's principles of the Heavenly Secret World. Under the crushing might of Gu Qing'er's Myriad Sword Art, 'Absolute Monarchy,' they shattered with a roar!

Within the Heavenly Secret World's inner realm, at the same location and time, two distinct narratives were unfolding simultaneously. Xu Xiaoshou and the others, having been drawn into the inner realm of the Heavenly Secret World, were completely oblivious to external events. Even Situ Yongren, the sole controller of the Heavenly Secret World's inner realm, was at this moment entirely focused on his next objective, having received orders from Rao Yaoyao. With Yellow Springs of Yama present, he couldn't afford to be distracted by outside events. His current mission was to rescue the red-robed Night Watchman captured by Yama.

As he raced towards Yama members Yin Cao Laike and Hundred Ghosts Night Travel, and the Night Watchman held captive by them, Rao Yaoyao charged with her sword towards 'Yama's Yellow Springs.' Behind her, Wang Dachui followed, his target not the Night Watchman, but still Yellow Springs—the only individual present capable of threatening both him and Rao Yaoyao. The remaining law enforcement officers, regardless of their cultivation—Dao Realm, Dao Severing, or Grand Void—all assumed their positions. Without Rao Yaoyao's direct command, they swiftly dispersed and formed the 'Seventy-Two Dragon-Severing Yuan Array' to prevent Yellow Springs and his associates from escaping.

A great battle was about to erupt!

Xu Xiaoshou, in the guise of Yellow Springs, was utterly powerless to prevent Situ Yongren and the others from 'confirming' the Night Watchman's identity. He instinctively thought how wonderful it would be if time would freeze right now, as he was overwhelmed and unable to change the outcome.

And then, he acted.

Xu Xiaoshou, composed amidst the chaos, extended a finger, pinning it to the void. "'Time...' Before he could even utter 'freeze,' Xu Xiaoshou suddenly realized the limitations of his abilities." He had never witnessed Yellow Springs use the 'Time Freeze' technique, nor had he acquired Yellow Springs' blood. Thus, he couldn't use his Imitator ability to extract the understanding of 'Time Freeze' from Yellow Springs' essence. Consequently, halfway through the execution of the technique, Xu Xiaoshou knew he absolutely could not achieve 'Time Freeze!' So, at the last moment, he swiftly changed his words.

"'Time Slowdown!'"

A single, well-executed technique was all he needed. Even if this 'fake' Yellow Springs only knew 'Time Slowdown,' in this critical moment, it proved sufficient. With his command, the Great Dao of Time dominated all, and the 'slowdown' ability enveloped every person within the Heavenly Secret World's inner realm.

Rao Yaoyao's sword-wielding advance slowed... Wang Dachui's grimace abruptly twisted... Even Situ Yongren, attempting to rush to the Night Watchman's aid—despite his ability to control the Heavenly Secret World's inner realm principles—found his actions of retrieving his formation token and attempting to disrupt the rule's influence on everyone agonizingly slow, yet eerily clear.

"'Hmph!' Xu Xiaoshou sneered, his voice like thunder from the highest heavens." He ignored Rao Yaoyao, who was now directly before him. The monstrous aura he had been meticulously cultivating, an aura capable of devouring mountains and rivers, was unleashed flawlessly and entirely upon the distant Situ Yongren.

"'Urgh!' Situ Yongren groaned, as if sensing something, and struggled to turn his head." When his eyes met the gaze beneath the golden mask of Yellow Springs—who remained calmly seated in space even in such a desperate situation—he felt his soul bombarded by an immense force, his mind exploded with a ringing sound, and his thoughts dissolved into a blank void.

"'Damn... it...' 'I... shouldn't... have... turned... to look at him...'"

Situ Yongren's thoughts moved at an excruciatingly slow pace. A jade pendant on his body shattered. The crystalline fragments, with a soft 'pop,' slowly scattered, sparkling and beautiful. His facial muscles, as if struck by a powerful airwave, rippled outward in incredibly slow, concentric circles, twisted and bizarre. His throat pulsed. Situ Yongren involuntarily parted his lips. The next second, dark red blood appeared on his pristine teeth, slowly spraying outwards.

"'Pffft...' 'Sssss...' The eerie crimson slowly stained the world's colors, signaling to everyone that the great battle had begun, the arrow was on the string, and there was no turning back."

"'No time!' Xu Xiaoshou, after his cold snort, hadn't anticipated that his 'Spirit of Devouring Mountains and Rivers' aura—powerful enough to crush Dao Severing wills—would merely shatter a jade pendant on Situ Yongren's body, failing to even knock out the comparatively 'small' Situ Yongren." At this point, he was already struggling to maintain 'Time Slowdown' while also attempting to rescue the 'Night Watchman.' For Rao Yaoyao, no matter how sluggish her movements, her sword tip was already inches from his face!

"'Retreat?' The thought flashed through Xu Xiaoshou's mind." Under the effects of Time Slowdown, he could easily rise from his spatial seat and take a single step back. Even just one step, given the disparity in time, would make it incredibly difficult for Rao Yaoyao and the others to advance their swords even an inch further. But Xu Xiaoshou knew that while he could retreat, his 'Spirit of Devouring Mountains and Rivers' aura could not! If he truly took a single step back, even just one step... not only would the formidable 'overbearing aura' he had just cultivated vanish instantly, leaving Yellow Springs with neither outward intimidation nor inner strength. Even Rao Yaoyao would easily discern his 'Yellow Springs' identity was false and would no longer fear his power. And then... the situation would only worsen, the danger escalate!

Just then, Teardrop seemed to perceive Xu Xiaoshou's predicament. As one of only two individuals on the scene unaffected by the Time Slowdown ability, she moved without hesitation. The law enforcement officers had their allies... but Xu Xiaoshou was not fighting alone either!

In that brief moment, Teardrop ignited her Qi Sea, pushing her abilities to their absolute limit. The Divine-Demonic Eye in her gaze seemed to be fitted with 'time acceleration' gears, spinning rapidly and emitting an immense, swirling black and white mist.

"'Demonic Extreme!' Teardrop's red lips parted, and the power of her right demonic eye unflinchingly targeted Rao Yaoyao, who was advancing." The world seemed to acquire a darker hue, imperceptible to the naked eye. Yet, in the depths of the world perceived by spiritual thought, a magnificent black Nirvana flower blossomed. And at the core of its blossoming petals was Rao Yaoyao, who was charging with her sword towards Yellow Springs.

"'Urgh...' Rao Yaoyao groaned in pain, a flash of black demonic energy in her eyes, her heart seizing with alarm." She had never imagined that she would be affected by the power of a mere Sovereign, especially this 'demonization' force. After all, the first stage of her Red Dust Sword cultivation was 'Red Dust Heart Refinement'—ordinary demonic power could not affect her in the slightest. But the 'Divine-Demonic Eye' was no ordinary power, and this was Teardrop's strength pushed to its limit.

The very next instant after the demonic energy flickered in Rao Yaoyao's eyes, Xu Xiaoshou, in the guise of Yellow Springs, distinctly felt Rao Yaoyao's aura—now extremely close to him—shift profoundly! In an instant, her face cycled through countless expressions. There was the sorrowful grace of a grieving woman, the seductive charm of a temptress, the dignified purity of a celestial maiden... Her seven emotions and six desires merged into a myriad of contradictory states, fully manifesting on Rao Yaoyao.

"'Boom!' In a mere instant, an unending surge of black demonic energy erupted from Rao Yaoyao. She nearly dropped her sword, painfully clutched her head, and her body sagged."

"'This is... the Divine-Demonic Eye's... power?' Wang Dachui, following closely behind Rao Yaoyao, was the first to perceive Rao Yaoyao's state: difficult to demonize due to her Red Dust Heart Refinement, yet once demonized, she became even more uncontrollable and incomprehensible." Under the amplified effects of Time Slowdown, he managed to wrench his head around and glare furiously at the silver-haired Teardrop behind him. "The Lei clan's ocular techniques truly aren't to be underestimated! While everyone's attention was fixed on Yama's Yellow Springs, this young girl had struck them from behind! She cannot be allowed to live!"

As this thought flashed through his mind, the only action Wang Dachui could manage was to bend his knee, attempting to push off the space and propel himself forward with the recoil. By Solitary Sound Cliff, Teardrop's right eye wept tears of blood, and her expression was utterly drained. She detected Wang Dachui's intention to charge at her, but knew that under the influence of Time Slowdown, his actions would certainly not proceed as he wished. The considerable distance between them was enough for her to catch her breath and launch another attack.

"'Divine Fall!' With a hand seal, Teardrop had to rely on forming seals this time to condense her limited spiritual essence." And as she softly uttered 'Divine Fall,' her left eye spun rapidly as before, and white mist instantly enveloped her entire body. In the spiritual perceptions of everyone present, the black Nirvana flower suddenly changed color, turning pure white. And this time, at the heart of the blossom, was Wang Dachui.

"'Boom!' Wang Dachui, who had only managed to complete his knee-raising motion, felt as if his mind had suffered a colossal blow." This gaze from the Divine-Demonic Eye, like a thunder god's hammer, nearly shattered his will on the spot. As the head of the Physical Division, Wang Dachui's body was incredibly robust, but his soul and spiritual fortitude were his weaknesses. And this time, Teardrop's deliberate targeting, with her 'Divine Fall' technique, instantly stripped him of the power to complete any further actions for a brief period. Under the influence of 'Time Slowdown,' even if Teardrop could only hold Rao Yaoyao and Wang Dachui for a single instant, that instant would be infinitely magnified.

"'Well done!' Xu Xiaoshou's heart swelled with exhilaration." But he no longer had time to worry about whether Teardrop would suffer severe repercussions after her eyes bled. He couldn't afford to waste Teardrop's exquisite control, nor could he miss this opportune moment.

Yin Cao Laike, Hundred Ghosts Night Travel, and even the Night Watchman—these three image clones—were completely isolated under the blockade of the 'Seventy-Two Dragon-Severing Yuan Array,' formed by the remaining law enforcement officers. Xu Xiaoshou, originally stretched thin and unable to attend to the image clones, had resigned himself to a full confrontation, assuming they would be discovered. But now, with Rao Yaoyao incapacitated, his combat power was fully unleashed.

Leveraging his profound knowledge from 'Textile Mastery,' Xu Xiaoshou, just as he had instantly found numerous flaws in the copied 'Thirty-Six Heavenly Seal Array' at the Tiansang City Lord's residence, effortlessly pinpointed the weak points of the 'Seventy-Two Dragon-Severing Yuan Array.' Without hesitation, his spiritual thought directly penetrated the array, making contact with the three image clones.

"'Bye-bye.'"

At this, Xu Xiaoshou's mind completely relaxed. As long as his spiritual thought could reach the three image clones, escape would be effortless. Even as Situ Yongren moved at a glacial pace, and under the confused stares of all law enforcement officers who sensed something amiss but couldn't pinpoint its source, Xu Xiaoshou nonchalantly conjured three space-time whirlpools with his spiritual thought, then dissolved the three image clones.

Indeed, they were dissolved instantly!

Image clones were, after all, merely concentrations of spiritual energy. Inactive, they were inert spiritual energy; when activated, they could move and transmit sound by vibrating the air. To dismiss them, one simply needed to disrupt their textile structure, causing the image clones to disintegrate. A simple operation, yet it plunged the many law enforcement officers present into deep despair. They had exerted their utmost effort, even deploying the 'Seventy-Two Dragon-Severing Yuan Array,' yet they were still powerless to prevent Yellow Springs from interfering with his own members and the Night Watchman within the formation.

"'Why?'"

"'Is the array useless against Yellow Springs? Is he a master of formations? Or did he use his abilities to treat this space-time as another parallel world, effortlessly extracting the three, including the Night Watchman?'"

"'Or... from the very beginning, were we and the enemy never truly in the same parallel space-time?'"

The Time Slowdown ability could not halt the profound, horrified introspection of the law enforcement officers. They were seized by panic at Yellow Springs' ability to bypass formations and chilled by Yellow Springs' uncanny abilities themselves. A seemingly flawless individual, paired with a Divine-Demonic Eye wielder capable of controlling even Sword Immortal Rao and Wang Dachui. Where in the world could such a duo not go? From where could they not escape?

The appearance of the three space-time whirlpools shattered everyone's hopes of rescuing the Night Watchman and brought the law enforcement officers' actions to a complete halt. But for Xu Xiaoshou, the true challenge was yet to come! He was certain the Divine-Demonic Eye couldn't control Rao Yaoyao and Wang Dachui for much longer. The 'Time Slowdown' ability, capable of stretching a fleeting moment into an eternity, was now becoming unsustainable for him, having been maintained for too long.

"'Swish!' Just before his spiritual essence was completely depleted, Xu Xiaoshou terminated the time ability." Panic churned within him, yet his eyes calmly swept over everyone present. He unhurriedly leaned back into the void, then spoke with a playful, utterly composed tone, as if fully in control of the scene:

"'Everyone, do you still wish to fight?'"