I almost forgot about you, you rat!

'Clang! Clang!'

With a wave of Ye Qing's hand, two more treasures glowing with radiant light flew out.

One was a set of azure armor emitting a dense aura of vitality—the [Taiyi Azure Wood Armor]! A seventh-grade Peak Grade defensive Dao Artifact!

The other was a heavy, ancient-looking black shield—the [Mystic Turtle Heart-Protecting Shield]! A seventh-grade High Grade defensive Dao Artifact!

Ye Qing put the armor on and held the shield in front of him.

Although he didn't speak,

his meaning was already quite obvious—

'You're going to detonate?'

'Why don't you detonate one for me to see?'

'Can you even do anything to me?'

'Hmm?'

'...'

'...'

At this moment,

whether it was the Boundless Supreme Venerable or the three Dao Artifact Artifact Spirits who wanted to run away,

they all felt a suffocating 'aura of a tycoon' hitting them square in the face.

For a while, their words faltered, and they actually didn't know what to say.

The Boundless Supreme Venerable's face turned green.

He had originally thought that holding two Dao Artifacts would be enough to bully others and sweep everything aside.

But... he never dreamed he would face such an unreasonable situation!

This is cheating!

Blatant cheating!

Is no one going to do anything about him???

And at this time,

the kunwu mirror, which was originally prepared to leave, also flew back dejectedly.

It wasn't that it didn't want to run,

but because it sadly discovered

that the space around this place had been completely sealed off by the [Divine Void Bracelet] floating in the air!

Furthermore,

the [Taiyi Five Elements Formation Diagram] had also unfolded, turning into a grand formation that sealed the world once again!

And then there was that Gengjin Sword Qi Formation Diagram... simply put, at this moment, there was no way up to heaven and no door into the earth!

Without Ye Qing's permission, no one could get out of here!

'That...'

The kunwu mirror trembled, and after hesitating for a moment, it lost all its previous arrogance and made a humble request:

'Se... Senior...'

'Spare me...'

'I am willing to abandon Boundless... and follow you...'

However,

Ye Qing's eyes were slightly cold, and he didn't even spare it a glance.

After all,

'Who would want a dog that betrays its master?'

He looked at the ten Dao Artifact Artifact Spirits around him that had fully recovered and were emitting a terrifying pressure.

He spoke slowly,

saying only one word:

'Kill!'

As the word fell,

'Boom—!!!'

Ten Dao Artifacts roared in unison!

Blinding light instantly submerged the world before the Boundless Supreme Venerable's eyes!

Above the wilderness, ten suns hung in the sky.

Under the world-destroying terrifying pressure of the ten Dao Artifacts, the Boundless Supreme Venerable along with his two Dao Artifacts,

as well as that overbearing nine dragons bloodthirsty spear,

were instantly suppressed until they couldn't move at all!

'Boom!'

There was no suspense.

In the instant the ten Dao Artifacts roared together, the Boundless Supreme Venerable didn't even have time to let out a scream.

His Physical Body, along with his Divine Soul, was directly torn into nothingness by that violent torrent of energy!

He completely disappeared from this world.

The leader of a top-tier power had fallen just like that, dying without even a trace left.

'Buzz! Buzz!'

Having lost their master's control, the kunwu mirror and the seven treasures purple gold gourd instantly lost their will to fight.

They trembled, letting out bursts of mournful cries.

The nine dragons bloodthirsty spear still tried to resist a bit, while those two Dao Artifacts directly sent out humble Divine Thoughts begging for mercy.

However,

'Resisting? Begging for mercy?'

Ye Qing's expression was indifferent, and he remained unmoved.

'If I had lost just now, would you have given me a chance to beg for mercy?'

'Since you've made your move, then be prepared to be wiped out.'

This was a truth that shouldn't need teaching.

With a thought from Ye Qing,

the next instant,

'Dragon Soul Sword, strike!'

'Qiang—!'

The eighth-grade Low Grade Dao Artifact [Dragon Soul Sword] floating in the air instantly let out a Dragon's roar that shook the Nine Heavens!

A Golden Dragon Sword Qi containing the ultimate slaughtering power whistled out!

'Puff! Puff! Puff!'

Three soft sounds.

The highly intelligent Artifact Spirits within those three items were instantly annihilated by this Sword Qi!

The three top-tier treasures, having lost their Artifact Spirits, also dimmed in light and fell from the sky.

Ye Qing reached out and took them all into his possession.

'Although the Artifact Spirits are gone, the material of the bodies is still there, so they can still be considered Pseudo-Dao Artifacts. It'll be a good choice to refine them again or cultivate new Artifact Spirits after going back.'

After doing all this,

Ye Qing's heart suddenly stirred.

He felt the cultivation base within his body, which had long been boiling, finally break through a certain Bottleneck after today's hearty battle.

'It seems I'm about to have a Breakthrough?'

A flash of joy appeared in Ye Qing's eyes.

'This place is not suitable for a long stay.'

He glanced at the ravaged battlefield, and with a flash of his body, he turned into a streak of light.

He quickly returned toward Flowing Cloud City.

'Go back and enter seclusion for a Breakthrough first.'

'After the Breakthrough...'

Killing intent flashed in Ye Qing's eyes:

'I'll go to the Western Heaven Prefecture and pull them up by the roots!'

'I can let innocent Cultivators go, but the direct lineage of the Boundless Supreme Venerable's branch... must all be exterminated!'

Whoever dares to resist, dies!

... Flowing Cloud City.

When Ye Qing's figure reappeared above the City Lord's Manor,

the Cultivators of the entire Flowing Cloud City erupted!

Although they hadn't seen the specific battle process due to the distance and the sealing of the battlefield,

the terrifying energy fluctuations coming from the distant horizon and the terrifying pressure that felt like the world was overturning had already scared them out of their wits.

Even taking a look toward the battlefield,

they felt their hearts tremble with horror.

Not only could they see nothing, but their eyes even felt a burst of stinging pain!

Everyone had thought Ye Qing was in grave danger and was in despair.

But now... Ye Qing had actually returned!

And looking at him, he didn't seem to have any major injuries.

It seemed that not only had he won, but he had also won quite easily?

'Heavens! City Lord Ye won?!'

'One person... facing three Dao Artifacts and a terrifying expert... and he actually won?!'

'Is this real?!'

Deafening cheers instantly broke out throughout the city.

While some were happy, they were also completely baffled and couldn't help but scratch their heads and ask:

'How exactly did he win? I can't figure it out no matter how hard I think!'

A 'know-it-all' nearby immediately speculated:

'It would be strange if you could figure it out! But what's so hard to guess?'

'It must be because of the Holy Academy!'

'City Lord Ye is such a Prodigy and the representative of the Holy Academy, how could the Holy Academy let him go to the Demon Domain Battlefield empty-handed?'

'I guess...'

The person said with a face of certainty:

'The Holy Academy must have privately bestowed a Dao Artifact to City Lord Ye for protection!'

'It must be so!'

'That's why he could win!'

Hearing this, everyone thought for a moment and nodded one after another, feeling that this explanation sounded very reasonable.

'So that's it! But City Lord Ye is still very fierce!'

'I feel the Holy Academy bestowed at most one Dao Artifact!'

'To be able to win even so, City Lord Ye is so strong!'

... In the secret room of the City Lord's Manor.

Ye Qing didn't know about the discussions outside.

The Holy Academy bestowed a Dao Artifact?

Of course the Holy Academy didn't, after all, the Holy Academy hadn't expected that the Boundless Supreme Venerable would be so insane as to bring two Dao Artifacts to assassinate Ye Qing.

Of course, none of that mattered anymore.

At this moment, Ye Qing sat cross-legged and immediately entered a state of seclusion.

After some time.

'Boom!'

A peerlessly powerful aura erupted from Ye Qing's body, instantly sweeping through the entire secret room!

Soul Transformation, Seventh Layer!

Ye Qing opened his eyes, and two golden lights shot out.

He clenched his fists, feeling the terrifying power surging like an ocean within his body.

'Finally... my cultivation has reached the Late Stage of Soul Transformation.'

'If I don't use various trump cards...'

'My current regular combat power has already firmly stepped into the level of a Late Stage Void Returning Realm Cultivator!'

'If I use all my means...'

A cold smile curled at the corner of Ye Qing's mouth:

'To be modest.'

'I presume that even facing a true Dao Integration Cultivator, I would have the strength to fight!'

And now, since I've had a Breakthrough,

it's time to go do some serious business.

'Western Heaven Prefecture...'

Ye Qing stood up, preparing to leave seclusion and head to the Western Heaven Prefecture to settle the Karma.

However,

just then,

'Hmm?'

Ye Qing's heart suddenly stirred, and he abruptly turned his head to look at a certain spot in the Void Realm.

His eyes narrowed slightly, and a cold light appeared.

'Someone is trying to spy on me?'

Just at that moment,

he keenly perceived a very subtle and malicious sense of being watched.

Someone was looking from the shadows!

... At the same time.

Deep in the Demon Domain, in a dead land shrouded in thick demon mist.

The Sacred Sovereign sat solemnly with his eyes closed.

A wisp of his soul fragment consciousness was lurking in the demon mist.

It had quietly arrived near Flowing Cloud City.

Earlier, he had sensed that a large number of the 'Demon Seed Puppets' he had painstakingly refined were being discovered and cleared near Flowing Cloud City, causing him heavy losses.

Subsequently, he sensed that near this area,

extremely terrifying battle fluctuations had erupted, and there was even the aura of Dao Artifacts.

'Who exactly is ruining my plans?'

Out of caution, the Sacred Sovereign used the pervasive demon mist as cover and extended his consciousness over, wanting to take a look.

As a result,

this look gave him a huge shock!

'There's Ye Qing's aura here?!'

'Is this that boy's base?'

Intense killing intent immediately rose in the Sacred Sovereign's heart!

Ye Qing, that bastard boy who was always ruining his plans!

The more he thought about it, the angrier he got.

New and old grudges surged into his heart at this moment, and the Sacred Sovereign forced himself to calm down, preparing to carefully investigate Ye Qing's current situation.

However,

just then,

'What?!'

The Sacred Sovereign was shocked!

His soul fragment suddenly had a feeling of being targeted by a hunter, and a hair-raising sensation instantly washed over his entire body!

After he focused his investigation,

he was shocked to find that his spying consciousness, which was merged into the endless demon mist and should have been seamless... was actually being dead-locked by an ice-cold gaze across the endless demon mist!

'How... how is this possible?!'

The Sacred Sovereign was in disbelief.

'In this Demon Domain Battlefield, my consciousness is mixed with the demon mist, like a fish in water. Even a Void Returning Realm Cultivator should find it very hard to detect!'

'There's no Void Returning Realm Cultivator here, so who could have discovered me?'

'Wait...'

'Could it be... Ye Qing?!'

'He... he has actually grown to this level?!'

Stormy waves rose in the Sacred Sovereign's heart.

How long had it been since they last met?

This boy's perception had actually become so terrifying?

While the Sacred Sovereign was still in shock and found it somewhat hard to accept,

an indifferent voice seemed to cross space and rang directly in his ear:

'So it was you, you rat.'

'I almost forgot about you.'

Before the voice had even faded,

'Swish!'

A brilliant Sword Qi followed the line of sight of that spying gaze and instantly slashed over!

'Puff!'

The Sacred Sovereign's wisp of spying consciousness didn't even have a chance to react.

It was directly annihilated on the spot by this brilliant Sword Qi!

... Deep in the Demon Domain, in an underground palace.

'Ugh!'

The Sacred Sovereign's original body, sitting on the throne, suddenly let out a muffled groan, his face turning slightly pale.

He opened his eyes, which were full of rage and gloom.

'Brat!'

'You're looking for death!'

He, the dignified Sacred Sovereign, had actually had a wisp of his soul fragment consciousness slashed by a young boy?

It was a great humiliation!

But at the same time,

the Sacred Sovereign's brow also furrowed tightly.

Because through that brief glimpse just now, he had noticed Flowing Cloud City where Ye Qing was located.

That city... was built too well!

Its defenses were tight, the people's hearts were united, and it even had that kind of purification method specifically designed to restrain Devilish Qi.

It was like a nail, firmly driven into the edge of the Demon Domain!

'If I send people to destroy this city...'

'I'm afraid it would take a lot of manpower and energy, and the loss might outweigh the gain.'

The Sacred Sovereign calculated in his heart:

'Moreover, Flowing Cloud City is just a marginal area of the Demon Domain Battlefield, its geographical location is not important.'

'Going to such lengths for such a marginal small city is not in line with my original strategic layout.'

'But...'

Thinking of Ye Qing's arrogant attitude and that Flowing Cloud City might pose a threat if it continued to develop,

and the Sacred Sovereign really couldn't swallow this insult and wanted to eliminate Ye Qing as soon as possible,

'What should I do?'

For a moment,

the Sacred Sovereign couldn't help but fall into contemplation and hesitation.

Disregard the strategic layout and directly send people to kill Ye Qing?

Or, endure it a bit longer?

... Flowing Cloud City.

Ye Qing withdrew his gaze, his eyes cold.

'Sacred Sovereign...'

Originally,

he had planned to go directly to the Western Heaven Prefecture after leaving seclusion to pull them up by the roots and solve the remaining issues of the Boundless Supreme Venerable.

But now,

'Since you, old thing, have taken the initiative to jump out and look for trouble...'

'Then I'll kill you first!'

Ye Qing instantly changed his plan.

Compared to the Western Heaven Prefecture, which had already lost its Dao Artifacts and its status as a top-tier power,

this Sacred Sovereign, who had been hiding in the shadows stirring up trouble and colluding with the Demon Race, was the true great menace!

'It can't be delayed any longer.'

'I must resolve this disaster as soon as possible!'

Ye Qing made a prompt decision.

He quickly made some arrangements in Flowing Cloud City.

Flowing Cloud City was already built strong enough and had a complete defense system.

But just to be safe,

Ye Qing left a seventh-grade Dao Artifact—the [Mystic Turtle Heart-Protecting Shield]—as a city-guarding treasure in secret.

And he set up a special trigger mechanism.

Once Flowing Cloud City encountered an irresistible danger, this Dao Artifact would automatically recover and protect the entire city!

'Everything is arranged.'

'It's also time to set off.'

Ye Qing took a deep breath.

'Boom!'

He leaped up, turning into a radiant streak, and went straight into the sky!

This time,

he didn't bring any Disciples, nor did he bring any other Cultivators.

He went alone!

Into the depths of the Demon Domain!

He didn't plan to waste any more time in this Demon Domain Battlefield.

First he was ambushed by the Boundless Supreme Venerable, and now he was being spied on by the Sacred Sovereign.

The anger accumulated in Ye Qing's heart

had already reached the edge of eruption!

There were too many petty matters, too complicated, and too annoying!

He would break through them all with a single sword stroke!

'Deep into the Demon Domain!'

'Destroy the Teleportation Formations! Slay the Demon Race! Annihilate the Sacred Sovereign!'

Killing intent boiled in Ye Qing's eyes, and his figure was like lightning as he charged straight into the depths of the Demon Domain!

'Along the way...'

'I will kill whoever stands in my way! If a demon blocks me, I will slay the demon!'

'After quickly annihilating the trouble here...'

'I will go to the Western Heaven Prefecture and pull them up by the roots!'