364: Destiny intervenes.

[Only then did the countless Cultivators in the city dare to raise their heads and cast their gazes fully toward the firmament, wanting to see the outcome clearly.]

["Is it... over?"]

["What was that silver light? Who won in the end?"]

[Many low-level Cultivators only saw a blinding flash of silver light and a few blurred shadows chasing and flickering; they couldn't see what happened at all, much less know who won or lost.]

[Only a few Cultivators whose cultivation had reached the Spirit Transformation Realm, along with Lin Feng who had been watching the battle with rapt attention, saw everything that happened in that lightning-fast moment clearly.]

[Lin Feng stood in the courtyard with his hands behind his back, his figure still tall and straight. But looking closely, the fingers hidden in his sleeves were actually trembling slightly.]

[He gazed at the giant silver beast in the sky, then looked at you standing there with your sword, stormy waves surging in his usually calm eyes. His voice was low, sounding as if it were squeezed from the depths of his throat:]

["What... kind of Yao Beast is that?"]

[The City Lord, Dugu Yan, was now frozen stiff on the flying eaves, his lips moving but unable to make a single sound.]

[He originally thought he had glimpsed the 'height of the heavens,' but now he realized that what he saw earlier was just the tip of the iceberg.]

[The scene before him—reversing the world, a sword slashing a Void Refining true body, and a giant beast hunting down several Spirit Transformation experts—had completely exceeded the understanding of his several thousand years of cultivation.]

[He almost didn't even have the courage to 'think' anymore.]

[After all, he himself was a Spirit Transformation expert.]

[Seeing six Spirit Transformation experts being hunted by a single Yao Beast left him with an indescribable feeling in his heart.]

[Inside the courtyard,]

[Xia Zhiwei gripped the hem of her clothes tightly, her fingertips turning white from the force.]

[Her body trembled uncontrollably, yet a terrifying light erupted in her eyes, her voice filled with an excitement that sounded like sobbing:]

["He... he actually... survived! He really survived!"]

[Jiang He, even more lost in the moment, gripped Xuanyuan Yi's arm so hard her nails almost dug into the flesh.]

[She was completely oblivious to it, merely tilting her head back and murmuring over and over, her voice growing louder until it became a choked shout:]

["Husband! He's alive! He's still alive! He won! He won!!!"]

[Xuanyuan Yi was as stunned as a wooden chicken, his mouth hanging open wide enough to fit an egg, staring blankly at the horizon as if his soul had flown away.]

[It wasn't until Jiang He shook him vigorously and called out to him that he slowly regained his senses.]

[An indescribable surge of heat suddenly rushed to his head, making his face flush red and his throat move, yet he was too excited to say a single word.]

[The entire city was first met with a deathly silence.]

[Then, like a volcano suppressed for ten million years, it erupted with a bang!]

["Won... he won?! He won!!!"]

[It was unknown who first roared out with a sobbing tone, but it instantly ignited the entire Immortal City.]

["Wuwuwu, he won, he's still alive..."]

["Won! He really won! This is great! This is wonderful!!"]

[Some waved their arms frantically, tears gushing out like a broken dam, flowing freely.]

["Hahahaha! Liu Clan Immortal Family! You have this day too! Did you see that? Even you have times when you suffer! Gratifying! Truly gratifying!!"]

[Some laughed toward the sky, acting as if they were mad, pouring out all the fear and resentment toward the Liu Clan that had been suppressed for who knows how long.]

["Wuwuwu..."]

[Still others crouched directly on the ground, holding their heads and weeping bitterly.]

[It was as if the one who won wasn't you, but themselves—as if the countless humble Cultivators shrouded in the shadow of the Liu Clan had finally seen a ray of light tearing through the darkness.]

[Countless people looked up at your figure standing alone in the sky, trembling with excitement, their eyes filled with hot tears.]

[Cheers, shouts, and bitter weeping converged together, becoming a world-shaking wave of sound that rushed straight into the clouds.]

[The inspiration and high spirits of this moment were more violent and pure than if they had obtained a peerless Opportunity or achieved a Breakthrough in cultivation themselves!]

[Just as the whole city was boiling and tens of thousands of Cultivators were in high spirits—]

[The color on your face suddenly drained away completely.]

[You stopped the hand controlling Liu Xuanyin's three Spirit Treasures.]

[An indescribable, irresistible force enveloped you without any warning.]

[It wasn't Spiritual Pressure, nor was it might; it was the 'will' of this world itself. It was as if the entire firmament had turned into an invisible giant hand, gently clutching you in its palm.]

[You didn't even have time to make any reaction.]

[Your Physical Body began to disintegrate from the most minute level of particles.]

[Skin, muscle, and bone, like a weathered sand sculpture, turned into fly ash inch by inch, silently dissipating into the air.]

[At the same time,]

[Your powerful and resilient Primordial Spirit was also like ice exposed to the scorching sun, forcibly eroded and erased by a higher, more fundamental power, dimming bit by bit toward annihilation.]

[Following the source of this destructive power, your Divine Thought struggled to cast itself into the depths of the Void Realm.]

[There, you 'saw' a pair of eyes.]

[Cold, indifferent, like stars hanging high for eternity, looking down at the struggles of ants.]

[Deep within those eyes, there was even a trace of theater-watching, extremely faint interest.]

[Venerable Tianming had taken action.]

[The Mahayana stage truly lived up to its reputation.]

[The Laws of heaven and earth were completely controlled by the opponent; you had no power to fight back.]

[As your Physical Body dissipated faster and faster, you instead calmed down.]

[In the final instant before your Primordial Spirit was completely annihilated, you looked toward the depths of the Void Realm, the corner of your mouth even pulling into a faint, almost mocking curve of indifference.]

[Your final Divine Thought rippled toward that coldness like a wave:]

["Old man Heavenly Mandate..."]

["A rat who only dares to hide in the gutter... finally willing to show your head?"]

[From above the firmament came a voice so indifferent it lacked any emotion, as if the Heavenly Dao itself were passing judgment:]

["Your fate has ended, your Karma is finished."]

["This Venerable follows the Heavenly Mandate to exterminate you and rectify this world."]

["Go in peace."]

[As the voice fell, your last bit of resistance vanished.]

[Your Physical Body completely turned to powder, scattering with the wind.]

[The light of your Primordial Spirit dimmed to the limit, like a burnt-out wick, letting out a soft 'poof' as it completely annihilated into nothingness.]

[A weak, about-to-dissipate Remnant Soul barely maintained a final sliver of consciousness as it drifted out.]

[You 'saw' below that Qin Han's hundred-zhang giant body had frozen in place.]

[In those giant eyes that were originally agile and cunning but were now wide and round, there was first a shock of disbelief, followed by a boundless, almost material sadness.]

[Crystal-clear tears rolled down from its eye sockets in large drops, hitting the ground and splashing into puddles of misty Spiritual Qi.]

["Dad... Daddy?"]

[It let out a short whimper, filled with the helplessness of a young beast.]

[Following that was a heart-wrenching wail as if it were going to cry its heart and lungs out:]

["Waaaaaa——!!"]

["Daddy...!"]

["Don't... wuwuwuwu..."]

[That crying sound pierced the clouds, carrying the most primitive and pure sorrow and despair, echoing between the suddenly deathly silent heaven and earth.]

[Your Remnant Soul looked toward it, and all the emotions in your heart ultimately turned into a silent trace of attachment.]

[Your last bit of Soul Power fluctuation brushed toward it gently:]

["Han'er..."]

["Live... well."]

[In the next moment,]

[That terrifying power that controlled heaven and earth and dominated the Laws swept gently toward your about-to-dissipate Remnant Soul, like sweeping away dust.]

[There was no pain, nor was there any sound.]

[It was just like a smear of dust being wiped from a table.]

[Finally, you only heard the sighs of pity from the whole city and Qin Han's heart-wrenching wails.]

[You are dead.]