Dragon Soul Shadow Emperor, all turned to dust.

Nightmare flattened the entrance of the Nine Nether Soul Devouring Prison with a single palm strike. His power shook the universe, and his declaration trampled the Imperial Dynasty's dignity underfoot.

Deep within the Imperial Capital, Zhao Wuji's fury burned the heavens, yet it was tinged with a chill from being awed by absolute power. He no longer held anything back and activated the Imperial Dynasty's deepest hidden foundations.

"Roar—!"

A dragon's roar, seemingly from the primordial era, suddenly erupted from the deepest part of the Imperial Dynasty's ancestral temple, making the entire Imperial Capital tremble! A massive, semi-transparent dark-gold Dragon Soul soared into the sky! It was not a pure Dragon Soul; its eyes were filled with tyranny, greed, and a twisted imperial will. It was the Soul of the Dragon Vein that the Zhao family had nurtured for generations with national fortune and secret methods, fused with some evil existence! The pressure it emitted had reached the Peak of Dao Integration, even faintly touching upon a fragment of the Mahayana Concept!

At the same time, the shadows beside Zhao Wuji twisted violently, and a figure wearing a crown, composed entirely of deep shadows, slowly stepped out. He had no specific facial features, only two flickering ghostly fires as eyes. His aura was cold and eerie, forming a sharp contrast with the Dragon Soul's madness, but his might had also reached the Peak of Dao Integration! He was the supreme leader of the Shadow Clan in this world—the Shadow Emperor!

One Dragon and one shadow, the strongest combat forces of the Imperial Dynasty and the Shadow Clan, appeared simultaneously, locking onto Nightmare in the distance!

"Those who desecrate imperial power shall die!" the Dragon Soul let out a deafening roar. Its massive body stirred the clouds, carrying the imperial dragon prestige that crushed everything. It crossed the Void Realm directly and swiped a claw at Nightmare! Wherever the dragon claw passed, Laws receded and space solidified!

"The seed of Nirvana should not exist in this world." The Shadow Emperor's voice sounded like ten-thousand-year-old ice rubbing together. He simply raised his hand, and endless shadows transformed into billions of shadow needles as fine as cow hair, yet containing extreme curse and devouring power. They shot toward Nightmare like a rainstorm, sealing off all his space to dodge!

The combined strike of these two beings had already exceeded the scope of an ordinary Peak Dao Integration, enough to threaten a Cultivator who had just entered the Mahayana stage!

Inside and outside the Imperial Capital, everyone who sensed this power turned pale and trembled. Was this the true foundation of the Imperial Dynasty? How terrifying! Could Nightmare still resist?

Facing this world-destroying siege, instead of fear, a hint of excitement and... disdain flashed in Nightmare's eyes.

"Finally willing to bring out something decent? Unfortunately... you are still just clay chickens and pottery dogs!"

With a thought, the Rule Fragment operated at an unprecedented speed, instantly analyzing the energy composition, Law fluctuations, and even the weak points in the attacks of the Dragon Soul and the Shadow Emperor!

"Imperial Dragon Qi? Twisted and heterogeneous, it's just an empty shell! Break... for me!"

Nightmare neither dodged nor avoided. Facing the dragon claw that tore through space, he simply punched out!

This punch was simple and unadorned, yet it condensed the Origin power of the nirvana dao seed, the surging blood-qi of the Immortal Golden Body, and the Nirvana Law optimized to the extreme by the Rule Fragment! At the tip of the fist, the Void Realm naturally collapsed, and all things returned to dead silence!

Boom! Crack!

Fist and claw collided!

There was no stalemate as imagined. The seemingly invincible dragon claw, at the moment of contact with Nightmare's fist, was like meeting its natural enemy. The dragon scales on the surface instantly lost their luster, shattered, and were annihilated! Next were the dragon claw's bones and muscles... the entire front claw was actually blown apart by Nightmare's punch, turning into a sky full of chaotic Dragon Qi energy!

"Awoo!" The Dragon Soul let out a howl of pain. Its massive body trembled violently, and its eyes were filled with disbelief!

"Shadow Curse? Such a trivial trick, yet you dare to show it off before a master!"

At the same time, the grayish-black Annihilation Domain around Nightmare automatically expanded. After the billions of shadow needles, enough to poison a Dao Integration Cultivator to death, shot into the Domain, the curse power on them melted like snow. Their bodies quickly became illusory and transparent, eventually being assimilated and absorbed by the Domain, becoming nourishment for the Annihilation Domain instead!

The Shadow Emperor's ghostly fire-like eyes jumped violently!

"How is this possible?! My Origin Shadow Curse actually..."

"Nothing is impossible," Nightmare's cold voice interrupted him. "In my eyes, your power is full of flaws!"

Before his voice faded, Nightmare's Rule Fragment locked onto the strand of twisted evil will at the core of the Dragon Soul. He pointed his fingers like a sword and slashed through the air!

"Nirvana · Spirit Slasher!"

An invisible Nirvana Sword Intent, specifically for slaying the Divine Soul and true spirit, ignored the spatial distance and instantly sank into the Dragon Soul's body!

"No—!" The Dragon Soul let out a roar of terror and despair. It felt its core will being forcibly erased by an irresistible force! It struggled frantically, its Imperial Dragon Qi boiling, but it could not stop the erosion of that Nirvana Sword Intent at all!

Within a single breath, the Dragon Soul's tyrannical gaze quickly dimmed and became hollow and lifeless. Its massive body also began to slowly dissipate, turning back into pure but ownerless Dragon Qi energy.

The Imperial Dynasty's foundation, a Peak Dao Integration Dragon Soul, had its true spirit slain by a single sword!

"Your turn." Nightmare's gaze turned toward the Shadow Emperor. The Rule Fragment had already completely analyzed the composition of his shadow Origin.

Warning signs blared in the Shadow Emperor's heart, and a fatal sense of crisis enveloped his entire body! Without hesitation, his figure instantly exploded, turning into countless shadows and fleeing in all directions! As long as one shadow escaped, he could achieve Rebirth!

"Playing with Clone escape techniques in front of me?" A sneer curled on Nightmare's lips. The Rule Fragment had already locked onto the core connection of all shadow Clones.

He simply stomped his foot.

"Nirvana · Void Tremor!"

Buzz!

With him as the center, a strange Nirvana ripple instantly swept through the Void Realm for tens of thousands of miles! Everything—space, energy, and even Laws—trembled violently under this ripple!

The countless fleeing shadow Clones, as if struck by an invisible giant hammer, all shuddered, and their movements instantly froze!

"Devour."

Nightmare opened his mouth and inhaled.

With the Rule Fragment's empowerment, the nirvana dao seed operated! A miniature black hole instantly appeared before him, erupting with a terrifying suction force!

The countless frozen shadow Clones were forcibly pulled back like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, wailing and twisting as they were sucked into the miniature black hole, compressed, refined, and finally transformed into the purest shadow Origin energy, which Nightmare absorbed completely!

The leader of the Shadow Clan, the Peak Dao Integration Shadow Emperor, was destroyed in both body and soul, becoming Nightmare's supplement!

From the appearance of the two Peak powerhouses to their easy slaughter by Nightmare with overwhelming force, only ten short breaths had passed!

The entire heaven and earth fell into a dead silence!

All Divine Thoughts spying on this place seemed to be frozen!

Strong! Too strong! Ridiculously strong! Despairingly strong!

Peak Dao Integration! And two of them! Before him, they were as powerless as infants! What kind of terrifying strength was this? Was he really at the Middle Stage of Dao Integration? Even the Mahayana stage probably wouldn't be much more than this!

In the deep palace of the Imperial Capital, Zhao Wuji saw this scene through a Water Mirror. His face instantly turned pale as paper. With a "poof," he finally couldn't help but spit out a large mouthful of blood. His aura instantly withered, and his eyes were filled with shock, fear, and a hint of... collapse!

His greatest reliance was gone just like that? Destroyed by the opponent as easily as crushing dry weeds and smashing rotten wood?

Nightmare floated in the Void Realm, the Rule Fragment absorbing and refining the Dragon Qi and Shadow Clan Origin. His aura became increasingly unfathomable. His cold gaze seemed to pierce through endless space, landing once again on the direction of the Imperial Capital.

"Zhao Wuji, are your methods exhausted?"

"Time is up. The person—will you hand her over or not?"

His voice was not loud, but it was like a final judgment, heavily striking the hearts of Zhao Wuji and everyone in the Imperial Dynasty.

Hand over Su Wanqing? The Imperial Dynasty would lose all face, and the plan would be completely abandoned!

Not hand her over? The next one to die would be Zhao Wuji himself! The Imperial Dynasty might even be wiped out today!

An aura of despair enveloped the entire Imperial Dynasty.

And Nightmare had already taken a step forward, walking unhurriedly toward the direction of the Imperial Capital.

Every step he took seemed to land on the heartbeat of the Imperial Dynasty.

The countdown to destruction had begun.