Regret.
At that moment, even Ouyang Lin, patriarch of the Ouyang Clan, felt a deep sense of regret in his heart.
They had actually provoked a Saint's seed?
Before Yang Cheng's arrival, if they had simply lowered their stance and paid a small price, there was still a chance to reconcile.
But they were too arrogant, too blind with pride. They dismissed Yang Cheng as a mere boy—and now, things had spiraled beyond control.
Now that it was too late for regret, there was only one choice left—to completely destroy him.
Ouyang Lin stood suspended in the air. Around him, countless droplets of water condensed into the shape of a towering tidal phantom, stretching ten thousand zhang high. From his sleeve, surging sword intent burst forth with the mighty grandeur of a winding river.
In his hand was no ordinary weapon. It was the Ouyang Clan's ancestral treasure—the Swallowing River Sword. The sword trembled in his grip, drawing in the boundless water-element laws between heaven and earth.
"You insolent brat! Witness my Ouyang Clan's Great River Sword Technique, Ninth Form—Star River Annihilation!"
His voice boomed like thunder.
He swung his sword.
The sword light didn't appear as a streak of brilliance but as a vast, liquid golden river-dragon. The dragon's body coiled with countless water-swords, and wherever it passed, the air boiled, releasing sharp hissing sounds.
The clouds over Linjiang City churned, transforming into torrential rain. Yet before even reaching within ten zhang of the sword light, the raindrops instantly evaporated into mist.
Yang Cheng's eyes flashed coldly.
Ouyang Lin, as a top-tier Insight God, had already merged his sword intent with the natural laws of heaven and earth. This Great River Sword Technique truly captured the essence of the river's flow—endless, boundless, and ever-renewing.
His power clearly surpassed that of Huang San.
But Yang Cheng didn't retreat.
He raised the Shura Dao Sword across his chest, his entire body glowing with crimson sword light that surged outward like a flood.
"Shura Sword Domain—open!"
In an instant, a radius of three zhang around him turned into a blood-red hell.
Countless twisted sword shadows drifted through the domain, each carrying the murderous aura that could shred the very soul.
When the golden river-dragon collided with the domain, it was like sinking into an abyss. The roaring waves were crushed layer by layer by the blood-colored sword qi, shattering into fragments of light that scattered across the sky.
But Ouyang Lin's attack didn't end there.
As the river-dragon disintegrated, thousands of water-swords burst from the blood rain, shooting straight toward Yang Cheng's vital acupoints.
"Ancestral Dragon Sword Body!"
Yang Cheng's low shout echoed across the heavens. Behind him, a golden nine-clawed dragon phantom rose into the sky. Golden dragon scales appeared across his skin, glimmering like divine armor.
The scales weren't illusions—they were real, as if peeled from an ancient divine dragon. They radiated a primeval aura of suppression, vast and eternal.
When the water-swords struck the dragon scales, the sound of metal striking metal rang out—clang, clang, clang! Each blade shattered on impact.
Yang Cheng took one firm step forward. The Shura Dao Sword transformed into a crimson arc of light that slashed directly toward Ouyang Lin's face.
Ouyang Lin's pupils shrank sharply.
The Ancestral Dragon Sword Body—the legendary Dao body of the human progenitor, immune to all laws—he finally saw its terror firsthand.
He swung his sword to block.
Crack!
The Swallowing River Sword fractured, leaving a deep inch-long gash across its body.
A surge of terrifying dragon might poured along the sword into Ouyang Lin's arm, tearing apart his meridians. Blood spewed from his mouth.
"What a powerful Ancestral Dragon Sword Body!"
Ouyang Lin wiped the blood from his lips, his killing intent flaring even hotter. "Since that's the case, then let me show you my Great River Sword Domain!"
Before his words even faded, the mist around him expanded a hundredfold.
This time, no golden river-dragon appeared—only a vast domain of deep blue water that covered a radius of ten li. The water churned like the surface of a boundless ocean, countless ancient sword embryos floating atop it. Each ripple carried sword intent strong enough to cut through mountains.
As soon as the domain formed, Yang Cheng felt the crushing pressure around him multiply.
It was as if he stood at the bottom of a ten-thousand-fathom river, even his sword intent slowing under the immense weight.
"Shura Sword Domain—open again!"
This time, he unleashed his Two-Star Shura Sword Domain.
Yang Cheng pointed his sword toward the heavens.
Blood-red sword intent erupted like a volcano, shaking the very world.
The once-limited domain expanded from three zhang to ten zhang wide. Within it, vague Shura phantoms emerged, and every strand of sword qi burned with black demonic flames. The air filled with the wailing of ten thousand vengeful souls.
When the Two-Star Shura Sword Domain clashed against the Great River Sword Domain, the sky itself split in half—
one side a storming sea of water, the other a blazing inferno of blood and blades.
Half of the sky had become a world of raging, muddy waves, filled with sharp sword intent like a boundless river. The other half burned red with blood light and demonic fire—a blazing Shura purgatory that seemed to swallow the heavens.
Pu!
Ouyang Lin spat out blood again.
The murderous force of the Two-Star Shura Sword Domain was far beyond his imagination. The blood-colored sword intent clung to his Great River Sword Domain like maggots gnawing at bone, continuously corroding his domain's energy.
He could feel it—his sword domain was being devoured and torn apart, bit by bit.
"How… how is this possible?"
For the first time, true fear appeared in Ouyang Lin's eyes.
That was a Two-Star Sword Domain!
And the one controlling it was just a twelve-year-old boy.
The realization sent a chill down his spine.
Then, from behind Yang Cheng, a venomous voice rang out: "Yang Cheng, you brat—die for me!"
Huang San had somehow circled around behind him. His severed arm had already regrown, and the blood light around him blazed even stronger than before.
He had burned part of his divine soul to activate his ultimate divine ability—Bloodfiend Myriad Needles!
In the blink of an eye, billions of crimson needles streaked through the void, filled with the power to corrode and annihilate all things, each one aimed straight for Yang Cheng's heart.
Yang Cheng didn't even turn around. "I've been waiting for that."
He flicked his left hand, and a burst of golden light shot out from his storage ring.
The light landed and transformed into a three-zhang-tall golden figure, covered in mysterious runes. Its eyes glowed blood-red—it was the Golden Corpse Puppet!
This puppet was one of Yang Cheng's system rewards. Its strength was comparable to a high-stage Insight God, and it felt neither pain nor fear—it fought endlessly, without rest, without death.
It threw a single punch.
The air exploded with a thunderous roar. The countless blood needles slammed into its body, but not even a single mark appeared.
Huang San's ambush had been completely nullified.
In return, the corpse puppet's punch sent a shockwave through his body, shaking his qi and blood wildly. He staggered backward, barely keeping himself upright.
"Ouyang Lin! Your time is up!"
Yang Cheng ignored Huang San completely. His figure blurred like lightning, streaking toward Ouyang Lin.
The Shura Dao Sword, empowered by the Two-Star Shura Sword Domain, radiated an overwhelming murderous aura, one that could annihilate everything in its path.
Ouyang Lin's face turned pale as death. He knew he wasn't Yang Cheng's match. Desperation twisted his expression as he bellowed, "Everyone! Attack together! Kill him!"
Before his words even faded, four figures shot out from among the Ouyang clan's ranks—four more Insight God experts.
Two were mid-stage, two early-stage.
Five Insight Gods struck together.
The might of heaven surged. Rays of divine light from five different laws intertwined, forming a vast web that sealed Yang Cheng at its center.
"Hahaha! Yang Cheng!" Ouyang Lin's laughter was wild and crazed. "Even with your unmatched talent, you can't survive when five Insight Gods strike together!"
He gathered all his remaining power into the Swallowing River Sword, his sword body glowing with azure brilliance. The blade erupted with a light that tore through the sky, cutting straight toward Yang Cheng like a heavenly judgment.
But facing five divine attacks, Yang Cheng suddenly closed his eyes.
He sank his consciousness deep into his sea of awareness and roared like thunder within his mind: "Undying Golden Light—activate!"
It was a reward he had received long ago, one he had never once used—until now.
Instantly, his skin began to glow with a bronze-gold radiance. Droplets of molten golden liquid oozed from his pores, forming a shimmering golden armor across his entire body.
When the combined assault of five Insight Gods landed, it was like waves crashing into an abyss—completely absorbed, without even a ripple.
"One breath… that's all I need."
Yang Cheng opened his eyes. A blinding golden light burst forth from his pupils.
He ignored all attacks, his figure flickering like a phantom, flashing through the sword and law web. In that instant, he moved like lightning—
—and struck straight for Ouyang Lin.