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Chen Xuanfeng shook his head and said, "After all, you didn't comprehend the Realm on your own, so you can't discern the difference. What I used was indeed my Realm—it's just different from ordinary ones. Others forcibly pull a portion of the Astral Sea into the prime material plane through sheer power, while I do the opposite: I push the space of this plane... into the Astral Sea."

"What?" Xi Luo was stunned. Though not a SwordSaint himself, his experience manipulating the EightColored Realm through the Hero Sword had granted him some understanding of a Realm's mysteries. For ordinary SwordSaints, pulling space from the Astral Sea into the material plane was already an immensely difficult feat, with many barely grasping the how without understanding the why. Yet the difficulty of such a Realm paled in comparison to the reverse—pushing real space into the Astral Sea. The former was anchored in normal space, backed by the entire material plane; even if one's strength fell short, there was at least no danger. The latter, however, plunged directly into the Astral Sea, a place even gods found troublesome, facing its ever-shifting, violent energy tides head-on. A single misstep would mean annihilation. Rather than calling it a Realm, it was more like tempting fate.

...Yet, if what he said was true, such a Realm would be the bane of almost all others. In fact, within another SwordSaint's Realm, entering the Astral Sea would be ten times easier than outside. And once he entered the Astral Sea, only he could strike others—no one could strike him unless they too recklessly charged into the Astral Sea. But even then, who could harm him when he was fully prepared? The outcome would still be death. So what could be done? Dispelling the Realm? Impossible. The only reason Xi Luo could fight him now was by relying on the EightColored Realm. Without it, death was just as certain. What then...?

Though Chen Xuanfeng's anti-Realm ability had only flashed briefly, it had already backed Xi Luo into a corner. Only now did Xi Luo realize that Chen Xuanfeng's earlier declaration of killing him was no empty boast.

"Understood now, Xi Luo? Your lack of strength leaves you utterly incapable of countering my changes. Had you mastered the full control of the EightColored Realm, even my anti-Realm ability couldn't harm you—it would only result in a stalemate. But you, barely able to manipulate two elemental forces, dared to rely on luck and schemes to stand before me. That alone sealed your fate to die here!"

As Chen Xuanfeng delivered this proclamation, he vanished into the Astral Sea once more. In the next instant, a dazzling platinum blade beam shot from the void, aimed straight at Xi Luo's throat. With the attack materializing a mere dozen centimeters from his face, Xi Luo—whose strength fell short of the Saint realm—had no chance to dodge.

Yet fate seemed unwilling to sever the twisted bond between Chen Xuanfeng and his disciple. Just before the sword light struck, another blade, white as jade, emerged from the void and deftly deflected the platinum strike from the side. This time, the extreme proximity worked against Chen Xuanfeng—he had no time to adjust the trajectory before the attack grazed past Xi Luo's neck.

But he did not press the assault, for that impossibly precise swordplay reminded him of its wielder.

Or rather, the undead who wielded it—the former SwordSaint, now a revenant.

Thus, Chen Xuanfeng reappeared and shouted, "Since you're here, why not join the fight? Does skulking outside and using stolen sword techniques suit your stature, Leinster?"

Yet the next moment, his voice caught in surprise. For the one who entered the Realm with Xi Luo's cooperation was not the skeletal undead SwordSaint, but a calm and refined female SwordSaint—Tan Yueer, the Moon Heavenly Maiden.

"Why you? Your temporal-spatial swordsmanship... No, your weapons..." Chen Xuanfeng stared at Tan Yueer in shock, then noticed the twin swords at her waist—one pure white as jade, the "Nameless Sky Sword," the only one among the Ten Divine Swords devoid of power; the other slender and sorrowfully beautiful, Leinster's posthumous blade, the "Century Phantom Sword." "Leinster actually gave you the Century Phantom Sword too? And you've even learned my 'Sky-Overturning Sword Dance'... So that means... Hmm, did he return to the Isle of Undead, or has he perished completely?"

As one of the two living masters closest to that level, Chen Xuanfeng instantly guessed something had happened to Leinster.

Facing the werewolf's speculation, the SwordSaint maiden offered no concealment, replying calmly, "Our ancestor is forever with us."

"Ah, I see. So he resorted to his old trick again—imprinting his recent sword insights into the 'Nameless Sky Sword' to teach you temporal-spatial swordsmanship. Which means his original body has died again, hasn't it?"

Chen Xuanfeng's expression betrayed neither joy nor sorrow, but Xi Luo paled in shock.

"Yue'er, what's going on? Weren't you on the eastern front? And what happened to Senior Leinster?"

A shadow of grief crossed Tan Yueer's face as she whispered, "Xi Luo, our ancestor has fulfilled his duty. Now, we must fulfill ours here. If we fail to slay the Orc King today, once we lose Shattered Star Abyss, humanity will never overturn the beastmen's dominion over the western continent. A century from now, all our advantages will vanish. So for this goal... any sacrifice is worth it."

"What...?" For a moment, Xi Luo couldn't fully grasp her meaning, still reeling from the news of the First SwordSaint's inexplicable demise. "What do you mean Senior Leinster is gone? Who killed him? Who could have killed him?"

Tan Yueer remained silent, but Chen Xuanfeng had no patience for Xi Luo's questions. Smiling coldly, he said, "What use is your coming? Even if you've learned Leinster's techniques, you're not Leinster himself. Power grasped through weapons is like Xi Luo's EightColored Realm—always a step clumsier. Not even Leinster in person would dare claim he could kill me today. Do you two half-trained successors truly believe you can work miracles?"

Tan Yueer drew her twin swords and said softly, "Miracles require sacrifice."

"Then I'll be watching closely." Chen Xuanfeng sneered, blades flashing as he vanished into the void—clearly intent on delivering a lethal strike.