"Brother Zhexian, be careful!"
"This Spirit Ability's defense is incredibly strong!"
Er Ming roared a warning:
"Even Da Ming's Azure Sky Annihilation Thunder can't break it!"
Li Zhexian listened, but his expression remained calm.
He had long known that in the original story, the Dark Evil God Tiger possessed an absolute-defense ability called Evil God Protection.
And today…
He wanted to know—
Can the Qinglian Sword cut through this so-called absolute barrier?
A sharp glint flashed through Li Zhexian's eyes. His fingers formed a sword, and he thrust downward with force.
"Break!"
High above—
The colossal Qinglian Sword, carrying the might to annihilate all creation—
Crashed violently down onto the gray-black barrier.
Zzzzz—!
Zzzzz—!
Tearing sounds exploded outward.
Substantial shockwaves burst wildly from the point where sword tip and barrier collided—
Surging like a tidal wave in all directions.
With a thunderous boom—
The surrounding earth collapsed.
Three feet of soil was directly annihilated into nothingness.
Crack—
Crack—
Jagged cracks suddenly appeared, spreading rapidly across the barrier.
Under Er Ming's disbelieving gaze, the Evil God Protection that could withstand all attacks—
Shattered like fragile glass.
Finally, with a crisp ping, it broke apart completely.
The Qinglian Sword did not stop.
Its annihilating force descended further—
And in an instant, it severed the already-damaged bat wing completely.
"ROOOAR—!"
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger opened its bloody maw wide.
A jet of black mist shot straight toward Li Zhexian's face.
He swayed lightly and avoided it with ease—
the glazed sword marks in his eyes spinning rapidly.
The next moment's scene reflected clearly into his vision:
The tiger's scorpion tail shot forward.
A bead of black light burned in the air—
forming a rapidly expanding black hole.
This move—
He had several methods to dodge.
However—
A trace of hesitation appeared on his face.
"To break through to Spirit Saint took me half a year."
"For six months I've made no progress on the Ninth Form of the Qinglian Sword Song."
"I've comprehended countless powers, but surpassing the 'Purity' sword intent…
Difficult, difficult, impossibly difficult!"
"That inverse-heaven power within the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger…"
"Might be the key to unlocking inspiration for the Ninth Form!"
In the flash of a thought—
Li Zhexian made up his mind.
A swordsman contends with the heavens—
Retreat is never an option.
He withdrew his instinct to evade.
The hesitation in his eyes vanished, replaced entirely by resolve.
"The Myriad Forms Sword Dao is harder than ascending to heaven—
but I, Li Zhexian, will never stop here!"
In the next instant—
Just as his vision had predicted—
Moments before the Qinglian True Sword struck down,
The tiger's scorpion tail thrust upward, piercing the air.
Space shattered like a mirror.
A deep black hole expanded violently—
And swallowed both him and the tiger in an instant.
"BROTHER ZHEXIAN!"
Er Ming roared, lunging forward with a massive hand—
But he was one step too late.
As Li Zhexian vanished into the black hole—
Er Ming prepared to leap in without hesitation—
But the hole collapsed instantly, disappearing without a trace.
"Not good! Not good!"
Er Ming's eyes widened.
"Brother Zhexian got hit by that evil technique!"
...
Darkness surrounded everything.
Li Zhexian felt himself floating, wrapped in a strange, profound power.
A force he had never studied or understood.
Light flickered before his eyes—hallucinations rising like waves.
A great river surged backward;
falling snowflakes reversed course and flew back into the sky;
ancient forests shrank and rewound through time.
Li Zhexian felt—
His Spirit Power weakening,
his body shrinking,
his throat smoothing,
and the hardened calluses on his sword hand disappearing.
"The power of time!"
"It is actually the Power of Time!"
In the void of his spiritual sea, the Skydream Ice Worm cried out in shock:
"This evil tiger can manipulate time!"
"No wonder this kind of Spirit Beast is feared by all living beings!"
"Brother Zhexian, you clearly could have dodged! Why did you let yourself get hit!?"
The Skydream Ice Worm was truly panicking.
Before the power of time, all beings are equal—
No matter how heaven-defying your talent, how can you resist the reversal of years?
Li Zhexian's voice had grown childish.
"I did it on purpose.
To hone a sword to its sharpest edge, you need the strongest whetstone."
Inside his spiritual sea—
The Skydream Ice Worm stared at the now-young boy whose face had become soft and tender, though his eyes remained unshakably firm.
First stunned—
Then slowly convinced.
"Brother Zhexian… you're completely insane…"
Boom!
While they spoke—
Li Zhexian's feet stepped onto something solid.
He looked around—
He stood on a circular platform suspended in endless darkness.
He lowered his gaze to his small, childish hands, around six or seven years old.
Then he looked forward—
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger that previously blotted out the sky had become a cub barely one and a half meters long.
At that moment—
A cold voice echoed from all directions:
"Welcome to the Death Arena.
The battle ends only when one side dies."
"Countdown—five, four… one. Begin."
The instant the countdown ended—
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger lunged at him like a streak of shadow.
Even though both had returned to their childhood—
This was far from a fair fight.
How can a human child compete with a Spirit Beast cub?
"If it were anyone else…"
"Returning to childhood and losing their Spirit Rings would mean certain death."
"But I am different.
My sword dao resides in my heart, not my strength."
"My comprehension of the sword remains.
Even as a child—
I can still wield a sword."
Clang—!
Li Zhexian's tiny fingers came together—
as tender as bamboo shoots—
Yet a sharp sword qi erupted from his fingertips, sweeping toward the charging cub.
"ROAR!"
The evil tiger panicked.
It tried to dodge, but in its weakened state it was a fraction too slow—
A bloody gash opened across its hide.
It staggered back—
Staring at the sword-qi-wreathed child,
Its blood-red eyes filled with disbelief.
It didn't understand—
Both had returned to their childhood.
So why could this human still use Spirit Abilities?
Li Zhexian gave it no time to breathe.
Sword qi in hand, he pressed the attack.
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger roared, thin evil energy swirling at its paws, and charged to meet him.
Upon this dark arena—
Sword cries and beast roars intertwined.
Though both were children again,
their clash remained fierce and deadly.
The result was never in doubt.
After the time it takes an incense stick to burn—
Li Zhexian sat atop the tiger's back, sword-tip pressed to its brow.
"I know you're controlling this Death Arena."
"I won't kill you.
Send me out first."
Killing intent surged in the tiger's blood-red eyes—
but feeling the icy edge at its brow, it finally yielded.
Hum—!
Light burst forth, darkness faded.
When Li Zhexian returned to the Star Dou Forest, his overwhelming strength flowed back into his body.
"Brother Zhexian!"
Er Ming rushed toward him with joy.
"No need to worry, Senior Er Ming. I'm unharmed."
Li Zhexian waved lightly, though his eyes drifted to the weakened, retreating Dark Demon Evil God Tiger..
A strange glimmer flickered in his eyes.
He was still savoring the profound sensation of being shrouded in time.
"Time is elusive…"
"To glimpse even a sliver of Time Sword Intent is unimaginably difficult."
"One experience is far from enough…"
Swish—!
Sword aura flashed.
Li Zhexian once again sat atop the tiger's back.
This time—
With its twenty-meter body restored, the ride was actually quite comfortable.
Humiliated, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger bared its sharp white fangs, releasing a deep growl—
But the sword-qi flaring at its brow forced the sound back down its throat.
Li Zhexian's lips curved upward.
"Beast, I need you to aid my cultivation!"