Chapter 887: Self-Destruct

The strange roar from Yi abruptly ceased.

As the berserk giant swelled in size, the azure light enveloping it expanded as well. Despite Yi's myriad techniques, his sluggish movements as a soul entity left him unable to evade the supreme speed of the Huanmie Yizhi through displacement.

There seemed to be a "bang."

Xu Xiaoshou faintly sensed an explosive sound from Yi's direction. Although a soul entity exploding couldn't be heard with the naked ear, he relied on the Tianji power attached to his eyes to witness Yi's soul form scattering and bursting apart under the azure light.

"Dead?"

Scattered specks of soul luminescence fell to the ground. Xu Xiaoshou saw it clearly but furrowed his brow slightly. It didn't seem right—someone struck down by Huanmie Yizhi shouldn't just scatter; they should be utterly obliterated.

He reverted to his normal human size and glanced at Xuan Wuji. Xuan Wuji's face showed barely contained delight, but he sternly declared, "Not dead yet!"

"Not dead?"

Xu Xiaoshou was stunned. Even after all that, Yi wasn't dead? Just how tough were Tai Xu beings to kill? If Yi hadn't casually countered with Tai Xu power in his final moments, he might have survived anyway. But there were no "ifs"...

Xu Xiaoshou never imagined that Yi's seemingly casual strike with Hunming Ghost Qi would actually add a "4.62" charge value to Huanmie Yizhi! That guy had truly sealed his own fate. Yi was already a weakened soul entity, and splitting himself had further diminished his capabilities. If he hadn't acted on impulse or used Tai Xu power, simply relying on mental control over Xu Xiaoshou, he wouldn't have boosted Huanmie Yizhi's charge to such a level. Yet, just as Xu Xiaoshou hadn't anticipated Yi's counterattack, Yi hadn't expected him to be an untouchable hedgehog.

What a twist of fate—life's uncertainties, like a big intestine wrapping a small one...

"Xu Xiaoshou."

"The realm... it's changed..."

Lei Xier awoke from Yi's control, gracefully standing and softly warning them. As she said, this place had originally been replaced by her Bai Ku small world, but with Yi's soul entity shattering, it was now overtaken by another scene.

A dim, hazy space unfolded, like the underworld itself, plunging anyone within into an icy abyss. Xu Xiaoshou vaguely felt this power was of a high level and somewhat familiar. Without thinking, he knew it had to be Yi's contingency plan! That guy, hit twice by Huanmie Yizhi and still clinging to life—was he some kind of cockroach? And what was this illusion-like world?

Xu Xiaoshou turned his gaze to Xuan Wuji. Clearly well-versed in such matters, Xuan Wuji quickly identified the scene and chuckled. "Tai Xu World! This is Yi's Tai Xu World. He's out of options and using this as a last resort to survive."

Tai Xu World... Xu Xiaoshou thought of Sang Lao's straw hat. That old man had used a similar method to give him one final assist. Now, Yi was clearly at his wit's end, forced to manifest his Tai Xu World. But why... if Tai Xu World was so powerful, why did both Sang Lao and Yi only use it when they were cornered? If they'd deployed it earlier, wouldn't the situations back then and now have turned out differently?

Xuan Wuji, sensing Xu Xiaoshou's confusion, explained, "Tai Xu World is the manifestation of a Tai Xu being's will, a place for nurturing virtual forms and training the spirit and soul. It's indeed powerful against lower-tier Ling refiners, but against peers, unleashing it first would just expose your most vulnerable side. After all, on this continent, truly specializing in spirit and soul paths is rare."

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly understood. But then he thought—Yi's main focus was the spirit and soul path, right?

Xuan Wuji smiled. "Do you really think so?" He continued, "Ancient sword cultivation is about the sword, Ling refining is about the spirit, and the Shen Soul path is about spirit and soul—that's true specialization. Yi merely shifted to the Shen Soul path at the Wangzuo Daojing level, building on his Ling refining base. His Shen Soul abilities are strong compared to most, who neglect it entirely, so you could call it his 'main focus.' But it's still just imitation. In the Five Domains, those truly dedicated to the spirit and soul path are scarcer than ancient sword cultivators, and only one, Bei Huai, has achieved mastery."

"That's why Yi hesitates to release his Tai Xu World—because..." Xuan Wuji smirked confidently, "Others might fear it, but my abilities completely counter it!"

Xu Xiaoshou's heart stirred. He was beginning to grasp why Xuan Wuji was smiling so smugly, even before Yi was fully defeated.

"Xu Xiaoshou, you've both done enough. Leave the rest to me."

Xuan Wuji glanced at the sky and halted his previous actions. Ever since he'd seen Xu Xiaoshou could hold his own against Yi, he'd taken on support duties, fully engaging in a remote Tianji duel with that red-robed Tianji master. It had to be said—the opponent was formidable. Continuous Tianji assaults made it hard for Xuan Wuji to spare any help for the fight at hand. But his experience pulled through. He'd held off the attacks, safeguarding control of Yunjing World during this time. Just as Xu Xiaoshou had secured the immediate situation, Xuan Wuji had secured their escape route after dealing with Yi.

He'd thought he'd need to break from the Tianji battle midway to assist Xu Xiaoshou, but to his surprise, Yi had been pushed to the brink by Xu Xiaoshou and Lei Xier alone—reduced to mere fragments of soul and a will hidden in the Tai Xu World.

Xuan Wuji realized his chance had come. Xu Xiaoshou and Lei Xier had already accomplished what would have taken him ages to set up with a massive Tianji array: dismantling Yi's physical form and soul entity. All that remained was cleanup. Whether a Tai Xu being died or escaped hinged on how well that was done.

For Xu Xiaoshou, reaching this point was already his best effort. Like last time when Yi had mysteriously slipped away, if he were fighting solo, he couldn't guarantee that even destroying Yi's body, soul, and will would prevent some unforeseen rebirth—like with the Yu Ling Drop. But Xuan Wuji was different. He'd prepared for this moment for far too long.

"Tianji, summon!"

With a hand seal, Xuan Wuji directly manipulated Yunjing World. Temporarily dropping his defense against the external Tianji master would let the enemy seize control quickly, but in that brief window, he figured it was enough to handle Yi's lingering will.

Starry light rained down, illuminating the Tai Xu World with dazzling specks amid the gloom. Xuan Wuji's hands moved rapidly, a Tianji array unfolding beneath his feet and slowly rotating.

"Seal!"

He lightly tapped the void with his ten fingers. A hum resonated, and the Tai Xu World ground to a halt. In that instant, Xu Xiaoshou felt as if time itself had paused—he could barely manage to turn his head.

"What a powerful Dao principle fluctuation..."

Lei Xier felt a chill in her heart too, her Shenmo Pupils activating instinctively, unleashing divine power to free herself from the constraint. Once free of the Tianji World's rules, she could move normally, but she was still awestruck by the overwhelming Dao essence in the air.

It was so vivid! In Lei Xier's dual pupils, the hidden Dao rules of the universe now appeared as tangible entities, like intricate gears turning. Each click harnessed Dao forces, which Tianji techniques channeled into unique attributes. Anyone cultivating at those gear junctures would likely enter a state of sudden enlightenment. But clearly, this spectacle wasn't meant for training.

Xuan Wuji was going all out. The restraints of his Liu Changqing Zhan Dao realm forced him to expend more energy, pushing his Tianji abilities to the limit to borrow the Dao rules he needed and control Yi's hidden will in the Tai Xu World.

Blood began to trickle from his seven orifices, but that was trivial—it wasn't his real body anyway. Xuan Wuji's eyes filled with complex patterns as he scanned for something. Soon, he stopped searching and sneered.

"Hide?"

"I'll let you hide! Let's see how long you can keep it up!"

He thrust his hands outward, drawing more power from the Yunjing World's Tianji array.

"Flipping Heavens Pattern—Wave Cage!"

With a roar, solid Tianji patterns burst from his ten fingers. These patterns intertwined and coiled, forming a vast network of threads that filled the entire Tai Xu World, like an intricate rule-based web.

Xuan Wuji clenched his fists, yanking the web inward viciously.

"Boom!"

Space shattered instantly under the Tianji patterns. Xu Xiaoshou watched as the net-like patterns passed through everyone's bodies without harm, converging on a distant point of light. Though the patterns had blasted space apart, they inflicted no injury on anyone. Instead, they gathered every fragment of Yi's will and soul scattered throughout the Tai Xu World.

"Bind!"

Xuan Wuji tightened his fist, transforming the web into a luminous cocoon that forced Yi's will into his remaining soul fragments and trapped them all.

"Ah—"

Yi's agonized roar echoed. The fragments reformed into a new soul entity, but it was pathetically frail. Before the second Huanmie Yizhi strike, Yi had resigned himself to self-destructing his soul to preserve a sliver of fragments. With his ability to divide his essence, as long as one fragment remained, he could anchor his will and revive. But now, Xuan Wuji had shattered all his hopes, hunting down every piece of soul and wisp of will, then forcibly merging them.

Despair took root in Yi. He sensed that this time, he might not escape his doom. It had all started with a simple inquiry to an insignificant junior, but things had spiraled wildly out of control, snowballing until it led to his downfall.

"Xu... Xiao... Shou!!!"

Yi's ethereal soul form thrashed wildly, snarling at the culprit, Xu Xiaoshou. He hated Xu Xiaoshou's bizarre and unseen Ling techniques, which had caught him completely off guard on this continent. He hated himself for not realizing during the gap after the first Huanmie Yizhi that it was a soul defense counter. And he hated his own overreach at the end, delivering that "Lingyi Chenlun" strike when possession was nearly complete—if he hadn't, the outcome might have been different.

No ifs... Yi ranted like a madman, spewing vile curses. Yet, his mind remained icily calm.

"I can't fight anymore—I have to go, I have to escape!"

"The Lei family survivor, Xuan Wuji, and that freakish arsenal on Xu Xiaoshou... If I die here, no one will know. The intelligence I hold is too critical—it must get out, Ye Xiao has to know. Otherwise, if she seeks revenge and underestimatess Xu Xiaoshou's Zongshi level, she could fall to the same trap!"

"But... but..."

Yi grew frantic. That damned control of Yunjing World was in Xuan Wuji's hands. These three standing before him were like his perfect counters. If even one were missing, he might have escaped. But together, they'd pinned him down from the start, leaving no room for extra maneuvers.

"Huff..."

Yi stopped his ranting, taking a deep breath. Then, his soul form suddenly swelled.

"Self-destruct?"

Xuan Wuji was startled. He never expected Yi to go this far—to blow up his own soul. That would mean taking all his secrets to the grave! Impossible! Yi wouldn't choose self-destruction; he knew too much and would cling to life to pass on the information, even if humiliated.

Xuan Wuji's first instinct was that it was a bluff. But Xu Xiaoshou, hearing the exclamation and seeing Yi's expanding soul, tensed up immediately. He had the Imitator now, and he was just one step from his audacious plan. Yi couldn't die so easily!

If Yi died, how would Yao Yao handle the aftermath when she arrived with her sword?

"Soul Read!"

In the crisis, Xu Xiaoshou's eyes widened in fury as he stared directly at Yi. He wanted not only the Imitator but also to seize every memory in Yi's soul—including all the knowledge he possessed.