With a cold snort from the Crow Tengu, the Ten Grip Sword was raised again. A column of fire descended from the sky, piercing diagonally through Ginza and burning a gaping hole through several buildings, disrupting the operation of the Qingqiu Fantasy Land.

In a series of whimpering cries, a staggering little fox emerged from the void. Half of its fur was scorched, and it leaned against her leg, softly whimpering.

"Alright, alright, I know." Ye Xueya picked it up and gently stroked it. "Tell everyone there's no need to push themselves too hard. I'll cover the rear; start retreating now. Granny Su won't blame us."

The little fox licked her fingers lightly, hopped down, and after limping a few steps, it looked back at her, wanting to join her. But all it saw was Ye Xueya waving her hand, smiling. "I'll follow shortly, don't worry."

The little fox whimpered softly, then vanished without a sound.

Immediately following the retreat of the Qingqiu Legion, the fog enveloping Ginza rapidly dissipated, shattering into pieces as the illusion faded away.

And in that instant, inside the building, Shan Lao finally broke through the layers of illusion and burst into the core of the underground chamber. Sensing the violent Source Fluctuation within, he was overjoyed.

"Lord Tianshi'ao, I've found it!" he exclaimed, unable to wait as he rushed into the basement. "It's right here!"

As if sharing that same joy of I've got it!, Lord Tianshi'ao let out a long laugh in mid-air. His pitch-black wings folded, and he merged into the fiery glow of the Ten Grip Sword.

With a fierce slash, he forcefully tore apart Ye Xueya's Illusion Technique and broke into Ginza. He aimed for Shan Lao's coordinates and plunged directly into the core.

Straight into the heart!

There, he saw Shan Lao, torn to pieces. As if hit head-on by a massive force, his entire body had been turned to plasma, crushed into paste, and evenly smeared across the facing wall, impossible to scrape off.

But in the excessively large basement, there was no trace of any Border Relic. Only shattered metal fragments remained, still carrying a faint Source Fluctuation, like dregs left behind after being completely devoured.

Among the metal pieces stood a young man, an iron rod in his hand, curiously prodding the paste on the wall.

Upon hearing the movement, he turned around. A curious expression appeared on his handsome face, and his voice was gentle. "How may I help you, friend?"

"..." Lord Tianshi'ao stared at him, his brow furrowing in confusion. Like Ye Xueya, he's a Third Stage Sublimator, with contained Source Substance and no dispersion. He's already at Third Stage perfection, but still far behind me.

What perplexed him wasn't the man's presence, but the utter emptiness of the place. There was nothing at all. He saw no trace of the Dongxia Genealogy's legendary trump card. It was like an abandoned storage room, without even a ghost of a Border Relic in sight.

The young man, seeing no response, continued to speak warmly, "If you're lost, friend, I have a map here you're welcome to take."

Lord Tianshi'ao frowned, silent.

The young man waited for a moment. When no reply came, he sighed and then his tone shifted dramatically. "Damn it! Are you deaf? Didn't you hear me talking to you?!"

The iron rod in his hand whirled up with a thunderous roar, smashing violently towards Tianshi'ao's forehead. The sudden change was astonishing; he was like a completely different person. The gentle elegance shattered to reveal unbelievable ferocity. It was as if he had torn off a human disguise in an instant, violent malice coiling around the iron rod, which emitted a piercing shriek.

The speed was so swift that even the Ten Grip Sword couldn't react in time. The rod struck Lord Tianshi'ao's forehead directly, making his vision go black and forcing him to retreat a step involuntarily.

Then, the young man swung the iron rod down again, his voice dripping with mock politeness, "Fuck your mother! I *just* swore off cussing, and here you are, you piece of shit, forcing my hand! Your poor mother raised a goddamn mute! You can't even fucking talk!"

A barrage of passionate curses, thick with dialect, assaulted Tianshi'ao.

Enraged, Lord Tianshi'ao raised the Ten Grip Sword and slashed down, forcing the young man back. But behind the young man, countless points of starlight suddenly emerged, weaving together into the specter of a ferocious ape. The iron rod in the young man's hand was instantly covered in frost, its chill daunting.

— Dongxia Genealogy·Third Stage Stigma·Shenshui Monkey!

Immediately after, Ye Xueya's helpless sigh came from behind Tianshi'ao. "I was all set to run. Why did you have to rush in?"

Feigning mysticism! Lord Tianshi'ao scoffed. With one horizontal sweep of the Ten Grip Sword, he tore through layer after layer of walls, almost instantly shredding the entire Mitsukoshi Great Building. Once inside, he quickly realized—the Mitsukoshi Great Building must have been a trap set by the Security Bureau specifically for Deer's Sing Hall!

However, a mere trap might confine others, but could it hold a Fourth Stage Sublimator with a Miracle Imprint in his hand?

"You've really gotten arrogant." Ye Xueya gestured, casually parting the oncoming heatwave. She shook her head and lamented, "In the past, you would have turned tail and run."

She lashed out with a kick, sending several monkeys toward Lord Tianshi'ao. "Get to work, you damn monkeys!"

The three old monkeys—Hear-No-Evil, See-No-Evil, and Speak-No-Evil—let out resigned screams and vanished into the wind. Then, they reappeared around Lord Tianshi'ao: one monkey covered his eyes, another his ears, and the third clamped shut his mouth. The three Border Variant species from Depth Hell instantly sealed off his senses, and then... they began to slack off.

They knew they were no match for him; they could only stall for time. Holding him off even for a little while was the best they could do. The three of them considered themselves weak, helpless, but still edible old monkeys, cunning to a fault; they would scrounge what they could without getting too involved.

In the brief lull, Ye Xueya looked at the young man beside her. "Xun Fang, what about the things I gave you? Have you finished them all?"

"All finished." Xun Fang pointed to the iron dross on the ground. "Over twenty Border Relics, not one left. It's rare to eat so well."

"True. After all, you managed to 'consume' your way to Third Stage perfection for that blank Stigma using all that equipment." Ye Xueya nodded, then asked, "So what are you waiting for? For me to send you off?"

"No, I, cough cough…" Xun Fang hesitated, his earlier domineering attitude with the iron rod gone. After hemming and hawing, he blushed and asked, "You know, Xueya, we've known each other for so many years, and you consider me an acquaintance, right? Maybe after this mission is over... would you consider it?"

"I refuse." Ye Xueya shook her head, her rejection firm.

Xun Fang was stunned. "Why?"

"Mixing romance with work, tempting fate when saying farewell, and mumbling through a confession. You've hit all three things I hate the most. We're not compatible." Ye Xueya shook her head and stated bluntly, "At most, I'll treat you to a meal later."

"That's fine." Xun Fang forced a bittersweet smile, a glimmer of hope rising. "I know a nice place…"

"…Bring everyone along." Ye Xueya didn't wait for him to finish, her addition completely dashing his faint hopes. Then, she took his life.

Yes, a true slaughter of a "single dog."

With a wave of her hand—a parting slash—Xun Fang's head fell to the ground.

But as Xun Fang died, his corpse did not vanish. Instead, a light as brilliant as the stars rose slowly from it, drawn into Ye Xueya's hand.

When Tianshi'ao finally shook off those damned monkeys and opened his eyes, this was the scene he beheld.

"Yo, you're awake?" Ye Xueya grinned. "Too bad, the daylilies are already cold."

Immediately after, she reversed her grip on the star-bright Stigma and plunged it into her own chest.

BOOM!

Source Substance of a terrifying magnitude surged out from her body, spreading in all directions before soaring into the sky. It tore through the gloomy clouds and stirred up a violent hurricane.

Before Tianshi'ao's very eyes, she implanted the Stigma of Shenshui Monkey into her own body.

She's courting death! No one's body could simultaneously contain two different Stigmas. Even if they were from the same source, it was impossible; not even for conjoined twins.

The moment the Stigma of Shenshui Monkey entered her body, the Stigma of Heart Moon Fox awakened. Under the seemingly endless irrigation of Source Fluctuation, the two perfected Stigmas within her slender frame sensed each other. They immediately erupted in rage, each dissipating into projections of stars that hurled towards one another!

The brilliant light of collapsing stars shone from her eyes. So scorching.

Tianshi'ao sneered, ready to enjoy the spectacle of Ye Xueya's body exploding and her Soul shattering. However, he then saw Ye Xueya surrounded by countless resplendent and pure starlights.

Bathed in that light, Ye Xueya's long hair fluttered in the air. The endless Source Fluctuation suddenly contracted, forming two distinctly different contours within her chest.

Tianshi'ao's eyes widened in disbelief. Those are two completely different Stigmas… No, at this moment, the Shang constellation formed by Heart Moon Fox and the Shen constellation formed by Shenshui Monkey—these two Stigmas, under some connection, have completely dissolved and merged into Ye Xueya's Soul, becoming a part of her!

"In life, we do not meet, ever moving like the stars Shen and Shang..." Facing the Crow Tengu's shocked gaze, Ye Xueya flashed an incredibly cool grin. "Who says Shen and Shang can't meet?"

In that instant, the metamorphosing Soul awakened amidst the stellar light. Within the overlapped radiance of the Azure Dragon and White Tiger constellations, all the Source Substance accumulated over long ages was completely digested in a flash.

Behind Ye Xueya, countless stars revolved. Driven by colossal power, new Stigmas flickered in and out of existence within the constantly changing celestial patterns, ephemeral and fleeting. It was like a wildly spinning roulette wheel, leaping chaotically, and no one knew where the final pointer would land.

In a trance, a gentle melody seemed to rise from afar, bringing a spark of enlightenment to Ye Xueya's heart.

Let's see what my luck is like...

She casually raised her hand, deftly plucking her destiny from the complex celestial phenomena. She selected the final outcome from the ever-changing star patterns, causing the frantically shifting nebula to freeze in an instant, fixed in place.

The roulette stopped.

Then, solemn, cold, and distant starlight illuminated her pupils. So cold, so mocking.

"Seems like your luck isn't the best…" Ye Xueya smiled, lifting her palm to reveal seven rays of light, as brilliant as the blazing Sun.

— Dongxia Genealogy·Fourth Stage·North Dipper!

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