"I finally see it clearly. Once Blind Arrow played her trump card, she stopped being the same Blind Arrow as before. Just this Pure Heavenly Body alone—untouched by the dust of the mortal world, unharmed by worldly things—is already close to Buddhist Nirvana, so most of her Sword Qi is useless against it, no more than interference. Only by borrowing the power of Heaven and Earth is there any real threat. But they’re both top ten under Heaven; Blind Arrow won’t give her the chance to use that move, always cutting things off before they happen. If this goes on, even if she had Three Heads and Six Arms she wouldn’t be a match, let alone when she’s only got one arm."

The Old Saintess listened to his spellbound muttering; he wasn’t asking this old relic for her opinion, he was trying to convince himself.

"I’m going to give Zhou Yitang the chance to borrow Heaven and Earth. Once a single Sword True Mysterious strike falls, no matter how heaven‑defying Blind Arrow’s abilities are, she dies all the same. And I—even if I’m gravely wounded—as long as I can tear off a piece of his flesh, it’ll be worth it." Chen Yi’s words rolled out one after another like thunder.

Those words, bordering on sheer fantasy, fell into her ears, and the Old Saintess turned her head to glance at the already devastated Heart Lake.

This man has probably gone mad.

Zhou Yitang’s Heart Lake had been dried up like a desert, her obsessions muddled and vacant, drifting through the days. Now, suddenly arriving in this fertile land that is Chen Yi’s Heart Lake, she had ruined it in no time at all. That he could barely hold it together already meant he had some skill—but no matter how great your skill, you don’t squander it like this?!

Like some poor Han who suddenly gets a hefty ancestral inheritance, not only sitting around eating through it, but throwing money around like dirt on top of that. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

As the words fell, Chen Yi’s eyes shut, then slowly opened again; every inch they opened seemed to cost him immense effort.

Golden radiance spilled from his eyes.

Scenes of Zhou Yitang previously manifesting her Heart Lake flashed through his mind. With the Heavenly Eye pushed to its limit, he fused and mastered the mysteries of the Taoist Skill contained within.

Then, Chen Yi raised his hand and drew it toward the center of his brows.

His Heart Lake shuddered violently, and his body began to tremble uncontrollably. The agony felt as if it were tearing his heart and lungs apart. The sword in his hand rose; first, a surging Sword Intent spread out with him at the center, cutting off the sea of clouds beneath his feet, propping open the blue sky above his head. In that instant, sword became Heaven and Earth; within the vast expanse of Heaven and Earth, there suddenly appeared a world forged entirely of sword.

He lifted his hand, imitating Zhou Yitang’s earlier actions in Vacuum Home, and shouted:

"Come."

One after another, faceless, mindless obsessions poured out from his brow, entering this manifested Heaven and Earth. In an instant, Sword Qi spread without end.

The Old Saintess could no longer sit still. If Chen Yi died because of this, her own life would be forfeit as well. She snapped, "Brat, if those obsessions turn around and kill you, what will you do then?!"

"Isn’t that simple?" Chen Yi shouted loudly at the crowd of obsessions, his tone firm as nails. "Honored Masters, Blind Arrow is trying to kill me—are you really going to let him run wild? Don’t you want to personally clean house? Whoever kills Blind Arrow first, I’ll let them kill me!"

The Old Saintess was already stupefied.

And as soon as those words came out, the obsessions grew restless again. They were not Heart Demons, and they possessed no intellect at all, only pure obsession. They were the discarded stones Zhou Yitang had chosen not to use. However well Chen Yi knew her, that was how well he now knew these obsessions. Obsessions are pure joys and sorrows, like clockwork machines wound tight, having nothing to do with reason or with passing moods, only with desires that once lingered long in the heart. To fulfill those desires, they would stop at nothing.

Chen Yi raised his sword.

The Heaven and Earth formed of sword crashed down toward Blind Arrow, who now resembled a Heavenly Person.

Wisps of cloud were torn apart and flung skyward; bolts of thunder detonated upward, wind and lightning spreading like a dense spiderweb, dragged and scattered everywhere by the Sword Qi.

Almost all of the obsessions were manipulating Sword Qi; unconscious currents of Sword Intent crisscrossed this Heaven and Earth.

Blind Arrow and Zhou Yitang turned back nearly at the same instant, the two top‑ten under Heaven both flashing a trace of astonishment.

And it was Blind Arrow, already akin to a Heavenly Person, who recovered first—because that Heaven‑rending Sword Intent was aimed straight at him.

Sword Qi roared like rivers and seas, vast and unstoppable, surging without cease.

Within several dozen feet of Blind Arrow, Sword Qi was already surging up one wave after another, and Chen Yi was still driving it on, still pushing it outward, squeezing out every last drop of strength to extend this Heaven and Earth as far as it would go, to its utmost limit—even as his meridians began to burst inch by inch, his whole body turning into a man of blood.

The unending Sword Qi rolled with wind and thunder, bombarding ceaselessly, not giving Blind Arrow the slightest chance to nock and draw his bow. Even if this Sword Qi could not harm his Heavenly Body’s shell, it still forced him to twist and dart about.

The obsessions knew no rest, no pause. Their hatred, disgust, resentment toward Chen Yi—all of it was contained in their sword moves, driving them to encircle and slaughter Blind Arrow. How deep those obsessions ran! Some of them even wheeled back to attack Chen Yi himself, but before they could reach him, a figure stepped in their way.

Zhou Yitang.

The one‑armed woman blocked the obsessions attacking him with effortless ease. She turned her head slightly, giving him a complicated glance.

She had also thought of manifesting her obsessions to use against Blind Arrow. But how withered was that Heart Lake of hers? Once the obsessions manifested, they would be all but impossible to recall. And such deep obsessions—once they fell into the world—could easily turn into Heavenly Demons.

Now, Chen Yi’s Heart Lake was a lush land. Once the obsessions left, they would return. Coupled with Sword Creation of Heaven and Earth, it was like a cage binding the obsessions’ steps.

Zhou Yitang gathered her mind, her thoughts flashing past in an instant. Ahead, Blind Arrow had already been hemmed in by Sword Qi; blades of Sword Qi surged up from the ground, slashing, stabbing, cleaving, raking—leaving him no chance to catch his breath. No words were needed; she already knew exactly what she had to do.