In the distance, in three directions, three kinds of light rose simultaneously, transforming in the sky into three golden phantoms! Blazing and dazzling, radiating an arrogant, overbearing aura.

The golden phantoms claimed the land as kings!

This signified that three King-level martial artists had entered the scene!

William Carter's pupils contracted. He gave a bitter laugh, powerlessly gazing at the three golden shadows in the sky, his heart turning cold. He hadn't expected the opponent's true killing move to appear only at this moment!

He was only a Martial Venerable, just one step below King-level, but that single step was as vast as the distance between heaven and earth!

Three Kings! What a grand display!

“Excellent swordsmanship, worthy of the Poison Sword Martial Venerable! But this Upper Three Heavens is not a place where a mere Poison Sword Martial Venerable can run wild!” one person said calmly. “It's a pity I cannot fight you fairly—what a regret!”

As he spoke, the other two appeared as well. All three wore wide robes with flowing sleeves, their garments fluttering as they rode the wind. Their bearing was elegant, their expressions composed.

William Carter's gaze was already a bit blurred. “You three Kings... also want the Nine Tribulations Sword?”

“Wrong. We do not want the Nine Tribulations Sword. We want you dead!” The three smiled simultaneously, exuding poise. “But taking the Nine Tribulations Sword in passing would be an unexpected gain. A great gain!”

William Carter gave a cold, proud smile, straightened his back, and declared loftily, “It's a pity you don't understand the Nine Tribulations Sword! You will never obtain it!”

His eyes became resolute, utterly determined!

He no longer had the strength to fight!

But he could still unleash one final strike—destruction!

Destroy himself, destroy the Nine Tribulations Sword, destroy the enemy!

With a flash of sword light, William Carter suddenly reversed the Nine Tribulations Sword and plunged it fiercely into his own heart! His eyes, devoid of emotion, stared at the three in the sky as he shouted, “With my heart's blood, shatter all tribulations! Master of the Nine Tribulations Sword, overturn heaven and earth!”

This was the only sword move he could unleash at full power. When he first saw the sword manual, he knew he could perform this move. But such a strike required his own life to activate!

Who would dare use such a sword technique?

With this strike, the wielder would die!

The Nine Tribulations Sword suddenly shone violently, as if a sun had appeared out of nowhere. Its fierce sword aura erupted wildly, and the surging power actually propelled William Carter's entire body into midair!

This was the ultimate move of the Nine Tribulations Sword! Sacrificing one's own heart's blood and soul to awaken the sword spirit! It was an absolute mutual destruction technique! This move could even kill opponents several levels stronger than oneself!

It was the Nine Tribulations Sword Spirit acting on its own, destroying everything!

“Retreat!” The three King-level experts were shocked and fled at top speed! Compared to their composed arrival, this was a world apart! Their graceful demeanor was utterly gone!

They had never imagined that this Poison Sword Martial Venerable could unleash such a move!

With a boom, a blazing sword beam soared into the sky, turning the entire heavens silver-white! The three Kings had no time to defend, not even to scream, before they were reduced to ashes!

Even the golden phantoms conjured by their King-level power still flickered in the air, but their lives had already vanished into nothingness!

A single strike from the Nine Tribulations Sword Spirit could destroy even heaven and earth within its range—let alone just three King-level martial artists?

William Carter suddenly found it a bit absurd and couldn't help but give a bitter smile. Was this the invincible secret of the Nine Tribulations Sword? If so, what value did this continent's greatest divine artifact have?

But he vaguely felt that this was not all. Yet the true secret of the Nine Tribulations Sword—he would never have the chance to uncover it...

William Carter sighed. Suspended in midair, his eyes drifted casually—and he spotted someone he believed should never appear here.

In the distance, a man in white stared in shock, his face full of disbelief.

“Edward Morgan!?” William Carter's gaze sharpened, and at last he understood. Why had his secretive actions been ambushed? Why had all his attacks been precisely intercepted?

So it was him, the master schemer Edward Morgan.

No wonder he had been so utterly defeated!

William Carter wanted to laugh bitterly, to mock himself, to... but in the end, he did nothing. He had lost all strength, and had no time left to think...

William Carter's body slowly fell from the sky, drifting down like a withered leaf in late autumn, landing in the dust. On his face was a faint yet warm smile, as he murmured, “Grace Carter, if there is another life, I will dance the world with you!”

Since death was inevitable, he would embrace it with the greatest passion and the deepest longing! Because there, his beloved awaited!

In the darkness, it seemed as if on a boundless, snowy plain, snowflakes fell from the sky, the earth cloaked in silver. Amidst it all, a graceful red figure danced lightly, as if welcoming him, or perhaps anxiously awaiting William Carter. Her face was indistinct, but the gentle, devoted gaze—so deep, so clear... Her dance grew ever more intense, swirling through the heavens and earth, until all became a blood-red, haunting, and cold beauty...

At William Carter's heart, the tip of the Nine Tribulations Sword suddenly burst forth with dazzling brilliance, shining blindingly bright!