Mad Saber and Snow Rose hovered facing each other at a distance, each wielding their respective weapons - Mad Saber with his saber, and Snow Rose with her crystal-clear sword. The tension crackled in the air between them as they prepared for the final battle.

"You are indeed looking better in that color," remarked Mad Saber, his gaze fixed on Snow Rose. Her previously white robe now stained a deep red, blood also drenching her body. "You should change your Dao Title to Crimson Rose, it suits you better," Mad Saber suggested with a grin.

Mad Saber's thoughts drifted momentarily as he observed Snow Rose, his gaze lingering on the crimson hue of her robe. In his eyes, she was more captivating, more beautiful, adorned in the color of blood rather than just plain white. Among their generation, Snow Rose stood out as one of the cultivators who had shed the most blood. Despite her usual calm demeanor, she can be as deadly as a hungry, bloodthirsty beast. He remembered vividly the sight of her surrounded by enemies, facing them with unparalleled bravery, her figure bathed in the blood of her foes. Such courage, such power, her image deeply ingrained in his memory. Despite his admiration, Mad Saber's grin remained, suggesting his playful nature even in the face of their impending clash.

Snow Rose remained silent, showing no interest in humoring Mad Saber's banter.

"Time to end this," Snow Rose declared, her expression icy as she pointed her sword towards Mad Saber.

"Sigh... that's right, time to end this," Mad Saber responded, his face now serious as he also aimed his saber at Snow Rose.

Snow Rose and Mad Saber's figures disappeared from where they were hovering as they moved swiftly towards each other. A series of clashing and clanking rang out as Snow Rose and Mad Saber exchanged blows. Both were unable to summon their Soul Manifestations anymore, and their Qi reserves were almost depleted. They relied solely on their weapon proficiency now - Mad Saber with his fast and deadly saber technique, and Snow Rose with her elegant and fluid sword technique.

They exchanged tens of blows in the blink of an eye, each inflicting wounds upon the other. Snow Rose's sword attacks would cause Mad Saber's wounds to freeze, his body infiltrated with cold energy. In return, Mad Saber's attacks would cause Snow Rose's injuries to bleed profusely.

"[Sword Dance of the Moonlight, Crescent Frost]!" Snow Rose exclaimed.

"[Blood Saber Crimson Slash]!" Mad Saber countered.

Both combatants unleashed their techniques simultaneously. Mad Saber's saber was enveloped in a thick red aura, while Snow Rose's sword shimmered with icy cold air. With a deafening bang, the two clashed, their weapons grinding against each other as they locked in combat. Both exerted their strength, pushing against each other, each determined to gain the upper hand.

"[Frost Snow Body]," Snow Rose uttered, while still locked in combat with Mad Saber. Three snow figures materialized around her, poised to attack Mad Saber.

"[Blood Phantom]!" Mad Saber retorted, summoning three blood figures to defend against the incoming assault.

The snow figures and blood figures clashed, engaging in fierce combat against each other. Meanwhile, the struggle between Mad Saber and Snow Rose intensified, both exerting their strength to push each other back.

With a final surge of force, Mad Saber and Snow Rose managed to break apart, their exerted strength causing a shockwave that destroyed all remaining snow figures and blood figures still locked in battle.

Mad Saber and Snow Rose moved swiftly towards each other once again, each preparing to launch another attack.

"HEAAA!" Mad Saber exclaimed, delivering a vertical slash towards Snow Rose.

Snow Rose prepared to counter with a stab of her own. As the saber descended towards her, Snow Rose extended her left hand towards it. Her left palm became enveloped in thick ice, which also extended towards the saber in an attempt to stop its descent.

A crack echoed as the ice was smashed.

Slash!

Mad Saber's saber attack cut through and destroyed the ice, slicing through Snow Rose's palm and continuing its trajectory to sever her left arm from her shoulder, blood gushing out.

Snow Rose's attack also landed on Mad Saber. Her sword pierced his chest, penetrating through to his back, and the cold energy surged, slowly freezing the area around the stab.

Both remained motionless.

"It seems that you've won... cough..." Mad Saber coughed, blood staining his lips.

Snow Rose, still holding her sword penetrating Mad Saber's chest, remained calm.

"It's over for you," Snow Rose declared, her gaze cold as she looked towards Mad Saber, having sacrificed her left arm to deliver the fatal blow.

"Cough... cough..." Mad Saber released his grip, his body ravaged by the infiltrating cold energy. His saber fell to the ground. "Indeed, but it's also over for you," he declared, using both his hands to tightly grasp Snow Rose's right hand, which still clutched her sword lodged in his chest.

"What are you trying to do?!" Snow Rose exclaimed; her tone laced with suspicion.

"He he he, that bastard Malachi wasn't so bad after all, he he he," Mad Saber chuckled.

Snow Rose remained puzzled by Mad Saber's actions, attempting to free her hand and retrieve her sword, but Mad Saber's grip was firm.

"Ha ha ha," Mad Saber laughed, then opened his mouth to reveal a black crystal on his tongue before retracting it back into his mouth. "Ga ha ha, you must know what this is, right?" he grinned wildly, blood staining his lips.

"What?!" Snow Rose exclaimed.

"That's right, it's that bastard trump card treasure, The Seven Serpents Poison Crystal!" Mad Saber confirmed with a twisted grin.

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The Seven Serpents Poison Crystal is a crystal containing a potent venom extracted from seven Rank-6 Spirit Beasts, enriched to increase its lethality many times over. Its poisons can kill almost any Soul Ascendance cultivator in just a few breaths.

"Why do you have it?!" Snow Rose demanded, struggling to free herself from his grip.

"He he, sure, we're not geniuses, but we're not that dumb either. We know that among the five of us, you would consider Malachi the most troublesome one, so you would have targeted him first. Even though he's very weak in direct combat, his poisons are hard to deal with. That's why that bastard Malachi gave me this crystal, because he wasn't confident he could survive for long against you. Although I must admit, I'm very surprised that you'd just one-shot him so easily like that," Mad Saber explained with a sinister chuckle.

Noxious Viper would be able to utilize the black crystal to its fullest potential, but Snow Rose would probably kill him first before a good opportunity presents itself to use the crystal. Thus, he entrusted it to Mad Saber.

"Let's die together!" Mad Saber exclaimed, biting down on the sinister black crystal.

"Tch!" Snow Rose clicked her tongue in frustration, releasing her sword and struggling to free her right hand from Mad Saber's grip, but to no avail.

The Seven Serpents Poison Crystal shattered inside Mad Saber's mouth, emitting black poisonous gas that began to seep out, melting his muscles, bones, teeth, skin, and tendons into a black gooey liquid. As his consciousness faded away amidst the unbearable pain, Mad Saber glimpsed the blurry figure of Snow Rose struggling to free herself from his grip before his vision darkened completely.

Snow Rose watched in horror as the dark gas emanated from Mad Saber's mouth, rapidly spreading and nearly reaching her. With a desperate kick, she managed to break free from his grasp, tearing her own right arm in the process. Propelled away by the force of her kick, she couldn't escape entirely unscathed as a small amount of the black gas touched her body.

"[Eternal Icy Prison]," Snow Rose invoked her technique, surrounding herself with swirling snowflakes that encapsulated her in a large snowball, protecting her from the black gas.

Mad Saber's head completely melted, unleashing a burst of thick black gas that enveloped the area, reaching the large snowball. His body fell to the ground, trailing black gas as it crashed down. The area where Mad Saber's body fell was completely surrounded and covered in thick black poisonous gas. Mad Saber's body itself had melted into a dark, gooey liquid, which sizzled and corroded the ground, leaving one large hole in its wake. Meanwhile, Snow Rose, protected within her snowy cocoon, drifted away from the contaminated area. However, the outside of the snowball became entirely black as it was tainted by the poisonous gas. Gradually, the contamination spread to the inside slowly and almost reached where Snow Rose was located.

As the black snowball traveled further, it split in two by a sword slash, and Snow Rose emerged from within. The split snowball, now almost entirely black, disintegrated into black snowflakes, disappearing. Snow Rose, weakened and in intense pain from the poison ravaging her body, plummeted to the ground unable to fly any longer. She crashed, creating a small crater. Lying on the ground, she turned her body upward, still gasping for breath. Beads of sweat rolled down her pale face, and the black veins on her skin were visible. With both arms lost, blood still dripping, she looked up at the sky, feeling the warmth of the sun on her face as the clouds slowly dissipated.

After a while, Snow Rose slowly struggled to get up, coughing up black blood as it sizzled upon touching the ground, evaporating into black gas. After taking several deep breaths and exhaling, Snow Rose slowly floated towards the direction of Xiu Hui and Yan Mei.

The landscape lay in ruins, devastated by the aftermath of the fierce battle. The volcano, caused by their fight, still erupted ominously in the distance. It didn't take long for Snow Rose to reach Xiu Hui and Yan Mei, who had been protected by an energy barrier throughout the ordeal. When they spotted their Martial Aunt flying towards them, relief washed over them, but their joy turned to anguish as they saw her condition up close.

Tears started to roll down Yan Mei's face. Xiu Hui then dispelled the energy barrier, and they flew towards Martial Aunt. Snow Rose descended slowly to the ground. Yan Mei was the first to reach her, wordlessly wrapping her arms around her Martial Aunt and burying her face in her ample chest, tears streamed down her cheeks as she began to cry loudly. For her, her Martial Aunt was very important, and she cared for and loved her Martial Aunt more than her own master.

Unlike her master, who was strict and easily angered, her Martial Aunt was gentle, lovable, and kind. Xiu Hui, with reddened and watery eyes, approached Snow Rose next, taking her into a gentle embrace.

"Martial Aunt... are you okay?" Xiu Hui asked, her voice filled with sadness. Seeing her Martial Aunt's condition, she observed that she had lost both arms, her robe torn and damaged. The previously beautiful and elegant white robes had become dark red, drenched in blood, and her complexion was pale. Blood also drenched her body.

"I am fine, don't worry," Snow Rose reassured them, offering a faint smile despite her injuries and the poison ravaging her body.

"But... but your arms," Xiu Hui pointed out, concern evident in her tone.

"They will heal in time," Snow Rose replied calmly.

Amidst Yan Mei's continued sobbing, Snow Rose's expression suddenly turned icy cold as she sensed someone spying from a distance. Her killing intent rising again, she prepared to battle, but the person immediately ran away, causing Snow Rose's expression to return to normal.

"Come on, let's leave this place," she said gently. With Xiu Hui and Yan Mei on either side of her, supporting her, they flew away from the desolate battlefield, disappearing into the distance as Yan Mei's cries gradually faded into the air.

...

"Phew... that was close. He he he, she's still as beautiful as I remember," muttered a figure streaking across the sky, moving so swiftly that his form blurred. He had been secretly observing the fight from the beginning and was detected by Snow Rose, prompting him to swiftly flee. As he flew, he retrieved a communication talisman from his storage ring to deliver a message.

...

In a lavish room, a handsome man wearing extravagant robes sat at a table, his long hair tied back neatly. Two beautiful attendants stood nearby, respectful and silent. As he sipped tea, he retrieved a communication talisman, and a message could be heard.

"Mad Saber and the others were killed by Snow Rose. Tsk tsk tsk, they were too weak. They also failed to force her to reveal her Demonification. Surprisingly, Snow Rose is still at the 6th stage of the Soul Ascendance realm. I will tell you the details later. Also, don't forget to prepare some good wine for me. Ha ha ha."

With the message delivered, the communication talisman crumbled to dust. The man continued to sip his tea.

...

After Snow Rose, Xiu Hui, and Yan Mei left the area, several illusory figures appeared in the sky. Some of them used their massive illusory palms to descend to the ground, grabbing both the remains of the fallen cultivators and their belongings before disappearing. A large figure opened its mouth and sucked in the black poisonous gas that blanketed the area before swallowing it.

A male illusory figure approached a female one. "You have a really impressive junior," he remarked.

The female figure didn't reply. The male figure and the others then disappeared, while the female figure took a last glance in the direction where Snow Rose had left before also vanishing.

The deaths of the five Ascendance Realm cultivators in this battle will undoubtedly reverberate throughout the Cultivation World. These individuals, having reached the Soul Ascendance Realm, wield significant influence within their respective factions on the Luoshan Continent and hold high-ranking positions. Cultivators beyond the Soul Ascendance Realm typically withdraw from active participation in worldly affairs, focusing instead on secluded cultivation due to the profound impact of karma on their cultivation paths; the higher their cultivation level, the more karma will affect their cultivation paths. Therefore, Soul Ascendance cultivators are among the most powerful figures actively engaging in the cultivation world. The loss of five such individuals is no small matter.

Those with knowledge and connections are likely to view this news with concern, understanding the implications it may have for the balance of power among factions. Conversely, those who are unaware or uninvolved in the affairs of the cultivation world will continue with their lives as usual, unaffected by the significant events unfolding among the elite cultivators.