Chapter 34: Heaven and Earth in Turmoil!
“Madman…”
Shen Yu cursed inwardly.
Could it be that this Dongyuan Sect truly didn’t know the meaning of death? Would they dare go to war with his Xuanyuan Sect over a mere outer disciple?
It was simply unreasonable!
Though several elders had quickly channeled their spiritual energy to protect Song Yan, that brief moment of pressure still caused him to cough blood.
The might of Foundation Establishment. That surging, tidal spiritual energy and imposing aura…
Facing a Foundation Establishment cultivator directly, he already felt like a frog in a well seeing the moon. He dared not imagine what realm lay above Foundation Establishment…
In his chaotic thoughts, Song Yan suddenly realized the situation had become entirely different from what he had imagined.
He had thought this was a game of strategy between two sects, with himself as a mere pawn for negotiation. How had it now escalated to the point of full-scale war with the Xuanyuan Sect?
Did the Dongyuan Sect truly value its disciples this much?
Hummm—
Just as the standoff reached a stalemate, an ancient sword hum rang out from nowhere.
Towering sword qi pierced the horizon, splitting the clear sky above the Dongyuan Sect’s gates in two!
In an instant, the entire Arrival Platform fell silent.
Every cultivator present—whether Dongyuan Sect disciples, elders, or the Xuanyuan contingent—felt time itself freeze!
“Where does this junior come from…”
A distant voice echoed from Dragon Head Peak, reverberating throughout the Dongyuan Sect.
“Just broke seclusion to hear this chirping, boastful talk…”
“Unnecessary noise.”
The voice was like cold jade striking water, yet it sent the Xuanyuan Sect’s blood and qi roiling.
The heaven-spanning sword light suddenly contracted, the chaotic sword qi becoming as fine as silk threads. But to onlookers, it carried the power to drag the celestial river and overturn the universe.
Unstoppable!
The Xuanyuan Sect crowd stood frozen, not daring to move a muscle.
Before them, a waterfall of sword qi separated them from the Dongyuan Sect members.
Trembling.
They looked up.
Above the Dongyuan Sect, the vast sea of clouds had been torn open by that sword qi, creating a canyon. The surging sword qi, carrying mist from the rift, cascaded downward.
Where the sword qi passed, mountains, clear skies, and flowing rivers faded to gray-white ink wash.
The Xuanyuan Sect crowd looked up to find the sky dark, the sun unseen.
“…”
All were silent.
Everyone stared blankly at that heaven-spanning sword qi in the clouds.
A single sword cleaving the clouds…
Heaven and earth in turmoil!
“Go back and tell Lou Zhengze.”
“If the Xuanyuan Sect wants war, come at us. There’s no need for these childish wastes of energy…”
The voice was leisurely, but the Xuanyuan Sect cultivators were drenched in sweat.
Golden Core realm. The Dongyuan Sect had only one.
The Dongyuan Sect Master, Daoist Lijun.
Chen Linyuan!
“This disciple of mine, though of ordinary talent, has diligently cultivated in the outer sect, never causing trouble.”
“Unprovoked, you used him as a pawn. Now he has lost all his cultivation—truly pitiful…”
“When the time comes, you will send some compensatory gifts.”
“…”
The Xuanyuan Sect crowd looked ashen-faced, each silent.
Not that they wanted to argue, but the power of this sword qi waterfall before them made them fear that speaking would invite the agony of ten thousand swords piercing their hearts.
“Since you don’t answer, I’ll take it as agreement.”
“It’s getting late…”
“See yourselves out.”
As soon as the words fell, the Xuanyuan Sect crowd vanished. The next blink, they were outside the sect gates.
“…”
The terrifying sword pressure gradually dissipated. The Xuanyuan Sect’s taut nerves slowly relaxed.
Facing a Golden Core cultivator directly…
Not to mention the Dongyuan Sect disciples, even they Foundation Establishment cultivators had never had such an “opportunity” before.
“…”
Shen Yu’s expression was dark, silent.
The atmosphere among the Xuanyuan Sect crowd was deathly still.
Elder Chang Ziyi looked spirited and quite young. Perhaps never having suffered such humiliation, he snorted coldly and shouted:
“Today, we have experienced the might of the Dongyuan Sect Master!” “However, today’s matter is not yet settled! We shall return to demand—”
Hummm—
A bolt of sword qi, faster than lightning, shot from the sky. Before he could react, it landed squarely in Chang Ziyi’s mouth, spinning relentlessly.
“Ah! Mmph…”
The violent sword qi wreaked havoc inside his mouth, shredding his tongue. Yet the intensity was precisely calibrated to allow his Foundation Establishment spiritual energy to automatically repair and recover.
The sword qi continuously sliced through Chang Ziyi’s tongue and oral cavity, blood gushing like a fountain.
“Today, I am in an excellent mood and do not wish to create more killing karma…”
“However, from now until you return within the Xuanyuan Sect’s protective grand array, if you dare speak a single word, you need not return at all.”
He truly dared to act?!
Chang Ziyi was on the verge of fainting when he finally stopped circulating the spiritual energy in his body, allowing the sword qi to reduce his mouth and tongue to a bloody pulp.
Shen Yu dared not linger any longer. With a sweep of his great sleeve, he led the Xuanyuan Sect crowd fleeing through the air.
He didn’t even dare utter the word “go.”
…
Within the Dongyuan Sect.
Song Yan felt a sudden chill, as if an invisible gaze had seen through him completely.
“In this world, no cultivator is innocent, nor is anyone purely evil…”
“In struggle and combat, as long as you don’t violate your conscience or recklessly accumulate karmic burden, if you kill, you kill. Why hide it?”
“This matter is settled.”
“Elders, come to Lingxiao Hall to discuss the many events during my seclusion.”
The elders bowed toward Dragon Head Peak: “We obey.”
The surrounding disciples gradually dispersed, but Song Yan remained rooted to the spot, gazing into the distant sky at that sword scar…
This was the Dongyuan Sect Master, Daoist Lijun.
The Dongyuan Sect was somewhat different from other major sects—one could say very different.
If someone were to study the history of the cultivation world in the State of Chu, they would find that the founders of the other five major sects mostly had only Foundation Establishment cultivation.
Later generations painstakingly managed affairs, and after long ages, with the sect’s blessed lands nurturing spiritual energy, Golden Core cultivators emerged.
In terms of founding age, the oldest among the six major sects was Huadu Temple in Chenzhou, established eight thousand years ago.
Most of the ancestral founders of the various major sects had long since passed away.
But the Dongyuan Sect was different. Daoist Lijun had come here only about three hundred years ago to establish the sect and build its gates.
The sect, from top to bottom, had gone through only a few generations.
He was a living ancestral founder…
Sects large and small in the State of Chu had always been eyeing the Dongyuan Sect’s blessed territory.
First, the Dongyuan Sect openly had only this one Golden Core cultivator. In recent years, there had been no reports of any disciple within the Dongyuan Sect breaking through to the Golden Core realm.
Second, when a cultivator breaks through to the Golden Core realm, they gain three hundred years of lifespan, able to live over five hundred years.
When Daoist Lijun had traveled here, he had already been at least mid-Golden Core or above.
How difficult was it to cultivate to the Golden Core realm?
In the remote and barren lands of the State of Chu, the record for the youngest breakthrough to Golden Core belonged to a cultivator named Perfected Qingyan.
He entered seclusion at one hundred twenty-six, and after three years, achieved the Great Dao of Golden Core at one hundred twenty-nine.
Unfortunately, he later left the State of Chu to travel, and his whereabouts became unknown. The small sect he originally belonged to, the Ziyuan Sect, had long since been destroyed.
Even if Daoist Lijun possessed talent equal to his, he should now be approximately four hundred thirty years old.
Everyone guessed that Daoist Lijun’s remaining lifespan was limited.
But today’s sword strike would probably force the surrounding covetous sects to temporarily abandon their unrealistic thoughts.
“…”
Song Yan lowered his head.
He wasn’t certain if the Sect Master’s words had been meant for him, but whether they were or not, what he said was correct.
No one was innocent.
“In this world where the powerful can truly turn clouds to rain with a flip of their hand, weakness and powerlessness are themselves a sin. Where is the innocence?”
“If one lacks strength, then as the Sect Master said, they are merely straw dogs and ants…”
“Merely pawns on the board of various sects and powers, playthings in the palms of the strong!”
One day…
Song Yan raised his head. In his eyes there was no resentment or malice—only calm and resolve.
One day…
One day he would cultivate the Great Dao, no longer relying on another’s protection, becoming the master of his own fate!
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(End of Chapter)