novelraw Chapter 685: Journey to the Sword World
Chapter 685: Journey to the Sword World
Luo You once again went into closed cultivation to repair his Spirit, while Nieli once again formed a demon cocoon to break through his realm.
Mu Weiliang was temporarily handed over to be taken care of by the Paper Crane Sister, while Bright Sparrow was busy commanding Taiwu, healing Mu Luo and Youhuang...
With so many powerful individuals present, and Taiwu being there, the Rain Immortal World was very safe, very safe...
After returning to the Rain Immortal World for only a month, Ning Fan immediately set out for the Sword World.
He wanted to fulfill the promise he made to the old monster; he knew the old monster had been waiting for him, waiting for a long, long time.
Perhaps, Little Dugu was also waiting for him.
"Master..."
In a barren mountain of the Sword World, a realm gate opened, and Ning Fan emerged.
He had killed countless, and in his hand were countless realm gate jade slips, opening a realm gate to travel through the nine worlds with ease.
His face was indifferent and emotionless as he walked through the mountains and waters, not a smile to be seen.
He had ultimately lost his seven emotions; whether alone or in front of others, he had no need to force a smile.
He didn’t stay in Yue Country for long, perhaps also fearing that Xu Qiuling and other perceptive girls would notice something amiss and be worried.
The Sword World was much larger than the Rain Immortal World, with a landscape predominantly of mountains and few rivers.
As far as the eye could see, endless mountain ranges, many villages, and towns were built by these mountains.
In the sky above, sword lights would occasionally sweep past.
The Sword World had many sword cultivators, and wherever one went, you could see Masters practicing sword flight.
The Sword World was divided into three great territories: Tianjiang, Xuan Frontier, and Snow Frontier.
Tianjiang was hot and filled with bandits, Xuan Frontier had many demons, and Snow Frontier had many sects.
Each of the three territories was guarded by a Sword Palace.
The Heavenly Emperor of Tianjiang, whose grandson once had a marriage pact with Dugu, had that pact broken due to Ning Fan appearing out of nowhere and taking away three strands of Sword Qi from Dugu, breaking the pact with the Heavenly Emperor.
The Sword Cultivators of Tianjiang were adept at using a unique type of flying sword resembling a strange saber.
The Miao Emperor of Xuan Frontier was a female Sword King. It’s said that Xuan Frontier and Snow Frontier were initially at odds, always at war. But for unknown reasons, in the past few decades, Xuan Frontier suddenly ceased the warring with Snow Frontier...
And this Miao Emperor seemed to frequently visit Snow Frontier...
The Sword Cultivators of Xuan Frontier were skilled in using a peculiar flying sword similar to a Miao saber.
The Ling Emperor of Snow Frontier, who was Little Dugu’s father, currently housed the old monster in Snow Frontier.
The Sword Cultivators of Snow Frontier were considered orthodox within the Sword World. It’s said that within Snow Frontier, the ruins where the Sword Ancestor once went into closed cultivation still remain, regularly hosting Sword Ancestor Trials for the younger generation to encounter opportunities.
Back then, it was during one of these Sword Ancestor Trials that Little Dugu accidentally acquired the Art of Sword Finger and gifted it to Ning Fan.
"A hundred years later, if I am not dead, I will surely go to the Sword World..."
That was the promise made by Ning Fan in his youth.
Ning Fan’s desolate heart suddenly felt warmth as he glanced at the One Heart Sword Seal on the back of his hand, a smile tugging at his lips.
The smile wasn’t natural, overly forced, yet it came from the heart.
"Little girl, I’ve come to find you, how are you..."
Nowadays, when he looked at Little Dugu, he saw her as a little girl.
All the information was gathered by Ning Fan along the way.
To say ’gathered’ isn’t entirely accurate.
When Ning Fan encountered a group of robbing Master bandits while drinking at a village at the foot of a mountain, he obtained all the information.
Killing, Soul Searching...
He was never a good person, at most abiding by "do not offend me, and I will not offend you."
This might make Little Dugu disappointed.
She so hoped he would be a good person...
Standing atop a mountain peak, Ning Fan changed his spiritual sense, performing the Heaven Prying Rain Technique.
In an instant, the entire Sword World was draped in a fine drizzle, nourishing without a sound.
Ning Fan closed his eyes, every plant and tree in the Sword World’s three territories was imprinted in his mind.
He opened his eyes, dispersing the fine drizzle as he identified Snow Frontier’s direction and slowly walked towards it.
His steps appeared unhurried, yet each one was imbued with Lifedeath Dao Charm, each step covering a distance of six million miles instantly.
It wouldn’t take long to reach Snow Frontier.
...
In Snow Frontier, it was the day when the Sword Ancestor’s Secret Land was open once every hundred years.
This was the Sword Ancestor Trial!
All Nascent Soul Stage cultivators and above from the three territories could participate in the Sword Ancestor Trial.
Of course, old monsters could also enter for cultivation, but the benefits were minimal.
For Nascent Soul cultivators, the Sword Ancestor Trial was highly dangerous.
It is said that within the secret land, there are many sword beasts comparable to Nascent Soul cultivators, considerably formidable. Numerous participants have died in past trials.
Those who died were those with inadequate cultivations, blamed on none but themselves. The path of cultivation is survival of the fittest.
The Sword Ancestor’s Secret Land was located in the Ling Wilderness Great Marsh within Snow Frontier.
At this moment, young talents from the entire Sword World were gathered on the borders of Ling Wilderness Great Marsh, accompanied by countless old monsters, the elders of these young talents.
Presiding over the Sword Ancestor Trial was mainly the Ling Palace, with support from the Heavenly Temple and Miao Palace.
After all, though the Sword Ancestor’s Secret Land is located in Snow Frontier, it is a common treasure of all Sword World cultivators, and could not be solely governed by the Ling Palace.
Snowflakes drifted across the sky in Snow Frontier.
Suddenly, the snowflakes vanished, replaced by a falling rain.
After a moment, the rain stopped, and the snow resumed its descent.
"Oh? I didn’t expect it to rain in Snow Frontier, a sight rarely seen. But an unusual situation may be a demon or an ill omen..."
Sitting on a high platform were three rulers of the Sword World, and an old, stern man among them chuckled coldly.
"The Heavenly Emperor overthinks, it’s just the snow turning to rain, maybe a cultivator above the Divine Transformation Realm practiced Rain Intent and altered the weather," the Ling Emperor said, squinting thoughtfully at the Heavenly Emperor.
Since the annulment of the marriage pact between Dugu and the Heavenly Emperor’s grandson, there had been discord between the Ling Palace and the Heavenly Palace.
Ten years ago, the Heavenly Emperor broke through to the Sixth Heavenly Layer of the Void Fragmentation Realm, surpassing the Ling Emperor and Miao Emperor, growing increasingly arrogant.
He even occasionally sends Tianjiang’s raiding bandits to plunder small sects in Snow Frontier...
The Ling Emperor pondered whether this ominous statement from the Heavenly Emperor held deeper meaning.
Could it be that the Heavenly Emperor was planning to strike against the Ling Palace?
No, it wasn’t possible...
Though the Ling Emperor hadn’t broken through to the Fracture Sixth Realm, he would not be much weaker than the Heavenly Emperor, he figured the Heavenly Emperor wouldn’t have the guts to attack the Ling Palace.
"Eh? Why haven’t I seen Han Yuanji? Ling Jiuyou, did you hide Han Yuanji! You should know, I came all the way to Snow Frontier enduring the cold, just to see him!" The Miao Emperor furrowed her elegant brow, searching among the crowd, seemingly displeased.
She seemed to have a fondness for the old monster!
"Hmph! Don’t mention that person in front of me!" The Ling Emperor’s face darkened instantly.
He didn’t like Han Yuanji, and liked Han Yuanji’s disciple even less!
Han Yuanji had entangled his eldest daughter, leaving her in a half-dead state.
Han Yuanji’s disciple had charmed his youngest daughter, leaving her in constant distraction...
As a father, he disdained Han Yuanji’s shameful attempts!
Though considering Han Yuanji’s dedication to saving the eldest daughter, he hadn’t torn apart their relationship yet.
As for Han Yuanji’s disciple, who was said to be a Nascent Soul junior decades ago, who knows if he had broken through to the intermediate Nascent Soul realm yet...
This person, who deceived his youngest daughter’s Sword Qi and aspired to marry her, truly, truly...
The Ling Emperor only knew that a young man had once taken Little Dugu’s Sword Qi and formed the One Heart Sword Seal with her.
He only knew that the young man was the old monster’s disciple, unaware that he was now the dreaded Nieyun Rain Emperor known across the nine worlds.
Even if he knew, he would most likely hold a grudge against Ning Fan.
He didn’t show the old monster, a Four Heavens Executor, any goodwill, naturally, he wouldn’t show any to Ning Fan either.
He was stubborn, thick-headed.
"Just because you said not to mention him doesn’t mean I won’t, I just want to mention him, I just like him!" The Miao Emperor said this with no shame, a bold heart typical of Miao women, daring to love and hate.
Millions of miles away, in an ice city, the old monster looked up at the sky, and when he saw the snow turning into a fine rain, his old face broke into a chrysanthemum-like smile.
"Little brat, you finally came!"
"Your disciple is quite capable, his reputation now spreading across the nine worlds, feared by all." Sovereign Xia said indifferently, yet his eyes were full of admiration.
"Nonsense! Of course, he is capable; after all, I was the one who taught him!" the old monster boasted.
"As far as I know, among his many divine skills, none is from your Black Demon Sect... you seem to have taught him nothing," the Sovereign Xia said in a cold tone, unhesitatingly revealing the old monster’s secrets.
"Uh... I taught him how to rob. Haven’t you heard that phrase? ’Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.’ Getting a treasure from the master is not as good as robbing hundreds of treasures!" the old monster retorted without a blush or gasp, his shamelessness leaving the Sovereign Xia speechless.
Beside them, waves of ripples suddenly appeared in Little Dugu’s calm eyes.
She automatically ignored the old monster’s various boasts, hearing only the sentence he said.
He is coming...
Without saying much, she raised her Escape Rainbow and sped towards the Ling Wilderness Great Marsh.
"Uh... Stubborn girl, where are you going? Aren’t you waiting here for Little Brat Ning?"
"The Sword Ancestor’s trial is in ten days, I need to be there waiting for him. He will come to find me, definitely," Dugu said with a faint smile that could captivate a city, before swiftly disappearing.
Three days later, Dugu, with a Half-Step Void Refinement Realm, arrived at the venue outside the Sword Ancestor’s Secret Land.
At the center of the venue, nearly three thousand young Sword World talents above the Divine Transformation Realm had already gathered.
Over sixty were above Nascent Soul Realm, with only one above Void Refinement Realm.
That person was the Heavenly Emperor’s grandson, known as the Sword World’s top young talent, Tianyi Yunshui!
The Heavenly Emperor’s name was Tianyi Xiong, and this Heavenly Temple’s surname had always been compound.
Theoretically, all young talents above the Divine Transformation Realm were eligible for the Secret Land.
Hence, before the Secret Land opened, there had never been any large competitions to reduce the numbers.
However, countless arenas were still built outside the Secret Land for the young talents here to exchange freely.
"Dugu, after years apart, you’re still so beautiful that you move my heart."
Tianyi Yunshui pushed through the crowd, approaching Dugu with a gentle smile.
His appearance was exceptionally handsome, and his temperament as gentle as jade, attracting the secret admiration of a few moderately attractive female cultivators.
Upon seeing Tianyi Yunshui, Dugu’s eyes involuntarily showed a hint of disdain.
Calling her Dugu, truly a nauseating address... on what basis does he call her that.
If anyone should call her that, it should be Little Demon Ning... right...
"Dugu is not familiar with Daoist, please Daoist be respectful."
Daoist, a completely estranged title, was enough to show that Tianyi Yunshui had no weight in Dugu’s heart.
Tianyi Yunshui’s expression darkened, saying coldly, "Don’t forget, you were once my fiancée!"
"Oh? Dugu does not remember such a thing. The so-called engagement was just a gamble between the Heavenly Emperor and me, that bet was won by me, the engagement naturally never existed."
Dugu was too lazy to argue further with Tianyi Yunshui and turned to leave in another direction.
Tianyi Yunshui’s escape light flickered, blocking Dugu’s path again, coldly laughing, "Nothing I desire can escape my grasp!"
He desired not just Dugu herself, but also the Art of Sword Finger that Dugu obtained from the Sword Ancestor’s trial!
"Tianyi Yunshui, if you continue to be tangled, don’t blame me for being ruthless!"
"Ruthless? You! Among the female swordsmen of this generation, you may be first but you are not my match! If you don’t believe it, come onto the arena and fight me!"
Tianyi Yunshui leaped onto a certain arena.
On that arena, two Early Nascent Soul cultivators were fiercely battling.
Tianyi Yunshui was too lazy to waste words, with a flick of his sleeve, numerous sword lights slashed at the two, directly throwing them off the arena, severely wounded and coughing blood.
"Tianyi Yunshui, you actually attacked without reason and harmed others!" the two injured Early Nascent Soul cultivators protested in anger.
"Dissatisfied?" Tianyi Yunshui glanced their way, causing their faces to drastically change and cough blood again, their fear silencing them.
The elders of these two were each a Nascent Soul and Spirit Severing cultivator, unwilling to provoke Tianyi Yunshui despite their anger at him for injuring their juniors.
Even Tianyi Yunshui alone was a Void Glimpse Stage cultivator, not someone they could offend.
Moreover, Tianyi Yunshui had the backing of the Heavenly Temple...
Each young talent present, witnessing Tianyi Yunshui’s violent acts, had varied feelings of fear or dissatisfaction but dared not speak.
The Ling Emperor frowned, the Miao Emperor snorted disdainfully, while the Heavenly Emperor laughed heartily, "Worthy of being my grandson, ones conduct should be so domineering!"
"Heavenly One Dugu, come up and fight your husband!" Tianyi Yunshui provocatively gazed at Dugu below the arena.
Instantly, an uproar erupted as Tianyi Yunshui added the surname ’Heavenly One’ to Dugu’s name.
Sword World’s customs were unique, unmarried women had no surname.
Dugu’s father, the emperor, surnamed Ling, yet she could not bear the surname Ling.
A Mountain of White Bones forgets the surname... Dugu’s surname must come from her husband.
Dugu’s beautiful eyes turned frosty, she disliked being tangled with Tianyi Yunshui, but he truly went too far.
"My name is not Heavenly One Dugu, I am Ning Dugu! My husband’s name is likely Ning!"
Dugu stepped forward, transforming into a sword light and instantly landing on the arena.
Facing Tianyi Yunshui, who was one major realm higher, Dugu showed no fear.
"Heavenly Emperor, what does this mean!" The Ling emperor’s gaze darkened.
Though he was not fond of Dugu claiming the Ning surname as her husband’s, he detested the Heavenly Temple’s relentless entanglement more.
His daughter must not be bullied by outsiders!
Tianyi Yunshui relied on his Void Refinement Stage to bully a Divine Transformation female, what sort of reasoning was that!
"Haha, merely young lovers’ quarrels, we as elders can quietly watch," the Heavenly Emperor laughed heartily, not finding his grandson’s actions arrogant at all.
Instead, his eyes showed anticipation.
If his grandson truly captured Dugu’s heart, his planned destruction of the Ling dynasty could be delayed.
He would allow his grandson to marry into the Ling Palace, gradually taking over it.
If that little Dugu girl was ungrateful...
The Heavenly Emperor’s eyes flashed sinisterly, he had already invited several strong allies from the Middle Three Worlds, and even a Void Fragmentation Level Seven from the Upper Three Worlds.
If he couldn’t peacefully seize the Ling Palace, he would do so aggressively!
Tianyi Yunshui coldly smirked at Dugu, raising his hand, an eerily shaped flying sword resembling a strange saber appeared in his hand.
"Considering your low cultivation, your husband will allow you three swords!"
"No need! Soon I will make you unable to speak! Fire Transformation Sword!"
Dugu’s first sword was the Fire Transformation Sword!
This sword was originally a Spirit Realm Sword Technique but had been refined by Dugu to become a Mortal Void level swordsmanship!
As the sword emerged, a torrential wave of fiery sword rays slashed towards Tianyi Yunshui!
Tianyi Yunshui was shocked, hastily retreating three steps, gripping his flying sword in both hands, and suddenly cleaving.
In an instant, a crescent moon sword rays immediately split the fiery sword rays in two!
This was one of the Mortal Void Sword Techniques of the Heavenly Temple, Crescent Slash!
"A Mountain of White Bones!"
Dugu was not intimidated by the crescent moon’s power, for a sword cultivator must possess a powerful sword heart, one that remains unfazed even when Mount Tai is collapsing right in front!
With one strike of the white bone sword rays, they unexpectedly met Crescent Slash’s power equally.
Tianyi Yunshui’s demeanor immediately darkened, becoming an object of ridicule as whispers arose everywhere.
Tianyi Yunshui, lauded as the number one talent in the Sword World, had his sword rays blocked by a Half-Step Void Refinement female.
Naturally, many viewed this as laughable.
"Purple Moon Slash!"
Tianyi Yunshui clutched his sword with both hands again, cutting out a purple sword beams toward Dugu.
Dugu said nothing, once again using A Mountain of White Bones to break that sword.
Before her feet even touched the ground, the third sword technique was unleashed!
Heart Image Sword!
As the sword painted, Tianyi Yunshui felt an intense pain in his heart, it felt as if his heart was going to be slashed to pieces by a sword!
He was already displaying signs of defeat!
The Heavenly Emperor’s complexion greatly changed, he never imagined Tianyi Yunshui would be defeated!
With a gesture, a Great Elder of the Heavenly Temple immediately moved to intervene, appearing on the arena, breaking the Heart Image Sword with a single finger, and countering by pointing at Dugu.
The Ling Emperor was enraged, about to step in for assistance, when a cold voice suddenly reverberated across the sky!
"Scram!"
With just a single ’scram’, unimaginable collapsing force expanded sharply from the Great Elder of the Heavenly Temple!
The Great Elder spat blood in severe injury, flying off the arena!
As for Tianyi Yunshui, he was already being held by the neck, lifted high in the air by a white-clothed youth.
"You... Who are you?" The Heavenly Emperor was both furious and shocked!