Young Noble Be Monster Slaying

"With me?"

Chu Liang found the situation had become even stranger.

I don't even know which way the Heavenly Palace's door opened, so how could I have the key?

"Yan Zi disagreed with us going to the Heavenly Palace of the Sword Domain for a simple reason," the Whale-Riding Immortal said. "Throughout history, many have sought the Heavenly Palace, but only two have ever returned. Regardless of whether they were at the seventh or eighth realm, anyone could perish inside. To enter the Heavenly Palace, you need guidance, and the 'key' to that guidance is likely the Heavenly Cloud Ancient Sword, which contains the essence of the Great Dao of the Cloud of Determination.

"When we found the sword back then, Yan Zi insisted on keeping it for herself. She had guessed it was the key and was worried we'd use it to take risks."

At this point, the Whale-Riding Immortal smiled again. "She has always been like that. She would rather risk her own life than to have people around her take risks. Now that she has reached the eighth realm, I am guessing that she will consider entering the Heavenly Palace herself if the Mount Shu Sect faces another crisis."

"Guessing?" Chu Liang asked, catching onto that word.

"At the time, the only clues about the key to the Heavenly Palace were two lines of poetry," the Whale-Riding Immortal explained.

He recited the poem.

Splits into nine hues, a celestial start.

Above the clouds, the celestial door gleams,

Unfolding in sequence, like ethereal dreams."[1]

Chu Liang blinked in realization. "It's talking about the Heavenly Cloud Ancient Sword?"

"Exactly," said the Whale-Riding Immortal. "But the Heavenly Cloud Ancient Sword was a sword forged in the later generations. I suspect that the key to entering the Heavenly Palace of the Sword Domain is simply any sword containing the Dao essence of the Cloud of Determination."

"The Dustless Sword?" Chu Liang was struck with another realization. "So my teacher had a replica of that sword forged back then as preparation for this day?"

"I think so," the Whale-Riding Immortal replied. "Otherwise, with Ah Feng's personality, if she really wanted to get you a handy flying sword, she would have chosen to steal or rob from someone instead of forging a replica."

Chu Liang nodded in agreement.

With a level ten understanding of Di Nufeng, this line of thought was undoubtedly the one Di Nufeng was most accustomed to.

After pondering for a while, Chu Liang found himself puzzled again. "This riddle is simple, but even if you gave my teacher a hundred years, she might not have figured it out. How did she come up with the idea of forging a replica?"

"That, I'm not certain of either. Perhaps some great figure guided her from behind the scenes," the Whale-Riding Immortal replied, nodding in agreement with Chu Liang's reasoning.

The two quickly reached a shared understanding of Di Nufeng's personality and intellect.

"But…" Chu Liang uttered, hesitating briefly, "the Heavenly Palace of the Sword Domain is incredibly dangerous…"

"Don't worry, I won't bring Yuebai in," the Whale-Riding Immortal said, as though reading his thoughts.

Chu Liang responded with an awkward smile.

Jiang Yuebai furrowed her brows slightly.

Seeing that, the Whale-Riding Immortal quickly added, "In a place as dangerous as that, I'd actually have more freedom to act if you weren't there."

"But if the two of us go in together, we'll be able to take care of each other," Jiang Yuebai said quietly.

"Don't I already have a companion?" The Whale-Riding Immortal pointed to the Sword Emperor. "Whether I bring you or him, the result is the same."

"Huh?” the Sword Emperor uttered, stunned frozen. He felt as if he were the joke in a father-and-child comedy act.

However, he couldn't deny that he was eager to enter the Heavenly Palace of the Sword Domain.

Now, even though his physical body was destroyed and he had lost control of the Great Dao of the Cloud of Determination, his combat strength remained formidable. However, in his soul state, he was an irresistible target for powerful cultivators, especially those from the Dark King Sect. ꞦàꞐοβËȿ

The leader of the Dark King Sect would stop at nothing to capture a seventh-and-a-half-realm battle soul like his, as refining it could create an extraordinarily powerful servant.

This was precisely why he avoided appearing before the citizens of the Sword-Hanging Kingdom.

It was extremely difficult to rebuild a corporeal body equivalent to that of an eighth-realm cultivator. Without an extraordinary opportunity, the Sword Emperor's cultivation path was destined to end here. His only hope of finding such an opportunity lay in a place like the Heavenly Palace of the Sword Domain.

After some thought, he said, "I can accompany you to the Heavenly Palace of the Sword Domain, but I have one condition."

"Speak,” replied the Whale-Riding Immortal.

“I want the Mount Shu Sect to help protect the Sword-Hanging Kingdom,” the Sword Emperor said earnestly. “For years, I've worked tirelessly to suppress the West Sea Diabolical Forces. Now that they believe I'm dead, they might seize the chance to retaliate. Without a strong cultivator guarding the kingdom, I will always be worried.”

"No problem. That can be solved easily," Chu Liang replied. "I can't order Senior Uncle Yan around, but I can arrange for my teacher to be stationed permanently in the Sword-Hanging Kingdom.”

"Hmm…" the Sword Emperor hesitated for a moment before saying, "Then I'd feel even more worried."

…

In truth, there was no need to overthink this, as they would soon learn of the outcome.

Though Daoist Yan had successfully taken control of the Great Dao of the Cloud of Determination, she was well aware of the hidden schemes involved. She had no intention of ignoring the plight of the Sword-Hanging Kingdom's citizens.

After leaving the Sword-Hanging Kingdom, her first destination wasn't Mount Shu but a barren, isolated island in the West Sea.

She paused briefly, then raised the Heavenly Cloud Ancient Sword high and brought it down in a swift, decisive strike.

Swish!

A torrent of overwhelming sword qi surged downward like an inverted heavenly river, crashing onto the island with unrelenting force! The massive landmass split apart instantly, exposing the iron walls and bronze barriers concealed beneath its surface.

Hidden beneath the island was a fortress-like structure that encircled its base. Within its iron walls, a maze of buildings was intricately arranged, resembling the cells of a beehive.

Countless diabolical sect cultivators resided within the fortress, but a single devastating strike wiped out one-third of their number. Those fortunate enough to not be in the center of the underground fortress clung desperately to the iron walls, their bodies trembling as they gazed at Daoist Yan in the sky.

The weakness, pity, and helplessness they felt were written plainly in their eyes.

The West Sea Diabolical Forces no longer dared to operate openly as they had once did. Each faction of the West Sea Diabolical Forces had its hidden headquarters, and discovery meant inevitable extermination. Recently, the Mount Shu Sect had received intelligence pinpointing the location of the Cascading Veil Sect, the second-largest faction after Evil Dragon Mountain.

At this time, Daoist Yan had arrived here. With one powerful strike, she nearly wiped out every member of this diabolical faction.

"Deliver this message to Immortal Yuan Lu. The Sword-Hanging Kingdom was once protected by the Sword Emperor, and from now on, it will be under my protection," Daoist Yan declared coldly, her voice commanding and divine. "If he dares harm so much as a blade of grass in the Sword-Hanging Kingdom, I will annihilate the entire West Sea Diabolical Forces. If he doesn't believe me, he's welcome to test it."

"Such bold words!" a thunderous voice boomed in response.

Dark clouds roiled on the distant horizon, and atop them stood a middle-aged man with his hands clasped behind his back.

It was Immortal Yuan Lu, the sect leader of Evil Dragon Mountain and the current leader of the West Sea Diabolical Forces.

"If you have something to say, say it to me directly. There's no need for messengers," Yuan Lu said with a sneer. "Just because you are now the master of a Great Dao doesn't make you invincible. You're far too inexperienced—"

Before he could finish, Daoist Yan raised her sword and slashed.

Boom!

The sword light descended from above, tearing through the vast expanse of black clouds and surging downward. With a single, devastating sweep, the strike obliterated the island where the Cascading Veil Sect had made their home. For a fleeting moment, it was as if heaven and earth had collapsed, leaving only the brilliance of the sky behind.

In that moment, several hundreds of diabolical cultivators were wiped out right in front of Immortal Yuan Lu, and the entire island was shattered into dust, scattered across the West Sea.

Standing high in the skies, Immortal Yuan Lu's face turned pale as the sword light streaked past him. The moment the sword light swept past him, he froze completely, unable to move an inch.

It was then that he realized that while Daoist Yan was a newly ascended master of the Heavenly Origin, her strike was as powerful as that of the Sword Emperor. In fact, her strike might even be more powerful.

"If you don't even dare to show your true form before me, stop spouting such grandiose claims. If you truly have the courage, come avenge these diabolical cultivators now. If not, behave yourself from now on. Should you show your face even once, their fate will be the fate of the entire West Sea Diabolical Forces," Daoist Yan declared.

Daoist Yan's gaze was sharper than the Heavenly Cloud Ancient Sword itself. Her tone was devoid of emotion, but her words were deliberate and cutting. "Remember. What. I. Said."

As the sea wind howled across the heavens, Immortal Yuan Lu felt an icy chill sweep through his entire body.

A bizarre thought suddenly crossed his mind: Was it a grave mistake to conspire with the Celestial Charm Sect and kill the Sword Emperor of the West Sea? This eighth-realm Daoist Yan was far more terrifying than ten Sword Emperors of the West Sea combined.

…

When Chu Liang returned to Mount Shu, he saw that Heaven-Reaching Peak was glowing with brilliance, teeming with exotic beasts. Countless leaders from various immortal sects had arrived to congratulate Daoist Yan on her success in gaining control of a Great Dao.

For any immortal sect, the addition of a master of the Heavenly Origin was a significant event that reverberated across the sects.

The Sword Emperor, bound to the Sword-Hanging Kingdom of the West Sea, had always maintained a neutral relationship with the rest of the immortal cultivation world. By comparison, the Mount Shu Sect held far better and more established relations.

Before he could scan the crowd for familiar faces, a piece of infuriating news reached him—teams from the Four Extremities Hall of Red Cotton Peak had been intercepted and slaughtered. Six teams, comprising over thirty cultivators, had been ambushed during their missions, and none had survived.

Since the establishment of Four Extremities Hall, casualties had occurred occasionally but never on such a devastating scale.

BAM!

Upon hearing the news, Chu Liang slammed his palm against the table before him, his face tightening with tension.

Lin Bei, Shang Ziliang, along with Lackey A and Lackey B, held their breaths, not daring to make a sound. Chu Liang, known for his calm demeanor and ever-cheerful smile, had never shown such fury before.

After swiftly addressing the compensation for the victims' families, Chu Liang growled through gritted teeth, "Investigate this immediately! If we can't even guarantee our brothers' safety, then Red Cotton Peak has no place in this world!"

"This is a grudge that cannot be forgiven!" he declared.

1. Refer to chapter 131. Link here. We finally know why she recited the poem ☜

GLTD Alternate Universe's Thoughts

Translator: GT

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