Li Zhaoye also turned around, his brow furrowed.
Although he disliked conflict, being publicly humiliated for his swordsmanship still stirred anger in his heart.
"Fellow cultivator, though my swordsmanship is not refined, it does not permit interference from outsiders."
"If you have come to observe the ceremony, I welcome you. But if you have come to cause trouble..."
Clang—
The Azure Peak Sword in his hand let out a clear, high-pitched ring.
"Then please forgive my rudeness."
Chen Zhou laughed.
He didn't even bother looking at the elder, simply waving a hand at Jian Huaishuang behind him.
"Huaishuang, someone is unconvinced."
"Go, teach this genius what a sword really is."
"As you command."
Jian Huaishuang stepped forward.
He did not fly on a sword, nor did he erupt with the pressure of a cultivator like the elder had. He simply walked toward the center of the square like a mortal martial artist, one step at a time.
With every step, his aura became more heavy and condensed.
By the time he stood ten paces before Li Zhaoye, his entire presence was like a towering mountain. Though he lacked sharp brilliance, he made it difficult for others to breathe.
"Draw your sword."
Jian Huaishuang's voice was as cold as ice.
Looking at this strange man clad in paper armor, Li Zhaoye felt an inexplicable sense of alarm rise in his heart. But he had confidence in himself.
"I am Li Zhaoye. Please, instruct me!"
Before the words had even faded, Li Zhaoye struck first.
"Noble Sword Qi!"
The longsword in his hand transformed into a white rainbow. The sword qi, like a dragon coiled in wind and snow, lunged with massive momentum straight for Jian Huaishuang's face.
This strike was upright and powerful, drawing a collective gasp from the surrounding disciples.
"Incredible! Senior Brother Li's strike has improved yet again!"
However, facing this stunning strike, Jian Huaishuang didn't even lift an eyelid. He simply and slowly pulled the broad, black heavy sword from his back.
With a single, simple movement, he swung the sword down.
It was as if he were swatting a fly.
Boom—!!
The seemingly unstoppable Noble Sword Qi shattered into a sky full of light-points the instant it touched the heavy sword.
The heavy sword’s momentum didn't slacken; accompanied by the whistling of the wind, it stopped a mere three inches above Li Zhaoye's head.
The fierce wind disarrayed Li Zhaoye's hair. He froze in place, cold sweat instantly soaking through his clothes.
One move.
Just one move.
The disciples who had been cheering just moments ago now stood with their mouths agape, looking like ducks being strangled by the neck. The elders on the high platform rose abruptly, their eyes filled with disbelief.
"This... what kind of swordsmanship is this?"
"He didn't use any cultivation, relying solely on physical strength and control over the sword?"
Li Zhaoye stared blankly at the dark heavy sword above him, his throat dry.
He could feel that the opponent hadn't used a single shred of spiritual power. That strange, massive sword didn't even have a sharp edge.
A heavy sword has no edge; great skill lies in simplicity.
"Too light."
Jian Huaishuang slowly retracted his sword, his tone as calm as if he were stating a plain fact.
"Your sword is too light, and your heart is too light."
"A sword cultivator cultivates the heart."
"If there is guilt in the heart, the sword is impure."
"If the sword is impure, how can it slay demons? How can it carry the Dao?"
"Do not do things that will make you regret."
Jian Huaishuang stopped there without saying more, just as Chen Zhou had said to him back in White Jade City years ago.
Li Zhaoye's face turned pale as if he had been struck by lightning. For all these years, he had cultivated desperately, tried his hardest to be a good person, and fought to protect the sect's reputation. Wasn't it all just to cover up his cowardice from back then? To escape that guilt?
From that night ten years ago, his sword had already ceased to be pure.
"Yes... I have lost."
The Azure Peak Sword in Li Zhaoye's hand fell to the ground with a clang.
He was thoroughly defeated and admitted it without reservation.
He looked at Jian Huaishuang. "Your swordsmanship is divine. I have learned a lesson."
"You are the second person I have ever met whose heart is a Lucid Sword Heart."
Li Zhaoye gave a bitter smile. "The other is my senior sister."
"You must also have a natural born sword bone, correct? Your path of the sword has likely reached the peak realm."
Chen Zhou nodded as he listened from the side. Of course he did—a Heaven Grade spiritual root and a red trait; he was the SSR that Chen Zhou had finally pulled during his beginner period. He certainly lived up to the effort Chen Zhou had put into training him.
"Is that it? Giving up already?" Chen Zhou yawned. "Boring."
He looked up at the elders on the high platform whose faces were turning green with rage.
"The youngster is done fighting. Won't you old ones come down?"
"My subordinate has an itch for a sword duel today and wants to test the Heavenly Sword Sect."
"Who else is there?"
A red-faced elder trembled with fury. "Arrogant! Simply too arrogant!"
"Our Heavenly Sword Sect has stood for centuries. When have we ever suffered such humiliation?"
"Elders, join me in a formation! Take down this demon!"
Since they couldn't win a duel, they would resort to a group fight!
The elders of the Heavenly Sword Sect discarded all pretense of dignity as eighteen streaks of light flew from the platform, instantly surrounding Jian Huaishuang.
Eighteen fifth-stage experts!
Sword qi crisscrossed, sealing off heaven and earth.
"Evil creature, today you will not leave here alive!"
Facing the combined attack of eighteen elders, a rare hint of battle intent finally appeared on Jian Huaishuang's face.
He slowly raised his heavy sword. Beneath his paper armor, that Lucid Sword Heart was beating violently.
"My Lord."
"Hmm?"
"May I be a bit more serious?"
Chen Zhou laughed. "Granted. Just don't tear down the mountain. After all, we'll be taking over this place later."
Receiving permission, Jian Huaishuang's aura changed. If he was like a mountain before, he was now an impending avalanche.
"Lie Sword Domain."
He whispered softly.
In the next second, the wind and snow in the sky suddenly froze.
Countless white paper scraps, looking like snowflakes, drifted out from his body, instantly blanketing the entire square. This was his domain, and his sword.
Before the elders' sword qi could even land, it was dissolved and assimilated by the falling paper snow.
"What is this devilish thing?!"
"My sword qi is out of control?"
Under everyone's terrified gazes, Jian Huaishuang moved.
The black heavy sword danced within the white paper snow, like a black dragon tumbling through a sea of clouds.
Sword qi traverses thirty thousand miles, and a single strike chills nineteen provinces.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Jian Huaishuang took them down one by one.
Whether they were guardians in the formation or elders who had rushed out from years of secluded meditation to fight, everyone was equal before Jian Huaishuang's heavy sword. They were like fragile scarecrows, swatted away one by one.
He fought from the sect gate to the foot of the mountain, and not a single soul could withstand a single blow. Finding it unsatisfying, he fought his way all the way back up to the gate, remaining completely unstoppable.
On this day, the eighteen elders of the Heavenly Sword Sect were defeated in succession.
A single man with a single sword had suppressed the entire first immortal sect of the Northern Region, making them unable to lift their heads.
As Jian Huaishuang finally retracted his sword, standing atop the plaque of the Heavenly Sword Sect, he said in a low voice, "A sword cultivator of the City of the Wrongfully Dead, by order of the Bone God, has come to seek instruction."
The paper snow and the natural snow falling from the sky reflected each other.
Snowflakes fell.
Zen Master Wu Hai watched the falling snow, the soul fire in his eye sockets flickering with a hint of excitement. He had followed the scent of Huo Dou all the way here, and finally, he had found the place.
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