Cultivation: When you take things to the extreme

“After a thorough investigation by the elder of the South Sea Sect, it was discovered that Yue Qing’er had joined the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion and been taken as a disciple by a Supreme Elder Mahayana. She was even in contention for the position of Saint Heir.”

“The elder of the South Sea Sect, being a man of passion, could not tolerate his disciple being taken by another. Despite the immense power of the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion, he immediately made a scene there, insisting on taking Yue Qing’er back.”

“But who could have imagined that Yue Qing’er would deny her connection to the South Sea Sect and her relationship with its elder in front of everyone, claiming she didn’t know him.”

“Such a betrayal of the master-apprentice bond infuriated the elder of the South Sea, prompting him to start a fight on the spot.”

“But what place is the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion, to allow an outsider to run wild?”

“Though the elder of the South Sea Sect was Mahayana, he was ultimately from an inferior path, no match for the sacred grounds of the Immortal Sect. In the end, he was defeated in one move by the Supreme Elder of the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion, his honor lost, returning home with injuries.”

“Afterward…”

Lu Mingyu heaved a sigh and said softly: “Yue Qing’er formally joined the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion and even seized the position of Saint Heir, becoming the wife of the Sword Disciple of that time, now the Ninth Heaven Sword Master Xiao Teng.”

“This incident caused quite a stir in both the Southern Sea’s cultivation realm and the Central Plains of the Northern Domain, leading to severe disgrace for the South Sea Sect, and thus a deep-seated enmity with the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion was formed, with conflicts arising in both open and secret for many years.”

“…”

“I didn’t expect such an origin.”

Hearing this, Xu Yang also sighed, “Was Yue Qing’er truly denying it, or was she suffering from memory loss?”

“Apart from the South Sea Sect and the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion, who would know?”

Lu Mingyu shook her head: “But it’s natural for people to reach for higher ground and water to flow to lower places.”

“That’s true,”

Xu Yang nodded, his understanding clear.

Lu Mingyu then changed the subject: “This incident caused great disgrace for the South Sea Sect, and both the elder of the South Sea and Li Cangwu suffered a great blow, especially the latter. As a hot-blooded young man, how could he endure such humiliation? After the elder of the South Sea retreated, he quietly went to the Central Plains, trying to bring Yue Qing’er back. He was defeated by a single strike from the Sword Disciple at the time, and only Yue Qing’er’s plea spared his life, allowing his return to the Southern Sea.”

“Since then, the name Yue Qing’er has become taboo within the South Sea Sect, never to be mentioned by anyone, and Li Cangwu, in particular, suffered a substantial setback, heartbroken and with his foundation damaged, preventing him from advancing to Mahayana to this day.”

“Although the South Sea Sect could not rival the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion, it was unwilling to endure silently, and gradually began to strike at the affiliated forces of the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion within the Southern Sea’s cultivation realm, even harboring intentions to unify the lesser paths of the Southern Sea to strengthen itself.”

“But the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion was not to be easily provoked. Although for various reasons it was not convenient to act openly, it also supported the lineage of Mysterious Yin Island in secret, countering the South Sea Sect and entangled with it for ten thousand years, only now seeing the outcome.”

Lu Mingyu shook her head and sighed: “Now the elder of the South Sea and the Old Ancestor of Mysterious Yin, both Mahayana from the lesser paths, have fallen, leaving only Li Cangwu.”

“Li Cangwu possesses the stature of Mahayana and is a Heaven Sword Cultivator. Though heartbroken back then, it does not mean he cannot break through.”

“If he achieves cultivation, advancing into Mahayana, he will surely unify the cultivation realm of the Southern Sea and make things difficult for the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion to the end.”

“How could the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion tolerate such a threat? Therefore, they sent that Sword Disciple to the Southern Sea to settle this matter.”

Lu Mingyu looked at Xu Yang and said solemnly, “The partner of Yue Qing’er, Xiao Teng, was already the Saint Heir of the Sword Pavilion six thousand years ago, exceptionally talented beyond words. Afterwards, he made rapid progress and broke through all the way, assuming the position of the Saint Lord three thousand years ago, known as the Ninth Heaven Sword Master.”

“After Xiao Teng became the Sword Master, the position of Sword Disciple was not left vacant. It was won through competition by his and Yue Qing’er’s son, Xiao Zhang. Moreover, with Xiao Teng’s father and Yue Qing’er’s master, the Xiao Family has held the position of Sword Master for three generations within the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion, which is an extraordinary honor even there.”

“Now six thousand years have passed, and there are rumors that Xiao Teng has advanced to Mahayana, becoming a Supreme Elder of the Sect, and the position of Sword Master will be taken over by his son Xiao Zhang. This time, coming to the Southern Sea, one goal is to settle the old karma and eliminate potential enemies, and the other is to demonstrate personal strength, proving his qualification to assume the position of Sword Master.”

Lu Mingyu shook her head: “The Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion has a tradition—before a Saint Heir can succeed as Saint Lord, they must fight the world with their sword, to prove themselves. I’m afraid this Southern Sea is just the first stop for Xiao Zhang.”

“So it is, no wonder no wonder.”

Xu Yang smiled softly, still calm in the face of change.

This made Lu Mingyu frown slightly, “Does fellow Daoist think that True Monarch Cangwu will accept Xiao Zhang’s sword-fighting challenge?”

Xu Yang smiled and retorted, “Could he possibly not accept?”

“Logically speaking, he could refuse, but…”

Lu Mingyu shook her head, “Having been defeated by the father in the past, feared by the son today, combined with the lingering heartbreak from Yue Qing’er and the humiliation suffered by the Elder of the Southern Sea in those days… If True Monarch Cangwu does not accept this battle, I’m afraid he might develop a demon in his heart and lose any hope of advancing to the Mahayana stage!”

“A psychological tactic!”

Xu Yang shook his head indifferently, “Is their chance of victory really that high?”

Upon hearing this, Lu Mingyu hesitated slightly but eventually said, “Although Xiao Zhang is still a Saint Heir now, his cultivation has already reached the Integration stage. As long as he fights in various places and duels with swordsmen around the world, he can take up the position of Sword Master and become the apparent leader of the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion. His strength is unfathomable.”

“On the other hand, True Monarch Cangwu…”

Lu Mingyu’s gaze shifted, looking towards Xu Yang, “Fellow Daoist, what do you think the odds are for True Monarch Cangwu if he accepts this battle?”

“…”

Xu Yang, upon hearing this, also fell silent.

Nine Heavens Sword Disciples, Integration Saint Lords, to him, they were not worth mentioning at all.

A hundred years ago, in the Void Spirit Cave Heaven, at the Five Elements Immortal Mansion, wielding the “Broken War God,” he had the strength to clash head-on with the Righteous Path’s Integration powerhouses; had it not been for the intervention of someone like Dustless, a Mahayana powerhouse of the Righteous Path, the two Integration Saint Lords from the Five Elements Immortal Sect and the Big Dipper Immortal Sect would hardly have been a match for him.

A hundred years has passed, and it is even more so now; without a Mahayana of the Righteous Path, no one is his match,

Therefore, the threat posed by the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion is neither here nor there for him.

But he is he, and others are others.

Facing this enemy’s son, does Li Cangwu have a chance of victory or at least a hope for a draw?

It’s hard to say, truly hard to say!

Although Li Cangwu practices the Heaven Sword Tao, the Heaven Sword method he has developed is self-taught. Despite his strong combat power, it still belongs to a side path, and compared to the true Heaven Sword method, there is still a significant gap. Otherwise, he would not still be stuck at a bottleneck, with no hope for the Mahayana.

Just like the Heavenly Gang Earth Sha Divine Power in the Earth Immortal Realm, the Heaven Sword Tao also has distinctions such as minor accomplishment, great accomplishment, and the perfect Dharma Body realms.

Currently, Li Cangwu’s Heaven Sword is at most at the minor accomplishment stage; Mahayana is far out of reach, not to mention perfection.

In this regard, Xu Yang has enough right to speak, for he is also a Heaven Sword Cultivator, absolutely of the orthodox Heaven Sword tradition.

Xuanyuan Divine Sword Spell!

Heavenly Intent Celestial Honor Method!

His Heaven Sword has already achieved great accomplishment and is now even approaching perfection, transitioning towards the Holy Tao method, commanding the heavens, the earth, and the hearts of men, with authority over the Triad and the Nine Instruments.

To him, this Nine Heavens Sword Disciple could be cut down with a flip of the hand.

But for Li Cangwu…

Both at the perfect Integration stage, but relying only on a minor accomplishment Heaven Sword and coming from a side path, can he defeat this Nine Heavens Sword Disciple, born of the Immortal Sect Holy Land?

It’s really hard to say!

Xu Yang remained silent, his silence speaking volumes.

Lu Mingyu let out a deep sigh, her voice heavy with concern, “Whether for his own Tao fruit or for the legacy of the Southern Sea, True Monarch Cangwu cannot avoid this!”

Having said that, she turned to look at Xu Yang with a serious expression, “Fellow Daoist, today the Nine Heavens Sword Disciple paid a visit and was turned away by you. Even if he does not harbor resentment, there will inevitably be an accounting in the future. If True Monarch Cangwu is defeated by him, what about you…?”

In her words, there was an implicit concern.

As the manager of the Bright Moon Pavilion, she had little to do with Li Cangwu, and whether the South Sea Sect won or lost was of little consequence to her.

Xu Yang was different; setting aside his personal relationship with Li Cangwu, there was the matter of the Heavenly Thunder Double Swords crafting, as well as the years of assistance the South Sea Sect had provided to the Ten Thousand Swords Pavilion, which was enough to tie the two factions together.

If Li Cangwu were to be defeated, the South Sea Sect might not have to submit completely, but they would be powerless to resist the influence of the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion over the Southern Sea’s Cultivation Realm. When the time came to prop up a puppet like Mysterious Yin Island to settle accounts with the South Sea Sect for past affairs and today’s events…

Unless Xu Yang is willing to bow his head and submit to the Ninth Heaven Sword Pavilion, otherwise, the days ahead for the Ten Thousand Swords Pavilion will not be much easier than those of the South Sea Sect.

Would he be willing to bow his head, could he possibly bow?

As a good friend, Lu Mingyu was worried about this.

Given the nature of this “Xuanyuan,” even if Li Cangwu were to endure in silence, he would probably not concede.

In that case…

“Master!”

Her thoughts were interrupted as Gui Sanqian entered the hall, announcing with a grave voice, “True Monarch Cangwu has arrived.”