First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 2535 – Ringing the Bell, Beating the Drum, Burning Joss Paper, Paying Respects

A group shot over the surface of the sea. All of them were headed toward Sunset Perch Island.

There were over a hundred of them in total. Their leader was a black-robed man with distinctive features and a jade crown.

He walked like an emperor surveying his territories, with the proud, powerful gait of a tiger or dragon. His qi connected heaven and earth, shattering the skies.

Xun Wuyuan!

He was an old-timer from one of the three ruling factions of the Epoch of Sumeru, Ravening Wolf Daoist Court, and a Nine-Tribulation Master God who’d touched the threshold of destiny!

Those accompanying him were fellow experts of Ravening Wolf Daoist Court. All of them, without exception, were Undying Realm Master Gods, and even the weakest had overcome seven Dao-Refining Tribulations.

“Martial Uncle, that’s Sunset Perch Island up ahead,” someone said softly and pointed into the distance.

A landmass floated beneath heaven and earth, an island like a continent. Divine radiance and auspicious mists hung in the air, gathering all of the spiritual energy from the surrounding area.

It was like an otherworldly pure land.

The imposing Xun Wuyuan glanced at the island in the distance, then commented casually, “An extraordinary place indeed. It shines with far-reaching auspicious light, and it connects with the underwater leylines of the surrounding ninety thousand miles of ocean. If it’s as I suspect, the whole island is surely covered in top-notch Undying divine formations. We cannot underestimate it.”

He swept his gaze across his companions. “Ring the bell. Let’s go see the greatest expert of the present age, the one they call Sword Venerate Su.”

“Understood!”

Boom!

A powerfully built man stretched out a fan the size of a cattail leaf and struck the ninety-foot bell balanced on his shoulders.

The bell went off like a thunderclap resounding throughout the nine heavens. The ocean churned, the seawater boiled, and the sky was thrown into chaos. Countless rifts formed in the air.

The ringing of the bell swept outward, practically overturning the ocean and inverting heaven and earth!

But when the sound neared Sunset Perch Island, the power of a divine formation blanketed the sky, obscured the sun, and blocked it with a deafening impact. Divine Radiance scattered.

“Beat the drum!” Xun Wuyuan said coldly. “Tell them in no uncertain terms that we aren’t here as guests.”

“Got it!” A man in beast skins took out and beat a war drum with all his mind, each hand holding a mallet.

Boom! Boom!

The drum beats were like the clanging of weapons, like pierced metal and split stones.

The entire stretch of ocean was thrown into disarray. The sky split and collapsed.

The formation covering Sunset Perch Island was under a terrifying onslaught. It churned violently as if about to fall.

By now, Xun Wuyuan and his allies were in the sky just ten thousand feet from Sunset Perch Island.

“Enough,” said Xun Wuyuan, waving his allies to a stop. “That’s enough of a commotion to inform them of our presence. Let’s just wait for them to come out.”

The ringing and drum beats instantly died down. All was silent, but the murderous intent permeating the surroundings only grew denser and denser.

Meanwhile, on Sunset Perch Island, Luo Qingdi, the Lord of Sleepless Nights, Demon Venerate Five Desires, and the others had overcast looks on their faces. Their hearts were full of fury.

These experts of the Epoch of Sumeru are being far too aggressive!

But then, they wouldn’t have come here in such numbers unless they had reason to be confident. I’m sure they came prepared.

“You all wait here,” said Su Yi calmly. With that, he stepped into the sky.

Xun Wuyuan and his allies instantly focused their attention on Su Yi.

“Are you Su Yi?” Xun Wuyuan said coldly, his gaze utterly calm and indifferent.

“That’s right,” said Su Yi.

Xun Wuyuan continued, “Were you the one who killed Xun Huo, a disciple of our Ravening Wolf Daoist Court, several years ago?”

“That’s right,” said Su Yi. His gaze didn’t so much as ripple with emotion.

“At least you’re admitting it,” said Xun Wuyuan, his eyes blazing like twin suns as he stared intently at Su Yi. “They say that Sunset Perch Island is home to numerous crouching tigers and hidden dragons, so why are you the only one to have stepped forth?”

“I’m enough to handle you all,” said Su Yi.

Xun Wuyuan was stunned. A moment later, he couldn’t help but burst into laughter. “Then do you dare to leave the protection of Sunset Perch Island?”

“Sure,” said Su Yi, passing through the island’s defensive formations. He seemed incomparably cooperative.

The sight left Xun Wuyuan and the others stunned once more. All of them were surprised.

“Do you have anything else to say to me?” Su Yi asked casually. He showed no trace of the characteristic energy fluctuations of a cultivator; it was as if he were an ordinary mortal. He was utterly unassuming.

But to Xun Wuyuan, that only made him seem even more mysterious and inscrutable.

Xun Wuyuan said calmly, “We came here to seek revenge, but if you and everyone on Sunset Perch Island are willing to submit, we can set aside our past enmities and pursue your crimes no further.”

“And if I refuse?” said Su Yi.

Xun Wuyuan’s eyes flashed. He said softly, “You’ll die.”

“I understand.” Su Yi inclined his head slightly. “There’s something I’d like to ask, too.”

“Go right ahead,” said Xun Wuyuan with a faint smile. “We came with ample sincerity. So long as you’re open to discussion, everything is on the table.”

“Who hurt Wan Zitian?” asked Su Yi.

Xun Wuyuan’s brow furrowed, but then, he seemed to understand. “Are you talking about that purple-robed sword cultivator? It’s true that we hurt him, but when you’re weaker than someone, injuries are hard to avoid. Don’t you agree?”

His tone was utterly dismissive.

Su Yi inclined his head. “You’re right.”

Xun Wuyuan smiled. “To tell the truth, you’re being far more cooperative than we anticipated. We prepared numerous means of forcing you to behave, but now, it seems obvious that none will be necessary.”

“Oh?” said Su Yi. “What kind of methods?”

Xu Wuyuan took a scented candle and joss paper out of his sleeves. “I thought I’d be bidding you farewell today, so I prepared paper money and an incense candle as an offering. But if you and your allies choose to submit, there’ll naturally be no need for these trinkets.”

He waved his sleeve, and both the candle and the paper money scattered.

“Wouldn’t it be a pity to let such gifts go to waste?” Su Yi stretched out his hand and snapped his fingers.

The paper money ignited, and the candle lit. Incense smoke rose into the air.

Xun Wuyuan’s brow furrowed.

The man beside him, the powerfully built fellow supporting the bell on his shoulders, said, “What’s the meaning of this?”

Su Yi gazed at him through the sky full of burning paper money. “I’m making an offering. I’ve burned the paper money and lit the candles. All that’s left is to send you lot on your way.”

His voice had only just rung out when he vanished into thin air. A moment later, he appeared before the powerfully built man.

Boom!

The powerfully built man reacted quickly, his hands forming a seal, which he slammed into Su Yi.

But he obviously couldn’t shake Su Yi in the slightest!

A wondrous power of the Grand Dao flowed over his body, effortlessly neutralizing a palm strike that could have severely injured a Nine-Tribulation Master God.

The powerfully built man looked stricken.

Su Yi, meanwhile, stretched out his hand and grabbed. The massive bell on his shoulders fell right into his hand.

Clang!

Su Yi struck it gently, and the ringing of a bell resounded throughout heaven and earth.

Wherever the soundwaves passed, the sky shattered. The powerfully built man was sent flying.

His “Undying” body was instantly severely injured. Blood gushed from numerous wounds, and he shrieked desperately.

This entire series of attacks happened in a flash. Not even someone as mighty as Xun Wuyuan could stop it in time.

“You don’t plan to negotiate after all?” Xun Wuyuan said icily.

Su Yi held the bell aloft and said calmly, “If you survive this, I wouldn’t mind chatting with you a while longer.”

Boom!

He tossed the bell into the air. It descended upon Xun Wuyuan.

“Hmph!” Xun Wuyuan waved his sleeve through the air. The bell split into countless pieces, scattering fragments of metal. “You insisted on doing this the hard way!”

And as he attacked, an endlessly terrifying power swept outward. It was far beyond a Nine-Tribulation Master God. Such power was only possible for those who’d touched the threshold of destiny!

Xun Wuyuan took a step forward, and…

Boom!

Heaven and earth swayed, and the sky split and burst on all sides.

Xun Wuyuan was already attacking, his hands forming a seal. It was as if he were wrapping his arms around the sun. When his palms touched, dazzling, searing power of the Laws condensed into a wheel of light that rose into the sky.

In the blink of an eye, the power filling the surrounding skies contorted, rumbling, booming, and collapsing.

The wheel of light was just too terrifying. It was like a falling sun, bringing with it all-encompassing destructive power.

When the experts accompanying Xun Wuyuan saw this, they immediately moved further away.

That was the Original Divinity Sky-Crushing Wheel! Xun Wuyuan’s strongest divine ability!

When activated, it could slay any Nine-Tribulation Master God with ease.

In the Epoch of Sumeru, this was considered a supreme killer move. It would have been dazzling in any age.

Over on Sunset Perch Island, Luo Qingdi and the others were stunned. They could naturally tell how terrifying this strike was.

Especially Luo Qingdi. He’d once been the ruling expert of his epoch of origin. He could tell that Xun Wuyuan’s attack contained a hint of Eternity!

This was a power unique to those who’d touched the threshold of Eternity.

Even if his attacks only contained the barest hint of Eternal truths, they could still crush Nine-Tribulation Master Gods with ease!

How will Fellow Daoist Su handle this?

Luo Qingdi and the others held their breath.

They weren’t worried about whether or not Su Yi could neutralize this attack or not, but they weren’t sure how he’d pull it off.

This was for the simple reason, as of yet, no one on Sunset Perch Island knew just how strong Su Yi had become.

All of this took a long time to explain, but in truth, it happened in a flash.

As Xun Wuyuan unleashed the Original Divinity Sky-Crushing Wheel and the onlookers’ minds raced, Su Yi took action.

He stood in place, robes billowing around him, and gently knocked the air, as if he were knocking on the door of an old friend’s home.

It was a casual, carefree gesture, yet an unbelievable scene followed.

That terrifying wheel of light was as dazzling as the sun. It shattered the sky and burned the air.

But when it was just ten feet from Su Yi, it shattered like glass, splitting into countless pieces!