Chapter 19 — So the Mountain Exists Again

"So the mountain exists again."

The words had not been spoken in eight thousand years.

They traveled through a chamber buried beneath layers of immortal stone.

Nine broken chains lay across the floor.

Each chain was thicker than a man's body.

Ancient Dao characters covered their surfaces.

Some meant Space.

Others meant Time.

Karma.

Soul.

Void.

Heaven.

The final chain bore no character at all.

It had simply broken.

The old man sat in the center.

His robes had once been white.

Eight thousand years of dust had turned them gray.

Long silver hair fell across his shoulders.

His body looked thin.

Almost fragile.

Yet when he opened his eyes—

the surrounding laws became quiet.

Not suppressed.

Not destroyed.

Quiet.

As though waiting for him to speak.

The old man raised one hand.

A fragment of silver-blue light appeared above his palm.

Within it—

a mountain.

Clouds.

A palace.

A young man in white robes staring toward the heavens.

The image lasted less than a breath.

Then shattered.

The old man's eyebrows rose.

"He noticed?"

Interesting.

He tried again.

Nothing.

Cloudveil Peak had vanished.

The old man stared at his empty palm.

Then laughed.

Softly.

His voice was dry from disuse.

"Good."

Footsteps sounded beyond the chamber.

Fast.

Many.

The old man looked toward the sealed doors.

Eight thousand years of silence—

apparently over.

Boom!

The first door opened.

Immortal light flooded inside.

A group of armored cultivators rushed through.

Golden armor.

White cloaks.

Weapons already drawn.

The leader stopped.

His face lost color.

The old man recognized none of them.

That was expected.

Eight thousand years was a long time.

The armored Immortal swallowed.

"Who are you?"

The old man considered.

That was a difficult question.

Names changed.

Titles changed.

History changed more.

Eventually he answered.

"Xuankong."

Silence.

No recognition.

The old man smiled.

That was almost refreshing.

The armored cultivator raised his spear.

"This is a restricted domain of the Taihuang Immortal Dynasty."

"Taihuang?"

Xuankong's smile faded slightly.

"Which Taihuang?"

The guard frowned.

"There is only one Immortal Emperor Taihuang."

Xuankong became quiet.

Then:

"Ah."

He remembered.

A child.

Golden robes.

Arrogant eyes.

Excellent talent.

Terrible swordsmanship.

Interesting.

"He's still alive."

The guards stiffened.

No one referred to the Immortal Emperor that casually.

The leader stepped forward.

"You will come with us."

Xuankong looked at the broken chains.

Then at the guards.

"Why?"

"You have violated an imperial restricted zone."

Xuankong raised an eyebrow.

"I was here first."

The guard hesitated.

That was not the expected answer.

Xuankong stood.

Dust fell from him.

The chamber shook.

Every guard froze.

Not because of pressure.

There was none.

That was worse.

They could not sense him.

At all.

An old man stood directly before them—

yet divine sense passed through him as though he were empty space.

Xuankong walked past.

The guards couldn't move.

At the doorway, he stopped.

"Where is the Mortal Realm?"

The leader struggled to speak.

"B-below the Severed Barrier."

Xuankong's eyes became distant.

"So they still call it that."

He continued walking.

The guard forced out another question.

"Where are you going?"

Xuankong stopped.

For a moment—

the ancient cultivator looked almost amused.

"To find out why a mountain that should have been destroyed..."

He glanced toward the distant heavens.

"...has returned."

Cloudveil Peak.

"Did anyone understand what just happened?"

No one answered Lu Chen.

Mostly because Lu Chen was supposed to be unconscious.

Lin Yue looked down.

The boy was still in her arms.

His eyes were open.

"You're awake."

"Apparently."

Jian Wuchen glanced at Shen Yuan.

That word was spreading.

Shen Yuan ignored him.

Lu Chen sat up.

Then immediately froze.

His entire body felt wrong.

Not painful.

Different.

He flexed his fingers.

The movement felt sharper.

He could hear wind moving through leaves thirty meters away.

He could smell medicinal herbs from the garden.

His heartbeat sounded—

loud.

"Master."

"Hm?"

"I think something happened."

"Yes."

"What?"

Shen Yuan inspected him.

The system appeared.

Name: Lu Chen

Cultivation: None

Primordial Chaos Spiritual Root: Dormant — 7% awakened

Primordial Chaos Body: Embryonic — 3%

Physical Foundation: Mortal Transcendent

Body Tempering Compatibility: Perfect

Elemental Resistance: Developing

Chaos Conversion Capacity: Not established

Current Condition: Stable

Shen Yuan blinked.

Mortal Transcendent?

The boy had been unconscious for less than six hours.

"Punch something."

Lu Chen stared.

"What?"

Shen Yuan pointed toward a training stone.

"That."

Chen An immediately spoke from the distance.

"Use the reinforced one."

Everyone looked at him.

He pointed farther away.

A dark stone stood near the training grounds.

"That one is replaceable."

Shen Yuan nodded.

Good distinction.

Lu Chen approached.

He looked at the stone.

Then at his fist.

"I've never punched a rock before."

Jian Wuchen spoke.

"Don't lock your elbow."

Lin Yue added:

"Turn your hips."

Lu Chen looked between them.

"Why does everyone here know how to punch rocks?"

Neither answered.

Lu Chen took a breath.

He punched.

Crack.

The stone split.

Lu Chen froze.

Half the stone slid sideways.

Then fell.

Boom.

He stared at his fist.

No blood.

No pain.

Nothing.

"Master."

"Yes?"

"I think I'm strong."

"A little."

"A little?"

Shen Yuan compared.

Body Tempering fourth stage physical output.

Maybe fifth.

Without actually beginning Body Tempering.

Interesting.

Lu Chen looked at the broken stone.

Then smiled.

Slowly.

"Can I do it again?"

Chen An immediately said:

"No."

Lu Chen's smile disappeared.

"Why?"

"We only have six reinforced stones."

Shen Yuan frowned.

"Only six?"

"We had eight."

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Everyone looked at Lin Yue.

She looked away.

One had been hers.

Then Jian Wuchen.

He also looked away.

Apparently the other had not survived his Sword Foundation testing.

Chen An sighed.

"I'll order more."

"Order twenty," Shen Yuan said.

Chen An stared.

"Twenty?"

Shen Yuan looked at his three disciples.

"Thirty."

Chen An nodded.

"Reasonable."

That word had changed meaning on Cloudveil Peak.

Mu Qinglan had not moved.

She was still staring at the sky.

Shen Yuan noticed.

"Qinglan."

No response.

"Peak Master Mu."

She slowly looked at him.

"What?"

"The formation."

"What formation?"

Shen Yuan raised an eyebrow.

She blinked.

Then remembered.

Right.

Cloudveil Peak.

Immortal-grade territory.

Folded space.

Higher-realm eye.

Nine mysterious bells.

Normal workday.

She rubbed her forehead.

"Shen Yuan."

"Hm?"

"What exactly are you?"

Jian Wuchen looked interested.

Lin Yue too.

Lu Chen most of all.

Chen An continued writing notes.

Shen Yuan thought.

"Peak Master."

Mu stared.

"That is your position."

"Correct."

"I asked what you are."

"Human."

"Are you?"

Shen Yuan looked at his hands.

As far as he knew.

The Primordial Autonomous Dao Body complicated things slightly.

"Probably."

Mu closed her eyes.

Jian Wuchen quietly said:

"Complicated."

Lin Yue laughed.

Shen Yuan looked at him.

"You're learning bad habits."

"From my master."

Fair.

Mu pointed toward the sky.

"That was an Immortal."

"Yes."

"From the Immortal Realm."

"Probably."

"Stop saying probably."

Gu Tianhe's influence was spreading too.

Mu continued.

"He was using some kind of cross-realm observation technique."

"Yes."

"And then nine bells rang."

"Yes."

"And the connection collapsed."

"Yes."

"Do you know why?"

"No."

She stared.

Finally—

a normal answer.

Then Shen Yuan added:

"But something woke up."

Mu's relief vanished.

"What?"

"Unknown."

"Where?"

"Immortal Realm."

"How powerful?"

"Unknown."

"Hostile?"

"Unknown."

Mu became very quiet.

Then:

"I miss yesterday."

Shen Yuan nodded.

"So do I."

Yesterday had only involved a demonic invasion.

Simpler times.

The news that Cloudveil Peak had disappeared spread through Azure Origin Sect within minutes.

Technically—

the mountain was still there.

But from outside its new Hidden Mountain Domain, disciples saw only clouds.

This created problems.

The first was practical.

A delivery disciple walked into empty air three times before Chen An placed a temporary sign.

CLOUDVEIL PEAK ENTRANCE — WAIT HERE.

The second was social.

Everyone wanted to see it.

By noon—

more than two hundred disciples stood outside.

Qin Feng arrived.

He stared at the clouds.

Then shouted:

"Shen Yuan!"

Inside Cloudveil—

Shen Yuan heard him.

He considered ignoring it.

Chen An looked over.

"Peak Master."

"I heard."

"You should answer."

"I know."

Qin shouted again.

"SHEN YUAN!"

Shen Yuan sighed.

He opened the domain.

Clouds separated.

A stone path appeared.

Qin Feng walked through.

Then stopped.

His expression changed.

Spiritual energy.

Dense.

Far denser than yesterday.

Sword Intent drifted through the mountain.

Lunar Dao Essence flowed near the eastern ridge.

Even the air felt different.

Qin looked around.

"What did you do?"

"Renovation."

"This is not renovation."

"Improvement?"

Qin pointed toward the sky.

"Every sword on Heavenly Sword Peak bowed to this mountain."

Shen Yuan frowned.

"Bow?"

"Pointed."

"That's not bowing."

"It felt like bowing."

Jian Wuchen approached.

Clear Wind trembled as Qin neared.

Qin's eyes moved toward the Sword Intent Tempering Hall.

Then widened.

"What is in there?"

"Training resources."

"What kind?"

"Sword."

Qin stared.

"That's not an answer."

"It's accurate."

Qin walked toward the hall.

Shen Yuan stepped in front.

"No."

Qin stopped.

"Why?"

"Jian's."

Qin looked at Jian Wuchen.

The young swordsman nodded.

"Mine."

Qin's face twitched.

He was a Peak Master.

A Sword Dao cultivator.

A respected expert.

And somehow he had just been denied entry to a sword hall by a nineteen-year-old holding half a sword.

"I only want to look."

Shen Yuan thought.

Then the system appeared.

[Non-disciple access may dilute specialized territory resonance.]

"No."

Qin's eye twitched.

"Shen Yuan."

"Hm?"

"I am beginning to dislike your mountain."

Mu Qinglan passed behind them.

"No, you aren't."

Qin looked at her.

She didn't even slow down.

"You want to move here."

Qin became silent.

That was private.

Shen Yuan smiled.

"No vacancies."

"There are thirty-three empty residences."

"Chen An."

Chen An looked up.

"Thirty-two."

Shen Yuan frowned.

"What happened to the other one?"

"Guest residence for Ye Feng."

Right.

Qin looked offended.

"You gave Ye Feng a residence."

"Temporary."

"And not me."

"You have a peak."

"So?"

Shen Yuan considered.

Strong argument.

Still no.

At the Main Peak—

Gu Tianhe had a different problem.

"Say that again."

The elder before him swallowed.

"Cloudveil Peak is no longer visible on the sect territory map."

Gu looked at the map.

Four major peaks glowed.

Heavenly Sword.

Jade Lotus.

Vermilion Flame.

Black Tortoise.

Where Cloudveil should have been—

nothing.

"Physically?"

"Still present."

"Spiritually?"

"Present."

"Formation connection?"

"Present."

"Then why isn't it on the map?"

The elder hesitated.

"The map cannot determine its spatial coordinates."

Gu stared.

That sentence should not apply to a mountain.

"Fix it."

"We tried."

"And?"

"The map cracked."

Gu looked at the broken jade disk beside him.

Of course.

He stood.

Then a disciple rushed in.

"Sect Master!"

"What now?"

"A visitor."

Gu froze.

The Bloodriver Patriarch wasn't due for three days.

"Who?"

The disciple looked confused.

"He says he's looking for Cloudveil Peak."

Gu's expression changed.

"Name?"

"He won't give one."

"Cultivation?"

The disciple swallowed.

"We can't detect it."

Gu became still.

Not again.

"Appearance?"

"Old man."

"Affiliation?"

"Unknown."

"Weapon?"

"None."

"How did he enter the outer sect?"

The disciple's face became pale.

"We don't know."

Gu closed his eyes.

Shen Yuan.

Somehow—

this was Shen Yuan's fault.

He could feel it.

"Where is he?"

"Outside."

Gu opened his eyes.

"Outside the hall?"

"No."

The disciple pointed upward.

"Outside."

Gu frowned.

Then—

the roof became transparent.

Not broken.

Transparent.

An old man stood in the sky above the Sect Master Hall.

Silver hair.

Gray-white robes.

Bare hands.

No aura.

He looked around Azure Origin Sect with mild curiosity.

Then his gaze stopped.

At the place where Cloudveil Peak should be.

The old man smiled.

"Found you."

Gu Tianhe's stomach sank.

Shen Yuan felt him.

Immediately.

The Primordial Autonomous Dao Body reacted.

Not defensively.

Strangely.

Like recognition without memory.

Shen Yuan looked toward the Main Peak.

The system appeared.

[Unknown entity detected.]

Then—

[Analyzing...]

Pause.

Longer.

[Analyzing...]

Shen Yuan frowned.

Another pause.

Then:

[ERROR.]

His expression changed.

That had only happened—

No.

The Nameless One hadn't appeared yet in his actual life.

That future encounter remained unknown to him.

But this was the first time the system had outright failed on someone standing nearby.

[Target information inaccessible.]

[Cause unknown.]

[Target possesses ancient Dao concealment.]

[Estimated cultivation: Unable to determine.]

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Shen Yuan opened space.

"Stay here."

Lin Yue frowned.

"Master?"

"Visitor."

Jian Wuchen's Sword Heart reacted.

"Strong?"

Shen Yuan paused.

"I don't know."

That got everyone's attention.

Jian Wuchen had seen Shen Yuan stop thousands of attacks with one hand.

Lin Yue had watched him casually rebuild cultivation foundations.

Mu Qinglan had just watched him speak across realms to an Immortal.

"I'll come," Lin Yue said.

"No."

Jian Wuchen stepped forward.

"Master—"

"Stay."

His tone changed.

Only slightly.

Both disciples stopped.

Shen Yuan looked at Chen An.

"Keep the domain closed."

Chen An nodded immediately.

"Understood."

Shen Yuan disappeared.

The old man landed outside the Sect Master Hall.

Gu Tianhe emerged.

Grand Elder Mo Qingfeng appeared beside him.

Several elders followed.

Mo Qingfeng examined the stranger.

Nothing.

His divine sense found nothing.

Not concealed cultivation.

Nothing.

As though the man had no existence.

Mo's expression became grave.

"Senior."

The old man looked at him.

"Senior?"

"You entered Azure Origin Sect without triggering our formations."

"Did I?"

Gu Tianhe's eye twitched.

"Yes."

"My apologies."

The old man sounded sincere.

That somehow made it worse.

"I haven't visited a mortal sect in a long time."

Gu focused on one phrase.

Mortal sect.

"May I ask Senior's name?"

The old man smiled.

"Xuankong."

Nothing.

No recognition.

Mo Qingfeng searched his memory.

Nothing.

Gu did the same.

No famous expert.

No hidden ancestor he knew.

"Senior Xuankong."

"Mm."

"What brings you to Azure Origin Sect?"

Xuankong looked toward Cloudveil.

"I'm looking for a mountain."

Gu became silent.

Of course.

"Cloudveil Peak?"

Xuankong smiled.

"So that's what it's called now."

Now?

Gu's expression sharpened.

"What was it called before?"

Xuankong looked at him.

"Cloudveil."

Gu paused.

"Then—"

"But not in your language."

Silence.

Mo Qingfeng's fingers tightened.

Before either could ask—

space opened.

Shen Yuan stepped through.

Xuankong turned.

Their eyes met.

Nothing happened.

No explosion.

No aura.

No pressure.

No heavenly phenomenon.

Yet Gu Tianhe felt an immediate desire to be somewhere else.

Shen Yuan inspected the old man.

Silver hair.

Calm eyes.

No detectable cultivation.

No karmic weight he could understand.

Ancient.

Very ancient.

Xuankong inspected him in return.

Then—

his eyebrows rose.

Once.

Twice.

His expression became genuinely surprised.

"That's impossible."

Shen Yuan smiled.

"I've heard that recently."

Xuankong stepped closer.

Mo Qingfeng moved.

Shen Yuan lifted one hand.

"It's fine."

Mo stopped.

Xuankong circled Shen Yuan.

Once.

Shen Yuan let him.

Twice.

Shen Yuan became less amused.

On the third—

"Are you done?"

Xuankong stopped.

"No."

"Be done."

The old man laughed.

Gu Tianhe stared.

No one spoke to unknown terrifying ancient experts that way.

Except Shen Yuan.

Apparently.

Xuankong looked directly into Shen Yuan's eyes.

"Where did you get that body?"

Shen Yuan's expression changed.

There.

First person to notice.

"My body?"

"Don't play stupid."

"I wasn't."

"That's worse."

Xuankong lifted one finger.

He didn't touch Shen Yuan.

He stopped several centimeters away.

Space around his fingertip vanished.

Not cracked.

Vanished.

Shen Yuan's Primordial Autonomous Dao Body reacted.

A faint ripple passed through him.

The missing space reformed.

Xuankong's eyes widened.

Then—

he laughed.

Not politely.

Not quietly.

He laughed like someone who had just found an answer to a question he'd carried for thousands of years.

Gu Tianhe looked at Shen Yuan.

"What is happening?"

"No idea."

Xuankong stopped laughing.

"You truly don't know."

"Know what?"

"What you are."

Shen Yuan's eyes narrowed.

"I know enough."

"No."

Xuankong shook his head.

"You know what it does."

"Not what it is."

Silence.

The system remained blank.

No information.

No warning.

Nothing.

Shen Yuan became serious.

"Then tell me."

Xuankong studied him.

"Who gave it to you?"

That—

was not a question Shen Yuan intended to answer.

"Complicated."

Xuankong stared.

Then smiled.

"Good."

Shen Yuan frowned.

"Good?"

"If you had answered immediately, I'd have assumed you were an idiot."

Gu Tianhe looked away.

He wasn't sure whether Shen Yuan had just passed some ancient test.

Xuankong turned toward Cloudveil Peak.

"Let me see the mountain."

"No."

The answer was immediate.

Xuankong looked back.

"No?"

"My disciples are there."

Something changed in the old man's expression.

Tiny.

Interest.

"Disciples."

"Yes."

"How many?"

"Three."

"Names?"

"No."

Xuankong smiled again.

"Protective."

"Reasonably."

"Good."

He sat down.

On nothing.

Air became a chair beneath him.

Gu Tianhe stared.

Xuankong looked at Shen Yuan.

"Then we'll talk here."

Shen Yuan folded his arms.

"About?"

"The Severance."

Silence.

Gu Tianhe's expression changed.

Mo Qingfeng went still.

Shen Yuan's eyes sharpened.

Xuankong continued.

"Eight thousand years ago, the Mortal Realm was not separated from the Immortal Realm."

"I know."

The old man's eyebrows rose.

"How much?"

"Not enough."

"Who told you?"

"Several dead people."

Xuankong laughed.

"That sounds about right."

Shen Yuan waited.

The old man's amusement faded.

"Eight thousand years ago, someone cut the Ascension Road."

"Who?"

Xuankong looked toward the heavens.

"We never learned."

Shen Yuan frowned.

"You were there?"

"Yes."

Gu Tianhe stopped breathing for a moment.

Eight thousand years.

Xuankong continued.

"The official history is wrong."

"Which part?"

"Almost all of it."

Shen Yuan sighed.

Of course.

"The Severance was not an accident."

"I assumed."

"It was not a natural calamity."

"Also assumed."

"It was not caused by the Mortal Realm."

Shen Yuan became still.

Xuankong looked at him.

"The Immortal Realm did it."

Silence.

Even Shen Yuan didn't respond immediately.

Gu Tianhe spoke.

"Why?"

Xuankong looked at him.

"Fear."

"Of what?"

The old man's gaze moved toward Cloudveil Peak.

"A sword."

Jian Wuchen.

Shen Yuan's expression didn't change.

Xuankong noticed anyway.

"You have him."

"Who?"

"The Sword Heart."

Shen Yuan said nothing.

That was answer enough.

Xuankong closed his eyes briefly.

"So it really returned."

"What returned?"

"The Ninth Path."

Shen Yuan stepped closer.

"Explain."

Xuankong opened his eyes.

"The Seven Guardian Lineages were never guarding an inheritance."

"The Sword Tomb isn't a tomb."

Shen Yuan already suspected that.

"What is it?"

"A lock."

Silence.

"On what?"

Xuankong's expression became grave.

"Something the Immortal Realm could not kill."

The wind stopped.

Gu Tianhe felt cold.

Mo Qingfeng's face hardened.

Shen Yuan remained still.

"Person?"

"No."

"Creature?"

"No."

"Artifact?"

"No."

"Then?"

Xuankong looked at him.

"A path."

Shen Yuan frowned.

Xuankong continued.

"A way of cultivation."

"The Nine Sword Meridians."

"Partly."

"Partly?"

"The Nine Sword Meridians are only the key."

Shen Yuan remembered the Tomb.

Nine gates.

Seven keys.

One missing Ninth Meridian.

Xuankong continued.

"At the end of the Nine Gates lies a cultivation path that does not require the permission of Heaven."

Silence.

Gu Tianhe didn't understand immediately.

Shen Yuan did.

His expression changed.

Xuankong smiled without humor.

"Now you understand."

Cultivation.

Tribulations.

Ascension.

Heavenly Dao.

Every stage ultimately existed within a structure.

A system of laws.

A path permitted by the world.

But Jian Wuchen's cultivation was already beginning to operate independently of conventional realms.

Heart.

Bone.

Sword Foundation.

No dantian.

No normal meridians.

No conventional cultivation architecture.

Shen Yuan spoke quietly.

"A path outside Heavenly Dao."

Xuankong nodded.

"Yes."

Mo Qingfeng's expression changed.

"That's impossible."

Xuankong looked at him.

"That is what the Immortal Realm said."

A pause.

"Then someone proved it wasn't."

Shen Yuan thought of the vision.

One sword.

One cut.

Stars separated.

Space opened.

When the heavens sever the path... become the sword that severs the heavens.

"The sword wielder."

Xuankong's eyes sharpened.

"You've seen him."

"Fragment."

"Where?"

"No."

Xuankong smiled.

"Still protective."

"Still reasonable."

"Fair."

The old man continued.

"The cultivator who completed the Nine Gates reached something beyond the established Sword Dao."

"What?"

"We don't know."

"Name?"

"Erased."

"By whom?"

"The Immortal Realm."

There it was.

Xuankong's voice became quieter.

"He challenged something he shouldn't have."

"Who?"

Xuankong looked upward.

"Not who."

Shen Yuan waited.

"What."

The old man's eyes became cold.

"He challenged the authority behind ascension itself."

Silence.

"Then what happened?"

"The Immortal Realm panicked."

"That seems dramatic."

"You didn't see what his sword did."

"I saw part."

Xuankong looked sharply at him.

Shen Yuan continued.

"A cut."

The old man became still.

"Stars."

Xuankong's face changed.

"Space."

No one moved.

"And something in the void screamed."

Xuankong stood.

"Where is the fragment?"

"No."

"Shen Yuan."

First time he'd used the name.

"Where?"

Shen Yuan's expression hardened.

"No."

Xuankong stared.

Then—

slowly—

nodded.

"Good."

Again.

Shen Yuan was becoming tired of ancient people testing him.

Xuankong sat again.

"If you had handed it over, I would have taken it."

"Try."

Gu Tianhe closed his eyes.

Please don't.

Not inside the sect.

Xuankong smiled.

"Later."

"No."

"You're no fun."

"I've been told otherwise."

Xuankong continued.

"The sword wielder cut something connecting the realms."

"The Immortal Realm responded by severing the entire Mortal Realm."

"Why punish an entire world?"

"Because they couldn't find him."

Shen Yuan's eyes narrowed.

"He escaped?"

"No one knows."

"What about the Sword Tomb?"

"Sealed."

"Seven Guardian Lineages?"

"Ordered to protect the keys."

"By the Immortal Realm?"

Xuankong hesitated.

"No."

Interesting.

"By whom?"

"The sword wielder."

Shen Yuan frowned.

"He sealed his own path?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

Xuankong looked toward Cloudveil again.

"That is the question that got several of my friends killed."

Silence.

"Someone betrayed the guardians."

"Yes."

"Still alive."

Xuankong's eyes moved to Shen Yuan.

"Who told you that?"

"The Tomb."

For the first time—

Xuankong looked genuinely shaken.

"The Tomb spoke?"

"Yes."

"What did it say?"

"Your lineage failed. The traitor still lives."

Xuankong stood so quickly the air cracked.

"Whose lineage?"

"Li Cangwu's."

Xuankong became silent.

Then:

"Profound Sword Sect."

"You know it?"

"No."

"It didn't exist in my era."

Right.

Eight thousand years.

Xuankong began pacing.

"Guardian descendant."

"Seven lineages."

"Traitor still lives."

He stopped.

"That's impossible."

Shen Yuan smiled faintly.

"I've heard that recently."

Xuankong ignored him.

"Unless..."

His expression changed.

"What?"

Xuankong looked toward Shen Yuan.

"The traitor never survived eight thousand years."

"Then?"

"He survived through them."

Shen Yuan frowned.

"Explain."

"Body possession would degrade."

"Soul transfer leaves karmic scars."

"Reincarnation loses continuity."

"But there was another technique."

Xuankong's voice became quiet.

"Dao Parasitism."

Gu Tianhe had never heard the term.

Neither had Mo Qingfeng.

Shen Yuan's system reacted.

[Unknown cultivation concept detected.]

[Dao Parasitism.]

[Analyzing...]

Xuankong continued.

"A cultivator attaches part of their Dao to a bloodline."

"Not a person."

"The lineage itself."

Shen Yuan's eyes sharpened.

"Meaning?"

"When one host dies, the Dao sleeps."

"Then awakens in another descendant."

"Memories?"

"Eventually."

"Cultivation?"

"Rebuilt."

"Identity?"

Xuankong looked at him.

"Continuous."

Silence.

Eight thousand years.

Seven Guardian Lineages.

A traitor who still lives.

Not one body.

One lineage.

Shen Yuan immediately thought of the Profound Sword Sect.

Seven primary lineages.

One Acting Sect Master.

Zhou Tianluo.

One missing elder.

Zhou Xuanji.

But—

suspicion wasn't proof.

"Can it be detected?"

Xuankong shook his head.

"Not easily."

"Can you?"

"If I see the host."

"Reliably?"

A pause.

"No."

Good.

At least he admitted uncertainty.

"Then we don't accuse anyone."

Xuankong smiled faintly.

"You're cautious."

"Evidence is useful."

"Rare attitude for someone your age."

"I'm older than I look."

Technically.

Xuankong stared at him.

Shen Yuan realized.

Bad wording.

The old man's eyes narrowed.

"How much older?"

"Complicated."

Xuankong laughed.

A communication jade activated.

Gu Tianhe checked it.

His expression changed.

"What?"

Gu looked at Shen Yuan.

"Bloodriver Sect."

"Again?"

"Not the Patriarch."

"Then?"

Gu's face became serious.

"One of the prisoners is dead."

Shen Yuan's expression changed.

"How?"

"We don't know."

Mu Qinglan's suppression formation.

Cultivation sealed.

Weapons confiscated.

Guarded.

"Which prisoner?"

Gu looked at the message.

Then froze.

"Xue Ming."

Silence.

The Void Refining elder.

Shen Yuan opened space.

Xuankong stood.

"I'm coming."

"No."

"Yes."

Shen Yuan stared.

Xuankong smiled.

"You want to know whether your eight-thousand-year traitor is involved."

He stepped through the spatial passage before Shen Yuan could answer.

Gu Tianhe stared.

"He just entered your spatial passage."

"I noticed."

"Can people do that?"

"Apparently."

Gu closed his eyes.

That word again.

They followed.

The prisoner valley was silent.

Too silent.

Bloodriver cultivators stood behind suppression barriers.

Many looked terrified.

Mu Qinglan was already there.

She knelt beside Xue Ming.

The Void Refining elder lay on the ground.

Eyes open.

No wounds.

No blood.

No signs of struggle.

Dead.

Shen Yuan approached.

"When?"

"Seven minutes ago."

"Who was near him?"

"No one."

"Formation disturbance?"

"None."

"Cultivation?"

"Fully suppressed."

Shen Yuan crouched.

His Immortal perception entered.

Body intact.

Meridians intact.

Dantian intact.

Soul—

gone.

Not destroyed.

Gone.

Removed.

Xuankong appeared beside him.

Mu Qinglan immediately stepped back.

"Who—"

"Later," Shen Yuan said.

Xuankong examined the corpse.

His expression became grim.

"Not Dao Parasitism."

"Then what?"

Xuankong touched Xue Ming's forehead.

A black line appeared beneath the skin.

Thin.

Almost invisible.

Shen Yuan recognized it.

The karmic thread.

It had been connected to Xue Ming earlier.

Now—

severed.

Xuankong's eyes narrowed.

"Karmic execution."

The system reacted.

[Analysis confirmed.]

[Higher-order karmic link forcibly severed.]

[Soul removed through karmic medium.]

Shen Yuan stood.

"Can you trace it?"

Xuankong shook his head.

"Whoever did this is careful."

Then—

Xue Ming's corpse moved.

Everyone froze.

His mouth opened.

A voice emerged.

Not his.

Deep.

Distorted.

"First Key bearer."

Jian Wuchen.

Shen Yuan's expression became cold.

"Chaos Root."

Lu Chen.

Colder.

"Nine-Yin vessel."

Lin Yue.

Everyone else stared.

The corpse smiled.

"Three."

Shen Yuan stepped forward.

"Who are you?"

The dead mouth moved.

"Not enough."

"Answer."

"Nine are needed."

Shen Yuan's eyes narrowed.

Nine disciples?

Nine Sword Meridians?

Nine what?

The voice continued.

"The mountain gathers them."

Xuankong's face changed.

"Shut the mouth."

Shen Yuan looked at him.

"What?"

"NOW!"

The corpse laughed.

Then—

a black symbol appeared on Xue Ming's forehead.

Seven swords.

One circle.

The same symbol from the black token.

Xuankong raised one hand.

Shen Yuan moved first.

His fingers closed.

The corpse vanished.

Not exploded.

Erased.

A black thread shot upward.

Shen Yuan caught it.

The world shook.

The thread burned against his palm.

Not physically.

Karmically.

The system screamed.

[WARNING.]

[Higher-order causal link detected.]

[Unknown entity attempting reverse observation.]

Shen Yuan tightened his grip.

The thread tried to escape.

He remembered the reward.

Heaven-Severing Sword Dao Origin.

Severance.

A microscopic trace appeared on his finger.

Xuankong's eyes widened.

"Wait—"

Shen Yuan cut.

The black thread snapped.

Somewhere—

very far away—

something screamed.

Not loudly.

Not physically.

But every sword in the prisoner valley vibrated.

Xuankong stared at Shen Yuan's hand.

Then at him.

His face had gone completely still.

"Where did you get that?"

Shen Yuan dismissed the remaining Sword Dao trace.

"Complicated."

Xuankong didn't laugh.

For the first time since arriving—

the ancient man's expression showed fear.

Not of Shen Yuan.

Of what Shen Yuan had used.

"That Dao..."

His voice became quiet.

"I watched its owner die."

Silence.

Shen Yuan's eyes narrowed.

"You said no one knew what happened to him."

"No."

Xuankong looked toward the place where the black thread had vanished.

"I said no one knew if he escaped."

A pause.

"I know he died."

"How?"

Xuankong looked at him.

"Because I was holding the sword when his heart stopped."

Silence.

The wind moved through the valley.

Shen Yuan stared.

"Who was he?"

Xuankong closed his eyes.

Eight thousand years disappeared from his expression.

For one moment—

he looked tired.

Ancient.

And deeply sad.

Then he answered.

"My master."

Far away—

inside the Dead Sword Wasteland—

a prisoner hanging from chains suddenly raised his head.

Duan Zheng.

The darkness behind him moved.

The eyes that had opened earlier narrowed.

Then—

one chain on the wall broke.

A voice whispered from the dark.

"The Severing Dao..."

Another chain snapped.

"It has returned."

Duan Zheng stared into the darkness.

For three years, whatever shared this prison with him had never spoken.

Now—

it laughed.

And beneath the wasteland—

something enormous began to wake.