In the shadowed grove beneath the First Jianfeng, an ominous tension filled the air, thickened by the anticipation of a fateful duel. The golden palace of the Ye clan had been a symbol of pride, yet now stood tainted by the blood of its own, spilled by the lone swordsman Yun Xiao. The cultivators assembled around it bristled with anger and fear, their gazes fixed on the white-robed intruder who had defied the might of their clan with chilling audacity.
Most of the Divine Sea Realm cultivators had already rushed toward Sword Cloud Building to secure the stronghold. Outside the ancestral hall, only two Divine Sea Realm cultivators remained—Ye Xuanying, the venerable elder of the Ye clan, and his daughter-in-law, the graceful yet deadly woman known as "Buddhist," who held deep connections within Ten Thousand Swords Sea.
"Father, that young man just killed Divine Sea Realm cultivators like Ye Ziyan, Wu Jue, and others. His strength is clearly formidable. Since he dares to challenge First Sword Peak alone, he must have some advantage!" the Buddhist Lady whispered cautiously into Ye Xuanying's ear.
"Inform Tiance. I will lead people to crush him! No matter how strong a sword cultivator is, can one person alone block a thousand swords?" Ye Xuanying's eyes gleamed with vicious intent.
A fierce gust of wind surged around Yun Xiao, preventing anyone from doubting his intent as he moved forward, alone, to confront a thousand people.
"Yes, Father, but please be careful," the Buddhist Lady reminded him before retreating into the crowd, slipping her sword into the jungle of First Sword Peak. She would leave the confrontation to her father-in-law, but the urgency in her step betrayed her unease. As she vanished into the shadows, Ye Xuanying's gaze remained locked on Yun Xiao, filled with hatred for the one who had taken the lives of his grandson, granddaughter, and countless top disciples.
Feeling reassured with his daughter-in-law's warning, Ye Xuanying's eyes locked on the young man in white clothes. This young man had killed his grandchildren, defeated 120 of First Sword Peak's top disciples, and now dared to challenge First Sword Peak itself. This was an insult he would not bear.
"I've ruled these lands for 80 years, and yet you, a mere child, dare to provoke me?" Ye Xuanying raged. Though aged and with diminishing vitality, he was still a formidable Divine Sea Fixed Realm cultivator, wielding 20 strands of Sword Energy.
As he stepped forward, his disciples and descendants from Dragon Spring Realm shouted in unison, "Old Sword Venerable, your sword remains as powerful as ever!"
"Destroy him!" Ye clan disciples cheered from behind Ye Xuanying, flames of hatred blazing in their eyes.
Ding!
In Ye Xuanying's hand appeared his Sword Soul. It was a brilliant diamond Sword Soul, forged with high-grade Kaiyang essence and capable of channeling 20 strands of Sword Energy, making it the pinnacle of Blue Soul swords.
"I've spent my life cutting through iron and mountains, sending both monsters and men alike to the underworld. Why should I fear a brat like you?" Ye Xuanying scoffed, signaling his disciples to step back as he prepared to confront Yun Xiao personally.
"Yun Xiao won't last three moves!" shouted the Ye clan members, their collective momentum bearing down on Yun Xiao.
Ye Xuanying advanced with his sword, his eyes sharp as an eagle's, his aura exuding murderous intent as it pressed down upon Yun Xiao.
Yun Xiao responded with a cold smile. "Ye Tiance and his Divine Sea Realm lackeys are absent, and yet you still dare to challenge me?"
He shot forward with his hand outstretched, summoning his azure Sword Soul. Though it appeared ordinary, it radiated a deadly aura, shrouded in the aura of death itself. Above it were 22 strands of Sword Energy, each strand holding the souls of those he had slain, including Ye Ziyan, Wu Jue, and Yao Qingqian.
"Twenty-two strands of Sword Energy!" A sudden uproar spread through the crowd of over a thousand. Yun Xiao had only 15 strands earlier—how had he grown so powerful?
Ye Xuanying had forged 20 strands of Sword Energy over his entire life, putting him among the top three in Blue Soul Sword Sect, second only to Zhao Jianxing and Ye Tiance.
"How did you gain such power?" Ye Xuanying's heart trembled with fear.
Clank!
"Take a guess." Yun Xiao's white silhouette accelerated, and his sword struck with a deadly precision.
Ye Xuanying swung his diamond Sword Soul in an attempt to block, but Yun Xiao's sword slipped past and struck the diamond Sword Soul. With a harsh crack, it fractured under the pressure of Yun Xiao's attack, splitting apart before Ye Xuanying's horrified gaze.
Ye Xuanying, who had long prided himself on his unbreakable sword, felt his confidence shatter in an instant. Blood dripped from his hands, and he staggered back under Yun Xiao's relentless assault, his fingers dripping with blood.
"No!!" Ye Xuanying screamed, trying to block, but he was too slow. Yun Xiao's sword shot forward, piercing his abdomen, severing his dantian, and spilling his decades of cultivated power. Ye Xuanying was hurled backward, reduced to a mortal in an instant.
"Ye Xuanying, after 80 years of power, is this all you've got?" Yun Xiao mocked, stepping on his shattered dantian. Ye Xuanying howled in rage, but his vitality was quickly fading.
"Didn't you claim you could defeat me in three moves? You couldn't even handle one." Yun Xiao sneered. "If you weren't useful to me, that strike would have gone through your head."
Yun Xiao slapped him across the face, his cheek swollen and teeth knocked out, reducing Ye Xuanying to a humiliated wreck.
"You call yourself a cultivator, yet your Sword Soul is too soft!" Yun Xiao's words echoed in his mind like a nightmare. Ye Xuanying knew that he had lost because his Sword Soul had shattered, but he could not understand how Yun Xiao had reached such a level of power.
"What realm have you reached?" Ye Xuanying asked, fear flooding his heart.
"You'll find out when your son is dead," Yun Xiao replied coldly, stepping down hard on Ye Xuanying's abdomen.
Then, Yun Xiao turned to the remaining Ye clan members. "What's wrong? Am I stepping on your old ancestor, yet you all stand there like cowards? Is the Ye clan just a nest of weaklings?"
Many of the Ye disciples seethed with rage, yet fear held them back. A thousand disciples stood silent.
"For those who wish to stand for Sword Pavilion and justice, stay where you are. But if you wish to fight me, come forward," Yun Xiao declared, his gaze sweeping over the crowd.
Half of the disciples remained still, silent witnesses to the battle. Many had once been loyal to Sword Pavilion, until they were coerced or bribed by the Ye clan to betray it. Yet, under Yun Xiao's unyielding presence, they stood by his side, reclaiming a piece of their lost honor.
Seeing this, Yun Xiao was moved. "There are still people of loyalty in this world." He gave a respectful nod to those who had chosen to support him.
However, his expression quickly turned cold as he looked toward the remaining 400 Dragon Spring Realm cultivators and Ye clan members who were ready to attack him. "Very well. Since you've come to kill me, prepare for death!"
In a flash, Yun Xiao became a storm of white and azure light, weaving through the crowd, leaving nothing but blood and bodies in his wake.
With a mere flick of his sword, dozens of lives were claimed, and terror spread among the ranks of his enemies. Panic-stricken, they turned to flee, but Yun Xiao's blade showed no mercy, leaving the ground littered with corpses.
The Ye clan's last hope, its proud and powerful legacy, lay in ruins before Yun Xiao, its members weeping in shame and despair. In the face of such devastation, Ye Xuanying spat out blood, utterly defeated.