Chapter 352 – One Person, One Sword, Ascending Great Thousand Mountains Alone, Spirit Transformation Fiend Appears…

At the foot of the former Martial God Mountain, now known as Central Province’s Great Thousand Mountain.

Countless demons and immortal fiends living within the Great Thousand Mountains suddenly halted their activities, turning their gaze uniformly toward the mountain’s base.

At the foot of the mountain, an immense Sword Intent was being unleashed without restraint.

Though only just beginning to manifest, the Sword Intent was overwhelmingly vast.

The pressure it brought forth instilled a profound sense of crisis among the mountain’s inhabitants.

It felt as though an Immortal Sword hung invisibly above their heads, poised to descend at any moment.

Were it not for the mountain protection array blocking the majority of the Sword Intent,

this mere manifestation would have been enough to shatter the minds and extinguish the spirits of many ordinary demons and immortal fiends below the Golden Core Stage.

Even those protected by the mountain array were affected thus.

The demons wandering outside the Great Thousand Mountains fared even more miserably.

Centered around Lu Chen, an invisible wave of Sword Intent began to sweep outward.

Wherever the sword wave passed, weaker demons immediately bled from all seven orifices and perished on the spot.

Those with somewhat better cultivation trembled in all four limbs, prostrating themselves on the ground.

The terror in their eyes showed they were frightened to the extreme, devoid of even the thought of escape.

And the so-called sword wave was not merely a single occurrence.

At the mountain’s base, Lu Chen held his sword vertically before him, gripping the hilt with one hand as he slowly drew the Immortal Sword from its sheath.

Though his drawing motion was deliberate and slow,

it already exerted a terrifying influence on the surroundings.

The first wave of Sword Intent was but a glimpse of the power revealed as he began to unsheathe the sword.

“We can’t let him draw that sword completely!”

“Just the initial Sword Intent is so astonishing. If he manages to fully draw the Immortal Sword with this momentum,”

“the power of this strike will be absolutely extraordinary!”

A Nascent Soul Stage immortal fiend within the Great Thousand Mountains watched Lu Chen at the mountain’s base.

Though not a Sword Cultivator himself, he could assess the situation based on what he saw.

Given the strength Lu Chen was currently displaying,

if he were allowed to draw the Immortal Sword at his peak momentum,

even if he couldn’t shatter the mountain protection array with one strike,

he would certainly cause significant damage to the array.

Moreover, with only Lu Chen appearing so far, such power had already been unleashed.

If other powerful cultivators from Central Province were hiding nearby,

the mountain protection array might not hold for long.

However, compared to the somewhat flustered Nascent Soul Stage immortal fiend,

the Deity Transformation Stage Great Thousand Mountain immortal fiends, led by Protector Yin, remained remarkably calm.

They even looked at Lu Chen with mockery in their eyes.

For only they knew how truly powerful this mountain protection array was.

Not even ten times the Sword Intent Lu Chen was currently displaying

could shake this mountain protection array in the slightest.

Unless Lu Chen could find the array’s weakness.

But calm as they were, facing Lu Chen’s audacious act of blocking them at their mountain gate,

they had to take action.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t simply be a matter of losing face—

it would directly affect the entire Great Thousand Mountain’s aura.

After all, compared to Central Province cultivators, immortal fiends were much harder to control.

When things were going well, they would fight recklessly for profit.However, once the situation turns unfavorable, those ruthless Immortal Fiends would not care about any sect sentiments.

After all, backstabbing was not uncommon among the Immortal Fiends.

Gazing at Lu Chen at the mountain’s base, Protector Yin said indifferently, “You few, go teach that impudent Sword Cultivator from the Central Province what etiquette means.”

“Yes!”

Upon hearing this, five Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends immediately rose and flew toward the foot of the mountain.

But the moment they left the mountain-protecting formation and faced Lu Chen’s Sword Intent head-on,

the smiles on their faces instantly vanished.

Feeling that terrifying Sword Intent, vast and endless like towering waves,

a profound terror immediately surged within their hearts.

Especially when they saw that Lu Chen’s Immortal Sword had only been drawn about one-third of the way,

this sense of terror grew even heavier.

This man was not an Immortal, yet he surpassed one!

Boom!

Under immense pressure, the five Great Thousand Mountains Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends decisively unleashed the Law of Heaven and Earth,

transforming into five monstrous, hideous beings with astonishing Auras.

Yet Lu Chen paid them no mind.

His Immortal Sword was already half-drawn.

As the surrounding Sword Intent reached a critical point,

a startling celestial phenomenon suddenly appeared.

Dark clouds stretching for hundreds of miles spread across the skies around the Great Thousand Mountains.

As these clouds continuously shifted, they gradually formed a terrifying heavenly vortex.

The center of the vortex was aimed directly at where Lu Chen stood.

Boom!

With the appearance of this celestial phenomenon, the five Great Thousand Mountains Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends instantly felt their bodies grow heavy.

At this moment, it was as if a massive mountain were pressing down on them.

If not for the other Great Thousand Mountains Elders watching from behind,

given the power Lu Chen had displayed, they would have fled as far as possible long ago.

Life was their own, and inherently selfish Immortal Fiends would not risk their lives for the Sect.

But if they fled now, they would face pursuit from the Great Thousand Mountains.

Coupled with the Central Province’s rejection of them,

fighting offered a slim chance of survival.

Fleeing meant certain death.

Under such circumstances, though the five Great Thousand Mountains Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends were fearful,

they still charged toward Lu Chen without hesitation.

But when they closed within a kilometer of him, a sudden change occurred.

“Wh-what is that?!”

One of the Great Thousand Mountains Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends looked up at the sky, his voice trembling.

In the sky, a massive inverted Sword Mountain emerged from the heavenly vortex, slowly descending.

Compared to this enormous Sword Mountain,

the several Great Thousand Mountains Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators who had unleashed the Law of Heaven and Earth seemed like small dogs standing before an elephant—

weak and helpless.

Witnessing this, even the other Transformation Soul Stage Elders within the Great Thousand Mountains could no longer remain calmly seated.

They never expected that Lu Chen, a mere Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator,

had already reached the level of being able to invoke the power of the Heavenly Dao.

Was this something a Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator could accomplish?

But regardless of their thoughts, the Sword Mountain above would not stop.

As most of the Sword Mountain was revealed, Lu Chen’s Immortal Sword was nearly fully drawn.

Meanwhile, the five Great Thousand Mountains Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends charging toward Lu Chen came to a halt.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to advance further, but the tangible Sword Intent surrounding Lu Chen

made them feel as if they were trapped in a swamp, unable to move forward even half a step.

Even more terrifying, this Sword Intent seemed to contain other formidable powers.One after another, wounds began to appear on the five Great Thousand Mountains Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends.

Immediately after, these wounds continued to spread, with some reaching depths where bone was visible.

Clang!

As Lu Chen fully withdrew the Immortal Sword in his hand, a crisp sword cry suddenly rang out.

Then, countless Sword Qi scattered in all directions.

Transforming into a sky-full of dancing Sword Qi, they swept past the five Great Thousand Mountains Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends not far away.

This caused the already precarious Immortal Fiends to instantly collapse.

Boom!

Under the impact of these Sword Qi, the Great Thousand Mountains Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends who had already reached their limit completely gave way.

Their bodies appeared as if sliced by countless sharp blades.

Disintegrating into countless points of light.

And these Sword Qi could not only sever the Physical Body but also cut through their Divine Souls along with it.

Thus, the five powerful Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends failed to even touch the hem of Lu Chen’s clothes before their souls flew away and spirits scattered on the spot.

Meanwhile, the environment around Lu Chen underwent a dramatic transformation.

Countless dense sword marks, large and small, covered the ground.

As for the trees or other structures on the ground,

They had long been annihilated by the Sword Qi, vanishing without a trace.

If one were to look from the sky, a terrifying scene would unfold.

That is, within a hundred-mile radius of Lu Chen, no signs of life could be seen.

The entire land seemed as if it had been flattened by swords; apart from enormous sword marks resembling fissures, nothing else remained.

By now, Elder Yin and the others within the Great Thousand Mountains had completely risen to their feet.

Their expressions were extremely grave.

This Sword Cultivator was definitely no ordinary Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator.

His Sword Intent had transcended the realm of spells and Divine Abilities.

His Sword was the Dao.

“Form the array!”

Gazing at the enormous Sword Mountain outside the mountain gate, Elder Yin immediately issued the command to the mountains.

Countless Immortal Fiends, upon receiving the order, immediately sprang into action.

Vast amounts of crimson light appeared beneath their feet, transforming into numerous red bloodlines that connected to the Great Thousand Mountains’ protective mountain array.

Just as they finished forming the array, Lu Chen finally raised his head.

The presence of the Seven-Star Mask made it impossible to discern his current expression.

But through the gaps in the mask, one could clearly see his pupils, which had transformed into lotus flowers.

His eyes showed neither sorrow nor joy, devoid of any emotional fluctuations.

And his gaze remained fixed on the Great Thousand Mountains’ protective mountain array, as if observing something.

A moment later, Lu Chen swung his sword toward the Great Thousand Mountains before him.

In an instant, the heavens and earth changed color within a hundred-mile radius of the Great Thousand Mountains.

All because the massive Sword Mountain overhead had enveloped this entire area.

The Sword Mountain, covered in golden Dao patterns, descended straight toward the Great Thousand Mountains like divine punishment.

The Sword Mountain’s descent was not fast, but it was precisely this slowness that escalated the fear of the Immortal Fiends within the Great Thousand Mountains to its peak.

For most of the Immortal Fiends had no idea whether the protective mountain array could withstand the majestic Sword Mountain.

Not to mention the scene of the five Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends meeting a gruesome end at Lu Chen’s hands.

They had witnessed it all firsthand.

If even Nascent Soul Stage Immortal Fiends suffered such a fate, those with cultivation levels below the Nascent Soul Stage need not be mentioned.

Under the tense gazes of the Immortal Fiends,

Lu Chen’s Sword Mountain finally collided with the Great Thousand Mountains’ protective mountain array.The blood-red mountain protection formation immediately began to tremble violently at this moment.

Many Immortal Fiends connected to the formation through spiritual resonance instantly staggered, vomiting blood.

For a time, the entire Great Thousand Mountains shook continuously as if experiencing an eighth-level earthquake.

However, despite the shaking,

the Sword Mountain only created rippling circles in the formation

without achieving any other substantial effects.

Instead, the Sword Mountain itself began to continuously crumble.

Witnessing this scene, countless Immortal Fiends revealed expressions of having narrowly escaped disaster.

Clearly, the effectiveness of this mountain protection formation far exceeded their expectations.

With this mountain protection formation in place, they had no need to worry about Lu Chen breaking through.

Moreover, after calming down,

many Immortal Fiends recalled the Deity Transformation Stage Immortal Fiends led by Elder Yin, as well as the recently descended Serpent Mountain Immortal.

Though for unknown reasons, neither Elder Yin and the others nor the esteemed Serpent Mountain Immortal had rushed to take action.

Yet as long as they were present, the Great Thousand Mountains remained an impregnable fortress, unlikely to collapse easily.

It was precisely this confidence that allowed the Great Thousand Mountains’ previously waning aura to visibly recover.

But unlike the excitement of ordinary Immortal Fiends,

Elder Yin and the others remained extremely solemn.

“Just a Nascent Soul Stage Sword Cultivator possesses such strength.”

“Not to mention those above the Nascent Soul Stage at the Deity Transformation level—if just a few more similar sword cultivators appear, our goal of occupying the Central Province would face significantly greater difficulties.”

“Have those from the Black Lotus Sect and Corpse Fiend Cave still not sent any messages?”

Hearing Elder Yin’s words, the other Deity Transformation Stage Immortal Fiends all shook their heads.

This made Elder Yin’s expression grow even darker.

According to the original plan, their Great Thousand Mountains was supposed to jointly invade the Central Province with several other sects from the Ancient Fiend Nine Realms.

By then, the entire Central Province would be engulfed in war flames,

leaving the Central Province Sects too preoccupied to assist one another.

Yet the current situation clearly differed from the initial plan.

It seemed that presently, only their Great Thousand Mountains had truly taken action in the Central Province.

The other Ancient Immortal Sects remained hidden in the shadows, observing how the situation developed.

Although Elder Yin had already anticipated this phenomenon,

facing it in reality still filled him with burning rage.

If not for the fact that the current Martial God of Martial God Mountain was nearing his recent period of weakness,

and missing this opportunity would require waiting another fifty years,

coupled with that Martial God vaguely detecting anomalies within their sect and showing signs of intervening,

the Great Thousand Mountains would not have wanted to expose themselves so openly.

But as things stood, aside from pressing forward stubbornly,

they had no better alternatives.

Unless they were willing to abandon the Central Province—this great piece of fat meat.

Gazing at Lu Chen at the mountain’s foot, Elder Yin ultimately decided to take action personally.

After all, they couldn’t allow this fellow to continue causing trouble like this.

The Great Thousand Mountains’ protection formation was indeed powerful,

but maintaining such a formation consumed considerable energy.

Before the Serpent Mountain Immortal could fully master his current body,

the mountain protection formation must not develop any flaws—they had to buy enough time for the Serpent Mountain Immortal.

“Let’s move together.”

Upon hearing Elder Yin’s words, two of the four nearby Deity Transformation Stage Immortal Fiends immediately stepped forward,

leaving only two behind to oversee the Great Thousand Mountains.

Outside the mountain, Lu Chen seemed to sense something and looked up.Elder Yin and the other two had already stepped out of the mountain-protecting formation, arriving not far from him.

Three Deity Transformation stage Immortal Fiends—simply by standing there—formed a terrifying oppressive force.

The pressure was so intense that it even began affecting the surrounding environment.

As Lu Chen gazed at the three of them, a cold glint flashed in his eyes.

Everything was unfolding exactly as he had anticipated.

Unaware of Lu Chen’s thoughts, Elder Yin and the other two looked toward the silent Lu Chen in the distance, unleashing their killing intent without restraint.

In that moment, the heavens and earth shifted in color, and Karma surged toward the sky.

(End of Chapter)