Chapter 417 – Clouds Part, Sword Mountain Appears, Formation Rises, Stars Rush to Slay Across Thousands of Miles

With the Three Lives Dao as its core, supplemented by the Fiend-Slaying Sword Formation.

Above the Fallen Dragon Lake at this moment, even the distorted tribulation clouds that blotted out the sky were overshadowed by the boundless Sword Intent.

Countless streams of Sword Intent converged, forming a terrifying sword momentum.

So heavy was this sword momentum, so powerful this Sword Intent, that even the tribulation clouds formed by the Heavenly Dao showed traces of fear.

Innumerable tentacle-like ‘heavenly thunders’ began to thrash wildly.

Thick fleshy tentacles, massive as mountain ranges, moved with earth-shattering, cloud-scattering terror with every motion.

Yet even these bizarre heavenly thunders that could easily crush Nascent Soul Stage cultivators, or even ordinary Transformation Soul Stage practitioners, could not break through the invisible shackles formed by the surrounding Sword Intent.

The massive Fiend-Slaying Sword Formation, executed simultaneously by Lu Chen’s countless Incarnations, had completely sealed off the distorted tribulation clouds.

Countless Sword Qi glinting with cold light formed an enormous vortex of Sword Intent beyond ordinary imagination.

At the vortex’s center was the distorted tribulation cloud.

Beneath the tribulation cloud stood Lu Chen, who had deployed this grand formation.

In the past, even with sufficient magical power, Lu Chen would not have had the mental capacity to execute such a terrifying sword formation.

The mental energy required, the calculations needed—all were unimaginably vast, beyond human capability.

But under the effect of the Three Lives Dao, Lu Chen could accomplish this without expending much effort.

He only needed to convey his requirements to the countless Clones he had manifested.

These Clones, possessing fragments of Lu Chen’s True Spirit, could perfectly execute any task he demanded.

They were the ultimate assistants.

This was the difference between Dao and technique.

Lu Chen was now employing technique through Dao.

Even though this was his first time deploying the Fiend-Slaying Sword Formation in this manner, the effect was surprisingly effective.

Boom!

As the sword vortex continuously contracted, the space originally belonging to the distorted tribulation clouds grew increasingly scarce.

Cornered, the distorted tribulation clouds sought change for survival.

What it attempted was to find a way to break through Lu Chen’s sword formation.

The massive tribulation cloud palm opened, revealing numerous desiccated corpses with half their bodies exposed.

Though Lu Chen did not recognize the origins of these dried corpses, he deduced their source in mere moments.

If he wasn’t mistaken, these exposed corpses were Nascent Soul Stage cultivators who had failed their tribulations and been devoured by the distorted tribulation clouds.

Just the number of dried corpses visible in the palm exceeded a thousand.

Countless more failed cultivators’ remains were hidden within the tribulation cloud.

Lu Chen estimated that the number of cultivators devoured by these clouds must be at least over a hundred thousand.

This was not a quantity that could be accumulated in a short time.

It must be the collection of all cultivators who had failed their tribulations throughout the entire Nine Realms over nearly ten thousand years, or even tens of thousands of years.

Seeing these Ancient Fiend cultivators transformed into reincarnation Puppets after death, forever denied liberation, Lu Chen couldn’t help but feel emotional.

Although his relationship with Ancient Fiend cultivators was one of mortal enmity, were these not pitiable souls as well?

From the moment they were born in the Ancient Fiend Nine Realms, their fate was sealed.

Every step they took was predetermined by ‘heaven.’

Tragic and lamentable.

Yet the pitiable also have their detestable aspects.Though Lu Chen lamented the tragic fate of the Ancient Fiend cultivators,

the countless lives lost at their hands were undeniably real.

Thus, he would not alter his stance toward the Ancient Fiends or their cultivators.

Watching the distorted tribulation clouds summon countless ‘Nascent Soul mummies’ and frantically assault the swirling Sword Intent vortices on both sides,

the Dongzhen Aperture at Lu Chen’s brow began to radiate a profound divine light.

As this light emerged, the Sword Intent filling the sky… stirred.

Amidst the interweaving Sword Intent, an ancient Immortal Sword gradually materialized high in the heavens.

It was a Sword Mountain, bound entirely in chains.

Faintly visible upon it were numerous figures shackled within.

With the emergence of the Sword Mountain, heaven and earth trembled, and winds and clouds shifted abruptly.

Sensing the terrifying killing intent from above, Lu Chen immediately perceived a human-like fear emanating from the distorted tribulation clouds.

As for the Sword Mountain he had summoned this time with countless Sword Intent, Lu Chen felt both surprised and unsurprised.

What surprised him was that the Sword Mountain he summoned in the Ancient Fiend Nine Realms

largely resembled its counterpart in the Immortal Cultivation World, with few differences.

What did not surprise him was that variations between the two realms’ Sword Mountains were inevitable.

After all, for any world, the Sword Mountain represented the collective ‘Dao Intent’ of countless Sword Cultivators.

Though Lu Chen’s own Sword Path proficiency was considerable, among the innumerable Sword Cultivators across the river of time,

he was still far from ranking among the top.

There were undoubtedly many with superior Sword Path mastery and higher cultivation.

Yet, those individuals couldn’t even summon the Sword Mountain—

they couldn’t even glimpse its shadow.

Undoubtedly, Lu Chen’s ability to achieve this was tied to his unique True Spirit.

“Descend.”

Guided by the mysterious light of Lu Chen’s True Spirit,

the Sword Mountain in the sky began its gradual descent.

Trapped by the Sword Formation below and faced with the descending Sword Mountain above,

the distorted tribulation clouds descended into utter madness.

Their massive thunderous tentacles lashed wildly at the Sword Mountain overhead,

as if striving to halt its descent outright.

Yet, those tentacles, capable of effortlessly dismantling spells and Divine Abilities with boundless power,

now proved utterly incapable of impeding the Sword Mountain.

They could only watch helplessly as it continued its descent.

Their sole effect was to slightly slow its pace—

merely delaying the tribulation clouds’ inevitable demise.

Boom!

As the movable space was compressed to its limit, no matter how unwilling the distorted tribulation clouds were,

they ultimately met the Sword Mountain summoned by Lu Chen’s vast Sword Intent.

The first clash between these two colossal entities

ended decisively with the tribulation clouds’ defeat.

The distorted tribulation clouds had reoriented, directing their palm toward the Sword Mountain.

In an instant, the Sword Mountain obliterated the mummies upon the clouds’ palm.

Countless forbidden forces scattered in the process, Karma soaring skyward.

Yet, the Sword Mountain seemed inherently to counter this Karma.

Before the Karma could escape,

countless chains flew from the Sword Mountain, sweeping like a whirlwind to imprison all the ancient vengeful souls formed from the Karma upon the mountain.

In moments, the massive Sword Mountain gained many new ‘guests.’

At last, Lu Chen could behold the Sword Mountain in its entirety.

He had long suspected something about the chains enveloping the Sword Mountain since first laying eyes on them.

After all, the Sword Mountain was the amalgamation of Sword Intent from all Sword Cultivators in this realm.Moreover, Sword Cultivators themselves are the epitome of ‘unyielding integrity’ and are notoriously known as ‘troublemakers.’

They specialize in ‘slashing heaven and earth,’ and in extreme cases, they would even slash themselves.

How could a Sword Mountain, formed by such iron-willed individuals, exhibit a phenomenon of ‘self-sealing its edge’?

This is fundamentally at odds with the very essence of the ‘Sword.’

After all, the meanings represented by ‘sheath’ and ‘lock’ are entirely different.

The former is ‘Hidden Edge,’ while the latter is ‘edgeless.’

Although ‘edgeless’ is also a school of thought among Sword Cultivators,

this school is undoubtedly a drop in the ocean compared to the mainstream.

It could never become the representative manifestation of Sword Intent like Sword Mountain.

Therefore, the ‘lock’ on this Sword Mountain must not have been placed by the Sword Cultivators themselves.

Instead, it must have been forcibly imposed upon them by someone.

And as for who this person is, Lu Chen faintly had an answer.

It must be the Nine Realms Heavenly Dao.

Upon careful reflection, although the Ancient Fiend Nine Realms has countless schools and numerous Sects,

it indeed seems that no powerful Sword Sect has emerged.

In fact, forget about Sword Sects—during Lu Chen’s interactions with so many Ancient Fiend Cultivators,

he couldn’t recall encountering a single true Sword Cultivator.

This was undoubtedly very peculiar.

The only Ancient Fiend Cultivator he encountered who resembled a Sword Cultivator

was the Black Lotus Sect Cultivator he met in the Instance ‘Sword Tomb Ruins,’ who had picked up his ‘Sword Array Fragment Map.’

Moreover, according to him, even the Black Lotus Buddha Mother was very interested in his Sword Array Fragment Map.

Initially, Lu Chen thought this was because his Fiend-Slaying Sword Formation was particularly unique, which is why a Buddha Mother comparable to a True Immortal would pay such attention.

But after seeing this Sword Mountain forcibly ‘sealing its edge,’

Lu Chen gradually developed other thoughts.

Perhaps not everyone in the Ancient Fiend Nine Realms is a monster twisted by the Heavenly Dao.

There must be some who have seen the true nature of the Heavenly Dao and are striving to seek a way out.

Otherwise, why would a Sword Mountain, the collective Sword Intent of an entire realm, be deliberately sealed by the Heavenly Dao?

What difference is there between this and cutting off one’s own arm?

After realizing this, Lu Chen gradually formed a bold speculation:

It seems that Sword Cultivators of the Nine Realms are not favored by the Nine Realms Heavenly Dao—in fact, they might even be despised.

Delving deeper, perhaps not a single ‘Sword Immortal’ has ever appeared in the Nine Realms.

Or perhaps one has appeared, but they happen to be beyond the control of the Nine Realms Heavenly Dao,

making it impossible for the Heavenly Dao to control this ‘Sword Mountain.’

Otherwise, why would a Sword Mountain, which even the tribulation clouds—the representatives of the Nine Realms Heavenly Dao’s will—could not summon,

now be summoned by Lu Chen, an outsider?

Interesting, truly interesting…

Lu Chen watched as the Sword Mountain pressed the tribulation clouds from the sky down to the Fallen Dragon Lake, revealing a meaningful expression.

A sealed Sword Mountain, the elusive Sword Cultivators of the Nine Realms, and a Sword Immortal suspected to be beyond control.

The more Lu Chen thought about it, the more he felt he had uncovered some great secret.

With this in mind, Lu Chen decided to thoroughly search for information about the Sword Cultivators of the Nine Realms.

Perhaps he would make a remarkable discovery.

As Lu Chen pondered, the tribulation clouds suppressed by the Sword Mountain finally could no longer bear its weight and completely shattered.

As the tribulation clouds dispersed, the Sword Mountain, now without a target, began to fade away.

However, at the moment the Sword Mountain dissipated, a black shadow shot toward the horizon at an astonishing speed.

Although the appearance of this black shadow was sudden and its speed extraordinary…But Lu Chen seemed to have anticipated it.

He raised his hand, and the Fiend-Slaying Sword Formation around him rose once more.

Then, using his own Sword Intent, Lu Chen condensed a massive Immortal Sword.

And this sword was unbound.

“Slash.”

Lu Chen swung his hand downward.

The ten-thousand-zhang Immortal Sword cleaved through the air.

In an instant, clouds parted and mist scattered as Sword Qi swept across the expanse.

As the sword shattered the mysterious black shadow, it also completely split the Fallen Dragon Lake, which had already been ravaged by the Sword Mountain to the point of existing in name only.

On the ground, a bottomless chasm stretched from the Fallen Dragon Lake all the way to the horizon.

Above this chasm,

the vast mist that had originally enveloped the Ancient Domain was similarly torn apart.

Even the clouds in the sky were now split by a massive gap, allowing sunlight to shine upon this land—a rare sight.

Fortunately, this area was the territory of the Dragon Fiend and the Great Thousand Mountains.

Otherwise, such a tremendous commotion would inevitably attract the attention of many Ancient Fiends.

As all disturbances subsided, a cluster of purple auspicious clouds drifted quietly within the sword scar left by Lu Chen’s strike.

And these auspicious clouds were the most crucial thing Lu Chen needed for his Tribulation Transcendence.

They were also the essence of the Grand Dao’s blessing—the Grand Dao Source.

Without Lu Chen needing to do anything more, the auspicious clouds, now stripped of a great deal of Karma, spontaneously flew into his body.

This caused Lu Chen and the Three Lives Dao he had fused with to integrate further, truly reaching the level where they were indistinguishable from each other—the realm of Embodying Dao.

A powerful aura began to gather around Lu Chen.

At the same time, within a mysterious Sect in the Ancient Fiend Nine Realms, several exclamations of surprise rang out.

“It’s done, haha, it’s done! Finally, someone has succeeded!”

“That’s right, I can feel it, I can feel it! The shackles placed upon us have finally weakened!”

Amidst a chorus of exclamations, several figures flew out of their Cave Residences, eagerly sharing this earth-shattering news with others in their School.

In the process, this School revealed a scene entirely different from that of the Three Sects of Nine Realms.

The Three Sects of Nine Realms—Corpse Fiend Cave, Black Lotus Sect, and Great Thousand Mountains—no matter what Grand Dao they cultivated, always shared one common trait:

the higher the cultivation of their Sect’s Cultivators, the more they lost their “humanity” and the more they converged with the Nine Realms Heavenly Dao.

But this School was different.

The few Cultivators who flew out each possessed cultivation at the Nascent Soul Stage Perfection.

Yet, astonishingly, they carried not a trace of malevolence, their spiritual platforms clear and bright.

What was strange, however, was that despite being great Cultivators who had already cultivated their Nascent Souls,

each of them was blind, their eyes bearing clearly visible sword scars.

It seemed as though they had deliberately blinded themselves with a sword.

And their primary purpose for doing so was cultivation.

This was because these individuals were the notorious “Demonic Cultivators” and “Heretical Cultivators” of the Nine Realms—those whom everyone sought to eradicate.

They were beings who, the moment they revealed themselves, would be relentlessly hunted down by the Three Sects of Nine Realms and countless other Nine Realms Sects.

Yet, it was precisely this group, labeled “Heretical Cultivators” by the outside world,

who resembled the legendary “Cultivators” far more than any other in the Nine Realms.

For they remarkably carried not a trace of “aberration.”

Their cultivation was entirely achieved through their own diligent efforts.

In the Nine Realms, where Ancient Fiends stood tall and the Heavenly Dao was distorted, this was undoubtedly an extremely rare existence.

Apart from these characteristics, these individuals also possessed one most prominent trait.Behind each of them was strapped a Sword Box.

Blind eyes, sword blindness, no mutation.

These people, this mysterious Sect.

Were the greatest anomaly among the Nine Realms… the Imprisoned Sword Sect.

And the joyous news that shook the entire Imprisoned Sword School was their clear perception:

The Nine Realms Sword Mountain, which had vanished for tens of thousands of years… had reappeared.

This meant either a Sword Cultivator from the Nine Realms had reached the realm of a Celestial Being,

Or someone’s sword technique… rivaled that of a Celestial Being.

(End of Chapter)