The three great suns had already sunk more than halfway below the horizon of the Imperial Capital, their lingering glow painting the city's splendor into a magnificent skyline, while the moon had already risen.
It was a moment when both the sun and moon shared the sky.
Yet, at least for now, the Sword Forge Square made it almost impossible to feel the sun's presence.
This was the domain of the Lunar Yin.
"Is she going to break through her realm here?"
Everyone's breath hitched as the Lunar Yin's divine intent manifested—mysterious, profound, noble, and chillingly pure.
Those below the Inner Realm couldn't even see what was happening without releasing their own divine intent.
This spectacle hardly seemed like the breakthrough of someone at the Observation Deity Realm.
"With the Hidden Dragon Tournament imminent, why would she choose to break through now, in full view of everyone?"
"Li Mo, you really like swords, don't you?" Ying Bing's tone was as light and clear as her expression."Of course, uh... I like hammers too."
Li Mo first reassured Hammer Baby, unsure why the ice block's expression had suddenly turned so serious, then voiced his thoughts:
"Hammers and swords are like life and dreams. Swordsmen are so cool, but not everyone has the talent to realize their ideals..."
Even the Little Overlord occasionally envied those swordsmen.
After all, strength aside, being cool was a lifelong matter...
Too bad no one called him a swordsman anymore. These days, it was all about hammers—especially after he brought out Hammer Baby today.
The title of "swordsman" was probably gone for good...
Ying Bing lowered her eyes and chuckled softly:
"Then let me help you realize it, alright?"
"How?"
"I'll go get you a good sword."
Her clear, crisp voice still lingered in his ears.
As Li Mo stood frozen in place, he suddenly saw the Lunar Yin's radiance intensify, emanating from the divine mark between her brows. Bathed in moonlight, it rapidly solidified.
No life-or-death ordeal, no so-called bottleneck.
She broke through.
The Lunar Yin seemed to suddenly descend, as if just for her. The vast distance between heaven and earth blurred, no longer feeling so far away.
Li Mo stared dumbfounded as her figure, enveloped in the Lunar Yin, seemed to condense into moonlight itself.
The boundary between body and soul grew indistinct.
It resembled the move with the Golden Crow projection, but the minor world had no true sun—whereas now, there was a real moon.
"Sister Bing, over there!"
Jiang Chulong, tense after searching for a while, finally pinpointed the location with cautious certainty.
Hearing this, the moonlit ice block—now one with body and soul—nodded. She soared effortlessly on the wind, light as a feather, riding the moonlight as she flew into the azure heavens on her sword.
"!"
Li Mo finally understood why the legend of Chang'e flying to the moon endured for so long.
Wait, no—where was the ice block going?
Baffled, as if dreaming, no one had time to ponder. Her ethereal figure moved with an elusive grace, like a celestial maiden who had briefly graced the mortal world.
Perhaps she had lingered too long and was now returning to the heavenly palace, taking her serenity and peerless elegance with her, leaving behind a world she had once dazzled—making her presence seem like a fleeting illusion...
"Is she heading for... the Rivers and Mountains Scroll!?"
As the person most deeply connected to the Great Yu's Heavenly Fortune Artifact, Crown Prince Jiang Yu abruptly stood up.
"No!"
Du Wufeng suddenly cut in, his aged face growing increasingly animated:
"It's Celestial City! She's going to Celestial City to... bring it back."
"Hahaha, I see now! I finally understand what it's been waiting for all this time!"
"What in the world is going on?"
On the judges' platform, the old eunuch, the scholar surnamed Luo, Nan Gongmin, and the others had no idea why Du Wufeng had suddenly lost his composure.
Only Jiang Yu, after a moment of contemplation, seemed struck by lightning.
A few words forced their way through his clenched teeth:
"Celestial... Divine Sword?"
Crack—
A thunderous distortion rippled across the Rivers and Mountains Scroll, warping its majestic scenery.
A massive gate slowly emerged from the endless chaos, creaking open just a sliver.
Through that narrow gap, one could glimpse a vast and wondrous world—a divine city towering within, vaguely resembling the Imperial Capital but loftier.
Its architecture rose in layers, bizarre and varied, yet amidst the grandeur, there was an unsettling dissonance.
The uppermost tier was the most majestic and divine of all.
"Why has Celestial City appeared?"
Li Mo heard Princess Yuyang's trembling voice.
Celestial City?
Then wasn't this the other half of the Phoenix Domain?
Calling it the Phoenix Domain wasn't entirely accurate. From what he knew, the Phoenix Domain constantly evolved. This so-called Celestial City was likely just one of its relatively stable forms within the incomplete Phoenix Domain.
"Amitabha..."
The old monk Hengyuan seemed to discern something.
But in the end, he only sighed deeply and fell silent.
Celestial City. Divine Sword...
"!"
Li Mo leaned back slightly.
No way, ice block... you're going this far?
But even if she had half of the Phoenix Domain, how could she summon that sword?
That didn't matter.
Now, there truly was a heavenly palace in the sky.
Yet the celestial ice fairy showed no intention of entering. She merely raised a slender hand, then parted her lips, murmuring something inaudible.
A sword light flashed within the heavenly palace, piercing through the void in an instant, emerging from the Rivers and Mountains Scroll.
This sword, fleeting as dew and lightning, descended obediently into her grasp.
A soft sword hum resonated across the heavens.
It also snapped everyone out of their daze, though their emotions were now beyond words.
"Only the top three of the Hidden Dragon Tournament may enter Celestial City—to wield the Celestial Divine Sword."
"But now... the tournament hasn't even started!"
"I'm out. Call me when Ying Bing isn't competing anymore."
"She's seventeen. You could live to be a turtle elder and still not outlast her."
"But she already has a weapon, doesn't she? If she can summon the Celestial Divine Sword, why bother coming here at all?"
"Bro, have you ever been in love?"
"?"
Xie Xuan choked, fists clenching, yet he had no retort.
What the hell does this have to do with love? I've severed all emotional ties!
"But the Divine Hammer Overlord doesn't have a weapon yet."
His junior brother, who had just arrived, looked at him with pity.
"???"
Xie Xuan shuddered, then began trembling uncontrollably.
The Divine Hammer Overlord... using the Celestial Divine Sword in the... Hidden Dragon Tournament?
What kind of absurd nonsense is this?!
Right now, he probably resembled a writhing, shadowy maggot—disgusting, yet he couldn't help himself.
Li Mo, you truly deserve to die!