188: Chapter 57: Inviting Everyone to Admire the Lotus 188: Chapter 57: Inviting Everyone to Admire the Lotus A sword.
Just a single sword.
The formidable Red Dragon Dharma Image vanished in an instant, the Sword Intent of the entire Lotus River was flung into the air, mighty waves surged and broke apart, this Sword Qi shattered the sky, and streaked hundreds and thousands of yards forward, with an unstoppable momentum as if to break out of the Grotto Heaven and travel to the external world.
Xu Nianning stood, transfixed, upon the churning river waters.
In her life, she had never seen such vast, such piercing Sword Intent.
Duan Zhao was equally stunned.
Water from the Lotus River rose and fell, carrying countless Daoist rhythms, draping over the shoulders of the two of them.
If anyone had persevered until this moment, without leaving, they would have, like Xu Nianning and Duan Zhao, felt this “Dao Blessing” stirred by Xie Xuanyi’s Sword Qi.
The Sword Intent left behind by the sages of the Sword Palace through the ages, mixed in the river water, sank into the Heart Lake.
The only person who did not enjoy this “blessing”
was the Prince Jiangning, Xie Sheng.
The consciousness of the Prince Jiangning trembled violently, becoming blurred… He could not understand how this Sword Qi was unleashed.
Last night’s assassination was chaotic and widely discussed.
It was said all over the Sword Palace’s hills that Xie Zhen had been grievously injured and couldn’t participate in tomorrow’s grand competition.
But to be safe,
Xie Sheng still sought the Incense Fire Pavilion Master, borrowing a thread of Primordial Power.
The purpose.
Was to ensure he could secure the Xuanshui Cave Heaven!
With the thick Primordial Power of the Incense Fire Pavilion Master, a Yin God Venerate, aiding him, so long as he spared no expense, summoning the Red Dragon’s Vitality, then he could briefly condense a dharma…
He never imagined.
His dharma, under the devastating Sword Qi of the Lotus River, couldn’t even last a moment.
It crumbled to pieces.
Like rubble.
“Roar, roar, roar…”
The heavens full of river water crashed down, the twelve golden dharma swords lost their luster, their bodies bursting with cracks.
The emaciated body of Prince Jiangning, along with countless waves, plunged down.
He fell hard into the water of the Lotus River.
From the ultimate other shore
It was only so close.
But that closeness, was a chasm.
…
…
“Prince Jiangning has displayed the ‘Red Dragon Dharma Image’!”
“Worthy of being Perfect Cave Heaven, he actually condensed a ‘Yin God’ realm dharma!”
“Cave Heaven Realm, does anyone here stand a chance against the Prince?”
In front of Lotus Peak gate, countless people held their breath.
At the moment when Xie Sheng unleashed his dharma, all young Sword Cultivators felt deep fear and despair.
This is the sword genius of the Xie family, once in a hundred generations, the fastest progressing young man in the Cave Heaven Realm’s history—
If the Law Enforcement had not canceled the Sword Qi competition,
Xie Sheng would have won the top place without doubt.
Just this dharma alone could instantly kill all opponents in the Cave Heaven Realm.
Perhaps only someone equally at “Perfect Cave Heaven” could battle against him.
This fight was destined to end quickly.
As a matter of fact.
This fight… ended faster than they had imagined.
Xie Zhen just needed one sword.
Before this sword, Prince Jiangning and Jing Qingming a few days ago, were not much different.
The pompous Red Dragon Dharma Image, was shattered into pieces by a wisp of Sword Qi, both spirit and form destroyed.
Inside Prince Jiangning’s chest, the ambition that seemed to swallow the entire heaven and earth, was also shattered altogether.
This moment.
Made the whole of Lotus Peak so silent you could hear a pin drop.
“Prince Jiangning…”
“Has he lost?”
Wan Chuo looked on incredulously at this scene, his complexion paler than paper.
The reason he joined the Jiangning Xie Family
Was because he had witnessed Xie Sheng’s completely overwhelming strength against his peers, and in Wan Chuo’s view, all the praises created by Jiangning for Xie Sheng were more than justified.
Perhaps not even Xie Xuanyi reincarnated could match the Prince.
But at this moment.
His thought was cruelly shattered by reality.
Prince Jiangning lost, and it was a terribly miserable defeat, not even surviving past the second move.
One could say.
This was not a fight of peers at all.
Those important figures paying attention to the situation of choosing the master of Xuanshui Cave Heaven also fell silent.
“The Red Dragon Dharma Image, vanquished by a wisp of Sword Qi?”
Marquis of Bowang’s face was complex: “This Xie Zhen’s Sword Dao comprehension is…
alarmingly powerful.”
This moment.
In the eyes of young Sword Cultivators, it was an inconceivable miracle.
But the Great Venerates who had ascended to Yin God status noticed the “delicacy” of this instant.
How powerful can a strand of Sword Qi, devoid of Primordial Force, be?
Even if the Yang God Great Sword Immortal strikes a sword, relying only on Sword Intent without Primordial Power, he may not be able to cause such a commotion.
But this sword from Xie Zhen stirred the entire Lotus River.
One could say.It was not the barren twig Sword Qi that instantly killed the Red Dragon Dharma Image.
It was the Sword Intent of the sages hidden deep within the Lotus River that Xie Zhen’s sword stirred up, the surging of countless Sword Intents under the millennial momentum of Xuanshui Cave Heaven, what counts of a mere small Red Dragon?
These important figures witnessed the entire process of Xie Zhen passing through Xuanshui Cave Heaven.
From the moment he stepped into Xuanshui Cave Heaven, to finally reaching the other shore.
The time taken was just a few hundred breaths.
And he swept through like wind and thunder, pausing nowhere in the airspace above the Lotus River.
To have stirred these Sword Intents.
Means…
his sweeping through was not merely rushing!
What a terrifying aptitude for Sword Dao comprehension!
Moving past a spot, he would gain insight into the Sword Intent.
Is this boy truly visiting Xuanshui Cave Heaven for the first time?
The expressions of these prominent figures from the four realms all became solemn.
Such aptitude in Sword Dao was simply unimaginable for ordinary folk.
This was simply the reincarnation of a Great Sword Immortal re-cultivating!
“Fellow seniors,”
Qi Lie knew what these great figures were thinking; he calmly said, “The Law Enforcement specially asked me to relay the message that for the past cycle of sixty years, no one has stepped foot in Xuanshui Cave Heaven…”
“Oh?”
Lord Bowang showed interest and asked with a smile, “How come I heard that Xie Xuanyi had already refined this Grotto Heaven long ago?”
“Just rumors, mere falsehoods,”
Qi Lie shook his head and said, “The previous master of Xuanshui Cave Heaven, ‘Venerable Lotus,’ perished in the battle against the Demon Country Venerable during the Battle of Poisoned Wine.
Back then, Sword Palace held a mountain-suspending memorial ceremony, and my master even regarded him as a ‘close friend.’ How tragic that past was…
Later on, even though brother Xuanyi became the Sword Dao Leader, this Xuanshui Cave Heaven was still not opened ahead of schedule.”
As the name ‘Venerable Lotus’ was mentioned,
The eyes of these great figures grew more solemn and respectful.
Back then, during the Battle of Poisoned Wine, it was the golden age.
The Da Chu Dynasty paid a heavy price to repel the Demon Country, and the fortune of Sword Palace also declined after that battle.
Venerable Lotus was the “key figure” in that battle.
“Since the Law Enforcement has spoken, then the rumors circulating outside are naturally just falsehoods…”
Lord Bowang commented softly, “Looking at it this way, this Xie Zhen’s ability to resonate with so many Sword Intents upon his first entry into Lotus River is truly astonishing.
The Jiangning Prince truly cannot compare to him.”
That one sword.
Shattered the ambitions of the Prince Jiangning.
It also shattered many people’s hopes of “practicing the sword.”
“Yet again, a Sword Dao Leader.”
The Xu Family Head from Bingzhou spoke meaningfully, “Truly deserving of being a disciple taught by Xie Xuanyi…
perhaps the only one who could compare to Xie Zhen is Xie Xuanyi himself from those days, right?”
Qi Lie just smiled and did not speak.
Right then,
Si Qi, who was guarding the gateway to Xuanshui Cave Heaven, sent a message with the Sword Palace Ruyi Order.
Si Qi cautiously asked, “Brother Qi, the Prince Jiangning has already been defeated…
Aren’t you going to save him?”
Lotus River had returned to calm.
Xu Nianning and Duan Zhao had successfully reached the other shore.
In the river, a thin body, clothed in tattered finery and with a pale face, floated unconscious: it was Xie Sheng.
“No hurry,”
Qi Lie, with his hands clasped behind his back, said emotionlessly, “According to the rules, I only save those in danger who cannot fend for themselves.
Although Xie Sheng has been defeated, he is currently not in danger; Lotus River is not going to drown anyone.
Let him drift a while longer, perhaps he may leave the cave heaven ‘gracefully’ on his own.”
To save him?
In Qi Lie’s view, there was no need.
“Indeed,”
Si Qi didn’t say much else, only looked toward the direction of the Jiangning delegation with a hint of sympathy.
From today onward.
The entire Dachu Dynasty would be aware of the confrontation at Lotus River in Xuanshui Cave Heaven.
The Prince Jiangning suffered a crushing defeat, unable to withstand even a single strike!
The grand prediction at Fangyuan Pavilion has been embarrassingly disproved, and who knows how many will reassess the Jiangning Xie Family… Perhaps the influential figures in the Imperial City, who had been silently backing the Jiangning royal mansion, might change their views due to this battle.
This one strike from Xie Zhen.
Not only shattered Xie Sheng’s Red Dragon Dharma Image but also shattered the wild ambitions of the Jiangning Xie Family to ascend to the heavens in one step!
…
…
Xie Xuanyi silently lowered his head.
He examined the dead branch he had casually picked up, deep in thought.
Xuanshui Cave Heaven, deservedly a top-tier Grotto Heaven blessed land unique to Da Sui Sword Palace, not only contained countless profound blessings within Lotus River but even a commonplace branch held a faint Sword Intent.
Xie Xuanyi turned around, looking at the woods in the distance.
The other side of Lotus River was a dense forest, somewhat similar to the bamboo grove behind Golden Turtle Peak.
In every grass and tree, there was Sword Intent.
Reaching the other side did not mean becoming the new master of Xuanshui Cave Heaven.
To take down this cave heaven,
one must find the entrance to the second layer.
“Do you want to see the world’s wondrous sights of Xuanshui Cave Heaven?”
Xu Nianning and Duan Zhao were still immersed in the glory of that one strike.
Suddenly, a voice interrupted their thoughts.
Both turned around.
Both looked at Xie Zhen in confusion and disbelief.
At that moment, less than a quarter hour remained until Xuanshui Cave Heaven would close.
Xu Nianning silently observed their surroundings.
She had to admit that even without the Prince Jiangning… she would likely have been stopped here as well.
The dense forest contained a rich Sword Intent.
Anyone who approached could feel the bone-chilling aura assailing them.
This was due to the array patterns of Xuanshui Cave Heaven only being inscribed up to this point…
The Sword Intent on the other side of Lotus River was too intense for the patterns to transmit an accurate depiction.
“There’s still time to follow me,”
Xie Xuanyi twisted the twig.
He looked at the forest filled with Sword Qi and silently thought for a moment.
He remembered the regrets from his previous life.
He remembered the beautiful dreams before plunging into the North Sea.
Finally,
he thought of the scholar who, within the Ruyi Order Illusion Realm, bowed to him from across the book pavilion.
“Xuanshui Cave Heaven, which opens once every sixty years, is said to have scenery of extreme beauty, with the world’s most magnificent lotus scene.
Besides that, Xuanshui Cave Heaven is the identity proof of the successive masters of Da Sui Sword Palace.”
“If possible, please visit Xuanshui Cave Heaven for me.”
Xie Xuanyi took a deep breath.
His voice, passing through the Lotus River array patterns, reached every corner of Da Sui Sword Palace.
“Today,”
“I invite all under heaven to view the lotuses of Xuanshui Cave Heaven.”
…
…
(PS: Lost some big sleep TAT, so I’m updating only now.
I’ve seen all the comments in the comment section!
I feel there’s no problem with yesterday’s handling, so…
once again asking for a monthly ticket!)