That day.
A cataclysmic event occurred in Yecheng.
At dusk.
The mortal world witnessed a black cloud drifting abruptly from the horizon...
"What is that thing?"
"Hmm, what a strange phenomenon."
"That... that's not a cloud! It's people! They're immortals!"
At that moment.
The people of the entire city were stunned into silence.
That was no black cloud; it was clearly a dense mass of flying swords in the sky, with countless immortals riding their blades through the air.
People craned their necks, staring blankly as the black cloud approached.
The sound of sword chimes echoed, agitating the heavens.
In the blink of an eye, ten thousand immortals filled the sky. Their sword points surrounded the city as a terrifying pressure swept through the area.
On the bustling streets, the commoners scattered in a panic, seeking cover. They locked their doors and windows, shivering in fear.
Atop the high city walls, war banners fluttered, yet not a single soldier dared to draw their blade.
Cultivators and spies from various sects hidden within the city felt a deep sense of unease.
"The Wendao Sword Sect?"
"Ten thousand sword cultivators..."
"What a grand display!"
"Damn it, this information must be sent out immediately..."
That day.
The Sword Suppression Hall arrived in force, and Yecheng felt as if the end of the world had come.
No one knew what had happened, but everyone understood that something momentous must have occurred.
The City Lord's Manor.
Situ Dengyue, the current City Lord, sat upon his throne with a sword across his knees. He occasionally took a sip of wine, his eyes closed as he gathered his spirit.
The vast manor was already empty. Aside from him, not even a chicken could be found.
Late last night, the Martial Temple had reported that Min Zhan's lamp had gone out.
In the morning, news arrived: the great snake was dead, the Blood Demon Cave was destroyed, and a single person from the Wendao Sword Sect had escaped, sending a gold spirit smoke toward the north.
Then.
The messengers from Cangwu who had been negotiating with him were found dead in their courtyard.
At that moment.
He knew.
The sky over Yecheng had truly fallen.
And he would certainly not survive.
He had dismissed his family, burned incense, bathed, and waited quietly...
Hearing the sword chimes in the sky outside the city and feeling the sudden draft through the hall, he took a sip of strong wine and smiled bitterly.
"What was meant to come has finally arrived."
A moment later.
A figure appeared in the hall almost instantaneously.
The moment she appeared, a wild wind rose. The wooden doors and windows rattled loudly, and the candles in the hall were extinguished in an instant.
A piercing sword intent followed.
It actually forced Situ Dengyue, who was seated on the high platform, to drop directly onto the floor.
Before him, the royal desk made of ten-thousand-year-old wood shattered instantly, turning into fine powder...
He pressed himself firmly against the floor, his face contorted. He did not forget to say respectfully, "Situ Dengyue welcomes Your Eminence!"
Ye Xianyu's eyes were cold, filled with a bone-chilling frost.
"Situ Dengyue!"
"I... am here."
"The Wendao Sword Sect has always treated your Situ family well. Why did you rebel?"
Situ Dengyue said hoarsely, "I was possessed by a moment of madness. I failed to recognize the heights of the heavens and the depths of the earth, and thus provoked the celestial wrath. I can only atone with my death. However, the fault of Yecheng lies solely with me. I beg Your Eminence not to punish the people of Yecheng."
A cold light flashed in Ye Xianyu's eyes, and her pressure intensified.
Situ Dengyue was slammed hard into the floorboards, blood leaking from his seven orifices.
Ye Xianyu asked grimly, "Who is the person behind this?"
Situ Dengyue saw this person as a deity and could not even conceive of resistance. He confessed honestly:
"The current Crown Prince of the Cangwu Empire. He promised me that if I caused chaos in the Southern Borders, he would persuade the Three Sects to help Yecheng become an independent power..."
Ye Xianyu seemed to hear a massive joke and couldn't help but laugh aloud.
"Haha!"
"Your ancestor, Situ Shangyun, was considered a hero of his generation. How could he have such a foolish descendant?"
Situ Dengyue remained silent, wishing only for death.
Ye Xianyu withdrew her tribulation transcendence stage pressure. The wind stopped, the sound died down, and Situ Dengyue was able to catch his breath.
Ye Xianyu said coldly, "One list for your life."
Leaving those words behind, Ye Xianyu walked away.
"Thank you for your celestial mercy, Your Eminence!"
After Ye Xianyu left, Situ Dengyue climbed to his feet and wiped the blood from the corners of his mouth. He fetched paper and brush and wrote down a long list of names.
He then walked out of the hall with his sword and into the courtyard. He looked up at the sky, his eyes filled with sorrow.
"Ancestors above."
"I, your unfilial descendant Situ Dengyue, have caused a great disaster today."
"I can only atone with my death!"
The longsword swept across his neck. The sword light was cold, the sunset was yellow, and the blood was hot as it splashed several feet away.
Situ Dengyue.
Committed suicide before the heavens.
A short while later.
The list was in Ye Xianyu's hands. It was densely packed with names—all the officials and major clans of Yecheng who had participated in the rebellion...
The Wendao Sword Sect was a great immortal sect; their methods were beyond the imagination of ordinary people.
Trading a list for sparing Yecheng from destruction—at this point, Situ Dengyue naturally did not dare to hide anything.
"Sect Master, this is the list Situ Dengyue wrote."
Ye Xianyu gave it a glance before handing it to Wen Qingxue, saying flatly, "Go take care of it. Leave no one alive."
"Understood!"
"And your Little Grand-Uncle?"
Wen Qingxue shook her head.
Ye Xianyu fell silent.
Wen Qingxue withdrew.
Soon.
Li Qingshan arrived. The two looked at each other, and the latter said dejectedly, "I've searched everywhere."
Ye Xianyu's gaze was heavy...
An Elder asked tentatively, "Sect Master, should we keep searching?"
Ye Xianyu said firmly, "Search! Until the immortal sword returns, we shall not rest for a single day."
"Understood."
Li Qingshan said, "Master, Xu... Martial Uncle might have been captured by the people of the Cangwu Empire. I request permission to make a trip to the Cangwu Empire."
Nangong Ning hurriedly added, "I will go too."
Ye Xianyu looked toward the south, at the borders of Yecheng, and said softly:
"Some people have lived in comfort for too long and have started to have foolish thoughts. It is time to give them a warning. Let the world know that the swords of my Wendao Sword Sect are not to be moved. If moved, nations fall and sects perish."
Having said that, Ye Xianyu faced the ten thousand sword cultivators outside the city and asked:
"Everyone, who is willing to step into the Central Plains with me once?"
Ten thousand sword cultivators looked excited, their eyes burning with fervor.
"We are willing to go!"
"We are willing to go!!"
The mountain-shaking cries echoed, deafening to the ears.
Ye Xianyu drew her sword and pointed the tip south.
"Then draw your swords!"
The sunset was a melancholy yellow, and the sea of clouds was layered. That evening, the swords of the Wendao Sword Sect hung over the Central Plains.
The borders of Cangwu.
The army of hundreds of thousands was as good as non-existent. The border cities were completely destroyed. Led by Ye Xianyu, ten thousand sword cultivators took only three days to reach the walls of the Cangwu imperial capital.
Fanzhou was shaken.
Cangwu was in turmoil.
The empire's grand formation was destroyed.
The guardian sect was slaughtered.
The State Preceptor, an eighth-stage great ascension expert guarding the imperial city, was decapitated in an instant... The entire nation was in mourning.
"Quick! Hurry and invite the Three Sects to save my Cangwu!!"
Three days later, in the early morning.
The Cangwu imperial city was shrouded in the smoke of war.
The defending army had long since fled in panic, abandoning the city.
The cultivators who had once sworn loyalty to the empire were even quicker to avoid trouble, having long since vanished...
When ten thousand sword cultivators besieged the imperial city, not a single person dared to fight, and no one dared to obstruct them.
The once-arrogant Cangwu imperial family was shivering in fear.
The Emperor of Cangwu personally bound the Crown Prince and brought him to the city wall, begging for forgiveness.
"Sect Master Ye, my wretched son was ignorant and offended your noble sect. I have bound him and brought him here to be dealt with as you see fit. I hope the Sect Master will consider that we are of the same race and withdraw your swords. I swear in the name of the Emperor that from this day forward, not a single soldier or horse of Cangwu shall ever set foot in the Northern Borders again..."
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