First Immortal of the Sword

Before his shout—although really, it was more like a guttural roar—finished echoing through the air, Huan Shaoyou activated a talisman.

The talisman was perfectly square, and its surface was pitch black save for an elaborate golden Dao mark emblazoned at its center.

Search tinyurl.com/2p9emv8w for the original.

The other side of the talisman was as white snow and engraved with a mysterious demonic Edict.

Bzzzz!

As the secret talisman flew through the air, two streaks of divine light, one black, one white, crossed in midair. A limitlessly terrifying energy fluctuation permeated the air.

Heaven and earth shook, and the air currents were thrown into disarray.

The distant onlookers’ hair stood on end. They felt a wordless sense of panic, oppression, and insignificance. 

“What’s this?”

They watched as black and white interwove and fused, connecting heaven and earth as they outlined an illusory figure.

It was a dark-robed elder in a loose-sleeved robe and a wide belt. He had a willowy beard, distinctive, elegant features, and a crown of stars.

He was tall and stalwart, with a gaze like the limitless starry sky. Stars, suns, and moons floated within his gaze, and arcs condensed of the power of the Grand Dao flowed out of him like waterfalls.

Most eye-catching of all was the divine disc behind him. It was perfectly round and shone with two colors of profound light: the black and white of the Yin-Yang. It revolved slowly, and a terrifying, supreme majesty emanated from it. 

The dark-robed elder’s figure was illusory and ethereal, but as he stood in the air, he was like a deity standing above the nine heavens, looking down on everything below. He emanated an aura of supremacy. 

“An Emperor!!” Zeng Pu, Chi Jiansu, and the other monsters of the ancient era could no longer maintain their cool. Their pupils constricted, and they visibly lost their composure.

“Demon Emperor Heavenly Avarice!?” Gu Cangning gasped, and his face filled with astonishment.

Thirty thousand years ago, the Huan Family was honored as the top demonic faction beneath the heavens, and the most legendary figure in the entire clan was Demon Emperor Heavenly Avarice.

Back then, of the Nine Emperors of the Azure, Demon Emperor Heavenly Avarice of the Huan Family was solidly in third place. His imposing majesty dazzled and shook the world!

Yet now, the Demon Emperor Heavenly Avarice’s visage had appeared before them!

“The Imperial Realm?” Buddhist Son Chen Lu, Li Handeng, Jiang Li, and the others were astonished too. 

Not one Imperial Realm cultivator had appeared during the thirty thousand years since the Prohibition of Ancient Darkness enveloped the Azure Continent. They now only existed in vague legends.

It was to the point that the vast majority of the world’s cultivators didn’t even know that the Imperial Realm existed!

Who could have imagined that Huan Shaoyou’s last resort was requesting aid from an Imperial Realm cultivator?

This was unquestionably unbelievable!

“This unworthy descendant is called Huan Shaoyou, and I’m in a dire predicament. I had no choice but to disturb you, Ancestor. I humbly request your forgiveness.” Huan Shaoyou knelt in the air, looking utterly ashamed.

“What… What era is it?” The dark-robed elder looked around and said in a low voice permeated with the vicissitudes of life.

“Ancestor, almost thirty thousand years have passed since the onset of the Prohibition of Ancient Darkness,” said Huan Shaoyou respectfully.

“So, it’s already been that long…” The dark-robed elder sighed ruefully.

He looked at the kneeling Huan Shaoyou and frowned. “I once established a rule that members of the Huan Family were to revere neither heaven nor earth, that they were to worship neither god nor ghost, and that they were to bow to no one, not even their ancestors. Why is it that the bones of your knees are so soft? Don’t tell me that after thirty thousand years, the Huan Family has turned into a bunch of spineless cowards?”

His voice resounded throughout the surroundings, like the voice of the Dao itself. It shook the hearts and minds of everyone present.

Many of them held their breath, and they just barely repressed the urge to prostrate themselves before the elder. His presence was just too strong. Every word and every movement contained unfathomable, supreme majesty, and every sentence was like divine writ!

Huan Shaoyou stiffened, then shot to his feet and said bashfully, “Ancestor, I was overly agitated earlier, and I forgot myself. Please don’t take offense.”

The dark-robed elder shook his head and swept his gaze across the area.

Everyone he looked at tensed and instinctively lowered their heads. They felt an irrepressible awe rise within their hearts.

This was the absolute suppression of a superior cultivation.

They were like ants gazing up at a celestial dragon; the fear alone could kill them.

However, when the dark-robed elder’s gaze landed on Su Yi, he couldn’t help but feel a bit stunned.

Unlike the others, Su Yi stood in the air, calm and composed. He didn’t show even the slightest trace of dread or reverence.

Even when the elder looked directly at him, he didn’t so much as avert his gaze!

“Ancestor, this is the one who forced my hand. I humbly request that you help me eliminate him!” Huan Shaoyou solemnly bowed.

The distant onlookers’ hearts tensed.

An Imperial Realm exert had appeared. How could Su Yi possibly contend with him?

Su Yi’s companions were as nervous as they could possibly be; they almost forgot to even breathe.

Only for Su Yi to suddenly shake his head. “And here I thought your trump card had to be something strong. So, it’s just a severely injured remnant of someone’s lingering will.”

He sounded disappointed, and his voice carried a hint of undisguised disdain.

When they fought earlier, he intentionally left Huan Shaoyou for last because he sensed an extremely terrifying power hidden on his person.

Su Yi had originally thought that it was most likely the soul avatar of an Imperial Realm cultivator

Who’d have thought it was just a wisp of willpower, and furthermore, that it was severely damaged…?

As Su Yi’s voice reverberated throughout the area, those present fell deathly silent.

“???”

Imperial Realm cultivators were as lofty as gods. They could look down upon the whole world. Who’d dare treat them with disrespect? Who could be so bold as not to fear them?

Yet it sounded as if Su Yi didn’t take the Huan Family’s Imperial Realm expert the least bit seriously!

“Su Yi, death is imminent, yet you still dare treat my ancestor with disrespect? You’re simply frenzied and depraved!” Huan Shaoyou said with a tone of harsh reproach.

The dark-robed elder’s eyes shone like the starry sky as he looked at Su Yi and sighed ruefully. “Thirty thousand years have passed, and now, even a paltry little Gathering Stars Realm kid dares disregard the power of an Imperial Realm cultivator like me…”

He sounded calm, yet every word was domineering, and his voice boomed like thunder, shaking the nine heavens. The sound slammed into Su Yi’s eardrums, targeting his soul!

The inscrutable presence of the Sword of the Nine Hells filled Su Yi’s sea of consciousness, neutralizing the voice’s majesty and pressure with ease.

“Hah?” Su Yi couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re just a wisp of remnant will, but you’ve sure got a mouth on you.”

The power of an Imperial Realm cultivator was perhaps enough to intimidate the masses.

But to someone like Su Yi, who’d once reached the very pinnacle of the Imperial Realm and who’d once reigned supreme over the Nine Provinces of the Wilds, the dark-robed elder’s conduct seemed utterly ludicrous.

When the crowd saw this, they were increasingly flabbergasted. They couldn’t even imagine how Su Yi could dare say something like that at a time like this.

Even Huan Shaoyou was dumbstruck. He’d seen recklessness, but he’d never seen anyone this reckless!

Unlike the others, the dark-robed elder’s eyes narrowed, and his expression was slightly grave. 

He wouldn’t have imagined that a young Gathering Stars Realm cultivator wouldn’t need to fear the pressure of his Imperial Realm Grand Dao!

This was unquestionably out of the ordinary.

“You’re right,” said the dark-robed elder, his voice rumbling and booming throughout heaven and earth. “I am indeed just a damaged wisp of lingering will.”

The onlookers were stunned; they hadn’t anticipated this.

But then, the elder continued leisurely, “However, I can still kill someone like you in the time it takes to snap my fingers. Let’s not waste any more words. Take out whatever you’ve got in reserve. I’d like to see just what’s given a paltry little Gathering Stars Realm cultivator like you the confidence to be so arrogant.”

His tone was utterly contemptuous. It seemed he was convinced that if an insignificant figure like Su Yi was so bold, it had to be because of some treasure he was keeping in reserve.

As for Su Yi himself? He wasn’t remotely worth looking at.

“Want to see what I’ve got in reserve? You’re not qualified,” said Su Yi. He raised the Abstruse God Sword. “This is enough to kill you.”

“....” The onlookers didn’t know what to say to that.

It was just too difficult for them to wrap their heads around. Su Yi dared to provoke and disdain this remnant of an Imperial Realm cultivator’s will, but that wasn’t all; he even dared proclaim that he could kill him!

Huan Shaoyou was so furious that he almost laughed. This bastard! He’s too deranged to even reason with!

“That so? I’m actually rather interested to see that for myself,” said the dark-robed elder. It was obvious he’d lost his patience. His eyes glinted, and he suddenly reached out his hand, pointed, and pressed down on Su Yi from afar.

Boom!

Heaven and earth were thrown into chaos as the ambient spiritual energy boiled over. 

A boundless streak of power shot from his fingers. It was as if a deity were extending his finger; the gesture was accompanied by the Grand Dao energy fluctuations of the Imperial Realm.

The aura alone left the distant onlookers beside themselves with fright. All of them were thinking the same thing: Were that finger directed at me, it could destroy me in an instant, both body and soul!

Su Yi felt a piercing pain, and the energy circulating through him almost solidified and ceased its flow beneath the pressure. 

But a moment later, he laughed. A clear hum emanated from the Abstruse God Sword, and he slashed through the air. 

Whoosh!

It was just a simple slash, but when it clashed with the boundless power of that finger, it cut the energy fluctuations in two. They burst apart in midair, scattering a rain of sparks.

As easily as a knife through paper. 

“This…” The onlookers were stunned.

The dark-robed elder’s expression shifted slightly. “What kind of power was that?”

“The kind that can slaughter you like a chicken in the time it takes to snap your fingers.” 

As his light, airy voice rang out, Su Yi continued ahead, sword in hand, his sleeves billowing around him as he walked toward the dark-robed elder.

His tall, lean figure now revealed a majesty contemptuous of all of creation.

The dark-robed elder snorted coldly, and both hands reached through the air from a distance.

Boom!

A divine hammer condensed out of black demonic flames descended upon the world below, boundless, majestic, and terrifying beyond limit. Even just the aura emanating from it stung the distant onlookers’ eyes and made their hearts tremble. They were completely astonished. 

“It’s time to end this,” said Su Yi as he strode ahead. He swung his sword.

A streak of sword qi condensed. It was about ten feet long, and it contained traces of an inscrutable and mysterious presence as it shot ahead in a flash.

Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!

The hammer formed of black demonic flames burst apart like paper mache before even drawing near Su Yi. It split down the center in midair, scattering with a thunderous boom.

Amidst the resulting rain of light, Su Yi stopped in midair.

The dark-robed elder furrowed his brow, then looked down at himself. “This… Just what kind of power was that?”

His voice contained undisguised confusion.

Su Yi sheathed the Abstruse God Sword with a clang. “You’re nothing but a wisp of remnant will. You should be honored to die beneath my sword.”

“Is that so…?” The distant dark-robed elder looked at Su Yi and opened his mouth as if about to say something.

However, before he got the chance, his illusory figure silently split down the midline, then transformed into a rain of colorful motes of light. Before long, they dispersed and disappeared.

His faint, barely audible sigh still lingered in the air.

This was a wisp of an Imperial Realm expert’s will, yet Su Yi had effortlessly cut him down!

Heaven and earth were silent. Everyone was too shocked for words.