First Immortal of the Sword

Three days later.

Weng!

A strange fluctuation reverberated throughout the room.

A talisman hovered before Su Yi, and an obscure aura circulated around it. As its light flickered on and off, its strange energy fluctuations gradually faded away.

Hah~

Su Yi let out a long breath of turbid air.

This talisman sealed a wisp of the Sword of the Nine Hells’ aura.

With this treasure, I can proceed to the Great Xia without worry, he thought.

He’d spent the past three days repairing and improving the Heaven-Sealing Formation of the Nine Absolutes, the formation protecting the ruins of the Immortals’ Sword House. He’d crafted quite a few talismans too.

The strongest of them was the one floating before him, the one in which he’d sealed a wisp of the Sword of the Nine Hells’ power.

With these in reserve, it wouldn’t matter how chaotic the outside world got; so long as no true Imperial Realm experts showed up, no one could threaten Ning Sihua or anyone else taking refuge in the ruins.

“I ought to get going.”

Su Yi rose, then left the room.

….

Ning Sihua and the others already knew that Su Yi planned to leave for the Great Xia soon.

However, when the moment of his departure came, they couldn’t help but feel reluctant to see him go.

“Big Brother Su Yi, can I go with you?” asked Wen Lingxue, the rims of her eyes red. She looked at him pitifully.

“Not this time,” Su Yi said gently. As you know, the Azure Continent is in turmoil, and the Great Xia is the most turbulent of all. You’d best sit tight and remain here. If you feel bored or stifled, you can go out for a bit. Just have Cha Jin and the others accompany you.”

As he spoke, he tousled Wen Lingxue’s hair.

The young woman pursed her lips and grunted, but she was obviously upset.

Su Yi thought for a moment, then said, "Next time, I guarantee I’ll take you out exploring. How about it?”

“Really?” Wen Lingxue’s spirits soared.

“Of course,” said Su Yi with a laugh. “I’ve never gone back on my word.”

“Alright then! I’ll remember your promise.” The young woman looked delighted, and a radiant smile spread across her beautiful face.

“Young lord, how about you have Yuan Heng accompany you? He can help you take care of various tasks along the way,” Cha Jin couldn’t help but say gently.

She knew Su Yi well. Without an attendant, he’d only get lazier and lazier.

Yuan Heng instantly looked expectantly at Su Yi.

However, Su Yi refused. “The Radiant Epoch will arrive within three months. You ought to spend this time gathering your strength and preparing to challenge the Spiritual Manifestation Realm. Only then can you vie for power and soar into the heavens when the Radiant Epoch arrives.”

This time, everyone realized that Su Yi had already made up his mind. There was no way he’d take anyone else with him to the Great Xia.

“Master, in that case, you’ve got to take care of yourself,” said Yuan Heng.

Su Yi waved, then turned and left.

He detested drawn-out goodbyes above all else.

The unkempt old Daoist, Ye Xun, hurried after him.

The crowd watched as Su Yi and Ye Xun left the ruins, then shot over the horizon.

It was the fifth day of the second lunar month, the day Su Yi set off for the Great Xia.

It had now been three months since he left the Great Xia.

….

Above the sea of clouds.

Su Yi rode the winds, his clothing fluttering around him.

His pace was neither hurried nor slow, but he flew far faster than he had as a Grain Avoidance cultivator.

Furthermore, as his qi fused into his surroundings, he flew without expending the slightest effort.

This was the Spiritual Manifestation Realm.

Such experts could ride the winds and fly through heaven and earth. They could leave the northern seas in the morning, wander the four directions, and be back by nightfall.

“After that rain of the light of the Grand Dao poured onto the Azure Continent, the ambient spiritual energy really is denser.” 

Su Yi sensed his surroundings along the way, and his divine sense scanned the landscape. He keenly detected numerous changes.

The spiritual energy flourished throughout the wilderness, and in the cities, everything seemed rejuvenated.

From the enormous mountains, rivers, lakes, and oceans, to each tiny blade of grass, everything was overflowing with vitality and growing like mad.

These changes didn’t just accelerate the growth of countless spiritual medicines and materials; they benefited each and every living thing.

Humans, ghosts, yao, and nature spirits all had the potential to seize an opportunity and transform, like a carp leaping over the dragon’s gate.

Even those who didn’t cultivate were becoming more robust under the nourishing effect of the spiritual energy, and their lifespans were extended!

This is just the most remote corner of the Azure Continent, but it’s already changed this much. I wonder what the Great Xia has become… thought Su Yi.

The Great Xia was the heart of the Azure Continent.

It didn’t just have hidden realms with passages to the Ninth Star Ruin like Sumeru Immortal Island. There were also Meteor Abyss, the Glittering Ghost Domain, and several other danger zones.

The recovering spiritual energy would undoubtedly change the Great Xia the most.

However, this only increased Su Yi’s eagerness.

With his current cultivation boundary, if he remained in a place like the Sea of Chaotic Spirits, he’d be like a dragon confined to shallow waters.

Only a place like the Great Xia could provide him with opportunities to ride the wind and waves.

“Brother-in-Law, no, Brother Su, you… Did you really reincarnate to cultivate again from the beginning?” Ye Xun couldn’t help but ask along the way.

He’d suppressed this question for quite some time now. 

Su Yi furrowed his brow. Every time Ye Xun opens his mouth, he just has to add the title ‘brother-in-law.’ He’s obviously stuck in his ways with no intention of changing.

“You can address me as you please. Otherwise, both of us will suffer.” Su Yi shook his head. He couldn’t be bothered to concern himself with this minor detail any further.

Ye Xun broke into a grin. “Wonderful! Right, Brother-in-Law, you still didn’t answer my question.”

“You guessed correctly,” said Su Yi.

Ye Xun had already dared say with certainty that Su Yi must have discovered the legendary method of reincarnation.

However, when he heard Su Yi directly acknowledge it, his heart shook nonetheless.

He sighed wistfully, “Brother-in-Law, in your shoes, I couldn’t possibly have abandoned the cultivation base that granted me my supreme reign over the Wilds or the strength to suppress the heavens with my sword!”

 Who would have believed that the lofty, legendary expert known as the Master of Ten Thousand Daos, the man who’d once forced the experts of the Netherworld to lower their heads in defeat, would choose to reincarnate and cultivate all over again?

Who else… Who else could have given up all that glory?

“You aren’t me, so you couldn’t possibly understand,” Su Yi said calmly.

Why was it that in his past life, his sword dominated the world for 108,000 years?

There was just one reason: he single-heartedly pursued the Dao.

It was because his heart sought the Dao with unshakeable determination that he'd resolutely cast aside everything he’d obtained to reincarnate and seek greater heights!

Ye Xun seemed quite self-aware. “Brother-in-Law, it’s true: one such as I couldn’t possibly fathom or even imagine the thought process of a matchless expert like you.”

He paused, then continued, “Brother-in-Law, do you remember? When you and my sister parted ways, you said that so long as you discovered the method of reincarnation, you’d come back for her?”

“I remember.” Su Yi nodded.

In his past life, when he visited the Netherworld, he did so to search for the legendary method of reincarnation. Little Leaf naturally knew about this. 

Thus, although she was beside herself with grief when they parted ways, she made no attempt to dissuade Su Yi from his chosen course of action.

“Agh. Now that I mention her, it’s been a long, long time since I last saw my sister. I wonder how she’s doing…” Ye Xun sighed.

He’d already wandered the Azure Continent for tens of thousands of years.

Discover the complete story on pawread dot com.

After such a long time away, the Netherworld had undoubtedly changed.

“Didn’t you say that there was a corridor to the Netherworld in the Glittering Ghost Domain? Even if it's long since been destroyed, so long as we can find it, I have means of repairing it. Later on, I’ll take you home,” Su Yi said casually.

Ye Xun’s spirits soared. He cried out, “That would be amazing!”

“Don’t get too excited too soon,” said Su Yi. “Even with my methods, I’ll have to reach the Spiritual Revolution Realm before I can repair a corridor between worlds.”

Ye Xun laughed dismissively. “Brother-in-Law, how is that a problem? I’ve endured for tens of thousands of years. What’s a little more time? Besides, with your abilities, once the Radiant Epoch is upon us, it won’t take you long at all to reach the Spiritual Revolution Realm!”

Every word was full of absolute confidence in Su Yi. 

Su Yi smiled but said nothing.

When he reincarnated, he already had plans to visit the Netherworld before returning to the Nine Provinces of the Wilds. He had to find some of his old friends and retrieve some of the things he’d left behind!

For instance, Little Leaf was keeping watch over the sword he’d used in his past life—the Tiny Heart of the Cosmos!

That was the three-inch Dao Sword the founder of the Ghost Lantern Sarcophagus Bearers, Old Ghost Coffin-Beader, had drooled over. It was also the weapon Su Yi was most pleased with.

He’d left various other treasures of his past life with his friends in the Netherworld too.

He naturally had to retrieve them, one by one, before returning to the Wilds.

Seven days later.

The Great Xia, the Southern Skies Province. Yin Mountain City.

Inside a restaurant. 

“Brother-in-Law, the Great Xia really is different…” Ye Xun lamented between sips of wine.

After entering the Great Xia, he could clearly sense that the ambient spiritual energy far surpassed the rest of the continent!

“How far is the Glittering Ghost Domain from here?” asked Su Yi.

Ye Xun didn’t even pause to think. “The Glittering Ghost Domain is in the Great Xia’s Sand River Province. At our pace, we’ll arrive within three days.”

“After we’ve finished our food and drink, let’s head there directly,” said Su Yi.

Ye Xun said with delight, “That would be absolutely wonderful!”

Su Yi smiled, and was just about to say something when another conversation taking place in the same restaurant caught his attention.

As he listened, his brow furrowed slightly.