In the depths of the heart of origins, there were endless strange sceneries.
There was the boundless Long River of Time, as well as deserts that were dead lands, but there were also places that were very suitable for living beings.
In a sunny place, the sky was clear, and the wind was gentle. Nonetheless, the weird thing was that there was a huge snowfall where the snow looked like goose feathers. Snowflakes were flying all over the sky. The sun and the snow existed at the same time. This scene was extremely unusual.
The hot sun and the falling snow seemed to have been perfectly merged into one by some kind of power and were displayed together in this area.
All of a sudden, the snowflakes seemed to have been attracted. They quickly rotated and connected the ground and the sky. It was like an old dragon inhaling water and exhaling air. Waves surged violently.
After an unknown time, the snowflakes in the sky scattered. A black-clothed man walked out from the snow. He shook the snow on his shoulders and smiled, “Brother Yun Lan, it’s about time. Can we meet now?” As he spoke, he cupped his hands toward a spot in the sky.
“Hahaha, you brat from the Qiongqis. You always do this every time you appear. Don’t you get tired of it? You’re a Ruler, so you’re keeping too low of a profile!” A voice shook the void. When it was heard, the space shook as snow scattered in all directions. Soon after, a grey-clothed man walked over with a blade of grass in his mouth and a sword case on his back.
With every step he took, the sword intent on his body grew stronger.
Similar to a 33-kilometers-long sword, it seemed like he would not retreat even if it died.
The sword Qi around his body was overflowing. Even if he did not do it on purpose, anyone below a Ruler would die if they touched it.
Of course, spirit beasts like Big Yellow and Lil’ Red who had small worlds were exceptions.
When Luo Yang heard what the grey-clothed man said, he did not have the slightest intention of getting angry. His black clothes fluttered in the wind as he responded seriously, “We haven’t seen each other for 1,000 years. I didn’t expect your Unbending Sword to reach such an extent. I’m afraid that you’re not far from the great success of the path of swords.”
The grey-clothed man, whose name was Yun Lan, lifted his shoulder strap, causing the sword case to move up 2 inches. He replied, “How can it be so easy? The law of swords is elusive and difficult to find. One careless move will cause one to walk further away from it. I did progress, but I still have a long way to go before I can achieve the path of swords.” His voice was soft, and he looked carefree, but he was like the rising sun in the world. Every subtle movement from him was dazzling and gathered with the good fortune in the world.
Luo Yang did not say anything. He turned his head and looked in the direction of the Shaman Tribe.
After a moment of silence, he said, “The 10,000-years Seal on the Qiongqi Clan will completely disappear in a few decades. When that happens, our powerhouses will break the seal, and the Great Wide World will belong to us.”
When Yun Lan heard those words, he shook his head and mocked, “I’ve traveled through the Great Wide World for 100 years. Outside the heart of origins, the strengths of the Dragons and the Phoenixes after 10,000 years of nurturing are indescribably terrifying. If they get rid of their enmity and unite against the outside world, it’ll be very difficult for the Qiongqi Clan to be victorious. Besides, the Qiongqi Clan’s bloodline also has a natal oath to the Ancient Shamans. As long as the oath exists for a day, your clan won’t dare to do as you please.” He flicked his sleeves and got straight to the point.
Luo Yang’s expression darkened a little, and he said seriously, “This is the exact reason I’m inviting you to come over for a chat, Brother Yun Lan.”
“Oh,” Yun Lan uttered softly and used his eyes to signal for Luo Yang to continue speaking.
Luo Yang gathered his thoughts, and his expression was grave. He said, “A few days ago, I led our clan’s powerhouses to meet the clan master of the Shaman Tribe as I wanted to break the natal oath.”
“In the end, the clan master refused to meet you?” Yun Lan asked.
“That’s right. I didn’t expect you to be so well-informed, Brother Yun.” As Luo Yang spoke, he glanced at Yun Lan with a mysterious meaning in his eyes.
“Hmph, it could be easily guessed. When the Demons and the Shamans were fighting for hegemony, only the Qiongqis and the Golden Crows managed to avoid the calamity. Besides, they collected the blood essences of 10,000 members to nourish themselves. They were eventually sealed by the Ancient Shamans, but they also obtained unspeakable benefits. Right now, the Shaman Tribe is the descendant of the Ancient Shaman. How would they be willing to be on your side? If it was the Ancient Shamans, which were the war gods from the Ancient War, I’m afraid that the Qiongqis won’t even dare to get involved, right?” These words were straightforward, but Luo Yang still stood there with a smile. At their level, they were all able to hide their emotions well.
“As expected of Brother Yun; your analysis is spot on,” Luo Yang praised.
Yun Lan snorted coldly and asked, “After saying so much, you still haven’t clearly explained why you called me here.”
“Pretend to be Ou Yangming, infiltrate the Shaman Tribe, and destroy their defensive formation.”
A ruthless glint flashed in Luo Yang’s eyes. In actuality, he and his people had never planned to meet the clan master when they went to the Shaman Tribe. They had gone there to alert their enemy and seek opportunities and flaws. Now, he had found a chance. As long as the Shaman Tribe’s formation was broken, he would invite all the powerful warriors to charge in. Once the Shaman Tribe was destroyed, the shackles in their souls would disappear. They only needed to wait for another few decades for the powerful warriors of the Qiongqis to break the seal. Then, there would be a place for the Qiongqis in the Great Wide World. By then, they could even fight for the entire Great Wide World.
For a Ruler, a few decades was merely a period of meditation.
“Who’s that person?” The corners of Yun Lan’s mouth curled up as he asked in a deep voice.
“I’m not sure, but I heard that he’s very important to the Shaman Tribe,” Luo Yang replied.
“How will I benefit from this?” Yun Lan went straight to the point as he stared at Luo Yang with a burning gaze. He did not ask the foolish question of why he had to pretend to be Ou Yangming. What he cared about was how much he would benefit in the end.
“It’s so easy to talk business with you, Brother Yun.” Luo Yang was not surprised at all.
At the same time that his voice reverberated in all directions, he lowered his right arm and pressed his middle finger gently on his interspatial bag. Following that, a gentle white light spread out from his hand and enveloped the area within 33 meters of him. He waited for the gentle white light to dissipate, then an old wooden box with a distant aura appeared in his hand.
“The 3 Manuals of the Path of Swords. This is the first volume. After the task is done, I’ll hand over the second and third volumes.” As Luo Yang spoke, he rolled up his sleeves, and a powerful spiritual power burst forth. The wooden box shook gently, and it turned into a colorful stream of light and was grabbed by Yun Lan.
Luo Yang heaved a long sigh of relief in his heart.
Yun Lan rubbed the wooden box as he asked softly, “What should I do?”
“It’s very simple. You just need to destroy their formation,” Luo Yang said.
“Alright!” Yun Lan nodded. The 3 Manuals of the Path of Swords were worth risking his life for. Furthermore, the difficulty of the mission was not too high for him. He had received news that before Du Xie was looking for Ou Yangming, he had used 100 years of his life as a sacrifice to hear about this name. With this, this whole matter made sense. The Qiongqi Clan was putting pressure on the outside, and the clan master of the Shaman Tribe could not withstand the pressure. As such, the clan master opened the sky to divination, looking for a way to break the situation. In the end, he found out about Ou Yangming, and the rest of the matter followed.
‘The Shaman Tribe… Hmph, they’re nothing more than that. Given that I’m getting into the situation so easily, the ancient era’s overlord has declined.’ Yun Lan sighed internally.
※※※※
“Come, come, Senior Ou, the Shaman Tribe is right ahead.” An old woman chuckled and raised her hand to lead Ou Yangming forward.
Following the old woman’s gaze, a man dressed in white could be seen. His clothes fluttered in the wind, and he had a handsome face. Just one look at him, and he gave off an extremely good impression. It was especially so when he was carrying a green sword case on his back. A faint green glow flashed, bringing with it an indescribable sharpness. It was as if he could split open the sky with a single sword and cut through all eternity. He was tainted with an unspeakable immortal aura. This person was Yun Lan. No, at this moment, he was “Ou Yangming”.
“Sorry for the trouble!” The man smiled and returned the bow. He had taken care of everything, so he would not accidentally expose himself no matter what.
The old woman sighed internally and thought, ‘No wonder Clan Master had personally ordered the search for Senior Ou. It turns out that he’s such a powerhouse.’ From what she could sense, Yun Lan’s aura was as deep as the sea. There was no limit to it.
Even if he encountered a Ruler-level demonic beast, he could use his gaze to scare it away and win without a fight.
After walking for another 5 kilometers, a leisure tribe appeared in front of them.
At this moment, a shuddering feeling appeared in Yun Lan’s mind. It was as if as long as he took another step forward, his life or death would have been decided. This feeling came without warning. Without further ado, he let out a strange cry, and a ball of white fog was wrapped around his feet. His body transformed into a longsword as he rushed backward. Despite that, as soon as the flight light appeared, an old voice was heard. “Since you are already here, why don’t you have a cup of liquor before you leave?”
Before the old man arrived, his voice was already heard.
The moment the voice was heard, an old man and a young man appeared in Yun Lan’s sight.
Yun Lan’s expression was grave as he uttered bitterly, “The clan master of the Shaman Tribe?” He had cursed Luo Yang countless times internally and was just short of cursing his mother. At this moment, he was clear that Luo Yang had fallen into a trap. This was simply like catching a turtle in a jar, where one simply waited for the turtle to fall for the bait. Yun Lan even had a premonition that all of this was a trap set up by Du Xie, by which even the divination was non-existent.
He did not know that Du Xie was just playing along.
“It’s me!” Du Xie nodded.
Subsequently, he looked at Ou Yangming and said in a low voice, “Lil’ friend, fighting with a Ruler is a rare opportunity. I’ll be watching from the side so nothing will happen.”
Ou Yangming’s heart shook. He understood that this was a test from the clan master of the Shaman Tribe, so he nodded hard.
Besides, after entering the Great Wide World, he had not fought against a true sword cultivator. He also wanted to know if a sword cultivator, who was known to have the strongest attacking power, would be stronger or weaker than him.
At this moment, Big Yellow and Lil’ Red had also caught up from behind.
“Kill!” Ou Yangming roared. His movements were agile, and he charged forward like a ghost. His center of gravity lowered like mercury swaying inside his body, making him unpredictable. His aura was drawn but not unleashed, but the Qi momentum was already lingering in front of his body. He did not seek victory and was worried about losing first.
Du Xie nodded and thought to himself, ‘He’s neither servile nor overbearing, and his mind is resolute. Using the cultivation of a Venerable One to fight against a Ruler—based on this point alone, many Rulers are inferior to him. Just what kind of person is he? Senior Brother, what exactly did you see in the divination?’
“This… A Venerable One actually dares to take the initiative to attack a Ruler. Am… Am I dreaming?” A middle-aged man rubbed the space between his eyebrows. His eyes were filled with disbelief.
“That’s not the most important thing. The most important thing is that his opponent is a sword cultivator, who has the strongest attacking power among Rulers. This is really too crazy,” another member of the Shaman Tribe noted.
Of course, the one who was most shocked was the old woman who had returned with Yun Lan.
She felt as if the world had collapsed, and she thought to herself, ‘What… What’s going on?’ She did not want to believe that the senior she had brought back was actually a fake. Of course, the most important thing was that the seemingly insignificant Venerable One actually dared to provoke the man that she had brought back. After all, she had seen how sharp the sword in his case was during their journey back to the tribe. In fact, it seemed like nothing in the world could not be broken by the sword.
