At the Cottage of the Heavenly Mandate Academy.
Currently, quite a number of people had gathered here. Many cultivators, including Ye Futian, Yu Sheng, Gu Dongliu, and Dou Zhao were present. Nan Luoshen and Xiao Muyu were around too. Each and every one of them was a legendary figure of this generation who had forged flawless Divine Wheels.
However, all of them were sitting upright now and were listening to the lecture delivered by the person in front.
The lecturer was handsome and had a scholarly bearing. His temperament was ethereal. He was none other than Emperor Nan, the legendary figure who had long made his name renowned throughout the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path.
This Dynastic Overlord of Nantian Divine Kingdom was at the Cottage today to lecture about the Way.
Of course, everyone would give their full attention to his teachings.
“There are strong Great Paths and weak Great Paths, but in the end, it depends on the users. Other than the direct suppression of the Divine Wheel of the Great Path, the might of the Great Path is ultimately unleashed through the Arts of Supreme Attack. Hence, cultivators in the world will try to comprehend the Arts of Supreme Attack that are suitable for themselves. When you reach the Renhuang Plane and have forged a Divine Wheel, you have comprehended the might of the Great Path and are free to create your own Art of Supreme Attack.”
Emperor Nan continued, “Nevertheless, even though Arts of Supreme Attack created by our ancestors do not fit you perfectly, they are still fruits of the experience accumulated by the seniors. The might of these techniques, especially those passed down by top figures, are powerful. I am sure all of you have experienced these techniques in the previous battle. The True Will of Waves unleashed by the Battle God of the Holy Land of Taichu was impressive. If any one of you in the Heavenly Mandate Realm were to attempt to unleash such an attack, you would not be able to unleash such a powerful attack even though you had comprehended the same power of the Great Path. In the end, it depends on the most suitable application of the might of the Great Path and the merging between Ways.”
Emperor Nan explained, “Hence, the cultivators who can comprehend many types of Great Paths will have advantages. They can merge the Great Path into the Art of Supreme Attack and create an even more powerful technique. They can also blend and transform the Ways to create an entirely new and stronger Way.”
Everyone listened attentively. They had just broken through to the Renhuang Plane. In reality, most of them were still understanding the power of the Great Path. In terms of applying the power of the Great Path, they paled into insignificance when compared to cultivators of the Holy Land of Taichu. This disparity was shown when they were engaged in battles.
Emperor Nan had most likely realized this problem, too, so he pointed it out now.
“Ye Futian, the Fleeting sword technique created by Lord Taixuan is very powerful. However, as the battle proceeded, you made the swords resonate with each other. That was your original technique, right?” Emperor Nan asked as he looked at Ye Futian.
“Yes.” Ye Futian nodded and said, “I named it Dust.”
“Well done. Dust bears resemblance with Fleeting, yet it transcends the original. It also fits your Way better,” Emperor Nan analyzed. “This sword technique cannot be said to be better than Fleeting, but when you perform it, it is stronger than Fleeting.” Ye Futian nodded in strong agreement.
This sword was a better fit for himself.
Aside from that, the staff technique that he used to defeat his opponent, in the end, was also his original. The Nine Heavenly Attacks had undergone countless metamorphoses; it had been thoroughly refined. Ye Futian could not say that the technique was more powerful than the original, yet it was a perfect fit for his use.
“I also practiced swordsmanship and have comprehended a sword that is suitable for myself. Today, I will show you,” Emperor Nan said. He looked at Nan Luoshen and said, “Luoshen, lend me Qinghe.”
Nan Luoshen nodded in agreement and passed the Qinghe Divine Sword to Emperor Nan. The Qinghe Divine Sword was originally Emperor Nan’s sword, so it resonated with him. When it was held in Emperor Nan’s hand, it vibrated and created a drumming in the ears of the audience. It was as though the sword was excited.
With the sword in his hand, Emperor Nan flew into the sky. Ye Futian and the rest leaped up and followed him.
“Keep a distance away from me,” Emperor Nan ordered. Everyone stopped in their tracks. The clouds churned in the sky. Emperor Nan wielded the Qinghe Divine Sword in his hand. He casually grasped hold of it. He became one with the sword, as though he had merged with the Great Path.
In an instant, a terrifying aura of sword enveloped the surroundings with Emperor Nan as its center. The space seemed to be fragmenting. Ye Futian and the rest had a vague feeling that if they entered the range of the sword, they would be instantly crushed into dust by the Sword Will.
“The Great Path strikes for simplicity. When you reach a higher cultivation Plane, you will no longer need those flashy techniques,” Emperor Nan lectured. “The simplest way would be concentrating all your energy on one point, not wasting even a bit of the might of the Way. It is the strongest technique.” As he spoke, his aura became even more terrifying.
Everyone could sense that the vast sky seemed to be enveloped by a formless Sword Will. It was pressuring, but it was not threatening. It was as though they could sense that this sword would not land on them.
The Qinghe Divine Sword rang and floated in front of Emperor Nan. Emperor Nan extended a finger and pointed at the Qinghe Divine Sword. Right away, the sword sprang forward and traversed the sky.
Swoosh. A dazzling sword light crossed the sky. Everywhere it passed, the space shattered. Ye Futian and the rest were shocked by the sword. In the sky, a dark crack appeared. It was as though the space had been fissured by the sword.
All the Great Path around the slit was crushed into dust.
The aura in other places dissipated. The crowd no longer felt pressured. In their eyes, only the sword remained. Emperor Nan had merged all his Way into the sword; not a bit of it was wasted. His Great Path was simple and true to the fundamentals.
In the Heavenly Mandate Academy, everyone raised their heads and looked at the sky. The hideous slit was shocking to all who saw it.
Many disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy were envious. Emperor Nan was personally delivering his teachings. Now, the Heavenly Mandate Academy had a good reputation, and they could even invite Emperor Nan over as a lecturer. Unfortunately, the masses would not be able to receive his teachings. They had to first become core disciples of the Heavenly Mandate Academy. Then they had to be qualified to enter the Cottage before receiving Emperor Nan’s guidance.
The Qinghe Divine Sword flew back into Emperor Nan’s hand. However, Ye Futian and the rest were still in a daze as they stared at the sword. The sword technique appeared plain, yet it contained unparalleled power.
The crowd returned to the Academy. Emperor Nan returned the Qinghe Divine Sword to Nan Luoshen, then he concluded, “Alright. All of you train diligently. The future of the 3,000 Realms of the Great Path is yours.”
“Thank you, Emperor Nan,” Ye Futian said while bowing. The rest also bowed one after another. Emperor Nan then left the Academy.
Yaya, Ye Wuchen, the Swordmaster of Lihen, and many others were swordsmen. This simple sword attack moved them greatly. Some principles were easy to understand, yet they were very difficult to be executed in life.
If they could use their power like how Emperor Nan did, their attacks would surely skyrocket in terms of strength.
“Emperor Nan is indeed worthy of his fame,” Dou Zhao exclaimed. “Rumor has it that in the past, countless cultivators died in his hands. However, he is such a scholarly gentleman now.”
“He is gentle because he is guiding us. If he is faced with an enemy, he will most likely traumatize the other party and kill them with a single attack,” Ye Futian commented. Dou Zhao nodded in agreement.
A sword like his was indeed frightening. Even a space slit had appeared because of it.
Everyone went on with their own business. Ye Futian also went to train alone. He continued to comprehend the Great Path. In these chaotic times, he had a strong urge to improve his ability.
…
In the Higher Heavens Realm, the ancient Golden Divine Nation was dazzling as though the building was built with pure gold. It was erected on the ground and was more than ten thousand meters tall. To reach the building, one would need to first set foot on the staircase of Golden Divine Nation. Commoners would not be qualified to enter the place.
However, on this day, cultivators from all around the Realm had gathered in this ancient place.
The Dynastic Overlord of Golden Divine Nation had invited all the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm to come over for a gathering. One by one, the guests arrived.
Everyone was startled when they heard the news about the Solar Realm. Even the top forces were not at ease. If the super forces from the Outer Realms wanted to take over the forces in the Void Realm, most of them could not stand against the former. Two perfect examples would be the Hidden Land Realm and the Solar Realm. There was no suspense in the development of the situation.
The reason why the Heavenly Mandate Academy could escape from this fate was that the Academy had formed alliances with various forces. This caused the Holy Land of Taichu to not be able to shake their establishment. Even so, the battle between the Holy Land of Taichu and the Heavenly Mandate Academy still rendered the latter to be in a crisis. Thankfully, the crisis was resolved in the end.
In reality, many forces in the Nine Realms did not have existences above the Renhuang Plane to hold the fort. They also did not have upper-level Renhuang in their forces. Hence, even though their forces appeared powerful, they were actually very fragile. In the past, all the forces had to be wary of each other to maintain the balance of the Realm. However, during these chaotic times, they were all at the risk of being eradicated.
In the Higher Heavens Realm, only Shangxiao Divine Palace, Golden Divine Nation, and the former Taixuan Mountain had giant figures. Other forces had no one who could defend them. Even Lord Taixuan was considered relatively new in terms of breaking through to the higher Planes.
After Gai Qiong returned, Golden Divine Nation had two giant figures. On the other hand, Lord Taixuan went to the Heavenly Mandate Realm. Hence, in the current Higher Heavens Realm, aside from Shangxiao Divine Palace, which could still contend with Golden Divine Nation, the other forces were no match for them.
Therefore, all the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm came when Golden Divine Nation invited them. On this day, various forces, including the Divine Capital of Xiling, Divine Sword Li Family, Sky Burying God Clan, and Chang Feng Clan, set foot in this dazzling golden palace.
Outside of Golden Divine Nation palace hall, the cultivators met Gai Cang and Gai Qiong. Gai Cang was the Dynastic Overlord, while Gai Qiong was a divine general under the command of Donghuang the Great. Gai Qiong’s ability was not any weaker than that of Gai Cang.
The two brothers sat together and emanated a majestic aura.
When the cultivators from various forces arrived, they saluted the two brothers since they were weaker.
After most of the cultivators had arrived, Gai Cang scanned the crowd and asked, “Is the representative of Shangxiao Divine Palace here?”
“Shangxiao Divine Palace has joined the alliance of the Heavenly Mandate Academy, so now many of them are sent to train in the academy,” Old Demon Luo from Divine Capital of Xiling replied. Instantly, the atmosphere in the hall turned awkward. In the Higher Heavens Realm, almost all the forces sent a few of their disciples to cultivate in Shangxiao Divine Palace.
However, right now, Golden Divine Nation had the intention of ruling over all the forces in the Higher Heavens Realm. In that case, the holy land of cultivating and the strongest force in the Higher Heavens Realm might stand on opposite sides.
Besides that, many people had heard rumors about the existence of another force manipulating Golden Divine Nation in the shadows.
After their battle with the Holy Land of Taichu, the influence of the Heavenly Mandate Academy had reached a new height. Moreover, they formed alliances with many forces. Hence, it was difficult for outsiders to seize control of the Heavenly Mandate Realm.
Consequently, some forces from the Outer Realms had moved their targets to the Higher Heavens Realm.
After all, the goal of the top forces from the Outer Realms was to establish their influences in the Nine Realms. It didn’t matter much to them which Realm they took over.
The forces in the Central Emperor Realm were the strongest and hence the hardest to take over. The Hidden Land Realm was now under the control of dark forces. Therefore, the choices left were limited!
