In front of the Lingxi Valley sect’s main hall,
A female disciple collapsed onto the flagstones. Her face was pale as she stared at the massive sword scar that stretched tens of meters long.
The scar began at the valley’s main gate and extended all the way to the back mountain. It was as smooth as polished glass, as deep as an abyss. If one listened closely, they could hear faint echoes—like countless sword cries lingering within the chasm.
“Ah—! Baihua Peak… Baihua Peak is gone!”
Someone screamed in terror.
Lingxi Valley was famous for Baihua Peak, a towering cliff adorned with countless blossoms.
The Elder Hall and the Sect Master’s cave dwelling were located upon it.
Now—Baihua Peak had been cleaved clean in two.
A ray of sunlight pierced the rift, as if some mountain god had swung down his colossal axe.
The great waterfall that once cascaded down from the cliff had been severed.
A fierce wind whistled through the gash, producing a mournful howl that burrowed into the disciples’ hearts.
One sword.
Enough to split mountains.
Enough to leave behind a scar like the maw of the abyss.
Who was that white-robed figure stepping on the Milky Way?
Why did he wield such terrifying swordsmanship?
And why did he strike against Lingxi Valley?
No one knew.
Perhaps only Yun Suxin and the Valley Master, Yun Baiyu—who now knelt trembling before Chen Huaian—understood the truth.
Yun Baiyu stood protectively in front of her daughter, one knee pressed to the ground.
Both her hands clutched tightly to Chen Huaian’s Black Scale Sword, blood running freely down her fair wrist, soaking into her sleeves.
“Senior… please… have mercy…”
Her words were broken by violent coughing.
Blood spilled from her lips.
Her health had long been frail, and now, taking on half the force of that earth-sundering sword strike for the sake of Lingxi Valley and Yun Suxin, she was suffering even more.
“Mother, you—!”
Yun Suxin tried to rush forward, but Yun Baiyu snapped her head back, eyes cold and sharp.
“Kneel down!”
The command cut like a whip.
Yun Suxin trembled. Her lips parted, but no words came. Finally, she dropped back to her knees, head bowed low. Her fists clenched and unclenched repeatedly, her face shifting between scarlet and pale.
Yun Baiyu dared not raise her head.
She stared at the boots of the swordsman before her, her voice trembling with humility.
“Senior… you must be one of the hidden elders of the Sword Pavilion. As Valley Master of Lingxi Valley, I am willing to shoulder whatever sin has roused your wrath. But… Suxin is still young. I beg you, please do not hold her accountable.”
Her tone was heavy with submission.
She had lived in the Cangyun Realm long enough to know:
No matter how strong one’s alliances, no matter how many sects pledged friendship—when calamity struck, they would scatter like smoke.
She had learned this bitter truth three years ago.
That year, in the Dongzhou secret realm, a legendary sword had been unearthed.
To seize recognition from that ancient spiritual weapon, countless cultivators slaughtered one another. Rivers of blood flowed; corpses piled high.
By the end, they could no longer distinguish friend from foe. Even those who once called her ally… raised their blades against her.
That was when she understood.
Outsiders could never be relied upon.
Only strength.
Their own strength.
That was the foundation of survival.
If she had not been gravely injured—
If she still possessed her peak power—
Even if she could not defeat this terrifying swordsman, she would at least have had the dignity to stand.
Not to kneel here, tail tucked between her legs, begging for mercy without even the courage to lift her eyes.
This man’s sword was too fierce.
Was he… truly the rumored strongest killer of the Cangyun Realm?
Today, she had experienced his sword firsthand.
Chen Huaian stood before her.
And this time—
He did not bother with silence.
Cold. Cruel.
Yet even Chen Huaian himself was startled by the strike.
He had remembered all along that Li Qingran and Yue Qianchi had only come to purchase spiritual herbs. That was why he had deliberately held back.
But fearing that it might not be shocking enough, he had still unleashed eighty percent of his strength.
Even so—eighty percent of his power was enough to split a mountain in two.
If not for the woman before him arriving in time, Lingxi Valley itself would have collapsed into rubble.
Yun Suxin, the valley’s disciples, even the precious spiritual fields—they all would have been reduced to dust.
[Your avatar experience time: 10 seconds remaining!]
The system prompt flashed before his eyes.
Chen Huaian snapped back to himself.
Blinking, he looked down at the Lingxi Valley Master—a woman whose youthful face was marked by age-old sorrow, her hair already white. His brows furrowed as he spoke solemnly:
“This disciple came merely to purchase spiritual herbs. But your daughter deliberately set up an illusion array to trouble me. I calculated by fate and sensed a bond between my sword and your Lingxi Valley. I drew a line across the heavens—and indeed, there was a connection.”
Yun Baiyu’s lips twitched.
What a fate… it would be better to never have such a fate.
Yet all she could do was force a smile.
“So… Senior, is it fate that you have come today?”
“Of course.”
Chen Huaian nodded gravely, before his words began to ramble on:
“Fate—marvelous, indescribable! Just like splitting this mountain today—what joy, what destiny!”
The Valley Master’s silence deepened.
Chen Huaian gave an awkward laugh.
“Well, I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll be taking my leave. Those two are my juniors—please see that they’re well cared for. When I have time, I’ll return… to chop again… and find what I am destined to carve away.”
As his words faded, the ten seconds ran out.
His figure scattered into countless fragments of sword-light, dissolving into the wind.
Yun Baiyu’s eyes widened with fresh dread.
That had only been an incarnation.
If his true body were to descend…
When did such a terrifying old monster appear in Jiange? And why has there been no news?
She let out a shaky breath.
Fortunately, Suxin only activated the second layer of the illusion array today, not the third. If those two little girls had truly been harmed, wouldn’t that monster have razed Lingxi Valley to the ground?
Her heart pounded. Wounded as she was, dizziness swept through her body.
Just then, a pair of trembling hands reached out to support her.
Yun Suxin’s eyes were red, her lips quivering.
“Mom… are you… are you alright?”
“I’m fine.”
Yun Baiyu’s voice was weak, yet her eyes brimmed with both affection and guilt.
“Don’t worry. I only need to recuperate. That sword cultivator didn’t use his full strength. I believe he merely sought to give us a warning.”
Yun Suxin pouted bitterly.
Cutting Lingxi Valley in half… that was just a warning?
These people from the Sword Pavilion were utterly unreasonable.
Not only had they taken what they wanted, they’d wrecked her illusion array. And now they’d nearly cleaved apart the sect’s mountain gate. Yet still, they spoke as though they were the ones showing kindness.
“Alright. Go and receive those two Sword Pavilion disciples,” Yun Baiyu instructed, disguising her pain with indifference. “Treat them as honored guests. Do not be disrespectful—especially to the younger one.”
That swordsman had said it himself—the younger disciple was his apprentice.
And cultivators with such terrifying backgrounds… were best not provoked.
“Qingran… was that your Master just now?!”
Yue Qianchi was still dazed, staring at the rift that cleaved Baihua Peak.
“Yes. That was Master’s incarnation. But he cannot project it for long,” Li Qingran nodded.
Her composure was steadier. She had already witnessed her Master’s swordsmanship at Qingyun Sect.
Though she had fainted under the impact of his earlier strike, she had at least been mentally prepared.
Now, her thoughts turned toward her Master’s health.
This incarnation had been in the Fusion Realm, consuming enormous energy.
Would that place further strain on his battle… or worsen the demonic poison ravaging his body?
“Powerful! Too powerful!” Yue Qianchi was breathless with awe.
She crouched down, running her hand over the sword scar on the earth, clicking her tongue.
“If even his incarnation wields such strength, how terrifying must the true body be?”
Then, her lips curled into mischief.
“Qingran… your Master really doesn’t consider taking a Dao companion? I mean, just look at me—your senior sister, usually all wrapped up. If I let myself loose… hehe, you know. Cultivators these days love someone like me~”
Li Qingran’s face flushed scarlet.
She rolled her eyes, her expression turning stern as she snapped:
“Senior Sister… to tell you the truth, Master prefers… the smaller kind!”
“Oh~? And how would you know that?”
“Y-you—stop asking!!!”
