The Sovereign’s Ascension

Lin Yun had to deliver the Cauldron Sword to the Sword Sect no matter what. He already had plans before coming. He would deal with whoever dared to stand before him. He would cut down anyone standing in his path with the sword in his hand.

He didn’t stay there for long. He entered the Iris Secret Realm with the box containing the Netherflower. He still had one last stage left in the Divine Firmament Sword Sutra before reaching complete mastery. A cultivation technique would undergo a huge transformation if it reached complete mastery.

While Lin Yun was cultivating, Feng Shaoyu wasn’t slacking either. Feng Shaoyu was hosting a banquet in the palace with Zhao Wuji, Gu Zijing, and Jiang Yunting with Feng Shengling beside him.

“You all fought with Ye Qingtian before. What do you guys think of him?” Feng Shaoyu asked. “We’re all members of the Sword Alliance. We might have scuffles between us, but we should be united at times like this. He has already become the champion of the Sword Assembly. If he borrows the Cauldron Sword, it would be a great blow to the Sword Alliance’s prestige.”

Compared to his arrogance during the day, Feng Shaoyu seemed cautious at this moment and had no intentions of looking down on Ye Qingtian.

“I hope everyone can share with me what you think,” Feng Shaoyu smiled and drank the cup with one gulp.

“Young Manor Master, you’re too polite,” Zhao Wuji, Gu Zijing, and Jiang Yunting raised their cups.

What Feng Shaoyu said was right. Ye Qingtian became the champion today, and this made their faces ugly. If Ye Qingtian managed to borrow the Cauldron Sword, it would strike a great blow to the Sword Alliance’s prestige.

Zhao Wuji spoke out first, “That fellow is too cocky. He snapped the Heavenly Dipper Sword and even asked the Hidden Sword Manor to forge another one for him. We have to teach him a lesson.”

“He’s indeed too much,” Feng Shengling said furiously.

Lin Yun’s words were lethal, especially when he said Feng Shaoyu’s grandfather and the Hidden Sword Manor were garbage. Even in Skysolute City, the Hidden Sword Manor hadn’t been humiliated this way before.

Gu Zijing frowned with a peculiar light flashing across his eyes. It felt weird for him because Feng Shaoyu was bullying and humiliating Ye Qingtian, thus forcing Ye Qingtian to retaliate. He didn’t think that Ye Qingtian did anything wrong. On the contrary, Feng Shaoyu was wrong instead.

Feng Shaoyu should just follow the rules instead of being shameless. But he didn’t let Ye Qingtian challenge the arrays and would have him fight a Quasi-Saint, instead.

Honestly, the three arrays might be tough, but it shouldn’t be a problem as long as someone’s attainment in the sword was heaven-defying enough. Many people passed through the arrays over the course of history. But it was too much for someone at the seventh transformation of the Nirvana Stage to fight someone at the Azure Origin Phase of the Quasi-Saint Realm. The wine tasted foul in Gu Zijing’s mouth.

“Brother Zhao, you go first. What do you think of him?” Feng Shaoyu asked.

“Logically speaking, it shouldn’t be a problem for you to defeat him since he’s only at the seventh transformation of the Nirvana Stage. He might not even be able to last a single attack from you. But he must have the confidence to place the fight three days from now,” Zhao Wuji said.

Feng Shaoyu nodded, “Brother Zhao, carry on.”

“He might know a few more swords of the Divine Firefly Sword,” Zhao Wuji said.

“But he has already grasped nine sword forms!” Feng Shengling said in shock.

“He’s not that terrifying if he has grasped the tenth sword form. But I’m concerned that he has grasped the last three swords,” Zhao Wuji said, shaking the wine in the cup. “The Flaming Golden Lotus, Flowing Time, and Planting Soldiers. If he has grasped even one of them, it would be enough for him to slay a Quasi-Saint.”

The difficulty of grasping the last three swords was tough, and even a Quasi-Saint might not be able to grasp the essence. It would already be impressive if someone has reached lesser mastery in them.

There’s that possibility, and I must guard against that.?Feng Shaoyu might have had no change in his expression, but he kept it in his mind. Feng Shengling was also shocked because this was something unimaginable to him.

“Brother Jiang, what do you think about this?” Feng Shaoyu turned to look at Jiang Yunting.

“He has the achievement of slaying a Quasi-Saint at Six Holy City. I’ve heard that he has grasped an extremely fast sword technique that will strike his opponent the moment it’s used,” Jiang Yunting said.

Feng Shaoyu placed his cup down and said, “I’ve already received a report about that. That sword is called the Light of the Beginning and it should be a sword technique from the Golden Era.”

It had been a few hours since the Sword Assembly ended. He had already obtained all of Ye Qingtian’s information with the Hidden Sword Manor’s powerful intelligence network.

“That is a powerful sword, and it’s real,” Feng Shaoyu said. “But I’m not afraid of it. I already have a way to deal with it. If he considers that sword as his trump card, I don’t mind surprising him.”

“I’ll no longer speak about it since Young Manor Master has a way of dealing with it,” Jiang Yunting smiled.

“Brother Gu, what about you?” Feng Shaoyu asked, raising his head.

He held Gu Zijing the highest amongst the three, even if Gu Zijing had lost to Ye Qingtian. Based on the strength Gu Zijing had revealed, he would soar to the sky once he reached the Quasi-Saint Realm. After all, he was the Ice Emperor’s disciple.

“Me?” Gu Zijing smiled awkwardly. “Young Manor Master, you’re being too humble. Based on your cultivation, I bet you have long converted all of your nirvana aura into saint aura. You can easily inflict heavy injuries on him with a single attack, not to mention your attainment in sword dao isn’t weak. You also have a terrifying foundation and can seek guidance from seniors anytime. So you might be able to strengthen yourself in the three days. Ye Qingtian is nothing in your eyes, so how can we give you any advice when we’ve lost?”

Jiang Yunting turned to look at Gu Zijing with the corner of his lips rising. He could feel a hidden meaning within Gu Zijing’s words.

But Feng Shaoyu didn’t notice the sarcasm in Gu Zijing’s tone and smiled, “Brother Gu, you’re too polite. Even a tiger has to use its full strength to hunt a rabbit. So I can’t underestimate him even if he’s nothing. So you can just speak.”

Gu Zijing glanced at Feng Shaoyu and said, “His strength is unfathomable. If I have to say something, he can face a Quasi-Saint at the Azure Origin Phase even if he doesn’t have any trump cards.”

When he said that, Zhao Wuji and Feng Shaoyu became unhappy.

“Brother Gu, don’t tell me that you’re scared after losing to him?” Zhao Wuji asked.

“It doesn’t matter. Brother Gu can go on,” Feng Shaoyu said.

“A Quasi-Saint is strong, but it’s irrelevant if you can’t touch Ye Qingtian,” Gu Zijing said.

“What a joke. Who can withstand the strike of a Quasi-Saint? How can a Quasi-Saint not touch him?” Zhao Wuji said coldly.

“The Azure Dragon Sword Heart enables him to predict the incoming attacks, and he might be able to accomplish it by pairing it with his movement technique. He hasn’t brought out the full power of his sword heart and trump cards,” Gu Zijing said. “That’s not the most important thing. Don’t forget his Divine Firefly Sword. His Divine Firefly Sword gave me a really weird feeling.”

Jiang Yunting’s eyes lit up and asked, “What do you mean by that?”

“His Divine Firefly Sword doesn’t seem chaotic like ours. I suspect that he might have grasped the profundity of it,” Gu Zijing said. They used the Divine Firefly Sword when they fought, but Ye Qingtian’s attacks were stronger than his, and he could no longer hold on when Ye Qingtian executed the ninth sword form.

He wasn’t just defeated because Ye Qingtian grasped the ninth sword form but because Ye Qingtian’s attacks could link together, allowing his attacks to overlap. So when Ye Qingtian executed the ninth sword form, the power of his attack increased by ten-odd times. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be so easy for Ye Qingtian to resolve his secret technique.

When Gu Zijing said that, Zhao Wuji and others’ faces changed. Even Feng Shaoyu was surprised with his brows locked together. After all, everyone who had practiced the Divine Firefly Sword knew this sword technique was chaotic and couldn’t be linked.

Feng Shaoyu was willing to believe that Gu Zijing had grasped the tenth sword form, but he didn’t believe that Ye Qingtian had grasped the profundity of this sword technique and could link them together.

“Brother Gu, aren’t you too serious about this?” Feng Shaoyu smiled awkwardly.

“I’m just sharing what I feel, and I’m not done yet,” Gu Zijing said.

“Go on,” Feng Shaoyu said.

“We’re all members of the Sword Alliance. Since Young Manor Master wants to hear my honest opinion, I’ll be blunt,” Gu Zijing said.

“It’s fine. Brother Gu can go on,” Feng Shaoyu said.