System Possession, One Sword Shocks the Gods

39: Ancient Cave SecretsThe cave returned to a deathly silence, with only the lingering Yin Evil Qi in the air and the pile of completely lifeless ancient skeletal remains serving as proof of the heart-pounding battle that had just occurred.

Ye Chen consumed several healing and Qi-recovery Medicinal Pills, sitting cross-legged to regulate his breathing for about half an hour before his pale complexion regained a hint of color. The battle with that eerie ancient corpse had been a massive drain, and he had sustained significant internal injuries, but the gains were equally staggering. His application of the ’Nirvana’ Sword Intent had become more proficient, and his cultivation barrier had loosened considerably; he was now only one opportunity away from a Breakthrough to the Kaiyuan Realm Fourth Level.

He stood up, his gaze first falling upon the pile of ancient skeletal remains. Aside from that black token made of neither metal nor wood, there was also an inconspicuous, ancient-looking Bronze Ring among the bones.

Picking up the ring, he extended his Divine Sense inside and found a space about three zhang square! This was a Storage Ring! Although the space wasn’t large, it was far more Advanced than the standard-issue Storage Pouch provided by the academy.

There weren’t many items inside: some Ores and medicinal herbs that had long since lost their Spiritual Qi, several Jade Slips recording obscure information, and... a broken sword, pitch-black throughout, with only half a blade remaining, yet still emitting a heart-palpitating aura of sharpness!

The material of this broken sword was extraordinary; even though it was fractured, its residual Sword Intent made Ye Chen’s skin prickle slightly. He tried to bring the qingfeng sword closer, and the qingfeng sword let out an even more intense hum than it had when facing the ancient corpse. The dark golden patterns on its blade flowed, conveying a complex mix of longing, sadness, and anger.

”This broken sword... is related to the qingfeng sword?” Ye Chen’s heart shook as he carefully took out the half-length black sword. As the two swords drew near, the resonance between them grew stronger, as if they were brothers separated for many years.

He put away the broken sword along with the black token, intending to study them slowly in the future. The urgent priority was to explore the depths of this Immortal Cave and stay alert for any potential follow-up moves from Lin Hong.

His gaze turned toward the deeper parts of the cave; it wasn’t a dead end, but rather connected to another even darker passage extending downwards. The aura of antiquity and danger permeating the passage was even greater than what lay outside.

Ye Chen gripped the qingfeng sword tightly and stepped inside.

This passage was even more winding and long than the one he had come through, and some blurry murals began to appear on the stone walls. The content of the murals was ancient and abstract, seemingly depicting some kind of sacrificial scene where countless beings knelt in worship toward a towering altar. Above the altar hovered a... dark golden ancient sword extremely similar in form to the qingfeng sword!

However, the sword in the mural was complete and flawless, its sword might so vast it seemed capable of cutting down the stars!

Waves of emotion rose again in Ye Chen’s heart. The origins of the qingfeng sword were truly extraordinary! This Immortal Cave seemed to have a very deep connection with it.

Continuing forward, at the end of the passage, the view suddenly opened up to reveal an even more magnificent underground palace!

The palace was supported by twelve massive coiled dragon stone pillars, and the dome was embedded with night-luminescent pearls that emitted a soft light, illuminating the entire space. In the center of the palace was not a throne, but a massive circular altar covered in countless profound runes and sword-shaped patterns!

The altar was cast entirely from a dark green metal, emitting an ancient and majestic aura. Scattered around the altar were dozens of lifelike... remains! These remains were not human; some had wings on their backs, some had single horns on their heads, and some were covered in scales—clearly they were powerful alien races or Yao Beasts. They maintained their life-and-death combat poses, yet their life force had been instantly stripped away by an invisible power, turning them into eternal statues.

And at the very center of the altar, a sword was thrust! A broken sword consisting only of the hilt and a small section of the blade, dark golden throughout, identical to the ancient sword in the mural, yet already fractured!

Upon the broken sword, a faint yet supreme Sword Intent still remained, as if the monarch had passed but his prestige still lingered!

The qingfeng sword in Ye Chen’s hand vibrated violently, letting out a sorrowful yet excited hum, like a wanderer returning home and seeing a long-lost relative!

Ye Chen could feel that the spirituality of the qingfeng sword was producing a strong resonance with the broken sword at the center of the altar, as fragments of information flooded into his mind like a tide.

The fragments were scattered and blurry, but he vaguely captured some key information:

”God-slaying... traitor... Seal... waiting... return...”

This Immortal Cave was not the meditation place of an ordinary ancient Cultivator, but an ancient battlefield, or rather... a place of Seal! The broken sword on the altar was once the sidearm of some supreme existence, broken during an earth-shattering battle, and its master seemed to have fallen as well. And the qingfeng sword was actually the... reincarnation of that God-Slaying Sword’s spirit? Or perhaps formed from its fragments?

The information was too shocking, causing Ye Chen’s mind to reel. He felt as if he had touched the tip of an iceberg concerning the secrets of heaven and earth!

Just then, another change occurred!

The half-length black broken sword and the black token he had just put into his Storage Ring actually flew out automatically, uncontrolled! The black broken sword hovered in mid-air, emitting a dense darkness and Death Qi, while the token shot out a beam of black light, illuminating a specific rune on the altar!

”Buzz—!”

The entire altar shook violently! Those inscribed runes seemed to come to life, beginning to flow and flicker! An aura far more terrifying and ancient than the previous ancient corpse, filled with the meaning of destruction and madness, slowly awakened from the depths of the altar like a sleeping primeval Vicious Beast!

”Hahaha! Ye Chen, thank you for activating this ’demon summoning token’ and ’dark corrosion sword’ fragment for me!”

A laughter filled with triumph and cruelty came from the entrance of the palace. Lin Hong’s figure had appeared there at some unknown time, a sinister smile of a successful plot on his face as he watched the changes on the altar, his eyes filled with fanaticism.

”You thought killing that Corpse Puppet guarding the door meant everything was fine? Fool! That was merely a pawn I used to exhaust you and have you bring the ’key’ to this place!” Lin Hong walked into the palace step by step, his gaze sweeping over the dark golden broken sword at the center of the altar with endless greed. ”The remains of this ’God-Slaying Sword,’ and this entire altar cast with the blood of ancient gods and demons—the power they contain is beyond your imagination!”

He pinched a complex hand Seal and pointed at the hovering black broken sword (the dark corrosion sword fragment): ”With Dark Corrosion as the guide, and ten thousand souls as the sacrifice! Awaken, the remnant soul of the ’Shadow Demon Lord’ sealed here! Devour this sacrifice, and we shall cooperate to master this God-slaying power!”

Following his incantation, the black broken sword’s light flared brilliantly, the runes on the altar spun frantically, and the terrifying existence awakening from the altar’s depths instantly locked its aura onto Ye Chen! It was a will filled with pure malice and the desire for destruction, as if it wanted to devour all living beings!

Ye Chen understood everything in an instant! Lin Hong’s true purpose was not simply to kill him, but to use the ’key’ he brought (the dark corrosion sword fragment and the demon summoning token) to awaken the remnant soul of some ancient Devil Head sealed beneath this altar, intending to use him as a sacrifice in exchange for power, and even to control the remains of that God-Slaying Sword!

What a vicious plot! What grand ambition!

At this moment, with the terrifying demon soul awakening in front of him and the predatory Lin Hong behind him, Ye Chen had fallen into an unprecedented desperate situation!

However, facing this certain-death scenario, instead of despair, a sky-high Battle Intent and a killing intent chilled to the extreme ignited in Ye Chen’s eyes!

He looked down at the qingfeng sword in his hand, which was humming incessantly and conveying a will of unyieldingness and anger, then looked up at the dark golden broken sword in the center of the altar, which seemed to be responding to the qingfeng sword’s call.

”Want to use me as a sacrifice? Based on a hiding rat like you and a remnant soul that’s been sealed for who knows how many years?”

Ye Chen took a step forward, actually taking the initiative to walk toward the altar whose aura was becoming more and more terrifying! The qingfeng sword pointed directly at Lin Hong, his voice like ten-thousand-year-old ice:

”Today, I shall let you know who the true master of this God-Slaying Sword is!”

Before his voice had even faded, he communicated with that wisp of ’Nirvana’ Sword Intent deep in his Divine Soul, while simultaneously pouring his Luminous Sword Heart will without reservation into the qingfeng sword, triggering its resonance with the dark golden broken sword at the center of the altar!

In this desperate situation, he was going to forcibly communicate with the God-Slaying Sword remains, draw upon its power, kill Lin Hong, and suppress the demon soul!

This was a massive gamble! If he won, his strength would surge and he would understand the secrets; if he lost, his life would end and his Soul would be Flying Away and Spirit Scattering!

But Ye Chen did not look back!