Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Su Xuan, who had been sitting with both hands tucked in his sleeves on the throne, lifted his eyes slightly. His withered yellow hands slid out from his cuffs.

He raised a hand, and that overwhelming force evaporated without a trace.

With a flick of Su Xuan’s finger, a streak of spirit light merged into Long Hou’s body. His injuries healed in an instant, and the golden armor returned to its former state. Within that twisted space, even the bells on the hilt of Hong Zhi’s blade returned to their original form.

After that, Su Xuan looked up at the nine figures before him. All nine were old monsters in the Tribulation Realm. The finest handful the Human World had to offer.

Su Xuan smiled. But the smile was deeply unsettling.

One of the elders looked at Su Xuan and spoke in a cold voice. “Su Xuan, you have suppressed us and prevented us from ascending for no less than ten thousand years! Our ancient clans wish to emerge into the world. Will you permit it or not?”

Su Xuan clasped his hands behind his back. Without anyone noticing, an ancient, unassuming scabbard appeared in his hand.

Su Xuan appeared as though he had not heard a single word of the furious accusation.

He fixed his gaze on the foremost elder and said quietly, “Yu Wenxuan... you think you’ve touched the threshold of the Ascension Realm? Does that give you the right to yell at me? Back in the day, I could beat you until you soiled yourself. I could make you kneel and beg for your life. I can do the same today. And until I say otherwise, not one of you is getting up there!”

As he spoke, Su Xuan reached out and tore open the void. The instant that crack appeared, Yu Wenxuan went deathly pale. “You! No... impossible! We are separated by no less than a million li! How could you find me directly?!”

A withered yellow hand appeared within Yu Wenxuan’s spirit-light projection. It seized his throat and hoisted him into the air.

The next instant, Su Xuan vanished into the crack.

Yu Wenxuan’s spirit light slowly dissipated, as though some irresistible force had broken the projection.

Within a few breaths, shock spread across the eight remaining elders’ faces.

Hum!

Hong Zhi snapped her head to the side.

The space warped slightly, and a blood-drenched figure stepped out.

Su Xuan held a dripping, severed head in his hand.

A few splashes of fresh blood stained Su Xuan’s face, but his aura had not shifted at all. The scabbard in his hand still hummed with residual blade qi, its sharp blade intent slicing through the void.

Thud!

Su Xuan turned to the remaining figures, his gaze icy and his voice frigid. “Even if all of you were at the Ascension Realm... I’d still make you kneel before you got a word out!”

Boom!

The instant those words fell, a terrifying, oppressive force erupted from Su Xuan, overwhelming heaven and earth.

His hemp robes whipped around him. Tangled silver hair flew across his face. He regarded the elders with a sharp, unblinking gaze. Even from a million li away, his aura left them unable to breathe.

One after another, their faces went paper-white. They bowed their heads, avoiding his gaze with darting eyes.

Even the people standing behind Su Xuan swallowed involuntarily. Several of them were witnessing him truly make a move for the first time.

Su Xuan reined in his aura and lowered himself back onto the throne. This time, not a single person dared to speak out of turn.

Su Xuan spoke with his eyes closed. “Pass the word. I will permit your clans to emerge into the world. In return, you will do everything in your power to suppress the Abyssal-Sealing Lands as quickly as possible. Do not engage in needless conflict with one another. Those who refuse to comply... shall bear the consequences.”

He raised a hand, dispersing the spirit-light projections without giving the elders a chance to speak.

Su Xuan turned to glance at Hong Zhi, a warm smile crossing his face. “Girl, was the one you ran into this time very powerful?”

Hong Zhi nodded and said quietly, “That person’s strength... is no less than Ah Long’s. Very likely, this is also someone who has touched the threshold of the Tribulation Realm. And what’s more...”

She hesitated, looking as though she wanted to say more. Su Xuan said gently, “It’s all right. Say whatever you need to say.”

Hong Zhi steadied herself. “I don’t think that was that person’s full strength. The Liang-tier figure I encountered may well have been only a clone.”

Chan Kongzi cried out, “What? The person who severely injured Second Sister was just a clone? Then that person’s true strength would be...”

Su Xuan smiled and nodded, his voice soft. “Alright. I understand. For now, you’ll all have to bear ‌the hardship. Once the Six Territories are purged of Abyssal Demons, go ahead and seal everything again. As for my grandson... try not to have too much contact with him for now. He’s not yet strong enough to stand alongside you.”

The people behind him nodded in understanding. But then Su Xuan smirked with a faint, knowing glint in his eyes. “But rest assured, the day when he stands before you all... will not be far off.”

Chan Kongzi shrugged and muttered, “A man a few months from thirty, already at the peak of the Illusory Refinement Realm... there probably aren’t many like that in the entire world.”

Su Xuan turned his back to the eight of them and said quietly, “Keep an eye on the movements of the ancient clans. If it becomes more than you can handle... go and find the Four Kings.”

Everyone stiffened at the mention of the Four Kings, Long Hou included.

Long Hou bowed his head in respect and said firmly, “If we encounter someone we cannot defeat, I will go to them!”

Su Xuan nodded, then took a single step forward, his figure dissolving like smoke as he vanished.

Only the severed head on the ground told the crowd what had transpired during the meeting. In no more than ten breaths from start to finish, a peak-level cultivator who had touched the threshold of the Ascension Realm was killed without a sound.

No one knew just how strong Su Xuan was. Even Long Hou suspected the old man might be an existence with the power of an immortal, right there in the Human World.

But even he only dared entertain that guess in private.

Not a single person knew the true extent of Su Xuan’s strength. Even throughout the entire Seventh Territory, no one knew. People always thought their boldest guess was daring enough, only for Su Xuan to shatter the assumption. So much so that not a single cultivator in the Seventh Territory dared act against his wishes.

If he so desired, he could effortlessly ascend to the Immortal World, as if he were merely taking a breath.

Long Hou sighed in his heart, then turned to the others. “You all heard him. The Six Territories are bound to descend into an age of chaos. Our duty is to prevent it from becoming a complete catastrophe for all living beings.”

Chan Kongzi shrugged. “Now that the ancient clan cultivators are entering the world, ordinary cultivators won’t stand a chance... Hmm... though that little guy might be a different story. Haha.”