Heaven rewards diligence, but there are always fairies plotting against me.

Deep beneath Qianjing, in ancient ruins thousands of feet below.

The once raging lava river has now completely subsided, turning into dark red solidified magma. The underground thunder and rampant sword energy have long since dissipated under the invisible might of heaven.

Chu Chang sat alone on the stone platform in front of the black and gold bronze gate.

On his lap, the ancient sword Duanchen lay unadorned, its blade like a pool of autumn water, reflecting his deep eyes that seemed to hold the endless starry sky.

He has been practicing here alone for a full six months.

Half a year is but a fleeting moment for an ordinary cultivator, not even enough time to consolidate a minor realm through seclusion.

However, for Chu Chang, who had entered the Tribulation Transcending stage, the past six months of "Quiet Meditation" allowed him to completely digest all the inheritance left by the Taiyi Immortal.

The myriad variations of the Taiyi Dividing Light Sword Technique have all been integrated into his Chaos Sword Dao.

More importantly, as he entered the Tribulation Transcending stage, his primordial spirit merged with the laws of heaven and earth, and his divine sense became all-pervasive.

During his six months of secluded cultivation, he used the remaining immortal Daoist energy to deduce the secrets of heaven and finally saw the truth hidden behind the fog of history.

"The Yuan Dynasty's royal family is nothing more than a puppet in name only."

"The so-called underground ruins seal, the so-called invasion of the extraterrestrial demons, and even the fall of Taiyizi back then... all have the shadow of Wanjian Mountain behind them."

Chu Chang stroked the blade of the Broken Dust Ancient Sword, his voice as cold as a knife.

Wanjian Mountain, a sect that claims to be the number one righteous holy land in the Tianqian Domain, is actually the biggest vampire in this world.

They deliberately blocked the path to ascension, turning the entire Tianqian Domain into their "breeding ground for Gu." Whenever a brilliant genius was about to break through to the Nascent Soul stage and threaten their rule, Wanjian Mountain would secretly intervene, either eliminating them or forcibly recruiting them.

The three patriarchs of Ten Thousand Swords Mountain who died under the heavenly tribulation were merely deacons pushed to the forefront.

Deep within the forbidden area of ​​Wanjian Mountain, two ancient monsters who have lived for thousands of years—the two Supreme Elders of Wanjian Mountain—still lurk.

Those were two terrifying beings who had already reached the Great Perfection of the Mahayana stage, and even glimpsed the threshold of the Tribulation stage. They used their sect's secret techniques to prolong their lives, constantly devouring the fortune of the Tianqian Domain, all in order to forcibly create an opportunity for ascension in the Dharma-ending Age.

"The Great Perfection of Mahayana Buddhism."

Chu Chang slowly stood up.

boom!

The moment he stood up, the entire underground ruins trembled violently. The once incredibly hard lapis lazuli platform instantly turned to dust, and countless tiny black spatial cracks appeared in the void. This was because his physical strength was too great, and even the void of this world was slightly unable to withstand it.

The period of tribulation.

In this Dharma-ending Age, where even the Transformation Gods are rare, Chu Chang is the only deity.

"Today, we will go and destroy this mountain of ten thousand swords."

Chu Chang took a step forward.

There was no overwhelming light, no earth-shattering aura. A faint ripple spread through the void, and his figure vanished instantly into the dark depths of the earth.

One person, one sword.

They charged straight in, heading towards Ten Thousand Swords Mountain.

Wanjian Mountain is located in the far west of the Tianqian Domain.

It was a majestic mountain range stretching for hundreds of thousands of miles, with its main peak, "Wan Jian Feng," resembling a giant black sword piercing the sky, exuding a chilling aura of Geng metal sword energy.

From Qianjing to Wanjianshan, there are tens of thousands of miles between them.

Chu Chang did not use the teleportation technique to descend directly, but instead strolled through the void like a traveler enjoying a spring outing, carrying his sword.

Every step taken is a journey across mountains and rivers.

He wanted to hone his sword intent to its peak along the way.

When he reached a desolate area 30,000 miles away from Wanjian Mountain, the originally clear sky suddenly darkened.

"Buzzing!"

In the void, countless sword cries rang out simultaneously.

Amidst the swirling sandstorm ahead, more than ten figures exuding powerful auras had appeared. These individuals were all dressed in the dark blue sword robes of the Ten Thousand Swords Mountain, with the lowest cultivation level being the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm, and the leader reaching the peak of the late stage of the Nascent Soul realm.

That was the inner sect elders of Wanjian Mountain.

They have been waiting here for a long time.

"Fellow Daoist Chu, please wait."

The leading elder, a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, stepped forward.

This man, whose Taoist name was "Lone Pine Master," had a withered face and eyes as sharp as a hawk's. He looked at Chu Chang, who was walking slowly through the void, and a hint of fear and apprehension, which he tried his best to hide, flashed deep in his eyes.

The news that the three Nascent Soul elders and the sect's most precious treasure were destroyed in the battle in the capital of the Great Yuan Dynasty had already reached Wanjian Mountain.

Although Wanjianshan blocked the news, the upper echelons were already in an uproar.

"What's up?"

Chu Chang stopped and stood in the void, looking down at the group of people. His eyes were calm and undisturbed, as if he were looking at a pile of rubble by the roadside.

Suppressing his unease, Gu Songzi forced a smile, cupped his hands in greeting, and said:

"Fellow Daoist Chu, my three junior brothers acted rashly and offended you. Their fate of having their souls destroyed was entirely their own fault. My Ten Thousand Swords Mountain deeply regrets this."

Chu Chang raised an eyebrow but remained silent.

Thinking there was still room for maneuver, Gu Songzi quickly continued:

"Now that you have attained the pinnacle of cultivation, you are unmatched in the world. Our two Supreme Elders of Wanjian Mountain have keen insight and know that a peerless genius like you should not waste your time in this mortal world."

"The two Supreme Elders specially dispatched us to convey their message."

Gu Songzi took a deep breath and announced the heavy-hitting condition that Wan Jian Mountain had been preparing for a long time:

"If Fellow Daoist Chu is willing to set aside past grievances and join my Ten Thousand Swords Mountain, you will become the third Supreme Elder of my Ten Thousand Swords Mountain! Your status will be equal to that of the two Ancestors!"

"Not only that, all the fragments of immortal artifacts and ancient sword techniques in the Treasure Pavilion of Ten Thousand Swords Mountain are available for you to choose from."

"The most important point"

Gu Songzi's voice deepened and became mysterious, carrying a hint of seduction: "Fellow Daoist should have noticed that the path to ascension in this world has been severed. However, the two Supreme Elders hold the only key to reopening the ascension passage! If you join us, within a hundred years, the two Ancestors are willing to share the secret of ascension with you and ascend to the ranks of immortals in the upper realm!"

They promised him a high position, bestowed upon him divine artifacts, and shared in his ascension to immortality.

Such conditions are so favorable that no cultivator across the entire continent could refuse them.

Even the elders of Wanjian Mountain behind Gusongzi felt that the conditions offered by the sect were too generous, so generous that they were jealous.

"Are you done talking?"

Chu Chang spoke calmly.

Gu Songzi was slightly taken aback, then nodded and said, "What do you think, fellow Daoist? If you agree, we will escort you back to the mountain..."

"Noisy."

Chu Chang shook his head.

"Are you from Ten Thousand Swords Mountain so used to being superior that you even beg for mercy with such an air of superiority?"

Chu Chang raised his right hand, joined his index and middle fingers together, and casually swiped forward.

"Fellow Daoist, you!"

Gu Songzi's expression changed drastically, and he was about to summon his natal flying sword for defense.

However, it was too fast.

Before the power of a cultivator in the Tribulation Transcending stage, space and time lose their original meaning.

A thin, almost invisible golden ray of light flashed and disappeared in the void.

There was no earth-shattering explosion, nor any violent fluctuations of spiritual energy.

"Click."

Gu Songzi's voice abruptly stopped.

A thin red line spread down his body from his forehead, and then his entire body, along with his Nascent Soul and the flying sword at his waist, was instantly cut in two.

Not only him, but also the dozen or so Nascent Soul stage elders behind him were all cut in half at the same time by this spatial ray of light before they even had a chance to scream.

Thump, thump...

More than a dozen mutilated corpses fell to the ground like raindrops, instantly buried by the sandstorm whipped up by the gale.

"The secret to ascension?"

Chu Chang withdrew his hand, a cold sneer playing on his lips.

"If I wish to ascend, why should I share with others? If the heavens block my way, I will cleave them in two. If this path is blocked, I will pave it with the bones of you, the Supreme Elders."

With a flicker, Chu Chang disappeared into the sandstorm once more.

…………

…………

…………

Two days later.

Chu Chang finally arrived at the foot of Wanjian Mountain.

Before your eyes lies a vast ocean of sword energy.

To guard against Chu Chang, Wanjian Mountain has unleashed all its accumulated resources accumulated over thousands of years. Within the mountains spanning tens of thousands of miles, countless sword lights soared into the sky, weaving together into an enormous nine-colored sword net in the void.

【The Great Array for Protecting the Sect and Slaying Immortals】.

This formation is the foundation of Ten Thousand Swords Mountain. Legend has it that it was personally set up by an immortal in ancient times, using a large, top-grade spiritual vein at the foot of Ten Thousand Swords Mountain as its source, and gathering the sword intent of tens of thousands of disciples within the sect.

Even cultivators at the Integration Stage or even the Mahayana Stage who launch a powerful attack will be instantly annihilated into nothingness by the overwhelming sword energy.

At this moment, behind the Sword Net, tens of thousands of Wanjian Mountain disciples stood ready for battle.

In the void at the forefront stood dozens of elders at the Nascent Soul and Divine Transformation stages, each with a solemn expression, staring intently at the black figure that walked step by step from the horizon.

"He really came..."

"One person actually dared to take on our entire Ten Thousand Swords Mountain single-handedly!"

"Arrogant! This Myriad Tribulations Immortal Slaughtering Formation was left behind by immortals. Even if he is strong, can he possibly be stronger than the heavens?!"

Discussions spread among the elders. Although some were shouting, most had sweaty palms and trembling bodies.

After all, the news that more than ten Nascent Soul stage elders had been instantly killed in the Great Wilderness had already been transmitted back using secret methods.

That man was a complete monster.

Chu Chang stood on the outer edge of the formation, looking at the sky-covering nine-colored sword net and the Wanjianshan people behind it who looked as if they were facing a formidable enemy.

"Too slow."

Chu Chang frowned slightly.

"Is this all the time I gave you to prepare?"

"Arrogant brat!"

In the void, a late-stage Nascent Soul elder from Ten Thousand Swords Mountain roared, "Chu Chang! You killed my sect elder, and today you dare to attack my Ten Thousand Swords Mountain headquarters! Do you really think Ten Thousand Swords Mountain is without anyone? With this Myriad Tribulations Immortal Slaughtering Formation here, you won't be able to set foot in my Ten Thousand Swords Mountain even half a step!"

"Is that so?"

Chu Chang smiled gently.

He slowly drew the Broken Dust Ancient Sword.

The moment the Broken Dust Ancient Sword was fully drawn, the sound of swords echoing throughout the world instantly ceased.

The once raging sea of ​​sword energy from the Myriad Tribulations Immortal Slaughtering Formation began to tremble before the sharpness of the Broken Dust Ancient Sword, as if it were ordinary iron that had seen the king of swords and was showing signs of submission.

"cut."

Chu Chang gripped his sword with both hands and unleashed a seemingly ordinary slash forward.

This sword strike was not enhanced by any supernatural powers or spells, but was simply an infusion of pure magical power.

However, this is the power of a cultivator in the Tribulation Transcending stage!

boom!

A golden sword beam, ten thousand feet long, like a golden celestial river, spanned the void and crashed fiercely into the nine-colored sword net.

"Click..."

It was just a fleeting moment of contact.

The Myriad Tribulations Immortal Slaughtering Formation, which was said to be able to slay immortals and block all great powers, was torn open the moment it came into contact with the golden sword light, like a fragile mirror, with a huge gap ten thousand feet wide torn open.

The violent backlash traveled back through the great formation.

puff!puff!puff!

Behind the formation, tens of thousands of Wanjian Mountain disciples who were in charge of the formation simultaneously coughed up blood. Those with weaker cultivation levels had their meridians shattered and collapsed to the ground.

One sword strike, and the formation is broken!

"That's impossible!"

The Nascent Soul elder who had just been shouting almost popped his eyes out.

However, before he could even show a look of despair, the aftershocks of the golden sword light that had torn apart the great formation had already swept over him.

Along with him and several other elders of Wanjian Mountain, they instantly vaporized in the golden sword light, leaving not even a wisp of ashes behind.

Chu Chang sheathed his longsword and stepped into the territory of Ten Thousand Swords Mountain.

"Call those two old monsters out."

Chu Chang's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached the ears of every Wanjian Mountain disciple: "Otherwise, after today, there will be no more Wanjian Mountain in this Tianqian Domain."

"well……"

A faint sigh suddenly came from the ancestral land deep within Wanjian Mountain.

The sigh seemed to contain endless vicissitudes of time, and the moment it fell, the violent spiritual energy of heaven and earth, which had been raging due to the rupture of the formation, instantly calmed down.

Immediately afterwards, two terrifyingly oppressive auras rose from below the main peak of Wanjian Mountain.

The power of this pressure was so strong that it had surpassed the limits of the mortal realm, and it faintly condensed into two enormous Dharma images in the void.

The Great Perfection of the Mahayana Stage!

"boom!"

The void cracked open, and two aged figures emerged from it.

On the left was a man wearing a tattered gray Taoist robe, his body was as thin as a rake, and his eyes were cloudy, but every breath he took could resonate with the laws of heaven and earth around him; on the right was a man with silver hair, a cold face, and a chilling demonic aura emanating from his body.

These two were none other than the Supreme Elders of Ten Thousand Swords Mountain who had lived for thousands of years.

Tiankui Ancestor and Disha Ancestor.

"Young man, your strength has indeed exceeded our expectations."

Ancestor Tiankui looked at Chu Chang standing in the void, a trace of fear flashing in his turbid eyes.

"At such a young age, you have already entered the Tribulation Transcending Realm. I have cultivated for three thousand years and seen countless people, but I have never seen anyone with such extraordinary talent as you. You are truly remarkable."

"but……"

The Earthly Fiend Ancestor sneered, his eyes flashing with cruel, bloodthirsty light: "You shouldn't have come to my Ten Thousand Swords Mountain to act so presumptuously! Although those at the Tribulation Transcending stage are powerful, you've only just broken through, and your foundation is not yet stable. The two of us, having joined forces and cultivated this place for thousands of years, can certainly kill you with the help of the remaining power of the sect's protective formation!"