Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

"Qingse is thinking of starting a small business in the Sword Dynasty in a while, dealing with women's daily necessities, such as bellybands and clothes, so she wants to inquire about it."

Balan was also making plans. It wouldn't matter if Qingse and Chu Mingkong did some small business together; it wasn't even a favor. It was just a gesture of goodwill.

“If Miss Qingse needs any help, please let me know,” Balan said.

......

Inside the main hall, the conversation proceeded in a serious manner.

Chu Mingkong could go and see the Two Elements Chaotic Soul Array himself later, so the focus of the conversation was still on the situation related to the Heavenly Domain.

Even if they focused on discussing it, the Sword Dynasty royal family to which Empress Ba belonged knew very little. It was as if the situation in the Heavenly Domain had been sealed off since a certain period of time.

The Queen of Ba mentioned that the first queen seemed to have unintentionally revealed that the Heavenly Realm had undergone many rounds of power struggles and evolutions, sometimes dividing and sometimes uniting, and eventually slowly became a rigid system.

One of the forces highly valued weaponry, and thus it once accepted the early Sword Dynasty, attracted by the Sword Dynasty's emphasis on sword intent cultivation.

As the first empress, she herself was naturally at the level of a sword immortal. Unlike the current empress, she needed to rely on Balan for her military support. But it's not entirely the fault of this generation of empresses. In all the years of the Sword Emperor Dynasty, there have only been about a dozen sword immortals. It's impossible for someone from the Ba family to necessarily become a sword immortal.

"The late emperor said that even if there is an insurmountable gap in cultivation level due to talent, the comprehension of sword intent is unrelated to cultivation level. This applies to people in every world. This should refer to the strength related to weapon cultivation in the Heavenly Domain."

The Two Elements Chaotic Soul Formation is a sword diagram coveted even by beings in the Heavenly Realm; it is said to have been won by the late emperor from the people of the Heavenly Realm.

Zuo Qiuchi was surprised:

"The fact that they won the sword diagram shows that they were willing to accept defeat. But why insist on setting up this grand formation, the culmination of generations of hard work, and trying to scheme against those 'descended' celestial beings? Is it because they have a conflict with other forces and have been angered?"

"I don't know." Empress Ba shook her head helplessly: "The matter concerning the Heavenly Realm is only known to a few high-ranking members of the Sword Dynasty, and it has not been publicized."

The primary reason for this was to avoid causing panic, and the other reason was that there was no need to publicize the news, because apart from the first empress, none of the subsequent successors had any further contact with the people of the Celestial Realm.

Spreading such news would be pointless.

Chu Mingkong pondered the various details in the intelligence report. The empress who arranged the marriage between him, his master's beloved concubine, and Aunt Donglu was truly remarkable.

"Did the late emperor leave any clues about the journey to the Heavenly Realm?" This was the question Chu Mingkong most wanted to know.

"No, but after the late emperor stabilized the Sword Dynasty, he visited the Queen Mother of the West of the Daoist sect. During this period, she did not mention the Two Elements Chaotic Soul Array. I am wondering if it was the Queen Mother of the West who helped the late emperor make contact with the Heavenly Realm?"

Chapter Forty-Eight: Touch Your Big Peach

Okay, so this is a vicious cycle!

The Queen Mother of the West and Yao Ji of the Daoist sect have both gone into seclusion and disappeared. No one knows where they went, leaving the Daoist sect leaderless. Chu Mingkong couldn't find any clues in the Daoist sect, which is why he set off for the Sword Dynasty.

In the blink of an eye, the ancestor of the Sword Dynasty was very likely to have sought advice from the Daoist sect and made contact with the Heavenly Domain.

But something's not right. The Taoist sect has the ability to contact the Heavenly Realm, so why do so few of its disciples know about it?

With such great abilities, it's impossible for the Taoist sect's combat power to be so much weaker than the Buddhist sect's.

While there are certainly some reclusive elders in the Taoist sect, the Buddhist sect has quite a few active high-level combatants. The Asura King is everywhere, not to mention the Rakshasa Society, which was also founded by the Buddhist sect.

"Did the late emperor mention anything about the Queen Mother of the West?" Chu Mingkong had lost his train of thought and started asking casually.

"It was briefly mentioned that the Queen Mother of the West and Yao Ji of the Daoist sect were both very kind and gentle women. They possessed power and had dignified appearances, but no arrogant or domineering manner. Apart from that, nothing else was mentioned."

Regarding the faction in the Heavenly Realm that revered weapon mastery, the late emperor described them as "extremely fanatical" and possessing a "unconventional unity of man and sword."

Chu Mingkong sighed, then suddenly remembered something and said to Zuo Qiuchi:

"Master, when we were dealing with Li Tairan earlier, didn't Aunt Donglu say that there was something wrong with that flying sword? Did you come to any conclusions afterward?"

Zuo Qiuchi immediately took out the broken sword that had been confiscated at the time, pointed to the broken surface, and said:

Look here.

Chu Mingkong looked closely and at first glance he didn't notice anything, but upon closer inspection, he could actually see some flesh and blood textures on the cut surface.

Balan leaned over to check as well, looking puzzled:

"This is definitely not from the Sword Emperor Dynasty."

Zuo Qiuchi relayed what Donglu had said at the time:

"Donglu is a swordsman who cultivates flying swords. She said that this flying sword had its own sword intent at the time, which was very different from Li Tairan's. It didn't seem like it was made by him. This sword seemed to have its own thoughts, but it was a bit clumsy."

The fact that there are no concepts like sword spirits or weapon spirits in this world is quite surprising, considering that even scriptures can emanate their own will.

This flying sword has its own ideas; to these sword cultivators, it sounds more like living beings being poured into the sword.

Balan said incredulously:

"The Sword Emperor Dynasty doesn't possess such technology. Could it be that Li Tairan obtained this item, which is why he's so obsessed with the Yin-Yang Chaos Soul Formation? Could that formation possibly forge a divine sword with its own consciousness?"

Since we've gotten to this point in the conversation, let's head over and take a look at the Yin-Yang Chaotic Soul Array.

Balan helped the Queen to her feet and led the way for everyone.

When the great formation was mentioned, Chu Mingkong wondered if it was underground or somewhere else, but Balan led the way to a cloud ladder.

The group walked upwards on clouds, as if climbing an invisible pagoda.

As they ascended higher, the panoramic view of the Sword Emperor Dynasty's capital came into view, with mountains, rivers, buildings, and streets scattered like stars, a sight that was breathtaking and invigorating.

At the very top is a transparent platform; stepping on it feels like walking on water, creating tiny ripples.

This transparent platform is engraved with mysterious and profound array patterns. Among them, the Yin-Yang Eyes face the direction of the Abyss on one side and the direction of Yang Valley on the other.

Chu Mingkong had not yet visited Yang Valley, but as his senses probed in that direction, a faint hostility arose from the extreme Yin power within him.

Aside from the unique natural Yin-Yang balance, what is most astonishing about this place is the feeling of being surrounded by countless swords, as if one were standing on the edge of an abyss.

These are the countless sword intents filling the formation, as if countless flying swords are wandering in the sky. Each sword intent exudes the remaining will of its master before death, with sighs and cries of resentment being the most common.

Chu Mingkong and Zuo Qiuchi were both newcomers, and their first thought was: if a sword were truly forged from this great formation, how heavy would the resentment in that sword be...?

Putting aside whether we can deal with the Celestials, it's a good thing we don't end up dealing with ourselves.

There are no teleportation array patterns or anything like that in this great formation, so it seems there are no secret passages leading to the Heavenly Realm hidden within.

"Normally, this place shouldn't be easily accessible to others, right? Do those sword cultivators only have the opportunity to come here when they sacrifice their own sword intent?" Chu Mingkong asked.

Balan felt a pang of shame, but could only tell the truth:

"This is forged from the sword intent of countless sword cultivators of the Sword Emperor Dynasty, but they never actually have the chance to get close to it in their entire lives. To sacrifice one's sword intent, one only needs to set up a small array and then guide one's mind to send the sword intent into this large array. There is no need to come here in person."

Chu Mingkong thought about it and agreed, then said:

"So, according to Queen Ba's plan, this place will be completely sealed off in the future?"

"I have this intention, but if a powerful being from the Heavenly Realm were to wreak havoc on the Sword Dynasty in the future, then we would have no choice but to use this formation to try it out. However, before we reach that point, I do not want to try the unknown consequences of this formation."

......

Inside the Immortal Treasure Pavilion.

Jin Yu and her mother, Pei Mi, were relaxing in their room.

The girl, whose body was as delicate and fragrant as warm jade, tossed and turned on the bed, trying to pass the time. Her two soft, plump breasts would sometimes flatten and round, and sometimes become full again, as she rolled around.

"Jinyu, stop rolling around like a worm. You're making my eyes dizzy. If you're so bored, why don't you go to the Sword Dynasty with Chu Mingkong? Ruyu went with him." Pei Mi complained irritably.

"But we also brought Qingse. With so many people, we might not be able to take care of them all. We'll go after we've settled on the accommodations." Jinyu continued to roll around on the bed.

She also tried rolling back and forth, but it was a bit tiring, and the hair accessories would stick to her head, so it was more practical to roll left and right.

"Then don't let your own decisions dangle in front of you."

"Mi'er, you seem so relaxed. You looked so sad before Chu Lang led you through the wedding ceremony. Although the ceremony itself was simple, you felt much better as soon as it was over. What are you pretending for?"

Pei Mi got up and went to bed. He then pulled Jin Yu onto his lap and gave her a good spanking, making her firm, soft buttocks tremble.

Jin Yu, relying on the fact that her mother wouldn't really hurt her, continued to tease and joke:

"Mi'er, you're afraid Chu Lang won't come, and you're also afraid Chu Lang will do something reckless~"

Pei Mi's jade-like face was flushed and beautiful, and she said fiercely with a hint of shyness:

"You still say it's reckless? I'll start by recklessly messing with your butt!"

"I'll tell you, I'll tell you~ Look, Yongzhen is already carrying a baby, and Mi'er, you and my mother, Zhi'er, don't get along, right? Now Zhi'er's mother is pregnant too. If we mother and daughter don't work harder, we'll run into trouble!"

"You call Xiao Zhi 'Mother Consort' but I 'Mi'er,' right? You little ingrate!" Pei Mi was furious.

Spanking her bottom wasn't enough, so in the end he rubbed her soft, tender face until her hair was all messed up before he could calm down.

Jin Yu tidied her hair, opened her delicate hands as if to claw at Pei Mi, and then pounced:

"You've been taking pictures of me for so long, let me take some pictures of yours too. How come your peaches are so big?"

Chapter Forty-Nine: The Three-Flower Medicine Classic, Flowers Blooming at the Top

In the large cemetery.

From the hills to the valleys, rows of neat sword mounds stretch as far as the eye can see, and even from a high vantage point, the view is boundless.

Occasionally a few cultivators would pass by, but that did little to alleviate the desolation of life and death in this place.

Zuo Donglu stood in front of a sword mound, remaining silent for a long time.

A stone tablet stands in the sword tomb, detailing the deceased's life. In front of the tomb is a stone-carved sword, the sword used by Zuo Donglu's master.

"Master, my cultivation has not improved at all in five years. I am filled with confusion and cannot find a solution..."

On one of the few occasions when Zuo Donglu descended Wufeng Cliff, aside from some routine ceremonies of the Sword Emperor Dynasty, sweeping her master's grave was also a major event.

This phrase has become something she says every year, but it varies each year. At first, she said "no progress in a year," and later it became "two years."

The passing of her grandfather and her master was a deep-seated problem for her.

If one's cultivation continues to enhance one's destiny, will it eventually bring calamity upon those who have had connections with one in the past?

Perhaps the key to spiritual cultivation is to focus more on oneself and manage one's own cultivation. As long as one's destiny does not affect one, then one should pretend that those influences do not exist.

However, some people find it difficult to be so decisively selfish. As for Zuo Donglu herself, she knew that after embarking on the path of cultivation, conflicts and hurting others were inevitable, but she did not want the people around her to suffer because of her.

"Qiu Chi said that her rebellious disciple, Ming Kong, can use the power of extreme Yin to disrupt my destiny. Perhaps when I come back next year, my cultivation report will bring good news..."

A strange male voice came from behind the tombstone; someone was hiding there.