Chapter 1498: Sword Dao Pierces the Vast Sky, Dao Heart Shines Like Frost and Snow
"Tribulation?"
Kai Huang looked at Qin Mu, watching him raise the divine sword and examine it under the light falling from Xuan Du. His heart surged with emotion.
The vastness of tribulation—who controls its rise and fall?
Back in the Kai Huang era, the Shang Huang era, the Chi Ming era, the Ten Celestial Venerables had repeatedly sent down tribulations to annihilate the world, turning glorious golden ages to ash and smoke. Amid those tribulations, one brilliant emperor after another, one civilization after another that bridged past and future, ultimately declined and perished. Even the Kai Huang era became nothing but a fleeting dream.
When tribulation loomed, who could seize the oars to ride the wind and waves, carrying all living beings across the calamity?
Kai Huang had not seized them.
Now, Qin Mu named his divine sword "Tribulation." Was it because he foresaw that the Ten Celestial Venerables would bring tribulation down upon Yan Kang? Or was it that he intended to bring tribulation down upon the Heavenly Court? Perhaps it was both.
The power of the Tribulation Sword was completely restrained. From the outside, the sword appeared utterly ordinary—no complex Dao patterns or marks, no superfluous decorations. In Qin Mu's hand, it was like a beam of light he held, merely shaped with an edge and a tip. But everyone who participated in forging this sword knew how terrifying it truly was.
When the sword was successfully forged, the Four Ancient Emperors and Kai Huang had to temper and suppress it together. At the moment of its completion, its might reached beyond the heavens! The Tribulation Sword shook the celestial gates; with a flick, it could topple stars. Even the treasures of the Celestial Venerables had never stirred such a commotion.
Qin Mu gripped the sword, thought for a moment, then casually made a wooden scabbard and slid the Tribulation Sword into it. No scabbard could truly match this divine sword. If its full power were unleashed, even the finest scabbard in the world could not withstand it. So it was better to save effort and use the simplest, most ordinary scabbard to conceal the sword's edge.
"Back then, you convinced me with your sword, making me leave the Land of No Worries. After that, you abandoned the sword and turned to divine abilities."
Kai Huang walked up to Qin Mu and said, "Now you've picked up the sword again. Don't let it down."
Qin Mu nodded. "My sword is not mere sword Dao. I use the sword to kill."
"And are divine abilities not used to kill? Follow the Dao, uphold the righteousness in your heart, never stray from your original intent, never betray your initial resolve. Then what harm is there in turning the sword in your hand into a blade of slaughter?"
Kai Huang turned and walked away, speaking calmly. "Mu Celestial Venerable, you are a genius in sword Dao, but you haven't realized it yourself. You think the path of divine abilities and sword Dao are incompatible, yet you haven't considered that sword Dao divine abilities are still divine abilities, and divine abilities are still divine abilities—they can merge and harmonize."
Qin Mu's mind exploded, and he stood frozen.
Kai Huang's words suddenly opened a door for him, filling him with excitement!
The harmony of divine abilities and sword Dao was the simplest truth, yet one he had never pondered!
In the past, he had comprehended divine abilities, achieving the twenty-third heaven of entering Dao through divine abilities. He had devoted immense effort to divine abilities, studying various great Daos, but he had grown lax in sword Dao. The death of Cripple had stirred a killing intent within him, prompting him to turn back to sword Dao. Yet he knew his sword Dao had only reached the third heaven, and advancing further was incredibly difficult.
But Kai Huang's single insight revealed a vast possibility: merging the Dao realm of divine abilities with the Dao realm of sword Dao!
Suddenly, he couldn't help but leap into the void, drawing the Tribulation Sword. Sword light scattered as sword Dao and the path of divine abilities merged!
In his hands, the sword light flowed as he executed the Four Celestial Sovereign Seals, forming a round heaven and square earth, embodying joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness. Emotions were infused into the Tribulation Sword, and the Dao of divine abilities perfectly fused with sword Dao, its power astonishing!
His sword technique shifted, transforming into the Celestial Earth Mystic Gate. Sword light swept in all directions as a heavenly gate connected heaven, earth, and the mortal realm!
Sword light scattered from his hand as he thrust forward, conjuring a Heavenly River. The Four Poles of Heaven and Earth emerged as he wrote and painted with sword Dao: Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise—the Four Ancient Emperors stood at the four poles of the Heavenly River.
He executed one form after another, pouring out his heart, unable to contain his excitement and elation.
Kai Huang walked out of Tian Yin Realm. Yan Yunxi and Li Youran stepped forward, following behind him. Kai Huang looked back and saw sword Dao spanning the vast sky, crossing the void, dazzling to behold.
There, Qin Mu transformed his accumulated knowledge into sword Dao, advancing by leaps and bounds, his sword Dao cultivation soaring a thousand miles. Even Kai Huang couldn't help but marvel.
"The people of the Qin family—sword Dao is etched into their bones."
He smiled, turned, and continued forward. Then, an old man blocked his path. The old man was timid, shrinking back, not daring to meet his gaze.
"Human Sovereign Su Mozhe."
Kai Huang stopped and studied the old man. Village Chief Su Mozhe's gaze darted away, unable to look him in the eye. Kai Huang said, "You block my path, wanting to break the god in your heart, yet you dare not draw your sword. Do you not even have the courage to hold it?"
Yan Yunxi and Li Youran paused, looking at the Village Chief.
The Village Chief's hand slowly reached for the sword at his waist, but it trembled—not at all like a hand meant to grip a sword.
A hand that wields a sword should be as steady as Kai Huang's. For a sword Dao master's hand reflects the cultivation of their Dao heart. The hand that holds the sword must be as steady as the Dao heart itself, unshaken by turmoil—a single strike to settle a nation, a single stroke to pacify the world—all require mastery of the Dao heart.
Village Chief Su Mozhe was the second person to comprehend the Sword Domain. His sword Dao attainment was extremely high. Yan Kang's emergence of so many sword Dao experts could be said to be largely due to him. It was his careful teaching and nurturing that allowed Yan Kang's sword Dao to advance so rapidly.
Yet after comprehending the Sword Domain, he could not take another step forward, nor could his cultivation realm advance further!
Because his sword Dao cultivation was too high. Whenever he employed sword Dao, he would see a colossal giant standing before him, like an unclimbable, unsurpassable peak!
That person was Kai Huang Qin Ye!
Kai Huang Qin Ye, the foremost in sword Dao, had his sword Dao imprinted across thirty-five voids. Anyone who set foot on the path of sword Dao and comprehended the Sword Domain would see his back, feel the vast and profound power and cultivation of his sword Dao, and be struck with awe as if gazing up at a mountain!
Kai Huang was the god in the hearts of nearly all sword Dao masters, an unbreakable god. For Village Chief Su Mozhe especially, this god pressed down on him, making it hard to breathe.
"You want to strike, to break the god in your heart, yet you dare not, because you think any sword move you make would be wrong."
Kai Huang looked at the Village Chief's hand, still trembling, still unable to grasp his sword, and said in a deep voice, "But you haven't considered that Mu Celestial Venerable was not taught by me. His sword Dao was shaped by you. You are his teacher. In his heart, there is no god at all. My presence does not block his sword Dao."
Village Chief Su Mozhe's voice was hoarse and aged, rasping, "His sword Dao hasn't reached a profound level, so it's hard for him to see this great god blocking his path..."
"Wrong!"
Kai Huang's gaze fell on his face, meeting his eyes directly. "His sword Dao has already reached the twenty-ninth heaven."
The Village Chief was startled. He looked up at the sky and saw Qin Mu's sword Dao vast and boundless, transforming into Primordial Unity Qi, executing the great divine ability of "One Qi Primordial Dao Roaming Together"!
It was not only Qin Mu's understanding of the great Dao and divine abilities but also his understanding of sword Dao!
The twenty-ninth heaven of sword Dao was thus displayed in Qin Mu's hands, using sword Dao to expound the Dao of Primordial Beginning, so perfect and harmonious!
"This kind of sword Dao genius was taught by you, nurtured by you. I could not have taught him."
Kai Huang pressed his hand on the hilt of the Carefree Sword and said solemnly, "You taught such an unparalleled disciple, yet before me, you dare not even draw your sword? Was it not you who told him he was the Overlord Body? Was it not you who cultivated his invincible confidence? Was it not you who taught him how to be a person and how to act? That he has no god in his heart is your doing. Can you, his teacher, not do the same? Draw your sword!"
The Village Chief's eyes grew brighter and brighter, his hand steadier and steadier.
Suddenly, with a clang, his divine sword left its sheath, and sword light filled the sky!
Kai Huang's Carefree Sword left its sheath. Sword light clashed as two figures charged and crossed paths.
Kai Huang halted. Behind him, Village Chief Su Mozhe, his white hair flowing, returned his sword to its sheath, standing firm.
Sssss—
A thousand sword wounds split open on the Village Chief's body, and his vigorous blood and qi burst through the wounds, hard to suppress.
He smiled, his body swaying, then suddenly collapsed to the ground.
Kai Huang slid the Carefree Sword back into its sheath. A single strand of hair at his temple slowly drifted down. He turned back and said, "Su Mozhe, you have stepped out of my shadow. You can now be my Dao companion on the path of sword Dao."
The Village Chief, wounded in the lungs by his sword, gasped like a broken bellows, but he laughed joyfully, like a child, rolling in the blood-soaked mud, clutching his divine sword as he tumbled back and forth.
Kai Huang shook his head and walked out of Tian Yin Realm.
Yan Yunxi and Emperor Shi Tian quickly followed him. Yan Yunxi whispered, "Your Majesty, did you let him win? He cut off a strand of your hair. With his strength, he shouldn't have been able to do that."
Kai Huang shook his head and said calmly, "I yielded to him in cultivation, but not in sword Dao. Sword Dao is the path of attack. He has the qualification and strength to cut off one of my hairs."
His expression was serene. "I do not wish to become the Tenth Celestial Venerable of sword Dao. Not now, not ever."
"The Tenth Celestial Venerable of sword Dao?"
Yan Yunxi was startled, then understood his meaning. Restraining those who come after, firmly grasping power and resources, controlling everything, leaving no hope for later generations to surpass him—wasn't that exactly what the Ten Celestial Venerables did?
Whether Kai Huang had yielded a move to Village Chief Su Mozhe, Yan Yunxi couldn't tell. Both Kai Huang and the Village Chief far surpassed her in sword Dao attainment. But she could feel Kai Huang's state of mind—the state of one who has attained the Dao.
This realm was beyond what the Ten Celestial Venerables could reach.
Emperor Shi Tian Li Youran looked back at Tian Yin Realm. In the Dao Fire Ancestral Land of Tian Yin, a majestic and stalwart figure stood amidst layers of Dao fire, his Dao realm deepening.
He could feel the path of forging advancing, constantly perfecting.
He was no longer the First Heavenly Artisan.
A later generation had surpassed him, yet boundless joy filled his heart.
—Happy birthday to the three alliance leaders: Wear Through Space Stone, Heaven and Earth, and The Story in the Maple Grove!