Chapter 1535: Sword Path Grand Empyrean Heaven
That was a sword transformed from the pure sword path of the Kai Emperor, and also a sword born from his Dao heart after washing away all pretense and all guilt within it.
The Carefree Sword represented the Carefree Realm. Using his own sword path as a blueprint, he forged the Thirty-Three Heavens of the Carefree Realm, concealing the Carefree Realm within the Carefree Sword and bringing it to the Other Shore Void.
Forging the Carefree Realm and relocating the Kai Emperor's Heavenly Court there was the most important decision he had ever made in his life, a correct decision, but also the most controversial one.
Now, the Carefree Sword was shattered, but this was not the Kai Emperor denying himself.
He never believed he had done wrong; rather, he believed he had not done well enough, that his actions had failed the people of the Kai Emperor era.
His sword path sublimated at this moment.
The guilt from his past actions had become an obstacle to advancing his Dao heart and Dao realm, a demon in his heart preventing him from taking that final step.
Outwardly strong, giving the impression of an unshakable Dao heart, he was the Kai Emperor whom no one could change, the Kai Emperor whom no one could defeat!
He was the god of the Carefree Realm!
As long as he existed, the Kai Emperor era would endure!
As long as he lived, the Kai Emperor era would never end!
But in truth, he was never a god. He was only a man.
He too had weakness, hesitation, doubt, and pain in his Dao heart, wounds in his Dao heart, demons in his Dao heart.
When Qin Mu used the Execution Platform and the Execution Divine Saber to peel away his strong exterior, to peel away his Dao heart, layer by layer, revealing his original intention, the pain and demons of his Dao heart were at their most intense, and he was at his most vulnerable.
But it was also the moment his Dao heart ascended!
To ensure tragedy would never repeat itself, he had to wash away the pain and demons of his Dao heart, wash away the guilt of the past, so that in the future there would be no more such guilt and regret!
The Carefree Sword in his hand shattered, his Dao heart ascended, and with his original intention as the sword, the moment the sword was formed, all his sword paths merged completely!
The blood and blade light on the Execution Platform were overwhelmed and shattered by the radiance of that Dao sword. Amid the bloodlight, the Execution Divine Saber in Qin Mu's hands broke inch by inch, forcing Qin Mu to retreat and resist desperately, but the sword light, like the sword path itself, was pervasive, leaving him with countless wounds in an instant!
Qin Mu had no choice but to retreat from the Execution Platform. However, the sword radiance on the platform grew ever more intense, ever more powerful. Layer upon layer of sword path proliferated, sweeping through the heavens and earth of the Carefree Realm, surging into the Other Shore Void, making it impossible even for that void to conceal the sharp edge.
A beam of sword light suddenly appeared in the void, bright and dazzling, illuminating the myriad worlds.
The radiance of that sword path shone upon all heavens and realms, causing all who cultivated the sword to suddenly sense that the sword path within the universe had become incomparably clear, incomparably brilliant, allowing them all to see an immensely majestic figure, an immensely bright sword light!
The sword path was rising, sublimating, imprinting itself upon layer after layer of void, reaching the deepest, most ultimate depths of the void!
Yankang, the Academy of the Dao.
The Village Chief was teaching the younger generation of Yankang how to use the sword. At this moment, he raised his head, his expression solemn and dignified, gazing into the void, his eyes filled with hot tears.
He sensed the birth of an immortal Great Dao.
This was precisely the pinnacle of the Dao he had dreamed of.
Ancestral Court, Jiang Baigui and Yanfeng Emperor walked one behind the other. Jiang Baigui suddenly looked up, a solemn reverence like a pilgrimage, bowed from afar, then continued on his way.
Yanfeng Emperor asked curiously, "Baigui, what are you revering?"
"Revering the one who has attained the Dao of the sword."
Jiang Baigui's expression was grave: "Today, someone has attained the Dao, becoming a monument of the sword path."
At this moment, no matter where they were, all who cultivated the sword path wore solemn and dignified expressions, simultaneously bowing in reverence toward the same direction. The swords in their hands, the sword bags on their backs, the sword cases, the sword pellets they had summoned—all rejoiced and hummed for this attainder of the Dao.
Sword light danced in the air, feeling the incredible power of that heavenly Dao.
And in the Carefree Realm, Celestial Masters such as Yan Yunxi, Zhuo Cha, and Han Tang looked up at that sword light, their heroic spirits surging and churning.
This day had finally come!
From the moment the Kai Emperor's Heavenly Court had transformed into the Carefree Realm, they had accumulated a bellyful of resentment. Even when Qin Mu came to the Carefree Realm and woke its people, reigniting their fighting spirit, that bellyful of resentment had never disappeared.
Because they were still in a position of being beaten.
The divine demon army of the Heavenly Court had attacked the Grand Void, occupied the Grand Void lands, forcing them to retreat into the Other Shore Void, cowering and refusing to come out.
This resentment of theirs had turned into anger. Always cowering, never daring to fight—they were indeed angry in their hearts.
But now, the Kai Emperor had attained the Dao!
That meant they could finally counterattack!
In the distance, Woodcutter Wen Tian'ge appeared much calmer. He looked at that sword light, recalling a day forty thousand years ago when he had met the Kai Emperor. After a long discussion, they had become kindred spirits.
From then on, they had embarked on a path full of legendary color.
Attaining the Dao through acquired cultivation—that was the goal they had set from the very beginning. And today, this goal had finally been realized, at least in a small way.
"But the sword path is only the first step. The three hundred and sixty Great Daos of acquired cultivation—that is the true goal of the Kai Emperor's reforms!"
At this moment, Qin Mu had already retreated from the Execution Platform. The pressure from the Kai Emperor, Qin Ye, on the platform was too great. He was covered in blood and wounds, yet the blood was flowing backward, and the wounds were healing at an astonishing speed.
He too was a cultivator of the sword, and at this moment he sensed that the sword path, as a Great Dao, had been accepted by heaven and earth, becoming a heavenly Dao.
And the Kai Emperor, one of the Nine Heavenly Lords of the Dragon Han era, now seemed to be imprinted between heaven and earth, becoming eternal!
At Qin Mu's waist, the Calamity Sword vibrated gently, emitting a cheerful hum. The sword path becoming an eternal Great Dao made the Calamity Sword very excited as well.
What was excited was not Qin Mu's Calamity Sword, but the sword path Qin Mu cultivated.
"I suppose all sword path masters under heaven can feel this immense joy, right?"
Qin Mu smiled, looking at the Kai Emperor on the Execution Platform with great satisfaction, his heart filled with pride and joy.
This attainder of the Dao was his own creation, so naturally, his heart was full of pride!
On the Execution Platform, the Execution Divine Saber had already shattered, turning into baleful qi that howled and spun around the Kai Emperor, but it could never solidify.
The Kai Emperor's sword path was too strong, preventing the Execution Divine Saber from restoring its complete form.
Qin Mu looked up and saw layer after layer of void opening up. The sharp, unmatched sword path imprinted itself in one void after another, with the Kai Emperor's figure appearing in each layer.
Soon, the sword path imprinted itself in the Thirty-Fifth Void!
In the past, the Kai Emperor had also imprinted his sword path in the Thirty-Fifth Void, but that imprint had been limited in scope. This time, however, his sword path imprinted every corner of the Thirty-Fifth Void, omnipresent!
His sword path spread out like layers of heavens, unfolding across the layers of void, from the Grand Imperial Heaven to the Jade Purity Realm, covering the entire void.
Qin Mu suppressed his excitement, watching as the Kai Emperor's sword path broke through the Thirty-Fifth Void and arrived at the Ultimate Void!
He quietly waited for this moment, which was bound to be etched into the history of the entire universe!
Taiyi had attained the Dao, but Taiyi was not a native being of this universe.
Tai Emperor had attained the Dao, but he was only a half-finished product, a defective one.
Tai Chu and Heavenly Lord Hao had attained the Dao, but they could only briefly remain in the Heavenly Court realm and were currently unable to imprint their Dao in the Ultimate Void.
The two Empress sisters had attained the Dao, but they had merged into one person, mad and delirious, and had not imprinted their Dao in the Ultimate Void.
Only the Kai Emperor, Qin Ye, if he succeeded in imprinting his sword path in the Ultimate Void, would become the first attainder of the Dao in this universe!
The Ultimate Void opened—a cold, desolate void, empty of all things, infinitely dangerous, where almost no matter could remain.
Whether person or object, upon entering the Ultimate Void, they would be blown by the cold, desolate wind, becoming infinitely thin, infinitely wide, the distance between particles of matter becoming infinitely far.
There was no mass there, no temperature, only cold desolation.
The Grand Void's Bridge of Void had blocked the Heavenly Court's army, making it difficult even for Heavenly Lords to cross, but the Ultimate Void was countless times more dangerous than the Thirty-Fifth Void!
Only true Dao could be eternally imprinted there.
The Kai Emperor's sword path entered that place, and then the sword path rose, spreading out in all directions amid the cold desolation, forming a Sword Path Grand Empyrean Heaven.
The range covered by the Sword Path Grand Empyrean Heaven grew wider and wider, larger and larger. Within this Grand Empyrean Heaven, a sword light suddenly trembled gently, and a tender sprout grew within the Grand Empyrean Heaven, growing at a visible speed into a towering tree.
It was a World Tree, also a Dao tree of the sword path.
The Dao tree grew from a sapling into a great tree, rising higher and higher, its canopy growing denser and denser, making the Sword Path Grand Empyrean Heaven look like a strange sky carved from fine jade.
Suddenly, a flower bud formed on the Dao tree. The sword path had produced a Dao flower there.
The flower bud trembled gently, and the petals spun outward, separating. Thirty-six petals spun open, revealing a crystal-clear stamen like jade swords.
This Dao flower was intoxicating. Gazing at it from afar, one could not smell its fragrance, but one could see the sharpness and breadth of the sword path, as well as its supreme might!
On the Execution Platform, the Kai Emperor's aura grew stronger and stronger, his cultivation base surging by leaps and bounds. The Dao flower became more vibrant, and the Dao tree grew more robust.
Qin Mu clenched his fists tightly, quietly waiting for that crucial moment.
After an unknown amount of time, the Kai Emperor's aura accumulated to its peak, then suddenly returned to calm. He stepped down from the Execution Platform, one step at a time.
Qin Mu was stunned and called out loudly, "Heavenly Lord Qin, what about your Dao fruit?"
The Kai Emperor descended the steps, shaking his head: "My sword path has been used up."
Qin Mu was furious: "What do you mean, used up?"
"It means the foundation of my sword path is exhausted, and I cannot make the Dao flower bear fruit."
The Kai Emperor's tone was very calm, unhurried: "I felt my spirit merge with the Grand Empyrean Heaven. In an instant, my Dao heart became immensely vast, as if a new world had appeared before my eyes. At that moment, I was both excited and calm."
He spoke slowly, recounting his insights during the attainment of the Dao: "I suddenly realized that attaining the Dao is not the end. There are still realms beyond it. I just comprehended this realm, mysterious and profound, beyond the description of words, beyond the depiction of divine consciousness. I couldn't help but immerse myself in it, thereby realizing my own shallowness."
Qin Mu couldn't help but yearn for the Grand Empyrean Heaven, murmuring, "That means there's a lot more to gnaw on for many years..."
He suddenly snapped back to reality and said seriously, "I killed Consort Qiang, seized the Execution Platform and the Execution Divine Saber, all to help you attain the Dao. And my purpose in helping you attain the Dao is for Celestial Venerable Ling and Celestial Venerable Yun! Kai Emperor, do you have confidence?"
The Kai Emperor smiled slightly.