Chapter 1389: Heavenly Dao Sword Art
Zhang Ruochen’s expression shifted as a thought struck him. “You are that peerless genius of the Chi Clan from two hundred years ago?”
“That’s right.”
Chi Dufeng, seated within the Golden Step Dragon Carriage, spoke with a tone brimming with immense confidence.
With his noble status as a member of the imperial clan and his sword mastery reaching the Sword Saint realm, he was a leading figure among his peers, even surpassing older saints who had cultivated for five or six hundred years. Such achievements certainly warranted such confidence.
Chi Dufeng said, “Since you managed to break through to this point, it seems there are quite a few experts among those Sacred Bright rebels. The battle outside must be quite brutal, I imagine.”
“Indeed, it’s brutal. Many members of the Chi Clan have been wiped out, including some old fellows who lived for several hundred years—they’ve all been killed,” Zhang Ruochen said bluntly.
Chi Dufeng knew better than anyone how formidable the Lingxiao Heavenly King Manor was. For the Sacred Bright rebels to have broken in, they must have paid a heavy price.
To severely damage the Lingxiao Heavenly King Manor, they still had a long way to go.
Chi Dufeng snorted lightly, clearly not believing Zhang Ruochen’s words. He chuckled, “Your purpose in coming to the Ancestral Shrine of the Emperors must be to take control of the Great Saint Inscription Runes and turn the tide of the battle outside, right? Unfortunately, you’ve run into me. Today, the Sacred Bright rebels are doomed to total annihilation.”
Zhang Ruochen didn’t want to waste more words with him. He prepared to suppress and kill him as quickly as possible, so he fully mobilized the world force of the Qiankun Realm.
He summoned it nine times in succession, and a vast, boundless power surged from the Qiankun Realm, erupting through Zhang Ruochen’s five saintly meridians.
Zhang Ruochen swung the Abyssal Ancient Sword, slashing horizontally.
“This power… how terrifying…”
Chi Dufeng sensed the abnormal power fluctuations emanating from Zhang Ruochen. His expression shifted slightly as he pressed both hands forward, channeling his saintly qi continuously into the nine chains, transmitting it to the nine flood dragons.
“Nine Dragons Unite, Sweep the Eight Wastelands.”
Scorching light burst from the bodies of the nine saint-level flood dragons, their saintly power intertwining to illuminate the entire area.
Above the nine saint-level flood dragons, a divine dragon phantom appeared, as if the nine dragons had merged into one. Their saintly power stacked together, surging forward to meet the attack.
“Boom.”
By mobilizing the world force of the Qiankun Realm, Zhang Ruochen could unleash the full power of the Abyssal Ancient Sword. Ten thousand zhang of black light surged from the blade, shattering the divine dragon phantom.
The sword blade slashed horizontally, unstoppable, severing the bodies of all nine saint-level flood dragons in a single stroke. Dragon blood cascaded down like nine blood-red waterfalls, and nine dragon heads, each as massive as a palace, flew backward.
If an outsider had been present, they would have been utterly stunned.
Zhang Ruochen’s strike carried an invincible momentum. The sword qi surged forward, nearly toppling the Golden Step Dragon Carriage. However, the carriage was an extraordinary treasure with unparalleled defensive power, managing to block the residual sword qi.
All nine saint-level flood dragons were slain by Zhang Ruochen’s single blow.
Chi Dufeng’s mind churned with difficulty, filled with astonishment.
At the Demon Sect’s headquarters, Zhang Ruochen had used three moves to barely repel Mu Qingtian, and his strength could be estimated. But now, the power he unleashed was more than ten times greater than Mu Qingtian’s.
“No, the power on him is rapidly fading.”
Chi Dufeng realized that the previous strike was not Zhang Ruochen’s true strength but borrowed external force.
With that thought, he calmed down.
Borrowing external force always came at a great cost, and one couldn’t wield that power freely. Otherwise, everyone would rely on borrowed power, and who would bother with solid, down-to-earth cultivation?
Chi Dufeng also possessed means to borrow external force, but he would never use them unless his life was on the line.
“Impressive strength, Zhang Ruochen. You indeed have hidden trump cards. But it’s a pity—you’ve already set yourself on a path of self-destruction. For a true prodigy, fighting with borrowed power brings a hundred harms and not a single benefit.”
Seeing Zhang Ruochen as a formidable enemy, Chi Dufeng laughed loudly, preparing to first shatter Zhang Ruochen’s resolve with words: “I thought that with your talent, you might cultivate to the Great Saint realm and become a world-dominating overlord like Emperor Ming. But I overestimated you.”
“Below the Great Saint realm, it’s about insight and talent. Above the Great Saint realm, it’s more about tempering the heart.”
“When you recklessly fight with borrowed power, your heart becomes corroded. You’re consuming your own potential, eroding your will, seeking only momentary strength while destroying your entire cultivation path.”
But he didn’t know that Zhang Ruochen understood this principle very well.
Everything has its pros and cons. While gaining immense power, one inevitably pays invisible, heavy costs.
If not for the urgent need to enter the Ancestral Shrine of the Emperors, Zhang Ruochen wouldn’t have actively mobilized the world force of the Qiankun Realm.
“How presumptuous. Someone like you has even greater flaws in your heart.”
Zhang Ruochen tried to mobilize the world force of the Qiankun Realm again, but failed.
Seizing the moment, Chi Dufeng didn’t give Zhang Ruochen another chance to borrow external force. He drew a sacred sword, charged out of the Golden Step Dragon Carriage, activated the “Qing Zhao Divine Art,” and unleashed the sword intent of Sword Seven, attacking with three consecutive strikes.
“Three Celestial Phenomenon Swords.”
The first sword was like a world-shaking hurricane, with tens of thousands of wind blades following the sword qi, converging into a single thread of sword energy.
The second sword erupted with thunder and lightning, condensing into a vast sea of lightning. The mere sound of the thunder could shatter the eardrums of some saints.
The third sword rained down sword qi like a torrential storm, merging with the hurricane and lightning, complementing each other, layering upon layer, with power escalating step by step.
These so-called Three Celestial Phenomenon Swords were sword techniques created based on three celestial phenomena, aligning with the Heavenly Dao rules, each strike being a sacred art.
Only a Sword Saint could merge the three sword techniques into one, doubling their power.
Facing a powerhouse like Chi Dufeng, Zhang Ruochen had to go all out, releasing his sword intent and executing the sword techniques of the Skyward Sword Lineage—the True One Thunderfire Sword Art.
“Divine Thunder of the Ninth Heaven.”
The sky turned pitch black, and hundreds of lightning bolts descended from the heavens, merging with the Abyssal Ancient Sword. He swung it, meeting Chi Dufeng’s Three Celestial Phenomenon Swords.
“Rumble.”
Two powerful sword intents and sword qi collided violently—a duel at the Sword Saint level, akin to a battle between true gods for ordinary cultivators.
Amid the dense mass of sword qi, Zhang Ruochen retreated, taking dozens of steps back to land several miles away. His robe bore dozens of gashes, and even a lock of his hair had been severed.
Chi Dufeng, clad in a golden kingly robe, appeared exceptionally handsome and carefree. A wave of cyan saintly qi surged outward like a tide, shattering the surrounding sword qi.
Holding his sacred sword, he looked at the somewhat disheveled Zhang Ruochen, a smile curling at the corner of his mouth. “Do you know why I’m waiting for you here? Because the space and time structure of this area outside the Ancestral Shrine of the Emperors is extremely stable, maximally suppressing your time and space powers. Blame your Zhang Clan ancestors for carving too many inscription runes here.”
Clearly, although Chi Dufeng was arrogant and dismissive, he was quite shrewd and cautious. Otherwise, someone with his temperament wouldn’t have survived over two hundred years.
From the start, Chi Dufeng had been attacking Zhang Ruochen’s resolve.
Because he knew that in a Sword Saint-level duel, the heart was paramount, and the sword secondary. Once the heart was broken, defeat was inevitable.
Chi Dufeng had once dominated with his fused “Three Celestial Phenomenon Swords,” slaying gods and demons alike. That Zhang Ruochen could block them was already surprising, though he didn’t show it outwardly.
Chi Dufeng walked forward leisurely, one hand holding his sword and the other behind his back, as if strolling through a garden. “Honestly, your strength is a bit beyond my expectations. But still, within ten moves, you’ll die under my sword.”
Zhang Ruochen’s heart was as firm as a rock, completely unaffected. “Your strength is also a bit beyond my expectations.”
“Is that so?”
Chi Dufeng smiled faintly.
Then, Zhang Ruochen added, “I heard that two hundred years ago, you could exchange dozens of moves with Senior Luo Xu without losing. But now, I suspect Senior Luo Xu could kill you with a single punch. Over the years, you’ve completely fallen behind.”
Chi Dufeng’s smile vanished, replaced by a murderous intent. “It seems I’ll have to show you my true strength and make you die convinced.”
“Three Celestial Will Swords.”
Shrill sounds rang out.
Tens of thousands of sword qi surged from the sacred sword in Chi Dufeng’s hand, flying rapidly through the surrounding space.
Zhang Ruochen’s expression shifted slightly. “Has Chi Dufeng also mastered the Three Celestial Will Swords?”
Both the “Three Celestial Phenomenon Swords” and the “Three Celestial Will Swords” were sword techniques from the “Heavenly Dao Sword Art.” Above them were the “Three Heavenly Dao Swords.”
A total of nine sword techniques, which could be used individually or fused together.
If someone could cultivate the “Heavenly Dao Sword Art” to the point of fusing all nine swords, the unleashed power would rival a perfected Sword Nine.
“The Celestial Will Cannot Be Defied.”
“The Celestial Will Cannot Be Measured.”
“The Celestial Will Has Been Decided.”
Three consecutive sword techniques extended into tens of thousands of sword qi and sword shadows, surging toward Zhang Ruochen like a tide, as if a Sword God had descended, aiming to obliterate him.
“Nine Nines Return to One.”
Zhang Ruochen didn’t retreat or dodge. Instead, he mobilized the sword intent of Sword Seven and executed the strongest move of the True One Thunderfire Sword Art.
In an instant, Zhang Ruochen’s body split into nine, then into eighty-one.
The eighty-one figures arranged themselves in a peculiar pattern, causing the sky to shift and change. Thousands of lightning bolts descended from the heavens, while rolling flames erupted from the ground, like a sea of fire enveloping the eighty-one Zhang Ruochens.
All eighty-one figures struck simultaneously, swinging their swords to counter the Three Celestial Will Swords.