Chapter 135: Overlord's Giant Sword

The Inner Prefecture was located in the deepest part of the Azure Wind Profound Palace, separated from the Middle Prefecture by a dense thicket. After passing through the trees, the entrance to the Inner Prefecture appeared. What blocked the entrance was not a gate, but a slowly rotating purple sealing formation.

As Sikong Du approached, the formation stopped rotating and then vanished. However, when Yun Che took a step forward, the vanished formation suddenly reappeared, and an irresistible repulsive force emanated from it, forcing Yun Che back a step. Simultaneously, an aged voice came from an unknown location:

"Sikong Du, is the person you've brought the 'Yun Che' that Prefect Qin spoke of?"

Sikong Du declared, "Yes. Elder Xu, please grant us passage."

A faint profound energy suddenly emanated from the front, landing on Yun Che and quickly vanishing after entering his body. Following this, the aged voice spoke again: "This is the Inner Prefecture's passage mark, but it is only valid for three months. After three months, the mark will automatically disappear. You may enter."

"Let's go," Sikong Du said, stepping forward and entering the Inner Prefecture.

The environment of the Inner Prefecture could only be described as simple and serene. At a glance, there wasn't a single person in sight, and the buildings, though simple, exuded an ancient charm.

However, the moment Yun Che took his first step inside, he clearly felt that the profound energy here was exceptionally dense, at least twice as potent as outside.

"Did you feel it?" Sikong Du glanced at Yun Che's reaction and explained, "Although the Inner Prefecture is small, beneath it lies a rare natural profound vein! This allows the Inner Prefecture to possess incredibly dense profound energy. The sealing formation we just passed through doesn't just seal the entrance; its greater purpose is to prevent this profound energy from dissipating."

"The tower directly ahead is called the Profound Gathering Pagoda, and it has ten floors. Special formations have been set up within the pagoda that can greatly gather the Inner Prefecture's profound energy, allowing the profound energy inside to reach an extremely high density. Cultivating within the pagoda will inevitably be much faster than outside."

Following Sikong Du's direction, Yun Che saw the ten-story pagoda standing in the very center of the Inner Prefecture.

"You only have three months, so you must seize every moment to cultivate; it's best not to waste a single second," Sikong Du said seriously. Although he knew that no matter how desperately Yun Che cultivated, defeating Murong Yi was fundamentally impossible. The only thing he could hope for was a miracle... for example, Murong Yi suddenly choking on water, dying from overeating, being struck by lightning, tripping and falling to his death, or collapsing from exhaustion on a woman's belly within these three months...

"Therefore, you should start cultivating in the Profound Gathering Pagoda today. Devote all your time and effort to it, even eating and sleeping there... As for food, I'll personally bring it to you every day if necessary."

Yun Che felt a warmth in his heart upon hearing this, and a look of gratitude appeared on his face. "Brother Sikong, thank you for your generosity."

"Haha, don't mention it," Sikong Du said with a smile. "Your grandfather saved my life. Without him, Xiao Lie, I wouldn't be where I am today. For years, I've longed to repay your grandfather's great kindness, and your arrival has finally allowed me to fulfill my wish to some extent. Whatever I do for you is only right. Alright, let's go. I'll take you to the Heavenly Armory first."

"The Heavenly Armory?"

"The Azure Wind Profound Palace has three main armories: the Mortal Armory, the Earthly Armory, and the Heavenly Armory. The Mortal Armory is in the Outer Prefecture, the Earthly Armory is in the Middle Prefecture, and the Heavenly Armory belongs to the Inner Prefecture. These three armories are where disciples select their weapons. Naturally, the Heavenly Armory in the Inner Prefecture has the highest-grade weapons. Any Inner Prefecture disciple gets one chance to select a weapon from the Heavenly Armory. After choosing a weapon, you can go to the Grand Profound Hall to select the profound arts and profound skills you wish to cultivate... Furthermore, only Inner Prefecture disciples can cultivate the Azure Wind Profound Palace's unique profound arts, and naturally, its highest-grade profound skills."

"Also, the Inner Prefecture has no instructors; all cultivation relies on self-study."

As they spoke, they arrived at the Heavenly Armory.

The Heavenly Armory was located underground, but it wasn't dark. At a glance, an array of weapons of various colors filled the view: swords, blades, spears, halberds, axes, hammers, daggers... everything imaginable. Most glittered with brilliant, colorful lights, while some lay quietly in corners, dull and unlit. The moment Yun Che entered, he felt waves of cold aura washing over him—some agile, some noble, some sharp, and some domineering.

"The lowest grade of weapons in the Heavenly Armory are True Profound Artifacts, with most being Spirit Profound Artifacts," Sikong Du explained. "Originally, there were also some powerful Earth Profound Artifacts, but they have long since been taken by previous generations. The only remaining Earth Profound Artifact is an undesirable one that no one is willing to choose. Yun Che, what weapon do you usually use?"

Yun Che paused for a moment, then truthfully replied, "I'm not skilled with any weapon."

When he was on the Azure Cloud Continent, his hands were needed to control the Sky Poison Pearl, so he couldn't wield weapons. After all, the Sky Poison Pearl wasn't integrated with his body back then as it is now.

"You don't cultivate with weapons?" Sikong Du looked surprised, then shook his head and said, "As a profound practitioner, you shouldn't overlook the immense role of weapons. A suitable weapon can greatly enhance a profound practitioner's attack and defense capabilities; its effect is no less than having an extra arm. In battles between practitioners of the same level, with other conditions being equal, a practitioner without a weapon will simply be unable to defeat one who uses a weapon. However, you're still young, so it's not too late to start cultivating with one now."

Yun Che nodded, agreeing with Sikong Du's words. Previously, he hadn't trained with weapons because he needed to control the Sky Poison Pearl, but now, it was indeed time to cultivate a weapon that suited him.

"If you truly haven't trained with weapons before, then I suggest you choose a sword," Sikong Du said. "The sword is considered the king of all weapons. It can hack, slash, stab, cut, gouge, pare, and parry. It's versatile, easy to control, powerful in both offense and defense, and simple to learn and master. Currently, on the Profound Sky Continent, roughly seventy percent of profound practitioners use swords as their weapons. Unless a profound art or skill requires a specific weapon to unleash its full power, most practitioners will choose a sword. My weapon is also a sword."

Yun Che also agreed with Sikong Du's words. Previously, during the Phoenix trial and the battle against the Black Demon Mercenary Group, he had used the Tiger Soul Sword, which he acquired from a branch of the Xiao Sect. He had no prior experience using a sword, yet he wielded the Tiger Soul Sword with surprising ease on those occasions. The sword's versatility, offensive and defensive capabilities, and ease of learning and mastery were unmatched by other weapons.

"Alright, then I'll choose a sword," Yun Che nodded.

Among the many weapons in the Heavenly Armory, swords were the most numerous, numbering in the hundreds. Yun Che's gaze meticulously swept over each sword, all of which emanated different auras. After examining them all, his heart was filled with disappointment, as none of the swords' auras could compare to that of his own Tiger Soul Sword.

After all, the swords here were True Profound Swords and Spirit Profound Swords, while the Tiger Soul Sword was a genuine Earth Profound Sword.

Just as he was about to look at other weapons, Yun Che suddenly paused, his gaze drawn to the bottom of a weapon rack.

Beneath the weapon rack adorned with various divine swords lay a giant sword, quietly covered in a thick layer of dust... Indeed, this was a genuine greatsword. Its blade was a full thirty centimeters wide, and its length was almost equivalent to Yun Che's height. The blade was blunt and massive, and the hilt was wide, clearly requiring two hands to wield. The entire sword body was jet black, without any fancy patterns. It didn't even exude any outward aura, just lying quietly in the dust like a piece of ordinary iron, as if it had long been overlooked and forgotten. If not for Yun Che's sharp eyes, he wouldn't have noticed its existence.

"What about this sword?" Yun Che crouched down and asked curiously.

Sikong Du glanced at the greatsword and casually said, "Oh, that's the last Earth Profound Artifact remaining here, the one I just mentioned. It's called the 'Overlord's Sword,' and it was used by a fierce general known as the 'Overlord' in the Azure Wind Empire a thousand years ago. He used this sword to slay countless enemies and achieve illustrious military feats. After his death, the sword was placed in this Heavenly Armory, and it has remained silent for many years. It's just a pity that this Earth Profound Artifact is a heavy sword; as profound practitioners, no one would ever choose it."

"Why?" Yun Che asked.

"It's simple," Sikong Du replied. "Because it's a heavy sword, with an enormous blade and immense weight. Though still a 'sword,' it completely lacks the agility and versatility of a regular sword. Its weight makes merely wielding it an extremely difficult task, and even if one could wield it, every swing would consume a vast amount of profound energy. Clumsy, difficult to wield, and high energy consumption—these three disadvantages ensure that no profound practitioner will choose it. Its greatest advantage is that, once it hits, it will undoubtedly cause immense destructive power. However, with such a cumbersome sword body, the swinging speed can't possibly be fast, making it very difficult to hit an enemy. Furthermore, after a swing, it leaves a huge opening, giving the opponent ample opportunity to strike."

"Moreover, although a heavy sword is still a sword, its characteristics are entirely different from those of a normal sword. Therefore, profound skills related to swords are not suitable for heavy sword cultivation. Currently, the Grand Profound Hall has three hundred forty-seven sword-based profound skills, but not a single one for heavy swords."

As Sikong Du spoke, Yun Che kept his eyes fixed on the dust-covered Overlord's Greatsword, picturing himself freely wielding this heavy sword... At that moment, he suddenly extended both hands, grasping the hilt of the Overlord's Greatsword, and then lifted it with force.

The Overlord's Greatsword remained absolutely still.

Yun Che's heart secretly jolted... *It's so heavy!*

He took a deep breath, clenched his teeth, and instantly gathered all his profound energy, pouring all his strength into his hands, then let out a roar.

"Hmph!"

*Clang...* With a profoundly heavy metallic scraping sound, the Overlord's Heavy Sword was finally lifted bit by bit by Yun Che, who gripped its hilt. The lifting process was extremely difficult and slow... It took him a full dozen seconds to finally raise the hilt to his hip level. Under the immense exertion, his entire face was flushed red, and his forehead was covered in hot sweat.

*So heavy! How can it be this heavy! What material is this sword made of?!*

"This Overlord's Sword is said to be made from an extraterrestrial meteorite and weighs three thousand nine hundred *jin*," Sikong Du said. "For you to be able to lift it with your current profound energy is already quite impressive. Hmm? You're not interested in it, are you?"

"Evil Soul!"

Yun Che let out a low roar in his mind as the Evil Soul activated, and his profound energy instantly surged throughout his body. Empowered by the surging energy, he roared, and his entire body's strength surged wildly, instantly lifting the tip of the Overlord's Greatsword off the ground. He completely grasped it and raised it in front of him... However, this horizontal lift only lasted for a few breaths. Under its terrifying weight, he could no longer sustain it. The sword tip abruptly sank, smashing to the ground with a "boom," and amidst the loud crash, the entire floor of the Heavenly Armory trembled.

Yun Che still gripped the hilt, panting heavily, yet a look of excitement appeared on his face. "This is it... this sword!"