Chapter 686: Magic Sword Tournament?

Night Solitary Shadow had never known fear, for there was nothing in this world that could threaten the Sun Moon Divine Hall. However, the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor is so extraordinarily powerful, a truly transcendent being unparalleled in history. He personally stated that destroying our Sun Moon Divine Hall would be as easy as flipping his hand. As an elder of the Divine Hall, guarding a legacy passed down for ten thousand years, I truly cannot help but be afraid.

"Besides the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor, Yun Che also fills me with dread. While awaiting your return, Heavenly Monarch, I re-examined all information about Yun Che. I found that this child is extremely arrogant and unyielding, holds grudges fiercely, and employs ruthless and merciless methods. Everyone who has offended him or become his enemy has met a tragic end. Even the vast Phoenix Divine Sect was thoroughly humiliated by him alone on their own territory back then. Given his nature, if he gains enough strength in the future, he will surely retaliate against the Young Master and bring disaster upon our entire Sun Moon Divine Hall! And... and..." Night Solitary Shadow took a deep breath and continued, "To be frank, Heavenly Monarch, the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor letting us return was only one reason—he didn't want to break his no-killing vow. Another, and the most crucial reason, is actually... that he wished to admonish his disciple, telling him that his own grievances must be avenged by his own power, without relying on him... He also personally stated that Yun Che would be invincible in three more years, and in six more years, he would be powerful enough to trample over our Sun Moon Divine Hall!"

Night Demon Shadow: "..."

"If he were merely a potential threat, we could eradicate him early. But behind this threat is the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor, whom we absolutely cannot provoke. We can only watch Yun Che grow day by day. Given his incomprehensible growth rate, becoming invincible in a few more years might not be a wild fantasy at all! Considering his personality and past actions, his threat to our Sun Moon Divine Hall... is definitely not an overblown concern!"

Night Solitary Shadow's words caused Night Demon Shadow's eyelids to tilt slightly, and his brows to furrow tighter and tighter. A moment later, he suddenly spoke calmly: "Han'er once mentioned that three years ago, on the Primordial Profound Ark, the Jade-faced Demon Monarch Ji Qianrou of the Supreme Ocean Palace took action against him to protect Yun Che. Is this true?"

"It is true." Night Solitary Shadow nodded. Over half the people in the Sun Moon Divine Hall knew about this, because after the Divine Phoenix Empire returned that year, Night Star Han had been furious for several days... one of the people he cursed was Ji Qianrou.

"Mmm." Night Demon Shadow pondered briefly, then slowly said: "Before sunset today, send a message in my name to Elder Mo Chenfeng of the Ocean Palace, asking him to draft an extra invitation for Yun Che to attend the Demonic Sword Convention in a few months! Since Ji Qianrou has some connection with Yun Che, it would be most fitting for him to deliver it."

"The Demonic Sword Convention?" Night Solitary Shadow looked up, puzzled, then thoughtfully added: "Could it be that your journey to the Supreme Ocean Palace this time, Heavenly Monarch, was for this Demonic Sword Convention?"

"Indeed." Night Demon Shadow nodded slightly.

"That demonic sword, could it be..."

"It is none other than the Heaven's Calamity Divine Sword!" Night Demon Shadow scoffed.

"The Heaven's Calamity Divine Sword, which disappeared a thousand years ago, is actually in the hands of the Supreme Ocean Palace?" Night Solitary Shadow looked astonished: "I thought..."

"No!" Night Demon Shadow said coldly: "The Supreme Ocean Palace is merely the venue for the Demonic Sword Convention. It was the Heavenly Might Sword Region that proposed holding it."

"As expected! Did the Heavenly Might Sword Region admit to stealing the Heaven's Calamity Divine Sword back then?"

"Hmph!" Night Demon Shadow sneered: "How could that old fox Xuanyuan Wentian admit it? According to him, he recently found this sword in a desolate place, recognized it as the Heaven's Calamity Divine Sword of the former Everlasting Night Royal Family, and claimed that such a divine sword should not be exclusive to his Heavenly Might Sword Region, but rather its secrets should be explored by all heroes of the world. Thus, the Demonic Sword Convention came about. To show he had no ambitions or schemes, he proactively proposed that the Demonic Sword Convention not be held in the Heavenly Might Sword Region, and even directly handed the Heaven's Calamity Divine Sword over to the Supreme Ocean Palace."

"Does the Heavenly Might Sword Region truly take everyone for fools!" Night Solitary Shadow said with furrowed brows: "A thousand years ago, the Four Sacred Grounds jointly annihilated the Everlasting Night Royal Family, only to later learn that they had been used by the Heavenly Might Sword Region! The Heavenly Might Sword Region meticulously plotted to destroy the Everlasting Night Royal Family precisely for the Heaven's Calamity Divine Sword! After the Everlasting Night Royal Family was overthrown, the Heaven's Calamity Divine Sword disappeared. The greatest possibility is that it had already fallen into the Heavenly Might Sword Region's hands! This time, holding this so-called 'Demonic Sword Convention' clearly indicates that the Heavenly Might Sword Region has been unable to uncover the Heaven's Calamity Divine Sword's secrets for an entire millennium, and thus had no choice but to borrow our power."

"That is indeed the truth, but the lure of this Demonic Sword Convention makes it hard to refuse." Night Demon Shadow's voice gradually softened: "Xuanyuan Wentian personally stated that the Heaven's Calamity Divine Sword very likely conceals the secrets of the Divine Dao!"

"This..." Night Solitary Shadow's eyes widened, then he shook his head: "This is merely Xuanyuan Wentian's baseless claim; it's absolutely impossible! Otherwise, how could the Everlasting Night Royal Family, who had guarded this sword for so long, have been annihilated?"

"The secrets of the Divine Dao, even if known to be just bait concocted by Xuanyuan Wentian, are an irresistible temptation for those who have been stuck at the peak of the Sovereign Profound Realm for centuries, unable to advance further. Moreover..." Night Demon Shadow's tone shifted slightly, and his eyes deepened: "This might not be mere empty talk."

"Heavenly Monarch means..."

"A thousand years ago, the Everlasting Night King's strength was the weakest among our five Sacred Ground Masters. However, after he went berserk and demonized, it took the combined strength of our four Sacred Ground Masters and seventeen elders, fighting a fierce battle for a full seven hours, to finally defeat him! But even though his physical body was destroyed, his soul did not dissipate; instead, it remained fully intact. Despite everyone's best efforts, we couldn't annihilate it, and ultimately, we had no choice but to seal it in a soul coffin at a great cost, allowing it to naturally disperse."

"Even now, thinking back to the Everlasting Night King's power after he went berserk, I still feel lingering fear. His body was destroyed, yet his soul remained intact—this is a Divine Dao power that transcends the Sovereign Profound Realm. Ever since then, whenever I recall it, I deeply feel that these abilities might not have been simply due to demonization... It's not impossible that it was a half-step Divine Profound power, surpassing the Sovereign Profound Realm."

"..." Night Solitary Shadow remained silent. He had not been present at the fierce battle with the Everlasting Night King that year, nor was he qualified to participate, so he could not truly comprehend Night Demon Shadow's words.

Night Demon Shadow turned around: "The Demonic Sword Convention invites only the most elite forces and powerful individuals from the Profound Sky Continent, those capable of participating in uncovering the demonic sword's secrets. With Yun Che's ability to kill a protector of our Divine Hall, he already has sufficient qualifications. Given his arrogant personality, he shouldn't refuse a convention of such a high caliber. Then..."

Night Demon Shadow did not continue. Reflected in the glow of the Sun Moon Totem, his eyes were eerily devoid of any light. Night Solitary Shadow bowed forward and respectfully said, "As you command, Heavenly Monarch."

"You may go... Have Han'er come see me."

"Yes." Night Solitary Shadow took two steps back and departed silently.

At the same time, in Floating Cloud City, Azure Wind Nation.

Yun Che never would have imagined that the name "Heaven Smiting," which he had casually made up, actually existed! Furthermore, it traced back ten thousand years to a legendary, earth-shattering powerhouse.

However, this not only didn't become a flaw, but it instead exponentially increased the deterrent he had created!

It even reached the point where Night Demon Shadow personally ordered that he not be provoked!

It also became the catalyst for his invitation to the Demonic Sword Convention.

At this moment, Yun Che, completely unaware of any of this, had just flown out of Floating Cloud City, arriving to its east. He hovered a thousand feet in the air, gazing down with cold eyes.

Two hundred thousand Divine Phoenix soldiers were scattered across this undulating landscape, either in groups of dozens, hundreds, or thousands. Their unified action was to continuously bombard the ground, creating an unceasing rumble that echoed from all directions.

Xiao Lingxi told him that after the Divine Phoenix army arrived, they never entered Floating Cloud City. Instead, starting from the second day, they began this activity. The dense, muffled rumbling almost never ceased, continuing for nearly half a year until today. The people of Floating Cloud City discussed it as the Divine Phoenix army conducting training.

But Yun Che naturally wasn't naive enough to believe they were truly training, because the invincible Divine Phoenix army could not have been trained through such nonsensical methods.

However, after observing for a long time from high above, he still couldn't understand what this large Divine Phoenix army was doing. The ravaged land had clearly been repeatedly blasted to ruins countless times. The Divine Phoenix soldiers' movements, frequency, and amplitude were perfectly uniform. After nearly half a year of "training," they must have mastered it down to their bones.

"Jasmine, can you tell what they're doing?" Yun Che asked with a frown.

"Hmph, do you need to ask me about such a thing?" Jasmine said irritably.

Yun Che quirked his lips. He activated "Fleeting Lightning Shadow," completely concealing his presence, then silently descended and hid at the edge of the Divine Phoenix army's area.

Yun Che didn't have to wait long. Soon, a Divine Phoenix soldier left the "training" group and casually walked toward Yun Che, unbuckling the armor at his waist and muttering something incoherent. The moment he stepped behind a tall rock to relieve himself, a hand, as if extending from thin air, clamped around his throat.

It was as if an iron vise weighing ten thousand pounds clamped his neck. The Divine Phoenix soldier's eyes bulged, blood vessels burst, and in his immense terror, he couldn't utter a single sound. Yun Che gazed at him indifferently. Profound light flickered on his arm, and profound energy instantly broke through the soldier's mental defenses, entering his mind. Memories surged into Yun Che's consciousness like a ceaseless tide.

In an instant, Yun Che retracted his profound energy and dropped his arm. The Divine Phoenix soldier at his feet still had wide, staring eyes, but was completely lifeless.

Reading the Divine Phoenix soldier's memories did not clarify things for Yun Che; instead, his brows furrowed even tighter. In this soldier's memories, the order he had received was simply to conduct special training here.

The content of this special training was to gather all profound energy to strike the ground, the harder and louder the better... Any slackening would result in severe punishment, even immediate execution.

However, Yun Che was not without gains. At the very least, he learned a person's name and appearance, as well as their usual sitting location!

Feng Huwei, the commander of these two hundred thousand Divine Phoenix soldiers, the renowned Grand General of Tiger Might of the Divine Phoenix Empire, was a figure with Phoenix bloodline, affiliated with the Phoenix Divine Sect.

The most crucial point... when the Divine Phoenix army besieged Floating Cloud City, it was he who tried to abduct Xiao Lingxi! If Fen Juechen hadn't intervened, the consequences would have been unthinkable!

Yun Che's gaze shot towards the southeast... That was where Feng Huwei's main tent was located! The next moment, he transformed into a shadowy blur almost invisible to the naked eye, darting straight towards that direction. Within his calm pupils, a chilling murderous intent surged.