Chapter 432: The Most Primitive Tai Cang Ancestor Blade

At this moment, Xu Qing re-entered the Mural World and reappeared.

As the laws of that world pressed upon him, he took a deep breath, took out his token according to the instructions, and headed to District East Thirteen, the area he would be responsible for guarding in the future.

This area was vast. Ghost Hand hadn't taken him there before. After Xu Qing quickly found it, he looked around.

The topography of this place was primarily volcanic, with a reddish-brown earth and rolling magma.

The three Black Sky Clan members were each suppressed within three different volcanoes.

Using the light and heat of the volcanoes to mimic the power of the sun, they were tormented day and night.

Xu Qing flew around to inspect, and even drew out one of the Black Sky Clan cultivators to examine closely. After five hundred breaths, as time passed, a sharp glint appeared in Xu Qing's eyes.

"The aura of the Red Moon is much stronger than that in the Saint Lan Clan..." Xu Qing murmured.

In fact, when Ghost Hand had explained and dissected that Black Sky Clan member in front of him earlier, Xu Qing had already sensed the Red Moon's aura within the Black Sky Clan member's body.

This aura came from the Black Sky Clan's dark blood.

Having arrived today, his investigation confirmed this point.

"This is also why I sensed the Red Moon's aura in the Saint Lan Clan members, because there's a trace of Black Sky Clan bloodline integrated into every Saint Lan Clan cultivator's body."

"Looking at it this way, could it be that the Black Sky Clan, just like the cultivators of the divine realm represented by the brand on the Primordial Leaving Nether Pillar in Yinghuang State, all worship that evil deity who covers their eyes within the Red Moon?"

Xu Qing felt a surge of alertness in his heart. He clearly knew that the purple moon in his Fourth Heavenly Palace was formed from a wisp of gas plundered from the Red Moon.

"Black Sky Clan..." Xu Qing pondered. He felt his judgment was likely the truth, and it also aligned with the saying that there is no sun, only the moon, within the Black Sky Clan.

After a long while, Xu Qing suppressed his thoughts and transmitted a divine sense to his shadow, having it leave 'shadow eyes' on the three Black Sky Clan members for observation.

He also placed jade slips to record events.

Then Xu Qing thought for a moment, and to allow them to communicate and uncover more details, he simply confined all three Black Sky Clan members within a single volcano.

After doing all this, Xu Qing tried to capture another foreign race prisoner. He wanted to test his Mysterious Nether Dao-Seizing Art to see if he could devour the opponent and thereby increase his cultivation.

Although Xu Qing could overwhelmingly defeat the prisoner in terms of combat power, the difference in cultivation realms meant the Mysterious Nether Dao-Seizing Art wasn't very effective.

Xu Qing pondered. He thought that if devouring a Golden Core was like eating a candied hawthorn skewer, no matter how tough the hawthorn might be, he should be able to eat it, since it was coated in a layer of sugar that would melt upon entering the mouth and be easily digested once inside the body.

However, devouring a Nascent Soul was like coating the candied hawthorn skewer in iron, turning it into a solid iron lump that was difficult to digest.

Xu Qing could understand this point. After all, even if the opponent was weak, their realm was still Nascent Soul. The difference in levels made it difficult for Golden Core realm cultivation methods to function normally.

Of course, it wasn't impossible, but it would be much more troublesome, not as convenient as devouring a Golden Core.

Xu Qing felt that his method might be incorrect, so he planned to wait until he could endure staying in this place for longer before trying to find a solution. Calculating the time now, he prepared to leave.

Today was already his second visit. His body, burdened by the laws of this small world, was also nearing its limit.

Just as Xu Qing was about to depart, the distant sky and earth suddenly changed color. The clouds in the sky transformed on their own, turning into a vast, oppressive darkness, with streaks of lightning continuously weaving within.

It looked like a heavenly tribulation.

Moreover, many bolts of lightning spilled out, striking the ground, causing a series of loud noises. The ground there collapsed, sending shattered rocks flying, and the affected area was still expanding.

Xu Qing's eyes narrowed. He hadn't used his authority to create this scene.

"Could another jailer have arrived?"

Xu Qing's body flickered as he moved closer. Everywhere he passed, wind and clouds surged.

From a distance, he looked like a celestial body surrounded by violent power, rapidly dashing forward.

This foreign creature had only one eye, massive arms, each with nine fingers. At this moment, its expression was anxious and even frantic, as it charged rapidly towards the thunderclouds in the sky.

He was undergoing tribulation!

Xu Qing understood immediately upon seeing this. There were no other jailers here; the reason for the changes in the sky and earth was this foreign creature.

This person was extraordinary. His cultivation in this small world was actually nearing a breakthrough, thus causing the laws of the small world to transform into a heavenly tribulation for suppression.

Such an event was rare within the small world. As Xu Qing had gained more understanding of this prison realm during his time here, he knew very well... that the opponent could not succeed.

If the laws of this world weren't controlled by the Sword Holding Palace, the opponent might have a chance of success. But now, the suppression of the heavenly tribulation here, although Xu Qing had never witnessed it firsthand, he understood its power to be earth-shattering.

This place originally had no guards. This was likely the reason the foreign creature chose this spot.

But this prisoner clearly hadn't anticipated Xu Qing's arrival today.

"Did Senior Ghost Hand arrange for me to come here because he also knew about this?" As enlightenment dawned in Xu Qing's heart, the tribulation cloud suddenly let out a deafening roar.

Thunder roared, and the sky changed color. Streaks of lightning fell in unison from within the clouds. They didn't directly strike the charging foreign creature, but instead rapidly converged.

To his surprise, below the clouds, a long blade formed from lightning and thunder.

The blade pulsed with endless lightning, dazzling and piercing to the eyes. The moment it appeared, the heavens and earth roared.

An ultimate power descended upon the world. It contained the laws governing the operation of this small world, the laws of heaven and earth, and even the power of the Heavenly Dao.

It exuded a clear Dao aura!

At this moment, the blade's radiance was exceptionally dazzling, causing the heavens and earth to change color. It was as if, for this instant, the world completely dimmed, with only the light of this blade remaining as the sole radiance in the heavens and earth!

With supreme might, displaying infinite power, it unleashed a sky-shattering whoosh and slashed down at the foreign creature with a single strike!

This was the true Heavenly Blade!

It severed not the body, but the Dao!

As the blade descended, it instantly pierced through the foreign creature's body.

The blue-skinned foreign creature trembled all over. A mournful, tragic cry escaped its lips. As its body shook, it couldn't help but spurt out blood wildly.

While its body swayed precariously, its Nascent Soul cultivation could not sustain itself and instantly collapsed in the blink of an eye!

The Nascent Soul within its body instantly turned to ash. All its heavenly palaces were obliterated in a flash. The Foundation Building fire dissipated in an instant. Its Dao foundation completely crumbled. All its cultivation fell apart!

"No! I don't accept this!!"

The foreign creature's voice was utterly tragic. But clearly, being in this small world, it was powerless under its rules and laws and could only swallow its regret. Its body slammed into the ground with a thud, becoming a mortal, losing everything, and on the verge of death.

At this moment, Xu Qing paid no attention to the prisoner. He didn't listen to its unwilling roars. He landed on a mountain peak, his eyes wide, heavenly thunder echoing in his heart, and a monstrous surge rising in his mind.

He stared intently at the Heavenly Blade formed by countless bolts of lightning and thunder in the sky.

That single blade kept appearing in his mind, becoming the only thing there.

"This blade... this blade..." Xu Qing murmured, his body trembling, as if a storm swept through his mind.

The changes in his state of mind also triggered the transformation of the surrounding world's laws. Above him, countless clouds and mists appeared, sometimes turning into acid rain, sometimes forming lightning magnetic fields, and sometimes producing lightning.

The same occurred around the mountain peak where he stood.

Everything outside the mountain blurred. For a moment, it was an ocean, then a plain, then a desert, and then it returned to a volcano.

The heavens and earth changed color, and wind and clouds swirled in reverse.

As for the foreign cultivator who failed the tribulation, at this moment, it also vanished without a trace amidst the changes in the world's laws. Perhaps it died, or perhaps it escaped.

Xu Qing did not pay attention to this person. All his focus was now on the Heavenly Tribulation Blade.

Even though this Heavenly Tribulation Blade was slowly dissipating in the distance, it became even clearer in Xu Qing's mind.

It was very similar.

Thinking of this, Xu Qing's body trembled.

"Could it be..."

He faintly had a realization that the peerless expert who created the Grand Azure One-Strike back then might have also seen a Dao-severing Heavenly Blade similar to what he witnessed today.

But upon closer inspection, there were differences.

The Grand Azure One-Strike from the Dao Temple was a cultivator's blade, while today's blade was a Heavenly Tribulation Blade.

The similarity between the two was their nearly identical origin; the difference lay in the Dao aura they contained, which meant they severed in different directions.

The former killed the body, the latter severed the Dao.

"If I could comprehend it and fuse it with the Grand Azure One-Strike..."

A sharp glint appeared in Xu Qing's eyes, and his breathing quickened slightly.

His right hand instinctively rose. As he mentally mimicked that blade, his right hand also waved, attempting to unleash the Dao-severing Blade formed by the convergence of world rules and natural laws.

But even with Xu Qing's astonishing comprehension, it was impossible to succeed with just one glance.

So, after dozens of breaths, as the shadow of the Heavenly Blade formed by lightning in the sky slowly dissipated, the blade's image in Xu Qing's mind also blurred, unable to remain.

Until finally, even though Xu Qing was unwilling, he still couldn't retain it, and it gradually vanished.

He also tried to use his own authority to make this blade reappear in the sky, but it was ineffective.

Clearly, the appearance of this Heavenly Tribulation Blade was beyond his authority.

But Xu Qing didn't give up. He immediately closed his eyes and began to meditate.

Just as he had tried to comprehend before Ghost Emperor Mountain, he tried his best to make the blade's image in his mind dissipate slowly, and struggled to commit it to memory.

Hundreds of breaths passed in a flash.

Xu Qing opened his eyes, which were bloodshot. He looked up at the sky, which had returned to normal after the clouds dispersed, and sighed softly.

His comprehension... had still failed.

One reason was that the Heavenly Blade appeared for too short a time. Another was that he was nearing his physical limit within the small world, which put him in a poor state.

Furthermore, this Heavenly Blade possessed an extremely high status. To some extent, it could be seen as the original version of the Grand Azure One-Strike.

All of this made it very difficult for Xu Qing to succeed.

"Also, I was too impatient."

Xu Qing murmured. After analyzing the reasons for his failure, he reluctantly ascended amidst his sigh and left the small world.

The moment he exited, as his body relaxed, a sense of exhaustion immediately spread throughout him.

Every time he left the small world, he felt this way. This was because his cultivation was insufficient, and bearing the rules of that world placed a huge burden on his body.

However, Xu Qing didn't pay attention to these. His eyes showed contemplation, and his mind was also analyzing.

"To comprehend this blade, it needs to appear multiple times... and I need to be completely relaxed, with an undivided mind."

"Only then might I have a chance to fully comprehend this Dao-severing Heavenly Blade."

Xu Qing pondered. He looked down at the small world below, and a direction formed in his heart. "I currently master two strikes of the Grand Azure One-Strike. If I can successfully comprehend this Dao-severing Heavenly Blade, then it can become my third strike."

After Xu Qing arrived at the Prefectural City, he hadn't left this place and hadn't gone out to search for Grand Azure Dao Temples, so the number of Grand Azure One-Strikes he mastered hadn't increased.

He also understood that given the conditions for comprehending the Grand Azure One-Strike, most Dao Temples were actually abandoned.

After all, once someone succeeded, it became invalid.

This meant that accumulating more Grand Azure One-Strikes was extremely difficult, requiring great fortune to find a Dao Temple that had not yet been successfully comprehended, or one where the comprehending individual had coincidentally died.

As Xu Qing pondered, he returned to the Penal Affairs Division.

"I won't return to the Sword Pavilion for now!"

The moment he stepped out of the mural, Xu Qing looked back at the image of the small world.

Determination flashed in his eyes. He simply found a corner on this ninetieth floor, sat cross-legged, and began to cultivate and rest.

Two hours later, as jailers continued to enter and exit the small world, Xu Qing's body, under the circulation of the purple crystal, returned to normal.