Chapter 2032: Trial of the Sword

The infusion of Primordial Purple Qi brought about immense changes to the Seed of Life. This Seed of Life, which embodied all of Cuiyin's consciousness, power, and understanding of the Great Dao, had already completed all the preliminary preparations for evolving into a World Tree while still in the hands of the Medicine Ancestor. All it lacked was the nourishment from the power of the Eighteen Pools of Life Elixir. Now, the Dao Ancestor's Primordial Purple Qi replaced the life elixir, helping it complete this final and most crucial step.

More importantly, the Primordial Purple Qi carried a vast number of memory imprints. This effortlessly transferred ownership of what should have been named the "Tree of Life," even changing its name to the "Tree of Memories." To seize the Medicine Ancestor's tree and its ownership right in front of him. What difference was there between this and cutting off someone's life source to steep in wine for one's own enjoyment?

"What an utter disgrace!" Even the low-level Spirit Refiners in the Five Domains felt shame and rage on behalf of the Medicine Ancestor. Such humiliation, if inflicted upon them, would be met with a desperate, life-or-death struggle to retaliate, regardless of the outcome.

But… what about the Medicine Ancestor? After countless attempts to surface like a gopher, the Medicine Ancestor completely withered under the deterrence of the vast Primordial Purple Qi. He seemed utterly despairing, refusing to even manifest an extra avatar. No match. Absolutely no match. With his life source snatched away, he seemed to have submitted to reality. His former assertiveness was gone, replaced by weakness; he no longer dared to show his face or even utter a peep.

"What a waste!" "Useless Medicine Ancestor!"

Outside the City of Floating Corpses, next to the Tree of Memories, Jiang Nayi slowly regained consciousness. He didn't know why he was suddenly so furious. When he awoke, Lei Xi'er was gone, and so was Wu Siniang. The only companion left was Liu Guifen, who possessed a Pure Yang physique, but he watched helplessly as Liu Guifen, without even taking action, also became like a moth drawn to a flame, plunging into the Sea of Memories.

"They're dead..." "All dead..." "Only I, this 'Perfect Devil,' this Emissary of the Devil Ancestor, was shown some slight favor by the Dao Ancestor and allowed to live..."

Jiang Nayi felt both fear and unease. He wanted to retreat but still sought an opportunity to contribute his strength to the Devil Ancestor amidst the chaos. Under the infusion of Primordial Purple Qi, the Tree of Memories grew larger and larger. Its root system burst forth from the Seed of Life, the trunk rose upward, piercing the clouds, while the roots plunged downward, embedding themselves into the Heavenly Dao, into the earth, and into the City of Floating Corpses.

"Rumble, rumble, rumble..." Mountains crumbled and the earth split open, as if an earth dragon were turning over. Jiang Nayi easily extended his spiritual perception and found that the Tree of Memories' roots underground were truly like a dragon's body, winding and spreading throughout the entire city. In just a few breaths, the entire City of Floating Corpses, along with its central crossroads, became the anchoring point for the Tree of Memories.

"Do something!" "If not for myself, then for the Devil Ancestor!" This impulse surged in Jiang Nayi's mind, as, according to the agreement between the Devil Ancestor and the Dao Ancestor, the Path of Arts belonged to the Devil Ancestor. But looking at the current trend, by the time the Tree of Memories was fully formed, the Path of Arts would surely become a possession of the Dao Ancestor. There were some things the Devil Ancestor found difficult to do. As His Emissary, he had to worry about what troubled the Devil Ancestor and accomplish what the Devil Ancestor's power could not reach. Even at the cost of his life and cultivation, he had to be the one to step forward!

"Dao Ancestor, die—" Jiang Nayi lunged forward, drawing the long sword from his waist, intending to stab the colossal Zero above the Sea of Memories.

With a hum, whether dead or something else, the world before his eyes suddenly collapsed, and Jiang Nayi failed to take flight. His consciousness was drawn into a black space. Nothing was around, but in the distant air, there was a bust of the Devil Ancestor, majestic and dignified, half holy, half demonic.

"Devil Ancestor?" Jiang Nayi exclaimed in surprise, instinctively ready to offer lavish praise, "Congratulations, Devil Ancestor, on the successful integration of holiness and demonic nature, from now on..."

"Quiet."

"Oh." Jiang Nayi promptly stopped, thinking that the Devil Ancestor must have something to instruct him, this Perfect Devil, and he was all ears.

The Daoist voice rumbled like thunder in his ears. The Devil Ancestor spoke, and his first words were a bolt from the blue: "This Ancestor was momentarily negligent and fell prey to the Dao's guidance, forcing the sealing of the space-time channel." "From this moment forth, you must feign compliance, acting as the Emissary of the Name Ancestor, openly friendly to the Dao Ancestor, but secretly obeying this Ancestor's commands." "The divine oracle commands: immediately use Xu Xiaoshou's Intent Dao guidance to direct the ancient sword cultivators of the Five Domains—Wen Ting, You Tu, and Gou Wuyue—to strike and wound this Ancestor, thereby unsealing the space-time channel."

What?! Jiang Nayi was not particularly foolish. Upon hearing this divine oracle, he felt as if the sky itself had split open. It was actually telling him to act against the Devil Ancestor Sheng Xin, unseal the space-time channel, and release that monster from the Five Rivers of the Great Dao within? Had the Devil Ancestor gone mad? Or was the Devil Ancestor fake?

When Ancestral Gods exchange moves, there must be a deeper meaning. Perhaps during this period of heavenly sealing, the Devil Ancestor had formed an alliance with the oddity within the temporal realm, now appearing friendly to the Dao Ancestor on the surface while secretly plotting against him. And he, as the Emissary, naturally had a changed identity; he had to be outwardly friendly to the Dao Ancestor, secretly obey the Devil Ancestor, yet still had to strike at the Devil Ancestor.

"Yes!" The situation was urgent, allowing no time for overthinking; Jiang Nayi immediately affirmed. The moment he nodded, the dark world collapsed, and a gaze descended from above, feeling like needles pricking his back. Jiang Nayi sharply looked up and realized that Zero was staring at him from a distance. Instantly, his face turned pale, and his crotch felt warm. What about striking at an Ancestor... With just one look, he realized how insignificant he was. But the disrespectful words had already slipped out; how could they be retracted now?

In a moment of desperation, Jiang Nayi blurted out, "Dao Ancestor, you're finally looking at me! I am..."

"This Ancestor knows who you are." The Dao Ancestor's voice echoed in his ear, identical to that of Xuanji Hall Master's brother, only with added majesty.

Jiang Nayi's heart stirred. The Devil Ancestor was truly terrifying! With just one divine oracle, he had also implemented a set of guidance and successfully made the Dao Ancestor fall for it, thereby gilding his superficial identity? Jiang Nayi even wanted to consult the Dao Ancestor, to fully play his part, and ask if he, as the Emissary of the Name Ancestor, needed to strike and severely injure the damned Sheng Xin!

The Dao Ancestor could indeed read minds. Even before Jiang Nayi spoke, the unmistakable telepathic message resounded in his mind a second time: "Do as you please." "This Ancestor will obscure the heavenly secrets for you; you will not be discovered."

"The Dao Ancestor didn't stop me?" The thoughts of the "Complete Person" hidden within Jiang Nayi stirred, feeling slightly surprised. At this moment, he still couldn't distinguish whether this incarnation of the Dao Ancestor, including Zero, was primarily guided by the will of Yi Ji or Dao Qiongcang. Their goal, he supposed, was singular: to annex everything. If possible, after seizing all Paths, they would then seize Xu Xiaoshou's true form within the temporal realm.

But upon careful thought, regardless of whose dominant will currently resided in the Dao Ancestor, they indeed still dared not directly antagonize the true form—neither the true form nor Ba Zun'an. They had merely entered the temporal realm and were temporarily unable to return, not that they would never return. From the Dao Ancestor's perspective, if his act of guidance this time was merely a test and he was immediately stopped, the signal emitted would undoubtedly be a complete break with the true form. Did Yi Ji or Dao Qiongcang dare to do that? Didn't the Complete Person know about the true form's ability to settle scores later? Judging by the operational principles of the Dao Ancestor's two wills, they absolutely dared not go to extremes with matters they weren't fully confident about. Therefore, for his strike this time, even if the Dao Ancestor was unwilling, he truly had no choice but to protect him and target the Devil Ancestor simultaneously.

"So, let's go!" "Come on!" "The power of the Perfect Devil, my Jiang Nayi's power, shine with glory!"

Jiang Nayi's heart roared with excitement; at this moment, he yearned to soar into the sky and unleash his full brilliance under the gaze of the Five Domains. He dared not. He was only fit to quietly shrink beneath the Tree of Memories, in the shadow at the base of the great tree, creating his own Intent Dao Diagram and Spatial Dao Diagram, while simultaneously unleashing his perception to search the entire Five Domains.

Guidance? What was guidance? Jiang Nayi didn't truly understand it, he only knew that he saw the three figures from the divine oracle: You Tu, Wen Ting, and Gou Wuyue. He exerted all his strength, using his entire will, silently shouting: "Kill!" "Kill Sheng Xin!" "Use all your strength, unleash everything you have! This is my command, Jiang Nayi's—a divine oracle: Kill!"

By the great desert, You Tu tilted his head, looking into the distance. In the distant temporal realm channel, the subtle summons grew increasingly strong. No mistake! Ba Zun'an was returning! Otherwise, the Devil Ancestor wouldn't have gone to such great lengths, expending massive amounts of holy-demonic power to forge the Divine-Demonic Dao Sea, just to seal the temporal realm channel.

"There's no need to kill him; simply sever the heavenly sealing, and Ba Zun'an will find a way to emerge." "Everything that follows can be entirely left to him to handle, as long as I help him seize a strategic opportunity..."

Just as You Tu was about to rise, his sleeve was suddenly gripped with a snap. He looked back and saw August with tears in her eyes, silently shaking her head, unable to speak.

"Those who leave the ground by one *zhang* shall die!" "Those who draw their swords shall die!"

Sheng Xin's murderous pronouncements after the heavenly sealing still echoed in his ears. Grandfather You Tu had retired from the jianghu for years, his sword edge old; how could he possibly contend with the heavens again?

"Don't worry, old man that I am, your father and I share a bond of the sword; he wouldn't dare kill me." With that, he leaped. You Tu took one step, covering a thousand *zhang* above the ground, like a precious sword unsheathed, radiating murderous intent. With another step, he space-time leaped to the Central Domain. A glance downwards showed him Mei Siren, wide-eyed with shock, confusion, and terror written all over his face.

"No..." Mei Siren reached out, crying softly. You Tu merely glanced at the coward, chuckled, shook his head, ignored him, and waved his hand, calling out: "Tai Cheng!"

At the peak of Eastern Mountain, jade bamboo lightly hummed, and snow fell like a waterfall. Wen Ting also gazed at the temporal realm channel, the burgeoning impulse within him growing stronger. He first furrowed his brow, sensing something strange, but soon sighed deeply, no longer dwelling on it, and turned to look at the towering Sword Hemp beside him: "Sword Hemp, the Devil Ancestor harmed my disciple. Should I retaliate?"

Sword Hemp trembled but was speechless. As the Ancestral Tree personally planted by the Sword Ancestor, embodying the most unyielding integrity of ancient sword cultivators, Sword Hemp was now hesitant. On one hand, it knew what Wen Ting intended. This endeavor would surely be fruitless. Under the gaze of the Ancestral God of Zeroing, even if Sheng Xin couldn't spare a hand, he still had to be wary of the Dao Ancestor and Medicine Ancestor. But against any existence below an Ancestral God, where was the need for full dedication? A single thought would be enough to crush everything! On the other hand, Sword Hemp also knew Wen Ting's purpose in cultivating his sword until now. Where the Dao lay, there the heart yearned. If this obsession wasn't severed today, if he didn't confront the sharp edge but instead sought temporary comfort, how could he advance even half a step in the future? Regardless of whether it was Ba Zun'an or Xu Xiaoshou in the temporal realm channel, Wen Ting didn't need to slay Sheng Xin; he only needed to sever Sheng Xin's hand that sealed the channel. Everything that followed would be unrelated to him.

But... what about the cost? Sword Hemp trembled, surprisingly choosing to resist. Wen Ting smiled at this, his green long robe fluttering in the wind and snow, his gentle gaze extending to the Central Domain, as he softly said: "But if I do not advance, who else would dare?" "If I do not contend for this Path, who would dare contend in the Sword Burial Mound in the future?" After a pause, Wen Ting's expression became solemn, and silver sword qi surged from the Sword Burial Mound, resonating with thunder and attracting the attention of people across the Five Domains. "Lend me your power, Sword Hemp." "I, too, should be unsheathed!"

"No!" "You cannot be unsheathed!" Gou Wuyue stepped out, then retreated two steps, back behind the Southern Departure Realm, positioning himself behind Moon Palace Slave, not far away.

Guidance! This was guidance! If Ba Zun'an was in the temporal realm channel, he could break through it and emerge. And at worst, Gou Wuyue knew that... Before Ba Zun'an left, he had clearly given Moon Palace Slave an Eight-Character Token. This token could surely connect inside and out, summoning at least one sword's worth of Ba Zun'an's power, which would certainly be enough to sever the heavenly sealing. Why did he need to intervene in this situation? Since he had been defeated by Ba Zun'an's sword in the Eight Palaces that day, the name "Sword Immortal Wuyue" no longer existed in the Five Domains; why seek such attention? Since he had chosen to follow Dao Qiongcang to the Southern Domain from the Dead Sea that day, and with the Ancestral God's battle still ongoing and the Dao Ancestor present, why did he need to seek this attention?

"Hum!" The voice of Nulan slightly trembled, somewhat indignant. Ancient sword cultivators charged forward without hesitation. Yet Sword Immortal Wuyue had retreated two steps. What did that mean? Gou Wuyue grasped it, soothing it, but slowly shook his head, saying nothing more. He knew too well how the Five Domains currently viewed him. He didn't care. He had lost an arm in the Dead Sea and gained enlightenment of the Dao, and his refusal to heal his injured body until now demonstrated the steadfastness of his own will. Now, why would he be moved by external guidance or be forced by rules to wield his sword?

"Someone will step forward..." "But it won't be me, Gou Wuyue. I am not a hero."

"Look, sword light!" "Someone's left the ground and drawn a sword? How dare he!" Too fast! So fast that few people could react. The transformation of the Tree of Memories had just begun, and everyone was still focused on the rapid ascension of the Five Domains' Dao arts, immersed in the joy of another breakthrough. Suddenly, murderous aura soared from the Western Domain, and a figure shot into the sky. With a call of "Tai Cheng," Mei Siren's Tai Cheng Sword responded, streaking through the air and flying into his hand, obeying him as easily as his own arm.

"That's..." It was an old man with white hair, clad in a white robe embroidered with cloud cranes. Standing in mid-air with his sword, one hand behind his back, he exuded an air of detachment, as if life and death held no sway over him. He proudly stood atop the clouds, gazing directly at the Devil Ancestor Sheng Xin before the space-time channel, his tone light and understated: "I have a sword, and I wish to test the Ancestor's edge."

Unexpectedly, Sheng Xin was not angered, nor did he directly kill those who left the ground or drew their swords, as he had previously declared. Instead, he said calmly: "State your name."

"You Tu." As soon as these words were uttered, the Five Domains erupted in an uproar. Everyone stared intently at the white-haired old man, as if only now recognizing his identity. "You Tu?!" "The leader of the Seven Sword Immortals... no, You Tu from the previous generation of Seven Sword Immortals, Grandfather You Tu?"

Damn it. You really are damned. Below the Southern Departure Realm, Mei Siren watched from afar as that old man once again stole the limelight, the flames of jealousy in his eyes almost setting the paper fan in his hand alight. But he couldn't step out. Unlike You Tu, Mei Siren had already proven his combat level. He could barely withstand even a casual sword strike from Hua Changdeng, so how could he possibly directly confront Sheng Xin in the slightest? Besides lending out the Tai Cheng Sword, he could offer no further assistance.

"At an age when one is almost in the grave, why still act the hero?" "Just commit suicide with your sword; at least you'll die with dignity!" His beard flew wildly, and the paper fan rustled noisily. In the end, Mei Siren's hands trembled slightly, until he pressed the paper fan to his chest, allowing his heart rate to calm down somewhat before his hands stopped shaking. Xiao Kongdong glanced sideways, seeing only four large characters on the fan, the ink not yet dry: "Peace and Safety."