Chapter 120: Unity of Man and Sword

Facing these conceited enemies, Xu Yang always displayed the imperious aura of a demonic ruler.

As his soul power forcefully entered Mistress Wuqing's spiritual world, countless memory fragments began to surface one by one. A crystalline light continuously flickered from Xu Yang's fingertips. Each time he cut into a fragment, the corresponding memory completely vanished from Mistress Wuqing's soul, leaving behind an empty void.

"Xu Yang, you bastard, get out of my head now!"

Xu Yang burst into laughter. "What's the rush? I want to see what your attitude was like when you first stripped Lingyao of her precious jade."

Soon, Xu Yang traced back to that memory from many years ago. At that time, Lingyao was just a tender young girl whose precious jade was taken by the Great Elder and presented to the Ten Elders.

"Heavens! How powerful is the life aura contained within this jade? If we can use this jade to nurture the soul of the Heavenly Sword, it might elevate our swordsmanship to the next level, allowing us to truly comprehend the realm of the Heavenly Sword!"

Only then did Xu Yang discover that it was Mistress Wuqing who had originally proposed seizing the jade.

"Thieving old woman, this is all your handiwork. Now, pay the price!"

In a fit of rage, boundless flames ignited in Xu Yang's palm, fiercely burning away her past memories within Mistress Wuqing's sea of consciousness. Even her beloved vanished from her spiritual world.

"No, please, don't! Have mercy on me, Xu Yang, I know I was wrong!"

Unable to bear forgetting her beloved, Mistress Wuqing was finally forced to cry out to Xu Yang for mercy. Xu Yang was not entirely heartless and offered the old woman a chance for self-redemption.

"Kneel before Lingyao and beg for her forgiveness. This is your only way to atone for your sins."

Xu Yang's words utterly stunned Mistress Wuqing. For this old woman, who valued her pride above all else, to kneel before a mere junior was the ultimate humiliation! Yet, only through this act could her past mistakes and crimes be forgiven! Mistress Wuqing hesitated for a long time but ultimately chose to compromise, kneeling before Lingyao in front of all the Ten Elders. Her eyes held a deep sense of repentance.

"It was all my fault! All the vital energy I plundered from that precious jade over the years, I will return it all to you!"

No sooner had Mistress Wuqing spoken than she pointed a finger to her glabella, then connected her body to Lingyao's with powerful sword energy fluctuations. Overwhelming sword energy surged through Lingyao's entire being. That girl, known as "Sword Obsessed," already possessed unparalleled talent in sword cultivation. Now, with Mistress Wuqing's transmission of power, she gained over eighty percent of Mistress Wuqing's profound cultivation in an incredibly short time, reaching the peak of the Nascent Soul realm. She surpassed her master, the Great Elder, and became the undisputed foremost female sword cultivator in the entire Qi domain!

What Xu Yang hadn't anticipated was that Lingyao's surge in power inadvertently triggered the recovery of Bai Lianxue's strength!

"Very good! Old woman, you have completed your atonement for the wrongs against Lingyao. I will preserve your past memories, but the countless lives that perished by your hand will never cease their obsession with tormenting you!"

As Xu Yang withdrew from Mistress Wuqing's sea of consciousness, it was from that very moment that the spirits of all those who had died innocently beneath her sword began to howl madly, demanding her life! The reason was simple: Xu Yang had left an indelible obsession with revenge in Mistress Wuqing's mind, causing her to constantly be tormented by the illusion of countless entities seeking vengeance, from which she could never escape.

"No!!"

Mistress Wuqing dropped her precious sword and began screaming and wailing like a madwoman. She was the first to break free from the Heavenly Sword's inner realm and vanish from sight. She had gone insane!

Of the Heavenly Sword's Ten Elders, two had already been incapacitated by Xu Yang before they even truly began to fight. The Ninth Elder was stunned, the Fifth Elder had gone mad, and the remaining eight had all entered a state of readiness, prepared to tear Xu Yang limb from limb!

"The dignity of the Ten Elders is inviolable. You have committed a capital offense!"

The strongest among the Ten Elders, clad in white robes and serving as the core controller of the ancient Heavenly Sword formation—Sword Saint Wuxin—spoke with a cold voice.

"Capital offense? Heh, fantasize all you want. I merely wish for you to understand that a few pieces of trash like you do not possess the right to judge me, Xu Yang! In front of you all, I will destroy this Heavenly Sword Grand Formation and reclaim what rightfully belongs to Lingyao."

At this stage, the enmity between Xu Yang and the Heavenly Sword Holy Land lineage was irrevocably sealed, leaving no room for retreat. Without further hesitation, Wuxin took a deep breath, soared into the air, and was the first to fly into the immense outline of the Heavenly Sword.

Man and sword become one! At the cost of sacrificing his own will, he activated the long-dormant sword soul of the Heavenly Sword.

"Junior brothers, join me! Unleash the power of the Heavenly Sword and slay Xu Yang!"

"Yes!!"

The remaining seven of the Ten Elders simultaneously channeled their power, injecting a formidable source of spiritual energy into the Heavenly Sword above to activate its heaven-defying might.

"No! Do not let them succeed, otherwise, if the Heavenly Sword's soul awakens, even the most formidable power will be annihilated!"

The Heavenly Sword, as the ultimate profound art of the Heavenly Sword Holy Land, one of the ten great sacred lands of the continent, also served as the very foundation of their lineage. Should the Heavenly Sword fully awaken, the entire Great Qi would plunge into a catastrophe! Such world-destroying power could not be resisted by a single individual. Xu Yang himself knew that he had not yet achieved the final breakthrough to the perfected Qi Refinement stage. If he truly had to confront the Heavenly Sword Holy Land's strongest attack, he held no certainty of victory.

But Xu Yang was Xu Yang. What he set his mind to, not even the Heavenly Dao could alter!

"My fate is my own, not heaven's! Today, I shall see what this unparalleled and ancient power of the Heavenly Sword can truly do against me!"

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Just as Xu Yang prepared to make his move, seven divine swords belonging to the Ten Elders simultaneously shot skyward, spontaneously forming a formidable sword array to block him. This was also to buy the Heavenly Sword above the final moments it needed for a complete revival. Xu Yang sneered, waving his hand to conjure a sky-obscuring barrier. He simultaneously held the seven divine swords at bay, clearly using his own power to single-handedly contend against the swordsmanship of seven peak Nascent Soul realm cultivators! Each sword represented a completely distinct legacy of swordsmanship. That Xu Yang could simultaneously withstand all seven forces demonstrated that his strength had long surpassed the Nascent Soul realm!

"Unbelievable... If I hadn't witnessed it with my own eyes, I wouldn't believe such a terrifying Qi Refinement cultivator could exist in this world!" The Third Elder of the Ten, "Mad Sword Immortal," exclaimed with a somewhat grotesque expression, his hair flying in fury.

"Indeed. This person has only opened his Qi Gate, confirming his Qi Refinement cultivation is correct. Yet, his innate ability to command all spiritual energy is akin to the supreme Dao cultivation of ages past—boundless, infinite, and truly unfathomable..."