Chapter 3177: Nine Sword Tower

More than two months had passed. In a secluded courtyard with blue tiles, Wang Yier, Wang Dianlong, and Feng Yueqin sat in a stone pavilion as Wang Guangming reported to them.

Wang Yier held a token in his hand, which was engraved with nine small sword patterns. They had acquired it from a minor family.

"According to the information we have," Wang Guangming said slowly, "that token is called the Nine Swords Token. It's said that with this token, one can enter the secret realm left by True Monarch Nine Swords to search for treasures." He added that True Monarch Nine Swords hadn't appeared for tens of thousands of years, making it too difficult to verify the token's origin; they couldn't just believe every rumor.

"Nine Swords Token! True Monarch Nine Swords, secret realm!" Wang Yier exclaimed, frowning with a thoughtful expression.

After years of hard work, they finally had a lead. If it truly was a key to a secret realm, he hoped there would be valuable treasures inside. Now, their task was to locate the secret realm.

"Oh, right," Wang Guangming added, remembering something, "the Cold Flame Sect is also looking for the Nine Swords Token, and they're making quite a fuss about it."

After the species war, the Cold Flame Sect became very close to the Profound Green Sect. Under the latter's patronage, the Cold Flame Sect recovered its strength much faster.

It was no secret that the Wang family was at odds with the Cold Flame Sect. However, without major conflicts of interest, both sides exercised restraint, maintaining an appearance of amiability.

Before Chen Yueying advanced to the Mahayana stage, Zhenhai Palace was also at odds with the Cold Flame Sect. However, they competed when necessary and allied when beneficial.

The Wang family was now one of the top ten human forces in Xuanyin Continent. Each time the Xuanyin Grotto-heaven opened, the Wang family would send Soul Transformation cultivators to search for treasures. Many cultivators fought fiercely for cultivation resources, resulting in casualties on both sides. Yet, once outside the Xuanyin Grotto-heaven, cooperation would resume as needed.

Wang family disciples often clashed with Cold Flame Sect disciples in the Xuanyin Grotto-heaven, with victories and losses on both sides.

Wang Yier nodded. "Let's see who finds the secret realm first! Perhaps it's not a secret realm, but True Monarch Nine Swords's secluded cultivation abode. We've been delayed here for quite some time; it's time to leave. I hope other family members have some clues."

Various halls within the family were keeping an eye out for news about the Nine Swords Token. When relevant clues were gathered, they would notify the members of the Treasure Seeking Hall, who would then dispatch people to investigate.

Upon leaving Kanyuan Valley, Wang Dianlong flicked his wrist, and a deafening dragon roar echoed. A streak of green light flew out from his spirit beast bracelet, revealing a blue flood dragon. It was entirely azure, with a wide mouth full of fangs, formidable scales, and four huge claws beneath its belly that gleamed with a cold light.

It was a fifth-order Azure Wind Flood Dragon!

Wang Dianlong was one of the few Void Refining cultivators in the Wang family who raised a fifth-order flood dragon. Currently, no family member had cultivated a sixth-order flood dragon.

Wang Dianlong and the others successively stepped onto the Azure Wind Flood Dragon. The beast let out a deafening roar, then soared into the sky amidst the envious gazes of other cultivators, vanishing into the horizon.

Seven days later, the Azure Wind Flood Dragon appeared over a sprawling mountain range, with Wang Yier and more than a dozen other Wang family disciples standing upon its back.

The Azure Wind Flood Dragon was incredibly fast, with strong winds howling past them.

Wang Yier held a piece of green beast hide in his hand, which depicted mountains and rivers with several visible markings.

This was True Monarch Nine Swords's movement map. Whenever he heard True Monarch Nine Swords had appeared somewhere, Wang Yier would take people to investigate, hoping to find clues. However, since True Monarch Nine Swords's last appearance was tens of thousands of years ago, tracking him was very inconvenient, and Wang Yier often made fruitless trips.

A deafening roar interrupted Wang Yier's thoughts.

A giant blue lotus flower appeared high in the sky, highly conspicuous. It was the Wang family's distress signal, used by their disciples when they encountered danger outside.

"Head there immediately," Wang Yier commanded.

Wang Dianlong acknowledged and formed a hand seal. The blue flood dragon flew swiftly toward the blue lotus flower.

Less than an hour later, the blue flood dragon stopped over an open area where two factions of cultivators were engaged in combat. A colossal tower, shimmering with spiritual light, stood on the ground. The lower half of the tower was buried underground, and runes flickered on its surface. The golden characters "Nine Swords Tower" were visible on its body.

"Fellow Daoist Lan, Xiuling, Xiulong!" Wang Yier murmured in surprise, recognizing the origin of one group of cultivators.

Lan Fukong, Wang Xiuling, and Wang Xiulong were all present. Wang Xiuling and Wang Xiulong had already advanced to the Void Refining stage and were currently at the early Void Refining level.

The other group of cultivators was from the Cold Flame Sect. Leading them was a graceful woman in a white dress, with an icy expression, and a white banner flag floating before her.

This was Sun Xue, a late Void Refining stage cultivator and Li Qingyue's youngest disciple.

Over twenty corpses lay on the ground, including those of Wang family disciples, Lan family disciples, and Cold Flame Sect disciples.

Not far away, two massive, motionless puppet beasts also lay on the ground.

The Cold Flame Sect had six Void Refining cultivators: one at the late stage, two at the middle stage, and three at the early stage.

"Ancestor Yier, this is a treasure left by True Monarch Nine Swords!" Wang Xiuling shouted excitedly, her face lighting up with joy upon seeing Wang Yier and the others. "It's said his legacy is within the Nine Swords Tower!"

"True Monarch Nine Swords's legacy! The Nine Swords Tower!" Wang Yier's expression darkened. The Treasure Seeking Hall had searched extensively but failed to find True Monarch Nine Swords's secluded cultivation abode. He hadn't expected to stumble upon it here while passing by. It was truly a case of being in the right place at the right time.

"Fellow Daoist Wang," Lan Fukong urgently transmitted to Wang Yier, "the Cold Flame Sect has also sent out a distress signal, and they've dispatched someone to relay the news."

The three of them stood together, enveloped by a massive blue light barrier.

Lan Fukong had accidentally obtained a Nine Swords Token but hadn't thought much of it. When he passed by this location, the token reacted. Driven by curiosity, Lan Fukong sent his family members to search, and they unexpectedly discovered the Nine Swords Tower. To his surprise, Cold Flame Sect disciples were also nearby, and a battle ensued between the two sides.

Wang Xiuling and Wang Xiulong had originally intended to attend a gathering of Void Refining cultivators, and since they were going in the same direction as Lan Fukong, they traveled together.

"Guangming," Wang Yier instructed, "you and the others go and report this. Contact family members at other strongholds and request support. We'll hold them off."

The Wang family had multiple strongholds in the interior, and many affiliated forces as well.

Wang Guangming acknowledged and left with the other family members. They couldn't be of much help in a battle between Void Refining cultivators, so seeking reinforcements was the better option.

Wang Yier, Wang Dianlong, and Feng Yueqin launched attacks against Sun Xue and her six companions. Wang Yier summoned a sixth-order puppet beast, which he had applied for from the family, originally intending to use it for treasure hunting.

The Wang family now had over a hundred Void Refining cultivators. Naturally, not every one of them possessed a sixth-order puppet beast; apart from a few wealthy family members, most did not. However, they could apply to borrow a sixth-order puppet beast for important missions.

With the three of them joining the battle, the pressure on Lan Fukong and his two companions was greatly reduced.

The number of Void Refining cultivators on both sides was equal. However, on the Wang family's side, only Wang Yier and Lan Fukong were at the middle Void Refining stage, while the other four, including Wang Dianlong, were all at the early stage. Fortunately, with the assistance of a sixth-order puppet beast, holding off the opposing side for a period would not be an issue.

For a time, continuous explosions resounded as various spiritual lights intertwined. Powerful waves of qi swept outwards, crushing rocks and sending vegetation flying.