Chapter 1412: Zhu Xian Four Swords?

Spectacular.

Not only did Pang Bo feel his hair stand on end, but Ye Fan was also taken aback. Four immortal swords suppressing something within an ancient Celestial Venerable's Life Spring—this was truly bizarre and terrifying!

“Are the figures from the Investiture of the Gods truly alive in this world? Impossible!” Pang Bo shook his head vigorously.

The four killing swords emanated a fierce aura, as if the gates of hell had opened, or primeval beasts were charging forth. Surging sword energy shot upwards, splitting the heavens and rending the earth, causing numerous great stars in the sky to fall.

In the Sea of Misery, black waves surged sky-high, their crests reaching hundreds of thousands of miles, while stars plummeted like flying sand and rolling stones. The scene was utterly terrifying.

Such a spectacle, such dominance, such killing intent—it truly startled all realms, rarely seen since ancient times. At the very least, none of the Great Sages or young Supremes present had ever witnessed anything like it.

Was this the terrifying sight of an Emperor Armament truly and completely reviving?! It was far too shocking; even a Great Sage would be shattered like an ant by the sword energy.

In another area, the Divine Refining Pot was sent flying hundreds of thousands of miles. Its azure-gold radiance scattered, hazy and indistinct. It had been on the verge of full revival but was struck and sent hurtling away, its luster significantly dimmed.

In the sea, an old man appeared, having pursued it all the way down. He had four faces and was constantly coughing blood. Originally emanating light, he was now trembling violently, his aura fading.

This was Mi Zhen, the Great Sage of the Light Clan, who had cultivated for 6,500 years. Yet, he was now in such a sorry state, nearly perishing in the sea.

After unleashing the Divine Refining Pot, he had kept himself sufficiently far away, which allowed him to escape a deadly calamity. Had he been near the pot, he would undoubtedly have died, reduced to ashes.

“How could this happen?” Mi Zhen, disheveled and blood-stained, wore a look of disbelief.

He was a dignified Great Sage, yet unleashing the Divine Refining Pot, an ancient Imperial Armament renowned through the ages, had not yielded the expected results. He was nearly shaken to death.

All four swords were Emperor Armaments, possessing unparalleled might, and their killing aura still sent chills down his spine. No one was activating the four swords, so how could they be more terrifying than a Great Sage unleashing an immortal pot?

Mi Zhen stood beside the azure-gold pot, silently regulating his breath. As its radiant glow shimmered, the bloodstains across his body vanished, and he slowly recovered.

Half an hour later, Mi Zhen returned to this sea area. Everyone was extremely wary of him now; he possessed an Emperor Armament, and all had to be cautious.

The black Sea of Misery gradually calmed, and no more stars fell. However, the killing intent had not entirely vanished; it was now contained within the sparkling, radiant Life Spring.

Supreme Emperor's might—this was an undeniable fact. And it was from four Emperor Swords, which was astounding. In their hearts, there was both fervent desire and a profound sense of dread.

“As you all have seen, there are Emperor Armaments in the sea, which cannot be seized by one person alone. How about we join forces?” Mi Zhen, the Great Sage of the Light Clan, transmitted his voice to everyone.

Everyone was startled. Many had a glint in their eyes; cooperating with someone who possessed an Emperor Armament was indeed too dangerous.

Mi Zhen said, “Please do not doubt me. I have no ill intentions. Everyone present is a Heaven's Chosen. Does my Light Clan dare to offend all of you?”

He wanted to unite all the Great Sages to jointly activate the Divine Refining Pot, allowing it to fully revive and suppress the four immortal swords separately. As for how they would be distributed, that could be discussed later.

Some were swayed. Even if the Light Clan was powerful, they wouldn't dare to antagonize all strong clans, so it was worth a gamble.

Since there were Emperor Armaments within the Life Spring, perhaps there would also be ancient scriptures, other artifacts, or immortal herbs below. Anything nurtured by an ancient Celestial Venerable's Life Spring would undoubtedly be heaven-defying.

As the Great Sages deliberated, the young Supremes kept their distance, fearing that if any of the old fellows lost their minds and used an Emperor Armament on them, they wouldn't be able to escape even with secret treasures.

Even powerful and arrogant figures like Golden Snake Four Gentlemen, Devouring Beast, and Sang Gu kept a low profile, standing in the distant sky, silently watching and awaiting the outcome.

“Do you think there really is such a person as Grandmaster of Heaven?” Pang Bo asked.

The Investiture of the Gods is a novel about gods and demons and cannot be taken as fact. In true Taoist and ancient Chinese mythology, there is no figure named Grandmaster of Heaven, which is why Pang Bo was conflicted.

“No!” Ye Fan shook his head, then mused, “Or, yes, in a way.”

“What do you mean?” Pang Bo was surprised.

“Let's just observe for now and see how powerful those four killing swords truly are,” Ye Fan said, retreating further with Pang Bo, Dragon Horse, and others, unwilling to get involved.

“Alright, fellow Daoists, let us join forces. At the very least, we can absorb some immortal liquid. If we can open this spring, the rewards will be unparalleled,” Mi Zhen said.

After their discussion, a total of four Great Sages agreed to join forces with him, while others continued to observe, unwilling to immediately commit.

This was because the four killing swords were too powerful; they had spontaneously revived just now, sending the azure-gold divine pot flying, filling them with great apprehension and even fear.

A few Great Sages suspected that there might be a living entity in the Sea of Misery, perhaps an extraordinary being, manually controlling the four swords; otherwise, how could they be so powerful? Hence, they were very cautious.

The Divine Refining Pot revived, glowing with dazzling azure-gold light. Waves resembling immortal feathers emerged, emanating Supreme divine might, causing the sun, moon, and stars in the sky to tremble.

Forged from Feathered Azure Gold, its inner deity awakened, and Imperial Qi flowed, its power shaking the nine heavens. The pot's spout spewed light, chaotic energy appeared, and rivers of stars swirled within.

Everyone gasped. This was an Emperor Armament—capable of swallowing the universe, containing galaxies, and melting all things in the world! Just its fluctuations alone were enough to make Great Sages prostrate.

This time, Mi Zhen, the Great Sage of the Light Clan, did not act arrogantly. He slowly advanced, gradually pushing the Divine Refining Pot towards its full revival, allowing its deity to truly awaken. Furthermore, he did not intend to swallow all four killing swords at once; instead, he planned to separate them first and target one.

However, things always unfold unexpectedly. The heavens and earth suddenly crackled with lightning and thunder, as if gods and demons were wailing.

With a deafening roar, the Sea of Life was directly severed. The four immortal swords below vibrated, their killing aura intensely strong, alarming the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands! Surging sword energy, like wolf smoke or thousands of falling galaxies, vast and boundless, ravaged the surroundings, actively attacking the Divine Refining Pot.

Everyone's scalps tingled. How could such power be resisted? It was truly as if an ancient Great Emperor had revived, not to be desecrated!

This left them puzzled. No living being was seen within the Life Spring, so how could the four swords revive and attack on their own?

Of the four Great Sages who had joined, three immediately fled, choosing to abandon the fight rather than resist. Only one remained with Mi Zhen, operating the divine pot, but they too were sent flying backward.

“Boom!”

This time, the Divine Refining Pot was struck by the sword energy. Its entire body burst with light, resisting most of the pressure, but it was still sent flying backward.

“Ah…”

This time, Mi Zhen was not so fortunate. Covered in blood, he was sent spinning diagonally like a scarecrow, his primordial spirit nearly splitting in half, his entire body ragged.

The other Great Sage also spewed blood. Seeing this situation, he said nothing, but desperately fled, refusing to cooperate ever again.

Yet again, it was fruitless, and Mi Zhen nearly perished. Had he not been better prepared this time, controlling the divine pot from an immense distance, there truly wouldn't have been a single bone shard left of him.

“How could this be…” Mi Zhen muttered to himself. Was the Divine Refining Pot, when wielded, still inferior to four ownerless killing swords?

Suddenly, his lower body exploded, and then his upper body disintegrated inch by inch, turning into a bloody mist. This sight sent shivers down everyone's spines, shocking all the Great Sages.

When the final soft sound came, his forehead bone shattered, his Immortal Platform disintegrated, and his primordial spirit extinguished, utterly destroyed by a wisp of terrifying killing sword energy!

This was energy overflow from the Divine Refining Pot. When the four swords struck earlier, vast sword energy poured into the pot. When Mi Zhen approached it at that moment, calamity naturally befell him.

“These four swords are too terrifying,” even the Great Sages exclaimed in horror.

Suddenly, the Divine Refining Pot glowed, dazzling brightly as it flew back on its own, charging towards the Sea of Life.

Everyone stared, then became joyous. Clearly, the deity within the divine pot had awakened and was enraged, launching an active assault, intending to contend with the four killing swords.

The area immediately shattered. Neither the Sea of Misery nor the Life Spring could withstand a single strike of Supreme divine might. Chaotic lightning danced, terrifying to the extreme.

With a mighty roar, under a single strike, all heavens and myriad realms trembled. Many stars above shattered, some plummeting, and the waves of the Sea of Misery surged skyward, crashing into the depths of the universe.

“Whoosh!”

A brilliant azure-gold light flashed, bursting from the Sea of Misery, tearing through space, and vanishing into an ancient starfield, disappearing into the deepest reaches of the universe.

Everyone was astonished. No one knew what kind of massive collision had occurred between the Divine Refining Pot and the Celestial Venerable's ancient armaments, but its retreat was clear for all to see.

The starfield collapsed, numerous great stars were knocked down, crashing into the black ocean, and the entire starfield trembled.

“Look, above the four killing swords, there's an ancient diagram!”

“That’s… a formation diagram. So that’s it! An ancient Great Emperor's formation diagram combined with four killing swords is naturally invincible under heaven!”

“There’s actually an Emperor's formation diagram left in this world; it's simply defying the heavens! Could it be that person? I think I might know who it is!”

All the Great Sages were shocked, and the young Supremes' hearts surged with fear, utterly terrified.

“Unbelievable, is it really… him?!” Pang Bo's eyes shot out an incredible light.

“There is no such person as Grandmaster of Heaven, but you could say it's him,” Ye Fan shook his head, a strange expression on his face, and continued, “The archetype for Grandmaster of Heaven in the Investiture of the Gods is Heavenly Venerate Lingbao from Taoism. Everything here should be related to him.”

Taoism has the Lingbao School, which reveres Heavenly Venerate Lingbao as one of the Three Pure Ones, an ancient Celestial Venerable from the mythical era. There are many legends about him in ancient China, which were later embellished and written into stories by subsequent generations.

“If it's truly Grandmaster of Heaven, then could these be the Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram and the four swords?!” Pang Bo's eyes widened. Having witnessed the overwhelming divine might of the four swords moments ago, his blood was boiling.

“Wrong, you should call him Heavenly Venerate Lingbao. To be precise, there is no such person as Grandmaster of Heaven,” Ye Fan clarified.

In the distance, the other Great Sages were also discussing, their expressions agitated and utterly shocked. They didn't recognize the four swords, but based on ancient records, they recognized the formation diagram.

“It's Heavenly Venerate Lingbao! Unbelievable that this is his Sea of Misery, and within its Life Spring, it harbors a killing formation diagram!”

Ancient records state that Heavenly Venerate Lingbao possessed unparalleled talent and world-shaking divine might. He once refined a divine diagram, through which he attained Dao, sweeping across the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, unrivaled throughout heaven and earth.

It is said that he also attempted to forge weapons, stating that he would forge killing swords that, when combined with the formation diagram, would allow him to become an immortal and break into the Immortal Realm!

For the latter half of his life, all his energy was dedicated to this endeavor.

“Legend has it that once he forged Celestial Venerable ancient armaments that combined with the formation diagram, he would attain Dao and become an immortal. Now that the four killing swords have appeared and merged with the diagram, could it be that he has become an immortal?”

Everyone was deeply shocked and felt their scalps tingle upon considering this possibility.

“Impossible. Heavenly Venerate Lingbao's Wheel Sea is here, which proves he has passed away, his vast and boundless body lying across the universe. How could he have become an immortal?”

“That might not be certain. Perhaps this is an Emperor's body shed upon becoming an immortal. Ancient texts record that Heavenly Venerate Lingbao once said that as long as the formation diagram and Celestial Venerable ancient armaments appeared together, he could become an immortal.”

None of the Great Sages could remain calm. These four killing swords combined with the formation diagram represented a terrifying, ultimate power, which the ancient Celestial Venerable had once hoped to use to attain immortality!

“Ye Zi, we have to find a way to seize the Immortal-Slaying Formation Diagram and the four killing swords!” Pang Bo's eyes burned with eagerness as he rubbed his hands together.