CHAPTER 539: 434 ZHANGG ONE SWORD_2

Perhaps this place was once the residence of immortals, or maybe a sacred ground of inheritance.

But during the calamity of the past, when the Immortal Sect fell, it was shaken and reduced to ruins. Apart from broken walls and rubble, there is nothing else left.

Before these ruins lies a staircase of white jade, shrouded in mist, leading straight to the Immortal Sect.

This is a place they, as a couple, had visited many times.

Yet today is vastly different from the past.

...

"What a grand spectacle!"

Chen Jichuan and Wang Yan arrived outside the Immortal Sect, and with a single glance, they saw that in the ruins of the Immortal Sect, which was usually desolate and devoid of people, there now stood dozens of individuals. Most of them blocked the front of the white jade staircase, while a few loitered to the side.

Some appeared indifferent, others seemed faintly excited, some showed hope in their eyes, while others hesitated with inner struggle.

These people were not strangers; they were none other than various Heavenly Venerates within and outside the Nine Heavens and Immortal Sect. And among them, the ones in the lead—

Were the ancient and serene Bixia Immortal Venerable.

The authoritarian and domineering Xuanming Immortal Venerable.

The straightforward and brash Golden Light Immortal Venerable.

The cunning and effeminate Taiyin Immortal Venerable.

The decisive and ruthless Mohe Immortal Venerable.

The cold and aloof Guangmu Immortal Venerable.

And the youngest, Jiuyang Immortal Venerable.

"Seven Immortal Venerates, quite a spectacle indeed."

Adding in the newly ascended ’Dongning Immortal Venerable,’ there were originally nine Immortal Venerates in the Nine Heavens. Now, eight were gathered here, with only ’Yu Ming Immortal Venerable’ absent.

"You really were right, my husband. These people truly can’t sit still any longer."

Wang Yan carried her sword in one hand, her eyes brimming with battle intent.

Ever since she ascended to the Ninth Realm and achieved the title of Immortal Venerable, she had yet to experience a truly satisfying battle. This time, with numerous Immortal and Heavenly Venerates blocking the gate, it seemed like a perfect opportunity to heat up her blade.

"Why must it come to this?"

Chen Jichuan gazed at the group before him and shook his head inwardly.

To his eyes, these were merely pitiable people. They had achieved greatness thanks to the Immortal Sect, living tens of thousands of years in carefree longevity even before reaching the Fifth Order. Yet the Immortal Sect also severed their hope. Upon becoming Heavenly or Immortal Venerates, they could no longer leave the Chongming Realm. While they were freed of external dangers, they also lost countless opportunities and fortunes.

Unwilling to simply fade into death, one by one, they imprinted their True Spirit onto the Immortal Sect. Decades of thousands of years of torment and confinement truly made them pitiable.

And now, seeing a glimmer of hope before them, they naturally wanted to fight for it with all they had.

But to block the gate and coerce others—this was unpardonable.

"Fellow Daoists."

"There are many Holy Artifacts within the Immortal Gate Realm, yet we immortal cultivators often find ourselves at a disadvantage, restricted at every turn. Since you two virtuous Dao companions have already taken the lead and acquired many Holy Artifacts, why not share the invincible Magic Skill of the Immortal Gate Realm with all of us? That way, we might have a glimmer of hope for transcendence. Such a virtuous deed would surely yield infinite merit; when we reach the Upper Realm in the future, we would surely risk our lives to return the favor!"

Taiyin Immortal Venerable stood at the forefront of the crowd and was the first to speak.

He was the most adept at divining the mysteries of the heavens among the Nine Heavens. Ever since the emergence of the ’Tyrant’ and the appearance of the Holy Artifacts, Taiyin had begun his investigation. After gathering countless pieces of information over the past thirty thousand years, he had pinpointed Chen Jichuan and Wang Yan as his targets.

This time, he rallied several Immortal and Heavenly Venerates to block the Immortal Sect, in an attempt to force Chen Jichuan and Wang Yan to surrender their Magic Skill.

With seven Immortal Venerates and dozens of Heavenly Venerates joining forces, no great tactics were needed; simply barricading the couple outside the Immortal Sect would suffice to compel these two hopefuls of the Immortal Dao to compromise.

For a single Magic Skill, for the sake of Yu Ming Immortal Venerable, would the two truly ignore their path to transcendence?

They didn’t believe that possibility.

This was the most direct and effective approach, and it was also the source of Taiyin Immortal Venerable and the others’ confidence.

"Apologies in advance; we beg your understanding, fellow Daoists!"

The ancient Bixia Immortal Venerable, who appeared like a mundane old woman, also spoke at this moment. To pursue transcendence, this venerable one, who was ordinarily serene and indifferent, had cast aside her usual temperament and chosen to intervene, joining the other Immortal and Heavenly Venerates in opposing Chen Jichuan and Wang Yan.

"Fellow Daoist, you truly make it difficult for me. This humble one has no such Magic Skill capable of roaming the foreign realms."

Chen Jichuan shook his head.

Out of respect for Bixia Immortal Venerable, the first to achieve Immortal Venerate status after the arrival of the Immortal Sect, he patiently offered an explanation.

"Alas!"

But Bixia Immortal Venerable sighed, evidently disbelieving or unwilling to accept Chen Jichuan’s words.

On the other side,

Taiyin Immortal Venerable spoke once more, "Daoist of Wind Thunder, is there truly a need to be so resolute? Once you two leave the Chongming Realm, what use will this Magic Skill be to you anyway? We are willing to pay a price. Surely, in the foreign realms or the Upper Realm, Spirit Crystals would come in handy. Name your terms—no matter how many you require, I’m certain we can pool them together."

Taiyin Immortal Venerable lowered his stance considerably.

What he said wasn’t wrong either.

If he could, Chen Jichuan would indeed prefer to sell the Magic Skill for Spirit Crystals, allowing Wang Yan to bring them to the Upper Realm.

It never hurt to have more wealth.

But unfortunately, he simply did not possess such a Magic Skill.

Seeing that Chen Jichuan still refused to yield, Taiyin Immortal Venerable’s expression turned unpleasant.

Nearby, the irascible Golden Light Immortal Venerable could no longer restrain himself. He roared, "Qii Baihu! You good-for-nothing ’Soft Rice Venerable,’ don’t push your luck! If you don’t hand over the Magic Skill today, don’t even think of taking a single step closer to the Immortal Sect. The path to immortality is right before you; if we block you out for tens of thousands of years, then no matter how many Holy Marks or Artifacts you have, you’ll never escape the Fourth-Order limit. By then, you’ll still have to imprint yourselves onto the Immortal Sect like the rest of us!"

Golden Light Immortal Venerable had always been hot-tempered and shameless.

After being stuck near the Immortal Sect for nearly eight hundred thousand years, his state of mind had deteriorated greatly, becoming even more extreme in recent years.

At this moment, with a chance at transcendence within reach, but with Chen Jichuan stubbornly refusing to budge, he had lost all patience and directly tore off his facade.

His words were crude, causing several nearby Heavenly Venerates to frown.

Yet no one spoke up to refute him.

Because what he said was, in essence, the truth. This was precisely their plan. Only by doing this could they force Chen Jichuan and Wang Yan to capitulate.

However—

Chen Jichuan remained impervious to both threats and persuasion.

"Golden Light, Taiyin."

"You two have long-standing grievances with my wife and me. I had no intention of holding it against you, yet you came disrupting us at this moment. Since that’s the case, there’s no need for more words; let’s settle this with Divine Skills!"

Chen Jichuan was done being patient. As Golden Light Immortal Venerable tore off all pretense, he saw no need to argue further.

He turned to Wang Yan and said, "Ordinary duels can be too restrictive. Today, with so many Immortal and Heavenly Venerates present, why not take the opportunity to test ourselves and see who truly stands above the rest?"

"Agreed."

Wang Yan had been eager to act for a while now.

"Let the battle begin!"

With her Immortal Sword in hand, she was the first to strike. Her feet moved with Wind Thunder, as her Swordsmanship flowed as if gifted by the heavens, its movements imperceptible.

With a single move, she encased Taiyin, Golden Light, and Guangmu Immortal Venerables, along with the eight Heavenly Venerates beside them, within her sword’s glow.

"In the past, the Three Immortal Courts trapped me in the Dongning Realm. Today, you aim to seal me outside the Immortal Sect."

"It’s past time to settle this!"

Wang Yan’s sword light was unfathomable.

With one strike, it descended like the universe itself. Outside the three Immortal Venerates, the eight Heavenly Venerates fell into an Illusion Realm, their expressions flickering erratically as they forgot to defend themselves.

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

The sword light swept across, and in the blink of an eye, it sent the eight Heavenly Venerates, including Yongye and Wanying, flying. Their Nine Layers Immortal Light trembled as their physical forms were damaged.

Bang!

A resounding crash echoed as, though their Immortal Light remained, their bodies shattered. When their forms reassembled, their faces had turned pale.

With one strike!

Eight Heavenly Venerates were gravely injured!

The Ninth Immortal Venerable of the heavens fully revealed her might for the first time. After switching to a True Sect Level Cultivation Method and mastering the ’Seven Emotions Magic Sword’ to the Third Realm, Wang Yan now possessed unparalleled strength, capable of crushing even Fourth-Order Immortal Venerates.

As for ordinary cultivators of the Heavenly Ladder Realm?

A single sword was enough!

"Dongning Immortal Venerable!"

"How is this possible?"

"She became an Immortal Venerable only four thousand years ago—how could she be this powerful?!"

Golden Light, Taiyin, and Guangmu desperately defended against the Seven Emotions Magic Sword. Their eyes caught a glimpse of the eight Heavenly Venerates’ miserable state, and each of their hearts shook.

Though they were also Immortal Venerates, Wang Yan’s strength far exceeded their expectations.

And not just for the eight Heavenly Venerates; even as the three joined forces, wielding all their secret techniques, Divine Skills, and precious Immortal Treasures, they were still pressed so hard by Wang Yan that they could barely breathe.

Brandishing their Divine Skills and wielding their Immortal Treasures, the three of them were relentlessly driven back.

Blocking the gate?

In this moment, it seemed like nothing but a joke.

"The three Immortal Venerates cannot hold her off!"

"Jiuyang, Mohe, we call upon you two for aid!"

With the eight Heavenly Venerates severely injured and the three Immortal Venerates struggling to hold their ground, it was evident they wouldn’t last much longer against Wang Yan.

If these three Immortal Venerates were defeated or killed, the entire party would face a humiliating failure today. Sensing the critical situation, Bixia Immortal Venerable, who was presiding over the affairs, turned to Jiuyang and Mohe Immortal Venerates for help.

"Dongning Immortal Venerable, we seek your guidance."

In the next instant, two more Immortal Venerates joined the fray.

"Haha!"

"Come, the more, the merrier!"

For a moment, Wang Yan faced five Immortal Venerates alone, showcasing her unparalleled prowess.

...