The Wang Family Elder coughed up blood, his face a ferocious snarl. "What damn 'forbidden figure'?! Pah! Just some old fossil at the Transcendance Tribulation Stage! You think far too highly of him! I refuse to believe you could summon anyone with the guts to actually level our Yunxia Sect!"

"Heh heh! Ancestor, since the Command of Ten Thousand Swords has chosen to help that kid, why don't we join forces and suppress this old relic!"

"Yes! Suppress this old relic!"

"This old man is a spy from the Wang Family! The Wang Family and the Yunxia Sect are sworn enemies!"

The group of cultivators surrounding the Yunxiao Tower grew restless upon hearing this. The Nascent Soul Stage cultivators, in particular, had their eyes darting about, itching to rush over and seize the Command of Ten Thousand Swords amidst the chaos.

"You… you're courting death!"

At the top of Yunxiao Tower, Li Yuanqing's expression changed drastically. With a low roar, he activated the jade pendant in his hand, and a flash of spiritual light instantly enveloped the entire tower.

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

The next moment, a series of formidable auras burst forth from within Yunxiao Tower. These were the disciples of the Yunxiao Sect—a whole seven or eight hundred of them.

"You… you actually hid so many people inside Yunxiao City!" the Wang Family Elder's face twisted in shock.

From within the tower, Li Yuanqing's mocking laughter echoed. "Haha! Old man, now you see the true depth of my Yunxiao Sect's power! I'll give you two options: either get lost, or be suppressed by us! Our Yunxiao Sect is not like your Wang Family; we believe in fair competition!"

"Fair competition? Haha! How naive! You don't understand the Mountain of Ten Thousand Swords at all!" The Wang Family Elder laughed, his voice dripping with fury and scorn.

"Hmm?"

"Look! The Sword Key is reacting!"

"The Sword Key is responding! It seems to be drawn deeper into the Yunxiao Tower!"

Around the tower, many cultivators turned their gaze to the Ten Thousand Swords Pavilion, noticing the Sword Key trembling slightly. They all looked puzzled, as the vibrations weren't intense, and it was only shaking within the pavilion itself, without any other signs.

Could it be? Is something inside the Ten Thousand Swords Pavilion pulling on the Sword Key?

"Li Yuanqing! Your Yunxiao Sect has gone mad!" the Wang Family Elder's face grew extremely grim. "The Sword Key is the core treasure of the Mountain of Ten Thousand Swords! If it enters the mountain, it's tantamount to destroying it! The Sword Key is not just a key, but also the core of the sealing formation! If it is destroyed, the seal will fail! Your Yunxiao Sect will be finished! Our Yunxia Sect will be finished! Everyone inside the Mountain of Ten Thousand Swords will die, including the disciples of the Yunxia Sect!"

He was keenly aware of the Sword Key's power. An ancestor of the Wang Family had once obtained it by chance and had tried to use it to control the Mountain of Ten Thousand Swords, even hoping to harness its might to annihilate the Yunxia Sect. However, they ultimately failed because only the true owner could wield it; the Wang Family had no right. Furthermore, activating the Sword Key would cause the Mountain of Ten Thousand Swords to collapse, and all life within would be inevitably wiped out. Even if the Yunxiao Sect's secret realm was well-hidden, it would be instantly leveled.

"The Sword Key is our Yunxiao Sect's ultimate treasure!" Li Yuanqing gritted his teeth.

"Hah! A treasure? In that case, I'll be taking your sect's ultimate treasure, the Sword Key!" the Wang Family Elder sneered. His eyes were glued to the Command of Ten Thousand Swords, now only half a meter away. He reached out to grab it, but the short distance felt like an insurmountable chasm. A terrifying Sword Intent seemed to block his path, and no matter how much strength he exerted, he couldn't grasp the command token.

SHIING!

Suddenly, from above the Ten Thousand Swords Pavilion, the air filled with the cries of swords. Countless flying swords ascended, forming a rain of blades that descended upon the Wang Family Elder's body. In a mere moment, he was sliced into pieces, leaving not even a bone behind.

WHOOSH!

Witnessing this spectacle, the cultivators below were terrified, their scalps tingling. One by one, they tore through the void and vanished from sight. That sword attack was too horrifying; a single blade could have easily slain a Golden Core Early Stage cultivator.

「Atop the Yunxiao Tower」

Li Yuanqing stood frozen, completely dumbfounded. He felt a bone-deep chill spread through him, having just watched a Nascent Soul Stage Ancestor be executed by dismemberment. After a long moment, he sucked in a sharp breath of cold air.

The Command of Ten Thousand Swords… The Sword Key… These two treasures are simply heaven-defying!

Now, the Wang Family was truly finished.

"The Sword Key is our sect's ultimate treasure! The Command of Ten Thousand Swords has guarded our Yunxiao Sect for thousands of years!" Li Yuanqing clenched his teeth, his voice filled with renewed determination. "Though my cultivation is lacking, I too have a dream! I will lead the Yunxiao Sect back to glory! Our sect will become an overlord of the cultivation world! The Ten Thousand Swords Pavilion is our foundation, and the Sword Key is our guardian divine weapon! How dare they try to steal it from us! This is an intolerable insult!"

"The Command of Ten Thousand Swords… is a guardian divine weapon…"

"My heavens… No wonder the Ten Thousand Swords Pavilion was preserved! No wonder the Yunxiao Tower still stands unshaken!"

"Once news of this gets out, it will surely cause a massive uproar!"

Inside and outside the Yunxiao Tower, people buzzed with discussion.

"Hmph!"

From high above the Yunxiao Tower, a cold snort echoed. The next instant, a beam of white light shot downwards.

"What is this thing?! Shatter!"

Another Wang Family Elder—who had remained behind—looked up abruptly and summoned a magic treasure to defend himself. With a BANG, the treasure shattered. He was thrown back dozens of meters, crashing through a wall before coming to a stop.

"You… who… are you!" he bellowed, his eyes wide as he stared at the top of the Yunxiao Tower.

A young man in black robes stood there. Beside him was a woman in a red dress.

"Young Master Xiao…"

Atop the tower, the Yunxiao Sect elders trembled as they looked at the man in black. "It's… it's you! You're the one who undid the second-level restriction on the Yunxiao Tower!"

SWOOSH!

As soon as these words were spoken, all eyes in and around the Yunxiao Tower swiveled to focus on Xiao Feng. In that instant, he became the center of everyone's attention.

"Senior Brother… you're Senior Brother Xiao Feng!"

"How… how could Senior Brother Xiao Feng ambush Elder Wang! Senior Brother Xiao Feng is a Golden Core Peak Cultivator! How could he possibly scheme against someone at the Nascent Soul Stage?!" several of the Yunxiao Sect elders exclaimed in terror.

"No! This isn't my Senior Brother Xiao Feng!" a Yunxiao Sect Executive shouted, staring indignantly at the robed man. "The traitor Xiao Feng from our sect is a Soul Formation cultivator! This man must be an imposter!" This man looked exactly like the Xiao Feng he remembered, but he refused to believe it was really him. After all, the Yunxiao Sect had undergone a massive upheaval. Xiao Feng's entire lineage had been expelled and a bounty was placed on their heads. How long had it been? How could Xiao Feng now be a Golden Core Peak Cultivator? What a joke!

"You… you are Xiao Feng…"

In the main hall of the Yunxiao Sect, the defeated Wang Family Elder stared blankly for a long while before finally recovering. He opened his mouth, as if to question Xiao Feng, but ultimately closed it again. He knew that in his current state, he no longer had the right to question anyone; he had been utterly defeated.

"I don't know who you are, but since you dared to break into the Yunxiao Tower to steal the Sword Key, I advise you to leave at once! Otherwise, our Yunxiao Sect will not let you off lightly!" one of the Yunxiao Sect elders shouted in a low voice, also suspecting this Xiao Feng was a fake.

The other high-ranking members of the Yunxiao Sect remained silent, their lack of protest an apparent agreement with the elder's words.

"Heh."

The man in black gave a faint smile. With a wave of his right hand, the Sword Key levitated above his palm. He swept his gaze across the entire Yunxiao Sect before letting it rest on the tower. "Have all of your people fled? Then I suppose I'll have to tear this Yunxiao Tower down. But if I do, all the magic treasures, Cultivation Techniques, talismans, Immortal Techniques, and elixirs inside will belong to me!"

HUMMM!

Before his voice had even faded, the Sword Key released a terrifying aura that vanished as quickly as it appeared.

BOOM