Chapter 6 The Divine Sword Departs from Calamity

"Clang—" The sound of swords clashing was ear-piercing.

Li Chang'an suddenly woke up, his heart pounding in his chest.

Moonlight streamed down, shining through the gaps in the bamboo leaves into the bamboo grove.

Upon seeing the scene before him, Li Chang'an's eyes widened in shock, and his heart pounded wildly.

Less than half a meter in front of him, the black sword and a huge scimitar collided violently.

Behind the scimitar was a dark figure over two meters tall, its scarlet eyes fixed on him with greedy intent.

"It smells so good..." the tall, dark figure uttered in human speech.

Li Chang'an was stunned.

Deep within his mind, those memories he had always ignored and deliberately avoided suddenly surged forth.

[It smells so good. If I eat you, and everyone in this village, I can return to my peak condition...]

While Li Chang'an was stunned, the dark figure raised his other hand high, and another huge curved blade came down towards Li Chang'an.

The moment the sword was swung down, it rang out loudly, flashed with silver light, and sent the dark figure flying.

It was only through this silver light that Li Chang'an was able to see the appearance of the dark figure.

It has a pair of curved swords on its chest, a large belly, and transparent wings on its back.

This is a praying mantis demon!

Seemingly not expecting the black sword to be so powerful, the mantis demon roared to the sky, its head twisting into a triangular mantis head, with long antennae growing from its head, and two red eyes moving backward, eventually settling on either side of its head.

At the same time, its mouth kept changing, turning into sharp mouthparts.

Watching a human-like head turn into an insect was so disgusting that it made Li Chang'an feel nauseous.

However, in the next instant, he saw the mantis demon suddenly fly towards him.

In almost a second, the mantis's scimitar was already upon them.

If it weren't for the Black Sword reacting faster and flying in to block it, Li Chang'an would have already been cut in half.

Immediately afterwards, the mantis demon's mouthparts writhed, and it raised its other forelimb. The curved blade detached from its joint and flew away, spinning as it slashed towards Li Chang'an's back!

Li Chang'an snapped out of his daze and quickly rolled to the side. The mantis demon's curved blade struck the large rock where he was sleeping, cutting it in two.

If he hadn't filmed action scenes before and knew to quickly roll away, he would have been the one cut in half.

But...his bed! His new bedding!

Li Chang'an only had time to glance at it before the curved blade, which had been embedded in the rock, began to tremble. After being pulled out, it flew back towards him.

The black sword deflected the mantis demon, and the demon quickly flew over to block it.

The scimitar spun back to the mantis's forelimbs.

Li Chang'an looked at the black sword in front of him and swallowed hard, feeling like he had just escaped death.

It seems the black sword isn't just going to suddenly be thrust at his neck, but also protect him.

With that in mind, he felt much more at ease.

When he looked at the mantis demon again, Li Chang'an pursed his lips and clenched his fists, forcing himself to calm down.

It's not like six years ago anymore. He can cultivate now, and he will no longer be at the mercy of demons!

But what else can he do when facing a demon?

Oh right, he just learned how to draw talismans...

The mantis did not immediately launch another attack.

Its two eyes were fixed on Black Sword and Li Chang'an. After a while, it opened its mouth and roared.

Its wings spread out and flapped rapidly, the wind whipped up by the wings carrying fallen leaves from the bamboo forest toward Li Chang'an.

Li Chang'an raised his hand, golden light flashing in his eyes, and quickly drew a fire talisman in the air.

A half-meter-long flame swept over the fallen leaves, instantly burning them to ashes.

Li Chang'an looked on in surprise, a smile playing on his lips.

This flame is much brighter than when he grilled fish at noon!

Although he felt some pain in his lower abdomen, it didn't stop him from being very happy; he had succeeded!

Before he could even smile, the mantis demon flew over again.

It seems to have abandoned its target of Li Chang'an and instead headed straight for the Black Sword.

"Clang—" The two curved blades and the black sword clashed.

Li Chang'an got up and drew talismans in the air again.

With each stroke, a burning pain shot through my dantian.

Li Chang'an gritted his teeth and finished the last stroke of the fire talisman, sending bright flames hurtling towards the mantis demon.

Insects should all be afraid of fire, right?

Uncertain, Li Chang'an leaned weakly against a bamboo stalk, his eyes fixed on the distance, awaiting a result.

However, a figure swiftly passed through the bright flames, its mouth wide open, and it bit down towards Li Chang'an's head.

It all happened in an instant.

Li Chang'an stared in horror, his heart pounding. He watched as the horrifying, ugly mouthpiece drew ever closer, yet he was unable to move and utterly powerless to resist.

Just like back then.

Am I going to die? Be eaten by a monster?

"boom--"

At the crucial moment, a foot wearing a black boot kicked the mantis on the head, sending it flying.

The mantis demon's body smashed through a large patch of bamboo, and only stopped after traveling about fifty meters.

The sword spirit, standing in mid-air, raised his hand, and the hilt of the black sword landed steadily in his palm.

Just now, the two curved blades developed serrated edges and clamped the black sword tightly, which is why it couldn't fly over in time to protect Li Chang'an.

The two curved blades spun back to the mantis's forelimbs.

Seeing the sword spirit releasing a terrifying aura, the mantis demon turned its head and tried to rush towards the seven-colored light.

Run! This guy is someone we can't mess with!

However, just as it made a move, a sword light bright enough to illuminate the night flew over.

"Ah—" The mantis demon's body was engulfed by the sword light and instantly turned to ashes within it.

The sword light continued flying until it reached the barrier at the edge of the entrance to Xuanling Immortal Mountain before gradually disappearing, and the bamboo forest returned to tranquility.

Li Chang'an lowered his hand from his eyes and stared blankly at the sword spirit that had fallen to the ground.

The black sword left the opponent's hand and hovered beside him.

Li Chang'an shifted his gaze to the front.

By the moonlight, he saw that a large grove of bamboo had fallen ahead, and the ground was even dredged several meters deep because of the sword light.

Stunned, the sword spirit raised its hand, and the ground gradually returned to its original state.

If it weren't for the fact that a large number of bamboo stalks were still broken and fallen, Li Chang'an would have wondered if he was hallucinating.

But in any case, thanks to the timely arrival of the sword spirit, he was saved.

Li Chang'an steadied himself against the bamboo and said, "Thank you, senior."

"Um."

Li Chang'an looked at the black sword beside him and fell into deep thought.

Before and after the arrival of the Blade Spirit, the Black Sword displayed two completely different abilities.

Before arriving, Black Sword seemed to act solely on instinct to protect himself, repeatedly blocking the mantis demon's scimitar; aside from that silvery-white light, he had no other moves.

But in the hands of the sword spirit, this black sword is the true divine sword, possessing overwhelming power, capable of instantly killing the mantis demon in one move.

The user's strength determines the maximum power that this black sword can unleash.

Li Chang'an clenched his fists, his heart beating slightly faster.

Is it possible that once he cultivates to a certain level, he will be able to unleash such sword light?

"Yes." The sword spirit's cold voice brought Li Chang'an back to his senses.

Li Chang'an then realized that he had inadvertently voiced his doubts.

He scratched his face sheepishly, feeling a little embarrassed.

At a loss, the sword spirit lowered his voice and called out to him, "Li Chang'an."

"You should understand by now that there are no restrictions on the entrance to Xuanling Immortal Mountain."

There are no restrictions; anyone can come in.

Mortals, cultivators, and even demons and evil spirits.

Recalling the scene where he was almost bitten off by the mantis demon, Li Chang'an bit his lip, and a few more cold sweats appeared on his forehead.

The sword spirit glanced at him, then quickly looked away.

"The spiritual energy in the Cangxuan Realm is becoming increasingly scarce, and the spiritual energy in the Xuanling Immortal Mountain will surely attract people from all walks of life to rush here."

Li Chang'an fell into deep thought.

No wonder the Sword Spirit Senior had been urging him to start cultivating for two days in a row.

The sword spirit added, "But there's no need to worry too much. If it's an enemy, just fight them off."

Li Chang'an stared wide-eyed at the sword spirit.

What powerful words! Is this the demeanor of a strong person?

He perked up, but then deflated a moment later: "But what if we can't win?"

The sword spirit said, "If you can't defeat them, then summon me."

"How do I call you?" Li Chang'an murmured.

"Oh, I see, is that right?" Li Chang'an's eyes sharpened, he took a deep breath, and pointed his sword finger sharply forward: "Sword, come!"

All around was silent, and the black sword remained still, as quiet as a chicken.

Li Chang'an froze, his head slowly shifting to look at the sword spirit.

The sword spirit's icy expression remained unchanged, but Li Chang'an seemed to see a message in it: "What are you doing?"

"Uh." Li Chang'an withdrew his hand, standing ramrod straight and stiffly. "Isn't that wrong?"

The sword spirit closed its eyes.

It seems like they're quite helpless.

A few breaths later, he opened his eyes and calmly said, "Just call me by my name."

Li Chang'an nodded, and seeing the sword spirit rise into the air again as if to leave, he quickly asked, "But senior, I still don't know your name!"

The sword spirit had vanished into the night sky, leaving only a cold voice: "My name is Li'e."

...

"The Sword of Departure?!"

A rough voice rang out from the Cultivation Alliance Palace located in the eastern part of the Cangxuan Realm.

The palace is situated above a lake, and inside stand seven stone pillars arranged according to the positions of the Big Dipper in the sky. Seven people are sitting cross-legged on top of the stone pillars.

"Yuheng, look closely, is that really the Li'e Sword?!"

The speaker was a muscular, burly man. On a stone pillar in front of him stood Yuheng, who had led people into Xuanling Immortal Mountain yesterday.

Yuheng nodded with a grave expression: "The words on the sword are indeed 'Li'e'."

The burly man fell silent.

"What happened to the Li'e Sword?" On the last stone pillar, a girl who looked to be only ten years old asked, tilting her head.

Yuheng said, "That is the natal divine sword of the Boundless God. In the beginning, it was actually a sword of calamity, absorbing the evil energy of heaven and earth to wreak havoc on the human world. It is said that no one who gets his hands on it will suffer a qi deviation."

"Later, it was the God of Boundless Space who subdued it, purified the evil energy on its body, and helped it transcend tribulation and ascend to heaven. It also transformed from a spiritual sword into a divine sword."

"Oh," the girl said dismissively, "Even if the seven of us joined forces, we couldn't beat them?"

Yuheng remained silent.

The burly man patted the stone pillar. "Use your brain! That's a divine sword. The seven of us Golden Core cultivators are nothing more than seven eggs in front of it!"

"So what? He's a divine sword, and we have the power of the stars. It's not certain yet. Are you chickening out?"

The burly man was furious. He crossed his arms and turned his head away, saying, "Forget it, there's no point in arguing with you fire elementalists!"

"What's wrong with fire elemental roots? You're being stereotypical!"

The two started arguing, and the once quiet palace suddenly became noisy.

The woman on the first stone pillar slowly opened her eyes, her voice authoritative: "Alright."

The two who were arguing quickly quieted down.

"If I'm not mistaken, that man in black should be the spirit of the Li'e Sword. Like the God, he possesses the power to create and destroy the world. We will never be his match in our entire lives."

"As for the newly recognized master of Xuanling Immortal Mountain..."

A guess began to form in her mind.

That person probably has a very close relationship with the God of Boundless Space.

But whether this guess is right or wrong, since the spirit of the Li'e Sword said that Li Chang'an is the newly recognized master of Xuanling Immortal Mountain, then he is.

With the God of Boundless Destiny already fallen, who else is more qualified than the spirit of the Sword of Departure to deal with the Mysterious Spirit Immortal Mountain?

"Yuheng," the woman said calmly, "the cultivators are paying special attention to Xuanling Immortal Mountain. Now that the mountain has an owner and its spiritual energy is being lost, we should inform them in time so that they don't make a wasted trip."

Yuheng rose and bowed: "Yes."

——

The following day, the top news headline in the cultivation world reported that Lord Yuheng led his people to Xuanling Immortal Mountain. However, like other blessed lands and secret realms, the immortal mountain could not escape the fate of destruction and disappearance.

However, because the immortal mountain was reclaimed by a new master, it was eventually preserved. It's just a pity that the spiritual energy within the immortal mountain has been lost, and it is no different from the Cangxuan Realm today.

Regarding the concept of recognizing a master, the Seven Stars of the Alliance explained that Xuanling Immortal Mountain was created by the God Venerable, and is like a divine artifact. Divine artifacts can recognize a master and reappear in the world, so Xuanling Immortal Mountain can naturally do the same.

This news instantly ignited the entire cultivation world.

Then, upon seeing the name of the new master of the Xuanling Immortal Mountain, some people were so shocked that they couldn't sit still.

"What! Li Chang'an inherited the Xuanling Immortal Mountain?!"

A note from the author:

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