Chapter 25
The world in the mirror.
Just like slowly floating up from the deep sea, Yan Bujian felt that his whole body was light and floating, supported by invisible air currents, with no support and no sense of reality.
He slowly opened his eyes, and what he saw was not the darkness he had expected, but a vast, boundless chaos.
There was no sky or earth, and the light was scattered and floating like broken glass, flickering unpredictably.
There was only a fist-sized, glowing cyclone of air, quietly hanging three inches in front of his eyes, slowly rotating as if it had life.
After a long moment of contemplation, seeing that the cyclone remained silent and mysterious, he finally reached out tentatively. Unexpectedly, his fingertips pierced through it the moment they made contact—and the next moment, the air suddenly moved!
The originally integrated air mass began to stratify. The light and clear ones rose like mist and gathered into ethereal clouds in the void; the heavy and turbid ones fell down and condensed into dark brown earth under his feet. The outline gradually became apparent, and the soil began to take shape.
At this moment, the empty voice from before rang in my ears again, clearer than before, as if whispering into my ear -
"When the world was created, chaos was first separated. The upper layer gave rise to the immortal world——"
Before he finished speaking, the scene in front of Yan Bujian suddenly changed.
Amidst the upper clouds, towering jade-like buildings rise from the ground, glittering and translucent, with winding jade steps. Immortals in white robes walk on the clouds, a gentle light flowing through their fingertips, a scene of peace and tranquility.
"The lower layer has sunk into the Demon Realm, where evil demons and fierce ghosts wreak havoc—"
In the lower earth, pitch-black cracks suddenly opened up, and evil spirits with green faces and fangs surged out like a tide, roaring and leaping towards the surrounding areas. The demonic energy surged like thick ink, dyeing the sky and the earth dark.
"The middle class is responsible for the human world, upholding the importance of justice and balancing the energies of the upper and lower classes."
In the human world, mortals toiled on the ridges of the fields, while monks flew through the fields on their swords. Sometimes they joined forces to resist the escaped ghosts, and sometimes they sat in meditation to practice, hoping to touch the upper immortal light.
Yan Bujian quietly looked at the scene of the three-part division of heaven and earth, his brows furrowed tighter and tighter: Although he had seen the legend about the evolution of the "Three Realms" in the fragments of ancient books, he had never thought that he would see it with his own eyes in such an intuitive way.
But before the shock faded, the picture began to distort—
In the center of that vast evil land, a creature that had been nurtured for eternity finally broke out of its cocoon. Then, at its command, those evil spirits that had been killing each other suddenly changed direction and rushed upwards like a tide, trying to break through the boundaries of the demon realm, invade the human world, and finally attack the fairyland!
When the immortals in the fairy world saw this, they all raised their hands, and countless rays of spiritual light condensed into a long sword that was completely white. The sword body flowed with brilliant immortal power. It hung in the sky above the exit of the Demon Realm, releasing endless sword light downwards - the sword light was warm and majestic, and wherever it shone, the demonic energy dissipated instantly.
Once this sword comes out, it will be like the power of heaven, suppressing the evil spirits to death!
At this moment, the brilliant immortal power also illuminated the sword, and Yu Yan could not see two words clearly in front of his eyes -
"Suppress the devil".
"The Demon-Suppressing Sword suppressed the demons for ten thousand years. During this time, cultivators in the human world continuously cultivated and broke through bottlenecks, ascending to the immortal realm and becoming its new pillars. Therefore, after ten thousand years, the power gap between the two realms became increasingly wide. The Demon Realm will be completely suppressed, and will never be able to regenerate..."
The sound continued to ring, and the scene in Yan Bujian's eyes also progressed.
He saw countless cultivators, after enduring hardships, radiant with ascending light as they broke through to their final realms, gracefully ascending to the immortal realm. The immortal realm's jade towers grew in prominence, and the immortal energy grew ever more powerful; while the roars of the extreme realm gradually faded, and the pitch-black rifts slowly shrank, as if about to close completely.
——But at this moment, something unexpected happened.
The Demon-Suppressing Sword, previously suspended at the entrance to the Demon Realm, suddenly glowed with a dazzling light. Its soft, pristine white hue transformed into a fiery golden glow, scorching the eyes like the blazing sun. The sword began to vibrate slightly, emitting a low, humming sound. At first, the immortals gathered around the sword in admiration, believing it to be the sword's power growing with the strength of the immortal realm. This remarkable phenomenon foreshadowed the immortal realm's glorious future.
But no one noticed that deep within the golden light, a very light gray mist was quietly growing...
“No one could have predicted that the ultimate power would give rise to an unwilling self-awareness—that is the prototype of ‘imbalance,’ ” the voice said.
Yan Bujian heard the sound and his breathing paused slightly.
He could clearly feel that the "thought" growing in the sword was somewhat similar to the occasional restless power in his own sword bones, but it was more chaotic and greedy.
He didn't know how long it had been, but to him, it was just a moment - the Demon-Suppressing Sword suddenly burst out with a dazzling golden light, and the beam of light penetrated the clouds and headed straight towards the heart of the fairyland!
The strange light swept through the jade buildings, instantly cracking into spiderweb-like cracks. The immortals panicked and used their magic weapons to resist, but those instruments containing pure immortal power melted like ice and snow in the instant they were touched by the light - before the golden light, the immortals' power was vulnerable!
Even more terrifying, the demonic energy at the Demon Realm's exit began to surge in reverse—no longer rushing madly toward the Immortal Realm, but instead following the golden path, like a stream of drawn ink, it quietly seeped toward the Demon-Suppressing Sword. On the giant sword, golden light and demonic energy intertwined, gradually transforming into a strange gray-black. The once smooth blade began to twist, faintly revealing the shapes of countless struggling and howling faces.
"The unbalanced thought awakened in the sword mixed the immortal power and demonic energy into a ball. It neither wanted the immortal world to completely suppress the demon realm, nor did it want the demon world to retaliate against the immortal world - but wanted to take the power of both realms for itself." Perhaps it was also unwilling to give up. Seeing this, the voice slowly let out a cold sigh.
Yet, this sigh was like a passing breeze, leaving no trace on Yan Bujian's face. He watched the chaos quietly, his heart unmoved, his expression as cold as ever.
The gray-black light column pierced into the fairyland along the initial golden light. The clouds in the fairyland gradually turned gray, and the ethereal fairy energy was mixed with demonic turbidity. The two worlds gradually broke through the limitations of space and began to merge. The cultivators who were ascending in the lower world were completely unaware of this strange phenomenon and still rushed headfirst towards the fairyland - but the moment they touched the fairyland, they were suddenly bounced back by the gray-black light, instantly exploded into a bloody mist, lost all their cultivation, and fell from the sky.
Among the immortals standing in the clouds, an old man in a purple robe with white hair and beard saw this. He counted with his fingers and his face instantly became solemn as if covered with a layer of frost:
"The Demon-Suppressing Sword has developed an inner demon. If the connection between the Immortal Realm and it is not severed, the entire Immortal Realm will be dragged into the lower realm and merged with the Demon Realm!"
By this time, the Immortal Path had been completely engulfed by the strange gray-gold light. The light was thick and viscous, as if it had substance, and carried a heart-pounding devouring force. The Immortals' faces paled, their usual composure gone. They glanced at each other, seeing the determination in each other's eyes.
The purple-robed elder at the head of the group transformed into a streak of light, struggling against the torrent of gray-gold light as he rushed towards the edge of the immortal realm. The other immortals followed closely behind, their bodies mired in mud. With every foot they advanced, the celestial light around them was eroded by the strange light, emitting a mournful "sizzling" sound. Those with weaker cultivation levels actually saw their sleeves and temples begin to dissolve, transforming into tiny specks of dust and dissipating.
When they reached the border, the immortals no longer hesitated. They sat cross-legged in the air, made ancient hand seals, and chanted difficult spells. Unlike before when they casually offered up their immortal power, they frantically forced out the power that maintained the origin of the immortal essence as if they were cutting out their hearts and livers!
Brilliant yet tragic immortal light burst out from their bodies, but it was no longer for defending against enemies or ascending to heaven, but for - to sever the connection between the two immortal worlds!
The moment their immortal energy left their bodies, the faces of many immortals aged visibly, their hair frosted, and wrinkles appeared at the corners of their eyes. They clenched their teeth, veins bulged on their foreheads, and their bodies trembled violently with extreme pain, but no one withdrew their hands.
Thousands of immortal lights, acquired through sacrificed essences, converged into an unprecedented transparent barrier. This barrier was flawless, yet within it flowed the mournful wailing of burning immortal essence. After forming, it wailed, inch by inch, resisting the terrifying absorbing force of the Demon-Suppressing Sword. Extremely slowly yet with unwavering determination, it ground downward from the edge of the immortal realm—
It was as if the heaviest millstone between heaven and earth was turning. With every advance, the immortals' bodies would tremble violently, golden blood would ooze from their mouths, and some would even have cracks on their bodies, with countless rays of light escaping from the cracks - the immortals would rather damage their foundation and fall in realm than not push this barrier forward!
Finally... after paying countless sacrifices, the barrier emitted a wail that shook the universe, and the barrier completely cut off the gray-black light - completely isolating the glorious fairyland from the out-of-control magic sword and the struggling human world below!
The pavilion in the sky gradually disappeared into the depths of the clouds behind the barrier, vanishing completely, as if it had never appeared in this world.
At the same time, the Demon-Suppressing Sword, suspended above the boundary marker between the two realms, suddenly lost its support. The gray-black light that had been surging violently on the sword's blade seemed to have been cut off from its source, instantly extinguishing and dimming. Immediately afterwards, a series of fine, piercing "crackling" sounds rang out—countless cracks appeared from the sword's spine, instantly spreading across its entire blade! All its divine power, all its fierce might, was completely drained at this moment, returning to a dead silence.
Finally, without a sound, it fell silently, like ordinary iron, straight down, slashing diagonally across the vast seal. The force of time began to erode it relentlessly, a dull brown rust creeping in, gradually covering its former edge and glory, until the entire blade...quietly crumbled!
Countless dark shadows then roared out from beneath the shattered sword, like the River Styx bursting its banks, rushing towards the land of the Three Thousand Continents. They swept across mountains and rivers, tearing through the night, stirring up one bloody storm after another, dragging the entire world into boundless turmoil and terror!
......
The picture paused here, and chaos once again shrouded the vision.
"To protect themselves, the immortal realm was forced to sever its ties with the human world and fade into the void. From then on, no one in the human world could see any trace of the immortals. Those cultivators who longed to ascend, no matter how hard they practiced, could never glimpse the immortal secrets." The voice sounded again, carrying with it the vicissitudes of time that spanned eternity. "The news of the severance of the immortal path spread throughout the human world. Some, unwilling to accept this, searched everywhere for traces of the immortals, but to no avail. Others, helpless, gave up the thought of ascension and turned their attention to protecting the peace of the human world."
Yan Bujian remained silent, but his heart felt as if a huge wave was surging through it.
He finally understood why the spiritual energy of the Three Thousand Continents was exhausted and why it was difficult for cultivators to break through their realms - it was not a punishment from heaven, but the immortal world had cut off the path to immortality on its own.
The "order" of this world has been in chaos since the moment the Demon-Slaying Sword was born with an inner demon.
"And you—" Before he could digest this shocking secret, the voice suddenly turned sharper and rushed towards him. "The Sword Bone has appeared in the world, and order will return. Yan Bujian, you carry the Sword Bone, a once-in-a-century gift from heaven. You were born to save this world."
Unexpectedly, Yan Bujian suddenly looked up when he heard this. The shock in his eyes quickly disappeared. Then, his eyes flashed with a sharp light and he said coldly, "Why should I save you?"
"This is your destiny. You were born for this." His voice carried undeniable authority. "Your innate strength is exceptional, and with the added blessing of the sword bone, it will only take time for you to reach the Tongtian realm. When you gain insight into the Great Dao and separate your body and soul, you will be able to fuse your sword bones and reforge the Demon-Suppressing Sword. Then, with your spirit and soul, you will be able to guide the immortal realm back and resume your journey to heaven. When your merits are complete... even in the immortal realm, you will become a giant."
However, after the words fell, Yan Bujian's tone was still as cold as ice: "I still say the same thing - why should I save him!"
"You can't say no."
The moment the last six words fell, Yan Bujian felt a sudden explosion in his mind—
Suddenly, a tremendous force surged from the void, like a mountain pressing down on his head, suppressing his soul!
He clenched his teeth, veins bulged on his forehead, and his eyes were instantly filled with bloodshot, so red that it seemed as if blood was about to drip out. All the bones in his body creaked under the heavy burden, and every inch of his muscles was tensed to the extreme, trying to break free from this invisible restraint.
But that power was like the might of heaven, with an unyielding force that kept him pinned to the spot, preventing even his fingertips from trembling.
"It seems you still haven't recognized your fate. Well..."
As soon as he finished speaking, the chaos around him dissipated. A familiar darkness gradually emerged before Yan Bujian's eyes. The next moment, the ancient bronze mirror that had previously dragged him into it reappeared in his sight.
The gray mist in the mirror was still spinning slowly, as if waiting for him.
"——Look into this mirror of karma, recognize your emptiness, eliminate your sword-like nature, and finally achieve the Way of Heaven!"
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