C1725 The Sword Sect Was Unsealed

"Lord Faang, what should the Ruby Hand do now?"

Elsewhere in the northern reaches of the Land of Quiescence, Hou Tianzhao clutched the Phoenix Feather Fan, fanning himself vigorously. His plump face was slick with sweat as he called out in distress.

Along the desolate rim of the volcano, Faang Yao and many other cultivators from the Ruby Hand stood watch over the battle.

From their vantage point, they could see the Blood Altar that Sky Fiend Youqian had summoned, as well as a colossal Troll, forged from tens of thousands of Banes, decimating the Thunder Sect's cultivators.

The Troll's hands had transformed into ghastly black vortexes, from which it wrenched over a dozen souls.

Among the captured souls was Qi Jinghai, a highly valued leader of the Thunder Sect's new generation, whom Wei Zhuo had earmarked as his successor. Despite his renown, Qi Jinghai was powerless to resist and had his soul torn from him by the vortex, meeting an untimely and confounding death.

Hou Tianzhao and his companions, who had been closely monitoring the battle, recognized Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit and deduced that the immense Troll was likely its manifestation.

Witnessing the Troll's unbridled assault on the Thunder Sect's cultivators left them uncertain about their next move and whether they should intervene to save the Thunder Sect.

By alliance, the Ruby Hand stood with the Sword Sect, the Ebon Star, and the Thunder Sect.

When Han Miaoyuan covertly consented to the Thunder Sect's offensive against the Terror Claws, their Sect Master Qin Luo had reassigned Yuan Lianyao to an extraterrestrial location and personally joined the assault on Zhongli Dapan.

This indicated that the Ruby Hand was aligned with Han Miaoyuan.

Given these circumstances, with the Thunder Sect's cultivators being mercilessly slaughtered by the Boulderdawn without a chance to retaliate, shouldn't they offer assistance?

Hou Tianzhao had no desire to antagonize Yu Yuan. He believed it would be wise to advise Yu Yuan to temper his killing spree, lest the situation spiral out of control.

The Devil Palace is quiet, and the archdemon guarding Shadow's Keep hasn't stirred either. Why rush? Besides..." Faang Yao abruptly looked up into the vast expanse of the Everlands and remarked, "Hasn't our Sect Master already joined the battle?"

Just then, a flame meteor with a long tail of fire streaked across the wall of the Everlands.

Boom!

The ground of the Everlands quivered. At Skyreach Peak, pillars of divine power, like towering Holy Mountains, hurled themselves at the flame meteor that had just breached the wall.

Boom!

Qin Luo, having transformed into the fiery meteor, was engulfed in an explosion of sunfire, his divine flame patterns shattered by the Holy Mountains materialized from the pillars of light.

Beneath the wall, enormous clouds of flame billowed out, the cosmic order of fire magic appearing twisted.

"Ruby Hand! Qin Luo!"

"Mr. Qin has been attacked by Zu Ann of Skyreach Peak!"

"Has Zu Ann lost his mind?"

Onlookers gazed skyward, their screams echoing in disbelief at the scene unfolding before them.

Not long before, Han Miaoyuan had convened the heroes at Skyreach Peak, leading everyone to believe that even Zu Ann had been swayed to join his cause.

No one expected that Zu Ann would strike Qin Luo a vicious blow upon his return to the Everlands.

What was even more unexpected was that Zu Ann's interception of Qin Luo had begun outside the Everlands.

In the void, Qin Luo's Divine Transcendence shifted form, like a brilliant sun gathering an infinite blaze of sunfire.

"Zu Ann! Will you ever cease?!" Qin Luo bellowed in fury.

Zu Ann had been covertly intercepting him ever since he stepped forth from that blazing sun, descending toward the Everlands. The reason for his delayed arrival was Zu Ann's assault from beyond the wall, making his passage through it exceedingly difficult.

From Skyreach Peak, Zu Ann offered no verbal reply, only launching more beams of divine light.

Qin Luo, cursing under his breath, dispersed his divine form into the void, splitting into a dozen mini suns. He cleverly avoided a direct clash with the beams of divine light, swiftly making his escape downward.

As the mini suns finally reached a certain altitude, Zu Ann abruptly ceased his attack.

At that height, any collision between his divine light beams and Qin Luo's scattered suns would have catastrophic repercussions for the people below, potentially claiming the lives of many innocents.

Zu Ann realized that his actions were straying from his original intent, so he decided to cease his efforts and instead continued to observe the battle from Skyreach Peak.

His objective had been met.

Whoosh!

Dozens of miniature suns, noticing Zu Ann's withdrawal, reconvened in the sky to form a fiery meteor.

The meteor paused briefly in midair, then abruptly altered its trajectory.

Originally destined for the Thunder Sect, the meteor shifted direction and hurtled towards Ebon Star, piercing through the visible layer of dense spiritual energy and entering Ebon Star territory.

"Mr. Han!"

Qin Luo, materializing suddenly, voiced his astonishment: "I've witnessed numerous sword lights emerging from the Everlands, all converging towards the River of Swords!"

"Additionally, I was intercepted by Zu Ann in the extraterrestrial space, which delayed my arrival," he clarified.

Han Miaoyuan, grasping the Banner of Duality and channeling the world's spiritual energy, glanced at Skyreach Peak before furrowing his brow and remarking, "Nie Qingtian's sword is the culprit."

"The River of Swords has come to a halt."

Cao Jiaze, encircled by nine Mark of the Celestials, dispersed his remnant soul consciousness throughout the walls and subterranean arrays of the nine palaces, manipulating them with precision while keeping an eye on the brilliant River of Swords.

"It's biding its time, waiting for an influx of sword lights and gathering strength."

Employing the Mark of the Celestials, Cao Jiaze activated the tiny inscriptions on the talisman.

After a moment of keen perception, he exclaimed in astonishment, "These thousands of distinct sword lights appear to embody the sword's will of every renowned Grand Sword Immortal from the Sword Sect throughout history!"

"Sect Master, how can Yu Yuan be so formidable?" Lin Yue inquired, his tone laden with concern.

"First, let's fend off this sword strike!" Han Miaoyuan resolved.

With that thought, a seven-tiered Exquisite Pagoda soared from his sleeve.

Divine radiance spilled from the pagoda, transforming into feathers, olive branches, fresh leaves, and symbols of the cosmic order that bridged heaven and earth. Each element seamlessly integrated into the protective light surrounding Ebon Star, weaving a new world within the barrier and inscribing an alternative cosmic order.

Cao Jiaze, the master of the formation, had a glint of realization in his eyes as he immediately noticed the formation's power had surged by thirty percent.

Whoosh!

Yu Yuan, wielding the Titanblade, charged into the sky from the direction of the Thunder Sect, leveling with the River of Swords that stretched above the Ebon Star.

The Dragon Slaying Stage continued its ascent and descent. Wei Zhuo of the Thunder Sect remained firmly suppressed, exerting every ounce of his strength to no avail against the stage's binding seal.

"The Sword Sect's seal is now open!"

Hovering in midair above the Thunder Sect, Yu Yuan directed the Titanblade toward the Sword Sect behind him. The Sword Sect's mountain, with its hundreds of cave mouths, emitted streams of brilliant sword light as if they had been granted clemency.

Yu Ying, seated in meditation within a cave, was previously confined by a net of sword light. But at Yu Yuan's command, the net parted, opening like a gateway.

"Ms. Ying, it looks like you can come out now," said Chen Qingyan, who often visited in her spare time. She couldn't help but beam with delight. "Grandma, I knew you'd be safe. You don't judge a book by its cover. Considering my master's close relationship with Yu Yuan and your shared surname with the God of Ghosts Youyu, I was confident you'd be alright."

Confused, Yu Ying stepped out of the cave, only to find that Tan Yuan, Shen Feiqing, and others were also emerging from different caverns.

"Am I not the only one?"

Yu Yuan took note and saw that individuals from the Forgeroses, Starmoon Sect, Colddeath, and even the Silvermoon Empire had been set free.

Swoosh!

Kong Banbi arrived with a look of consternation. He watched the crowd departing from the Sword Prison, uncertain whether to intervene or not.

The Spirit Swords and Divine Swords, once entombed within the Sword Cave, now served as Yu Yuan's allies. They had coalesced into a formidable River of Swords high above the Ebon Star, continuing to gather strength.

Upon Yu Yuan's command, the seals on the Spirit Swords and Divine Swords still lodged in the Sword Cave were released.

The Sword Sect's practice centered on the sword, with many of their swordsmanship mantras originating from the Spirit Swords and Divine Swords within the Sword Cave.

With these swords now recognizing Yu Yuan, the Sword Immortals left to oversee the Sword Sect found themselves at a loss.

To intervene would mean opposing the Spirit Swords and Divine Swords.

Yet, to do nothing would be to allow these individuals to depart freely.

They had been detained and brought here by various factions on the orders of Han Miaoyuan. The Sword Sect couldn't just watch them walk away without an explanation for Han Miaoyuan.

"Oh, if only the sect master were here."

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