Chapter 74: New Members Join the Group

Chu State, Imperial Capital, beside Guize Lake.

At this moment, a large crowd had gathered here, for a momentous event was about to unfold across the world—the Supreme Elder of Zhoushan Sword Sect, the “Heavenly Sword” Meng Huan, would today ascend to heaven through the shattering of space in broad daylight!

“Master, I thought I’d die of old age before ever seeing it, but now I get to witness your ascension through the shattering of space before I pass!”

Meng Huan’s third disciple, the “War King” Liu Chengfeng, ranked seventh on the Heavenly List, laughed loudly: “My luck far surpasses that of my two elder brothers—I’ve seen my master ascend! I have no regrets even in death!”

“White-day ascension has always been legend! Yet today we actually get to witness it with our own eyes!”

“They say over three hundred years ago, Meng Huan’s father, the ‘Frost Sword’ Meng Yiqiu, also ascended through the shattering of space right here at this very spot!”

“It’s said the former Sect Master personally witnessed Meng Yiqiu, the Supreme Elder, shatter space—but the old man never attained the Dao and passed away over a century ago!”

“Who else in this world but a Divine List cultivator could live so long?”

“Indeed! The land where Guize Lake now lies was once a mountain peak. Legend says the ‘Frost Sword’ Meng Yiqiu, during his white-day ascension, fought another Divine List cultivator, and that battle erased the mountain, giving birth to this lake!”

Around them, the crowd buzzed with murmurs.

These voices reached the ears of the “Heavenly Sword” Meng Huan, yet left no impression upon him.

He had trained with his father since childhood, wandered the martial world with his sword in youth, mastered the ultimate realm of “Ice Heart” at thirty-two, topped the Heavenly List at thirty-six, entered the Dao at forty-eight, and now stood ready to shatter space and ascend in broad daylight!

What mortal in history could match such talent?

Yet compared to his father Meng Yiqiu, his talent was utterly insignificant.

“Now that I can ascend in broad daylight, perhaps I’ll meet my father again,” Meng Huan thought silently.

Moments later, Meng Huan’s gaze settled on his disciple, the “War King” Liu Chengfeng: “Chengfeng, you’ve now reached second on the Heavenly List. Though you’re nearing the end of your lifespan, you still have over a decade left. With your talent and insight, you still have a chance to enter the Dao!”

“I will strive with all my might!” Liu Chengfeng bowed deeply.

Meng Huan’s gaze swept over his other disciples and family.

Unlike his father Meng Yiqiu, who ascended before turning a hundred with his loved ones still alive,

Meng Huan had cultivated for nearly four hundred years. Even a Primordial Void Core cultivator lives only two hundred years—so most of his close kin had long since passed.

Now, only his son and daughter, along with a few disciples, remained by his side.

“Master, take care!” His disciples were deeply reluctant.

“Father, I don’t want you to go!” His daughter’s eyes brimmed with tears. Though her cultivation talent was decent, she was only at the Primordial Solid Core realm, nearing the end of her lifespan—she looked far older than Meng Huan, who still appeared youthful.

Meng Huan gently stroked his daughter’s head and comforted her: “Xiao Si, you’re no longer a child—don’t let the younger generation laugh at you!”

All around, the crowd bowed respectfully toward Meng Huan.

Among them were members of the Duan family, from whom Meng Huan’s aunt Meng Yuxiang had come—but Meng Yuxiang had died many years ago, and relations between the two families had grown distant.

With his departure through the shattering of space, the bond between the Meng and Duan families would grow even colder.

“Enough!” Meng Huan released his daughter and turned to his youngest son: “Xiao Wu!”

“Father!” His youngest son, Meng Wenzhuan, looked up at Meng Huan: “I will surely shatter space one day and join you and Grandfather!”

“Hahaha, good!” Meng Huan laughed heartily.

Yet deep inside, he knew well: though his youngest son’s talent was high, to enter the Dao after two hundred years of cultivation meant his chance of shattering space was exceedingly slim.

But at this moment, he could not crush the boy’s spirit.

Thinking this, Meng Huan turned to Meng Wenzhuan and said seriously: “Xiao Wu, I know you’ve long dreamed of conquering the world and building a great empire.”

“With your current strength, aided by Zhoushan Sword Sect, achieving this would be easy. But do you know why I’ve always stopped you?”

“I know, Father.”

Meng Wenzhuan replied respectfully: “You fear I’ll become obsessed with power and neglect my own cultivation.”

“Correct.”

Meng Huan nodded slowly, then warned again: “Centuries ago, the top name on the Divine List was the ‘Demon Lord’ Xiahou Zhen. He fought your grandfather twice—and Guize Lake was born from their battle!”

“Though Xiahou Zhen’s strength paled beside your grandfather’s, his talent surpassed yours. Alas, he sought to unify the world in his youth, then pursued body-cultivation arts to eliminate other Divine List cultivators—and lost his chance to shatter space, dying beneath your grandfather’s sword.”

“I shall remember your teachings, Father!” Meng Wenzhuan said quickly.

In truth, he had planned to conquer the world after Meng Huan’s ascension, using Zhoushan Sword Sect as his core—but now he hesitated.

After all, once one becomes a Divine List cultivator, shattering space becomes the only true goal.

If no one had ever ascended, it might have been different—but in the past few centuries, his grandfather and father had both shattered space in broad daylight, giving him hope.

“Enough! I’m leaving!”

Meng Huan added: “Xiao Wu, you must protect the family.”

“Rest assured, Father!” Meng Wenzhuan nodded urgently.

Meng Huan’s gaze swept over the crowd, then he soared into the air and drew a simple longsword from his waist.

At his level, even the most ordinary weapon could shatter space.

The “Frost Sword” left by his father Meng Yiqiu, and his own nurtured “Heavenly Sword,” were among the top two divine weapons in the world—he had left them behind in the family.

Whoosh!

Meng Huan swung his sword casually, and a three-zhang-wide rift tore open before him.

But just then…

A streak of light from afar shot toward the rift, and a booming laugh echoed across heaven and earth.

“Meng Huan, you and your father truly are extraordinary! Over three hundred years ago, your father Meng Yiqiu ascended here through the shattering of space—and today, you do the same!”

“I’ve never wronged you or your father. Let me borrow your ascension path today—you wouldn’t be so stingy, would you?”

The crowd gasped in shock.

“It’s him!” A flicker of surprise crossed Meng Huan’s face.

The man was the Divine List’s second-ranked cultivator, the “Shadowless Blade” Zhou Conglong!

When Meng Yiqiu ascended, Zhou Conglong was already a Primordial Realm cultivator, then swiftly entered the Dao and became one of the world’s few Divine List elders.

With the older Divine List cultivators passing away, only Meng Huan, the top-ranked, could surpass him.

Yet after wiping out a small sect over a century ago, Zhou Conglong vanished completely—many assumed he had perished.

No one expected him to appear today, seeking to ride Meng Huan’s newly opened space rift to ascend.

But as half his body plunged into the rift, a crushing terror descended upon him.

“Heavenly Punishment!” Zhou Conglong suddenly understood.

Yet he was already at the end of his lifespan—even with Heavenly Punishment looming, he had no choice but to press forward!

As Zhou Conglong surged ahead, his entire body dissolved into nothingness beneath the Heavenly Punishment.

Watching Zhou Conglong’s body vanish without a trace, Meng Huan sighed inwardly.

He had once considered letting his disciples and children use his ascension path—but his father Meng Yiqiu had long warned him: the Dao’s laws forbid anyone without the power to shatter space from ascending. So he abandoned the idea.

Yet he never imagined Zhou Conglong would ignore the Dao’s warning. Still, given his near-death state, such desperation was understandable.

Regaining his composure, Meng Huan glanced down at the crowd, smiled faintly, and stepped directly into the dark space passage.

“Father!”

“Master!”

Below, Meng Wenzhuan and the others stared upward, whispering softly as Meng Huan’s figure vanished.

The rift in the sky sealed shut, leaving no trace of Meng Huan.

The ascension of father and son, Meng Yiqiu and Meng Huan, became a great legend across heaven and earth.

Even their ultimate technique, “Sword of Heaven and Earth,” was revered by countless cultivators as the supreme martial art.

After the Meng family declined, this technique and the two divine weapons left by Meng Yiqiu and Meng Huan stirred countless storms across the world.

…

Elsewhere, after entering the space rift, Meng Huan felt a mysterious force envelop his body.

Whoosh!

This force carried him hurtling through the black void, and in an instant, he had flown billions of miles.

With each space transit, the scenes before Meng Huan’s eyes shifted endlessly.

He saw distant, colossal stars; towering demonic gods slumbering in lifeless celestial bodies; divine birds circling fiery orbs…

Soon, he saw a vast, immense star, encircled by layers of thunder, and even from afar, he felt its oppressive presence.

Under the mysterious force’s guidance, Meng Huan now flew toward that colossal star.

“So this is where white-day ascension leads?” Meng Huan mused.

But as the mysterious force hurled him into the massive star, his expression changed slightly—suddenly, a strange voice echoed in his mind.

“Ding! Welcome to the Multiverse Chat Group!”

…

True Spirit Continent, Chigu Desert, Tianmeng Ancient Ground.

The Tianmeng Ancient Ground was an ancient inheritance site, normally hidden within spatial fissures, invisible to all unless it opened of its own accord.

It opened only once every ten years, and only those under twenty-four lunar years of age could enter safely—anyone else attempting to force entry would be instantly incinerated into ash by its rules.

Legends claimed the Tianmeng Ancient Ground held countless treasures: divine weapons, heavenly herbs, secret manuals—all available.

Thus, every decade, when it opened, countless sects from surrounding nations sent their top disciples inside to compete for opportunity.

For these elite young cultivators, it was also a place to break through their cultivation limits.

After each trial, nearly one in ten entrants would breakthrough to the Baoyuan Realm, while others saw noticeable progress.

Yet the death rate was equally high—even with the most talented disciples sent by major sects, nearly half perished.

Despite this, countless young cultivators still rushed in, eager to secure their sect’s future and their own rapid advancement.

Now, within the Tianmeng Ancient Ground, the trial had reached its final stage.

Deep within a lake lay an immense palace, built of an unknown material—neither gold nor jade, yet glowing with seven-colored radiance, radiating profound mystery.

This is the most important sacred site within the Heaven Dream Ancient Land: the Heaven Dream Battle Hall.

Every genius who enters the Heaven Dream Ancient Land desires to enter this Heaven Dream Battle Hall.

At this moment, the Heaven Dream Battle Hall is guarded by an ancient Xuanjin Snake, dozens of meters in length, so countless geniuses have gathered to attack it together.

Among the countless geniuses attacking the ancient Xuanjin Snake, a figure clad in white robes, wielding a long sword, stood at the center of the group, displaying exceptional brilliance during the assault.

This individual is Ye Chen, a disciple of the Flowing Cloud Sect of Tianfeng Country; though his cultivation base is only at the late Qi Refining stage, because he has comprehended Sword Intent, even many early Foundation Establishment cultivators may not be his match!

Amidst the collective assault of these geniuses, the ancient Xuanjin Snake is now a cornered beast.

As its wounds grew heavier, the ancient Xuanjin Snake let out a final mournful cry, then its massive body crashed heavily to the ground, completely losing all life energy.

Boom!

The moment the ancient Xuanjin Snake died, the Heaven Dream Battle Hall nearby immediately responded—the massive iron gate slammed open, releasing a flood of pure white light that illuminated all outside.

Under the glow of this pure white light, the true qi within the bodies of the geniuses outside began to stir; some even broke through directly, and Ye Chen of the Flowing Cloud Sect was among them.

Bathed in the white light, he instantly and naturally broke through to the peak of the late Qi Refining stage.

Of course, this was also inseparable from his prior accumulation!

“Charge!”

Seeing the Heaven Dream Battle Hall open, the surrounding geniuses descended into madness, all rushing to enter.

“Get out of my way!”

Some powerful geniuses rushed in first, and even a few ruthless ones casually slew other disciples blocking their path.

After verifying his true qi circulation was flawless through several rounds of practice, Ye Chen quickly led several Flowing Cloud Sect geniuses into the Heaven Dream Battle Hall.

Fifteen minutes later, the gates of the Heaven Dream Battle Hall closed again, and all geniuses inside were separated.

Seeing this, Ye Chen sat cross-legged on the ground, attempting to meditate and cultivate using the dense heavenly energy within the Hall.

At that moment, the dense heavenly energy surged rapidly into a massive crystal ball above him, and soon a white humanoid silhouette appeared beneath it—holding a treasure sword, its appearance identical to Ye Chen’s at that moment!

Swish!

The moment the white silhouette appeared, it stepped forward and slashed at the real Ye Chen with a single sword strike.

Ye Chen knew clearly this must be the Heaven Dream Battle Hall’s trial—he must defeat this opponent to remain.

Thinking this, he instantly drew his long sword and charged straight at the white silhouette.

Ye Chen, after all, was a world-class genius who had comprehended Sword Intent; a mere late Qi Refining-level silhouette was no match for him, and soon his head was severed by a single sword strike, dissolving back into white light and returning to the crystal ball above.

……

At the same time, other geniuses were undergoing similar trials.

All who entered the Heaven Dream Battle Hall were elite disciples of major sects; after the first trial, only five geniuses performed poorly and were quickly teleported outside.

The second trial was far more difficult—even with their strong cultivation, thirty-five more were eliminated.

After the second trial, the third trial opened simultaneously.

This time, the white silhouettes’ strength increased again, and the number of eliminated geniuses surged to a staggering two hundred forty.

Of course, though all these individuals were eliminated by the Heaven Dream Battle Hall, they had already gained considerable benefits from the earlier trials.

As for those who passed the third trial and remained inside the Hall, only thirty-some geniuses were left.

Thus, the trials continued, and the number of eliminated geniuses grew ever larger.

Meanwhile, every genius who continued passing the trials gained immense benefits during the process; many Qi Refining geniuses even broke through to Foundation Establishment.

Ye Chen of the Flowing Cloud Sect paid no attention to whether others broke through—he merely relied on his powerful Sword Intent to defeat one white silhouette after another.

Each time he clashed with a white silhouette, Ye Chen felt a strange vibration transmit through his body, carrying within it pure, refined energy that continuously enhanced his cultivation.

In the blink of an eye, Ye Chen had already passed the fifth trial.

The white silhouette in the sixth trial now possessed the strength of mid-Foundation Establishment, and even among mid-Foundation Establishment cultivators, it was among the elite.

Though Ye Chen possessed Sword Intent, his own cultivation was still only at the peak of Qi Refining; facing such a terrifying opponent was indeed extremely difficult.

But no matter how strong the opponent, Ye Chen never entertained the thought of surrendering—he continued entangling with the enemy using his increasingly refined Sword Intent.

Thus, Ye Chen and his opponent fought endlessly.

Finally, after a thousand precise strikes, Ye Chen severed the opponent’s head with a single sword slash.

But he was now utterly exhausted, his vision swimming with golden stars, dizzy and disoriented.

Yet at that moment, a wondrous vibration surged into his body; under this vibration, he felt his tendons and bones itch, and his true qi began flowing at a speed suddenly multiplied several times over.

Additionally, due to his surging blood and qi, Ye Chen’s face flushed red.

Immediately afterward, the true qi vortex within his dantian began to contract, eventually forming a perfect true qi whirlpool.

At this moment, Ye Chen officially broke through to Foundation Establishment.

But at that very instant, a strange voice echoed in Ye Chen’s mind.

“Ding! Welcome to the Multiverse Chat Group!”

……

Inside the chat group.

【System Notice: Detected increased group activity—two new members will be randomly added to the group!】

【Ding! Welcome ‘The Cultivation Genius Who Shatters the Void’ to the group!】

【Ding! Welcome ‘The Sword Dao Prodigy with Exceptional Insight’ to the group!】

【Pang Bo: Holy crap, these new members are both world-class geniuses!】

【Pang Bo: @Xiao Yan, looks like your title as Number One Genius under the group master is about to be taken!】

Lu Qingshan paid no heed to Pang Bo’s words, instead carefully pondering the identities of these two new members.

But their nicknames were far too generic—he had no clue whatsoever.

Still, as new members had joined, he should extend a welcome.

【Lu Qingshan: Welcome, new members!】

【Yue Buqun: Welcome, new members!】

【Han Li: Welcome, new members!】

【Cao Cao: Welcome, new members!】

【Xiao Yan: Welcome, new members!】

【Heaven Dream Ice Silkworm: *pops up.jpg* Welcome, new members!】

(End of Chapter)