Chapter 966: The Realm Lord

Unlike the celestial constellations of the Northern Dipper seen in immortal sects, the Great Sun Boundary Array of the Great Sun Sword Pavilion was a blazing sun hanging high in the sky, faintly overlapping with the sun star within the realm, merging as one.

The brilliant light of the great sun illuminated the land of the Minor Thousand Worlds—the Southern Frontier, the Western Desert, the Northern Plains, and the Eastern Sea—every detail clearly visible, with precision exceeding three meters; Qi of Foundation Establishment and above revealed in every fiber, utterly impossible to hide.

This was the Immortal Sect's strategic-level array—the Great Sun Boundary Array!

The Immortal Sect relied on it to firmly control the Minor Thousand Worlds, making internal subversion exceedingly rare.

"Let me see…"

Jiang Ding's spiritual sense surged into the Great Sun core of the Great Sun Boundary Array.

Instantly, countless streams of information flooded his spiritual sea, like tidal waves crashing through it; even a Soul Transformation-level spiritual soul struggled to bear it, forcing him to frantically categorize and sort every piece, rapidly skipping over irrelevant or expendable data.

Jiang Ding blocked over eighty percent of the information before his spiritual sea finally eased.

These data included the Minor Thousand Worlds' sunlight, seasonal winds, ocean tides, geological movements, changes in earth veins and terrestrial qi, the impact of life population growth on the environment… and countless other details, covering every aspect of the Minor Thousand Worlds, down to the minutest point.

It was as if the Minor Thousand Worlds had been fitted with a celestial-dao information hub!

"This thing is undoubtedly an achievement of Immortal Dao beyond the Void Refinement stage!"

Upon contact, Jiang Ding immediately understood.

The Boundary Array was one of the distinctions between native forces and Immortal Sect forces.

Judging from this, it was likely inherited by the Nine Great Immortal Sects from even more ancient ancestral masters—the achievement of an alien Immortal Dao civilization, not developed within this realm by the Nine Great Immortal Sects themselves.

"This thing is extremely helpful for understanding the Sword Realm space…"

Jiang Ding's gaze grew distant.

By comparing this true Minor Thousand World with the nascent Great Sun Sword Realm space in his third eye, he immediately noticed many subtle disharmonies within the Great Sun Sword Realm space.

If these could be gradually corrected, the growth of the Void Refinement space prototype would surely accelerate.

This must be the subtle technique.

It was absent from the Great Sun lineage, because to the Great Sun Sword Pavilion's founding ancestor, this was common knowledge—no need to explicitly note it.

This was the depth gap between Immortal Sects and Immortal Clans, built from countless small and large details.

"Record this—it will help Teacher Gu Lin and later cultivators who have developed Void Refinement spaces in the Immortal Sects."

Jiang Ding silently recorded it.

For now, he slowed his comprehension of the nascent Sword Realm space, directing his spiritual sense and sword intent toward the Great Sun Boundary Array's reconnaissance and scanning array.

Hum!

The Great Sun core of the Great Sun Boundary Array, nearly merged with the sun star, suddenly flared—countless beams of light converged into a brilliant ray that struck the earth, covering tens of thousands of square kilometers, yet causing no harm to the life within, merely sweeping over them.

This brilliant ray formed by the Boundary Array slowly swept across the Northern Plains, illuminating every inch of grassland.

This scene resembled the Realm Lord inspecting his domain—countless beings trembled, bodies stiff with fear, daring not to move lest they provoke a catastrophic misunderstanding.

The golden beam continuously scanned the Northern Plains.

Several days later.

"Northern Plains—nothing."

"Xi Ping'an and Friend Friend Baizu are not in the Northern Plains."

Jiang Ding retrieved a jade slip and recorded this result, along with the Boundary Array's scanning process, to avoid oversight.

Jiang Ding took out a jade slip and recorded this result, as well as the process of the Yi Ji Ding Gao Jie array's search, so as not to miss anything himself.

As long as no Void Refinement-level concealment was used, even Jiang Ding himself could not hide from the Boundary Array's scan—he would inevitably be exposed, for this was a scan powered by the entire realm's force, a strategic-level Immortal Dao achievement of extraordinary nature.

As long as there is no Refinement Void level concealment, even Jiang Ding himself could not hide within the Yi Ji Ding Gao Jie array's scan and would inevitably be exposed, because this is a scan powered by the force of an entire realm — a strategic-grade immortal Dao achievement of the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong, extraordinary indeed.

"Western Desert—nothing… but I found a secret vault of the Zhenjun Zhenjun Bingfeng clan—still holding an Zhenjun Zhenjun Bingfeng egg, and a fortune… all mine…"

"Southern Frontier—nothing… discovered many fifth-rank heavenly treasures hidden in countless secret corners, untouched by anyone…"

"Eastern Sea—nothing… completely stripped clean by Xi Ping'an—damn it! That's my money…"

"The East Sea… there's nothing left… Xi Ping'an swept it clean, damn it! That was my money…"

Jiang Ding's gaze suddenly halted.

The golden solar beam sweeping across the Eastern Sea froze, directly illuminating an ordinary little island in the endless ocean.

This island had no spiritual energy whatsoever; it was inhabited by many ordinary birds called Flame Birds, entirely crimson, shaped like living flames.

Few cultivators passed here, and those who did paid no attention—these were mere ordinary birds, useless to cultivation.

Now, the solar beam shone directly upon the flock of Flame Birds.

At this moment, a beam of sunlight fell straight into the flock of flamingos.

The Flame Birds shrieked in ugly tones, scattering in all directions, abandoning even their nests and unhatched eggs, crimson feathers flying wildly.

The flock of flamingos let out unpleasant cries and scattered in all directions at once, abandoning even the bird eggs being incubated in their beach nests, with fiery red feathers flying everywhere.

This Flame Bird was ordinary—just one among hundreds of thousands incubating eggs; when the brilliant solar beam struck, it had panicked and flapped like the others, showing no anomaly.

But within the solar beam, a force solidified space, freezing all its movements.

"Friend, haven't we not met in sixty years?"

Jiang Ding nodded, his figure vanishing in a flash of white teleportation light from the Black Demon Palace of Liu Dao Sect.

In the next instant, Jiang Ding appeared on this spiritually barren island, staring at the Flame Bird suspended in midair.

Its body remained utterly still, eyes darting in terror; from both spiritual sense and physical form, it was plainly a female Flame Bird—an ordinary bird.

Its body remained motionless, its eyeballs darting about in terror; whether viewed by divine sense or by physical body, it was a female flamingo, an ordinary bird.

"It's been many years—I've missed you."

Jiang Ding smiled slightly: "Sixty years ago, I visited you at the Ten Thousand Toxins Sect; your Lady said you were away on a journey—I've regretted it ever since."

Jiang Ding smiled slightly: "Sixty years ago, this sovereign went to the Myriad Poisons Sect to visit a Daoist friend, but your esteemed Lady said the Daoist friend was not at home, having gone on a long journey, a regret I have harbored to this day."

"I did not expect to meet the Daoist friend now — what a great fortune."

Keng~

Jiang Ding placed his hand on the sword hilt and slowly drew it out.

In the air, a thousand li of space suddenly solidified; a heavy weight like the sea, like a falling star, descended upon heaven and earth. The vast, surging seas for ten thousand li were forcibly smoothed, becoming as smooth as a mirror, with not a single ripple remaining.

"Gua gua..."

This flamingo still spun around in panic, just like a true mortal bird.

Clang!

The sword left its sheath and struck down.

The flamingo's body stiffened.

Centered on its beak, wings, and chest, a bloodline bloomed and tore, yet what appeared was not a scene of gushing blood and flying feathers, but a centipede swelling rapidly like a balloon, its body golden-green, yet possessing the upper torso of a Daoist with an immortal air and Dao bone.

"How did you discover me?"

Friend Friend Baizu's voice was low; he looked up at the Da Ri Ding Gao Jie sun in the sky, his mood growing increasingly despondent.

"Was it him?"

"No wonder Xi Ping'an refused to hide with me, flying resolutely to the starry void beyond the boundary, unwilling to linger even a moment."

He said with a sigh of regret.