Chapter 643: No Need to Thank Me

The subsequent changes in the cultivation world had nothing to do with Tang Luo.

As a renunciate, he naturally could not speak falsehoods when the need arose; he went to the Listening Rain Sword Pavilion and asked for the key to the Heavenly Sword Land they were safeguarding.

This key was the same as the one in Tang Luo's hand — also a fragment.

However, the two fragments did not appear to have any connection at all, any place where they could be joined.

Leaving the Listening Rain Sword Pavilion, Tang Luo and Ao Yulie and the others headed for the Shu Mountain Sword Sect, where the last "key" they needed was located.

The conditions Yue Wushuang gave Jian Chi Yixin gave Tang Luo a hint.

The three "keys" merged for use — there might be further changes?

Perhaps this method could actually locate the Heavenly Sword, the divine sword in the mission.

Regardless, get all three keys in hand first; it certainly wouldn't be a mistake.

The Shu Mountain Sword Sect's key, like the Listening Rain Sword Pavilion's, was now kept within the mountain gate.

After Zhenren Feng Xian's death, Shu Mountain had completely sealed the mountain; only disciples could enter, and they could not leave.

To take the key from the Shu Mountain Sword Sect, they would likely have to tear open the Mountain-Sealing Sword Array and give the Shu Mountain sword cultivators a beating.

The Shu Mountain Sword Sect might not be as "reasonable" as the Listening Rain Sword Pavilion.

But reasoning with them a bit would definitely get through.

"Little White Dragon, this time it's up to you to act," Tang Luo said, sitting on the dragon's head.

The Shu Mountain sword cultivators of the Sky-Supporting Sword Gate, including the Sect Master, had not all returned.

Only some disciples who weren't badly injured had come back.

Those severely injured higher-ups had all concealed their whereabouts and wouldn't return to the mountain gate so quickly.

Especially the Shu Mountain Sect — they hid extremely thoroughly; other sects still had people to receive them, so they didn't need to worry about being ambushed and killed halfway.

A dead camel is bigger than a horse; the Six Great Sects, even after repeated heavy blows, were not something just any sects could scheme against.

The thirteen sects of the second tier also suffered losses in this Grand Assembly and had no thought of fighting the Six Sects again.

The Sky-Supporting Sword Gate's losses were actually the smallest — ignoring the loss of the Void Refining sword cultivator.

But going forward, they would face immense difficulties; some secretly admired Yue Wushuang, but that didn't mean they would let the Sky-Supporting Sword Gate off.

Lei Zhengyang, released only because his master confined him, wanted the son to pay the father's debt, leading his sect through a difficult time.

"No problem," Ao Yulie said.

With his master sitting atop his head, he wouldn't dare say he wanted to slack off even if he did.

Besides, fighting the Shu Mountain Sword Sect — of course he had issues with it, but with Tang Luo holding the fort, if the sects sent out disciples for single combat, he, Ao Yulie, feared nothing.

With his master's boundless Dharma blessing, beating a Spirit Severing sword cultivator was entirely feasible.

As for Void Refining — the Shu Mountain Sword Sect only had one Void Refining sword cultivator in the sect; if he dared act, wouldn't Master slap him down?

Approaching the Shu Mountain Sword Sect's territory, Tang Luo and the others felt a vast, majestic sword qi raging in this rarely tread place.

"Someone is attacking the Shu Mountain Sword Sect?" Ao Yulie said. "The speed to pluck the peach is fast, and who has such confidence?"

The peach isn't that easy to pluck.

The Shu Mountain Mountain-Sealing Sword Array is their trump card.

It's even "stronger" than the Sky-Supporting Sword Gate's Fleeting Light and Shadow Sword Division Grand Array; Fleeting Light and Shadow still needs to divide the battlefield, the Mountain-Sealing Sword Array doesn't.

It only needs to protect the mountain gate, and then counterattack.

Because it is pure, it is stronger.

Ao Yulie was very curious — who, or which sect, was so confident as to attack the Shu Mountain Sword Sect at this time?

Aren't they afraid of backlash?

The silver-white true dragon hid within the clouds and mist, arriving above the Shu Mountain Sword Sect.

"It's actually just one person!"

Ao Yulie was very surprised; he originally thought it would be some sect, but it turned out to really be just one person.

And, merely one person.

Moreover, under this person's ceaseless attacks, the Mountain-Sealing Sword Array kept manifesting, was bombarded until it tottered on the brink of collapse, and even faced the danger of shattering.

The array's counterattacks were guided by that sword cultivator, instead becoming force that bombarded the array.

After all, a sword array is a dead thing; even under some sword cultivators' control, it can never match the nimbleness of one's own natal flying sword.

It is strong enough, and "heavy" enough.

Few can control an array of this level with effortless ease.

This flaw of the sword array isn't really a flaw at all; even if it were Yue Wushuang, he couldn't do better than this sword cultivator.

It was as if the sword array voluntarily exposed its flaw to the sword cultivator before it.

Every sword of his was just right, either shattering or guiding the array's counterattack.

While precise to the utmost, it flowed like clouds and water, pleasing to the eye.

How does that saying go? The difference between surgery and butchery lies in precision.

This sword cultivator's precision almost made Yue Wushuang look like butchery by comparison.

Of course, that's not to say this sword cultivator is stronger than Yue Wushuang; if they truly fought, the heaven-shaking sword Yue Wushuang produced under Tang Luo's Glazed Nirvana Great Hand Seal would come crashing down — no matter how precise this sword cultivator was, it would be useless, and he'd most likely lose his life.

Without that heaven-shaking sword, the sword cultivator wouldn't be Yue Wushuang's opponent either.

The likely result of a fight: Yue Wushuang heavily injured, this sword cultivator dead; or both mutually destroyed, this sword cultivator escaping.

If he went all-out to escape, Yue Wushuang would find it hard to kill him.

"Why would this Jian Chi Yixin come attack the Shu Mountain Sword Sect?" Ao Yulie found it a bit strange.

No need to think further; among the current "Hundred Flowers Withered" Void Refining sword cultivators, aside from Jian Chi Yixin, there was definitely no one else with this level of strength.

Before Tang Luo could say anything, Ao Yulie, who had asked the question, suddenly realized and answered himself: "For the fragment, that key?"

"Most likely." Tang Luo said.

The reason Jian Chi Yixin moved against the Shu Mountain Sword Sect was the key, and the key alone.

Don't forget, among the conditions Yue Wushuang agreed to for Jian Chi Yixin, there was the merging of the "three keys," allowing Jian Chi Yixin to enter the Heavenly Sword Land once more to pursue his Sword Dao.

With Yue Wushuang dead, the "agreement" between the two naturally became void.

Thus, Jian Chi Yixin came to take the key himself.

Once certain thoughts arise, they are very hard to suppress again; what kind of personality did Jian Chi Yixin have?

If he thought of it, he would definitely do it.

Unrelated to anything else.

"Yixin! Does your Cangjian Mountain Villa intend to be thoroughly enemies with my Shu Mountain Sword Sect?"

The Seal Mountain Sword Formation was tottering on the verge of collapse, and from within came the voice of a Lianxu Sword Cultivator.

He hadn't expected that even while controlling the grand formation, he actually couldn't stop this rising star; he was truly old.

Pausing for a moment, Jian Chi Yixin seemed to be thinking; in the end, he still answered: "I have already betrayed and left Cangjian Mountain Villa; I have no further connection with Cangjian Mountain Villa."

His face was wooden, without a trace of expression, merely stating a fact.

Inside, there was also not the slightest emotional fluctuation.

"... Madman!" The Lianxu Sword Cultivator cursed in a low voice.

He couldn't imagine Jian Chi Yixin being so absolute; the vast Cangjian Mountain Villa, he said he would betray it and he betrayed it — only Jian Chi Yixin would do something like this.

"Could it be... for the key to the Heavenly Sword Land?" The Lianxu Sword Cultivator thought secretly in his heart.

To tell the truth, this key wasn't a product related to the sect's survival or destruction.

For the next several hundred years, even if the Shu Mountain Sword Sect held the key, they wouldn't go use it; recuperating and multiplying was the proper way.

Sending people into the Heavenly Sword Land — if they died inside and didn't come out, for the Shu Mountain Sword Sect that would be adding frost to snow.

But this didn't mean that just because Jian Chi Yixin attacked the mountain gate without a second word, they would hand over the key.

Do you think you are Tang Xuanzang?

The Lianxu Sword Cultivator was pondering countermeasures when suddenly he sensed massive dark clouds surging in the sky.

A white dragon, both ferocious and majestic, appeared, accompanied by swirling, surging lightning.

What truly attracted the Lianxu Sword Cultivator's attention wasn't that white dragon, but the person sitting cross-legged atop the white dragon's head.

White long hair, blood-colored robes.

Tang Luo raised his hand, aiming a palm strike at Jian Chi Yixin.

The Glazed Nirvana Great Hand Seal silently emerged, landing on Jian Chi Yixin, not as grand and imposing as the time he struck Yue Wushuang.

This time the Great Hand Seal wasn't large either, only the height of one person.

However, Jian Chi Yixin's entire body of sword arts and divine abilities had absolutely no room to be used; struck by the Great Hand Seal, he was smashed to the ground, smashing out a huge deep pit.

Not moving a muscle, he had clearly already fainted.

Tang Luo looked toward the Shu Mountain Sword Sect's mountain gate and spoke: "Amitabha, this poor monk observed an evil disciple attacking your noble sect, and conveniently resolved it; no need to thank me."

For the first time, the Lianxu Sword Cultivator felt that even his facial expressions could not be well controlled.

No need to thank him?

If we really don't thank him, is your next palm strike going to come straight down on the mountain gate?

Having been bombarded by Jian Chi Yixin for so long, the sword formation was already tottering; it absolutely could not withstand Tang Xuanzang's single palm.

"Elder..."

A disciple beside him spoke softly, it's too hard!

The Shu Mountain Sword Sect is too hard! A wolf came, and behind it followed a tiger.

If the Shu Mountain Sword Sect could still hold out against this wolf Jian Chi Yixin, then Tang Xuanzang — they really couldn't bear it.

The "Heaven-Tilting Dramatic Change" of the Ertian Sword Gate — the words "Heaven-Tilting" refer to that one palm of Tang Xuanzang, covering and replacing the horizon, like a heaven-treading palm.

Compared to Yue Wushuang, Tang Xuanzang seemingly didn't have that much "hot" discussion.

But that was because he was too strong.

Strong like a deus ex machina product in a swordsman novel written by mortals; there's really nothing to say, strong and that's that.

"What to do?"

"Don't panic."

The Lianxu Sword Cultivator had to hold the fort; at this time he had to steady things: "He's probably also here for the key to the Heavenly Sword Land."

"Then Elder, do we give it or not?"

"Give!"

The Lianxu Sword Cultivator made a decisive choice.

If there hadn't been the uninvited guest Jian Chi Yixin coming to the door, Tang Luo coming over like this would really require a fight.

But now, compared to Jian Chi Yixin, Tang Xuanzang counted as giving the Shu Mountain Sword Sect enough face.

The Shu Mountain Sword Sect also had no need to "rather be shattered jade than intact tile."

Soon, Tang Luo drove the dragon away, the final piece of the Heavenly Sword Land's key in his hand.

"Elder, what about him?"

The Shu Mountain Sword Sect's Seal Mountain Sword Formation had already opened; a group of sword cultivators pointed at the still-unconscious Jian Chi Yixin in the huge pit and asked.

"Lock him up first!"

The Lianxu Sword Cultivator said; how to deal with Jian Chi Yixin was also a troublesome matter.

Fortunately, it looked like this guy would be unconscious for a while.

Otherwise, might as well find a farther place and just throw him away.

One day later, the Heavenly Sword Grounds.

To be precise, the entrance to the Heavenly Sword Grounds.

To enter the Heavenly Sword Grounds, it wasn't as simple as just pouring in Sword Essence and activating the key to gain entry.

Rather, one had to arrive at a designated location, and only by holding the key could one enter.

The Seven Great Gates originally all had stations here, but now they were all deserted.

Besides Tang Luo and his disciple, Daoist Chi Jing and Jiang Shang had also come.

The two were fake Golden Cores; they hadn't followed along to attend the Soaring Heaven Sword Gate Grand Assembly, and deeply regretted not witnessing that day's grand spectacle.