Chapter 335: The Immortals' War

The disciples of Tai Chu Palace formed a circle around the infant in the formation, all curious—everybody had heard of the innate sword body, but none had ever seen one.

In the center of the formation, the baby sat on the ground, gazing up at the blue sky and white clouds above, beginning to seriously contemplate life. In her vision, she sat upon a green meadow amid mountains, surrounded by forests, streams, and towering peaks, with endless clear sky above—but for some reason, she felt faint malice all around, making her dare not move.

"Is this Xu Xu Wenwu's daughter?"

"She said 'Dad' as her first words after birth."

"Didn't expect this kid to be so wild!"

"What's surprising? Look at the records he wrote—he's flashy, extremely flashy!"

"Is the innate sword body that powerful?"

"It's something passed down from ancient times… should be powerful, right?"

Master Chuhe True Person, the eldest among them, spoke: "The primordial sword body is one of the few primordial bodies passed down from antiquity—a natural foundation for immortality. Cultivating sword arts becomes twice as effective. I sensed something sealed within her spirit sea—perhaps she even carries an inherited lineage."

All disciples were stunned. A natural immortal foundation was already astonishing; now she came with her own inheritance? Was this even fair?

Sun Yu said: "Her body differs from ordinary humans—her growth rate is over ten times faster. We may not be able to guide her cultivation with conventional methods."

Yu Yu Zhizhuo said: "Things passed down from antiquity aren't necessarily superior to modern ones. In the past few centuries, our Tai Chu Palace has innovated and developed over a hundred unprecedented immortal foundations… oh, the Great Radiance Subduing Demon Sword doesn't count…"

"Among these new foundations, several immortal bases could have dominated even in ancient times. Let Zhang Sheng explain—he's experienced it."

Zhang Sheng said: "I've never encountered an innate sword body, but during my early trials, I met an ancient primordial body—its reputation was well-deserved; fighting it was difficult."

"Give her a name!" Feng Feng Tingyu said.

"Xu Xu Shiba!" Xiang Little Wei Yuan blurted out.

Everyone fell silent. No one objected. It was approved.

What was going on? So unusual—Xiang Little Wei Yuan felt a chill.

Sun Yu patted his shoulder and sighed: "Innate sword body, rapid growth, inherited lineage… Lord of the Realm, cultivate well. When she grows up and finds out you named her, she might rebel against her master and destroy her ancestral line."

"Wait—I just said that offhand! Let's think of another—"

Everyone ignored Xiang Little Wei Yuan and moved on to the next topic.

"How are the two surviving children?"

Sun Yu said: "Their potential is quite good—they might become immortal foundations too."

Master Chuhe True Person stroked his beard: "Though I don't know what secret method this is, clearly it concentrates the life force and fortune of a thousand infants onto the final three, then selects the strongest one—the other two become fuel for the path. These children were already one in ten thousand; now their descendants are one in a thousand. These two boys are geniuses among ten million!"

After the commotion, the disciples dispersed, returning to their duties.

In truth, perhaps one in ten million could become an immortal foundation, but never a primordial body—let alone one primordial body plus two immortal foundations. Partly because tens of thousands of Xu family youths carried the Tinghai Xianjun's bloodline; partly because Xiang Little Wei Yuan suspected Xu Xu Wenwu had some connection—otherwise, the infant with the innate sword body wouldn't have called him 'Dad' first. When she saw Xiang Little Wei Yuan, she looked utterly disdainful.

But the girl was a bully toward the weak and fearful of the strong—when Xiang Little Wei Yuan and Zhang Sheng revealed their immortal swords, she immediately cowered and let herself be held and patted.

The next evening, Xu Xu Wenwu suddenly came to find Xiang Little Wei Yuan. His first words were: "I've broken through!"

Xiang Little Wei Yuan carefully examined him and found Xu Xu Wenwu's bones had fully transformed—now a pale blue, jade-like in texture, altering his entire demeanor. Though still fat, he was now a ethereal fat man.

Xu Xu Wenwu had completed Bone Tempering, opened his spirit sea, and entered the Spirit Refining realm.

After inspection, though lacking Dao Stones or other tools, even the naked eye could see Xu Xu Wenwu's root constitution had improved dramatically—truly a complete transformation. This must be tied to the blue lotus the infant had broken off. No one expected the lotus to have such a dramatic effect.

The most valuable treasures in this world are those that improve potential. No one imagined the blue lotus accompanying the infant's birth was such a rare, unattainable treasure.

Xiang Little Wei Yuan said: "It seems you've benefited greatly from your daughter. Oh, since your constitution has changed, you might as well switch sect arts. From now on, cultivate this."

Xiang Little Wei Yuan handed him the Jade Toad Gazing at the Moon Painting. Xu Xu Wenwu treasured it like a priceless relic and left happily—forgetting to ask what his daughter's name was.

After seeing Xu Xu Wenwu off, Xiang Little Wei Yuan reviewed the entire incident again, carefully recalling every detail.

Everything about this affair reeked of strangeness. Such a massive underground setup, tens of thousands of surviving youths and maidens—even if they couldn't leave due to soul binding and had to be abandoned, destroying the underground space should have been trivial for an Tinghai Xianjun—just one move. Why leave it intact?

The fragment of the Heaven's Realm had fallen, and its location wasn't hard to find—even Xiang Little Wei Yuan found it. The Xu family had occupied the shattered land for so long, they must have found it too.

Xu Xu Shiqi and Xu Xinyi were powerful, but not invincible. If a formidable spiritual form, wielding a treasure containing a single strike from an Tinghai Xianjun, entered the Heaven's Realm, they could be slain.

When Xiang Little Wei Yuan entered, Xu Xu Shiqi truly intended to kill him—if not for the girl's Yin-Yang, he would already be dead. Though later came the sword transmission, Xiang Little Wei Yuan was certain: Xu Xu Shiqi had genuinely wanted him dead.

The Xu family youths must still have hidden traps—no one knew what they were, or when they'd activate.

The more Xiang Little Wei Yuan thought, the more uneasy he became. He took out a tortoise shell and pierced it with Feiye Zhuxian Sword. Crack! The shell shattered into pieces. In a daze, Xiang Little Wei Yuan thought he saw blood oozing from the shell's broken edges!

This omen was unrecorded in any text, but instinct told him it was no good sign. Xiang Little Wei Yuan stepped outside and looked up. Dusk approached; the sky burned crimson with clouds, the setting sun large and red. On the other side, the full moon had risen—sun and moon vying for brilliance.

Beyond heaven.

Somewhere unknown, strange and inexplicable scenes unfolded endlessly.

In the void echoed indescribable whispers—no one knew what they said, yet they carried power to drive one mad. The longer the whispers lasted, the more the earth cracked, mountains collapsed, and great lakes dried up for no reason.

Countless worlds surfaced in the void, overlapping, everything twisted beyond recognition. A ten-clawed giant eagle dove from the sky, tearing a colossal serpent into pieces—then a headless giant swung a massive axe, severing the eagle's wings.

Suddenly, a mountain appeared in the sky, crushing all into thin sheets—then the stones rolled back, coalescing into a stone beast that shook and flew skyward.

All manner of bizarre phenomena: immortals and demons clashed, while voids constantly appeared like drifting black silk ribbons—anything touched vanished instantly.

Countless worlds arose and perished; innumerable beings fought to the death.

At either end of this realm stood two colossal figures, too vast to describe—ten-thousand-zhang mountains were no larger than their fingers. They sat facing each other; countless worlds formed and annihilated each moment.

All tangible and intangible things were twisted, changing, never knowing when they'd perish. Some had endured long—like the headless giant—others lasted only a moment, like the torn serpent.

!.

From the void emerged more strange, inexplicable things—formless, intangible, yet extremely dangerous. Even the two Immortals had been forced to shift positions several times.

This was the Immortal War—the clash of countless races, the battle of innumerable worlds.

One Immortal had an ancient face, his aura unmistakably decayed and withered. The worlds he summoned were poisoned wastelands or realms of raging lightning and fire. The beings born within were cruel, vicious, twisted, and strange.

The other Immortal radiated pure clarity; countless red suns rose around him, and countless ancient races long extinct surged from nothingness to battle his foe.

His worlds were far fewer, yet thrived with vitality. The headless giant wielding the axe had shattered countless dead realms.

The young Immortal spoke: "Brother Xu Wangu, victory is decided. Why cling on?"

His voice shook heaven and earth; dozens of dead realms shattered into nothingness from a single word.

The old man, as if asleep, opened his cloudy eyes slowly after a pause, speaking sluggishly: "This body is already ruined. What meaning is there in clinging to life a few more years? Better to trade it for something—say… Brother Pei's demise!"

His final words rang out with earth-shattering force!

The old man's forehead split open—a sword light, indescribable, cut across unimaginable distances, from one end of the starry sky to the other, slashing straight at the opposing Immortal!

As the sword fell, half the suns around the Immortal instantly extinguished; half his worlds vanished into ash.

He raised his eyebrows and sighed: "Why force this? Our mortal struggle only benefits the outsiders."

Cracks spread across the old Immortal's body; his face twisted grotesquely: "When I die, let the floods rise!"

Another sword light erupted, instantly annihilating all suns. The headless giant fought desperately—but dissolved in the torrent of swordlight.

The young Immortal's form grew fainter; immediately, several strange entities emerged from nothingness and slithered toward him.

The old man's body shattered into chunks, becoming a pile of stones.

Yet every stone ignited, transforming into a pillar of fire capable of burning the world. From the flames stepped a youth, wielding a great sword, eyes bright as stars, a massive crystal embedded in his forehead.

The youth laughed aloud: "Didn't expect it, did you? I stole heaven and switched fate—reborn in fire, my lifespan extended!"

Another sword light cut through, annihilating all worlds. Between the two Immortals now lay only emptiness—the young Immortal's body nearly gone.

The youth raised his great sword to his shoulder and roared, shaking the cosmos: "Pei Tinghai! You blocked my path—you've earned death! Perish here today!"

As the great sword reached its highest point, it halted—yet the sword intent surged infinitely, even drawing those strange entities toward it, absorbing them into its essence!

In an instant, above, below, left, right—the boundless universe became centered on this sword!

Tinghai Xianjun Tinghai remained unmoved; countless suns rose around him: "Even if I perish, Tai Chu Palace will have someone who ascends the Immortal Path—generation after generation, unbroken! But you, selfishly abandoning humanity's great cause—how dare you call yourself an Immortal? Aren't you afraid of eternal scorn, of future generations shamed?"

The youth laughed: "History is written by the living!"

"Heaven and earth bear witness!"

"That's for later—but your Immortal Path ends today! See my sword—Three Armies Are Old!" Xu Xu Wangu's momentum reached its peak—he slashed down!

Just as the great sword was about to move, all its memories, true meaning, and inheritance began to vanish, bit by bit—as if an invisible hand erased them from the youth's Primordial Spirit!

The crystal in his forehead cracked open; his great sword rusted over. The accumulated sword momentum recoiled, instantly wounding him severely!

Xu Xu Wangu was stunned and furious—but no matter how he tried, the sword vanished as if it had never existed. The Wan Shi Sword Scripture originally had four swords—now only three remained.

(End of Chapter)