The First Venerable of All Paths

Sword repair!

The owner of this skeleton was actually a sword cultivator in life!

A sword cultivator at the Divine Intent Realm level.

Such an existence is beyond Fang Xuan's ability to deal with.

Even though he had long since perished and become a skeleton.

That casually unleashed sword strike caused the world to lose its luster, its sword intent chilling.

The only thing that comforted Fang Xuan was that this sword cultivator's skeleton had no intelligence whatsoever; it was merely a puppet controlled by Xie Gui using the secret techniques of the evil race.

Unable to unleash the full potential they had before birth.

Otherwise, Fang Xuan wouldn't even have had a chance to escape.

"Hiss hiss hiss!"

The sword energy was as swift as a startled swan, cleaving through heaven and earth.

As a result, a ravine appears to run across the lake below.

At the end of the ravine stood Xiao Jinyu, her face pale with fright, and Fang Xuan, his expression grave.

"Oh no, we can't escape now."

Xiao Jinyu's tone was full of despair, and she even gave up resisting because of it.

Faced with a terrifying sword strike from a sword cultivator at the Divine Realm, any means of resistance are pale and laughable.

Fang Xuan is different.

Shock as it may be, somber as it may be.

But Fang Xuan did not surrender.

He pulled Xiao Jinyu behind him and slammed his palm against the Innate Sword Box.

"Buzzing!"

The first layer of restrictions on the sword box was activated, and the chilling and violent Returning Void Sword Qi suddenly bloomed, condensing into a black longsword above the head.

"go!"

Fang Xuan let out a low shout, and the Guixu Sword Qi slashed out quickly, instantly colliding with the cyan sword light.

Sword energy swept across the area.

As the sword light swept across, it cleaved the entire lake surface into pieces.

The lotus leaves beneath him could not withstand the weight and were shattered by the sword energy.

The sword energy of Guixu also dissipated.

The cyan sword light, with only a wisp the size of a hair remaining, continued to slash towards Fang Xuan.

Swift as lightning.

Fang Xuan's eyes turned cold, and he clenched his fist.

"Hey!"

The cry resounded in all directions, and the magnificent golden-red Phoenix Cry Sword appeared in Fang Xuan's hand on its own.

Without hesitation, he unleashed a sword strike.

"A hundred kills turn to frost!"

The chilling sword aura was as cold as frost and as fiery as fire.

Two extremely opposite and sharp sword energies bloomed from the Phoenix Cry Sword, swirling towards the cyan sword light.

"Snap!"

The cyan sword light shattered instantly, and blood flowed from the corner of Fang Xuan's mouth.

Although Fang Xuan successfully blocked the sword strike from the blue skeleton, he was also injured.

"You're also a sword cultivator?"

Xie Gui's pupils contracted again as he looked at the golden-red longsword in Fang Xuan's hand.

This was clearly beyond his expectations.

"Heavenly Fire, a swordsman?"

Xie Gui sneered, "It seems I can't let you live!"

With a flick of his finger, Xie Gui sent gray, malevolent energy landing on the skeleton.

The skeleton was about to raise its sternum and strike again.

But Fang Xuan was faster.

He raised his sword with great force, channeling his innate sword energy into the blade.

"One sword pierces the peak!"

A dazzling sword light, like a rainbow, swept across the sky, fiercely slashing towards the blue skeleton.

"Snap!"

The blue skeleton raised its ribs to block, but the moment it touched the golden-red sword energy, its sternum shattered on the spot.

The skeleton trembled violently, and the flames in its eye sockets dimmed drastically, as if they might go out at any moment.

"How is that possible?"

Xie Gui's expression darkened; he hadn't expected Fang Xuan's strength to be so terrifying.

"As expected of a sword cultivator, truly formidable!"

Xie Gui's eyes were gloomy, and his tone was icy as he said, "It's a pity your own cultivation level is too low. Even if you wield your natal flying sword, you are no match for me!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Xie Gui opened his mouth wide and swallowed the seven-leaf red lotus.

"Boom!"

Xie Gui's aura surged wildly, and red waves of energy rose around him.

In the blink of an eye, his cultivation level rose from the first level of the Divine Intent Realm to the second level.

"The Hand of Evil!"

Xie Gui roared and slammed his palm down towards Fang Xuan.

That overwhelming evil hand seemed to cover the entire lake surface.

Fang Xuan swung his sword and slashed.

A hundred kills turned to frost!

A hundred battles, a cycle of reincarnation!

One sword pierces the peak!

Three sword strikes were unleashed in succession, but they could not stop the giant hand of the evil spirit.

At that moment, a strong sense of life and death crisis arose in my mind.

Fang Xuan's body trembled, his arms trembled, as if he was about to lose his grip on the Phoenix Cry Sword.

His eyes were bloodshot, and his face showed madness.

The sword was changed from being held with one hand to being held with two hands.

The "Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Void Technique" was operating wildly.

Sword energy, elemental power, and essence blood.

Fang Xuan's entire will was integrated into the longsword in his hand.

"One sword, cleaves the river!"

Fang Xuan roared angrily, and the Phoenix Cry Sword slashed fiercely upwards towards the rapidly descending giant evil spirit hand.

"Boom!"

The lake water churned, and terrifying golden-red sword energy split the lake surface, reaching all the way to the end.

The sword energy shot straight into the sky, splitting the giant evil hand in two.

"snort!"

"puff!"

Xie Gui let out a muffled groan, took a step back, and looked surprised.

Fang Xuan coughed up blood, his face was as pale as paper, and his whole body was trembling.

"Sword cultivators, this is what sword cultivators are all about!"

Xie Gui suppressed the violent power within him, his eyes extremely cold.

Fang Xuan's sword strike just now almost caused him to lose control of his power.

"If you break through to the Condensation Realm, I'm afraid I won't be able to do anything to you."

Xie Gui took a deep breath, his facial features contorted.

"What a pity, what a pity you're too weak right now!"

Xie Gui spread his arms wide, his ten fingers slightly hooked.

"Eye of Evil, open it for me!"

Xie Gui roared, and the skin between his eyebrows burst open, revealing a blood-red eye.

It was the blood-red eyeball that Fang Xuan had seen in the mist.

"Boom!"

At the same time, a huge blood-red eye appeared above Xie Gui's head.

Its bloodshot eyes were tightly closed, but its overwhelming evil energy crashed onto the lake like a mountain.

Fang Xuan knew very well that if he waited for those blood-red eyes to open, he would surely die.

And this time...

He can't stop him!

"Walk!"

Without hesitation, Fang Xuan grabbed the already stunned Xiao Jinyu and flew away on his sword into the distance.

"Are you able to leave?"

Xie Gui grinned, formed a hand seal, and slowly opened the evil eye between his eyebrows.

"laugh!"

The moment the Evil Eye opened a crack, an extremely terrifying and sinister power burst forth from it, tearing a rift in space.

It is easy to imagine just how terrifying the power would be once the Evil Eye is fully opened.

"puff!"

At that moment, Xie Gui's body began to tremble violently, he spat out a mouthful of blood, and his breath rapidly declined.

The evil eye between his brows closed again, and the giant eye on his head disappeared as well.

"Oh no, the Blood Lotus is backfiring!"

Xie Gui's expression changed drastically, but seeing that Fang Xuan had already flown a hundred meters away on his sword, he quickly manipulated the blue skeleton.

"Go, kill him, and retrieve the core of the secret realm!"

A flicker of flame appeared in the eyes of the blue skeleton before it vanished in a flash.

When it reappeared, it was not far from Fang Xuan.

A section of rib was detached from the blue skeleton and slammed down on Fang Xuan.

Sensing the terrifying force approaching from behind, Fang Xuan had no time to think and instinctively pulled Xiao Jinyu firmly into his arms.

"Thump!"

Ribs fell heavily, slamming onto the Innate Sword Box.

With a dull thud, Fang Xuan was like a cannonball, crashing straight into the bottom of the lake.

"puff!"

Even though the innate sword box blocked some of the power, Fang Xuan felt as if all the bones in his body were about to fall apart, and he saw stars before his eyes.

Before losing consciousness, Fang Xuan only heard a cry of alarm, which faded into the distance.

Watching Fang Xuan disappear into the lake, the flames in the blue skeleton's eyes first went out, then shrank to the size of a grain of rice, before plunging into the lake as well.

Xie Gui was unaware of this anomaly.

He mistook it for a blue skeleton and, following his orders, continued to hunt down Fang Xuan.

Suffering from the backlash, he was circulating his cultivation technique, trying his best to refine the Seven-Leaf Red Lotus he had just consumed.

As long as Xie Gui can acquire the power of the Evil Lotus, he can break free from his shackles, become a true member of the Evil Clan, and undergo a complete transformation.

"And this secret realm will become the place where our race rises!"

......

"Fang Xuan, don't sleep!"

Xiao Jinyu patted Fang Xuan's cheeks, her eyes reddening, trying to inject her Yuan energy into Fang Xuan's body.

"Please, wake up!"

But Fang Xuan showed no reaction whatsoever. He couldn't even withstand the power she injected, and blood kept gushing from his mouth and nose.

Seeing Fang Xuan in such a state, Xiao Jinyu could no longer hold back her tears.

Tears, mingling with the lake water, becoming one.

Behind them, the blue skeletons were rapidly closing in.

"Go to sleep if you want."

Xiao Jinyu pushed Fang Xuan deeper into the lake, then turned around to face the sword cultivator's skeleton.

Without uttering a single wasted word, Xiao Jinyu directly activated his cultivation technique, stimulating the power of his Yin-Yang Dao Body, condensing black and white koi carp, and evolving Yin and Yang.

Before Xiao Jinyu could make a move, the sword cultivator with his skeletal hand gently waved his hand.

Xiao Jinyu felt as if she had been struck by an invisible force; the yin-yang pattern disappeared, and the power of the yin-yang Dao Body returned to her body.

Steadying herself, Xiao Jinyu looked at the sword cultivator's skeleton in surprise.

The other party didn't kill her?

Instead, it helped her suppress the backlash from the Yin-Yang Dao Body.

What's going on?

Xiao Jinyu sensed something was amiss, but she stepped in front of Fang Xuan again.

The sword cultivator's skeleton stopped, its empty eye sockets staring at Xiao Jinyu.

At that moment, Xiao Jinyu was surprised to find that the gray flames in the other person's eye sockets had turned blue.

The blue flames spun, resembling a lotus flower.

In the instant Xiao Jinyu was stunned, she was pushed away by a gentle force.

Then the sword cultivator's skeleton teleported in front of Fang Xuan, bent down, and looked Fang Xuan up and down.

"This thing...it has sentience?"

Xiao Jinyu looked at the sword cultivator's skeleton in disbelief, as if she had just realized something.

Then, something even more shocking happened to Xiao Jinyu.

The skeletal remains of the sword cultivator grabbed Fang Xuan and plunged towards the bottom of the lake.

"Put him down!"

The other party ignored Xiao Jinyu and walked straight ahead.

Xiao Jinyu gritted her teeth and quickly chased after him.

The sword cultivator's skeleton moved very fast, and Xiao Jinyu could barely keep up even with all her might.

After an unknown amount of time, the sword cultivator's skeleton stopped and reached out with its skeletal hand.

Then Xiao Jinyu saw the lake water part, and a huge lotus flower, as green as jade, appeared in her sight.

"Nine-grade blue lotus?"

Moreover, in the center of that lotus flower, there was a tiny flame, no bigger than a grain of rice, flickering slowly.

Xiao Jinyu's delicate body trembled, her red lips parted wide, her eyes widened, and a storm of emotions surged within her.

"That's... the Azure Lotus Karmic Fire?"

The blue lotus purifies the world, burning away karma and destroying evil!

"Heavenly fire! It's actually heavenly fire!"

Xiao Jinyu swallowed hard, his throat bobbing.

She never expected that deep within this lake lay the ninth-grade green lotus, a top-tier spiritual herb in the world.

This ninth-grade green lotus even gave birth to green lotus karmic fire!

The sword cultivator's skeleton turned his head and "looked" at Xiao Jinyu.

Although the other party didn't speak or even make any eye contact, Xiao Jinyu understood.

Shut her up!

Xiao Jinyu quickly covered her red lips and shook her head repeatedly.

The sword cultivator's skeleton then turned around and, to Xiao Jinyu's astonishment, threw Fang Xuan toward the blue lotus.

"call!"

The blue flames suddenly surged, engulfing Fang Xuan completely.

At the same time, the lotus closed up, enveloping Fang Xuan within it.

Xiao Jinyu: "!!!"