783: the climb

Within a mysterious, dark, and void space.

A black divine mountain, emanating countless Sword Intents, stood in this void space.

In the silent space, spatial fluctuations appeared.

Zhou Xiuyuan, with a long sword hanging at his waist, stepped out of the spatial fluctuations.

An independent space?

Zhou Xiuyuan focused his Divine Sense, but it couldn't penetrate the dark barrier.

However, this was expected.

If it couldn't even block his Divine Sense,

then the Legacy of Heavenly Sword Mountain wouldn't be something he could contend for.

Zhou Xiuyuan turned and looked forward.

Within his gaze, there was only a colossal black peak.

On the peak, various long swords were embedded, shimmering with faint light, adding a touch of killing intent to this ancient black divine mountain.

Boom!

At this moment, the divine mountain trembled, emitting a rumbling sound.

After a moment.

A staircase extended directly from the foot of the mountain to its summit, with no end in sight.

"Climbing the mountain, huh."

Zhou Xiuyuan mused.

It seemed he was the only one here, yet there were twelve keys to Heavenly Sword Mountain.

Perhaps this divine mountain had separated them.

He observed for a moment longer, finding no other changes.

Zhou Xiuyuan stepped forward, placing his foot on the first step.

Om~

An invisible sealing force surged from the step beneath his foot into his body.

It completely sealed his magic power and cultivation.

He couldn't resist, nor was he able to.

"If I can't use magic power or cultivation, then..."

Zhou Xiuyuan stepped onto the second step.

Clang!

A sharp sound of a sword being unsheathed echoed in Zhou Xiuyuan's mind.

Accompanying this sword cry was a wisp of Sword Intent.

This Sword Intent was like light, extremely fast, cutting towards his consciousness.

However, this light-like fast Sword Intent had yet to strike.

It was dispelled by a wisp of sharp, keen Sword Intent emanating from Zhou Xiuyuan.

As the fast Sword Intent was dispelled.

The pressure on the second step suddenly vanished.

Zhou Xiuyuan's body stood steadily on the second step.

"So that's how it is. One step, one stair; one stair, one sword; one sword, one intent."

"Sealing magic power and cultivation, relying entirely on Sword Intent to contend."

"It seems this is how Heavenly Sword Mountain chooses its successors."

Zhou Xiuyuan murmured to himself.

He stepped forward again, heading for the third step.

The third.

The fourth.

The fifth... On the ancient black divine mountain, a white-haired figure slowly ascended.

With every step, Sword Intent surged.

Competing with the pure and sharp will emanating from the white-haired figure.

The white-haired figure's pace was not fast, but extremely steady.

The sharp intent emanating from within him also grew heavier and purer.

At the same time.

Another eleven staircases extended downwards from the mountaintop.

On each, a figure broke through heavy pressure, climbing towards the summit.

Six thousand... seven thousand... Who knows how long passed.

When the white-haired figure stepped onto the seven thousandth step.

One ascending figure could no longer hold on and fell from the steps.

Boom!

As that figure fell from the divine mountain.

The divine mountain gently trembled, and that staircase disappeared.

At this time, eleven people remained on the divine mountain.

Seven thousand nine hundred steps.

Another person fell, disappearing into this mysterious space, leaving ten people.

Eight thousand three hundred steps.

Nine people remained.

Eight thousand eight hundred steps.

Eight people remained.

Nine thousand and one steps.

Seven people remained.

Nine thousand seven hundred steps.

Six people remained... "Hoo~"

"Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine."

"The last one."

Zhou Xiuyuan paused, his body trembling slightly, steadying his breathing.

He looked ahead; the next step should be the last.

All the way up, he had fought against various Sword Intents.

It could be said he had gained a lot.

The higher he went, the stronger the Sword Intent.

Reaching this final step, what supported him was only his unyielding will.

After a long period of silent adjustment.

Zhou Xiuyuan slowly rose and stepped onto the last stair.

His will was firm and resolute.

"What is a sword?"

The expected irresistible Sword Intent did not appear.

As Zhou Xiuyuan landed, only a profound voice, like a bell, resonated in his mind.

"What is a sword?"

The voice sounded again.

Prompting him to answer.

"A sword is a tool! It is a sharp blade that kills."

"A sword is the heart! It is the intent within the heart; where the sword points, the heart points."

"A sword is heaven and earth! It is wind and rain, spring thunder, mountains and rivers; it is all things in heaven and earth, and all things can be a sword!"

Before the third question could sound, Zhou Xiuyuan slowly spoke.

Om~

After Zhou Xiuyuan finished answering.

He didn't await judgment; his vision blurred, and the world around him had already changed.

Perhaps everyone's Dao is different, with no distinction of superiority or inferiority.

This question likely had no standard answer.

Its purpose was merely to reaffirm one's Dao and forge ahead bravely.

The steps behind him had vanished.

Zhou Xiuyuan looked back, but saw no path from which he came.

This was an arena, not very large.

Currently, he was the only one.

He subconsciously tried to mobilize his magic power, but found it was still impossible.

Hmm?

At this moment, his hand touched his waist; his three original swords were gone, replaced by only an ordinary wooden sword.

"A wooden sword."

Zhou Xiuyuan didn't mind. His Realm had improved significantly over the past hundred years; even without a sword in hand, as long as he had a sword in his heart, it was as if he held a sword and possessed the world.

Zhou Xiuyuan sat cross-legged, closing his eyes to cultivate his mind.

Before long.

On the arena, another person appeared out of thin air.

The newcomer was a young man, around seventeen or eighteen years old.

The young man's face was flushed, his aura unstable, and his expression wary.

Upon seeing the white-haired figure sitting cross-legged.

The young man cautiously retreated backward, observing his surroundings and calming his breathing.

After another moment, a tall man, about thirty years old, appeared on the arena.

Then a gentle and beautiful woman appeared.

Following her was a young man dressed in blue.

The last person was a burly man, over a zhang tall, with a special pattern on his chest.

When this sixth person appeared.

A realization simultaneously dawned in the minds of the six people in the arena.

After one hour, it would be a free-for-all in the arena, and those who fell off would be eliminated.

After a moment of silence.

The fifth person to appear, the blue-clad youth, looked around and spoke with a smile.

"To meet is destiny. I am Li Zhenyi, a true disciple of Lushan Sword Sect. Greetings, Fellow Daoists."

As the blue-clad youth's words fell.

The seventeen or eighteen-year-old youth and the gentle woman's eyes flickered imperceptibly.

Lushan Sword Sect is a Holy Land. It is said that a Mahayana Heavenly Venerable resides within the sect, making it a powerful force.

"Bah, what Lushan Sword Sect true disciple? You still want to use your influence here?"

"Kid, I'll show you Grandpa's might later."

The tall man, about thirty years old, spat, his tone disdainful.

He despised people like this the most, and he didn't expect to encounter one here.

It's just that this wooden sword is too light; it's really not very handy.

"You!"

Li Zhenyi was enraged. With this person's interruption, his strategy of seizing the initiative had lost more than half its effectiveness.

However, that kid and that woman probably weren't from major powers.

As for the other three, he didn't know... Li Zhenyi suppressed his anger, slowly analyzing the situation in his mind.

He saw the reactions of the young man and the woman.

But the white-haired youth, the tall man, and the burly man who was over a zhang tall were completely unmoved, making them inscrutable.