Departing with Du-Bai had left Ryu with a sense of duty. Du-Bai entrusted his sublime and profound set of skills to him. The Drunken Dragon Fist School is one of seven ancient schools of martial arts on the Heaven Continent that follow the two person rule and have devoted their lives to martial arts and cultivation towards immortality. It was up to Ryu to pass down this art in the future.

After receiving brief but top class training sessions from Na’Vi, the former prince of the Sky Continent, and Du-Bai the infamous Drunken Master, Ryu could just be able to hold his own or at least escape from mid King Domain masters. By both their estimates, Ryu should be able to keep his life is he were to encounter someone five levels above himself in the King Domain. This isn’t the case in Emperor Domain, the difference between each level in that Domain is exponentially greater so by their estimates Ryu can at most hold his own against someone two levels higher in the Emperor Domain. This is due to the fact that Ryu’s specializations are unique and powerful and the fact that he has multiple reservoirs, the quantity of Qi he has is an overwhelming advantage.

Ryu headed towards the nearest city near him. Du-Bai had given him a more detailed map of the Yasha Province and informed him that the competition for Musashi’s blade will occur in a month from now, giving Ryu plenty of time to reach the Thousand Swords Graveyard. This event will be broadcasted through the technology of the Magic Continent.  The prize, the Heaven Penetrator Blade, is a dual element sword of darkness and fire. The blade itself is made from a fang of a Shadow Fiend Bat that’s from the Sovereign Domain while the essence of the blade is from a Red-Eyes Black Fox, also in the Sovereign Domain. This will guarantee the winner of the blade a favorable position in any of the empires.

Du-Bai had informed him that each of the five empires on the Heaven Continent have roughly two to three Supreme Domain experts each. Most live in the capitals to protect the emperors. There were Sovereign Domain experts within the empires of the past but none now. However, each empire’s founder were legendary figures in the past and have left powerful ancient weapons for their successors to wield to maintain power. With these weapons, the emperors or generals wielding them are not any weaker than Sovereign Domain masters. There are a few immortals on Heaven Continent but none belonged to any of the empires as far as Du-Bai knows. That’s because one usually has to give up worldly desires and possession and enter a long period of seclusion to prepare for a Rebirth. After the Rebirth, most will view the world differently.

One of the perks of being the winner of this competition is that you’ll be the first owner, making the blade easier to conquer. There’s a chance that legendary items will remain ownerless after the original owner has passed away because of their sentience. Legendary items contain a will of their own, if you are not acknowledged then you will be unable to use their full potential. Some are also intelligent and cunning, attempts to subdue the item might end up costing one’s own life.

The Thousand Swords Graveyard is a mysterious place that is bigger than any capital in all five provinces. It is occupied by the prestigious Miyamoto Clan. Although the power of the clan might be weaker than some powers, they had the backing of their invincible founder Musashi. The Thousand Swords Graveyard is divided into seven sectors. Each sector is a hefty establishment large enough to house over a million inhabitants.

According to Du-Bai, the greatest swordsman himself is situated in the last sector. The other six sectors are inhabited and controlled by different branches of Miyamoto clan. Musashi himself is rarely seen in public. He has been around forever and dubbed as a monster by Alexis and Du-Bai. The extent of his power is unknown but once a famous general in peak Sovereign Domain from the Toko Province challenged Musashi to a dual. Musashi initially refused but the general brazenly marched up to the Thousand Swords Graveyard causing trouble. The greatest swordsman himself came out and with a sweep with his finger, the general and his whole army got decapitated. With a second sweep, the capital that was over a thousand miles away was cut in half. This was recorded by an image crystal and sent to all five empires, reminding them never to mess with him.

Only Shaolin and Wudang could pose a threat to him but there is no enmity between them. Shaolin and Wudang will only intervene in worldly matters. If wars between provinces escalate too far or if foreign powers attempt to disrupt the balance and peace on the continent. However, Musashi only stays secluded in his Thousand Swords Graveyard, he’ll only take action if intruders dare encroach upon his territory.

None of his descendants made it to Rebirth but they are still a “cocky bunch” according to Du-Bai. There is a lot of politics within the clan, there is a deep rivalry between the sectors due to limited resources. They are only protected near the Thousand Swords Graveyard, Musashi wouldn’t make an appearance if the clan members were killed elsewhere. Rumor has it that in the last Great War the number one swordsman didn’t even bother making an appearance when the dark forces invaded the Heaven Continent. However, the dark forces made a mistake of intruding upon the Thousand Swords Graveyard and the ring leader from the Dark Continent was slayed, thus putting Musashi on the Dark Continent’s radar. Shaolin and Wudang were able to repel the rest of the invaders after Muasahi slayed the leader.

The sun was setting in the navy tinted sky and one could hear the running of a beast. On a horse-like beast, a young man clad in a set of casual white robes was rapidly approaching a city. Ryu was given multiple warnings not to stand out. Right now his cultivation is in the early Grandmaster Domain, his true cultivation nullified by the Sage Arts. As he approached the boarders of the city, he jumped off the beast and patted its head.

“Thank you for giving me a ride. You may go now.” Ryu said as he took out a large berry he had collected in his travels and fed it to the beast. The beast licked Ryu’s face, took the berry and ran off merrily. The guards of the city looked confused but politely greeted Ryu as he approached the gates.

“Sir, right now it’s a busy time for the City of Starlight Blades. To control the number of inhabitants, there is a temporary toll of a hundred gold. Numerous sects have already set up camps on the other side of the city walls. All the inns have been booked but you can still enter if you like.” One guard with a black eye patch said respectfully. Ryu paid the fee and entered the city. This city was one of three cities between the Lin Province and the Thousand Swords Graveyard.

The walls of this city was tallest Ryu had seen, a full fifty meters in height. After entering, there were many pedestrians on the streets. Countless stalls were set up for the newly arrived visitors. Ryu casually browsed through them as he listened to all the chatters.

“I can’t believe so many people are staying here, it’s the busiest our city has ever been!”

“Did you know two of the strongest sects from the Lin Empire are camped outside of the city?”

“Not only that, many independent experts are here to spectate too!”

“I heard every noteworthy powers on the continent are coming to the Thousand Swords Graveyard! Besides the sects from the five provinces, the Maxwell family that has monopoly of all the flight services are joining too.”

“I heard the Xin family that owns most major auction houses in major cities are coming too!”

“There’s also the famed alchemy factory that produces a huge source of training medicine for Heaven Continent, the Spirit Medicine Workshop. Even though they sell medicine, they have quite a few experts too!”

“Ah how can they compare to Shaolin and Wudang who sent representatives to observe?”

 “I wonder who will get the legendary sword crafted by the number one swordsman.”

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“Who cares, the competition opens in a month. During this time, let’s make as much money as we can!”

“The ones that makes the most is the Miyamoto Clan. Did you know that each sect has to fork over five million gold just to participate?

“There’s even rumors that foreigners are coming to bid for the sword. Although they say that foreign powers were never allowed to compete for it in the past.”

As Ryu listened to the gossip around him, nothing particularly new stood out. The lavish entrance fee was expected, the prize itself was priceless. A Sovereign Domain weapon was something that takes centuries to craft and only one person on the Heaven Continent is capable of crafting one at the moment. Musashi’s swords are also able to evolve with the owner, making it ten times better than other static weapons. Alexis’s black scythe was also a Sovereign Domain weapon with a dark essence but this was something bestowed upon him by his superiors for his a hundred thousand years of service to the Death Origin organization and for reaching the Sovereign Domain.

There were various experts strolling around in the street chatting and possibly scouting out the competitors. All in all it was a festive atmosphere, the Thousand Swords Graveyard was not going to be open until three weeks later.

Just as he was pretending to look at some handcrafted pottery in one stall, a huge crash could be heard followed by loud shouting. Ryu looked around and saw that a medium sized food stall was where the commotion was happening.

“Who do you think you are? If I want to drink, I will drink. Bring me more wine!” A bulky man with no hair was shouting. His faced was flushed, it was evident that he had been drinking a lot. There was a companion beside him that was just laughing and enjoying the scene.

“Sir, there’s only limited wine left. You’ve already tallied up to over a thousand gold coins in your bill.” One scrawny waiter said as he trembled. Fear can be seen on his face, he looked like he had just seen a ghost. Actually the customers around had already paid and gotten up in fear of getting involved. The other waiters and waitresses were cowering on the side along with the chef.

“Hey Xu-Zha, this little ant is talking back. It must be your bad luck day, that girl from the Saint Jade Sect rejected you and now this haha.” The companion beside the bulky man laughed out loud.

“Shut up Shi-Jing-Lei. Don’t you know who I am? I am one of the seed disciples from the Resilient Gaia Sect! How dare you speak to me like that?” The bulky man screamed as he slapped at the waiter. The waiter is just an ordinary human with no cultivation, this slap would definitely be fatal. Not one bystanders dared to intervene though, the bulky man was in the Heaven Domain along with his companion.

“Hey, enough.” A cold voice boomed out. A handsome youth wearing fancy embroidered clothes in his twenties appeared out of nowhere and grabbed the hand.

“You…” Xu-Zha said with a growl. He was trying to withdraw his hand but realized that he couldn’t.

“Don’t blame us for playing dirty, you started it.” Shi-Jing-Lei said as he suddenly slammed the empty bottle in his hand against the mysterious intruder. The Qi he infused with the bottle was evident, the bottle itself was practically glowing.

The youth wearing the fancy embroidered clothes chuckled as the bottle hit him. However, the bottle seemingly just passed by him.

“An afterimage!” Xu-Zha said in shock.

“Pft.” Shi-Jing-Lei snorted as he swung the bottle in an arch within the same motion and pointed at where the youth reappeared a meter away. “Kid, our sect specializes in earth techniques. Did you think your movements can escape us? Xu-Zha you fat pig, get your act together and let’s teach this punk a lesson.”

“Right! You are dead!” Xu-Zha shouted as he screamed and slapped his face a few times. Although a crowd formed around the commotion, once the fight escalates then there is a good chance people will be hurt. Everyone started panicking and running outwards. The few experts around stood still and watched in amusement. The city guards were only low level Master Domain people that can’t possibly interfere.

That man is brave for standing up to these two in such a public space. Ryu secretly praised. Although he was about to step in to save the poor waiter, Ryu was planning to use a long ranged skill to knock them out. This would’ve aroused many suspicions but at least it’ll be harder to trace back to him.

“It’s over!” Shi-Jing-Lei shouted as he clasped his hands together while standing still. Xu-Zha charged over, ready to punch the youth. The youth was about to escape again but suddenly the ground beneath him wrapped around his shoes and hardened. Sneak attacks from below are harder to guard against, Ryu experienced it firsthand when he was struck by a blow from below previously against an elder from the same sect as these two seed disciples.

The expression of the youth changed as he realized that even if he did escape, there is no way to dodge the heavy blow coming his way. Given that his fighting style relies on agility, it’s most likely his defense is relatively weaker.

Bam! The overbearing fist from Xu-Zha landed but it wasn’t against the youth. Ryu had appeared out of nowhere just like how the youth did a few moments ago to intercept the fist. It was like déjà vu to Xu-Zha. When he was about to slap the waiter, someone caught his hand. When he was about to punch the youth, someone caught his hand.

However the difference is that when he is about to pull back his fist, he found out that he had no strength. Naturally he increased the flow of Qi towards his arm but for some reason, the Qi wasn’t reaching his hand. Somewhere in between his shoulder and hand, the Qi was disappearing.

Ryu twisted Xu-Zha’s wrist and flipped him over, making him land face first on the ground. The moment Ryu let go of Xu-Zha’s hand, all the Qi that Xu-Zha was channeling before returned all at once. This time it was in the reverse flow, creating an unpleasant ripple through out his body. The returned Qi was fighting against his inner Qi, damaging his inner organs and causing him to cough up mouthful of blood.

Ryu turned around and saw the trapped youth fighting mid-air against Shi-Jing-Lei. Shi-Jing-Lei’s movements were sluggish, probably something the youth did. During the time Ryu put down Xu-Zha, the youth broke free and flew directly at Shi-Jing-Lei. Ryu only sensed it and didn’t see it but Shi-Jing-Lei swung out a fan that caused Shi-Jing-Lei to leap into the air. Shi-Jing-Lei’s body was covered by a stone layer as he exchanged blows with the youth. The youth was much too fast and was landing dozens of blows while dodging. Suddenly he stopped.

The youth laughed and said, “There’s too many witnesses here today. You better not let me see you ever again or I’ll kill you in painful ways you can’t imagine!”

Shi-Jing-Lei looked like he was about to retort when suddenly he coughed up a mouthful of blood as well before falling into the ground. Since he was clad in stone armor, the impact was great and he was buried a meter deep.

“Thank you! My name is Leonardo, nice to meet you. What is your name brother?” The youth asked as he introduced himself the moment he landed.

“I don’t really have a name but you may call me Dragon.” Ryu replied. Actually Na’Vi had warned Ryu not to use his real name and told him to come up with a new one or an alias. Ryu was surprised to see that Leonardo has blue eyes.

“Haha fair enough. Let me treat you to some food, courtesy of the guy in the ground.” Leonardo said as he revealed a storage ring he took from the fight. In a place crowded with experts, it’s not the wisest thing to do to give out your real name, Leonardo himself didn’t give out his last name.