They said they were prepared, but in truth, the disciples of the Lichen Sect didn't immediately turn their heads toward the direction of the gray smoke. Perhaps some younger disciples were slightly restless, but quickly, under the leadership of experienced elder brothers like Hua Xifeng, they continued toward the monastery.
Li You, seeing Yu Ci's confusion, patted his shoulder cheerfully and explained, "Have you forgotten? After the Sword Garden opens, it can be entered within thirty-six hours. Of course, there are advantages to going early, but we don't care about such insignificant gains. It's more important to adjust our condition first."
Yu Ci let out a light sound of understanding. Looking ahead at Hua Xifeng and others, they indeed appeared calm and composed, unperturbed by the smoke and clouds. He couldn't help but admire them. This composed demeanor was the result of their years of cultivation and their confidence in their abilities, and of course, the solid foundation provided by the colossal Lichen Sect.
This aura emanated from them and influenced the surrounding junior brothers. Naturally, the disciples of the Lichen Sect on the mountain road also integrated into this atmosphere. Regardless of whether they could truly ignore the distant disturbances or resist the temptations within the smoke and clouds, at least now, they presented a different realm compared to the chaotic scene surrounding the pillar of smoke and clouds.
Yu Ci glanced back again, not at the gray clouds, but at the palace eaves on another mountain peak. He wondered what attitude those who could contend with the Lichen Sect would have.
The gray smoke soaring into the sky continued from dusk until the next morning, showing no signs of dissipating but instead becoming denser. In the White Cloud Manor, forty Lichen Sect cultivators had rested for a night, mostly adjusting their physical and mental states.
Hua Xifeng, Xiao Lu, Zhao Fu, and Li Hong, the leading figures among the fourth-generation disciples, announced at breakfast that the disciples would enter the Sword Garden that morning. It was the final preparation time. However, the cultivators participating in this grand event had already tidied up early. After breakfast, they gathered in groups on high grounds, pointing at the distant smoke column and discussing the next steps.
Tens of miles away, the gray smoke column rose thousands of feet into the sky, shaking the atmosphere. Occasionally, a sharp whistle could be heard. According to Li You, the "old horse knowing the way," this whistle was actually the resentful Sword aura released by the Sword cultivation predecessors buried in the Sword Garden, who had been bearing the humiliation of defeat for many years and died with grievances.
These Sword auras, combined with the dead air permeating the Sword Garden, would give birth to many special ghost creatures. They posed a threat to the cultivators entering the Sword Garden, but they also represented opportunities. At this moment, thousands of cultivators surrounded the soaring smoke column, some rushing in, some hesitating, and some just standing there in a daze. Human nature is diverse and abundant.
"There's a quarter of an hour left."
Yu Ci squinted at the sun, stood up from the snowy ground, and Li You and Zhang Yan were already ready, just waiting to set off. Yu Ci looked back, above the White Cloud Manor, Yu Zhou's white hair fluttered, smiling at these promising sect juniors. Feeling Yu Ci's gaze, the old Daoist nodded slightly at them.
Yu Ci smirked, his gaze shifting to the higher peaks where Hua Xifeng stood tall and mighty. He said nothing, only making a gesture that was clear to everyone around him.
"Move!"
The sound of sword light piercing the sky rose in intensity as fifteen Golden Elixir cultivators simultaneously levitated. Their Golden Elixir True Sha, though of diverse natures but born of the same source, released millions of Auras, intertwining to form an invisible yet dense net that enveloped the remaining twenty-five disciples. The smoke-like Magical Instrument from yesterday was once again spread out, bearing a significant portion of the weight.
In this way, the forty individuals became almost one. The True Sha sword light of the Golden Elixir cultivators collided with the Primordial Qi of heaven and earth at the outermost layer. From afar, it looked like a giant cocoon shimmering with silver light, moving faster and faster, heading straight for the towering smoke column.
The Sword Garden is an incredibly unique place. It is located within the Broken Realm Mountain Range, yet it extends far into the void. Legend has it that this place was formed by the two supreme Sword Immortals buried here, who warped space with their Great Mystical Powers on top of their original graves. Therefore, geographically speaking, the Sword Garden has a certain range, but once inside, the size of the space is unpredictable, making it hard to grasp.
Around this peculiar and vast space is a unique Seal, covered by an unfathomable Divine Power. It envelops the entire Sword Garden, and anyone attempting to forcibly enter will face the strongest backlash from the residual Sword aura of all the Sword cultivations buried in the garden, including the power of the two Sword Immortals!
Such a terrifying impact would even give pause to the Earth Immortals at the apex of this realm.
The Sword Garden only reveals the entrance under specific conditions, such as the smoke column that now connects heaven and earth. For external Cultivators, this is probably the only opportunity to enter and exit. However, even then, there are conditions to pass through the outer Seal.
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Without a sword, how can one enter the Sword Garden? Therefore, to enter the Sword Garden, one must practice the sword. And it's not just any practice; even if one is not a dedicated Sword cultivator, they must have a certain level of accomplishment and methodology. Those who are not up to par will be ruthlessly turned away at the door. Those who insist on barging in are likely to be shredded by Sword Energy in an instant.
Take the Lichen Sect as an example. Although they have selected forty Cultivators, all proficient in the Sword Way, the reality is that only those who have reached the Golden Elixir Stage in their Cultivation Level and have deep accomplishments in the Sword Way can be certain of entry. The rest will depend on luck. Under normal circumstances, getting more than half of them in is already an impressive achievement.
Precisely for this reason, when Lichen Sect's members charged into the grey smoke column, they adopted a Formation setup, with fifteen Golden Elixir cultivators uniting their Aura on the periphery, weaving their Sword Energy together. Although the methods they cultivated differed, they all stemmed from the Sect's Supreme Immortal Canon, the "Heavenly Mansion Profound Microcosm Nine Degree Sutra", which innately resonated with them. This approach allowed the forty individuals to act as a single entity, advancing and retreating in unison, proving to be a highly effective method for penetrating the Seal.
Since the establishment of the Sword Garden, the Lichen Sect has spent most of its time using this method, attempting to bring as many disciples into it as possible. However, the most effective number still hovers around forty. Over time, this has become a habit, solidifying into tradition.
A silver light cocoon soared through the air, already breaking through to the periphery of the grey smoke column. Here, some cultivators still hesitated and watched, others were thrown out by the Seal, either hanging their heads in defeat or cursing loudly. Yet, none of this could hinder the momentum of the light cocoon. Its thunderous Sword Howl intimidated the onlookers, causing the cultivators along the way to dodge and clear a path directly to the smoke column.
Among the forty cultivators of the Lichen Sect, at least one-third were not here for the first time. Their grasp of the formation and timing was extremely precise, giving them more than enough confidence to enter the Sword Garden. However, the world is unpredictable. Just as the silver light cocoon touched the outer layer of the smoke column and made contact with the Seal, the Sword aura inside and outside began to intertwine, generating a strange reaction. Suddenly, a gust of wind and thunder rose from the ground!
A dark light, silent and unnoticeable, emerged from the massive grey smoke column. Without any buffer, it collided with the silver cocoon ahead. The dark light was only a few inches wide, seemingly delicate, but at the moment of collision, it set off a thunderous boom.
"Black Thunder Shuttle!"
At this point, more than half of the people recognized this Magical Instrument. However, the timing of the black shuttle's arrival was too perfect. Hua Xifeng, who was in charge of the Formation setup, had just enough time to reinforce the Sword Energy at the point of impact before the Yin Thunder hit. Amid the explosion, the sword light wrapped around the exterior of the silver cocoon rippled like water, causing the already touched Sword Intent Prohibition to waver. Any movement triggered changes!
A sharp glint shot from Hua Xifeng's narrow eyes. While the sword aura of the Sword Array remained still, another nearly transparent sword light whizzed out, disappearing mid-air. From within the smoke column, following the Black Thunder Shuttle, a person flew out, directly colliding with the invisible sword light. With a cry, blood splattered in the air. The person was sent flying back faster than he had come, his half-angry, half-triumphant yell still echoing from within the cloud:
"Cultivator Xifeng, is this how you jest with old friends? I'll be waiting for you in the Sword Garden!"
Hua Xifeng's face was expressionless as he sheathed his sword. Before the blade fully disappeared, he gave it a gentle shake, and the blood on it fell away, leaving it untainted. However, the formation setup was already in chaos, beyond anyone's ability to salvage.
"Clear your mind, let your Sword Energy shine outward, and let fate take its course. If you can't enter, don't force it!"
Hua Xifeng commanded in a solemn voice. Even before his words had fully echoed out, the distant sky behind the pillar of grey smoke had already opened its gates to him amidst the resonating sound of swords. A mixture of deathly aura and spiritual energy gushed out. With a slight dizziness, he had already rushed through the stream of energy, arriving in a boundless, grey world.
The world was shrouded in a layer of grey haze, and at first glance, it was an endless plain. Hua Xifeng had exceptional vision, but even with such a far-reaching gaze, not a single figure could be seen within his field of vision. Precisely because of this, despite successfully entering, there was no joy on Hua Xifeng's face. After all the twists and turns, how many could make it in like he did?
He quickly discarded these useless thoughts, closed his eyes to meditate, and fully engaged the grand law of the interaction between heaven and earth. His mind was like an open disc, and those deeply remembered auras were like balls rolling on the disc, vividly in sight.
"One, two, three... twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty-six!"
After counting twice, Hua Xifeng let out a bitter smile. He had presided over the entrance to the Sword Garden more than once or twice, but this was the first time that a third of his fellow disciples had disappeared all at once.
He released the Sect's unique Contact Flying Star, which was red in color. Fellow disciples within a hundred miles would see this and release their own Flying Stars to signal their safety and then gather. The space in the Sword Garden was distorted, and a slight displacement during entry could result in a thousand-mile error. Normally, such displacement would be minimized by the Sword Array, but now, all bets were off.
After a full hour, only twenty people had gathered around him, all within a five-hundred-mile radius. Six others were too far away, probably not even having seen the Contact Flying Star.
"Eh, where's Junior Brother Yu?"
Li You's voice sounded somewhat abrupt in the slightly dull atmosphere. Hua Xifeng interrupted his thoughts, looked up, and saw another disciple from the Empirical Department respond:
"Maybe he didn't make it in?"
"Impossible!" Li You's voice was very certain: "Junior Brother Yu achieved his Sword aura early on, extremely pure and refined. How could he possibly be kept out?"
Even in the Lichen Sect, those who could condense their Sword aura at the Nature-Connecting Realm were few and far between. Hua Xifeng thought for a moment, then remembered the last person recorded yesterday. He closed his eyes and examined for a moment, then nodded: "He's in, just far away."
With that, he shook his head: "He's beyond a thousand miles away. The exact distance is hard to calculate, I can only vaguely sense it."
"That's so unlucky!" Li You gaped in surprise.
...