Desolate Era (Book 19 - Book 21)

If…


If Ji Ning was only capable of defeating five or six of the guardians, then it would probably be difficult for him to succeed within the next ten million years.

“Darknorth…”

The eyes of the Empyrean Gods were filled with hope, desire, nervousness, and uneasiness.

They weren’t afraid of death, but they simply couldn’t stand knowing that their masters, brothers, loved ones, and family members were facing a terrible war while they were living safe lives here at Kilostar Island. They wanted to leave. They truly wanted to leave!

……

The long wooden bridge led directly towards the Path of Blades.

The Path of Blades was filled with enormous upright swords, spears, sabres, and other edged weapons. They were planted into the ground and pointed upwards towards the heavens.

A white-robed youth suddenly came to a halt midway through the path…because in front of him had just appeared a golden-robed youth that looked just like him.

“Is that me?” Ning was slightly startled.

“I’m the first guardian. Take a look at that sword over there.” The golden-robed youth pointed towards a nearby sword that was at least thirty thousand meters tall. Phantom illusions actually began to appear on the surface of the sword, illusions of a humanoid that was executing a complete set of profound sword-arts, going from simple to profound, from start to finish.

“The sword-arts that appeared on that sword are the sword-arts that I will use.” The golden-robed youth looked at Ning. “You can view these sword-arts three times. After doing so, the sword-arts will vanish and we shall fight.”

“Oh?” Ning felt delight. This really was an unexpected surprise. He was actually being given a chance to view the opponent’s sword-arts? Sin and Sealthroat hadn’t told him of this. Most likely, the two had wanted to give him a pleasant surprise. There was no point telling him in advance, after all, and letting him find out on the spot would bring a bit of joy.

Ning carefully stared at the enormous sword that had been plunged into the endless ice around them. The sword-arts appearing on the sword were continuously being displayed. Three sessions took nearly twelve full hours, at which point in time it all came to a halt.

“What a curious sword-art.” Although Ning sighed in approval, he didn’t panic in the slightest, because this first guardian’s sword-art posed no threat to him at all.

“Done?” The golden-robed youth asked.

“Yes.” Ning nodded.

“Then receive my attacks.” The golden-robed youth’s body suddenly blurred, manifesting a total of three heads and six arms. Six swords appeared in his hands as well as he pounced towards Ning.

A strange feeling was in Ning’s heart, because this sort of battle tactic was quite similar to his own, and this person looked identical to him.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! His sword-art moved at the speed of light, and it was overwhelming superior. Although Ning’s opponent had increased his power with the [Starseizing Hand], his sword was still knocked flying by Ning’s sword-light chop. However, thanks to the [Eight-Nine Arcane Art], the doppelganger’s body was completely unharmed.

“Your sword-art is far superior to mine.” The golden-robed youth landed on the wooden bridge and nodded. “I am thoroughly convinced by my defeat.”

Whoosh. The golden-robed youth disappeared into thin air.

Ning continued to advance forwards, making his way deeper into the Path of Blades. Each time he encountered a new guardian, a nearby sword would begin to display a set of sword-arts for him to view. Each time after he viewed the sword-arts, Ning would feel somewhat inspired, and he was able to further perfect his [Brightmoon] sword-art. However, his [Brightmoon] sword-art was already incredibly powerful, as it had incorporated the essence of the [Five Treasures] within it. Sword-light that struck at light speed was incredibly formidable. The word ‘fast’, all by itself, could be superior to countless tricks and techniques.

Ning was able to battle all the way to the eighth guardian on his first try.





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Book 20, Chapter 28 - The Mournful Sword


The golden-robed youth standing before Ji Ning had very gentle eyes.. He looked towards Ning in a very affectionate way, as though he was looking his most beloved lover.

“Eh?”

For some reason, Ning felt vaguely threatened as the eighth guardian stared at him. Still, he didn’t say anything. Instead, he turned to look at the enormous sword that was next to him. Sword-arts had already begun to appear on its surface. As he had battled his way past the guardians, the sword-arts he had encountered had become increasingly formidable and had provided more and more insights to Ning.

In fact, Ning could sense that all of these sets of sword-arts were guiding him towards the limits of the Heavenly Daos, as if they were teaching him how to reach and surpass those limits. Although there were many types of sword-arts in the Three Realms, aside from the [Five Treasures] which had surpassed the Heavenly Daos, no sword-arts had inspired him and helped him as much as these ones had.

“The major power who created Undermoon Lake definitely had an extraordinary background. The sword-arts he has left behind have been tremendously beneficial to me, but he’s also done the same for the other Empyrean Gods, some of whom use spears, staves, scimitars, and other weapons. No matter what weapon is used, the Path of Blades will produce a different, matching guardian.” Ning was stunned by the implications.

This further reinforced the truth to Ning that the primordial chaos truly was filled with all possibilities. The Three Realms was nothing more than a single little chaosworld within the infinite primordial chaos.

To sit at the bottom of a well and stare at the tiny portion of sky that was visible and believe it to be the entirety of the heavens…that would truly be a joke.

Since he was weak, he had to work hard and train hard to make himself become strong. Ning celebrated the fact that he had been able to come to Undermoon Lake and become more powerful.

“This sword-art is quite marvelous, quite special…” As Ning watched, a look of veneration appeared in his eyes. “Lingering affection? Longing? The name of this sword-art should be the ‘Longing Sword’.”

The sword-arts were displayed on the sword three times, then vanished.

Whoosh.

Two swords appeared in the hands of the golden-robed youth. He lowered his head to look at the swords, his gaze very gentle. In a soft voice, he said, “It’s time to fight.”

“Right.” Ning nodded, a pair of swords appearing in his own hands as well.

The golden-robed youth smiled slightly, a beautiful, intoxicating smile. He then transformed into a gentle breeze, and his sword-light was like a gentle breeze as well. It seemed incomparably soft and harmless, but Ning could sense a tremendous threat emanating from it.

If he hadn’t had the chance to view the complete sword-art three times from start to finish, he probably would’ve been at a huge disadvantage. However, Ning now knew this sword-art, the ‘Longing Sword’, with incomparable clarity, giving him a much better chance of dealing with it. Twin swords in his hands, he sent his own sword-light howling forth at the speed of light, using the ghostly and unpredictable ‘Shadowless’ stance to launch a frenetic series of attacks!

Sometimes, his swords would be tremendously ferocious that they would actually move a bit slower. The fact that his swords alternated being fast and slow made them even more unpredictable.

Clearly, Ning’s sword-arts were far deadlier than they had been when he had first embarked upon the Path of Blades. And indeed, Ning had reaped much from his battles against the seven previous guardians.

“Blood Drop stance.”