Chapter 244: One Sword

Blackstone City.

At the summit of the towering mountain, where the third-rank spirit meridians reached their zenith, the Blackstone Ancestor sat meditating in his cultivation chamber. Dark gray mist swirled around him, its undulating patterns mirroring the shifting essence of the ancient cultivator.

After over a hundred trials, the Blackstone Ancestor had corrected several potential flaws in the technique. Now, with final confirmation of its safety, he began cultivating the ‘Evasion Secret Technique’.

As his practice deepened, the Blackstone Ancestor sensed a mysterious force coalescing around him - one that bore striking resemblance to the Demonic Heart Tribulation yet carried subtle differences.

“Finally, it’s perfected.”

The Blackstone Ancestor opened his eyes, a flicker of emotion crossing his gaze.

Were it not for his waning lifespan, he would have sought more test subjects. Alas, the Foundation Establishment cultivators proved no fools. After enduring several of his schemes, the survivors had all fled to the territories of the Qiong Hua Sect and demonic clans, leaving him without targets. Matters had worsened recently with a mass infiltration of Qiong Hua Sect cultivators into the Southwest Territory. Blackstone City’s control over the region was crumbling - all first-rank spirit meridians along the border had slipped beyond their grasp, and several second-rank meridians had already fallen into enemy hands.

Many second-rank great demons had infiltrated the demonic cultivation realm, turning the entire area into a chaotic mess. Even the Blackstone Ancestor’s own cultivation resources were being disrupted.

However, to the Blackstone Ancestor, these were mere trifling issues. Once he endured this crisis, he could easily suppress these shadowy creatures. But if he failed…

If I die, who cares about the raging floodwaters!

“Just a little longer,” the Blackstone Ancestor murmured. “I need to perfect this secret art.”

As he circulated his energy, his aura gradually stabilized, and Blackstone Mountain returned to its usual tranquility.

Blackstone City remained calm, but dark currents churned beyond its borders.

The Qiong Hua Sect had formally breached the entrance to the Far West Territory. The Black Carapace Daoist, gravely wounded by the Qiong Hua Sect’s peak lord, had fled alone to Blackstone City, while all other defending cultivators perished. For the first time, a Core Formation Ancestor from Qiong Hua Sect appeared in the Southwest Territory’s domain. To the north, the demonic Great Peng crossed the boundary mountains, seizing the Five Eyes Temple Master’s second-rank spirit meridian and five adjacent first-rank meridians. The demon race had officially begun their southern advance.

Both the southwest and northern fronts had fallen.

The first round of probing attacks concluded. As expected, the Blackstone Ancestor remained completely motionless. With this understanding, both sides grew increasingly bold, abandoning all pretenses of restraint.

Occasionally, they encountered scattered resistance, but such sporadic opposition proved futile against the two major forces.

Time flowed like water. Three years slipped by in the blink of an eye.

During these three years, Chen Luo successfully assimilated the ‘Demonic Heart Power’ he had accumulated in the Blood Pool’s secret chamber. With the aid of the Demonic Heart Art, he achieved in three years what would have taken Mei Xuanxing ten years to accomplish.

Having fully absorbed this power, Chen Luo’s cultivation reached the pinnacle of the late Foundation Establishment stage. Just one step remained to attain the great cultivator realm of Foundation Establishment Perfection.

Ninety-nine spiritual energy dragons!

As his cultivation advanced, Chen Luo gradually understood the truth behind the saying “Immortal cultivation knows no seasons.” The higher one’s cultivation, the longer it took to progress. Thirty years had already passed since he began his journey, and twenty-five years since he left the God Lake Immortal Sect.

These three years of seclusion brought Chen Luo a small yet significant discovery.

He discovered that when the Demon-Plant Art was integrated into the Demonic Heart Art, the cultivation technique gained a new ability: sowing Demonseeds.

This ‘Demonseed’ differed from the Demonseed Sect Leader’s original creation. It was a sinister method to lure people into demonic corruption. Once a person harbored demonic thoughts, the Demon-Plant Art could manipulate their mind, amplifying their desires and transforming them into a ‘Demonseed’. The stronger the Demonseed, the greater its influence. When the Demonseed ‘matured’, it could be harvested.

This familiar ability reminded Chen Luo of Guoshan County.

Even during his Qi Refining realm days, he had heard of the ‘Six Desires Heavenly Demon Art’. Demonic cultivators had unearthed ancient demonic techniques from ancient ruins, using divine abilities to bewitch an entire city.

Boom!

A violent explosion echoed from outside, activating Gu Demon Mountain’s massive array. Countless interconnected formations formed a spherical barrier of light, enveloping the mountain.

“I’ve long heard Gu Demon Mountain is a Pill Formation Master’s domain,” came a brazen voice from beyond the barrier. “I never imagined their arrays could actually block my hammer.”

“Shizun!”

“Mountain Lord.”

Several figures appeared outside Chen Luo’s secluded chamber. He pushed open the door to find a five-meter-tall White Elephant Demon standing beyond the mountain’s edge, wielding twin copper hammers.

The great demon’s aura was like a bottomless abyss, its presence withering all vegetation within reach. The ground beneath its feet had turned to parched yellow earth - the result of its cultivation technique that devoured all living things around it.

“Stay put on the mountain. Don’t wander off,” Chen Luo instructed Mu Xiaoyu, his gaze fixed beyond the peak.

In the past three years, several second-rank spirit meridians had changed hands. The Five Eyes Temple and Demon Seed Valley had lost their full-circle realm cultivators, while Poison Dragon Spring and Bamboo Forest had both suffered attacks. Gu Demon Mountain’s remote location had kept it safe until now, but it seemed Chen Luo’s sanctuary had finally attracted attention.

This White Elephant Demon was the first to test their defenses.

“This place belongs to Lord Elephant now. Will you scuttle away on your own, or wait for me to smash your rotten tortoise shell and hammer you to death?”

Sensing Chen Luo’s scrutiny, the White Elephant Demon snarled with malice. Green energy swirled around its massive frame before coalescing at the hammer’s tip.

Boom!

Another hammer strike. The terrifying force materialized like a physical entity, shaking the air and unleashing a powerful wind. The formation near the mountain’s edge trembled violently. If Chen Luo hadn’t reinforced it multiple times, these two strikes would have already shattered the edge formation.

One force breaks ten thousand methods. This saying proved most fitting for such a brute.

They didn’t understand formations, but their strength made up for it.

Seeing Chen Luo’s silence, the White Elephant Demon grew bored. He finally understood why no one had challenged this place for three years - artificers were simply too tedious. Just breaking through a formation required immense effort. By the time you breached it, your opponents’ power remained at its peak. Fights between the weak and strong? Any sane person would avoid such folly.

Yet the White Elephant Demon belonged to that rare breed of the insane.

He raised his copper hammer again, its surface glinting with light.

The demon’s power surged to its peak. On the mountain, Chen Luo extended his hand, and a pure-white sword flew into his grasp. A first-rank Magic Artifact - these swords littered the mountain. As a second-rank Artificer, Chen Luo often crafted them in his spare time. Half-finished pieces went to Ding Zhao and others, while the rest adorned the mountain as ornaments.

One sword strike will suffice.

Within the external brain, the consciousness of sword cultivator Wang Mingyi materialized.

This monster cultivator possessed unusually tough skin and flesh, even more resilient than many physical cultivators. Engaging in direct combat would not only exhaust vast amounts of spiritual energy but also risk failure. Yet ignoring him was equally problematic; with his limited intellect, he might persist in his destructive rampage indefinitely. Moreover, the array formations required continuous energy expenditure. Beyond the strain on the array flags, Chen Luo’s second-rank formation was directly tethered to Gu Demon Mountain, drawing from its own second-rank spiritual energy reserves.

He couldn’t permit this destructive hammering to continue unchecked.

The unseen instigator behind Wang Mingyi’s actions had likely reached the same conclusion, explaining their lack of urgency.

Through his perception, Chen Luo detected three powerful auras lurking in the shadows, observing the situation from concealed positions.

Greenwood Sword Intent.

Chen Luo’s robes billowed as spiritual energy coalesced around him, forming sword-like auras. Every Magic Sword on the mountain trembled violently, including those wielded by Mu Xiaoyu and the other disciples.

A sword cultivator?

While the other disciples remained uncertain, Ding Zhao recognized the signature immediately.

It was precisely because he recognized what was happening that he was so shocked.

Isn’t the mountain lord a cultivation master?

At the God Lake Immortal Sect, Chen Luo had entered Wu Dao Peak alongside him, specializing in divine soul cultivation. How could he suddenly become a sword cultivator? Judging by his fluid movements, this transformation didn’t seem like an act.

Chen Luo gripped his precious sword, his aura growing increasingly fierce. From his perspective, each time the White Elephant Demon raised its hammer, its demonic energy would circulate through its body. The moment the copper hammer struck out, the demon’s aura would momentarily weaken - a fleeting opening lasting barely a breath.

A single breath’s opening. Not even a true opening.

Few could breach the White Elephant Demon’s defenses.

Now was the moment.

As the White Elephant Demon raised its hammer for a fourth strike, Chen Luo’s sword flashed violently.

The precious sword shattered, disintegrating into fragments.

A dazzling sword qi erupted from the mountain peak, slicing through the air.

In the blink of an eye, it reached the White Elephant Demon.

Swift! Unbelievably swift.

One moment Chen Luo had drawn his sword, the next the sword qi was upon the demon.

“Sword cultivator?!”

The White Elephant Demon, enraged, roared and instinctively tried to summon his demonic energy for defense. But he had just finished swinging his hammer, leaving him in a state where his old strength had been exhausted and new strength had yet to form.

A sharp whoosh pierced the air.

The sword qi sliced through his body as easily as cutting tofu, continuing its trajectory until it struck a distant mountain peak. The impact sent dust flying across the sky as the triangular mountain was severed in half, the top sliding sideways.

The White Elephant Demon stood frozen in place, blood gushing from his chest. His body swayed once before collapsing to either side. The crimson liquid seeped into the earth, its metallic stench mingling with the air.

The sword qi had split the demon in two, ending his life in an instant.

At the mountain’s summit, Chen Luo glanced at the three figures lurking in the shadows before returning to his cultivation chamber.

Below, the group stared in shock at the scene.

This was a late Foundation Establishment White Elephant Demon!

A great demon renowned for physical cultivation, slain by a Pill Formation Master with a single sword strike. But aren’t Pill Formation Masters supposed to rely on arrays for their power? Why does his sword technique seem so terrifying?

“Go!”

The three shadowy figures vanished without a backward glance at the fallen White Elephant Demon.

The test was over.