First Immortal of the Sword

“Go back. Remember, you are not to look back, nor are you to tell anyone you were here.”

The black bat felt a massive weight lift from its shoulders. It nodded. “This disciple understands!”

With that, it beat its wings and soared into the distance.

But before it got far, its body exploded with a bang.

“Founder, you….!” The black bat cried out in astonishment, but its voice quickly came to an abrupt halt as its fragmented corpse scattered into ash.

“Child, the gods are watching the Immortal Realm, and the shadow of divine misfortune is omnipresent. You ought to have been willing to sacrifice your life the moment you agreed to come here to deliver a message.”

The large white hands disappeared.

Deep within the plains covered by eternal, unmelting ice, beneath countless layers of hidden realms, there lay an underground palace. Everything was shrouded in darkness, with only a single bronze lamp for light.

A youthful, beautifully handsome man opened his hand, and a talisman floated into the air.

This was the talisman the black bat had just delivered. It contained a detailed report on the battle that followed the Divine Hunt.

After reading the full report, the man sank deep into thought. Quite some time passed before his eyes shone with strange light. “Wang Ye, was that really you?”

“Hah!” The man burst into cold laughter. “Back then, you proclaimed that your sword would dominate any era, past or present. You proclaimed yourself ruler of the Immortal Realm and lamented how difficult it was to find worthy opponents. If Shen Mu really is your reincarnation, he’s… far too weak!

“Admittedly, we old-timers fear divine misfortune and have been forced into hiding, but the will of the gods has already permeated the Immortal Realm, and… all of them are looking for you!”

Here, the man sank into contemplation once more. “The gods, divine misfortune, the path to divinity… reincarnation… Wang Ye… Ha, we’re in for a show! Although the curtains have yet to open, I’m eagerly looking forward to it!

“To me, and to the other old-timers who’ve gone into hiding, this is an unprecedented spectacle. Furthermore, our opportunity to ascend to godhood is sure to arrive shortly!

“But all of that’s on the assumption that he really is Wang Ye, and… that he can live until that day arrives…”

The man stroked his jaw as he finally reached a decision. “Very well. I, Jiang Tai’e, will just have to test you. Let’s see if you’re really Wang Ye or not!”

He glanced at the side of the hall. There, beneath the dim, mottled lamplight, he saw a dense collection of human skins hanging from the ceiling!

They included a mix of men and women, and all of them were perfectly intact.

It almost seemed that they were still alive!

Jiang Tai’e beckoned, and one of the skins landed in his hand. It belonged to a white-haired elder covered in dense wrinkles. He had an attention-grabbing saber scar between his eyes.

Next, Jiang Tai’e took out a lamb suet jade bottle and gently tapped it.

Kcch!

A soul body flew out of the bottle. It looked just like the skinned old man!

Jiang Tai’e said with a faint smile, "Xing Yuanzi, I have good news for you. It seems that your master, Wang Ye… has returned from the cycle of reincarnation…”

The soul body’s eyes were vacant. He didn’t react in the slightest.

Jiang Tai’e continued as if speaking to himself, “I’m sending you to see him now. Who knows how upset he’ll be when he sees you like this?”

As he spoke, his hands formed seals. The soul instantly shot into its skin.

An unbelievable scene followed. The skin silently bulged as flesh, tendons, and bones grew within it. Soon, it transformed fully into a gaunt, white-haired old man.

However, his eyes were vacant.

Jiang Tai’e drew his hand through the air, creating a floating portal.

He stared intently at the white-haired old man, his gaze heavy and cold. “In the outside world, find Sect Leader Xuan Zhong of the Church of Supreme Oneness. He’ll tell you how to find the young man they call Shen Mu.”

“If you die, that proves he isn’t Wang Ye, but if you live…” Here, the man laughed. “Well, you won’t be long for this world either way, but I’ll at least know that he really is Wang Ye. Now go!”

Xing Yuanzi, the hollow-eyed elder, nodded, then woodenly walked through the portal. Space rippled around him, and he disappeared completely.

“Testing him like this might alert him, but with ‘Wang Ye’s’ current strength, what can he possibly do to me?” The man sighed. “It’s a pity. If I weren’t hiding from divine misfortune, I’d be the first in line to twist his head off its shoulders!”

His voice was tinged with nigh imperceptible bitterness.

Divine misfortune was like a sword hovering over his head. As powerful as it was, he had no choice but to hide himself away. He dared not take so much as half a step out of this place!

……

The south of the Immortal Realm, a place with sparse spiritual energy.

These lands were home to a mundane nation known as the Donglai Kingdom. Most of the citizens were ordinary mortals. There were a few cultivators among them, but most of them were second-rate small fries.

An old beggar leaned in the corner between two walls in one of the Donglai Kingdom’s cities. His eyes were closed as he basked languidly in the sun.

Suddenly, the old beggar seemed to sense something. He picked up the broken bowl in front of him and noticed a coin that hadn’t been there before.

The old beggar frowned, then grumbled, “The skies haven’t fallen, have they? Using the Escaping Seclusion Talisman I left you just to send a message is a ridiculous waste!”

As he spoke, he crushed the copper coin.

Bang!

Countless characters, each the size of a grain of rice, floated into the air, transformed into wisps of light, and surged into the old beggar’s sea of consciousness.

Moments later, the beggar’s back straightened, and the depths of his turbid gaze surged with imposing radiance.

“Wang Ye, you’ve… come back?

“No wonder the gods have set their sights on the Immortal Realm. The lofty, powerful gods do not permit the power of reincarnation…” The beggar’s eyes flashed with cold light.

He silently put his hands over his chest.

A long, long time ago, a sword had run him through, leaving an almost incurable injury. It ached even now, countless years later!

And Wang Ye was the one responsible for this injury!

“Not even the Battle of Eternal Night could kill you, but this time, we aren’t the only ones who won’t permit you to exist. Even the gods cannot tolerate your existence!”

The beggar’s chest heaved as his heart filled with murderousness, but in the end, he gradually cooled his head.

“There’s no rush. I’ll let others attack first. I refuse to believe that I’m the only one who’s realized that you’ve returned…”

The beggar slowly leaned back into his corner. “I suspect the god’s dogs have already caught your scent. Dark currents are surging beneath the surface, and everything is still shrouded in fog. I’ll just sit back and wait. Let’s see how long this reincarnation of yours lasts!”

The old beggar closed his eyes, but inwardly, he struggled to remain calm.

Wang Ye!!

A long time ago, this name had haunted even his dreams. He couldn’t even eat or sleep in peace.

Now it seemed that the person that name represented had returned. The beggar felt as if he’d returned to the distant past, and numerous unbearable memories rose to the forefront of his mind.

In the remote, mundane nation of the Donglai Kingdom, no one knew this universally disdained old beggar was actually a top expert of the Immortal Dao, an unrivaled powerhouse from the days prior to the Age of Fallen Immortals, and the founder of one of the Immortal Realm’s three great Demonist sects, the Church of Divine Flame.

They certainly had no idea that he was the Leveling Heavens Immortal Sovereign, Nan Pingtian. He was one of the thirty-three Great Realm experts who’d joined forces with Blood Firmament, Chu Shentong, and Jiang Tai’e to ambush Wang Ye, resulting in the Battle of Eternal Night!

……

One after another, the secluded Great Realm experts hidden throughout the Immortal Realm heard the news.

Some people guessed that Shen Mu was Wang Ye’s reincarnation.

Others were suspicious of this hypothesis.

Some started arranging their pawns, just like Jiang Tai’e.

Others preferred the Leveling Heavens Immortal Sovereign’s approach. They let the Immortal Realm’s dark undercurrents flow around them without getting involved.

In summary, this Divine Hunt had a far, far greater impact than anyone had anticipated!

And the resulting waves were already targeting Su Yi.

……

Whoosh!

A treasure ship shot through the sky, soaring into the distance.

Su Yi’s wicker chair was placed near the railing. He was sprawled out comfortably as he admired the passing scenery.

The light of dusk blazed like fire or the blush of an intoxicated beauty. It was an indescribably glorious sight.

His harvest during the Divine Hunt was absolutely enormous.

First, he acquired close to three hundred demonic cores. Around thirty of them were extraordinarily rare and precious treasures.

Second, he acquired a sizable collection of immortal herbs and divine materials rare in the outside world, as well as all manner of immortal treasures. The treasures were mostly spoils of war.

Third, he acquired a six-inch sword coffin and the Combat Soul Puppet Lei Ze, both of which were connected to his fifth lifetime.

Fourth, he broke into the Void Realm atop the Dao Contemplation Platform and grasped the fundamental truths of all Daos returning to a common source. Going forward, he’d be able to fuse all Daos into his Dao of the Sword. His sword would be able to manifest all Daos and break everything in its path!

Fortunately, acquiring all these cores and rare immortal herbs means that I won’t lack for cultivation resources any time soon, thought Su Yi.

After stepping into the Void Realm, he sensed that Immortal Lord-level cultivation resources would no longer suffice to fuel his cultivation!

Only particularly rare and precious Saint Realm medicines and Immortal King-level resources would do!

As for the treasures and divine materials? Su Yi tossed them into the Divine Replenishment Furnace to temper the Sword of the Human Realm.

Su Yi estimated that the sword was currently comparable to the greatest of Saint Realm weapons. If he strengthened it even just a little further, it would break through. Then, it’d be able to contend with the weapons of Immortal Kings!

I still can’t open that sword coffin. Perhaps then I’d know who I was in my fifth lifetime… Su Yi found this an awful pity.

The six-inch sword coffin was highly mysterious, and a strange restriction sealed it completely. Su Yi guessed that he wouldn’t be able to open it until he awakened the power of his fifth incarnation’s Dao Imprint.

Going forward, I’ll have to keep an eye out for medicines and treasures capable of repairing the soul, decided Su Yi.

That way, he could restore Lei Ze’s soul as quickly as possible. That wouldn’t just give him a powerful fighter; Lei Ze would then be able to tell him numerous secrets of the Primeval Era.

He’d also be able to find out whether the “master” Lei Ze spoke of was really his fifth incarnation, and how and why Lei Ze met with divine tribulation.