It was fortunate that the entire Sword Qi Great Wall had been plunged into the stagnation of the River of Time. Otherwise, that tall woman’s single sentence would have destabilized the sword hearts of many sword immortals.

Of course, those nearby, like the Hidden Official or Dong Sanggeng, remained unconstrained. However, they could no longer perceive the events unfolding around Chen Qingdu. Because the Chief Sword Immortal was acting in this way, anyone who dared to act rashly would be questioning Chen Qingdu, and Chen Qingdu had never been too polite. The number of sword immortals who had died under Chen Qingdu’s sword qi was not limited to just the Dong Guanpu of ten years ago.

“To see Chen Qingdu draw his sword is to become a sword immortal.”

This was not a joke.

Chen Qingdu showed no irritation, smiled, leaped onto the wall, sat cross-legged, and gazed at the vast lands to the south, asking, “How dare the Confucian Temple allow you to stand here? Those sages can’t possibly be unaware of the consequences. Could it be the Old Scholar who vouched for you? Ah, the Old Scholar just made a great contribution, only to waste it all for his closed-door disciple. He’s truly willing to sacrifice merit.”

On top of the wall, one stood, one sat, a clear distinction in status.

She frowned slightly and said slowly, “Chen Qingdu, after ten thousand years of cultivation, your audacity has grown quite a bit.”

Chen Qingdu laughed, “It’s been a long time since I’ve spoken with a senior. The opportunity is rare; a few scoldings are nothing.”

She only stood there for a moment, yet she grasped secrets that perhaps even the saints of the Three Teachings and countless sword immortals could not fathom. She shook her head. “Pitiful. Had you known this, why did you do what you did? Do you regret it?”

Chen Qingdu nodded. “Speaking only of Chen Qingdu, I have many regrets. Back then, those like Chen Qingdu already had a path to take, free from the constraints of heaven and earth, even surpassing most deities. But Chen Qingdu still drew his sword and ascended, fighting alongside so many like-minded people in this world, questioning the heavens. Those who died never regretted it, so whether or not one Chen Qingdu regrets it is unimportant.”

Chen Qingdu looked up. “Has Senior ever regretted it?”

The tall woman, her palm pressed against the hilt of her sword, remained silent for a moment, then answered indirectly, “You can’t possibly not see the acupoints where those three strands of sword qi reside?”

Chen Qingdu replied, “I’ve seen some clues, but I dare not believe it. At the same time, Chen Qingdu also worries that it’s a far-reaching scheme of the Confucian School.”

Chen Qingdu looked up at the sky and sighed. “Before that child, those who accompanied Senior were all so lofty, so unparalleled. One sword here, another sword there, casually creating mountains of divine corpses and shattering blessed lands. Then came an ordinary young man, with an Earth Immortal’s aptitude, yet his bridge to longevity was broken. Was he a third or fourth realm martial artist at the time? How could Senior expect Chen Qingdu to believe it? To this day, I remain baffled as to why you chose Chen Ping An. So I deliberately turned a blind eye, waiting for this day. I hope that when Chen Qingdu attains enlightenment in this life, he will see Senior, and at the moment of his death, he can take one last look.”

Chen Qingdu smiled, extended two fingers, and gently swept them forward horizontally. Suddenly, in the far distance, a river of sword qi lit up, but it was not a straight line, but rather crooked and twisted, like a long river seen from the heavens looking down on the world.

Chen Qingdu smiled. “The earliest sword techniques Chen Qingdu learned were like this. To be honest, today’s sword cultivators have muddled sword hearts and unclear dao hearts. They are truly inferior to the aptitude of our generation. With just a single glance, we understood the great path.”

This sword, falling on the savage lands near the Sword Qi Great Wall, was estimated to cause no small commotion.

For example, some guessed that Chen Qingdu was about to descend from the Sword Qi Great Wall for the first time in ten thousand years, questioning the entire savage world with his sword.

She asked, “Are you showing off these trivial skills to me?”

Chen Qingdu laughed, “How dare I?”

Then, this ancient elder, the Chief Sword Immortal in everyone’s eyes on the Sword Qi Great Wall, finally displayed some of the spirit that Chen Qingdu should have. “Besides, Senior, my sword techniques are truly not low now. Ten thousand years ago, if I were to be your enemy, I naturally wouldn’t have had a chance of victory. But if I had another chance to reverse the River of Time, taking my sword to the past battlefield…”

Without any visible movement, her long sword tilted, suspended in the air, the tip pointing at Chen Qingdu, who was sitting nearby.

Even though the sword tip was only three inches from his head, Chen Qingdu remained steadfast. At the tip of the sword, a speck of light the size of a mustard seed condensed.

She said, “On this Sword Qi Great Wall, no one can do anything to you, Chen Qingdu, except for me.”

The world’s sword techniques were first divided into four lineages: Chen Qingdu’s lineage on the Sword Qi Great Wall, the Celestial Master’s lineage on Dragon Tiger Mountain, the lineage of Taoist sword immortals in the Great Profound Capital Temple, and finally, a lineage in the Lotus Buddha Kingdom.

This was the extremely hidden ten-thousand-year inheritance of sword arts, no longer known to the world. Even many sword immortals in the Northern Majestic Continent did not know its origins, only knowing that those few worlds possessed four immortal swords.

And these four lineages of sword techniques each had their own focus, but if only considering the magnitude of destructive power, then Chen Qingdu’s lineage on the Sword Qi Great Wall undoubtedly reigned supreme.

Chen Qingdu was certainly not afraid of the tall woman beside him, who had not yet reached the pinnacle of sword dao.

It was respect.

But, speaking of which, while he might not be afraid, how could he not be concerned at all? Just as she said, no matter how high Chen Qingdu’s sword skills were, in her presence, they would never be the highest.

This sentence was actually far more shocking than when they reunited after ten thousand years and she told Chen Qingdu to get lost.

It should be known that unless a saint of the Three Teachings personally arrived at the Sword Qi Great Wall with a token, then Chen Qingdu, sitting guard on the Sword Qi Great Wall, was truly invincible in the world. Even if the Second Taoist Patriarch held an immortal sword, he would still have no chance of victory.

Why did Upside-Down Mountain exist? Why was there a Catch and Release Pavilion on Upside-Down Mountain? Why, even though the Second Taoist Patriarch was clearly already on Upside-Down Mountain early on, did he not take another step? Why did this Daoist, who most loved to compete with the heavens and earth, bring it to the Vast Expanse and return to the Azure Vault without drawing his sword? It should be known that this Daoist’s initial plan was to step on the largest mountain-shaped seal in the world and have an all-out battle with Chen Qingdu, who stood atop the Sword Qi Great Wall!

To prove that he was not only profound in his Dao techniques, hence half of the White Jade City came from his hand, but also to prove that he had pioneered a new path for the world’s sword techniques, creating a fifth lineage of sword dao!

Both of them were gazing into the distance. From beginning to end, she did not look directly at Chen Qingdu even once.
Upon the southern ramparts of the Sword Qi Great Wall, the strokes of the massive characters, each stroke a cavernous space, began to shed dust in droves. Some of the Earth Immortal Sword Cultivators cultivating there swayed, oblivious to the disturbance.

Chen Qingdu smiled faintly, “Senior, is this enough?”

She replied, “Do you even realize that your inaction back then significantly slowed my master’s cultivation? He should have broken through the eighteenth bottleneck of sword qi long ago.”

Chen Qingdu said, “Young people should take it slow, endure hardship. What’s wrong with that? Ascending too quickly, reaching heights too soon, and always having seniors by your side—it’s not necessarily a good thing for the world. And what you said to Wei Jin about wielding the sword was spot on. You should tell your little junior brother the same thing. If Chen Ping’an can’t become your master’s true master, I think his path of cultivation might as well be even slower, never drawing his sword. The later he reaches the peak, the better. If Chen Ping’an ever reaches a point where he draws his sword whenever he pleases, I’ll regret letting him go to Lotus Root Paradise to train and rebuild the Bridge of Longevity. If I remember correctly, that juncture point of the blessed land was where you once slew a True Spirit God, and the resulting sword qi cleaved out a shattered small world, wasn’t it?”

She fell silent.

At the tip of her sword, a speck of light, as small as a mustard seed, suddenly expanded to the size of a fist. Chen Qingdu’s sideburns began to flutter, and strands were severed, scattering in the wind. These strands effortlessly cleaved through the stagnant river of time.

“Chen Qingdu, I’m giving you a modicum of respect, you’d better accept it!”

Her expression was cold, her eyes gleaming with a brilliance surpassing the sun and moon. “Ten thousand years ago, my previous master pitied you, and you ants on the ground accepted it. Ten thousand years later, I’ve fallen too far, and your swordplay has improved somewhat, but that’s no reason for you to speak to me like this. Old Mister entrusted me here, filled with anxiety along the way, and chattering on and on, it wasn’t without reason.”

Chen Qingdu forced a smile, “Could it be that Old Mister mentioned the betrothal, and you’re taking it out on me? Old Mister is such a cunning fox, never willing to suffer the slightest loss!”

Chen Qingdu reached out and grasped the ball of light at the sword’s tip, saying, “No more than this. You may take these pure sword intents, Senior, as compensation for my delaying your sword sharpening. If there were any more, I wouldn’t mind, but I fear Chen Ping’an would be saddened if he found out later.”

She frowned, sheathing her sword. The light vanished from the tip, flowing through the blade. She resumed her stance, leaning on her sword.

Chen Qingdu turned and gazed into the distance, laughing, “Senior, what are your thoughts on the mortal realm now?”

She sneered, “Too small.”

Chen Qingdu nodded, “Indeed, the sun, moon, and stars once paled in comparison to your sword light. Or rather, it is the existence of beings like you that created the brilliant starry sky we have today.”

The stars in the sky, countless in number, are all the corpses of floating creatures.

Chen Qingdu stood up, his body stooped, seemingly burdened, never truly straightening his back in ten thousand years.

The sword cultivators of this world, apart from a handful of Great Sword Immortals, had long forgotten that the origin of all sword techniques lay with the heavens.

Only then did countless divine arts and spells appear, brought to the mortal realm by the longswords wielded by mortals, along with various deities, one by one, picked up by the miserable ants on the earth, and then they cultivated and ascended, becoming immortals.

From mere puppets for incense offerings, from livestock raised by gods, they transformed into rulers of the world. That was an extremely long and arduous age.

Chen Qingdu was one of the first to learn the sword in this world, the most senior founder of sword cultivation, and only then were they able to jointly create the heavens. The reason why the sword is the sword, and why sword cultivators’ destructive power is the greatest, surpassing heaven and earth, lies in this principle.

However, in the later stages of the earth-shattering battle, a rift arose within the human race, and sword cultivators became exiles, banished to the Sword Qi Great Wall. The demon race was driven to the barbarian lands, and the Central Continent established the Confucian Temple, erecting nine majestic fortresses, standing tall between heaven and earth. The little Daoist riding the green ox journeyed to the Azure Vault, laying the foundation for the White Jade City. The Buddha, standing on a lotus, spread his light across the land.

What was the annihilation of the Jiaolong race eight thousand years ago compared to this?

Chen Qingdu softly asked, “Why did Senior choose that child?”

She replied, “Qi Jingchun said that some people’s ‘one in a million’ is actually ‘ten thousand’, so he suggested I give it a try.”

Chen Qingdu asked, “Have you been disappointed again?”

She casually raised her sword and thrust it out.

The sword pierced through Chen Qingdu’s head, and the golden light flowing from the blade resembled a miniature Milky Way suspended in the mortal world.

Chen Qingdu remained motionless, sighing, “Senior’s temper is still not good.”

She said, “It’s much better now.”

Chen Qingdu took a few steps sideways, dodging the sword, and chuckled, “Then why did Senior want to split Upside Down Mountain in half?”

If it hadn’t been for the Sage personally intervening and making a rare appearance outside the Confucian Temple, Upside Down Mountain would probably have collapsed by now.

She said, “My master was unconscious at the time, I could act on my own.”

Chen Qingdu said helplessly, “I never imagined that Senior’s master would be Chen Ping’an. But upon further reflection, it seems that anyone else would be wrong, completely wrong. With anyone else, it would be hard to say who the real master would be.”

Chen Qingdu suddenly laughed, “What kind of divine move was Qi Jingchun’s final chess piece?”

She casually grabbed, pulling out the golden light from the sword, reassembling it into a brilliant ball of light, which she crushed in her hand, sneering, “Bestowing sword intent? You, Chen Qingdu?”

Chen Qingdu nodded with a smile, remaining silent.

She pinched her fingers together, smiling slightly, “I’ll take it myself.”

Grains of golden light began to appear out of thin air throughout the Sword Qi Great Wall.

Chen Qingdu’s expression changed slightly, and he sighed. He could stop it, but the price would be too great. Besides, he wasn’t sure of her current temper, so he had to use his trump card.

Thus, the young man in green, who had dispersed his drunken stupor on the way and was about to reach the Ning Manor, stumbled onto the city wall, appearing beside the tall woman.

Chen Ping’an looked confused and pleasantly surprised, softly calling out, “Immortal Sister?”
The tall woman waved her sleeve, dispersing the golden light. The long sword in her hand vanished. She turned around, a smile gracing her features, and then embraced Chen Ping’an.

Chen Ping’an was caught off guard, arms outstretched, turning his head to look at Chen Qingdu with an innocent expression. However, she pressed his head, drawing him close to her.

Chen Qingdu closed his eyes, then opened them again.

It really wasn’t his imagination.

This great Sword Immortal rubbed his temples, wondering if the previous sword strike had caused him pain.

Chen Ping’an’s face flushed red, but thankfully, she had already released him. She slightly bent down, gazing intently at him, her eyes crinkling with a gentle smile as she softly said, “Master has grown taller again.”

Seeing her about to reach out again, Chen Ping’an quickly extended his own hands, gently pressing down her arms. With a wry smile, he explained, “If Ning Yao sees this, I’m as good as dead.”

She looked crestfallen, clutching her chest. “Aren’t you afraid I’ll die of heartbreak first?”

Chen Ping’an’s eyes shone with a unique brilliance. A radiant smile bloomed on his face as he turned to look at the heavens. Raising his arm high, he pointed to the three bright moons, asking, “Divine Sister, I heard that this world could lose two moons without consequence. The seasons would still turn, and all things would change as usual. Is it possible that one day we could cut down one of those moons and take it home? Perhaps we could secretly place it in our own Lotus Root blessed land.”

She looked up, smiling gently. “Not now, but it won’t be difficult in the future.”

Standing beside them, Chen Qingdu felt incredibly awkward.

She glanced sideways at Chen Qingdu.

Chen Qingdu then left.

But before departing, Chen Qingdu said, seemingly casually, “Don’t worry, I won’t tell that girl Ning.”

Chen Ping’an turned around, his eyes clear, and smiled. “I’ll tell her myself.”

She stood beside Chen Ping’an, still smiling.

However, within Chen Qingdu’s mind, thunder roared, uttering only three words: “Stay far away.”

Chen Qingdu walked away slowly, his hands clasped behind his back.

Chen Ping’an walked alongside the Sword Spirit, hands tucked into his sleeves.

Chen Ping’an was intimately familiar with the River of Time. Walking within it felt not like torture, but like a fish in water. The slight soul tremors were nothing. If he weren’t concerned with appearances, and if the Sword Spirit weren’t by his side, Chen Ping’an would have been running. After all, the benefits of being in the stagnant River of Time were almost impossible to find elsewhere.

Chen Ping’an turned to ask with a smile, “What brings you here? Did my teacher make a trip to Dragon Spring County?”

She nodded.

The Old Master was worried about his closed-door disciple not being safe on the Great Wall of Sword Qi. Of course, the Old Master had also frankly told her that if Chen Qingdu didn’t give him, the Old Master, any face, so be it. But how could he not even respect Chen Ping’an’s teacher? Wasn’t that disrespecting his disciple, her master? Who gave Chen Qingdu the gall?

Chen Ping’an said, “I thought I wouldn’t see you for decades.”

She smiled. “The matter of sharpening the sword at the Wind and Snow Temple’s Dragon Slaying Cliff is done. Master can rest assured, I spoke reasonably. The Wind and Snow Temple was initially terrified when they noticed something amiss. None of the stationed sword cultivators dared to act rashly. Then a baby-faced kid secretly made a trip to Dragon Spine Mountain, performed all the necessary courtesies, and I met with him, imparting a sword art to the Wind and Snow Temple as an exchange. They were quite happy since it would help him break through his realm. Next was Ruan Qiong’s area. Ruan Qiong agreed, which is why the Great Li Dynasty is specially selecting a new site for the Dragon Spring Sword Sect. Ruan Qiong is clever, he didn’t ask for anything. I was pleased and taught him a sword-forging technique; otherwise, with his paltry cultivation, his ambitions would be nothing more than wishful thinking. As for the Dragon Slaying Cliff at True Martial Mountain, forget about it. It involves too much and is likely to bring trouble. It’s no issue for me, but Master will have a headache.”

There were things she could do, but she also worried, like Chen Qingdu, about who the real master was. Doing them would just cause Chen Ping’an trouble.

Chen Qingdu’s reasoning wasn’t wrong, but she simply felt that a mere Chen Qingdu wasn’t qualified to tell her what to do.

Chen Ping’an tucked his hands into his sleeves, saying calmly, “One day, in front of me, trouble will be just trouble.”

She was overjoyed.

With many twists and turns, she thought she would be separated by tens of thousands of miles. If that were the case, it wasn’t that she would be disappointed, but she would be a little sad. Who knew that, in the end, it would be a swordsman she wished to hand her sword to.

She asked with a smile, “If Master can keep ascending, what kind of person do you want to become?”

“To speak with reason and act with principle.”

Chen Ping’an answered without hesitation, “Then, with one sword thrust beyond the heavens and one punch downward, all martial artists under the heavens will feel the heavens above.”