Chapter 1180: Sundering Sword's Inheritance
Ding!
The Sundering Sword hummed softly, as if to confirm his words.
Zhuo Fan snickered, "Then, Sundering Sword, rise with me and break that lightning, tear a hole in the sky so that I can use apocalyptic thunderflame to make sure it never recovers, ha-ha-ha..."
Bam!
The Sundering Sword put a stop to his mad cackle, smacking his head with the wide part of the blade, making his nose swell.
"What was that for?!"
Rubbing his poor nose, Zhuo Fan snapped back, irate, "I wield you now, you're my sword. I'm your master. Is that how you treat me? See how I pulverize your sword spirit!"
The Sundering Sword paused then struck again, only this time it did on the demonic sword.
Ding!
[Wanna fight? Don't mess with me!]
The demonic sword was no pushover, reacting by floating in front of the Sundering Sword and taunting it.
The Sundering Sword just stood still.
Zhuo Fan said, "You're saying to put all my skill aside and use just you to face the thunderclouds?"
Ding!
The Sundering Sword shook again.
[Hey, don't just ignore me! I'm made of sterner stuff, four swords in fact. Yet a newbie like you tries to take my place? Why should master use just you? Trying to replace me, is that it? Ha, keep dreaming, hunk of rust, in a few days you'll be a part of me, hi-hi-hi...]
The demonic sword had enough of the Sundering Sword's arrogance and brandished its edge, trying to pick a fight.
Zhuo Fan nodded, "Alright, I'll give you this chance. Demonic sword, return."
The demonic sword stalled, looking stumped at his master's decision, even depressed.
[Master, you already got a new flame and forgot your trusted sidekick? I'm made of four blades here!]
Demonic sword didn't make a fuss, noticing Zhuo Fan's determination, turning into a black light and slipping in his body.
Zhuo Fan gripped the Sundering Sword and it took him towards the sky to fight the heavens.
Lightning struck constantly, yet all Zhuo Fan did was swing the Sundering Sword around, destroying the attacks as purple glows flared on every contact.
The utter destruction of the lightning had the thunderclouds growing weaker.
When Zhuo Fan used the Soaring Sword Art, he only scattered the lightning power in the clouds, only delaying its growth and not stopping the source.
Now though, he had the means to destroy them!
Boom!
Zhuo Fan charged into the thunderclouds with the Sundering Sword, with lightning coming from all around now.
"If I used Thunderflame Void Annihilation now, the clouds..."
Bam!
Zhuo Fan indulged in a flight of fancy, but the sudden knock to the head brought him back to reality. Zhuo Fan sighed and shook his head, "Fine, I get it, no other skills but you, happy? But how is a lone sword supposed to remove all the thunderclouds in a thousand mile area? Time waits for no one, and once red starts appearing..."
The Sundering Sword was silent, for a lack of a better word.
Then it started moving and took Zhuo Fan's hand with it. Its blade shone a deep purple glow.
Zhuo Fan shook all over, as a figure suddenly appeared in his mind as he wielded the Sundering Sword.
"Sundering, one day I will take you to the top, become the focus of everyone, ha-ha-ha..."
Baili Yutian cackled among the flaring lightning clouds as he hacked at the incoming attacks with pride and arrogance, "Only I am worthy of such a divine sword, not those common folk. But..."
Baili Yutian paused, showing fear, "There will always be someone better out there. If one day someone can take you from me, it proves I'm not worthy of you, and you should have a much stronger master. He will be just like me, taking you to the top and not disgrace your sundering name, of splitting the heavens. By then, I shall be dead, but you must pass on all my knowledge and insight in the way of the sword to him. If I can't take you to the top, then my path will!"
Hum~
The Sundering Sword shook to console him.
"Ha-ha-ha, I'm only assuming here. Who in the world could ever defeat me. Don't worry about it, ha-ha-ha..." Baili Yutian wielded the divine sword with burning battle spirit.
Zhuo Fan finally understood the Sundering Sword. It passed on Baili Yutian's legacy. There was none out there better than Baili Yutian when it came to understanding the Sundering Sword Art, not even the Sword Sovereign.
While he had made the five divine swords by combining their arts with the five sacred beasts' powers, he was not the least bit aware of what changes that brought. Baili Yutian, however, was a man immersed in the Sundering Sword Art all his life, having understood the core of the Sundering Sword Art.
Why else would the Sundering Sword's inheritance have Baili Yutian's image and not someone else's? There had to be countless people wielding it through eons, including the Sword Sovereign.
[But only one man truly understood it.]
Zhuo Fan's gaze steeled, slashing around based on Baili Yutian's example.
Wind picked up and purple lightning flared as the sword fell. The thunderclouds around shone and then faded away. From just the sword's intent, lightning exploded in all directions and the world crumbled.
Zhuo Fan forgot himself in this state, his form following Baili Yutian's actions to perfection as he unleashed devastating and brutal sword strikes.
By the time he finished the entire set of strikes, the sky was clear of thunderclouds and the sun shone brightly on the scorched earth for the first time ever.
Zhuo Fan felt a tear come loose at the display.
Not due to him, but induced by the Sundering Sword spirit, having their minds linked.
The sword spirit might not speak, but it could send Zhuo Fan its deep emotions.
Purple flickered from the Sundering Sword, blending with the world's spiritual energy. Zhuo Fan saw as the sword spirit scattered its own energy to return to the earth once it passed on the Sundering Sword Art.
[A true sacrifice for a true friend.]
With the death of the Invincible Sword, it wanted to follow him as well. But his wish to pass on his legacy kept it here. Now, it could pass on as well without remorse.
The Sundering Sword now became just an empty shell.
"Zhuo Fan, reach the top!"
As the last purple energy faded, Zhuo Fan saw the Invincible Sword shout in his mind and knew it to be the sword spirit blessing him instead of its former master.
Zhuo Fan smirked and nodded, "Like master, like sword. Like sword, like master. The Sundering Sword spirit was as carefree and heroic as the Invincible Sword."
Tracing the purple divine sword's blade, Zhuo Fan smiled and placed it in his ring, his eyes firm.
[I will reach the top, along with your sword art...]
Whoosh~
Murong Lie and the others popped up next to Zhuo Fan, "Sir Zhuo, are you alright?"
"Yes, what about you?" Zhuo Fan flicked his hand and the domain faded, revealing strong auras. Luo Yunhai's group had broken their restraints and entered Genesis Stage, while the three kids were now in Ethereal Stage.
Zhuo Fan nodded, turning to the Sword Kings with a glint in his eye.
Murong Lie's group had been kept for so long behind that now they were at peak Spirit King Stage. Even Li Jingtian and the elders reached mid Spirit King Stage.
They were all thrilled at the boundless Yuan Qi they felt.
"Steward Zhuo, your cultivation fell again, to the 5th layer of Bone Tempering Stage!" Li Jingtian gasped.
Zhuo Fan now focused on his own cultivation and cried out in astonishment, "Mid Spirit King?"
Having met with lightning tribulation, the peak Genesis Stage Zhuo Fan, due to Sundering Sword's inheritance, his heart grew as well as making the True Self Art bring his cultivation down to the Bone Tempering Stage, while his true cultivation lay at mid Spirit King Stage.
Though reaching Spirit King brought lightning tribulation, Zhuo Fan had been waving Sundering Sword around without restraint, thus he unknowingly cut his own tribulation down before he could feel it.
He felt down at the realization.
[I missed the chance to toughen my body.]
But since he got a taste of the others' tribulations, his regret faded.
[What's the point of going through all that again when I already got a Spirit King's body the first time around? Ha-ha!]
"Everyone!"
With all safe and sound and Zhuo Fan gaining the Sundering Sword's insight, a bargain to be honest, his eyes flashed, "With our Spirit Kings cultivation levels, we now can form a group. Sword Kings, having gotten a divine sword's insights, will be more than mere Spirit Kings. I dare say that we can now jump ahead and carve our own slice of the Sacred Domain!"