Chapter 1189: A Flurry of Actions Fierce as a Tiger

Chapter 1189: A Frenzied Display Like a Tiger

The Fifth Star Ring divided into east, west, north, and south.

Yet unlike the northern reaches of Wanggu Continent, this northern starfield held no snow.

Scorching heat dominated instead.

Especially when great events stirred the whispers of northern cultivators—both the air and the heavens seemed to grow hotter still.

As now, in a small town near the Sword Immortal Sect within the northern starfield, a teahouse buzzed with chatter.

"These past days, this place must be among the liveliest spots."

"From great sects to noble families and tribes, all have sent their heirs here."

"Those two stellar disciples of the Sword Immortal Sect, masters of the blade—their Sword Unsheathing Ceremony will shake the entire north."

"They are the brightest prodigies of our northern realms, the idols revered by this generation of cultivators!"

"Naturally, their ceremony draws observers from every quarter."

"Clearly, the Land of Fallen Immortals expedition stirred these northern prodigies deeply. Their gains were astonishing."

"It’s said they forged immortal essence into their sword spirits there, as if sharpening a blade anew!"

Within the teahouse, talk of Qianjun and Biyi swirled ceaselessly.

Listening, Xu Qing sat by the window, lifting his cup to the spirit-infused tea’s fragrance, his expression calm.

Northern cultivators disdained wine, favoring this spirit-tea instead. Thus, teahouses thrived in every city.

"Those two swords... intriguing."

Xu Qing sipped the tea, tasting its peculiar bitterness and astringency, until the sharpness melted on his tongue into sweetness.

This was Xu Qing’s third day in the northern starfield.

Unfamiliar with the north, he had instinctively concealed the aura of his quasi-Immortal Sovereign token en route, hiding his stellar radiance from the northern star charts.

Upon arrival, he learned of the Sword Unsheathing Ceremony for Qianjun and Biyi’s blades.

The ceremony would commence in three days.

Spanning two full months...

Its end would coincide with the conclusion of the third phase.

"That’s... fear?"

Xu Qing pondered. Though his deeds in the south had not yet spread widely, he believed those two swords would have taken note.

"So what gives them confidence these two months of ceremony will shield them?"

"Not their sect—the Immortal Capital Trial rules forbid it. Thus, this ceremony likely hides some arrangement."

"Waiting for me to arrive?"

Xu Qing considered, then drained his cup of spirit-tea.

Three days later.

Around the asteroid housing the Sword Immortal Sect, cultivators gathered thick as stars. Forces from across the north converged, filling the air with fevered anticipation. All awaited the ceremony.

Inside the Sword Immortal Sect upon the asteroid, the scene mirrored the frenzy.

Whether native disciples or honored outsiders, all ringed the central plaza, chatting amiably as they waited.

Then, as the auspicious hour struck, the heavens roared.

Two earth-shattering rainbows surged from the plaza, visible for leagues, vast and imposing.

Upon striking the auroral sky, crimson radiance blazed, spilling like the sea in all directions.

Forming two colossal vortices.

As they churned with thunderous force, even the asteroid trembled, emitting azure light.

This blue glow ascended, weaving with the red.

Thus, crimson and azure blazed over the Sword Immortal Sect, painting the horizon.

Outer cultivators gazed, hearts stirred. Inner disciples smiled, eyes bright with expectation.

Yet beneath this multitude’s gaze, amidst the soaring sword qi, Qianjun and Biyi stood on the plaza, hearts churning.

Their whispered words never ceased.

"He hasn’t come?"

"I thought he’d arrive before the ceremony. But he’s absent!"

"Could he mean to appear during the rites?"

"Never mind. We’re prepared. If he fears us and stays away, so be it. But if he shows..."

"Today becomes our moment to wash away past shame!"

"But... what if we lose?"

"If we lose, we surrender! The shame isn’t ours—it’s Master’s! He couldn’t protect two disciples mid-epiphany. What a disgrace for an Immortal Lord!"

"Brother, you’re right!"

Qianjun and Biyi exchanged glances, seeing courage in each other’s eyes. They drew deep breaths, stepped forward, and unleashed their sword qi.

As it merged with the crimson-azure light, immortal essence flared from them.

In the next instant, two hazy swords materialized above their heads.

Ancient, steeped in the weight of ages, they drew countless gazes and stirred many souls.

Any cultivator from another star would recognize them instantly: the immortal swords forged within the sword furnace of the Fourth Layer World.

Now, the azure glow from the spirit-infusion and the celestial aurora became luminous sand, swirling around the hazy swords, polishing their edges.

Like craftsmen at work, they deepened the swords’ qi, sharpened their lethal brilliance.

The ceremony demanded this polishing last two months.

Throughout, the swords would grow ever brighter, constantly radiating sword essence for observers to absorb.

As for Qianjun and Biyi, they sat cross-legged, eyes closed, utterly immersed.

Praise echoed from every side. Admiring eyes multiplied.

Within the Sword Pavilion of the Sword Immortal Sect, mocking voices drifted.

"Brother Lan, your two disciples are indeed extraordinary."

The speaker, a middle-aged man in crimson robes, swept his gaze over the plaza below and smiled.

Beside him stood Lan Fu, the Immortal Lord.

Yet Lan Fu shook his head helplessly.

"Extraordinary crap. They’re probably trembling with fear right now! Might even blame me—thinking any mishap stems not from their own idiocy, but my failure as a master."

The crimson-robed man chuckled, his eyes settling on a figure in the crowd below—seeming both present and absent.

Absent, for the cultivators around him noticed nothing.

Present, for those who could see recognized his uncanny, singular state.

"What they fear is that little fellow. No wonder the Immortal Sovereign favors him. His aura... reminds me of the Aurora Immortal Lord in his prime."

The crimson-robed man sighed. "Brother Lan, you were once the first true disciple taken outside the Aurora Immortal Palace by its sovereign..."

Lan Fu sighed.

"Only a nominal disciple. My so-called master rarely appeared, never took me to the palace. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here."

"Still, the karmic thread remains," the crimson-robed man murmured.

Lan Fu sighed again.

"Do you know what I hate most about you?"

"I know."

"What I hate most is how you always say what I’m about to say!"

"I understand. Ah, that little one... he's watching us." The middle-aged man in red robes smiled and pointed downward.

In the Sword Immortal Sect's plaza, on one side of the crowd, Xu Qing lifted his head. He gazed toward the sect's highest pavilion in the distance.

Vaguely, he sensed a sharp, piercing intent there. Though unclear, a suspicion had already formed in his heart.

Xu Qing pondered for a moment, then clasped his fists in a bow toward that direction. Afterward, he took one step forward.

He crossed the crowd, crossed the void, walked into the plaza, walked to the edge of those two sword auras, walked to... the two immortal swords being honed.

He raised his hand and swept it gently.

Beneath that sweep, the two swords being honed suddenly shuddered.

The next instant... amid the stunned disbelief of the surrounding crowd, they emitted a joyful tremor, as if leaping with delight, and broke free directly from their honing state.

They shot straight toward Xu Qing.

At the same moment, Qianjun Biyi, seated cross-legged below, abruptly opened his eyes. Within their hearts, an instinctive leap of joy also surged—but the next moment, they forcibly suppressed it.

"He's here!" "Those are our swords!" "Fight him to the death!"

Qianjun Biyi’s breathing turned instantly ragged. Without hesitation, uncaring that all eyes were upon them, each formed hand seals and suddenly slammed their palms toward the plaza floor.

As the four palms struck, the plaza roared. Hundreds of ringed light circles surged upward instantly, each radiating terrifying power as they rose.

Layer upon layer, they surged toward Xu Qing.

Simultaneously, Qianjun Biyi rose to their feet, forming hand seals, expressions grave, a low growl emerging from the void between them.

"Lift the sword! Let the sword fall!"

The next instant, the plaza thundered. A vast, ethereal sword erupted from the plaza’s earth, its interior shimmering with radiant light, its presence majestic, its sword aura shaking the heavens.

It shot straight toward Xu Qing above.

At the same time, above, another great sword formed from the sea of light, descending toward Xu Qing as well!

It was not over. Behind the hundreds of light rings and the two ethereal great swords, Qianjun Biyi’s forms flickered. Forming hand seals again, each spat blood.

"Starfall Sword!"

The next instant, the meteorite where the Sword Immortal Sect stood blazed with blue light. From that radiance flew thousands of azure swords, streaking toward Xu Qing, swirling in formation around him, creating a sword array. They joined the swords above and below, merging with the hundreds of light rings—slaughter filled the heavens.

These were the very restrictions Qianjun Biyi had prepared for Xu Qing.

Now, having unleashed them all in one breath, the two, eyes resolute, formed hand seals once more. Their bodies flickered, overlapping, fusing rapidly into a single being.

Sparing no blood streaming from every pore, sparing no loss of primal essence, they pointed their sealed hands toward the two joyful immortal swords nearing Xu Qing.

The two immortal swords suddenly quivered. Their joy was suppressed, their sharpness awakened. Like beasts turning on their master, they charged toward Xu Qing.

This seemed a long tale, yet it all unfolded in the instant Xu Qing appeared.

Facing this, Xu Qing remained calm. With a mere lift of his hand, a speck of floating dust danced from his palm.

Then, it drifted gently downward.

The heavens trembled. The earth roared. The void shook. Time and space convulsed. That was… the dust of cosmic law.