Chapter 909: Number One in Asking the Sword

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Lu Yang remained oblivious to the Pavilion Master's soft murmurings, wholly unaware that what he was currently manifesting was the embryonic form of a Sword Dao Domain. He had merely witnessed the Invincible Infant display it once and felt that he too could achieve it.

A single trial proved that it was indeed within his grasp.

Furthermore, he was now capable of establishing this embryonic domain simultaneously upon the earth and across the sky.

Blade after blade of green steel erupted from the ground, Lu Yang's sword intent flooding the entire space, heightening his senses until he could faintly perceive the shifting presence of the Han Guang Sword.

If the higher echelons of the Sword Pavilion were struck with such profound astonishment at the sight of Lu Yang's domain, the reaction of the swordsmen beneath the stage was beyond description.

The great black dog gaped in sheer disbelief, utterly unaware when its saliva-slicked sword slipped from its jaws to clatter upon the ground.

Kun Qiu stood frozen by the spectacle. Her true cultivation resided at the late stages of Deity Transformation, yet having only just brushed against the threshold of the Sword Dao Domain, she remained incapable of manifesting even its rawest embryonic form.

To think that Lu Yang had already overtaken her, calling forth the domain with such apparent ease.

"Lu Yang, I will surely catch up to you!" Kun Qiu declared, her spirit uncrushed by the vast disparity as her gaze hardened with fierce resolve.

A true swordsman must possess unyielding fortitude, ever pressing forward with a sharp, advancing edge.

"Right here!"

Lu Yang's right hand suddenly flicked upward. A sharp clang rang through the air, sounding as though an unseen object had been violently deflected.

Catching the Han Guang Sword, Ming Tai found himself equally unprepared for the revelation that Lu Yang had comprehended the embryonic domain.

He had once accompanied the Supreme of the Sword Pavilion through the Tribulation of Ascension, sustaining grievous wounds that stripped him of the greater part of his memories. Awakening a mere twenty years ago, he had been forced to begin his journey anew.

Were it not for that catastrophic past, he too would have been capable of manifesting the embryonic domain.

Though the Han Guang Sword remained entirely invisible to the eye, Lu Yang could discern the trajectory of the strikes solely by the movements of Ming Tai's wrist; to a true master of the blade, the invisibility of the weapon mattered naught.

This puzzled Lu Yang. Ming Tai undoubtedly knew that his strikes were being anticipated, so why did he persist in gripping the sword?

Dividing his concentration, Lu Yang commanded the majority of his green steel blades to clash with the manifestations of sword intent, stepping forward to face Ming Tai directly.

Ming Tai unleashed the Vast Blue Sword Technique once more, his sword intent swelling like a boundless ocean, surging toward Lu Yang in waves meant to shatter his stubborn resolve.

Drawing upon a portion of the sublime essence of Xue Shilou's Standing Post Sword Technique, Lu Yang stood firm, letting the seas assault him from all sides while remaining as immovable as a mountain.

Below the stage, Xue Shilou looked upon Lu Yang as if encountering a ghost. Had he not merely displayed a few stances of the technique moments ago? Could Lu Yang truly replicate it so swiftly?

Ming Tai's form dissolved into the ocean of sword intent. Facing the immovable Lu Yang, an ambush from any quarter was rendered futile, leaving him no choice but to reveal himself in open combat.

Yet, before ten exchanges had passed between them, a sudden slash marred Lu Yang's cheek.

Had his anticipation failed him?

No.

"What happened? Did Lu Yang not parry the Han Guang Sword? How was he struck?"

"Is there another Han Guang Sword hidden in the shadows, executing a sneak attack?"

"Did the Supreme of the Sword Pavilion not always wield a single blade?"

The crowd of swordsmen murmured in confusion, unable to comprehend how Lu Yang had sustained the injury.

Lu Yang retreated to create space, a brief moment of reflection revealing the truth: "So that is it. The Han Guang Sword not only grants invisibility, but it can also alter its own length."

He could foresee the position of the blade, but he could not predict its extensions!

"As expected of Senior Brother Lu Yang," Ming Tai remarked in quiet surprise, impressed by how rapidly his opponent had discerned the weapon's hidden attribute.

Realizing that close combat against an unpredictable blade would only invite disadvantage, Lu Yang decided to alter his approach.

His arm shuddered violently, unleashing a torrent of sword intent that soared into the sky, cascading downward like a vast, shimmering waterfall—a thunderous mountain torrent that shook the surroundings.

If close quarters offered no victory, he would dictate the battle from afar with raw sword intent.

Ming Tai had anticipated this shift. Wielding the Han Guang Sword, no cultivator of the same realm could surpass him in close combat.

The Han Guang Sword hummed with immense resonance, its intent piercing the heavens as though it were the very center of the cosmos, causing great stars and radiant suns to revolve about its form.

The two opposing forces of sword intent collided, unleashing a terrifying and destructive power.

The clashed energies shattered instantly, the fragmented shards slicing across both their bodies. Yet neither paid any heed, seemingly numb to the pain as they swung their blades anew, rending the very air with tyrannical fury.

The spectators beneath the stage grew contemplative, perceiving that both combatants harbored a singular spirit—an unyielding conviction to be the strongest of their generation. Only by possessing such momentum could a swordsman carve through obstacles and shatter successive bottlenecks.

This was the true essence of Inquiring the Sword Through Intent.

Neither held back, pouring the entirety of their might into every strike to overwhelm the other, yet each clash resulted only in mutual destruction.

Their respective powers were so perfectly matched that no victor could be discerned.

"Unity of Man and Blade!" Ming Tai roared, fusing his entity with the Han Guang Sword to return to his primal origin, causing his sword intent to swell exponentially.

"If that is the case..." Lu Yang mused, a sudden inspiration prompting him to attempt a reckless gamble.

He abandoned the defense of his domain against the manifested entities, allowing them to swarm and tear into him, leaving his body scarred and bloodied.

The green steel blades in the heavens and upon the earth began to tremble, taking flight as streaks of light that resonated and merged into the gathering strike Lu Yang was charging.

The sword intent, which had already reached its absolute zenith, surged significantly higher once more.

"This is... The Return of Ten Thousand Swords to the Ancestor!" Pavilion Master Guan murmured, faintly recognizing the technique.

With his vast experience, he should have identified it at a glance, but the technique Lu Yang displayed was remarkably distorted, bearing no resemblance to any orthodox teachings.

The Pavilion Master's suspicion was correct. Lu Yang had never formally studied the technique; he had merely witnessed the Unspoken Daoist deploy it during a confrontation with the Emotionless Sect, and was now clumsily replicating it from memory, augmented by his own understanding of the blade.

Naturally, it differed vastly from the authentic version.

Left with no alternative, as he could not publicly reveal techniques like the Sword Intent Tiger, Phoenix, Dragon, or the Immortal-Destroying Sword Formation, he had to rely on this makeshift creation.

As both forces expanded to monstrous proportions, the crowd below could no longer discern which side held the advantage. They swallowed hard, their gazes locked onto the stage, refusing to blink lest they miss the definitive moment.

The climax arrived abruptly.

Like the heavens collapsing, the two great dragons of sword intent collided, detonating into a magnificent rain of sharp fragments that shook the ears with a deafening metallic roar.

Both figures were violently thrown backward by the sheer force of the explosion.

Ming Tai plummeted from the stage like a kite with its string severed.

Lu Yang's body likewise recoiled out of control. Desperately absorbing the kinetic shockwaves, he forced strength into his right arm with a fierce cry, driving his green steel blade deep into the floor to anchor himself firmly upon the platform.

Pavilion Master Guan descended from above, scanning the gathered crowd with a solemn expression before finally casting an approving gaze upon Lu Yang, his voice ringing clear and resonant.

"Lu Yang's Sword Heart is a testament to the heavens and earth, unprecedented since antiquity."

"Lu Yang's Sword Intent is pure and radiant, soaring high to touch the clouds."

"In this trial of Inquiring the Sword, Lu Yang takes first place!"

Cheers erupted from the spectators who had witnessed the full extent of his might. Cries of "Lu Yang is first" reverberated through the air, shaking the foundations of the Sword Pavilion.

Lu Yang's vision blurred as his body swayed unsteadily, the fierce battle having drained every ounce of his strength.

"You people... if you have the breath to shout my name... someone come and catch me..."

With a soft thud, he collapsed unconscious.