NOVEL WEB Chapter 308: Clash of the Titans
Chapter 308: Clash of the Titans
A few days later.
The victors from all the tracks had arrived at the Sword Pavilion.
The Pavilion Master sent word to Xu Lian, informing him that he could now proceed to the entrance of the Sword Emperor’s Mausoleum to claim his reward.
Thus, Xu Lian set off toward the entrance of the Sword Emperor’s Mausoleum with his sword attendant Huo Xin’er and sword disciples Yun Conglong and Feng Conghu.
The entrance to the mausoleum was located under the colossal sword in the middle of the Sword Pavilion. In fact, the entire Sword Pavilion was built on top of the Sword Emperor’s Mausoleum. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the Sword Pavilion was a sect constructed on a tomb.
Among all the victors from the various tracks, the most attention-grabbing figure was undoubtedly Sheng Tianyun, the honorary disciple who had reached the Sage Realm.
Sheng Tianyun had spent over two thousand years cultivating to reach the Sage Realm, a testament to his extraordinary talent.
Moreover, throughout the long history of the Sword Pavilion, the vast majority of honorary disciples remained trapped below the Sage Realm, with reaching the pinnacle of the Origin Tracing Realm being their ultimate limit. Very few honorary disciples ever broke through to the Sage Realm. Sheng Tianyun was clearly an exception.
His sword attendant, Xiao Xiang’er, was also highly talented. In just over two thousand years, she had cultivated to the seventh rank of the Origin Tracing Realm. She was said to be the direct daughter of one of the strongest families in the Sword Pavilion, the Xiao family. A “strongest family” referred to those possessing quasi-supreme experts, holding immense weight within the Sword Pavilion and serving as its backbone.
Thanks to their extended lifespans, both Sheng Tianyun and Xiao Xiang’er appeared quite youthful. Handsome and beautiful, they stood together like a heavenly couple, attracting the envious glances of the other victors.
The accomplishments that Sheng Tianyun and Xiao Xiang’er had achieved were basically the lifelong goals of all honorary disciples and sword attendants.
As such, Sheng Tianyun became the hot favorite to win this Sword Pavilion competition and secure the Sword Emperor’s inheritance.
Of course, the other major contender was Xu Lian.
Holder of the Sword of Destruction, blessed with divine laws from the Divine Kingdom, Holy Son of the Nine Heavens, and having reached the seventh rank of the Origin Tracing Realm in less than a century-each of these titles alone was enough to inspire envy. When combined into one person, it was impossible for Xu Lian not to draw attention to himself.
In terms of probability, Xu Lian probably had a better chance of receiving the Sword Emperor’s inheritance than Sheng Tianyun. Throughout the Sword Pavilion’s long history, while it was rare for honorary disciples to break through to the Sage Realm, it wasn’t entirely unprecedented – there had been a handful of cases. However, until Xu Lian, there had never been an honorary disciple who had been blessed with divine laws. He was the only one.
Divine Laws were extremely rare, precious, and difficult to obtain. In a way, they were even more valuable than the Sword Emperor’s legacy. Would the lingering consciousness of the Sword Emperor overlook such a factor when choosing a successor?
Of course, Xu Lian’s own innate talent was unparalleled in the long history of the Sword Pavilion, and even in the whole world. Reaching the seventh rank of the Origin Tracing Realm in under a century was unheard of since ancient times.
In terms of current strength, Sheng Tianyun was slightly stronger than Xu Lian. However, when it came to innate talent and future potential, Xu Lian had an overwhelming advantage, far surpassing Sheng Tianyun.
Due to the brilliance emanating from these two figures, the other victors seemed somewhat overshadowed.
Other victors either hadn’t been honorary disciples for long enough to fully develop or, despite reaching significant power, still fell short of the top-tier Origin Tracing Realm experts.
Therefore, all the victors and the entire Sword Pavilion unanimously believed that the Sword Emperor’s remaining consciousness would choose between Sheng Tianyun and Xu Lian-a binary decision.
Of course, this wasn’t absolute. The history of the Sword Pavilion was long, and in the past, there had been exceptionally talented honorary disciples who had never received the Sword Emperor’s approval. This showed how strict the criteria was for selecting a successor.
“Speaking of strength, Sheng Tianyun is the pinnacle of all the honorary disciples in the history of the Sword Pavilion. In terms of innate talent and future potential, Xu Lian is the pinnacle of the pinnacle. If even these two can’t win the Sword Emperor’s approval, then I really don’t know what kind of successor the Sword Emperor wants.”
“Yes, even though this sword competition has been divided into several tracks, the only ones who have a real chance of winning the Sword Emperor’s inheritance are Sheng Tianyun and Xu Lian…”
The other victors whispered among themselves. Even though they were geniuses and had pride in their hearts, they couldn’t deny that Sheng Tianyun and Xu Lian had a much higher chance of obtaining the Sword Emperor’s legacy.
Xiao Xiang’er sneered, “My master has already reached the Sage Realm, surpassing the upper limit for honorary disciples of the Sword Pavilion. His cultivation is only at the seventh rank of the Origin Tracing Realm, the same as my own. How can he possibly compare to my master?
“Even if he is blessed with divine laws and possesses extraordinary talent, before breaking through to the Sage Realm, he remains trapped in the Sword Pavilion’s curse, where honorary disciples struggle to become top-tier experts.”
Her words did not surprise anyone. Every sword attendant believed that their master was the most qualified candidate to become the new Sword Emperor.
Huo Xin’er bristled. “With my master’s talent, breaking through to the Sage Realm is a certainty – it is only a matter of time. I estimate that it won’t take more than five hundred years for him to achieve it.
“From what my Huo Clan has gathered, your master took over five hundred years to reach the Origin Tracing Realm. While that’s impressive, it pales in comparison to my master!
“The only advantage your master has over mine is that he started cultivating earlier, gaining an additional two thousand years.
“If my master and your master had started cultivating at the same time, your master would’ve died!
“I don’t know where you got the nerve to say such a thing, it’s shameless!”
Xiao Xiang’er became furious. “Huo Xin’er, watch your tongue!”
In the past, members of the Huo Clan would never dare to provoke someone from the Xiao family. After all, the Huo Clan was only a mid-level family within the Sword Pavilion, and its strongest member being a Sage. Meanwhile, the Xiao Family possessed a quasi-supreme expert, far surpassing the Huo Clan in both strength and influence within the Sword Pavilion.
However, the Huo Clan was no longer what it used to be. Bound to Xu Lian, their status and influence within the Sword Pavilion had risen significantly, granting them equal footing with the Xiao family.
Huo Xin’er was not afraid of Xiao Xiang’er. “You are the one who should watch your tongue! Disrespecting my master is tantamount to disrespecting the Nine Heavenly Sacred Lands. Think about your family’s hard-earned Quasi-Supreme Expert. You wouldn’t want him to meet an untimely demise without even knowing how it happened”.
The crowd exchanged strange glances as they struggled to suppress their laughter. Huo Xin’er’s words were dripping with obvious threats.
Xiao Xiang’er’s face turned red and white with anger. She was completely enraged.
Seeing his sword attendant being reprimanded, Sheng Tianyun shot a cold glance at Huo Xin’er. “The Nine Heavenly Sacred Lands aren’t as great as you think. My Sheng family also has Supremes. It’s best not to get too involved in the affairs of the Sword Pavilion.”
Huo Xin’er snorted. “Not every era of the Sheng Family produces a Supreme. They only appear every few centuries. In contrast, the Nine Heavenly Sacred Lands consistently have fift to six Supremes at any given time. How can you compare the two?”
Sheng Tianyun’s expression darkened. Frowning, he addressed Xu Lian. “Holy Son Xu Lian of the Nine Heavens, isn’t your sword attendant a bit too arrogant?”
Double standards? Xu Lian chuckled. “I don’t think Xin’er said anything wrong. She’s absolutely right.”
Huo Xin’er happily nestled closer to him, relishing the support of her master.
Sheng Tianyun’s gaze turned icy. Waves of Sage Realm energy rippled around him as he coldly glared at Xu Lian.
Xu Lian met his gaze with a smile, feeling no pressure at all. Compared to the Black Dragon Princess Ao Mei’er of the Ten Thousand Peaks Stone Sea, Sheng Tianyun’s aura was far weaker. Clearly, Sheng Tianyun had only recently broken through to the Sage Realm, and his cultivation still lagged behind Ao Mei’er’s.
Everyone could see that the tension between the two was palpable. The allure of the Sword Emperor’s legacy was immense, and neither side was willing to back down even in words. It was said that the Sword Emperor had been a ruthless and iron-fisted individual in life. Only the strongest honorary disciples would be worthy successors to his legacy.