Starforce Warriors

The 'mummy' strode resolutely toward the Sword Sect's residence. The disciples guarding the main gate of the Sword Sect immediately noticed the group and moved to intercept them.

However, the 'mummy' merely gestured lightly. The Sword Sect disciples, though formidable, suddenly collapsed to the ground like drunkards who had lost all strength, their bodies limp and powerless.

The 'mummy' and the others proceeded unhindered toward the secluded abode located on an island in the depths of Silent Lake.

***

At the same time, a female disciple, Shin Koharu, stared at the hot spring pool before her, now dyed red with blood. Tears streamed down her face like broken pearls.

"Master, please... maybe you should stop cultivating!" She couldn't hold it in any longer and dropped to her knees, pleading.

As the sole disciple of Ishihara Masami, the strongest Sword Saint in the history of the Sword Sect, Shin Koharu admired and respected her master deeply. She treated her like a cherished family member.

So, every time she saw her master's injuries flare up, forcing her to suppress them by relying on the geothermal energy of Mount Hakutou, it felt like her heart was being torn apart. She wished she could take the pain in her master's place.

Just what kind of cultivation technique was this? Every time her injuries acted up, countless pores across her master's body would split open, and blood would stain the spring pool red.

It was as if all the blood in her body was being replaced. If not for her master's exceptional cultivation and powerful life force, she would have died countless times over.

Splash.

The blood in the spring pool began to boil. Ishihara Masami slowly stepped out, ascending the stone steps. A deep gash had split open across her body. One particularly grievous wound across her chest and abdomen was wide enough to see her internal organs.

That breathtakingly beautiful face showed a flicker of pain. Yet, as she emerged from the pool, the wounds on her body gradually closed up, until they vanished completely.

Her fair and flawless figure, like it had been carved from finest mutton-fat jade, was exposed to the air. It was immaculate and divine, as if sculpted with meticulous care by the hands of the gods themselves. She draped herself in a white robe, her flowing hair cascading like a waterfall.

"There are guests on the island. You should go and greet them," said Ishihara Masami. Her voice was ethereal and serene, like a heavenly melody.

Shin Koharu was momentarily stunned. This island at the center of the lake was her master's secluded cultivation ground; it was a forbidden zone. No one in the entire Sword Sect was allowed to trespass.

How could there be guests? Could it be... the person my master has been waiting for all these years?

She vaguely knew a secret. Her master had been quietly waiting for someone; someone more precious to her than her own life.

"Yes, Master." Shin Koharu left the secluded residence and followed a path paved with blue stone fragments. She headed toward the island's only small pier.

By the time she arrived, a small wooden boat had already docked, carrying five figures who had just stepped ashore. Her presence immediately drew the attention of the five on the opposite side.

The one leading them, a figure wrapped entirely in white bandages, turned toward her and asked, "Are you the disciple of Sword Saint Ishihara?"

"I am." Shin Koharu bowed slightly and said, "My master sent me to guide you, honored guests."

The other four were visibly startled. This island in the heart of the lake was the residence of Jiepeng's strongest being, the legendary Sword Saint herself. It had to be filled with hidden dangers, a place akin to the domain of Asura.

If they let this scrawny little girl guide them, wouldn't they be walking straight into a snare?

"Sir, be cautious, it could be a trick. Perhaps we should restrain the girl and have her..." One of the Awakened cultivators on the left began to suggest.

Before he could finish, the 'mummy' waved his hand dismissively and said, "Sword Saint Ishihara is a woman of noble bearing. She would never resort to such disgraceful methods. Young lady, please lead the way."

He confidently followed Shin Koharu. The other four powerful cultivators were inwardly apprehensive, unsure where their leader's mysterious confidence came from. But they had no choice but to follow closely behind.

A moment later, they arrived outside the secluded residence.

"Greetings to the Sword Saint," said the 'mummy' as he bowed respectfully at the entrance.

"Tōan Ritsu, so you finally couldn't resist showing yourself?" Ishihara Masami's voice rang out clearly from within the residence, cold and pure as a lark echoing through a secluded valley.

The 'mummy's' figure trembled slightly. He hadn't expected Ishihara Masami to recognize him.

He had gone missing after a failed attempt to kidnap Li Guorui after that martial arts exchange in Central Jiepeng. He had been killed by a girl who wielded a bamboo branch as a sword. But in truth, he had simply taken on a new identity and continued to operate covertly in Jiepeng.

The reason he hadn't died was due to one of his rare multi-type superpower abilities, the Undying Body. As long as he wasn't utterly pulverized into paste, he could resurrect. Deeply aware of Li Xiaofei's terrifying strength, he faked his death and returned to Jiepeng, operating from the shadows ever since.

In recent years, the surge of Awakened awakenings in Great Xia had strengthened the spiritual energy tides in neighboring Jiepeng beyond those of Western nations. As a result, many Awakened had emerged.

As the former strategist and leader of the New Power Faction, Tōan Ritsu thrived in these secretive activities. Using another one of his multi-type abilities, Assimilation, he constantly absorbed the powers of other Awakened, stealing their abilities and growing stronger with each encounter.

He believed he had hidden his identity well all these years. But Ishihara Masami had seen right through him the moment they met.

After a brief flicker of surprise, Tōan Ritsu smiled faintly. The bandages covering his body suddenly unraveled like living tendrils, slithering away and retracting under his arms before vanishing. A tall, broad-shouldered figure straightened, revealing a firm and resolute face.

"As expected of the Sword Saint." He slowly cracked his back and said, "I've come to Silent Lake this time to request your aid, Sword Saint."

"And what is it you seek to accomplish?" The cold, distant voice asked from within the residence.

Tōan Ritsu smiled again and said, "I want to unify Jiepeng's martial arts and Awakened, and lead them in resisting Great Xia."

The residence fell into silence.

That was the best possible answer. Who in the world today would dare to speak so arrogantly of opposing Great Xia? Five Omega level Awakened stood like five ancient divine mountains, suffocating all beneath their presence.

Tōan Ritsu said, "I am not dreaming idly. I've received aid from a god beyond the stars. Destroying Great Xia's Dragon Group will be as easy as crushing an ant. It won't be long before Jiepeng replaces Great Xia and becomes the ruler of the Earth. We Jiepeng people will be the planet's only nobility and the true superior race. The East, the West... all shall kneel beneath Mount Hakutou. The glory of the Yamato people is within reach."

His voice carried an overwhelming tone of persuasion. The four subordinates beside him felt their blood surge with fervor, ready to die for Tōan Ritsu without hesitation.

"God beyond the stars, is it?" The voice of Jiepeng's most revered goddess rang out once more from within the residence. "You don't understand... There is only one god in this world. There has always only ever been one."

Before her words fully faded away, five beams of sword light shot out from the residence. The sword lights were not fast, but they could not be dodged.

Tōan Ritsu's immense superpower erupted wildly and surged like a tidal wave. Yet he found that he couldn't move even a single finger. The other four Awakened were even more powerless. The sword lights passed through their bodies like sparks igniting fireworks.

The five figures burst apart one after another with soft, almost gentle sounds, their bodies turning into radiant yet fleeting flames. They vanished completely from the world.

Tōan Ritsu, who had harbored grand ambitions to unite Jiepeng and had spent nearly ten years hidden in anonymity, was no exception. He died in a state of utter shock.

So this... this is the strength of the Sword Saint?

No matter how lofty his ambitions, all returned to dust before this single sword. In the end, everything was for nothing. That was his sorrow. Perhaps it was Jiepeng's sorrow as well.

In the final moments of his life, Tōan Ritsu couldn't help but wonder. After his death, would there still be anyone from Jiepeng willing to give everything for its revival, as he once did?

Standing off to the side, Shin Koharu showed not even the slightest surprise on her face. She had long known this would be the result. Her master was invincible. These people were truly pitiful, to think they could challenge her master.

Just as she was about to enter the residence, her vision suddenly blurred. Ishihara Masami, clad in flowing white robes, suddenly shot out from the secluded residence and vanished directly into the void.

Moments later, waves of terrifying roars and dreadful bursts of energy erupted from within the void as if coming from another world entirely.

A moment later, several drops of blood fell. They flickered in the air, and were dyed crimson-gold blood. The instant they struck the ground, it was as if a mountain had crashed down, causing the entire island to tremble violently.

The earth within a hundred meters was scorched black, as though seared by raging flames.

"The Primordial God?" A startled male voice echoed through the void.

In the next instant, ripples surged through the air as someone rapidly retreated. A single arc sliced into the distance, splitting the sky open. Ishihara Masami's figure plummeted from above, falling from the rift in space.

"Master!" Shin Koharu cried out in shock and rushed forward to catch her.

When she caught Ishihara Masami, her master had grown unbearably weak, her face pale like gilded paper and her breath shallow and intermittent.

Even worse, the two conflicting energies within her body had finally broken free of her control, erupting in a frenzied, destructive storm that was tearing her apart from within. Her master... was dying.