As the four Qiankun Cauldrons were about to land on the stone tablet, a golden sword aura burst forth from it.
“Clang!”
A loud crash echoed.
The four cauldrons were instantly flung back.
The sword aura vanished in a flash.
“Hm?” Ye Qiu’s brow furrowed, his face full of disbelief.
The others were equally stunned.
“Did I see that right? Even a divine artefact couldn’t withstand that sword aura?” Longbrow Master gasped.
Ye Qiu’s expression grew solemn.
He was already at the peak king-level realm, confident he could hold his own against someone a realm higher. Yet, he never imagined he’d fail to suppress a mere stone tablet.
“Again!”
With a thought, Ye Qiu summoned the four Qiankun Cauldrons back into the air.
“Suppress!”
He roared, and the cauldrons crashed down, but the outcome was the same.
As they neared the tablet, a dazzling sword light shot out, striking with a clang, and the cauldrons were knocked back once more.
Ye Qiu was shocked.
“Little brat, use the God-Beating Whip,” Longbrow Master suggested.
Ye Qiu drew the whip and lashed it toward the tablet.
Just as it was about to strike, the sword aura reappeared.
“Clang!”
The aura hit the whip, sparking a shower of sparks.
Ye Qiu felt a tremendous force, like a raging storm, surge through the whip into his arm. His body shook, and he staggered back over a dozen steps before steadying himself.
“Pfft!”
Barely standing, Ye Qiu spat out a mouthful of golden blood, his chest churning with energy.
“Young Master Ye, are you alright?” Lüluo asked, concerned.
“I’m fine,” Ye Qiu wiped the blood from his mouth, his gaze returning to the tablet.
“What’s the deal with this tablet? How is it so powerful?”
He stood still for a moment, then approached the tablet again, summoning the four Qiankun Cauldrons once more.
“Enlarge!”
With a low shout, the cauldrons grew larger.
“I refuse to believe the Qiankun Cauldrons can’t suppress a single sword aura.”
With a thought, the cauldrons, carrying immense force, plummeted swiftly.
Yet, when they were a few metres from the tablet, a golden sword aura shot out like lightning, overwhelmingly powerful.
“Clang!”
It struck the cauldrons, sending all four flying backward.
What?
Ye Qiu’s face changed completely.
The combined force of the four cauldrons was nearly a million jin, yet this sword aura was so ferocious.
After repelling the cauldrons, the golden aura darted back into the tablet, vanishing.
The next second, a piercing sword whistle rang out.
“Swish!”
Dozens of sword auras burst from the tablet, forming a curtain of light that surrounded Ye Qiu.
Though each aura was only thumb-thick, they were razor-sharp, and Ye Qiu sensed a dire threat.
“Not good, the little brat’s in danger!” Longbrow Master’s face paled, ready to intervene.
Boom!
The four Qiankun Cauldrons flew back, perhaps sensing their master’s peril. They radiated brilliant light, with images of birds, fish, and beasts appearing on their surfaces, accompanied by mysterious runes. An imperial aura spread overwhelmingly.
One cauldron pierced the sword aura encirclement, hovering three feet above Ye Qiu’s head, casting beams of light to shield him.
The other three, as if enraged, furiously rammed the tablet.
“Clang!”
The golden sword aura emerged again, but this time it didn’t repel the cauldrons.
It clashed fiercely with the three cauldrons in midair.
“Clang, clang, clang!”
Sparks flew.
The sword aura was formidable, holding its own against the three cauldrons.
Seizing the moment, Ye Qiu channelled his full strength, throwing over three hundred punches to shatter the sword auras trapping him.
With Ye Qiu safe, the cauldron above his head flew to join the others, all four now battling the sword aura.
The cauldrons and the aura fought like two peerless masters, sparks flying with each clash, the sound of collisions unrelenting.
Ten minutes later, the sword aura’s glow began to dim, clearly unable to withstand the cauldrons’ assault.
“Pfft!”
Suddenly, the sword aura shattered, vanishing without a trace.
The cauldrons, still unsatisfied, plummeted from the sky toward the tablet.
“Buzz!”
A radiant white light appeared, enveloping the tablet like a glass dome.
“A seal?” Longbrow Master exclaimed, “The tablet has a seal!”
Ye Qiu was surprised. Why would a tablet be sealed?
The cauldrons relentlessly bombarded the white light.
After a while, a loud boom echoed.
The white light shattered.
The tablet cracked open.
A sharp sword hum rang out, spreading in all directions, accompanied by a powerful aura, as if a sovereign had descended.
Ye Qiu looked up and saw a golden longsword emerge from the cracked tablet.
Instantly, the four Qiankun Cauldrons returned to hover above Ye Qiu, seemingly wary of the sword.
At the same time, the broken Emperor Sword in his Qiankun Bag flew out on its own, bowing to the golden sword like a subject before an emperor.
Longbrow Master noticed his Demon-Refining Sword, wrapped around his wrist, trembling as if facing something terrifying.
Hu Zi’s dragon-patterned spear also shook uneasily, nearly escaping his grip, as if encountering a supreme menace.
The golden sword radiated brilliant light, exuding an air of unmatched nobility, like a heavenly emperor overlooking the mortal world.
Its aura was overwhelming.
“A divine artefact!” Fairy Hundred Flowers gasped, falling to her knees.
Lüluo and Xiao Zhan followed, kneeling.
Longbrow Master, Chongxu Taoist, and Hu Zi struggled to resist the sword’s divine might with their cultivation, but after a moment, they too knelt with a thud.
This was just a sword!
Ye Qiu resisted, but the sword’s pressure was too great, forcing his knees to bend.
The four Qiankun Cauldrons, sensing his struggle, quivered and cast beams of light to shield him.
But at that moment, the golden sword shot toward Ye Qiu’s forehead.
His pupils widened, and faintly, he saw two tadpole-like characters etched on the blade—
“Xuanyuan!”
