Invincible Sword God

Mysterious tower

Looking at the black tower before him, Ye Xuan was utterly shocked. What he was seeing had completely surpassed his understanding.

Forcing himself to calm down, he knew this could be an opportunity, but it might also be dangerous. In the end, Ye Xuan chose to push open the tower door and step inside. Leaving now would only leave him with regret.

Once inside, Ye Xuan glanced around. The walls were covered with paintings of strange beasts he had never seen before, along with mysterious purple-gold runes, some of which even seemed to writhe and move! Finally, his gaze fell on a skeleton sitting cross-legged not far away, with a long sword standing upright beside it.

Ye Xuan's eyes shifted to the ground in front of the skeleton, where a line of text was inscribed: "I am the Sword Lord of Cang Realm. I began cultivating the sword at twelve, mastered the sword path at seventeen, became invincible in the Cang Realm at twenty-one, and at twenty-seven, I broke through the limits of the heart with my sword, achieving the supreme sword path. Trapped in this prison for twelve hundred years, I have spent my entire life unable to leave this tower. Knowing my death is near, I leave behind my legacy. May the one who comes after me inherit it. If you feel indebted, please take care of the Cangjian Sect."

Sword Lord of Cang Realm? Ye Xuan frowned slightly. He had never heard of such a person. His gaze moved downward, where a fist-sized jade stone lay beneath the inscription.

A legacy stone!

Ye Xuan's blood instantly boiled. A sword cultivator! In the entire Qingzhou region, there were many martial artists, but sword cultivators were exceedingly rare, almost like phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. To become a sword cultivator, one needed a special spiritual root, something Ye Xuan knew little about, except that it was extremely rare.

Instinctively, Ye Xuan moved to take the stone, but as he approached, an invisible force blocked him, preventing him from advancing even an inch.

Ye Xuan was stunned. He couldn't get past it?

"Newcomer?" A woman's voice suddenly echoed in the space.

Startled, Ye Xuan took several steps back, scanning the area but seeing no one. Had he misheard?

Just as this thought crossed his mind, the voice spoke again, "Who controls the Heavenly Dao in this realm?"

Ye Xuan was puzzled. "Heavenly Dao? What's that?"

After a moment of silence, the voice spoke again, "Why are you so weak? Wait, you weren't imprisoned here!"

Ye Xuan was completely confused.

The mysterious woman sounded surprised, "A natural Dao body, and a dual spiritual root? No wonder the prison tower chose you."

Natural Dao body? Dual spiritual root? Ye Xuan was baffled. "Senior, who are you?"

The woman replied, "You're already an adult. By now, you should at least be at the Tongyou Realm. Why are you so weak? And your physical foundation is so poor, it's almost unbearable to look at."

Ye Xuan: "..."

The woman suddenly asked, "How have you been training your body?"

Ye Xuan hesitated, then said, "Push-ups, weighted runs, striking my body, things like that."

The woman coldly retorted, "Are you living in the primitive age? Using such backward methods to train is a waste of your physique and spiritual root!"

Ye Xuan smiled wryly, "Senior, everyone in Qingcheng trains like this."

The woman fell silent.

Ye Xuan looked around again, still seeing no one. This place was filled with strangeness.

Seeing that the mysterious woman had stopped speaking, his gaze returned to the legacy stone, his eyes burning with desire.

"Do you want to learn the sword?" the woman suddenly asked.

Ye Xuan quickly nodded, "Yes!"

Who wouldn't want to soar through the heavens with a sword, overlooking all creation?

The woman said, "Your dantian is shattered. You can't cultivate the sword legacy before you."

Hearing this, Ye Xuan's expression darkened. A shattered dantian! Forget sword cultivation, even becoming an ordinary martial artist seemed impossible now. At best, he was just a martial disciple.

Just then, the woman spoke again, "How about this? I have a different method of sword cultivation. Would you like to learn it?"

Ye Xuan was stunned, then quickly asked, "Can I learn it without a dantian?"

The woman replied, "Not having a dantian is even better."

Ye Xuan was almost jumping with excitement, but he forced himself to stay calm. He glanced around, "Senior, what's the catch?" He knew there were no free lunches in the world.

The woman explained, "This tower was severely damaged in the past. Its nine Dao principles were scattered across the Qingcang Realm, and the seals on each level have loosened. You're lucky that the sword cultivator before you was already dead when you entered. Otherwise, you'd probably be a corpse by now."

Ye Xuan: "..."

The woman continued, "I know you're curious about what this tower is, but explaining it to you would be pointless. All you need to know is that this tower has twelve levels, each imprisoning some of the most powerful beings from various worlds—humans, spirits, demons, even the soul of a world's Heavenly Dao... Once, this tower could suppress them, but now, the seals are weakening, and it can barely hold them."

She paused, then added, "What you need to do is find the scattered Dao principles in the world to reinforce the tower. Of course, you could also release them."

"Release them?" Ye Xuan was stunned. "What would happen then?"

The woman replied, "Two outcomes. First, they kill you and take the tower. Second, you control them and make them serve you. But given your current strength, the chance of them killing you is pretty much 100%."

Ye Xuan smiled bitterly. A blessing and a curse!

Suddenly, he asked, "Senior, were you also imprisoned here?"

The woman said, "No."

Ye Xuan pressed, "Then who are you?"

The woman replied, "You're asking too many questions."

Ye Xuan: "..."

The woman continued, "As the current master of this tower, each Dao principle you recover will not only greatly enhance your strength but also increase your control over the tower. If you can recover one Dao principle, you can control the first level. In battle, as long as your opponent isn't vastly stronger than you, you can use the tower to imprison them. Right now, the tower has no Dao principles, so its functions are completely disabled. Not only that, but the seals on each level are gradually loosening. If the tower completely shatters and the imprisoned beings are released, your world will likely be doomed. And you'll probably be the first to die."

Ye Xuan said solemnly, "Senior, are you asking me to save the world?"

The woman replied, "You're saving yourself. The being imprisoned on the second level is no saint. If I'm not mistaken, within a year, the seal on the second level will completely disappear. By then, you can bid farewell to this beautiful world."

Ye Xuan bowed deeply, "Please, Senior, teach me the cultivation method that doesn't require a dantian."

The woman was silent for a moment, then said, "This sword cultivation method is vastly different from the usual ones. It's much more difficult, and the training might feel like torture. Think carefully."

Ye Xuan smiled wryly, "With my dantian shattered, I have no other choice, do I?"

The woman said, "True. But I still need to explain this method to you. Without a dantian, you're actually suited for this method because it requires using the sword as your dantian."

Ye Xuan was stunned, "Using the sword as a dantian? Is that possible?"

The woman replied, "Of course. Using the sword as your dantian means you're not following the martial path but the sword path. The better the sword, the better your dantian. Moreover, while others absorb spiritual energy, you'll absorb the essence of swords. The better the sword, the faster your cultivation will progress. In the early stages, if you reach a minor achievement, your body will become a sword body. At that point, you'll be immune to ordinary swords. Not only that, but your mere presence will make all swords submit."

All swords submitting! Ye Xuan's blood boiled with excitement. He couldn't wait to begin.

The woman added, "Before you entered, did you see the three swords at the top of the tower?"

Ye Xuan nodded, "Yes."

The woman said, "Those three swords represent the three ultimate sword paths in the world. If you can absorb them into your body, use them as your dantian, and assimilate them, your strength will reach unprecedented heights."

Ye Xuan hesitated, then asked, "It seems like those three swords are suppressing the tower. If I absorb them, won't something bad happen?"

"Of course not," the woman replied quickly. "Nothing will happen. Trust me, I'll protect you."

Ye Xuan was skeptical, but he knew he had no other choice. He had to trust her.

The woman said, "Do you see the sword in front of you?"

Ye Xuan looked ahead. Beside the skeleton stood a sword, over three feet long and about an inch wide. Its entire body was silver, and it looked quite pleasing to the eye. On the blade were two small characters: "Lingxiao!"

Lingxiao Sword!

The woman said, "This sword has been imprisoned here for twelve hundred years. Its spiritual energy has almost completely dissipated, making it perfect for you now. I'll teach you a cultivation technique. Follow the method in the technique to absorb this sword into your body. You're currently at the peak of the fifth-grade Incessant Realm. If you succeed, you should reach the sixth-grade Qi Transformation Realm."

Ye Xuan caught the implication in her words and quickly asked, "Could I fail?"

The woman said, "It's possible."

Ye Xuan was stunned, "Senior, don't tell me no one has ever tried this cultivation method before!"

The woman was silent for a moment, then said, "Indeed, no one has. You're the first. If you succeed, congratulations, you'll be the first in history."

Ye Xuan's expression froze. After a moment, he smiled bitterly, "Senior, if I fail, what happens?"

The woman said, "The sword might pierce your body. You might, probably, almost certainly die."

Ye Xuan: "..."

The woman continued, "Your dantian is shattered. You're already living a life worse than death. Why worry so much? Just go for it."

Hearing this, Ye Xuan's expression turned serious. It was true. With his dantian shattered, he was in a desperate situation. If he didn't take this risk, not only would he have no hope, but his sister Ye Ling would also be doomed.

He had to take the chance!

Ye Xuan nodded, "Let's do it!"

As soon as he spoke, a strand of white light shot into his brow. Soon, a flood of information poured into his mind.

"Invincible Sword Body Technique!" Meanwhile, a soft murmur echoed in the tower, "I never thought it would actually work..."

Unfortunately, Ye Xuan had already passed out and didn't hear these words.