Chapter 542 : The Sword's Forbidden Quest

"The sword tip..."

Azure Abyss Sword fell silent for a moment, then laughed. "You have only just broken through to the Infant Soul [the third major stage of cultivation where one's nascent soul is formed] realm. Your current strength is insufficient to retrieve my missing fragment for me."

"My sword tip lies within the Desolate Demon Ridge [a mountain range infested with demonic cultivators] on the Nine Rivers Continent. Even in the past, that ridge was guarded by three Infant Soul old demons, including one at the Infant Soul Late Stage. To conquer it would require the combined might of at least two or three cultivators at the Infant Soul Late Stage."

Eldrin Chen fell silent upon hearing this. The Desolate Demon Ridge was akin to the Black Fiend Ridge, both being strongholds guarded by Infant Soul Late Stage old demons.

Within such Demonic Cultivator [practitioners who use dark, often sacrificial methods to gain power] Forbidden Land [a territory saturated with malevolent energy], the power of the Demonic Cultivator would be amplified. Merely defeating them would be one thing, but to truly eradicate them would require the concerted effort of two or three powerhouses of equivalent rank.

"It seems I must advance my cultivation further and help the Patriarch and Kael and the others reach the Infant Soul Realm before we can even consider targeting that Desolate Demon Ridge," Eldrin Chen concluded inwardly.

With this thought, Eldrin Chen spoke again. "This junior has come with another request."

"Oh?"

The Azure Abyss Sword fixed its gaze upon Eldrin Chen, awaiting his words.

Seeing this, Exquisite Jiang beside him took up the thread. "We wish to ask you, Senior, to leave your seclusion and lend us your aid." Enjoyed this chapter? Read more at AUDIO-NOVEL.COM.

"Exactly so."

Eldrin Chen nodded and recounted the events at Celestial Dome Island, informing Azure Abyss Sword of all that had transpired.

After listening, Broken Sword fell silent for a moment before speaking. "That Verdant Seal Path Master was able to create the Heaven-Seizing Vein Creation Art; he truly deserves to be called a prodigy of his generation."

"If that Black Dragon Demon Ancestor had not intervened, perhaps he could have surpassed my master, Verdant Abyss Path Master, and our Human Race might have gained another peerless Path Lord."

"What a pity..."

Azure Abyss Sword sighed in admiration, then spoke with grave seriousness. "The Verdant Seal Path Master's Earth Soul, after fusing with boundless resentment and the spirits of the aborted Earth Vein [a spiritual artery of the world], has become a sinister and aberrant entity."

"Such an existence is unfathomable and unpredictable. In my prime, I would not have feared it, but my wounds are not yet healed. If I were to exert my full power now, the outcome would likely be mutual destruction."

At this point, Azure Abyss Sword continued, "However, you carry the bloodline of the Chen Clan, and you have forged the Great Encompassing Foundation [the pinnacle foundational cultivation realm]. As long as even a sliver of its original consciousness remains, such an entity will most likely not attack you."

"Very well. I shall accompany you on this journey, but only as a deterrent. I will not intervene directly unless absolutely necessary."

Hearing this from Azure Abyss Sword, Eldrin Chen's face lit up with joy.

With the Azure Abyss Sword [a legendary divine sword of immense power] accompanying them, even in the worst-case scenario where the Verdant Seal Path Master's Earth Soul [the earthly soul fragment of the ancient cultivator Verdant Seal Path Master] had completely lost its sanity, they would have a final safeguard.

Having settled on this thought, Eldrin Chen cupped his hands once more and said, "My gratitude for your assistance, Senior!"

"No need for such formalities." The Azure Abyss Sword hovered in the void, its voice calm and detached. "If your Chen Clan can produce another Heavenly Path Infant Soul [a cultivator who has formed their nascent soul by comprehending the Heavenly Path], I too can recover my missing tip sooner, reforge my body, and fully heal my wounds."

"..."

Having secured the aid of the Azure Abyss Sword, the two immediately took a Teleportation Formation [a magical array for instantaneous travel across vast distances] and arrived at Immortal Apricot Island.

Kael Chen and the others had been waiting for some time. Upon their arrival, the group proceeded together towards the Sunken Sea Region of Celestial Dome Island.

Just before entering Celestial Dome Island, Eldrin Chen looked at Exquisite Jiang with concern. "You do not share the Chen Clan bloodline. Entering this place might hold unforeseen dangers. Perhaps it is best if I go in alone."

Exquisite Jiang shook her head firmly, her resolve unwavering. "Together, even against a cultivator at the Great Perfection of Infant Soul [the pinnacle stage of the Nascent Soul realm], we can hold our own for several exchanges."

"If you were to enter alone, that is when I would truly worry."

Hearing her words, Eldrin Chen said no more.

Exquisite Jiang possessed formidable combat prowess in her own right. She had cultivated the Great God Ability known as the Two Polarities Divine Light [a divine light technique embodying the opposing yet complementary forces of yin and yang], and her Second Primordial Embryo [a second, independently cultivatable spiritual avatar] had already advanced to the Infant Soul Mid Stage. Her combat strength was in no way inferior to his.

Their combined power was nearly equivalent to more than half of a Infant Soul Late Stage cultivator. Within the Celestial Dome Island, aside from the Verdant Seal Path Master's Earth Soul [the earth-bound soul fragment of the Verdant Seal Path Master], they likely feared no one else.

Having reached this conclusion, Eldrin Chen addressed the Old Patriarch and the others. "Once we enter, you must seal off this ancient site to prevent any unforeseen incidents."

"Understood."

Seeing their nods of agreement, Eldrin Chen retrieved the site's command token. Taking a deep breath, he descended into the ocean's depths.

They flew for a long time, guided by the token's resonance, until they finally located the Celestial Dome Island—a colossal island submerged in the abyssal sea. Discover more cultivation stories at audio-novel .c om.

The Celestial Dome Island stretched for over one hundred thousand Li-length [one Li-length equals five hundred meters], a massive underwater mountain range. It was once the source of the Vast Sea's Water Vein [a subterranean channel of concentrated spiritual water energy], but it had been violently severed by the Black Dragon Demon Ancestor, causing it to sink into the ocean's unfathomable depths.

"This is the place,"

Eldrin Chen said, drawing a steadying breath as he gazed upon the immense island before them.

Exchanging a glance with Exquisite Jiang, he channeled spiritual energy into the token. It pulsed with light, allowing them to pass through the Celestial Dome Island's protective formation and enter its outermost periphery.

"Boom—"

The moment he stepped onto Celestial Dome Island, Eldrin Chen sensed a flash of crimson light hurtling towards him.

With a flick of his sleeve, he extinguished the bloody radiance, only then noticing the one who had attacked.

The attacker was a man drenched in blood, his flesh withered and gaunt, yet his eyes were filled with a sanguine glow.

"Kill, kill, kill! Slaughter all demons, protect our Chen Clan!" the blood-soaked man roared, gripping a broken sword as he charged forward for another strike.

"Is this the malevolent spirit born from resentment?"

An inexplicable pang of sorrow gripped Eldrin Chen's heart. Suppressing his discomfort, he raised a hand and vanquished the blood-robed man.

Only then did he survey his surroundings. The entire island was awash with a bloody luminescence. An immense and profoundly evil aura of resentment saturated the heavens and earth, its overwhelming hatred and murderous intent almost palpable.

"Conceal your aura," Exquisite Jiang reminded him.

Eldrin Chen nodded. They had come to search for treasures; it was best not to disturb the Verdant Seal Path Master's Earth Soul [the earthly soul fragment of the Verdant Seal Path Master] unless absolutely necessary.

Skirting the edge of Celestial Dome Island, the two of them ventured cautiously deeper into the ruins. Along the way, they encountered numerous malevolent spirits [spectral entities born from lingering resentment and hatred], but these were all weak, eerie creatures that they dispatched with ease.

They had not traveled far before arriving at a dilapidated Spiritual Field.

"A Spirit Herb Garden [a cultivated plot for growing spiritually infused plants]," Exquisite Jiang remarked, her voice tinged with a hint of recognition.

Eldrin Chen looked up and saw that the Spiritual Field was indeed overgrown with numerous Spirit Herb.

His initial flicker of delight quickly faded into a wry smile. These Spirit Herb had been corrupted by the pervasive miasma of resentment [a corrupting energy born from intense negative emotions], their medicinal properties twisted and mutated, rendering them useless.

They searched the area meticulously and did not leave empty-handed. They discovered one Nascent Soul Transformation Fruit that had been only lightly tainted.

"A fine treasure," Eldrin Chen said, a note of genuine pleasure in his voice.

He was truly pleased. The resentment clinging to this particular Nascent Soul Transformation Fruit was minimal and should be possible to purify.

Exquisite Jiang, herself a Fifth Rank Alchemist, carefully harvested the fruit. "The resentment on this Nascent Soul Transformation Fruit is faint," she observed. "A single drop of Heart-Cleansing Spirit Liquid [a rare liquid that purifies the heart and soul, expelling foreign energies] would be enough to cleanse it."

The Heart-Cleansing Spirit Liquid was a Fifth Rank Low-Grade treasure, capable of purifying a cultivator's heart-mind and soul, and expelling invasive energies.

Typically, ten drops of this substance must be used together to have an effect on a True Lord. However, if only a single drop is used, the required quantity is much smaller, costing approximately five million Spirit Stone [a mineral that stores and radiates spiritual energy] to purchase.

Thinking of this, Eldrin Chen said with delight, "With this Nascent Soul Transformation Fruit [a miraculous fruit that aids in the formation of the Nascent Soul], combined with the Five Veins Infant Transformation Formation [a formation that guides and stabilizes the soul during the Nascent Soul breakthrough] and the Creation Verdant Lotus Seed [a seed containing immense life force and spiritual essence], Uncle Lior and the others should have a significant chance of breaking through to the Infant Soul [the Nascent Soul realm, the stage where a cultivator's spiritual essence condenses into an independent soul form] in the future."

"Indeed, Tea Rose now also has hope of reaching the Infant Soul."

After storing the Nascent Soul Transformation Fruit, the two continued deeper into the ruins. Before they knew it, they arrived before a grand hall.

Eldrin Chen glanced at the hall and immediately furrowed his brow.

The scene within the hall was one of carnage. Corpses littered the ground, bodies that had fallen a millennium ago yet remained uncorrupted. Each represented a Human Race cultivator who had once reached at least the Golden Core Realm [the stage where a cultivator's spiritual energy condenses into a solid, golden core].

At the far end of the hall, a figure stood with hands clasped behind its back. It wore a verdant robe, its long hair loose and disheveled.

It gazed silently at the two of them. That gaze felt like a stare from the deepest depths of the Nine Nether Abysses [a mythical realm of ultimate darkness and cold], causing Eldrin Chen to instantly feel a chill seep into his very bones.

"You have come!" This chapter appears courtesy of audio~novel.com.