Sword Graveyard

Dragon Tiger Mountain, evening.

Lin Yuan, dressed in a standard gray Taoist robe, stopped before a massive boulder.

"Ten years already."

Lin Yuan sat atop the boulder and fell into brief contemplation.

Over the past ten years, Lin Yuan had gained a deep understanding of this world.

The cultivation system of this world was divided from Ninth Grade to First Grade.

Ninth Grade was the lowest, First Grade the highest, and above First Grade was the Celestial Phenomenon Realm.

Celestial Phenomenon Realm experts were said to embody heaven and earth themselves. They could perceive the vital energies of all things and shatter mountains and split boulders with every gesture.

Even in the Universe Human Alliance, they would unquestionably count as second-rank combatants.

From this, Lin Yuan had also confirmed that this world stood at a higher level than the Martial Arts World from his first traversal.

"Seventy years of residency remain."

Lin Yuan glanced at the illusory words beneath his field of vision.

Name: Zhang Shanfeng (Lin Yuan)

Identity: Wielder of the Door of Myriad Worlds

Bound Talent: Heaven-Defying Comprehension

Current Status: Consciousness Descent

Residency Time: Eighty years

Perhaps it was due to his increased strength and the difference in world rank.

This time, Lin Yuan's residency period had increased from twenty years to eighty.

Lin Yuan was quite satisfied with that. Under the circumstances of consciousness descent, the longer he could remain, the better.

"Celestial Phenomenon Realm."

Lin Yuan closed his eyes slightly, sensing the True Force slowly circulating within him.

Naturally, Lin Yuan had not spent the past ten years doing nothing.

With his Heaven-Defying Comprehension, it had taken Lin Yuan only three years to cultivate to First Grade.

That was equivalent to the Carefree Realm of the Martial Arts World.

Five years later, Lin Yuan had naturally stepped into the Celestial Phenomenon Realm, becoming one of the foremost experts of the age.

Of course, Lin Yuan had done all of this in secret. No one else on Dragon Tiger Mountain knew.

"I should still keep a low profile."

Lin Yuan let out a soft breath and thought to himself.

The Celestial Master Manor of Dragon Tiger Mountain was the Taoist Ancestral Court of the realm, with unfathomably deep foundations.

At the very least, after breaking through to the Celestial Phenomenon Realm, Lin Yuan had vaguely sensed auras beyond that realm hidden in several places on Dragon Tiger Mountain.

"I'll cultivate slowly."

"Either way, I still have plenty of residency time this round. There's no need to rush."

Thinking this, Lin Yuan left the side of the boulder.

Before long.

Lin Yuan arrived at a Taoist Academy halfway up the mountain.

This Taoist Academy was where the Taoist Acolytes of Dragon Tiger Mountain lived.

There were eight such Taoist Academies across Dragon Tiger Mountain.

The Celestial Master Manor did not strictly manage the Taoist Acolytes in ordinary times. As long as they completed their daily lessons, they could do as they pleased.

Not long after Lin Yuan returned, he saw quite a few young Taoist Acolytes about his age gathered together.

"Pingyang Taoist Priest?"

Lin Yuan raised his brow slightly.

At that moment, surrounded by numerous young Taoists, stood an old Taoist dressed in a tattered robe.

This old Taoist usually wandered around Dragon Tiger Mountain and enjoyed mixing with the young Taoists. The many Taoist priests of the Celestial Master Manor never paid him any attention when they saw him.

Over time, everyone had become familiar with him.

The reason Lin Yuan paid such close attention to Pingyang Taoist Priest was that he was clearly a Celestial Phenomenon Realm expert.

The Celestial Master Manor of Dragon Tiger Mountain publicly declared that only Manor Head Azure Lord was a Celestial Phenomenon Realm expert.

In truth, the Celestial Master Manor had three Celestial Phenomenon Realm experts.

The slovenly-looking Pingyang Taoist Priest before him was one of them.

Lin Yuan guessed that Pingyang Taoist Priest played a role similar to a protector of the Tao.

He would only reveal himself when the Celestial Master Manor faced a crisis.

"Old Taoist, Old Taoist, who do you think is the strongest person in the world?"

Among the young Taoist Acolytes gathered around Pingyang Taoist Priest, a younger-looking child asked in a childish voice.

"The strongest person in the world?"

Pingyang Taoist Priest was briefly taken aback, then smiled. "Naturally, it is the successive Celestial Masters of our Celestial Master Manor."

"Our Celestial Master Manor has been passed down for six thousand eight hundred years and has produced thirty-six Celestial Masters. Every one of them was astonishingly talented and invincible in the world."

"Even someone as strong as a Celestial Phenomenon Realm expert must bow before a Celestial Master."

Pingyang Taoist Priest's tone rose slightly as he spoke with considerable pride.

The other young Taoist Acolytes were immediately stirred.

After all, they were all Taoist Acolytes of the Celestial Master Manor. Hearing that their own Celestial Masters were invincible in the world—

Naturally made them happy.

"Then who is the Celestial Master of the Celestial Master Manor now?"

Another innocent young Taoist Acolyte asked.

As soon as those words fell.

All the young Taoist Acolytes looked toward Pingyang Taoist Priest.

"The current Celestial Master..."

Pingyang Taoist Priest hesitated, but still answered, "Our Celestial Master Manor has not produced a Celestial Master in this generation."

There was something else Pingyang Taoist Priest did not say.

It was not merely this generation that had failed to produce a Celestial Master.

No Celestial Master had appeared for a full five hundred years.

The Celestial Master Manor had been passed down for six thousand eight hundred years and had produced thirty-six Celestial Masters.

In other words, a Celestial Master did not emerge in every era.

Even so, at most two or three hundred years would usually pass before a Celestial Master appeared.

But now, since the previous Celestial Master had passed away in meditation—

A full five hundred years had gone by.

"Celestial Master."

Not far away, Lin Yuan's gaze remained calm.

Based on what he had learned over the past ten years.

The true realm of the Celestial Masters of the Celestial Master Manor should have surpassed the Celestial Phenomenon Realm.

As for how one became a Celestial Master, one had to undergo some kind of trial.

Lin Yuan did not yet know the specifics of that trial.

This was already among the most core secrets of the Celestial Master Manor. Only Celestial Phenomenon Realm experts likely had the qualifications to know.

"How does one surpass the Celestial Phenomenon Realm?"

Lin Yuan frowned slightly.

Ever since entering the Celestial Phenomenon Realm two years ago, Lin Yuan had noticed that his cultivation speed had slowed considerably.

At this rate, even with Heaven-Defying Comprehension, Lin Yuan would need at least fifty years to break through the Celestial Phenomenon Realm.

That was extremely strange.

With Lin Yuan's Heaven-Defying Comprehension, he still needed fifty years. For anyone else, no matter how gifted they were, if not five hundred years, then at least two or three hundred, right? Yet every past Celestial Master Lin Yuan knew of had been under a hundred years old.

"Could there be a shortcut?"

Lin Yuan secretly speculated, his gaze once again sweeping inconspicuously toward several directions.

Those directions were precisely where Lin Yuan had sensed auras surpassing the Celestial Phenomenon Realm.

"So it's Shanfeng." Pingyang Taoist Priest looked up at Lin Yuan, a smile appearing on his face. "Counting the days, in another half month, it will be the once-every-twenty-years Sword Graveyard expedition of the Celestial Master Manor."

"When the time comes, perform well. It will bring great benefits for your future."

Pingyang Taoist Priest spoke as if there were a deeper meaning behind his words.

"The Sword Graveyard expedition?"

A slight ripple rose in Lin Yuan's heart.

If someone else had said that, Lin Yuan might not have cared much.

But Pingyang Taoist Priest was a protector of the Tao for the Celestial Master Manor, as well as one of its three Celestial Phenomenon Realm experts.

His understanding of the Celestial Master Manor certainly far exceeded Lin Yuan's.

For such a person to specifically emphasize the Sword Graveyard expedition and tell Lin Yuan to perform well—

Clearly carried a deeper meaning.

"Thank you for the reminder, Pingyang Taoist Priest."

Although Lin Yuan did not know what the Sword Graveyard expedition truly signified.

He still respectfully bowed to Pingyang Taoist Priest.

Over the past ten years, Pingyang Taoist Priest had taken great care of him, especially when he had first been brought to Dragon Tiger Mountain.

In addition to Changqing Daoist's care, Pingyang Taoist Priest had secretly used his own Celestial Phenomenon True Qi to cleanse Lin Yuan's meridians and marrow several times.

Pingyang Zhenren thought Lin Yuan was too young to know about it.

But Lin Yuan had descended here in consciousness and was fully aware of everything he had experienced since birth.

There's another chapter. It's already written and being revised; it should take about ten minutes.