Grandmaster Achieved

One sword strike split heaven and earth for ninety thousand li. Where it passed, it left a profound, hellish sword mark that sliced the sky in two. Mortals looking up saw the world torn apart, the sun and moon divided, stars collapsing, as if the end of days had arrived.

The world was horrified!

Mortals believed the apocalypse had come, disaster was imminent, and they panicked.

Cultivators, however, saw the reality: this sword strike had cleaved the sky, cutting down an Ancestor Realm cultivator ninety thousand li away. It was terrifyingly powerful.

High in the heavens, at the Ancestor Realm level, conversations were taking place.

"The Dao contained within this sword strike is simply terrifying. If he doesn't fall, our Old Land might truly produce a Sword God. Then, we'd have a greater say, wouldn't we?"

"There are no wrong nicknames, only wrong given names. Thousand-Year Sword God of the Old Land, he is worthy of the title!"

"Emperor Wu of Zhou cultivated for a hundred years and finally condensed his Ancestor Realm foundation, only to have it severed again. It'll be difficult for him to recover now."

"He needs to rest. If he moves around again, there will be no hope left at all. The blow he suffered this time is too great."

"He achieved the Ancestor Realm at the fastest speed back then, hailed as the future hope of the Old Land. Unfortunately, his personality was too extreme. He betrayed even his best friend without hesitation. Who would dare let him bear the burden of the Old Land?"

"Hmph, such treachery and vindictiveness! Does a scoundrel like that deserve to bear the great responsibility of the Old Land? It's simply absurd. He's been recovering from injuries for the past few hundred years since becoming an Ancestor. Does a sickly person like that deserve it?"

Shangqing Palace, Golden Summit Hall.

Silence reigned after the storm.

This sword strike had erupted from Shangqing Palace, traversing ninety thousand li. Everyone who had come to attend the enthronement ceremony of the Shangqing Palace Sect Master witnessed it firsthand, their gazes filled with shock.

The power and momentum of that sword strike were etched deeply into their hearts, unforgettable for a lifetime.

"Shangqing Palace was hiding an Ancestor Realm cultivator?" someone gulped, suppressing their inner shock with difficulty, finding it hard to believe.

"No wonder Shangqing Palace isn't afraid of Luochuan Sect. So, they had such a trump card."

"This Ancestor Realm cultivator chose to act at this special time today, undoubtedly intending to use us as mouthpieces to declare to the world that Shangqing Palace is no longer what it used to be and that they intend to return to the ranks of top-tier great sects."

"The foundation of a thousand-year sect is truly unimaginable. Li Qingshan and this Ancestor Realm cultivator revealed nothing beforehand. So cunning."

After communicating with each other, the people from various factions, big and small, confirmed their suspicions. Shangqing Palace had deliberately made the Ancestor Realm cultivator act today, using them to announce their intentions to the world.

These individuals lacked the Ancestor Realm cultivator's perspective and couldn't recognize it as the sword energy of the Thousand-Year Sword God of the Old Land. Thus, they all fawned over Li Qingshan, surrounding him and showering him with praise, much to his helplessness.

Some even suggested visiting the Ancestor Realm elder and hoped Li Qingshan could pass on a message.

Li Qingshan rolled his eyes internally. If Shangqing Palace had an Ancestor Realm elder, would they have endured until now?

In his helplessness, Li Qingshan could only explain carefully. Unfortunately, everyone took it as him being evasive and didn't believe him.

Outside the Scripture Repository Pavilion.

Water cascaded down.

Spray flew.

Li Jiusheng called out softly, "Senior?"

The surroundings were empty, save for the roar of the waterfall. The traces of the Thousand-Year Sword God of the Old Land had vanished.

Since unleashing that sword strike, the Thousand-Year Sword God of the Old Land had disappeared.

Li Jiusheng knew he was truly gone this time. After unleashing that sword strike, he had no regrets.

"I wonder if this strike severed Emperor Wu of Zhou," Li Jiusheng muttered. His realm was too low; he couldn't see what was happening ninety thousand li away.

"I still need to cultivate. The Ancestor Realm... a sword strike spanning mountains and seas, ninety thousand li away, just like that. How dashing! Li Jiusheng sighed. He then sat down by the waterfall and carefully studied the Heaven-Slaying Sword Drawing Technique that the Thousand-Year Sword God of the Old Land had just performed.

This sword strike had been performed using his body. The Sword Intent, the Aura, the Sword essence, the Sword Dao – Li Jiusheng could feel them all clearly, as if they were right before his eyes.

He closed his eyes, his mind filled with the image of the Thousand-Year Sword God of the Old Land using his body to execute that sword strike.

Li Jiusheng studied it intently, deeply immersed, like a traveler who had been thirsty for days and found an oasis, plunging into it and refusing to come out.

He was so thirsty.

For cultivation, for the Sword Dao, for realm, for everything...

Li Jiusheng refused to let go of any opportunity to improve himself. Although he couldn't understand many aspects of the Sword Dao, Sword essence, and Sword Intent yet, he would remember them. Those he could understand, he devoured greedily, learning frantically. Only when he had completely mastered them would he move on to the next.

He meditated like this for seven days.

For seven days by the waterfall, day and night without rest, Li Jiusheng learned a great deal. With his breathing, the Spiritual Energy between heaven and earth was drawn in, transforming into two long swords that entered his body, vigorously nourishing every inch of his skin and remodeling every bone.

The Innate Sword Body was like a fish in water at this moment, working diligently, absorbing Spiritual Energy, improving itself, and incidentally raising Li Jiusheng's realm.

The recently condensed Innate Golden Core grew larger, spinning rapidly, spreading throughout his body, occupying his Dantian, and continuing to expand.

Seven days later, when Li Jiusheng emerged from his immersion, he realized he had reached the peak of the Innate Realm, his Golden Core perfected, on the verge of shattering and forming his domain.

Once the domain was formed, the Grandmaster Realm would be achieved.

The greatest improvement from the Innate Realm to the Grandmaster Realm was the meticulous refinement of the condensed Golden Core within the body, followed by its shattering to form one's own domain.

The size of the domain depended on how well the Golden Core was condensed, how much Dao one comprehended, one's own potential, and physical strength. It was a multifaceted process.

"Since my Golden Core is perfected, I will directly break through to the Grandmaster Realm. With the rich Sword Dao left by Senior, my Grandmaster domain will undoubtedly be extraordinary," Li Jiusheng decided decisively. Without a second word, every inch of his skin exerted force, frantically absorbing Spiritual Energy to propel the shattering of the Golden Core and the formation of his domain.

Li Jiusheng continued to immerse himself in the Thousand-Year Sword God of the Old Land's sword strike, comprehending and absorbing it deeply.

He wasn't just comprehending in a dry manner; he was also verifying it against his own sword techniques.

Under such verification, his [Grass and Wood Sword Technique] and the newly learned [Heaven-Slaying Sword Drawing Technique] improved at an unbelievable pace, rapidly surpassing the Aura/Momentum level and entering Sword essence.

The foundation of the sword, the inner depth of the sword, the long-term essence of the sword...

All of this became Li Jiusheng's foundation for breaking through to Grandmaster.

Dong!

Dong!

Dong!

Drumbeats echoed from his Dantian, the perfect Golden Core pulsing and emitting these sounds.

Li Jiusheng calmed himself, unmoved. He let it pulse while he continued to absorb Spiritual Energy, comprehend the Sword Dao, and improve himself.

Crack!

As he absorbed more and more Spiritual Energy, his accumulation grew thicker. At the stroke of midnight, a crack appeared on his Golden Core, which then directly collapsed. The accumulated energy exploded outwards, breaking through his body and scattering into the heavens and earth.

At this moment, under the bright moon, the aged Li Jiusheng, clad in black robes, sat cross-legged on the cliff's edge. Centered on him, within a ten-mile radius of the mountains and wilderness, Spiritual Energy surged violently. Clanging sounds intertwined as the diffused Spiritual Energy transformed into Sword Intent, glinting coldly under the moonlight. Each strand of Sword energy could kill the Li Jiusheng of before.

Ten miles of mountains and wilderness, Sword energy swirling like a brilliant river of stars.

Domain, achieved.

Grandmaster, achieved.