In the 211th year of the Nanxun Calendar, on the thirteenth day of the seventh month.
The ethereal Misty Cliff manifested within the Ice Wind Forest of the far north, where immortals descended into the mortal world and the cloudy heavens cracked open, revealing the wondrous spectacle of a star-filled universe.
Amidst the stars and billowing clouds, five immortals radiating brilliant light and rain revealed their celestial postures. Their poise was flawless, making all who beheld them forget their worldly sorrows.
Rumble—
Resembling a water spout supporting the heavens, Misty Cliff emitted a massive thunderous roar. Amidst the collision of wind and clouds, thunderbolt arcs trembled while winds howled and lightning flashed.
Vast swaths of clouds churned like waves whipped up by an ocean, forming densely packed crests and troughs that scattered outward from the center, revealing a pillar of light right in the middle that led straight up into the Teleportation Array above.
"Immortals!"
"They truly are immortals!"
Nangong Shuo and the many people gathered upon the mountain peak—even mortal Xiantian Grandmasters—had never witnessed such an astonishing scene. One and all, they were long since struck with awe, dropping to their knees in prostration while the hurricane whipped their hair into disarray and caused their faces to tremble with shock.
Whatever so-called number-one martial artist in the world seemed utterly laughable at this moment.
Then, everyone holding an invitation found that the invitations in their own hands were likewise bursting with spiritual light.
A special force diffused from within them, enshrouding their figures and actually causing their bodies to grow light as they drifted upward toward the pillar of light.
"Damn it! Nangong Shuo, you and Shao Yu Feng joined forces to seize my invitation. I, Hu Lei, along with the Sword Sound Sect, swear that we are irreconcilable enemies with you."
Hu Lei, the Seventh Under Heaven, watched with a ferocious and resentful expression as one person after another holding an invitation soared upward. He glared furiously at Nangong Shuo opposite him and hurled curses.
Nangong Shuo frowned, watching as his own disciple successfully ascended. Abruptly, he offered Hu Lei a faint smile and said, "Could it be that Sect Master Hu still cannot see the situation clearly? Now that Brother Shao and my grandson have both successfully participated in the Ascension Convention, once either of them achieves immortality, how could you and the Sword Sound Sect possibly dare to do anything to us?"
Hu Lei started, feeling like a glowing coal dropped into an ice cellar. The bones throughout his body grew ice-cold section by section, and his head slumped limply down like a sick chicken.
Nangong Shuo smiled contemptuously, feeling victory was securely in his grasp. Just as he was about to mock him further, his ears twitched slightly. His gaze swept with astonishment toward the mountain path below, and he narrowed his eyes.
Has he finally arrived?
A thought stirred within him. If he were to employ a slight scheme at this moment, wouldn't it be a marvelous opportunity to turn hostility into friendship while simultaneously venting his spite?
Right now, eyeing the despondent and dejected Hu Lei, he secretly transmitted his voice. "Brother Hu need not be discouraged either. I see that yet another person holding an invitation has arrived. If Brother Hu can obtain the invitation from his hands, wouldn't you once again be able to go and participate in the Ascension Convention?
To express my apologies, I will also take action at the appropriate juncture. I only hope to turn hostility into friendship with Brother Hu, what do you say?"
Hu Lei was taken aback, yet at the same time his Qi sensed a powerful aura making its way up the mountain. In an instant, his thoughts whirled through a hundred turns and he made his decision.
At this moment, Chen Dengming's figure moved across the rugged and steep mountain path as if walking on flat ground. The speed at which his inner Qi was consumed matched the speed at which it recovered, remaining neither depleted nor increased as his face stayed free of flushing and his breathing remained even.
"Is that Chen Family Head Chen Dengming?"
"To think the Nanxun Saber King has actually arrived as well."
"He has an invitation too? Good grief, looking at it this way, among the Eight Xiantian Grandmasters, only the Second Xiantian, the Arctic Elder, lacks an invitation while everyone else has one."
Gathered halfway up the mountain, quite a few martial world figures who had congregated there noticed Chen Dengming rapidly ascending and burst into surprised discussions.
"Grand Tutor Chen has come as well."
"This Eighth Under Heaven has always lived in seclusion and rarely fought with others. I didn't expect him to be concealing his abilities. It seems the rumor back then that he obtained the Youth Preserving Pill was true, and along with that immortal pill, he probably also obtained an invitation."
At the mountain peak, the minds of the remaining crowd also fluttered restlessly, though that cold-looking, smiling old eunuch among them felt not the least bit surprised.
He had crossed paths with Chen Dengming inside the Imperial Palace and knew that this Eighth Under Heaven possessed extraordinary strength, belonging to those who bloomed late in life.
Although he was the last of the eight grandmasters to advance to the Xiantian realm, he accumulated strength over time and rapidly broke through all the way from the first stage of Xiantian to the seventh stage, making him a force not to be underestimated.
Swish—
Employing his lightness art like a gust of wind, Chen Dengming swept onto the snow-covered platform at the mountain peak. His two feet landed practically without leaving a trace in the snow, arriving in a flash.
In an instant, over a dozen gazes all landed upon him, and an oppressive pressure of Qi immediately bore down upon them.
Chen Dengming remained calm and unhurried, his expression blank. After sweeping his gaze in a circle and exchanging a look with the old eunuch, his eyes swept past Nangong Shuo and Hu Lei, and he nodded slightly.
"Saber King Chen!"
"Lord Grand Tutor!"
At that moment, several people familiar with Chen Dengming greeted him one after another, expressing goodwill.
After Chen Dengming acknowledged them all with nods, his gaze looked toward the pillar of light above. From afar, he felt five lofty gazes cast down from above, and the Qi in his body inexplicably felt a powerful pressure.
Chen Dengming knew full well that regardless of whether there were risks involved in the Ascension Convention, one had to bear those risks in order to reap the benefits.
He was just about to take out the invitation that had begun reacting from within his bosom, intending to submit to the pulling force within it and fly up into the pillar of light above.
Yet a voice carrying a hint of probing and greed abruptly traveled over.
"Saber King Chen has lived in seclusion for years, but I never expected that you also managed to obtain an invitation?
It seems the rumor from back then that you obtained the immortal's Youth Preserving Pill is indeed not false. Aside from the Youth Preserving Pill, there must also be this invitation and other items, right? You truly are a person blessed with great fortune."
"Hmm?"
Chen Dengming looked over and spotted a middle-aged man carrying a double-edged sword on his back. His cheekbones were very high and his eyes were narrow and long, giving off an air of coldness while bright lights flashed within them.
Their four eyes met like crashing lightning, their Qi colliding.
The Seventh Under Heaven, Hu Lei.
This man belonged to the demonic path and had stepped into the Xiantian realm earlier than him, thus ranking seventh under heaven. By now, he should be over seventy years old.
"Could it be that Sect Master Hu came here without an invitation? Just to watch the commotion?"
Chen Dengming calmly replied with a single sentence and stepped into the pillar of light, preparing to yield to the pulling force of the invitation and ascend upward.
Yet Hu Lei saw through his intent and could no longer bother with polite probing. With a loud roar of "Leave the invitation behind," he suddenly swooped in like a giant roc and struck out with a palm. It formed a powerful and majestic momentum akin to ten thousand jun of thunder, and even before the palm force was fully unleashed, its pressure was already choking off everyone's breath.
At that very instant, Chen Dengming felt the airflow inside the pillar of light beside him shift, actually causing the pulling force of the invitation in his bosom to instantly weaken.
"Scoundrel!"
Chen Dengming frowned, swinging his palm out in a swift counter as a surge of powerful True Qi erupted.
With a resounding boom!, the ground beneath his feet trembled, energy ripples swept across the earth, and dust scattered everywhere amidst flying snowflakes.
Suddenly, turbulent energy surged across the mountain peak platform, sending numerous pebbles and snowflakes dancing and scattering in all directions.
"What?"
Hu Lei let out a muffled grunt and was forced back.
He gazed with astonishment at Chen Dengming, who stood as steadfast as a monolith.
"You are also at the fifth stage of Xiantian?"
Nangong Shuo, who had been observing the situation, relaxed his expression. "He is only at the fifth stage of Xiantian, just like Hu Lei. Fortunately..."
Chen Dengming coldly watched Hu Lei and calmly cupped his fists. "Sect Master Hu, please respect yourself. With strength on equal terms between us, it is difficult for you to snatch the invitation from my hands."
With those words, ignoring Hu Lei's unsightly complexion, Chen Dengming felt the pulling force intensify once more and leaped upward to assist his ascent.
Abruptly, a burst of loud laughter came from the other side, followed closely by an oppressive wave of Qi.
"Why must Brother Chen reject people a thousand miles away? You might as well stay and exchange pointers with this brother!"
Nangong Shuo laughed heartily as he lunged forward with his sword. A fierce, matchless aura and pressure assaulted him on the spot, once again disrupting the Qi field within the pillar of light and causing the pulling force to weaken and throw into chaos.
At the same time, the wind and clouds above shifted unpredictably, and the light within the pillar began to dim, as though the Ascension passage was about to close.
"You two! Have gone too far!"
Chen Dengming held back no longer. His brow hitched, his eyes turned like cold lightning, and he unleashed an incomparably formidable murderous aura. Abruptly, he drew the great saber from his back and slashed out with a single strike!
Rumble—
An unmatched, formidable saber Qi crashed down violently, cleaving the air apart like surging water waves. The fierce shock wave kicked up rolling layers of turbulent ripples and surged straight toward the drastically changing expression of Nangong Shuo.
"Seventh-stage Xiantian!! Green Hill Mad Dragon!"
Watching the overbearing and crazed dozen-or-so-zhang saber Qi come crashing down—especially given Chen Dengming's suddenly soaring aura and pressure—Nangong Shuo's heart and mind trembled. With nothing left save for a long roar, he rallied his spirit and swiftly raised his sword horizontally to block and parry.
Bang-thump!--
Caught in this rushed defense, he felt an avalanche-like, fierce and massive force press heavily downward. It crushed down on his leg bones as though they were being struck by small hammers, rendering him unstable on his feet as he staggered back seven or eight steps. The webbing between his thumb and forefinger split open, and the long sword in his hand hummed and trembled violently.
This entire sequence happened in the flash of a flint. Everyone upon the mountain peak had only seen Hu Lei suddenly make a move against Chen Dengming.
The next moment, wind and snow scattered as Hu Lei retreated.
And then Nangong Shuo suddenly attacked, only to be forced back by a astonishing dozen-or-so-zhang saber Qi slashed out by Chen Dengming in a single stroke.
That terrifying dozen-or-so-zhang saber Qi was like a green dragon rising from the peak of a snowy mountain, or a rainbow bridge crashing down to astonish all present. Even the numerous martial arts experts halfway up the mountain witnessed it and burst into shocked cries of "Green Hill Mad Dragon!"
Green Hill Mad Dragon was precisely the signature technique that brought fame to the Nanxun Saber King.
Slashing out thirteen zhang of saber Qi in a single strike, it resembled a mad dragon dancing above Green Hill, utterly overbearing!
Yet at the very instant Chen Dengming used a single blade stroke to shake and injure Nangong Shuo, how could he possibly let go of such a prime opportunity? His movement technique flowed like a divine dragon leaving the water, his cloak fluttered like illusions, and his saber momentum intensified. Clinging to his opponent like a shadow, he swept his blade in a diagonal cut toward Nangong Shuo's flank.
At that exact moment, Hu Lei abruptly roared and charged out, launching another assault to join forces in a pincer attack.
As if anticipating this, Chen Dengming let out a sudden whistle.
His body spun, and a streak of black light flew out from his cloak with the momentum of his spin. It resembled a black centipede dancing wildly against the wind, followed immediately by a cacophony of hissing sounds that filled the air.
A cluster of black radiance shot fiercely toward the two opponents like a torrential rain.
Hu Lei and his companion instantly generated protective internal energy around their bodies, their weapons easily knocking away all the hidden weapons.
Yet merely in the blink of an eye, completely without the two of them noticing, the Madness Gu that had diffused into the air along with the hidden weapons had all been inhaled through their noses and mouths.
Amidst the dizzying spectacle for the many onlookers, they merely saw Chen Dengming rush out of the pillar of light. His saber light flashed like cascading ribbons, and his movement technique resembled a howling hurricane as he unexpectedly suppressed both Hu Lei and Nangong Shuo in a one-versus-two battle.
This was precisely the ferocious renown of the Nanxun Saber King—reaching the ultimate peak to survey all mountains. If he did not croak, he would shock the world with a single cry.
However, those with profound discernment could naturally tell that Chen Dengming's ferocious offensive could not be sustained. He had merely caught Nangong Shuo and Hu Lei off guard at the very beginning; once the two of them recovered their footing, they would quickly stabilize the situation.
Especially Nangong Shuo, whose internal energy was even more formidable than Chen Dengming's. As long as he seized an opportunity, he could launch a counterattack and subdue his enemy.
Pity that no one in this world had ever witnessed the Madness Gu employed by Chen Dengming, and they were utterly ignorant of the terror wielded by this gu poison obtained from an immortal.
As time elapsed and twenty or thirty moves passed in the blink of an eye.
The physically weaker Hu Lei suddenly saw his movements fall into disarray, his eyes covered in red veins, and his arms twitching.
In that fleeting fraction of a second, the long saber transformed into a fierce streak of light.
Chen Dengming's figure crossed paths with him in an instant.
A trace of blood instantly appeared across Hu Lei's brow. His body abruptly stiffened, the bloody line rapidly extending down his nose bridge and dropping to his chin.
"Brother Chen, stay your hand!! This is a misunderstanding, let's talk this over—"
Nangong Shuo was frightened out of his wits, feeling his body suddenly grow numb as his internal energy refused to obey his commands. He let out a panicked shout and rapidly retreated, but after pulling back merely seven or eight steps, his eyes turned bloodshot, his body convulsed wildly, and he collapsed to the ground with a dull thud, his limbs twitching frantically.
The few members of the Nangong family who had just rushed forward turned pale with horror, realizing this was a sign of severe poisoning.
Yet what kind of severe poison existed in this world that could quietly intoxicate and fell a Xiantian Grandmaster renowned for being immune to all poisons?
The few members of the Nangong family were about to drop to their knees and plead for mercy from Chen Dengming.
Instead, a fierce, sharp light suddenly flared within Chen Dengming's eyes. The wild gale whipped up by his saber wind condensed into a fierce, steel-like momentum as he slashed through empty air with a single virtual strike!
Superior martial arts could injure a person and sever their soul.
The few individuals were instantly struck with terror on the spot, standing rooted and unable to move.
When those few individuals regained their senses once more, they only discovered that the black cloak ahead was fluttering in the empty air. Chen Dengming had already withdrawn his saber and flown away into the sky, casting only a calm gaze downward as he looked at Nangong Shuo and murmured softly.
"A hundred years of human life pass in a flash, like a white horse passing a crevice. To be obsessed with being number one under heaven for the first hundred years, and scheming to the extreme for the latter hundred years—what was the point of it all?"
His words drifted down from the air, falling into the shocked and bewildered gazes of the dozens upon hundreds of people looking up from below.
In the blink of an eye, two of the Eight Grandmasters of the World were gone.
In the 211th year of the Nanxun Calendar.
Atop the peak of the Ice Wind Forest, beneath Misty Cliff.
Eighth Under Heaven Chen Dengming danced a mad dragon atop Green Hill, his saber slaying the Seventh Under Heaven Hu Lei while the flick of a finger extinguished the number-one under heaven Nangong Shuo, displaying a mysterious and eerie poison.
As it turned out, the Nanxun Saber King's most terrifying aspect was not his saber technique after all.
It truly verified Shao Yu Feng's words.
The Eighth Under Heaven might not necessarily be eighth, and the number-one under heaven might not necessarily be first.
Within the Teleportation Array above Misty Cliff.
Shao Yu Feng and the others who had already reached the peak watched in shock as Chen Dengming rapidly flew upward, only then realizing the true strength of this Eighth Under Heaven.
The young member of the Nangong family who had come up holding the invitation wept uncontrollably as he witnessed Nangong Shuo's death.
As for the five immortals, they all gazed down with surprised expressions at Chen Dengming flying up toward them, their eyes carrying doubt and exploration.
What they doubted and felt curious about was naturally not Chen Dengming's strength.
Because in their eyes, such Xiantian squabbles—no matter how formidable—could be easily swept away using Daoist arts and magical artifacts, rendering them utterly not worth mentioning.
What perplexed them was Chen Dengming's appearance and the gu poison he had employed.
"Judging by his bone age, this man is clearly over eighty years old, yet he has the face of a youth in his twenties or thirties. Is there really some kind of youth-preserving cultivation technique in the mortal world with such miraculous effects?"
"The toxin he wielded just now should be a form of gu poison. Although gu poison is a minor path among immortal arts, it is rare and unusual. To think a mere mortal would excel in it?"
While the five immortals discussed the novelty amongst themselves, they also felt a sense of surprise in their hearts, even though such gu poison posed little threat to them.
Yet if it were aimed at lower-tier cultivators without any precautions, it would still pose a threat, prompting them all to grow somewhat interested.
Before you continue