This was a saying that had circulated within the Tianjian Sect for a long time.
It meant that the Heavenly Sword Record would only stir of its own accord under three circumstances. The first was when a Spirit Transformation powerhouse fell. The second was when the Tianjian Sect changed Sect Masters. The third was when a new Sword Heir emerged within the Tianjian Sect.
"The lifespans of the several Spirit Transformation ancestors are still quite abundant. None of them have gone out recently, so it is impossible for one of them to have suddenly fallen. The Sect Master still has more than seven hundred years left in her term, so it is not yet time for a change either. That leaves only one possibility: a new Sword Heir has emerged."
After the drowsy disciple finished his analysis, his eyes seemed to gleam with a light called envy.
They were able to guard the Ancestral Hall, so their status among the True Disciples was already extremely high.
But compared to a Sword Heir?
The difference was still as vast as heaven and earth!
At that moment, the other disciple was just about to report the news.
One powerful aura after another suddenly appeared around them, their scorching gazes fixed upon the Heavenly Sword Record floating in midair.
"Those are the masters of the Four Great Peaks? The sect's Grand Elder and the Hall Master of the Law Enforcement Hall are here too."
As the two disciples watched one usually elusive great figure after another appear, all releasing terrifying auras, they trembled like leaves.
Every one of these powerhouses possessed peak Nascent Soul cultivation.
In terms of strength, they could all be called Nascent Soul Overlords.
Any one of them had the ability to directly wipe out an outside Nascent Soul-level faction.
"Reel in your auras a little. There are disciples here. Don't frighten these two little fellows out of their wits!"
A woman with a faint smile walked over, her voice as gentle as a mountain breeze and as ethereal as the moon reflected in water.
"Understood, Sect Master. Aren't we just a little too excited?" The Hall Master of the Law Enforcement Hall gave a foolish grin and was the first to restrain his aura.
The other sect bigwigs followed suit.
The two disciples' hearts, which had been hanging in their throats, finally resumed beating.
They looked at the smiling woman, their eyes brimming with excitement.
This was the current Sect Master of the Tianjian Sect.
It was also their first time seeing this legendary figure.
She came from Moon Sword Peak, was the previous generation's Sword Heir, and was the youngest Deity Transformation Venerable in the Tianjian Sect.
Most impressive of all was her Venerable title: Venerable Moon Sword.
One had to know that in the Tianjian Sect, there was only one condition for using the name of a Great Peak as one's title.
That was to be strong enough.
As long as one could prove that among all cultivators of the same realm from their own Great Peak, both present and throughout history, they were unquestionably the strongest, that would suffice.
Take Moon Sword Peak as an example.
At the Golden Core realm, one could be called True Person Moon Sword; at the Nascent Soul realm, one could be called True Lord Moon Sword.
And the Tianjian Sect Master's title was Venerable Moon Sword.
That meant that among the dozens of Deity Transformation Venerables in Moon Sword Peak's history, the Tianjian Sect Master's current strength was also considered number one.
Even more terrifying was the fact that the Tianjian Sect Master was still very young, not yet two thousand years old.
She had not even lived through one-fifth of a Deity Transformation Venerable's lifespan.
Who knew just how far she would go in the future?
Now, nearly everyone in the sect regarded this Sect Master as someone akin to the next Seventh-Generation Patriarch.
"There is nothing more for you to do here. You two little fellows may leave first." Venerable Moon Sword smiled gently.
"Yes, ma'am."
The two disciples immediately withdrew.
Only after they had gone far away did Venerable Moon Sword speak with a half-smile.
"What are you doing at the Ancestral Hall? Have you come to pay respects to the ancestors?"
"Sect Master, aren't you asking the obvious?" True Monarch Mingyang, the master of Sun Sword Peak, spoke.
He was a delicate-looking young man, seeming even somewhat frail, the sort who looked easy to bully.
But anyone who had seen him fight would never think so.
He was brutally violent—ripping apart the flesh of fourth-rank demon beasts with his bare hands, biting demonic cultivators of the same realm to death, crushing female cultivators' heads with his long legs—such things were insignificant deeds in his cultivation life.
"Fine, then let us speak plainly. You merely want to learn this new Sword Heir's identity from the Heavenly Sword Record first, so you can rush over and seize him in advance, correct?"
"Ha ha!!"
Several figures who could be considered overlords among Nascent Soul cultivators all smiled awkwardly. That was indeed what they had in mind.
Sword Heir-level figures would at the very least become powerhouses comparable to them in the future, and they stood an excellent chance of breaking through to Spirit Transformation.
If such a person fell into their hands, their respective factions would enjoy glory for thousands of years no matter what.
"Then this is simple. I will not permit your scramble for him!"
Venerable Moon Sword swept her gaze around and continued.
"Whichever faction this Sword Heir comes from, he will belong to that faction! Do not even think about making him change allegiance."
The moment those words were spoken, aside from the masters of Tianjian Peak and Moon Sword Peak, as well as the Hall Master of the Law Enforcement Hall, who remained calm and composed, the other Nascent Soul True Lords immediately became anxious.
"No, Sect Master! What if this Sword Heir appears in one of their three factions again?"
"That's right. As Sect Master, you must consider the balance of the sect!"
The Tianjian Sect's current two Sword Heirs respectively came from Tianjian Peak and the Law Enforcement Hall.
As for Moon Sword Peak, which was Venerable Moon Sword's own faction, there was even less need to mention it.
"Balance? I do not think I need to consider that."
A trace of playfulness appeared on Venerable Moon Sword's beautiful face.
As the strongest Spirit Transformation cultivator of the current Tianjian Sect, her strength was enough to suppress every faction within the sect.
The balance that every Sect Master throughout history had needed to consider simply did not exist for her.
Because even if they invited out the Spirit Transformation ancestor of their own faction—
Sorry, that ancestor would still not be her match.
The Nascent Soul True Lords were helpless as well.
With a Sect Master like this, what could they do?
"Then let us agree beforehand. If this Sword Heir was born in a minor peak, you cannot stop us anymore," True Monarch Mingyang, the master of Sun Sword Peak, said helplessly.
"Of course."
Venerable Moon Sword smiled and nodded.
If a Sword Heir born in a minor peak were not allowed to join a Great Peak or an important sect hall jointly established by the Four Great Peaks, that would be irresponsible toward the Sword Heir.
A minor peak would find it difficult to provide the resources a Sword Heir needed for growth.
"Sigh." Several Nascent Soul True Lords let out a long sigh.
That was easy to say.
But how low was the probability of a Sword Heir appearing on a minor peak?
Of the more than one hundred Sword Heirs who had appeared in the Tianjian Sect throughout history, only two had come from minor peaks.
And those two had only occurred because the sect's talent-selection system had not been sufficiently refined at the time.
Over the past hundred thousand years, no Sword Heir had come from a minor peak at all.
After several dozen breaths had passed,
the radiance on the Heavenly Sword Record gradually faded, and the words upon it finally became clear enough to read.
Everyone released their divine senses in succession and swept over the Sword Heir column, eager to see who exactly had newly appeared.
[In the 176,448th year of the Heavenly Sword Calendar, near the border between Chixia and Qingxia in the Seven-Glow Mountain Range, Su Yang was born with talent for sword cultivation. He may become a sect True Disciple. A True Disciple token has been issued.]
[In the 176464th year of the Heavenly Sword Calendar, Su Yang, an uninitiated True Disciple, broke through to Perfect Foundation Establishment at the age of sixteen. He has met the standards of a Sword Heir and may become a sect Sword Heir. A sect Sword Heir token has been issued.]
[After entering the sect, it is recommended that he join Sun Sword Peak.] ```
"Su Yang. So this new Sword Heir is named Su Yang. He broke through to Perfect Foundation Establishment at only sixteen years old—what kind of talent is that?"
"Mingyang, your Sun Sword Peak will soon rise to prominence. When the time comes, do not bully us too badly."
"That's right, Mingyang. When you eat meat, remember to leave us a mouthful of soup!"
Several Nascent Soul True Lords joked in succession.
But True Monarch Mingyang was not feeling quite so delighted. Were these True Lords all blind?
They could not even read properly.
"Stop talking. What kind of eyesight is that? Look carefully before you speak."
Only then did the True Lords begin to examine it closely.
It turned out that when their divine senses had swept across it, they had not looked carefully. Upon seeing the words "Sun Sword Peak," they had assumed he was a disciple of Sun Sword Peak.
They had not expected it to say that he was recommended to join Sun Sword Peak.
He was still at the recommendation stage of the Heavenly Sword Record. In other words, this disciple had not yet entered the sect and had not formally joined the Tianjian Sect.
A wild Sword Heir who had not joined the sect.
Why did that phrase sound so unfamiliar?
Before you continue