A Sword Drawing Technique Shocks the Ghost Lord

The air in the sealed room was slightly stagnant.

Chen Changqing picked up the empty jade bottle and gently ran his fingertip across the still-damp blood-red characters on the bottom of the bottle.

The bloodstains carried a faint, extremely subtle fluctuation of the Taiyin Law, the aura of a secret technique unique to the Heavenly Gate.

This bottle of the Ten-Thousand-Year Yellow Springs Origin was handed to him personally by the Black Armor Ghost Immortal in front of everyone. It was possible to leave words on the bottom of the bottle right under the Ghost Immortal's nose, or rather, the words were deliberately left by the Black Armor Ghost Immortal.

Chen Changqing casually pinched the jade bottle, and it turned into dust and scattered.

He neither readily believed the blood-written words nor let his guard down.

Within the Sea of Consciousness, the Twelve Primordial Spirits slowly rotated. Their vast Divine Senses, which had surged to five thousand miles after the breakthrough, silently penetrated the many restrictions of the secret chamber and spread towards the entire Heavenly Gate Inn and the surrounding streets.

Within a radius of five thousand miles, every movement of the grass and the rustling of leaves is under our control.

On the three main roads surrounding the post station, the Heavenly Gate's city patrols were openly patrolling back and forth, but in the shadows of the eaves and the blind spots of the formations, there were more than thirty powerful auras lurking.

Among them, more than a dozen carried the unique Yin Baleful Intent of the Nangong Aristocratic Clan, while the rest were elite spies from Rakshasa City and Black Mountain City.

The entire Dark Moon Posthouse has been surrounded by an impenetrable iron barrel.

Inside the inn, most of the soldiers of Dark Moon City were drinking and celebrating in the front courtyard. Only in a side room in the southeast corner of the back courtyard, a sneaky Spirit Transformation stage Divine Sense was trying to communicate with the outside world.

Chen Changqing withdrew most of his Divine Sense, a cold smile appearing on his lips.

Tap, tap, tap.

Just then, three very soft knocks came from outside the stone door leading to the ground from the secret chamber.

The night was deep, and the lanterns in the inn's corridor glowed with an eerie green light, casting a long, narrow shadow of the slender figure outside the door.

It was the Dark Moon Ghost Lord had come alone.

She didn't bring the First Ghost General, nor did she alert any of her personal guards. She held a tray made of ten-thousand-year-old cold jade in her hands, her expression showing some hesitation and struggle.

With a flick of his sleeve, Chen Changqing silently slid open the stone door to the secret chamber.

"Lord of the city, is there something you need for my visit so late at night?"

Chen Changqing sat calmly in the armchair, his right hand hanging naturally beside the armrest, his fingertips only an inch away from the Immortal Execution Sword at his waist.

The Dark Moon Ghost Lord entered the room, set up a soundproof barrier with his backhand, and then placed the cold jade tray on the table.

"Guest Chen, I have no choice but to disturb your meditation so late."

The Dark Moon Ghost Lord bit his lip and spoke in a low voice.

"I just received definite information through my undercover agents in Dark Moon City who have been lurking in Heavenly Gate for many years: after you severed the arm of the Grand Elder of the Nangong Aristocratic Clan's Law Hall, he did not go into seclusion to heal his wounds, but instead secretly summoned the Black Armor Ghost Immortal and the newly awakened Rakshasa Ghost King."

"They bribed the elder in charge of the interdimensional teleportation array, planning to forcibly alter your spatial coordinates and detonate the primordial Spatial Turbulence the moment you step into the teleportation array three days from now, heading towards the Central Domain, thus burying you completely in the void rift!"

Chen Changqing picked up the cold tea on the table, took a sip, and watched her without making a sound.

"So, what does the city lord intend to do?"

"We're not going to the Central Domain!"

The Dark Moon Ghost Lord spoke urgently, picking up a jet-black, teardrop-shaped Jade Pendant from the tray and pushing it in front of Chen Changqing.

"This is the Nether River Calamity-Crossing Token, a secret passed down through generations of city lords of Dark Moon City. It can bypass the Heavenly Gate's sealing array and directly connect to a tributary of the Nine Netherworlds Nether River deep underground."

"Chen Keqing, tonight you will take this order and escape through the dry well in the backyard into the Nether River, returning to the Outer Domain overnight! As for Heavenly Gate, I, the city lord, will handle it. At worst, I'll distribute all two hundred million Ghost Coins I won today to bribe the higher-ups, ensuring the Nangong Family won't be able to trace you!"

Seeing the genuine anxiety on the face of the Dark Moon Ghost Lord, Chen Changqing put down his teacup.

If the Dark Moon Ghost Lord truly colluded with the Black Armor Ghost Immortal to harm him, there would be no way he would hand over the Nether River Calamity-Crossing Token, which is related to the life and death of Dark Moon City, nor would he persuade him to give up going to the Central Domain.

After all, only if he enters that tampered teleportation array can the killing scheme of the Nangong Family and Heavenly Gate be effective.

The blood-written words on the bottom of the bottle were clearly a vicious scheme to kill someone using another's knife!

Black Armor Ghost Immortal, knowing he was suspicious by nature, deliberately left a warning at the bottom of the Yellow Springs Bottle: "Dark Moon has betrayed us."

If he believes it to be true and launches a sudden attack when the Dark Moon Ghost Lord visits late at night, killing this city lord at the Peak Ghost King Stage on the spot, then not only will Dark Moon City be instantly leaderless and become prey for forces such as Rakshasa City, but Chen Changqing will also completely lose his only ally in the Nine Nether Outer Domain!

"A clever plan, but unfortunately, they mistook Chen for a brainless brute."

Chen Changqing shook his head, then suddenly raised his right hand, put his index fingers together, and pointed at the wall in the southeast direction!

Laugh--!

A Pure Yang finger strike, refined to its utmost, instantly pierced through the stone wall of the secret chamber, traversed the courtyard for dozens of feet, and shot with unparalleled precision into the side room in the southeast corner.

"Ah!"

A short, agonizing scream pierced the night sky.

Immediately afterwards, Chen Changqing made a grasping motion with his five fingers, and a huge suction force pulled a headless corpse from the side room, along with a communication Jade Slip that was flashing red light, directly over and slammed it heavily onto the floor of the secret room.

The Dark Moon Ghost Lord was taken aback. He looked down and, upon seeing the clothes on the corpse on the ground, his face turned ashen.

"Second Elder?! How could he...?"

"You, Second Elder, were just reporting your whereabouts to the Heavenly Gate Guards outside the door."

Chen Changqing pointed to the communication Jade Slip on the ground and the remaining powder from the Yellow Springs Bottle on the corner of the table, and briefly explained the origin of the blood-written words on the bottom of the bottle.

After listening, the Dark Moon Ghost Lord picked up the communication Jade Slip on the ground and scanned it with his Divine Sense. Inside, there was a record of all the evidence that the Second Elder had accepted five million Ghost Coins from the Rakshasa Ghost King and cooperated with the Black Armor Ghost Immortal in staging a play to sow discord!

Cold sweat instantly soaked through the back of the Dark Moon Ghost Lord.

Looking at Chen Changqing's calm expression, a wave of fear washed over her, and her delicate body went slightly limp.

If Chen Changqing had harbored even the slightest intention to kill her when she entered, given his ruthless methods—capable of easily crushing six Late Heavenly Monarch Stage —she would probably be lying on the ground like the Second Elder right now!

"Thank you so much, Senior Chen, for your keen insight and for sparing my life!"

The Dark Moon Ghost Lord no longer dared to consider himself an equal city lord. He bent his knees and knelt directly in front of Chen Changqing, even changing his address to "senior".

"Get up. Since you have treated me with sincerity, I, Chen, will certainly not wrong an innocent person."

Chen Changqing raised his hand in a gesture of support.

The Dark Moon Ghost Lord stood up, and his gaze toward Chen Changqing turned completely one of awe and submission.

She took a deep breath and presented the last item on the jade tray—a tattered ancient map sewn from unknown dark gold animal hides—to Chen Changqing with both hands.

"Senior, since you've seen through Heavenly Gate's treacherous scheme, you absolutely must not enter the teleportation array three days from now. This ancient map was obtained by chance by my ancestor from Dark Moon City. It records an ancient, abandoned passage leading directly from the Outer Domain to the heart of the Central Domain. Although it's dangerous, it's still better than falling into the Nangong Family's trap."

Chen Changqing took the ancient map made of animal hide and casually spread it out on the table.

The ancient map was drawn with extreme detail, and the mountains and rivers were marked with ancient divine script.

Chen Changqing glanced at it once, but his gaze was fixed on the skull mark circled in cinnabar in the very center of the ancient map.

The words "Senluo Deathland" are engraved next to it.

The moment he saw those four words, the five Inheritance Tokens inside the Heaven-Stepping Ring suddenly trembled violently, and the direction of the resonance was exactly the same as the "Senluo Deathland" on the ancient map!

Not only that.

When Chen Changqing's finger touched a broken crescent moon emblem in the lower right corner of the ancient map, the animal skin map, which had been silent for tens of thousands of years, suddenly lit up with a cold Yue Hua.

Buzz--!

Within Chen Changqing's body, the Yinyue Holy Dynasty's supreme martial Supreme Lore, the "Heaven-Slaying Sword Drawing Technique," which had already been cultivated to perfection, unexpectedly began to operate on its own under the stimulation of this Yue Hua!

A pure, domineering, ancient sword Sword Intent, seemingly capable of splitting the Firmament in two, emanated from Chen Changqing's fingertips, carving a vacuum crack about an inch long in the secret chamber.

Standing to the side, the Dark Moon Ghost Lord trembled violently, as if he had witnessed some incomprehensible miracle. His eyes widened as he stared intently at the wisp of Sword Intent at Chen Changqing's fingertip, his voice shaking uncontrollably:

"The Heaven-Slaying Sword Drawing Technique?! This is the supreme martial Supreme Lore of my Dark Moon Imperial Clan, lost for ten thousand years! You... who exactly are you?!"

The cool Yue Hua flowed through the secluded room, illuminating the surrounding stone walls as if it were daytime.

The Dark Moon Ghost Lord's breathing became rapid, her chest heaving violently, and her usually majestic and charming eyes were now filled with shock and fervor.

Chen Changqing slightly tightened his fingers, suppressing the overflowing Sword Intent back into his body.

Looking at the distraught Dark Moon Ghost Lord, the scene of receiving the inheritance of True Person Qingxu in the Yang Realm flashed through his mind.

The "Heaven-Slaying Sword Drawing Technique" left behind by True Person Qingxu clearly records that it is the ultimate martial Supreme Lore of the Yinyue Holy Dynasty, and the Dark Moon City in the Outer Domain before us also has the words "Dark Moon" in its name.

"This sword technique was obtained by me in my early years from the remains of a senior in the Yang Realm. That senior's Daoist name Qingxu."

Chen Changqing did not hide anything, and with a light stroke of his finger in the void, he simulated a Moon Sword seal that was attached to the inheritance of True Person Qingxu.

Upon seeing the ancient Moon Sword seal, the Dark Moon Ghost Lord's eyes instantly reddened. With a thud, she knelt down on both knees again, this time prostrating herself completely, her forehead slamming heavily onto the black jade floor.

"Yue Wuxia, a descendant of the thirty-seventh generation of the royal family of the Yinyue Holy Dynasty, pays respects to the Holy Lord!"

The Dark Moon Ghost Lord's voice choked with sobs, carrying a sorrow suppressed for tens of thousands of years.

"Ancestor Qingxu was the guardian sword master who escorted the crown prince of our Holy Dynasty out of the encirclement! The ancestor swore a blood oath that only those with great fortune and who have perfected the 'Heaven-Slaying Sword Drawing Technique' can inherit the Holy Dynasty's throne! Since you, senior, have received the ancestor's complete instruction and have mastered this technique to perfection, you are the new Holy Lord chosen by the ancestor!"

Chen Changqing raised an eyebrow. "Your Dark Moon City, are you descendants of the former Yinyue Holy Dynasty?"

"Yes!"

Yue Wuxia raised her head, her face filled with deep-seated hatred.

"Thirty thousand years ago, my Yinyue Holy Dynasty was the supreme overlord ruling the entire Nine Netherworlds Central Domain! At that time, the Nangong Aristocratic Clan was nothing more than a domestic dog under my Holy Dynasty, in charge of punishments!"

"Later, when the Holy Lord attempted to break through to the Immortal Emperor realm, he suffered a backlash from the Heavenly Dao. The ancestor of the Nangong Family, blinded by greed, colluded with foreign enemies to betray the Holy Lord. He not only destroyed the capital of our Holy Dynasty and divided up the Holy Dynasty fortune and treasures accumulated over 100,000 years, but also exterminated our royal bloodline!"

"My lineage escaped to a remote Outer Domain by sheer luck, establishing the Dark Moon City to eke out a living. To conceal our existence, we dare not even reveal our royal surname. The Senluo Deathland depicted on this ancient map is actually the site of the imperial tombs of my former Yinyue Holy Dynasty!"

At this point, Yue Wuxia gripped Chen Changqing's robe tightly with both hands, her words dripping with emotion.

"My Lord! The Nangong Aristocratic Clan and my Dark Moon lineage are sworn enemies, bound by the Blood Sea! They have set a deadly trap in the teleportation array. You must not go there to your death. If you return to the Outer Domain with me, I am willing to devote all the power of Dark Moon City to help you reunite your old forces and one day return to the Central Domain!"

After hearing this secret that had been sealed for 30,000 years, Chen Changqing finally understood why the Nangong Family's Cultivation Methods always carried a sense of patchwork; it turned out they were nouveau riche who made their fortune by devouring their former masters.

Even more remarkably, the sixth Inheritance Token of the Heaven-Stepping Immortal Emperor was hidden in the imperial mausoleum "Senluo Deathland" of the Yinyue Holy Dynasty.

"There's no need to reunite with the old guard; it's too slow."

Chen Changqing lifted Yue Wuxia from the ground and casually put away the ancient map on the table along with the Nether River Calamity-Crossing Token.

"Tomorrow morning, you will take the First Ghost General and the people of Dark Moon City with you, and take the land deed to take over the Taiyin Black Iron Vein in Rakshasa City."

Yue Wuxia was taken aback, her face turning pale instantly. "Holy Lord, what about you? Are you still going to try and break through that interdimensional teleportation array? There's a spatial trap set up by the Nangong Family patriarch and the Black Armor Ghost Immortal inside!"

"If I don't enter the teleportation array, how can I legitimately go to the Central Domain to collect debts?"

Chen Changqing spoke in a flat tone.

"Since they've gone to such lengths to set up this stage for me, wouldn't it be a waste of the Nangong Family's efforts if I didn't go up and put on this show?"

In the blink of an eye, the three-day deadline has arrived.

The atmosphere in the central square of Heavenly Gate was extremely oppressive in the early morning.

A towering interdimensional teleportation platform, hundreds of feet high, stands in the north of the plaza, surrounded by thirty-six thick Obsidian pillars, their surfaces inscribed with intricate spatial runes.

Below the teleportation platform, Cultivators from various cities had already gathered in layers to watch the spectacle.

The Rakshasa Ghost King sat pale-faced in the sedan chair, his chest wrapped in thick bandages, yet he still gritted his teeth and stared in the direction of the post station; the deputy city lord of Black Mountain City and others huddled in the crowd, their faces full of schadenfreude.

They had already received word that this teleportation array was meant to be the coffin for that malevolent star of the Yang Realm!

Step, step, step.

At the end of the street, Chen Changqing, dressed in a white robe, walked slowly alone.

The Dark Moon Ghost Lord Yue Wuxia and the First Ghost General, along with others, had already led their troops away from Heavenly Gate and returned to the Outer Domain half an hour ago, as instructed by him.

Seeing that Chen Changqing actually dared to come to the appointment alone, a cold smile appeared on the face of the Black Armor Ghost Immortal who stood with his hands behind his back on the high platform.

"Young friend Chen is indeed punctual."

The Black Armor Ghost Immortal descended the steps and pointed to the massive teleportation array above, which was now fully charged.

"The interdimensional passage is now open. Please come in, young friend. Fellow Daoists from the Central Domain are all waiting for you."

The elders from the surrounding cities let out a low sneer, and many of them looked at Chen Changqing as if he were a dead man.

Chen Changqing didn't even glance at the Black Armor Ghost Immortal, but stepped onto the hundred-foot stone steps and stood directly in the core of the teleportation array.

"Activate the grand formation and send young friend Chen on his way!"

The Black Armor Ghost Immortal suddenly waved his hand, and at the same time, his left hand, hidden in his sleeve, crushed a pitch-black Formation Disk!

Buzz--!

The thirty-six Obsidian pillars, which had originally emitted a soft, silvery-white light, suddenly turned a dazzling crimson red in an instant!

A piercing alarm blared simultaneously, accompanied by a sound like space being torn apart.

The entire teleportation platform shook violently, and the originally stable interdimensional passage collapsed on the spot. In its place, an ancient void storm with endless purple-black spatial blades swirled around it!

"Haha! It's done! The spatial coordinates have been completely altered!"

The Rakshasa Ghost King on the sedan chair was so excited he almost jumped up, slapping the armrests and laughing wildly.

"If someone gets caught in the Spatial Turbulence, let alone Half-Step Heavenly Monarch, even Two-Tribulation Ghost Immortal would be shredded into mincemeat by the power of space! This little beast is doomed!"

The Black Armor Ghost Immortal crossed his arms and coldly watched Chen Changqing being completely engulfed by the scarlet light.

"Arrogant and ignorant brat, do you really think you can run rampant in the Nine Netherworlds with just a broken Jade Talisman? Once you enter this Spirit-Severing Space Storm, your sword talisman won't even have a chance to activate!"

However.

Just as the raging purplish-black spatial rift was about to completely engulf Chen Changqing...

Chen Changqing, who was at the center of the storm, showed no panic whatsoever. Instead, he raised his right hand and took out a palm-sized, incomplete blue jade disc from his Heaven-Stepping Ring.

Ancient sacred artifact, Fragment of the Creation Jade Disk!

Buzz!

The moment the jade disc fragment appeared, the nascent Embryonic Law of Time and Space contained within it suddenly spread out, creating a faint bluish halo around Chen Changqing within a three-foot radius.

The Spatial Turbulence that were powerful enough to easily tear apart top- Top-grade Immortal Artifacts, upon touching this layer of cyan light, obediently parted to the sides as if they had encountered a king's subject, without even a ripple in Chen Changqing's robes!

Chen Changqing stood with his hands behind his back in the center of the raging spatial storm. Through the array light screen that was not yet fully closed, he gave a cold smile to the dumbfounded Black Armor Ghost Immortal and Rakshasa Ghost King below.

His lips moved slightly, and he silently uttered a few words:

"Wash your neck clean and wait for me to come back."

Boom!

With a flash of red light, Chen Changqing's figure completely disappeared from the teleportation platform.

On the plaza, the cold smile on Black Armor Ghost Immortal's face froze, and a strong sense of unease suddenly welled up in his heart.

Meanwhile, deep within a void billions of miles away.

Chen Changqing stepped out of the collapsed spatial passage, his feet resting on the spacetime halo formed by the Fragment of the Creation Jade Disk.

However, what came into view was not the expected Central Domain, but a desolate starry sky completely sealed off by nine ten-thousand-foot-tall blood-red Formation Flags!

Directly in front of the starry sky, three ancient figures, their bodies shrouded in terrifying Tribulation Immortal Method and their auras as deep as the ocean, stood silently in a triangular formation.

The man in the center, with his left sleeve hanging empty at his side and his face as pale as a ghost, was none other than the Grand Elder of the Nangong Aristocratic Clan's Dharma Hall, whose Dharma Body arm had been severed by a sword three days ago!

Seeing Chen Changqing emerge from the spatial passage unscathed, the one-armed Grand Elder was first stunned, then a cruel grin spread across his face, his hoarse voice causing the entire sealed starry sky to tremble violently:

"Good lad, you actually survived the Primordial Chaos! Unfortunately, I already knew you possessed a rare treasure, so I specially invited two Three Tribulations Ancestors to set up the Nine-Bend Immortal-Severing Grand Formation here!"

"You little beast, welcome to the burial ground I've prepared for you!"