Recaps

Ye Lin began the third true disciple trial, Myriad Swords Pay Homage, which required him to reach the Progenitor Sword while gaining every sword’s acknowledgment. He used a trace of sword seal aura to make the first swords yield, then entered a region of older, damaged blades.

• Cangfeng explained that Ye Lin had to win the acknowledgment of every sword on the way to the Progenitor Sword, and that past candidates had taken as long as three years and seven months.
• Ye Lin took his second step, stirring the swords within a hundred zhang and drawing the attention of a dark-red longsword.
• The dark-red longsword accused Ye Lin of carrying the stench of blood, and Ye Lin replied that sword cultivators killed to survive.
• Ye Lin revealed a faint trace of sword seal aura, causing the dark-red longsword to retreat and turn aside.
• The swords in the first region rose into two rows and let Ye Lin pass into a broader area filled with ancient, damaged swords.

Ye Lin silenced the sword souls in the second area by showing them the Sword Dao he had cultivated himself, and they bowed aside to let him pass. He entered the third area, where a green-robed phantom raised a sword to demand that he prove himself.

• A sword soul in a broken blade questioned Ye Lin about the ancient Sword Dao aura he carried.
• Ye Lin summoned a tiny sword of his own Sword Dao, silencing the sword souls and convincing the old man that he spoke the truth.
• The old man bowed and withdrew into his broken sword, while the ancient swords turned aside as Ye Lin walked past.
• Ye Lin entered the third area, where several dozen swords stood on stone platforms inscribed with arrays.
• An azure sword rose before Ye Lin, and a green-robed phantom emerged to assess him.

Ye Lin won the recognition of the forty-nine ancient swords by demonstrating a Sword Dao that encompassed every school while returning to simplicity. The swords opened a path to a small, bone-white sword embedded in a piece of bluestone.

• The azure-robed phantom explained that the forty-nine swords would judge whether Ye Lin's Sword Dao aligned with their own.
• Ye Lin traced a simple arc with two fingers, causing all forty-nine swords to resonate with the essence of his Sword Dao.
• The azure-robed phantom praised Ye Lin's foundation, saluted him, and entered the azure-blue Long Sword.
• The forty-nine swords turned their tips to show Ye Lin the way, and a stone path appeared beneath his feet.
• Ye Lin walked past the swords and reached a small white sword embedded in bluestone.

Ye Lin discovered a lifeless white short sword in the Sword Graveyard that resonated with the true essence of his Sword Dao. After its light repelled his attempt to touch it, he waited quietly, and a humanoid figure began forming above the sword.

• Ye Lin examined the white short sword and sensed that it resonated with the true essence of his Sword Dao.
• Ye Lin tried to touch the sword, but a layer of white light blocked his hand and dissolved his Sword Intent.
• Ye Lin sat cross-legged before the sword and waited in silence.
• White light emerged from the sword and gathered into a hazy humanoid silhouette above it.

Ye Lin met a diminutive old man who had emerged from the white light and learned that he was a consciousness formed from the sword’s spiritual awareness and sword soul, as well as the Sword Graveyard’s gatekeeper. The old man had awakened after millions of years and was assessing Ye Lin, who waited calmly to hear what came next.

• A white light transformed into a diminutive old man, who studied Ye Lin with a smile that left Ye Lin feeling mistaken for someone else.
• The old man stretched after awakening from a sleep of millions of years, then asked whether Ye Lin had tried to touch him.
• The old man explained that Ye Lin could not reach him because a restriction protected him from Ye Lin’s Third Heaven Quasi-Saint Realm cultivation.
• The old man said he was a consciousness reborn from the sword’s spiritual awareness and sword soul, and that he served as the Sword Graveyard’s gatekeeper.
• Ye Lin stayed calm and waited for the old man to speak, earning another look of appreciation.

The little old man told Ye Lin stories about his master, the first Sword Dao Holy Lord, and the founding of the Sword Dao Holy Land. After sharing his memories, he looked at Ye Lin with a deeper expression, leaving the reason for his tale unanswered.

• The little old man compared Ye Lin's calmness to that of a former examinee who became the Holy Land's deputy Holy Lord.
• The little old man explained how his master, then a Fifth Heaven Quasi-Saint, defeated the stronger Thousand-Blade Devil Lord and broke his sword formation.
• The little old man described how his master founded the Sword Dao Holy Land to preserve and revive the Sword Dao.
• The little old man recounted his master's pursuit of sword arts, romance with a beloved confidante, and final disappearance on a snowy peak.
• Ye Lin asked the little old man why he had told him those stories.

Ye Lin answered the old man’s question by saying he would keep cultivating even after reaching the summit, convincing the old man that he resembled his master. The old man faded into the short sword, which Ye Lin could not pull free, and Ye Lin left the Sword Graveyard through a gate of light.

• The old man told Ye Lin he saw a trace of his master in him and asked what he would do if he became unmatched in the world.
• Ye Lin said he would continue cultivating toward higher realms, and the old man accepted his answer with a solemn “Good.”
• The old man dispersed into white light that returned to the short sword, and the barrier around the sword vanished.
• Ye Lin tried to pull out the short sword but realized he was not qualified to wield it.
• A gate of light appeared, and Ye Lin stepped through it, leaving the Sword Graveyard.

Ye Lin learned that Holy Land personal disciples could enter the Scripture Depository and the Teaching Hall, then received a map and a black sword token from Cangfeng. He arrived in a vast realm of sword-shaped peaks and endless Sword Intent, where he recognized the cleansing wind as the Holy Land’s Jian Feng.

• Ye Lin asked Cangfeng what privileges came with becoming a Holy Land personal disciple, and Cangfeng explained his access to the Scripture Depository and the Teaching Hall.
• Cangfeng gave Ye Lin a Holy Land map and a black sword token, warning him to visit only the Scripture Depository’s first three floors and the Teaching Hall.
• Cangfeng sent Ye Lin away, and Ye Lin appeared on a stone platform overlooking countless floating sword peaks and a river of sword light.
• Ye Lin examined the realm’s mirrored peaks and felt the sharp wind cleanse his body, recognizing it as the Holy Land’s Jian Feng.

Ye Lin entered the Sacred Land and studied its map, identifying the Scripture Depository and Lecture Hall. He headed northwest across a bridge of sword light toward the Scripture Depository, mindful of Senior Cangfeng's warning that the beautiful place held deadly dangers.

• Ye Lin emerged through the sword gate engraved with “Return of the Sword Dao to Its Origin” and felt the Sacred Land's sword essence strengthen his cultivation foundation.
• Ye Lin studied the map in his consciousness and located the Scripture Depository to the northwest and the Lecture Hall to the southeast.
• Ye Lin surveyed the Sacred Land and saw his reflection change into a person standing with a sword in hand.
• Ye Lin stepped onto a bridge of sword light and walked northwest toward the Scripture Depository, remembering Senior Cangfeng's warning.

Ye Lin reached the Scripture Depository and took in its sword-marked, twelve-level structure. His black sword opened the entrance, and he stepped inside, where an overwhelming rush of words met him.

• Ye Lin examined the Scripture Depository and sensed the gathered Sword Intent surrounding it.
• He observed sword marks covering the pavilion and the sword-tip spire crowned by a pearl containing a miniature Star River.
• Ye Lin approached the entrance, and his small black sword touched the light curtain, causing it to open.
• Ye Lin entered the first floor and felt words rush toward him.

Ye Lin explored the Scripture Depository, finding countless sword arts on its first and second floors. He reached the third floor, the highest level his authorization allowed, eager to see what it contained.

• Ye Lin touched a floating character on the first floor and learned the Spring Breeze Turns to Rain Sword art.
• Ye Lin passed the first floor’s foundational sword arts and ignored projected disciples demonstrating techniques.
• Ye Lin climbed a sword-light stairway to the second floor and received the True Explanations of the Third Heaven Quasi-Saint Realm Sword Dao.
• Ye Lin continued upward and arrived on the third floor.

Ye Lin explored the third floor of the Scripture Depository and began absorbing its deeper Sword Dao teachings. He was abruptly expelled after exceeding his access limit and left, unable to return inside.

• Ye Lin decided to stay on the third floor, respecting Senior Cangfeng's warning not to enter places beyond his permission.
• Ye Lin tapped a light orb containing the True Explanations of the Sword Dao and absorbed its information.
• The scenery shifted, and Ye Lin found himself outside the Scripture Depository, unable to pass its light screen even with the little black sword.
• Ye Lin concluded that he had exceeded the number of materials he could access and left, regretting that Senior Cangfeng had not warned him about the limit.
• Cangfeng wondered whether he had forgotten something, then closed his eyes again.

Ye Lin entered the ancient Teaching Hall, where Sword Intent filled the walls, doors, and a vast inner realm. He found countless sword cultivators sealed beneath the floor, each radiating a distinct Sword Intent.

• Ye Lin approached the Teaching Hall and felt its ancient gaze observing him.
• Ye Lin studied the hall’s dark walls, where Sword Intent had left images of sword cultivators, then examined the sword-patterned doors.
• Ye Lin crossed the threshold, and the hall filled with soft white light.
• Ye Lin discovered that the hall contained a vast inner realm with bluestone slabs sealing sword cultivators beneath their surfaces.
• Ye Lin saw the varied figures and sensed the different Sword Intents emanating from them.

Ye Lin examined the hall’s thousand sealed sword cultivators before choosing an inconspicuous slab whose faint Sword Intent felt supremely pure. He sat on the central platform and closed his eyes to meet the figure he had chosen.

• Ye Lin sensed the many kinds of Sword Intent filling the hall and recognized it as an ideal place to cultivate.
• Ye Lin read the platform’s instructions, which allowed him one chance to choose a sword cultivator to expound the Dao.
• Ye Lin surveyed the sealed imprints throughout the hall and considered how their Sword Dao auras resonated with him.
• Ye Lin chose a small, inconspicuous slab whose hazy figure emanated faint but exceptionally pure Sword Intent.
• Ye Lin returned to the platform, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes to meet the chosen figure.

Ye Lin entered the small black sword’s inheritance space and met its blurred sword master, who revealed that he cultivated the Destruction Sword Dao. The old man rejected Ye Lin’s definition of destruction as an end and began challenging what he had been taught.

• Ye Lin closed his eyes and entered a primordial darkness, where a blurred figure appeared before him.
• The old man asked Ye Lin why he had chosen him, and Ye Lin explained that the old man’s apparently empty Sword Intent seemed to contain everything and that his intuition had guided him.
• The old man revealed that he cultivated the Destruction Sword Dao and asked Ye Lin what destruction was.
• Ye Lin answered that destruction was the end and the return of all things to nothingness, but the old man declared that answer wrong and began criticizing the belief that destruction was an end.

An old man taught Ye Lin that destruction was a necessary step in transformation, then began recounting how that insight helped him overcome a cultivation bottleneck. The chapter ended just before the old man revealed what he had done.

• The old man challenged Ye Lin to consider the purpose of drawing a sword, and Ye Lin answered that it was to cut, win, and end an opponent.
• The old man explained that destruction could create something new, using examples of iron becoming a sword and old growth being pruned away.
• The old man told Ye Lin that he had remained stuck at the Seventh Heaven Quasi-Saint Realm for two thousand years despite trying many ways to advance.
• The old man said he had finally realized that his bottleneck was an old shell he feared to break, and began to reveal what he did.

Ye Lin learned the principles and dangers of the Destruction Sword Dao from the old man, who described how burning away his old comprehension had renewed his strength. The old man vanished after urging Ye Lin to face destruction as a beginning, and Ye Lin’s consciousness began to return.

• The old man told Ye Lin how he burned away his accumulated sword comprehension over three years, nearly losing his soul before breaking through his bottleneck.
• The old man explained that the Destruction Sword Dao required knowing what to preserve, controlling the fire, and enduring the pain of destruction.
• Ye Lin connected the old man’s ordeal to his own experience inside the bronze gate.
• The old man revealed that his cultivation first fell to the Fifth Heaven Quasi-Saint Realm, then quickly returned to the Seventh Heaven and eventually advanced to the Nine Heavens.
• The old man vanished after telling Ye Lin that destruction was a beginning, and Ye Lin’s consciousness withdrew from the space.

Ye Lin emerged from the Teaching Hall after hearing an ancient discourse, but resolved to keep his Sword Dao completely pure. He returned to Dao Sword City and discovered that a hundred years had passed.

• Ye Lin woke on the Teaching Hall’s stone platform as a dark-red aura entered his sword essence.
• Ye Lin decided the old man's Dao did not suit him and reaffirmed his commitment to pure Sword Dao.
• Ye Lin left the Teaching Hall and used the Sword Dao Mark to return to the City Lord Mansion in Dao Sword City.
• Ye Lin realized he had been away for a hundred years and wondered whether Dao Sword City had produced any worthy experts.

Ye Lin explored Dao Sword City and found that its strongest sword cultivators had gathered at the Lecture Platform, where his master, the Heavenly Blade Sage, was giving a lecture. He learned that the Great Blade Association’s helper had been unable to stop his master from entering the sword-only city.

• Ye Lin walked through Dao Sword City and approved of how many sword cultivators had gathered there.
• Ye Lin found Drunken Sword Pavilion and most of the Arenas filled with Daluo Golden Immortals, and wondered why his city had attracted so few stronger cultivators.
• Ye Lin discovered that Quasi-Saints and other powerful experts occupied the Lecture Platform, which required strength to access.
• Ye Lin looked up at the lecturer and recognized his master, the Heavenly Blade Sage.
• Ye Lin saw the young helper from the Great Blade Association standing nearby, helpless because he could not stop the Heavenly Blade Sage from entering.

The Heavenly Blade Sage continued preaching the Dao to the sword cultivators in Dao Sword City, while Ye Lin struggled to follow the advanced teachings. The sermon drew more powerful experts, and the chapter left it ongoing.

• Ye Lin realized that the Heavenly Blade Sage’s profound cultivation made him capable of teaching sword cultivators despite being a blade cultivator.
• Ye Lin inferred that his master had likely reached the Ninth Heaven Quasi-Saint Realm after returning from his earlier departure.
• Ye Lin closed his eyes and listened, but found the sermon difficult to follow because he had arrived midway.
• Most cultivators struggled to understand the Heavenly Blade Sage, while about a dozen figures listened with full comprehension.
• Powerful experts continued arriving as the Heavenly Blade Sage preached the Dao.

After the Heavenly Blade Sage ended his lecture, he spoke privately with Ye Lin at the City Lord Mansion about his own breakthrough and the vast road ahead. He praised Ye Lin’s Dao Sword City but warned him not to use the Windcloud Mirror carelessly, since powerful cultivators would resent being watched.

• The Heavenly Blade Sage ended his lecture, and Ye Lin bowed farewell with the other cultivators.
• The Heavenly Blade Sage brought Ye Lin to the City Lord Mansion and joked about the treasures in Ye Lin’s possession, especially the bluestone.
• Ye Lin asked whether the Heavenly Blade Sage had reached the supreme realm, and the Sage confirmed his breakthrough while explaining that greater cultivation revealed how much more there was to learn.
• The Heavenly Blade Sage praised Ye Lin’s Dao Sword City and warned him that using the Windcloud Mirror to watch visitors could offend powerful cultivators and harm his reputation.

Heavenly Blade Sage explained the Arena contest against the Chaos Ancient Clan and offered Ye Lin one of the lower-tier slots, where losing meant death. Ye Lin asked who would enforce the agreement if either side reneged, and Heavenly Blade Sage began to answer before the chapter ended.

• Heavenly Blade Sage told Ye Lin that the Chaos Ancient Clan's invasion had paused while the two sides' higher-ups negotiated.
• Heavenly Blade Sage described the Arena's 108 battles, with provinces and treasures at stake across three Quasi-Saint realms.
• Heavenly Blade Sage revealed that he had secured Ye Lin a slot in the lower 36 battles and warned that losing meant death.
• Ye Lin asked who would guarantee the Arena agreement and what would happen if one side refused to honor it.
• Heavenly Blade Sage said the battle would be led by someone, but his answer was cut off.

Ye Lin agreed to fight in the arena tournament, trusting his strength despite the risks. The Heavenly Blade Sage gave him the Innate Spirit Treasure Divine Evolution and told him to stay put until the tournament began in about a year.

• The Heavenly Blade Sage explained that a damaged Chaos spirit treasure could invoke the Dao of Causality, making oath-breakers die.
• Ye Lin agreed to compete in the arena tournament, confident that few opponents of his realm in the Chaos Ancient Clan could match him.
• The Heavenly Blade Sage gave Ye Lin Divine Evolution, an Innate Spirit Treasure once owned by his close friend, a Ninth Heaven Quasi-Saint.
• The Heavenly Blade Sage told Ye Lin to stay there for the next year and said he would take him to the tournament.

Ye Lin examined Divine Evolution after Heavenly Blade Sage left and learned that the innate spirit treasure had preliminarily acknowledged him. Yun Qiyue and Nangong Yue asked whether he would enter the arena tournament, and Nangong Yue explained why she expected the Blade Sage’s spot to go to Ye Lin.

• Heavenly Blade Sage left Ye Lin alone with Divine Evolution.
• Ye Lin tested Divine Evolution, admired its sword form, and found that it responded to him.
• Ye Lin turned Divine Evolution into a bracelet, confirming that it had preliminarily acknowledged him.
• Yun Qiyue asked Ye Lin whether he would participate in the arena tournament.
• Nangong Yue said the Blade Sage had secured a spot and would likely give it to Ye Lin because his eldest disciple did not meet the realm requirement.

Ye Lin learned that Yun Qiyue had a sealed Ancient Phoenix bloodline and that Nangong Yue believed he was the only candidate who qualified for the competition. Ye Lin and Nangong Yue prepared to compete, and after a year passed, Ye Lin remained in secluded cultivation at the City Lord Mansion.

• Nangong Yue reasoned that Ye Lin was the only one among them who qualified for the competition, since Yun Qiyue's bloodline had not awakened.
• Nangong Yue revealed that Yun Qiyue possessed a sealed Ancient Phoenix bloodline and explained that it could eventually make her one of the Origin Continent's strongest talents.
• Yun Qiyue warned Ye Lin and Nangong Yue that the competition would be deadly, and both assured her they were confident.
• Yun Qiyue said she would accompany them to cheer them on, and Ye Lin and Nangong Yue agreed.
• A year passed as Ye Lin stayed in the City Lord Mansion and cultivated in seclusion.