Stellar Fruit Tree, Sun God Sword vs. Ziwei Emperor Sword

"The master of Ziwei Star has come to visit Fellow Daoist Lingxiao. As it happens, Fellow Daoist is getting married, so I have brought a congratulatory gift in advance."

Before long, a somewhat stiff voice came from outside Lingxiao Palace. It pierced through the golden flame barrier around the Sun Star and entered the hall with perfect clarity.

"Ziwei Star Lord?"

Lingxiao was slightly surprised, then recalled:

In the original course of events, this innate sacred being of Ziwei Star had been qualified to contend for the position and providence of the supreme ruler of the starry sky, and thus entered into a struggle for providence with Dijun and Taiyi.

In the end, two fists could not defeat four hands. He was slain by the two Golden Crow brothers, leaving only a sliver of his true spirit to escape. He was later reincarnated as Bo Yikao, eldest son of King Wen of West Qi during the later Investiture of the Gods tribulation. He was made into meat pies before ultimately ascending to the divine position of the North Pole Central Ziwei Great Emperor.

Casting aside his stray thoughts, Lingxiao immediately brought Xihe and Changxi out of the palace to welcome him in person.

In the starry sky outside the palace, a streak of violet-gold starlight faded away, revealing Ziwei Star Lord, dressed in an imperial robe embroidered with violet-gold dragon patterns.

Innate imperial violet qi lingered between his brows. He possessed the awe-inspiring majesty of a lord of the stars, yet his expression was straightforward and wooden, as though he were unskilled in worldly pleasantries and empty formalities.

Lingxiao smiled and cupped his hands in invitation, welcoming him into the main hall of Lingxiao Palace.

After host and guest took their seats, Ziwei Star Lord exchanged not a single word of polite small talk before getting straight to the point.

With a wave of his hand, all 129,600 Stellar Fruits appeared suspended in the hall. With a rush, dazzling starlight instantly filled the entire great hall. The power of the stars circulated endlessly, subtly corresponding to the cycles of the Heavenly Dao and the rotations of the starry sky, perfectly matching the number of a single primordial cycle.

"These were borne by the Stellar Fruit Tree. I offer them to Fellow Daoist as a wedding gift." Ziwei Star Lord's tone was flat, without the slightest pretense, yet he had truly presented a lavish gift.

Lingxiao was slightly taken aback. He promptly cupped his hands and thanked him. "Fellow Daoist is exceedingly generous. Thank you for your kindness. I gratefully accept."

Looking at the lustrous spirit fruits before him, Lingxiao recalled the origin and foundation of this spirit root—

The Stellar Fruit Tree could be traced back to before chaos had separated. It had originally been a Chaos Spirit Root, with 365 main branches corresponding to the 365 primary stars of the heavens. It was the manifested embodiment of the Stellar Dao.

However, during the tribulation of the creation of heaven and earth, this spirit root had been struck by the aftermath of the battle between the three thousand Chaos Fiendgods. Its origin was damaged, five main branches shattered, and only 360 branches remained. Its rank had also fallen from that of a Chaos Spirit Root.

Even now, though it was not counted among the ten great innate spirit roots of the Primordial World, it was still a genuine supreme-grade innate spirit root. It stood on equal footing with the Fusang Tree of the Sun Star and the Moon Osmanthus Tree of the Lunar Star, respectively governing the three great origins of sun, moon, and stars. Together, they were the three great world-stabilizing spirit roots of the Primordial Starry Sky.

These Stellar Fruits could cleanse the marrow, temper the body, and reshape one's innate foundation.

For a top-tier innate sacred being like Lingxiao, the ability to reshape one's foundation was not particularly useful.

Yet the pure stellar power within them could temper the body and soul and wash away impure qi. Even Zenith Heaven Golden Immortals could stabilize their Dao foundations and replenish their losses by consuming them, all without the slightest side effect.

—If the Twelve Ancestral Witches, who specialized in refining their bodies and cultivated the Nine-Turn Profound Technique, saw such spirit fruits, they would likely turn red-eyed on the spot and fight desperately to claim them.

After giving it some thought, Lingxiao understood something else—though all were spirit roots of the starry sky, the Stellar Fruit Tree differed from the fruitless Fusang Tree and Moon Osmanthus Tree.

Although producing one batch of fruit required a considerable amount of time, time itself was the most meaningless thing to innate sacred beings of the Primordial World like Ziwei Star Lord.

That was why he had no hesitation in gifting Lingxiao an entire complete cycle's worth of Stellar Fruits.

In any case, this was indeed a lavish gift.

After several rounds of tea, Ziwei Star Lord set down his teacup and looked up at Lingxiao. Still using that blunt, rigid tone, he got straight to the point:

"Everyone says that the sun and moon are the supreme rulers of the Primordial Starry Sky. Yet my Ziwei Star was transformed from Pangu's Purple Mansion. I occupy the center without moving, command the stars of the heavens, and possess peerless nobility. Today, aside from delivering a wedding gift, I have come to spar with Fellow Daoist and determine our respective strengths."

The moment those words were spoken, anyone would have taken them as a provocation at the door.

Xihe's willow brows furrowed, and a layer of frost instantly covered her cool jade-like face. She only felt that this man had no understanding of worldly etiquette.

Changxi widened her almond eyes, pouted her rosy lips, and tightly clutched Lingxiao's sleeve with her small hand. She glared indignantly at Ziwei Star Lord, feeling that he was utterly rude.

Lingxiao's expression did not change in the slightest, as though he had expected this all along.

He guessed that Ziwei Star Lord was merely upright by nature and poor with words, with no malicious intent. Otherwise, he would not have first presented such a lavish gift.

—In truth, if Ziwei Star Lord had not brought a gift first, his personality really made it far too easy for others to mistake him for an ill-intentioned and unwelcome guest.

"Since Fellow Daoist wishes to verify our paths, I shall naturally accompany you. Let us find a remote stretch of starry sky so that any misstep does not affect the stars." Lingxiao did not refuse.

With that, he rose with Xihe and Changxi. Together with Ziwei Star Lord, they transformed into streaks of light, left Lingxiao Palace, and flew toward the depths of the Primordial Starry Sky.

Xihe and Changxi followed close behind. One remained cool and focused, fearing that Lingxiao might suffer even the slightest mishap; the other was full of curiosity and eager anticipation, hoping to see her elder brother display his divine might once more.

The four found a starless region shrouded in turbulent spatial currents. It was far from the stars of the heavens, so even a great battle would not affect the Primordial Starry Sky.

Clang!

Ziwei Star Lord gripped the supreme-grade innate spiritual treasure at his waist, the Ziwei Emperor Sword. As the sword left its sheath, violet-gold starlight surged into the heavens. The blade was three feet six inches long, drawing resonance from all 360 primary stars of the heavens.

He pointed the sword directly at Lingxiao. His tone remained flat, but it carried a greater solemnity befitting a contest of Dao paths. "I possess a sword technique known as the North Pole Central Ziwei Sword Technique. It contains the mysteries of the stars of the heavens. I ask Fellow Daoist to appraise it."

"Very well." Lingxiao loosely clenched his right hand, and a brilliant golden rainbow suddenly flew from the sea of consciousness between his brows, landing in his palm and transforming into a longsword.

The sword was three feet, three inches, and three tenths long. The blade flowed with the radiant Dao rhythm of the great sun. Wherever sunlight reached, it could draw upon the harmonious yang power of heaven and earth, suppressing all evil and heterodox paths. Even in deadly battle, it would not be stained by the karma of slaughter.

"Fellow Daoist, please proceed first." Lingxiao stood with sword in hand and smiled faintly.

"Purple Mansion opens heaven and establishes the imperial pivot; the Northern Dipper remains unmoving and commands the map of stars."

"One sword edge settles three thousand Daos; Myriad Luminaries Paying Homage enter the great void."

The moment his voice fell, Ziwei Star Lord moved.

He stepped into the void, his emperor sword cutting across the sky. His first strike drew down starlight from across the heavens, and a violet-gold river of sword light, like a celestial river hanging upside down from the nine heavens, came crashing down upon Lingxiao's head.

Within the sword momentum, phantoms of all 360 primary stars emerged. Stellar power condensed into sword qi, each wisp enough to shred a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal. This was the opening move of the Ziwei Sword Technique—Myriad Luminaries Paying Homage.

Whoosh!

Lingxiao neither dodged nor retreated. He lightly raised the Sun God Sword in his hand and thrust forward with an utterly ordinary strike.

Brilliant golden flames of the great sun abruptly rose from the blade. Though the strike seemed plain and unremarkable, it struck precisely at the core flaw of the stellar river of sword light.

With a hum, the sword qi of stellar power filling the sky suddenly collapsed. Like ice and snow beneath the blazing sun, it vanished without a trace.

A sharp light flashed through Ziwei Star Lord's eyes. Rather than being discouraged in the least, his fighting spirit surged even higher.

His wrist turned, and the emperor sword swept out repeatedly. Each strike was faster than the last, each strike heavier than the last.

At times, his sword transformed into the Northern Dipper, fixing the surrounding void and locking Lingxiao's body in place with the immovable momentum of the center.

At times, his sword divided into the Four Symbols, drawing upon the stellar power of the Twenty-Eight Mansions to form a net of swords that sealed every route of retreat.

At times, his sword gathered the Milky Way, condensing a phantom of the Ziwei Emperor Star and unleashing a world-destroying strike with the imposing force of an emperor descending upon the world.

For a time, amid the turbulent currents of the void, starlight and golden flames intertwined while the cries of swords echoed across the stellar river.

Ziwei Star Lord's sword technique was grand and domineering. Every strike resonated with the stellar power of the heavens, while visions of inverted stellar rivers and Ziwei descending into the world appeared layer upon layer. It displayed the supreme divine might of a lord of the stars to the fullest. Even ordinary great supernatural experts would not be able to endure this unceasing sword momentum for long.

Yet the Great Sun Lingxiao Sword Technique, which Lingxiao had created after comprehending sword formations, had already approached the Dao through pure skill, appearing simple yet containing profound mastery.

Faced with the net of stellar sword qi filling the sky, the Sun God Sword in his hand remained steady and unhurried. Every strike appeared completely ordinary, yet each one always landed precisely upon a flaw in the Ziwei Sword Technique.

Solar True Fire merged into his sword edge as the radiant Dao rhythm of the great sun flowed. No matter how countless the stars, he would break them all with a single sword.

His sword was the Dao of the sun illuminating all heavens. Nothing escaped its light; nothing could withstand its force. Every transformation and every hidden edge within the Ziwei Sword Technique was clear as day in his eyes.

More remarkably, Lingxiao always stopped at the proper point. The moment his sword broke through the stellar sword qi, he withdrew it without harming Ziwei Star Lord in the slightest.

He even used his sword momentum during their exchange to guide and fill in the omissions of the Ziwei Sword Technique. He was clearly using this sparring match as an opportunity to instruct the other's Dao path.

This exchange of sword techniques was simply a crushing mismatch, like an adult instructing a child!