The End of the Sword-Inquiry Platform

The Sword-Inquiry Platform was deathly silent.

Lu Chen knelt on one knee, his longsword fallen beside him. He panted heavily, sweat mixed with blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.

He raised his head, his eyes filled with bewilderment and collapse as he stared at the man standing there with his sword sheathed.

He had been thoroughly defeated.

His cultivation, sword techniques, and Sword Force had all been crushed.

Not only had his proud Mountain-Suppressing Heavy Domain failed to crush his opponent, it had instead become nourishment for the opposing Sword Force, swallowed clean by that bottomless abyss.

This kind of crushing from the roots was more complete than any humiliation.

On the viewing platform, the Blackwater Peak elder's face had turned ashen, while the Zhao Family members all wore grim expressions.

Elder Li rested a hand on that rusty iron sword and said nothing for a long while.

"The champion of this inner sect tournament is Shen Qingzhou."

Elder Wang, who was in charge of transmitting teachings, finally broke the frozen atmosphere.

His voice carried traces of complexity and astonishment as it echoed through every corner of Sword-Coming Peak.

The oppressive atmosphere exploded at once.

Countless discussions, gasps of amazement, jealousy, and awe became a surging roar that swept in from all directions.

"Qi Refining, Fifth Layer? He's actually at the fifth layer of Qi Refining!"

"My heavens, how is that possible? How long has he even been in the sect?"

"The Kan Water Lineage... that crippled inheritance actually produced someone like this."

Standing in the center of the platform, Shen Qingzhou could clearly feel the Dao Strife ability operating madly, while his Sword Disciple proficiency rapidly rose along with it.

He sheathed his sword. The Ripple-Pattern Sword gave a soft cry, as though answering its master's victory.

He ignored the uproar below and did not even glance at the defeated Lu Chen. He simply turned calmly, preparing to leave the Sword-Inquiry Platform.

The instant he turned around—

An invisible, razor-sharp aura pierced through the clamoring voices, through the barrier of space, and stabbed toward him without warning.

The Sword Qi was a pale gray, as though fragments of cold iron gleamed within it.

Once it locked onto its target, there was no escaping it. There was simply no way to dodge.

This was actually Sword Qi from a Foundation Establishment True Person!

Every hair on Shen Qingzhou's body stood on end. The Abyss-Hiding Sword Essence in his dantian instinctively guarded his body, while the Abyssal Descent Momentum transformed into an invisible force field, trying to divert that strand of Sword Qi.

But the gap between their realms was simply too great. His defenses were pierced in an instant. As that strand of Sword Qi neared him, his skin faintly tingled as though needles were pricking it.

He abruptly raised his head and looked toward the viewing platform.

The one who had acted was Li Changqing, the Foundation Establishment True Person of Sword-Coming Peak's main lineage, who was watching him with an inscrutable gaze.

There seemed to be another intention hidden within those eyes.

Under the pressure of this life-and-death instant, Shen Qingzhou strangely sensed that something was off. His thoughts raced.

Though this strand of Sword Qi was domineering, it carried no killing intent.

This was more like a test.

"Enough."

A calm voice rang out.

It was not loud, yet it clearly entered everyone's ears.

There was no emotional fluctuation in it; neither sorrow nor joy, resentment nor anger could be heard.

Yet as those two words left his mouth, the fierce Sword Intent that seemed to fill heaven and earth vanished into thin air.

It disappeared without a trace, without stirring even the slightest ripple.

Everyone followed the voice and saw that Cloud Hermit, who had been dozing all along on the viewing platform, had risen to his feet at some unknown point.

He still wore that old Daoist robe, washed until it had faded white. Frost and snow flecked his hair, and his figure was even somewhat hunched.

Yet simply standing there, he became a presence none could ignore.

Elder Li looked at him expressionlessly and released the fingers resting on the railing.

Cloud Hermit ignored Elder Li. His gaze passed through the crowd and fell upon Shen Qingzhou.

"From this day onward, Shen Qingzhou shall be my final disciple."

"From now on, his affairs shall be the affairs of my Kan Water Lineage."

He did not deliberately raise his voice, yet those words clearly reached the ears of everyone present.

The weight of the words "final disciple" was far beyond that of a nominal disciple. It represented a true inheritance of mantle and robes, as well as protection without reservation.

Ever since his failed breakthrough and the damage to his Dao heart, Cloud Hermit had not truly accepted a disciple for nearly a century.

Su Yu and the others had mostly been managed on his behalf.

Yet today, before everyone, he personally acknowledged Shen Qingzhou as his final disciple.

This was equivalent to declaring to the entire Profound Heaven Sect that Shen Qingzhou was someone Cloud Hermit intended to protect.

Whoever touched him would be slapping Cloud Hermit in the face. It would be a fight to the death.

Elder Li remained silent for a moment before slowly withdrawing his hand.

He gave a slight nod in Cloud Hermit's direction.

"Since Senior Brother has such intentions, it is this boy's good fortune."

He said nothing more, merely casting Shen Qingzhou a deep look.

Below the platform, Shen Qingzhou's heart shook violently. The pressure brought by Dao Strife suddenly eased.

This meant that the hidden danger surrounding him had been temporarily resolved.

He let out a long sigh of relief inwardly, then immediately bowed toward Cloud Hermit and performed an incomparably solemn great salute.

"This disciple, Shen Qingzhou, pays respects to Master!"

This bow came from the bottom of his heart.

This bow also thoroughly established their relationship.

Su Yu let out a long breath and sat back down.

That lazy smile returned to her face, though it now carried a trace of genuine delight.

Only now had the tournament truly come to an end.

When the turmoil on the Sword-Inquiry Platform had finally settled, the light and shadows inside a secluded, magnificent hall deep within the sect were dim.

Wang Jing, the elder in charge of transmitting teachings, stood bowed in an extremely respectful posture.

Behind a jade table before him sat a young man dressed in a brocade robe patterned with clouds.

The man was handsome, with an abyssal aura. His cultivation was clearly only in the Qi Refining Realm.

Yet an oppressive presence no weaker than that of a Foundation Establishment True Person emanated from him.

He was turning a warm jade pendant over in his hand as he listened to Wang Jing's report.

"...That was roughly what happened. Lu Chen lost, while Shen Qingzhou claimed the championship with cultivation at Qi Refining, Fifth Layer."

"And the Sword Force he used was something we had never heard of. It was indeed somewhat strange."

Wang Jing paused, glanced up, then hurriedly lowered his head again as he added,

"Afterward, Li Changqing tested him, but Cloud Hermit stopped him."

"That old fellow Cloud Hermit... publicly announced that he was accepting Shen Qingzhou as his final disciple."

"Final disciple?"

The young man stopped turning the jade pendant, and an amused smile curled across his lips.

"That old immortal really is protective of his food."

Wang Jing kept his head lowered, barely daring to breathe. He did not dare respond to that remark at all.

The man before him was Zhou Yan, a direct-line true heir of the Purple Palace Zhou Family, one of the sect's three great clans.

He was also the junior most favored by that great figure.

His status within the sect was far beyond that of stewards and elders like them.

"A naturally ordained fate from a crippled inheritance is enough for him to make such a huge fuss?"

Zhou Yan chuckled, his tone carrying a trace of disdain.

"So be it. Since that old thing has protected him, let him grow for a while longer."

He casually tossed the jade pendant in his hand into the air, then steadily caught it again.

"Though the clan elders have always hoped I would consume Dao Ginseng, I am not especially willing. After all, I can still distinguish between suffering for a moment and suffering for a lifetime."

"This hurdle must ultimately be crossed by myself."

Wang Jing's heart tightened. Naturally, he understood what Zhou Yan meant by Dao Ginseng.

Within the sect, some exceptionally gifted disciples without backing had always been secretly raised by these great clans and aristocratic families.

They waited only until their foundations were complete before harvesting them.

Shen Qingzhou was one of the candidates the Zhou Family had long set their sights on.

"Then... how should the Liu Family be dealt with?"

Wang Jing cautiously probed.

"The Liu Family?"

The smile on Zhou Yan's face did not change in the slightest. He remained as unconcerned as ever.

"A pack of things unfit to grace the stage, and they dare covet what is mine?"

"That old fellow Liu Xuantu knows how to read the situation. He did not let the juniors act recklessly. Just send someone to give them a slight warning."

"Yes."

Zhou Yan rose and walked to the window, gazing in the direction of Sword-Coming Peak.

"One Cloud Hermit and one Li Changqing cannot turn the heavens upside down."

"Shen Qingzhou... isn't everyone outside calling him a genius? Then let us watch and see just how high he can grow."

His voice was soft, yet it carried an indifferent air of control over everything.

"Mm... if he truly is a peerless genius, making him Dao Ginseng would indeed be somewhat wasteful."

"If he can help me perfect my Intent in the future, it would not be impossible to reward him with a path out. I only hope he does not disappoint me."