The collapse of Mirror Memory City sounded like heaven and earth shattering. The instant Chu Mo was flung away by the blast wave, the Chaos Sword instinctively formed a protective barrier in his palm. Prism fragments crashed against the shield like a torrential rain, each one reflecting his slightly pale face—within those reflections, some held bloodstained broken swords, some knelt before the First Generation Sword Master's coffin, and others... had the vertical pupils of a demon god gleaming in their eyes.
"Chu Mo!" Yun Che's cry pierced through the chaos. He jolted awake to find himself falling into a faintly glowing sea of mist. His childhood sweetheart's hand passed through the barrier and gripped his wrist tightly. The warmth of her fingertips calmed him, yet the moment he touched the calluses on her palm, his heart suddenly clenched with pain—marks left by years of sword practice, overlapping with memories of them training together in the Ye family's back mountain.
"Where is Mirror Abyss?" Chu Mo asked hoarsely, his gaze searching through the sea of mist. Yun Che shook her head, broken prism fragments still caught in her hair. "The energy storm swept him away... and Su Hanxue too." Her voice paused, and something complicated flickered in the depths of her beautiful eyes. "Just now, in the mirror image, I saw... I saw another ending for you in the Ye family's forbidden ground."
The sea of mist suddenly shook violently as a colossal bronze gate emerged from the void. Its doors were carved with the same runes as the Chaos Sword, while three ancient characters slowly lit up above its lintel: Primordial Chaos Realm. Chu Mo's grip on Yun Che's hand abruptly tightened. He recognized this place from the fragmentary scroll of the Primordial Sword Art—the "Sword Master's Trial Ground"—but he had never expected it to appear when Mirror Memory City collapsed.
"Go in!" He had no time to explain as he pulled Yun Che toward the massive gate. The instant his fingertips touched its surface, a demon god's furious roar rang out from the depths of the mist. Countless black tentacles pierced through the fog and lashed toward them. The Chaos Sword flew from its sheath on its own, slashing out twelve streams of Sword Qi before the gate. Each resonated with the runes upon it, forming a golden shield of light.
The moment the colossal gate opened with a thunderous boom, Chu Mo felt his soul being savagely dragged inside. When he opened his eyes again, he was in a starry sky filled with countless floating sword tombs. Tens of thousands of ancient swords rose and fell through the void, each entwined with power of law of different attributes—karmic flames that had burned for ten thousand years upon fiery blades, profound ice that would never melt upon frosted scabbards, and world-destroying lightning coursing over thunder-lit sword bodies.
"This is... the First Generation Sword Master's sword domain?" Yun Che's voice was filled with reverence. Chu Mo did not answer. His gaze had been drawn to the Bronze Altar at the very center. Half a golden-glowing page floated above it—it was the missing first half of the Primordial Sword Art! Beneath the altar lay a corpse clad in tattered sword armor, and the wound in its chest was exactly the same as the place where he had stabbed his own heart in Mirror Memory City.
"Watch out!" Yun Che suddenly threw herself over him. A crimson sword beam skimmed past his hair and shattered a distant sword tomb. Chu Mo looked up and saw Su Hanxue standing atop a giant sword burning with karmic flames. Her white robes had been dyed red with blood, her veil had vanished completely, and the demon god totem on her forehead now faintly resonated with the altar's runes. "Chu Mo, do you think opening the Primordial Chaos Realm will give you answers?" Her voice was no longer cold; instead, it carried a mad, laughing edge. "The First Generation Sword Master died long ago. What he left behind is nothing but a cage to trap every inheritor of the Chaos Sword Body!" As she spoke, she raised a hand and summoned back more than ten ancient swords. The power of law upon their blades surged wildly, forming a savage demon god phantom behind her.
Yun Che tightened her grip on her flexible sword, but suddenly staggered and dropped to one knee. Chu Mo realized in alarm that her aura was rapidly fading. Only then did he remember that, in Mirror Memory City, she had already suffered grievous wounds while shielding him from Mirror Abyss's attack.
"You go first!" Yun Che gritted her teeth and raised her head, tears shining in her eyes. "Get the first half of the sword art. I can hold on!"
Chu Mo's nails dug deeply into his palms. The fragmentary page above the altar was calling to him, while beneath it, in the bronze corpse's chest, he could vaguely see a shard made from the same material as the Chaos Sword. Su Hanxue's demon god phantom had already raised its giant sword wreathed in karmic flames. Everywhere its sword wind passed, sword tombs throughout the starry sky crumbled apart.
The sword art, or Yun Che? The thought crashed into his heart like a massive hammer. The power of the Chaos Sword Body boiled within him, while the contents of the Primordial Sword Art fragment surged through his Sea of Consciousness. Then he suddenly recalled what Mirror Abyss had said before fading away: "Chaos and mirror images are one and the same." Perhaps... there was no need to choose at all!
"Yun Che, grab my hand!" Chu Mo suddenly turned and thrust the Chaos Sword into the altar. Golden blood flowed down the blade and into the altar. The shard in the bronze corpse's chest resonated, then slowly merged into his Chaos Sword Body. At the same time, Su Hanxue's giant sword had already descended above his head, and the demon god phantom's roar made his eardrums ache.
When Chu Mo opened his eyes again, he found himself in the bamboo forest behind the Ye family estate. Yun Che, his childhood sweetheart, was crouched beside a stream washing her sword. Hearing him, she lifted her head, mischief he knew so well dancing in her eyes. "Chu Mo, were you secretly practicing swordsmanship until this late again?"
No, this is an illusion! Chu Mo clenched the hilt of his sword. The runes on the Chaos Sword suddenly lit up, and the bamboo forest instantly collapsed, revealing the crumbling starry sky of the Primordial Chaos Realm. He saw his hand passing through Yun Che's body, while the real Yun Che was still kneeling beside the altar, blood dripping from the corner of her mouth.
"So that's it... the Primordial Chaos Realm's trial tests one's Dao heart." Chu Mo muttered to himself as the Chaos Sword suddenly erupted with radiance greater than ever before. He turned to face Su Hanxue. There was no longer any confusion in his eyes, only a light as resolute as a sword. "No matter what scheme the First Generation Sword Master has, no matter whether this is a cage or not—my Dao will be decided by me!"
Before his words had faded, every ancient sword in the starry sky suddenly turned, their blades all pointing toward Su Hanxue. Chu Mo raised a hand and clenched it. The Chaos Sword resonated with the altar's fragmentary page, condensing a Chaos Sword Shadow behind him even taller than the demon god phantom. The instant the shadow swung its sword, the entire Primordial Chaos Realm trembled. Su Hanxue's demon god phantom shattered like papier-mâché, and she herself was sent flying, coughing up blood.
"You... you can actually control the First Generation Sword Master's sword domain..." Su Hanxue stared at him in disbelief, and fear finally flashed through her eyes.
Chu Mo ignored her and hurried to Yun Che's side, gently lifting her into his arms. When his fingertips touched her brow, Chaos Power poured into her body, and her fatal wounds began healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"Chu Mo, look!" Yun Che suddenly pointed toward the altar. Chu Mo raised his head and saw the fragmentary page atop the altar slowly merging into his Chaos Sword. The bronze corpse had already turned to dust and scattered with the wind. Where the corpse had vanished, a new line of runes appeared: The Chaos Sword Body is born against fate; it cuts away all falsehood, and with one sword settles heaven and earth.
The starry sky of the Primordial Chaos Realm began to collapse. Chu Mo knew they had to leave this place. Carrying Yun Che in his arms, he walked toward the bronze gate as it began to close. Su Hanxue's figure gradually blurred behind them. Just as he was about to step out of the Primordial Chaos Realm, Chu Mo suddenly heard a familiar voice in his Sea of Consciousness. "Little one, congratulations on passing the trial. Next, go to the God Domain. There... you will find your true opponent."
That voice was exactly the same as the avatar within the First Generation Sword Master's coffin! Chu Mo's heart tightened, but before he could think further, he was swept into another spatial turbulence. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself standing upon an unfamiliar continent. Nine enormous floating islands hung in the sky, each radiating powerful energy fluctuations—the God Domain, the pinnacle existence among countless worlds.
"Chu Mo, did we... make it?" Yun Che's voice held the joy of surviving a catastrophe.
Chu Mo nodded, looking toward the floating islands of the God Domain in the distance. A trace of determination flashed through his eyes. The conspiracy of Mirror Memory City, the trial of the Primordial Chaos Realm, the First Generation Sword Master's message—everything foretold even greater challenges waiting ahead. Yet at this moment, with the Chaos Sword in his hand and his childhood sweetheart in his arms, there was no fear left in his heart.
"Let's go, Yun Che," Chu Mo said softly. "Our road has only just begun."
Before his words could fade, a deafening boom suddenly came from the sky. One floating island shook violently as countless powerful auras rose from it. Chu Mo looked up and saw a figure in black armor gazing down at them from the island's peak, cold killing intent gleaming in his eyes.
A new storm was about to rise in the God Domain. And Chu Mo would wield his Chaos Sword to cleave through every obstacle and embark upon the path to becoming a Sword Sovereign.
Before you continue