That night, the moon was bright and the stars were few.

The cold wind was crisp, and the withered leaves rustled bleakly.

Zhao Rui sat cross-legged on his bed, his eyes closed in quiet contemplation.

True Qi swirled around his body like a great vortex, enveloping the entire room.

Boundless True Qi seeped through the cracks in the door, penetrated the walls, and permeated the earth and sky, slowly pouring into his body in various elemental forms.

His Dantian and Qi Sea had long since solidified to the density of mercury, emitting the vibrating thrum of roiling liquid.

According to the doctrines of the Daoist School of Cultivation, this was akin to one’s qi and blood becoming like mercury, surging ceaselessly.

"Sword, come!"

Zhao Rui’s eyes fluttered open. The longsword resting beside him shot out of its scabbard in an instant. It gleamed brightly under the lamplight, coiling around his body like a roaming dragon.

’The Profound Celestial Sword Technique! It truly is unique! To be able to command an ordinary Treasure Sword as if it were an extension of my own arm... If I were to combine this with Sword Intent, couldn’t I reach the state of Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Root?’

Zhao Rui’s eyes lit up. Such a possibility was not out of the question.

Although the Emei Sword Intent was powerful, it couldn’t command ten thousand swords. It lacked a certain sword-controlling heart method, and ordinary Treasure Swords didn’t possess enough spirituality to be controlled in such a manner.

The power of Sword Intent lay in its conceptual state—in the True Qi it unleashed, which naturally carried the sharp edge of Sword Qi.

Its sharpness was unparalleled and ever-enduring.

It was a form of the Sword Dao. When Sword Intent reached its apex, it could evolve into a Sword Domain. That was the true pinnacle of Sword Intent, where all things could become swords, and all swords would bend to one’s will.

The Sword Control Skill, on the other hand, emphasized manipulation and communication.

It primarily involved using one’s Divine Soul True Essence Power to cast a Technique upon a Treasure Sword in order to command it.

The Profound Celestial Sword Technique was precisely this kind of Cultivation Technique.

However, while the Kongtong Sect’s Profound Celestial Sword Technique could command ordinary Treasure Swords, executing the Sword Technique’s associated arts was time-consuming and exhausting. It couldn’t instantaneously connect with the Spiritual Qi of ten thousand swords through sheer will.

It was more of a technical skill!

But for Zhao Rui, these two issues were not issues at all.

Because Zhao Rui possessed both Sword Intent and the Sword Technique, he could not only manifest countless projections of himself, but wherever his Sword Intent reached, ten thousand swords would submit. By simultaneously wielding the Sword Technique, wherever his Sword Intent was present, ten thousand swords would obey, and the Sword Technique could be easily inscribed upon them by his will.

Under the combined power of his Sword Intent and Sword Technique, while not yet a true Sword Domain, it was not far off.

At this thought, Zhao Rui felt an irresistible itch to try. He leaped out of the lodging area, soared high into the air, and sat cross-legged, quietly sensing his Circulation Sword Intent.

Ten meters in every direction, then a hundred, then a thousand...

The entire mountain peak of the Kongtong Sect was enveloped by his Sword Intent.

Swords were scattered all over the Kongtong Sect’s mountain. Every disciple carried one, and the massive armory housed countless more Sword Embryos and blades—more than the hairs on an ox.

In his sea of consciousness, every single sword emanated a conspicuous glow, like starlight in the darkness.

These swords varied in strength, and the light they produced differed in size and intensity.

But without exception, as long as Zhao Rui willed it, he could remotely inscribe the Sword Technique upon them and take control of these swords.

Of course, if any of these swords contained a spiritual attachment stronger than his own, he would naturally be unable to simply clear it away and assume control from a distance.

Among all this starlight, one gleam deep in the back mountain shone the brightest.

But this light flickered, extremely unstable, as if it were absorbing the Sword Intent from the world around it.

’This must be the Sect’s Divine Artifact that Master Changkong mentioned, the one forged by the combined efforts of the Gui Xu Kongtong masters.’

Zhao Rui thought to himself.

Zhao Rui didn’t dare to linger. After all, the back mountain was home to many Gui Xu Kongtong masters, and it was possible a Domain Powerhouse would detect his prying Sword Intent.

Just as he was shifting his gaze elsewhere, his expression suddenly froze. He quickly focused his Divine Soul Power and peered into the distance.

In a remote corner of Kongtong Mountain, he saw a light even more brilliant and eye-catching than that of the Sect’s Divine Weapon in the back mountain.

Beside this brilliant light, several other gleams of sword light flickered.

But none of them were as dazzling as this one.

’This is...?’

Zhao Rui was momentarily stunned. ’Could the Kongtong Sect be hiding another Divine Weapon?’

’Is some master bringing it back up the mountain right now?’

’Or perhaps...?’

Zhao Rui’s eyes lit up as a possibility occurred to him. With a flicker of his body, he was already rushing toward the source of the starlight.

When he arrived near the starlight, he held his breath and looked from afar, his expression immediately turning grave.

Among the rocks ahead, five masters were concealing their figures, slowly making their way toward the summit.

One of them was a man Zhao Rui had met once before: the Kongtong Sect disciple, Lin Zhenren, Lin Han.

"Who’s there?"

A mere flicker in Zhao Rui’s emotions had actually alerted the people below. One of them barked out a sharp command.

The voice exploded like a thunderclap next to Zhao Rui’s ears.

Zhao Rui, however, was a master of the Heavenly Demon Illusionary Sound Technique. When it came to the dao of melody, he could be considered a grandmaster. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Before the sound wave even reached his ears, he had already used his True Qi to disrupt its frequency, turning it into a harmless, ordinary sound and stripping it of its killing power.

Although their Sound Skill was ineffective against him, the fact that they could become so alert from just a slight emotional ripple on his part was enough to demonstrate their terrifying strength.

Since he had been discovered, Zhao Rui no longer bothered to hide. He laughed heartily and called out, "Fellow Daoist Lin, I trust you’ve been well?"

The abrupt voice instantly echoed throughout Kongtong Mountain.

"Withdraw!"

The person who had shouted earlier reacted with extreme speed. Seeing that Zhao Rui was completely unaffected, he knew they had encountered a formidable enemy and decisively gave the order to retreat.

All five were experts. Their figures flickered, and they shot down the mountain.

Their speed was so great that in the blink of an eye, they were already a thousand meters away.

They were fast, but the Kongtong elders were not slow either.

Three figures appeared beside Zhao Rui in an instant.

After getting a clear look at the fleeing figures below, they exclaimed in shock, "Lin Han, you traitor who betrayed your master and ancestors! How dare you return to the mountain?"