"Prince Wuque's dantian has been destroyed and his Dao foundation is ruined. What punishment do you all think is appropriate?"
In the Northern Domain of the Dayan Dynasty, at Prince Shenwu's Estate.
The Prince of Shenwu, Ning Hongtu, looked down at the heads of the seven branch lineages of the Ning family.
Among them, a burly elder radiating explosive physical power spoke indifferently: "My grandson, Ning Yu, possesses the Sovereign Body of the Firmament and an invincible physique. The only thing he lacks is mediocre comprehension. Ning Wuque's primordial Dao bone can enhance comprehension, so let that be given to my third lineage!"
Others chimed in one after another: "My son is a genius who practices ocular arts. His Piercing False Gold Pupils should belong to my second lineage!"
"Ning Wuque is a Chaos Body, and the blood in his veins is the ultimate medicinal primer for refining the Hunyuan Pill. Let his blood go to my sixth lineage!"
"The disciples of my seventh lineage specialize in the Array Dao, which incurs massive expenses. The treasures Ning Wuque has accumulated over the years should be given to us!"
"My great-grandson, Ning Wushuang, has only just stepped into the Qi Condensation Realm, yet he has already displayed supreme swordsmanship talent. My fourth lineage wants his exquisite sword heart..."
"Going too far!"
In the crowd, Ning Henchen, dressed in a red skirt, glared at everyone. "Wuque's parents sacrificed themselves to protect our Ning family! Now, Wuque only killed the Northern Frontier King's son by accident while fighting for the Xuan Mountain mine on our family's behalf, which provoked the Northern Frontier King to destroy his dantian. Instead of wanting to avenge him, you actually want to carve up his physical body and treasures? Are you even human?!"
"Ning Wuque is a member of our Ning family. Isn't it his bounden duty to make sacrifices for the clan?"
"Ning Henchen, you are Wuque's aunt. We all understand that it is hard for you to accept him becoming like this. However, the Ning family has also put in a lot to cultivate him over the years, and your fifth lineage has gained quite a few benefits. Now it's time for your fifth lineage to give back to the clan!"
"Ning Wuque is already a cripple. The organs on his body can be put to use for other clansmen, which can be considered recycling waste. You shouldn't stop this!"
"Bounden duty? Recycling waste? Ever since Wuque stepped into the Spirit Refining Realm, he has fought everywhere for the family, conquering territories for the past eight years. The mines he personally seized alone number over a hundred. Doesn't this make up for the family? Have your consciences been eaten by dogs?!"
Ning Henchen bit her lower lip, turned to Ning Hongtu, who had remained silent all along, and said, "Prince, back when my brother and sister-in-law fell in battle, you personally promised that you would take good care of Wuque. You..."
"Are you interrogating this Prince?"
Ning Hongtu's eyes narrowed. The crushing pressure of his powerful aura caused Ning Henchen's face to instantly turn pale.
"Henchen, I know you feel a sense of injustice in your heart, but everything we are doing is for the Ning family. For the prosperity of the clan, some sacrifices are inevitable."
Ning Hongtu slowly withdrew his gaze, his calm voice carrying indisputable authority. "Of course, this Prince will not treat your lineage unfairly either. From now on, twenty percent of the resources allocated annually will be drawn from each lineage and handed over to you. In addition, seeing that you have been stuck at the Yin-Yang Realm for many years, I will bestow upon you a Five Elements Spirit Pill to help you enter the Five Elements Realm. How about that?"
"Ning Henchen, you should know when you've had enough!"
"Do not be insatiably greedy!"
The others spoke one after another.
Ning Henchen's bloodshot eyes were filled with reluctance. Though she wanted to protect Ning Wuque, she also knew that she stood alone and was utterly powerless to resist. Gritting her teeth, she said, "I can agree to the other conditions, but his heart must not be harvested. As for the Five Elements Spirit Pill, there's no need. I must ask the Prince to trade it for a Seven-Star Life-Extension Pill for me instead!"
"A Seven-Star Life-Extension Pill? Out of the question! Ning Wuque is already a dying man, giving such a life-saving divine pill to him would be a complete waste!"
Ning Henchen said coldly, "If you don't give me the Seven-Star Life-Extension Pill, don't even think about touching Wuque!"
Everyone looked over at Ning Hongtu.
Ning Hongtu pondered for a moment, then nodded. "Very well, as you wish..."
………
Inside the bedchamber.
Ning Henchen looked at Ning Wuque, who was lying on the bed—his eyes dug out, his Dao bone excised, and the blood in his body almost entirely drained. With a complex expression, she sighed softly, "Wuque, it's all Auntie's fault for being useless and failing to protect you..."
On the bed.
Ning Wuque kept his eyes tightly closed, his entire body exuding an aura of death.
Just half an hour ago.
The powerhouses of the Ning family had dug out his eyes, excised his Dao bone, and drained nearly all of his blood.
Even with the reinforcement of the Seven-Star Life-Extension Pill, given his current state, he had at most seven days left to live.
Reflecting on his life, Ning Wuque felt an incomparable desolation.
To think that he, Ning Wuque, began practicing martial arts at the age of three, and by age ten had crossed the Body Tempering, Qi Condensation, and Spirit Refining Realms, reaching the Mortal Shedding Realm—the final stage of the four Postnatal realms.
Furthermore, he entered the Xiantian Spirit Gathering Realm at age twelve, and now, at only sixteen, he had broken through to the Mystery-Accessing Realm, earning renown as the premier prodigy of the contemporary Dayan Dynasty.
One must understand that the seven Xiantian realms—Spirit Gathering, Mystery-Accessing, Yin-Yang, Five Elements, Turning Wheel, Nirvana Realm, and Celestial Phenomenon—each represented a vastly different heaven.
Someone as powerful as Ning Henchen, after practicing for over forty years, had merely reached the peak of the Yin-Yang Realm.
One could thus imagine how terrifying a sixteen-year-old in the Mystery-Accessing Realm truly was!
Over the years.
Ning Wuque had fought in all directions for the Ning family, conquering territories with hard-earned merit.
And the result?
At his time of distress, not only did the Ning family fail to lend a helping hand, but they even threw stones at someone who had fallen down a well.
Ning Wuque's heart turned to ashes.
At that moment.
A low voice from outside the door interrupted Ning Wuque's thoughts: "Master, Princess Yunshang of the Southern Suppression Prince's Estate is here to see you!"
"Mu Yunshang?"
Ning Henchen was startled, subconsciously looking toward Ning Wuque on the bed.
Upon hearing those three words, Ning Wuque's body also gave a slight shudder.
Mu Yunshang.
Daughter of the Southern Suppression Prince of the Dayan Dynasty, and Ning Wuque's fiancée.
When Ning Wuque became the youngest Xiantian Martial Artist in the Dayan Dynasty at the age of twelve, the reigning emperor personally bestowed a celestial marriage, betrothing Mu Yunshang to him.
However.
Ever since the two of them became engaged, the number of times they had actually met could be counted on one hand.
Now that he had fallen to such a state, Mu Yunshang had come impatiently. I'm afraid...
A bitter smile hung on the corner of Ning Wuque's mouth. "Since I've turned out like this, she's probably here to break off the engagement, right? Auntie, let her in!"
Husband and wife are birds of the same forest; when disaster strikes, they fly their separate ways.
Such things had been common since ancient times.
Moreover...
His days were now numbered.
Yet Mu Yunshang was a lofty princess; her coming to break off the engagement did not come as too much of a surprise to Ning Wuque.
Ning Henchen clearly thought of this as well. With a light sigh, she said, "Let her in!"
"Understood!"
The person outside the door retreated.
A moment later.
Mu Yunshang walked in, dressed in a long green gown, her waterfall-like black hair cascading down her back, looking as cold and detached as a celestial maiden from the nine heavens.
She first bowed to Ning Henchen, and then her cold gaze fell upon Ning Wuque.
Even though she had already known about Ning Wuque's condition, when she truly beheld his appearance, Mu Yunshang still could not help but tremble.
Her lips turned slightly pale, and her cold eyes burned with an ice-cold fury that was suppressed to the ultimate limit.
Ning Henchen spoke up, "Princess Yunshang, what brings you here this time..."
Mu Yunshang replied, "I have come this time for the marriage between Wuque-gege and me."
Just as expected!
Ning Henchen sighed inwardly. She looked at Mu Yunshang with a complicated expression and was about to speak when she heard Ning Wuque say from the bed, "Auntie, the marriage contract between Princess Yunshang and me is in the cabinet on the left. Please take it out and return it to the Princess!"
"Alright!"
Ning Henchen nodded, found the marriage contract where Ning Wuque had directed, and handed it toward Mu Yunshang. "Princess Yunshang, this is the marriage contract!"
Ning Wuque said, "Princess Yunshang, I already know your purpose here. If you tear up the marriage contract, our engagement will be annulled..."
Mu Yunshang did not take the marriage contract. Instead, she walked straight up to the bed.
She gently squatted down beside Ning Wuque.
Gazing at the peerless prodigy before her—one who had once been the object of admiration for every young woman in the Dayan Dynasty—at this moment, her heart held nothing but aching tenderness as she spoke softly, "Who told you I was here to break off the engagement?"
"Hm?"
Ning Wuque was stunned.
Mu Yunshang gently took Ning Wuque's hand and said softly, "Wuque-gege, I came today to take you home."
"H-Home?"
Ning Wuque was dumbfounded.
Ning Henchen also parted her lips slightly, a look of utter astonishment on her face.
Mu Yunshang repeated, "Wuque-gege, come back to the Southern Frontier with me and marry me, okay?"
Ning Wuque's throat bobbed a few times, and his hoarse voice carried a hint of bitterness, "Why must the Princess make fun of a dying man like me?"
He had turned into this wretched state.
Right now, he was merely dragging out his last breath relying on the Seven-Star Life-Extension Pill, and had no more than seven days to live!
Yet Mu Yunshang was none other than a princess of the Southern Suppression Prince's Estate and the reigning emperor's own niece.
How could she possibly marry someone like him?
Mu Yunshang said with a completely earnest expression, "I am not joking with you, Wuque-gege. Ever since our engagement, I have been looking forward to this day day and night! It's just that you were previously entirely devoted to cultivation, fighting in all directions for Prince Shenwu's Estate, so I could only wait. Now, I don't want to wait anymore. Let's go home together, alright?"
Ning Wuque's mind and soul shook violently.
He could feel Mu Yunshang's sincerity.
Yet it was precisely this sincerity that made him find it hard to believe.
"Yunshang, you really don't have to do this..."
Ning Wuque smiled bitterly. "I am a dying man. If you marry me, you'll be widowed in seven days. You..."
Mu Yunshang declared, "I, Mu Yunshang, recognize only you, Ning Wuque, in this lifetime! If you live, I will tend to you and raise our children! If you die, I will remain a widow for you!"
Boom!
Ning Wuque's body trembled violently.
Even though his body was now nothing more than an empty, hollow shell, upon hearing Mu Yunshang's words, his blood still surged with heat.
To obtain such a wife in this life, what more could a husband ask for?!
If he weren't completely paralyzed right now, he would have jumped up and pulled Mu Yunshang tightly into his arms.
When his dantian was destroyed and his cultivation utterly ruined.
Ning Wuque had only felt despair.
When everyone in Prince Shenwu's Estate decided to carve up his Chaos Dao Body, his heart had turned to absolute ash, and he had simply wanted to end his life.
Yet right now...
Mu Yunshang's appearance brought a ray of light into his world, which had been invaded by darkness.
It suddenly gave him the will to live on.
Mu Yunshang looked at Ning Wuque with a heart full of anguish, and said softly, "Wuque-gege, I will take you away from this cold, ruthless place. Let's go home, alright?"
"..."
Ning Wuque remained silent for a moment before finally speaking, "Yunshang, take me away."
"Mn!"
Mu Yunshang embraced Ning Wuque. Her frail body held him securely in her arms as she slowly stood up and looked toward Ning Henchen. "Auntie, please trouble yourself to tell everyone in Prince Shenwu's Estate that I, Mu Yunshang, have remembered everything they did to Wuque-gege. One day, I will reclaim justice for my husband. Tell them... to wait."
"Princess Yunshang..."
Ning Henchen's expression tightened.
Before she could speak, however, Mu Yunshang had already picked up Ning Wuque and strode away.
Watching the two figures depart, Ning Henchen's expression flickered uncertainly, ultimately turning into a deep sigh: "So be it, so be it..."
Mu Yunshang carefully cradled Ning Wuque as she boarded the carriage.
They journeyed all the way toward the Southern Frontier.
Mu Yunshang looked quietly at Ning Wuque in her arms: "Wuque-gege, this is the Divine Travel Chariot I specifically asked Father for. We will be able to return to the Southern Frontier in just five days. You must hold on; I'm waiting for you to marry me!"
Mu Yunshang did not wait for Ning Wuque's reply.
Assuming he was simply too weak, she stopped speaking and just held him quietly.
What Mu Yunshang did not know at this moment, however, was that Ning Wuque was not too weak to answer her.
Rather, just as Mu Yunshang was carrying him away from Prince Shenwu's Estate, a silver light had transferred from within Mu Yunshang's body into Ning Wuque's.
Almost simultaneously.
A sound like a divine thunderclap from the nine heavens exploded within his mind...
"Reborn through nine lifetimes, creating the Eternal Law!"
"Across the myriad realms and heavens, I alone am supreme!"
Chapter 2: Chaos Sword Body
"Across the myriad realms and heavens, I alone am supreme!"
The resounding sound was like a great bronze bell, shaking the nine heavens and reverberating between heaven and earth.
Within Ning Wuque's vision—which had previously been pitch black—a brilliant light suddenly emerged, fierce enough to eclipse everything else. It grabbed Ning Wuque's consciousness and plunged straight into it.
An incomparably vast ancient starry road appeared before him.
On both sides of the ancient road burned rows of bronze ancient lamps, emitting an intense, blazing light powerful enough to illuminate thousands of worlds.
"C-Could the things glowing on these bronze ancient lamps actually be suns?!"
Ning Wuque felt his throat go completely dry, shocked beyond all measure.
Along the ancient starry road, there were precisely ten thousand and eight hundred bronze ancient lamps.
This meant that exactly ten thousand and eight hundred suns had been refined and fused into the ancient lamps to illuminate the starry road beneath his feet.
Suppressing his shock, Ning Wuque walked forward along the ancient starry road.
Along the way, he could see towering divine figures and terrifying entities.
There were supreme divine venerables with three heads and six arms;
Overlord demonic emperors with three eyes on their foreheads, capable of swallowing the sun, moon, and rivers of stars;
And dragons, phoenixes, and qilin standing at the peak of countless living beings...
At this moment.
They all maintained a posture of prostration.
The direction they bowed toward was none other than the end of the ancient starry road.
These terrifying beings, capable of shaking myriad eras, were lined up on either side like a group of sacrificial burial objects!
"What kind of sacred entity resides at the end of this ancient starry road? To actually use a river of stars as a road, blazing suns as lamps, and have divine venerables, demonic emperors, and ancient primordial beasts buried as sacrifices..." Ning Wuque felt his heartbeat accelerate continuously, as if it might burst out of his chest at any moment.
Everything before his eyes was simply too shocking!
"Reborn through nine lifetimes, creating the Eternal Law!"
"Across the myriad realms and heavens, I alone am supreme!"
That booming voice suddenly rang out from the end of the ancient starry road.
The scenery on both sides rapidly receded.
In a split second.
Ning Wuque appeared at the end of the ancient starry road.
Before him lay a black long sword, suspended in a state between illusion and reality.
The blade was pitch black, engraved with gilded inscriptions that coiled like dragons and phoenixes, with primordial runes faintly circulating within them. It was profoundly mysterious and formidable.
It merely floated there quietly, yet felt as though it were the only one of its kind in existence.
Where the sword blade pointed, truth prevailed!
Subconsciously, Ning Wuque reached out toward the black long sword.
Yet at that moment, a sudden change occurred.
The black long sword erupted with a terrifying black light, wrapping around Ning Wuque's arm like a black serpent. With lightning speed, it spread, instantly forming a black cocoon that enveloped Ning Wuque.
Finally, it fused completely with his body.
"I am the Sword Ancestor. This is the divine weapon I refined using my bodies from nine lifetimes, named the Chaos Divine Sword. To obtain this divine sword is to receive my inheritance. It is my hope that my successor will inherit my mantle, practice the supreme sword dao, forge an unshakeable foundation, and testify to the Eternal Law..."
A thunderous roar exploded in Ning Wuque's mind.
A look of profound shock appeared on his face: "What a terrifying Sword Ancestor! He had already reached the supreme peak of myriad eras, yet he resolutely chose to undergo samsara for nine lifetimes, solely to seek that Eternal Law..."
As the sword soul of the Chaos Divine Sword integrated into his body, Ning Wuque understood everything.
"At the very beginning of the birth of heaven and earth, the world's first sword cultivator, the 'Sword Ancestor,' was born. To prove the Eternal Law, he possessed great perseverance, entering reincarnation and undergoing nine lifetimes of reconstruction. Finally, in his ninth life, he discovered the method to achieve eternity and step into the undying realm..."
Ning Wuque marveled at the legendary life of the Sword Ancestor recorded in the information he had just obtained.
After all.
As the very first sword cultivator between heaven and earth, he had already reached the peak of the myriad realms.
Yet, in order to seek the illusory Eternal Law, he had been able to cast aside his peak power and choose reincarnation.
Nine lifetimes of reconstruction!
Every single one reaching the peak!
What a terrifying perseverance and determination that was!
"What a pity..."
At the thought of the Sword Ancestor's ultimate fate, Ning Wuque couldn't help but sigh softly: "Even such a powerful figure ultimately failed to escape the karmic retribution of a man harboring a treasure becoming a target of crime..."
As it turned out.
Including the Sword Ancestor, there were ten innate supremes between heaven and earth.
Each of them had reached the pinnacle of martial arts in the world.
Without exception, all of them were searching for the path of eternity and undying preservation.
After nine lifetimes of reincarnation, the Sword Ancestor finally found this path, immediately arousing the covetousness of the other nine supremes. Just as the Sword Ancestor was on the verge of success, the nine of them joined forces to seize it.
Powerful though the Sword Ancestor was, he struggled to withstand the joint forces of nine supremes.
At the moment of his death.
He refined the Chaos Divine Sword—forged from his bodies across nine lifetimes—splitting it into nine parts, and divided the Eternal Law among them, scattering them across the various realms of the universe.
What Ning Wuque had obtained was merely the sword soul of the Chaos Divine Sword. To acquire the complete Eternal Law, he needed to gather the complete Chaos Divine Sword pieces.
Yet even without currently possessing the complete Chaos Divine Sword,
just the "Chaos Infinite Sword Dao" and the ancestral memories and inheritance of the Sword Ancestor's nine lifetimes of reincarnation were enough to allow Ning Wuque to stand at the peak of the myriad realms.
"How did this sword soul end up inside my body?"
Unable to figure it out, Ning Wuque stopped dwelling on it and instead shifted his attention to the general outline of the "Chaos Infinite Sword Dao" contained within the sword soul.
"The greatest difficulty of the 'Chaos Infinite Sword Dao' is turning the physical body into chaos. Only a body of chaos can contain all Daos in the world. By using a chaos body to smelt the Chaos Divine Sword, one can forge the supreme Chaos Sword Body. When that happens, every single cell in the body will be a sword, and surging sword qi will course through the body like blood—endless, continuous, and unceasing..."
Ning Wuque's eyes lit up. "The Sword Ancestor underwent nine lifetimes of reincarnation precisely to transform his own body into a Chaos Body, yet I am born with a Chaos Body. As long as I refine the sword soul of the Chaos Divine Sword, I can begin practicing the 'Chaos Infinite Sword Dao'!"
This was something even the nine supremes coveted so deeply that they were willing to join forces to kill the Sword Ancestor to obtain it.
It was a peerless cultivation method created by the Sword Ancestor after experiencing nine lifetimes of reincarnation!
And now, for Ning Wuque, it was within arm's reach.
How could he not be excited?
"Misfortune is what fortune leans upon, fortune is what misfortune hides within... Though I suffered this great calamity and nearly died, it has also allowed me to obtain this supreme opportunity. Northern Frontier Prince's Estate, Prince Shenwu's Estate, you bunch of scum, just you wait..."