At the instant the Chaos space shuddered, roars echoed from all directions across the Chaos before instantly dying away. Zhang Qing then felt the massive clusters of Qi of Chaos that he had summoned being blasted apart, followed by the outermost compound array being completely destroyed in a single flash.
When that wave made contact with the Imprisoning Heaven Flame Array, a heaven-shaking red light flashed, actually halting the wave for a fraction of a second. Zhang Qing instantly blanketed his body in Chaos Sword Qi, adding a layer of insurance to his armor.
In the next instant, the Imprisoning Heaven Flame Array was also breached. The ringing of swords echoed far into the Chaos space as his early-stage Daluo Golden Immortal cultivation was pushed to its absolute limit. Then he felt his armor vibrate, and Zhang Qing instantly lost consciousness.
When he woke up again, Zhang Qing was still somewhat dazed. Scenes from his past life flashed one by one through his mind, followed by countless years of cultivation within the Chaos space.
Opening his eyes, he found himself lying beneath a stone stele. The armor on his body was tattered and torn, but his physical body was completely uninjured—after all, his true form was that of Xiantian Chaos Sword Qi.
His physical body's sturdiness was nothing short of monstrous. Raising his head to look up along the stone stele, two mysterious Xiantian runes appeared before his eyes. The two characters "Fangzhang" instantly surfaced in his mind; although he did not consciously recognize these runes, he simply knew what they meant.
"Could this be Fangzhang Immortal Island, one of the three great overseas immortal mountains formed from the fragments of the Chaos within the Primordial World?" Zhang Qing was thrilled. Not only had he survived the Heaven-Opening tribulation, but he had also materialized directly upon the legendary Fangzhang Immortal Island. Truly, those who survive a great disaster are bound to enjoy later blessings!
Zhang Qing hurriedly crossed his legs and checked his condition. Upon inspection, he was shocked to discover that his Daluo Golden Immortal realm had been unceremoniously knocked right back down to the Taiyi Realm.
He was back at mid-stage Taiyi, instantly reverting to where he was before liberation. Zhang Qing gave a bitter smile; there was no time to cultivate yet. Investigating this island first was the priority—he needed to make sure there were no hidden dangers.
One had to remember that this was the Primordial World after the Chaos, and who knew how long he had been unconscious? If there were any terrifying entities on the island, wouldn't his situation be truly wretched once again?
Although his cultivation had dropped to the mid-stage Taiyi Golden Immortal level, fortunately, his Daluo Golden Immortal divine sense remained intact without suffering heavy damage. Spreading out his divine sense, it instantly blanketed the entire island.
"Oh? The area isn't small at all, easily spanning tens of thousands of li in radius." Under Zhang Qing's divine sense, the entire Fangzhang Island lay open to view. Though called an "island," it was no different from an immortal mountain.
There were quite a few peaks standing a thousand zhang high, along with towering mountains and deep ravines. Among the mountains roamed spiritual deer and spiritual apes, alongside cranes and jade springs, with spiritual fruits and herbs scattered everywhere. The Chaos spiritual qi formed clouds and mist on the island, condensing into droplets of rain that drifted gently across the mountains—what a marvelous overseas immortal mountain formed from a fragment of the Chaos!
Zhang Qing wanted to fly up high into the air to survey the surrounding environment, especially since he already intended to use this place as his future dojo. His body instantly shot upward, rising into the sky: one thousand zhang, two thousand zhang, three thousand zhang—until suddenly, a barrier blocked his path.
"Huh? What is this?" Zhang Qing wondered in bewilderment. Why couldn't he go any higher? Changing to a different direction, he was blocked at the exact same altitude. Zhang Qing simply decided to drop back down to the island.
With a flash, he appeared at the edge of the island and pressed a hand against the air. Sure enough, there was another barrier—it was actually a protective array, and a Xiantian Chaos defensive grand array at that.
Exerting his entire cultivation, he struck the barrier with a palm. A thunderous roar immediately shook the air, and the stone stele engraved with the characters "Fangzhang" on the island blazed with golden light. "Oh? Could this stone stele be the eye of this Xiantian Chaos grand array? It seems only by refining it can I master this Xiantian array." The workings of the array instantly became clear to him.
Zhang Qing flashed back to the spot where he had just woken up, sat down cross-legged facing the stone stele, and pressed one hand against it. His divine sense enshrouded the entire stone stele and began refining it.
Once the refinement started, a full forty restrictions unfolded within his divine sense. True to being the eye of a Xiantian Chaos grand array, it was actually equivalent to a Xiantian Spiritual Treasure, capable of rivaling the legendary Immortal-Slaying Sword Four.
Thus, Zhang Qing embarked on another grueling journey of refinement, simultaneously refining the stele and recovering his cultivation. When he opened his eyes again, three millennia had passed.
His cultivation had recovered to the late-stage Taiyi Golden Immortal level, his divine sense had reached the mid-stage Daluo level, and his refinement speed had also accelerated considerably. The restrictions had just been largely refined.
He should now be able to gain a preliminary grasp of this array. Zhang Qing soared into the air and struck the top of the stone stele with a palm. The entire Fangzhang Immortal Mountain trembled as the stone stele slowly sank into the ground and vanished. An immensely complex Xiantian array materialized within his mind—he had finally mastered this Xiantian array; it certainly hadn't been easy.
With a series of incantations cast, a gateway was opened in the Xiantian defensive Chaos grand array, and Zhang Qing flashed out of the island. All around lay a boundless expanse of water, where Flood Dragons swam from time to time, chasing giant fish a hundred zhang in size ahead of them. The boundless waters were rich in spiritual qi, yet with Zhang Qing's mid-stage Daluo divine sense cultivation, he still could not detect their borders.
As expected, the Primordial World was still far too vast. The East Sea region alone was boundless and countless tens of thousands of li across. While the external Xiantian spiritual qi was abundant, it still couldn't compare to his Fangzhang Island.
Since the interior was filled with Chaos spiritual qi, recovering his cultivation took precedence, and the array-eye stele still needed further refinement. Zhang Qing planned to add a sword array to this Xiantian defensive array once his cultivation recovered.
This way, the Xiantian Chaos grand array would handle defense while the sword array handled offense, combining offense and defense into one and granting Zhang Qing a shred of peace of mind in this unfamiliar Primordial World.
In the days that followed, Zhang Qing began cultivating day and night. Finally, after countless days and nights, all forty restrictions of the stone stele were completely refined.
His cultivation likewise finally recovered to the peak Taiyi Golden Immortal stage, leaving him only a single step away from his former Daluo Realm. This showed just how severely he had been injured during the Heaven-Opening tribulation.
By now, Zhang Qing was in no rush to continue recovering his cultivation. He wanted to consolidate his foundation in the Taiyi Realm. Back in the Chaos, his cultivation had been forcefully piled up entirely by absorbing the Qi of Chaos.
Aside from the Law of Fire, which he had comprehended and mastered bit by bit on his own, even the primordial body of the Xiantian Chaos Sword Qi had formed naturally rather than through his own refinement.
Therefore, he treated this as a complete recasting and retempering. Armed with the patience forged over countless ages in the Chaos world, Zhang Qing began yet another round of cultivation—not of his Dao attainment and cultivation level, but of his own foundation.
Additionally, he set about refining the sword embryo, which was a Xiantian Spiritual Treasure. Twenty-seven restrictions had already been refined to twenty. The entire sword body resembled a pool of autumn water, moving in absolute silence when brandished.
A single sword strike could instantly shatter a small mountain to dust. Under the control of his divine sense, it could reach ten thousand li away in an instant, making the slaying of Flood Dragons effortless.
After countless more days and nights, his armor was also repaired, restoring the might expected of a Xiantian Spiritual Treasure, and all twenty-seven restrictions of the longsword were finally fully refined.
At the moment the sword was completed, two Xiantian runes naturally manifested at the hilt. Upon careful perception, Zhang Qing discovered they read the characters "Chengying". "From now on, your name shall be the Chengying Sword," Zhang Qing laughed heartily. The Chengying Sword emitted a clear ring in response, as if answering Zhang Qing, which delighted him all the more.