This Sword Grotto-Heaven differed from ordinary evolved grotto-heavens.
Inside, there were no mountains, rivers, or lakes, only scenery strikingly similar to that of the Sword Tomb.
Tens of thousands of swords were thrust into the ground in chaotic disarray across the expanse.
Sword qi crisscrossed and surged, whipping up howling gusts of astral wind.
The entire grotto-heaven was a world exclusively belonging to swords, incapable of harboring any other living thing.
Inside the Sword Tomb, outside the Sword Grotto-Heaven, the clone Li Qing—whose body had previously been shattered to pieces—slowly reformed his physical shape amid a writhing mass of flesh and blood.
"Early Nascent Soul stage." Sensing his own cultivation, he nodded slightly.
His realm was somewhat weaker than that of his true body. Although his actual combat power could not compare either, having built his Dao Foundation upon a wonder of Heaven meant that crushing an ordinary Soul Formation cultivator was no trouble at all.
Yet upon stepping into the Nascent Soul realm, Li Qing felt an unseen resistance impeding his forward path.
When the clone bade farewell to the wooden sword wonder of Heaven and returned to the Xuanhuang Realm, that faint malice became even more pronounced.
A passage of words could not help but surface in Li Qing's mind:
"The Heavenly Venerable new method is truly an act against Heaven. The more grace one receives from Heaven and Earth, the more difficult it will be when defying the principles of Heaven and Earth in the future.
"When offering sacrifice to the anima of Heaven and Earth, one will even suffer multiplied backlash from the will of Heaven and Earth. No matter how great one's talent, one will basically halt at Soul Formation."
Perhaps because Li Qing had contributed to the birth of this black sword, he had not encountered excessive resistance when devouring it and transforming it into a grotto-heaven.
Even so, he had a premonition that this was already the limit of what Heaven and Earth could tolerate.
If he wished to advance further, ascending to Soul Formation or even Dao Integration, he would have to face the malice of heaven and earth head-on.
However, Li Qing did not mind much.
After all, as a clone, his mission was not cultivation, but rather journeying to the Five Elders Association and going to Heavenly Venerable Yixin to reclaim the lost cultivation techniques of the Profound Heaven Sect.
Reviewing the information sent over by his true body, Li Qing noted that due to the previous inexplicable spatial fluctuation, the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association were currently in a rare period of truce.
After getting his bearings, Li Qing transformed into a streak of black escaping light and sped rapidly toward his destination.
As he flew, Li Qing immediately noticed something different from before.
When his true body soared through the sky, it had to overcome the resistance of Heaven and Earth as well as the head-on assault of astral winds.
Yet Li Qing, having transformed into a sword light, moved like a fish in water, blending seamlessly with his surroundings.
Not only was the resistance virtually negligible, but the energy consumed by his flight was astoundingly low!
"A wonder of Heaven originally belongs to the Xuanhuang Heavenly Dao. Naturally, it receives preferential treatment."
Flying was no longer an arduous chore, but had instead become a kind of enjoyment.
Li Qing felt profoundly refreshed. If not for the fear of drawing the Alliance's attention, he would have let out a long, resounding cry of exhilaration.
The black sword light grew faster and faster, flashing across the sky.
Even if someone inadvertently caught a glimpse of it, they would only assume their eyes were playing tricks on them.
Barely seven days later, Jiwei Province of the Five Elders Association was already visible in the distance.
Before the White Mist Barrier that spanned heaven and earth, a squad of cultivators from the Alliance's Martial Practice Hall was stationed.
Li Qing did not alert them. Relying on the information his true body had transmitted, he easily bypassed the monitoring of the Alliance's defensive grand formation and slipped into the white mist.
As a buffer province between the Five Elders Association and the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals, Jiwei Province was untouched by the power of any Heavenly Venerable other than Heavenly Venerable Wuyou.
The reason he chose to enter the Five Elders Association from here was that he could bypass the Country of Truth and head straight for the One Heart Immortal Sect after crossing the Heavenly Realm of Humanity.
In the Country of Truth, no falsehood could hide. It was clearly not a suitable place for covert infiltration, so it was best avoided if possible.
By comparison, the Heavenly Realm of Humanity was far safer.
Compared to the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals preparing for war, the territory of the Five Elders Association appeared far more peaceful.
Apart from heavily fortified borders and buffer provinces lined with massive troop deployments, the other provinces seemed entirely oblivious to the existence of war. Along the way, the cultivators and mortals Li Qing encountered were all utterly relaxed, even somewhat indolent.
Li Qing could not help but click his tongue in wonder, admiring the Five Elders Association's way of governing its subordinates.
Without encountering any danger, Li Qing crossed the Heavenly Realm of Humanity and finally arrived in the territory of the One Heart Immortal Sect.
Of course, the reason his journey had gone so smoothly—aside from his Dao Foundation being a wonder of Heaven, which granted him exceptional stealth—was likely because he had never joined the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals.
If a cultivator of the Alliance wished to infiltrate so effortlessly, it would probably prove rather difficult.
This place was called Yilu Province.
True to its name, as far as the eye could see lay endless, fertile plains.
Mortals' merchant caravans could even be seen traveling between cities.
Unlike the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals, where cultivators and mortals lived apart, every city in the Five Elders Association housed a mixed population of mortals and cultivators.
There was merely a division between the outer and inner cities.
Mortals lived in the outer city, while cultivators resided in the inner city.
Sensing the somewhat familiar scenery around him, Li Qing fell into thought.
"I seem to have been here before..."
Suppressing these stray thoughts in an instant, Li Qing began searching for his objective.
According to the information from his true body, the key to entering the true One Heart Immortal Sect was to attract the attention of Heavenly Venerable Yixin.
The erotic picture books circulating secretly within the Five Elders Association were the swiftest and most effective method.
Unfortunately, this operation did not seem to be going very smoothly.
Li Qing had wandered around Yilu Province for several days without finding any of those audaciously daring merchants.
Yet this was understandable. After all, openly distributing such materials right under the nose of a Heavenly Venerable could genuinely cost someone their head.
Just as Li Qing was thinking of trying his luck in another province, a sudden commotion broke out in the normally tranquil city.
His interest piqued, Li Qing followed the crowd toward the center of the incident.
"You're Wan Zailai?!"
Several cultivators surrounded a handsome young man in fluttering white robes, their expressions hostile.
"So you found me after all. Well, that's fine. After resting for a few days, it's about time I got back to work." Wan Zailai cast a sidelong glance across the surrounding crowd. Under the pressure of his gaze, the surrounding cultivators subconsciously took half a step back.
At this, the cultivators of Yilu Province lost face.
One of them snapped in shame and anger, "A mere Golden Core cultivator dares spout such arrogant nonsense, claiming our Yilu Province is full of incompetents!
"Today, I'll teach you a good lesson!"
"Brother Pei, you are already in the Nascent Soul realm. Isn't it unbecoming to bully the weak like this?" an onlooker urged.
Before the Pei-surnamed cultivator could speak, Wan Zailai chuckled softly. "So what if you're a Nascent Soul cultivator? In my eyes, you're nothing more than clay chickens and pottery dogs!"
At these words, all the Yilu Province cultivators present turned furious.
"Good! Very good!"
"Pei Qingshan of Yilu Province requests your guidance!"
As Pei Qingshan spoke, a transparent, circular structure suddenly materialized in the sky.
Amid gasps of astonishment from the crowd, the colosseum-like building cast down two beams of radiance, drawing both duelists inside.
"It's the Heavenly Venerable's trial arena!"
"It seems the rumors were true! Wan Zailai really intends to challenge Nascent Soul cultivators with his sword as a Golden Core, all to enter the One Heart Immortal Sect!"
Chapter 915