Chapter 79

After hearing the old man’s words, Ling Chenyan slowly widened her eyes and said, “A fifth divine artifact?”

The old man nodded, his long white eyebrows trailing to the corners of his eyes, as he said with a smile, “How about it, are you shocked?”

Ling Chenyan nodded like a chick pecking at grain and asked in confusion, “But why has there been no news of that fifth divine artifact until now?”

The old man was very satisfied with the shocked expression on Ling Chenyan’s face; his expression became more mysterious as he struck the pose of an otherworldly master.

“Because that fifth divine artifact is the sealed main body of the God-Demon Heaven Sword itself.”

“The four divine artifacts known to the world are merely parts split off from the ancient sacred relic, the God-Demon Heaven Sword.”

“Though called divine artifacts, they are actually just pseudo-artifacts; their power is naturally far inferior to the main body…”

“Shut up, you old fogey!” The old man’s blunt words finally enraged the “pseudo-artifact” Wenxin.

His eyes nearly spit fire: “Who are you calling a pseudo-artifact?!”

The old man lightly evaded the spiritual energy Wenxin swung at him and looked at him, saying, “You should be the one who knows clearest, shouldn’t you?”

Wenxin’s pupils shrank slightly; he did indeed know the clearest.

When he saw the power belonging to ‘that person’ left on Ling Chenyan’s stolen content sealed memories, he had guessed it.

Ling Chenyan was the main body of the God-Demon Heaven Sword, and they were merely parts split off from her.

Therefore, their power was fragmented and incomplete, because the complete power belonged to the God-Demon Heaven Sword.

Ling Chenyan looked at Wenxin’s expression and then at the old man’s calm face; for a moment she couldn’t understand what riddles they were playing.

She couldn’t help but ask, “Then why did she split the God-Demon Heaven Sword into five?”

“That, I do not know,” the old man replied with a shrug.

Ling Chenyan turned her gaze to Wenxin, who ground his teeth: “Why are you looking at me? How would I know.”

At that time, he hadn’t even gained sapience, so of course he didn’t know why “she” wanted to split the sword into five and seal the main body.

Ling Chenyan retracted her gaze and lowered her brows, appearing deep in thought.

Seeing this, the old man said with a smile, “Sigh, I’m getting old. After waiting all these years, I haven’t been able to find the person I was looking for.”

“I haven’t been able to complete the task she entrusted to me, and the ones I finally waited for turned out to be you two artifact spirits.”

The old man let out a long sigh, his voice sounding strangely lonely.

The air was silent for a moment; the old man was still waiting for someone to comfort him.

When he looked down, he saw the little girl frowning, thinking about something, and he asked in confusion, “Little girl, what are you thinking about?”

Ling Chenyan suddenly raised her eyes, which were shining with light: “I was thinking about what the relationship is between those four artifacts and the main body.”

The old man stroked his beard, glanced at Wenxin, and grinned mischievously.

“I suppose they could be considered the four children of the God-Demon Heaven Sword’s main body?”

“Pfft…” Ling Chenyan couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

“To suddenly have four big sons, I wonder what the main body thinks, hahahaha.”

The ‘big son’ Wenxin was currently looking at the completely oblivious Ling Chenyan with a complex expression.

In Ling Chenyan’s memories, she was a modern person, so things like “main bodies” naturally had nothing to do with her.

But Wenxin knew she probably belonged to this world originally; her past memories were sealed, so she just hadn’t noticed.

Wenxin was looking at Ling Chenyan when suddenly the girl looked over. He immediately had a bad feeling.

Sure enough, in the next second, the girl curved her eyes and laughed mischievously.

“Wenxin, what does it feel like to suddenly have a ‘mother’ appear?”

Wenxin’s hair stood on end: “…What are you so happy about?”

Wait until the day you know the truth, then I’ll see if you can still laugh.

Ling Chenyan didn’t know; she laughed very happily, only thinking that the main body was truly pitiable.

Wenxin turned his head huffily and looked at the old man, saying, “Hey, old man, what mission did she give you?”

The old man stroked his beard: “What does it have to do with you?”

Wenxin: “…” Damn it.

His face darkened, and he turned to take Ling Chenyan away, but the old man let out a sorrowful sigh: “Sigh…”

Ling Chenyan made a couple of “eh” sounds and pulled back her sleeve which was held in Wenxin’s hand.

“Wenxin, what are you doing? Don’t go, I—I’ll leave in a moment.”

She was still thinking about the treasure that had attracted her earlier.

Wenxin couldn’t pull her away and could only watch as she went back to the old man’s side.

Her eyes darted around as she asked, “Senior, look, this place is remote and not many people come here.”

“Why don’t you give the inheritance to me? Although I am an artifact spirit, I’m not entirely one.”

“Having someone inherit it is better than no one at all.”

The old man stroked his beard, feigning a deep pensive state for a moment before saying:

“Actually, it’s not impossible. But if you accept my inheritance, it’s the same as accepting the mission ‘she’ gave me. Are you truly willing?”

Ling Chenyan’s eyes darted: “Why don’t you tell me what the mission is first?”

The old man chuckled and said, “It’s nothing difficult. Just find the main body of the God-Demon Heaven Sword and give her something.”

“That’s fine,” Ling Chenyan said. “I’ll take it, I can take it.”

The old man glanced at the little girl and said, “I think you don’t want the inheritance; you’re just eyeing my treasures, aren’t you?”

Ling Chenyan said solemnly, “How could that be? I just respect ‘her’ from the bottom of my heart, which is why I took the mission. Senior, what kind of person do you take me for?”

The old man asked skeptically, “Really?”

Ling Chenyan nodded resolutely: “Of course.” It was a lie.

The old man then nodded and sighed reluctantly, “Very well.”

He then became serious and said, “Steady your breath and enter a state of meditation.”

Ling Chenyan hurried to comply.

From a distance, Wenxin looked at the foolish girl who thought she was getting a bargain, and his mouth twitched.

The girl was foolish, but he was not; that old man’s goal from the start was clearly to get them to take over that mission.

Otherwise, why would he tell them that secret and mention the mission as soon as he arrived?

But since it was a case of a willing victim, and the silly sword could learn a few things, he didn’t bother to stop it.

The inheritance didn’t take long, and soon Ling Chenyan opened her eyes, looking at the old man with a face full of surprise.

After passing on the inheritance, the old man seemed to have his energy drained away and looked much more haggard.

He looked at the girl before him, marveling in his heart that this sword spirit could actually accept his inheritance.

Ling Chenyan was also very surprised, but her surprise was that the old man’s inheritance was something related to hiding and escaping, called the ‘Tortoise Swallow Technique.’

This was far too suitable for her.

Ling Chenyan was very satisfied, and the old man was very satisfied as well.

He reached back solemnly and grasped the air, saying, “Scabbard, come!”

Soon, an object shining with cold light appeared from behind.

Ling Chenyan’s heart began to beat rapidly of its own accord, growing more intense as the object drew closer.

It wasn’t until the shimmering scabbard appeared before her eyes that her heart nearly jumped out of her chest.

That feeling was like meeting an old friend she hadn’t seen for a long time; every cell in her body was shouting with longing.

Ling Chenyan reached out and grasped the scabbard, her eyes shining; she couldn’t help but say, “Long time no see.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, not only was she stunned, but the old man who called the scabbard and Wenxin in the distance were also stunned.

Wenxin was the first to snap back to his senses. Looking at the scabbard, he suddenly understood something.

He looked at the dazed old man and rushed over before he could cry out, saying coldly, “Shut up.”

The old man’s surprised voice froze in his mouth and was swallowed down.

Facing Wenxin’s interruption, he didn’t even protest immediately; he was still immersed in shock.

I never expected it, I truly never expected it.

The old man’s old eyes reddened as he looked at the sky.

He had originally thought his mission would never be completed in this life.

He hadn’t expected this lingering remnant of a thought would stumble into completing the mission.

He also understood Wenxin’s interruption.

Since that person chose to seal her power and memory, there must be a reason for doing so.

Unless she realized it herself, they would never speak up.

Realizing he had almost blurted out the truth, the old man felt a wave of lingering fear.

After the fear, a strange sense of pride rose in his heart—the one who inherited his legacy was the main body of the God-Demon Heaven Sword!

This was far better than those “chosen ones.”

The already satisfied old man became even more satisfied; the soul and the mirror both stared fixedly at Ling Chenyan.

Although Ling Chenyan felt a special connection with this scabbard, she remembered the old man’s words and snapped back to her senses.

She looked at the old man and asked, “Senior, may I ask what the mission is?”

“Why call me senior? Call me Master.”

Ling Chenyan didn’t react immediately, but she still called him Master properly.

The old man was overjoyed. He restrained himself under Ling Chenyan’s growing confusion and then said:

“It’s nothing. I don’t think that mission is very important anymore; it’s fine not to do it.”

Ling Chenyan: “…?”

Wenxin cleared his throat from the side.

The old man said, “The mission is to find the God-Demon Heaven Sword and say hello to it on ‘her’ behalf.”

Ling Chenyan nodded in realization; although she thought the mission was strange, she didn’t think much of it and agreed.

The old man didn’t have much time left. He looked at the girl before him and said slowly:

“The future of this world is now in your hands…”

Ling Chenyan rubbed her nose and didn’t respond. The old man only gave her a meaningful look before his form slowly dissipated into the air.

Ling Chenyan felt a slight weight in her heart.

Wenxin glanced at her and said, “Let’s go. The treasure is in hand, what are you still staying here for?”

Ling Chenyan let out a sigh, but an uneasy feeling lurked in her heart.

It was not only because of the old man’s words, but also because of some abrupt intuition.

The scabbard in her hand vibrated slightly, as if to comfort her.

Ling Chenyan curled her lips and said, “Let’s go, let’s find Her Highness.”

In a certain space within the secret realm, Xuan Ye looked at the people appearing in various parts of the realm constantly searching for him and gave a light sneer.

These people were only looking for him because of the Evil Race.

They talked about the world falling into chaos and hoped he would go out and help sweep away those evil things, and mentioned forging the God-Demon Heaven Sword.

He had zero interest in those things.

He actually wished the world would become as chaotic as possible; the more chaotic it was, the more likely she would appear.

Xuan Ye thought of something, and his face gradually darkened.

Mu Yunze watched his shifting expression from the side and didn’t make a sound.

He had now reached a temporary cooperative relationship with Xuan Ye.

He would help Xuan Ye see the person he wanted to see, and Xuan Ye would help him kill Guan Luowei.

But he couldn’t figure out Xuan Ye’s thoughts at all; he acted too much according to his whims.

It felt as if he could cooperate with him one second and then destroy the agreement and stab him without blinking the next.

As long as he found it interesting.

Now, he watched Xuan Ye slowly curl his lips and ask him nonchalantly while propping up his chin:

“Hey, where is that woman you spoke of?”

Mu Yunze’s face darkened slightly as he pointed toward a woman with tightly closed eyes.

Xuan Ye raised his eyebrows and sneered:

“No wonder you want me to act. With your cultivation, she could crush you with one finger.”

Mu Yunze’s expression was very unsightly, but he didn’t dare say anything.

Previously, Wu Zhong had courted death by daring to beguile Xuan Ye.

Xuan Ye had only smiled slightly and hooked his finger, and Wu Zhong had turned into a pile of mud before his eyes and vanished.

He didn’t understand why the person Lin Qingwan gave him was an evil creature, but he believed she was also kept in the dark.

Wu Zhong’s strength was far greater than his, yet Xuan Ye had killed her with just a flick of his finger; this showed Xuan Ye’s power.

After mocking him, Xuan Ye curled his lips again and said:

“Tsk, since so many people have come, let’s play something fun…”

Mu Yunze didn’t know what he had done, but seeing the excited smile on his face, he intuitively knew it wouldn’t be anything good.

After Zhenling Daoren entered the secret realm, he was transported into a ruin forest.

Fortunately, he was followed by many sect disciples; unfortunately, there were clearly more demons and beasts gathered here.

Enemies often meet on narrow paths; Tong Di and Sen Hao were also transported into this same ruin forest.

After the three parties met briefly, they all huffed at each other with unfriendly expressions and parted ways.

Things began to change after Tong Di and the other demons found many demon heritage sites to increase their strength.

They were overjoyed, and their strength greatly increased; Tong Di also improved significantly.

He led the demons, who were full of spoils, out of the heritage site with a beaming face.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he stepped out of the cave entrance, his eye was nearly poked out by a flying trident.

He dodged with a flip. Looking at the sneak-attacking Sen Hao, before he could question him, Sen Hao spoke first in a furious voice:

“Tong Di! All my life I’ve looked down on those who vent their anger on the people around their rivals!”

“I used to respect you as an opponent, but I never thought you were such a despicable and filthy person!”

Tong Di had nearly been blinded just as he came out and had strangely become a “filthy person”; he immediately grew angry as well.

He looked at Sen Hao with a darkened face and said, “What do you mean by that? Explain it clearly to me!”

Sen Hao narrowed his green beast pupils and sneered:

“You have the courage to do it but not the courage to admit it. Bring out my clan’s dead brother!”

As soon as he heard about a dead brother, Tong Di had a bad premonition.

Sure enough, in the next second, the beasts behind Sen Hao carried out a beast-kin covered in black mist, clearly having died under demonic energy.

He looked at the silent Tong Di and barked, “What else do you have to say!”

Tong Di took a step forward, intending to check the wounds on the body.

But the beasts behind Sen Hao all took a step forward, eyeing him with hostility.

The demons naturally wouldn’t be outdone; they also narrowed their eyes and took a step forward, releasing their auras.

Tong Di reached out to stop the people behind him, looked at Sen Hao, and said coldly:

“Sen Hao, I used to think you were smart. Think about it.”

“With the Evil Race in front of us now, no matter how much hatred I have for you, I wouldn’t kill your clansman.”

“And even leave such obvious traces. What benefit would doing this bring me, besides making us fight among ourselves?!”

Sen Hao’s initial anger passed; after calming down and thinking about it, he felt what Tong Di said made sense.

Tong Di glanced at the corpse and sneered:

“Such a low-level scheme of sowing discord—besides those people from the Lingxiao Immortal Sect, I really can’t think of anyone else who would do this.”

Sen Hao’s face gradually turned cold at his words; if it truly was the Lingxiao Immortal Sect’s doing…

Then even with the Evil Race present, he would definitely make them taste what it’s [stolen content]like to be a dead person.

However, not long after Tong Di finished speaking, another group of people rushed over from the horizon.

Their speed was so fast they seemed ready to vent a towering rage.

Zhenling Daoren raised his long sword and lunged at Tong Di: “Shameless brat! Give me your life!”

Tong Di: “…?”

He fought and retreated several times with Zhenling Daoren, and was finally forcibly stopped by Sen Hao.

Sen Hao looked at Zhenling Daoren, his eyes flashing with an unnoticeable dark current: “And what are you here for?”

Zhenling Daoren was so angry his beard was quivering; with a wave of his hand, the people behind him carried up a dead disciple.

The disciple was covered in demonic aura, clearly having also died under demonic energy.

He said furiously, “With a great enemy at the door, your Demon Clan is actually so narrow-minded as to secretly harm my clansman!”

“Today, you must give me an explanation!”

Sen Hao’s expression changed instantly. If he had been half-skeptical of Tong Di’s words before, now he couldn’t help but scrutinize him.

The veins on Tong Di’s forehead throbbed as he was watched by the two; he said coldly:

“I said it, my Demon Clan disdains doing such sneaky and underhanded things…”

“Nonsense! Don’t think this old man doesn’t know—the treasures of our Lingxiao Immortal Sect were all stolen by your Demon Clan’s young madam!”

Tong Di: “…”

He endured it and finally calmed down: “That is not the same thing. I, Tong Di, dare to swear to heaven that these people were definitely not killed by the demons I brought.”

From beginning to end, they had been together; if someone had left secretly, he wouldn’t have missed it.

Zhenling Daoren gnashed his teeth and said, “So it was done by other people from your Demon Clan?!”

Tong Di: “…”

At the same time, such incidents were playing out in every corner of the secret realm.

Members of the Demon Clan could always find ancestral ruins, and among the other races with them, someone would always die at the hands of the “Demon Clan.”

Rumors were spreading among the beast-kin and human cultivators that the Demon Clan had already obtained the Heavenly Book.

And that they wanted to use this opportunity to wipe out half of their elites…