Chapter 132: Xiao Chen – Those Who Oppose, Those Who Support!

Chapter 132: Xiao Chen – Those Who Oppose, Those Who Support! Hoo... The night wind swept across the mountain, and in the darkness, countless eerie green flames suddenly emerged. Boom... boom... boom... A series of muffled thuds echoed from all directions. Xiao Chen felt the ground trembling beneath his feet. He instinctively released his divine sense, only to discover that within the killing aura of the Sword Tomb, his spiritual awareness, which normally covered dozens of miles, was now barely reaching a few. Very quickly, he noticed eerie white skeletons rising from the earth like bamboo shoots after a rain. The green lights in the darkness were clusters of ghostly flames, and occasionally, aimless wandering souls drifted among them. "Junior Sister, be careful." Just as Xiao Chen spoke, a blood-curdling scream rang out from the darkness. "Ghosts! There are ghosts!" "Kill them—kill these ghosts! Only then can we seize the treasures within the Sword Sect!" "..." Though Liu Yue’er was a young woman, there wasn’t a hint of fear in her eyes as she looked at the ghosts and sword-wielding skeletons. "Kill!" Xiao Chen shouted, and the two of them charged with their swords into the swarm of skeletons and spirits closing in from all sides. These skeletal beings and ghosts were mostly at the True Fate and Heaven Origin Realms. With Xiao Chen present, the two of them didn’t face much trouble. Half an hour later, Liu Yue’er said, "Senior Brother, these skeletons and ghosts seem endless. No matter how many we slay, more keep coming." Recalling the rapidly decaying corpse they had seen during the day, Xiao Chen said, "Let’s head for the summit. These creatures are likely the remnants of cultivators who once fell here." "Alright!" Back to back, they fought their way uphill. No one knew how long they battled until they finally saw a group of people. A dozen cultivators were being besieged by hundreds of undead and skeletons. Among them were several wearing the robes of Wendao Academy. "Senior Brother Xiao!" Liu Yue’er suddenly called out. The two of them shared a tacit understanding—Xiao Chen instantly knew she wanted him to rescue the academy disciples. Without hesitation, Xiao Chen declared, "Don’t worry. I’ll handle this. Ten Thousand Swords Return to Origin!" Clang! As his sword rang out, countless blades of sword aura tore through the darkness, raining down upon the skeletons and ghosts. With a single strike, silence fell all around. "That was Ten Thousand Swords Return to Origin!" "Senior Brother Xiao is here!" The Wendao Academy disciples in the group lit up with joy the moment they recognized the technique. The other cultivators from different sects, who had previously teamed up with them, instinctively looked around. They saw two figures approaching—one in black, one in white. Even the Wendao Academy disciples were momentarily stunned when they recognized the pair. A core disciple muttered under his breath, "The Black-White Twin Fiends..." Smack! A direct disciple gave him a firm smack on the head. "Watch your mouth!" Then he stepped forward, clasped his hands, and respectfully said, "Yuan Hua greets Senior Brother Xiao." Yuan Hua had of course heard the name of the Black-White Twin Fiends—an infamous duo in Yunmeng Swamp. What he hadn’t expected was that the black-robed god of slaughter would turn out to be none other than Senior Brother Xiao Chen himself. If not for the unmistakable Ten Thousand Swords Return to Origin, he wouldn’t have dared to approach and greet him. "Mhm." Xiao Chen gave a faint response. As one of the candidates for Wendao Academy’s Holy Son, strength alone wasn’t enough to stand out among the contenders. Reputation mattered just as much—that was also why he chose to act and save them. "All of you, follow me up the mountain." "Understood." A look of joy appeared on Yuan Hua’s face, and the rest of the Wendao Academy disciples all shouted together, "Thank you, Senior Brother Xiao!" After regrouping, everyone continued their ascent. The disciples from other factions, seeing this, cautiously followed behind Xiao Chen’s group. After a night of fierce fighting... As soon as the sun rose, the ghostly flames dispersed, and the skeletons ceased moving. They casually dug holes and buried themselves, as if performing a routine action they had done countless times before. Xiao Chen said, "Junior brothers and sisters, let’s rest here for two hours before continuing." "Understood." The Wendao Academy disciples responded in unison and sat cross-legged on the spot to begin their breathing exercises. The other cultivators kept their distance. Although they had cooperated well the previous night, none of them could guarantee that the Wendao Academy disciples wouldn’t take the chance to eliminate them in broad daylight. They were long used to such occurrences. Two hours later, the group resumed their journey up the mountain. Two days later, they arrived safely at the summit of the Sword Tomb. When Xiao Chen and the others reached the peak, they saw that quite a few sword cultivators from various factions had already gathered. Aside from the Ten Great Holy Lands, there were also several Half-Saint-level powers present. The various groups were clearly separated, standing around a dilapidated little courtyard that looked completely unremarkable. No one was in a hurry to be the first to enter. The moment Xiao Chen’s party arrived, they drew countless gazes. Xiao Chen stepped forward boldly, drawing everyone’s attention as he released the aura around him. The cultivators present immediately became alert upon sensing his presence. Xiao Chen ignored the crowd and instead fixed his gaze on Ye Lingxiao. "Senior Brother Ye, you got here pretty fast." The moment those words were spoken, the expressions of the other sword cultivators from the remaining nine Holy Lands grew even more serious. Just dealing with Ye Lingxiao was already a headache—and now yet another terrifying sword cultivator from Wendao Academy had arrived, upsetting the delicate balance. Hearing that familiar yet distant voice, Ye Lingxiao was briefly startled. Then, a smile of joy lit up his face. "Junior Brother Xiao, what took you so long? I thought you weren’t interested in the Sword Tomb." "That’s Xiao Chen!!!" A wave of shocked exclamations erupted from the crowd. The name of the top disciple from Wendao Academy’s inner competition had already spread across all major factions. None of them expected Xiao Chen to appear in such attire—did all prodigies have unusual tastes? Xiao Chen ignored the murmuring and led his group toward the Wendao Academy disciples. "I entered the Taixu Secret Realm quite far from the Sword Tomb. That’s why I was delayed. Senior Brother Ye, why is everyone gathered here?" Ye Lingxiao stepped forward with his people and smiled. "All the fellow Daoists want to be the first to enter the Sword Cottage, but no one’s agreed on who should go first." As a sword cultivator, Ye Lingxiao naturally wanted to seize the lead. Although the Sword Tomb had already been visited by many over the years, with so many elites gathered here, everyone wanted to prove themselves. Whoever entered first would represent the strongest. Hearing this, Xiao Chen turned his gaze to the stone stele beside the cottage entrance. Despite the passage of countless years, two bold and powerful characters still remained etched on the stone—Sword Cottage. These were words carved through swordsmanship alone. Just one glance made even a prodigy like Xiao Chen feel the terrifying sword intent radiating from them. He smiled and said, "That’s easy. Isn’t there a Trial Sword Stone right there? Since we’re all sword cultivators, let our swords do the talking. Whoever leaves the strongest sword intent on that stone gets to enter first." After speaking, Xiao Chen raised his voice and declared: "Everyone—who supports this method, and who opposes it?!" ==================================================================================== Get access to 20 chapters in advance and enjoy 2 daily updates by supporting the series. Available on Patreon: /Alex_Cruise or Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/anish_44