Free Web NovelChapter 39: Chapter 39: Life and Death Battle
In a rundown room.
Shen Daoxing sat cross-legged on the bed, his Divine Soul having already entered the Venerable Domain.
Shen Daoxing looked at the Blood Dragon coiled atop the mountain peak and asked, "If I cultivate this Annihilation of Ten Thousand Swords Technique, will people be able to see what it is?"
The Blood Dragon said flatly, "The Annihilation of Ten Thousand Swords Technique is a lost art. In this land, it’s impossible for anyone to see through your cultivation Heart Method."
"That master from Celestial City Academy today merely saw that your acupoints had been awakened and grew greedy."
Chen Guanggu spoke with such righteousness, but in truth, he was merely coveting Shen Daoxing’s Annihilation of Ten Thousand Swords Technique.
Although his own bloodline mark prevented him from ever awakening one hundred and eight acupoints, possessing the Annihilation of Ten Thousand Swords Technique was like owning a treasure trove.
Even if he couldn’t use it, it could serve as a bargaining chip.
Shen Daoxing clenched his fists. "My strength is still too low."
Everything that had happened on Celestial City Mountain today was clearly seared into his mind.
Shen Daoxing secretly swore an oath. ’One day, I will set foot on Celestial City Mountain again, and when that time comes, I won’t be swept out the door like trash.’
The Blood Dragon pondered for a moment before saying, "Since you can awaken one hundred and eight acupoints, your cultivation speed is definitely not an issue. With enough Elixirs, or a Spiritual Land rich in Primordial Energy, your strength will certainly advance by leaps and bounds."
Shen Daoxing shook his head with a bitter smile. "Elixirs are extremely expensive, and Spiritual Lands rich in Primordial Energy are all occupied by the major powers. How could I possibly get into one?"
The Blood Dragon said, "That will be up to you. Right now, the only people in the Venerable Domain you can command are a few of the experts on the first floor of the prison."
Shen Daoxing considered this for a long time. "The Imperial City is teeming with factions and experts. Besides cultivation, I also need to gather intelligence. I should send these experts into the Imperial City to scout for information on my behalf."
The Blood Dragon reminded him, "You can arrange it however you like, but I must warn you. Though these prisoners aren’t the strongest, a few of them have unusual backgrounds. If they die, it could cause trouble for you in the future."
Shen Daoxing nodded. "Understood."
He then went to the first floor of the prison and found several Profound Platform realm experts of the Shadow Race.
Shen Daoxing pointed to the Shadow Race expert with the highest cultivation and asked, "What’s your name?"
The Shadow Race expert was slightly taken aback. "Ying Er."
Shen Daoxing asked, "Do you want to get out of here?"
"Yes!"
The Shadow Race experts exchanged glances, a look of wild joy appearing in their eyes.
When they learned they were imprisoned in the Venerable Domain, they all thought they would grow old and die here. They never imagined they would have a chance to leave.
Shen Daoxing said calmly, "I can let you out, but in return, you must sign a servant contract with me."
"A servant contract!?"
Hearing this, the group nodded eagerly with almost no hesitation.
This stunned Shen Daoxing. ’Logically, shouldn’t they be extremely hesitant? Wasn’t I supposed to use a carrot-and-stick approach to win them over?’
The Blood Dragon explained, "These small fry were unintentionally brought into the Venerable Domain by the previous Venerable Supreme, who then simply forgot to let them out. To become the servant of a Venerable Supreme... this is likely the greatest fortune of their lives."
Realization dawned on Shen Daoxing, and an idea sparked in his mind.
’The prison in this Venerable Domain has nine floors. These are just the experts from the first floor. If the experts from the higher floors were to submit to me... the thought is unimaginable.’
The Blood Dragon saw through Shen Daoxing’s thoughts and threw a bucket of cold water on them. "Without enough strength, releasing them will only get you killed faster. This is especially true for those from the 7th Floor and above. They are great terrors capable of destroying this entire world. Forget about you—even the previous Venerable Supreme couldn’t make them submit."
Shen Daoxing nodded. The main reason these Shadow Race experts submitted to him was because his strength was not that different from theirs.
Next, Shen Daoxing signed a servant contract with each of them one by one. He then ordered them to go to the Imperial City to gather intelligence, especially regarding Celestial City Academy. They were to report back to him immediately at the first sign of any activity.
「The next morning.」
Lin Haitao led Shen Daoxing to a dilapidated hall. It was cluttered and covered in cobwebs.
In the center of the hall was a massive circular disk.
The disk was covered in dust, but some patterns were still faintly visible.
Lin Haitao walked over, wiped the dust from the disk, and asked, "You should know something about the grudge between the Sword Institute and Celestial City Academy, right?"
Shen Daoxing nodded. "The Sword Institute is a faction that split off from Celestial City Academy. The two powers hold a competition every ten years to fight for control of Celestial City Mountain."
Lin Haitao sneered. "What you’ve heard are just rumors. The Sword Institute was never a faction that split from Celestial City Academy. That’s just a lie Celestial City Academy uses to fool the world."
"But you don’t need to know the details right now. You’ll find out when the time is right."
’Rumors!?’
Shen Daoxing found this strange. ’Could there be some hidden secret behind all this?’
Lin Haitao gradually wiped away the dust on the disk’s patterns, revealing ancient and exquisite lines.
"It’s true that Celestial City Academy and our Sword Institute hold a competition every ten years for control of Celestial City Mountain. But this competition is an extremely brutal life-and-death battle. If Celestial City Academy wins, they will hang the corpses of the dead on Celestial City Mountain for a month, leaving them exposed until they are devoured by wild beasts. Not even a complete body is left behind."
"Furthermore, Celestial City Academy has issued an edict: any Celestial City Academy disciple who kills a Sword Institute disciple will be rewarded with a high-grade Profound Tier Martial Technique and a Breaking Yuan Pill. That’s why, even on a normal day, their students will attack to kill if they see one of ours."
Shen Daoxing was taken aback. "In that case, doesn’t this mean I’ll be hunted down by the entire student body of Celestial City Academy?"
Celestial City Academy had nearly a thousand students, while the Sword Institute had only him.
One person against a thousand... it was simply surreal.
"That’s right."
Lin Haitao looked at him as if to say he was a fast learner, then his expression turned grave. "The life-and-death battle for Celestial City Mountain is in less than a year. In the last nine years, Celestial City Academy has produced many monstrous geniuses. The one you need to watch out for most is Xia Junze. He’s on the Martial Arts Ranking. You should know how significant that is. In the entire Martial Kingdom, there is only one person whose talent surpasses his."
Shen Daoxing asked, "Shangguan Yiran?"
Shangguan Yiran was known as the number one genius of the Martial Kingdom, so she must be the only one who could outrank Xia Junze.
"Correct."
Lin Haitao nodded slightly and continued, "Besides him, there are four other people you must be wary of. They are known as the Celestial Capital’s Four Heroes. Even though they aren’t on the Martial Arts Ranking, their strength cannot be underestimated. One of them is also a Swordsman who is said to have already comprehended five types of Sword Intent. He is a once-in-a-generation Swordsman."
"As for Xia Chen, whom you defeated, forget comparing him to his older brother—he’s leagues behind even these four. The main reason he was accepted as Bai Bo’s disciple was because of Xia Junze."
Shen Daoxing’s expression also grew solemn.
’I didn’t expect Celestial City Academy to have so many geniuses,’ he thought. ’But on second thought, it makes sense. After all, it is the number one academy in the Martial Kingdom.’
Lin Haitao turned his head to look at the disk. "For the sake of this life-and-death battle, I have decided to put you through special training. But before we begin, I want to see your affinity for Sword Intent."
