The Heavenly Dao Oath and a Promise of Eternity

“You…” Chen Jin stared at Ji Ning in utter shock. The Ji Ning before him had once been a gentle, polite youth, but now the killing intent in his eyes was undisguised. “If I don’t swear a Heavenly Dao oath, he will definitely kill me. Definitely!”

Correct.

Ji Ning had indeed made up his mind to kill. He would absolutely not allow his tribe, the Ji Clan, to be destroyed. Whether for the sake of his father, for the clansmen who had moved him, or for the sense of belonging he felt in this life—Ji Ning would protect his tribe with all his might.

“Even if it means a fellow disciple killing a fellow disciple, violating the sect rules… I accept it!” Ji Ning said to himself.

Although the sect forbade disciples from harming each other, if it truly happened… the sect’s punishment would depend on the circumstances. For example, if a fellow disciple was trying to kill him, how could he not fight back? The rule of ‘no killing fellow disciples’ was just one article in the sect’s code, and the punishment was always decided by the sect based on the specifics of the case.

Chen Jin wanted to annihilate the Ji Clan… If Ji Ning killed him, there would be extenuating circumstances. It wouldn’t result in his Violet Palace being crippled, but a punishment of facing a wall in silent meditation for three hundred years would probably be the lightest possible sentence.

“Which path do you choose?” Ji Ning stared at Chen Jin.

From his distant position, Flamesaint was also filled with wariness. “That Ji Ning can even unleash a soul-shock technique. He must have already reached the level of divine sense, and his strength is this formidable! Chen Jin is in his hands now; he could kill him with a thought. Even if I tried to save him, I wouldn’t make it in time.”

He had some confidence in fighting Ji Ning.

But… his advantage in strength over Ji Ning was limited. They were already on the same level. It was clearly impossible for him to rescue Chen Jin from Ji Ning’s grasp.

“I… I…” Chen Jin’s body trembled slightly, wracked with pain and humiliation, as he uttered words he would never forget for the rest of his life. “I am willing to swear the Heavenly Dao oath!”

“Whoosh.” Flamesaint let out a sigh of relief.

Watching from nearby, Nine Lotos also relaxed. She had been incredibly tense, because this was all ultimately caused by her. Although she was completely innocent, she still felt guilt and anxiety.

“I will recite it first. Swear the Heavenly Dao oath exactly as I say, not a single word wrong!” Ji Ning tightened his grip on Chen Jin’s throat, his voice cold. “Listen carefully. I, Chen Jin, hereby swear before the Heavens, with the Heavenly Dao as my witness…”

“I, Chen Jin, hereby swear before the Heavens, with the Heavenly Dao as my witness…” Chen Jin repeated word by word, filled with reluctance.

An invisible ripple descended.

It was the ripples of the supreme Heavenly Dao. The oath had been acknowledged by the Heavenly Dao itself. To break it would be to face the punishment of the Heavenly Dao! Even an Immortal would be immediately subject to backlash if they broke a Heavenly Dao oath. If the oath had stated ‘my soul shall be scattered’, then that would indeed be the instantaneous result.

“Should I violate this oath, may I, Chen Jin, immediately have my soul scattered and be forever denied reincarnation.” Chen Jin ground his teeth as he spoke, looking at Ji Ning. “Are you satisfied now, Junior Apprentice-Brother Ji Ning?”

Ji Ning gave a cold smile and waved his hand.

Swish.

He tossed Chen Jin far away. Chen Jin stabilized himself in mid-air, glaring coldly at Ji Ning.

“If you want to come after me, feel free. Bring whichever expert you can. I, Ji Ning, will be waiting.” Ji Ning met Chen Jin’s gaze. “But remember, when you make your move against me, you had better be prepared for my retaliation!”

“You’re ruthless.” Chen Jin ground his teeth.

Of course, he wanted to kill Ji Ning. But he couldn’t!

He was just a relatively low-status member of the Chen clan, not even the next clan leader. His father was merely a Primal Daoist… Even if Chen Jin had enough face to request help from an Immortal of his clan, how could a clan Immortal possibly move against the ‘disciple of the Diancai Immortal’ and the ‘monster genius of the Black-White College’?

For a clan to survive, it could not indulge in reckless vendettas. A clan that did so would not last long!

“Let’s go.” Flamesaint flew to his side.

Chen Jin glanced at Flamesaint. Although his heart felt as if it were being scorched by fire, he had no other choice. He nodded. “Fine.”

“Ji Ning.” Before leaving, Chen Jin looked back at him and said in a low voice, “Let me give you a piece of advice. Nine Lotos is the confirmed next leader of the Dongyan clan. That’s already settled. The Dongyan clan is an ancient, powerful clan that surpasses even the Black-White College. The Dao-companion of the next leader of such a clan is not something just anyone can become. Even I find my own background insufficient; I have to train desperately. As for you… Hmph.”

“That’s none of your concern,” Ji Ning said calmly.

“Hmph.”

Chen Jin and Flamesaint immediately mounted a fiery red cloud, transforming into a streak of light that vanished on the horizon.

Above Winged Serpent Lake, only Ji Ning and Nine Lotos remained.

“Ji Ning.” Nine Lotos stood beside him, a look of guilt on her face. “It’s all because of me that you gained this enemy.”

That was how things were between people.

Before this, Ji Ning and Chen Jin were unfamiliar fellow disciples. In the blink of an eye, Ji Ning had become Chen Jin’s greatest heart demon. And Chen Jin, by threatening to annihilate the Ji Clan, had been marked by Ji Ning as a ‘mortal enemy’.

“You can’t blame yourself, Senior Apprentice-Sister,” Ji Ning said with a smile. “Don’t worry, Senior Apprentice-Sister. That Chen Jin is just a clown. He can prance around all he likes now… but what can he possibly do to me?”

After all, he was now one of only two Sword Immortals in the Black-White College! One was his master, the Diancai Immortal. The other was himself!

“Right, that third stance of the Three Talents Sword you just displayed… ‘Sword Light Flashes’.” Nine Lotos said softly, “If the Black-White College learns of this, their estimation of you will rise greatly. The ‘Three-Foot Sword’ is the most powerful sword art of the Black-White College. You are a genius in the art of the sword. The college will do everything in its power to protect you. The Chen clan is on par with the Black-White College, but their base is in Shangshui Commandery. Their influence in Anchan Commandery is very low. And Chen Jin’s status within the ‘Chen clan’ is ordinary… So, you really don’t need to worry about anything.”

Ji Ning nodded.

They were standing very close in the air. When Nine Lotos spoke, Ji Ning could even feel her breath.

This stirred a feeling in Ji Ning, who had never experienced love between a man and a woman before. The previous battle, where he had repelled his ‘romantic rival’ Chen Jin, only intensified this impulse. He reached out and directly grabbed Nine Lotos’s hand.

Her hand was very soft, as if made of water.

“Hmm?” Nine Lotos was caught off guard.

“Be my Dao-companion,” Ji Ning said.

Nine Lotos’s heart was suddenly in turmoil. She had been hesitating all along. Over the past year, she had gradually become certain of her feelings, but her personality made her want to observe for a few more years. Now, faced with Ji Ning’s ‘advance’, she didn’t know what to do for a moment.

“The path of cultivation is filled with hardships. It’s good to at least have a Dao-companion by one’s side,” Ji Ning said, looking at Nine Lotos. “Senior Apprentice-Sister, are you willing to walk this path of cultivation with me for a thousand years, ten thousand years, or even for all of eternity?”

Nine Lotos’s eyes suddenly reddened, and she nodded gently.

“Hahaha…” Ji Ning laughed freely.

“Remember what you said,” Nine Lotos said, looking at him. “We will walk this path of cultivation together. For a thousand years, ten thousand years, and for all of eternity.”

“Mm.” Ji Ning nodded.

Their eyes met.

From a distance on Brightheart Island, Autumn Leaf saw everything and a smile appeared on her face. “The young master… has found his true love.”

Within the Black-White College in Anchan City.

Loose Immortal ‘Chen Jin’ returned to his estate. He sat alone, drinking one cup of wine after another.

“Ji Ning.”

“Ji Ning.”

He muttered the name over and over, his gaze terrifying.

The woman he loved had been taken from him. He had been defeated, and even had his throat grabbed while being forced to swear a Heavenly Dao oath. All of this made Chen Jin hate Ji Ning with a vengeance, but there was nothing he could do. Ji Ning’s cultivation time was far shorter than his, yet his rate of progress was astonishing.

“I can’t catch up to him. I’m no match for him.” Chen Jin couldn’t even muster the will to fight.

“What do I do?”

The pain tormented Chen Jin’s heart.

“Right!” A bright idea suddenly struck Chen Jin. “Even if I can’t have Nine Lotos, Ji Ning’s background is far inferior to mine. He may be a monstrous genius, but… to a vast and ancient clan like the ‘Dongyan clan’, what is a mere genius? Hmph, the Dongyan clan probably doesn’t know about Nine Lotos’s and Ji Ning’s relationship yet. Then let me do Ji Ning a favor!”

“As soon as the Dongyan clan finds out, they will definitely stop them. Definitely!”

Chen Jin was also from a large clan. He knew very well how they operated.

Everything… was for the clan!

Even the clan leader had to follow this rule. The only exception would be if an individual’s status and influence were great enough to overshadow the entire clan, as Ji Ning’s had been in the ‘Ji Clan’. That was the only way to transcend, to make the clan dance to his tune.

It was clear that Nine Lotos, on her own, could not surpass the entire Dongyan clan!

“Go.”

Swish.

Chen Jin transformed into a streak of light and quickly left the Black-White College.

The Dongyan clan was a tremendous clan that spanned three commanderies. Naturally, they had a stronghold in Anchan City.

That very day, Chen Jin passed the news to this stronghold.

The Primal Daoist in charge of the stronghold did not dare to be careless. This news involved the next leader, ‘Nine Lotos’.

Very quickly…

The news was transmitted back to the Dongyan clan’s nest—the Dongyan Mountain Range in Shangshui Commandery. On this mountain range, which stretched for over a hundred thousand li, countless buildings had been erected. The hundreds of millions of clansmen of the Dongyan clan lived within these mountains. Countless ancient formations were buried deep within the range. This was, after all, an ancient clan spanning three commanderies. Celestial Immortals had been born in this clan many times, of course. In the boundless flow of time, Celestial Immortals, despite having endless lifespans, could still fall in battle.

Whether or not the current Dongyan clan still had a living Celestial Immortal was unknown.

In terms of foundation, the Dongyan clan absolutely surpassed the eight great powers of Anchan Commandery, approaching the level of the Anchan Northmont clan! Perhaps the greatest difference from the Anchan Northmont clan was that they had not been granted a marquisate.

“Xiaoyun has chosen a Dao-companion?”

“What is this Dao-companion’s name?”

“Ji Ning?”

The news rapidly caused a stir among the high-level members of the Dongyan clan.