The Birth of the Lotus Sword World

A massive lotus flower immediately appeared around the black-robed Ji Ning. Its core was a fiery red, while beyond the core were ring upon ring of lotus petals, circles and layers of petals… At the moment of its appearance, there were already six layers of water-green lotus petals.

The Water-Fire Lotus was formed from alternating water and fire petals, generating a grinding, crushing force.

But the ‘Lotus Sword World’ was completely different. Only the central petals were fiery red; the surrounding layers of petals were entirely water-green. This was a Lotus Sword World ultimately formed by merging the profound mysteries of the lotus with the ‘Dao of Rainwater,’ the ‘Dao of the Sword’ as the core, supplemented by the ‘Dao of Blazing Fire’ and the ‘Dao of Space.’

“Rustle, rustle, rustle…” Layer after layer of water-green lotus petals continuously grew, expanding outwards: six layers, seven layers, eight layers…

The water-green petals spread out swiftly, frantically occupying more and more space.

“What is this?!” The Floating Cloud Immortal, who had just released his miasma, stared in shock at the frantically expanding ‘Lotus Sword World.’ He was stunned, but then smirked coldly. “So Ji Ning wants to use this lotus technique to seize more space. Where the lotus spreads, he will be able to sense everything, so he won’t be fighting blind.”

“But can a single technique really block my flying swords?”

“Break for me!”

While maintaining his miasma, the Floating Cloud Immortal manipulated his three flying swords, three top-grade Earth-ranked flying swords. Circling around the Cloud-Mist Diagram Formation, they directly charged into the densely packed lotus petals.

“Sssss…” The moment the flying swords pierced into the petals, they felt as if they had sunk into a swamp, struggling to advance, moving forward with immense difficulty.

Every single petal was formed from countless coalesced sword-ki. When the flying swords stabbed in, this sword-ki hurled itself forward wave after wave, continuously blocking the flying swords, making their advance extremely difficult.

“Impossible! How can a mere Primordial-level kid’s technique be this strong?” The Floating Cloud Immortal was both anxious and unwilling to believe it.

“Swish.”

At that moment, the golden flying sword formed from the Greater Thousand Sword Formation came howling through the air once more. As it passed, the lotus petals swayed, allowing the golden flying sword to pass through with ease. Then, the golden flying sword directly slammed once more into the massive diagram formation formed by the three flying swords. BOOM! This time, the diagram formation directly shattered.

“Rustle, rustle, rustle…” The water-green lotus petals continued to grow, layer upon layer.

“Withdraw.” The Floating Cloud Immortal made his decision.

The mist that had filled the Blood Coagulation Heaven-Sealing Formation instantly dissipated. The Floating Cloud Immortal now understood that within this sea of lotus petals, his flying swords were clearly slowed down. Perhaps, given enough time, he could pierce through all the petals. But Ji Ning’s second true body’s sword formation was simply too fast; it gave him no chance.

His three flying swords were slow, while Ji Ning’s Lesser Thousand Sword Formation could easily intercept them.

If this continued, his precious time would be wasted, and the Floating Cloud Immortal would only face death. So, he gave up on the mist.

“What’s going on inside the formation?” Zhuanshui Xiaolou, Tiannong Quge, Xiao Lang, and Fairy Boyan stared in shock at what was happening within the great formation.

Inside the formation.

Ji Ning stood there, a massive, beautiful lotus flower in full bloom. This lotus had already occupied about eighty percent of the space within the entire formation. The layers of water-green petals were crystalline and translucent, with faint traces of sword-ki shimmering within them.

“A lotus secret art?” Zhuanshui Xiaolou’s pupils contracted.

“This Ji Ning actually knows a lotus technique?” Tiannong Quge was also astonished.

Throughout the Three Realms, many mighty figures used the lotus as a method of protecting their physical bodies. Whether Buddhist or Daoist, countless great powers used the ‘Lotus Throne’ to safeguard their true bodies. It was the most important secret art they possessed for self-defense.

The lotus…

Was incredibly sacred, containing boundless profundities.

In the Grand Xia Dynasty, the older and more ancient a tribe was, the deeper its research into the ‘lotus.’

In truth, Ji Ning had comprehended the ‘Water-Fire Lotus’ when he was young, realizing it through meditation on the lotus. He had a natural affinity for the lotus. Later, he frequently exchanged ideas with Nine Lotos, and the Dongyan clan had also taught him some of the profound mysteries regarding the lotus. After that, the vast Dao repositories of the Wu Jiang Immortal Estate and the legacy left behind by Celestial Immortal Juhua also contained some research on the ‘lotus.’

Furthermore, the spirit of the aquatic palace, the ‘Yellow-Haired Bear,’ had occasionally guided Ji Ning. After more than a year of this, the ‘Lotus Sword World’ was finally created.

If the Water-Fire Lotus was formed from ‘Earthfire and Cold Sha’ along with the Water and Fire of Heaven and Earth, it was stronger in offense.

The ‘Lotus Sword World,’ on the other hand, was formed from the ‘Elemental Ki’ of his second true body and the power of Heaven and Earth. It was mainly for defense. Each petal contained countless elemental sword-ki, which acted like countless teeth, furiously blocking the enemy’s attacks and grinding away their power.

“BOOM…” Under the twelfth assault from the ‘black serpent’ formed by Zhuanshui clan’s thirty-six Loose Immortals, the Blood Coagulation Heaven-Sealing Formation was already on the verge of collapse. The golden heart was even beginning to change color, growing dim, with more and more cracks appearing on its surface.

“Break! Break! Break!”

The Floating Cloud Immortal seemed to have gone mad, his white hair flying wildly.

His three flying swords strained to assault Ji Ning’s Lotus Sword World.

“Ssss…” Layers of lotus petals continuously resisted, layer after layer of defense.

The golden flying sword formed from the Lesser Thousand Sword Formation was as fast as lightning, while the Floating Cloud Immortal’s flying swords were far slower. They were once again scattered by the attack.

“It’s over.”

The Floating Cloud Immortal suddenly gave up. His three flying swords didn’t attack again. He just stood there, dazed, staring at the black-robed Ji Ning within the Lotus Sword World.

Facing the Lotus Sword World, the Floating Cloud Immortal felt like he was facing a turtle shell. There was simply no way to break it! He had no way, at least not in the short term. He could sense that the ‘Blood Coagulation Heaven-Sealing Formation’ could not hold much longer. He was in despair. He had given up. He understood that this time, he had lost.

The Floating Cloud Immortal looked at Ji Ning, his expression becoming incomparably calm. He transmitted, “Ji Ning, tell me, what… what kind of technique is this?”

The black-robed Ji Ning saw that his opponent had stopped attacking and understood that he had given up. He didn’t actually hate this bald old man. Instead, he pitied him… because Ji Ning could guess that the man was a dead-man walking.

“This is the ‘Lotus Sword World.’”

“Each petal is formed from my endless elemental sword-ki.”

“Where the petals spread, that is my world.”

“It contains the Dao of the Sword, the Dao of Rainwater, the Dao of Space, and the Dao of Blazing Fire. It is the strongest technique I have ever created on my own.” The black-robed Ji Ning transmitted. At this moment, Ji Ning understood that the man had chosen death.

The Floating Cloud Immortal looked at Ji Ning, his eyes filled with envy. “The Dao of the Sword? The Dao of Space? The Dao of Rainwater? The Dao of Blazing Fire? So many Daos, and two of them are Grand Daos, yet you were able to perfectly merge them together and create a technique on your own. In merely thirty years, you accomplished this. A genius like you… I have never seen before, and I cannot imagine your future. I am completely and utterly defeated.”

Ji Ning, however, knew full well how much heart and soul he had poured into creating this technique.

He often meditated within the Starlight Hall.

He often pondered in the quiet room of the aquatic palace.

Time and again, he frantically tried new combinations.

The spirit of the aquatic palace had occasionally guided him, awakening his insights. Only then had he been able to create this defensive technique, a technique with ‘defense’ as its sole purpose.

“Kill me. Let me die by your hand.” The Floating Cloud Immortal’s gaze was distant. At the moment of death, he vaguely sensed that this peerless genius, Ji Ning, would have an astonishing future. He even vaguely sensed that a storm of terrifying proportions was about to arise, and this peerless genius before him would become one of the dazzling figures within it.

“As you wish.” The black-robed Ji Ning nodded.

Swish!

A streak of golden sword-light flashed past.

The Floating Cloud Immortal offered no resistance. The sword-light pierced through his body, stabbing into his golden lotus Primordial Soul. The golden lotus was directly pierced through and then began to collapse.

Although Ji Ning hadn’t extinguished the Floating Cloud Immortal’s divine soul, the Floating Cloud Immortal knew he would be obliterated, thanks to the ‘Oath of Heaven.’ He could feel the ripples of the Heavenly Dao beginning to descend.

“Ancestor Xuanji.”

“At this moment, I can vaguely sense a great storm is about to begin. Dazzling figures will rise, and this Ji Ning will be one of them. My Shaoyin clan will suffer a great calamity because of this…”

“Ancestor Xuanji, you have doomed me, but what sort of terrifying enemy have you brought upon my Shaoyin clan?”

“You will regret this.”

“You will regret this.”

“You are a sinner of my Shaoyin clan, a sinner. But all of this is none of my concern anymore. Oblivion awaits me. Everything is irrelevant to me, irrelevant…” The Floating Cloud Immortal closed his eyes. His physical body first dissolved into nothingness, revealing the shattered and disintegrating golden lotus of his Primordial Soul. Under the descending ripples of the Heavenly Dao, the golden lotus Primordial Soul was quickly completely annihilated, dissolving into nothingness.

The more powerful a cultivator was, the more they believed in the vague premonitions they sensed.

In the moment of his death, the Floating Cloud Immortal had also sensed a terrifying storm about to erupt. Even the Shaoyin clan, which had existed since the earliest days of the Primordial Fiendgod Era, would totter and tremble under such a storm…

“BOOM!”

Just as the Lesser Thousand Sword Formation’s sword-qi pierced through the golden lotus Primordial Soul and the Floating Cloud Immortal began to dissolve into nothingness, a thunderous explosion rang out. The Blood Coagulation Heaven-Sealing Formation also shattered. A coiling black serpent hovered in the air, looking down at Ji Ning, who was surrounded by the massive lotus.

One of the lotus petals curled around the flying swords, storage treasures, and other items left behind by the Floating Cloud Immortal after his death. The petal floated directly to the black-robed Ji Ning.

The black-robed Ji Ning waved his hand, collecting all of them.

The entire building was silent.

The terrified servants, the shocked golden-armored imperial guards, Tiannong Quge, Zhuanshui Xiaolou, Fairy Boyan, Xiao Lang, and even the thirty-six Loose Immortals who had just dispersed, all stared at the black-robed Ji Ning, who was protected by layer upon layer of the massive Lotus Sword World.

They had witnessed a scene…

The second true body of a Wanxiang Adept had slain a powerful Loose Immortal.