The Mirror of a Thousand Blades

“What’s the strength of the guardians on the Swordroad of Ten Thousand Blades? What are their special traits?” Ji Ning asked.

This was the final obstacle. Ji Ning understood that the guardians would certainly be terrifying.

Sin God and Seal-Throat God exchanged a glance and both laughed. Sin God looked at Ji Ning. “On the Swordroad of Ten Thousand Blades…your opponent is yourself!”

“Myself?” Ji Ning was startled.

“Yes.”

Sin God explained, “When you challenge the Swordroad, the opponent that appears will have a divine body, divine abilities, divine power, and everything else completely identical to yours. Even the sword-arts you use, they will use the same sword-arts. The only difference is…the sword-arts they use are those of the Moon Underwater Abyss.”

Ji Ning felt a chill in his heart.

His greatest advantage was that his ‘Pure Yang Golden Core’ had reached the second grade. But on the Swordroad of Ten Thousand Blades, he would have no such advantage at all.

“On the Swordroad, what matters is pure combat technique,” Seal-Throat God sighed. “For me, it’s spear technique. For you, Northmyre, it’s sword technique! You can only defeat your opponent if your sword-arts surpass theirs. And on the Swordroad…there are ten such opponents. They all have the same divine body, abilities, and power as you, but the sword-arts they use are different. The further back the guardian, the higher their sword-art level.”

“The ten guardians on the Swordroad of Ten Thousand Blades are like ten versions of yourself. Defeat these ten selves, and you can reach the fifth island and leave the Abyss,” Seal-Throat said.

Ji Ning nodded slowly.

Defeat himself?

And ten increasingly powerful versions at that?

…

Having understood the difficulty of the Swordroad, Ji Ning no longer felt so confident. His advantages over other Empyrean Gods lay in his ‘Golden Core’ and ‘divine body protective divine ability’. Now, those were stripped away. If it was purely a contest of sword-arts… fortunately, his hundred years of bitter battle across the Demon-Ice Valley had greatly improved his swordsmanship.

After arriving at Thousandstar Island, he had also meditated for over ten days. The Five Treasures Sword Art was now faintly touching the threshold of great completion, and his sword speed could even reach the speed of light.

“With such sword-arts, can I pass the Swordroad?” Ning was uncertain.

“Brother Northmyre, the Demon King said you have the best chance of leaving the Moon Underwater Abyss alive. We’re all counting on you,” Tyrant God laughed.

“If you get out, we can follow.”

“It won’t be hard for Brother Northmyre to get out.”

Around a campfire, roasting a skinned beast, over two hundred Empyrean Gods gathered. Their gazes toward Ji Ning were burning hot, because in their hearts…this Northmyre Empyrean God was their best hope. They had been trapped here for far too long, and deep in their souls, they desperately yearned to leave.

“Alright, alright, don’t put too much pressure on Northmyre,” Feiyou God shouted. “The Moon Underwater Abyss isn’t so easy to leave. Let Northmyre take his time to challenge it.”

“Right. We’re not in a hurry. We’ve waited this long. Another ten thousand years, a million years—no rush.”

“We’re not in a rush.”

“But there’s a tribulation outside now, so we need to get out sooner rather than later. If we’re too late, the tribulation will be over, and we won’t even be able to contribute.”

Amidst the chatter, Seal-Throat God and Sin God came to stand beside Ji Ning. Seal-Throat spoke softly, “Northmyre, to tell you the truth, Sin and I have challenged the Swordroad for many, many years. I can’t get past the seventh guardian. Sin is stuck on the sixth. The ten guardians get stronger as you go. I still have four left to beat; Sin has five. Our chances of progress are slim…”

“Yes,” Sin God sighed. “I’ve only beaten half of them. There are still five ahead! I really don’t have much confidence anymore. Back then, Sun Nine had a lot of promise. He had already beaten eight guardians, with only the last two left. But sadly, he died at the hands of that Greatdream. Greatdream is stronger than us, too. He’s also beaten eight guardians, with only the last two left.”

Ning nodded.

He could sense the lack of confidence in Sin and Seal-Throat.

“We don’t know when we’ll be able to leave on our own,” Seal-Throat looked at Ning. “Over two hundred Empyrean Gods are now watching the three of us. We two aren’t good enough. It all comes down to you.”

“Northmyre, we really are relying on you,” Sin God also looked at him.

“I’ll do my best, but I’m not certain myself,” Ning said.

“Oh, and one more thing,” Seal-Throat advised. “Remember, if you defeat the ninth guardian, immediately retreat and come back to Thousandstar Island.”

“Why?” Ning was taken aback.

“If you defeat all ten guardians in a single push, you’ll be sent straight to the fifth island,” Seal-Throat said urgently. “What about the two hundred plus Empyrean Gods over here? They’re waiting for you to take them out. If you can beat nine guardians, it’s best to bring them along to challenge the tenth.”

“Right, right, right. Back then, that Jueming—it’s said he suddenly had an epiphany while challenging the Swordroad, and without a word, he broke through the last three guardians in a row and left directly. He didn’t take a single god out,” Sin God said angrily. “That Jueming was far too selfish.”

“Maybe we can’t blame him,” Seal-Throat said. “He was probably immersed in the excitement of his epiphany, charging all the way through. He forgot the exact number of guardians and just fought his way out. Once he was out, there was no going back.”

“Hmph,” Sin God snorted disdainfully, clearly holding a grudge against Jueming.

“Enough of that,” Seal-Throat smiled at Ning. “Northmyre, we two are useless. It really is up to you.”

“Tomorrow, give it your best shot. Just don’t charge all the way out—save some energy,” Sin God laughed.

“If I can even beat the ninth guardian, that’ll be worth celebrating,” Ning shook his head. He really wasn’t confident.

…

The next day.

At the edge of Thousandstar Island, more than two hundred Empyrean Gods came to see Ji Ning off.

“Northmyre, be careful!”

“Beat nine and come back!”

“Northmyre, staying alive is the most important thing. Don’t throw your life away.”

The gods all gave their advice. In the past, there had indeed been gods who died on the Swordroad. But Ning wasn’t worried. The guardians the other gods faced were identical to them in divine body and power. When they fought, a single hit could shatter their bodies. But for him?

When he faced a guardian, both sides would be protected by the Eight-Nine Arcane Art, so neither could kill the other. For Ning, challenging the Swordroad was actually the safest option. But safe or not, defeating all ten guardians…that would be incredibly difficult.

“I’m going.” Ning waved his hand and stepped alone onto the log bridge.

More than two hundred Empyrean Gods watched as he followed the floating bridge and disappeared into the distant Swordroad.

“With the tribulation of the Three Realms upon us, I wish we could get out soon.”

“It all depends on Northmyre now.”

At this moment, the gods all grew tense. Their earlier joking and laughter had only been to lighten the mood. Now that Ning had truly gone to challenge the Swordroad, the pressure settled on all of them.

If…

If Ning only managed to defeat five or six guardians, then it might be millions or even tens of millions of years before anyone could leave.

“Northmyre…”

The eyes of over two hundred Empyrean Gods were filled with longing, hope, and anxiety.

They weren’t afraid of death.

But knowing that their masters, brothers, and loved ones were facing a great tribulation while they themselves lived safely on Thousandstar Island…they couldn’t bear it. They wanted out. They longed desperately to get out!

…

The long floating bridge led to the Swordroad of Ten Thousand Blades.

Countless giant blades, swords, and other weapons pierced toward the sky. The white-robed youth suddenly stopped. Far ahead, a golden-robed youth appeared, looking exactly like Ji Ning.

“Myself?” Ning was momentarily stunned.

“I am the first guardian. Look at that blade,” the golden-robed youth pointed to a nearby sword-shaped blade towering ten thousand zhang high. On the giant blade, an image appeared, showing a figure demonstrating a sword-art, from shallow to deep, from simple to complex. A formidable sword-art was being displayed.

“The sword-art shown on this blade is the one I will use,” the golden-robed youth looked at Ning. “You may watch this sword-art three times. After the third viewing, the image will disappear, and we will fight.”

“Oh?” Ning was delighted.

An unexpected surprise. He was actually allowed to preview his opponent’s sword-art. Sin God and Seal-Throat God hadn’t mentioned this. Perhaps they wanted to give him a pleasant surprise, thinking that such an unannounced gift would make him feel joyful at the critical moment.

Ning carefully watched the sword-art displayed on the giant blade thrust into the endless ice. The sword-art was demonstrated continuously. Three viewings took nearly six hours, and the demonstration nearly completely deconstructed the art.

“A rather unique sword-art,” Ning praised, but he wasn’t flustered. The first guardian’s sword-art shouldn’t pose a threat to him.

“Ready?” the golden-robed youth asked.

“Yes,” Ning nodded.

“Take this.” The golden-robed youth suddenly shook his body, manifesting Three Heads, Six Arms. Six divine swords appeared in his hands, and he lunged straight at Ning.

Ning felt a strange sensation in his heart. The opponent’s fighting style was very similar to his own, and he looked exactly like him.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. His light-speed sword technique held an overwhelming advantage. Although the opponent’s power also surged, as if executing the Starseizing Hand, the opponent was still sent flying backward by Ning’s sword-light. Only the Eight-Nine Arcane Art protected him from any harm.

“Your sword-art is far superior to mine,” the golden-robed youth landed on the log bridge and nodded. “I admit defeat.”

Whoosh.

The golden-robed youth immediately vanished into nothingness.

…

Ning pressed forward, delving deeper into the Swordroad. Every time he encountered a new guardian, a sword-art would appear on the blade beside him, allowing him to study it carefully. Watching these sword-arts also gave him some inspiration, helping him to refine his own Brightmoon Sword-Art. But the Brightmoon Sword-Art, created by absorbing the essence of the Five Treasures Sword Art, was simply too powerful. The light-speed sword-light was especially formidable, for a single ‘speed’ surpassed countless techniques.

Ning advanced in one smooth push, all the way to the eighth guardian.

That’s all for today’s update, folks!