Chen Jichuan maintained his composure while operating his cultivation technique.
The five hundred and twenty strands of Sword Qi alternated between manifesting as the "Four-character Poem Sword" and the "Splashed Ink and Striped Cloth Sword Technique," carrying various profound intents as they targeted the unrefined bones throughout his body.
Sonic booms resonated from the depths of his body as one shackle after another was shattered by the Sword Qi.
Essence Qi was fully refined.
Chen Jichuan’s cultivation and mana surged rapidly.
Yin and Yang united, entering the Enlightenment State.
Various sword techniques played out within him, their sublime intents flooding his consciousness, granting him new insights by the second.
The Sword Qi naturally multiplied—
Five hundred and thirty strands.
Five hundred and forty strands.
Five hundred and fifty strands.
Time passed unnoticed. Chen Jichuan only felt his body growing lighter, an abundance of clear energy rising within him, inducing an almost ethereal sensation as though he were merging with immortality.
His entire being brimmed with power; his Divine Soul was invigorated, and his mana flowed boundlessly. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ N0v3l.Fiɾe.net
This state was indescribably sublime.
Chen Jichuan opened his eyes.
Sword Qi erupted violently within him, surging outward in all directions. One sword stance after another coalesced into complex sets of techniques. Even a casual display would terrify a Qi Refining Third Layer cultivator, leaving them unable to endure more than a few breaths before being shredded to pieces by the Sword Qi.
Chen Jichuan exhaled deeply, retracting the Sword Qi.
He didn’t need to count; he instinctively knew—
"Six hundred and ten strands!"
Chen Jichuan’s eyebrows lifted in delight.
He glanced at the Immortal Record panel—
[Cultivation: Qi Refining Sixth Layer; Core Formation Second Layer; Third Layer of Daoist Skill]
"Qi Refining Sixth Layer!"
The smile on Chen Jichuan’s face widened.
Feeling the dramatic rise in his cultivation, his heart overflowed with joy.
Lowering his gaze to the Yuan Yin Pearl and Primordial Yang Pearl in his hands, he noticed that both pearls were dim and lifeless—the Essence Qi accumulated over countless years had been entirely absorbed and refined by him.
Relying on the Yin Yang Mysterious Realm, he had transformed their energies into his own cultivation.
he had forcefully elevated his cultivation by an entire level, stepping from Qi Refining Fifth Layer to Qi Refining Sixth Layer.
Chen Jichuan’s heart brimmed with reverence for the ancient cultivator Wei Boyang.
The treasures, the Primordial Yang Pearl and Yuan Yin Pearl, were an immense boon for Qi Refining cultivators. Even with his current cultivation, he felt it was somewhat wasteful to use them.
For cultivators at the Sixth Layer of Qi Refining striving for the late stage of Qi Refinement, these pearls were most effective.
but in an Immortal Sect, such treasures would be considered unparalleled heirlooms.
Over three centuries of accumulation, the sect would likely produce a Qi Refining Immortal Master with high probability.
In other words, as long as the Primordial Yang Pearl and Yuan Yin Pearl remained in possession, an Immortal Sect like Echo Valley could continuously generate Qi Refining cultivators, almost ensuring their lineage would never falter.
Chen Jichuan held the two pearls, using the Insight Skill to scrutinize the structure, materials, and refinement techniques of the Primordial Yang Pearl, recording each detail meticulously.
The Yuan Yin Pearl, still newly acquired, would require some additional time.
But there was no hurry.
"I still have eight years."
This time was sufficient for him to fully comprehend the Yuan Yin Pearl.
He stored the magical treasures away.
Chen Jichuan sensed his cultivation, nodding repeatedly with satisfaction.
The Qi Refining Sixth Layer already qualified him as a true pinnacle within the Mysterious Nether Sea.
As long as there were no vaster worlds or mightier powerhouses beyond the Mysterious Nether Sea in the Jade Spring World, he could directly condense the Dao Fruit!
"Eight years remain."
"I will comprehend the Yuan Yin Pearl while consolidating and familiarizing myself with Qi Refining Sixth Layer. Then, perhaps I will embrace death."
For the first time, Chen Jichuan no longer feared death but rather awaited it with anticipation.
Online, then offline.
Sixteen years passed in a flash.
in the Northern Territory of the Mysterious Nether Sea, on Carefree Island,
The "Long-Armed Sky Demon" Fei Yun was cultivating.
Before him, dozens of beautiful women lay lifeless in disarray, their deaths harrowing beyond description, clearly having suffered inhuman torment.
Rivers of blood flowed.
Fei Yun opened his mouth, inhaling deeply to devour all the fresh blood into his stomach.
The old demon’s face displayed an expression of ecstasy, a perverse delight. As he operated his demonic skill, the muscles on his two arms pulsed incessantly, faintly shimmering with black light.
Fei Yun’s heart skipped a beat, a foreboding sense of calamity seizing him. He hastily turned his awareness inward, only to find an unnamable flame inexplicably igniting within him.
The fire smoldered, unsettling his mind.
His mana surged uncontrollably, and with his mind in disarray, he spat out a mouthful of blood, suffering significant injury.
Fei Yun’s brows furrowed as he leapt outside, landing at the entrance of Carefree Cave on Carefree Mountain on Carefree Island. His eyes scanned his surroundings furiously as he roared, "Qizhenzi, you old scoundrel! Why curse me for no reason?!"
In the vast Mysterious Nether Sea,
only one person, proficient in spells and bold enough to target the "Long-Armed Sky Demon," existed—the same Qizhenzi of Righteous Qi Island.
Fei Yun raged, bloodlust surging.
his eyes caught a subtle disturbance among the white clouds above. He immediately stretched out his hand, reaching upward. Though standing motionless on the island, his arm elongated a thousand meters, covered in black scales, exuding terror.
The hand transformed into an enormous palm and lunged ferociously at the peculiar cloud.
The cloud burst apart.
But all it contained was a paper figurine, torn into bits.
A bell of alarm resounded in Fei Yun’s heart as he hastily terminated his spell, retracting his arm.
Eight flying swords streaked across the sky, mingled with hundreds of strands of Sword Light, and with a sudden twist and churn—
Fei Yun’s "Sky Supporting Hand," cultivated over two centuries, was severed on the spot.
The Sword Light swirled, shredding the entire appendage into nothingness.
"The Ten Thousand Sword Map?!"
"Qizhenzi, how dare you pilfer Echo Valley’s Absolute Skill?!"
Recognizing the technique, Fei Yun endured the agony of his severed limb and glared at the old Daoist in the sky with a mix of rage and dread.
Chen Jichuan stood in the air, ignoring the "Long-Armed Sky Demon."
Forming seals with his hands,
the "Ten Thousand Sword Map" unfurled, strands of Sword Qi interweaving to create a breathtaking masterpiece that descended toward Fei Yun to claim his life.
fourteen corpses broke through the soil. Each corpse possessed no less than Qi Refining Third Layer power, and two even rivaled Qi Refining Fourth Layer strength.
Forged through the "Overlord Armor" method, their bodies had been tempered to be invulnerable to blades or flames.
They encircled Fei Yun, constraining his movements.
The Sword Qi cascaded down.
Fei Yun raged and panicked, cursing, "You wretched old Daoist! I have no enmity with you—why make me your target?!"
Fueled by wrath, the internal fire blazed fiercer, leaving him dizzy and disoriented.
Still, he persisted, wildly thrashing his remaining arm—
Stretching and contracting at will.
Thickening and thinning without warning.
Alternating between unyielding rigidity and fluid suppleness.
For a while, he managed to fend off the surrounding Sword Qi and the fourteen corpses.
"What a formidable ’Sky Supporting Demon Skill’!"
"What a fearsome ’Long-Armed Sky Demon’!"
Chen Jichuan couldn’t help but feel a surge of admiration.
Fei Yun’s savagery and cruelty, combined with his mastery of the so-called strongest defense technique in the Mysterious Nether Sea, the "Sky Supporting Demon Skill," had allowed him to rampage unhindered, leaving countless casualties in his wake.
Now it was clear he lived up to his infamy.
having become Chen Jichuan’s target, with spells cast and a surprise move severing his arm, Fei Yun could only passively defend, unable to launch any counterattack.
The Sword Qi transformed into a grand tapestry, blanketing the sky.
This was Chen Jichuan’s first time unleashing the full might of the "Ten Thousand Sword Map."
Six hundred and ten strands of Sword Qi soared and danced unpredictably. One sword technique after another took form as sword stances, exhibiting unparalleled power.
Fei Yun weathered the first wave, endured the second wave, but he could not hold against the third wave or the fourth wave.
With the internal fire consuming him,
the confrontation between Echo Valley’s "Ten Thousand Sword Map," famed as the strongest offensive art in the Mysterious Nether Sea, and the "Sky Supporting Demon Skill," renowned as the strongest defensive art, fell decidedly in favor of the Sword Map.
After the fifth wave,
Fei Yun had no strength left to retaliate—
"You’ll die a horrible death!"
Consumed by fury and despair, Fei Yun’s body was riddled with wounds, each a testament to the merciless Sword Qi. He roared and shrieked, only for his head to be severed in the next instant.
A dread figure of the Mysterious Nether Sea, the "Long-Armed Sky Demon," met his end.
In the year 11,864 of the Mysterious Nether Calendar,
the "True Yin Sky Demon" Qizhenzi of Righteous Qi Island’s Fenguang Cave annihilated seven demonic overlords, including the "Long-Armed Sky Demon" Fei Yun, the "True Water Sky Demon" Dong Yi, and the "Blood Refining Sky Demon" Chang Zhouzi, shaking the Mysterious Nether Sea to its core.
Qizhenzi, accompanied by fourteen corpses and commanding yin soldiers and the Five Ghosts, descended upon Jade Spring Mountain, declaring, "First I slay Echo Valley, then I decimate the Five Elements, and henceforth I shall reign supreme in the Mysterious Nether Sea."
He proclaimed himself the "Heavenly Venerate of the Mysterious Nether!"
In Jade Spring Mountain, Chen Jichuan, the founder of Echo Valley who had disappeared two centuries prior, rose from his coffin to battle the "True Yin Sky Demon" Qizhenzi upon the Nine Heavens.
The clash darkened the skies and dimmed the sun and moon.
In the end, only Chen Jichuan returned.
He retreated to his coffin and resumed his slumber.
The "True Yin Sky Demon" and "Heavenly Venerate of the Mysterious Nether" Qizhenzi fell in this battle, his blood staining the firmament, never to appear again.
The world presumed Qizhenzi to have been slain by Chen Jichuan.
The might of Ancestor Chen shocked the populace.
In the years that followed, within and around Jade Spring Mountain spanning thousands of miles, demons and fiends fled in terror, with few daring to challenge the prestige of Echo Valley.
The name of Ancestor Chen resounded through the ages.
The Jade Spring Chapter concludes!