Chapter 405

Chapter 405: Chapter 404 Who exactly was it? Killed Sword Elder, blocked Heavenly Punishment, and also stole the Xuanyuan Sword?

Just thinking about it makes one shudder. Sword Elder was a Peak Expert of the Early-stage Martial Saint level who specifically invented an Absolute Skill to resist Heavenly Punishment. He could lock down three Thunder Dragons as big as water barrels and burst one with a punch. Such strength far exceeded that of an ordinary Early-stage Martial Saint expert. It was evident, whoever killed Sword Elder, blocked Heavenly Punishment, and stole the Xuanyuan Sword must be an unparalleled expert, powerful beyond imagination. Otherwise, how could they possibly have stolen the Xuanyuan Sword under such circumstances?

"Who exactly was it?" Ye Tianchen couldn’t help asking.

"Keep watching!" At this moment, Sword Elder also grew serious. His eyes angrily stared at the scene, having used his powerful strength numerous times to reproduce the scene of that day, certainly intending to find out who had fatally schemed against him.

Boom! A loud thunderclap exploded, the world within that scene trembling everywhere. The thatched hut where Sword Elder was, directly shattered, and even the ground on which he stood cracked open with dozens of fissures. The air was blasted apart, and even the clouds were completely shaken into powder—a truly astonishing power.

Roar!

That was a monstrous roar. Ye Tianchen stared intently at the scene, not daring to believe his eyes, unable to comprehend how such Heavenly Punishment could be so immense. In the scene, Sword Elder also frowned, clearly showing a hint of retreat. It had evidently reached a level hard for humans to contend with. Suddenly, the space above the sky tore open, and a giant Thunder Dragon appeared, its head alone occupying half the sky, poking out a head as if the True Dragon itself had descended from heaven, though this dragon was still made of thunder, representing the will of the Heavenly Dao to suppress the Xuanyuan Sword.

Sword Elder was entirely stunned. He held the "iron" in his left hand and his right-hand hammer also hung down by his side. The scene was too shocking, even Ye Tianchen, merely standing outside the scene, couldn’t help but gasp. With such a massive Heavenly Punishment, the Thunder Dragon’s head alone occupied half the sky. Who could withstand such an attack? Perhaps even an Emperor Level expert wouldn’t dare touch it, taking it lightly in no way.

Howl!

The Thunder Dragon raised its head and howled, its mouth suddenly spewing out a gigantic Thunderball that flew towards Sword Elder with the speed of lightning. Sword Elder was utterly terrified. Where could he still afford to be slow? He threw out the iron hammer in his right hand, striking the Thunderball, and at the same time, Sword Elder also flew away from his location because the iron hammer, tempered with his Original True Qi, was not an ordinary weapon; otherwise, it couldn’t be used to strike the "iron". When it flew towards the Thunderball, still a hundred meters away, Sword Elder’s iron hammer, tempered by his Early-stage Martial Saint strength, instantly turned into flying ash, not even scraps remained. What frightening power? How could he not flee for his life?

Bang!

The Thunderball spewed by the Thunder Dragon solidly hit the ground. Even though Sword Elder had escaped tens of thousands of meters in the blink of an eye, he was still affected and gotten blown away, heavily crashing into a large mountain. But before Sword Elder could climb up from the ground, another Thunderball had already arrived. A mountain comparable to Mount Tai was directly smashed to pieces, turning into powder. It was unbelievable. Anyone who could withstand such an attack had to be nothing less than an Emperor. The force of this blow was comparable to that of a punch from a Peak of Late Stage Martial Saint.

In an instant, the entire space where Sword Elder was filled with thunder and lightning, simply turning into a time of thunder. Heavenly Punishment surrounded him. He still grasped the "iron" in his left hand, his body already drenched in blood, but Sword Elder didn’t let go. Being a stubborn man and a Swordsmith who had been obsessed with sword making his entire life, how could he give up upon encountering such Divine Iron? Facing such Heavenly Punishment, beyond human power to contend with, Sword Elder’s only option was to flee with the "iron"!

Bang, bang, bang...

The exploding sounds of those colossal thunderballs falling, Sword Elder, an Early-stage Martial Saint expert, could say he was strong enough to roam the world in his era or even in the present day, but now he had no choice but to flee and withstand the hits. Such Thunder Punishment was not aimed at him but at the "iron" in his hands—a Heavenly Punishment that even Emperors would marvel at, truly formidable, destructive to heaven and earth, no exaggeration.

In less than a third of an incense stick’s time, a radius of ten thousand li was completely destroyed, all blasted apart by the power of thunder and lightning. The ground had no intact soil left, nor a single complete tree, all the high mountains were razed to the ground. Just thinking about that scene made one feel frightened.

"Do you know how miserable I was back then? I had absolutely no power to fight back!" Sword Elder couldn’t help but sigh. Even as an Early-stage Martial Saint, unequivocally a formidable figure, to have no room to retaliate at all, this Heavenly Punishment really is... unspeakably harsh!

"I know, perhaps it is no different even for those about to become Emperors when they undergo Heavenly Punishment," Ye Tianchen frowned and asked.

"I don’t know. Actually, I could have avoided it, but curse that person who plotted against me..." Sword Elder said bitterly.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Thunder and lightning filled the skies. Sword Elder was already surrounded in a world of thunder, where even moving a step would invite lightning strikes. Now, that enormous Thunder Dragon opened its mouth and spewed out countless rains of swords, all formed by the power of thunder and lightning, each one tearing through the void with wild destructive power.

One can imagine, Sword Elder standing on the ground that had been flattened for tens of thousands of miles around, holding that piece of "iron" in his left hand, standing dumbfounded on the spot, watching the dazzling thunderous sword rain falling from the sky like meteor showers, yet possessing the power to destroy heaven and earth. What a sight that must have been! In that moment, even as an Early-stage Martial Saint, Sword Elder despaired and gave up resisting. He knew he couldn’t withstand such Heavenly Punishment. Having been revered as the world’s greatest swordsmith in his lifetime, and having crafted such a Divine Sword, he was prepared to die without regrets, yet not having seen the true face of that piece of "iron," he still felt a tinge of unwillingness.

Swipe!

Just as Sword Elder despaired, believing he was undoubtedly going to die without seeing the true face of that piece of "iron," the "iron" in his left hand suddenly detached itself and shot into the sky, facing the thunder-formed sword rain.

A magnificent and unparalleled sword light flashed, blindingly bright, and cleaved the Heavenly Capital as if slicing it into two halves. The thunder sword rain coming its way was completely shattered by that sword light, dissipating in mid-air, falling to the ground like a beautiful meteor shower. Unfortunately, Sword Elder was not in the mood, nor did he have the opportunity to appreciate this beautiful scene.

It seemed as if Heaven and Earth acknowledged the power of that piece of "iron." Like an unyielding sovereign, it faced the Heavenly Punishment that even Emperors would handle cautiously, not retreating a single step, showing no signs of surrender, simply floating in the air, standing firm, as if waiting for this realm’s Heavenly Punishment to see what other means it had.

"No matter how vast the heavens or how strong the Heavenly Dao, they must recognize my supreme authority. Isn’t this the path I must follow?" Ye Tianchen couldn’t help but mutter to himself.

At that moment, the massive Thunder Dragon that had poked its head out was roaring madly, its dragon claws also abruptly stretched out from the void, frantically struggling as if trying to free itself and confront that piece of "iron," but no matter how much it roared and raged, it couldn’t fully emerge. Ultimately, its eyes even shot out two beams of purple lightning toward the "iron" floating in mid-air.

"What? The mightiest Heavenly Punishment Thunder?" Ye Tianchen couldn’t help but cry out in alarm.

"Looks like you know quite a bit, kid. But this is just the beginning. Thinking I could witness such a scene and die is not too regrettable. However, when I think of the person who schemed against me, I can’t let it go even if I were to become a ghost!" Sword Elder said through clenched teeth at the end.

Every cultivator, whether or not they have undergone Heavenly Punishment, has some understanding of it because it is considered the greatest impediment to a cultivator’s progress, as well as the biggest barrier to breakthroughs and cultivation growth. It strikes just when cultivators have painstakingly managed to increase their power. Therefore, no one dares to take it lightly, since Heavenly Punishment represents the will of this realm and the Great Universe. That level of power is truly tremendous.

Generally speaking, many can withstand their Heavenly Punishment because it’s not too severe. Of course, as one’s Cultivation Realm increases, the Heavenly Punishment will become increasingly severe, more violent, and the power of thunder and lightning will become greater. As is well-known, purple lightning represents the most formidable Heavenly Punishment Thunder. Only those with extremely high talents and hopes of becoming Emperors, or even defy-the-heavens demonic geniuses, will face such Heavenly Punishment. If such people withstand it, their cultivation and strength will terrifyingly skyrocket.

It is said that transcendent masters, when trying to break through the final limits to enter the Emperor Realm, face the strongest Heavenly Punishment. Aside from the mightiest Heavenly Punishment Thunder, many unimaginable phenomena occur. Many have perished on the Emperor Road, even those exceptional demonic geniuses. Becoming an Emperor, dominating the universe, is not an easy feat...(To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to qidian.com to vote and support me. Your support is my greatest motivation.)