Chapter 961: Heart Of Guardianship (2)

All six of them stared in disbelief as the thousands of shattered blades making up the sword forest rose into the air in perfect unison, hovering motionless ten meters above the ground.

Through the newly formed gap between the swords and the soil, the six finally saw the figure standing at the summit’s center. His entire body was wreathed in golden and silver light.

Fourteen wings of blade and sword were fully spread behind him as he held a golden and silver pair of blades. The scene before them was overwhelmingly powerful, its visual impact crashing down like a wave.

In the very next moment, the broken blades hovering in midair rang out with a metallic chorus. They began to circle around Li Xiaofei’s figure, and then, as if being embedded into a greater design, they seamlessly merged into the twin wings of silver and gold behind his back.

It was as if a god had awakened in that instant. Even Liu Shaji felt a pressure that pierced directly into his soul. At that moment, all of Mount Ten Thousand Blades came alive.

"This is bad, the mountain really is collapsing!" Zhu Zhixun shouted, his voice filled with panic as he felt the ground beneath his feet start to tremble more violently and soften.

Fortunately, the oppressive force began to weaken with the mountain’s collapse. Everyone regained the ability to circulate some of their Immortal Force. Without hesitation, Liu Shaji summoned his White Lotus Killing Sword and rose into the air.

"Get on!" He bellowed. He swept the five young warriors up with him, taking off shakily into the air.

Boom.

A moment later, a cloud of metallic dust exploded into the sky as Mount Ten Thousand Blades completely crumbled. Countless fragments of weapons that varied in color, shape, and size shot out through the void, spinning, scattering, twisting, and swirling as they erupted outward in all directions.

"This is bad!" Xiong Gang cried out as he saw the wave of shattered blades hurtling toward them. He immediately summoned the black wok. The wok rapidly expanded and covered the group like a shield, enclosing them beneath it.

Clang. Clink. Clang.

Fragments of weapons pelted the surface of the wok, producing a chorus of metallic crashes. Xiong Gang gritted his teeth, his face pale as he endured the relentless vibrations.

Liu Shaji seized the opportunity to channel all his energy into the White Lotus Killing Sword, finally managing to carry the group out from the very heart of the collapsing Mount Ten Thousand Blades.

The group tumbled to the ground, drenched in cold sweat. They turned back. The towering mountain, once ten thousand meters high, was rapidly crumbling into dust. A single stream of radiant light burst out from within the collapsing mass. It was composed of the countless weapon fragments that had formed the mountain’s body.

Dormant for who knew how many years, they had been awakened by some unknown force and one final spark of spirit and energy stirred within them. Unwilling to remain in eternal slumber, the fragments reawakened with a fierce battle intent and surged toward the one point that had drawn them.

"This is bad. Senior Li hasn’t come out yet!" Zhu Zhixun cried out, his face pale with alarm.

He was truly worried. The same thought struck Xiong Gang and the others, and their eyes instantly turned red.

"Go back!" Jin Ye gritted his teeth. "Even if we die, we must bring Senior Li out!"

"Let’s go," said the square-faced man without hesitation.

At the side, Liu Shaji couldn't help but feel a bit jealous,

Damn it.

He had gone through all that effort to rescue them, and now, these guys were ready to throw their lives away again without a second thought.

Just what was it about Li Xiaofei? What kind of charm did that guy have, to make a few people who had only known him for less than half a year so willing to die for him?

"All of you, stay put!" Liu Shaji blocked their path. "What nonsense is this? That brat’s got freakish luck and a monstrous life force. He’s the one who caused all this chaos; do you really think he’s in danger?"

Zhu Zhixun was overjoyed. “Liu Shaji, you mean to say...?”

“Relax.” Liu Shaji replied calmly, “This is his destined opportunity.”

Liu Shaji had gradually come to understand the truth along the way. Among the many illusionary seals they had encountered, the treasures left behind by Sword Immortal Lin Beichen might have seemed like they were meant for everyone, but in reality, they had all been prepared for Li Xiaofei.

He and the five young warriors had merely been tagging along and enjoying the scraps of good fortune. Li Xiaofei had grown continuously through the journey of searching for Lin Beichen. His strength had advanced at such an astonishing pace that even Liu Shaji, who had been reincarnated with a previous life’s experience and strength, felt a crushing sense of pressure. Still, all he needed to do was keep fighting and killing, refining the Sanqing Dahua Pill within his body, and his strength would continue to grow naturally without encountering bottlenecks.

The five young warriors remained tense and on edge. They stared in the direction of Mount Ten Thousand Blades but the mountain was no more. Weapon fragments now floated in the sky, spinning like swift flying swallows, casting brilliant, multicolored lights across the sky.

At the very center of it all, a golden and silver orb of light was growing larger and more radiant by the second. There was a fiery, pure gold and a pristine, snow-white silver bathing everything around them in their respective brilliance.

The six of them watched as not just the remains of Mount Ten Thousand Blades, but countless weapon fragments from all across the Blade Ruins began to converge toward the golden orb.

They surged forward as if in a frenzied race, each fragment fighting to be absorbed into that core. It was a scene both strange and breathtaking. Liu Shaji’s gaze sharpened with understanding, mixed with a trace of excitement.

“Is he... refining the blades of ten thousand mountains into an imperial weapon for the Dao?” he murmured.

Li Xiaofei had always demonstrated talent and cultivation speed far beyond what even peerless geniuses could manage. His combat strength was leagues above others in the same realm.

With the Blood-Drinking Sword at full power in his hand, Li Xiaofei’s combat ability could even rival a level nine Reaper. But his cultivation, and his weapons were, to some degree, tied to the legacy of the five Human Emperors. He had benefited immensely from the gifts and blessings of those five mighty sovereigns.

How much of what Li Xiaofei wielded was truly his own original creation? Truly not much. If he truly wished to become the Sixth Human Emperor, Li Xiaofei needed to forge his own path.

The vision of mastering saber, spear, and sword as three ultimate arts was clear. But he had barely begun to walk that road. One saber technique, one sword technique, and one spear technique. Powerful indeed, but far from reaching the pinnacle.

Now, with the convergence of ten thousand blades, the weapons of countless fallen human heroes had acknowledged him and chosen to follow. Those weapon fragments, orbiting the golden and silver light like stars encircling the sun, seemed on the verge of rebirth within the radiance.

Liu Shaji could sense it. There was a strange and completely new force of law being born, slowly budding at the very center of Mount Ten Thousand Blades.

Is that... the power of guardianship?

A sudden intuition struck Liu Shaji like a flash of enlightenment.

Guardianship. A new law was taking shape right before his eyes. In that moment, he understood that Li Xiaofei’s path to becoming the Sixth Human Emperor had finally begun to reveal its edge.

The five great Human Emperors had all walked their own sovereign paths. In truth, it wasn’t just the five. There was also Liu Shaji himself, Hua Xiangrong, Li Lan, Zhong Dajun, Zhang Fan, Fang Tianyi, Wang Yan, Elena, Ling Chen, Han Bufei, Jian Xue Wuming, Ye Weiyang, Mi Ruyan... and countless others.

Every one of these peerless human experts who aspired to become an Emperor had carved their own path. To become Emperor, one had to first find their Dao. But that Dao was never easy.

To carve out one’s own Dao through the thorn-covered, mist-shrouded wilderness of ten thousand blades was an ordeal beyond imagination. It might begin as a narrow footpath. It might resemble a lone, swaying bridge. Perhaps, in time, it would become a towering, majestic Great Dao.

But no matter what, once a path was found and affirmed, then no matter how difficult it was, one had to walk it to the end. Throughout the universe, so many heroic figures among the human race had once declared grand vows to protect humanity. Some never spoke such words, yet fulfilled the duty of guardianship through their every action.

However, only one person had truly entered the Dao through the power of guardianship, to awaken and manifest the Law of Guardianship. The Sixth Human Emperor had found his Dao, and that Dao had begun to shine, radiant and clear.

Liu Shaji’s eyes widened. At some point, a massive phantom had appeared in the sky. It was the image of Li Xiaofei. Countless weapon fragments flocked to the phantom like young swallows returning to the nest.

They danced, spun, circled, and guarded. Then, they began to assemble with methodical precision. They formed a saber, a sword, and a spear behind the towering phantom. The saber and sword were vivid and defined, brimming with a palpable presence. The spear, however, appeared faint and indistinct, its shape scattered and unclear.

This was because Li Xiaofei had yet to fully grasp the supreme laws of the spear. Even so, the moment those three weapons took shape, the torrent of weapon fragments did not stop.

They continued to rush forward from the collapsed Mount Ten Thousand Blades and from every hidden corner of the Blade Ruins, like celestial saints responding to a divine call, to join the great assembly.