Translator: CinderTL
Whoosh.
Li Chunjun led his group directly to Flaming Phoenix Peak.
On the peak, Core Formation Cultivators were also gazing at the Heavenly Vault.
They knew little about the decisions made by the sect's upper echelons.
They were barely aware of the conflict between Li Chunjun's journey to the Two Worlds Mountain Battlefield aboard a Void Warship and the Taixu Sword Sect.
Some even believed the sect had arranged for Li Chunjun to go to the Main Sect for advanced training.
Now, seeing Li Chunjun return in a Void Warship that clearly wasn't ordinary, many assumed he had achieved great success and was returning from the Main Sect. Their faces lit up with excitement and anticipation.
"Sword Prodigy Li!"
Qin Zhou was the first to fly into the Void, his voice filled with respect and joy.
Jiang Yuxue, Zhang Weiqian, and the others followed closely behind.
"Qin Zhou."
Li Chunjun nodded slightly to him and then gestured to Zhao Yu Pan and the others. "You go with him and bring Zhou Wu Gou. To prevent any unforeseen changes after the Blue Star blockade is lifted, handle this matter swiftly."
"Yes, Sword Prodigy."
Zhao Yu Pan and the others replied in unison.
Seeing the Nascent Soul True Lords, Qin Zhou didn't dare delay. He quickly led them into the peak and soon brought Zhou Wu Gou out.
As they went to retrieve Zhou Wu Gou, Li Chunjun glanced at a courtyard on Flaming Phoenix Peak.
In the courtyard, another figure was watching him intently.
Her eyes were filled with relief and joy.
"Senior Sister," Li Chunjun greeted her.
"Junior Brother, you..." Jiang Wanyu responded immediately.
She seemed to have much to say, but when the words reached her lips, they transformed into a simple inquiry: "Have you been well these past two years?"
"Very well," Li Chunjun nodded slightly. "I went to the Profound Yellow Great World to compete on the Profound Yellow Star Brilliance List. I claimed the first rank and gained immense rewards. After digesting my gains, I entered seclusion to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm. Once I reached the Nascent Soul Realm, I continued to challenge the Profound Yellow Solar Radiance List, successfully reaching the top."
Jiang Wanyu covered her mouth, her expression filled with disbelief.
"This journey has been smooth and successful, bringing me both fame and fortune," Li Chunjun concluded briefly.
Jiang Wanyu stared at him for a long moment without reacting, lost in thought.
Li Chunjun turned his gaze away from her. Qin Zhou, Zhao Yu Pan, and the others had just brought out Zhou Wu Gou, whose Essence, Qi, and Spirit had been completely drained, leaving him looking like a frail old man on the brink of death.
"Li Chunjun..." Zhou Wu Gou's gaze, filled with hatred, locked onto Li Chunjun as he was brought back into the sunlight.
Li Chunjun, however, had no intention of exchanging another word with him.
He sent a mental message to Jiang Wanyu: "We'll talk more when I return."
Then, turning to the others, he said, "Let's go. To the Chiyang Sword Sect."
With that, he soared into the sky, surrounded by a retinue of Nascent Soul and Primordial Spirit cultivators, and headed straight for the Golden Crow Battleship.
At this moment, the members of the Taixu Sword Sect finally snapped out of their shock.
Sect Master Huan Ming quickly caught up. "Sword Prodigy Li... may I accompany you?"
He immediately added an explanation: "There are some Hidden Pawns from our Taixu Sword Sect within the Chiyang Sword Sect. To avoid any accidental harm, I thought..."
"Sect Leader Huan Ming, there's no need for formalities. You're welcome to join us," Li Chunjun replied.
Watching Huan Ming, who had recovered from his shock and now wore a more restrained expression, Li Chunjun paused. He considered adding, "I am also a member of the Taixu Sword Sect."
But remembering True Monarch Xuan You's attitude...
If he said those words, the ensuing events would only put the Sect Master in an awkward position.
It was best to maintain the current status for now.
He could deal with the matter of the Blue Star Taixu Sword Sect after the uproar surrounding the Star Brilliance First Rank had subsided.
For now, he led Huan Ming into the Golden Crow Battleship.
The Void Warship's speed was so great that the entire Blue Star seemed but a stone's throw away.
Before long, the sealed mountain gate of the Chiyang Sword Sect came into Li Chunjun's view.
A Primordial Spirit True Monarch was personally stationed here.
Dozens of Nascent Soul True Lords presided over the Array Formation, ensuring that no one within the Chiyang Sword Sect could leave.
As Li Chunjun appeared, the Primordial Spirit True Monarch immediately stepped forward, cupping his hands in greeting with curiosity. "Sword Prodigy Li, it's an honor to meet you."
"Thank you for your efforts," Li Chunjun replied, then instructed, "Open the Array Formation."
At that moment, Zhou Wu Gou, escorted by Zhao Yu Pan, Qin Zhou, and others, seemed to realize something.
Something's different!
The people around Li Chunjun, the aura he exuded...
Something's different!
Though his cultivation had been crippled, his vision as a True Inheritor Disciple remained sharp.
He could see that every one of the dozens of people aboard the Void Warship was at least a Nascent Soul True Lord.
Some of them were even considered powerful among Nascent Soul True Lords, and even standing near them filled him with a sense of dread.
He didn't know if his perception was distorted after his cultivation was destroyed, or if there was another reason...
The only thing he could imagine was that these people were all Perfected Great Lords of Late Nascent Soul Stage!
Fifty or sixty Nascent Soul cultivators!
Half of them in the Late-Stage Nascent Soul realm!
This force alone was enough to uproot the entire Chiyang Sword Sect!
Especially...
The Chiyang Sword Sect seemed to have been sealed off long ago by Li Chunjun's men, causing him to cry out in alarm: "What are you doing!? Li Chunjun, what do you want!?"
Li Chunjun glanced at him. "The Taixu Sword Sect believes in reciprocal retribution, and I agree. Before, I lacked the strength to make you pay for your actions in the Great Shang Royal Capital. But now... I have the strength. It's time for me to fulfill the promise I made back then."
"You... you want to exterminate my Zhou Clan?" Zhou Wu Gou's pupils contracted sharply.
Su Fang, standing nearby, spoke at the opportune moment: "The Chiyang Sword Sect colluded with the Divine Race and plotted to harm our Human Race's Heavenly Prodigy. The entire sect is guilty of crimes against humanity and can be executed on the spot! The only reason they're still alive is to allow Sword Prodigy Li to conduct a trial and see if we can extract any information about the Divine Race from them."
In truth, the Chiyang Sword Sect was being kept alive solely to allow Sword Prodigy Li to exact his revenge.
The so-called "trial" was merely a euphemism.
"No! Impossible! The Chiyang Sword Sect is a member of the Immortal Alliance! How could a mere sect feud possibly be twisted into a crime against humanity?! These are nothing but slanderous accusations!" Zhou Wu Gou exclaimed, his voice trembling with emotion.
"I am Su Fang, a Primordial Spirit True Monarch from the Hall of Justice of the Multiverse Hegemony War Committee. This document has already been approved by the Immortal Alliance. How could it possibly be false?" Su Fang replied calmly.
"Pri... Primordial Spirit True Monarch!?" Zhou Wu Gou stammered, his eyes widening in disbelief as he stared at Su Fang.
He quickly turned his gaze to the others in the room.
Was this man truly a Primordial Spirit True Monarch?
He sensed a similar aura from several others present!
If that were true...
There were multiple Primordial Spirit True Monarchs in this room!
Yet all of them seemed to be deferring to Li Chunjun!
How could this be possible!?
"Why would a sect feud be twisted into a crime against humanity?" True Monarch Huang Tian chuckled softly. "Perhaps you don't know who Sword Prodigy Li truly is."
He said calmly, "Standing before you is the first Peerless Prodigy in the history of the Azure Sea Domain to rank first on the Profound Yellow Star Brilliance List! He is also one of the few prodigies in the entire Profound Yellow Great World to reach the Star Brilliance First Rank at the age of twenty-two! In the future, he is destined to become a Void Refining Human Race high-level seed!"
He glanced at Zhou Wu Gou. Though beings of this level usually wouldn't even be worthy of speaking to him, he didn't mind saying a few more words since it concerned Sword Prodigy Li.
"Your Chiyang Sword Sect has committed the audacious crime of colluding with the Divine Race to frame such a Heavenly Prodigy of the Human Race. What's wrong with sentencing them for crimes against humanity?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Wu Gou felt as if his mind was about to explode.
An unprecedented wave of shock and terror surged through him, reaching the crown of his head and nearly lifting his skull.
Star Brilliance First Rank!?
Though only a Golden Core disciple, as a True Inheritor of his sect, he naturally knew the significance of the Profound Yellow Star Brilliance List.
He also knew what it meant to be ranked Star Brilliance First Rank!
This was the strongest cultivator chosen from the vast and boundless Profound Yellow Great World and countless Lesser Thousand Worlds, among hundreds of millions of Nascent Soul cultivators!
This was a Peerless Prodigy whose name alone could ignite a frenzy among countless Core Formation, Nascent Soul, and even Primordial Spirit True Monarchs, who would treat him as an idol!
This was the legendary Human cultivator who had to possess at least Late-stage Primordial Spirit combat power just to make the Star Brilliance List!
Such a legendary figure, who should only exist in news reports and biographies...
...was Li Chunjun!?
The Core Formation cultivator who had nearly been killed by him in the Great Shang Royal City's array formation years ago!?
In an instant, a sense of world-shattering disbelief surged through Zhou Wu Gou's mind.
"Impossible! Impossible! Li Chunjun is just a mere native of Blue Star! How could he possibly possess such talent!? How could he possibly have reached the Star Brilliance First Rank!?"
Zhou Wu Gou's Heart-Mind was shattered, his thoughts in disarray.
He refused to believe it.
Yet before his eyes, Primordial Spirit True Monarchs were deferring to Li Chunjun's lead.
The Hall of Justice had personally intervened to seal off the Chiyang Sword Sect, and the Main Sect had remained completely silent, repeatedly reminding him that this was reality.
The vast gulf between his perception and reality violently assaulted the True Inheritor Disciple's Heart-Mind, shattering his sanity in mere moments.
Suddenly, Zhou Wu Gou began to laugh and cry uncontrollably. "This can't be true! How could such a legendary figure be born in a tiny Azure Star Minor Realm, and how could I possibly have encountered him... This isn't real! It's an illusion! All of this is an illusion! Hahaha, hahahahahaha..."
The Chiyang Sword Sect's Array Formation had already been activated.
Zhan Chiyang, the Chiyang Sword Sect Master, along with Nascent Soul True Lords Zhou Chixin, Li Ding, and Yu Kun, had also taken flight.
Zhou Wu Gou's heart-mind collapsed, and his desperate cries reached the ears of these Nascent Soul True Lords.
When they learned that Li Chunjun had ascended to the "Star Brilliance First Rank," these True Lords were struck as if by lightning, their faces turning deathly pale.
Zhan Chiyang, the Sect Master himself, couldn't help but tremble violently.
"Star Brilliance First Rank!? The Star Brilliance List!? How could it possibly be the Star Brilliance List!?"
Li Chunjun's performance on the Two Worlds Mountain Battlefield had already made them realize his astonishing strength, making his ascent to the Star Glory List a foregone conclusion.
But the Star Glory List...
While impressive in its influence, it paled in comparison to the Star Brilliance List.
Those who could make it onto the Star Brilliance List almost all possessed Primordial Spirit-level combat power!
The Star Brilliance First Rank holder was so powerful that they could contend with a Late-stage Primordial Spirit cultivator while still in the Nascent Soul Realm!
At this moment, every True Lord of the Chiyang Sword Sect felt a sense of unreality.
How long had it truly been since Li Chunjun left Blue Star?
Was it not the two years they believed it to be?
Had decades, even centuries, already passed!?
Could that be the reason for Li Chunjun's extraordinary growth!?
(End of the Chapter)
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