As the Treasure Sword Gu was pulled out, something unexpected happened—the rock serving as the base slowly opened up like a game of Tetris, revealing a winding staircase leading downwards!
Liu Chen carefully stepped onto the staircase, feeling a slight tremor from the rocks beneath his feet with every step.
As he delved deeper, the walls on both sides of the underground passage gradually appeared before him. To his astonishment, the walls were embedded with fist-sized luminous pearls, which emitted a bright glow, illuminating the entire underground space as if it were daytime.
Liu Chen admired the wondrous sight as he slowly descended the staircase. After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, he suddenly heard a slight movement behind him. He turned his head to see the entrance to the passage slowly closing, as if a massive mechanism was operating automatically.
Liu Chen's heart tightened, realizing he could no longer return the way he came. It seemed the only way to leave this place was to accept the Legacy.
He took a deep breath, composed himself, and continued down the staircase. After some more time, he finally arrived at an underground space.
This underground space was very spacious, about the size of a football field. A winding path made of stacked rocks stretched into the distance, as if guiding him forward.
At the entrance, four crystal-clear Flying Swords were embedded in the ground, each sealing a Gu.
The crystal Flying Swords were merely outer shells; the key to preserving the Gu was the Hidden Sword Gu within them, which functioned similarly to the Di Zang Hua Gu, both used for storing Gu.
The stone platform where these four Flying Swords were embedded bore an ancient and solemn inscription. Though weathered by time, the characters of the inscription were still clearly legible.
"Oh, fated one of later generations, since you are able to step into this Domain, it proves that you are a Sword Dao Gu Master and possess the potential to inherit my mantle. The Gu here will enable you to condense an unparalleled killing move… When you can skillfully activate this killing move, you will be qualified to accept my Legacy. Either you will become famous throughout the world, or you will be buried here—Ping Du He."
In the very center of the stone platform, the specific Legacy of this killing move was inscribed.
"Killing Move: Sword Shadow Trace, Third Rank Sword Shadow Gu, Third Rank Sword Control Gu, Second Rank Sword Scar Gu, Second Rank Sword Qi Gu…" Liu Chen gazed at the Gu activation sequence and control methods described in the inscription, a feeling of awe surging within him.
This killing move not only started with Third Rank Gu, but its control difficulty was also beyond imagination. However, it was precisely these stringent standards that highlighted the power and uniqueness of this killing move.
The more Liu Chen looked, the more he felt that Ping Du He was no ordinary person. His name being able to dominate the East Sea was certainly not an empty boast; judging from the design and Legacy of this killing move, his attainments in Sword Dao Gu techniques were absolutely unparalleled.
It was no wonder that Dugu He was so impressed by Ping Du He, even willing to abandon his original name and change it to He, to express his respect and allegiance to Ping Du He.
Liu Chen, without changing his expression, reached out and easily crushed them. With a crisp cracking sound, four Gu fell out.
Liu Chen's mouth curved slightly as he peeled away the outer Hidden Sword Gu, revealing the four Gu within. These were precisely the four Gu recorded in the inscription. He unhesitatingly refined these four Gu and absorbed them into his Aperture.
One must know that for ordinary Gu Masters, they could at most activate a killing move once in battle.
After all, a killing move is called a killing move because of its immense power, but it also requires a large consumption of true Qi and mental effort. If multiple Gu are activated simultaneously, the consumption of true Qi and mental effort will multiply, which is extremely difficult for a Gu Master.
Even in daily practice, activating multiple Gu simultaneously is a very difficult task. Moreover, if a killing move fails to activate, the Gu Master will not only fail to unleash its power but will also suffer its backlash. Throughout history, countless people, who placed all their hopes on a killing move, were interrupted by enemies during its activation, suffering backlash and a tragic death.
However, Liu Chen was not afraid of these difficulties and risks. In his Aperture, the four Gu were the Sword Shadow Gu, Sword Qi Gu, Sword Scar Gu, and Sword Control Gu. When he activated these four Gu simultaneously, the true Qi in his Aperture instantly decreased by thirty percent, but then quickly recovered.
Time passed by, minute by minute. After the Gu were activated for four breaths, the killing move finally manifested.
The Sword Shadow Gu was originally a rare Sword Dao Gu. Its ability allowed it to attach to the Gu Master's hand, forming a phantom Sword Shadow that was incredibly sharp; ordinary Third Rank defensive Gu could not withstand the attack of the Sword Shadow Gu.
However, through Liu Chen's continuous attempts, he successfully fused the Sword Shadow Gu with Sword Qi, thereby enabling this Sword Shadow to materialize and fly freely in the air like a true Flying Sword.
Not only that, Liu Chen also skillfully integrated the power of the Sword Scar Gu into it, further enhancing the power of this Flying Sword Shadow. Coupled with the Sword Control Gu, this Sword Shadow not only possessed powerful lethality but also became exceptionally agile, able to fly as Liu Chen wished.
Liu Chen was very excited about his discovery; he couldn't wait to try out the actual effect of this killing move. Unfortunately, since there were no suitable targets nearby, he couldn't truly test the power of this killing move.
Nevertheless, when Liu Chen first activated this killing move, he immediately felt an unprecedented smoothness and ease. It was as if this killing move was tailor-made for him; even with his first use, he felt no unfamiliarity.
"It seems I truly have a unique advantage in the Sword Dao!" Liu Chen secretly sighed to himself.
Since he couldn't verify the effect of the killing move, Liu Chen decided to withdraw it for now.
Liu Chen looked around and found that the surrounding environment had not changed in any way due to his activation of the killing move. So, he stepped onto the rock path and continued forward, exploring the unknown Domain ahead.