"Pa", a light, crisp sound of contact.
Chen Kuang's hands had already gripped the blade and hilt of the sword firmly, he had caught it with both hands, as a sign of respect to a fellow sword cultivator.
Also, because the blade was incomplete, the thicker portion could be grasped directly by hand.
But the problem was... Chen Kuang shouldn't have been able to catch this sword.
What he caught wasn't the sword itself, it was the Sword Intent of the Wisdom Sword.
Chen Kuang looked at the sword in his hands and sighed inwardly.
Before the sword left Jiang Yunqing's hands, he hadn't sensed any sword intent from it. That meant Jiang Yunqing had infused the intent at the very moment he threw it.
This was a blatant test!
Why is it that every time I try to stay low-key, I end up dead before the plan even starts...?
Chen Kuang lifted his head. As expected, the expressions of everyone present had changed dramatically from earlier.
Yan Hui, Tang Qiusheng, and others now had grave looks in their eyes while Shen Yuliu was outright dumbfounded.
It wasn't just the younger generation. The elders standing around them also showed signs of surprise.
Jiang Yunqing's sword had once been reviewed by Canglang Evaluation as: "His sword path has not yet reached its pinnacle, but even the emptiness shines with light that can chase the clouds."
The meaning was simple. "The Pinnacle of Emptiness" was considered the resting place of a Sword Saint, and the reviewer believed Jiang Yunqing might reach that very realm!
That was already the highest possible praise for a sword cultivator.
And his sword intent had once been inscribed by one of the three elders of Immortal Island, the Elder of Swords, with the character for Wisdom. That's how the name Wisdom Sword came about.
Wisdom, akin to the Dao itself.
This showed just how highly Jiang Yunqing was regarded. Since his debut in the martial world after leaving the Sword Furnace Pavilion, very few had ever managed to receive even one blow from his sword.
Among his peers, only the two sisters of the Shen family had succeeded.
And now, one more had joined their ranks, Chen Ruogu, still only at the Tower Ascension Realm!
Chen Kuang held the sword, sensing the vast and elusive sword intent within it, misty as mountains and clouds. He took a deep breath, looked at Jiang Yunqing, and smiled.
"A very fine sword indeed. May I ask, does it have a name?"
Jiang Yunqing's eyes seemed to light up. "Salt and Plum."
Tang Qiusheng couldn't help but let out a surprised "Eh?", having always thought Jiang Yunqing's sword was simply called Wisdom Sword.
He hadn't expected it to have another name.
Everyone else was equally astonished, Jiang Yunqing had never mentioned his sword's name before. And now, it turned out to be something so distinctive.
Wen Yao narrowed his eyes and gave Chen Kuang a measured look, then said in a low voice:
"Now that everyone's here and introductions are done, shall we move on?"
Everyone's hearts tightened. They collected their thoughts from the earlier interruption and nodded.
The masters of the various sects exchanged glances and began forming seals. In an instant, the light within the stone gate shifted from white to black. Within it, stars seemed to swirl, deep and unfathomable.
A master from the Mysterious Divine Path Sect stood up, flicked his sleeve, and ten streams of light flew into each participant's hand as he said:
"I'm sure you've all been briefed by your sects on the rules of the Ancient Battlefield of Meditation, but just in case, allow me to repeat them."
"From the moment you enter the battlefield, you will have only seven days. During this period, you will each enter different battlefields to comprehend them. Of course, there is a small chance of ending up in the same one as others. Within each battlefield, ancient intent will harmonize with your identity, allowing you to act freely."
"Normally, these battlefields will not contain cultivators above the third rank, so the threat to your lives is relatively low."
"But if you do enter a battlefield containing those above the third rank, you may crush the Teleportation Talisman in your hand to leave immediately. So do not lose it under any circumstances."
"Every visible object within the battlefield, some real, some illusory, may either be part of the secret realm or drawn in from the outside world over thousands of years. Judge carefully what you can bring back. Do not blindly loot, or you may leave empty-handed. Don't say I didn't warn you."
"When one battlefield ends, you may enter the next. So you can try to influence the course of events, but always remember the words: know your limits."
The master of the Mysterious Divine Path Sect swept his gaze across them. "That's all I have to say. Understood?"
Everyone responded in unison: "Yes."
Chen Kuang rubbed the talisman in his hand, thinking to himself: This Ancient Battlefield of Meditation sounds pretty safe.
Judging by the rules, there wasn't much direct competition among participants.
If luck's on my side and I never run into anyone else for the full seven days, wouldn't I walk away loaded?
Low risk, high reward. No wonder the great sects are so keen to control this wild secret realm and make it their own private land.
This is practically a free, massive resource vault!
Who wouldn't want to monopolize it?
Thinking that, he felt his next seven days might not be so tough after all...
Once the white light in the stone gate was completely consumed by darkness, the masters called out in unison: "Enter!"
Yan Hui charged ahead first, transforming into a streak of red and vanishing into the darkness.
Shen Xingzhu followed right after. The rest, unable to hold back, quickly followed suit.
Surprisingly, Wen Yao was the second to last to move.
And the final one... was Chen Kuang.
Just as he was about to step forward, he saw that in the instant Wen Yao entered the gate, his previously scattered dual pupils suddenly converged, overlapping into one, releasing waves of mysterious golden light!
But it lasted only a moment, Wen Yao's figure vanished into the gate.
Chen Kuang frowned, a trace of doubt flashing in his heart.
That had to be some sort of Divine Ability. But why activate it right when entering the Ancient Battlefield of Meditation?
Unfortunately, he knew too little about dual pupils, or about Wen Yao himself.
Speculation alone wasn't going to give him answers.
Moreover, Chen Kuang had a more immediate concern.
He hadn't actually meant to be the last one in. It was just a moment of hesitation, and by the time he snapped out of it, everyone else was already gone, leaving only him.
And the reason for his hesitation...
Chen Kuang twitched the corners of his mouth and looked down at the Salt and Plum sword in his hand.
Jiang Yunqing had left, but didn't take his sword!
Chen Kuang hadn't even had the chance to call out to him. Now he was just standing there, silently staring at the sword.
Forget it, can't blame me. Jiang Yunqing left it behind himself!
If they crossed paths again in the Ancient Battlefield of Meditation, he'd return it then...
Chen Kuang shook his head, put away the talisman, and holding the sword, leapt into the stone gate.
...
"Disciples of the Dao Sect, we swear never to retreat!!!"
"You demonic scum of the Bitiantian Prefecture, go die!!!!"
"The Mysterious Divine Path Sect is right behind us! We shall not yield a single step!!!"
"Kill!!!!!!"
Chen Kuang returned to his senses from a daze, his ears suddenly overwhelmed by a thunderous cacophony of shouts and battle cries. His eyes were immediately filled with a blinding sea of crimson.
His pupils shrank instantly. His temples throbbed violently. Every hair on his body stood on end as Blood Premonition screamed in alarm!
The last time Blood Premonition reacted like this was when he faced a single finger from a Saint!
Right in front of him, a Dao-robed disciple was cleaved in half in an instant, blood and flesh flying!
Blood splattered across his face. Chen Kuang's expression darkened as he retreated at full speed, quickly scanning his surroundings.
Once he got a clear look at the scene, he involuntarily gasped.
A mountain of corpses. A sea of blood.
Chen Kuang had seen worse carnage before.
In the Great Void Illusion Realm, he'd broken into the imperial palace alone and fought until fifty thousand black-armored soldiers mentally collapsed.
Corpses had piled high, and the blood beneath his feet had reached ankle-deep.
But the sheer impact of this battlefield in front of him, was still beyond comparison.
Of those fifty thousand black-armored soldiers, at least half were ordinary men, none had even opened five apertures. They were just martial artists.
Without formation support, they were mere mortals.
But this mountain of corpses, this sea of blood, it was all cultivators!
Qi Opening Realm, Innate Realm, Tower Ascension Realm, Sea-Cleaving Realm, Moon-Embracing Realm, even Master Realm..
All were just a part of the carnage here!
Among the bodies within sight, those at the Tower Ascension Realm like him numbered in the hundreds!
Even those at Sea-Cleaving and Moon-Embracing Realm, there were at least twenty!
And still, more Dao-robed cultivators charged forward relentlessly, only to become part of the carnage.
This was hell!
Chen Kuang took a deep breath and swallowed subconsciously. His throat was parched, and the Spiritual Energy in his body surged wildly, raging through his meridians.
What battlefield had he stumbled into?!
"Rumble..."
The ground suddenly shook, as if struck by a colossal force. In the sky above, blinding fire erupted, turning the night sky bright as day.
"SCREEEEE!!!"
A vast, flaming bird beat its wings and soared across the battlefield, thousands of feet wide, blotting out the sky.
Countless streams of fire rained down from it.
That scattering firelight illuminated a colossal city floating in the sky.
On its walls, countless cultivators stood, casting spells.
Chen Kuang jerked his head up. In that instant, he saw a slender figure standing behind the blazing bird, suspended in midair.
A Saint?!
He forced himself to calm down. No... not a Saint, Profound Realm.
Upper Third Grade!
What the hell is this?
Chen Kuang stumbled two steps backward. Weren't upper third-grade battlefields supposed to be extremely rare?
He couldn't be this unlucky, right?!
He nearly laughed out of frustration. At this point, he seriously wondered if he had some undiscovered passive ability called Misfortune.
Still, at least he had a failsafe...
He wasn't planning to use it so soon, but having it gave him a little peace of mind.
"Crack."
Suddenly, a faint snapping sound echoed in his ear.
His heart sank and his body froze.
His face turned ghastly pale as he took out the Teleportation Talisman.
The previously whole talisman had shattered in half, it was completely inert.
Chen Kuang stared at it, fists clenched.
A familiar trace of Dao rhythm lingered on it.
That was...
The Tyranny of a Martial Saint!