Immortal of the Ages

Ancestral spirit plaques! A whole bundle of ancestral spirit plaques!

"Did Yun Xiao really clean out the ancestral temples of the three Sword Venerables?" many people blurted out, their eyes wide and mouths agape. These were the three great noble families of Azure Spirit!

“The guts on this lad, truly unparalleled!”

Having slain Ye Ziyan and others, and while Ye Tiance was summoning the Sword Cultivators, he decisively went to the ancestral temples of the three great Sword Peaks?

“Hilarious, the three Sword Venerables want to demolish others' ancestral temples, only to have their own raided first...”

Even though over a thousand people came under pressure, not all were of the same mind. Seeing the three Sword Venerables so infuriated they could spit blood, many took it as a spectacle.

With them being held up, the Sword Pavilion temporarily avoided humiliation!

“Junior Brother Yun…” Zhao Xuanran looked toward the white-robed youth by the Azure Spirit Cauldron's fire. At this moment, he seemed like a world-conquering hero, bringing hope to the Sword Pavilion amidst despair!

A stroke of pure white was deeply etched in Zhao Xuanran’s bright and beautiful eyes. “Let’s go over!” She reacted quickly, leading the four elders directly toward Yun Xiao.

“Ye Tiance and the others might have just shot themselves in the foot!”

“Still wanting to use the First Sword Peak ancestral temple as a new Hall of Heroes?”

“Maybe by threatening with these spirit plaques, the Sword Pavilion can avoid disaster today!”

They too quietly moved closer to Yun Xiao.

“Yun Xiao!” Ye Tiance's chest was in turmoil. His eyes flashed a deep chill, “You lowly, unqualified creature!”

“Takes one to know one, learned from the best,” Yun Xiao retorts, thoroughly opening the white bundle in front of everyone, indeed filled with spirit plaques. All three ancestral temples were all here!

Ye Tiance and the others can't help but glare, their eyebrows raised in anger.

The Azure Spirit Cauldron's flames blazed intensely, Ye Tiance's eyelids shook, as if the ancestral spirits held in Yun Xiao’s hand were all cursing him. Yao Manxue and Zhang Jian were also grinding their teeth in anger!

“What do you intend?” Ye Tiance, as if caught in a trap, found it hard to move.

“Simple, don’t demolish the Grand Hall and the Hall of Heroes. Also, take your people and scram!” Yun Xiao said, his gaze cold and laughing.

“Thus, you’ll return our ancestors’ spirit plaques?” Fire flowed in Ye Tiance's eyes.

“Can do!” Yun Xiao said earnestly.

“Yun Xiao, no! These people can’t be trusted…” Grandpa Qin hurriedly warned. There was no need to play the saint now that Yun Xiao had their weakness.

Hearing this, Shangguan Yu, Li Chenlong, and the others get nervous, hoping Zhao Xuanran could persuade Yun Xiao.

The lady in the black gown frowned her elegant eyebrows! She also didn't understand why Yun Xiao was being so naive.

Ye Tiance immediately said coldly, “Fine! No problem, I promise publicly, you return our family's ancestral spirit plaques, and I won’t personally demolish the Grand Hall and Hall of Heroes!” However, he never mentioned the graves of the Seven Prodigies of the Sword Pavilion, and he certainly didn't mention not drowning the Sword Pavilion in filthy blood, defiled corpses, and demon feces!

Zhao Xuanran's face tightened, her heart pounding against her chest in anxiety.

"Junior Brother Yun, don’t..." She barely opened her mouth when, to her utter shock, Yun Xiao suddenly broke into a bright laughter.

“Fine! You've already given your word. So, don't go back on it!”

“Great!” Ye Tiance, Yao Manxue, and Zhang Jian all laughed. But for the others in the Sword Pavilion and the three Sword Venerables like Shangguan Yu, darkness seemed to fall before their eyes.

"Come take it!" Yun Xiao said, his face as innocent as a lamb.

"This foolish kid." Senior Sister Zhao's eyebrows shot up, ready to snatch the ancestral spirit plaques herself.

But in that moment, Yun Xiao let go of the bag in his hand! With a rustling sound, the entire white bundle dropped, plunging into the Azure Spirit Cauldron's fire.

A hum echoed as the blue blaze swallowed the cloth, scattering countless ancestral souls from the three families. In a short time, they sizzled and popped in the intense heat, their residual souls wailing in agony as thick smoke belched and soared, their spirits obliterated beneath the offering of incense!

“Oops!” Yun Xiao’s face shifted slightly. “I’ve been killing pigs and dogs too much lately, my hand's been twitchy. I guess accidentally burned all your ancestors, not my fault, right?”

CRACKLE CRACKLE CRACKLE! The blaze from the Azure Spirit Cauldron tripled in an instant, casting Yun Xiao's white robes in a haunting green glow. Amidst the flames, a cold smile curled on his lips. Even Zhao Xuanran and the others were stunned.

“Aah! No!" Ye Tiance, Yao Manxue, Zhang Jian, and others from the three great families, witnessing this scene, bulged their eyes, their blood and qi rebelling, and flames practically spewed from their eyes! Just a moment ago, they were still laughing at Yun Xiao’s foolishness! Well, who's the fool now? Did Yun Xiao truly bargain with them? At this moment, everyone understood, Yun Xiao was just toying with them!

“Still want to dismantle Grand Hall? Still want to level the Hall of Heroes?” Yun Xiao coldly laughed.

“You!!!” Ye Tiance and the others’ faces turned an ashen hue. Pointing at Yun Xiao, their anger surged through the roof, watching in horror as the ancestral spirits plaques and spirits were reduced to nothing but ashes.

“There’s karma in this world. Want to do evil? Taste the fruits of evil first!” Yun Xiao declared. He didn't want to be the villain! But he could certainly be more villanous than anyone!

“You will undoubtedly die for this insult on the ancestors of my Ye Family!” Ye Tiance’s eyes were nearly popping out of their sockets. Just a moment ago, he was dreaming of enshrining his ancestors in the Hall of Heroes! This had turned him into a monumental laughingstock. Yao Manxue and Zhang Jian were no exception either!

"Yun Xiao, you are brave, reckless, and impulsive. Have you considered that once these spirit plaques are burned, you'll have no more cards left to play?" Yao Manxue raged, her voice unnatural, eerie, like a demoness.

Ye Tiance's eyes were bloodshot, and he had reached the height of his tolerance. "Liu Xuan! Go and dig up the graves of the Seven Prodigies of the Sword Pavilion this instant! For the Sword Pavilion to nurture such a sinner like Yun Xiao, his seniors are all guilty as well! Grind their bones to dust!"

Even now, Ye Tiance fancied driving Zhao Jianxing into an early grave out of sheer vexation. This was, after all, the primary aim of his visit. So he wouldn't feel any remorse stooping lower to achieve it.

Their responses had given rise to the exact fears harbored by the members of the Sword Pavilion. Retribution was thrilling but what would follow it?

"Kill them all!" Yao Manxue instantly ordered, her voice ice-cold. Her Yao Family were also bristling with fury, their eyes cold and ruthless, pressing forward once again.

"Are you all losing patience?" Just when the tension was about to peak, Yun Xiao brandished a chain in his hand. With a swift yank, he pulled a figure from the woods underneath the Azure Spirit Cauldron.

"Hoh? I wonder who could this be?" Yun Said said sarcastically. In his hand dangled the lifeless body of a man!

"Liu Chen!" Yao Manxue twisted her face in agony, her eyes flaming red.

"Is this your man? A handsome one indeed, too bad his head's missing." Saying so, Yun Xiao nonchalantly flung the body into the Azure Spirit Cauldron.

SIZZLE SIZZLE SIZZLE! The mesmerizing azure flame instantly reduced the body to ashes, as if the souls of a thousand demons lurking underneath greedily devoured it.

Yun Xiao had killed this man when passing by the Yao Family ancestral temple. The man had tried to alert others upon sighting him.

"At least, my senior brothers and sisters have graves and mourners while your man died a clean death. Not even ashes were left behind. Don't even think about exhuming anything!" Yun Xiao taunted.

"Y-you…!" Yao Manxue stumbled three steps backward, her organs writhing inside her as if they were torn to shreds. Liu Xuan, who was about to go digging graves, froze in pure fear. He worried if in the next moment Yun Xiao would yank his woman out of nowhere!

"Attack him!" Ye Tiance couldn't take it any longer.

"Sword Venerable Ye, are you losing your patience too? Please, I beg you not to!" Yun Xiao turned his gaze sharply at Ye Tiance. This unanticipated move sent chills up Ye Tiance's spine, causing his body to shiver involuntarily. And sure enough! Yun Xiao had another chain in his hand.

Whoosh! He yanked out another headless body from the woods below.

"Venerable Ye, is this your woman? Not bad looking, except she's headless." Yun Xiao swung the chain in mid-air, toying with the lifeless body.

"My dear Fan!" The color drained from Ye Tiance's face as waves of excruciating pain tore through his guts. His daughter and son were dead. He had dreams of having more children. But now, even his wife was gone!

"I'd forgotten to mention," Yun Xiao began casually, "On the day I arrived at Azure Spirit, Yao Qingqian was in such a hurry to kill me, I just had to burn her too." A collective gasp followed his revelation.

Everyone knew Yao Qingqian was Ye Tiance's mistress! In that moment, he had lost his wife and his lover both.

"No!" Ye Tiance roared in despair, but it did nothing to stop Yun Xiao, who tossed another lifeless woman into the flames of the Azure Spirit Cauldron.

SIZZLE SIZZLE SIZZLE! The mesmerizing azure color of the flame engulfed the body, reducing it to ashes.

SPUTTER!! Ye Tiance clutched his chest, a stream of blackened blood seeping from his lips.

"Lastly, I would like to inform you that last night, the Third Sword Venerable, Wu Wu, tried to stop me from acquiring the thousand-year-old demon bone. He dispatched a demonic cultivator to assassinate me. Isn't that insulting? It nearly killed me with anger. In return, I slaughtered his entire family of ten-plus members." After delivering his dramatic revelation, Yun Xiao casually clapped his hands.

BOOM! The Sword Cultivators present felt as if they were struck by lightning. This incident had already stirred chaos in Azure Spirit. Everyone had their guesses brewing, Elder Fan too was under suspicion. But none had suspected Yun Xiao! How did he manage that?

That said, this was no longer important. Every cultivator present, no matter their allegiance, gazed at Yun Xiao with fear-filled eyes.

It was widely known that the quality of Yun Xiao's Sword Soul was exceptionally high, possibly rivaling Ye Guying's Planet grade Sword Soul. His natural talent for swordsmanship was also unparalleled. But at this moment, what people found most terrifying were his other characteristics—his ruthlessness, his cold detachment, his greed, anger, and foolishness, and his propensity for revenge.

This seemingly innocent and clear-eyed young man was capable of triggering an ocean of blood and a mountain of corpses. The FIrst Sword Venerable wanted to push Zhao Jianxing to his death? Not under Yun Xiao's watch!

But Yun Xiao's trump cards—the spirit plaques, the corpses, and the revelations of Yao Qingqian and Wu Wu's deaths had turned Ye Tiance, Yao Manxue, and Zhang Jian into bloodshot walking zombies due to rage.

Decimating their peace was a delight, but now Yun Xiao had burned even the bodies. He had no cards left to suppress Ye Tiance's vengeful heart. This thought sent Shangguan Yu's heart racing.

Visibly, Ye Tiance had lost his sanity out of sheer rage!

"What are you waiting for?" He glared at Yao Manxue, Zhang Jian, and Liu Xuan.

"Wash the Grand Hall in blood! Grind them to dust! Also…" Ye Tiance suddenly turned to face the hundreds of Sword Cultivators manipulating the enormous cauldrons of demon feces and filthy blood, "Disciples trained by Zhao Jianxing have the audacity to kill even a Sword Venerable, and exterminate a family. If such atrocities are not punished, how can Azure Spirit claim to uphold righteousness? Hear my command! All of you, together... bury the Sword Pavilion under a flood of shit!"

His three-pronged attack was all set to proceed!

"Yes!" Those who acted were direct disciples of the three Sword Venerables. So, they obeyed without hesitation.

On Ye Tiance's command, Yao Manxue, Zhang Jian, Liu Xuan, and the wielders of the cauldrons moved in unison! Once again, the members of the Sword Pavilion fell into a panic.

At this moment, everyone's eyes unconsciously fell on Yun Xiao.

“Junior Brother Yun, what should we do?” Zhao Xuanran's beautiful eyes quivered, her hands clenched tight. Always the leader, now in dire straits, she relied on this young man in white.

“Fear not, Senior Sister Zhao, I have a plan!” Yun Xiao said his voice filled with immense resolve. His words brought a sudden tremble to Zhao Xuanran's heart and moistened her eyes. This was the assurance she was waiting for. Despite her reddened eyes, her heart found unmatched calmness.

"Wait a moment!” Faced with Ye Tiance’s ferocious and desperate forces, Yun Xiao turned and dropped down, vanishing into the forest behind.

“Where is he going?” Zhang Jian's eyes chilled as he immediately pursued! His Sword Cultivators from the Seventh Sword Peak charged toward the Grand Hall, their loyalty unyielding.

Yao Manxue led her group, striking again towards Zhao Xuanran!

Liu Xuan went to dig up the graves!

BOOM BOOM BOOM!! One by one, huge cauldrons filled with filthy blood, defiled corpses, and demon feces were lifted off the ground, dragged by those Sword Cultivators towards the sky above the Sword Pavilion!

“Zhao Jianxing, you just wait! I'll drive you to an early grave!” Ye Tiance frowned, retreating to the furthest distance. He knew that before Zhao Jianxing died, the person he most wanted to kill would be him.

Unfortunately, his eyes fixed forward, he didn't see from afar behind him, someone was coming on a Sovereign Sword, reporting that the ancestral temple of the First Sword Peak had been raided by Yun Xiao.

It couldn't be helped. Yun Xiao's speed far surpassed the Dragon Spring Realm! Even if he stopped by the Sixth Sword Peak and the Seventh Sword Peak, he would still return much earlier.

“It's over!” Cai Maomao's face turns bleak, “Why did Junior Brother Yun waste the advantage just for a moment of satisfaction?” He also didn't understand!

Just at this bewildered moment, a burst of azure light suddenly rose into the sky, blocking the path of the massive cauldron army! White clothes, azure sword, it was Yun Xiao again!

“You young brat, you dare to block the way?” Zhang Jian caught up, about to snicker. Suddenly, he saw Yun Xiao soaring on his Sovereign Sword, with a long chain of dark things beneath his feet! Dragging from the sky, down to the ground!

"W-what is that…? Zhang Jian focused his eyes for a better look! At the top there was an old man, his tongue severed, Dantian destroyed, covered in blood, his face pale as he wailed towards Zhang Jian.

“My father? Crippled!” Like being struck by lightning, Zhang Jian immediately spewed blood, his riding on the Sovereign Sword becoming unstable, and he crashed into a tree.

Sure enough, his eyes weren't deceiving him. When Yun Xiao passed the Seventh Sword Peak, he incidentally crippled Zhang Jian's father, the previous Seventh Sword Venerable.

“What?” Hearing the commotion, Yao Manxue looked in that direction.

“Father, Mother!” Yao Manxue's vision blacked out as rage and blood rushed to her heart. She spewed three mouthfuls of blood and collapsed to the ground. Below Zhang Jian's father were her own parents! Tongues severed, and Dantians destroyed! Both were hanging in the sky, necks bound, tongues drooping, mouths foaming, nearly half-dead!

And finally, there was Ye Tiance! His whole body trembled violently. He lifted his head, his eyeballs nearly popping out. His noble Ye Family, nearly a hundred members in total, all hung in the hair in chains!

“All crippled…” Ye Tiance, overwhelmed by anger and blood rushing to his heart, felt a sickly sweetness in his throat, a mouthful of black blood suddenly spurting out!

JL's Thoughts

Heya,

It's JL here, your buddy who’s definitely not pacing the room with nerves! First off, virtual high fives all around because we've hit the big 5-0—that’s right, Chapter 50 is in the books, folks!

I hope the ride's been as thrilling for you as it has been for me. You know, typing out those sweet, sweet face-slapping moments feels like serving justice with a side of sass—and isn’t that just the best dish to serve cold?

Normally, this is where I'd throw in a, "Please leave a review". But you've heard that spiel. Instead, I’ll just park it here—I love your thoughts. The good, the bad, the ugly—spill it. After all, a story is only as alive as the buzz it creates.

As I've hinted at before, we're just warming up. The story's got that slow burn that makes you lean in closer, and yes, the revenge arc is just the starter dish. Wait until we dish out the main courses and the author starts twisting the usual tropes into pretzels—at least for me, that's where I really started having fun.

By now, I hope I've earned your trust as the captain of this wordy vessel. To those who are buckled in for more, you make it all worthwhile. And for the crew who are disembarking here, no hard feelings! I'm just stoked you came aboard for a spell. 🌊🚢☁️

All that's left to say is a big, heartfelt thank you. It's been real, and it's been fun. Here's to the chapters ahead and all the banter I'm looking forward to in our comment section!

-JL, over and out

P.S. You can start Championing this novel starting tomorrow. Till then, I'll be breaking my back writing em for you in the background.