The Dao bell's chime echoed for a long time. In the air above the Yinghuang Province's Absolute Beginning Separation City, Zhang Siyun's expression was gloomy. There was an indescribable fire of emotion burning in his heart.
As the publicly acknowledged number one person in the younger generation of the Yinghuang Province, he was already used to being the center of attention. Today was one of the very few times in his life when he served as a contrast and watched others shine.
This caused him to have mixed feelings. This was especially so when he thought of how his mother and grandmaster were still waiting for good news from him in Fenghai County. He hated Xu Qing even more for ruining his good thing.
After all, if Xu Qing hadn't interfered, he was confident that he would have achieved his wish this time. His target wasn't the life lantern but another item in the wooden hut.
However, now, everything had turned into nothing. It would be many years before the Sword Holding Court lifted the Absolute Beginning Separation Pillar again.
"Mother will be disappointed."
Zhang Siyun muttered inwardly. He didn't care about Grandmaster. He only cared about his mother's feelings.
Because his father had passed away early and his mother was strict with him, he had held his mother in awe since he was young.
He had always worked very hard to cultivate and didn't dare to disappoint her. In his heart, he yearned for his mother to take him as her pride. This thought transformed into a raging fire in his heart, burning his internal organs, causing him to stare fixedly at Xu Qing.
Xu Qing didn't care about Zhang Siyun's gaze. He looked at the emperor's statue for a long time before bowing deeply.
All the Sword Holders in the sky stared at him. All the cultivators on the ground were paying attention.
Other than being shocked, everyone was also intensely curious. They really wanted to know what the emperor asked and what Xu Qing answered.
This was especially so for the captain. He felt as though there were countless cats scratching his heart. On one hand, he felt aggrieved, and on the other hand, he was racking his brains to think of a way to get Xu Qing to tell him the answer.
Amidst these complicated emotions, this Sword Holder Assessment ended.
The emperor's statue dissipated, the staircase blurred, and the multicolored light in the sky dissipated. Everything returned to normal.
Xu Qing and the others were also told that they had to rush to the Sword Holding Palace in Fenghai County within a year.
There, they would obtain the inheritance of the Sword Holders and the distribution of posts. There would also be endless opportunities.
This was extremely important to every new Sword Holder. The former could increase their combat strength by a lot, while the latter represented the orthodox lineage of the human race.
In addition, as the capital of a county, the county capital of Fenghai County gathered geniuses from the various provinces.
There were also many races in the county capital. Most of the heaven's chosens of the various races would stir up trouble there.
If they could rise up in the county capital, they would truly be considered famous.
This was also the thought of many heaven's chosens from the various forces. If they wanted to fight for a future and become an ancient sovereign and ruler, they would naturally have to sweep through the world when they were young.
This way, they could obtain more opportunities and fortune. From there, they would be far ahead and finally completely suppress an era.
This was something all the ancient sovereigns and rulers had done before.
Compared to the county, Yinghuang Province could only be considered a remote area.
This place was too far from the county and there were several provinces between them. Although there was also a large-scale teleportation, the Sword Holding Court wouldn't let newly-promoted Sword Holders use it.
No matter what identity they had, as long as the identity wasn't greater than the Sword Holding Court, the new Sword Holders had to travel on their own.
This was because the Sword Holding Court wasn't a place to nurture flowers. This journey was also a form of tempering.
"According to my calculations, we can use some public teleportation arrays from other provinces on the way. This way, we should be able to reach the county in about eight months."
"We don't have to worry about the specific journey and plan. There are some Sword Holders who came from the Eight Sects Alliance, so the Alliance has also set up a branch in Fenghai County."
"When we return to the Alliance later, someone will naturally help us arrange everything. After all, our identities are different now."
After the Sword Holder Selection ended, Xue Lianzi held a celebration banquet for Xu Qing and the captain in the Eight Sects Alliance's encampment. The captain pulled Xu Qing outside and coughed before speaking in a low voice.
"Look, Little Qing, your Eldest Senior Brother was the one who brought you up this path to heaven in the beginning. Aren't you going to express your gratitude to me? I won't talk about spirit stones and hurt our relationship. You just have to tell me your answer."
Xu Qing had drunk some wine at the banquet. At that moment, he lifted his head and looked at the night sky.
As the wind and snow blew over and landed on his body, he felt very comfortable. He turned his head and looked at the captain.
"Eldest Senior Brother, your eyes and ears have grown out."
The captain looked smug.
"Of course. I can grow this thing whenever I want. Amazing, right? Little Qing, you…"
Xu Qing took out an apple and handed it to the captain.
"Captain, congratulations on becoming a Sword Holder."
The captain instinctively took it. After taking a bite, he was about to continue asking when Xu Qing simply lay on the pile of snow and looked at the starry sky. He looked at the fragmented-face of the god that was faintly discernible in the night. He then took out a flask of wine and took a big gulp.
"Eldest Senior Brother, what are gods in the end?"
When the captain heard this, he also looked at the sky. After some thought, he sat on the snow beside Xu Qing and ate the apple as he slowly spoke.
"Gods, hehe."
"Are they delicious?" the captain said proudly.
Xu Qing smiled. He knew that the captain definitely didn't say this in front of the emperor's statue. Otherwise, the light wouldn't be just ten feet.
The snowstorm grew heavier and heavier, and Xu Qing stopped talking. He lay there and allowed the snowflakes to land on his face as he recalled his words in front of the emperor's statue.
After that, he laughed. He sat up and spat out a mouthful of saliva dozens of feet away, landing on the snow in the distance.
The captain was stunned and also spat out. Seeing that Xu Qing didn't say anything, he knew that he couldn't be anxious about this matter. Hence, he suppressed the curiosity in his heart and finished the apple. He then took out the frozen pear unique to this city and ate it.
It was very quiet outside. Amidst the swirling snowflakes, there was a rare sense of peace.
Only the sound of a bonfire burning not far away and the laughter coming from the tents drifted in the wind.
At some point in time, Yanyan had secretly run over. Seeing that Xu Qing and the captain were sitting on the snow, she hurriedly sat down beside Xu Qing. She lay down, feeling satisfied.
In the sky, Xue Lianzi and Esteemed Master Dongyou looked at the three people on the snow.
"It's good to be young." Xue Lianzi sighed with emotion.
"What do you think this kid answered? The few lords from the Sword Holding Court also hinted to me to ask." Xue Lianzi had a curious expression.
Esteemed Master Dongyou coldly glanced at him.
Xue Lianzi blinked and coughed, changing the way of address.
"Say, what exactly did your grandson-in-law answer?"
The wrinkles on Esteemed Master Dongyou's face shone with a smile as she nodded slightly.
"After we return to the Alliance, you can ask your son-in-law about this disciple of his."
"It's still early. Those lords from the Sword Holding Court asked us to stay for a few more days. On one hand, Xu Qing and Chen Erniu need to comprehend the human emperor-level cultivation art. Also, it seems that something happened in the Sword Holding Court that requires the help of the two of them."
Time passed.
Most of the cultivators from the various forces who had gathered in Absolute Beginning Separation City had left.
The originally lively city also became much more spacious. Only the rogue cultivators were still here and continued to comprehend battle spirit marks from the Absolute Beginning Separation Pillar.
The people from the Eight Sects Alliance didn't leave, nor did the Litu Sect. It was the same for the Grand Affairs Immortal Sect.
This was because the reward for ranking first on the Absolute Beginning Separation Pillar was released.
The comprehension of human emperor-level cultivation art was extremely rare.
The place of comprehension was arranged at the top of the Absolute Beginning Separation Pillar, in the Sword Holding Court in the clouds.
This was the first time Xu Qing had stepped into this place.
Xu Qing even saw Qing Qiu here.
However, the other party wasn't here to comprehend the cultivation art with them. Instead, she sat silently in front of a large hall, as though she was waiting for something.
When she saw Xu Qing and the captain, she turned her head and snorted.
Xu Qing was expressionless and the captain also snorted. Very soon, the two of them left this place. In the end, they were brought to an empty area by a Sword Holder.
Red liquid flowed on the ground here, outlining a huge array formation. It emitted a red glow and also illuminated this place in blood light.
In the middle was a large black stone with gray iron chains tied to it.
Through the gaps in the chains, one could see a sword carved on the large rock.
It was a very ordinary sword.
However, the instant they looked over, be it Xu Qing or the captain, their minds trembled.
They felt an earth-shattering aura spreading out from the carved sword.
The two of them looked at each other and saw the shock and desire in each other's eyes.
They knew that this was the place where the human emperor-level cultivation art was.
In fact, the Golden Crow behind Xu Qing was shaking at this moment. After meeting another emperor-level cultivation art for the first time, it didn't reveal itself, as though it was in awe.
Xu Qing also saw Zhang Siyun.
The other party had arrived earlier than them. At that moment, he was sitting beside a large rock and closing his eyes to comprehend.
"Go over. Each of you has six hours of opportunity to comprehend. After six hours, you will be moved out of this place by the array formation."
The person who brought them here was none other than the middle-aged Sword Holder who presided over the ceremony.
He glanced at Xu Qing a few times on the way. After he finished speaking, he reminded a few more times.
"You guys, cherish this opportunity well. This is because according to the process of the Sword Holders, you need a huge amount of military contribution points to comprehend this sword."
"The name of this emperor-level cultivation art in front of you is…"
"Emperor Sword!"
"The Emperor Sword is also known as the Sword Holder's Sword. It was created by the emperor and is an extremely rare emperor-level cultivation art that can be comprehended by many people. It belongs exclusively to us humans and even more so to the Sword Holders."
"It can be said that the reason why the Sword Holder was able to suppress all races in the past era has a lot to do with this Emperor Sword."
"When you comprehend it later, you will understand why."
With that, the middle-aged Sword Holder turned and left.
Xu Qing and the captain didn't hesitate at all. They quickly stepped forward and each chose a seat to sit cross-legged and begin to comprehend.
However, compared to Xu Qing, the captain sat very close to the rock. When Xu Qing saw this, he was a little shocked and sent a voice transmission to remind him.
"Eldest Senior Brother, if you take a bite here, I reckon… I have to go to Fenghai County alone."
The captain turned his head and glanced at Xu Qing bitterly.
