...

"Upgrade."

Xu Qing’s expression remained unchanged. He connected his consciousness to the Encyclopedia of All Things and immediately upgraded the "Chaos Reception Secret Technique: Sword Dao Chapter."

...

[Upgrade successful!]

...

[Upgrade successful!]

...

[Upgrade successful!]

[Chaos Reception Secret Technique—Sword Dao Chapter Level 10: 799,948,900 Jing / 51,200 Jing (Upgradeable!) (A special Secret Technique that has reached Cultivation Perfection. It has drawn upon the Chaos Qi of the Sea of Chaos and has already forged a ’Dao Platform’ in the mind.)]

...

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!

Xu Qing was in his Seclusion Chamber within his residence at the Supreme Imperial Palace. Upgrading the Chaos Reception Secret Technique: Sword Dao Chapter couldn’t be done in the Beastman Mini World; it had to be performed within the Profound Yellow Realm.

Nine consecutive upgrades.

The Level 1 Chaos Reception Secret Technique: Sword Dao Chapter had now reached Level 10. He had cultivated this Secret Technique to Perfection, and his own will had broken through the restraints of the Profound Yellow Realm’s Celestial Dao, allowing him to sense the boundless Sea of Chaos outside the Profound Yellow Realm.

In the unseen world,

Xu Qing sensed the countless streams of Chaos Qi within the Sea of Chaos—a vast expanse of gray mist. He drew the Chaos Qi into his body and merged it into his mind.

BUZZ! BUZZ!

After nine upgrades,

he had drawn in a total of 129,600 streams of Chaos Qi. They merged into his mind, combining with his Primordial Spirit, soul, and consciousness to form a ’Black Dao Platform’.

CLANG!

Another sword cry rang out.

Xu Qing’s Sword Dao manifested, taking the form of a jet-black sword that thrust itself into the very center of the Black Dao Platform. Wisps of black mist immediately appeared around the Black Dao Platform and the Black Dao Sword. This black mist was formed from the Transcendent True Intent Xu Qing had comprehended, combined with the Power of Rules he controlled.

"Hooo..."

Xu Qing took a deep breath and glanced at the basic information for the Chaos Reception Secret Technique: Sword Dao Chapter. ’I still have over 700 million Jing of Experience Points left.’

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!

At that moment, the inheritance of the ’Shushan Ancestor’ began to tremble. A jade tablet shaped like a sword appeared and transformed into a stream of light, revealing 129,600 special characters. These characters were Dao Talismans imbued with Dao Rhyme and truth. As they manifested, a single Dao Talisman could even evolve into an entire Sword Dao Scripture.

And here, there were a full 129,600 of them.

When all of them combined,

they formed a supreme True Sword Dao Scripture.

BUZZ!

With a single thought,

Xu Qing’s consciousness immediately connected with the Encyclopedia of All Things. He focused his mind and attention entirely on the inheritance of the Shushan Ancestor, using the Mighty Power of the Encyclopedia of All Things to record it.

In an instant, an endless white mist appeared before Xu Qing’s eyes. The mist was so dense that his consciousness grew hazy, as if his vision blurred for a moment.

The next moment, within the thick white mist, Xu Qing saw a white-haired man. He stood at the summit of a towering mountain peak, hands clasped behind him, his back turned to Xu Qing. His thick, white hair cascaded down his back.

His entire being

exuded a supreme sword rhyme.

"You’ve come."

The white-haired man didn’t turn around, yet his words seemed to traverse millennia, as if they had traveled from a distant era to the present day.

!!!

Xu Qing’s pupils contracted. This was the first time he had ever encountered such a situation.

"You must understand, this world is far more complex, more terrifying, and more unfathomable than you can imagine. Our enemies have never been the All Heavens and Myriad Races, but rather an ’unknown terror’."

Suddenly, the white-haired man spoke again, but his words left Xu Qing confused. By the time Xu Qing wanted to ask for more details,

BOOM!

the image of the white-haired man before him dissolved into countless streams of light. The scene changed again, and Xu Qing saw a young boy appear, holding a sword.

Afterward, Xu Qing watched the boy learn the sword, practice the sword, comprehend the sword, and finally create the sword. He spent his entire life with the sword as his companion, ultimately creating a supreme Sword Dao.

This Sword Dao was named: Chaos Sword Dao.

...

[Recording successful!]

[Chaos Sword Dao Level 1: 100,000,000 Jing / 10,000,000,000 Jing (A supreme Sword Dao created by the ’Shushan Ancestor’. After successfully and completely cultivating it to Perfection, one can step into the ’Seventh Realm’.)]

...

The information he wanted appeared in Xu Qing’s mind.

"Hooo..."

Xu Qing opened his eyes. Wisps of Chaos Sword Qi appeared around his body. The ’Chaos Reception Secret Technique: Sword Dao Chapter’ had merged into the ’Chaos Sword Dao’, and the Experience Points had been converted accordingly.

"I succeeded."

A smile appeared on Xu Qing’s face as he assessed his condition. ’The three basic prerequisites have been met, and now I’ve also mastered the Shushan Ancestor’s inheritance, the ’Chaos Sword Dao’.’

’Next,’

’I just need to focus on cultivating the ’Chaos Sword Dao’ and raising its Level. Then I’ll be able to truly comprehend and master the ’Sword Dao Rhyme’ and step into the ’Sixth Realm: Dao Realm’.’

At this thought,

Xu Qing grew even more satisfied.

He checked the time.

Not even half a month had passed.

’Looks like I might even be able to master the ’Chaos Sword Dao’ and step into the ’Sixth Realm: Dao Realm’ before Zhang Ling and the others start the war.’

Moreover, by then, the Level 19 Beastman Mini World could probably be upgraded to a ’Grand Thousand Worlds’ as well.

In that case, Xu Qing’s combat strength would take a qualitative leap.

"Good, good, good."

Xu Qing nodded in satisfaction. "In that case, I’ll continue to upgrade the Chaos Sword Dao."

However, reality did not go according to his wishes.

Because,

that very evening,

just as Xu Qing was about to connect his consciousness to the Level 19 Beastman Mini World and enter it, a sudden change occurred.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!!

Xu Qing heard a tremendous roar coming from outside the Supreme Emperor Capital. He looked up to see a terrifying transformation occurring across the entire sky.

In every direction,

high in the sky,

Xu Qing saw endless visions of Hell. He saw layer upon layer of the Underworld, saw level after level of Hell, saw countless Black and White Impermanence, saw legions of Ox Head and Horse Face, and saw one Judge of the Underworld after another.

RUMBLE!!!

One after another, the figures of the Underworld’s Yamas manifested...

Moreover, deep within these layered Underworlds, eight terrifying figures faintly appeared. Each figure emanated a trace of imperial might.

"What?!?"

Xu Qing’s pupils contracted. He took a single step, his figure soaring into the air. Standing in the Void, he looked out beyond the Supreme Emperor Capital. His eyes were met with the sight of enormous, towering warships and majestic palaces.

BUZZ! BUZZ! BUZZ!!!

An incredibly dense Military Evil Qi enveloped the entire Supreme Emperor Capital.

’This is...’ Xu Qing noticed eight different banners, each representing a different army. ’The Eight Great Vassal Kings, and the eight Inheritors of the *Ancient Scripture: Supreme Fengdu Scripture*.’

"Hooo..."

Xu Qing had basically figured it out. ’Zhang Ling and the others were planning to defeat the Eight Great Vassal Kings and the eight Inheritors one by one. To do so, they needed about a month to prepare, to unite the forces of the Supreme Dynasty with those of other Vassal Kings.’

’It seems now,’

’the Eight Great Vassal Kings and these eight Inheritors have joined forces first. Their Eighth Layer Underworlds have combined to form a nearly complete Underworld, and with the allied armies of the Eight Great Vassal Kings, they’ve launched a preemptive strike.’

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!

All around him,

Xu Qing sensed one familiar aura after another appear, and one familiar figure after another soar into the sky. It was Zhang Ling and the others.

It was clear that Zhang Ling and the others were also caught off guard; they hadn’t expected the enemy to launch a preemptive strike. It was a complete surprise. However, they had been preparing for nearly half a month. Even though the enemy had struck first, Zhang Ling and his allies were not without confidence in their victory.

A great war was about to erupt.