Chapter 729 Ultimate Swordsmanship Showdown (IV)

Ji Lanfang frowned as he immediately became more serious. Swordsmen must enter the realm of Human and Sword Unity to reach the four stages of Sword Slash. 

There is also the realm of Human and Heaven Unity, which granted cultivators a higher level of control of Spiritual Qi and, eventually, the power of Heaven and Earth. However, this realm is not a realm that only swordsmen can achieve. Many cultivation systems require cultivators to reach the Human and Heaven Unity stage before they can comprehend and wield the power of Law.

However, with all his knowledge and experience, he had never heard of Sword and Sword Unity.

"This realm is easy to understand," said Wang Tian with a smile. "My body is the sword, my heart is the sword, and I hold a sword–I am the ultimate sword."

A terrifying momentum emanated from his body. He harnessed the power of his fleshly body, but oddly, it was not the power of blood energy: it was the power of a supreme sword.

Ji Lanfang looked at his opponent in shock. His vision changed, and what he saw was no longer Wang Tian but an actual sword; it was like the person before him had abandoned its fleshly body and turned into a real physical sword.

Wang Tian swung his sword to create 108 blades that fused into an enormous blue sword. Ji Lanfang's face changed as he mobilized his Sword Domain to respond. He also condensed 108 swords that combined.

Unfortunately, it was pointless. Wang Tian's attack cut through his sword like a sharp knife cutting through butter. And it was meaningless no matter how Ji Lanfang responded; that sword cut anything in its path. 

Luckily for him, this was not a life-and-death battle, so Wang Tian stopped the sword from erasing him from the mortal coil.

Li Lanfang looked dazed, as if he had lost his mind.

"Is this the true realm of One Sword Breaking Myriad Laws?" he muttered to himself, but everyone watching through different means could hear him. Regardless, he did not care about these people as he was lost in his own mind.

"Nine is extreme, and 12 is perfection. The perfect Sword Realm: body, soul, and mind are all swords. So, we were wrong all along." Ji Lanfang's face underwent multiple changes; it appeared as if he was struggling with something, struggling to accept the truth.

"Hahahaha, so we were all wrong," he said with delirious in his voice. "We focused so much on pureness that we strayed from the true path of swordsmanship. How ridiculous."

Ji Lanfang was not the person whose mind was shocked by this revelation. All swordsmen who reached the Sword Law and Domain stage and thought they had reached the ultimate stage of swordsmanship had a similar reaction.

They realized they must temper their bodies to reach the same stage as Wang Tian. However, how could they easily accept their path was wrong? The idea of pursuing the ultimate attack of the sword by ignoring the body has been engrained in their souls and bloodlines for millions of generations.

This idea has become their core; it has formed their belief and personal philosophy, so how could they easily accept they were wrong?

Crack!

The whole world simultaneously heard a cracking sound. Many people were confused, but only a few knew this resulted from countless swordsmen having their Dao hearts broken.

Throughout the Myriad Emperor World, all swordsmen of a sufficient realm suddenly spewed a mouthful of blood and became extremely pale.

Sword Casting Villa:

Jian Yi looked at the screen with a pale face. He wiped out the blood from the corner of his mouth, trying extremely hard to reign in his mind. However, this task was more challenging than he imagined. All he could think about was his path was wrong, and he could not accept this.

'Maybe Wang Tian is wrong. Maybe he entered this stage for a different reason.' He repeated this thought over and over, trying to convince himself. Unfortunately, the evidence was right before him.

Jian Yi took a deep breath and swallowed several pills to help with his injury. The best choice for him would be to enter seclusion to heal properly. However, he knew he must watch this battle to the end.

While Jian Yi was distracted, something extraordinary occurred. Jian Wushuang suddenly moved one of his fingers. At first, it was barely perceivable, but with the passage of time, he truly moved his finger.

"Shuang'er, you!" asked Jian Yi with shock. He received no response, but he could still not control the joy on his face. He watched as Jian Wushuang moved his fingers over and over. Jian Yi did not waste time and called one of the villa's ancestors to check the situation.

Dao Opening Sect:

The ancestors–who were also watching this battle–rapidly looked at Sword One with a worried look. They detected many of the sect's swordsmen also spewed blood and even had their Dao Heart broken. 

Luckily, their worry was in vain.

A powerful and mysterious aura suddenly enveloped Sword One as she looked in a daze at the Visual Transmission Array. A few seconds later, she muttered, "Is this the Sword and Sword Unity Realm? Besides the terrible name, it's not bad at all."

"You?" asked Origin One.

"The Empress already told me of this realm and forced me to temper my body. However, I could not enter it before now."

Tempering the body was a requirement to reach this realm, but it was not guaranteed. 

"Your strength?" asked Origin One with excitement.

"I don't know exactly, but I'm no longer afraid of these old Immortal Sovereigns."

Sword One was confident she would not need the help of the Human Preservation Array to find the Immortal Sovereign from the Spirit Genesist Sect.

"Good, good, good."

…

Wang Tian sighed as he felt the change between Heaven and Earth. He predicted this outcome before the battle. However, he knew his action was necessary for the Sword Path to continue forward and prosper.

The swords must break before being reforged into something stronger. He knew many people would not accept his new idealogy and concept even with conclusive evidence his path was the best. Regardless, he prepared to lay the foundation for this new path so it could become mainstream in a few generations.

As for the pushback he would receive from the majority of swordsmen? Wang Tian did not care and prepared to suppress all of them after proving the Dao.

'My Sword Path will become the orthodox way; I will ensure that.'

Ji Lanfang finally calmed down and regained his bearing. 

"I lost," he said calmly. "However, I have not given up on my path."

He gathered his momentum again, his eyes shining brighter than before. "Let's decide which path is the best."

"Why are you being stubborn? You should know the outcome of this battle before it even started," convinced Wang Tian.

"I'm not being stubborn." Ji Lanfang was telling the truth. He knew Wang Tian's path was the best, and he even considered changing his path.

"I have cultivated this path for 230 million years," Ji Lanfang sighed. "I cannot give up so easily."

"I understand," replied Wang Tian. When the Sword Empress first suggested he tempered his body, he also refused even though he knew she was a Paragon and walked farther than him in the Dao of the Sword. And if not for his enlightenment, he would have never reached the current realm.

Wang Tian took a deep breath before also gathering his aura and momentum. He understood Ji Lanfang's last struggle was the manifestation of the desire of all the swordsmen of the old path.

Once Wang Tian defeats him, it will signify that the new Sword Path has triumphed over the old one: a new era for the Sword Dao will officially begin.

"Are you ready?" asked Wang Tian.

"I am."

"Then, let's begin."

Ji Lanfang nodded before gathering his Essence, Qi, and Spirit, ensuring they reached the peak. Then, he mobilized his law before slashing his sword.

The attack was so fast that matter, space-time, Heaven and Earth, and even fate could not catch its trajectory.

99% of swordsmen, or even cultivators, watching this legendary battle could not follow the trajectory of this sword. And even the people who could not see it but could only feel it.

Unfortunately, nothing happened when the strike reached Wang Tian. He floated in the air in the same place, not a scratch on his clothes. He still had the ethereal and sword-immortal-like atmosphere around him that woe countless women in his generation.

Ji Lanfang sighed, "You cut my speed?"

"I did," replied Wang Tian. Although he could not react to the speed of the attack, he had a passive Domain surrounding him. So, once Ji Lanfang's attack almost reached him, the Domain responded and cut off the latter's speed.

"Good," said Ji Lanfang, drastically increasing his fighting intent. "This battle has just begun."