First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 1433 - The Changed Su Yi

Three days later, at dawn.

Su Yi was still seated cross-legged in the darkness of his room.

When his eyes opened, the depths of his gaze flashed with an indifferent light. He maintained his position, sitting there in silence for a moment before rubbing his face and smiling silently.

Then, he rose, and drew his fingers through the air.

Whoosh~

A curtain of light appeared, reflecting Su Yi’s image in full detail.

Su Yi examined his reflection in silence for a long time before shattering the curtain of light. The scattered fragments reflected his shifting, uncertain expression.

He whispered, “Your memories, experiences, emotions, and lifetime of cultivation are now mine. Going forward... I’ll naturally put them to use.

“Our battle of the heart begins today. In others' eyes, you are no longer you, and I... am no longer me!”

“But going forward, I am you, and I am myself, too!”

Were these words for Wang Ye’s ears?

Or were they spoken for Su Yi’s benefit?

The Divine Replenishment Furnace seemed to sense something, and it silently quivered.

Su Yi turned to look, then walked over and picked it up.

His gaze was deep and inscrutable, as if he were recalling something. “So... you’re that treasure. I wouldn’t have expected you’d flee to the Human Realm during the Immortal Realm’s catastrophe, too...”

The Divine Replenishment Furnace’s quivering intensified.

Su Yi laughed. “Relax. I’m me, I just... awakened one of my past lives’ memories is all.”

The Divine Replenishment Furnace gradually quieted down.

Su Yi saw the vast pile of pills inside the furnace. They were glittering and eye-catching, and they flowed with colorful light. Immortal qi rose into the air.

There were also the essences of numerous refined immortal materials.

Su Yi selected a pill and popped it into his mouth. He sensed the scalding, overflowing medicinal power course through him before finally fusing into his sword-shaped Nascent Divinity, and he couldn’t help but break into a satisfied grin.

But then, his brow furrowed, and he let out a sudden, muffled grunt. His calm, indifferent gaze shifted, as if he were locked in a fierce struggle.

A moment later, he took a deep breath, and his gaze returned to its former calmness and clarity.

“We’ll see who replaces who in the end!”

......

“Master, have you encountered some kind of trouble?” Qing Tang couldn’t help but ask.

Su Yi was reclining in his wicker chair, the same as he always did, but Qing Tang sensed something different about him, something not quite right.

“Trouble?” Su Yi asked in surprise.

“Right,” said Qing Tang. “For some reason, over the past few days, it’s seemed like your thoughts are elsewhere, and when we interact... something doesn’t feel quite right.”

Illuminating Emptiness was listening from the sidelines, and he nodded repeatedly. “I’ve sensed the same thing.”

Sword Immortal Qingshi and the Universal Emptiness Sword Buddha were listening from a distance. Neither said anything, but both of them looked over. It was obvious that they agreed.

It had been three days since Su Yi left seclusion, and although there were no outward changes, everyone sensed that he’d changed somehow. They just couldn’t put a finger on what exactly was different.

After a moment’s silence, Su Yi said softly, “Everyone changes. It’s only natural that your mentality changes as your cultivation increases.”

After succeeding Wang Ye’s memories and experiences, his horizons and perceptions had changed completely. His view of the heavens and his knowledge of the Immortal Dao weren’t at all like they’d been before.

It was as he’d risen into the Immortal Realm after standing at the pinnacle of the Human Realm. From his new, higher vantage point, the “mountains” he’d once known seemed like mere hills!

This was the source of his changes, including the shift in his mentality!

But outsiders couldn’t perceive this sort of battle of the heart.

“‘Your mentality changes as your cultivation increases?’ Nonsense!” the yellow dog said with a cold snort. It fixed its gaze on Su Yi and said, “I suspect... something has gone awry with your cultivation. If you don’t fix it in time, you’re likely to lose yourself to obsession!”

Su Yi said with obvious disinterest, “You don’t understand.”

“I don’t understand?” The yellow dog’s eyes bulged. It was just about to say something when it met Su Yi’s gaze, and its heart palpitated with inexplicable terror.

As if... it were suddenly completely transparent, and all of its secrets were laid bare. The sensation was thoroughly uncomfortable.

But when it tried to sense more details, it learned nothing. Even that strange, terrifying sensation vanished.

This left the dog completely baffled... or rather, astonished.

It dared say with certainty that it hadn’t been imagining that sensation earlier! Su Yi really had seemed to see through its secrets at a glance, and he really had filled its heart with a heart-palpitating sense of dread and oppression!

The yellow dog’s gaze shifted erratically. Something must have happened to this kid!

“It doesn’t matter how I’ve changed. I am me. I was your master before, and I’ll naturally be your master from now. There’s no changing that,” said Su Yi gently, looking directly at Qing Tang.

She nodded and recalled that the Temple Master had reincarnated into Su Xuanjun, who’d in turn reincarnated into the current Su Yi.

But no matter how he changed on the outside, her master’s care for her had never wavered.

......

Later that day, Daoist Master Red Cloud visited, bringing Meng Changyun and the Netherworld King with her.

Father and daughter were reunited after a lengthy celebration. Naturally, both the Netherworld King and Wei Shan were overjoyed.

Meng Changyun was also beside himself with excitement when he saw Su Yi.

Su Yi noticed that after just several months apart, Meng Changyun had reached the pinnacle of the Oneness Realm. One more step, and he could prove his Dao and enter Cosmic Enlightenment!

And the Netherworld King was at the peak of the Heavenly Longevity Realm. She too had progressed rapidly.

There was no doubt that both of them had benefited considerably from their time cultivating alongside Daoist Master Red Cloud.

“Mistress, I suspect that Su Yi has awakened the memories of his past life. It’s highly likely that he’s become the Central Immortal Court’s strongest Immortal Lord, the Sword Fanatic!” Xing Que transmitted to Daoist Master Red Cloud.

She was briefly stunned, but in the end, she merely nodded without a word.

When Su Yi saw Daoist Master Red Cloud, his behavior was the same, except...

He could roughly discern this mysterious woman’s true origins!

“Are your preparations in order, Fellow Daoist?” asked Daoist Master Red Cloud.

“We can set off right away,” said Su Yi, rising from his wicker chair.

Both of them set off that very day, beginning their journey to the Starjade Forbidden Zone. The dog, Xing Que, stayed behind to watch over Universal Emptiness Temple.

......

Two days later.

An enormous chaotic belt stretched as far as the eye could see through a boundlessly vast stretch of stars.

Lightning surged in the depths of the chaos, producing a low rumbling that shook the surrounding stars.

Terrifying, calamitous power swept outward, enveloping every last inch of the surrounding space.

This was the Starjade Forbidden Zone. One of the stars’ seven great forbidden zones!

About twenty years ago, an enormous change took place here. Not one of those who’d entered since had ever returned!

During the End of the Dharma, immortals saw the Starjade Forbidden Zone as their only path to life, and countless immortals from all across the stars sought refuge there. All of them hoped to find that path to salvation.

But in the end, the overwhelming majority died bitterly!

According to the Tailor, after his subordinates chased the Antique Dealer into the Starjade Forbidden Zone, he entered a mysterious, run-down temple, never to return.

No one knew if he was alive or dead.

Whoosh!

An arc of light shot over, then stopped in front of Daoist Master Red Cloud and Su Yi.

Practically simultaneously, hearty laughter rang out.

“Celestial Red Cloud, you’re finally here.”

Four figures shot over accompanying this voice.

The first was a man in a scholarly Fangjin head covering and Confucian robes. He carried a scroll in his hands.

Then there was an elder in worn-out beast skin robes. He had a saber on his back.

Next was a woman shrouded entirely in long black robes. Only her pale amber eyes were visible.

Finally, there was a clear-faced, youthful monk holding a set of prayer beads.

Their auras were as inscrutable as the chaos itself. It was difficult to discern the truth of their abilities.

But even just standing there casually, they emitted a formless pressure, as if they looked down on all of creation!

It was the man in Confucian robes who’d greeted Daoist Master Red Cloud.

He carried a scroll, and he had a distinguished, elegant bearing.

Daoist Master Red Cloud merely inclined her head, but it counted as a greeting.

She then said to Su Yi, “These four were peak Void Realm True Immortals in life. To prevent a backlash from the Laws, they have no choice but to use secret treasures to suppress their cultivation bases.”

Su Yi nodded.

On the way here, she’d told him that four experts of the Immortal Dao would accompany them on their trip to the Starjade Forbidden Zone.

There was no doubt that these were the four experts in question.

“And this must be Fellow Daoist Su. A promising youth, just as the rumors say. There’s no one else like him!” The man in Confucian robes smiled and introduced himself. “My name is Yun Huaqing, but now, I’m just another pitiful revenant.”

“Oh,” Su Yi said flatly. He paid the man no further heed.

Su Yi ignored the other three Void Realm True Immortals too. He had absolutely no intention of taking the initiative to get to know them.

His attitude was cold, prideful, and aloof. The man in Confucian robes couldn’t help but be stunned, and his brow furrowed imperceptibly.

But then, he looked at his three companions.

The elder in beast skin robes grinned, as if mocking Yun Huaqing for inviting rejection.

The woman shrouded in black robes took another look at Su Yi. Her pale golden eyes didn’t so much as fluctuate with emotion.

The youthful-looking monk broke into an easy grin. “Fellow Daoist Su, you’re no ordinary person, so we naturally cannot mistake you for one.”

With that, he approached, clasped his fist, and inclined his head. “My Buddhist name is Zhe Yin. Greetings, Fellow Daoist Su.”

Su Yi glanced at the seemingly youthful—but in truth, ancient—monk, then said out of nowhere, “Are you a Guardian of the Faith in Northriver Immortal Province’s Sanskrit Cloud temple?”

The crowd found this question entirely unexpected, but then they recalled that Su Yi had come here with Daoist Master Red Cloud, so they quickly made sense of it.

There was no doubt about it. All of them assumed that Daoist Master Red Cloud had told him of their origins.

Only Daoist Master Red Cloud herself knew better. Her bright, clear eyes narrowed and flashed with a hint of strange light. She hadn’t told Su Yi a thing about their companions’ origins!

“I am indeed,” said the monk.

A long time ago, while Wang Ye was still protecting the Sixth Gate of Heaven, he had a good brother-in-arms, someone who’d found alongside him in numerous bloody, life-or-death battles.

A Buddhist cultivator from the Northriver Immortal Province’s Sanskrit Cloud Temple!

This had happened a long, long time ago.

Nonetheless, when Su Yi recognized Zhe Yin’s origins, an irrepressible grief and melancholy arose in his heart.

Those were Wang Ye’s emotions!

After a moment’s silence, Su Yi said calmly, “If we run into danger on this expedition, I’ll ensure your safety.”

His words left the others gobsmacked. This promise caught them so completely off guard that they almost thought they’d misheard.

Even Daoist Master Red Cloud was unwittingly stunned. She suddenly thought back to Universal Temple, and what the dog Xing Que had told her.

The atmosphere was stifled and a bit strange.

A junior wanted to ensure a Void Realm True Immortal’s safety?

Anyone who’d heard that would have found it... absurd!