The sword qi grew faster, one streak after another. At this moment, several intensely sharp beams of sword light were simultaneously lunging forward.

Lu Yuan’s eyesight now was faster, fiercer, and sharper than before. Even more terrifying!

Previously, the requirement was simply to block the sword techniques—one could block anytime. But now, he had to meet the peak moment of the sword’s momentum head-on with his physical body.

This placed an even higher demand on Lu Yuan, pushing his perception, timing, and control to heaven-defying levels. This was actually immensely beneficial for Lu Yuan's growth.

Where before, Lu Yuan could easily win regardless of how he fought, now he was forced to evolve. By grasping that single instant in each strike, even the slightest flaw became apparent to Lu Yuan; this was effectively a form of strengthening training for him.

The former Lu Yuan had many shortcomings. For instance, his foundation in the Way of the Sword, his perception—these were still far behind those who had fought countless battles.

Lu Yuan had spent most of his time sleeping in late. But now, through this trial, he was mending all those weak points.

Simultaneously, there was his capacity for enduring pain. As seven beams of sword light struck almost simultaneously, Lu Yuan’s body flickered, and at the apex of their power, he intercepted all seven, driving them into his body [Ti].

With so much sword qi flooding inside, the quantity finally began to trigger a qualitative transformation. The sword qi within him battered his Dharma Power, physical body, and Divine Soul.

Under this onslaught, the Dharma Power, the physical body, and the Divine Soul all absorbed the characteristics of sword qi: the Dharma Power gained the density of a blade, the body acquired the hardness of steel, and the Divine Soul took on the striking force of a sword. Each now possessed a part of the sword, and with a colossal roar from within, Lu Yuan sensed a massive change occurring in his physique.

At this moment, the Dharma Power, the physical body, and the Divine Soul began to link organically. They transformed, each becoming a component of a single sword: the Dharma Power became the hilt, the physical body became the blade, and the Divine Soul became the edge.

The sword itself was Lu Yuan. In a state of blurred consciousness, Lu Yuan realized he had become a sword.

A sword passed down from an unknown age! The Heaven Sword Soul, Earth Sword Soul, and Human Sword Soul had long since merged—the spirit was like the man, and the man was like the sword.

During this process, the fusion between the Dharma Power, the physical body, and the Divine Soul grew ever tighter. The Three Extremes Return to One!

Yes, this was the Three Extremes Return to One (San Ji Gui Yi). Normally, in this process of sword transformation, Lu Yuan could have gained deeper enlightenment, but the phrase "Three Extremes Return to One" forcefully struck his mind, jolting him back into the real world.

He was no longer a sword, but thankfully, Lu Yuan discovered he had already reached the level of the Three Extremes Return to One. What a difficult feat.

The cultivation of the Qi Refining, Body Tempering, and Longevity realms—the Dharma Power, physical body, and Divine Soul—had finally integrated into an organic whole. At this stage, his internal cultivation had essentially reached its limit; only one final step remained—the Great Perfection of the Tenth Level of Longevity—after which he would need to seek external development.

Having reached the Three Extremes Return to One, his strength surpassed that of the Eighth Level of Longevity considerably. For example, at the Eighth Level, one controlled a sword using either Dharma Power or Divine Soul.

Upon reaching the Ninth Level, controlling every sword involved the unification of Dharma Power, Divine Soul, and physical body, naturally surpassing control based on a single element. Alright, Lu Yuan snapped back to focus, realizing he was still managing various streams of sword qi.

At this moment, the instantly released sword qi had escalated to eleven streams, and he was struggling somewhat to cope. Lu Yuan glanced over and saw the numbers carved on the Sword Dharma Wheel had reached the nine thousandth mark.

It was rumored the wheel could unleash a total of ten thousand streams of sword qi, but very few managed to pass the trial. Having weathered nine thousand, he was determined to see if he could clear the full set, thus mastering one variation of the Cloud Dragon Ten Transformations and elevating his Dharma Power to the Ninth Level of Longevity.

With nothing else on his mind, he focused entirely on the sword qi before him. Nine thousand one hundred streams!

Nine thousand two hundred streams! Nine thousand three hundred streams!

Nine thousand eight hundred streams! Nine thousand nine hundred streams!

Nine thousand nine hundred ninety-nine streams! Ten thousand streams!

This final, tenth-thousandth beam of sword light was astonishingly fast and ruthlessly sharp. This single beam seemed to embody every sword move ever conceived between heaven and earth.

Under such circumstances, discerning the single most potent instant was truly difficult. There was no choice; he had to try.

Judging by technique was impossible now; he had to rely purely on his Sword Sense. With immense effort, he blocked it—he blocked the ten thousandth stream of sword qi.

Lu Yuan was left panting heavily, pushed to the point where he had to rely solely on his Sword Sense. It was utterly extreme.

The Sword Dharma Wheel slowly ceased its rotation. He had finally weathered ten thousand streams of sword qi.

At that moment, a line of hovering text appeared in the void: "The ten thousand and first stream of sword qi will appear in one hour. In ten thousand years, no one has broken through the ten thousand and first stream.

If it can be broken, one may obtain..." Lu Yuan froze. He had heard of the Ten Thousand Sword Reincarnation, wasn't it only ten thousand streams?

Why was there a ten thousand and first stream? The ten thousand and first stream!

The preceding ten thousand streams had followed one after another without pause. Even weathering the tenth thousandth, which had left him gasping, was a continuous struggle.

But now, there was an hour-long pause. An hour!

A full sixty minutes! This meant the ten thousand and first stream of sword qi was likely far more terrifying than any preceding one, perhaps ten times more dreadful than the tenth thousandth beam.

Very well, a brief rest, then prepare for the ten thousand and first stream! He meditated for half an hour, consumed some pills to restore his Dharma Power, and reviewed the insights he had gained during this period.

His comprehension of the Way of the Sword had deepened significantly. When the time felt right, Lu Yuan opened his eyes, which now radiated bursts of sword qi.

The Sword Dharma Wheel began to turn slowly, its grinding sound echoing through the empty space. The ten thousand and first stream of sword qi was about to be unleashed.

Lu Yuan concentrated, awaiting the imminent tenth thousand and first beam of sword light. Within the chamber of the Ten Thousand Sword Reincarnation, Zhou Qingxuan stood with his hands clasped behind his back.

The Guards of the Zither, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting—all four had temporarily set aside the arts they cherished. The Ten Thousand Sword Reincarnation was notoriously difficult.

In the preceding generation, only two people had managed to clear it by surviving ten thousand streams of sword qi: Yan Cangtian and Zhou Qingxuan. Even Chu Duan hadn't succeeded.

Now, for them to believe Lu Yuan could pass the ten thousand streams was beyond their capacity to accept. Time slowly trickled away.

A long time passed. Lu Yuan still had not emerged.

The hourglass trickled sand grain by grain. Time was up!

The first ten thousand swords of the Ten Thousand Sword Reincarnation operated on fixed timings. Since the time had elapsed and Lu Yuan had not appeared, it meant he had cleared the trial.

He had actually passed the Ten Thousand Sword Reincarnation! The Zither, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting Guards exchanged looks, their hearts filled with unimaginable shock.

The Chess Guard moved a piece: "Indeed worthy of being the genius the Master favored, as expected." The other three guards, though silent, largely shared this sentiment. However, almost immediately, the four guards noticed something amiss—something truly wrong.

The process of the Ten Thousand Sword Reincarnation was clearly complete, yet Lu Yuan hadn't come out. Could he have perished inside?

That shouldn't be... Just as the four guards felt unease, an intensely sharp stream of sword qi pierced through the thick Xuan Iron Gate.

This sword qi, passing through the ten-zhang-thick Xuan Iron Gate, struck each of their hearts as if plunging them into a volcano. The four guards simultaneously felt their bodies flush with unbearable heat.

How was this possible! At this distance, and through iron specifically designed to isolate sword energy, there was still such potent heat radiating!

What manner of terrifying sword qi was this! This was sword qi of the gods and demons!

The Chess Guard was the first to break the silence: "Master, this is?" "This is the ten thousand and first stream of sword qi," Zhou Qingxuan stated slowly. "There is still a ten thousand and first stream?" the Calligraphy Guard asked.

"Shouldn't it just be the Ten Thousand Sword Reincarnation?" "The final strike of the Ten Thousand Sword Reincarnation is not the tenth thousandth, but the ten thousand and first. The terror of this single strike far exceeds all preceding ones, perhaps exceeding the tenth thousandth by more than tenfold," Zhou Qingxuan explained, hands behind his back.

"Back then, Senior Brother Yan and I both challenged the ten thousand streams of sword qi, but we both failed against the ten thousand and first stream. As for others, they couldn't even withstand ten thousand streams.

Looking at the situation now, it seems Lu Yuan can handle this final strike, though whether he can pass it remains to be seen." Impossible to pass! After all, neither Yan Cangtian nor Zhou Qingxuan had survived the test of the ten thousand and first stream back then.

After a long pause, Zhou Qingxuan spoke calmly: "He passed." There was still the ten thousand and first stream! The very strike that neither Yan Cangtian nor Zhou Qingxuan in their prime could withstand, Lu Yuan had just caught it.

The Zither, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting Guards found it incredible. Could it be that Lu Yuan's talent in the Way of the Sword surpassed even that of the former Yan Cangtian and Zhou Qingxuan?

Perhaps not entirely. Back then, Yan Cangtian and Zhou Qingxuan lacked the guidance of master instructors like Yan and Zhou.

Lu Yuan had benefited from their direct instruction, with many of his mistakes being corrected by Yan and Zhou. Lu Yuan’s innate talent was comparable to theirs, nearly identical.

Zhou Qingxuan stood with his hands clasped behind him. What now intrigued him was what reward awaited after surviving the ten thousand and first stream.

This question had lingered in his mind for hundreds of years, and now, the time had come to find the answer.