In truth, for the entire past year, everyone within Sword Gate had been preparing. Preparing for the Sect Ranking Battle.

This contingent, led by Ancestor Jian Mie, with Ancestor Jian Yunzhong assisting, included Supreme Elders such as Cang Ye Ming, along with numerous Sovereigns like Sovereign Dong Ye, Sovereign Baili, Sovereign Gongyang, and Sovereign Xiahou. For any sect, the most crucial event was the Sect War.

The last time they held a Sect Ranking Battle was many years ago; Sword Gate ranked 333rd. This time, Sword Gate was determined to hold at least that position.

So, these individuals had been striving tirelessly. Nearly half of their effort during this time had been spent rehearsing the ultimate weapon of Sword Gate: the Endless Sword.

A Sect War is not a contest between individuals, but between one sect and another. Therefore, it was natural that they had to practice the sect’s ultimate weapon.

In the ranking battle, the sect’s ultimate weapon could play a tremendously significant role, and the Endless Sword, as such a weapon, actually possessed numerous variations, not just a single thrusting motion. It also had other changes, such as sealing, blocking, transforming, cutting, slicing, and so on.

Of course, the Endless Sword was immensely massive and could not possibly have the endless variations of a typical weapon, but even these simple maneuvers held extreme power. Lu Yuan had visited their practice sessions over the past year, only to discover that he didn't quite suit this kind of collective training.

Being required to fix himself at a single point to exert strength meant that the power he could unleash wasn't significantly greater than that of Ancestor Jian Mie. Lu Yuan realized he was inherently averse to group practice.

Forget it; he was more comfortable on his own. If he couldn't participate in the Endless Sword, then so be it.

Lu Yuan was happy to enjoy his freedom. And finally, the time had arrived.

“Prepare to set off!” Ancestor Jian Mie roared, and commands were issued one after another. Nearly all the elite forces of Sword Gate were mobilized; few were left behind.

Normally, some personnel had to be retained for defense, but that was unnecessary now, because during the Sect Ranking Battle, attacking a sect’s headquarters was strictly forbidden. This was a rule established by the Five Great Ancient Civilizations, and anyone who dared to break it would face their sanction.

Clearly, no one desired the sanctions of the Five Great Ancient Civilizations. The Five Great Ancient Civilizations—in the Central Celestial Dynasty—were Heaven itself!

Lofty, supreme, and incomparably majestic Heaven! Everyone in Sword Gate was ready, seated aboard Ancestor Jian Mie's Sword Boat.

The boat was shaped like a sword, incredibly fast, and possessed vast internal capacity. Over a hundred elites of Sword Gate sat within, each occupying a remarkably large space.

Lu Yuan also sat at the bow, watching the scenery drift by. The scenery of the Central Celestial Dynasty, once you saw too much of it, became quite monotonous.

Endless void, surrounded by countless planets. Beyond the official thoroughfares, there appeared strange beasts of all shapes and sizes; some beasts, Lu Yuan reckoned, even he, at the fifth heaven of the World Realm—the Creation Realm—might struggle against.

The destination this time was the Pingtian Continent. The Pingtian Continent was a colossal landmass floating in the void.

This continent was significantly larger than an ordinary planet and remarkably solid; even the magical power of a World Realm cultivator could barely cause a tremor upon its surface. Such continents usually did not appear naturally; rather, they were condensed from the supreme magical power of mighty figures to serve as civilization strongholds.

For instance, the Fagu Civilization possessed a Continent of Law, far larger than any star. This Pingtian Continent was actually condensed by a Civilization Deputy Lord to serve as their base, but that Deputy Lord later died, and the civilization collapsed.

Subsequently, the Five Great Ancient Civilizations decreed that the Pingtian Continent would serve as the venue for the Sect Ranking Battle. The Sword Boat flew straight ahead, heading directly for the Pingtian Continent.

The distance for this flight was truly considerable. Even with the Sword Boat’s lightning speed, it took a full month to reach the Pingtian Continent.

At that moment, Lu Yuan suddenly recalled something: his eight-year agreement with the Son of the Sword had only about half a year remaining. He wondered if he would still honor the pact.

Never mind! The Pingtian Continent had arrived.

Even before the vessel landed on the continent, Lu Yuan gazed out and saw dozens of flying ships descending simultaneously toward the Pingtian Continent. They were all heading toward the center, all participants for the Sect Ranking Battle.

Given the sheer size of the Pingtian Continent, further travel within it would be necessary. The Sword Boat flew for some time more before finally descending toward the center of the Pingtian Continent, which was a grassy expanse, vibrant and green.

Upon reaching the center, they found a considerable number of sects already present. Each sect occupied its own flying vessel or ship, with over a thousand vessels already moored.

As soon as Lu Yuan landed, he went looking for connections. He had heard that among the two thousand participating sects, one was actually called the Wine Sect.

He felt they were kindred spirits, and naturally, he sought out the people of the Wine Sect. Lu Yuan inquired everywhere until he finally learned the location of the Wine Sect’s vessel.

The Wine Sect was actually a rather weak sect, essentially at the very bottom among the two thousand participants. Being so low-ranked meant they were naturally poor.

Being poor, they needed to generate wealth. Thus, the Wine Sect sold alcohol.

Among the two thousand sects, there were certainly many connoisseurs of fine wine. Therefore, the Wine Sect could earn a substantial sum from this—such an opportunity rarely presented itself normally.

Lu Yuan arrived at the Wine Sect’s area, which even featured some pavilions and terraces, offering an excellent view. Lu Yuan requested some of their wines.

Among them was the Spirit Rain Brew, made from the very first drop of rain collected during every downpour—the raw materials alone took a long time to gather. There was also Undersea Fire, brewed using flames from beneath the sea, and the Cosmic Wine, distilled from the spiritual energy of the cosmos, utterly unique.

Superb! Lu Yuan ultimately acquired one hundred and sixty-nine varieties of fine wine—one hundred and sixty-nine!

Lu Yuan certainly enjoyed himself to the fullest; the Wine Sect truly lived up to its name and was incredibly impressive. As Lu Yuan drank, he overheard various discussions.

These discussions centered around four main points. First, the Original Top Ten Sects: Hegemon Blade Gate, Blood Gate, Arrow Gate, Puppet Gate, Nanhua Gate, Shaoyang Gate, Long Spear Gate, Unique Gate, Youli Gate, and Fanghua Gate.

It was rumored that several of these sect leaders had already reached the eighth heaven of the World Realm. The eighth heaven of the World Realm sent a chill down Lu Yuan’s spine; currently, there was no way he could contend with someone at that level.

Fortunately, his goal was only to push Sword Gate into the top ten, not first place; otherwise, completing the task would be impossible. Even the top ten would be difficult.

The second point involved speculation on which sects were most likely to break into the top ten. Apparently, several sects were quite formidable, possessing figures at the seventh heaven of the World Realm.

These sects harbored immense ambition to challenge the top ten positions, exerting formidable pressure. There was no alternative; the benefits of entering the top ten were too great: access to the Civilization Holy Land.

The Civilization Holy Land was the number one sacred ground in the eyes of every cultivator aiming for the Civilization Realm. For a World Realm expert, gaining entry to the Holy Land brought the greatest benefits; no other place held the same magnetic attraction for them.

Even those within the Ancient Civilizations considered achieving entry to the Holy Land an honor. As for sect members, being allowed even one trip to the Civilization Holy Land was akin to their ancestors’ graves steaming with prosperity for eighty generations.

Precisely because the opportunity to visit the Civilization Holy Land was so rare, many sects were determined to fight for a spot in the top ten, to battle until they secured it. The third topic of discussion concerned the positions of the World Volcanoes, those ranked from 1 to 365, and which sect was most likely to be relegated.

Among these sects most susceptible to demotion was, naturally, Sword Gate. Sword Gate’s inherent strength already placed it in the bottom few dozens among the 365, hovering near the relegation zone.

Furthermore, in recent times, Sword Gate had endured several internal upheavals—the rebellion of Xuanyuan Wang, the rebellion of Ancestor Jian Fengzhong, and the challenge by the Son of the Sword. After these three incidents, Sword Gate's strength had been severely diminished.

Later, Sword Gate was even attacked by the Mad Gate. Although the Mad Gate was eventually annihilated, Sword Gate’s losses were still severe.

It could be said that currently, the Supreme Elders of Sword Gate, excluding the unreliable faction of Jian Xu, numbered only about ten. In their peak state, they had numbered a full fifty.

To have the Supreme Elders reduced so drastically meant that Sword Gate's current fighting power... Yes, Sword Gate now possessed a new, extremely powerful combatant: Lu Yuan.

However, Lu Yuan was only at the fifth heaven of the World Realm, which wasn't considered a very strong combat force among so many sects. Secondly, the current sect warfare was a contest of sect versus sect, not one person versus one person.

If a sect’s overall strength weakened, even one person couldn't turn the tide; ultimately, they would lose. Therefore, Sword Gate was currently weakened to the extreme.

Many sects had already resolved to push Sword Gate out of the top 365 ranks and seize the World Volcano positions. And some had even decided to push Sword Gate out of the top one thousand, claiming the title of Supreme Great Teaching for themselves.

Sword Gate was too weak to remain a Supreme Great Teaching; it was time for other sects to ascend. Countless sects viewed Sword Gate as a massive piece of fat meat.

Lu Yuan drank his wine, listening to all the surrounding commentary, feeling that Sword Gate was unwittingly catching countless bullets—truly helpless. Heh heh, just wait until Sword Gate falls out of the top 365, out of the top thousand; you all just wait to be shocked.