The Gate of Swordsmanship Lu Yuan raised above his head shot forth rays of light that transformed into an endless sea of blades. While this sea of blades did not appear overtly treacherous on its surface, within it raged complex currents and surging undertows, coalescing into monstrous waves of pure sword energy. The Son of the Sword was now but a tiny skiff atop these surging waves, perpetually on the verge of capsizing.

Should he capsize, there would be no burial ground left for him.

The Son of the Sword had never encountered such a scenario. He was the Child of the Sword Dao, yet now he was about to be submerged in an ocean of swords. He prided himself on being able to handle any sword technique, but now, facing such a terrifying barrage of blade attacks, he found himself utterly incapable of defending against them.

Damn it!

Why had he grown stronger, only for Lu Yuan to have grown even stronger? The gap between him and Lu Yuan seemed to have widened even further.

Complaints ended here.

Indeed, there was no longer time for grievances. The Son of the Sword’s predicament was extraordinarily perilous. If he failed to employ some extraordinary method now, he was likely to perish beneath Lu Yuan’s blades. None of the Seven Sons of Fortune had ever fallen, but it now appeared the Son of the Sword might be the first to perish.

Lu Yuan, too, felt an exhilarating sense of triumph. He had been enemies with the Son of the Sword for years, and now, finally, he had the chance to slay him.

Only by slaying the Son of the Sword could his own path become truly clear.

Lu Yuan savored this moment of elation, guiding his sword-light with even greater steadiness. The Son of the Sword's own strength was formidable; without the Gate of Swordsmanship, even with his current power, Lu Yuan could only secure a minor victory, certainly not a killing blow. Thus, he pressed his advantage with increasing assurance, determined to finish the Son of the Sword now.

The Son of the Sword, driven to desperation, unleashed his final resort.

With a whoosh, the Son of the Sword summoned an object: two Sword Master Tokens, and moreover, the combined power of two such tokens. This held significant force for a Sword Master. The Son of the Sword intended to use this move to buy time. As Lu Yuan was actively collecting Sword Master Tokens, he made no pretense of politeness, sweeping them up with a wave of his spiritual power and drawing the two ancient tokens into his New Sword World.

In that precise instant, a blinding flash erupted.

What a magnificent radiance it was! Within this light, Lu Yuan perceived a consciousness of supreme greatness—an immense, overwhelming divine sense, far grander than his own, which nearly blasted him apart instantly. Within this consciousness, Lu Yuan detected the aura of the Civilization Realm.

This aura carried a scent similar to the Jian (A type of ancient weapon), which shared a subtle difference with the essence of the Sword.

Lu Yuan, inherently attuned to the Sword, was consequently also highly sensitive to the Jian.

A torrent of divine thought enveloped and shielded the Son of the Sword.

“Lu Yuan!”

“Lu Yuan!” Countless voices echoed his name through the void. Lu Yuan’s sword-light flared: “Vice-Lord of the Jian Civilization, I know it is you. But I have heard that even when a Civilization Realm expert transmits their divine sense here, it is weakened by a ten-thousandth part, and their spiritual power cannot penetrate at all. To attempt to injure me with mere divine sense is impossible.”

Lu Yuan spoke lightly, yet in reality, even one ten-thousandth of a Civilization Realm divine sense was terrifyingly potent; had he not possessed the Godly Protection guarding his soul, he could have sustained severe injuries.

This was the power of the Civilization Realm—utterly distinct from the World Realm, the difference as vast as heaven and earth.

“Lu Yuan, interesting. I hope you manage to live a few more years.” As the voice faded, the divine sense of the Vice-Lord of the Jian Civilization vanished simultaneously. At that same moment, the Son of the Sword utilized his Chaos Bubble technique, escaping from within the body of the Chaos Civilized Beast. The Vice-Lord of the Jian Civilization had planted a special artifact within the Son of the Sword, allowing him to trigger this mental storm, saving the Son of the Sword just long enough for him to calmly activate the Chaos Bubble and secure the necessary ten breaths of time.

Once outside, the Son of the Sword was overwhelmed with frustration. Before he could fully react, he was forcibly yanked across billions of miles of void by an immense spiritual force, depositing him onto a star. There, two figures radiated the aura of the Civilization Realm, their civilized presence blindingly glorious.

“Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization, this Son of the Sword still has an important role to play?” This was the voice of the Vice-Lord of the Jian Civilization.

“Naturally. This child Lu Yuan possesses a peculiar destiny. If we are to counteract Lu Yuan’s fate, we must divide his Sword Dao fortune. As long as the Son of the Sword lives, Lu Yuan can only claim half of the Sword Dao fortune.” The second voice was incredibly hoarse. The Son of the Sword felt a jolt; he had heard that the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization was the most adept at divination among all the Civilization Realm experts, his mastery of hexagrams unparalleled in the world.

“We must cultivate the Son of the Sword quickly. The stronger he becomes, the more fortune he will siphon off. We absolutely cannot allow him to die by Lu Yuan’s hand,” stated the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization.

The Son of the Sword was inwardly ecstatic. Several Vice-Lords were planning to heavily cultivate him. Lu Yuan, he vowed, this debt would be repaid.

“The Seven Sons of Fortune and Lu Yuan—there will be a final battle. The one who ultimately claims the boundless fortune may be the one we have been waiting for,” the Vice-Lord of the Fate Civilization concluded. This statement made the Son of the Sword pause. Judging by his tone, there was someone among the eight—the Seven Sons and Lu Yuan—that these Civilization Realm figures were anticipating. What exactly were these powers plotting?

While wondering who these figures were waiting for, the Son of the Sword also lamented the great treasure he had almost grasped, only to lose it so suddenly; the frustration settled deep in his gut.

......

Rescued!

Lu Yuan shrugged, feeling a distinct annoyance. The Son of the Sword carried many advantages, such as those two ancient Sword Master Tokens. Had he succeeded in slaying the Son of the Sword, the rewards would have been far greater. Such immense profit was snatched away by the Vice-Lord of the Jian Civilization. But there was nothing to be done; his current strength was inferior to that Vice-Lord. As for their enmity, the feud with the Vice-Lord of the Jian Civilization was already profound, and this incident only deepened that titanic hatred.

For now, he should examine the great treasure the Son of the Sword had kept mentioning; it ought to be extraordinary.

Before him now stood a door.

A door!

Lu Yuan approached it. The door had no handle. Lu Yuan placed his hand on it and pulled with his spiritual power. What a heavy door! Lu Yuan had never encountered such a weighty door in his life. But no matter how heavy, it had to be opened. Lu Yuan roared, channeling his spiritual power to its limit, and finally forced the door ajar.

Upon opening it, the interior seemed slightly shadowy. Lu Yuan summoned a ball of flame to illuminate the space within.

Behind this door lay a vast, desiccated pool.

And in the center of the pool rested a weapon of bizarre shape.

It was truly peculiar—resembling a saber in some aspects, a sword in others, and even a long spear at times; upon closer inspection, it looked like a halberd. It was a non-descript amalgamation of weapons. This was the great treasure the Son of the Sword had spoken of. Lu Yuan had no idea of its true function, yet he picked up the artifact and casually manipulated it.

This treasure was indeed heavy, unnaturally so. Lu Yuan estimated the strange weapon weighed at least several dozen catties, and it possessed no true edge; it was blunt.

What use could this peculiar weapon have? Lu Yuan wondered with curiosity.

He casually swung the weapon, observing it again, but nothing came to mind. Lu Yuan simply struck the outer core of Mount Gallbladder with the weapon. The outer core remained unmoved, and its sharpness was inferior even to his Immortal Sword of Nurturing Self. He then swung it against the inner core of Mount Gallbladder—clang!—it failed to cut that either. But that was to be expected; the inner core of Mount Gallbladder was fundamentally inviolable, by him or anyone else. Practicing a magnificent technique like the Eternal Undying Art has its advantages, Lu Yuan mused internally, only to suddenly realize something was amiss.

There had been a subtle dissonance in that sound.

The difference in the noise was minute, almost imperceptible, but Lu Yuan was intimately familiar with the sound of a weapon striking the inner core of Mount Gallbladder. He had tested it several times with the Sword of Nurturing Self; the core remained undamaged, but the sound now was subtly different.

Lu Yuan focused his gaze on the spot that had been struck, increasing the light output to its maximum.

Lu Yuan let out a soft "Eh?" Upon closer examination, he discovered a minute crack on the inner core of Mount Stomach where the weapon had struck. What was happening? This weapon could chip a tiny fraction of the inner core of Mount Gallbladder? Lu Yuan tried again, channeling his full spiritual power, driving the weapon into the heavy core. This time, the fissure was slightly larger than before.

What was going on?

What exactly was this treasure the Son of the Sword had mentioned?

In truth, the Son of the Sword himself did not know what this great treasure was. He had merely read fragmented passages about it in an ancient book left by a predecessor, which led him to seek this treasure. The book claimed that obtaining this treasure would grant him a Chaos Crystal, which could then be used to cultivate to the Tenth Heaven of the World Realm, along with other benefits. The Son of the Sword did not know what a Chaos Crystal was. Had he obtained the treasure, with his intelligence, a simple test would likely have revealed the method to gain the Chaos Crystal and reach the Tenth Heaven of the World Realm. Clearly, that ancient predecessor followed the same path as Lu Yuan; in the vastness of time and space, countless coincidences occur, and few are truly unique across all realities.

Cultivating to the Tenth Heaven of the World Realm through this method resulted in a foundation far more solid and stable than conventional methods, making the ascent to the Civilization Realm easier—a far superior path. This was a significant opportunity, even for a Son of Fortune.

Alas, this great opportunity, practically delivered into the Son of the Sword’s hands to help him reach the World Realm, ended up falling into Lu Yuan’s possession after he encountered him. Truly, it was a windfall gifted to Lu Yuan.

(First update delivered.)