"No matter what else, when it comes to the flow of Soul Energy, I, Su Su, am the best at it." Su Su chuckled smugly, and a surge of purple light enveloped Ye Xiu entirely. "It's just that, Master, you'll have to give me time to adapt to its Soul Energy flow frequency. During that time, Master, you'll have to endure some pain!"

"Wha—! Ah!" The moment Su Su finished speaking, several streaks of sword light once again struck Ye Xiu, leaving fresh wounds upon him. He was already covered in blood and could barely remain standing. "Su Su, how long will this adaptation take you?"

"No rush, I'm already gradually sensing its trajectory." Su Su's voice had never been so calm. At this moment, she controlled Ye Xiu's movements, guiding him to traverse the ground with steps that were undeniably precise. Initially, those aimless sword lights could wound Ye Xiu's body, but as time passed, they only managed to graze his skin. After a little longer, only the sound of them whistling by could be heard, unable to touch Ye Xiu at all.

"How can this be?" That massive Sword Soul hovered in the sky, seemingly startled by Ye Xiu's ability. It swayed its body back and forth in confusion. "You can actually perceive my Soul Energy flow? Ordinary Death Gods are incapable of this."

Ye Xiu had also gradually become familiar with the movements Su Su controlled. Though injured, it didn't stop him from summoning the Black Flame and blasting it toward the Sword Soul. He grinned, his teeth showing, "I don't care what you are; if you block my path, disappear!"

"Boom!" The Black Flame struck the Sword Soul directly, but the soul barely quivered; it appeared completely unharmed. It suddenly began to spin, absorbing the surrounding remnants of blades and swords, drawing them towards itself. "If the sword shadows can't harm you, then what about these physical blades and swords!"

"Tch!" Ye Xiu scoffed, raising both hands, unleashing the Black Flame. This time, the Black Flame surged forward like nine dragons, precisely meeting the long chain of metallic blades surrounding the Sword Soul. After countless sharp cracking sounds, those already tattered swords and blades completely disintegrated into scrap metal, clattering onto the ground. "I just want to know exactly what you are, nothing more."

Seeing that physical attacks were also ineffective, the Sword Soul flipped and dove down, charging at Ye Xiu with its tip. Blue flames ignited around it, its target now undeniably Ye Xiu's life. "Besides the Death Realm's Sword Demon, Bafang Gu Ling, there has never been another Death God in this world who could sense the existence of my Tian Miao Sword Soul! If I cannot kill you, I will be your slave for eternity!"

"I'm afraid you'll be with me for a lifetime!" As the Sword Soul's silhouette streaked past, Ye Xiu spat out a fierce retort and swayed aside, dodging the sword's tip. However, the sheer power of the Sword Soul, along with the surrounding blue fire, enraged Ye Xiu. As he turned and gripped the hilt of the Sword Soul, the majority of his abdomen was scalded. "So what of it!"

"Whoa!" The Sword Soul was firmly grasped by Ye Xiu, which also surprised it greatly. It struggled intensely, rocketing toward the heavens. This force was far too immense, causing Ye Xiu's entire body to soar wildly through the air with it. "Kid, do you think you can claim my power so easily?"

"Oh no, Master, its power is even stronger than before." At this moment, Su Su's face showed terror. It turned out the Sword Soul had burst free from that cluster of blue flames. It wasn't a flame, nor was it an ordinary sword; it was merely a red thread of light that could be grasped.

"Ah..." Ye Xiu had placed both hands on the Sword Soul, but the impact was too great; he couldn't hold on much longer. "Su Su, the previous Power Soul... quick..."

The situation was dire. Seeing Ye Xiu dragged up and down by the Sword Soul, Su Su became anxious. She unleashed her final burst of Power Soul, actually suppressing the Sword Soul's strength. As a result, the Sword Soul's ascent slowed considerably. In a short while, it dragged Ye Xiu crashing heavily back into the earth.

"Thud!" Ye Xiu plunged directly onto the ground. That fall nearly knocked him unconscious. "Damn it, you should be quiet now, right?"

"Swoosh..." The Sword Soul immediately condensed into a stream of red light, drifting around Ye Xiu. Looking at how gently it floated, it seemed to have shed its previous hostility. "I understand now. It turns out all of this was due to your Death God Soul Stone's effect."

Hearing the Sword Soul's tone soften, Ye Xiu also let out a long breath. He simply sat down heavily. "Regardless, you should be under my command now, shouldn't you?"

The stream of red light continued to drift and finally settled into Ye Xiu's palm. "My Tian Miao Sword was the divine weapon wielded by the Death Realm's foremost swordsman, Sword Demon Bafang Gu Ling. It's a pity that the Sword Demon was unfortunately killed here while attempting to contend with the peerless divine weapon, Yu Huang Zhan. The blade of the Tian Miao Sword was shattered by Yu Huang Zhan, causing the Sword Soul to separate from its body and wander these ruins."

"Turns out the Tian Miao Sword isn't such a big deal after all." Ye Xiu had expected to obtain a divine weapon capable of matching Yu Huang Zhan, only to learn that the Tian Miao Sword had also been destroyed by Yu Huang Zhan. "Who is Bafang Gu Ling? Is he also a Death God?"

The red light circled slowly as it spoke. "The Sword Demon was a genius rarely seen in the Death Realm across ten thousand years. His Soul Energy cultivation was only at the Blood Artifact realm, yet he could stand against the Death Realm's Underworld King, who possessed the supreme realm cultivation. By channeling his Soul Energy into his sword, he could absorb the power of all realms, shattering heaven and destroying earth. He fought for the Underworld King but often roamed the Underworld due to his love for swordsmanship, remaining outside the sphere of power."

"Someone at the Blood Artifact realm could actually contend with the legendary Underworld King?" Ye Xiu asked incredulously. "Such a powerful figure couldn't defeat Sha Jun Tian Xia!"

"When Yu Huang Zhan emerged, Sha Jun Tian Xia landed from the Demon Realm and forcibly seized Yu Huang Zhan. The Sword Demon, who cherished weapons above all else, naturally challenged him with his Tian Miao Sword." The Sword Soul's voice grew low, seemingly filled with longing for its former master. "Sha Jun Tian Xia became incomparably stronger with Yu Huang Zhan; although the Sword Demon's prowess was extraordinary and he managed to severely injure Sha Jun's primary body by eighty percent, he himself vanished and perished. The Tian Miao Sword shattered, and the Sword Demon's soul dispersed. He channeled his final strength to forge the Tian Miao Sword Soul—that is how I came to be."

"Hah..." Ye Xiu sighed, contemplating those ancient confrontations. If the Sword Demon hadn't challenged him, leading to Sha Jun Tian Xia's substantial injury, perhaps the subsequent Great Vow of the Earth Store Bodhisattva could not have succeeded in slaying him. Considering this, could the divine weapon once held by the Earth Store Bodhisattva stop the current Sha Jun if it were brought to the present world?

The red light gradually faded, tracing along the lines of Ye Xiu's palm before merging into his body. "You must find a weapon capable of enduring the Tian Miao Sword Soul; perhaps only then can the original Tian Miao Sword reappear to challenge Sha Jun. My spirit carries the Sword Demon's challenge against Sha Jun, and you will now carry the Tian Miao Sword's hatred for Yu Huang Zhan."

"Hey, hey! Does this mean getting you is completely useless to me?" Ye Xiu rubbed his hands together, trying to force the red light out of his palm. "Where am I supposed to find such a weapon!"

"This Yu Yu Sealing Blade ruin is the location of divine artifacts across all realms. I believe it must be here." The red light vanished, and the Tian Miao Sword Soul left only this final declaration before falling silent. All that remained was a single point of crimson light in Ye Xiu's palm.

"Rumble, rumble!" At this moment, blazing flames suddenly erupted from the previously silent stone stele. The flames illuminated the characters etched within the stele, and it was unclear when they had appeared, but three large red characters now stood there: "Divine Sword Tomb."

"Is it over? Hey! Say something." Ye Xiu knelt on one knee, shouting repeatedly at his own palm. "You tell me only half the story, what am I supposed to do now? Su Su!"

"Master, please don't get agitated. There is a strange Soul Energy flowing within your body now." Su Su sounded uncertain, soothing Ye Xiu. "The attribute of this Tian Miao Sword Soul energy is different from the previous Speed Soul or Power Soul; it seems to possess its own operational method. I can feel certain sword path techniques gestating within it."

"Sword path techniques? Does this Sword Soul contain some unparalleled ancient sword manual or something?" Ye Xiu paid little attention to Su Su's words. He had experienced numerous battles, large and small, and in this world, disparities in strength were almost always rooted in speed and power. Occasionally, there were figures like Old Liu who relied on strange magical arts, but swordsmen—where did they need specialized techniques?

Su Su remained silent. As a form of Soul Energy existing within Ye Xiu, no one could fully explain everything at this juncture. Her role was merely to continuously monitor this power and advise Ye Xiu on how to respond.

After resting briefly, Ye Xiu walked to the front of the stele. He stared coldly at this Divine Sword Tomb, which had been reduced to a wreck by his recent battle with the Sword Soul. The stone embankments surrounding the tomb firmly contained the scattered blades and swords, resembling a pool of swords. Within, glints of gold suggested many famous swords were hidden, but would the body of a sword capable of housing the Tian Miao Sword Soul truly be found here?

"Splash..." Just as Ye Xiu hesitated, the discarded weapons within the Sword Tomb surged toward him like a massive tidal wave, rising incredibly high. Ye Xiu tried to evade, but he felt the entire world turning upside down. All he saw was a dazzling expanse of light as he was about to be buried by the stone stele and the tomb itself.

...

"Clang..." At that moment, an archway on the field violently toppled right next to Old Liu, startling him into jumping up. "Damn things, how can they just fall over like that."

"Ye Xiu..." Mei Yi naturally understood the situation unfolding on the battlefield and the location where Ye Xiu was situated. She looked at Dao Kuang with concern. "Senior, what is this..."

"It's indeed the same pattern as when Yan Luo entered the Fourth Heaven Tower," Dao Kuang signaled Mei Yi not to worry and explained slowly. "That day, Yan Luo entered the Fourth Heaven Tower to forge the Twin Holy Swords of the Underworld, and only emerged after all four archways had fallen. Fourth Heaven Tower, Fourth Heaven Tower... I believe one must experience four stages of forging to complete a peerless divine weapon."