First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 1317 - Relics Become Buddhas

A monk as valiant-looking as an arhat was carrying a temple on his back and running like mad.

For a moment, Wei Shan thought his eyes were playing tricks on him.

The monk was fleeing so quickly that he seemed like glittering golden light; it was only possible to discern his figure with his divine sense.

Heaven and earth rumbled and shook violently.

The monk’s footsteps rang out like rapid-fire drumbeats.

“Temple Master, what are you just standing there for? Hurry up and help me! Can’t you see I’m being chased?” the old monk bellowed frantically.

Only then did Wei Shan notice the mottled iron sword pursuing the old monk. It was so quick that it was almost impossible to see clearly.

Boom!

The monk ran in circles, still carrying the temple, not daring to stop. It seemed he was terrified that the rusted iron sword would stab him.

Su Yi couldn’t help but laugh. They call him the Monastic Guardian of Universal Emptiness Temple. He’s as crafty as a ghost, a true-blue hooligan.

This is my first time seeing him in such a sorry state.

“Be quick about it! Aren’t you a sword cultivator? Hurry up and subdue that iron sword! It’s a supreme treasure left over from the End of the Dharma!” When he saw that Su Yi was just standing there watching the show, the monk was instantly frantic.

“A supreme treasure from the End of the Dharma?” Su Yi’s heart stood. “Agreed to do something for me, and I’ll help you.”

“Looting a burning house? Since when was the Temple Master so shameless?” the monk shouted, all the while still running like mad.

Kccch!

The mottled iron sword swept outward, slashing the monk’s buttocks.

He cried out in agony, not daring to hesitate any longer. “Grandpa Temple Master, please, I beg you!”

“Do you agree?” Su Yi asked with a laugh.

“I agree!” shouted the monk.

Only then did Su Yi step forward.

Boom!

Sword intent full of the power of reincarnation surged out of Su Yi. The skies abruptly dimmed.

The rusty sword pursuing the monk suddenly trembled, as if sentient, then soared into the air with a clang. It pointed its tip at Su Yi as if preparing to meet a mighty foe.

The monk seized the opportunity to escape. His back shook, and that massive, mountain-range-sized temple fell to the ground with a bang.

He then flopped onto his butt and breathed in ragged gasps, letting out a string of curses. “There’s something fucking wrong with that damned sword! It chased me for seven days and seven nights. I’m just about ready to drop dead of exhaustion!”

Su Yi looked over.

The years had severely corroded the sword, and it was covered in mottled iron. Even its aura was faint, inscrutable, and mysterious.

“Reincarnation?” A raspy male voice emerged from the iron sword.

“That’s right.” Su Yi inclined his head.

The monk was flabbergasted. “You pursued me for seven days and seven nights! Why didn’t you let out so much as a single fart in all that time?”

Clang!

The iron sword turned and pointed at the monk, who shuddered from head to toe. Beads of cold sweat formed on his forehead.

He hurriedly cried out, “Temple Master, hurry up and subdue it! There’s something wrong with that sword. It’s highly likely that an extremely terrifying revenant is hiding inside!”

“Although the power of reincarnation is dangerous to me, I do not fear death,” said the sword, quivering slightly as it emanated a raspy male voice.

“Why chase the monk, then?” asked Su Yi. He looked thoughtful.

“If I really wanted to kill him, there’s no way he could have fled for a whole week,” said the sword. “I didn’t attack because I was afraid that if I did, he wouldn’t be able to block even a single strike without dying.”

“????” The monk was flabbergasted. A sword is looking down on me?

Meanwhile, Su Yi asked with great interest, “But why insist on chasing him?”

“My remains are in that temple,” said the sword. “I have to retrieve them before I can rebuild my body.”

The monk exclaimed, “Impossible! I’ve watched over Universal Emptiness Temple all this time, but I’ve never seen any remains!”

“That’s because you don’t understand what happened. Back then, the founder of Universal Emptiness Temple and I discussed the Dao for a thousand years. We meditated together to confirm each other’s paths, but we couldn’t have anticipated that disaster would strike out of nowhere. Your founder had no time to spare, so he buried my remains beneath the laurel tree. In the end, he perished too.

“Now that I’ve awakened from dormancy, if I acquire my remains, I’ll be able to escape Vast Expanse.”

The monk looked stunned. He couldn’t help but blurt, “Vast Expanse? Are you Sword Immortal Qingshi!?”

Vast Expanse!

Su Yi thought for a moment before recalling the name.

He’d first heard it not long ago, during his time in the Impermeable Demon Ocean. When he suppressed that wisp of Buddhist Master Blood Lantern’s soul, the Sword of the Nine Hells startled the revenant. That was when he spoke of Vast Expanse.

Supposedly, it was the strongest sword around during the End of the Dharma!

“Sword Immortal Qingshi? Hah! That’s nothing but an empty title. I’ve never been an immortal, so how could I be so shameless as to call myself that?” A self-deprecating voice rang out from within the rusted iron sword. “Besides, Vast Expanse was badly damaged during that catastrophe. By now, it’s little different from scrap metal.”

Here, he let out a long sigh.

The passage of time was heartless. His past glories had ultimately gone up in smoke.

“Is that guy really Sword Immortal Qingshi?” Su Yi’s eyebrows rose. He didn’t know the other party’s origins, but he was fairly certain that since he controlled the top sword of the End of the Dharma, Vast Expanse, he’d surely been a shocking top expert of his generation in life!

“Why didn’t you say something earlier, Senior? This really was an example of ‘flood waters destroying the dragon king’s temple.’ We’re allies, but we didn’t even recognize each other!” sighed the monk.

The founder of Universal Emptiness Temple and Sword Immortal Qingshi had been close friends!

Both had been sword cultivators. Their founder had once been known as the Universal Emptiness Sword Buddha.

“Earlier, my awareness was muddled. That fellow Daoist’s aura of reincarnation awakened me from my muddled state. Please forgive me if I offended you earlier,” the sword said apologetically.

The monk laughed. “They say you can’t make friends without first butting heads!”

But as he spoke, although his smile never wavered, he transmitted to Su Yi, “Do you think he’s the real deal?”

“How should I know?” transmitted Su Yi. “I don’t even know who this Sword Immortal Qingshi is.”

“During the End of the Dharma, Sword Immortal Qingshi was the most legendary sword cultivator around. They say even immortals of a higher plane wanted to take him as their disciple and guide him to the Immortal Realm to continue his cultivation, but he refused. He said he wanted to seek out his own path to immortality.

“I read about this in our sect’s ancient tomes. It was there that I learned that he was close friends with our founder, and that the two of them once sparred and discussed the Dao.

“I would never have guessed that an old-timer who ought to have perished way back during the End of the Dharma had somehow survived all this time!”

Here, Illuminating Emptiness couldn’t help but wipe the cold sweat from his brow.

It was truly astonishing.

But Su Yi was comparatively calm. “Relax. Not long ago, I met a descendant of immortals from the Immortal Realm. She became a revenant during the end of the Dharma too.”

“A descendant of immortals?” Illuminating Emptiness gasped in astonishment.

“What’s there to be afraid of?” said Su Yi. “A revenant, that’s all. Besides, it’s just as he said. Had he wanted to kill you, he wouldn’t have let you flee for seven days and seven nights.”

Illuminating Emptiness didn’t know what to say. For some reason, he felt looked down on and humiliated.

But when he thought it over carefully, he realized this "insult" was simply an objective fact, and he let it go.

“Has your founder’s revenant reawakened?”

The voice within the mottled iron sword rang out once more.

Illuminating Emptiness shook his head. “I won’t lie to you, Senior. I know very little of what happened during the End of the Dharma. Furthermore, my master passed away a long time ago. I’ve been the only member of Universal Emptiness Temple ever since.”

“Ah, so that’s how it is.” The man instantly understood. “Only a handful of us survived the End of the Dharma. The rest... perished beneath that catastrophe.

He paused, then said, “I remember that your founder’s remains became a relic. It too was buried beneath the laurel tree.”

Illuminating Emptiness was briefly stunned, then excited. “Senior, does that mean our founder’s revenant is likely to reawaken?”

“I don’t know, but we can try to help him,” said the sword. “That fellow Daoist controls the power of reincarnation. If your founder’s revenant still exists, the power of reincarnation ought to be enough to reawaken him.”

The monk’s spirits soared, and his eyes shone as he looked at Su Yi. “Fate truly is too wondrous for words! It was the hand of destiny that led to our meeting, Fellow Daoist!”

“....” Su Yi didn’t know what to say to that.

“Come on! Hurry! Let’s go into the temple for a chat!” Illuminating Emptiness said fervently.

Universal Emptiness Temple’s interior was like a pure land. Countless wondrous and strange plants were planted here, including ancient trees with trunks so thick it would have taken multiple people to wrap their arms around them completely. There were also numerous ancient buildings, which seemed holy, austere, and tranquil beneath the light of the heavens.

Before a massive laurel tree.

Universal Emptiness dug a hole three feet into the ground.

Before long, he found a bronze box covered in mysterious glyphs that sealed its aura completely.

“No wonder no one ever discovered this treasure. So, the founder used these glyphs to seal it away.”

Universal Emptiness’s heart filled with excitement. He dared say with certainty that their founder’s relic was hidden in the bronze box!

“Temple Master, quick, help this old monk out! If you can awaken our founder, then forget about benefactor and whatnot, I’ll even call you my grandfather!” urged the monk, looking frantic with impatience.

Su Yi said irritably, “I don’t have a grandson like you.”

But despite his words, he still circulated the power of reincarnation and pressed down on the box.

Crunch!

The box suddenly quivered and opened of its own accord. A bundle of dense but gentle Buddhist light surged forth.

Before Su Yi and the others could sense it clearly, that voice emanated from the rusted sword. “I can sense my remains too!”

Clang!

The sword gently swept forward, opening the earth.

A ten-foot bronze coffin rose out of the ground beside the box. Immediately after, the sword stood upright atop it.

Su Yi sensed something, and he led Illuminating Emptiness and Wei Shan further back.

Boom!

The coffin rumbled and boomed. Immortal light flowed, soaring into the nine heavens.

Meanwhile, a wave of Buddhist light flowed out of the bronze box, filling both heaven and earth. As enormous as the temple was, it was now bathed entirely in holy, majestic radiance.

And Su Yi and company watched as that rusted iron sword took to the skies. A tall, upright figure silently emerged, a dreamlike, ethereal rain of immortal light scattering around him.

A Buddha-like figure sat cross-legged before that relic. Behind him, his radiance illuminated all worlds.

One stood there with his rusted sword in the ground, his bones becoming an immortal.

The other sat cross-legged, left behind a relic, and became a Buddha!