Some big news made its way out from the residence of the Imperial Adviser of the Dali Dynasty. The Imperial Adviser was going to take on another disciple personally. This news shook Emperor Li’s City in an instant.
The Imperial Adviser’s reputation was so excellent that even the four kings could not suppress him. He was as noble and prestigious as the Prince Regent, and as strong as King Tiandao. One of these men was Emperor Li’s Uncle, and the other was his brother. Neither of them could suppress him. He truly was subordinate to only one man, and above tens of thousands.
Each of the Imperial Adviser’s students was also outstanding. Lu Chuan, who had seized victory for Emperor Li’s Realm at the Empty Realm ten years ago, was one of them. And there were even several disciples above him. Every one of their names was well known throughout Emperor Li’s Realm. For example, his great disciple Yan Yuan was now at the third tier of the Divine Path, the tier of Unblemished Holiness. He almost stood among the greatest cultivators in Emperor Li’s Realm.
After all, there were so few who had achieved the Nirvana tier. In all of Emperor Li’s Realm, there were not even ten. Thus, one who attained the tier of Unblemished Holiness was already at the top, and far above most. Moreover, some people said that Yan Yuan was at the top of the third tier of the Divine Path and that there was no one else at this level in Emperor Li’s Realm who could defeat him. And the Imperial Adviser’s second disciple was also at the level of Unblemished Holiness. Thus, the Imperial Adviser’s reputation within the Dali Dynasty, in reality, was no less than that of Emperor Li’s sons.
This could be seen from the Emperor’s son Li Yao’s attitude towards Yuan Jin, a disciple of the Imperial Adviser, at the Battle of Empty Realm. Li Yao was a fellow disciple of Yuan Jin and had great respect for him. And Li Yao was also a disciple of the Imperial Adviser, but he was not personally taught by him; he was just a registered disciple. If the Emperor’s son wanted to seek training from the Imperial Adviser, he naturally could not deny him that.
Because of all this, when the news came out that the Imperial Adviser was personally taking on another student, Emperor Li’s Realm was shaken. Many people said that it was because of Yuan Jin’s death and that he wanted to take another disciple to replace him.
Everyone sighed when they thought of Yuan Jin. He had initially been an outstanding figure at Dali Academy, who had achieved the limit of what was possible below the Saint plane. There very few people who could rival him. And yet he had met his death at the Battle of Empty Realm. Not many people knew the details of that battle, but some rumors said that Yuan Jin had managed to enter the Saint plane, but had still been slain by his two opponents working together.
Of the two people, one of them was Xia Qingyuan of Emperor Xia’s Realm, and the other was the one who had won victories left and right at the Battle of Empty Realm, Ye Futian. This was an unfamiliar name to the people of Emperor Li’s Realm. No one knew who Ye Futian was, but since he had taken control of the Battle of Empty Realm and slain Yuan Jin, he must be an outstanding and powerful figure.
Was the Imperial Adviser personally taking on another disciple in order to train someone who could compete with this incredibly powerful junior from Emperor Xia’s Realm? Perhaps he had a plan like this. As for who he would choose, many people in Emperor Li’s City already had a guess. It would be the student at Dali Academy, Dong Chen.
At the time of the defeat at the Battle of Empty Realm last year, Dali Academy had held its annual forum. Dong Chen had undoubtedly been the first place finisher from Dali Academy with his perfect performance. He had been number one in terms of both debate and .polemic.
The debate at the Dali Academy forum was an argument in which they discussed their opinions and feelings about cultivation. The polemic, on the other hand, was a battle.
Dong Chen had given perfect answers. The one who had done this before him had been Yuan Jin.
Some said that if Dong Chen had been born a few years earlier, he would have been the one to enter the Imperial Adviser’s household and not Yuan Jin, even though Yuan Jin was also an outstanding talent and a hero of his age. Yuan Jin had gone to the Battle of Empty Realm, and Dong Chen had not.
Yuan Jin had died at the Battle of Empty Realm, and the Imperial Adviser was taking another disciple. Dong Chen was the most likely candidate. Many people seemed to already be sure that Dong Chen of Dali Academy would soon enter the Imperial Adviser’s household to cultivate.
At that moment, many people at Dali Academy were discussing this matter. Even among those outside Dali Academy, there were some people who would talk about it from time to time.
At this time, a handsome figure was standing outside of this top holy land that had been personally prepared by the Imperial Adviser with the full support of Emperor Li. He was looking at the grand Dali Academy before him.
Dali Academy was not old, and standing before it, one could faintly sense that it was full of vitality. The vast majority of the cultivators who came out of Dali Academy were extremely young, seeming to be about the same age as him. But they had all already reached various stages of the Sage plane, having left the Noble plane far behind. The true heroic figures of the Dali Dynasty were all gathered together at Dali Academy.
Even members of Emperor Li’s own family came here to cultivate. He had let his sons and daughters come here to train, so how could the other noble families dare not to follow suit?
Many people noticed Ye Futian standing outside Dali Academy and were quite curious. This young man was extremely handsome. Could it be that he was a student there as well? Perhaps he was a youth who sought to enter the academy.
For who in Emperor Li’s Realm would not want to enter Dali Academy?
But even the sons of noble families would not necessarily be qualified to enroll. The entrance exam for Dali Academy was the strictest in the Dali Dynasty. There were none others like it.
Ye Futian stood outside and sighed inwardly. He had come to Emperor Li’s Realm from Emperor Xia’s Realm. Upon seeing the differences between them, he had realized that Emperor Li’s Realm’s sense of unity was greater than that of Emperor Xia’s Realm. The Imperial Adviser seemed like someone who possessed great talent and bold vision.
At that moment, a sword will suddenly shrieked beside Ye Futian, and everyone who was outside Dali Academy was instantly drawn to him. And those disciples inside Dali Academy looked at him sharply.
This man dared to draw a sword outside Dali Academy? What was he trying to do?
There were also people there who had come to pay their respects to Dali Academy. When they saw what he had done, they turned to him one by one; their faces froze in surprised expressions. They only saw endless sword wills wrapping around Ye Futian’s body, which then formed into real swords.
The swords flew up into the air, then fell back to the ground, causing a series of loud noises. Seven swords were pierced directly into the ground. The sounds resonated together, and an even more powerful sword will spread out from among them.
Ye Futian stepped forward, standing behind the swords. A powerful storm of Sword Qi was born and gathered together around his body.
And then a voice came from Ye Futian: “I, the Seventh Swordsman, who has reached the peak of the Sage level, have come to Dali Academy to seek the Path and to cultivate.” His voice swept out, making everyone’s hearts beat faster, especially those who had come to Dali Academy to pay their respects. They all looked at him strangely. Had he come to Dali Academy to seek the Path?
The disciples of Dali Academy also looked at him strangely. Was he wielding a sword outside the academy?
Someone looked at Ye Futian from a distance and asked, “How do you wish to seek the Path?”
“By training in swordsmanship,” Ye Futian answered.
“Is that a challenge?” asked the one who had spoken before.
“I am not challenging you, I am seeking the Path,” answered Ye Futian. Asking to practice his swordsmanship in order to seek the Path was indeed a challenge, but he wouldn’t admit it. To stand outside Dali Academy and issue a challenge would not sound too good. It would be more provocative. “Seeking the Path” sounded much better. It was humble, and his opponents could find no faults with it.
The Seventh Swordsman had come to the Upper Realm and was seeking the Path at Dali Academy.
Many of the disciples of Dali Academy were looking at Ye Futian. Was he doing this to draw attention to his performance, and thus gain entry to Dali Academy to cultivate? This method was very direct, but to be so arrogant as to stand outside Dali Academy and ask to seek the Path would end very badly for him.
Seemingly drawn by his words, more disciples walked out of Dali Academy. But most of them were just smiling and laughing and did not take any direct action.
As disciples of Dali Academy, they naturally had their pride. Someone had come to seek the Path, but he was nobody worth taking action against.
At that moment, a figure walked out from the crowd. He was carefree and easy, and he bowed slightly to Ye Futian, saying “I am Xu You of Dali Academy.”
“I am the Seventh Swordsman.” Ye Futian touched his sword to his chest in a gesture of respect.
“I hope to learn from you,” said Xu You.
“And you as well,” answered Ye Futian.
Boom! As soon as the two of them were finished speaking, Xu You stepped forward as fast as a bolt of lightning, and in an instant, he was in the air. Up in the sky, a majestic force surrounded him, and it gradually formed into the image of a dragon. It roared and the sky trembled. Xu You raised his hands into the air and clapped them, and suddenly the golden dragon swept out, rushing through the air towards Ye Futian to crush him.
“Rise!” called Ye Futian, and suddenly one of his seven swords cut through the air. He stepped forward, and clutching his sword in his hand, his body shot up into the sky like an arrow.
A ferocious storm gathered as Ye Futian’s sword sliced through the air, and suddenly, a hurricane of illusory swords appeared in the sky and collided with the golden dragon. Everyone could only see the storm slicing through the air and cutting through the dragon’s body. But the giant swords were also gradually destroyed.
Ye Futian flew upwards, and he seemed to transform into a storm. His swords followed behind him, and suddenly, thousands of sword wills burst out from them. Each one seemed able to cut through the very air itself.
The images of dragons behind Xu You were overbearing to the extreme. He clapped his hands together again with what seemed like enough force to topple the mountains into the sea. A pure-blooded dragon mudra shook the skies until it seemed as if they would collapse, and it collided wildly with Ye Futian’s swords.
Everyone saw the terrible scene unfolding in the sky. In only an instant, the two of them had struck each other countless times.
Of course, Ye Futian was not using his full power. He was indeed practicing his swordsmanship, and his ability to call upon storms of swords. He had come to the Dali Dynasty not only for revenge but also to cultivate.
Finally, an extremely brilliant storm of swords slashed down from the sky, and all the pure-blooded dragons were completely shattered. Xu You was sent flying backward. He panted heavily as he stared at the swordsman before him.
“You win,” said Xu You.
“Thank you for the match.” Ye Futian nodded and then descended to the ground. He brought his swords back down, keeping them held out in front of him.
A strange look came over everyone’s faces. Xu You was not well known in Dali Academy, but no one there was a weakling. All of them were outstanding people. From the battle that had just taken place, they could tell that both combatants combat power was extremely strong. Xu You was absolutely not weak. But he had still lost to the Seventh Swordsman. It seemed that this swordsman did indeed have remarkable power, which was why he had dared to come to Dali Academy to seek the Path.
This battle caused great waves, and drew in even more people. Disciples streamed forth from the academy continuously, and in an instant the area grew extremely lively!