565: The destruction of the Cold Sea Holy Sect

Deep within an abandoned ancient ice cave on the Hanling Continent.

Di Juetian sat cross-legged, with that profound ice Jade Soul emitting a faint blue light floating before him.

Without the slightest hesitation, Di Juetian swallowed the profound ice Jade Soul directly.

Buzz—!

A vast and pure wave of unimaginably extreme cold energy, like a bursting glacial river, surged frantically into his Sea of Consciousness and throughout his entire body!

The mysterious silver-blue patterns on his skin suddenly lit up, greedily absorbing the energy.

As time ticked by, the temperature inside the ice cave dropped to the extreme, until even the air seemed frozen solid.

Di Juetian's body was covered in a layer of crystalline ice armor, making him look like a frozen god of war.

An unknown amount of time passed.

Crack!

A crisp sound rang out, seemingly from the depths of his Soul!

Boom—!

A terrifying cold majesty, far surpassing anything before, erupted from within Di Juetian's body!

The entire ice cave shook violently, and the thick profound ice covering the walls cracked inch by inch! He snapped his eyes open.

Law Realm Tenth Level! Peak! He was only a hair's breadth away from the Profound Venerable Realm!

He had been in seclusion for ten days and had finally achieved a Breakthrough.

The ice-attribute spiritual power within him surged like a mighty river; the energy of the profound ice Jade Soul had not been fully absorbed, with the remainder lying dormant in his body.

"No wonder the Hanming Sacred Sect didn't use this profound ice Jade Soul. Even Han Qianshan couldn't easily absorb its terrifying energy. If it weren't for his Extreme Cold Ice God Body, coupled with the support of the Myriad Realms Return to Origin Scripture and the Extreme Cold Ice God Art, he wouldn't have been able to easily absorb the energy within this profound ice Jade Soul either."

"Power... this is the feeling of power!" Di Juetian clenched his fists, feeling the terrifying cold force racing through his body, a cold curve curling at the corner of his mouth.

However, when he restrained his aura, left the ice cave, and stepped into a nearby market to inquire about the frontline situation, a piece of news hit him like a bolt from the blue.

"Have you heard? The Hanming Sacred Sect... is gone!"

"What? Impossible! They were the overlords of our Hanling Continent!"

"It's absolutely true! The Profound Ice Divine Palace joined forces with the Frost Divine Palace and several of the Hanming Sacred Sect's subordinate families who had long held ill intentions. With help from the inside, they launched a surprise attack on the Hanming Sacred Sect's mountain gate just three days ago! It's said even the Sect-Protecting Grand Array was destroyed from within!"

"My god! What about Sect Master Han? And Grand Elder Zhu?"

"All dead! Sect Master Han Qianshan was besieged by Palace Master Ling Jue and Palace Master Shuang Ji of the Frost Divine Palace. They reportedly destroyed half the Hanming Mountain Range before he finally died of exhaustion! Grand Elder Zhu Hong self-detonated his Saint Body, taking two Saint Realm Elders from the Profound Ice Divine Palace down with him... The entire Hanming Sacred Sect mountain gate was stained red with blood! It's already been carved up by the Profound Ice Divine Palace and the Frost Divine Palace!"

"Hiss... how tragic... A great Sect that dominated the Northern Region for thousands of years, gone just like that..."

"I heard it started because the Hanming Sacred Sect killed Palace Master Ling Jue's youngest son and kept assassinating Elders of the Profound Ice Divine Palace. That's what brought about this extermination..."

"..."

The discussions in the market teahouse were like demonic music piercing his ears.

Di Juetian's hand holding the teacup suddenly tightened, and the hard ice-jade cup was instantly crushed into powder!

"Exterminated... wiped out?"

Stormy waves surged in his heart.

Han Qianshan was dead? The Hanming Sacred Sect was gone?

He had planned meticulously, constantly adding fuel to the fire, preparing to make the flames of hatred burn even brighter and make this grand game of chess even more spectacular... and yet, just as he emerged from seclusion after a Breakthrough, the stage had been torn down? One of the main protagonists had been killed off directly?

A sense of stifling frustration from being intercepted welled up in his heart.

He wasn't done playing! He hadn't yet let the Hanming Sacred Sect collapse completely in despair! He hadn't yet personally trampled the Hanming Sacred Sect under his feet!

"Profound Ice Divine Palace... Frost Divine Palace..." Cold light flickered in Di Juetian's eyes. Instead of dissipating with the fall of the Hanming Sacred Sect, his killing intent grew deeper and colder as it locked onto new targets.

"Good, very good! Since you were so eager to jump out and be the winners... then get ready to endure my wrath!"

He tossed down a few Spirit Stones, and his figure, like a ghost merging into the cold wind, silently left the noisy market. The sky over the Northern Region was not yet ready to clear.

The Tianxiao Continent ruins in the Eastern Region.

A strange sight appeared before everyone.

The air was filled with an ethereal, sharp, and piercing aura.

What appeared before Di Qianjie and the others was not ruined walls, but a vast plain upon which stood countless gargantuan black stone steles!

These steles were of varying heights and shapes.

Some were straight as swords, piercing toward the firmament; some were thrust diagonally into the earth, looking like the remnants of blades after a giant sword strike; some were covered in cracks yet still emitted an unyielding Sword Intent; some were smooth as mirrors, reflecting the light of the sky and the shadows of clouds.

Densely packed and stretching beyond the horizon, they formed a vast forest of sword steles!

On every stone stele remained markings, some clear and some blurred. Those were not words, but crisscrossing sword scars containing different true meanings of the Dao of the Sword!

At this moment, this sword stele forest, which had been silent for an unknown amount of time, appeared exceptionally lively.

At the edge of the plain, hundreds of Cultivators had already gathered, the vast majority of whom were Sword Cultivators!

They came from various Sects, families, and were even Loose Cultivators from across the provinces of the Eastern Region.

Their auras varied in strength, ranging from the Heaven-Reaching Realm to the Profound Venerable Realm.

Like pilgrims, everyone chose one or several sword steles that resonated with their own aura, sat cross-legged, and sank their minds into the sword scars on the steles, striving to comprehend the Secret Manuals within.

In the air, invisible Sword Intent intertwined, producing faint yet heart-palpitating hums.

Occasionally, someone would erupt with strong fluctuations of Sword Intent, either ecstatic with joy or with brows locked in a tight frown, clearly having gained insights or hit a Bottleneck during their comprehension.

"What astonishing Sword Intent! Is this... a burial ground for ancient Sword Cultivators? Or was it their sword-testing field?"

As Di Lingxiao felt the omnipresent sharpness in the air, the dragon fall spear spontaneously let out an excited hum.

Di Qianjie's gaze swept across the dense sword steles, his eyes sharp as an eagle's. The sword yuan within him resonated, and the Thousand Tribulations Sword trembled slightly in its scabbard.

"Look over there!" Di Wushang's Asura Demonic Eyes flashed with a faint blood-red light as he pointed toward a relatively empty area deep within the plain.

There, two figures stood out, their temperaments distinct yet equally eye-catching.

One was dressed in green robes, standing tall like a solitary Peak pine, with a handsome face and eyes that revealed a sword-like purity amidst their warmth. The other figure appeared somewhat thin, with a right sleeve that was empty and swaying—these were none other than Ye Qingtian and Yu Qingchen.