Heavenly Wheel Ascension

Zhi Xuan narrowed his eyes, catching the hidden meaning behind the Holy Maiden’s words. "Becoming assets? You intend to swallow the remnants of their sects now that their leaders are ash?"

"The cultivation world does not allow a power vacuum to persist for long, Senior," Shen Ruolan replied as she stepped gracefully, her fingers dancing in the air as if weaving the threads of destiny. "Without Weaver experts, those sects are merely piles of treasure without a guardian. Rather than falling into the hands of external clans or rogue factions, is it not better for them to return to the embrace of the Ancient Shen Clan as auxiliary branches? Senior has cut the thorns; Ruolan only needs to harvest the flowers."

Zhi Xuan snorted softly, a sound heavy with annoyance yet also an acknowledgment of the political cunning of the woman before him. "You truly are a beautiful predator, Ruolan. You let me do the dirty work while you arrive with clean robes to claim the territory."

"That is why Senior will not take his eyes off Ruolan," she whispered, her voice as melodious as a zither yet as sharp as a dagger. She then turned, gazing at the disciples being evacuated by the Elders. "Elders, we are returning."

Mo Chen approached Shen Ruolan’s side, yet his gaze remained fixed on Zhi Xuan with a respect he could not fully hide. He wanted to approach his Senior, to call him teacher and perhaps receive more teachings. However, Mo Chen would not force it, for he knew that the priority now was to bring back the injured Ancient Shen Clan disciples.

A void rift gaped open behind them once more, emitting a purple glow that split the darkness of the dawn. The Divine Transformation Elders had finished their tasks; the remaining Shen Clan disciples had been brought into the flying ship waiting behind the folds of dimensions.

Shen Ruolan glanced back at Zhi Xuan over her shoulder, a thin smile—almost invisible—playing on her lips. "Do not stay outside for too long, Senior. The winds in Chi Di can be very cold for those with many secrets in their hearts. Ruolan awaits you once more at the Sixth Peak."

With a graceful wave of her hand, her figure slowly faded into the void, followed by Mo Chen and her guards. The dimensional rift then closed with a soft hissing sound, leaving a silence that once again ruled over Red Flame City.

Zhi Xuan stood alone in the middle of the crater that was slowly cooling. There was only the puff of steam from the Earth Fire Core still seeping from the ground cracks, along with the fine dust from the Weaver experts' bodies that was now part of the destroyed city landscape.

"Weaving destiny upon the blood of others," Zhi Xuan murmured, his voice lost to the morning wind. "That woman... she truly knows how to exploit every drop of chaos."

Ao Sheng, who had been silent until now, began to stir on Zhi Xuan’s shoulder. The small dragon let out a snort that sounded like a chuckle. "Senior, you truly cannot run from her. She came not just to save her disciples, but to affirm in the eyes of the Elders that you are her hidden sword."

"A flirtatious woman, just like Holy Maiden Feng," Xiao Die buzzed sharply. "Why is it that Holy Maidens other than Senior Sister Zhu and Ye are always flirtatious and shameless, hmph."

Zhi Xuan did not respond to Xiao Die’s grumbling. He merely watched the sky, which was beginning to fade from blood red to pale orange, a sign that dawn was breaking over the Chi Di horizon. He reached into his robe pocket, touching the cold surface of the remaining pill bottles he hadn't managed to give to the disciples earlier.

"Beautiful women are always dangerous," Zhi Xuan muttered. "She knows that with this incident, she will gain power in the eyes of the Shen Clan Elders, showing that she possesses a promising hidden sword. Opportunity and loss stand side by side; Holy Maiden Shen truly cannot be underestimated."

Zhi Xuan closed his eyes for a moment, letting the dawn wind caress his face. He knew his name—Gu Fengyan—would become a topic hotter than the fires of Sky Furnace Mountain. Shen Ruolan had not only come to harvest flowers but also to water the seeds of rumors that would bind Zhi Xuan more tightly to her personal interests.

"Let’s go," Zhi Xuan said flatly. He did not fade away but stepped slowly across the scorched earth toward Sky Furnace Mountain.

"Where are we going, Senior?" Ao Sheng asked, weaving through the air, his golden tail cutting the dawn mist. "Are we returning to the Sixth Peak to surrender ourselves to that Holy Maiden’s fine nets?"

"Never again," Zhi Xuan said with a slight pout. "The Earth Fire Core here is very rich; I still have at least a hundred stalks of Black Bamboo to forge into swords. I haven't had the chance to do so since leaving the Heavenly Path Pavilion."

Zhi Xuan walked with a steady rhythm, each step on the cracked earth carrying a heavy echo of authority. Before him, Sky Furnace Mountain rose like a giant furnace of the gods, its peak hidden behind clouds and radiating a glowing red hue.

"Forging swords in a place like this?" Xiao Die perched on Zhi Xuan’s shoulder, her transparent wings vibrating as she felt the increasingly stinging heat fluctuations. "Senior, the fire aura here is very fierce. If you aren't careful, that Black Bamboo will turn to ash before it can become a blade."

"This Black Bamboo is sturdy enough," Zhi Xuan replied without shifting his gaze. "It grew under the essence of Senior Jian Dao for hundreds of years. An Earth Fire Core like this is the fastest way to shape them without waiting to store this sword energy in the form of bamboo."

He arrived at a hidden cave at the foot of the mountain, a natural alcove formed from lava flows thousands of years ago. Inside, the air churned, visibly appearing like dancing waves of heat. Zhi Xuan flicked his hand, bringing out hundreds of Black Bamboo stalks radiating a thick, dark glow.

He sat cross-legged, raising his hand and moving his fingers. The first ten stalks slid before him. Zhi Xuan clenched his palm, punching a hole into the cave wall, which immediately unleashed an intense heat that melted the steel-hard bamboo.

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"As I expected," Zhi Xuan murmured, the corner of his lip curling. "This mountain is like a refining furnace, and the Ancient Shen Clan won't mind if I borrow it for a moment to forge these swords."

The roar of fire from the earth's belly welcomed Zhi Xuan’s every breath, like the roar of a dragon trapped in a stone prison. Inside the glowing cave alcove, the red light from the lava flowing beneath the floor cracks reflected in his sapphire pupils, creating a sight both beautiful and terrifying.

"My body as the Sword, my Intent as the Sword Path," Zhi Xuan whispered, moving his fingers. "Form the Sword!"

The melting bamboo immediately formed a thick liquid. Zhi Xuan condensed his sword intent, guiding the thick liquid until it formed into a pitch-black sword fused with fire and flashes of lightning. The first ten blades solidified, hissing sharply as if possessing their own souls.

The first ten swords were created, clinking loudly as they twisted around the cave. With Zhi Xuan’s understanding of Man-Sword Unity, the swords circled before entering Zhi Xuan’s body, stored within his storage bag.

Zhi Xuan did not stop. He waved his hand again, calling the next twenty Black Bamboo stalks. With precise hand movements, he directed the heat spewing from the Earth Fire Core hole to wrap around the bamboo stalks.

"Senior, you truly are a workaholic," Ao Sheng commented, perching on a cold stone protrusion protected by his own aura. "You just fought a life-and-death battle with Weaver experts, and now you’re challenging the earth’s wrath to forge swords. Don't you feel tired?"

Zhi Xuan only answered with steady breaths. For him, this forging was not mere work but a meditation to realign his Dao Heart, which had been shaken by the vision of the Emperor’s Monument. Each blade formed was a manifestation of the inner peace he reclaimed from chaos.

KRAK! KRAK! KRAK!

The sound of Black Bamboo cracking due to excessive heat could be heard, but Zhi Xuan quickly enveloped it with his own spiritual essence. He combined the cold energy of his Extreme Ice element, creating a balance between Yin and Yang on every blade.

Time passed until dawn arrived. Twenty swords, fifty swords, until finally a hundred swords were forged under Zhi Xuan’s formless sword intent and the earth fire refinement that created forging without error. The red glow from the earth fire trapped within the black bamboo fibers provided red streaks like dragon veins on the blades.

The sight appeared like a sword storm capable of tearing apart anyone who saw it. Outside the cave, on the grounds of Red Flame City, Ancient Shen Clan disciples had arrived, those with denser Soul Transformation cultivation, unlike the previous disciples who had been withdrawn.

"Where? Where is that figure?" asked one male disciple, looking here and there. "I haven't been able to wait since last night when I heard I was coming here. The Soul-Devouring Demon Sect, two major sects, cleared by a figure named Gu Fengyan? I won't be able to sleep peacefully until I see that legendary figure."

"Hey, don't act like that!" hissed a female disciple, smacking the back of the male disciple’s head. "Don't call him by his name! Don't you know? Even Holy Maiden Shen calls him Senior; do you want to seek death calling him that?"

"Ouch, Senior Sister Meng, that hurts!" cried the male disciple, yet his face remained bright. "Fine, let's call him Master Gu. Now... I will even paint his image if he is truly in front of me. I heard his height reaches six chi! So tall! I would even pee myself standing before him."

The girl named Meng frowned, her face turning curious. "Really? A frame that tall... I have only ever seen that in Holy Son Shen, someone with the bloodline of a Great Emperor. Is Master Gu an ancient practitioner?"

"That's right, Senior Sister Meng," another disciple interjected, his hands lifting a chunk of pavilion ruins. "You heard it too, didn't you? About that scythe? Its name... Slaughter Gods Crescent! Its name alone sounds as if he is a butcher of gods."

"Exactly, it is one of the Thirteen Banners of Calamity!" added another disciple. "To hold such a disaster instrument, yet indirectly protect the Ancient Shen Clan disciples earlier—it is truly a blessing!"

"Banners of Calamity?!" several disciples squeaked, apparently unaware of the instruments of disaster.

"Banners of Calamity?! Are you serious?!" exclaimed a stout disciple, his eyes wide enough to nearly pop out. "Aren't those cursed items in the Lower Realm? Master once said, whoever approaches those banners, their soul will wither like a flower in the snow!"

"Stupid! Lower your voice!" Meng immediately snapped, pressing a finger to her lips. "They are indeed disaster items, but Master Gu is their master. Do you think just anyone can control an instrument that can shake the Nine Plains? That proves how majestic his cultivation base is."

"But Senior Sister Meng," interrupted the previously excited male disciple, his voice now low and inquisitive. "Don't you find it strange? A practitioner who holds a Banner of Calamity is usually a blood-mad devil. But Master Gu... isn't that a contradiction?"

"Who can guess the actions of such a figure, Lu Fan?" Meng murmured. "What an expert of that level does is not something we can understand. Besides, he already saved our friends; meeting him is likely impossible."

"You do not need to praise me," a low voice crept across the ground. From behind the heat mist covering the foot of the mountain, a figure in black-and-white robes floated low.

Zhi Xuan’s calm steps made no sound, yet his presence instantly froze all activity in the ruins of Red Flame City. The heat mist enveloping his body slowly faded, revealing a tall figure with black hair fluttering in the mountain wind.

His sharp sapphire eyes swept across the crowd of disciples who now stood stiff, as if time had just stopped ticking under his decree. The disciple named Lu Fan, who had talked the most, suddenly felt his tongue grow numb and his knees grow weak.

"S-six... chi..." Lu Fan whispered, his knees wobbling. "Truly like a heavenly pillar... I—I... my pants are wet..."

Lu Fan was about to prostrate, but was held back by a wave of Zhi Xuan’s hand. "No need to prostrate; I am not your elder," Zhi Xuan said calmly.

"Master Gu!" Meng exclaimed while bowing deeply, her face flushing red from a mix of embarrassment and awe. "Please forgive the insolence of my junior brothers who spoke without manners in your presence!"

Zhi Xuan merely looked at her flatly. "The mouth is the door to disaster, but if you only speak amidst ruins, it is no matter to me. Why have you come here? Has the Holy Maiden not brought all disciples back to Sky City?"

"We are elite disciples sent back, Master," Meng answered with a trembling voice. "The Holy Maiden ordered us to secure the Heavenly Metals at the foot of the mountain and we will rebuild Red Flame City. She also... she also sent a message that if we were lucky enough to meet you, we must treat you as if you were herself."

"Treat me like your Holy Maiden? An exaggeration," Zhi Xuan said, flicking his hand and turning to Lu Fan. "You, a Soul Transformation expert. Do you not think your wet pants are comparable to your cultivation?"

"Master Gu! This... this is the result of a soul being shaken!" Lu Fan stammered, his face now as red as a boiled shrimp. "Seeing your form in person is as if I am watching a divine mountain about to collapse upon me! My Soul Transformation cultivation base is nothing before Master Gu’s aura!"

Zhi Xuan snorted softly, his eyes shifting toward Meng. "Your Holy Maiden truly never stops placing burdens on others' shoulders. Treating me like herself? That is just a subtle way of telling you to keep an eye on me."

"I—It is not like that, Master!" Meng countered quickly, her hands moving restlessly. "The Holy Maiden truly respects you. Even before we departed, she personally said that without your help, the Shen Clan’s sovereignty at the eastern border might have collapsed that night."