Firmament Sword

Their thoughts… perhaps they were all the same, but no one said a word.

This… was the Huo Family!

The once incomparably powerful Huo Family of the Ancient Race could unite as one against external threats. Like a wolf pack, they could easily tear apart beasts that appeared much stronger than them…

The Huo Family’s ancestor, Huo Tongtian, had used this method to build a glorious and prosperous, powerful family!

But gradually, as time went on, most of the wolves of the Huo Family had become treacherous ingrates.

They no longer only turned outwards as they had in the past; they had also begun to turn inwards!

They started to prey on their own companions. Only by doing so could they make their mark in the talent-filled Huo Family and secure a place for themselves. And only by doing so could they truly… grow into a powerful… alpha wolf!

Nearly every descendant of the entire Huo Family was like this!

”Alright, we’re out here now, far from the Ancient Race Continent. This isn’t the Huo Family’s territory, after all. We should keep a low profile and, more importantly, stick together! Have we really started scheming against each other before we’ve even seen anything? Is there any point to that?” a man who appeared to be the leader said with a frown, his voice cold.

”That’s right. We don’t even know what’s ahead of us yet. Are we already going to start thinking about how to move against one another?” a short, small-framed old man shouted. His voice was sharp and shrill, like that of a boy whose voice was just breaking.

In reality, however, he was at least a hundred years old.

The others all nodded in agreement, but inwardly, they were all thinking: ’If you hadn’t already thought about how to move against others, why would you say something like that?’

Each harboring their own ulterior motives, the several great experts of the Huo Family at the Ninth Layer of Divine Power Realm started heading deeper into the reed marsh.

Xu Luo was currently in a profound state. He could clearly feel the pulse of the earth beneath him, and with every breath, he felt a wondrous sensation of becoming one with the entire world.

In the distant edge of the reed marsh, those few figures appeared with perfect clarity within Xu Luo’s Sea of Spiritual Consciousness.

This had never happened before!

Even if he could sense them in the past, he would have only been able to sense their auras. To perceive their images so clearly, as if seeing them with his own eyes… was completely unprecedented!

DING!

Xu Luo felt a soft chime from his Dantian. The core within his Dantian… shattered abruptly with that sound, then violently converged again, instantly erupting in a dazzling radiance!

This radiance seemed about to burst from his Dantian, enveloping his body in a layer of divine light, making him look like a deity!

Divine Power Realm… Fourth Layer, Peak!

A single breakthrough after achieving Dao Heart Clarity had actually allowed him to cross an entire major layer, advancing from the Third Layer Peak of the Divine Power Realm to the Fourth Layer Peak!

This speed of improvement was unbelievable to others, but for someone who followed the path of Heart as Proof of Dao, advancement… was just that simple!

As long as one’s heart… and thoughts were clear and unobstructed, one’s realm would naturally rise.

Then, Xu Luo extended his Divine Sense and began to observe the few Martial Artists who were constantly rushing in his direction.

A moment later, Xu Luo was slightly taken aback, then a cold smile appeared on his lips as he muttered, ”The Huo Family… they really are like lingering ghosts.”

He was all too familiar with their auras; they were from the Huo Family of the Ancient Race Continent. Furthermore, the way they were on guard against each other was directly imprinted in Xu Luo’s mind, making him sneer.

’The Huo Family… they stopped being that united wolf pack long ago. Now, they’re more like a group of tigers forced into the same cage! They may be fierce, but they’re doomed to never be able to work together!’

”Since they’re such ’good friends’ from the Huo Family… it would be rude not to give them a proper welcome!” Xu Luo chuckled slyly. Immediately, a flash of light shot out from his Dantian, transforming into a long rainbow that soared into the sky.

It rushed towards the vortex of white clouds in the sky above!

The Beidou Sword!

This was the only Beidou-related treasure on Xu Luo’s person after the Seven-Star Soul had left!

Moreover, this sword had become connected to his very bloodline when he awakened the memories of the Eighth Star. In this world, this sword belonged to him and him alone!

Therefore, Xu Luo could send out the Beidou Sword without any worry. Even if someone else seized it and put it in a Storage Ring, Xu Luo could have it shatter their Storage Ring and return to his hand!

Of course, if it were truly obtained by an unparalleled expert he was no match for, getting it back… wouldn’t be so easy.

Xu Luo dared to do this only because he completely understood the nature of the Huo Family members of the Ancient Race.

He knew all too well that the moment this sword appeared, it would inevitably cause a scramble among those great experts of the Huo Family. They would absolutely never allow any single person to obtain this peerless treasure sword.

Sure enough, when the few Huo Family members in the distance saw the streak of light transform into a rainbow and shoot into the sky, their eyes immediately turned red with greed. They all instantly unleashed their full power and charged towards that rainbow light high in the sky.

The old man who appeared to be the leader and had previously reprimanded the others was the fastest. Like a bolt of lightning or a shooting star, he pulled away from the rest in the blink of an eye. As he flew, he shouted, ”If I get this treasure, I’ll give each of you one hundred thousand Spirit Stones!”

The short, skinny old man with the voice of an adolescent boy shouted, ”If I get it, I’ll give each of you two hundred thousand Spirit Stones!”

”If I get it, I’ll give you each three hundred thousand! Let me have it!”

”I’m a Sword Cultivator! The sword is my life-bound weapon! Don’t fight me for this. I’ll give each of you a Spirit-Connected Magical Artifact in return!”

”Bullshit! You only have one Spirit-Connected Magical Artifact yourself, how are you going to give one to each of us?”

”Then let’s take out the one in the lead first, and we can figure out how to divide it up later!” As he spoke, the Martial Artist who claimed to be a Sword Cultivator unleashed a streak of light from his body, shooting it directly at the fastest person.

”You dare!” The Huo Family expert in the lead roared in fury. His Dharma Heaven and Earth rose behind him. His body continued to fly toward the rainbow streak, while his Dharma Aspect lunged at the light shot by the Sword Cultivator.

BOOM!

A thunderous roar erupted in the sky. A ball of brilliant light exploded like a firework, showering sparks down like rain.

The Flying Sword unleashed by the Sword Cultivator shattered, but the Dharma Aspect was also left somewhat damaged.

At the same time, the others weren’t idle either. They all unleashed their treasures, bombarding the Dharma Aspect. More dazzling bursts of light erupted in the sky, and the massive Dharma Aspect shattered with a deafening crash!

PUFF!

The man flying in the lead spat out a mouthful of blood. A venomous light shone in his eyes as he said grimly, ”We are from the same family! Must you really slaughter your own kin?”

”As long as you don’t fight for it, we definitely won’t kill you!” the Sword Cultivator roared, his eyes bloodshot. ”I’m a Sword Cultivator, and this is a peerless treasure sword! If I get it, my power will soar. If you let me have it today, I’ll be sure to reward you handsomely!”

SPURT!

A streak of light pierced through the Sword Cultivator’s back. Blood instantly flew, staining the sky a tragic and beautiful crimson.

The Sword Cultivator let out a pained scream and roared, ”Who ambushed me?”

The short old man with the adolescent voice cackled sinisterly, ”Did you think you were the only Sword Cultivator here? So am I!”

As he spoke, the streak of light wrapped around the Sword Cultivator’s neck and instantly severed his head. A torrent of hot blood shot skyward. The head flew high into the air, its eyes still wide open in disbelief that he would die here.

”Now I’m the only Sword Cultivator…” Before the short old man’s grating voice could fade, six or seven streaks of light shot toward him, blasting his body to smithereens!

High in the sky, the short old man was killed by the others’ combined efforts before he could even let out a scream!

After killing him, one of his killers even sneered, ”He slaughtered his own kin. He deserved to die!”

”That’s right! He deserved it!”

”Someone who backstabs others like that deserves a fate worse than death!”

The few of them spoke with righteous indignation, but at the same time, they were on high alert, guarding against the others making a move on them.

The streak of light, like a rainbow piercing the sun, was now getting closer and closer to the massive vortex of white clouds. And as the sword light approached, the vortex began to slowly rotate!

”Not good! That sword has achieved Spirit Communication… it’s trying to escape!” the leading Huo Family member shouted. He then roared at the others behind him, ”Can’t we wait until we get the sword to discuss who it belongs to? We can even decide with a duel! Can we just keep it to a spar? Does it really have to be a fight to the death?”

The remaining three exchanged a glance, and one of them said, ”Fine, we’ll do it your way!”

The other two also nodded in agreement.

However, the leader didn’t believe for a second that they truly agreed. He knew perfectly well what kind of people his kin were. Even he himself… was one of them.

When faced with unimaginably huge benefits, they would never… easily let anyone else have them!

Although his strength was the greatest among them, he couldn’t guarantee he would be the one to get the sword in the end. But if they didn’t go for it, the sword would definitely escape!

’A treasure sword that has achieved Spirit Communication… I must have it!’ The strongest expert of the Huo Family gritted his teeth, glanced at the few people behind him, and his figure instantly transformed into a streak of light, once again charging toward the sword.

The other three chased after his figure. This time, they didn’t attack each other, because they also understood that if they did, in the end… they would only be letting the strongest one get away with the prize.

Down below, Xu Luo was left dumbfounded watching this spectacular drama unfold.

Although he was well aware of the Huo Family’s disposition, Xu Luo still hadn’t expected them to be so decisive… when striking against their own kin.

They all had the same blood flowing through their veins. Even if they were five generations removed and their blood ties had thinned, they were still family. You couldn’t deny they were all from the same Huo clan.

One moment they were chatting and laughing together, and the next they could mercilessly try to kill each other. The way they fought… even sworn enemies with a deep-seated hatred would be no different, would they?

This family… was truly a bizarre anomaly among the Ancient Races!