Firmament Sword

”No matter what, I have to find a way to save my uncle!” Monkey swore, his eyes flashing like lightning.

”Since it was people from Celestial Brilliance who placed the restriction on your uncle, they must have a way to remove it, right?” Xu Luo asked.

”That’s right. The way to break the restriction is in the Soul Scripture!” Monkey said, glancing at Xu Luo. ”That’s also why I wanted to come with you!”

Xu Luo nodded in understanding.

’I need the Soul Scripture to save Qianqian, and Monkey needs it to save his uncle. We became friends only after fighting, and now we share the same goal. You could say we’re the perfect allies.’

”What? Young Master... You—you actually want to...” Hou San stared at Monkey, his face a mask of shock. His voice was laced with terror, and he didn’t even dare utter the words ”Soul Scripture.”

Monkey said, ”You’re one of us, so it’s fine to tell you. But you must not, under any circumstances, repeat this to anyone else. Otherwise, even if I were to spare you, you would still bring a great calamity upon yourself!”

Hou San said in terror, ”Young Master, rest assured. If I, Hou San, ever speak a word of this, may I die a horrible death!”

”Enough. Celestial Brilliance isn’t easy to infiltrate, and the Soul Scripture... is no simple prize to claim.” Monkey took a sip of wine and said lightly, ”This matter requires careful planning.”

”By the way, Brother Hui, we should take care of that other matter first,” Xu Luo said lightly, glancing at Monkey.

Monkey understood immediately and grinned. ”You’re right. I’m quite curious myself. Whatever made it that angry surely won’t disappoint!”

...

...

In a remote corner on the edge of the Bronze Divine Hall stood a great mountain, verdant and teeming with life.

But upon closer inspection, the mountain seemed out of place. It was surrounded by a vast grassland, making it look as if it had appeared out of thin air.

Fresh traces of earth were even visible where the mountain met the prairie.

That’s right—this was the very mountain that concealed the Infinite Saint Emperor’s Treasure Vault!

Xu Luo and Monkey stood before the great mountain. Monkey clicked his tongue in admiration. ”I thought this was just a Small World, but I never expected... it’s a whole Grand Thousand World! Brother, you’re incredible! But you also trust me too much. Aren’t you afraid I’d get greedy, kill you, and seize this world for myself?”

Xu Luo smiled. ”Would you?”

Monkey shot Xu Luo a sideways glance. ”Are you that sure I wouldn’t?”

”Well... I can’t be completely sure, but it wouldn’t be so easy for you to kill me, would it, Brother Hui?” Xu Luo said with a laugh. ”Besides, don’t you also trust me a great deal? You followed me into this world without a single question. Did you never consider that I might try to harm you in here?”

”HAHAHAHA! I may be a crude monkey, but I’m always loyal to my friends. Since you trust me this much, Brother, how could I possibly betray you?” Monkey boomed with laughter.

Xu Luo laughed as well. ’Even though I’ve only known Monkey for a short time, I can already tell he’s straightforward and passionate. He’s definitely someone worth befriending.’

”So this time, can we just smash this door open?” Monkey asked, looking at Xu Luo for confirmation. He scanned the surroundings and muttered, ”Such complete Heaven and Earth Laws... The Dao exists in this world, too!”

Xu Luo nodded. ’Monkey’s eyes are sharp. He’s right. The laws within the world of the Bronze Divine Hall are complete, perhaps even on par with the Divine Domain outside!’

”So, are you doing the honors... or shall I?” Xu Luo asked with a smile.

”Me, of course! You’ve handled all the important stuff, Brother. It’s my turn to do the heavy lifting. Besides, I’m dying to see the reaction of that big toad’s sliver of Divine Thought when it shows up!”

Monkey laughed heartily, then pulled out his Big Iron Rod. The rod instantly grew in size. He swung it violently, bringing it down with immense force on the stone door, which was covered in restrictive Arrays.

BANG!

A deafening crash!

It startled countless birds and beasts on the mountain, sending them scattering in all directions.

That simple, brutal strike sent a shower of sparks erupting from the stone door. At least three or four Arrays were shattered by Monkey’s blow.

This triggered a chain reaction, and countless powerful attacks erupted from the door.

Monkey, having anticipated this, had already somersaulted a great distance away the moment his rod made contact.

”Who dares attack this Saint Emperor’s treasure vault?!”

Following the cold, furious shout, a figure flew out from above the stone door. It hovered in the air, staring coldly at Monkey and Xu Luo.

”So, a junior of the Golden Monkey Race. This Saint Emperor recognizes you. If your uncle were here, I might have given it a second thought. But you dare to try such a thing? Kneel and beg for forgiveness!”

The figure was dressed in shimmering golden robes, hazy and indistinct, but it radiated a terrifying pressure, as if it could kill with a single glance.

”HAHAHAHA! You big toad, you idiot! Why don’t you take a good look at where you are?” Monkey laughed wildly, pointing at the golden figure in the air. ”You want me to kneel and beg for forgiveness? I’m going to extinguish this Divine Thought of yours today!”

With that, Monkey somersaulted back through the air, charging the golden figure and swinging his Big Iron Rod down with all his might.

”What is this place?” The golden figure was taken aback by Monkey’s words. He quickly realized this place... didn’t seem to be the Vast Mountains. When he saw Monkey daring to charge at him, he flew into a rage.

”You insolent little monkey... You think you’re fit to challenge me? I will teach you a lesson today, you ignorant brat!” the golden figure roared, raising a hand and firing a streak of light at Monkey.

Monkey yelped as he dodged, then shouted, ”Xu Luo! What are you doing? Hurry up and restrain this big toad!”

With a flicker of his Divine Thought, Xu Luo focused all the Heaven and Earth Laws within the Bronze Divine Hall upon himself. He then raised a hand, pointed, and commanded, ”Freeze!”

The Infinite Saint Emperor’s Divine Thought found itself unable to move. Shocked and enraged, it bellowed, ”Brat... what kind of Demon Technique is this?”

Monkey cackled, smacking the face of the Infinite Saint Emperor’s Divine Thought with his iron rod. ”Demon Technique my ass! This whole world belongs to him!”

”A Grand Thousand World...” The Infinite Saint Emperor’s Divine Thought was astounded. Half its face had been smashed to a pulp by Monkey’s rod, but it seemed to feel no pain. It stared at Xu Luo, its eyes filled with disbelief, and murmured, ”A supreme treasure like this... how did it fall into your hands?”

”Trying to pass a message to your real body? HAHAHAHA! Forget about it!” Monkey laughed. ”In here, my brother is the master! If you behave, you’ll open the door obediently and explain the origins and functions of all the treasures to me in detail. If you do, I might ask my brother not to destroy this Divine Thought of yours. Who knows... maybe one day, after I’ve destroyed your real body, I can let this Divine Thought out to take its place...”

”You shut your mouth!” Though the golden figure was immobilized, its aura was undiminished. It glared at Monkey in a fury. ”Insolent little monkey, you dare speak to me like that? Destroy my real body? You? With a single thought, I could make you die one hundred and eight thousand times! Even if this Divine Thought is destroyed, it matters little. But you two... hmph. With my power, I will find you sooner or later!”

”And when that day comes... I will make you beg for death!” the Infinite Saint Emperor’s Divine Thought declared tyrannically.

At the same time, it coveted the Grand Thousand World immensely. It chuckled sinisterly, ”You stole my treasure vault, but in the future... I will steal this world! It’s not yet clear who will win or lose! And another thing... little monkey, do you know why that big idiot of an uncle of yours was plotted against by Celestial Brilliance? HAHAHAHA! Of course you don’t. It was I who was pulling the strings! HAHAHAHAHA!”

”Fuck you!” Monkey’s eyes, which had been crackling with electricity, instantly turned crimson. He swung his Big Iron Rod and smashed it down on the head of the figure formed by the Infinite Saint Emperor’s Divine Thought.

CRACK!

With a sickening thud, the Divine Thought’s head was smashed to a pulp.

However, it wasn’t a real body, merely a Divine Thought. Even with its head smashed, it could still speak.

”Human, and you little monkey... For the humiliation you’ve dealt me today, I will one day pay you back with interest!”

The Infinite Saint Emperor’s voice was dripping with venom. It knew there was no hope for a peaceful resolution, so it began cursing them viciously, not caring about the consequences.

”Your uncle... will not meet a good end. Once the people of Celestial Brilliance are done using him, they will kill him!”

Monkey, driven mad with hatred, let out a furious roar.

Xu Luo’s voice rang out, cold as ice. ”Refine.”

A Power of Laws descended from the heavens, enveloping the Infinite Saint Emperor’s Divine Thought as a Karmic Fire began to burn fiercely around it.

All beings possess malice, and Karmic Fire burns all that is wicked.

The Infinite Saint Emperor’s Divine Thought instantly let out a bloodcurdling scream.

”Brat... you dare refine me! My true self will not let you go!”

”AAAAAH! Give me a quick death!”

”Kill me... Kill me!”

”In the vault... there’s something you cannot afford to touch! You’ll die if you do... Give me a quick death, and I’ll tell you what it is!”

”I’m begging you!”

”CROAK... CROAK...”

In the end, the wisp of the Infinite Saint Emperor’s Divine Thought was completely refined. All its malice vanished, leaving behind only its truest essence: a palm-sized golden toad.

”Huh? This sliver of Divine Thought... is more than it seems,” Monkey said, frowning slightly.

Xu Luo also raised an eyebrow in surprise.

’Normally, after being refined by the Karmic Fire of Heaven and Earth, a wisp of Divine Thought like this should have disintegrated into nothing.’

’But now, a golden toad has appeared...’

”This toad...” Monkey’s eyes flickered. His instinct was to eliminate any potential future threat.

CROAK! CROAK!

The golden toad fell from the air, landing hard on the ground with two painful-sounding croaks.

Then, it began hopping toward the stone door.

Xu Luo narrowed his eyes, watching the golden toad, curious to see what it would do next.