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Right at this moment of explosive tension.

From the depths of the originally dark red sky, a terrifying roar echoed without warning, like ancient war chariots crushing across the heavens.

Immediately after, the clouds above the nine heavens were brutally torn apart. A magnificent, thousand-zhang long pure white sword light, like a world-creating blade cleaving through chaos, swept in from the horizon with an overwhelming aura!

Within the sword light, there was no bloodcurdling murderous intent; instead, it was filled with an upright, majestic, and supremely arrogant imperial demeanor.

Before the sword light even arrived, its heavy, mountain-like sword pressure had already suppressed the natal flying swords of countless sword cultivators present, causing them to wail madly and tremble incessantly in their sheaths!

The sword light arrived in an instant, hovering above everyone's heads.

Above the blinding white light stood dozens of figures, as straight as pine trees.

They all wore white robes with golden patterns embroidered with complex sword arrays, carrying ancient-style longswords on their backs. The aura of each person was like an unsheathed sharp blade, displaying their sharp edges and unbridled arrogance.

Especially the young man standing at the very front with his hands behind his back.

His face was as cold as a ten-thousand-year iceberg, with a sharp jawline. The most striking feature was a golden vertical mark between his eyebrows, concealing a third divine eye that dominated slaughter.

Just by standing there, the distorted space around him declared his despair-inducing cultivation base—the Great Perfection of the Soul Formation stage!

When they clearly saw the insignia on this group's robes, the originally noisy and boiling core area of the Sword Tomb instantly fell into a deathly silence.

Even Lei Wanjun and Kuang Tie, who were insufferably arrogant just a moment ago and clamoring to crush Ye Xuan's bones, now had their pupils suddenly shrink. Their faces became uglier than if they had eaten a dead fly, and their bodies even uncontrollably took half a step back subconsciously, their muscles tense to the extreme.

Those were the garments of the Sword God Palace.

In today's Middle Earth Divine State, it was the most inviolable supreme holy land in the hearts of millions of sword cultivators!

And the leading young man was none other than the number one person in the Dao of the Sword among the younger generation of the current cultivation world, as well as the eighth personal disciple of the female emperor Ye Jiuhuang, who had killed her way through three thousand continents and shocked all of eternity: Zhang Jiuyou!

"Damn it... why is this madman Zhang Jiuyou here?"

"Wasn't it rumored that he was in closed-door cultivation attempting to break through to the Body Integration stage? Could it be that he also came out of seclusion for the Sword Emperor's inheritance?"

The chosen geniuses felt uneasy in their hearts, cold sweat sliding down their temples.

They thought this god of slaughter was also here to forcefully clear the field and monopolize the opportunity. If Zhang Jiuyou made a move, everyone present combined would probably not be enough for him to kill alone.

However.

The scene that occurred in the next moment not only made everyone's jaws drop and smash hard against the obsidian floor, but it also dealt a devastating blow to their worldview.

They saw the high and mighty Zhang Jiuyou, who seemed to view all living beings as ants, quickly scan the crowd below with his frosty eyes.

When his gaze deadlocked onto Ye Xuan, his iceberg face, which was expressionless all year round, unexpectedly melted instantly like spring snow encountering the scorching sun!

An extremely fanatical light erupted in his eyes, and the corners of his mouth wildly curved up, revealing an excited expression that could even be described as extremely flattering and overwhelmed by an unexpected favor!

He didn't even maintain the demeanor of a superior expert by riding his flying sword to land. Instead, he impatiently leaped straight down from an altitude of a hundred zhang.

After smashing onto the ground with a bang, this world-renowned Sword Son actually trotted all the way. Like a child eager to claim credit, he roughly pushed aside several Holy Sons of top sects who were blocking the way and rushed straight in front of Ye Xuan.

Then, under the dumbfounded gazes of tens of thousands of people in the audience, whose eyes were about to pop out.

Zhang Jiuyou extremely solemnly adjusted the purple-gold sword crown on his head and his robes. Subsequently, he cupped his hands, bent his waist deeply into a perfect ninety degrees, and performed the most grand and humble junior greeting ceremony in the cultivation world to Ye Xuan.

He took a deep breath, sinking his qi into his dantian.

His loud voice, mixed with vigorous spiritual power, like thunder from the nine heavens, resounded unreservedly throughout the Broken Sword Gorge:

"Unworthy grand-disciple Zhang Jiuyou."

"Pays respects to Master's Wife!"

"Pfft!"

In the distance, a rogue cultivator who had just taken out a waterskin to drink due to nervousness directly spat a mouthful of water like a fountain all over his companion's face.

"Cough, cough, cough... cough!"

From all directions came the violent coughing sounds of countless people who had choked severely on their own saliva.

Everyone widened their eyes as if looking at a monster, and some even frantically dug at their ears, seriously doubting whether they had been hit by an illusion technique in the Sword Tomb.

Master's... Wife?

As for the person in question, Ye Xuan.

His originally cold and murderous expression, which had brewed to its peak like a descending demon god, instantly cracked after hearing this deafening Master's Wife.

The muscles on his face twitched madly and uncontrollably, and the invincible aura he had just created fell apart at a visible rate.

In a pair of eyes that were originally as deep as an abyss and burning with raging battle intent, what burned now was no longer sword intent, but extreme shame and anger, wanting to slice this idiot in front of him into a thousand pieces on the spot!

"Shut. Up."

Ye Xuan gritted his teeth tightly and forced these two words out from between his teeth. The blue veins on his forehead bulged one by one, throbbing like coiled green snakes.

This damn bastard!

Today, after so much difficulty and racking my brains, I finally managed to create this tragic and fateful sense of a lone hero who has severed all emotions and ties!

I had already circulated the Six Paths of Reincarnation Heavenly Scripture to its limit, ready to go on a killing spree and use the blood of these chosen geniuses to wash away the shame of living off a woman, proving that I don't need to rely on any woman at all!

In the end, your roar of Master's Wife directly smashed the stage I painstakingly built into pieces, kicking me right back into the abyss of being a kept man!

However, as a super sword idiot with an emotional intelligence basically in the negatives, Zhang Jiuyou obviously completely failed to read the terrifying, murderous glare in Ye Xuan's eyes.

In his incredibly straightforward brain circuit, for the Master's Wife to have such a ferocious expression right now, it must absolutely be because he was blaming him for coming late, letting the Master's Wife suffer grievances from these scums!

"Calm your anger, Master's Wife! It is this grand-disciple who is late to the rescue and allowed Master's Wife to be frightened. This grand-disciple deserves death a thousand times!"

Zhang Jiuyou straightened his waist. Although his mouth shouted that he deserved death, his handsome face was written full of an expression begging for praise, practically saying, Master's Wife, hurry up and look at my performance. He patted his chest and loudly claimed credit:

"Before leaving, Master warned me time and time again, saying that you have a wild temper, like to run around everywhere, and extremely dislike bringing guards! Master specially issued a dharma decree, ordering this grand-disciple to closely look after your safety when the Sword Tomb opens, absolutely not allowing you to lose a single hair!"

As soon as his voice fell.

Zhang Jiuyou suddenly turned around, protecting Ye Xuan and Ying'er behind him.

The moment he turned around, the flattery and respect he had just shown when facing Ye Xuan instantly disappeared without a trace. Replacing it was a bone-chilling coldness and absolute dominance belonging to a peerless sword cultivator, sufficient to freeze souls!

"Clang!"

A clear and resonant sword cry rang out.

The natal ancient sword behind Zhang Jiuyou was unsheathed by half an inch, and a substantial, terrifying sword pressure tinged with pale gold instantly enveloped the entire scene like a raging tidal wave!

He looked around, his gaze sweeping inch by inch across the faces of Lei Wanjun, who was sweating profusely, Kuang Tie, whose body was stiff, and Murong Xue, whose beautiful face had paled. Finally, he let out a thunderous roar that was enough to tear apart divine souls:

"You blind ants, prick up your ears and listen carefully!"

"Ye Xuan is the husband legally married to my master, the current Supreme Sword Emperor Ye Jiuhuang! He is the most honorable person in my Sword God Palace, second only to my master!"

"Today, whoever dares to touch a single hair on his head, whoever dares to show him the slightest disrespect, will be fighting my entire Sword God Palace to the death! You will be making an enemy of all sword cultivators in the world!"

"I, Zhang Jiuyou, swear to the heavens that I will grind their bones to dust and exterminate their entire clan!"

Silence.

An even more despairing, deathly silence.

Immediately following was an extremely uniform and loud sound of people gasping for cold air.

If these words had been spoken by someone else, the top geniuses present might have scoffed at them, or even attacked en masse.

But this was Zhang Jiuyou!

And even more terrifying was the person behind him—the one at the height of her power, known as the "Number One Sword in the World within Ten Thousand Years," the terrifyingly decisive Sword Son of Heaven—Ye Jiuhuang!

Suppressing the sun and moon, her sword pressing down on three thousand continents.

The supreme prestige of the Sword Son of Heaven wasn't just empty talk; it was built upon a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood from countless major sects and ancient families!

In this world, who was tired of living and dared to provoke that husband-protecting maniac?

Lei Wanjun, the young master of the Thunder Sound Pavilion, who had been murderous just a moment ago and was about to crush the thunder bead in his hand, suddenly flicked his wrist and quietly slipped the bead back into his sleeve.

He turned his head extremely stiffly, his eyes drifting toward the dark red sky, and muttered dryly to himself, "Ah... the fog in this sword tomb today... is really nice, very good for one's health."

Kuang Tie, who had just smashed his heavy sword on the ground and clamored to crush Ye Xuan's bones, now quickly picked up his giant sword and put it back on his back as if it burned his hands.

This brawny man, over two meters tall and covered in muscles, now scratched the back of his head like a schoolboy who had made a mistake, saying foolishly, "I... I just felt this brick wasn't very flat, so I smashed it a couple of times. I'm just a passerby watching the fun."

As for Murong Xue, the Holy Maiden of the Moon Palace, her face was as pale as paper. She took three steps back, and the look she gave Ye Xuan now contained, in addition to her original disdain, an uncontrollable, deep-seated fear.

No one dared to move.

Even the rogue cultivators who had originally planned to fish in troubled waters didn't even dare to breathe loudly, for fear of attracting Zhang Jiuyou's attention.

But Ye Xuan, at the very center of this storm, closed his eyes in pain, wishing he could instantly find a hole in the ground to hide in.

He looked down at Zhang Jiuyou, who was standing in front of him like a "large loyal dog" with all its fur standing on end to protect its master.

Ye Xuan's right hand slowly rose, his five fingers spreading out, then clenching into a fist and dropping down due to extreme restraint, only to rise again uncontrollably.

"Master's Wife, look, it's all settled."

Sensing the movement behind him, Zhang Jiuyou turned around and resumed his fawning smile, eager for praise:

"With your grand-disciple here to hold the fort, this bunch of riffraff won't be able to harm even a corner of your clothes!"

Ye Xuan took a deep breath, letting the freezing air fill his lungs, forcefully suppressing the urge to stomp Zhang Jiuyou into the mud.

He opened his bloodshot eyes and spat out a single word through gritted teeth:

"Scram."

Zhang Jiuyou froze, the smile on his face stiffening, and he blinked aggrievedly: "Master's Wife... please don't be angry with me. Master said..."

"I told you to immediately, right now, get out of my sight! Don't block my way!"

Meanwhile, in the heavy shadows at the outermost edge of the crowd.

A few cultivators dressed in inconspicuous gray robes, seemingly not even breathing, were watching this scene coldly like lurking poisonous snakes.

They had concealed their auras and spiritual energy fluctuations to the extreme, blending perfectly with the cold surroundings.

They were the elite aces of "Heavenly Fiend Hall," the most notorious hidden assassin organization in the cultivation world.

The leading old man had a withered face and only one eye, while eerie green netherfire flickered in his empty eye socket.

"It seems the intelligence was wrong, and the plan has changed."

Without moving his lips, the one-eyed old man transmitted his voice extremely covertly to his companions:

"The employer didn't say that people from the Sword God Palace would intervene. That kid Zhang Jiuyou is a killing machine, and his sword intent has already touched upon the Great Dao. Clashing with him head-on is very unwise."

"Then what do we do? Boss, are we going to cancel the contract?" A voluptuous female assassin holding poisoned twin daggers frowned and replied via voice transmission: "That would violate the rules of the Heavenly Fiend Hall."

"Cancel my ass."

The eerie green netherfire in the one-eyed old man's eye jumped fiercely, accompanied by a cruel sneer:

"The core of the employer's request is 'to heavily injure Ye Xuan at all costs, but not damage his Dao foundation, and kill the maid beside him to clip his wings.' The space inside this Sword Emperor's tomb is folded, filled with traps, and the trials are ever-changing. Even if Zhang Jiuyou wants to be a dog, it's impossible for him to protect him closely every moment."

"Once we enter the trial levels and the spatial laws activate, they will inevitably be separated. When that time comes, this useless pretty boy will just be fish on our chopping block."

While they were plotting, not far from the assassins, the whispers of two young cultivators could be heard.

Although they kept their voices low, it sounded particularly harsh in such a quiet environment.

It was a pair of senior sister and junior brother from the "Ethereal Pavilion."

The senior sister was quite beautiful, but right now her eyes were fixed on Ye Xuan's direction, her face displaying a complex expression of jealousy, amazement, and extreme disdain:

"Junior Brother, did you see that? What does it mean to reach the pinnacle? This Ye Xuan's skill in living off a woman has simply reached a state of perfection."

"I originally thought the rumors outside were exaggerated, but seeing it today has really opened my eyes and left me in awe."

The junior brother beside her also looked full of sighs and sourness, nodding repeatedly in agreement:

"Yes, Senior Sister. Even Zhang Jiuyou of the Sword God Palace, who has always been arrogant and submitted to no one, has been tamed by him to be as obedient as a dog, affectionately calling him Master's Wife. I'm blushing for him!"

"What kind of sorcery do you think this Ye Xuan knows? Besides that face, which is prettier than a woman's, what other abilities does he have?"

"Hmph, that's his core competitiveness."

The senior sister clicked her tongue in wonder, her eyes full of surprise:

"To be able to coax Ye Jiuhuang, that cold, ruthless, and murderous female Sword Emperor, into willingly becoming his wife."

"I think he shouldn't bother cultivating the sword anymore. If he compiled his skills in coaxing women into a book and sold it in the major Joyous Sects, he probably would have made a fortune long ago. Why come here to this sword tomb and put on an act?"

The conversation between the two wasn't loud, but who among the high-level cultivators present didn't possess hearing far beyond that of ordinary mortals?

From the surrounding crowd, a low, malicious wave of suppressed laughter suddenly broke out.

The trace of fear and awe originally brought about by Zhang Jiuyou's terrifying deterrence was now completely transformed by this laughter into a deeper, heartfelt contempt for Ye Xuan.

In the eyes of everyone present, Ye Xuan was now not just a freeloader hiding behind a woman, but a charlatan riding on a woman's coattails to throw his weight around, completely lacking any real ability of his own.

Ye Xuan heard it all.

But he did not turn around to scold them, nor did he furiously draw his sword as he had done just moments ago.

He simply stood there quietly.

However, the last trace of human emotion was completely stripped from the depths of his originally gentle, jade-like eyes. In its place was a bone-chilling, absolute coldness.

"Ying'er."

Ye Xuan suddenly spoke softly, his voice devoid of the slightest ripple.

"M... Master..."

Ying'er clutched tightly at Ye Xuan's sleeve, her small face as pale as paper.

Zhang Jiuyou's sudden address of "Mistress" just a moment ago had frightened her terribly, and now the malicious gazes flooding in from the surroundings like a tidal wave made her feel as if thorns were pricking her back.

"Hold me tight."

Ye Xuan didn't turn his head, merely uttering these words indifferently.

"Mhm!"

Although Ying'er didn't know what was going to happen next, out of her absolute, instinctive trust in Ye Xuan, she didn't hesitate in the slightest. Her hands immediately wrapped tightly around Ye Xuan's lean, muscular waist, clinging to his body like a frightened koala.

Ye Xuan raised his head slightly, his emotionless, icy eyes looking into the near distance.

The first trial of the Sword Emperor's Tomb had already officially begun.

Unbeknownst to anyone, a portal of light had already appeared.