Volume 1, Chapter 4: Fusing the Sword Pupil, Binding the Karma of the Heavenly Dao

The Chen family members arrived at the scene, followed immediately by Chen Lan. Upon seeing his son’s eyes gouged out, Chen Lan was seized by a towering rage.

"Who did this? Who?"

"Father, it was my elder brother. He gouged out my eyes. I respected him so much; why would he do this to me? Why?"

Chen Fuyao was choked with sobs. The blow of having his eyes removed by his own brother was devastating, and he was filled with bone-deep hatred for Chen Xuanting. How could his own brother be so cruel?

"That rebellious son! How could he commit such a heinous act against you? You are his own blood brother!"

Chen Lan’s fury intensified. He never imagined that the perpetrator was his son, Chen Xuanting; it was absolute madness.

"Guards! Issue my Patriarch’s Command. Mobilize all the resources of the Chen family to hunt down Chen Xuanting. Kill him on sight!"

Already harboring a dislike for Chen Xuanting, Chen Lan used the Patriarch’s Command in his rage to issue a death warrant. The power of the Chen family was such that even the royal court had to show caution. Once the command was issued, there was no escaping it as long as the target remained within the Great Xia Dynasty.

The news of the decree soon shocked everyone in the Chen family.

"The eldest young master actually gouged out the second young master’s eyes. That is too vicious."

"I suspect the eldest brother was jealous that the second brother was about to be named the Young Master, which is why he committed such a cruel act."

"With the second young master blinded, the position of Young Master is now out of his reach."

The entire Chen family lamented for Chen Fuyao; a genius had been reduced to a cripple.

"Young Master, great news!"

Wang Quan, a subordinate of Chen Xiao, arrived at Lingxiao Pavilion to report, though he dared not force his way in.

The gates of Lingxiao Pavilion opened, and Chen Xiao, who had been in seclusion, walked out with a cold expression. "Let me hear your good news. If it cannot bring me great joy, I will make you suffer great sorrow."

"Young Master, it is tremendous news. Chen Xuanting gouged out Chen Fuyao’s eyes and fled. The Patriarch has issued a decree to hunt him down. With these two formidable rivals removed, the position of Young Master is undoubtedly yours."

"Is that true?"

Chen Xiao snapped out of his shock, still finding it hard to believe.

"The Patriarch’s Command has been issued, and the entire Chen family is in an uproar. Many experts have already been dispatched; it cannot be false."

"Hahaha! Heaven truly aids me! Even the heavens want me to ascend to the position of Chen family Young Master!"

Chen Xiao laughed wildly. He did not know why Chen Xuanting had gouged out Chen Fuyao’s eyes, nor did he care. All that mattered was the position of Young Master; with Chen Fuyao blinded, the seat was rightfully his.

Chen Xuanting rode his horse for hundreds of miles, galloping until the animal collapsed from exhaustion. He knew the Chen family would send people to hunt him down. To avoid any mishaps, he had to fuse the Sword Pupil as quickly as possible, so he took refuge in the mountains.

The mountains were dense with brush. Soon, Chen Xuanting found a secluded spot to begin the fusion. Looking at the blood-stained eyeball in his hand, his eyes burned with fervor. With the Sword Pupil, he would possess the potential to become a god. To achieve divinity, he would not hesitate to kill his own brother—or even his own father.

To fuse the Sword Pupil, he had to remove his own eyes. Raising his right hand, he hooked his fingers and dug into his own eyes without a moment’s hesitation.

As his own bloodied eyes were pulled out, he endured the agonizing, heart-wrenching pain with a twisted expression, placing the Sword Pupil into his empty, bleeding sockets.

The fusion began. Perhaps because he and Chen Fuyao shared the same bloodline as brothers, the Sword Pupil did not reject him, and the fusion proceeded smoothly.

A moment later, Chen Xuanting opened his eyes, and two beams of sword light shot forth.

"The Sword Pupil is mine now. In this life, I shall surely become a god."

At this moment, the Sword Pupil truly belonged to Chen Xuanting. His ambition was boundless; becoming an emperor was no longer enough—he wanted to become a god.

Suddenly, the sky changed color, and lightning crackled across the void as if the heavens themselves were enraged. Chen Xuanting’s face darkened. He knew that by stealing the Sword Pupil from Chen Fuyao, the Son of Destiny, he had altered the course of history and incurred a massive karmic debt with the Heavenly Dao.

But so what? If the Heavenly Dao stood against him, he would slay the heavens. No one could stop him from becoming a god, not even the Heavenly Dao.

He selected a low-grade Heaven-tier technique, the "Deathless Sword Scripture," and began to practice. Techniques were divided into Emperor, Saint, Heaven, Earth, Xuan, and Huang grades. Aside from Emperor and Saint grades, the others were subdivided into High, Middle, and Low tiers. Though he possessed many Saint-tier techniques, his sword manuals were only Heaven-tier, so he would have to make do for now.

He began to cultivate the Deathless Sword Scripture. The Sword Pupil contained Innate Sword Intent, which could evolve into thousands of sword paths; any sword technique could be manifested through it.

The next day, a terrifying killing sword aura erupted from Chen Xuanting’s body, surging toward the heavens. The surrounding vegetation withered instantly as their vitality was drained by the murderous aura.

"Such powerful killing intent."

The aura was detected by Elder Chen Yuantu, who was several miles away. Shocked, he released his divine sense, pinpointing Chen Xuanting in the mountains.

"Chen Xuanting! It is actually him."

Chen Yuantu immediately employed the God-Speed Step, rushing toward Chen Xuanting’s location. Sensing someone spying on him with divine sense, Chen Xuanting stopped his cultivation and released his own, spotting Chen Yuantu approaching rapidly.

"So it is this old fool. He comes just in time; I shall use him to test the power of my Deathless Sword Scripture."

Although he had only just begun the technique, it was still a Heaven-tier art, far surpassing anything of the Huang grade.

Soon, Chen Yuantu arrived and found Chen Xuanting. "You degenerate! You have harmed your brother and killed your own kin. Your crimes are unforgivable. Today, I shall purge the family and execute you."

"Old man, you talk too much."

Chen Xuanting struck first. With a single swing, a dozen "Deathless Sword Auras" surged toward Chen Yuantu. The elder, shocked, struck back with a palm, his power like crashing waves, relentless and deep.

The palm force collided with the sword aura. Although Chen Xuanting’s internal energy was not as deep as Chen Yuantu’s, his technique was of a higher tier. The palm force was shattered by the sword aura, and the remaining blades struck at Chen Yuantu, who barely dodged them; the trees behind him were instantly shredded.

Chen Yuantu was stunned by Chen Xuanting’s power, guessing that he had mastered a technique above the Xuan grade, and he was overcome with greed. "Degenerate, hand over the technique, and I will leave your corpse intact."

"Old man, you are at death’s door and still dare to bluster?"

Chen Xuanting unleashed the "Heaven-Swallowing Demonic Art." A terrifying suction force gripped Chen Yuantu, draining his energy and vitality rapidly. A look of horror appeared on the elder’s aged face.

"Xuanting, I am your third grandfather, you—"

"I am *your* grandfather."

Chen Xuanting, cold and ruthless, drained Chen Yuantu until he was nothing but a withered husk. His own internal energy surged. With his current cultivation, he could kill anyone below the God-Communication realm.

He quickly left the forest. To hunt him down, Chen Lan had placed a bounty of 100,000 gold pieces. Once the bounty was issued, the entire Great Chu was shaken; bounty hunters mobilized everywhere. Furthermore, the Chen family utilized the power of the imperial court to seal all checkpoints, preventing Chen Xuanting from leaving the Great Xia. It showed just how terrifying the Chen family’s influence truly was.

Chen Xuanting arrived at a small town on the border of Great Chu. Along the way, he had encountered several ambushes from bounty hunters and Chen family scouts, all of whom became souls under his sword. The Chen family was one of the most powerful clans in Great Chu, and his current strength was not enough to challenge them directly, so he planned to flee the Great Xia to lie low.

The town was quiet, the streets deserted. Chen Xuanting entered an inn; it was empty and desolate.

The waiter hurried over. "Welcome, guest."

"Waiter, bring me your best wine and food."

"Right away, sir. It will be out in a moment."

The waiter cleared a table and brought tea. Chen Xuanting placed his sword on the table and sipped the tea. Soon, the food and wine arrived. Chen Xuanting ate heartily; with the Heaven-Swallowing Demonic Art, he had no fear of poison.

Just then, three men armed with weapons entered the inn.

"Brother, why did you bring us to the border? You don’t really think Chen Xuanting would come here, do you?"

"Indeed he will. He crippled his brother and betrayed the Chen family; there is no place for him in Great Chu. If he wants to live, he must go to the Xia Kingdom. We wait here, at the only path, for him to walk right into our trap."

"Big brother is clever! Once we kill Chen Xuanting, we get 100,000 taels of gold."

"Waiter, bring wine!"

The three sat down.

"You are quite smart, actually knowing I would come to the border."

A voice came from behind them. The three brothers gripped their weapons and turned to face Chen Xuanting, who had been sitting with his back to them.

"Who are you?"

"I just complimented your intelligence, and now you’ve gone stupid? Aren’t you here looking for me?"

Chen Xuanting turned to look at them.

"It’s Chen Xuanting!"

"Truly, we spent all our effort searching, only to find him right here! Kill him!"

The three brothers lunged with their blades. A flash of sword light swept across the room, and all three brothers were silenced with a single stroke.

Chen Xuanting picked up his sword and walked out, leaving the waiter and the innkeeper shivering in the corner.