The Signal Fire Platform was located atop the walls of the Ancient Nine Luminaries City.

Su Yi walked back and forth atop the Signal Fire Platform with his hands behind his back.

The platform was huge and hewn of rugged stone. An altar was built at its center. It bore the vestiges of countless years, but there was nothing overtly special about it.

Su Yi examined it for a while before looking away. From here, he could see most of the city. When he looked outside its walls, he saw visions of a landscape covered in Star Graves, as well as a raging battle.

An armored warrior raised a massive axe, shattering the stars as he fought his way into a blood-soaked hidden realm full of mysterious and strange Celestial Demons! Sword cultivators whooshed through the air, stirring up a windstorm of sword qi that cleaved through the nine heavens. A grand figure as majestic as a Heavenly Monarch controlled the sun and moon, slamming them into that blood-soaked hidden realm.

As celestial bodies shifted, they created immeasurable eruptions of destructive power.

A sultry woman waved her sleeves, and heaven and earth caved in. Countless Celestial Demons shot out of the hidden realm and waged war against the cultivators. Splashing blood and glinting treasure light enveloped the entire landscape. There was no telling how many Celestial Demons fell, but many cultivators perished in the throes of battle, too. It was brutal, and they’d clearly been fighting for a long, long time already.

Unlike the Celestial Demons of other places, the Celestial Demons of that hidden realm were like the incarnations of calamity. Some were like lightning tribulations, others, heart tribulations or karmic tribulations... There was no end to them, either. It was as if all of the world’s disasters and tribulations had converged to create this massive army.

Su Yi watched it all in silence. He felt as if he’d arrived in the age of the Devastation, the age in which the Eternal Heavens Domain’s greatest enemies were Outsider Celestial Demons!

The Outsider Celestial Demons came from a place known as the Void. They presented a severe threat to all of the world’s cultivators.

Back then, the Eternal Heavens Domain had numerous battlefields at the front lines. The beacon fires were lit year-round. All the world’s top factions and countless cultivators protected the front lines. Only then did they prevent a large-scale invasion of Outsider Celestial Demons. However, truly eradicating the Outsider Celestial Demons was all but impossible. Even the Heavenly Sovereigns were helpless!

These secrets were recorded in ancient tomes. Most didn’t go into much detail, but Su Yi could still confirm a few things.

For instance, the Devastation was called that because the Outsider Celestial Demons came from the Void and brought with them endless tribulations and catastrophes.

At the time, even the Heavenly Sovereigns were fraught with worry. They predicted that sooner or later, the Eternal Heavens Domain would fall. But nothing of the sort transpired. The Devastation ended, and the Eternal Heavens Domain remained standing. It was the Outsider Celestial Demons who inexplicably vanished.

The cause was a mystery to this day. Some said that Heavenly Sovereigns knew these secrets, but if they did, their lips were tightly sealed.

“Die! Die! Die!”

Roars emanated from the battlefield like the beating of a rattle drum, emanating from across countless years.

Su Yi felt as if he’d really entered that blood-soaked battlefield bright with beacon fires. He was surrounded by the corpses of fallen stars and the bodies of those who had died in battle. The ground was pooled with blood, and everything was stained deep crimson. The dense smell of carnage hung in the air, and terrifying, destructive power swept forth in waves. Su Yi sensed it all with the utmost clarity, and it put immense pressure on even him.

Suddenly, an incomparably dazzling sun rose over the battlefield. Rather, it was a grand figure holding a sun aloft. He swept through the battlefield, crushing his enemies, cleaving his way through the stars, and erupting with endless light. Countless Outsider Celestial Demons melted like snow, then evaporated in the blink of an eye.

Soon, that unstoppable figure had fought his way into the void. But then, that grand figure shattered, and the sun he carried shattered with him. Everything was enveloped in stingingly intense light.

Su Yi saw nothing but searing, intense light. The landscape of his heart burned like a furnace.

When all of these visions faded away, Su Yi found himself back on the Signal Fire Platform. All of the carnage, brutality, and cultivators warring against Outsider Celestial Demons had vanished. All was still save for the wind blowing over the platform.

Su Yi threw back his head and drained his jug of wine before turning to leave.

A radiant sun arose in his heart.

The Laws of the Solar Luminary!

Yesterday, on the Divine Contemplation Lotus Platform, he saw a mysterious figure fight his way into the stars. By the time that figure left, nine stars representing the Nine Luminaries transformed into arcs of light and landed in the Ancient Nine Luminaries City.

It was then that Su Yi learned that the Laws of the Nine Luminaries were distributed throughout the city, in the Starry Stele, Signal Fire Platform, Gazebo of Buried Swords, and six other locations. That was why he’d chosen to come to the Signal Fire Platform!

He hadn’t made the trip in vain.

Not long after he stepped off the platform, and just as he was about to have a look around the Gazebo of Buried Swords, a voice transmitted directly into his ears.

“Your Excellency Su, don’t turn your head. This is Yang Lingxiao, and I’m trying to avoid discovery. Might we find a place for a private chat?”

Su Yi was stunned. He transmitted back, “I’m going to the Gazebo of Buried Swords. Don’t approach me. If you want to chat, just find a place nearby.”

The Ancient Nine Luminaries City might have looked big, but in truth, any Heavenly Monarch who was paying attention could easily discover who was meeting with whom.

The more you tried to hide, the easier it was to draw attention.

“Alright!” said Yang Lingxiao.

Su Yi arrived at the Gazebo of Buried Swords not long after. Numerous other cultivators were already there, searching for good fortune.

The gazebo wasn’t big. It was just a single open-air building hewn of stone. A sword tomb was constructed in front of it. They said that whenever a sword cultivator died in battle during the Devastation, his or her sword would be buried here. Every time a sword cultivator entered the Ancient Nine Luminaries City, they were sure to stop by the tomb to pay their respects.

When Su Yi arrived, the crowd stirred. Some of the sword cultivators instinctively moved further away. They weren’t scared because Li Muchen had defeated Xun Jiu’an and Dong Liujia. After all, those were just clashes of the Grand Dao. What scared them was hearing that Li Muchen had slain Xue Sheng and Wu Xun!

Su Yi disregarded all that, took out a jug of wine, and poured it over the sword tomb.

He had researched the Gazebo of Buried Swords, and he knew that there were indeed swords buried in its tomb. However, all of them had long since broken!

The tomb and gazebo existed to commemorate those valiant sword cultivators who had died here during the Devastation. They said that without a continuous influx of sword cultivator volunteers, the city could never have staved off the Outsider Celestial Demons’ offensive. Of everyone stationed in the city, it was the sword cultivators who’d contributed the most!

“How did you recognize me?” Su Yi returned from the tomb and casually took a seat to the side of the gazebo.

Yang Lingxiao stood with a group of other cultivators of the Five Great Continents. He didn’t seem the least bit out of place.

“Martial Uncle Wu Qing told me that you’d entered the Nine Luminaries Forbidden Zone, Your Excellency Su. I just didn’t realize that you were using the name ‘Li Muchen’ now.”

Yang Lingxiao was facing away from Su Yi, and he was pretending to examine the sword tomb.

Wu Qing? The image of a short, fierce-looking old man floated in Su Yi's mind. He was the lord of Mount Heavenquench and a Heavenly Fate Realm Sword Monarch.

It was Pu Xuan, or rather, Jin Xuan, who had guided Wu Qing when he joined the Heart-Tempering Sword House as a youth. The two of them were never officially master and apprentice, but they were in practice. Su Yi had learned that from Yang Lingxiao back in the Blue Peak Continent.

There was no doubt about it. If Wu Qing and Yang Lingxiao knew who he was, the other representatives of the Heart-Tempering Sword House did too!

“What do you want to talk about?” asked Su Yi. He took a sip of wine.

“Elder Fu Yong came looking for me. He said he hoped I could get close to you and try to become your friend,” transmitted Yang Lingxiao. “But he didn’t tell me why.”

He looked utterly bewildered. He said bitterly, “According to the sect’s rules, I shouldn’t be telling you any of this, but I know that I escaped the Blue Peak Continent alive thanks to you. Both logically and emotionally speaking, it wouldn’t be right to hide this from you, not even... if breaking the rules gets me expelled from the sect.”

As he said that last part, Yang Lingxiao slumped in despondency. It was obvious that this decision was tormenting him.

Su Yi subtly inclined his head. “Thank you. I’ll pretend not to know any of this, and I won’t reveal a thing.”

“I’ve been prepared to face the consequences from the moment I chose to tell you the truth,” said Yang Lingxiao. “I just hope you’ll be careful, Your Excellency. I suspect... that the Heart-Tempering Sword House has long since set a trap for you. Whatever you do, don’t get complacent.”

With that, a massive weight lifted from his shoulders. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Su Yi sat there, drinking wine. Why would the Heart-Tempering Sword House use Yang Lingxiao to approach me? It’s strange. Do they really think that Yang Lingxiao is enough to restrict me?

Su Yi couldn’t wrap his head around it. All he could say for sure was that Elder Fu Yong had ulterior motives!

“I’ll bid farewell to you here, Your Excellency.” Yang Lingxiao turned to leave.

“Wait a moment,” Su Yi said suddenly. “Elder Fu Yong told you to approach me. Aren’t you afraid he’ll suspect you if you fail?”

Yang Lingxiao froze, stunned, then said, “I told him you’re too unapproachable for that.”

“Did Fu Yong tell you who I really am?” asked Su Yi.

Yang Lingxiao shook his head. “He didn’t. He just said that Li Muchen’s attainments in the Dao of the Sword are heaven-defying. It would be just wonderful if we could convince him to join the Heart-Tempering Sword House.’ He wanted me to befriend you first.”

Su Yi mulled that over, but just as he was about to respond, something else occurred to him. “Who is your Dao Protector?”

He had noticed that Yang Lingxiao’s Dao Protector was standing not far from the Gazebo of Buried Swords, conversing with the other Dao Protectors.

Yang Lingxiao didn’t find the question at all strange. “Him? His name is Shang Wuhui, and he’s an unaccomplished old-timer from the Great Yin Divine Race.”