Chapter 2: Prison Tower

Looking at the black tower in front of him, Ye Xuan was incredibly shocked. Everything in front of him had exceeded his understanding. Soon, he forced himself to calm down. He knew that this could be an opportunity, but it could also be dangerous. Ultimately, Ye Xuan chose to push open the door of the tower and step inside. He couldn't bear to leave now.

Once inside, Ye Xuan took a glance around. The walls were adorned with various strange beasts he had never seen before, as well as some mysterious purple-golden runes, some of which were even moving! Finally, his gaze fell on a skeleton sitting not far in front of him, with a long sword standing upright next to it.

Ye Xuan's gaze landed on the front of the skeleton, where a line of words read: "I am the Sword Master of the Cyan World, I began practicing the sword at the age of twelve, achieved mastery of the sword at the age of seventeen, became undefeated in the Cyan World at the age of twenty-one, and achieved the Supreme Sword Dao at the age of twenty-seven by piercing my own heart with a sword. Trapped in this prison for twelve hundred years, unable to leave the tower in my whole life, I now know that I am doomed to die. I leave behind this legacy, hoping that future generations will inherit it. If you sympathize with me, please take care of the Cyan Sword Sect."

The Sword Master of the Cyan World? Ye Xuan furrowed his brows, as he had never heard of such a title. His eyes shifted down, and below the inscription, there was a fist-sized jade stone placed there— the Inheritance Stone. Ye Xuan's blood instantly boiled.

Sword cultivation! In the whole of Qingzhou, there were countless martial artists, but sword cultivators were extremely rare, almost like finding a phoenix feather or a unicorn horn. It was said that to become a sword cultivator required special spiritual roots. Ye Xuan didn't understand spiritual roots, but he knew they were extremely rare.

Ye Xuan unconsciously moved to take it, but as soon as he tried to, an invisible force stopped him, making it impossible for him to advance even a bit! Ye Xuan was stunned. Could he not pass?

"A newcomer?"

At that moment, a woman's voice suddenly echoed in the area. Ye Xuan was startled by the sudden voice and took several steps back, scanning his surroundings but finding no one. Had he misheard? Just as this thought emerged in his mind, the voice sounded again, "Who is the master of this realm?"

Ye Xuan was frozen. Master of the realm? What was that?

After a moment of silence, the voice rang out again, "Why are you so weak? No, you weren't imprisoned here!"

Ye Xuan was bewildered, "Wasn't I?"

The voice continued, "You possess a natural Dao physique and dual spiritual roots, both of them within you. No wonder the Tower of Purgatory chose you."

Natural Dao physique? Dual spiritual roots? Ye Xuan was confused, "Senior, who are you?"

The mysterious woman said, "You have reached adulthood, and according to normal circumstances, you should have at least reached the Universal Realm. Why are you so weak? Your physical foundation is so poor, it's simply unbearable to look at."

Ye Xuan, "..."

The mysterious woman suddenly asked, "How did you cultivate your physical body?"

Ye Xuan hesitated for a moment, then said, "Prone position, weighted running, hitting my body, etc."

The mysterious woman said coldly, "Are you living in ancient times? Using such outdated cultivation methods is truly wasteful for your physique! Wasteful of your spiritual roots!"

Ye Xuan chuckled bitterly, "Senior, the people in Qingcheng all cultivate like this."

The woman fell silent.

Ye Xuan was speechless, he took a glance around, but he still couldn't see anyone. This place exuded an eerie feeling.

Seeing that the mysterious woman didn't speak again, he shifted his gaze back to the Inheritance Stone in front of him. His eyes were unabashedly filled with eagerness.

"Do you want to learn the sword?" the mysterious woman suddenly asked.

Ye Xuan nodded eagerly, "Yes!" Who wouldn't want to command the world with a sword, overlooking all beneath the heavens?

The mysterious woman said, "You have a shattered Dantian now, so you cannot learn the sword cultivation legacy before you."

At these words, Ye Xuan's expression darkened. His Dantian was shattered! Forget about sword cultivation, he might not even have a chance as a regular martial artist. He could only be considered a martial enthusiast now.

Then, the mysterious woman said, "However, I have a different method of sword cultivation. It is unlike others and much more difficult. Practicing it might be worse than death. Are you sure?"

Ye Xuan self-mockingly smiled, "With my shattered Dantian, I have no other path to choose. Isn't that right?"

The woman said, "That's true. But I will still tell you about this cultivation method. Without a Dantian, it is even more suitable for you. With my method, you will use the sword as your Dantian."

Ye Xuan was stunned, "Use the sword as my Dantian? Can that be done?"

The woman said, "Of course it can. When you use the sword as your Dantian, the better the sword, the better your Dantian will be. Not only that, but instead of cultivating Qi like others, you will cultivate the sword. In the early stages, if you reach a small accomplishment, your body will become a sword body. At that time, you will be immune to ordinary swords. Not only immune, but you will make all swords bow down before you."

All swords bow down before me! Ye Xuan's blood boiled as he listened. He was already impatient.

The woman continued, "Have you seen the three swords at the top of the tower?"

Ye Xuan nodded, "Yes, I saw them."

The woman said, "Those three swords represent the pinnacle of three different sword techniques. If you can absorb them into your body and use them as your Dantian, and absorb their essence, your strength will reach an unprecedented height."

Ye Xuan hesitated for a moment, then asked, "If I absorb them, will anything go wrong?"

"How could it?"

The woman responded quickly, "Nothing will go wrong. Trust me, I will protect you."

Ye Xuan had some doubts, but he knew that he had no other choice at the moment. He could only choose to trust her.

The woman said, "Before, did you see the sword in front of you?"

Ye Xuan looked to a small distance away, where a skeletal body was next to a sword. The sword was over three feet long and one finger wide, with a silver body that looked pleasing to the eye. Carved into the sword was the name "Lingxiao".

The Lingxiao Sword!

The woman said, "This sword has been imprisoned for twelve hundred years, and almost ninety percent of its spiritual power has disappeared. It is just right for you to use it now. I will teach you a cultivation method, and later you can use the method on the sword in front of you. Now, you are at the peak of the fifth rank, and if you succeed, you should be able to reach the sixth rank."

Ye Xuan realized what the woman's words implied and hurriedly asked, "Is there a possibility of failure?"

The woman said, "There might be a chance of failure!"

Ye Xuan was taken aback, "Senior, don't tell me that no one has used this cultivation method before!"

The woman fell silent for a moment before saying, "Indeed, no one has used it before. You will be the first. If you succeed, congratulations, you will be the first in history."

Ye Xuan's expression froze. After a while, he forced a bitter smile, "Senior, what happens if I fail?"

The woman said, "Sword Breaker. It's possible, probably, almost certain, you will die."

Ye Xuan, "..."

The woman said, "Right now, your Dantian is shattered, and you are as good as dead. What's the point of thinking so much? Just give it your all."

Upon hearing this, Ye Xuan nodded, "Let's do it!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a white light suddenly descended in front of Ye Xuan, and soon, waves of information flooded into his mind.

The Invincible Sword Body Technique!

"To become the sword, to use the sword as your Dantian, to swallow all swords under the heavens, to nourish your body with a myriad of swords, to eternally exist..."

After a while, a slight sword hum suddenly rang out in Ye Xuan's body, and in an instant, his entire body fell to the ground. At the same time, a strong air current suddenly emanated from his body!

Qi Transformation Realm!

In the original position of his Dantian, a small sword was suspended in the air.

Inside the tower, a soft voice suddenly spoke, "I didn't expect this to really work..."

However, Ye Xuan had already fainted and couldn't hear these word