Chapter 46: Before Birth

Antarctica was a peaceful place, free from storms, gales, or spatial rifts, covering thousands of square miles. Members of the five major sects finally crossed the spatial rifts and arrived in Antarctica.

Cangyang Valley, one of the three demon cultivation sects, had Li Zhen, Yang Di, Li Heng, and five elders in the early stage of fusion among its members who arrived in Antarctica.

Taiyuan Gate, led by the heads of four immortal cultivation sects, had Liang Jue, Liang Qu, and three elders in the early stage of fusion among its members who arrived.

Xianyue Cliff, one of the three demon cultivators’ sects, had Xiao Yue Cang Lang, Yin Mian Xiao Tian Quan, and five Pan Tian Longs in the middle stage of fusion among its demon cultivators who arrived in Antarctica.

Jinyang Sect, led by the heads of three demon cultivation sects, had Shuo Jin, Shuo Bai, and four elders in the early stage of fusion among its members who arrived in Antarctica.

Jiugong Island, one of the three demon cultivators’ sects, had nine members including the Ancient Ice Crocodile and Blue Dragon, as well as five Tun Hai XueTun Hai XueTun Hai Xue in the middle stage of fusion who arrived in Antarctica.

Of course, among these five sects, the five individuals controlled by artifact deities—Li Heng, Liang Qu, Yin Mian Xiao Tian Quan, Shuo Bai, and Blue Dragon—had already reached the middle stage of fusion. Yet they used the “Wuxi Jue” to suppress their auras, appearing as if they were still in the early stage of fusion.

After arriving in Antarctica one after another, the members of these five sects immediately noticed the people from other sects and naturally decided to greet each other friendlyely.

Before the Birth Sword appeared, the ten major sects of the cultivation world still needed to maintain a friendly atmosphere. However, once the Birth Sword emerged, those from the five sects present would surely fight to the death.

Upon arriving in Antarctica, the members of the five sects quickly searched every area and found nothing but ice—no special places at all. Realizing that the Birth Sword had not yet appeared, they saw no need to search further.

The members of the five sects separated into five groups, sitting quietly to rest and wait for the Birth Sword to appear.

Another month passed.

Suddenly, the entire Antarctic region trembled as energy surged, and a terrifying, world-destroying aura covered the sky.

The five sect members, who had been sitting in meditation, were all startled and flew into the air, focusing intently on this unusual disturbance.

Suddenly, a green light shot out from the South Pole, piercing straight into the sky.

The green light rapidly expanded, turning into a massive beam ten miles wide that turned the entire world green.

Then, the world returned to calm, but the green light remained.

Confused, the members of the five sects landed on the ground, staring blankly at the green light before them, their minds filled with countless thoughts.

However, one thing is certain for the people of the Five Sects—the Eight Directions Sword is about to appear.
……
At this moment, the six members of the Jin Yang Sect flew over to the eight people in Cang Yang Valley, their faces filled with smiles.
When Li Zhen saw them coming, he smiled and welcomed them along with his seven companions, then waited for the leader of the Jin Yang Sect, Shuo Jin, to speak.
“Li Zhen, I really didn’t expect that people from Cang Yang Valley would also come. Now, out of our three magic-cultivating sects, two of us are here,” Shuo Jin said calmly, with his white hair and light eyebrows exuding an air of serenity.
Hearing this, Li Zhen felt displeased. Although the Jin Yang Sect was considered the leader among the three magic-cultivating sects, it seemed to look down on his Cang Yang Valley too much.
“Shuo Jin, we luckily defeated the Lan Yang Palace and came to the South Pole. But since your Jin Yang Sect is also the leader among our three magic-cultivating sects, why do you only have six people here? Our Cang Yang Valley has eight members,” Li Zhen said with a smile.
Undoubtedly, by saying this, Li Zhen was subtly mocking the foremost magic-cultivating sect for being inferior to his own Cang Yang Valley.
Upon hearing this, Shuo Jin frowned slightly but quickly relaxed and smiled, saying, “Li Zhen, I won’t argue anymore. Let me be direct—In this competition for the Eight Directions Sword, I want to cooperate with you from Cang Yang Valley to seize it together. Then, we can share this sword between our two sects.”
It turned out that Shuo Jin had already contacted the leader of the Jin Yang Sect using their communication token, explained the situation in the South Pole, and received instructions from the leader, which led to this proposal for cooperation.
“Shuo Jin, are you joking? We all know that the Eight Directions Sword isn’t just an excellent spiritual weapon—it’s also one of the eight keys to opening the Vast Heaven Immortal Mansion. Such a significant matter; I can’t make a decision on my own,” Li Zhen immediately refused.
Rumors said that the Vast Heaven Immortal Mansion contained many immortal weapons, and if one could enter it and obtain those weapons, the rankings of the top ten sects in the cultivation world might change. Therefore, a person at the Integration stage certainly couldn’t decide such an important matter as the key to opening the Vast Heaven Immortal Mansion.
“Li Zhen, you’d better contact Master Cang Huang first and convey my proposal to him. I think our two sect leaders are already discussing this,” Shuo Jin said with a smile.
Indeed, upon hearing this, Li Zhen immediately realized the possibility. So, he quickly took out his communication token, channeled his vital energy, scanned with his spiritual awareness, and sent out his message right away.
Soon, Li Zhen received a reply through his communication token.

“Okay, the sect leader has already told me to cooperate with you,” Li Zhen said immediately after scanning the information on the communication tablet.
Shuojin chuckled briefly and then fell silent, continuing to watch the green light before him.
…
On the other side, the two demonic cultivation sects, Xianyueya and Jiugong Island, also gathered together.
The seven demonic beasts of Xianyueya all transformed into human forms. The Howling Moon Wolf turned into a middle-aged man with a pale face, exuding a fierce aura. The five Sky-Coiling Snakes transformed into five identical men with square faces and small triangular eyes, radiating a cold and sinister vibe. There was also the silver-faced Howling Sky Dog controlled by the Artifact God, which turned into a thin youth who kept his head raised toward the sky, seemingly unwilling to look straight down or at a lower level.
As for the seven demonic beasts of Jiugong Island, their leader, the Ancient Ice Crocodile, turned into an old man with deep wrinkles, standing motionless like a stone. The five Sea-Devouring Blood Pythons transformed into five strong men with red faces, all looking similar in stature. There was also the blue dragon controlled by the Artifact God, which turned into a spirited man with blue hair.
The Howling Moon Wolf glanced at the Ancient Ice Crocodile and sent a mental message, “Ice Crocodile, among the ten major sects of the Six Pan Stars, only our two sects remain. We haven’t obtained either the Eight Directions Sword or the Six Directions Knife. Therefore, we must seize this seventh Eight Directions Sword. Otherwise, when the eighth sword appears in the future, even if both of us strive hard, only one sect will be able to get it.”
The Eight Directions Sword represented the eight directions, with each sword inscribed with a character: North, Northeast, East, Southeast, South, Southwest, West, Northwest.
The six swords corresponding to North, Northeast, East, Southeast, South, and Southwest had already appeared. According to the predictions of the ten major sects, the next Eight Directions Sword to emerge on Baiyin Star would be the one inscribed with ‘West’.
Of course, at this time, the people of the ten major sects had no idea that the Eight Directions Sword inscribed with ‘West’ had already been taken by Qu Yi.
Thus, the Eight Directions Sword to appear on Baiyin Star would be the last one—the one inscribed with ‘Northwest’.
After hearing this, the Ancient Ice Crocodile remained completely still, his expression unchanged. He sent a mental reply, “Howling Moon, what’s your suggestion?”

Hao Yue Cang Lang heard this and immediately replied via telepathy, “Bing E, as you can see, the Jin Yang Sect and Cang Yang Valley, these two magic-cultivating sects, have joined forces. It’s obvious they’ve allied. Even if we have the Pan Tian Snake and the Tun Hai Blood Python, it’s hard to say we can defeat them. Therefore, I’ve already reported the situation here to our sect leader, the Four-Clawed Golden Dragon, and suggested that our two sects unite.”

The expression on the Ancient Ice Crocodile’s face, which had remained unchanged for ten thousand years, suddenly changed as it heard these words. It blinked and turned to look at Hao Yue Cang Lang. Seeing that it wasn’t joking, it quickly regained its composure.

Soon, a message arrived through the Ancient Ice Crocodile’s communication token.

“Hao Yue, it seems your proposal has been accepted by our sect leader. Good, I agree to cooperate with you,” the Ancient Ice Crocodile replied promptly after scanning with its spiritual consciousness.

……

At the Tai Yuan Sect, the leader of the four immortal cultivation sects and now the only one to have arrived at the South Pole, Leader Liang Jue sat quietly on the ground along with Liang Qu and three elders in the early stages of fusion, ignoring the green light before them.

Of course, Liang Jue was also constantly sensing the movements of the Jin Yang Sect, Cang Yang Valley, Xian Yue Ya, and Jiu Gong Dao, knowing they were planning to unite. Yet, he wasn’t worried at all and didn’t take their actions seriously, as if he could handle them all by himself no matter how they united.

Liang Qu and the other three elders, seeing that Liang Jue remained silent, didn’t dare disturb him either and stayed with him, sitting quietly on the ground.

……

Inside the Dimensional Sphere.

Just as Qu Yi had melted a material using the Samadhi True Fire, the Artifact God appeared.

“Qu Yi, stop getting familiar with the material for now. The Eight Directions Sword is about to be born,” the Artifact God called out as soon as it appeared.

There was only a green light outside, and everything remained quiet. Yet the Artifact God was so certain that the Eight Directions Sword would emerge.

Qu Yi was momentarily stunned but didn’t question why the Artifact God was so confident. After all, the Artifact God wouldn’t tell him anyway, so it was better to save his energy and avoid getting annoyed by it.

“Alright, if that’s the case, call Rong Huo over. If necessary, let him go out and fight,” Qu Yi said with a smile.

Rong Huo came from Lan Yang Palace and was at the early stage of fusion cultivation. Since Cang Yang Valley ambushed Lan Yang Palace and won, killing most of its members, Qu Yi had brought Rong Huo into the Dimensional Sphere.

Soon, Rong Huo finished his cultivation and immediately flew over to Qu Yi.

……

The green light in the South Pole lasted for three days.

Suddenly, green light flashed, and then, like an explosion, thousands of green beams shot out into the distance. The green light over Antarctica had disappeared, and the entire world trembled again. A fierce and deadly aura soon spread out. The Eight Directions Sword was about to be born! Everyone from the five sects immediately reacted, watching eagerly the turbulent area at the pole, ready to fight for it at any moment.