Volume 1, Chapter 410 – Heavenly Mandate

A pitch-black fissure appeared in the vault of heaven, rapidly widening as it condensed into a deep passage. Vast fluctuations of essence swept through the nine heavens.

A massive warship, stretching several thousand zhang from end to end, emerged from the passage and came to a halt high in the sky. The spiritual light that spread beneath it across the heavens was like a blazing sun, dazzling beyond compare.

At the top of the warship, battle banners fluttered in the wind. Above a pattern of a single line piercing the clouds were the two characters “Tianyan,” gleaming with golden light.

Everyone present changed expression, especially the two Enshrined Elders of the Moonshadow Dynasty, whose faces turned grave.

A flying warship of this size was clearly a weapon of war at a glance. Even the Moonshadow Dynasty did not possess such a monstrous thing.

“Who are you people? State your names!”

The white-haired old man who had spoken earlier asked again, though his tone had unconsciously lowered quite a bit.

No answer came. A few breaths later, more than three hundred streaks of escaping light came howling down from the warship. Standing on flying swords, they halted in midair, their auras linking into one and stirring the entire sky.

At their head was a young man just over twenty, handsome in appearance and extraordinary in bearing, like a refined gentleman.

The men and women behind him all had radiant skin and fine features. As their auras expanded and contracted, faint white mist rose around them, as if immortals had descended into the mortal world.

“Greetings, Sect Master.”

Ignoring everyone else present, Li Canglan landed before Shi Lan and bowed.

“Forty-seven Core Formation Realm disciples, two hundred and seventy-six Foundation Establishment Realm disciples. Including this subordinate, there are three hundred and twenty-four of us in total.”

The more than three hundred disciples sheathed their flying swords and descended to the ground one after another. Fanatical reverence appeared on their faces. Dropping to one knee, they saluted and shouted in unison,

“We pay our respects to the Sect Master!”

Shi Lan lifted her eyes and swept her gaze over the Tianyan Sect disciples, feeling fairly satisfied. Though their cultivation was still insufficient, they at least already showed the signs of soaring upward.

Rеαⅾ oո ΚatRеαԁingСаfe

Tianyan was still young. Its future was full of promise.

Liang Yunnan and the others stood to one side, not daring to make the slightest sound. Out of the more than three hundred people before them, any random one was above the third rank.

The ignored people in the sky reacted in different ways. The people from the Cube Space all looked grave and had already begun to edge backward. Even the one who had come with the two Enshrined Elders was no exception.

As for the two Enshrined Elders of the Moonshadow Dynasty, their faces were ashen, as though they had suffered an unparalleled humiliation.

The Moonshadow Dynasty commanded the hundred sects under heaven. Under the whole heaven, all land belonged to the sovereign. As royal Enshrined Elders, they were already among the finest experts in the world, always lofty and arrogant, far above the masses. When had they ever been treated with such contempt?

Aside from that woman of unknown origin, they had already seen through the cultivation of everyone present. Only the leading young man was on the same level as they were. The rest were beneath notice.

“What sect or school do you belong to? Secretly constructing such a war machine behind the court’s back, what are your intentions?!”

The Enshrined Elder who had remained silent until now wore a frosty expression, his eyes full of killing intent.

“The dynasty has long had a decree: no flying vessel in the world may exceed a thousand zhang, and all must be registered. By acting in this way, you have overstepped the proper bounds between ruler and subject. Do you wish to bring destruction upon your sect?!”

Even if that woman were one of the greatest experts under heaven, beneath the iron hoofs of the Moonshadow Dynasty’s army, she would still have to bow her head and submit.

Li Canglan remained unmoved. Bowing slightly, he sought Shi Lan’s instruction.

“Kill them.”

Shi Lan’s expression did not change in the slightest. She calmly uttered a single word, without the least trace of killing intent.

The moment the word fell, more than three hundred flying swords left their sheaths at once. Surging sword-light filled heaven and earth in all directions, aligning dimly with the stars of the firmament as phantoms of the Four Sacred Beasts appeared and sealed off the world.

The eyes of all the Tianyan disciples were icy, murderous intent boiling from them.

The seventh rule of Tianyan Sect’s Seven Prohibitions:

Rеаԁ οո КаtReаⅾіngCafе

Any who insult our sect without cause or harm our brothers and sisters of the sect shall be slain!

To insult the sect was already to step into forbidden ground.

Li Canglan entered the formation with sword in hand, his aura sharp and fully revealed, his eyes bright as stars. This was Tianyan Sect’s first drawing of the sword across the heavens and myriad worlds. He would not allow the slightest mistake.

The disciples he had brought had all specialized in the sword for years. Combined with the Four Symbols Sword Formation, they could unleash battle strength far beyond the Spirit Infant Realm. Freed from the shackles of the Lingyang Realm, their might was even more terrifying.

The cultivation of those two Enshrined Elders was roughly equivalent to Myriad Phenomena Realm martial artists in the Lingyang Realm. In this world, they were supreme experts capable of splitting rivers and cutting off currents.

Had it not been for Shi Lan’s presence, none of the Cube Space participants here would have escaped death.

But now the two Enshrined Elders did not last long within the sword formation. After no more than the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the sword-light filling the sky dispersed. Li Canglan walked out with his sword in hand, carrying two bloodstained heads.

Shi Lan glanced at the retreating Cube Space group and then looked away, having no interest in pursuing them. Looking at Li Canglan, she asked,

“If we establish the sect in this world, what difficulties are there?”

“In this subordinate’s opinion, the Moonshadow Dynasty is currently the greatest threat. As long as the dynasty remains, the sect’s development will inevitably be restricted. Moreover, blood enmity has already been forged. Once we open the mountain gate, we will surely be attacked by their army.”

Li Canglan already had a general understanding of this world’s background. After pondering for a moment, he continued,

“The Moonshadow Dynasty has stood for many years, and its national fortune is now at its height. With only the disciples this subordinate has brought, we are too weak on our own to confront it head-on.”

“Then we go straight to the Moonshadow imperial capital.”

Shi Lan naturally understood what Li Canglan meant. She directly led Liang Yunnan and the others aboard the warship.

A dull roar sounded from within the warship. Then it instantly tore through the sound barrier, turning into a streak of light that shot toward the horizon.

Rеαd oո ΚatRеаdіոɡСαfe

…

The Moonshadow Dynasty had endured for ten thousand years. The imperial clan was the Wu clan, and powerful experts were as numerous as clouds within it. Their control over the world was as firm as an iron wall. The many cultivation sects could only live by watching their expression, not daring to overstep in the slightest, and every year they had to offer up great quantities of cultivation resources on time.

Moreover, whenever the emperor selected consorts, those sects also had to send female disciples into the palace to help the imperial family spread its branches and leaves.

It could be said that for many sects, when it came to the Moonshadow Dynasty, they were furious but dared not speak out for the sake of their inheritance, and could only become its hounds.

At this moment, deep within the imperial palace, Wu Tan sat upon the dragon throne in a dark-gold dragon robe. Below him stood six Enshrined Elders, their expressions all different.

He had already learned of the deaths of the two Enshrined Elders, and he was somewhat enraged.

What angered Wu Tan was not the loss of the two Enshrined Elders, but the fact that someone dared to challenge imperial authority. Without question, that had touched his reverse scale.

“What are your views on this matter?”

Hum—

The Enshrined Elders exchanged glances, about to speak, when a violent scream of air suddenly came from outside the hall.

Wu Tan’s expression changed. He rose and flashed out of the hall together with the Enshrined Elders.

A huge warship blotted out the sky overhead, casting down a vast shadow that made people instinctively feel fear.

At the very front of the warship’s deck stood an unparalleled figure, her imposing aura wholly unconcealed, like a god or devil.

“Were the two Enshrined Elders killed by your hand?”

Wu Tan showed no fear on his face, only a dark and gloomy look, as he stared at the woman standing on the warship’s deck and shouted,

“You are provoking the entire Moonshadow Dynasty. Are you trying to start a war?!”

Rеaⅾ οn KаtReαdіngСаfe

Shi Lan glanced at him and showed no intention of answering. She spoke directly.

“This seat intends to establish a sect in this world. The Moonshadow Dynasty is not to interfere or harass it.”

“You are someone from beyond this world?!”

Wu Tan’s expression shifted slightly as he grasped the key point. Clearly, the imperial family possessed secret records that let him know things ordinary people did not.

“I do not agree!”

“This seat is only notifying you. I do not wish to create slaughter without cause. Those two men first provoked with their words and thus earned their deaths. If you remain stubborn and insist on seeking death, then today this seat will wipe the imperial Wu bloodline from the Yuanji World forever.”

Shi Lan had never been the hesitant sort. She had no interest in this world, but Tianyan Sect’s development was, to her, the thread of life that might one day protect her Dao. It could not be obstructed.

As long as these people knew their place, then the Yuanji World could still remain under the Moonshadow Dynasty.

“Now the entire Yuanji World lies beneath my feet. If you act in such a perverse and rebellious manner, then you are traitors and rebels, and heaven itself will strike you down!”

Wu Tan’s expression was cold and severe. He spread his arms and shouted to the sky,

“So what if you come from beyond this world? Heavenly Mandate rests with me, not with you!”

“Heavenly Mandate?”

Shi Lan gave a cold snort. The Heaven’s Eye at her spiritual platform opened, and a giant hand that blotted out the sky reached into the sea of clouds above the imperial palace. A few breaths later, it dragged a golden dragon of fortune out from among the clouds.

The golden dragon of fortune struggled ceaselessly in her grasp, yet could not break free.

“So this is the Heavenly Mandate you speak of?”