Turned to ashes in a single instant

Su Yizhao turned his head to look, his eyes lighting up instantly.

Of the newcomers, he recognized three!

One was Xuan Wuji, one was Long Aotian, and the third was Di Shatian!

He never expected that they would cross paths again after all these years apart.

Su Yizhao cupped his fists and said, "Greetings, Elders!"

Could any cultivator walking alongside Long Aotian possibly be ordinary?

Xuan Wuji chuckled first. "You're growing up fast, kid!"

Long Aotian also smiled. "It seems he still holds a grudge against me!"

Su Yizhao was left speechless!

Back then, Xuan Wuji had wanted to bring him straight into the Profound Heaven Sect, but Long Aotian had refused.

To say he held no grudge would be a lie!

Yet, how could he really hold it against them?

At that moment, another elder stepped closer and said, "I am Mo Taotian. Just call me Elder Mo! What was the principle behind that punch of yours earlier?"

Mo Taotian?

A member of the Mo family?

Su Yizhao looked up, only to feel a sudden wave of dizziness wash over his mind!

Right then, the Divine Deer's voice echoed in his mind. "A cheap trick! Don't look into his eyes!"

Su Yizhao tried to look away, only to find that he couldn't move his gaze at all!

There seemed to be some sort of magical pull within Mo Taotian's eyes, locking his vision firmly in place!

Just as this happened, a sudden ripple of spiritual energy pulsed through his mind.

Feeling his vision instantly unburdened, he managed to look away.

"Oh?"

Mo Taotian let out a surprised hum and praised, "Not bad at all. Quite a fine sapling!"

Cold sweat was already beading on Su Yizhao's back.

Damn it!

What kind of cultivation base was this? What kind of technique?

"This fellow specializes in the soul. It must be some sort of demonic art!" the Divine Deer said in his purple mansion.

Su Yizhao asked in astonishment, "He specializes only in the soul? Shouldn't it be a triple cultivation of Qi, Body, and Soul?"

The Divine Deer sneered, "Do you think everyone possesses the *Profound Qi Creation Art*?"

Su Yizhao suddenly understood.

It wasn't that people didn't want to cultivate everything together; the key was that there simply wasn't enough time!

The higher the realm, the harder it became to cultivate and break through!

At times like that, it was far better to focus on specializing in a single path!

"Kid Su, I'm glad to see you didn't kill Feng Yuanzhou," a tall cultivator standing at the front spoke up at that moment.

Su Yizhao didn't dare hesitate. He cupped his fists and replied, "Elder, I am a swordsman, not a bloodthirsty demon."

Xuan Wuji was instantly speechless!

Could you please phrase things a bit more grandly?

Fellow disciples sparring with one another is meant to be mutual assistance for shared progress! Can't you say something like that?

Besides, that title of yours—"swordsman"—doesn't sound all that impressive either!

Xuan Wuji quickly reminded him, "This is the Great Elder of our sect, Elder Shang Zhentian. Aren't you going to greet him?"

Hearing this, Su Yizhao grew nervous as well.

The Great Elder of the Profound Heaven Sect!

The Great Elder of the number one sect in the entire Central Continent!

Just as he was about to cup his hands and bow, Shang Zhentian let out a hearty laugh. "Good! Truly a fine young man! His innate disposition is sound!"

Su Yizhao didn't know how to respond!

To be called a fine young man felt a bit much, but as for having a sound disposition—that was entirely accurate!

Seeing that his expression remained neither overly pleased nor sorrowful, Shang Zhentian held him in even higher regard. He turned to Mo Taotian and asked, "He broke the record of the Cultivation Tower. The rewards due to him should be given, right?"

Mo Taotian was rendered utterly speechless!

You're the Great Elder, you call the shots!

Meanwhile, Su Yizhao was bewildered!

He broke a record?

Could it be referring to that arrogant young man on the tenth floor?

Rewards meant good news, of course!

A sense of anticipation welled up within him.

Naturally, Mo Taotian had no choice but to nod in agreement!

Shang Zhentian looked at him and said, "You are known as the Brothel Swordsman, but where is your flying sword?"

Su Yizhao looked over at Mo Taotian and said, "It was destroyed by someone from the Mo family!"

Mo Taotian's expression instantly darkened a fraction!

Shang Zhentian said, "If it was destroyed, it must be compensated. Elder Mo, how about...?"

"A void-grade flying sword, I will compensate him!" Mo Taotian replied hastily.

With a flick of his right hand, a black flying sword materialized in the air!

With the financial resources of the Mo family, compensating a void-grade weapon was entirely effortless!

Seeing the flying sword hurtling toward him, Su Yizhao quickly reached out and grabbed it.

Trading nine divine weapons for a single void-grade weapon was an absolute bargain!

Right now, he didn't even have a single profound stone to his name and was worrying about where to acquire some. This came just in time!

Shang Zhentian nodded in satisfaction. "You were just issued a hundred million top-grade profound stones, so you shouldn't be lacking in funds. Rewarding you with more profound stones would be rather pointless!"

It would be very meaningful, actually! Su Yizhao screamed internally!

Yet, abruptly, Xuan Wuji shot him a warning look.

He immediately swallowed his words!

Shang Zhentian continued, "Once you reach above the Eightfold Void Realm, you can barely manage to cultivate the sect's *Profound Heaven Sword Technique*. How about I reward you with that?"

Su Yizhao was dazed!

Prior to this, he had never even heard of the *Profound Heaven Sword Technique*.

Moreover, the seventh-tier perfection *Cosmos Sword Technique* already possessed immense might, and he had never imagined there would be an even more formidable sword manual!

Xuan Wuji hurriedly prompted, "Why aren't you thanking the Great Elder? This *Profound Heaven Sword Technique* does not exist anywhere outside the sect!"

Hearing this, Su Yizhao promptly cupped his fists and said, "Many thanks, Great Elder!"

Shang Zhentian produced a jade slip and tossed it over to him!

Mo Taotian's expression shifted once more!

Wasn't it agreed that he should be left to develop on his own and only be interfered with at critical moments?

Why was he handing out such rewards the moment they met?

Clearly, this jade slip had been prepared long in advance.

The *Profound Heaven Sword Technique*!

It was regarded as one of the sect's most strictly guarded secret sword techniques. Below the rank of elder, only disciples who had made monumental contributions to the sect were permitted to study it.

Up to the present day, fewer than twenty people had ever received this reward.

Su Yizhao hurriedly caught it.

Noticing that Shang Zhentian still looked as though he hadn't had his fill of giving gifts, Mo Taotian hastily jumped in with a question. "How on earth did you defeat that young man?"

Su Yizhao asked, "You mean that insufferably arrogant kid on the tenth floor?"

Everyone was left speechless once more!

Granted, the fellow was indeed arrogant!

But that fellow had every right to be arrogant!

Xuan Wuji was deeply intrigued, eagerly waiting for him to say some flattering words.

For instance, mentioning how he achieved it under his guidance...!

Suddenly, he recalled that he didn't seem to have taught him anything at all!

Seeing that everyone remained silent, Su Yizhao asked with genuine puzzlement, "Wasn't he arrogant? Originally, I didn't want to fight him, but he was just acting way too full of himself, so...!"

Xuan Wuji asked excitedly, "So you fought him for three days and three nights? And finally managed to defeat him by a narrow margin?"

Su Yizhao shook his head!

Everyone was stunned!

He shook his head?

Could it have been easy?

"In just an instant, that young man turned into ashes!"

Everyone shouted in unison, "Impossible!"

Su Yizhao cupped his fists once more. "Speaking of which, I actually wanted to ask the Great Elder about this: that identity token is truly amazing. I wonder if it can be replaced?"

Shang Zhentian froze instantly!

Everyone present froze in place!

Identity token?

Why bring up the identity token all of a sudden?

Suddenly, realization dawned on Mo Taotian. He pointed at Su Yizhao and stammered, "You—you actually shattered your identity token?!"

Everyone snapped back to their senses, their auras instantly erupting in sheer fury!

Su Yizhao felt a sudden sense of impending doom!

Was something wrong?

Could an identity token not be replaced?

Even if it couldn't be replaced, there was no need to get this angry, right?

He stammered in shock, "Elders, I just wanted to test whether the identity token was real or not!"

Mo Taotian said indignantly, "That doesn't count!"

Long Aotian chimed in, "Why wouldn't it count? Who laid down a rule saying it can't be used?"

Xuan Wuji added, "The strike contained within the identity token is meant precisely for disciples to use in moments of crisis!"

Su Yizhao thought to himself that he was doomed!

It looked like the void-grade weapon and the sword technique were going to be taken back!

And that identity token probably couldn't be replaced either...!