World's No. 1 Swordsman-Chapter 645: Unshakable by Array, Unbreakable by Law

A day passed, then another. Soon, half a month slipped by in the blink of an eye.

Wang Sheng had been standing before the trunk of the divine tree all this time, striking what he liked to think was an impressive pose. Eventually, a corner of his mouth twitched. He gave up, sat down cross-legged, and reached into his robes to take out the jade pendant that Zhuge Lin had given him.

It's already been half a month. Why hasn't my senior sister broken through yet? How long is she going to cultivate here? Months? Years? Centuries?

The longer they stayed, the more dangerous their situation became. Regardless, this was a heaven-sent opportunity for Mu Wanxuan. Even if he had to stake his life on it, he was determined to see her through to the very end.

Then again, this place was adrift in space. Even great experts and major sects would need time to reach Qiling. Wensheng had also said he would use the excuse that this was the Qiling Immortal Sect's medicinal garden to hold back the first wave of cultivators.

Still, the Qiling Immortal Sect's strength was limited. They would not dare provoke powerful factions or mighty beings. After stalling as much as they reasonably could, they would close their mountain gate and stop getting involved with the matter.

"Senior Zhuge Lin and Wensheng have truly helped us. I will have to find a way to repay them in the future."

As his fingers traced the carved patterns on the jade pendant, Wang Sheng wondered whether he should make preparations of his own. If Heavenly Immortals managed to reach this place, perhaps he could simply "send them back out."

If only he could see what was happening beyond the arrays. Who knew whether fighting had already erupted outside.

Just as the thought crossed his mind, lights flickered wildly along the divine tree. A series of muffled thunderclaps rolled in from every direction.

Despite the layers upon layers of grand arrays, Wang Sheng still felt the primal qi outside spiral into chaos. The Great Dao itself seemed to tremble repeatedly.

What is this? Is some mighty being trying to blast open the array that Emperor Qinghua created?

A surge of urgency rose in Wang Sheng's chest. He leaped into the air and, in a streak of flame, sped upward along the massive trunk.

Even without him merging with Yaoyun, Soaring Red Feathers allowed him to reach extreme speeds. He was already at the late stage of the True Immortal Realm, after all. Nevertheless, it still took him several seconds to fly from the base of the tree to where the trunk met the canopy due to how enormous the tree truly was.

He reached the area where the immortal palace was, only to find it sealed behind layers of arrays. From afar, he could only make out the faint outline of a grand hall.

Mu Wanxuan was inside. Her aura was steady, and she seemed to have entered deep meditation.

Good. At least the disturbance outside hasn't affected her.

Wang Sheng gazed up, finding leaves as large as several to even dozens of mu[1] spread out above him like floating continents. He plunged straight into their midst. It seemed like a labyrinth. After wandering for quite some time, he finally reached the very top.

Above him were three walls of light—the outer, middle, and inner arrays. They were linked together, reinforcing one another. The space above the tree had clearly been forged into the strongest defensive point.

Just shy of the tree's peak, Wang Sheng stood and looked around on a branch as vast as a mountain range. The huge canopy covered part of the outer region and completely enveloped the middle and inner regions. It was almost as if everything that happened here unfolded under the watchful gaze of the divine tree itself.

The walls of the inner arrays cut straight through the canopy, leaving no hidden path for intruders. Black clouds drifted among the leaves, wandering freely.

Even now, Wang Sheng had no idea what those clouds were or how they operated.

At that moment, more than a dozen beams of light flared beyond the heavens and struck the outer array almost simultaneously.

Thunderous booms erupted. Heaven and earth quaked, and the Great Dao rang out in protest. Nevertheless, it seemed as though nothing more than a gentle breeze had brushed against the divine tree. Its leaves swayed lightly, but the outer array remained firm and unmoved.

Wang Sheng fell silent.

Wary that the mighty beings outside could glimpse him through the barrier, he concealed his presence. He then waited.

After a short while, a third wave of attacks crashed down. This time, even more people seemed to be striking. The impact created an even greater spectacle, yet the barrier itself showed not the slightest sign of damage; not even the faintest crack appeared.

More and more experts gathered outside and joined the assault. Explosions rolled endlessly. The Great Dao vibrated in overlapping waves. In space beyond the array, tides of primal qi began to surge.

The offensive reached its peak half a day later.

In a single instant, Wang Sheng saw hundreds of streaks of light erupt and fall like a meteor shower across the barrier. He could sense that the attacks were mixed with divine abilities belonging to multiple Grand Dao Golden Immortals.

For the first and final time, faint ripples spread across four or five areas of the outer barrier like circles on water. They vanished almost at once, restoring complete calm.

The divine tree reacted as though a moderate gust of wind had brushed against it. A few leaves swayed gently, then stilled.

No matter how many experts gathered, how powerful their divine abilities, or how many cultivators combined their strength to bombard it, the array stood firm. It did not dent nor crack. Moreover, the restrictions within remained entirely intact.

Qinghua's mastery of arrays truly matched his reputation as one of the Four Heavenly Ministers. He was, without question, extraordinary.

Wang Sheng had already seen Ziwei through the Dao traces that he had left behind. He was a stunning and peerless immortal, commanding the stars with a single sword and roaming freely across the cosmos.

Qinghua, who was as renowned as Ziwei, had left behind an array capable of blocking so many powerful beings. His decree that "Golden Immortals and above shall not enter" was like an iron law that no one dared defy.

Wang Sheng felt genuine admiration rise within him.

After that final surge of attacks, no one struck the array again. Clearly, the experts outside had realized that brute force could never open it. Quite a few experts outside were likely already studying the workings of the array, yet no matter how much they calculated or deduced, they would not find a single point of breakthrough.

If the mighty experts cannot break it open, they will probably choose a few outstanding Heavenly Immortals to enter instead, Wang Sheng thought. His heart, which had nearly leaped out through his throat, finally settled.

He stood upon the soft leaf beneath his feet and swept his gaze across every region he could see. Afterward, he took out the map that Zhuge Lin had given him and carefully matched the marked restrictions on the map with the terrain around the trunk. Every detail aligned perfectly.

It seemed that Zhuge Lin had truly taken part in setting up this grand array in the past. If so, then he probably knew how to break it.

Wang Sheng frowned. He suddenly felt that Zhuge Lin had kept many things unsaid. Still, the man had helped him and his senior sister out of goodwill. There was no reason to complain. Just then, a faint warmth spread across his palm. He looked down at the jade pendant in his hand and saw a soft emerald glow flickering over its surface.

"Mm?"

He was just about to call Yaoyun out to examine the situation together when he suddenly heard a gentle voice by his ear. At the same time, he felt as though someone had embraced him from behind.

"Junior Brother..."

Senior Sister?

Wang Sheng froze, then turned sharply. A pale green light drifted backward and gathered several meters away, forming a vague phantasm.

Senior Sister's phantasm?

It was in flowing robes that fluttered lightly, yet its outline and facial features were blurred, like a wandering soul.

The phantasm beckoned to him and softly called, "Come..."

Wang Sheng reached behind and grabbed the hilt of Spiritless, his expression turning solemn as he swiftly gave chase.

The phantasm drifted toward the central region of the canopy. He pursued at full speed, yet no matter how much he increased his pace, the phantasm maintained the same distance. It neither slowed nor allowed him to catch up.

Was it really my senior sister who was calling me? No, it can't be. Although the aura was nearly identical to hers, it wasn't her. Was it the divine tree guiding me, or has someone arranged something here?

Wang Sheng instinctively checked Mu Wanxuan's soul lamp inside his Qiankun Ring, but it showed no anomaly. He could also faintly sense that she remained in deep meditation.

Is this some state similar to one's Primordial Spirit leaving the body?

"Yaoyun, do you sense anything?"

Yaoyun replied, "That's definitely not Hua Qing, but it is guiding you somewhere. Go and take a look. With that pendant in your hand, you shouldn't be in any danger."

After flying an unknown distance, the phantasm stopped before a massive main branch and pointed toward an inconspicuous tree hollow. It then dispersed into strands of immortal light and vanished.

Hovering above a branch as vast as a mountain peak, Wang Sheng did not dare enter rashly. He carefully examined the hollow.

It was about two meters wide and shaped in a regular oval. Moreover, it had an extremely deep interior. His immortal perception could only extend a dozen meters before an unseen force blocked it.

From within Spiritless, Yaoyun telepathically instructed, "It should be the divine tree guiding you here. Go inside and see."

Wang Sheng was about to nod when he felt an itch on his forehead, and the small wooden sword that had been suppressing the Myriad-Slaying Sword Intent abruptly emerged from between his eyebrows. It circled once in front of him, then flew behind his back.

Seemingly dissatisfied by his hesitation, the small wooden sword thrust straight against the spine of the Dragon Sword, which was on his back. An overwhelming force surged from the blade and shoved him straight into the hollow, sending him plunging downward and making a corner of his mouth twitch uncontrollably.

"Pfft!" Yaoyun chuckled faintly.

The wooden sword continued to push. Wang Sheng dropped rapidly, causing streaks of green light to flash past him like meteors. They seemed to be some mysterious meridian within the branches and trunk of the divine tree.

It truly fit the old saying, "The sword grows impatient when its master hesitates."

Once Wang Sheng started flying downward of his own accord, the small wooden sword stopped pushing. It darted to his left hand and wedged itself between his index and middle fingers, deliberately positioning itself so that he had to hold it.

Wang Sheng was rendered speechless.

Everything had been arranged for him from start to finish.

The hollow extended for an unknown distance, twisting several times along the way. From his calculations, he had already reached the trunk and was now descending even further down.

It felt like a bottomless abyss, yet since it was inside the divine tree's trunk, he knew he would eventually reach the bottom if he kept going.

After a while, Wang Sheng saw a green lake below. His immortal perception still could not spread outward, but upon closer inspection, it was not filled with water. Rather, it was made of an immense concentration of vitality and primal qi.

According to his calculations, he had reached the root of the divine tree. He had just stopped when the small wooden sword tugged his left hand forward and dragged him headfirst into the Spirit Pool below.it didn't even give him a moment to think.

Right after, the world spun. A narrow realm hidden in the deepest part of the divine tree revealed itself before Wang Sheng.

1. Chinese unit of measurement, about 60 zhang squared or 666.67 meters squared ☜