First Immortal of the Sword

Chaotic, ancient, and primeval Grand Dao source power filled Su Yi’s surroundings as he sat cross-legged, calmed his heart, and pondered how best to temper his powers of the Grand Dao.

Whoosh!

When he exerted his will, the misty source energies of the Grand Dao gathered around him from all sides, surging like the tides.

Within Su Yi’s body, the Nascent Divinity shaped like the Sword of the Nine Hells rumbled and boomed, giving rise to numerous powers of the Grand Dao.

Profound Ruin, Reincarnation, the Light of the Universe, and other Laws of the Grand Dao seemed to come to life. As Su Yi’s nascent Divinity shook rhythmically, it started refining the Grand Dao source power flowing into his body.

Su Yi’s cultivation base had already reached the late-stage Manifesting Void Realm. One more step, and he’d reach the peak of the realm.

But his power of the Grand Dao advanced more slowly.

This was because comprehending the Grand Dao wasn’t just a matter of assiduous cultivation. You needed opportunities, revelations, and tempering.

Before I prove my Dao and become an immortal, I need to fuse my powers of the Grand Dao into one.

Reincarnation touches upon a supreme, forbidden power of the natural order. It’s enough to strike fear even into the hearts of gods. I have to advance my mastery of it as quickly as possible. Only then can I condense the corresponding Immortal Laws upon breaking into the Immortal Dao.

As for my other powers of the Grand Dao… I can just fuse them into the mysteries of Profound Ruin.

Cultivators sought to find oneness in countless Daos, and to bring all techniques back to their source.

Sword cultivators sought to fuse countless sword arts into a cohesive whole, and to cut through all arts and techniques!

When it came to comprehending the Grand Dao, it was best to branch out at first. The more you mastered, the better. However, as your cultivation rose and your understanding of the Grand Dao deepened, you had to fuse everything you’d learned into one.

This was finding simplicity in complexity!

Ultimate simplicity in the Grand Dao didn’t mean casting all other Daos aside to focus on one. Instead, it was like rivers flowing into the sea, disparate Daos merging into one.

“One” referred to the roots of a cultivator’s personal power of the Grand Dao. The Dao gave rise to one, one gave rise to two, and three gave rise to all things.

In this way, a single power could give rise to tens of thousands, and a single slash could manifest in countless ways!

It was only with sufficient accumulations that you could merge countless streams into a vast ocean.

Of course, this return to oneness wasn’t a restriction. Rather, it was a new beginning.

Take the Path of Transcendence. It started with the Nascent Divinity Realm, and ended in the Cloud Soaring Realm.

Stepping into the Immortal Dao was like an all-new beginning. That went for one’s cultivation of the Grand Dao too.

If you fused your Transcendent Laws of the Grand Dao into one, that "one" became the foundations of your Immortal Laws when you stepped into the Grand Dao.

It was like an endless, self-perpetuating cycle.

Alas, throughout the ages, those who’d achieved true perfection at every stage of their cultivation as Su Yi had were so rare as to be counted on one’s fingers.

My path through the Immortal Dao is one that not even Wang Ye ever walked. I cannot follow his old path. This time, I ought to strive for supremacy! It’s only by achieving supreme simplicity in the Grand Dao that I can achieve supreme, unprecedented, and irreplicable strength!

How many Immortal Laws did Wang Ye master back then? Thousands upon thousands! Of them, over a hundred were peak Laws of the Immortal Dao. But in the end, he never managed to truly fuse them or achieve supreme strength through supreme simplicity!

This is because he never found a vessel capable of holding all those Grand Daos. Without one, how could countless streams converge into an ocean?

But in this lifetime, it’s different. Both Profound Ruin and Reincarnation are the most sublime furnaces of the Ground Dao! When I step into the Immortal Dao, all I have to do is choose one of them, and I’ll be able to realize a level of mastery Wang Ye never did.

But this is far from enough! Although reincarnation is a taboo, the mysteries of Profound Ruin aren’t weak either. If I can fully combine Reincarnation and Profound Ruin into a single Grand Dao, it might… be supremely powerful!

Su Yi thus pondered how best to temper his power of the Grand Dao.

Wang Ye had never managed to fuse his Grand Daos into one, but he’d made countless attempts. And every attempt was like forging a new path.

Although they all ultimately ended in failure, his experiences were precious. Su Yi could avoid repeating his mistakes!

Actually, Wang Ye went into seclusion prior to the Battle of Eternal Night to fuse his countless Daos into one, and he’d found a promising approach.

Wang Ye predicted that if he fused his Daos into one, he wouldn’t just be able to transform his power of the Grand Dao. He might even be able to take a step further and attain godhood!

Alas, the Blood Firmament Immortal Sovereign and several other powerful foes ambushed him while he was in seclusion, and all his efforts came to naught.

Su Yi silently promised, Wang Ye, I’ll realize this desire for you in this lifetime!

……

Soon, half a month had passed.

“Your Excellency, everyone in the Black Dragon Market is complaining, both the trading companies and the visiting experts. They hope you can give the order to re-open the passageways to the outside world.”

Commander Xing Yu had come to deliver a report on recent developments to the Red Dragon Dao Monarch.

His face was racked with worry. Ever since the massacre at Auspicious Cloud Palace, the Black Dragon Market had been completely sealed off. No one could enter or leave.

But the market was full of rumors and whispers. Dark currents flowed beneath the surface. Furthermore, numerous prominent experts repeatedly expressed their displeasure and requested an explanation from the Black Dragon Guards.

These experts included Madam Yun Ning of the Divine Jade Pure Lands, Li Songfu of the Six Directions Daoist Temple, and numerous other prominent experts of the Immortal Dao, including the old monsters who’d come here to contemplate the Nine Steles of the Primeval Era.

Admittedly, the Black Dragon Market was the Red Dragon Dao Monarch’s territory.

But if she took this too far, she’d irrevocably offend every faction involved, both big and small. Going forward, no one would be willing to visit the market anymore.

“Let them wait a while longer,” the Red Dragon Dao Monarch said casually. “They’re already complaining. I’m not afraid of irrevocably offending them, either. I refuse to believe that the Black Dragon Market will crumble without them.”

Xing Yu couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.

Meanwhile, the Red Dragon Dao Monarch had already moved on to a different topic. “Right, did you find the immortal medicinal ingredients Seni-...er, Young Lord Lord Su needed?”

“I’ve already found them all,” Xing Yu said hurriedly.

The Red Dragon Dao Monarch nodded. “Good. You can leave, then.”

Xing Yu hesitated, then said, “Your Excellency, it’s been almost a month since the incident at Auspicious Cloud Palace. I suspect the Church of All Spirits has already realized that something is amiss. If they rally their forces and demand an explanation…”

Before he could finish his question, the Red Dragon Dao Monarch said dismissively, “If they dare come here, just kill them.”

“....”

He suddenly realized that there was practically nothing she wouldn’t do for that mysterious Young Lord Su.

“You cannot ruin the Black Dragon Market’s reputation or break its rules on my account. After all, your foster father built this place, and poured his heart’s blood into it. Without his hard work, it would never have become one of the Immortal Realm’s top three black markets.”

As his voice rang out, Su Yi sauntered over with his hands behind his back.

“Step aside.” The Red Dragon Dao Monarch glanced at Xing Yu.

“Got it!” Xing Yu hurriedly left. Inwardly, he sighed in relief. It sounds like it won’t be much longer before the Black Dragon Market opens itself up to the outside world once more! That’s good enough for me.

Meanwhile, the Red Dragon Dao Monarch faced Su Yi and bowed. “Senior, I didn’t know you’d left the Primeval Grounds. Forgive me for not going to welcome you earlier.”

Su Yi laughed dryly and waved the apology away. “You’re wonderful in almost every way, but you’re too reserved and polite.”

The young woman stood there at a bit of a loss, but Su Yi didn’t get hung up on the details. “Come on, let’s go to the Dragon Transformation Pool. I’ll leave once I’ve helped you break your seal.”

Over the past half month of seclusion, he’d fused his powers of the Grand Dao to the highest possible degree, and he’d even gathered an abundance of Grand Dao source power. It was ready and waiting for when he broke into the Immortal Dao.

All Su Yi needed now was an opportune moment to break through and establish this lifetime’s foundations in the Immortal Dao!

The young woman was stunned. She exclaimed, “You mean… right now? Is that okay?”

Su Yi laughed. “The Daoist canons and secret arts I taught you were all in preparation for your transformation into a true dragon. There’s no need for me to do anything else. With your strength and accumulations, once you enter the Dragon Transformation Pool, you’ll be able to break your foster father’s seal and metamorphosize into a true dragon.”

The young woman’s dark golden eyes lit up with obvious excitement. A little while later, she lowered her head. “Many thanks, Senior! Please, come with me.”

With that, she started leading Su Yi to the back of the Dragon’s Retreat.

This was a place shrouded in fog year-round, with ancient formations that blotted out the sun.

When the Red Dragon Dao Monarch activated the formations, an unbelievable scene appeared——

A golden ocean came into view, seemingly boundlessly vast. Its waters churned, giving rise to dazzling lightning.

This was the Dragon Transformation Pool! The most mysterious, fortuitous place in the Black Dragon Market. Rumor had it that the Dragon Transformation Pool gathered the purest ancestral draconic energies of heaven and earth!

Alas, only flood dragons were capable of absorbing and refining this power. No one else could lay a finger on it.

“Go on. With your foundations, you’ll be able to break your seal and become a dragon,” urged Su Yi.

The Red Dragon Dao Monarch nodded. Her eyes shone with determination, and she leaped into the golden water flashing with lightning.

Boom!!

Terrifying lightning slammed into the young woman. Her skin cracked, splattering blood.

But it was as if she didn’t even notice. She endured the torment of the lightning’s relentless battering to reach the heart of the Dragon Transformation Pool, where she leaped into the air.

The roar of a dragon rang out, and her slender figure expanded into a ten-thousand-foot Red Dragon. She crashed into the water, creating an enormous wave. Endless thunderclaps boomed throughout heaven and earth.

The entirety of the Dragon’s Retreat shook violently.

Throughout the Black Dragon Market, countless cultivators’ hearts shook. They stopped what they were doing and gazed up at the dome of heaven.

Endlessly terrifying draconic majesty made countless cultivators’ hearts shake. They stopped what they were doing and gazed up at the dome of heaven.

That draconic majesty stirred the wind and clouds, enveloping everything in all directions.

The Red Dragon Dao Monarch had been fettered for countless years, yet today, under Su Yi’s guidance, she entered the Dragon Transformation Pool and transformed into a true dragon!

Everyone was astonished.

The only sound was the roar of a dragon booming throughout the nine heavens and ten earths, shaking the souls of all who heard it.

Seth's Thoughts

"The Dao gave rise to one, one gave rise to two, and three gave rise to all things."

This is a (modified) Dao De Jing quote: 道生一，一生二，二生三，三生万物.

As translated by James Legge: "The Dao produced One; One produced Two;Two produced Three; Three produced All things."

The bolded part is missing from the raws. Might just be an error, but I think it's mostly just there for the effect, so I left it as in.

Commentary and alternative translations of the line here.

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