Lu Yun had noticed something unusual just now when unleashing the Black Emperor. Some of the North Sea’s power seemed to have gathered on the cannon and amplified its might by roughly five percent.

Is it because of the Divine Seaward Iron?

Lu Yun had speculated that the cannon would be different from the other weapon of war replicas he’d refined even before it’d taken shape, but he was still pleasantly surprised by the result.

Layers upon layers of layouts and coiled mountains protected the North Sea skydragon tomb, preventing the power of the land from entering. And yet the Black Emperor had still managed to draw upon some of the North Sea’s power to boost its own might.

If he were to use it outside the tomb...

What would happen then almost didn’t bear imagining. Perhaps the Black Emperor would become a true weapon of war, capable of killing with the power of heaven and earth.

……

“What’s going on here?!” Lu Yun, Qing Han, and the two members of the Star Demon Sect came to a surprised halt when they entered the heart of the tomb.

Before them lay a world of shifting silver, layers of iridescent starlight isolating it from the outside. Thick, mist-like veils prevented them from seeing more than thirty meters away. Not even Situ Zong’s sharp eyes could see through it.

“What’s... what’s this?” Hauling the Black Emperor on his shoulder, Situ Zong stared dumbly ahead. It felt as if he’d exited the tomb and entered a different world. “It wasn’t like this last I came, there was no starlight.”

“This is it, it’s really it!” Qing Han exclaimed in excitement. “It’s the Cosmic Sea, companion treasure to the Cosmic Skycarver!”

He looked at Lu Yun with sparkling eyes and cheered in a delighted tone, “You’ve hit a bottleneck in your sword dao, so further improvement will be challenging. However, with the help of the Cosmic Sea, you’ll be able to make the leap!”

Qing Han was no less endowed with talent than Lu Yun. The Tome of Life and Death pushed Lu Yun’s talent to incredible heights, while Qing Han enjoyed the blessings of the Dao Flower.

He could observe Lu Yun’s progress in cultivation and identify the problems his friend faced. Lu Yun’s sword dao had stagnated since he created his three personal sword techniques, and it was all because of his sword aura!

His sword aura had reached the realm of great perfection, but his customary sword ocean was now restricting and confining his intent from the pursuit of true freedom.

However free the deep blue was, it could never go beyond the parameters of itself. Such a narrow definition of freedom would naturally be restricted. When it broke free of the ocean, his sword aura would fall apart.

This completely obstructed his progress in sword dao.

In order to overcome those challenges, Lu Yun’s sword aura would have to transcend itself and reach a higher level. The third of his personal techniques, Starstream Stroke, had long shown him the way.

A field of stars!

He would expand his sword ocean to encompass the cosmos!

Every star was in itself a world, and the countless stars of the firmament were symbolic of endless worlds which formed the greater whole of the cosmos. Such was the structure of all living beings in the universe, and the mindset of a freedom that transcended everything.

The Cosmic Sea was a connate-grade treasure born of the concentrated essence of the starry sky, a complement to the Cosmic Skycarver. Within it resided the truths of the universe.

Situ Zong had discovered only the Cosmic Skycarver the last time he was here. When he took the weapon, he’d lifted the restriction on the Cosmic Sea, which had then unleashed its power and flooded the heart of the tomb with starlight.

The immortals in the area had been alerted to the treasure’s presence and were doing all they could to collect it.

“Follow me!” Qing Han grabbed Lu Yun’s hand and led him away before he could react.

Hoisting the Black Emperor with one hand and grabbing Situ Yun with the other, Situ Zong hurried after them, lest the two young lords encounter some danger.

“Here we are!” Qing Han stopped after some time.

In the eyes of the others, there was nothing different about the shimmering world around them. However, the disguised girl had refined the Cosmic Skycarver with Treasure Refining Talismans while Situ Zong was refining the Pelagic Org. He could easily sense the Cosmic Sea by activating the blade with his starstones.

“Careful! We’re in the skydragon tomb!” Lu Yun suddenly yanked Qing Han back, shielding his friend with his own body. His eyes turned pure black as he activated the Spectral Eye.

“What… what’s wrong? What do you see?” The question tumbled from Qing Han’s lips when he noticed Lu Yun’s suddenly veiny hands and tense muscles.

“Who are you?” Lu Yun asked instead of responding to Qing Han, looking into the unexplored space ahead of him. There was a pair of white eyes hovering there that looked human, but were completely devoid of emotion. Moreover, they stared back at Lu Yun like he was already dead.

“Not gonna talk?” He narrowed his eyes. “Aim the cannon at your eleven o’clock, Situ Zong!”

The pair of eyes gave Lu Yun so much pressure that he accidentally blurted out an expression used only on Earth.

Situ Zong paused. “My… my eleven o...?”

“That way.” Lu Yun pointed with his right hand.

“Understood!” Situ Zong turned and pointed the cannon at his eleven.

Mockery flashed through the eyes before they closed and disappeared; the haze of silver mist seemed to be their eyelids.

Those looked just like the ones in the depths of hell. They aren’t the same pair of eyes, but they belong to the same kind of people.

Nothing in hell could forever elude its overlord’s senses, and he’d learned of the pair of eyes that’d emerged when he was finished studying the talisman formations.

“Alright, we’re safe now.” Lu Yun waved a hand and secretly sighed in relief, sweat having drenched his clothes.

Situ Zong cast a surprised look at Lu Yun, the Black Emperor hefted by one hand and Situ Yun in the other. He was still wrapping his head around what had happened.

"To seek a dragon of mountains coiled,

Those deathly cliffs with mysteries roiled.

If danger lurks behind the doors closed,

Yin and yang a road to heaven rose."

Luopan manifesting in hand to spill forth a vibrant golden light, Lu Yun directed the radiance to form a beam of light that split apart the silver veil and forge a path of intertwining gold and silver fifty-four meters wide. It led to the half open room at the heart of the tomb.

There were many immortals along the path who were gradually finding their way toward the chamber.

“It’s Lu Yun! What’s that in his hand? It split the silver starlight here!” The immortals looked upon Lu Yun with greed when they saw him and the compass in his hand.

“Situ Zong, aim forward and blast anyone who dares make a move!” Lu Yun said impassively. “I’ve killed two of Beigong Xuan’s replicas already. This scum is nothing.”

“...understood!” Jaw tightened, Situ Zong hoisted the cannon ahead and growled, “If you don’t want to die, scram!”

“Situ Zong! Since when did the Star Demon Sect become Lu Yun’s lapdog?!” The immortals panicked when they saw him.