The sky above the Cloud Sword Mountains was no longer its usual serene, pristine blue. As Ye Tian emerged from the dimensional pathway of the Ancient Tomb, the metallic stench of blood and thick plumes of black smoke immediately struck his senses. From a distance, the roars of battle and the thunderous clashes of magical spells echoed across the heavens.

The Cloud Sword Sect was on the brink of annihilation.

Taking advantage of the power vacuum left when the elders and top geniuses departed for the Ancient Tomb, the Joyous Valley Sect—their sworn enemy—had launched a massive dawn raid. Thousands of dark-purple-robed cultivators had breached the sect's outer protective formation, slaughtering inner and outer disciples without mercy.

Ye Tian accelerated his pace. Channeling his physical True Immortal Realm power, each leap carried him hundreds of meters forward, leaving cracked earth in his wake. Bound to his waist, the hemp bag holding the rice and the Boundary-Piercing Compass swayed in rhythm with his lightning-fast movements. To Ye Tian, the destruction of the sect was of little concern; however, the primary formation gate that could reconnect him to the lower realm was located at the heart of the Main Peak. If the sect were leveled to the ground, his hopes of returning to Xiao Mei would be severely delayed.

At the White Jade Square, the grand battle was reaching its tragic climax.

The Grand Elders of the Cloud Sword Sect, including the Discipline Elder, had fallen to their knees, their bodies covered in burns and deep gashes. Standing before them was a gigantic man clad in deep purple robes embroidered with golden skulls. This was Guo Jue, the Sect Leader of the Joyous Valley Sect—a formidable cultivator who had achieved a Half-Step True Immortal Realm through demonic black magic.

"Today, the Cloud Sword Sect shall be erased from history!" Guo Jue bellowed, his voice booming with oppressive spiritual energy. In his hand, a Black Soul Mace radiated a dark aura, poised to execute the remaining elders.

Senior Huo and Lady Mei, who had just rushed back from the ancient tomb in an exhausted state, stepped forward to intervene. However, Guo Jue casually backhanded his left arm, unleashing a black shockwave that sent Senior Huo flying, coughing up blood before passing out. Lady Mei was forced back as well, her blade spider-webbed with cracks.

"Is this the end for us?" the Discipline Elder whispered, closing his eyes in resignation as he lamented the downfall of the sect he had guarded for centuries.

Just as Guo Jue's Black Soul Mace swung down to crush the elders' heads, a gray shadow shot down from the sky like a falling meteor.

BOOM!

Dust and fragments of white jade exploded outward for dozens of meters. As the smoke cleared, every pair of eyes on the square widened in utter disbelief.

A young man in the tattered gray robes of an outer disciple stood tall in front of the elders. His right hand, bare and unarmored, casually clamped around the head of Guo Jue’s Black Soul Mace. The lethal surge of black energy vanished the instant it touched Ye Tian’s jade-clean palm.

"W-Who are you?!" Guo Jue gasped, scared out of his wits. His prized weapon felt as though it were anchored into an unmovable mountain; he couldn't budge it an inch.

"Ye Tian..." Lady Mei whispered from afar, her eyes burning with a deep flicker of hope.

Ye Tian looked at Guo Jue with an icy glare. "You are standing in the way of my journey home, old man."

CREEEEEAK!

With a single squeeze of his bare physical hand, the high-tier artifact of the Joyous Valley Sect disintegrated into metallic dust inside Ye Tian’s grip.

Guo Jue’s eyes bulged as the backlash of energy jolted his internal organs. Sensing an immediate threat to his life, he retreated dozens of paces and frantically chanted his strongest black magic spell. "Forbidden Art: Nine Shadow Demonic Dragons!"

Pitch-black energy erupted from Guo Jue, forming nine colossal dragon heads that howled horrifyingly, ready to devour Ye Tian alive. The magical pressure was so intense that nearby disciples collapsed, their souls overwhelmed.

Yet Ye Tian simply took a deep breath. To someone who had shattered through to a physical True Immortal Realm, this mortal spiritual magic was nothing more than an illusion.

Ye Tian stepped forward, letting his body take the brunt of the nine demonic dragons. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Explosions battered his frame, yet the pure golden aura radiating from Ye Tian’s pores shredded the black dragons into thin air. His physical vessel was an absolute weapon, immune to lower-realm magic!

Before Guo Jue could process what was happening, Ye Tian was already standing directly in front of him.

"This is the end of your greed," Ye Tian said flatly.

Ye Tian pulled his right fist back, causing the surrounding space to twist and compress under the sheer air pressure. The remaining Ascension energy and the unyielding longing for his sister merged into a single, raw strike.

Mortal Sky-Severing Punch!

BLAAAAM!

A strike of pure physical force drove straight into Guo Jue’s chest. The shockwave was so immense that it punched clean through the enemy leader's body, carving a straight air corridor several kilometers long into the hill behind the square. Guo Jue’s body—a Half-Step True Immortal cultivator—was instantly pulverized into a mist of blood before he could even scream.

Seeing their leader slain in a single bare-handed strike, thousands of Joyous Valley Sect disciples lost all will to fight. They dropped their weapons and fled frantically, abandoning the Cloud Sword Mountains in mass panic.

A suffocating silence reclaimed the White Jade Square. Thousands of surviving Cloud Sword Sect disciples stared at Ye Tian with expressions shifting from shock to horror, and finally into profound reverence and worship.

The Discipline Elder and the other Grand Elders slowly pushed themselves up. Exchanging looks, they walked toward Ye Tian with trembling bodies. Before the entire sect, the supreme elders bowed their backs deeply.

"We, the Elders of the Cloud Sword Sect, offer our deepest gratitude for Lord Ye Tian’s salvation!" the silver-haired Grand Elder announced loudly. "By the ancient laws of the Immortal Realm, whoever slays the enemy leader in times of crisis and possesses absolute strength has the right to claim the supreme throne!"

The Grand Elder turned, retrieved a gold-plated Sect Master Sword from the hall's ruins, and presented it with both hands to Ye Tian.

"As of today, at such a young age, we crown you as the New Master of the Cloud Sword Sect!"

"Long live Sect Master Ye Tian! Long live the Sect Master!"

Thunderous cheers from thousands of disciples split the sky, shaking the mountain range. Gao Lu, who had just regained consciousness in the corner of the square, wept tears of bitter regret as he watched the man he once mocked as a "woodchopping laborer" become their supreme ruler. Meanwhile, Lady Mei gazed at Ye Tian from a distance, a subtle, respectful smile gracing her lips.

Ye Tian accepted the symbolic blade, but his eyes held no greed for power. Looking straight toward the Primary Formation Hall—now under his absolute control—he touched the hemp bag at his waist.

This title means nothing to me, Ye Tian thought, his eyes flashing with golden resolve. But with all the resources of this sect in my hands... Xiao Mei, wait for Gege. The dimensional gate home... will soon be opened!