I have an Apocalypse City

Chapter 1601: Chapter 1602: Divine Peak Master Chapter 1601: Chapter 1602: Divine Peak Master The Divine Sword Sect is situated amidst a range of rolling mountains, which could all be considered the private property of the Divine Sword Sect.

“The entire mountain range is known as the Falling Clouds Mountain Range. It is said that Immortal Falling Clouds perished here. Deep within the mountains, there lies a cave dwelling left by Immortal Falling Clouds. However, this is merely a legend without any evidence…”

“This place is called Falling Clouds Slope. During dusk, there is a vast expanse of fiery clouds, and this spot offers the most beautiful view…”

“This mountain peak serves as a combat arena. Nearly every day, disciples of the sect come here to fight and hone their actual combat experience. The battles on the arena can lead to serious injuries or even death. It’s only here that the sect tolerates deadly confrontations between disciples without pursuing accountability…”

…

As they ascended the mountain, Sun Yun provided detailed explanations at every location. Along the way, the two chatted and laughed as if they were peers.

However, Sun Yun truly did not dare to treat Song Jian as a junior anymore. Throughout their journey, Sun Yun had realized that Song Jian’s strength was at least around the pinnacle of the Legendary Realm, or perhaps… he dared not continue the thought.

Soon, the two reached the highest peak, which was the main peak of the Divine Sword Sect. At this time, the Sect Leader Divine Peak Master and several elders were casually chatting while enjoying tea on the main peak.

“I wonder how many will pass the entrance assessment this time. I hope there will be more favored disciples. Their aptitude for cultivation is so impressive that it’s enviable!” one elder said with a laugh.

“Hehe, every year, some favored disciples emerge, although not many. It is still far better than the Imperial Sword Sect, which is holed up in the Ancient Sword Star Semi-plane. I heard that up to now, they’ve only taken in two favored disciples. If they continue like this, it won’t be long before the Imperial Sword Sect is completely surpassed by our Divine Sword Sect. By then, that old fellow Duan Xingliu probably won’t even have the face to come knocking, hahaha…”

Upon mentioning the Imperial Sword Sect, all the elders of the Divine Sword Sect burst into laughter.

Like the Imperial Sword Sect, the Divine Sword Sect also originated from the Ancient Sword Sect. The relationship between them is quite complex, with both cooperation and times of conflict over interests, akin to two fellow sect brothers who experience both competition and collaboration. To witness an embarrassing but not too damaging incident befall the other would bring them quite a bit of schadenfreude.

“By the way, the Ascension Secret Realm is about to open, and the Imperial Sword Sect still hasn’t made a move. Usually, by this time, they should have already sent their disciples to request a quota…” an elder suddenly remarked.

“Hehe, these past few years, the Imperial Sword Sect hasn’t really recruited any decent disciples. Although the Ascension Secret Realm is full of opportunities, if the strength isn’t adequate, entering would only lead to death. The Imperial Sword Sect also has to defend against the attacks of wild beasts, so I suppose this year will be like the previous ones, where they give up the qualification to enter!” another elder said with a smile, speculating.

“If the Imperial Sword Sect really does give up this time, could we not give our outer sect disciples a chance? This year, there are a few quite promising newcomers among the outer sect…”

“We don’t have enough spots even for our own direct disciples, let alone those from the outer sect. It’s better to conduct a selection among the inner sect disciples. An additional spot means another disciple entering, which increases our chances of obtaining the Sword Intent Fruit…”

The elders chatted casually, but the middle-aged man sitting in the Sect Leader’s seat had not said a word. He hadn’t even touched the cup of tea in front of him.

This middle-aged man, who appeared to be in his thirties or forties, was the Sect Leader of the Divine Sword Sect, Divine Peak Master. His mind seemed to be elsewhere at the moment.

Suddenly, Divine Peak Master furrowed his brows and let out a light sigh. He opened his eyes and looked towards the foot of the mountain. The Divine Peak Master, who had his eyes closed until now, seemed no different from an ordinary person. However, when he opened his eyes, a boundless Sword Intent radiated from his pupils, almost solidifying into substance as it overflowed from his eyes.

“Enough, stop arguing. You all can forget about the Imperial Sword Sect’s quota this time!” Divine Peak Master said.

Upon hearing the words of Divine Peak Master, the other elders immediately fell silent, exchanging glances that conveyed a mix of surprise and skepticism.

“Sect Leader, even if disciples from the Imperial Sword Sect come, they may not necessarily be able to defeat our direct disciples, right?” one of the elders tentatively asked.

“Hmph, don’t mention direct disciples. Even if you lose face and go down to compete with him, you won’t come out on top. If it were a real fight to the death, even if all of you teamed up, it’s not certain that you would be his match!” Divine Peak Master said with a cold snort.

“What, how could that be?” the elders exclaimed in shock, their faces filled with disbelief.

“Hmph, we are all descendants of the Ancient Sword Sect, bearing the curse of the gods in our bloodlines. Our strength has been limited to the pinnacle of the Legendary Realm. That disciple from the Imperial Sword Sect has already broken through to the Demi-God Realm. Tell me, do you think you tied together could be his match?” Divine Peak Master said irritably.

“What, he’s broken through to the Demi-God Level? Is he, is he really a disciple of the Imperial Sword Sect?” the elders asked in astonishment.

“Nonsense, if he wasn’t a disciple of the Imperial Sword Sect, how would he dare come to the Divine Sword Sect? Moreover, the Sword Qi of chaos emanating from him has already reached the level of condensing Sword Essence. Which other sect in the world could possess such dense chaos Sword Qi apart from the Imperial Sword Sect?” Divine Peak Master responded impatiently.

“Sect Leader, it seems we need to intensify our efforts to recruit disciples with divine favor. Only they can ignore the curse of the gods. They are our hope for the rise of our sect!” an elder said excitedly.

“Sigh, you should know that our Divine Sword Sect started recruiting disciples with divine favor much earlier than the Imperial Sword Sect did. Yet to date, not a single one has been able to break through the Legendary Realm and reach the Demi-God Realm!”

“What’s there to fear? These favored disciples of the gods are exceptionally blessed; they cultivate at incredible speeds. Some who originally had only second-tier combat power have advanced to third-tier in just a few months. Their cultivation speed is several times, even a dozen times faster than that of ordinary disciples. With such speed, it won’t be more than half a year before some of them break through the Legendary Realm. Reaching the Demi-God Realm is just a matter of time…”

“Time, what we lack the most now is time!” Divine Peak Master murmured to himself.

Just then, Outer Sect Elder Sun Yun had already arrived at the entrance of the great hall with Song Jian.

“Outer Sect Elder Sun Yun, accompanied by Imperial Sword Sect disciple Song Jian, has come to pay respects to the Sect Leader!” Sun Yun announced loudly from outside the great hall.

“Hahaha, why such formality today, Elder Sun? Come in quickly,” Divine Peak Master laughed heartily.

Sun Yun led Song Jian into the great hall and after bowing to Divine Peak Master, he said, “Sect Leader, this is Imperial Sword Sect disciple Song Jian. He has been sent by Sect Leader Duan of the Imperial Sword Sect to pay respects to you.”

Song Jian stepped forward, took out a golden scroll, and bowed, saying, “Imperial Sword Sect disciple Song Jian pays his respects to Divine Peak Master. This is a token my master asked me to deliver to Divine Peak Master, please verify it.”

…