Chapter 754: Chapter 644: Treasure, Legacy_2
"This is the location of the Thousand Swords Array. If you have the ability, just go ahead and break it. Once you do, I will honor my promise,"
In the clearing not far away, a gigantic stone monument stood tall, inscribed with characters that seemed etched by the passage of time.
Elder Ten Thousand Swords did not leave, but stood nearby without uttering another word.
Truth be told, he did not believe at all that Qin An could break the Thousand Swords Array. Even if he let Qin An in, he thought it was just a part of the process.
After all, this was left by the ancestor who originally founded the Thousand Swords Bamboo Forest. If it could be easily broken, Elder Ten Thousand Swords would have already done so, no need to go through all the trouble of gathering so many people to crack it.
That’s why he stayed here now, wanting to witness Qin An’s failure, and mock him once he failed.
Qin An stared at the stone monument ahead, his brows slightly furrowed, as he raised his hand to touch the monument.
Yet, before his hand fell, an overwhelming sword intent surged forth, as if it would tear the sky apart.
Qin An withdrew his hand, his eyes slightly squinting: "Thousands of swords, no, not just swords, it’s an array formed by the convergence of weapons."
He could feel that the soaring sword intent was just a façade; within it were countless weapons gathered on the monument.
Elder Ten Thousand Swords was slightly surprised, nodded: "You kid are quite perceptive to have seen through this, but knowing doesn’t mean breaking the array."
He truly didn’t expect Qin An would know that this place was formed by the convergence of countless weapons forming an array, but he didn’t have high hopes either.
Though they were weapons, they were more the souls of weapons, and the so-called soul is the will left by the weapon’s owner.
He didn’t know why the ancestor had these, but over the years, not a bit had been broken here.
Therefore, he believed Qin An couldn’t break it either.
Qin An took a deep breath and said: "If this is true, I indeed cannot break it."
His Array Master profession was high enough, but the level of arrays here was higher, relying on his skills alone was indeed challenging.
However, he felt a sense of familiarity emanating from this monument.
Qin An raised his hand again, this time without using any strength, reaching toward the monument.
The moment Qin An touched it, the once calm monument erupted with soaring sword intent again.
Elder Ten Thousand Swords shook his head: "It’s useless, trying more will be futile, you can’t even break the sword intent of this monument."
From the beginning, he had given so much, yet only reached the first step, it was even more impossible for Qin An.
But just then, an anomaly suddenly appeared.
The initially soaring sword intent suddenly softened, as if recognizing Qin An, wrapping around him.
The next moment, Elder Ten Thousand Swords’ face drastically changed, as if seeing something extraordinary, he retreated several steps.
"This... how is this possible!"
Years of effort couldn’t break the sword intent on the monument, yet today with Qin An’s arrival, the sword intent seemed to recognize him, encircling him.
It’s like nurturing a cabbage for years only for it to suddenly be rooted out by a pig, and this pig came for the first time.
Elder Ten Thousand Swords couldn’t comprehend.
Just then, Qin An’s voice gently came, bringing Elder Ten Thousand Swords back to his senses.
"Because... I recognize them."
Qin An’s expression became complex, his brows slightly raised: "The aura of the Defender’s Cemetery is similar to this, they are also a cemetery, or rather... something similar?"
As the words fell, the terrifying sword intent suddenly paused, and then, the surroundings began to change.
They were no longer in the bamboo forest, but on a dim land, filled with a sense of desolation.
Aside from the desolation and gloom, the ground was littered with weapons, each broken and seemingly weathered by time.
Qin An’s eyes narrowed slightly, scanning the surrounding silence, taking a deep breath.
So similar, truly too similar.
This was exactly like the cemetery he had seen before.
Especially the aura of desolation, it was uncanny.
Elder Ten Thousand Swords’ throat rolled, his grip on the bamboo sword was tight to the point of turning white: "This is... such strong sense of melancholy, where exactly is this place?"
Qin An brushed a long blade with his hand, feeling the chill on it, suddenly spoke: "You’ll know once you touch."
Elder Ten Thousand Swords returned to his senses, mimicking Qin An’s action, touching a long sword.
The next moment, a flood of information surged into his mind, feeling as if he was in another place.
A man wielded a long sword, covered in horrific wounds, yet still standing upright.
In front of him, an overwhelming number of terrifying figures surrounded him.
The man fought with his sword, wounded yet maneuvering in the enemies’ siege.
His wounds worsened, his complexion grew paler, yet his grip on the sword remained firm as a rock.
Until all enemies fell, the man still stood there, his grip on the sword shriveled like dry wood.
The man lifted his hand, his fingertip brushed over the sword, revealing a bleak smile, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.
"I’ve roamed the world for decades, today I shall return my soul to oblivion."
"This death today is worthwhile, at least it’s for the beings of the world."
"But the world should not perish in fear, but grow in fear."
"Today, I, the Sword King, leave this sword, as a record of my true sword intent, hoping future generations can carry this sword intent to safeguard the world!"
"Though dead, I have no regrets!"
As the words fell, the long sword soared into the sky, vanishing into the horizon.
The man’s eyes turned gray, dissolving into ashes, scattered into the world.
Elder Ten Thousand Swords returned to his senses, unable to shake off the sense of melancholy just yet, with shock growing deeper in his eyes.
After a long while, Elder Ten Thousand Swords took a deep breath, calming the ebb and flow-like thoughts.
"They... are defenders?"
Reaching Elder Ten Thousand Swords’ level, he naturally knew about the defenders, even with considerable knowledge.
Qin An didn’t evade, lightly stroking the scabbard: "Yes, but they are dead."
Elder Ten Thousand Swords fell silent, suddenly bowing toward the long sword, eyes filled with respect.
When Elder Ten Thousand Swords lifted his head, the respect hadn’t faded, but intensified.
Qin An took this scene in silently, said: "Senior is also a person of true character."
Elder Ten Thousand Swords looked up: "If I were born a millennium ago, I’d gladly wield a sword in battle, far better than living in muddle, to die in battle as the sword bearer, that’s no regret."
If he weren’t a true character, he wouldn’t have led the Thousand Swords Bamboo Forest to stand up during the world’s most dangerous times, aiding Emperor Xuanwu in seizing the throne of Daqian.
And wouldn’t still have a place in the master-filled Xuanjing City, even Prince Zhenyuan dared not to confront him.
Qin An remained silent, again looking at the weapon-filled ruins: "There will be such an opportunity, but now the most important thing is the treasure before us."
Elder Ten Thousand Swords asked doubtfully: "Treasure?"
Qin An nodded slightly: "Yes, that’s them."
Just from that sensing earlier, Qin An already knew what situation this place was.
Hearing this, Elder Ten Thousand Swords was even more puzzled.
He couldn’t understand why these ruins could be considered a treasure.
In Elder Ten Thousand Swords’ view, the extent of ruins here was similar to a battlefield of fierce slaughter, even surpassing it.
As for the earlier prejudice against Qin An, it had completely vanished at this point, even holding Qin An in higher esteem.
Not to mention, gaining recognition from the array, bringing him here to witness the true secret of the Thousand Swords Bamboo Forest, was already considered successful in breaking the array.
Since he had successfully broken the array, he would honor his promise, but now he was more curious.
Qin An took a deep breath and said: "Senior, you also saw the scene resembling the Illusion Realm earlier, did you hear the last words?"
Elder Ten Thousand Swords earnestly recalled the scene he saw earlier, then a trace of amazement flashed in his eyes, even his beard twitched slightly.
"Are you implying this place is... a legacy! It’s the transmission of their power!"
