The hall housed the spirit tablets of all the successive ancestors of the Divine Sword Sect, and within many of those tablets remained Remnant Souls or Soul Power imprints.
Ye Yunfei's voice echoed through the hall, rolling and reverberating.
It wasn't until Ye Yunfei's voice had completely faded that the hall fell into a tomblike silence, with no immediate reaction.
Ye Yunfei stood there, sword in hand, sweeping his cold gaze across tablet after tablet.
"Young man, you have gone too far," a mournful voice finally rang out after a moment. "Although my Divine Sword Sect has erred, you should not have slaughtered our entire sect."
Ye Yunfei's eyes immediately found the spirit tablet from which the voice emanated. Three words were inscribed upon it: Elder Mu.
Ye Yunfei directed his Soul Power energy towards it, simultaneously employing the Mind Reading Art. He discovered a Remnant Soul hidden within that tablet.
"So that's how it is," Ye Yunfei muttered, quickly gleaning some of the thoughts and notions of that Remnant Soul. It turned out this soul had communicated with Zhou Duantian and had been supportive of him.
Without a shred of hesitation, Ye Yunfei swept his sword across, blasting apart both the spirit tablet and the Remnant Soul within.
"You vile runt! How cruel! You would even annihilate my Remnant Soul!" The soul within the tablet let out a resentful roar just before being scattered to the winds.
After shattering that tablet with a single stroke, Ye Yunfei continued to scan the other tablets, releasing his Soul Power energy and employing the Mind Reading Art to probe each tablet one by one.
"You seem rather displeased with my actions," Ye Yunfei said coldly moments later, his gaze settling on a particular tablet.
"Young man, grievances have their cause, debts have their source," the voice from the tablet under Ye Yunfei's scrutiny spoke up after a moment of silence. "I have been dead for such a long time. There is no need for you to trouble me."
"Indeed, grievances have their cause, debts have their source," Ye Yunfei gave a cold laugh. "However, you once advised Zhou Duantian and wholeheartedly supported all his actions. Therefore, you share in the blame."
Ye Yunfei had already used the Mind Reading Art to read the thoughts of the Remnant Soul within this tablet, capturing memory fragments of its interactions with Zhou Duantian.
"How do you know this?" The Remnant Soul within that tablet was both shocked and furious at Ye Yunfei's words.
Then, the spirit tablet shot into the air, transforming into a streak of light as it attempted to flee the hall.
But Ye Yunfei had already raised his sword, delivering another fatal slash.
*Bang!* The tablet and the soul within were completely shattered, dissolving into nothingness.
"This is retribution! The retribution due to our Divine Sword Sect!" Many other Remnant Souls were hidden within the remaining tablets, and watching this scene, they were filled with all manner of emotions: rage, terror, lament, guilt, and numb resignation.
"To be honest, I foresaw this consequence long ago," some Remnant Souls sighed softly.
"All those who had dealings with Zhou Duantian, Mo Chenzi, and their ilk, and who supported their actions, must all pay the price," Ye Yunfei declared clearly, his sword held steady as his gaze swept over the tablets one by one. He continued using the Mind Reading Art, probing each tablet in turn.
Whenever he discovered that a Remnant Soul or Soul Power imprint within a tablet had connections with Zhou Duantian, Mo Chenzi, or other Divine Sword Sect higher-ups and had supported their actions, Ye Yunfei would, without hesitation, slash with his sword, shattering both the tablet and the soul or imprint within.
Even Zhou Duantian was no match for Ye Yunfei, let alone these mere Remnant Souls and Soul Power imprints. Any tablet that attracted Ye Yunfei's attention was immediately destroyed by a single stroke.
"Esteemed comrades! Our Divine Sword Sect, a proud and ancient legacy with profound foundations, was once one of the three famed major sects of the Sword Realm Continent!" one Remnant Soul, realizing it was Ye Yunfei's next target, roared in desperation, trying to rally the other souls and imprints. "How can we allow this junior to lord it over us here, to trample upon our heads? Let us act together and annihilate him! I refuse to believe that pooling all our strength, we cannot defeat him!"
"It is useless. Even if we join forces, we are no match for him," a hoarse, ancient voice suddenly interjected. "The Heavenly Net Sword God aids him. Should we unite to oppose him, we would only face collective destruction. Moreover... this is the retribution our Divine Sword Sect deserves."
"What! The Heavenly Net Sword God aids him? Impossible!" many souls immediately voiced their disbelief upon hearing the ancient voice. "The Heavenly Net Sword God fell ages ago! How could he possibly aid this junior?"
"It is true, for I have sensed the Heavenly Net Sword God's Sword Dao Will. There is no mistake," the ancient voice spoke again. "If you all do not wish for collective annihilation, accept this reality. Our Divine Sword Sect's present retribution was brought upon by ourselves. We have no one to blame."
"If the Heavenly Net Sword God truly aids him, then whatever we do is meaningless. We must simply let him have his way," some souls sighed in lament. They knew who the owner of the ancient voice was, knew that with his seniority and status, he would not speak idly.
"So the Heavenly Net Sword God aids him... No wonder our Divine Sword Sect offers no resistance before him," a soul couldn't help but sigh.
"The Heavenly Net Sword God aids this brat against our sect... Does that not mean the Heavenly Net Sword God himself wishes to punish our Divine Sword Sect? It seems we truly erred, so gravely that even the Heavenly Net Sword God cannot tolerate it," another whispered softly. "Enough. This is self-inflicted, the retribution we deserve. Let it be. From now on, I shall concern myself no more with worldly affairs. I merely wish this last fragment of my soul to linger a little longer in this world."
The hall fell silent once more. Ye Yunfei stood with sword in hand, his eyes scanning tablet after tablet. Their number was vast, for this place had always been the ancestral shrine where generations of Divine Sword Sect ancestors rested.
Ye Yunfei continued employing the Mind Reading Art, sensing each Remnant Soul or Soul Power imprint within each tablet. Upon discovery of souls or imprints that had connections with Zhou Duantian and the other higher-ups and had expressed support, he would immediately eliminate them.
Before long, roughly two out of ten tablets in the shrine had been shattered by Ye Yunfei, reduced to nothing. The remaining tablets offered no reaction.
"This is our Divine Sword Sect's rightful retribution. We can blame no one else. Let it serve as our sect's penance for that great battle all those years ago," Gan Qingyang sighed, standing amidst the ruins of the Divine Sword Sect's headquarters. He was accompanied by the Remnant Souls who had always followed him and the sword cultivators he had saved from Ye Yunfei's blade. Around them lay snapped golden swords, scattered remnants of flesh and bone, blood flowing like rivers across the ground, deep sword scars gouging trenches in the earth, and countless collapsed structures.
His gaze then turned towards the shrine located deep within the headquarters. Of course, he could see Ye Yunfei inside, cutting down tablet after tablet with his sword.
Yet he did not go to stop him. He had long known that many of the sect's ancestors within that shrine had supported Zhou Duantian's actions. When Zhou Duantian had wronged him all those years ago, those ancestors within not only failed to uphold justice for him but publicly backed Zhou Duantian instead. Thus, Gan Qingyang had long since lost all hope in those Remnant Souls who supported Zhou Duantian.
"I hope that after this brutal, great cleansing, our Divine Sword Sect might break free from its cocoon like a moth, reborn anew," Gan Qingyang said quietly. At that moment, he saw Ye Yunfei stride from the shrine, sword still in hand, and could not help but breathe a sigh of relief. The affair, it seemed, was finally ending.
"Indeed. Let us hope our Divine Sword Sect can rise from the ashes, hereafter becoming a proper, orthodox sword sect belonging to the Sword Realm Continent," another Remnant Soul beside Gan Qingyang spoke softly.
Ye Yunfei walked through the air, landing before Gan Qingyang. "Elder Gan, the Divine Sword Sect has been cleansed," he said.
Despite having just slaughtered so many of the sect's sword cultivators and annihilated so many of its ancestral Remnant Souls and imprints, Ye Yunfei's expression remained utterly placid and calm as he faced Gan Qingyang and the other Divine Sword Sect members. This was the fate the Divine Sword Sect deserved.
"Young Master Ye, our Divine Sword Sect will embrace its rebirth," Elder Gan Qingyang said respectfully. "Please trouble yourself to return our sect headquarters to the Sword Realm Continent. From this moment forth, our Divine Sword Sect will truly be a part of the Sword Realm Continent."
"Very well," Ye Yunfei replied. His eyes rested on Elder Gan for a moment, then swept over the other Remnant Souls and surviving Divine Sword Sect sword cultivators standing beside him before giving a nod. Ye Yunfei had once again used the Mind Reading Art to probe all these souls and cultivators, confirming there were no problems before agreeing.
Then, with a single stamp of his foot, Ye Yunfei activated his Earth Magic technique. Thousands of earth dragons burrowed into the ground beneath the Divine Sword Sect headquarters. The landmass on which the headquarters sat began to move rapidly, surging back towards the Sword Realm Continent.
Soon, it arrived above the Sword Realm Continent, landing back on its original site with a thunderous crash.
"Grandmaster, all formidable enemies have been eliminated," Ye Yunfei said, turning his gaze to the Sword Ancestor.
"Good! Excellent! Ye Yunfei, you are a great hero of our Sword Realm," the Sword Ancestor laughed heartily, filled with profound relief and satisfaction.
"Elder, thank you for helping suppress this Black Demon Blade Stele," Ye Yunfei's figure flashed as he arrived beside Shoudi Laoren, who was utilizing dozens of Earth Magic artifacts to hold down the stele.
The Black Demon Blade Stele struggled incessantly, spewing forth torrents of blade radiance. However, Shoudi Laoren's Earth Magic artifacts were immensely powerful, and a continuous stream of earth energy from the Sword Realm Continent supplied them constantly. It was as if the entire Sword Realm Continent, plus these artifacts, were collectively suppressing the stele, giving it no chance to break free.
Ye Yunfei raised his sword and placed it directly atop the Black Demon Blade Stele.
*Boom!* A tremendous surge of Sword Dao energy instantly erupted, adding its own pressure on the stele.
The Black Demon Blade Stele immediately fell quiet, floating serenely in place.
"Nothing beats the Heavenly Net Sword God's Sword Intent for handling things like this," Jinjiao Longchan said with a smile.