As Lin Mu descended from Mount Sky Sever and returned to the sect, a wave of spiritual pressure preceded him.
Though faint and restrained, it was enough to make many of the gathered disciples and elders lift their heads, spines straightening instinctively. Word had already spread that Lin Mu had erged from the Path of the Sealed Swords—but no one expected what followed next.
Three years.
Three full years.
That was how long he had been gone. The longest anyone had ever remained within the path was one year, and most completed their trials within a few months. The very idea that soone could last three years was beyond belief. It made Lin Mu feel like an immortal legend walking among them—and not without reason.
As Lin Mu walked into the main hall of the Sword Discourse Pavilion, the Grand Elder Huo, Elder Yan Dao, and several High Elders had already assembled. Even so elders who had long secluded themselves made an appearance, such was the gravity of this return.
The Grand Elder Huo stepped forward first, stroking his beard as he observed Lin Mu carefully.
"You’re... truly unscathed?" he asked, his eyes flickering with disbelief and curiosity.
Lin Mu nodded calmly. "Yes. The path tested , but I returned stronger than before."
Elder Yan Dao let out a long breath, rubbing his forehead as if a heavy weight had been lifted. "You had us worried. Even the protective array was nearly at its limit."
"Sit, Lin Mu," the Grand Elder said, gesturing toward a prepared seat at the center of the hall. "We would hear your experience. You were not told what the path entails—as it is forbidden—but now that you have walked it, it is your right to speak."
Lin Mu took a breath and began recounting what had happened inside.
He spoke plainly but thoroughly—of the void he first found himself in, of the strange trials that challenged his skill, emotions, philosophy, and even his very identity.
He described the sword phantom with no face, the debate turned sword duel, the pathetic illusion that tried to mock him, and how he chose his own path instead.
The elders listened attentively, many nodding in recognition at the types of trials they themselves had once endured. But as Lin Mu continued to describe his journey, unease began to bloom in their expressions. Eyebrows furrowed, fingers tensed.
"Wait..." Elder Yi Feiyan murmured, leaning forward, "how many trials was that?"
Lin Mu glanced at the elder. "I’m not done. There were more."
The hall fell quiet. The Grand Elder looked up from his folded hands. "More?"
Lin Mu nodded. "In total, I completed one hundred and eleven trials."
A sudden silence swept the room like a falling blade.
"What?" Elder Yan Dao was the first to break it, his voice cracking in disbelief. "One hundred and... eleven?!"
Lin Mu blinked. "Yes. Was that... unusual?"
The Grand Elder Huo rose slowly to his feet. "Lin Mu, even among the greatest of us, none have passed more than fifty. Most complete the path between thirty and forty trials. It is... shaped by the individual. The path tests your potential, your weaknesses, and the truths you hold. But in all recorded history, not one cultivator has ever reported experiencing more than sixty. One hundred and eleven is..." He trailed off, almost unable to finish.
"The path must have continued until it exhausted every test it had," Elder Yi Feiyan muttered in awe. "Or until it ran out of ways to challenge you."
Lin Mu lowered his gaze for a mont. "That... might be true. It did feel as if the last few trials were more conceptual than combative. As if it were searching for a flaw in and failing to find one."
High Elder Yan Dao gave a short, dry laugh. "More like the path gave up."
But it was the next part of Lin Mu’s recounting that truly stunned them.
"There was a trial near the start. One involving an old man—powerful, kind, stronger than any immortal I’ve seen before. He said he was a celestial and offered to make his disciple. Said he’d teach the Astral Severance Sword technique. The power he displayed was... unbelievable. I almost thought it was a dream."
The mont the na "Astral Severance Sword" passed Lin Mu’s lips, the Grand Elder Huo froze. His expression went rigid as if struck by lightning. The room quieted again, and every elder turned to him, recognizing the look on his face.
"You... you said Astral Severance Sword?" Grand Elder Huo asked slowly.
"Yes," Lin Mu confird. "Do you know of it?"
The Grand Elder exhaled deeply, almost reverently. "The Astral Severance Sword is not just any celestial technique. It is one of the foundation arts of our sect that no one inherited. It was forged by none other than Daoist Star Slayer, the very founder of the Xian Sword Sect."
Lin Mu’s eyes widened slightly.
"The old man..." Elder Li Feiyan said, voice quivering, "was Daoist Star Slayer himself?"
"That’s impossible," another elder muttered. "The founder ascended to the celestial realms more than a million years ago!"
"Indeed," the Grand Elder said. "But remnants of his will still linger in our sect. If the path tested you with his presence, it ans you are viewed as a worthy inheritor of our sect’s ultimate legacy."
Lin Mu let that settle in. It wasn’t sothing he had expected. Not even remotely.
"Then... I suppose I passed that trial as well," Lin Mu said, voice steady.
The elders around him laughed—a mix of admiration, disbelief, and awe.
"You didn’t just pass," said the Grand Elder, stepping forward. "You surpassed every record we have. You walked through more trials than we knew existed. You resisted temptation from our founder himself. And you erged stronger, wiser, and with the Sword Heart."
He placed a hand on Lin Mu’s shoulder, his palm glowing faintly with warm qi that seed to be filled with kindness.
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