First Immortal of the Sword

Before Su Yi could ask any further questions, the golden-robed man’s body split into pieces, dissolved into a rain of chaos light, and disappeared.

At the same time, spatial power enveloped Su Yi, and the scenery shifted around him. He soon found himself in the world of the second step of the Dragon Ascension Platform.

A fiery chaos space came into view. Searing flames whooshed toward him, transforming into countless wondrous and inscrutable fiery “raindrops.”

Boom!

The moment Su Yi appeared, the surging flames condensed into a well-built, valiant man with a prominent mustache. His eyes blazed like twin suns, and he was covered in dazzlingly bright armor seemingly forged out of molten lava. When he breathed, he spat fire from his mouth and nostrils.    

His blazing, tyrannical aura left even Su Yi unwittingly stunned.

The valiant man was also a Miracle Realm avatar of will, but he was obviously stronger than the golden-robed man Su Yi had fought before.

“How about we… talk first?” asked Su Yi. He was curious. Just which ancestor of the dragon race had left his avatar of will here?

But the valiant man disregarded him completely. He simply looked askance at Su Yi, then swung his fist and charged. 

Heaven and earth were thrown into upheaval. The sea of flames stretched seemingly endlessly. The illusory figure of a dragon charging out of an abyss appeared behind the valiant man, as if intent on burning the heavens and destroying the earth.

“You really aren’t being the least bit polite…” grumbled Su Yi. Without any further hesitation, he charged.

Boom!

Su Yi slashed with all his might, and the valiant man’s body exploded with a bang, transforming into a fiery rain of light.

“Such strength might be enough to threaten most peak Immortal Kings, but it's nothing but empty posturing to me.” Su Yi shook his head.

Before long, he arrived at the third stone step.

This time, his opponent was a white-haired man in blue. He looked as if he were condensed out of astral winds, and his movements were wondrously quick. 

He wasn’t any stronger than the valiant man Su Yi had encountered on the second step, but he was extremely difficult to pin down. When they fought, he was like an omnipresent gale, coming and going without a trace. It seemed there was nowhere he couldn’t reach.

His attacks seemed formless and ethereal, yet they were terrifyingly destructive.

Alas, with Su Yi’s power, he was more than capable of contending with Great Unity Stage experts. He naturally didn’t take an opponent like this seriously. In the blink of an eye, the battle was over.

Su Yi then proceeded with invincible momentum, overcoming the trials of the Dragon Ascension Platform one after another. 

From beginning to end, he was never even injured. It wasn’t that the trials weren’t difficult from an objective point of view, but that Su Yi’s strength within the Miracle Realm was far too terrifying. He was far beyond even the most titanic dragon race experts.

Throughout the ages, there had never been anyone else like him. 

Seeing him go through them, the trials of the Dragon Ascension Platform appeared relaxed and easy.

…

The eighth floor was a deathly silent chaos space. Darkness hung over the entire area like a curtain.

Here, Su Yi saw that golden-robed man once more.

However, his aura was heavier and denser, like an abyss or the pits of hell. He was so mighty as to make Immortal Kings of the present day give in to despair!

But this was still merely the power of an avatar of will.

Before Su Yi could speak, the golden-robed man exclaimed, “You’re here already?”

It seemed he hadn’t anticipated that Su Yi would make it from the first floor all the way to the eighth with such speed.

“I did alright,” Su Yi said casually. “I wasted a fair bit of time trying to get my opponents to talk to me.”

The golden-robed man didn't know what to say. Is this punk showing off?

He took a moment to steady himself, then said expressionlessly, “Even among us dragons, only a select few particularly heaven-defying figures have ever overcome the eighth trial. When they faced me, all of them already had the strength to contend with Great Martial Stage experts. Do you think you can cut it?”

Su Yi exclaimed, “It sounds like quite a few heaven-defying figures have appeared among your ranks!”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Fighting Great Martial Stage experts as an Immortal King! Both now and in the days prior to the Age of Fallen Immortals, that was an extremely rare, dazzling accomplishment!

A proud grin tugged at the golden-robed man’s lips. “For a dragon, that really isn’t all that impressive. After all, dragons are born with unsurpassed talent far beyond that of over races.”

But then, the man looked at Su Yi and sharply changed tacks. “Of course, you’re quite something too. You’re merely a human, yet you fought your way to the eighth trial of the Dragon Ascension Platform. I have no memory of any such thing ever happening before. Truly impressive.”

Su Yi smiled. “Am I supposed to feel honored?”

The golden-robed man could hear Su Yi’s dismissive attitude, and he couldn’t help but furrow his brow. “Little fellow, excessive pride will only hurt you.”

Su Yi took out a jug of wine and had a sip. “Earlier, you said that if I defeated you here as I did on the first floor, we could have a conversation. How about I go ahead and try it?”

The golden-robed man said expressionlessly, “I can see that you really are mad with arrogance, and you won’t take anyone's advice. Very well. I’ll just have to make you fall flat on your face. Perhaps that will knock some sense into you.”

Su Yi sounded gratified. “It would be just wonderful if you were really capable of that.”

This kid seriously wants someone to defeat him?!

The golden-robed man’s eyes glinted with sharp light, and he was just about to say something when Su Yi suddenly said, “Make sure you give it your all!”

The golden-robed man’s expression was instantly unsightly. Arrogant! He’s just too arrogant! If I don’t teach this kid a lesson, he’ll act like the trials of the Dragon Ascension Platform are just for show!

The golden-robed man’s imposing aura erupted, and his eyes flashed like stars. The impassioned, boundless hum of a dragon rang out, and a rain of the light of the Grand Dao poured onto him.

His aura was so intense that even Su Yi couldn’t help but feel stunned. His imposing presence is no weaker than a Great Martial Stage expert’s, yet his cultivation is still that of an Immortal King!

In other words, the expert who’d left this avatar of will here had also been able to compete with Great Martial Stage experts even in the Miracle Realm!  

The golden-robed man’s keen senses picked up on the surprise in Su Yi’s gaze, and he couldn’t help but laugh coldly to himself. But he had no intention of showing any mercy!

Even as he thought this, he attacked. The roaring of a dragon swept forth like the tides, and Dao Light fell like a waterfall.

He stretched out his claws, and they expanded, growing so enormous as to blanket the sky and blot out the sun. Then, they ripped through the sky and descended upon Su Yi.

There was no need to even question it. In Su Yi’s shoes, any other Immortal King, no matter how dazzlingly capable, couldn’t possibly have fought back.

Su Yi just stood there, unmoving, sleeves billowing around him. He just flipped his right hand, then pressed down on the air.

Boom!!

The sky collapsed and the earth caved in. The entire chaos space swayed violently.

A terrifying, explosive current of destructive power swept outward, shattering the descending dragon claws to bits. Immediately afterward, the golden-robed man stiffened, and he slammed to the ground with a bang, completely suppressed.

He couldn’t even move a muscle!

He felt as if a divine mountain had descended upon him, practically crushing him. His mind went blank. This… This is seriously the power of an Immortal King?

Su Yi said apologetically, “Earlier, you said that you’d only talk to me if I suppressed you in a single attempt, the way I did in the first trial, so I… had no choice but to do as you said.”

“....” The golden-robed man felt so stifled that he could barely breathe. I fell for it!

What an insidious kid! So, he was pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger—no, to eat a dragon—this entire time!

When Su Yi saw the golden-robed man sink into an infuriated rage, Su Yi couldn’t help but explain, “Actually, you didn’t lose at all unfairly. The moment I became an Immortal King, Great Martial Stage experts ceased to threaten me, and I could even duke it out with Great Unity Stage experts.”

The golden-robed man’s eyes widened. He looked as if he’d seen a ghost.

Had Su Yi said this before defeating him, he would undoubtedly have taken it for empty boasting and an insult to his intelligence. But as he heard it now… he wasn't so certain anymore.

This was an Immortal King capable of suppressing him with a single hand. It really wasn’t at all impossible for someone like that to defeat Great Martial Stage experts!

The golden-robed man was still somewhat skeptical of Su Yi’s claim that he could fight Great Unity Stage experts, but he had to admit that this young man was more than just strong. His power was simply unreasonable!

Throughout the dragons’ long history, no such monster had ever appeared among their ranks!!!

“Now can we talk?” said Su Yi. He’d already withdrawn his power for fear of shattering the golden-robed man’s avatar of will.

“First, answer me. Who are you?” asked the golden-robed man. “And who let you take the trials of the Dragon Ascension Platform?”

It was obvious that he had a bellyful of questions to ask too.

Su Yi didn’t hide the truth. “My name is Su Yi, and I’m a sword cultivator. I just happened to be in the area, and I came to the ruins of the Dragon Palace in search of good fortune.”

Before he could continue, the golden-robed man interjected, “The ruins of the Dragon Palace!? What do you mean? Don’t tell me…”

Su Yi thought for a moment, then told him the truth. 

“My race… has been destroyed!? How could this have…” The man in golden robes reacted as if he’d been struck by lightning. He was completely dumbstruck, and his expression shifted erratically.

Su Yi waited patiently.

There was no doubt about it. The golden-robed man overseeing the Dragon Ascension Platform hadn’t sensed the Dragon Palace’s destruction. 

At the same time, despite the passage of countless years, no one but Su Yi had attempted these trials since!

After a long time, the golden-robed man said hoarsely, “It was the Book of Karma that destroyed us…. Indeed, it really was the Book of Karma. I just knew it….”

Grief and bitterness were written all over his face. It seemed he’d recalled something and lost control of his emotions.

“You knew that the Book of Karma would bring calamity upon the dragons?” asked Su Yi.

The golden-robed man sank into a lengthy silence before managing to suppress his emotions. “I wouldn’t say I knew, but I always felt that it would happen. In the early days of the Primeval Era, the Book of Karma landed in our hands, and our elders warned us that no one, no matter who, was to use its power without permission. They said that if we did, we were sure to provoke an unpredictable disaster. Even then, I knew the Book of Karma was terrifying! Still, I would never have imagined that it would lead to our complete annihilation!”

Here, his expression filled with grief and desolation. The rims of his eyes reddened, and there was no hiding his agony. A moment later, he seemed to realize something, and he trembled from head to toe.

“No, that’s not right! The one who truly brought disaster upon the dragons was me! I’m the true, irredeemable sinner behind it all!”

His cries resounded throughout heaven and earth.

Even Su Yi was unwittingly stunned.

Title's a riff on the phrase "Play a pig to eat a tiger."