In the Ethereal World, lightning rained down heavily on Austin, who was near the eye of the Sword
Cosmos.
He stood still, calm and composed, his hands behind his back. He seemed unbothered, not dodging
any of the strikes thrashing at him.
He was only a premium-grade genuine divine god, but he was already far stronger than any ordinary
governing god.
The Thunderstroke Doom was a force on par with an attack of a semi-governing god, and still could not
harm him in the slightest.
An hour later,
the dark clouds dispersed and the lightning faded away along with them.
"That's it. I'm a semi-governing god now," Austin murmured softly, no one around to hear but himself.
He was satisfied with the end result.
Ascending to a higher vital energy realm hadn't done much for improving his strength this time.
But he had made a breakthrough after over ten years of cultivation. He was pleased with how his
efforts had turned out.
More importantly,
he had successfully absorbed and refined oceans of great cosmos force in the eye of the Sword
Cosmos.
The great cosmos force had made up about ninety percent of his energy structure,
which meant that most of the energy inside him was the great cosmos force.
This had increased his fighting power exponentially.
"Congratulations, Mr. Lin! You've made a breakthrough! I can feel it!"
"Master, you have finally achieved another breakthrough in your cultivation base. I am so happy for
you!"
Ellis, Warner and Emmet all had congratulatory words for Austin as they approached him together.
"Thank you!"
Austin replied, nodding in appreciation.
The three of them then took turns filling Austin in on what had been going in the Sword Cosmos over
the last decade.
Of the four former major forces, some had cut themselves off from the outside world while some had
kept a low profile or even gone off the grid altogether.
The Curry Sword Sect had been developing well in their position as the head of the Sword Cosmos.
Pretty much the entire universe obeyed its orders and lived by their rule.
It seemed, at least on the surface, like no one dared go against their commands.
"Master, as far as we know, the army of the Blade Cosmos have been inactive for the past ten years,"
Emmet revealed.
"I see,"
Austin said with a sinister smirk.
He had already decided he would make a move against the army of the Blade Cosmos stationed in the
Sword Cosmos soon.
"I will entrust the affairs of the Curry Sword Sect and all that entails to you three.
Don't worry though. If the sect is in danger, I will always be here to handle it,"
Austin said with a power in his voice that demanded respect.
He left them with those words and made his way for the exit of the Ethereal World.
"Master!"
"Mr. Lin!" they called out to him, surprised to see him leaving so soon.
They still had so much more to tell him about the Curry Sword Sect and all it had been through these
years past.
But Austin ignored them and continued on his way.
He left the Ethereal World and headed straight for the Divine Sword Mountain.
He wished to see Sword Son Curry.
He had a hunch something bad might have happened to him and he needed to learn the truth of the
matter.
A while later,
Austin arrived at the Divine Sword Mountain.
In no time at all, dozens of semi-governing gods appeared to greet him.
"Greetings, master!" they said bowing respectfully to Austin.
They were once from the four major forces, sent here to monitor and report back on the Divine Sword
Mountain. Austin had later subdued them and made them his slaves.
They had a connection with Austin and sensed him coming immediately.
Austin said nothing back.
He simply nodded at them in acknowledgement and walked past into the Divine Sword Mountain,
without looking back.
Before long,
he had reached the peak.
The five sword spirits appeared in front of him.
"Austin, there you are. Glad to see you back," they said in greeting.
"How are you doing?"
Austin said back.
He had grown much stronger since the last time he was here and he was confident he could now
match up to the five sword spirits.
But he was indebted to them and considered them as elders whom he held great respect for,
and so treated them as he always had before.
Sword Son Curry then emerged as well.
"Ha-ha! Austin, you finally took control of the Sword Cosmos. Well done, I say. Well done!"
he said cheerfully to Austin, pride beaming off his face.
"But, next you must face the Blade Cosmos.
They are more powerful than the Sword Cosmos,
and Donovan is a formidable foe.
He is a powerful cultivator around the same age as my master.
He is not as famous as my master once was, but he is a tough opponent nonetheless.
Plus, you have to keep an eye on the four major forces.
You may have defeated them, but they are still powerful. They may yet turn on you one of these days,"
Sword Son Curry added cautiously.
However, Austin barely took note of all these words. From the moment he saw Sword Son Curry, he felt
that something was wrong.
"Master Curry, where is your real body?
Have you left the Divine Sword Mountain?" he asked, a hint of concern showing itself as he spoke.
He could tell at a glance that the man before him was just a spiritual avatar of Sword Son Curry.
Sword Son Curry had been here, in the mountain, before. But now he had gone, leaving only his
spiritual avatar behind.
"Yes. My real body has left the Divine Sword Mountain,"
Sword Son Curry replied solemnly.
"Master Curry, have you returned to the Sea of Chaos?
Tell me why?"
Austin asked, filled with curiosity.
The Sea of Chaos was the first place to pop into his mind when he found out Sword Son Curry was not
here.
Sword Son Curry had after all lived there in seclusion for a long time.
"No.
The Sea of Chaos is just a temporary shelter for me. The Sword Cosmos is my home.
I have no reason to go there now,"
Sword Son Curry said, shaking his head.
"Where on earth are you then?"
Austin asked more firmly now.
"I will not keep you in the dark about this, Austin.
I'm searching for my master and my other four fellow senior disciples.
Austin, I leave the Sword Cosmos to you now,"
Sword Son Curry said with a deep sigh.
"What are you saying ?
Are you planning on going into that mysterious cave ?"
Austin asked, his eyes widening in astonishment.
"Yes, I am.
I have two wishes for my life.
The first was to take the ruling power away from the four major forces. My master, my fellow disciples,
and I had worked together to rule the cosmos. I can't leave it to those traitors now.
Austin, you have helped me realize that wish, and I can't thank you enough for that.
My second wish is to find my master and my fellow senior disciples.
They entered that cave one after the other and I have not heard a word from them since. When I
learned of their disappearance, I swore to myself that I would one day go into that cave as well and
bring them back,"
Sword Son Curry replied, telling his sad tale.
"Master Curry, have you entered that mysterious cave already?"
Austin asked immediately, a sense of urgency running through his words.
"Yes, I think by now my real body should have.
I'm not sure if I will ever make it back.
Austin, from here on out, the Sword Cosmos is under your control.
This jade slip has records of all my master's secret skills.
Keep it. It's yours now.
It may be helpful for your cultivation in swordsmanship,"
Sword Son Curry said as he threw a jade slip to Austin.
"Master Curry, you haven't fully recovered yet. You shouldn't have entered that cave alone. You should
have waited.
It's too risky,"
Austin said worriedly, a slight tremble in his voice.
Sword Son Curry had been forced to leave the Sword Cosmos after sustaining severe injuries.
He had then hidden his identity and lived in the Sea of Chaos, taking the time to allow himself to heal.
But whether he had actually managed to get better, Austin did not know.
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