The battle with The Overlord continued until the very last moment, when the outcome was finally revealed. Both sides unleashed terrifying powers that surpassed the entire Jiuzhou Continent; even the slightest aftershock was enough to sweep across the land, leaving a thousand miles of scorched earth. The Demon Palace collapsed, the Demon Kingdom was annihilated, Central State was split apart, and the Jiuzhou barrier shattered.

In the end, heaven and earth were overturned.

After that, he entered an infinite, boundless darkness.

There was no light, no warmth, no time or space. Everything familiar had vanished without a trace. Even the sword world of the Celestial Sword from beyond the heavens had lost all connection. Only a single spark of spiritual light carried his consciousness, enduring endless lonely years in the darkness.

In the darkness, all he could do was recall and reflect. He remembered almost nothing from his fifty years in the mortal world, and his new life had lasted only three short years—colorful, yet ultimately limited in experience. The only question worth pondering was the outcome of that final battle.

In theory, he should have won. Although The Overlord's final outburst of power exceeded expectations, based on the vague fragments of memory, he judged that he had narrowly prevailed. In terms of pure strength at the time, he and The Overlord were evenly matched. The other had the advantage of home ground, but he had the Nine Immortal Lords buying him ample time and had seen through more than half of The Overlord's demonic arts, giving him a slight edge in the decisive moment.

Besides, if he hadn't won, would The Overlord have allowed even this wisp of his spirit to remain?

Memories and contemplation accompanied the sword spirit through the long years. Unnoticed, the spiritual light began to dim, his consciousness gradually dulled, and finally, as the light slowly merged into the darkness, suddenly a point of light appeared, illuminating the entire world.

"Boss, how much is this sword?"

A crisp, pleasant girl's voice became the light that awakened the world.

He realized he had awakened only a moment later, as a brand new world came into view.

Bright sunlight shone down on him, gentle and warm, just like before the great battle, on the jade-green plains beneath the golden clouds surrounding the Sky-reaching Tower. The cozy warmth seeped into his heart, and his sluggish, rusted thoughts began to turn once more.

Until that clear girl's voice sounded again, interrupting his thoughts.

"Boss, this sword."

"Twenty taels."

"Twenty taels is too expensive! A plain iron sword for twenty taels—do you think this is Liantian City?"

Only then did he turn his attention back, and saw that he was lying in a bustling, noisy marketplace. On the wide road before him, crowds of people bustled about, their appearances varied, speaking in slightly unfamiliar accents as they bought and sold goods, chatting and laughing.

And he himself was lying on a wooden box at an open-air stall, being pointed at by a fair, delicate girl's finger.

"Cheaper, how about five taels?"

"Miss, you must be joking. I have to make a living too! Although this sword is just a plain weapon, the material is extraordinary—especially sturdy. I’ve tested it with a sword stone several times, and not a single chip came off. It’s practically indestructible, a divine weapon among plain swords, especially suitable for beginner cultivators like you to practice swordsmanship. Normally, don’t even mention twenty taels—I wouldn’t sell it for fifty!"

"But it’s still just a white-grade weapon! For fifty taels, I could buy a real divine sword!"

"Miss, would you even dare use a divine sword for fifty taels? Aren’t you afraid it might be cursed? Really, selling this special white-grade longsword for twenty taels isn’t expensive at all!"

"But this sword is so old and shabby, most of the cloud patterns have been worn off—it’s basically an unearthed relic!"

"If it were a real relic, it’d be worth far more than twenty taels! This is indeed an ancient sword, but its performance is truly unmatched. I’ve already wasted two test swords on this broken blade, not to mention countless sharpening stones. For a young lady from a great family like you, why haggle with a poor vendor like me over a few coins?"

"A plain sword, twenty taels, that’s too expensive," the girl insisted stubbornly.

"Aiya, you’re really something! How about fifteen taels? My cost is already ten taels!"

"I’ll offer nine taels."

"Young miss, at least let me make a little milk money?"

"...I only have nine taels on me."

"......"

"Really, it’s all here, look."

A few pieces of broken silver tumbled from her purse into her palm, making a pitiful clinking sound.

"I give up, The Thompson Family's young lady, nine taels it is. I’ll just count today’s business as a loss. Take this sword, and if you find it handy, remember to tip me for tea sometime. Of course, it’d be best if you could put in a good word for me at your house, all right?"

"All right."

The girl agreed cheerfully, then nimbly picked up the plain longsword from the wooden box and hugged it to her chest.

It was only when he realized he seemed to be held in a young girl’s arms that he understood: the bargaining, the final deal at nine taels, the old, half-worn, cloud-patterned plain longsword—they were all referring to himself.

Stunned for a moment, he examined himself and found that the "plain sword" description was truly apt. The fierce battle with The Overlord had destroyed his inner sword world. And that sword world was the source of all his powers; now, with all his abilities gone, he was indeed no different from a plain longsword—at most, his sword body was made of special material, indestructible and unbreakable.