Chapter 222: Chapter 176: Piously Deducing Sword Intent, Who Will Lead the Big Dipper?
The Celestial Book had grown another page, likely from absorbing that strand of golden essence.
Jiang Yi gazed intently at the resplendent, flawless golden paper, his mind racing with countless thoughts.
’Karmic Inspection is already an incredible ability. It allowed a mere Qi Cultivation Lower Cultivator like me to navigate the political chessboard of True Monarchs and even Daoist Monarchs, ultimately landing me the grand title of "Daoist."’
’And now with this new "Deduction" ability, my progress in Cultivation and Refining Techniques is sure to be unstoppable.’
[Mortal Lifespan: One Hundred Fifty-Seven Years]
The third page of the golden paper prominently displayed a line indicating his lifespan.
As long as Jiang Yi was willing to expend his lifespan, he could use it to deduce the outcomes of future events.
A faint smile touched his lips as he indulged in a wild thought.
’If I had a hundred pages in this Celestial Book, even the Tai Yang would be no cause for concern.’
He never expected that absorbing a strand of golden essence would bring such a welcome surprise.
Jiang Yi’s thoughts shifted, and an image of the Inverted Slaying Sword formed in his mind.
’I beg the Celestial Book, show me the lifespan required to deduce the "Annihilation Sword Intent" to the entry-level.’
The answer came a moment later.
[Two Hundred Twenty-Three Years]
Jiang Yi was rather pleased, nodding slightly.
’It seems my Dao Wisdom, innate talent, and aptitude have all improved tremendously through this ordeal.’
’To think I could learn Sword Intent in just over two hundred years!’
After all, even at the height of the Sword Dao’s glory, there were no more than three million people in the entire Yanfu Vast Land who could truly call themselves Sword Cultivators.
This just went to show how difficult it was to even begin the path of the Sword Dao.
This Daoist Lineage demanded more than just Dao Wisdom, innate talent, and aptitude.
The higher the grade of the Technique, and the more extraordinary the Dao Inheritance, the more it would test one’s courage and character.
Hence the common saying: "Twenty years without mastering sword arts, two hundred years without comprehending Sword Intent, and you will never become a true master."
By that standard, the fact that Jiang Yi could bring the Inverted Slaying Sword to the entry-level in two hundred twenty-three years was remarkable.
In the Sword Discourse Pavilion of one hundred twenty thousand years ago, he would have earned at least an upper-tier evaluation as "a fine prospect."
’I beg the Celestial Book, show me the cost for the Bingding Crimson Divine Light...’
’I beg the Celestial Book, show me the cost for the Long-term Nourishing Daoist Embryo Skill...’
’I beg the Celestial Book...’
Jiang Yi queried the cost for every Daoist Skill he was practicing and finally came to a conclusion.
’My lifespan is still far too short. It’s not nearly enough.’
He turned his attention back to the Inverted Sword. As things stood, his most powerful killing move was this very Slaying Sword, which could make him virtually invincible against opponents of the same Realm.
The sword was harmless as long as it remained sheathed, but once drawn, it could reduce even a Foundation Establishment True Master to ash.
That was why Jiang Yi focused on it the most, always thinking about how to take the next step and master more of the Annihilation Sword Intent.
It was said that the realms of the Sword Dao were divided into twelve, which included such esoteric stages as "Manifesting Sword Aura," "Splitting Sword Light," and "Sword Qi Thunder Sound."
The signature skill of the Sword Discourse Pavilion was a supreme Sword Intent known as the "Otherworldly Sound of the Twelve Jade Towers."
It was said that "at the seventh turn, it commands destiny; at the ninth turn, it shatters tribulations; at the twelfth turn, it can even strike down a Daoist Monarch."
’From the looks of it, simply comprehending Sword Intent already makes one an elite in the Sword Dao.’
Jiang Yi mulled this over, planning to ask Xiaoqiao for guidance later.
After all, the Sword Discourse Pavilion was known as the most authoritative main lineage of the Sword Dao in the Yanfu Vast Land.
Clearing his mind of distracting thoughts, Jiang Yi figured he might as well go through with it. He sacrificed a mere fifty-seven years of his lifespan to deduce the "Annihilation Sword Intent."
Besides, he only had a sixty-year cycle. If he couldn’t ascend to the position within sixty years, the favor of the Shao Yang would no longer be his alone.
Under these circumstances, lifespan was the "least valuable" asset he possessed.
’In Cultivation and practicing Refining Techniques, the "Dao" is the foundation, like a boat needed to cross the sea. The "Method" is the means, like the sails and oars that let you travel farther and reach the other shore.’
Jiang Yi mused to himself. The Mixed Refining Origin Qi Cultivation method, as well as the Long-term Nourishing Daoist Embryo Skill, were both paths to understanding the profound mysteries of Cultivation.
Naturally, the Celestial Book could be used to analyze their profound subtleties, helping him deduce and comprehend them.
But when it came to Magical Combat methods like Sword Intent and sword arts, armchair strategizing was useless.
Their subtle mysteries had to be grasped through sparring, clashes, and life-or-death struggles.
’No wonder there are so few Sword Cultivators. At their peak, they numbered only three million—not even comparable to the Ancestral Sects during times of peace.’
Jiang Yi thought to himself that such a Cultivation path was no way to live a long life. For every step forward, for every single layer of advancement in one’s Realm, who knew how many Disciples would be killed, injured, or crippled.
As fifty-seven years of his lifespan were infused into it, dense, tadpole-like characters materialized on the third page of the golden paper.
[Year One: You trained arduously in the sword arts, achieving Small Success...]
[Year Five: You worked tirelessly, not daring to slack off, and approached Great Success...]
[Year Ten: You hit a bottleneck and grew disheartened...]
[Year Twenty: Your body is like withered wood, your hair stark white, yet you still cannot glimpse the Realm of Perfection...]
[Year Forty: Your friends and family pass away one after another, leaving you utterly alone in the world...]
[Year Fifty-seven: Your time is near. Gazing at the autumn snow one night, you have an epiphany about the impermanence of the world, like the cycle of life and death. Thus, you create a new form: ’Withered Snow on the Mortal Plane, the World in White Mourning’...]
’It was as if another "me" truly existed, one who practiced the sword with pious devotion for fifty-seven years, pouring his heart and soul into it, exhausting everything he had to finally create a single sword form.’
Jiang Yi carefully savored the torrent of sword techniques and move trajectories flooding his mind.
Despite losing fifty-seven years of his lifespan, he felt no fatigue or weakness. On the contrary, his eyes grew ever brighter and more focused, as if they could slice the very air and kill with a single glance.
’I remember this feeling from when I first met Xuan Chanzi. A single glance from him felt like being run through by a sharp sword.’
Jiang Yi gently lowered his eyelids, concealing the sharp, fierce light that had condensed within them.
The Slaying Sword, with its extraordinary substance and its resemblance to a baleful, dark light, seemed to stir with faint excitement.
It was as if, after a hundred thousand years of silence, it was finally getting its chance to roar at the heavens and the earth.
...
...
In the Exquisite Magic Tower, Fu Lizi, who had intended to just watch the show, now stood with his head bowed in silence. His long eyebrows drooped, and his expression was grim.
