Chapter 1046: Chapter 1045: The Broken Spring Fury Sword_1
"When desires clash repeatedly over time, the will of the weaker ones will become chaotic. Even after leaving the Heavenly Desire Origin, they can be affected afterward, such as by becoming mentally deranged."
According to this reasoning, all the strangeness caused by the Heavenly Desire Origin could be explained.
Shi Xiaole was startled and began to introspect, searching over and over within himself. Eventually, he discovered a cluster of chaotic will in his mind that had appeared unbeknownst to him.
This chaotic will was extremely weak and insignificant, to the point that even Shi Xiaole almost missed it. It should be noted that Shi Xiaole’s mental strength was on par with the Forbidden Martial Emperor.
Of course, that’s not to say Shi Xiaole would really be harmed by the chaotic will. When it grew strong enough to be detected, it was frightening enough to prove its menace. Most people wouldn’t even know how they were harmed by it.
Turning his mental strength into a sword, Shi Xiaole easily slashed the chaotic will to extinction.
In an instant, the scene before his eyes changed. Amidst the abstraction, there was an addition of reality. Tracing the essence of reality, Shi Xiaole began to move forward selectively, distorting his path as needed.
Throughout the process, whenever any chaotic will inevitably made an appearance, it would be promptly slashed to extinction by Shi Xiaole.
"Nine-turn Dragon’s Tongue Orchid?"
Three days later, Shi Xiaole discovered a blue nine-petaled, diamond-shaped flower. The flower, growing between rocks, illuminated the rocks above with a crystal hue.
The Nine-turn Dragon’s Tongue Orchid, one of the rare top-tier spiritual medicines in the world, consumption of which greatly enhances one’s vitality and strength, akin to a divine elixir for Horizontal Practice Martial Artists.
Without any hesitation, Shi Xiaole plucked it right away. It was a waste for him to consume the Nine-turn Dragon’s Tongue Orchid, but it could be reserved for Nine Heavens Mountain.
Yellow Vine Climbing Sky Lotus, Cloud-traversing Grass, Blood Essence Jade Ginseng...
In the days that followed, Shi Xiaole continually discovered numerous medicinal herbs, some rare spiritual medicines and others top-tier. For example, the Cloud-traversing Grass greatly benefited the understanding of the Cloud Martial Way; likewise, the Blood Essence Jade Ginseng could instantly replenish depleted vital blood.
One day, a faint, familiar fragrance entered Shi Xiaole’s nostrils, causing slight disintegration signs in his Vigorous Air.
"What is this?"
Shi Xiaole hastily retreated, his face filled with shock.
In his line of sight, a group of people were flying over from afar. They were dressed in identical gray robes, with black chains as thick as a child’s arm wrapped around their necks and limbs. Their expressions were wooden, like a group of specters from hell, each emanating an eerie air.
The wave of fragrance was emanating from them.
"Bad news, they’re Burial Martial Artists!"
"Run, those monsters have appeared again..."
Several passersby from the Martial World who happened to be nearby, upon seeing this group, fled desperately.
But halfway through their escape, they either fell to the ground or fainted on the spot, only to be chopped into dozens of pieces by the gray-robed figures. The Martial World traveler who got the furthest was strangled to death by a chain thrown by one of the gray-robed men.
Seemingly satisfied with the outcome, the group of gray-robed figures laughed with each other and continued to wander aimlessly, carrying the fragrance toward the distance.
Stepping out from behind the mountain cliff, Shi Xiaole remained in shock for a long time.
Mutation Transformation Flower!
He was certain he wasn’t mistaken—the fragrance just now was extremely similar to that of the Mutation Transformation Flower but was even more enduring and subtle. Despite the vast distance, it almost impacted him; the effect of the fragrance was tens of times stronger than that of the Mutation Transformation Flower.
In Sky Mountain, also one of the Ten Great Dangerous Places, that man entered alone, and Shi Xiaole couldn’t help worrying whether the other party had met with misfortune or failed in his research, but now it seemed that there was much more to the story.
Combining this thought with the unexpected destruction of the Boundless Flower Prison, Shi Xiaole suddenly had an intuition that there might be a shocking conspiracy unfolding somewhere out of his sight!
...
The Heavenly Desire Origin was interlaced with various illusions. Even with Shi Xiaole’s mental strength, it was impossible to perceive anything ten thousand meters away. Several months passed, and he still had not found the Three-Life Flower that could revive the Purple Wood Sword Emperor.
"Given the Purple Wood Sword Emperor’s determination, he can last at most one year. The time left for me is getting shorter and shorter."
Shi Xiaole said he wasn’t anxious would be false, but some things can’t be rushed no matter how urgent one feels if the opportunity hasn’t come.
"Is this the Three-life Subordinate Fate Flower?"
Perhaps fortune had turned, as in the fifth month of his time in the Heavenly Desire Origin, Shi Xiaole found a Three-life Subordinate Fate Flower. A derivative of the incomplete seeds of the Three-Life Flower, its effects were evidently much weaker, but it was still greatly beneficial for consolidating one’s determination.
"This is mine, get lost."
Suddenly, the figure of a man seated in meditation appeared beside the Three-life Subordinate Fate Flower. His body was as hot as the blazing sun; although they were ten thousand meters apart, Shi Xiaole’s skin still felt a strong burning sensation until he activated his body-protecting Sword Qi, which then alleviated the pain.
He was powerful.
Through his senses, Shi Xiaole assessed that this scorching old man must be a first-class Heaven Realm Martial Emperor.
"Huh, you’ve got some skills."
The Flame Sun Great Emperor initially didn’t take it seriously. But when he noticed that Shi Xiaole appeared young not only in looks but also in life essence, greed flashed in his eyes.
Over six hundred years ago, the Flame Sun Great Emperor had been gravely injured in the war between the righteous and Devil Paths, with no cure available. He had little choice but to enter the Heavenly Desire Origin from the Bei Liang dynasty, where he stayed for many years.
It took the Flame Sun Great Emperor ages to find this Three-life Subordinate Fate Flower and he guarded it every day, waiting for it to mature. Even swallowing the Three-life Subordinate Fate Flower could only postpone his injury, not heal it.
However, the life essence of a Martial Emperor less than one hundred years old would be a different story. Back in the day, the Flame Sun Great Emperor practiced a Devil Path martial art that devoured life essence, but in his era, there were no Martial Emperors of such a young age, and even if there were, they would be extremely rare to find.
By a twist of fate, Shi Xiaole’s life essence was far too young, definitely not exceeding a hundred years, probably not even fifty. If the Flame Sun Great Emperor could devour his essence, he could possibly recover from his injuries right away.
"Young friend, do you want this thing? Let’s make a deal,"
Flame Sun Great Emperor’s eyes shone with a cunning light.
"No need."
Shi Xiaole immediately backed away in flight.
"That’s not up to you."
Then, with a booming sound, a crimson fireball appeared out of nowhere, enveloping both Flame Sun Great Emperor and Shi Xiaole, spanning tens of thousands of meters.
The Spring Fury Sword unsheathed, Shi Xiaole thrust out with his sword, and at a certain point on the crimson fireball, it bulged violently, extending for hundreds of meters before suddenly snapping back.
"Kid, give up. You can’t break through my Red Flame Sun Domain," said the emperor.
With a stride of ten thousand meters, Flame Sun Great Emperor’s huge palm pressed down; his palm seemed to contain a sun, radiating a brilliant divine light, making space twist as if boiling water.
This palm exerted a heavy pressure on Shi Xiaole, it was clear the adversary was extremely cautious and definitely going all out from the start, intending to capture him.
Hissss...
The boundless Sword Qi became one with the sword, clashing with the palm energy, causing the heavens and earth to lose color, and the reverberating sounds made the sky shatter like glass.
At this moment, the advantages of Heavenly Desire Origin were revealed; the shockwaves that reached ten thousand meters away were dissipated by invisible illusions, and not a single person nearby noticed the commotion here.
"Pfft..."
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth as Shi Xiaole increased the distance between himself and Flame Sun Great Emperor.
He had not been negligent in his cultivation during this time, but his rate of improvement could not be compared to the past, still remaining at a second-rate Heavenly Realm level.
"Impressive, young one. Could you be the reincarnation of some old freak, possessing such power?" the emperor exclaimed in shock.
Even the Flying Horse Martial Emperor of old wasn’t as outstanding as Shi Xiaole, who became a Heavenly Realm Martial Emperor before the age of one hundred. He must capture him, as the life force of such a person would only be purer than imagined, and might even improve his own talents.
"Sun Chaos Palm!"
With flames burning in his eyes, Flame Sun Great Emperor’s palms came together, and countless sun palm lights emerged, like a landslide, swarming over Shi Xiaole.
It was evident that the crimson fireball resonated with the sun palm lights, enhancing each other, and elevating their destructive power.
"Red Flame Sun Domain," ranked twenty-ninth on the Northern Bei Liang Dynasty’s celestial list—this was Flame Sun Great Emperor’s signature technique, and over six hundred years, his deadly skills had undoubtedly become even more advanced.
It was impossible to break through without being a first-rate Heavenly Realm Martial Emperor.
"Formless Sword!"
The forces of nature around melded into the Spring Fury Sword, transforming into an invisible sword light that surged out, constantly deflecting and piercing the sun palm lights, but the power of the invisible sword light was also waning, soon exhausted.
Shi Xiaole aimed for this brief moment, executing the "Ascending Immortal Step." Instead of retreating, he pushed forward, channeling his way in. As they drew close, he boldly activated the blood energy within his body.
"Evil Blood Tribulation!"
The Flame Sun Great Emperor trembled, and immediately after, he was enveloped by a powerful spiritual force that dragged him into a beautiful illusion.
"Come back here!"
As expected of a first-rate Heavenly Realm Martial Emperor, Flame Sun Great Emperor broke free from the "Heavenly Palace Illusion" even before Shi Xiaole could attack. Mainly because "Heavenly Palace Illusion," being a top-tier martial art, was to some extent unable to capitalize on Shi Xiaole’s spiritual advantage.
But it wasn’t over yet.
Following the "Heavenly Palace Illusion," Shi Xiaole executed the "Shocking Eye Tribulation."
The Flame Sun Great Emperor’s momentum stalled, his eyes slightly unfocused, but he still made an attacking gesture.
Shi Xiaole silently shook his head, giving up his plan to attack. The Vigorous Air that he had been readying condensed into a sword light, and taking advantage of the momentary stagnation of the crimson fireball, he pierced a hole through it.
Whoosh.
Shi Xiaole dashed out through the hole and fled. Facing a first-rate Heavenly Realm Martial Emperor, he was not yet presumptuous enough to waste his killing techniques.
"Don’t run, Red Flame Falling Sun Palm!"
Surprised and enraged, Flame Sun Great Emperor truly couldn’t imagine that Shi Xiaole’s spiritual path strength was no less than his martial prowess. The crimson fireball shrank a hundredfold and he fiercely pushed it toward Shi Xiaole, as fast as lightning.
After an earth-shattering explosion, Flame Sun Great Emperor stood with an ashen face.
The unique circumstances of Heavenly Desire Origin prevented him from chasing after Shi Xiaole; if he lost track of him and someone else snatched the Three-life Subordinate Fate Flower, he would have nowhere to weep.
"In a few days, the flower will mature, and my strength will increase further. Kid, I’ve memorized your scent," he said with a sly chuckle, settling himself down again.
Far away, Shi Xiaole was pale, his clothes bloodstained, and with a grim expression, he looked at the Spring Fury Sword, broken in two, in his hand.
