Jiang Xuan closed his eyes, savoring the sensation he had just experienced, feeling the space around him, feeling the wind... Completely focused, Jiang Xuan swung his blade again. He vanished from his original position, and the blade's aura was everywhere—both real and illusory, indistinguishable from one another. It could be said that it was all false, yet it was all true! Because it was so fast and terrifying!
Dozens of large trees were cut down, turned into even smaller pieces of firewood.
"It requires complete concentration and total mental focus to unleash this move. Once it is performed, you enter a subtle state where you feel fused with the heavens and earth. It's as though you are everywhere—wherever your thoughts go, the blade follows. This is the limit of thought…"
Jiang Xuan’s figure materialized in front of the transmission stone, his image merging with the afterimages. He looked at the blade in his hand, becoming increasingly excited—not just because he had mastered the strongest move of Chasing Wind Blade, but because it was the first time he had felt as though he was merging with the heavens and earth.
This realization made him understand that he had touched a higher realm of technique.
It also made him feel his own insignificance.
It was a heart-shattering insight.
"Senior, are you there? Senior, I’ve mastered it! Senior!"
Jiang Xuan wanted to immediately share this good news with the "Mysterious Stone Senior," but there was no response.
Clearly, the senior was not present at the moment.
"Continue! Don’t slack off! While I can’t master it completely in the short term, I must solidify this feeling!" Jiang Xuan began to practice his blade again.
After a while, he was forced to stop.
Standing in front of the transmission stone, covered in sweat, breathing heavily, his face pale and his breath weak, Jiang Xuan realized, "In such a short time, my innate power is nearly depleted, and my meridians are showing signs of damage. The Chasing Wind Style is indeed terrifying! I’m not even at the congenital stage yet, forcing myself to use it has put too much strain on my body. If I weren’t cultivating Black Abyss Skill, I might already be injured."
This was the first time Jiang Xuan had experienced such a situation after practicing for so long in the back mountains.
But it wasn’t surprising. He was pushing beyond several realms to force out the Chasing Wind Style. If it weren’t for the miraculous Black Abyss Skill, it would be impossible for anyone at a half-step congenital level to use it this way.
The Chasing Wind Style was simply that terrifying.
Jiang Xuan took out a recovery pill, swallowed it, and sat cross-legged to recover his innate power. This recovery pill was provided by the tribe. Most of the cultivation resources in the Jiang tribe were being used by him alone. Although the resources were running low after the three-year life-and-death battle, there was still some foundation left.
One hour later.
Jiang Xuan had recovered enough and got up to continue practicing the blade.
Exhausted, recover, then practice again!
He kept going until late at night.
"Have you mastered it?" The transmission stone suddenly emitted the ethereal voice.
"Senior!" Jiang Xuan appeared in front of the stone, "I’ve mastered it! The Ninth Style!"
"Then I can rest easy. Just as I expected, you mastered it before the life-and-death battle. Now, you will have no opponent. Even the strongest congenital warrior of any tribe cannot resist this move of yours." The ethereal voice said.
"Since Senior says so, it must be true."
Jiang Xuan responded quickly, "By the way, Senior, I have a question. When I unleash the Ninth Style, I feel like time slows down and I feel as though I am merging with the heavens and earth. I’ve never had this sensation before. No other technique gives me this feeling. I don’t know what it means…"
"It means entering the Dao of Technique." The ethereal voice replied.
"Entering the Dao of Technique?" Jiang Xuan asked in surprise.
"Do you know what is needed to transcend congenital?" The ethereal voice continued.
"It requires complete congenital perfection, and then…" Jiang Xuan responded, unsure of the details, trying not to say anything wrong.
"Complete congenital perfection is one of the prerequisites for transcending congenital."
The ethereal voice continued, "To become a calamity realm expert, beyond just cultivation, you need to have the 'realm of technique,' which is entering the Dao of Technique. There are three difficult stages: unity of man and sword, the power of heaven and man, and the divine might of heaven and earth."
"You are cultivating the sword, so the first stage can be called 'unity of man and sword.'"
"I know this." Jiang Xuan nodded.
"My father not only reached complete congenital perfection but also comprehended unity of man and sword and the power of heaven and man. Any ordinary congenital would not be his opponent, so he is the number one congenital in Black Abyss Mountain. Shentu Lie, like my father, has also comprehended the first two stages."
"Hmm."
The ethereal voice continued, "For those at complete congenital perfection, comprehending the unity of man and sword is not difficult, as long as the sword technique is of sufficient rank. For example, your tribe’s Chasing Wind Blade. If you can reach the eighth style, you must have already achieved unity of man and sword. Without that kind of talent, it’s hard to master the eighth style."
"Your father mastered the eighth style, and it was natural for him to achieve unity of man and sword. However, for him to comprehend the power of heaven and man, he must have worked thousands of times harder, with unimaginable perseverance and possibly some luck, to have comprehended it!"
"So, what does this have to do with the sensation I feel when I use the Ninth Style?" Jiang Xuan asked, "Why mention this?"
"Because the sensation you feel is part of the process of comprehending the power of heaven and man." The ethereal voice explained.
"Huh?" Jiang Xuan was stunned.
His father—the most powerful existence in Black Abyss Mountain—had only become the number one congenital after comprehending the power of heaven and man at the age of thirty-seven.
Yet here he was, at just fifteen, already experiencing the sensation of comprehending the power of heaven and man?
"Your father took a detour."
The ethereal voice continued, "But it wasn’t his fault. It was because his talent was not enough, so he couldn’t master the Ninth Style. I told you before, the sword techniques cultivated at the half-step congenital stage are the foundation. Your father, without having mastered the Ninth Style, tried to comprehend the power of heaven and man, which was forcing the comprehension with an incomplete foundation. This would be very difficult and completely cut off any possibility of comprehending the divine might of heaven and earth."
"Maybe your father wanted to master the Ninth Style after comprehending the power of heaven and man, but that was a wrong path."
"You, on the other hand, although your sword foundation is incomplete, you have mastered the most complex and difficult Ninth Style, the one closest to entering the Dao of Technique! The Ninth Style itself aids in comprehending the power of heaven and man, just like the eighth style aids in the unity of man and sword. Chasing Wind Blade is truly an excellent sword technique!"
Jiang Xuan began to understand a little.
"Does that mean I might be able to comprehend the power of heaven and man ahead of time?" Jiang Xuan asked, excited.
"You cannot."
The ethereal voice poured cold water on his excitement, "Unlike the foundation of swordsmanship, the realm after entering the Dao of Technique is like building a high tower. You must take it step by step—first the unity of man and sword, then the power of heaven and man. The former is the foundation of the latter! The Ninth Style’s effect on you right now is merely to let you experience the sensation in advance..."
"Hmm..." Jiang Xuan mused.
"You’ve just comprehended the Ninth Style. Your path ahead is still long! There are no shortcuts in cultivation, only detours! Even if I were to teach you breathing techniques to improve your talent, it wouldn’t increase it—it would merely uncover the hidden talent you already have."
"Rest assured, Senior, I won’t become arrogant." Jiang Xuan understood the senior’s good intentions.
"Hmm." The ethereal voice replied, "But on the other hand, with the talent you’ve shown so far, if you reach complete congenital perfection and then master the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth styles of Chasing Wind Blade, the unity of man and sword will come naturally, and the power of heaven and man will follow naturally! It’s only a matter of time! It won’t be as difficult as your father’s journey!"
"The only real difficulty left is the final hurdle—the divine might of heaven and earth. That’s the true crossing of the chasm! If you can’t get past it, you cannot transcend!"
Jiang Xuan understood without needing the senior’s words.
In the thousand-year history of the Jiang tribe, only four people had transcended congenital. Apart from Jiang Zhengwu, known as the Sword Ancestor of Black Abyss Mountain, the other three had all mastered the Ninth Style before the age of twenty, but they had barely managed to break through at the ages of forty or fifty, and had made no further progress.
Jiang Zhengwu transcended congenital at only twenty-one years old.
On the morning of August 2nd, when Jiang Qinghong came to deliver food to Jiang Xuan, she found a large patch of open ground in the forest. Dozens of large trees had been felled, and the firewood had been stacked into a small hill.
"Is the practice area too small? Why are you chopping firewood?" Jiang Qinghong asked with a laugh.
"It’s just something I did while practicing the blade." Jiang Xuan sat down on the animal skin mat beside her. "Sister Qinghong, what’s for lunch today?"
"It’s all your favorites."
"Smells great!"
Jiang Qinghong’s meal routines had become fixed because of Jiang Xuan. The two of them started eating, chatting, laughing, and playfully teasing, just like usual.
But Jiang Xuan keenly noticed that Jiang Qinghong seemed to be lost in thought, occasionally distracted.
As soon as the meal finished, Jiang Xuan finally asked, "Sister Qinghong, what’s wrong? You seem distracted?"
Jiang Qinghong stopped packing the meal boxes, looked at Jiang Xuan, and blinked, not saying anything.
"What’s wrong?" Jiang Xuan asked again.
"Xuan..." Jiang Qinghong looked at him with those beautiful eyes. "Let’s get married."
Jiang Xuan froze, staring into her gaze. After several breaths, he nodded. "Okay, when?"
"Tonight."
"Tonight?"
"Yes!"
"Alright, tonight it is!"