Sword Heart Illumination

Within the Dao Debate Palace, the eyes of the senior fellow disciples began to fall on a few individuals. After ‘Senior Brother Poison Blood’—already considered a formidable Wanxiang Adept in debates—had been defeated by Ji Ning, anyone who wanted to challenge Ji Ning now would have to be even stronger. That narrowed the field to perhaps a dozen or so—those among the multiple Domain of the Dao cultivators who were genuinely skilled.

“In that case, let me experience Junior Brother Ji Ning’s strength for myself.” A white-robed man standing beside Senior Brother Flamesaint walked forward with a calm smile.

“Beishan Xuantang?”

“Senior Brother Xuantang is making his move! His ‘Five Qi Grand Capture’ is far more powerful than Poison Blood’s.”

“With Senior Brother Xuantang stepping in, he should be able to win.”

A buzz of discussion rippled through the hall.

Beishan Xuantang was a standout among the Wanxiang Adept disciples of the Black-White College. Of course, in a real life-or-death battle, those who practiced Fiendgod Body Refining were generally stronger—disciples like ‘Senior Brother Bloodshadow’ possessed overwhelming combat power. Fiendgod Body Refining inherently held a massive advantage in battle. But Beishan Xuantang was a Ki Refiner. If one considered only the realm of the Dao, he was among the top of the multiple Domain of the Dao practitioners, far surpassing Poison Blood and his ilk.

“Beishan Xuantang?” Ji Ning recognized him at a glance. When he had first come to the Black-White College, he had encountered this man. At that time, Beishan Xuantang hadn’t even bothered to acknowledge him. “Brother Baiwei once said that Beishan Xuantang was a snake wrapped in sheep’s clothing. At least I can see the sheep’s clothing now.”

Beishan Xuantang approached gracefully, a faint smile on his face, his white robes fluttering. He certainly had a bearing about him, and he seemed to be well-liked.

Soon, Beishan Xuantang selected a puppet from the side hall, tapped his foot, and directly flew onto one of the stone pillars. His puppet leaped down into the arena below.

“Junior Brother Ji Ning.” Beishan Xuantang stood atop his pillar, looking over from afar, smiling. “When we first met, I never imagined that today we would be debating here in the Dao Debate Palace. The vicissitudes of fate truly are wondrous.”

“To be able to spar with you, Senior Brother, is a wondrous turn of fate indeed,” Ji Ning replied.

Beishan Xuantang nodded lightly, but the fighting intent in his eyes was clear. Because he came from a distant branch of the Anchan Beishan clan, he had always looked down on the direct descendants who relied on their parents’ protection. He had long since categorized Ji Ning as being on ‘Beishan Baiwei’s’ side, and Ji Ning’s string of victories had only made his displeasure grow.

“His talent is impressive, but he’s won enough,” Beishan Xuantang mused.

Suddenly—

Among the many senior and junior disciples standing at the side of the Dao Debate Palace, a white-robed, white-haired man spoke. “Junior Brother Ji Ning.”

Ji Ning turned his head and saw the speaker. He immediately clasped his hands respectfully. “Senior Brother Bloodshadow.”

Senior Brother Bloodshadow might have been average in debates, but when it came to direct combat, he was among the top third-generation disciples.

“Junior Brother, after first defeating three Zifu disciples in a row, then besting me, Bai Xue, and Poison Blood, and now preparing to fight this Beishan Xuantang… I can’t help but admire you,” Bloodshadow said. “Senior Brother Xuantang is highly skilled, and you, Junior Brother, have exceptional talent. The outcome of this battle is hard to predict. I’d like to offer a treasure to add a bit of spice. If Junior Brother Ji Ning defeats Senior Brother Xuantang, I will give this treasure to you.”

As soon as he spoke, a gasp ran through the crowd. Bloodshadow’s words slightly ‘undermined’ Beishan Xuantang’s face, and it was obvious that he was trying to get close to Ji Ning.

“Hmph.” Beishan Xuantang felt a flash of anger inwardly. But this Bloodshadow was one of the most troublesome third-generation disciples. On the surface, he maintained a calm smile.

“I cannot accept this,” Ji Ning said hurriedly.

“No need to be modest,” Bloodshadow said. “This treasure is a Mortal-ranked flying sword formation. It’s not of much use to me. I acquired it by chance during an Yinglong Guard mission—I stumbled into an Immortal’s manor and brought it back. I saw that you, Junior Brother, are skilled at controlling flying swords, and can even manipulate many at once. This set is a Heavenly Fiend and Earthly Fiend Sword Formation, a total of one hundred and eight flying swords. Useless to me, but it should be of great use to you. However, to obtain it, you’ll need to prove yourself in this battle.”

The white-robed, white-haired Bloodshadow wore a smile. He genuinely thought highly of Ji Ning.

He was the first among the Wanxiang Adepts to reach out, but in truth, it was a kind of ‘tossing out a brick to attract a jade’ gambit. From having fought many life-or-death battles, Bloodshadow had a very sharp intuition. He could faintly sense that Ji Ning, standing there in the distance, was like a sword. He understood that this junior brother had an unlimited future.

Offering this flying sword set… ostensibly only awarded on victory, even if Ji Ning lost, Bloodshadow could find another excuse to give it to him later. This way, they would naturally grow closer.

“I will do my utmost, Senior Brother,” Ji Ning said.

How could a Mortal-ranked flying sword formation be useless to Bloodshadow? He could trade it for quite a few Primordial Liquid tokens at the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. This was clearly a gesture to build a relationship.

…

“That kid Bloodshadow is the first to try and befriend your disciple,” the short old man said, taking a swig from his gourd as he spoke lazily.

Diancai Immortal nodded lightly. “Bloodshadow is a talent among the third-generation disciples.”

“Just because he’s on your disciple’s side makes him a talent?” The short old man glared, then curled his lips. “But to be fair, Bloodshadow may be slow on the Dao, but he’s solid. What’s more, he’s willing to endure hardship. The Fiendgod Body Refining technique ‘Bloodshadow Indestructible Art’ is considered one of the most painful cultivation methods, but once mastered, it becomes bizarre and astonishingly powerful. Bloodshadow often takes on dangerous missions in the Yinglong Guard. With the uniqueness of his Bloodshadow Indestructible Art, he walks the line between life and death repeatedly, and his strength has been growing faster and faster. His divine abilities have grown more formidable… He wasn’t remarkable when he first entered, but now he’s among the top third-generation disciples. I predict that in a few hundred years, he might become one of the strongest in the Black-White College.”

“Why are you so optimistic about him?” Diancai Immortal was startled.

“Comprehending the Dao is important, but the Dao-heart is even more so,” the short old man said softly, a hint of emotion in his voice. “You’ll understand after you’ve seen more.”

“Mm.” Diancai Immortal cast a profound glance at Bloodshadow.

“The battle is starting,” the short old man said, his eyes brightening as he gazed at the arena. Ji Ning and Beishan Xuantang had begun controlling their puppets to fight. “Diancai, who do you think will win? In my opinion, your disciple may have comprehended the first stance of the ‘Three-Foot Sword’, but that stance is about illuminating the sword-heart!”

“We don’t know the state of his sword-heart, nor how powerful the stance will be. And this Beishan Xuantang’s Five Qi Grand Capture is far stronger than that brat Poison Blood’s.” The short old man looked at Diancai Immortal, hoping to see a worried expression.

But Diancai Immortal remained as solemn as ever. “We’ll know the state of his sword-heart when we see it.”

“Oh.” The short old man responded, shaking his head with a sigh. “Aiya, your disciple is at a disadvantage. Looks like he’s in danger.”

…

Outside the sealing formation, the onlookers held their breath.

“I wonder if Junior Brother Ji Ning can create another miracle,” Senior Brother Flamesaint murmured with narrowed eyes.

…

“The power of his sword-light isn’t increasing anymore… Has his comprehension of the sword stopped?” The portly, slovenly youth frowned as he watched. “If it’s already stopped, this battle might be in doubt… Senior Sister, can Junior Brother Ji Ning win?” Jiulian asked.

The black-robed girl, Yu Wei, just watched silently, saying nothing.

…

“Win, win, win.” In a corner, Mu Northson and Senior Sister Donglin stood together. Northson clenched his fists, his eyes wide.

…

Inside the sealing formation.

Ji Ning sat cross-legged on his stone pillar, utterly suppressed. Still, his Nine Swords Three Talents Lotus Sword-art struggled desperately against the enormous Five Qi Grand Capture. From the looks of it, after a few more exchanges, the Three Talents Lotus Sword would collapse.

Ji Ning was very calm. There was no trace of panic. This made Beishan Xuantang sneer inwardly: “Almost there. It’s time for you to lose.”

But Beishan Xuantang didn’t know that Ji Ning was gathering momentum, wave after wave of insight into the sword surging within his heart.

“True freedom! True liberation!”

“Even fate itself must retreat!”

Ji Ning’s eyes suddenly exploded with a terrifying sword-intent, and his entire being emanated a shocking aura of the sword.

“The first stance of the Three-Foot Sword—Sword Heart Illumination!” Ji Ning’s gaze focused. Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh… All the flying swords behind his Thousand Sword Puppet shot out, including the ones he had been using. A total of over a thousand flying swords filled the air, their sheer number stunning the spectators. What was he doing?

All thousand flying swords pointed toward the Five Qi Grand Capture in the distance.

“Chop!”

Ji Ning let out a furious bellow!

The thousand flying swords instantly bloomed with lotus flowers, then all of them slashed forward at once… In that moment, the thousand flying swords transformed into a single colossal sword-light, carrying an irresistible momentum as it chopped forward!

This slash contained the invincible will of Ji Ning’s sword-heart!

In his past life on Earth, Ji Ning had lived through an age of information explosion. To have entered the mortal world and then emerged from it—the distracting thoughts born from that explosion of information were far more terrifying than the tribulations experienced in this primordial age.

Now, in this life, through his experiences, the separation of life and death, the warmth of family, Ji Ning’s heart had gradually become illuminated.

If a person lived in a paradise, they might also keep a pure, illuminated heart. But such a pure heart was very fragile; once tempted or faced with setbacks, it might collapse.

But Ji Ning had seen too much in the information explosion of his past life. Under the torment of illness, he had watched others run freely, read, and fall in love. How twisted and painful that was.

This heart, once stained by the mortal world, had been gradually illuminated by the warmth of family in this life—and had become even more indestructible.

“Standing atop a mountain peak, pure and untainted, is certainly commendable. But emerging unstained from the mud is even more rare!”

“This is my first stance of the Three-Foot Sword!”

“Chop!”

Ji Ning shouted the word ‘Chop’ three times in succession, and the sword-light in his eyes was visible to all. The powerful sword-intent, the indomitable will, even moved the two Immortals in the distance.

BOOM!!!

A thousand flying swords chopped in unison! The colossal sword-light formed from them slashed forward!

The mighty Five Qi Grand Capture in front of it held on for a moment, but soon shattered into pieces.