Chapter 195: Beyond the Mysteries, the Martial Dao's Divine Will

Chapter 195: Beyond the Mysteries, the Martial Dao's Divine Will

With this strike, Leng Fu channeled all his cultivation.

He intended for them both to perish together!

Xu Yan let out a cold hum, and with a swing of his sword, a landscape of mountains and rivers manifested, enveloping the blade.

Within the mountains and rivers, a gentle breeze blew, caressing the cold and gloomy long sword. In this breeze, Leng Fu's spiritual consciousness was utterly annihilated.

However, the power of this strike remained undiminished.

It seemed determined to pierce through the mountains and rivers and continue its deadly path.

Buzz!

The Life and Death Sword Wheel spun, entangling the long sword. The might of the sword strike was completely obliterated, and the long sword shattered and fell.

Thus, not a single enemy remained, all of them defeated!

Xu Yan reached out and grabbed the white-robed, blue-faced man from the Cangjiang River, along with another corpse, and returned to Canglan Island.

He tossed the bodies onto the ground.

A gentle breeze caressed Xu Yan, a sign of his newfound understanding of sword intent.

"Let's call this sword intent the 'Xun Wind Sword Intent'!" Xu Yan thought excitedly.

Li Xuan also smiled. This battle had come at just the right time, allowing Xu Yan to prematurely awaken to the sword intent, a technique directly targeting spiritual consciousness.

"Your disciple, Xu Yan, has comprehended the Xun Wind Sword Intent, and your own Xun Wind Sword Intent has reached perfection."

The golden finger responded the moment Xu Yan comprehended the sword intent.

The Xun Wind Sword Intent was derived from the trigram Xun in the Eight Trigrams.

This battle had come suddenly and ended swiftly, attracting little to no attention.

Night was falling.

On Canglan Island, the lights shone brightly.

Chi Cat returned to her slumber, while Xie Lingfeng and the others felt their blood boil with excitement, their minds fully devoted to cultivation.

The power of Insight into the Mysteries was indeed formidable.

Xu Yan continued to fathom the depths of the Xun Wind Sword Intent, reflecting on the gains from this battle.

Su Lingxiu immersed herself entirely in the Martial Dao. She wanted to become stronger, to face any danger on her own, rather than relying solely on her master and senior martial brother for protection.

Zhou Ying was also spurred on by these events.

At this moment, she was preparing to break through to the Innate Realm.

Shi Er, likewise stimulated, began preparing for his own breakthrough to the Innate Realm.

On Canglan Island, everyone dedicated themselves to cultivation, even Xu Yan's mother, who had rarely been diligent in her martial arts training, was seized with a rare fervor.

Li Xuan remained as carefree as ever, unconcerned about the trouble Su Lingxiu had brought.

He would deal with whatever came his way.

As for any secrets lurking in the background, he paid them no mind.

The battle on Canglan Island seemed to have caused no waves in the Martial World, as if no one was aware of it.

The disappearance of four Half-step Heaven Humans and dozens of peak Grand Masters went seemingly unnoticed.

Only those in the know understood the true might of Canglan Island.

In the royal study of the Great Yue Empire's palace, the Emperor sat silently, awaiting news.

"Your Majesty."

A Royal Tribute quietly entered.

"How is it with the Evergreen Pavilion?" The Great Yue Emperor asked, his voice deep and spirited.

The Tianyi Guard, the Tianyu Guard, and the Shenji Army, the elite forces of the Great Yue Empire, were all prepared. Once Canglan Island was destroyed, he would give the order to invade the Great Wilderness and wipe it out completely.

"There's no news from the two Tributes and the Old Duke," the Tribute lowered his head and replied.

The Great Yue Emperor slumped in his chair, his expression instantly becoming dejected. He remained silent for a long time.

No news meant the outcome was clear.

To bring about the downfall of the Great Yue Empire, the powerful experts involved in this operation far surpassed those from the first attempt, especially with the inclusion of four Half-step Heaven Humans! One of them was the Old Duke, the very foundation of the Great Yue Empire.

After a long while, the Great Yue Emperor waved his hand to dismiss the Tribute and began preparing his forces for action. The elite troops, including the Tianyi Guard and the Tianyu Guard, quietly withdrew.

Not a whisper of this incident must be leaked.

If this attack was linked to the Great Yue Empire, there would undoubtedly be retaliation from the Evergreen Pavilion.

The Great Yue Emperor's expression was gloomy. His next task was to stabilize the empire's situation and find a way to improve relations with the Great Wilderness. To that end, he made a tough decision and used the pretext of establishing trade relations with the Great Wilderness to cede the entire Yunfeng County to them.

From then on, both Lanping and Yunfeng Counties belonged to the Great Wilderness.

Aside from the Great Yue Empire, the other forces involved in the operation became low-key and retracted their influence.

The power dynamics within the Inner Realm's Martial World had quietly shifted.

In the palace of the Yan Empire, the Yan Emperor sat calmly, gazing at the elderly eunuch below. "Is it true that he's dead?"

"Your Majesty, none survived," the elderly eunuch replied with a nod.

"Announce that the Emperor's uncle is in seclusion and has no heart for politics. From this day forth, the Black Mystery Guard will take orders directly from me. Issue an imperial decree..." The Yan Emperor's eyes showed no hint of sadness; instead, he felt a sense of relief. Although the royal family had lost a true pillar, he could now be the true emperor of the Yan Empire! In a single day, the political landscape of the Yan Empire had changed, with the Yan Emperor holding sole power.

If the one in white had survived, it would have been him arriving, not this masked figure.

"We failed," the masked figure replied calmly.

"How many?" The Demon Child's expression turned grave.

"White Robe, Leng Fu, and two others. One from Great Yue, and one from Yan. In addition, several dozen peak Grand Masters." The masked figure's tone grew solemn.

"A Martial Dao Divine?" The Demon Child forced out the words, his eyes narrowing.

Indeed, only a true Martial Dao Divine could annihilate so many powerful experts. Not a single one had escaped! It was impossible for four Half-step Heaven Humans to all perish unless they had encountered a true Martial Dao Divine! Even with his own intervention, he wouldn't have been able to kill them all, let alone the dozens of peak Grand Masters.

Only a true Martial Dao Divine could possess such terrifying power!

The masked figure lowered his voice. "How could there be a Martial Dao Divine in the Inner Realm? It is said that the Demon Master came from the Spirit Realm's Door. You are his trusted confidant, and you know more about this than anyone."

The Demon Child fell silent, his eyes distant as he recalled his childhood. He had been up in the mountains, gathering medicinal herbs, when he stumbled upon a man lying on the ground, his body battered and bloody.

He had crushed the precious herb he found and fed it to the man, then called for his parents to help. That act had changed the course of his life.

The man had taught him martial arts and taken him along as he slaughtered warriors, founding the Demon Sect. But then, one day, the man had mysteriously disappeared, and he had returned to this very village.

"Demon Child, don't you want to become a true Martial Dao Divine? The Demon Master has vanished—did he return to the Spirit Realm's Door, or did he die? Don't you wonder?"

"Do you really intend to grow old and die in this mountain village?" The masked figure's voice was insistent.

The Demon Child sighed and looked up. "If he returned to the Spirit Realm's Door, he would have taken me with him. Since there is a Martial Dao Divine in the Inner Realm..."

The masked figure understood the Demon Child's implication. If there truly was a Martial Dao Divine on Canglan Island, then perhaps the Demon Master's disappearance was connected to them.

"With our power, we cannot stand against a Martial Dao Divine. In the Inner Realm, a peak Grand Master is already at the pinnacle of martial arts. Who wouldn't want to take the next step? Your Red Extinction has taken that step, and you know the price—the fifth-grade stone ghost grass that strengthens the spirit and will.

"If there is a path beyond the Grand Master realm, it is being monopolized by someone. What do you think the Grand Masters of the world would do if they found out?" The Demon Child's eyes blazed with intensity.

The masked figure took a deep breath. "In the end, we must take that step. There is no other way. We must unite the Grand Masters of the Inner Realm and force that Martial Dao Divine to submit."

"I will lend my aid, and so will the other Half-step Heaven Humans in the Inner Realm, especially those old fogeys who are nearing their end." The Demon Child lowered his head and continued carving.

The masked figure turned to leave. "I await your orders, Demon Child."

After the masked figure departed, the Demon Child stopped carving and stared into the distance, his eyes deep. His mind conjured up an image of a proud and domineering figure.

"Uncle Blood Spirit, did you die at his hands? You said you were a Divine of the Spirit, a pinnacle existence, and you vowed to take me with you to invade the Spirit Realm's Door..."

No one in the Inner Realm knew the Demon Master better than he did.

...

The masked figure's faction and other powerful beings like the Demon Child were brewing a storm, plotting to gather all the Grand Masters of the world to pressure Canglan Island. However, Li Xuan remained oblivious to these schemes.

Even if he had known, he wouldn't have cared.

With his current strength, what could a group of Grand Masters possibly do to him?

On Canglan Island, atop a lofty peak, Li Xuan stood with his hands behind his back, overlooking the vast Cangjiang River. Xu Yan stood respectfully by his side.

After a period of reflection, Xu Yan's understanding of the Xun Wind Sword Intent had matured, and his swordsmanship had improved. He was now close to achieving Sword Heart Enlightenment.

Moreover, his comprehension of the Insights into the Mysteries was deepening.

It wouldn't be long before he achieved minor success in Insights into the Mysteries.

"Disciple, you have reached the Insights into the Mysteries realm. Do you have any insights about the realm beyond?" Li Xuan asked.

Today, he would impart to Xu Yan the martial arts of the fourth realm beyond Insights into the Mysteries.

"And the fourth realm of martial arts?" Li Xuan asked solemnly.

"Cultivates the transcendence of the human body's mysteries, and cultivates the Martial Dao Divine Will!"

After Meng Chong nearly died at the hands of that "Wu Senior," and Li Xuan realized that his body had been possessed, he began to speculate and was triggered to create a cultivation method for the fourth realm beyond 'Understanding the Mysteries.'

As he had suspected, above the Grand Master realm, one cultivates the divine soul!

Only by possessing a divine soul can one possess the power of possession.

Whether it was the Hidden Pavilion Lord or the few Blue-Faced Men, they were all Half-step Heaven Humans who had not refined their divine souls but had only refined powerful spiritual bodies that had not yet transformed into divine souls.

Even so, by referring to the Half-step Heaven Humans, Li Xuan could still roughly deduce that the spiritual bodies cultivated by Martial Dao Divines, or what could be called divine souls, were relatively insubstantial and not strong enough.

Even in the cultivation of divine souls, there are distinctions between strength and weakness.

Beyond 'Understanding the Mysteries,' Li Xuan had already determined the direction of cultivation—to cultivate the Martial Dao Divine Will, a crucial realm. This realization came about after he became aware that above the Grand Master realm, one might cultivate the divine soul.

Li Xuan wanted to ensure that the martial arts he fabricated would always be more powerful, so he racked his brains to make it as mysterious as possible while also being self-consistent and seamlessly connected to the 'Understanding the Mysteries' realm.

After consecutively killing several Half-step Heaven Humans, Li Xuan gained immense confidence in his fabricated cultivation method.

"Martial Dao Divine Will?"

Xu Yan was thrilled, focusing intently, afraid to miss even the tiniest detail.

Li Xuan solemnly began to explain: "Open the Mud Pill Palace, nurture the Spirit Platform, and condense the Divine Will; the form of the Divine Will is the foundation of the divine soul..."

The fourth realm of martial arts, the Divine Will realm!

The cultivation of the Divine Will realm involves opening the Mud Pill Palace, nurturing the Spirit Platform, and condensing the Martial Dao Divine Will above the Spirit Platform.

Li Xuan had deliberated repeatedly before coming up with this theory, initially worried that the Martial Dao Divine Will cultivated in the Divine Will realm might not be powerful enough.

However, after encountering the Half-step Heaven Humans, he discovered that the Divine Will realm still maintained a significant advantage.

Li Xuan continued to explain the Divine Will realm: "The form of the Divine Will is like the true self. At the Spirit Platform, one perceives the heavens and the earth, condensing the intentions of the heavens and the earth, transforming them into one's intentions, and refining the form of the Divine Will, which is the foundation of the divine soul..."

After explaining, Li Xuan raised his hand to point out the location of the Mud Pill Palace and said, "The fourth realm of martial arts is to open the Mud Pill Palace, nurture the Spirit Platform, and condense the Divine Will, taking the form of the true self.

"Condense the intentions of the heavens and the earth as one's intentions, and refine the form of the heavens and the earth as the form of the divine soul; my intentions are the intentions of the heavens, and my form is the form of the heavens.

"Where the Divine Will reaches, it is as if the intentions of the heavens arrive, and the intentions of the heavens cannot be defied!"

Xu Yan listened intently, his heart filled with awe. He murmured, "The intentions of the heavens are my intentions, and the form of the heavens is my form; as I condense my Divine Will, it is like the intentions of the heavens, and the intentions of the heavens cannot be defied!"

In that instant, he felt as if he had seen his Divine Will descend like the intentions of the heavens, unstoppable and unopposable!

Those who defy will perish, and those who oppose will be punished, all in the blink of an eye!

How powerful is that!

Martial Dao Divines merely exert spiritual pressure to suppress the consciousness of martial artists, but the Martial Dao Divine Will is like the intentions of the heavens.

Those who defy the intentions of the heavens will be punished in an instant!

Under the Martial Dao Divine Will, everyone is like an ant!

Xu Yan was deeply shaken. He felt that even if he had perfected his 'Understanding the Mysteries' realm, he would struggle to resist a Martial Dao Divine Will cultivator and would be almost powerless to fight back.

Unless his sword intent had become strong enough to counter the Martial Dao Divine Will!

But what if his opponent had also comprehended sword intent?

How powerful would the sword intent of a Martial Dao Divine Will cultivator be?

Xu Yan realized that the Divine Will realm was a watershed, a massive transformation and leap forward. Thus, even a powerful 'Understanding the Mysteries' cultivator would be unable to oppose someone in the Divine Will realm.

'Understanding the Mysteries' harmonizes with the spiritual energy of the heavens and the earth and possesses the profound mysteries of the heavens and the earth. But can it oppose the intentions of the heavens?

No, it cannot!

'Understanding the Mysteries' can counter-attack Martial Dao Divines, but it is nearly impossible to counter-attack a Martial Dao Divine Will cultivator.

In that moment, Xu Yan suddenly felt that the so-called Martial Dao Divine was embarrassingly weak, tarnishing the name of "Divine."

Xu Yan's body surged with sword intent, as if he wanted to merge with the heavens and the earth, representing the intentions of the heavens. Mountains and rivers appeared, as if they were about to transform into the form of the entire world.

In his mind, enlightenment emerged, and the martial arts of the Divine Will realm appeared one by one. The more he contemplated, the more profound and unfathomable they seemed.

The more he felt their immense power.

My intentions are the intentions of the heavens, and my form is the form of the heavens!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end