https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-327-Defeat-Ninth-Rank-of-the-Art-Dao-Part-2-Unity-Part-2-/13450503/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-328-Sword-Dao-Ninth-Rank-Li-Hao-s-Fury-Part-2-Part-2-/13450505/
Chapter 328: Sword Dao Ninth Rank, Li Hao's Fury! (Part 2) (Part 1)
Chapter 328: Sword Dao Ninth Rank, Li Hao’s Fury! (Part 2) (Part 1)
Painting Dao Ninth Rank!
As his Art Dao broke through, numerous insights flooded his mind, overshadowing Li Hao's joy and immersing him in a profound understanding.
The passionate painting he had just created, using his Painting Heart to probe the Sage, capturing the indescribable essence of the Sage, had refined his mental state.
The ninth rank meant that Li Hao's paintings had now Entered the Dao.
Piercing through the surface of all things, capturing their essence and spirit, and depicting their Inner Bone Dao Resonance, his paintings were now one with the Dao, and the Dao was one with his paintings.
"Are you done?"
The Sword Master noticed Li Hao's pause and the feeling of being scrutinized to the bone vanished. His gaze shifted to Li Hao's painting board.
Li Hao snapped back to reality, slowly removed the painting, and handed it to the Sword Master with both hands.
The Sword Master took it, and as he looked at the painting in his hands, the ink was still wet, but the essence of the painting was already vividly apparent.
Moreover, as he gazed at the figure in the painting, he felt a humming Sword Intent resonate in his mind—his own Sword Dao!
Li Hao had managed to capture even a fraction of his Sword Dao!
The Sword Master's calm and composed expression instantly turned serious, his eyes fixated on the painting in his hands.
The brushstrokes seemed to carry a Dao Resonance he had never seen before.
The Sword Master looked up at Li Hao, who appeared serene, with an ethereal yet real aura about him.
In just a short moment, this young man seemed to have changed.
The Sword Master gave Li Hao a long, deep look, waited for the ink to dry, then rolled up the painting and put it away, saying:
"I'll keep this painting. Thank you for it, I really like it."
"Good, I'm glad you like it."
Li Hao smiled.
At this moment, he noticed the changes in his Art Dao panel, from the ninth rank to the tenth, with the experience required increasing from one million to five million!
However, just one painting of the Sword Master had earned him 370,000 experience points, which was quite astonishing.
Even so, to fill up his Painting Experience, he would need to have two or three Sages completely drained of their essence.
The tenth rank meant Sainthood Immersion!
A masterpiece could be passed down for thousands of years, remaining Unfading, a timeless work of art.
However, Li Hao knew that to break through to the tenth rank, besides accumulating experience, he needed to grasp the Mindset.
As the sun set, the evening glow cast a soft twilight over the Holy Mountain. Geese flew south, and the bamboo shadows swayed in front of the Sword Cliff, with the waterfall's rush of water creating a rare and beautiful scene.
Li Hao casually painted this scene of the Holy Mountain at dusk and unexpectedly gained over 5,000 experience points.
After bidding farewell to the Sword Master, Li Hao descended the mountain and returned to the Alchemy Academy.
The competition in front of the Holy Mountain had concluded. When Li Hao returned to the Alchemy Academy, Lin Shanhai asked:
"Why didn't you go to watch the matches today? It was a real pity, you have no idea how intense the battles were!"
"Oh?"
Li Hao found a teapot, feeling a bit thirsty from a day of fishing, and took a couple of sips to moisten his throat. "The final four have been decided, right?"
"Yes, tomorrow there will be two more matches to determine the top ten, and then the top ten battles will follow!"
Lin Shanhai explained.
The entire Sword God Battle would last a month, after all, it was a grand event that occurred only once every hundred years, and the competition wouldn't end in just a few days.
Li Hao nodded and glanced at Lin Qingying, who was sitting quietly in the courtyard.
Seeming to sense his gaze, Lin Qingying opened her eyes and looked at Li Hao.
She hadn't seen Li Hao today and knew he had gone to fish with the Sword Master again.
They exchanged a glance, but neither spoke, as if sharing a silent understanding.
Lin Qingying's gaze was calm.
She knew what Li Hao wanted to ask—whether she was confident. Her response was to handle things as they came and do her best.
Lin Shanhai noticed their exchanged glances and sensed a hint of danger, muttering to himself that it felt like he was inviting a wolf into his home, and that his granddaughter would eventually be taken away.
He tugged at Li Hao's sleeve to divert his attention, starting to talk about the day's matches.
Li Hao listened to his vivid descriptions, which included some exaggerations, but he could vividly imagine the battle scenes, including the clashes between the Holy Sons and Holy Maidens.
After all, he had watched the first round of matches, and he had a basic memory of the Sword Arts and techniques these people possessed, so he could guess how their battles would unfold.
After their chat, Li Hao went to the kitchen and prepared some small snacks, giving a portion to Lin Shanhai and inviting Lin Qingying to try them as well.
Lin Qingying, upon hearing Li Hao's invitation, slowly rose to her feet, her exquisite green robe flowing as she walked over to the Alchemy room and began to savor the food.
Lin Shanhai, who had been enjoying his meal with relish, suddenly found the pastries in his mouth losing their flavor when he saw his granddaughter actually accept Li Hao's invitation and sit down to eat and drink quietly with him.
Although Li Hao and Lin Qingying didn't exchange a single word, Lin Shanhai could sense something passing between them, something that seemed to bypass him entirely.
He sighed inwardly, feeling a sense of loss as his daughter grew beyond his reach.
After the pastries were finished, Lin Qingying stood up, thanked Li Hao, and returned to the courtyard to continue her sword meditation.
Li Hao also bid farewell to Lin Shanhai, dusted off his buttocks, and returned to his own small courtyard.
Once back in the courtyard, Li Hao casually set up the Barrier. With the help of his Tomes, it would be difficult for anyone to detect his presence unless they deliberately investigated.
Having done this, Li Hao brought up his Panel and noticed an additional Dao Mind Realm in the Mindset section:
Heart of Painting Dao (Unused).
Previously, Li Hao had used the Cooking Heart on the Flesh Dao and Yudao, causing his Sword Dao to stagnate. Although his Realm had advanced, his Sword Dao attacks had become weak.
Now, with the Flesh Dao at the ninth level, combining it with the Sword Dao would maximize his combat power in the short term.
After all, he had the Power, but he still lacked the means of attack!
Without hesitation, Li Hao selected the Sword Dao and embedded it.
Instantly, a wave of insights flooded his mind, using the Art Dao to comprehend the Sword Dao!
Numerous Sword Intents and Sword Qi surged into Li Hao's mind, and the small courtyard before him vanished, replaced by a world of swords.
Endless Sword Qi and various types of swords—long swords, short swords, fine swords, heavy swords, and more—appeared before his eyes and in his heart.
Each type of sword had its most suitable offensive techniques and Sword Arts.
All these techniques and arts now surfaced in Li Hao's mind, like a series of phenomena. When all the swords united, Li Hao experienced a profound enlightenment.
A sword is a sword, and nothing but a sword.
Whether long, short, or heavy, they are all swords.
Flowers and grass can also be swords.
Holding no sword in hand but having a sword in the heart—that is the Sword Dao.
At this moment, Li Hao's Sword Dao advanced to the ninth level, achieving Clarity!
The Sole Self Sword Intent he had previously condensed now merged with the ninth-level Sword Dao, transforming into the Sole Self Sword Dao!
What is Sole Self?
When one's Sword Dao is unleashed, all other paths bow in submission!
This is the Sole Self Sword Dao, the epitome of dominance!
Li Hao opened his eyes again, but he felt no sharpness. Instead, he felt a profound tranquility, as if seated in the river of time, serene and deep.
However, if one looked closely, they would see that his seat had become the center of the courtyard, and even the center of the entire area for dozens of miles. His posture and spine resembled a sword standing on the ground, its sharpness hidden but ready to cut anyone who dared to glimpse it.
At this point, in terms of Sword Dao levels, Li Hao was already at the Sword Saint level.
Reaching the tenth level would allow him to achieve the Sword Sacrificial Dao Ascension!
That would make him a true Sword Saint, the Supreme of the Sword Dao!
However, although Li Hao's Sword Art and Sword Saint were at the same level, their combat power still differed greatly. Just as his Sixth Rank Sword Dao could slay the Dao Law Realm, the Sixth Rank Sword Dao was considered the lowest among the Inner Disciples of the Sword Ancestor Sanctuary.
"Sword Dao, Sword Dao, Sword Intent follows the heart, Sword Dao follows the will..."
Li Hao murmured to himself.
He looked around his simple courtyard, and now, everything felt different.
The weeds, stone slabs, and old jars in the courtyard all seemed to possess a certain resilience, a quality that was also part of the Sword Dao.
He could find the shadow of a sword in everything.
After a period of absorption, the night deepened, and the stars shone brightly in the sky.
Li Hao withdrew his thoughts. He didn't try to swing his sword to test the power of his Sword Dao. At this level, he had an extremely clear understanding of his own strength and didn't need to experiment to know.
With a casual gesture, he summoned a piece of wood from the courtyard. A Sculpture knife appeared in his hand, but in Li Hao's eyes, it transformed into a Sword Edge. His Sculpture became even more effortless and precise.
Now, Sculpture has accumulated Fifth Rank experience.
Li Hao glanced at his current Panel attributes.
Flesh Dao: 9th Rank, Yudao: 7th Rank, Sword Dao: 9th Rank, Body Movement Techniques: 6th Rank, Fist Dao: 6th Rank.
In terms of Artistic Skills, Chess Dao: 7th Rank, Music: 4th Rank, Poetry: 4th Rank, Sculpture: 5th Rank, Cooking Dao: 9th Rank, Art Dao: 9th Rank, Fishing: 6th Rank.
Remaining Art Skill Points: 7.
Body Movement Techniques and Fist Technique are both stuck due to the lack of Spiritual Immersion Mindset.
These two are quite important. Li Hao currently relies mainly on the Netherwasteland Extreme Realm to compensate, but if Body Movement Techniques itself reaches the 9th Rank, and is combined with Return to the Abyss, Li Hao can hardly imagine the level he would achieve. The utilization of the Netherwasteland Extreme Realm would surpass expectations.
Fist Dao, besides enhancing his fist techniques, also increases the power in his arms, which in turn boosts the might of his Sword Dao. It is indispensable.
"Mindset, if Fishing and Sculpture could both reach the 7th Rank, my combat power would be elevated to a new level."
Li Hao felt a pang of regret. Time was still too short. Despite his daily efforts in cultivation, Fishing, and Sculpture, the progress was still too slow.
Shaking his head, Li Hao put away the Panel and continued his Sculpture.
This time, Li Hao aimed to Sculpture a Sword Master. He slowly carved the essence he had memorized into the wood, and soon, a hint of the essence appeared.
When the Sculpture was completed, Li Hao saw that he had earned over five thousand experience points.
Just by Sculpturing the figure he had in his mind, he had gained such a large amount of experience.
If he were to Sculpture in person, it would likely be in the hundreds of thousands.
Li Hao didn't rest and continued with the second Sculpture.
Although the experience was generous, Li Hao could clearly feel that Sculpturing a Sage was more challenging than Sculpturing others. If not for his Sword Dao, which had already entered the Dao, he might have injured himself several times while handling the Sculpture knife.
With the completion of the second Sculpture, Li Hao's Carving Dao experience reached the bottleneck of the Fifth Rank and broke through to the Sixth Rank!
The Sixth Rank requires fifty thousand experience points to be fully accumulated.
Li Hao continued Sculpturing, completing four or five more, each time earning an average of two to three thousand experience points.
When the experience gains started to diminish, Li Hao thought of Yaizu and the other Semi-Saint Elders, as well as the Sword Saint.
Li Hao visualized Yaizu's appearance and immediately began Sculpturing. The Sculpture knife in his hand moved like a brush, wood chips flying, and a figure of exquisite beauty, like a celestial being descending to the mortal world, appeared in his palm—none other than Yaizu.
While Li Hao was immersed in his Sculpture, in the Sword Tower, the Sword Master, who was sitting on the rooftop quietly gazing at the bright moon while drinking, suddenly felt a slight change in his expression, sensing a probing presence.
That feeling was guided by the Saint Path, and his melancholic gaze suddenly turned sharp, looking toward a certain direction.
His vision seemed to penetrate thousands of miles, landing on a small courtyard.
When he saw the familiar face, he was momentarily stunned, and the sharpness in his eyes instantly disappeared. His gaze then fell on the young man's hands.
When he saw the other person carefully Sculpturing a piece of wood, he was momentarily speechless.
He had thought that the other person was just deeply engrossed in the Art Dao, but now he was playing around with Sculpture?
Good grief, even in solitude, he didn't cultivate, and still had the time to indulge in such activities. How did he manage to cultivate the 97-layer Dao Domain?
After observing for a moment, he saw that Li Hao's Sculpture had a distinct essence, clearly not a passing interest. It must have taken serious dedication to achieve this.
Shaking his head, the Sword Master somewhat helplessly withdrew his gaze.
He had seen countless people, but someone as unconventional as this young man was a first.
The deep and serene aura around the other person was not an act but a natural trait.
"Perhaps he is a reincarnation of some old master, appearing in the Sword Ancestor Sanctuary, guided by fate. Could it be one of those old masters I haven't seen in a long time, who has been reborn?"
Sword Master muttered to himself.
It had been a long time since he last met those old friends. Usually, they only communicated through letters, and when they did meet in person, there wasn't much to say. After all, they had already talked about everything worth discussing in their younger days.
He planned to find some time to visit those old guys, just to make sure none of them had quietly reincarnated without his knowledge.
At the peak of Holy Mountain, in another green-tinged palace.
Inside the palace, Sword Saint, dressed in snow-golden robes, sat under a massive locust tree in the courtyard, watching a woman practicing her sword skills under the Bright Moon's light.
She was wielding her Ice and Snow Sword Intent, her attacks fierce, transforming the area within three feet of her into an Ice and Snow domain.
"Your Ice and Snow Sword Dao has hit a bottleneck."
Sword Saint immediately spotted the problem. He had noticed during the daytime that her Sword Intent was heading in the wrong direction.
Hearing her Master's words, Bian Ruxue sheathed her sword and bowed her head. "Please, Master, give me your guidance."
Sword Saint smiled. "There's no need to be discouraged. For someone your age to understand this much is already quite remarkable. Although I have taught you, your own insight is also commendable, and the foundation you laid in your childhood is solid."
Bian Ruxue had won her battle during the day, but it was a tough fight, leaving her feeling defeated.
Hearing Sword Saint's words and the mention of "childhood", her thoughts inevitably drifted back to that courtyard.
The child who played chess on the Chess Board, casually pointing out the flaws in her sword practice on the Training Grounds.
Master Jian Wudao had also said that her sword art foundation was strong.
But what she didn't realize was that she had encountered a prodigy in Sword Dao.
Unfortunately, that prodigy later went astray.
Bian Ruxue pulled her thoughts back and heard her Master continue:
"Ice and Snow Sword Intent is not about sharpness; it's about cohesion!"
Sword Saint explained, "When you fought Lin Qingying earlier, she used the Supreme Soft Sword Intent. The Supreme Soft Sword Intent is about dispersion, while the Ice and Snow Sword Intent is about cohesion!"
"Cohesion to the extreme will have more power than dispersion to the extreme."
"These two Sword Intents have different focuses, much like some sword arts focus on defense, while others focus on offense. The Supreme Soft Sword Intent is weak in attack but unbreakable in defense. However, this is relative. Your defeat earlier was partly because your Sword Intent was not as advanced as hers."
Bian Ruxue nodded slightly. She understood her Master's point. If their Sword Intents were equally perfected, hers would be more powerful and could overpower her opponent.
"In cohesion..."
Bian Ruxue murmured to herself, a spark of inspiration flickering in her mind.
Sword Saint was about to say more when he suddenly sensed something and let out a light exclamation.
Someone dared to spy on him?
His eyes shot a piercing glance, and he turned his head, his gaze seeming to pierce through thousands of miles. Soon, he saw a small courtyard.
When he saw the young man in the courtyard, sculpting his upper body with a Sculpture knife, he was slightly taken aback.
"Master?"
Bian Ruxue, noticing Sword Saint's unusual behavior, was puzzled.
Sword Saint narrowed his eyes for a moment, then withdrew his gaze.
He could tell that the young man lived behind the Alchemy Hall of Lin Shanhai and was likely closely related. Sculpting him was not an act of disrespect but possibly out of admiration.
This was not an unfamiliar situation for him, but the young man's ability to capture his essence while sculpting was somewhat surprising.
Only someone who truly revered him would observe so closely, but he could see that the young man was not a worshipper. Instead, he had a great talent in sculpture, which allowed him to capture his essence.
If it were reverence, he would have sensed faith incense from the young man.
Sages could see through their believers at a glance, and Li Hao was not one of his believers.
"There's nothing to worry about. It's just a young fellow with impressive sculpting skills."
Sword Saint remained calm, showing no anger or concern.
"Sculpting?"
Bian Ruxue was puzzled but didn't think much of it. This minor art form reminded her of the child who loved playing chess.
He must have become a chess master by now... Bian Ruxue smiled bitterly.
(End of Chapter)
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