Chapter Thirty-Two: The Daoist Aperture is Full

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  Outside the Sword Burial Pool.

  A waterfall cascaded like a dragon, on the large green stone above, a Taoist priest was clearly visible sitting cross-legged. He wore a grey Taoist robe, his black hair was as dark as ink, but somewhat disheveled. In his hand, a wine gourd continuously poured into his mouth without stopping.

  He suddenly stopped in his tracks and shook his head, saying: "Since the Master has arrived, why must you hide and not show yourself?"

  The void twisted, ten zhang away, a white-robed old Taoist walked out of the void. His black hair cascaded like a waterfall, his eyes gleamed with electricity, and his body was crystal clear, revealing white bones and blood. A halo of immortal aura surrounded him, clouds formed under his feet, and with one step, he traversed ten zhang of distance to arrive in front of Ming Jian Dao Ren.

  "Although you've inherited the sword techniques of Jian Feng, your actual cultivation is hidden and not revealed. If it were in ancient times, I'm afraid even your senior brother wouldn't be a match for you."

  The old Taoist pointed with his finger, and a white awn fell to the ground on top of his index finger. In an instant, it transformed into a platform of ice one zhang high. The old Taoist's footsteps were light as he tread, and with each step, a lotus flower made of ice appeared, supporting him as he landed on the ice platform.

  "Senior brother's Xuanbing Dao has reached an ethereal state, entering the realm of transformation, this move of objectification is truly admirable."

  With a stern expression, the current Mingjian Dao person has a majestic presence, exuding an aura as stable as Mount Tai. He looks at the old Daoist in front of him and hands over the wine gourd with a flip of his hand.

  Lao Dao didn't decline and directly took it over, tilting his head to take a sip. "A hundred-year-old purple bamboo wine, I haven't had any for ten years."

  Ming Jian Dao Ren laughed and said: "As long as Shixiong wants to drink, I can have Yun Fei and the other two send it to Qingyun Peak every month."

  The old man nodded and said, "Then let's wait until half a year later."

  As he spoke, the old Taoist looked up at the celestial waterfall in front of him. The waterfall was like a dragon, with white phosphorescent crystals shining brightly and transparently, falling from the ninth heaven above, with a radiant glow like silk, extremely beautiful and resplendent.

  Ming Jian saw the change in Dao Ren's face and said in a deep voice: "Eldest Martial Brother!"

  He waved his hand, and the old Daoist sighed, saying: "Junior brother, don't worry. Since you've sent them to the Burial Sword Pool, I won't stop it. Although Xuanjian Shangren passed away back then, he was also a senior of our Qingyun Sect."

  The old Daoist smiled and said: "This time in the Ninth Summit's small competition, although it was only the seventeenth generation, but my junior brother has some confidence."

  Ming Jian saw Dao Ren remain silent, after counting his breaths, he spoke: "Among the top ten, there must be one from Jian Feng."

  "Oh?"

  The old Taoist's eyes revealed a hint of unusual color, his cultivation was profound and unfathomable. With just a slight fluctuation in his mind, the surrounding immortal mist began to rise and fall, swirling around him. On his body, there were fragrant aromas wafting about, shining brightly like jade.

  "Alright then, I'll be eagerly waiting for it, Big Brother."

  The old man stood up, and the ice platform under him instantly melted away. Only his footsteps were light, and the void in front of him twisted instantly. After a brief moment, he had already disappeared without a trace.

  The Taoist remained still, his body unmoving, until the incense had burned for a quarter of an hour. Only then did he let out a sigh and say, "I've done all I can do. Whether it's good fortune or bad, that's up to your own destiny. I'm tired from talking so long, I'll take a nap."

  The gourd bottle was placed behind his head, and before he could count a few breaths, a thunderous snoring sound began to rise.

  Burial Sword Pond

  Unaware of the passage of time, on the tenth step of stone stairs, he sat cross-legged, with a thousand sword scars densely covering his entire body. Each scar was deep enough to reveal bone, and blood flowed, but was blocked by the sharp edges.

  Suddenly.

  Above the top of Qitian, a golden vortex suddenly appeared out of nowhere, with vast spiritual energy pouring down and transforming into a massive golden torrent that submerged Qitian.

  Hummm...

  The sound of a sword humming rose up. On the sixth stone step, Yun Fei opened his eyes, and an eerie color shone through them.

  "The spiritual essence has tempered his body, all 108 meridians have been opened."

  In the dan tian, the qi sea is internal, and the heavenly eye looks inward.

  Pure golden crystal-like innate sword energy swirled like a dragon, suddenly soaring upwards, piercing through 108 layers of buildings, spiritual aura entered the body, and was instantly swallowed in, large amounts of sharp energy were poured out, dispersing into the five organs and six viscera, skin and flesh all over the body.

  Sweat dripped like rain, every strand of sharp energy entering his body was like a knife cut, but compared to the encounters he had in these days, it was nothing. He stepped onto the tenth stone step, during which time, Qi Tian had fainted dozens of times, been shaken by the stone steps dozens of times, and his entire body had been hacked at by sharp energy tens of thousands of times. This sharp energy entering his body had already made him unable to utter a single sound.

  Buried in the Sword Pool, the ancient and old sharpness is flowing, these sharpness have precipitated for five thousand years, extremely pure, and are being sucked into the body of Qitian at the same time.

  Unlike the illusory hundred stone steps, these thorns are real objects. As soon as they enter the body, they cause a loud and long whistle to sound.

  Until the sharpness of the innate sword energy was completely dissipated, the ancient sharpness in the Burial Sword Pool gradually dispersed. At this moment, Qitian was panting heavily, lying limp on the stone steps, his body still covered in bloodstains. When the Linglai descended, he had not yet broken through this layer of stone steps.

  "The seventy-two earthly fiends and thirty-six heavenly restraints have finally been fulfilled."

  Two yin-yang fish appeared in his eyes, and with a loud shout, he suddenly emitted a strong and sharp aura. This aura burst out, causing his black hair to dance wildly, and the pre-heaven sword energy emerged from his body, almost condensing into a tangible substance.

  The sword slowly rose, and at this moment, Qi Tian's entire life underwent a heaven-shaking change. In Yun Fei's eyes, the tenth stone step had transformed into a hundred-zhang-tall ancient mountain. The ancient mountain descended, accompanied by an unparalleled sword hum that shook the air. A patch of empty space suddenly shattered, revealing a figure clad in green.

  Yun Fei exclaimed, "Indeed, you are worthy of being a pre-heavenly sword body. Born with the pre-heavenly sword aura, this one sword is something that even I, your senior brother, would find difficult to block. If you were to fully develop and master the pre-heavenly sword aura, becoming a complete and perfect Daoist, then those people would absolutely not be your match."

  Qitian nodded, without showing any humility. The sword's sharpness lies in its straightforwardness, not in seeking it from a curved path. He understood this, and Yun Fei also understood it. They exchanged a glance, both revealing a smile.

  "Junior brother, it's been a month now. This past month, I've been meditating at the entrance of the Burial Sword Pool every day. Now, I can barely step into the lower realm of Sword Rhyme. Today, I plan to rush to the Divine Court and open up my Sea of Recognition. What about you? Are you going to transform your innate sword energy?"

  Qitian sank into thought for a moment, shook his head and said: "This hundred-step stone staircase, I have entered the tenth level. In this month, I can feel my spirit becoming much stronger. The innate sword energy is now at ease with my arm, no longer awkward. My boundary has reached the peak of the Sword Rhyme Lower Realm, but I am not in a hurry for the time being. I want to see how many levels I can reach on this hundred-level heavenly staircase."

  Yun Fei was taken aback, seemingly understanding Qi Tian's thoughts. He said in disbelief, "Younger brother, could it be that you want to——"

  He nodded in agreement, no mistake, he had a mind to directly charge into the divine court, open the sea of recognition, and condense the sword embryo.

  The five realms of the sword path, the first realm is the sword fetus. Before the sword energy has been released, the swordsman's physical body is weak and feeble. If one uses this burial sword pool to temper their spirit, they will naturally be more refined than after releasing the sword energy and refining their physical body. When the energy reaches the divine court, the boundless spirit transforms into sword consciousness, like a long river flowing continuously without end.

  Moreover, for the sword fetus to condense, the first heavy thunder tribulation, Qitian also has some apprehension. Rather than forcing the sword fetus to condense at that time and facing the thunder tribulation, this moment is actually the best choice.

  After a moment of silence, Yun Fei gritted his teeth and said, "Since you have this intention, brother, I'll accompany you on this trip!"

  Qitian smiled and said: "It's best if Shixiong can be like this."

  Qitian knew about Yunfei's temperament. This hundred-layered heaven was indeed torturing people. Although the achievement was great, if it weren't for this choice, Yunfei wouldn't have continued either.

  However, this is a great advantage. Qitian knows about Yunfei's life and understands the principles that are not many, with a rough temperament, more in need of polishing.

  With a slight nod, he took a deep breath and stepped forward, setting foot on the eleventh heaven.

  Behind, on the sixth stone step, Yun Fei seemed to have noticed something. His gaze was fixed on the hundred stone steps for a long time. After a while, he let out a deep sigh and stepped onto the seventh heaven. (A new week, a new book list, everyone's recommendation votes, all come out!)