The Sage Who Transcended Samsara

Jiang Zhiwei agreed with Meng Qi’s opinion, saying, “You can learn many different movements and study their similarities and differences for a better grasp of their theories. But you better be well-versed in your own movement. If your weapon, Exterior movement, and genuine Qi aren’t in harmony, they’ll just drag each other down and reduce their power. Take this little monk for instance. When he uses his Whisper Sword, the power of his Ananda Oath-breaking Bladesmanship will be amplified but his Purple Thunder Bladesmanship will be diminished. The opposite is true if he uses the Evil Ordeal or the Heaven Inflicted Pain.”

“It’s a real skill to choose the right weapon. It’s not like we’re novices who rely on weapons to supplement our strength. We now need the right weapons to deal with different situations,” she added.

What she meant was how Meng Qi chose the Red Sun Evil Blade instead of his long sword of the Ananda Oath-breaking Bladesmanship so he could ward off evil spirits. On the other hand, Qi Zhengyan chose the Dragon Stripe Golden Sword to suppress the Demon Odor.

Qi Zhengyan listened attentively and nodded. “If my Exterior movements and Precious Weapons are in harmony, my Icysnow Genuine Qi wouldn’t appear lacking even if I enlighten my Eight Acupores and practice the Purple Star River. On the contrary, they’ll be my guaranteed means. So I’ll upgrade my Dragon Stripe Golden Sword first and choose the Exterior movements based on what Karma points that I have left.”

The Dragon Stripe Golden Sword was nearly a refined weapon at the level of the Half-step Exterior Scenery. It wouldn’t cost much to upgrade it into a precious weapon. If it was upgraded to the Hornless Dragon, he would need a Hornless Dragon Herb as a material. That would cost him 800 Karma points in total.

The brilliance aura of the sword rose in the air, sprinkling specks of divine light that gradually sparkled. The surroundings turned somewhat clear and cold.

Once those lights scattered and disappeared, the Dragon Stripe Golden Sword floated vertically inside the pillar of light. The dark gold sword was dyed light green and decorative patterns emerged over its body, giving shape to a hornless dragon. It was freezing cold all around. The hilt of the sword was like the dragon’s claws, magnificent and splendid.

The sword, being a Precious Weapon, was an evolving sword. It was based on the vital essence of the hornless dragon, covering all the features of a dragon. The sword was so solemn that it could frighten away all monsters and humans. Its edge was sharp enough to cut metals and stones into pieces. If one was hit by the sword, his blood and heart would freeze. If used well, it could blow clouds and mists as well as change the climate and freeze rivers with its Sword Qi. It cost 1,600 Karma points.

“It’s a decent sword,” Jiang Zhiwei praised.

Holding the hilt of the sword, Qi Zhengyan shivered as if he had come into contact with the Frigid Crystal. A subconscious smile appeared on his typically expressionless face as he said, “Indeed.”

He had about 3,500 Karma points remaining after upgrading the sword. He didn’t have to worry about price as he had enough Karma points to afford the Exterior movement.

The supreme arts belonging to the reputable sect and aristocratic families were excluded to prevent trouble, leaving very few choices. Meng Qi knew some of them.

“The Emperor’s Swordsmanship… It’s too expensive. It’d still be a good investment if Brother Qi has the fate of dragon and can defend his Dharmakaya. But no matter how I look at it, he doesn’t seem like it. So it’s useless to get that…”

“The Book of the Heaven Crystal Sword is fated with the Book of the Chaos but without the sword, its power will greatly diminish. The cost-to-performance ratio is too low.”

“The Sword Stained with Royal Blood transformed from the Book of the Chaos matches well but its power is too lame.”

“Heavenly Death and Earthly Chill belongs to the Devil Path. It goes against the orthodox…”

Jiang Zhiwei had an idea of what she wanted while Qi Zhengyan was the last to decide. Meng Qi was being fussy about his choices. Jiang Zhiwei and Ruan Yushu offered suggestions every now and then but Qi Zhengyan turned them all down. Their suggestions were either in disharmony with his skills or too expensive for him to afford. For a while, they couldn’t come up with a decision.

After listening to their discussions, Qi Zhengyan suddenly pointed at a book of sword art. “What about this one?”

“Swordsmanship of Icy Cold Light…” Meng Qi examined the book. It wasn’t something he knew but rather a book of sword art of the Exterior that had been lost in the ancient times. It wasn’t terribly powerful but not too weak either. For Qi Zhengyan’s realm, it was just good enough.

The book wasn’t too expensive either. It contained seven movements priced at 500 Karma points each. Its Primary Instruction was priced at 1,500 Karma points. Even if Qi Zhengyan could enlighten his Mouth Acupore, he could only use two Exterior movements. In addition to the period of practice that would take, it was advisable for him to exchange one at a time. So he only needed to spend 2,000 Karma points at the moment.

“Not bad,” said Meng Qi. It was a moderate sword art but decent overall. He didn’t have any opinion about it.

When Jiang Zhiwei took a look, she said cheerfully, “So it’s a lost sword art.”

She looked eager to find out what the sword art would look like.

Qi Zhengyan was a decisive person. After some consideration, he exchanged for the book of sword art without hesitation and obtained the first part of the movement as well as the Primary Instruction.

“I have 1,580 points left…” He gave it some thought and bought a Recover Pill.

He had to be fully prepared since he would be leaving Yedu soon to cultivate in the Jianghu. He could purchase ordinary elixirs easily, while even the elixirs from the Huanhua Swords Sect were no match for the top level Recover Pill. Since he had Karma points left, he should buy one as a precaution.

Jiang Zhiwei suddenly said, “Brother Qi, you should buy the fifth layer of the Book of the Chaos. You don’t know if you’ll enter the world directly after using the Samsara spell to open Zhenwu’s Decoy Grave. If that happens, you’ll miss out on this place and the next time you return will be a year later. By then, you’ll have enlightened your Eight Acupores. You shouldn’t waste any cultivating time.”

Qi Zhengyan was close to enlightening his Mouth Acupore, which will remove all his inherent potential and cumulative cultivation. Jiang Zhiwei believed it would happen in another one or two months and he would have his Eight Acupores opened by next year. If that happened, he would no longer be able to cultivate if he didn’t start on a Samsara task.

The last time, Meng Qi used the Samsara spell directly here. But he never tried using it in the main world so they must take into consideration every possible outcome.

“You can’t be too careful,” Meng Qi said.

Due to his experience, Qi Zhengyan was the one among them most absorbed in skills. He said nothing and exchanged for the Purple Star River, the fifth layer of the Book of the Chaos, for 900 Karma points.

It was a spinel that shined with a brilliant purple glow. Inside was an endless river of countless bright stars. The river ran on and on, endlessly washing down the cluster of stars, and emanated a bizarre charm. When one looked at it, he would feel as his mind was flickering and it would be hard for him to look away.

Jiang Zhiwei finally looked away and praised, “It’s indeed a Peerless Godly Kungfu.” The Book of the Chaos was special even among the many Divine Skills. If one mastered it, he could communicate with heaven and earth and weaken the Half-step Exterior Scenery during the enlightenment period.

It was a matter of laying down the groundwork for most Peerless Godly Kungfu at this stage. They wouldn’t appear any different than ordinary kungfu. For example, the Supreme Methods of the Sword would gather one’s swordwill, strengthen one’s sword mind, and enhance one’s sword art. On the other hand, the Eight Nine Mysteries strengthen one’s body, elevate one’s power, improve one’s senses and defensive capabilities, help one to master subtleties, ease the learning of the movements. Once one mastered the latter, he could demonstrate the movements precisely and bring about the initial change in one’s appearance. But the main point was helping one cultivate genuine Qi and enlighten the Nine Inborn Acupores like the other sword arts did.

Qi Zhengyan only had 180 Karma points left. He could only wait for Jiang Zhiwei to exchange for it.

“Let me first take a look how many points are needed to improve the Sword of the Sun-Penetrating Rainbow,” Jiang Zhiwei offered, without needing anyone else to ask her.

She preferred Sword Qi, not even taking the freezing ice or flame into consideration. Even if they could cause meteorological changes, bring about the fluttering of snow, freeze over rivers, and pour fiery rains, it was in discord with her Inner World. It was better for her to choose something that could activate her Sword Qi, like the Purple Decease Sword.

“The material and improvement cost 700 points,” she reported. She also exchanged all her elixirs on her for 80 Karma points. Besides, with her status, she didn’t have to worry about not being able to get any elixirs.

She said straightforwardly, “How about you lend me 80 points each? I’ll return them when Zhenwu’s Decoy Grave task begins. You can spend your remaining 100 points to buy some elixirs.”

She had been coveting the Twenty-three Swords Skill for a long time. How could she let this opportunity go?

Even if the awards were improved in future Samsara tasks, it was unlikely that they would be able to reap as many awards as they did this time.

“No problem.” Meng Qi and the rest showed no hesitation.

Jiang Zhiwei’s beautiful eyes gleamed after gaining the Karma points, so mesmerizing that others couldn’t bear looking at her. She exchanged the points for the skill and started turning it over in her hands eagerly. She wanted nothing more than to read it immediately.

Fortunately, she still had enough self-control to put away the script.

Meng Qi hoped she would only try and grasp the theory of the skill, instead of truly learning it.

Jiang Zhiwei also exchanged for some materials to upgrade her long sword. Holding the materials as well as her Sword of the Sun-penetrating Rainbow, she ran into the pillar of light and said solemnly, “I want to witness the transformation.”

This was a swordsman’s dedication to her sword. In her plans, she would be advancing her long sword when she broke the Hidden Latch of Life and Death. This would result in the harmonizing of her Inner World and her Precious Weapon, allowing her to move with ease without needing to adapt. Of course, she still had to prepare the proper materials for the upgrade.

The Dominator of Samsara in Six Realms didn’t oppose her action. A dense fog rose into the air, enveloping the long sword and materials and leaving behind only the silhouette of Jiang Zhiwei.

When the light disappeared, she walked out with the sword in hand. Nothing seemed to have changed in the sword, yet it emanated an air of danger.

“The Sword of the Sun-penetrating Rainbow, a Precious Weapon, had been evolved twice. Jiang Zhiwei had communicated with the swordwill well and she would be able to use the sword to defeat any refined weapons, frighten away demons, and hurt vital spirits. If she tried hard, her sword Qi would surge and cause tremors in the sky. This costs 1,500 Karma points.”

Meng Qi spent his remaining 100 points on a Hundred-herb Bolus, while Qi Zhengyan used his on two bottles of Hiding and Healing Elixirs. Ruan Yushu exchanged for some dispensable elixir without any regard for it.

Ruan Yushu, the beloved daughter of a legal wife of an aristocratic family, was the first to return. Though she was tough, she had nevertheless experienced dangerous times, endured various risks, and witnessed the deaths of her companions. It was inevitable that she would be feeling emotional and would need the comfort of her family and delicious food. Besides, she would meet Meng Qi and the rest in three months.

Jiang Zhiwei met Meng Qi before leaving and said seriously, “Little monk, the deaths of Senior Brother Zhang and Fu Zhenzhen devastate us all but don’t let it haunt you. If you allow their deaths to linger in your head, it’ll influence your state of mind and impede your kungfu progress. What we need to do is forget our bitterness and take it as motivation for us to march ahead, rise to the top, and revive them.”

She was worried that the deaths of their companions would cripple Meng Qi’s spirit and plunge his life into darkness.

Being a person who had lived through two lives and whose true age was much older than Jiang Zhiwei, Meng Qi sighed. “Don’t worry, Zhiwei. I’m not such a fragile person and become a completely different person because of this. I won’t become unhappy and forget to laugh because of this. I’ll do stupid things when my brain short circuits.”

After making a joke, he adopted a serious manner and continued, “I’ll always follow my inner mind and do positive things. I’ll never be impartial or head for the extremes.”

Jiang Zhiwei smiled. “I hope so. To be honest, when you’re being an idiot, it’s more befitting of your age. But when you’re being mature, your maturity exceeds my imagination.”

They exchanged several more words before the Dominator of Samsara in Six Realms urged them to leave. Together with Qi Zhengyan, they then set foot in the pillar of light.

Darkness enveloped them, only to disappear after a brief moment. Meng Qi found himself seated in his bedroom. Outside the window was the vast night sky dotted with numerous stars that glowed dimly. It gave him the wonderful and mysterious feeling of being the only person awake. With a grave feeling weighing over him, he suddenly felt the preciousness of life.

Yedu and the Holy Mountain were a two-fold heaven.