Tao and Heaven

Chapter 112: Tianquan Mountain Sword Pool Opens

In the evening, the sun sets in the blink of an eye.

A cool breeze blew across the sword and extended to the tip of the sword, only an inch away from Gu Wen's neck.

Xiao Yunyi said coldly: "You lost again."

[The third level of Buddha Sword, inspired by the true meaning of the Broken Sword, minus the twenty years of Heavenly Marrow, it takes twenty-five years to complete]

[The third level of the magic sword, inspired by the true meaning of the broken sword, minus five years of heavenly marrow, it takes ten years of heavenly marrow to complete]

[The Jade Sword Dharma is inspired by the true meaning of the Broken Sword. It takes forty years of Heavenly Marrow to complete, minus forty years of Heavenly Marrow.]

Isn't this nonsense? A sixth-level Daoist master beats me at the fourth level.

Gu Wen complained in his heart, but considering the massive discounts on Tiansui, he didn't complain too much.

After looking inward at his depleted mana, he waved his hand and said, "No more practice, no more practice. Sword practice is about quality, not quantity."

"You will be punished by the Dharma Elder if you say this in Zhejian Mountain."

Xiao Yunyi put away his sword and did not demand too much from Gu Wen, because the other party's achievements far exceeded his imagination.

He didn't know that Gu Wen had a destiny, but Xiao Yunyi could sense that Gu Wen's swordsmanship was steadily improving. It was normal for a genius to start fast, but it was not normal for a genius to break through fast.

In the initial stage of each level of martial arts, Xiao Yunyi's practice speed was more than three times faster than Gu Wen. He could even master the first three levels of some Mahayana sword techniques with just one look.

Because sword techniques have different paths but the same goal, the power, magic formulas, sword concentration, sword control, sword intent and so on become more advanced, the biggest difference lies only in the two aspects of the Dharma and the supernatural power.

Moreover, if he did not have such talent, he would not have been able to become the number one genius in Zhejian Mountain or even in the contemporary world.

But Xiao Yunyi couldn't do what Gu Wen did, where his breakthrough speed was equal to his cultivation speed. Instead, he would be stuck, and the Three Swords Dharma had stuck him for a year.

Xiao Yunyi couldn't tell what was strange about it, because Gu Wen didn't achieve enlightenment overnight like a sudden enlightenment, but he just improved his cultivation rapidly without any bottleneck.

Gu Wen was surprised and said, "My mana is exhausted. If I continue to practice in this situation, won't I get hurt?"

Cultivation is not practicing martial arts. Moves and force techniques are no longer important. What matters more is the application of mana and magic formulas. What's the point of practicing if you don't have mana?
"There are quite a few Zhejian Mountain disciples who die from practicing swordsmanship every year. Most of them don't have your heart to seek the truth. They insist on practicing swordsmanship because they have already made efforts and don't want to give up. Some people even just enjoy the praise from their elders and pretend to practice swordsmanship hard."

Xiao Yunyi changed the subject and said, "But practicing hard is always useful. At least it can help the disciple to advance to a higher level."

Not everyone is a genius, and there are many late bloomers in the world of cultivation. Sects need a large number of middle and lower-level disciples to maintain their success.

Otherwise, recruiting disciples, managing spiritual fields, secular cities, etc.

“Sunk costs and fake efforts?”

"It's a very detailed overview. I guess you've never been to the gate of Mount Sanqing, right?"

Xiao Yunyi suddenly asked, and Gu Wen smiled and said, "I am just a frog in a well. I have never been to Tianwaitian, let alone Sanqing Mountain?"

"Then when you get out, will you come to my Zhejian Mountain? We will treat you as a successor."

As soon as he finished speaking, a chill crept up his forehead. Xiao Yunyi looked around but couldn't find anyone. Suddenly, he had an epiphany.

Currently, the only one with such strength in Luoshui is probably the Taoist goddess, but he didn't expect that the other party would watch him so closely.

Is he staring at this place all the time?

Gu Wen shook his head and said, "If you had told me a month earlier, I might have really been moved. I'd better go to Sanqing Mountain to ask for the position of Jade Purity Heavenly Venerable."

He was not opposed to joining a sect, and even preferred to lean on a big tree for shade. But if he had to choose a sect, it would naturally be the Three Pure Ones Taoist Sect, as they had the same origin and connections, and the Taoist Sect's style of doing things was not bad either.

Why go to Zhejian Mountain where you are unfamiliar with the place instead of going to the number one sect in the world?
Xiao Yunyi felt quite regretful, but he did not dare to persuade them any further. He glanced at the sun which had already completely set and said, "Let's stop here today."
-
Back at the inn, Gu Wen clearly felt the little nun in the corner looking at him, but he ignored her and went upstairs to find Yu Hua and told her what happened.

He didn't ask before because he was avoiding the question. Gu Wen couldn't just ask Xiao Yunyi what kind of martial arts he practiced. That would be like asking someone on the street about their bank card number and deposits.

Yu Hua was quietly flipping through the book. He was not surprised to hear that Xiao Yunyi had broken through three levels in a row. He said without raising his head:

"The method used to guard Zhejian Mountain is not the true meaning of the sword, and the Sword Master does not only have the true meaning of the sword. He also has another method, the Zhejian method."

Gu Wen asked: "Can this method allow people to break through quickly?"

"No, it's not possible. The reason why Xiao Yunyi was able to break through three levels in a row is because his foundation is too solid."

Yu Hua put down the book in his hand and began to explain the Zhejian Mountain method to Gu Wen seriously.

"As the name suggests, the sword-breaking method is to break the sword techniques you have learned into pieces and use them as nutrients for your swordsmanship. Therefore, disciples of Zhejian Mountain practice many sword techniques and then break them one by one to transform them into nutrients. You can think of these learned sword techniques as another kind of cultivation. They are just transformed into each other."

Can the swordsmanship I practice be transformed into cultivation? If I learn it, won’t I be able to transform my celestial marrow into cultivation more efficiently?
This thought inevitably popped up in Gu Wen's mind, and then he became aware of the possible disadvantages.

There is no method in the world that can be practiced quickly and effectively.

"So what's the price?"

Yu Hua replied: "Your swordsmanship must surpass the broken swordsmanship, but you can't surpass it right from the beginning."

It is indeed difficult. It seems that I cannot practice the sword-breaking technique.

Gu Wen understood and felt quite regretful. There was no better sword technique in the world than the true interpretation of the Dao of the Sword.

Even if it exists, it is impossible for him to spend a lot of effort to learn it and then break it into nutrients. It would be better for him to practice the foundation of Taoism honestly.

Suddenly he noticed a problem and said, "So Xiao Yunyi's swordsmanship has surpassed the three swords of Buddha, Taoism and Demon?"

"He only surpassed the first six levels. He broke the first six levels of the Three Swords of Buddha, Dao and Demon, and then he reached the realm of the Three Heavens. Moreover, he was originally the best in the contemporary world, but he was delayed because of his obsession with the devil."

Yu Hua corrected himself, and Gu Wen gradually sorted out the cause and effect, and could understand why Xiao Yunyi could reach the third level in one step.

This isn't cheating or taking drugs, but he has already accumulated enough experience to reach this point.

"It seems that the winner of Tianquan Mountain is still uncertain. Xiao Yunyi may be able to take the first place and surpass everyone to return to the top."

Gu Wen touched his chin and suddenly felt that something interesting was happening. Xiao Yunyi, the Dragon King who had been beaten and kicked by everyone for a long time, had returned.

Naturally, he had no business getting involved in the battle, and from the beginning he was only responsible for bringing Yu Hua up there.

Now he is at the fourth level of Dao foundation, while the others are all at the sixth level. They are all monsters who can punch a True Lord and kick a Genius.

"No matter what, he is no match for you. He is just a loser. Once the true meaning of swordsmanship is revealed, no one can defeat him."

Yu Hua was as sharp-tongued as ever towards others, but her judgment was rarely wrong.

Xiao Yunyi himself thought so too, but he believed in the true meaning of the sword, while she believed in Gu Wen.

"You should go and practice. Tianquan Mountain will be opened in three days. Maybe you can see the beauty of the immortal sword."

Even Yu Hua was looking forward to it, as this was a magical sword that was rarely seen in millions of years.

Gu Wen stroked his chin, wondering how much of his celestial marrow he would lose by just looking at the Immortal Sword.

Since a sword can be regarded as the existence of an immortal, would it be possible that just looking at it can greatly improve one's swordsmanship?
-
In the middle of the night, Gu Wen entered into a state of meditation.

Xiao Yunyi didn't know if he was really stupid or crazy about swords, he never held back on Gu Wen's teachings. From the reduction in the amount of celestial marrow required for swordsmanship, it was known that if there was any reservation, it would not have been reduced that much. Because before when Gu Wen went to fleece other people, many people could only fleece for one year, and if he asked them more, they would definitely evade the question.

On the contrary, Xiao Yunyi, Lan Yongning, Chi Yuzi, Jun Yan and other top geniuses did not hold back, because they believed that they were not afraid of being surpassed by others. If it was so easy to surpass, they would not be called the strongest of the contemporary era.

For example, Akabane's method of wielding a sword, Lan Yongning's method of transforming brush and ink into swords, and Jun Yan's method of transforming sword energy into thousands.

Gu Wen only learned by analogy, and never thought of stealing other people's methods. He only asked for advice, just to learn from the excellent ones, and finally stepped out a road of his own.

Look inward at the three swords of Buddhism, Taoism and Demonism, as well as the Heavenly Marrow.

【Ninety Years of Tiansui】

The Buddha Sword requires twenty-five years, the Demon Sword requires ten years, and the Jade Sword requires forty years.

The total amount is enough to practice the third level of the true sword art and the Jade Sword Method, and there is a high probability that there will be dozens of years of heavenly marrow left. Gu Wen can practice the Yuanshen if he saves up some money from the Divine Tree Friends next month.

With the fourth level of perfection and the true understanding of the way of the sword, it should be no problem for him to be ranked fifth on the individual list.

Gu Wen felt that if he went further, he would have to reach the sixth level of Taoism. People like Chi Yuzi were not bad. In some aspects, they were much stronger than him, and they had also practiced to become immortals.

"To truly understand the Dao of the Sword, let's test the sound of the sword in three days."

The first is the magic sword, the ultimate in swordplay and the strongest in swordsmanship.

After Ten Years of Heavenly Marrow fell, the dark magic sword grew at a speed visible to the naked eye, and the magic sword's sword intent became apparent.

After twenty-five years, the Heavenly Marrow fell, the Buddha's light was vast, the Buddha's sword and its intent were revealed, mixed with the faint sound of chanting.

[The third level of the magic sword, the sword intent begins to appear]

[The third level of Buddha Sword, the sword intent begins to emerge]

The three swords of Buddhism, Taoism and Demonism gathered together again, pushing the true understanding of swordsmanship to a higher level.

hum!
The sword energy gradually spread out from darkness, and the invisible and formless sword grew slightly stronger.

As the messages came down, Gu Wen seemed to see the myriad sword techniques in the world. At this moment, he thought he could create a sword technique comparable to the Xuanming Spear at any time, and he could create the ultimate foundation-building technique in just a thought.

It only takes some time to sense the golden elixir and the Nascent Soul.

But these are just scraps cut from the true explanation of the sword, breaking up the already perfect swordsmanship. In common sense, the skills created by oneself must be better than others, but in the true explanation of the sword, all swordsmanship is incomplete.

【Threefold Explanation of Kendo】

As before, the true solution to the sword art has no specific changes, and even less specific moves.

It's just a very simple increase in power of fifteen times, and the consumption is twice that of the ten-fold period, which means that he now has only enough mana to swing two swords.

It seemed as if the consumption reduction of the previous level offset it, but Gu Wen felt that this was undoubtedly a gain, because there had never been a method that could perform a simple multiplication on the numerical value.

Even the Heart Sword, Sword Intention, Sword God, etc. of the Jade Purity Sword Art only changed the means of attack, made the sword energy more solid, and gave the sword technique a verve. But from beginning to end, it would not say how powerful it was, and it all depended on one's own level.

The Qi training stage is a sword with a Dharma image, which is not as good as the sword energy of the Jindan stage. The true solution of the sword also depends on the foundation, but the true solution of the sword in the Qi training stage can kill the Jindan.

In reality, there is often no such big gap in fighting. In a fight of the same level, if you have the true understanding of the sword, you are unmatched. Even if you have thousands of sword techniques, you cannot match the original sword technique.

This is hopeless for the sword cultivators who have practiced swordsmanship hard, and it is also the reason why there have been people who have gone crazy because of it in Zhejian Mountain throughout the ages.

Gu Wen's gaze shifted from the true explanation of the sword and fell on the Jade Purity Sword Technique.

[Jade Sword Dharma, inspired by the true meaning of the sword, minus thirty years of heavenly marrow, requires ten years of heavenly marrow]

During this period of time, I had to sacrifice my dignity to ask for advice from others, just for this sword-fighting Dharma image, which might not be very useful nowadays. But some things are more meaningful than useful, and not every action needs to be utilitarian.

Although Gu Wen was born into a merchant family and made a living by doing business, he never took profit as a man. He did not indulge in the extravagance and debauchery of Longqiao, and he did not think that the world was evil after seeing so many intrigues and deceptions.

Therefore, he will pursue something extraordinary, that is, a gentleman will die for his friend.

Jiang Fugui believed that the reason he could settle down in Nanshui was that Gu Wen would surely promise him a life of wealth and glory in the future.

Yu Hua believed him, so Gu Wen left Bian Jing to compete for the first place in the field of outstanding talents.

Today, Dao Zong believes in him, and Gu Wen will deserve the treatment he asked for as an immortal talent.

"It's just the sound of thousands of swords, the sword method."

Gu Wen calmed his mind and completely immersed himself in the jade sword.

Not all martial arts need to rely on Tiansui, and the true understanding of swordsmanship is not just a mere improvement in power.

Killing is just a superficial appearance; it is more about the Tao, the way of the sword.

He once saw the Jade Purity Sword Technique as bright as the blue sky and bright day, and he, a mere mortal, was overjoyed to have just learned the sword technique of the immortal.

Now the Jade Sword Dharmakaya meets me, just like a speck of dust in the sky meeting the sun.

With each breath, the Dharma appears.

Luodu is between white and black, and the Dharma image is solid.

Two days and two nights passed like this. The city's genius had already left for Zhejian Mountain. Yu Hua was still leisurely flipping through the storybook. The old donkey beside him was a little anxious and looked outside from time to time.

He was like the parents of a scholar going to Beijing to take the imperial examination, always worried.

Now it is the agreed gathering time. Tianquan Mountain will be open when the sun rises tomorrow. How can people not worry if Gu Wen has not finished his training at this time?

Until night, there was still no movement next door. Ao Tang was getting impatient and said, "Why don't we go over and take a look?"

"unnecessary."

"But the sword pool will open in three hours."

"Ah."

What? What if the immortality potion is taken away in advance?
Ao Tang was very anxious, but now he was no longer the boss, so how he would act depended entirely on the little ancestor in front of him.

Boom boom boom!
There was a knock on the door, and then Gu Wen pushed it open and walked in. Yu Hua also put down the book in his hand.

"Okay."

"Let's go."

It was drizzling and people were already getting up and cleaning up their shops on the streets to start their daily lives.

Gu Wen and Yu Hua were walking on the street. The falling rain automatically avoided them. The jade sword image that was invisible to the naked eye stood tall in the sky.

A hundred miles away, a group of geniuses led by Xiao Yunyi looked up at the same time, and almost all of them showed surprise.

Someone asked in confusion: "When did the Taoist sect produce a Taoist sword?"

(End of this chapter)