Chapter 143 - 142: The Human Emperor Jiang Who Excels in Sword Dao
There are few cultivators in Jiuzhou who have not heard of the Sword Monarch.
The Sword Monarch was a cultivator at the Tribulation Crossing Stage and a pioneering ancestor of the Sword Pavilion. At that time, talented individuals were scarce in the Sword Pavilion. Many sects wanted to assimilate the Sword Pavilion, and the dynasty where the Sword Pavilion located aspired to exert control over it. It was then that the Sword Monarch emerged.
He possessed a kind of spiritual root devoted to the sword, a rare case even amongst those with a single spiritual root.
There was a rock face at the back precipice of the Sword Pavilion, left by generations of elders; here, disciples of the Sword Pavilion could fully immerse themselves in the perception of Sword Dao. However, disciples were prohibited from staying at the back precipice for more than forty-nine days.
The Sword Intent at the back precipice was too powerful for disciples to stay for extended periods.
However, the Sword Monarch, without fasting, secretly meditated facing the rock face for ninety-one days. Covered in dust and surviving solely on spiritual energy, the elders were astonished and had to rescue the Sword Monarch who was on the verge of death.
Who would have thought that in the arms of the elders, the Sword Monarch would raise his trembling hand, finger pointing like a sword, manifesting various Sword Intents.
The elders were greatly alarmed; the Sword Monarch’s talent for Sword Dao far exceeded their expectations.
Since then, the Sword Monarch’s cultivation has advanced at a miraculous pace, ultimately reaching the Tribulation Crossing Stage, ushering in a new era of glory for the Sword Pavilion.
Suddenly, one day, the Sword Monarch disappeared, leaving only his mysterious Sword Tomb behind.
Some speculated that the Sword Monarch had passed away, leaving behind a legacy within the Sword Tomb, waiting for someone destined to unveil it.
That was four thousand years ago.
Bai Hong Tu, once addressed as the Sword Immortal, once lamented how unfortunate it was that the Sword Monarch had disappeared. Without the second-best in Sword Dao, who would highlight his own unparalleled strength?
Five hundred years ago, Jiang Li, who had yet to refine his Golden Core, was still uncertain of his talents in Sword Dao.
He heard that the Sword Tomb of the Great Sui Dynasty was about to open. Intrigued, he decided to join the exploration, where he met Bai Hong Tu, a wanderer without a Sect.
Inside the Sword Tomb, Jiang Li discovered that his understanding of Sword Dao was in complete disarray. He was only able to learn the Heart Sword technique, which significantly disrupted him.
“The Sword monarch’s soul is in the Sword Tomb?” Jiang Li found crucial information in the mission provided by his system.
The soul is different from remnants or residual consciousness. The system, being meticulous in its choice of words in this matter, would not err in distinction.
A soul indicates that the three souls and seven spirits are intact,
“It appears that the Sword Monarch did not actually disappear. But rather, something went wrong during his cultivation, resulting in his soul leaving his body,” said Jiang Li, taken by surprise. He had assumed that the Sword
Monarch, having disappeared for four thousand years, was already dead.
Disembodiment and death are two different concepts. Disembodiment refers to the soul leaving the body but still alive, capable of returning to the original body or seizing another.
However, death means the soul entering the Underworld for reincarnation, with no chance of possessing another body.
“Since the Sword Monarch’s soul is still present, it means that as long as I find him a suitable body, he can be resurrected,” Jiang Li muttered to himself.
The number of cultivators at the Tribulation Crossing Stage in Jiuzhou was limited. Saving one if possible, was the best that could be done.
“It seems as though the system knows that my talent in Sword Dao isn’t exceptional either hence the Origin Perception function.” Jiang looked over the system’s introduction for the Origin Perception feature.
The Origin Perception feature, as the name suggests, can increase comprehension of a specific Dao just by spending origin points, be it Sword Dao, Alchemy Dao, or even the Dao of Time…
Since this feature has only been temporarily activated, it can only be used to understand Sword Dao for now.
Completing the relevant tasks later will activate the Origin Perception feature fully.
However, Jiang Li didn’t intend to use this feature, whether for perceiving Sword Dao or comprehending the Dao of Time.
Perception links to a cultivator’s spirit and soul. If he used the system to enhance his perception, wouldn’t that be akin to allowing the system to modify his spirit and soul arbitrarily?
The system has a mysterious source, so Jiang Li has always been cautious towards it. He would never let the system have such access to himself.
He could utilize some external objects, but anything related to the spirit and soul, he absolutely wouldn’t let the system touch!
Actually, there were signs of this previously. During the apocalypse, the system would naively issue tasks at set times.
Back then, the system issued a task that greatly caught Jiang Li’s attention. The content of the task wasn’t as important as the reward it offered.
[Task Reward: Increase Alchemy Dao talent]
This was extremely terrifying. Each cultivator’s talent is determined at birth and is bound with their soul. When the system issued this task, did it not signify that the system can modify the soul at will?
Is it possible for the system to have ulterior motives during this process?
If he modifies his soul, could he still remain his own self?
Sundry concerns made Jiang Li give up on that task.
Jiang Li sat at a tea stall sipping low-quality tea, waiting for the Sword Tomb to open, and inadvertently overheard two young cultivators discussing himself.
“Have you heard? The Sword Tomb is opening again.”
“The Sword Tomb? The one where the Human Emperor Jiang started his legend?”
“Of course, which other Sword Tomb would it be?”
As Jiang Li was listening, he felt increasingly alarmed. Since when did he make a name for himself at the Sword Tomb?
Previously, he was studying at the Great Zhou Dynasty Family Academy and later learning Dao doctrine at Dao Sect, so how would it be possible for his reputation to have arisen from the Sword Tomb?
“Could the two of you enlighten me on something?” Jiang Li greeted the two cultivators, “Why would you say that the Human Emperor Jiang started his legend at the Sword Tomb?”
“You don’t know?” The two cultivators were equally surprised, “Who doesn’t know that the Human Emperor Jiang achieved his Sword Dao perception in the Sword Tomb, made three thousand sword roamed under his feet, who was just at the Golden Core Stage back then. From then on the Human Emperor Jiang soared with whoever hindered his way, either man or god, being killed, every move he made was like a sky-blocking downpour of swords. The dazzling sword points are terrifying to anyone.”
Jiang Li was baffled.
Are we referring to the same person?
“To my knowledge, the Human Emperor Jiang has a common comprehension of Sword Dao and only knows the Heart Sword move?”
The two cultivators looked at each other, and couldn’t help but laugh, catching the attention of passersby.
“How is that possible, who does the Human Emperor Jiang resemble that he only knows one Swordsmanship move, you believe such rumors?” “I stopped believing such rumors when I was five.”
“Tea Doctor, I will pay for this Dao brother’s tea.” One of the cultivators generously announced, “Please have another kettle of tea and two plates of snacks. ”
This cultivator was itching to engage in a conversation. It was hard finding someone who knew nothing about the Human Emperor Jiang, so he wanted to properly enlighten this Dao brother.
“Have you actually heard of the Human Emperor Jiang using a different sword skill?”
One of the cultivators pushed two plates of snacks toward Jiang Li, indicating for him to eat, and said: “When the Human Emperor Jiang draws his sword, it’s not a matter of leaving any survivors. Anyone who has seen him draw his sword is already dead.”
“Think about it, a hundred years ago when the Human Emperor Jiang single-handedly eradicated the Devil’s Lair, people may not have seen the process, but afterwards when someone went to investigate, they found not a single devil left alive in the Devil’s Lair. On top of that, the space within the Devil’s Lair had broken apart, filled with Sword Qi everywhere. Doesn’t this indicate something?”
“…Is there a possibility, it might not be correct, that the broken space was caused by the Human Emperor Jiang, and the Sword Qi was sliced out by the devils?”
“Impossible!”
Another cultivator continued: “The Human Emperor Jiang isn’t just exceptionally talented in Sword Dao, but even more unmatched in Alchemy Dao. Even Su Wei from the Alchemy Peak of Dao Sect is no match for him.”
“Yes, yes, I’ve heard that the Human Emperor Jiang can use the Heaven and Earth as a furnace, all creatures as firewood, Yin and Yang as the flame, to refine the Eight Sceneries of Ascension.”
You guys are spreading such rumours like this, makes it harder for me to seek alchemy aid from Su Wei in the future..