Chapter 239: Sword and Pure Yang

What was Pure Yang?

That was the first lesson Qing Yanzi had taught him about the Pure Yang Immortal Mantra.

The term "Pure Yang" did not refer to isolated Yang. At the beginning of the Yin-Yang Secret Scroll, it was written that all things possessed both yin and yang qi within them, and all living beings gained spiritual intelligence only through the mutual generation of yin and yang.

𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Men were naturally born with more yang qi, while women were the opposite. Therefore, many Daoist arts focused on dual cultivation between men and women, aiming to embody the harmony of yin and yang.

Two thousand years ago, there was a period when the art of dual yin-yang cultivation was widespread among cultivators. However, whenever men and women practiced it, the pull of yin and yang qi eventually made it difficult to restrain themselves.

Even if they maintained strict self-control at the beginning and sat facing each other with palms pressed together, they would gradually be drawn closer to one another, igniting their passion and ultimately damaging their cultivation. Hence, most Qian-Kun[1] dual cultivations led to the emergence of heart devils due to selfish desire. Since it was considered a lower path, the masters of Daoist sects completely destroyed all such dual cultivation methods.

The uniqueness of the Pure Yang Immortal Mantra stemmed from the fact that, based on the mutual harmony of yin and yang, it allowed the cultivator to refine yang qi alone without harming their yin qi. It enabled them to maintain their natural internal balance throughout their practice.

It did not represent isolated yang, extreme rigidity, aggression, or singular polarity. It possessed the strength and courage of masculine energy. This cultivation technique could be as fierce and domineering as lightning and thunder, or as continuous and nurturing as the growth of all living things.

This cultivation technique, which Lu the Progenitor was most proud of, was the only one that could be called an Immortal Mantra.

Wang Sheng recalled all the explanations that his master had once given him about the concept of Pure Yang when he first began his cultivation journey. Countless questions rose in his heart. By following those doubts, he sought his own path of Pure Yang immortality and searched for his own way of cultivation.

Near Mount Pingdu, only a few

li

from the Nether Gate, Wang Sheng sat quietly on a grassy slope, cultivating in silence during a rare moment of calm in the Small Nether Realm.

The dense primal qi surrounding him was being drawn into him at a speed visible to the naked eye. It seemed that his realm could even improve further.

The spirit-gathering formations could no longer satisfy Wang Sheng's need for primal qi. Beside him, Xi Lian sketched another formation out of thin air with her slender finger, drawing in primal qi from a ten-

li

radius.

Amid cultivation, time passed unnoticed. During moments of comprehension, the traces of time were hard to perceive. Dawn soon broke. The sun slowly rose in the eastern sky, and a ray of sunlight crossed the distant ridge, shining upon Wang Sheng.

Wang Sheng opened his eyes. A flash of golden light flickered in his pupils, and his aura began to surge upward.

Unfortunately, the golden light faded quickly, and the rise in his aura lasted only a short while. Although Wang Sheng felt unsatisfied, he had nearly exhausted the comprehension that he had accumulated.

A single night of effort had brought his cultivation up to match his Daoist realm, which was already an unusually fast pace of progress. Forcing further advancement and pushing himself to the peak of the Illusory Core Realm would only damage his Daoist realm or even risk falling into devilry.

Rushing would only backfire.

"I'm still a step short." Wang Sheng looked down at his palm, finding two streaks of golden light tracing its lines. He slowly closed his hand around them.

Standing nearby, Xi Lian chuckled softly. "Your cultivation advanced two whole steps in one night. That's more than enough. Aren't you afraid that something could go wrong if you push any faster?"

Huai Jing opened his eyes and smiled. "What's going on? Did you plan to break through to the Golden Core Realm last night, Fei Yu?"

"I did have that in mind." Wang Sheng glanced at the dark clouds above the Nether Gate, "It's not something that can be forced, though. I'm still a step away from perfection. I'll wait and see."

The dark clouds above were larger than last night and hung even lower. It covered the entire area within a kilometer around the Nether Gate, blocking out all sunlight.

Wang Sheng asked, "Any news?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary," Xi Lian shook the phone in her hand. "After entering the Nether Gate, Little Xuanxuan received a second telepathic distress call. It was a bit longer than the first."

"What did the immortal say?"

Xi Lian said, "She told them to be careful on the road and that she'll do her best to suppress it and wait until they arrive. It actually sounds like good news."

"Suppress?" Wang Sheng frowned slightly. "Suppress what?"

"Who knows?" Xi Lian shrugged. "I'm not the female immortal. How would I know what she's suppressing? Maybe it's some kind of devil. If it takes her to suppress it, then it has to be a terrifying being."

Huai Jing said, "Then if we look at it that way, it probably isn't some kind of devil. I overheard some of the Special Investigation Unit discussing it. They think it's more likely that the female immortal's physical body is about to collapse, and she's suppressing herself."

Wang Sheng thought about it for a while but reached no conclusion. He gazed at the Nether Gate as a morning breeze passed. No one knew what would happen next.

Wang Sheng stood up and summoned a wooden stick into his hand. He gave it a few light swings to test the grip. "I'll practice my swordsmanship for a bit."

Xi Lian shook her head helplessly. Huai Jing scooted a little farther away from Wang Sheng, afraid that a stray swing would hit him.

Wang Sheng began practicing with the stick. He was not trying to comprehend the Dao of the Sword. He was just doing a routine post-meditation sword practice to avoid neglecting the Dao of the Sword.

However, today, Wang Sheng felt slightly dissatisfied during his practice. His sword momentum felt off and lacked fluidity. He completed a full set of the Seven-Star Sword Formation and stood quietly in the gentle morning light, focusing on his sword intent and sword momentum.

A sudden thought then occurred to him.

To form a Golden Core, I have to use the Pure Yang Immortal Mantra as my foundation, but I do not necessarily have to rely solely on it.

When Mu Wanxuan formed her core, she also used the Pure Yang Immortal Mantra as her foundation. However, she ended up forging the Dao of Balanced Yin and Yang.

Wang Sheng was walking the path of the sword. While he could not recklessly forge a sword-shaped Golden Core, his sword intent should also help in forming one.

Mm?

Wang Sheng put down the sword case and tossed the wooden stick back to where it came from. He then retrieved Flying Haze from his chest, gripping its hilt tightly.

He slowly went through the techniques of the Reversed Seven-Star Sword Formation, which was part of the Heavenly Ziwei Sword Art. Though he was still just doing his usual practice, he now focused on the effects that his sword intent had on his Illusory Core.

The pure form of the Pure Yang Immortal Mantra should generate a light golden qi vortex when forming the qi sea, but his qi sea had specks of starlight mixed in. That was the early stages of the perfected Heavenly Ziwei Sword Intent and the Pure Yang Immortal Mantra merging.

The Pure Yang Immortal Mantra was the foundation of his cultivation, while the Heavenly Ziwei Sword Intent was his art for defending that path. The philosophy among the various lineages of the Daoist sects emphasized the Dao over the art since the Dao determined one's realm, while the art merely determined how much power one could exert at that realm.

The essence of cultivation was the elevation of the self, which was tied to one's realm. From this angle, the Dao was naturally more important than the art. However, Wang Sheng found himself wanting to break that habitual mindset.

If the Dao could give rise to the art, then why couldn't the art influence the Dao in return? Should the Dao and art be strictly separated, or should they intertwine and merge? Pure Yang was his Dao, but wasn't the Dao of the Sword also part of his Dao?

In his sword practice, Wang Sheng fell into deep thought. Though the idea naturally came to him upon reaching his current realm, the shape his path would take depended on how he would reflect on it.

The sword passed without a trace. The heart moved without a mark.

This is it.

Wang Sheng thought of his master and senior sister. He then began to assess himself.

The Pure Yang Immortal Mantra that his master followed was steady and orthodox. His senior sister, based on that foundation, practiced the Dao of Balanced Yin and Yang. Meanwhile, stars flickered within his qi sea.

He had only one true path, and that was the "Dao of Wang Sheng"! The sword, the true essence, the Heavenly Ziwei Sword Intent, and the Pure Yang Immortal Mantra were all parts of it!

The Golden Core was merely the initial condensation of that Dao.

His senior sister had waited for a certain feeling before forming her core. However, Wang Sheng realized that for him, feelings were not the key. The true key was fusing his sword intent with his Pure Yang cultivation.

That was his actual path.

Gradually, Wang Sheng's mind and spirit fully merged into every movement of his sword technique. He moved at a steady pace, his sword strikes flowing calmly.

From a slightly higher vantage point, a few Daoist elders who were observing the Nether Gate looked down and exchanged a few voice transmissions about Wang Sheng's swordsmanship.

Thanks to the Special Investigation Unit's relentless efforts to promote Fei Yu's image as a sword cultivator, their evaluation of Wang Sheng was quite favorable. They praised the brilliance of his one-man formation and pointed out how rare it was for someone so young to have reached the late stage of the Illusory Core Realm.

One elder suddenly raised his hand to stop the others. He transmitted, "Huh? Look closely at Fei Yu's sword techniques. His sword momentum seems to be changing."

"That's right. It used to be a sky full of stars, but now there's also... sunlight? What does that mean? When the sun rises, the stars should disappear."

"Look. He seems to have noticed it himself. His sword intent has changed again."

The Daoist elders focused their minds on Wang Sheng's swordsmanship, sensing the Dao Rhythm emanating from his movements. Each change represented a new attempt, but each attempt ended in failure.

Fortunately, Wang Sheng had deep insight into sword techniques. He approached every trial with caution, testing the waters without going too far. Whenever he sensed he was heading in the wrong direction, he quickly adjusted his approach.

Time passed bit by bit. Wang Sheng gradually found the right path that he had to take to merge his sword intent with his Pure Yang.

Dwelling at the North Pole, Ziwei commanded hundreds of stars through the sword. Pure Yang bears righteous qi that cannot coexist with corruption.

Wang Sheng continued practicing his sword forms. Within him, the sword's hum never ceased, and the roar of his qi sea surged like the tides.

The Daoist elders exchanged glances. A blur passed before their eyes, and the graceful Xi Lian appeared before them. A wave of indescribable pressure descended upon them.

"Little Fei Yu has suddenly attained comprehension and is about to break through. Please back off a bit and do not let anyone come within a hundred meters. Let's avoid any unnecessary commotion."

1. Qian here refers to male, Kun refers to female. ☜