Zhang Yan sat cross-legged in a cave carved out of a sheer cliff. With his palm spread open, a strand of Xuan Guang adhered to the sword ball. The sword light instantly surged, and in a flash, a radiant band as dazzling as the Milky Way floated before his eyes.
He then operated his cultivation technique, and the Star Essence Sand twisted and struggled for a moment before slowly splitting under his focused gaze, seemingly on the verge of dividing into two.
Yet, before the process could complete, he sensed the strand of Xuan Guang attached to it rapidly dissipating. Frowning slightly, he hurriedly withdrew it and stored it back within his chest.
Once the Xuan Guang was withdrawn, the sword ball returned to its original state.
This was one of the Dharma techniques recorded in the "True Origin Sword Scripture," called the "Splitting Light Separation Method."
This technique, when used against enemies, could split the sword light to inflict injuries, making it extremely powerful. If cultivated further, the sword could split from one to three, three to a thousand, even a thousand to ten thousand, until eventually returning to its primordial state. At that point, every grain of Star Essence Sand could serve as an individual sword ball.
However, to wield this method proficiently, one must first use Xuan Guang to slowly refine the sword ball, enabling its transformation and integration within the body. Only when it completely harmonizes with the Xuan Guang can it operate smoothly. At present, forcing its use felt a bit cumbersome.
Zhang Yan exhaled lightly. "The road is long, and cultivation stretches far. The Great Dao journey has just begun. I must not falter, nor should I be overly hasty."
He stowed the sword ball and rose slowly, standing with his hands clasped behind him.
In front of the cave’s entrance to the Demon Cave, turbulent river waters surged violently, rolling with awe-inspiring force.
Today marked the twelfth day of the twelfth month. In three days, he could harness the reverse flow of the Water River from the Demon Cave to return to the Dragon Abyss Marsh.
Yet even now, he couldn’t fathom why the Mingcang Sect remained unresponsive.
Leaving aside his other senior brothers and sisters, as a True Disciple, it was impossible for the sect to ignore his situation upon learning of it. Although there were internal factional struggles within the sect, with infighting occurring frequently in secret, such open disregard would never be permitted by the Sect Leader.
Another possibility was that once the news reached Zhou Chongju, even if he couldn’t come himself, he would certainly dispatch other experts to rescue him. The current lack of action suggested either that no one was aware of the situation or that the news reached too late, causing them to miss the window to enter or exit the Sea Eye.
As Zhang Yan mulled it over, he concluded that the most likely explanation was that Xie Zongyuan and the others had encountered some unforeseen incident en route, preventing them from delivering the message back to the mountain gate in time.
At this thought, he smiled faintly. This place was brimming with Spiritual Energy, making it an ideal location for cultivation. Aside from the Hua Dan Cultivator among the Blood Essence Sect disciples, the rest were not worth his concern. If he encountered them, he’d simply kill one if he saw one, kill two if there were two!
So staying here for a few more days to further enhance his strength seemed a prudent choice.
However, there was still a pressing issue to resolve.
He opened his palm, and with a twist of his thoughts, a streak of golden-red light appeared, flickering and flowing unpredictably in his hand.
The cultivation technique he practiced was the "Taiyin Golden Book." Its Xuan Guang followed the path of golden fire. Once unleashed, anyone with discerning eyes could instantly recognize it as a profound and advanced cultivation technique and would likely question its origins. Thus, he needed a way to conceal it.
To address this, he planned to condense Water Attribute Xuan Guang from the "Lan Yun Secret Volume" in the coming days as a disguise.
Now that he had stepped into the Xuan Guang Realm, cultivating some Water Attribute Xuan Guang would not take much effort, likely only seven or eight days. The remaining time could then be used to condense You Yin Heavy Water, ensuring he had an honorable method for confrontation during the Three Pools Battle.
He glanced up at the dark, deep waterway above the Demon Cave. In a few days, as long as Xie Zongyuan and the others were still alive, the Mingcang Sect would no doubt learn of his plight.
By then, he was curious to see which members of his master’s lineage would be sent to aid him.
The weight of the disciples sent would reflect how he stood in their estimation. Conversely, if their response was lackluster, it would mean he’d need to reconsider his future path carefully.
"Master, Master," Su YiAng’s voice called softly from within his sleeve.
Zhang Yan reached into his sleeve and took out a piece of Beautiful Jade, asking, "What is it?"
A faint green shadow emerged as Su YiAng manifested from the jade. Being a Primordial Spirit, he had taken the form of a small human figure standing atop it. Bowing before Zhang Yan, he said, "Master, I wish to remain here."
A faint expressionless look passed across Zhang Yan’s face as he replied, "Oh? Why is that? Speak."
Summoning his courage, Su YiAng said, "Master, I have lost my physical body. Despite reading the ’Seeking Origin Scripture,’ I have only grasped the ’method’ but not the ’essence.’ Returning to the sect may only hinder you and become a burden. After much thought, I believe the best course is for me to remain here and walk the path of the Devil. Who knows, I might one day become a great asset to you."