"Rumble!"
The six Dragon Lords did not die. There had never been any deceased souls under the [Non-Killing Sword Intent]. But precisely because of this, revival after death also became an illusion.
More importantly, after being decapitated by Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon, the connection between the six Dragon Lords and their Dao Fruits was completely severed. The scattered profound wonder of the Dao Fruits turned into a pouring rain, nourishing the grotto-heaven. Outside the grotto-heaven, the six Dao Fruits symbolizing the [Water Element] hid their traces one after another.
The sound of thunder grew increasingly loud.
In a daze, a blurry face seemed to be sketched out in the sky above the Immortal Nexus. It emanated fury, seemingly about to send down ten thousand jun of thunderbolts upon the grotto-heaven.
However, right at this moment.
"Clang—."
The hum of a sword sounded. A dazzlingly bright white line abruptly appeared on that blurry face, tearing apart its features, instantly shredding everything to pieces.
The face vanished.
As for the ten thousand jun of thunderbolts that should have fallen, they naturally ended up as nothing. The gathered spiritual qi subsequently dispersed, and the invisible will quietly returned to concealment.
Meanwhile, inside the grotto-heaven.
The Great Sword Ancestor's divided spirit withdrew his gaze and continued to look at Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon. He smiled and said, "For some reason, I always feel that Fellow Daoist's appearance is a bit familiar."
"May I boldly ask your name and surname?"
Hearing this, Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon rested one hand on his sword, cupped his hands in greeting, and replied, "Ye Guangji."
"A good name."
The Great Sword Ancestor nodded slightly, then returned the greeting: "I am nameless, merely formed by a sliver of my main body's Sword Spirit. Fellow Daoist may call me [Vanquishing-Demon]."
Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon: "..."
After a moment of silence, Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon didn't reply, but instead stepped aside: "With Fellow Daoist's cultivation, I cannot stop you. Fellow Daoist may do as you please."
"There is no need."
The Great Sword Ancestor shook his head: "Although the Dao Lineage of this place has some novelty, it is useless to me. I am only interested in Fellow Daoist, and Fellow Daoist's origins."
Having said that, he seriously sized up Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon again. Looking at the three sword intents swirling around him, a look of wonder surfaced in the depths of his eyes: 'Similar, truly too similar... But more perfect than me. I have three spirits in one body, but he is solely the sword, solely himself. Could it be that I succeeded in the end?'
Thinking of this, he grew even more curious.
After a brief silence, this number one sword cultivator of the sea of light—who was once praised by Pan Huang as a Half-Step Dao Lord, the one closest to attaining the Primordial Spirit—suddenly spoke in a low voice:
"Does Fellow Daoist know how to cultivate the Primordial Spirit?"
Instantly, Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon furrowed his brows.
Almost simultaneously, Lu Yang, who had been secretly observing through Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon's perspective the whole time, almost jumped up. A look of disbelief surfaced in his eyes.
'The secret of the Primordial Spirit!'
'He can actually voice it on his own initiative?'
What about the [Seal] on the Primordial Spirit? Could it be that this thing only targeted the present world and was useless against cultivators in the false history? Impossible. Would the Dao Lords make such a mistake?
"Oh, Fellow Daoist, please do not misunderstand."
Just then, the Great Sword Ancestor seemed to think of something and chuckled softly: "The [Seal] is also effective in this world, it's just ineffective on me."
Lu Yang: "..."
Are you that fierce?
Immediately after, the Great Sword Ancestor continued: "Fellow Daoist extracting three sword intents through your own power certainly gives hope for the Primordial Spirit, but it is also fraught with hidden dangers."
"It is solely because the three sword intents conflict with one another. This state might be fine for now, but over a long period, when Fellow Daoist integrates them into your Dao Heart and transforms them into a Sword Spirit obsession, they will begin to clash fiercely. When that time comes, if Fellow Daoist has no way to suppress and control them, you will inevitably suffer qi deviation as a result."
Hearing this, Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon also understood.
Therefore, without any hesitation, he immediately cupped his hands and said solemnly, "I implore Fellow Daoist to guide me. How should I resolve the conflict and unite the three spirits as one?"
"It can't be called guidance."
The Great Sword Ancestor smiled upon hearing this. Then, he reached into his robe and took out a jade slip. "I merely have some insights and experiences to share with Fellow Daoist."
Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon took the jade slip and swept it with his divine sense.
[Supreme Method of Severing the Three Corpses].
"Regarding the so-called Primordial Spirit, Lord Sisui once left a saying back then: [I have long contended with myself, I'd rather just be me] These short words exhaust the profound wonder of the Primordial Spirit."
The Great Sword Ancestor sighed with emotion and said, "However, Lord Sisui spoke rather obscurely regarding this aspect, and the other Dao Lords were even less willing to spread this Dao, so it is rarely circulated... But I can speak plainly to Fellow Daoist. If you want to forge a Primordial Spirit, the key lies in the transformation between the Good Self and the Evil Self."
"Rumble!"
Another thunderclap exploded, instantly illuminating heaven and earth. However, such a concept couldn't approach the Great Sword Ancestor, or even Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon before him, in the slightest.
"Dao Heart cultivation is nothing more than three steps."
"The first step, Dao Heart Perfection, is the foundation. It is the analysis and cognition of the self. It's difficult to say, but also simple to say; it can be supplemented with external objects."
"The second step, Fasting of the Mind, is the obsession."
"An obsession that one would rather die than forget is the foundation for constructing the Fasting of the Mind. However, most obsessions skew towards delusion. Sometimes, they actually cannot represent a cultivator's true heart."
"That is why there is the third step."
"Under the influence of obsession, the human heart can turn towards good, or it can turn towards evil."
The Great Sword Ancestor's tone was calm as he narrated eloquently:
"Thus, there is the division between Good Consciousness and Evil Consciousness. However, choosing which consciousness as the primary one to transform into the [True Self] is the crucial secret of the Primordial Spirit."
"This secret cannot be widely spread. Even Lord Sisui was extremely cautious about it, because doing evil is easy, while turning towards good is difficult. If the secrets of this part were to spread, in order to forge a Primordial Spirit, at least eighty percent of cultivators would ultimately choose evil as the primary. If that happens, it will be difficult for the sea of light to have peace."
Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon listened very seriously.
Lu Yang eavesdropped very seriously as well.
'So that's how it is. Previously, in the dark side of the sea of light, I saw the Great Sword Ancestor's Evil Consciousness. Divided into good and evil... to think the secret of the Primordial Spirit is this simple and direct!'
True teaching in a single sentence!
The so-called [I have long contended with myself] refers to the dispute between the "Good Self" and the "Evil Self." And [I'd rather just be me] refers to the "True Self"!
From this perspective, Sisui didn't actually hide anything for his own benefit.
At most, he just spoke a bit obscurely.
However, a doubt quickly surfaced in Lu Yang's mind involuntarily. He immediately transmitted this doubt through his connection with Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon.
"...Fellow Daoist."
Receiving Lu Yang's communication, Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon's gaze shifted slightly. Then, he suddenly spoke: "Since you know the secret of the Primordial Spirit, have you cultivated a Primordial Spirit?"
"Me?"
The Great Sword Ancestor was taken aback upon hearing this, then smiled and shook his head: "I suppose I've forged one, but it doesn't last. I can only say I've barely taken half a step."
"Why is that?" Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon continued.
As his voice fell, the Great Sword Ancestor narrowed his eyes slightly and looked deeply at Perfected One Vanquishing-Demon, seemingly judging something. After a moment of silence, he continued:
"Because I was born with three spirits."
"One person with three spirits holds a great advantage in the early stages of Dao Heart cultivation, but it becomes increasingly difficult later on, especially the final step of tempering the [True Self]."
"The Primordial Spirit is about purity; it cannot be tainted by external thoughts."
"But a body with three spirits, though closely united, each holds its own opinion."
"In essence, it is not pure, so how can it temper the [True Self]? Because of this, I was stuck at the final step. Even exhausting my mind and spirit, I could only take half a step."
Pan Huang and the others had a massive misunderstanding regarding the Great Sword Ancestor.
They believed the reason the Great Sword Ancestor had hope for the Primordial Spirit was because he was born with three spirits.
However, the truth was exactly the opposite.
Being born with three spirits was not an assistance to the Great Sword Ancestor; rather, it was a massive obstacle... Yet he had astonishingly managed to step half a foot across this heavenly chasm.
'So... that's why the Sword Lord wants to kill him!'