Chương 109: Chapter 106 – Here we go again!

Elder Ding led them past the edge of where people were gathering. Clear of the crowd, Ren could finally see what the people had gathered for. Three middle-aged men were standing in front of a sublime array through which a steady line of young potentials was passing. A brightly colored floating display showed obscured markings that one of the elders would read out.

"Bone age: 11, 7th layer qi gathering, medium potential. Pass."

"Bone age: 14, 7th layer qi gathering, low potential. Fail."

"Bone age: 12, 8th layer qi gathering, low potential. Pass." Ren was beyond shocked by the first three calls he heard. Late stage qi gathering realm at such a young age, and they were still deemed medium talent!

'Wait, not talent. Potential? How are they measuring something so inscrutable as potential? Is that even possible to judge?' Ren was particularly haunted by that 2nd young man who had reached the 7th layer of qi gathering at the same age Ren had only just begun cultivating and still failed to enter. The difference between the branch and main sects really sank in at that moment.

Ren had no doubt that if he were to step onto that array as he was now, he would be laughed out of the grounds for daring to dream too high. Ren wasn't the only one to feel that way, as he could see his fellow disciples wilting beside him. Even the typically proud Jian Feng looked pale. Fortunately for all of them, one of the three elders stepped forward to converse with the vice sect leader. Ren couldn't hear them, but he saw the vice sect leader bow low as if greeting a superior and presenting a token.

The huddled disciples felt a wave of qi wash over them along with a sensation of being thoroughly observed. Then with a lazy gesture they were allowed to proceed past the gates. Ren kept his head low but not before he caught the contemptuous scowl on that middle-aged elder's face.

'I expected poor treatment, but this really doesn't bode well for us.' Ren thought to himself. Past the gates were endless stairs leading high up to the peak, with a character carved at the front of each step. The familiar sight once again brought back memories of Uncle Tao.

'Back then Uncle Tao said I would only be able to experience climbing these stairs once in a lifetime. How fortunate am I to be able to climb similar stairs once again, only this time to enter the main sect?' The first thing Ren did was hold back Hua to share Uncle Tao's words of wisdom. Hua might not have known about the opportunity back then, but he shouldn't miss it again. Hua easily accepted the advice and began preparing himself by grasping the hilt of the broadsword strapped to his back.

Fully intending to make the most of the chance again, Ren also took his time to center himself. If these stairs were anything like those in the Heavenly Sword Sect, then it was bound to be an enlightening experience. Though the others had already started, Ren waited until he was ready before placing his foot on the first step, marked with the character for 'immortal'. Nothing magical happened, no visions or surges of qi. Yet Ren wasn't disappointed.

This wasn't that kind of opportunity where you reaped without sowing. He focused on the characters as he advanced. Whoever had carved the characters must have a very high attainment in calligraphy because their meaning sunk into his consciousness with ease. That was not to say their meaning was simple. On the contrary, the complex meanings mixed with those of the characters he had already passed and became something ever greater.

The story told by these steps was somehow both familiar and infinitely profound, and Ren lost himself in the lessons of the sect founders. Of warring factions brawling in the mud until elevated by the descent of the Celestial's Sword. Of shedding past enmities and unity forged. Of eternal bonds created in delving the mysteries of the Sword.

There came a section that seemed oddly out of place that spoke of the worlds conquered and gardens of immortals; that was bewildering, but it eventually returned to the smooth flow. The purity of the Dao and the peace gained at the edge of a sword. The proper conduct required of one who had power over the lives of many. The responsibility of wielding that power for the right reasons. Finally, it spoke of a lofty dream. The unattainable apex of cultivation that gave meaning to the path toward it.

An unshakeable resolve to pierce the heavens! Ren wasn't startled when he ascended to the final step, his thoughts still swirling on all that he had learned. Ren's lungs were burning both from the excessively pure qi in the air and from the physical exertion of climbing the mountain despite his body cultivation. His body was awash with qi. He slowly opened his eyes and took in the marvelous sight before him.

He was standing at a small platform at the top of the mountain, and he looked down on the world at his feet like some all-powerful divinity. There was another wall of a mountain range rising before them in the distance, with the hint of a 3rd ring of mountain ranges beyond them. Ren imagined it might appear as a meteor crater with 3 rings of mountains with the Celestial's Sword buried in the center, but it was just a thought.

In the valley between the ring where he stood and the 2nd ring, hundreds of buildings spread out over all kinds of environments. There were swift rivers, fields of crops, massive herds of beasts, and forests that stretched towards the skies. Amidst the relatively ordinary scenes were also more mystical sights, such as a burning lake and a plain dotted with swords, not to mention all the mysteries he couldn't see. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Ren felt his vision grow cloudy from unshed tears at the beautiful sight before him when a pulse from his dantian tugged at his attention. He looked around, and through half-dazed eyes he saw not one or two but tens of fellow disciples and other new sect members sitting in meditation. The numerous pulses of qi emitted from all around him indicated just how many were mid breakthrough! Swelling panic wiped away the cobwebs in his mind as he hurriedly checked his own dantian.

Just as he suspected, he found the Fire of Life construct emitting similar fluctuations. It was the most inopportune moment to breakthrough for Ren, as this breakthrough was bound to be rife with problems. But he had been at the 7th layer of the foundation realm when he had left the Heavenly Sword Sect a lifetime ago. He had almost broken through during the trial. This breakthrough wouldn't be held off any longer.

Fortunately, the elders were already moving, and the traitorous Jiao Yue was laying out an array to protect the disciples breaking through. Ren had no qualms in accepting that protection because it was impossible that she would seek to harm them openly at the threshold of the Azure Mountains. Using the precious little time he had, Ren laid out a layer of additional protection for himself. He seated himself and tried to regain that same meditative trance from before.

His senses entered his dantian and noticed that the pulsing of the Fire of Life had already begun to speed up. The most pressing concern was the demonic finger slumbering in the depths of the blue-gold spiritual sea. The finger made no moves, its presence almost non-existent with how completely it had concealed itself. But it was too soon to be relieved because just as he feared, changes had occurred in the month since its arrival. A few crimson threads were now floating around near it.

Ren hoped they wouldn't interfere with his breakthrough and warily monitored them. The pressure in his dantian grew as the spiritual sea surged. The waves of qi smashed on the walls of the dantian as the dense sun that hung above the spiritual sea flashed rapidly. Ren watched with growing fear as the sun, representing the Fire of Life, instead of shrinking and condensing, was drawing in large amounts of embers from the Fire of Merit belonging to those he had reinforced connections with.

Far greater in quantity than in any prior breakthrough. Ren also feared the consequences of drawing too many embers from the Fire of Merit belonging to another cultivator. After all, a Fire of Merit represented the karmic merit earned through one's actions, both good and bad. If he drew too much of their positive merit, it might dissolve the reinforced strands entirely by balancing the perceived debts. Worse still, it might harm their fate by robbing them of their hard-earned positive karma, leaving only sin.

The usually ephemeral thin strands surrounding his Fire of Life were also glowing brightly as they swarmed the burning sun. Yet among both types of strands, reinforced and unreinforced, a few were shining darkly. They stood starkly contrasted among their counterparts. Ren already knew with the fall of the Heavenly Sword Sect that it wouldn't be an ordinary breakthrough, but even so, he had thoroughly underestimated the scope. Recent events had accumulated too much karma, both good and bad.

The fruit of sowed deeds was too heavy for him to bear, and the Fire of Life construct was struggling to refine karma of such momentous proportions. For the first time, the glowing sun showed signs of deviation as a dark streak wound through its side! His breakthroughs had always happened without much involvement on Ren's behalf so he could focus entirely on holding his dantian together with his willpower.

But as the burning sun failed to contain a spurt of unrefined karmic merit, Ren couldn't watch passively any more. The flames were even scorching the thin strands hovering around it, causing them to wilt and fade, harming his future potential. He wracked his mind to decide which of his prepared solutions to pursue, even as the pressure on his dantian grew. The most dire problem was that the Fire of Life was unable to process the accumulated merit and sin.

To alleviate the pressure, he could reinforce the construct with his will, but that might steal attention away from his dantian, causing more damage. There was another idea he had been seriously considering ever since Elder Yun had highlighted the importance of the constructs taught by the Causality of Karma. A second Fire of Life Construct. Acting decisively, Ren began spinning qi into the simply yet intricate structure of a tiny sphere.

It had taken him a long time at the start of the foundation realm when he lacked the fine control, but his skills in manipulating qi had come a long way since. He had also extensively studied the structure ever since he had been taught its significance. As fast as he was in forming the construct, his fire of life was leaking out more unrefined qi and karmic merit. Ren raced against time to complete the construct. But Ren wasn't only forming the basic construct.

Unwilling to waste this opportunity, he was introducing a few planned changes. Ever since that meeting with Elder Yun, when he had stressed the importance of walking his own path, Ren had seriously considered this change. After all, he had gotten this far mostly on his own efforts. Rebuilding his manual, improving it through epiphanies, creating his own techniques, and extensive research had all built a solid bedrock of understanding. So Ren didn't hesitate to follow his instincts.

At first, he left the construct unmodified because he lacked understanding. Through the years, he had watched the Fire of Life grow with every breakthrough. Refining and sending out merit while keeping refined sin. The troubles and opportunities it had brought him as it grew denser and brighter, increasing the speed at which qi entered his dantian. He had carefully watched it fuel his rapid advancement through the foundation realm. Yes, he was very familiar with his Fire of Life.

While the core of the construct was the same, Ren felt comfortable introducing a fundamental change. Identifying the sections that refined merit and sin and isolating them, Ren finished creating a second Fire of Life construct, which would solely refine sin just as a large crack formed on the walls of his dantian.

'Hurry up and light!!' Ren was frantic. Did he make a mistake somewhere? Would it all blow up in his face?! All of a sudden, the delicate construct caught, and a tiny orb burning with pale black flames was born.