Profound Heaven Spirit Devouring Sword Art

The Wind Moon Sect Master was deeply astonished.

There was no need to elaborate on the importance of a Foundation Establishment Pill.

If circumstances were favorable, a single Foundation Establishment Pill could give the Wind Moon Sect another elder with Foundation Establishment cultivation. In some Cultivation Families outside, someone of that level would be an ancestor of the lineage.

Even True Disciples of the Wind Moon Sect could not all obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill. They had to wait their turn, and sometimes that wait lasted years.

In truth, let alone a Foundation Establishment Pill, even a Foundation Establishment Spirit Item was incomparably precious when Foundation Establishment was at stake.

And now, the Grand Elder had actually said that whoever successfully comprehended that Object of Opportunity would be rewarded with a Foundation Establishment Pill?

That was far too generous.

If any True Disciple truly succeeded, they would have struck it rich beyond their wildest dreams. Not only might they glimpse that opportunity, but they could also obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill. He wondered which True Disciple would be so fortunate.

But then again, even they Foundation Establishment Elders were At a Loss before that Object of Opportunity. In his estimation, the Grand Elder probably had not fully comprehended it either, which was why he had always paid it such close attention. Surely no True Disciple possessed such fortune?

At this moment, the Wind Moon Sect Master's thoughts surged and churned. However, since the Grand Elder had already made his decision, it was not something he could change. All he could do was carry it out.

Thus, the Octogenarian Elder immediately answered with a solemn expression, "Yes."

In truth, he also felt some regret in his heart.

He thought that if he could comprehend that Object of Opportunity and glimpse the opportunity that even the Grand Elder cared about, then perhaps there might be some hope for his Core Formation? Yet reality went against his wishes. What a pity, what a pity...

After that, the Grand Elder issued no further orders. Once the Octogenarian Elder had reported a few matters concerning the sect, he bowed and took his leave.

Thus, only the Dao Robe Youth remained.

The cliffside fell silent once more.

True Sword Master Xuanjian sat cross-legged atop a Giant Stone, his gaze cast toward the distant scenery. His brows and eyes bore the weight of time, and a trace of sorrow seemed to linger in his expression.

As a Core Formation Cultivator, True Sword Master Xuanjian had already lived for more than four hundred years. He had little Lifespan remaining, so he truly could not feel at ease.

Unless he could successfully attain Nascent Soul True Lord status within his remaining few decades. Then his Lifespan would rise to a full thousand years, and he would enter an entirely different state of being.

True Sword Master Xuanjian had already made his plans. Before his Lifespan ran out, he would make one or two attempts to break through to Nascent Soul. If he did not succeed, he would die trying. Yet the hope of success was truly not great.

In True Sword Master Xuanjian's view, even if he failed his attempt at Nascent Soul and died decades later, the enormous Wind Moon Sect would merely be battered by wind and rain. At most, its vitality would be gravely damaged; it would not be destroyed by other sect forces. So long as a False Core cultivator stood guard, assisted by the sect's grand formation and the methods he left behind, it could still barely protect itself.

"...It is only a pity that my Sword Dao will perish with me..."

The Dao Robe Youth sighed softly.

The Sword Dao Cultivation Method he cultivated had not originally belonged to the Wind Moon Sect. Rather, it had been an opportunity he obtained by chance during an outing for Lilian.

Its name was... the Profound Heaven Spirit Devouring Sword Art!

It was a Sword Dao Cultivation Method of tremendous origin. True Sword Master Xuanjian even speculated that it might not have originated from this world.

However, in a sense, this art could only be called an incomplete fragment.

That was because True Sword Master Xuanjian had obtained only seven layers of it.

The First Three Layers were for Qi Refining, the middle three were for Foundation Establishment, and the final layer was for Core Formation.

Yet after Core Formation, there were no further methods. Only a Spirit Devouring Sword Forging Art was recorded.

According to the Spirit Devouring Sword Forging Art, the subsequent cultivation method after Core Formation had to be deduced independently, because the Spirit Devouring Sword Forging Art possessed the effect of deducing the Sword Dao.

Theoretically, as long as one continuously deduced according to the Spirit Devouring Sword Forging Art, not only the subsequent Core Formation methods, but even Nascent Soul, Spirit Transformation... and realms beyond imagination could all possibly be attained.

If that could truly be achieved, then calling this art a peerless Sword Dao cultivation method would not be an exaggeration.

Unfortunately, such deduction was simply far too difficult.

True Sword Master Xuanjian searched his own heart and asked himself: he had risen from humble beginnings and come all the way to his current Cultivation Base. His talent was already Outstanding Talent, enough for him to be called a Heavenly Prodigy.

Yet even he, through unceasing effort, had only managed to deduce the Profound Heaven Spirit Devouring Sword Art to the ninth layer.

But the tenth layer was impossible no matter what he did. One crucial reason was that his Spiritual Soul Power was insufficient to support such deduction. If he forced it, not only would he fail to deduce the tenth layer, but he would also severely damage his own spiritual soul.

However, that tenth layer was precisely the cultivation level of the Nascent Soul Realm. Without obtaining the tenth layer, it was basically impossible for True Sword Master Xuanjian to achieve Nascent Soul.

Thus, he had remained trapped at Core Formation.

At times, True Sword Master Xuanjian wondered whether, if he had not cultivated the Profound Heaven Spirit Devouring Sword Art but some other method instead, he might already have reached the Nascent Soul Realm with his talent.

Unfortunately, it was already too late to switch cultivation methods. The only possibility was to hope for a breakthrough in the sword art and create possibility from impossibility.

Fortunately, not long ago, the True Sword Master Xuanjian, who had already lost all hope, obtained an Object of Opportunity from that Secret Realm.

This Object of Opportunity was an Ancient Green Plant. Though it appeared to be nothing more than an ordinary green plant, and aside from having endured countless years, it possessed no other distinctive traits.

Yet according to True Sword Master Xuanjian's research, it should conceal a cultivation method, perhaps one related to Spiritual Sense—a remarkable Spirit Refining Cultivation Method capable of strengthening Spiritual Sense.

When he learned this, he was beside himself with joy. Was not his inability to deduce the tenth layer of the Profound Heaven Spirit Devouring Sword Art and advance into Nascent Soul caused precisely by insufficient Spiritual Soul Power?

If he cultivated the Spirit Refining Cultivation Method hidden within this Ancient Green Plant and strengthened his Spiritual Sense, then perhaps he could successfully deduce the tenth layer of the sword art and later seize the chance to achieve Nascent Soul.

Yet after striving for a long time, he had gained only a slight understanding and could not fully comprehend the Spirit Refining Cultivation Method upon the green plant.

Nor was it only him. In his anxiety, he had allowed suitable Foundation Establishment cultivators within the sect to comprehend it as well, but none gained anything.

It was plain to see that ordinary Xiu Xian practitioners could not comprehend the Spirit Refining Cultivation Method within this Ancient Green Plant.

True Sword Master Xuanjian guessed that perhaps only Spiritual Sense at the Nascent Soul level could successfully comprehend it.

That made him lose heart entirely.

If he possessed Spiritual Sense of the Nascent Soul Realm while still in the Core Formation Realm, how could he fail to deduce the tenth layer of the Profound Heaven Spirit Devouring Sword Art? Why would he need to cultivate a Spirit Refining Cultivation Method that strengthened Spiritual Sense?

This was simply a vicious cycle.

Thus, with no other choice, True Sword Master Xuanjian could only broaden the scope and allow the Wind Moon Sect's True Disciples to comprehend the Spirit Refining Cultivation Method within the Ancient Green Plant as well.

This could be called an attempt born of despair, treating a dead horse as though it were alive.

After all, perhaps among the True Disciples, there might be someone with some special trait, or someone blessed with great fortune, who might, through extraordinary luck, suddenly gain enlightenment into that Spirit Refining Cultivation Method?

However, True Sword Master Xuanjian did not truly hold any hope for this. He merely did it on a whim. After all, allowing True Disciples to comprehend that Ancient Green Plant required only a word from him.

When all was said and done, if he wanted to break the deadlock, he still had to forcefully attempt Nascent Soul himself.

To forcefully attempt something he knew was basically impossible was essentially courting death. True Sword Master Xuanjian would only do so when his Lifespan was nearly exhausted.

"Perhaps from the moment I chose to cultivate the Profound Heaven Spirit Devouring Sword Art, this fate of mine was already decided..."

True Sword Master Xuanjian gazed into the distance and murmured softly.

And this was also the final fate of the Vast Majority of Xiu Xian practitioners in the Cultivation World whose Lifespans were nearly exhausted while they remained trapped before a great bottleneck.