The Great Dao Under Heaven Knows No Left or Right

Over the next three days.

Xie Xuanyi patiently taught Deng Baiyi how to inscribe formations—

It had to be said, Deng Baiyi truly was a genius in the arts of formation patterns and talismans.

For her very first formation inscription, she had chosen the exceptionally difficult "Ninefold Bright Phoenix Fire Void-Refining Grand Formation"!

This grand formation required several different talismans to suppress and anchor it.

To complete the final formation.

She needed to study more than one type of formation art and talisman art. It was exceedingly complicated... yet Deng Baiyi progressed at a breathtaking pace, understanding almost everything at a touch.

Xie Xuanyi watched with great satisfaction.

The greater Deng Baiyi's talent in the talisman arts, the more it proved that his earlier decision had been correct.

Such uncut jade should not follow him in cultivation.

The foremost place for talisman arts beneath heaven was the Daoist sect, the All-Under-Heaven Pavilion.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

At sunset.

Deng Baiyi's clothes were drenched through with sweat, and she had nearly exhausted the last wisp of her mental strength.

"It's finally finished..."

She sat upon the grassy summit, bracing herself with both hands. Her hair fluttered in the wind as she murmured softly.

The grand formation had been completed!

This hilltop, spanning nearly a hundred zhang in every direction, was now encompassed by the "Ninefold Bright Phoenix Fire Void-Refining Grand Formation."

After three days and three nights, she had barely closed her eyes.

Yet at this very moment, Deng Baiyi did not feel the slightest fatigue. Just now, she had completed the final formation-sealing ritual. Jiang Huang had cooperatively squeezed out a drop of blood from her fingertip. As that drop of essence blood spread through the formation-pattern core, Deng Baiyi, holding the "Phoenix Fire Main Formation Talisman," immediately felt herself enter an unprecedentedly wondrous state!

Every inch of earth here seemed to lie under her control.

She could feel every gust of wind that swept past.

She could also feel every blade of grass that drooped down.

With a single thought, she could activate this grand formation...

She was, without question, the master of this world!

"So this is... formation-sealing?"

Her first time inscribing a formation, her first time sealing one, her first time controlling one.

Deng Baiyi was intoxicated by that lofty sensation of control. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly caught sight of an incomparably stunning figure.

Xie Xuanyi stood atop the small hill.

He had changed clothes.

He was no longer dressed in white, clean as snow.

Xuanyi, dark robes.

For more than twenty years in his past life, he had worn black most of the time.

His former sword, Chronic Ailment, had also been a pitch-black blade.

Back then, many in Great Chu had said that wherever Xie Xuanyi stood was like the long night itself, because he so often wore that solemn, killing black.

Yet whenever he drew his sword, it was like the cold light of dawn breaking through.

Perhaps because he had "died once," Xie Xuanyi's complexion was fairer than in his previous life. Against his black clothing, it even appeared somewhat pallid, but that only made the contrast more striking.

After nearly half his acupoints had been ignited, Xie Xuanyi's vitality had gradually recovered to normal levels.

Now, wind and thunder gleamed within his eyes. His lips were red and his teeth white; without the human-skin mask, no one could tear their gaze away from him.

At least, Deng Baiyi could not look away for quite some time.

She had never seen such a handsome young man.

"There is a supreme saying in the cultivation world."

Xie Xuanyi suddenly spoke. "The bigger your fist, the bigger your reason... Many people mistakenly take this to mean that when two cultivators meet, the one with the lower realm must always bow their head. But that is not the case. There should be another half to that saying: heaven is vast, earth is vast, but staying alive is greatest."

Deng Baiyi was slightly taken aback.

"A person with the bigger fist may not live until the end."

Xie Xuanyi lowered his gaze and said softly, "Sometimes, a fight to the death does not rely only on fists. Flying swords, magical artifacts, poison, formation patterns, talismans, mechanism arts... the cultivation world is cruel. To survive, no method is beneath contempt. That is why there are so many unspeakable evil cultivators in the Southern Borderlands. They are filthy and vile, despicable and shameless, yet they live better than many others."

Deng Baiyi's eyes were somewhat lost.

"Many righteous people pride themselves on their nobility and disdain using 'unorthodox paths' or 'schemes and tricks.'"

Xie Xuanyi gave a self-mocking smile. "Such people often come to no good end. The more you overestimate yourself, the easier it is for others to plot against you. You must remember this: do not become such a fool. Even a lion uses its full strength to catch a rabbit... There is nothing shameful about fighting with talismans and formation patterns."

Deng Baiyi nodded vaguely. She still understood this principle.

Lose face, or lose her life?

Surviving was the true principle!

She simply did not understand why Xie Zhen had suddenly said these things to her.

"I'll be going out shortly. If all goes well, it will be like Taian City—I'll be back before long. In that case, there will be no need for this grand formation."

Xie Xuanyi paused, then said, "But if things do not go well... I may return in a rather sorry state."

Deng Baiyi immediately grew tense.

She clenched the main formation talisman in her palm.

"Though the Ninefold Bright Phoenix Fire Void-Refining Grand Formation possesses peerless killing power, it has its shortcomings... Its range is limited. If the enemy notices it beforehand and refuses to enter, then no matter how heaven-shaking its killing power may be, it will be useless."

Xie Xuanyi's expression turned grave as he said each word clearly. "So I need you to remain calm. You must wait until the prey takes the bait before activating the grand formation!"

Deng Baiyi clenched her teeth and asked, "Is this enemy so strong? Even you are not certain you can handle them?"

These days, she had already gained a rough understanding of the cultivation realms.

After Qi Control came the Grotto-Heaven Realm—

Could it be that even Xie Zhen, a Grotto-Heaven Realm cultivator, needed formation patterns to deal with his enemies?

Deng Baiyi's words made Xie Xuanyi laugh speechlessly.

He shook his head and softly uttered three words: "...All has passed."

Deng Baiyi heard a trace of helplessness within those words.

But even more than that, she heard calm acceptance.

"Do you remember what I just told you? Many years ago, I was that kind of fool."

Xie Xuanyi said softly, "I understood a little sword Dao and thought myself remarkable. With one flying sword, I grew blind to the height of heaven and breadth of earth, believing that heaven was vast, earth was vast, and I was the greatest. Only now do I know how outrageously wrong I was."

He lightly stretched his limbs.

The muscles and bones tempered by the Immortal Spring burst forth with crackling sounds like beans being stir-fried. Golden Qi ignited within his major acupoints, blooming like sparks amid the night, incomparably radiant.

The next moment.

With Xie Xuanyi's faint, lingering sigh, the Golden Qi boiling within his major acupoints gradually went out.

His whole person vanished into the night.

Black clothes, a black robe, and an ordinary black sword purchased in Carp Tide City.

Xie Xuanyi took out that human-skin mask and slowly pressed it onto his face.

That peerlessly handsome face immediately became ordinary.

"Hey!"

A tense voice rang out across the small hill.

Deng Baiyi clutched the talisman tightly. Her voice was so soft it was almost inaudible, like the buzzing of a mosquito. "Xie Zhen... I'll wait for you here..."

"You... must be careful..."

Xie Xuanyi waved his hand and lightly stepped forward.

His body fell like a drifting leaf.

He closed his eyes.

The wind howled.

His master's teachings surfaced in his mind once more.

"...The great Dao under heaven knows no left or right."

"...Among the myriad methods of this world, none stand inherently higher or lower."

"Xuanyi, the Dao a sword cultivator may comprehend need not be sword Dao alone."

These past few days, the chapter has been getting recommended, TAT. I hope everyone will keep reading and leave more comments. Endless thanks~