Chapter 15

Chapter 15: One Step, One Breakthrough—Shocking Yu Sheng Mo

Could it be the Sunflower Manual at Great Perfection?

Jiang Mu Ming felt a flicker of shock in his heart. This was no mere fragment of the manual that Dongfang Bubai had cultivated—it was the complete Sunflower Manual. Moreover, in this world, its upper limit had been elevated into a peerless divine art!

Once one cultivated it to the Great Perfection realm, they could grasp the mysteries of Celestial Being Incarnation. It was profound beyond words, wondrous beyond measure—a secret that even someone of Dongfang Bubai's talent had never managed to comprehend.

But now, Jiang Mu Ming only needed to fuse with this Great Perfection Sunflower Manual to fully understand the mysteries of Celestial Being Incarnation. Not only did it spare him the necessary step of self-castration to practice the art, but it also allowed him to step directly into that legendary realm—the Profound Spirit Realm—a realm that mortals could only gaze upon from afar.

"Fuse!"

With a single thought, the Great Perfection Sunflower Manual merged into Jiang Mu Ming's body. Instantly, his cultivation began to surge. With each step forward, a lotus bloomed beneath his feet; with each thought, a new realm was born. In just a few short steps, his cultivation skyrocketed, racing straight toward the Profound Spirit Realm!

Yu Sheng Mo had been fully absorbed, savoring the profound mysteries of the Sunflower Manual, when she suddenly sensed a powerful aura breaking through beside her. She looked up and saw that it was Jiang Mu Ming, her traveling companion.

Yu Sheng Mo was stunned. She herself stood at the peak of the Carefree Heaven Realm—a Half-step Profound Spirit. She was at the apex of the mortal world. Beyond that lay the Profound Spirit Realm, where one could be called an Immortal, possessing power beyond mortal comprehension.

From the battle just now, Yu Sheng Mo could tell that Jiang Mu Ming's cultivation was on par with her own—both at the Half-step Profound Spirit realm. Though it seemed only half a step away from the Profound Spirit Realm, that half step was like the gap between heaven and earth—an insurmountable chasm.

Even the most gifted martial artists might spend their entire lives without breaking through to the Profound Spirit Realm. Take Baili Dongjun, for example—though he was born with a Martial Vein and was a disciple of Li Changsheng, he still failed to reach the Profound Spirit Realm, remaining stuck at Half-step Profound Spirit. Yu Sheng Mo herself had spent her whole life without glimpsing the opportunity to break through.

Yet now, she saw Jiang Mu Ming right beside her—one step, one lotus; one thought, one realm. His cultivation aura kept climbing higher, as if he would break through to the Profound Spirit Realm this very day. What kind of talent and brilliance was this?

Even Mo Yi, once hailed as the greatest talent under heaven—unmatched in all the realms, breaking through to the Carefree Heaven Realm at just twelve years old—

had only reached the Profound Spirit Realm at the age of twenty-four!

But how old was Jiang Mu Ming?

He looked no more than twenty at most!

And yet, right before her eyes, he was about to break through to the Profound Spirit Realm?

To Yu Sheng Mo, this was a shock beyond measure!

As Yu Sheng Mo stood there, dumbfounded, Jiang Mu Ming stepped forward, each stride blooming with lotus flowers.

By the time he had taken nine steps, his cultivation had already reached the legendary Profound Spirit Realm!

And in Yu Sheng Mo's eyes, the Jiang Mu Ming she could still somewhat read had suddenly become unfathomably profound.

"So... this is the Profound Spirit Realm?"

Yu Sheng Mo couldn't help but sigh.

At this moment, although Jiang Mu Ming didn't press down on her with the same weight as Li Changsheng, his aura

was nearly identical to Li Changsheng's—

just a touch more raw.

But given time, there was no doubt Jiang Mu Ming would become a second Li Changsheng.

No!

Jiang Mu Ming wouldn't be a second Li Changsheng...

A sudden premonition struck Yu Sheng Mo.

He would surpass Li Changsheng! He might even touch upon the realm beyond the Profound Spirit Realm—that unknowable domain!

"Congratulations, young friend, on breaking through to the Profound Spirit Realm."

Yu Sheng Mo offered her sincere congratulations.

At his side, Jiang Mu Ming savored the experience for a moment before grasping the mysteries of the Profound Spirit Realm.

If the Carefree Heaven Realm meant merging with heaven and earth, borrowing their power, then reaching the Profound Spirit Realm granted the ability to reshape heaven and earth—a single thought could overturn the sky, another could overturn the ground.

Transforming the mortal world!

One could become... a true immortal of this realm!

And Yu Sheng Mo, who had just fought him to a standstill, now, in Jiang Mu Ming's hands, would likely not last three moves!

After all, everything Jiang Mu Ming had learned was of the highest caliber—whether the Great River Sword Intent or the Heavenly Stream God Finger, both were top-tier divine arts from the battle against the Heavenly Dao in Ever Night.

With a solid foundation, even reshaping heaven and earth was not impossible!

After fully appreciating his newfound strength, Jiang Mu Ming turned to Yu Sheng Mo

and said with a smile, "The Profound Spirit Realm is indeed profoundly wondrous."

"The world-renowned Academy Mister Li must be at this very realm."

"Only by entering this realm can one truly appreciate its myriad delights."

"And only then does one realize that the so-called Half-step Profound Spirit is still not the true Profound Spirit Realm."

Yu Sheng Mo was taken aback.

She had always believed that, though she couldn't match Li Changsheng, she could still put up a fight.

But today, watching Jiang Mu Ming break through to the Profound Spirit Realm, as his aura fully manifested, she finally understood the vast gap between herself and the Profound Spirit Realm!

It was like an abyss with no bottom—

a power too immense to fathom, too overwhelming to face directly!

Yu Sheng Mo couldn't help but let out a long sigh. "It seems I'm still far from being able to challenge Li Changsheng."

"Today, Mister Jiang bestowed upon me the Sunflower Manual."

"Perhaps this is my opportunity. I ought to delve deep into it, and only ascend to Tian Qi City once my cultivation reaches a higher level."

"Mister Jiang."

"I plan to find a place to seclude myself for a time, to comprehend the Sunflower Manual!"

Yu Sheng Mo abandoned her plan to head straight for Tian Qi City.

After witnessing Jiang Mu Ming's breakthrough just now, she understood the gap between herself and the Profound Spirit Realm. Challenging Li Changsheng now would only be overreaching.

But... she wouldn't give up.

The Sunflower Manual was her key to breaking through to the Profound Spirit Realm!

Celestial Being Incarnation... so profound and wondrous!

"That would be wise." Jiang Mu Ming nodded. "As it happens, I have business to attend to in Gan Dong City along the way."

"Shall we travel together?"

Jiang Mu Ming hadn't forgotten that in Gan Dong City, an old acquaintance from Western Chu still lingered, facing a life-or-death crisis!

And if he calculated the time, it wouldn't be long before Baili Dongjun went to the Sword Forest to claim a sword, unleashing the Western Chu Sword Song.

When that happened, the world would learn that Confucian Immortal Gu Chen, one of the legendary Ruxian and Jianxian of Western Chu, was not only alive, but right there in Gan Dong City!

"It's time to meet that Confucian Immortal."

Jiang Mu Ming hadn't forgotten.

Back in the war that annihilated Western Chu, it was this very Confucian Immortal Gu Chen who had sent him out of the kingdom.

But later, fearing that his identity would implicate Jiang Mu Ming, he only dispatched a few soldiers to protect him, while he himself slipped away quietly, letting the world believe that Confucian Immortal Gu Chen was dead, and that the Prince was no longer among the living.