Chest and Spirit

"Don't worry. With me here, a mere soul weapon won't be able to hurt you."

The voice of the Kindling Child suddenly rang out in Zhong Yue's sea of consciousness. "But I can only act through your body. Once I do, I'm afraid I'll be exposed. Quite a few people will set their sights on me, and you and I will have to flee for our lives across the world... Huh? Someone has made a move!"

The soul weapon was only a hair's breadth from piercing Zhong Yue's brow when a hand suddenly reached over from the side. The thumb and forefinger gently pinched together, catching the incoming soul weapon between them.

Fine beads of cold sweat broke out across Zhong Yue's forehead. He felt as if even his soul were trembling from the sword qi faintly emanating from the soul weapon.

That moment had been perilous beyond words. In a daze, he felt as though he had taken a journey between life and death!

"What a pity!"

In Zhong Yue's sea of consciousness, the Kindling Child flew back and forth, sighing with regret. "I was planning to expose myself, then detonate the demon souls suppressed here, release them, slaughter everyone on this Sword Gate Mountain, and roam the world with you in search of the pure-blooded Fuxi Divine Clan..."

Zhong Yue shuddered. The Kindling Child's words terrified him even more than the sword strike just now.

The soul weapon continued to tremble violently, as if it wanted to escape from between those two fingers.

"Second Uncle, stop."

The owner of those two fingers was a young man dressed in purple. He had handsome features and eyes like the stars and moon. Smiling at the old man from the Tian Feng Clan, he said, "You can't hide a secret attack from an adept. Even if you kill him, you'll only make people laugh at the magnanimity of my Tian Feng Clan."

The old man from the Tian Feng Clan was startled. He hurriedly rose and walked out of the Scripture Hall. "Why have you come to the Upper Courtyard?"

"Zuo Xiang Sheng defeated Second Uncle, seized my Tian Feng Clan's Azure Sky Hall, and damaged the reputation of my Tian Feng Clan. How could my Tian Feng Clan tolerate that?"

The young man smiled gently. "I came here to meet him and see how capable he really is!"

The old man's eyes immediately lit up. "With you here, you can certainly take back the Azure Sky Hall!"

The young man shook his head and smiled. "What Zuo Xiang Sheng did wasn't bad. The disciples from humble families truly need a path to rise. Let him continue managing the Azure Sky Hall. My main purpose in coming down the mountain is to restore my Tian Feng Clan's reputation. I'll defeat him and let him know that my Tian Feng Clan is not without talent!"

He turned to Zhong Yue and bowed. "My Second Uncle was rude. I apologize to you on his behalf."

Zhong Yue hurriedly returned the bow. He could not help feeling some goodwill toward the young man. "Senior Brother, you are?"

"A Sword Gate adept of the Tian Feng Clan—Tian Yanzong."

Tian Yanzong straightened and drifted away. "Second Uncle, do not make things difficult for him. I'm going down the mountain to challenge Zuo Xiang Sheng and win glory for our clan. Don't let my Tian Feng Clan lose face again!"

The old man's expression shifted between dark and light. He suddenly flicked his sleeve and returned to the Scripture Hall.

"Hahahaha! Is Senior Brother Zuo Xiang Sheng of the Zuo Qiu Clan here?"

Tian Yanzong laughed loudly in midair, his voice echoing across the mountains. "Tian Yanzong of the Tian Feng Clan has come to seek your instruction!"

Zhong Yue watched Tian Yanzong leave and said in a low voice, "Tian Yanzong's breadth of mind and spirit are in no way inferior to Zuo Xiang Sheng's. With such a heart and bearing, he is truly a hero..."

"Whether Tian Yanzong or Zuo Xiang Sheng, neither of them is very old. They're only around twenty, just five or six years older than me, yet they already possess such bearing and such breadth of mind. In the future, they will surely become extraordinary figures in the Great Wilderness!"

"Adepts... They are the adepts I envision, true adepts!"

Zhong Yue's thoughts surged like the sea. If he had only seen the old man from the Tian Feng Clan's actions, he would not have yearned to become an adept. But seeing Tian Yanzong and Zuo Xiang Sheng made him realize what an adept's state of mind and breadth of heart truly were!

"This encounter suddenly broadened and tempered your state of mind. You already possess some of an adept's bearing."

In Zhong Yue's sea of consciousness, the Kindling Child praised him. "Perhaps you'll become an extraordinary adept in the future. Of course, those bumpkins at the adept level are far inferior to a pure-blooded Kindling inheritor."

Zhong Yue was used to being struck down by him and paid it no mind. He thought, Although the Tian Feng Clan won't trouble me, no one has taken me as a disciple or taught me cultivation techniques. Without combat arts, I still can't bring out my true strength.

For example, just now, when that Upper Courtyard disciple raised his soul weapon and used his sword technique, Zhong Yue had been unable to resist him. He could only rely on a little trick to throw him off. If he had also been proficient in combat arts, he would not have been forced to do nothing but evade.

Although the Tian Feng Clan was no longer troubling him, none of the Upper Courtyard adepts had taken him in and taught him cultivation techniques. Thus, Zhong Yue had no way to learn those combat arts or display the strength he ought to possess.

"While living in this world, if the ambition in your heart is too small, then no matter how high your talent, it will still be difficult to achieve anything! If they won't accept me, can't I go listen to their lectures myself? As long as I can learn something useful, why should I care about status?"

Zhong Yue's eyes brightened. He stepped into the Scripture Hall. When Sword Gate's adepts descended upon the Upper Courtyard, they often taught cultivation techniques to the Upper Courtyard disciples there. Today, more than ten adepts were in the Scripture Hall, each teaching a hundred or so Upper Courtyard disciples and instructing them in the principles of cultivation.

Zhong Yue entered a quiet room and stood in a corner. He saw a hundred or so Upper Courtyard disciples sitting cross-legged, quietly listening as an old adept taught from the platform.

When the old adept saw him enter, he paused slightly, then gave him a subtle nod.

The other Upper Courtyard disciples also turned to look. The old adept continued his lecture, his voice booming like a great bell. "Mountains have Mountain Spirits, rivers have river spirits, trees have tree spirits, grass has grass spirits, clouds have cloud spirits, wind has wind spirits, metal has metal spirits, earth has earth spirits, the moon has the Moon Spirit, and the sun has the Sun Spirit!"

"By sensing the spirits of heaven and earth, a corresponding spirit will form in your sea of consciousness!"

"What is called a spirit is a Totem Spirit, a Sacrificial Spirit!"

"The people of the Great Wilderness worship mountains, great rivers, divine trees, spiritual herbs, wind and clouds, the sun and moon year after year. Over time, the mountains, rivers, trees, wind, clouds, sun, and moon gain spirituality. Only those with sufficiently powerful souls can sense the spirituality between heaven and earth, then draw it into their own bodies!"

"Only by possessing a spirit can one become an adept! When the spirit combines with the soul, it becomes the spirit-soul—the primordial spirit!"

"Look. This is my spirit!"

A Sword Gate suddenly appeared above the old adept's head. As its gates opened, a foot-tall stone figure walked out. It had four arms, and each open palm held an eye that flashed with eerie light!

"My spirit is the Mountain Spirit. When the Mountain Spirit combines with the soul, it becomes the spirit-soul, which can also be called the primordial spirit! The mountain god has four eyes and sees in all directions, so my spirit-soul also has four eyes!"

The old adept's soul flew out and merged with the Mountain Spirit. They fused into one. Then his primordial spirit grew larger and taller, transforming into a hundred-zhang-tall stone figure with four arms. It stood behind him, towering and majestic, its four arms spread wide and its four eyes gazing in every direction. The many Upper Courtyard disciples were left dumbstruck!

Zhong Yue was likewise shaken to the core. He had often heard others speak of "spirits," and some called them Totems or Totem Spirits, but he had never known what a "spirit" truly was. Only now had he finally seen one and gained a preliminary understanding of it.

"To sense a spirit, one must possess a sufficiently powerful soul. A sufficiently powerful soul, however, requires bitter cultivation, trials, and tempering. And to undergo trials in the depths of the Great Wilderness, one needs powerful strength."

The old adept guided them patiently and explained everything in detail before coming to the main subject. He smiled. "Powerful strength, in turn, can only be fully displayed through combat arts. All of you were able to enter Sword Gate's Upper Courtyard, so your foundations are solid. Your spiritual power is sufficiently strong, your souls can leave your bodies, and your combat awareness is not weak. You can cultivate the combat art I will teach you today—the Thunderclap Sword Art!"

His words were captivating, gradually drawing even a layman like Zhong Yue into a wondrous realm.

"The Thunderclap Sword Art uses spiritual power to visualize spring thunder. Spring thunder is the first thunder of the year. You must use your spiritual power to construct the Thunder Pattern Totem. Then refine the Thunder Pattern Totem into sword qi, and the Thunderclap Sword Art will be considered a minor accomplishment."

"When the sword qi of the Thunderclap Sword Art moves, it blooms like spring thunder. In long-range combat, it crosses a thousand miles in an instant, slashing across a thousand miles! In close combat, it kills within ten steps, and the thunder's eruption sweeps away all before it!"

Time passed unnoticed. The old adept imparted every key to cultivating the Thunderclap Sword Art, using his powerful spiritual power to demonstrate to the Upper Courtyard disciples how to carve the Thunder Pattern Totem without holding anything back.

Zhong Yue listened as if intoxicated. When the lecture on the Thunderclap Sword Art ended, the old adept closed his eyes and said nothing more. Only then did the many Upper Courtyard disciples in the quiet room awaken from their fascination.

Each Upper Courtyard disciple was incomparably excited. They began practicing the Thunderclap Sword Art one after another. Some even fought in pairs, observing each other's shortcomings and refining their techniques.

"Thunder moves incredibly fast. Once it strikes down from the heavens, it vanishes in a flash. In ancient times, living beings worshiped thunder, and that was how the Thunder Pattern Totem came into existence, containing the power of thunder."

Zhong Yue did not immediately try carving the Thunder Pattern Totem to test the Thunderclap Sword Art. Instead, he continued visualizing. He thought, The key to this Thunderclap Sword Art lies in the Thunder Pattern Totem. The Thunder Pattern Totem that old adept carved just now was lifelike, but the crucial point isn't its form. It's whether the Thunder Pattern Totem can unleash the imposing force of spring thunder's explosion in a hearty, unrestrained fashion!

The Thunder Pattern Totem is extremely complex, and it's difficult to grasp all its changes in a short time. Only by first grasping its spirit and charm can I quickly learn the Thunderclap Sword Art and apply it in actual combat, then perfect the Thunder Pattern Totem and increase the might of the Thunderclap Sword Art!

He sank into deep visualization, recalling the sight of lightning crashing down from the heavens. It was like a long sword piercing through heaven and earth, its sword light flashing across a thousand or ten thousand miles!

Spring thunder, meanwhile, was the first thunder of the year. It blasted winter apart and shook the soul—an entirely different artistic conception!

After a long while, Zhong Yue opened his eyes and rose to his feet. He began practicing the Thunderclap Sword Art.

By then, quite a few Upper Courtyard disciples had practiced the Thunderclap Sword Art until they looked somewhat competent. Their sword techniques were not much different from the old adept's.

Zhong Yue's practice, however, was vastly different from the old adept's. He looked extremely clumsy, lacking even the slightest trace of thunder's agility.

The old adept still sat upright with his eyes closed. Behind him, the Mountain God with four arms and four eyes opened its eyes and watched every movement of the Upper Courtyard disciples closely.

After a long while, the old adept sighed, rose, and left dejectedly. "Only one person has received my true transmission..."

----Zhuzhu knows that this chapter was uploaded more than three hours late, but brothers, do you know why? I wrote this chapter three times! A full nine thousand words! I wrote the first version according to the outline, but after reading it several times, Zhuzhu felt it lacked spirit, so I tore it down and rewrote it. The second version still wasn't satisfactory, but it was already time to release the chapter as promised. Zhuzhu was frantic beyond words, so I gritted my teeth, tore it down, and rewrote it again. The chapter you're reading now is three thousand words, but it's three thousand words carved out of nine thousand—it's a chapter Zhuzhu can finally feel satisfied with!!

Pouring out one's heart and blood—nothing less than this! What else is there to say? Please cast your recommendation votes!!!