Ziying Sword didn't know that Hao Shuai had deliberately come up with an excuse to give it a good beating.
Even though it had seemed very docile at first, it still couldn't escape a thorough thrashing.
After all, any treasure with a degree of sentience could potentially become a demon.
And magical treasures that were too sentient, to the point of developing self-awareness and wanting to become demons, weren't suitable for cultivators to use.
As cultivators, they sought immortality in defiance of the heavens and sought to control everything. How could they allow themselves to be controlled by a magical treasure instead?
That was why cultivators would usually erase the consciousness of any magical treasure that developed self-awareness, leaving only its sentience.
Once a magical treasure developed self-awareness and the concept of "I am me," it became extremely dangerous—especially treasures made specifically for battle and slaughter.
That was because such battle treasures were born to kill, and their sentience naturally carried an unruly, violent nature. Once they developed self-awareness, their defiance grew even stronger, and their bloodlust soared. They could turn on their master at any moment to break free and become demons, roaming wherever they pleased.
And divine weapons like Ziying Sword, which possessed such overwhelming baleful energy that it could shake the heavens and earth, were even more dangerous!
On top of that, its predestined master was Li Yingqiong, a natural harbinger of death with an exceptionally bloodthirsty nature.
So, if they weren't careful, the sword could end up controlling its wielder.
That was why Hao Shuai had beaten Ziying Sword so severely: to break up its weak self-awareness and leave only its sentience.
Magical treasures could recognize and choose their masters, but that didn't mean they had developed self-awareness.
Their choosing a master was more like an