"This is a domain!"
"I can sense it. Within this ten-mile radius, my combat power will be elevated without limit. Whether it is sword intent, sword momentum, or sword essence, all of them will improve drastically."
"This is the Grandmaster realm!"
Li Jiusheng experienced this wondrous feeling. Across the ten miles of wilderness, with a single thought, sword energy raged. Every strand of sword energy was terrifying, carrying Li Jiusheng's comprehension of the Sword Dao and the sword techniques he had cultivated.
"The books say that for someone who has just entered the Grandmaster realm, being able to form a complete domain covering three meters counts as success. Yet mine spans a full ten miles, comparable to some veteran Grandmasters, perhaps even Great Grandmasters." Li Jiusheng knew that this was because his foundation was simply too deep.
The Dao left behind by that sword strike of the Thousand-Year Sword God of the Old Land, the body Li Jiusheng had tempered along the way, and the methods he had cultivated—all of it came together to form this ten-mile domain.
"My strength has risen to fifty Dragon Elephant Power." Li Jiusheng clenched his fist, and boundless strength surged through him. He could clearly feel his power doubling, making his gaze gradually brighten.
A ten-mile domain and fifty Dragon Elephant Power—this was only the beginning of the Grandmaster realm. To Li Jiusheng, his future was limitless.
"The books also say that Grandmasters possess many extraordinary abilities within their domains, such as flight." Li Jiusheng immediately tried it. For all who cultivated, their first goal was flight.
To mortals, anyone capable of flying was a cultivator who had attained the Dao. This standard also applied in the cultivation world.
There was a saying in the cultivation world: only upon entering the Grandmaster realm and gaining the ability to fly could one be considered to have truly stepped through the gates of cultivation.
Grandmasters could live for three hundred years. Generally, only those in the later stages of the Grandmaster realm could expand their domains and use the power of their domains to make themselves fly. Even then, they could not fly too fast, or the power of the domain would fail to keep up and they would fall.
Li Jiusheng had formed a ten-mile domain the moment he broke through, so he did not need to worry about that.
With a thought, he controlled his domain, lifted himself, and rode the wind.
For a time, Li Jiusheng was like an immortal god, rising on the wind. Bathed in the morning sun, his entire body felt at ease, and he underwent an incomparably dazzling transformation.
"This is what a cultivator should be!" Standing above the clouds and watching the dawn glow rise, Li Jiusheng felt his heart broaden. In an instant, the heavens and earth seemed vast with a single thought, and even his thoughts became more expansive and fluid.
"The sea of clouds is so vast that one cannot see its end at a glance. The world is so great, yet the morning glow can illuminate all of it. A person's efforts should be like the rising sun, like the great sun." Li Jiusheng could not help but sigh.
[You bathed in the morning sun and gained an insight, forming the Great Sun Nirvana Scripture.] [You have learned the Great Sun Nirvana Scripture.]
A stream of information flowed into his mind. Delighted, Li Jiusheng immediately examined it.
Within his mind stood a Great Sun Rulai, radiating boundless light. Like the sun itself, it was so brilliant that he could not open his eyes, approach it, or see its face clearly.
However, through its spiritual fluctuations, Li Jiusheng comprehended this cultivation method.
The [Great Sun Nirvana Scripture] was a cultivation method created when Buddha, under the illumination of the great sun, discovered the flaws in his body. Through nirvana, he gained new life and achieved an immaculate golden body.
The [Great Sun Nirvana Scripture] was one of the Buddhist Sect's finest methods for cultivating the physical body. One had to undergo nirvana several times; each time, a flower of new life would bloom from the old body, then blossom and bear fruit.
"Perfect. My [Mountain and Wild New Life Method] is nearing its first nirvana. With this method, the process will speed up, allowing me to undergo nirvana sooner while giving me another layer of assurance." Li Jiusheng happily placed the [Great Sun Nirvana Scripture] together with the [Mountain and Wild New Life Method]. The two methods actually complemented each other perfectly.
Just as Li Jiusheng was rejoicing, a voice rang out amid the rolling sea of clouds. "Congratulations, Senior Brother, on breaking through the innate shackles and attaining the position of Grandmaster."
A figure slowly walked out from the sea of clouds. It was none other than Li Qingshan, the current Sect Master of Shangqing Palace, staring at Li Jiusheng with shock on his face.
Though he spoke words of congratulations, Li Qingshan could not conceal his astonishment.
The last time he had seen Li Jiusheng, Li Jiusheng had only just broken through to the Innate Golden Core realm. He had still been far from the peak of the innate realm, let alone the Grandmaster realm.
Yet now, when Li Qingshan saw Li Jiusheng again, he had already become a Grandmaster. He could even ride the wind through the air with great proficiency, showing that his control and use of his domain had reached perfection.
But it had only been a few days.
After congratulating him, Li Qingshan looked at Li Jiusheng and found himself at a loss for words.
He was an unparalleled genius regarded by Shangqing Palace as its hope, and his cultivation speed was already extremely fast. Yet compared to his senior brother's rate of progress, none of his records were worth mentioning.
Li Jiusheng saw Li Qingshan's shock and took the initiative to ask, "You have been Sect Master for seven days now. How does it feel?"
Li Qingshan came back to his senses and gave a bitter smile. "Only now do I understand why the Sect Masters of the major sects generally have low cultivation. There are simply too many trivial matters. There is no time to cultivate at all."
Over the past seven days, every matter in the sect, no matter how large or small, had to be brought to Li Qingshan. It had made him thoroughly frustrated, and he resolved to reform Shangqing Palace completely. Otherwise, if he had to concern himself with everything, would he have any time left to cultivate?
Li Jiusheng brought Li Qingshan down from the clouds and into the Scripture Repository Pavilion. The wilderness was heavy with morning dew, yet no one came to disturb them. Li Jiusheng and Li Qingshan stood side by side, looking at the mountains and rivers beyond as they talked.
"You need people to assist you. You should make the decisions only on major matters," Li Jiusheng said.
"Senior Brother is right. I have already found someone. From now on, I will hand the trivial matters over to him." Li Qingshan nodded, but as he spoke, he hesitated.
Li Jiusheng calmly said, "If you have something to ask, then ask. Why are you hesitating?"
Li Qingshan immediately asked, "Senior Brother, did you strike that sword?"
"Why do you think it was me?" Li Jiusheng asked in return.
"Because that sword was struck from the Scripture Repository Pavilion. Other than me, no one saw it," Li Qingshan said quietly.
Li Jiusheng gazed into the distance, his hands clasped behind his back. "It was struck by the Thousand-Year Sword God of the Old Land," he said softly.
"The Thousand-Year Sword God of the Old Land? Didn't he die hundreds of years ago?" Li Qingshan asked in shock.
"His heart was unwilling to accept it, so his remnant soul appeared in this world and struck a sword toward the Luochuan Sect. What happened after that strike?" Li Jiusheng asked curiously. He had remained in the Scripture Repository Pavilion, with few channels through which to learn of the outside world. Coupled with his constant secluded cultivation, he knew nothing.
Li Qingshan said, "That strike directly shattered Emperor Wu of Zhou's ancestral foundation. It is said that he roared in fury that day and killed several disciples of the Luochuan Sect. In the end, he entered secluded cultivation in rage. He probably will not emerge for quite some time. Shangqing Palace's crisis is temporarily over."
"His ancestral foundation was cut apart once again. Can he still restore it?" Li Jiusheng muttered.
"Without some exceptional heavenly treasure, it will be difficult!" Li Qingshan said happily. Emperor Wu of Zhou had previously been like a mountain pressing down on him, making it difficult even to breathe. Now that mountain had temporarily been moved away, so naturally he was delighted.
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