A Flash of Inspiration

"Good stuff. This must be why the corpse's chest had stayed so full of flesh!"

"GOOGLE SEARCH TWKAN"

"But the pendant's true purpose was probably to use its chill to keep a cultivator calm and clearheaded, allowing them to press forward fearlessly without worrying about qi deviation."

Uchiha Shūichi praised it, then looked down at the wretched corpse, whose seven orifices were bleeding—most likely from qi deviation—and curled his lip.

Clearly, everything in the world had its opposite. Talking about toxicity without considering the dose was meaningless. Against that incredibly wicked Demonic Sword, the Blazing Kirin Sword, which could be called the king of demonic swords, the pendant was not merely better than nothing; it was like a cup of water trying to put out a cartload of burning firewood.

Besides the Ice Crystal Pendant, Uchiha Shūichi had also found a cool piece of brocade on the corpse. It might have been made from some precious material like ice-silkworm thread, and it had a slight calming effect as well, though it was nowhere near as effective as the pendant.

However, the brocade was covered in tiny characters. They were traditional Chinese characters, but Uchiha Shūichi could still make them out.

"Let your heart be as clear as ice; let the sky fall without stirring you. Let all changes leave you steady, your spirit at ease and your breath calm..."

"That mantra sounds familiar. Isn't this the Ice Heart Art from Fung Wan?"

After casually reciting a few lines, Uchiha Shūichi reached his conclusion. Then he looked at the Demonic Sword on the ground, and at the brocade in his hand.

"Could this really be something from the Fung Wan World? And who was this dead guy? That Blazing Kirin Sword is far more powerful than I imagined... Could this be some kind of over-the-top Fung Wan World?"

Uchiha Shūichi's head was full of wild speculation. Though the Fung Wan manga had been a bestseller, he hadn't read much of it in his previous life. He had only watched a few TV adaptations and heard some online commentary, so he didn't know much about it.

If he had really known the series, he would have realized that, in the original Fung Wan story, the Blazing Kirin Sword never got upgraded later on. It simply shattered, and was never reforged.

Even without having read the original, though, Uchiha Shūichi didn't think that possibility was very likely. He was more inclined to believe something else.

The unusual corpse in front of him might have belonged to another transmigrator like himself. He had ended up in the Naruto world, while the other man had gone to the Fung Wan World.

Just as he had schemed his way to Kotoamatsukami and Hashirama Cells through Body Modification in the Naruto world, that transmigrator must have stirred up the world of Fung Wan, turning everything upside down.

Along the way, the original Blazing Kirin Sword could have had all kinds of fortuitous encounters and been strengthened, transforming from a second-rate divine weapon into an absurdly overpowered one. In fact, Uchiha Shūichi felt this was the most convincing explanation.

Otherwise, the corpse wouldn't have prepared so many things. The strange Ice Crystal Pendant and the Ice Heart Art secret manual were probably both meant to counter the Blazing Kirin Sword.

The genuine Blazing Kirin Sword could influence its wielder's mind, but it took time. Even ordinary people could use it. It couldn't possibly be this wicked!

Besides, there were no martial arts manuals on the corpse, only this Ice Heart Art. The Ice Heart Art in the Fung Wan World was purely an auxiliary mental technique. Apart from calming the mind, it offered no boost to martial arts.

It did have some value. A higher state of mind helped with both learning techniques and accumulating inner strength. But it certainly wasn't some supreme martial arts manual. Its greatest use was really to suppress qi deviation.

The corpse in front of him had left behind no other manuals, only the Ice Heart Art. The man must have studied it constantly, likely hoping to control the Blazing Kirin Sword.

Whatever the truth was, Uchiha Shūichi could no longer find out. He couldn't use the Blazing Kirin Sword for now, but after carefully studying the Ice Heart Art, he found it quite beneficial.

Unlike ordinary martial arts manuals, the Ice Heart Art was purely a mental method for visualization and concentration, for steadying the heart and will. It involved neither the cultivation of inner strength nor the meridians and dantian, so it wouldn't conflict with the Chakra system. Instead, it would further refine his spirit.

Chakra was formed from physical and spiritual energy. Once his spirit was more concentrated, his Chakra and Yin Release abilities would improve as well.

This was especially true for the Uchiha Clan, who were naturally adept at Yin Release. The Ice Heart Art would be even more useful to them.

The only slight drawback was that the Ice Heart Art suppressed the Uchiha Clan's emotional fluctuations, which might hinder the awakening of the Sharingan.

But the concentrated Mental Power cultivated through the Ice Heart Art also lowered the emotional threshold required to awaken the Sharingan. Overall, it was still a good deal.

Most importantly, cultivating the Ice Heart Art could greatly reduce the mental shock the Sharingan inflicted on Uchiha shinobi when it awakened. To put it simply, it would mean the Uchiha wouldn't produce so many mentally ill people anymore!

The mental shock caused by the Mangekyō Sharingan might be beyond what the Ice Heart Art could resist, but it could still lessen it considerably. With the ordinary one-to-three-tomoe Sharingan, it could essentially stabilize the user's mind completely, leaving them little different from a normal person.

Whether he would share the Ice Heart Art with the Uchiha Clan later was another matter. For now, Uchiha Shūichi could use it to thoroughly refine his own spirit, and perhaps even get a glimpse of the true Mangekyō Sharingan.

Although the Kotoamatsukami Mangekyō he had transplanted was almost becoming part of him, it was still Uchiha Shisui's Mangekyō. No matter how compatible Uchiha Shūichi was with it now, it could never compare to his own original eyes.

However, with the feedback from the Kotoamatsukami Mangekyō, his Body Modification, and his powerful Mental Power, Uchiha Shūichi's chances of awakening the Mangekyō were far better than those of an ordinary Uchiha.

Even Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Shisui couldn't match his talent in this regard.

But Uchiha Itachi, Uchiha Shisui, and Uchiha Obito were all deeply emotional people, while Uchiha Shūichi was cold and selfish. That was why he had never been able to awaken the Mangekyō the way they had.

Now, though, Uchiha Shūichi had thought of an even better way to help himself awaken the Mangekyō.