Shadow-Demon Tribulation

The moon hung high in the sky.

Yu Xiu finally stopped his sword.

All sixteen foundational cultivation arts and sword techniques had reached perfection.

[Comprehension: 25]

[Lifespan: 16/100]

[Realm: Late Flawless Realm (489/500)]

[Sword Sense: 16]

[Foundational Cultivation Arts and Sword Techniques: Sixteen Perfected (Sword Sense 16)]

With all sixteen foundational cultivation arts and sword techniques perfected, my realm has risen by eight points.

No wonder the essence and blood within him had felt more vigorous. Filling the gaps in his foundational cultivation arts had indeed brought improvement.

It wasn't the least bit unfair that I failed to break through before!

This was lacking, that was lacking—how could he possibly break through?

Forcing his way past the pass might have worked, but he would certainly have needed pills and external aids to make up for it. Otherwise, success would have been impossible.

But now?

What pills?

In the end, a man still has to rely on himself!

Twenty-five points of comprehension were no joke.

Back when he had nine points of comprehension, he could already rank in the middle tier of the Outer Court.

Now that he had twenty-five points of comprehension, try ranking him in the middle tier again?

Besides, twenty-five points of comprehension were far from Yu Xiu's current limit.

He still had Flawless Realm cultivation arts: ten sections of the Tide-Rising Sword Art and ten sections of the Indeterminate Sword Art.

Even if each section could still only grant one point of comprehension, that would be another twenty points.

Besides, if every section of a foundational cultivation art or sword technique could add one point of comprehension, then if a Flawless Realm cultivation art also added only one point, wouldn't that be cheating Heaven itself?

After eating and drinking his fill, he went to sleep.

The next day.

When the rising sun first appeared, Yu Xiu was already moving with his sword in hand.

Grow, grow—keep growing!

[Tide-Rising Sword Art First Section: Great Mastery (295/300)]

He had originally needed just five more points of proficiency to reach perfection.

Now, with twenty-five points of comprehension, sixteen points of Sword Sense, and the panel—

No, he did not even need sixteen points of Sword Sense, nor did he need the panel.

The instant his sword came into hand, before he had even finished practicing the first section once, Yu Xiu had already clearly grasped the perfected state of the first sword section: how it should be practiced, and how it should be cultivated.

The gap—this was the gap between nine points of comprehension and twenty-five.

The gap was simply too vast!

What bottlenecks, what difficult questions, what barriers, what inability to advance any further—none of them existed.

Before absolute numbers, all of it ceased to exist.

And if it did exist, that only meant the numbers were not high enough.

He could still gain another point of comprehension.

If his original nine points of comprehension had been like a Bronze Mirror in Yu Xiu's mind, covered in filth and rust, unable to reflect himself clearly or show him the road ahead—

Then his current twenty-five points of comprehension were like an invisible giant hand wiping away part of the filth on that Bronze Mirror, along with some of its rust.

He could already see himself clearly, and he could also clearly see the road currently before him.

Yu Xiu could sense that the Four Ascending Dragon Passes—neither one pass nor two, but all four of them—could no longer trap him.

Even the Four Great Passes might not be able to block his path.

And this was only with twenty-five points of comprehension.

It was still far from Yu Xiu's current limit.

Tide-Rising Sword Art First Section +2

Tide-Rising Sword Art First Section +2

It was no longer +1, but directly +2.

This was the most straightforward manifestation of twenty-five points of comprehension.

[Tide-Rising Sword Art First Section: Great Mastery (300/300)]

[Tide-Rising Sword Art First Section: Perfected (Sword Sense +3)]

It's perfected already!

Yu Xiu felt somewhat dazed.

This was not a foundational cultivation art, but a Flawless Realm cultivation art—one directly tied to realm advancement.

The ten sections of the Tide-Rising Sword Art corresponded directly to the four stages of the Flawless Realm: early, middle, late, and perfected.

Every bit of progress would raise his realm cultivation by a point.

Now that his first section had reached perfection, his realm immediately changed as well.

If you think this book is good and want to avoid losing it next time, remember to add it to your bookshelf.

[Realm: Late Flawless Realm (491/500)]

He was only nine points of cultivation away from perfection.

When the time came to break through, it would be as natural as water flowing into a channel. He would need neither pills nor external aid.

But Yu Xiu did not care about his cultivation realm at all right now. His gaze immediately fell upon the comprehension and lifespan columns.

Perfecting one section of a foundational cultivation art or sword technique could grant one point of comprehension and one year of lifespan.

Then how much would a Flawless Realm cultivation art grant?

[Comprehension: 28 (25+3)]

[Lifespan: 103 (100+3)]

It added three points of comprehension!

Yu Xiu was delighted.

If all twenty sections of the Tide-Rising Sword Art and the Indeterminate Sword Art were perfected, wouldn't that grant him sixty points of comprehension and sixty years of lifespan?

Twenty-five points of comprehension were already enough to breeze through the Four Ascending Dragon Passes. With eighty-five points, Yu Xiu did not know which of the Four Great Passes could still hold him back!

Steady. Keep growing!

He calmed himself and continued practicing his sword. His sword momentum flowed without obstruction.

Tide-Rising Sword Art Second Section +2

Tide-Rising Sword Art Second Section +2

Tide-Rising Sword Art Second Section +2

[Tide-Rising Sword Art Second Section: Perfected (Sword Sense +3)]

Comprehension +3

Lifespan +3

[Tide-Rising Sword Art Third Section: Perfected (Sword Sense +3)]

Comprehension +3

Lifespan +3

In the blink of an eye, it was the night of the second day.

[Tide-Rising Sword Art Tenth Section: Perfected (Sword Sense +3)]

[Comprehension: 55]

[Lifespan: 16/130]

[Realm: Flawless Perfection (Can Break Through)]

[Sword Sense: 46]

As long as I want to, I can break through at any time and enter Qi Circulation, the second Ascending Dragon Pass!

But he could not break through like this.

First, breaking through came with the "Shadow-Demon Tribulation."

The "Shadow-Demon Tribulation" was something every cultivator in this world had to undergo, and it was also the greatest danger.

So-called Shadow Demons could also be called "heart demons," yet they were more than mere heart demons.

Heart demons only damaged one's Dao heart, but Shadow Demons did more than damage the Dao heart. When one broke through, they would take form and fight the breakthrough seeker for control of the body.

According to the elders of his sect, after The Emperor passed away, the myriad Daos fell into chaos and yin and yang lost their order. From then on, Heaven and Earth underwent tremendous change.

Heaven was divided into yin and yang, and so were people. Every cultivating lifeform contained a Shadow Demon. So long as a person did not die, the Shadow Demon would never perish.

Shadow Demons had always existed within living beings. Or rather, they could be called the dark side of every living being.

You were you, and the Shadow Demon was also you—two sides of the same body.

Thus, one's own Shadow Demon possessed the same strength as oneself.

Many cultivators were harmed by their Shadow Demons when breaking through, after which their bodies would be occupied by the Shadow Demons. Such beings were also known as "demons." Many evil demons in this world, whose might towered over the heavens, had come about this way.

Conversely, if one could kill the Shadow Demon when it manifested, it would transform into all manner of spiritual treasures. Therefore, whenever cultivators broke through, they needed elders of their sect to stand guard and prevent the Shadow Demon from causing trouble.

For Rogue Cultivators, breaking through naturally carried immense risk. But for the Qingwei Sword Sect where Yu Xiu was, Shadow Demons were instead a kind of reward.

The moment they showed their heads, they were instantly killed.

In truth, I needn't fear the Shadow-Demon Tribulation either. Yu Xiu pondered.

His comprehension was already extremely high, while the Shadow Demon's strength would be equal to his. Then, when it emerged, if he made an on-the-spot breakthrough in a cultivation art or sword technique, he could immediately crush the Shadow Demon.

However, Yu Xiu had always been curious. Shadow Demons were products of the disorder of yin and yang caused by The Emperor's death, but at their root, they still came from heart demons.

In other words, the Shadow Demon was also him.

Then the two could not coexist.

Mm, that was wrong.

Could it be that the Shadow Demon could not become his incarnation?

If he could refine the Shadow Demon into an incarnation, wouldn't he immediately have another self?

If there was lightning, send the Shadow Demon to take the hit. If there was danger, let the Shadow Demon bear it!

After all, you are me. If I do not die, neither do you. So wouldn't it be perfectly reasonable for the Shadow Demon to step on lightning and take risks for me?

Wouldn't that be more useful than subordinates?

That would be a whole extra external incarnation!

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