The Immortal Sect's Void Refinement expert consultation team studied the matter for a full thirty years.
During that time, they discovered that the Great Sun Heavenly Lord's soul was extraordinarily resilient. It even contained something akin to the six paths of reincarnation, something undying and indestructible.
As long as he was not utterly destroyed in an instant, his Sword Soul would gradually develop an ability to adapt and begin trying to eliminate the foreign Sword Qi in his soul and flesh.
Yet the foreign Sword Qi, which carried power beyond the threshold of Dao Integration, was just as terrifying. It seemed equally adept at dealing with sword cultivators.
The moment the Materialist Solar Sword Soul adapted to that wisp of foreign Sword Qi, the Sword Qi would change again, reducing years of the Sword Soul's aberrant evolution to nothing.
If that foreign Sword Qi had not been diluted many times, leaving only an exceedingly faint trace, it would have killed the Great Sun Heavenly Lord ten times over by now.
As things stood, the Great Sun Heavenly Lord could barely withstand that trace of higher power with the aid of the Immortal Sect's healing pod and a continuous supply of Grand Unity Azurewood Life Essence.
After a full thirty years, Yuan and the others finally made a breakthrough in their research.
"A major discovery!"
"A momentous discovery!"
Beside himself with excitement, Yuan pointed at a newly obtained mana spectrum. "Look. This wisp of foreign Sword Qi is clearly supported by the heavenly Dao's web of laws governing thunder and the sword path. Whoever wielded it understood those laws to an extraordinary depth. There is a great deal we can learn."
"But that isn't the point!"
"The point is, we've found an extremely subtle difference between its thunder laws and the