Nirvana Art

Chapter 3: Nirvana Art

The legacy left to the True Martial Sacred Sect by the three Great Emperors brought it to an unprecedented golden age.

But all things in the world follow their own laws of development—when prosperity peaks, decline inevitably follows.

In the tens of thousands of years that followed, the True Martial Sacred Sect never produced another Great Emperor.

Though it remained a colossal entity, it could not escape the slow decline from that glorious era.

It wasn't until three thousand years ago that a girl appeared, breaking this deadlock.

The girl lived in an ordinary small village within the vast mountains and rivers under the True Martial Sacred Sect's dominion.

She lived an ordinary life for fifteen years, until one day, two Empty Meridian Realm experts fought and passed over the small mountain village, catching the girl's eye.

That young heart was thus planted with the seed of a new world's gate.

The girl came seeking to join the True Martial Sacred Sect, but was eliminated during the aptitude test due to her ordinary bone structure.

Yet the girl refused to give up. She knelt on the bluestone steps outside the sect gate, kneeling there for seven full days.

Through wind and rain, scorching sun, without a drop of water or a bite of food.

At that time, she was still just an ordinary person, yet she endured this torment.

Her consciousness was only barely lucid, never falling into a coma—her willpower was so firm it moved others.

Later, an Outer Sect Elder within the True Martial Sacred Sect took pity on her and accepted her as an unregistered disciple.

She was like a Frog in a Well, desperate to leap out, unwilling to remain confined to a corner.

Like an ant crawling across heaven and earth, she kept crawling, crawling.

Until one day, this crawling ant suddenly stood up, and only then did people realize that at some point, this ant had grown to match the heavens.

In the girl's era, there were too many dazzling, peerless geniuses.

But in the end, no one expected that an ordinary-talent girl would sweep through that era.

"Empress Hongtian!"

That was the honorific of that girl from long ago.

Among the countless Great Emperors through the ages, Empress Hongtian was undoubtedly one of the most brilliant.

She not only shone in her own era, but even the eras of several subsequent Great Emperors were deeply influenced by her.

Empress Hongtian led the True Martial Sacred Sect into another golden age.

Recalling the history of the True Martial Sacred Sect, Xu Zimo's gaze was deep. He hoped that one day, his own name could also appear among the brilliant stars of this epic tapestry.

Arriving at the Scripture Repository, it was located at the core of the True Martial Sacred Sect, housing all the techniques and Meridian Techniques collected since the sect's founding.

Unlike the majestic grandeur one might imagine, the atmosphere around the Scripture Repository was quite relaxed.

Ancient trees shaded the sky, spirit herbs carpeted the ground, Dao Flowers vied in splendor, colorful butterflies danced gracefully, and rare medicinal chickens patrolled the surroundings, loosening soil, fertilizing, and catching pests for the spirit herbs and Dao Flowers.

The Scripture Repository had eighteen floors. Standing at the entrance, an ancient aura rushed forth. It stood quietly, as if telling people of its tens of thousands of years of history.

The pavilion's colors were a mix of cyan-green and light yellow, with jade terraces and emerald eaves.

On both sides of the eaves were carved all kinds of rare beasts and exotic creatures.

There were eagles spreading their wings, birds soaring through the sky, leopards roaring, and wild lions glaring.

No one guarded the door of the Scripture Repository, but Xu Zimo could feel an aura from the surroundings that made his heart tremble.

High-level formations were arranged around here. Once an intruder was detected, the formations would activate, and even a Saint Meridian Realm expert might not escape easily.

Xu Zimo placed the token his father had given him into the slot at the entrance. The elder guarding the Scripture Repository would verify the token and then grant its permissions.

The light curtain at the door vanished, and Xu Zimo walked straight into the Scripture Repository.

The first floor was arranged very simply, with tens of thousands of bookshelves neatly placed.

Each bookshelf held techniques and Meridian Techniques, all covered by a faint light curtain.

At the front of each bookshelf was a small plaque, listing the corresponding book's name, purpose, and grade.

Xu Zimo didn't linger. He went straight to the highest floor of the Scripture Repository, the eighteenth floor.

The light on the eighteenth floor was somewhat dim. There were only four statues here.

Each of these four statues seemed to exist in its own special space.

Xu Zimo stood before the statues, looking from left to right.

The first statue was of a man with long hair draping over his shoulders. His aura was vast, his gaze deep as the sea, and the bearing of one who rules the world was irresistible.

This was a man who trod upon mountains and rivers, bearing the heavens on his shoulders.

The second statue was also of a man, giving off an extreme feeling. It was as if he had abandoned everything, only to pursue the end of something.

Aloof and arrogant, he carried three strange long blades strapped to his back.

The moment you saw those blades, you understood—this was a pure blade master, one who had spent his entire life striving for the pinnacle of the blade path.

"Born beneath the blade, die beneath the blade."

The third statue showed only a back. Its presence was especially ethereal, as if it stood right before you, yet also seemed to be far beyond the horizon.

He walked between reality and the void, forever chasing the ultimate truth of speed.

The fourth statue was a woman, her long hair cascading behind her, a thin veil concealing a face that could topple kingdoms.

Her style was varied and ever-changing. At first glance, she gave you a feeling of innocence and liveliness, reminding you of a certain afternoon, a ponytailed girl next door—the feeling of first love.

At second glance, she seemed like a bewitching, seductive enchantress.

At third glance, she resembled a female war god who killed without blinking, a woman who matched any man in valor, her conviction firm, her aura unmatched under heaven.

At fourth glance, she was like an empress who ruled all, as if all living beings were mere ants before her. With a single glance, the splendor of a flourishing age meant nothing in the face of annihilation.

Xu Zimo looked at the statues of the four greatest emperors in the history of the True Martial Sacred Sect, his heart filled with reverence.

In truth, he had no intention of cultivating someone else's techniques. In his previous life, he had already forged his own Martial Dao Heavenly Path.

But to conceal his secrets and avoid exposure, Xu Zimo still chose the Three Blades Great Emperor's technique.

He rather admired the Three Blades Great Emperor's extreme blade path—it would serve well as a transitional phase.

Xu Zimo placed his hand on the statue, closed his eyes, emptied his mind, and focused on comprehension.

A vast white mist shrouded everything. Xu Zimo could clearly sense a stream of memories merging into his own.

This was precisely the technique the Three Blades Great Emperor had cultivated: the Nirvana Art.

All begins in nirvana, all ends in nirvana!

Born from nirvana, cease in nirvana!

Having obtained the technique he wanted, Xu Zimo prepared to leave.

Before departing, he instinctively glanced toward a corner of the Scripture Repository, then shook his head with a faint, private smile, turned, and strode away with ease.