After that red-dressed woman knocked Xu Ming unconscious, Shi Xin told him everything that happened in the illusion without exaggerating a single word, ensuring that Xu Ming could form his most accurate judgnt.
Hearing Shi Xin’s account, Xu Ming fell into deep thought, realizing that this world was indeed far more complex than he had imagined. However, for now, he had yet to co into contact with that level of reality, so it wasn’t sothing that concerned him—at least, not for the mont. Of course, this was only temporary. As his cultivation realm rose higher and his understanding of the world deepened, the things he was ant to encounter would inevitably co his way.
Xu Ming slowly stood up, looking at the three treasure chests in front of him and the long sword embedded in the stone mountain. Walking forward, he opened the three treasure chests one by one.
Inside the first chest were over a thousand silver-white iron pellets. Xu Ming picked one up, examined it closely, and realized it resembled a soldier pellet. These so-called soldier pellets were a type of warrior jointly created by practitioners of the Mohist and Yin-Yang schools. Powered by spiritual energy, they were tireless, devoid of independent thought, and obeyed commands unconditionally.
Such soldier pellets were often expensive. Even the cheapest one would cost an upper-grade spirit stone. Xu Ming casually dropped the pellet to the ground. Sure enough, the pellet exploded, and a silver-armored warrior materialized before him.
The armored warrior held a spear in hand, looking almost identical to the warriors Xu Ming had seen in the “illusion” earlier.
“Co here,” Xu Ming ordered. The armored warrior obeyed, walking toward him.
Xu Ming picked up a random sword from the corpses nearby, weighed it in his hand, and said to the armored warrior, “Grip your spear tightly and use all your strength to stab at .”
The armored warrior followed the command, thrusting its spear at Xu Ming with full force. Xu Ming blocked it with his sword, the blade clashing against the spearhead, dispersing the spiritual energy in a shockwave.
“Good,” Xu Ming nodded approvingly. He then added, “Now, assu a defensive stance. I’m going to strike you with a sword, and I want you to block it with all your might.”
“Are you ready?” Xu Ming asked.
The armored warrior planted its feet firmly, spear pointing toward Xu Ming, and nodded.
Xu Ming swung his sword down. The armored warrior raised its spear to block, but the force of the strike sent it flying a hundred ters away, slamming it hard against the rocky wall.
However, the armored warrior quickly shook off the impact, pulled itself out of the wall, and returned to Xu Ming.
Looking at the warrior, Xu Ming walked up and patted its armor with satisfaction. It was at least equivalent to a Golden Body Realm martial artist, perhaps even stronger. Not only that, but it seed to possess so sort of “piercing” ability. The spear thrust earlier had made Xu Ming feel a flicker of alarm.
Besides its offensive capability, its defensive power was also impressive, likely due to the quality of its spear and armor. Both looked anything but ordinary.
Just imagining an army of 3,000 silver-armored warriors at the Golden Body Realm—tireless, immune to pain, and absolutely obedient—was a terrifying thought.
Xu Ming stored 1,500 soldier pellets in his storage bag and handed the rest to Shi Xin. “You keep these. They’re yours now.”
“I don’t need these,” Shi Xin shook her head.
Xu Ming chuckled. “On the contrary, you really do need them. You don’t kill, right? What are you going to do when soone tries to kill you? When danger cos, scattering these 1,500 soldier pellets will make even the boldest enemy tremble.
Besides, these spoils belong to both of us. You’re entitled to half. The Buddhist light you cast on in the secret realm was quite useful, too.”
Shi Xin hesitated, guilt in her heart. “But in the end, you didn’t win either…”
Xu Ming’s brow twitched. “You really didn’t have to bring that up.”
“But I truly don’t need these,” Shi Xin insisted again.
“Just take it. I can’t stand indecisiveness,” Xu Ming said, grabbing an empty storage bag, filling it with the soldier pellets, and tossing it to Shi Xin.
Shi Xin wanted to say sothing more but, afraid of making Xu Ming angry, silently closed her mouth.
Xu Ming then opened the second chest. Inside was a fla—Samadhi True Fire.
In this world, the Samadhi True Fire was as renowned as the Chaos Fla.
According to records: “The Samadhi Fire is composed of three types—heart fire, the noble fla, also called divine fire, nad Upper Samadhi; kidney fire, the servant fla, also called essence fire, nad Middle Samadhi; and bladder fire, the fla of the lower abdon, nad Lower Samadhi.”
So believed the Samadhi Fire had ties to Buddhist teachings.
Another record described it as: “To focus on the Buddha’s appearance or the true essence of the Dharma body (visualized chanting), or to chant the Buddha’s na wholeheartedly (vocal chanting)—this practice is called Buddha Samadhi, a state of ditative concentration through mindfulness of Buddha.”
In the mythologies of the Blue Star, the Samadhi Fire seed more like a spell, emanating from the eyes, nose, or mouth, refined from essence, energy, and spirit into three flas.
However, in this world, the Samadhi Fire referred more specifically to an innate fla.
Xu Ming moved on to the third chest. Inside was a sealed orb containing a strange creature.
The creature resembled a dog, with four clawless legs, wings, and a round, chubby body.
“This thing… could it be the Chaos Beast?” Xu Ming’s thoughts raced.
It looked too much like a young Chaos Beast!
Xu Ming was baffled. If this really was a Chaos Beast cub, the Chaos Beast was known to be one of the most ferocious creatures. Could he even keep it?
But the fact that it was presented to him as a treasure suggested this “Chaos Beast” might be different—perhaps even a valuable ally. Otherwise, whoever left it behind wouldn’t have intended harm.
“So cute,” Shi Xin softly murmured from beside Xu Ming as he debated how to handle the creature.
“You think it’s cute?” Xu Ming asked.
Shi Xin nodded.
Xu Ming took another careful look.
It did seem kind of cute.
“But have you considered that this thing might really be a Chaos Beast?” Xu Ming teased with a smile.
Shi Xin: “…”
Of course, Shi Xin had heard of Chaos Beasts.
Xu Ming continued, “Chaos Beasts are born ferocious. What if it ends up wreaking havoc on the world?”
“But the abbot always says we shouldn’t judge based on appearances. With careful guidance, even the fiercest beings can turn toward kindness,” Shi Xin replied, faintly guessing what Xu Ming was thinking.
Shi Xin felt that since the creature hadn’t done anything wrong yet, it deserved a chance. Preemptively judging it as a calamity and deciding to eliminate it—that was no different from what a demon would do.
“Alright, then. Take the Samadhi Fire and the little Chaos Beast with you,” Xu Ming said, his earlier words having been ant only to scare her and serve as a reminder.
In truth, this Chaos Beast seed different from the typical impression of the species. Besides, if Shi Xin brought it to Leiming Temple, where famous masters resided, it wouldn’t be able to cause any real trouble. It might not even have the chance to do anything wrong before being suppressed by one of the temple’s abbots.
“I… I can’t accept these,” Shi Xin protested, shaking her hands. “I didn’t do anything. All of this is yours.”
“Are you sure?” Xu Ming asked with a sly smile, glancing at the little Chaos Beast.
Shi Xin bit her lip lightly. “Then… then I’ll take care of it for now. Once I’ve taught it well, I’ll return it to you.”
“Suit yourself,” Xu Ming said nonchalantly. He had never intended to take back the little Chaos Beast anyway.
If the Chaos Beast could truly be trained well, its potential could soar to the Fifth Realm upon adulthood. Perhaps it could beco a formidable guardian for Shi Xin.
Though Shi Xin was undeniably a “saintly type,” won like her—pure, untainted, and as pristine as freshly fallen snow—were exceedingly rare.
“And take this fla as well. That sword, I’ll be taking,” Xu Ming added before Shi Xin could respond.
“Don’t even try to say you don’t need it. The Samadhi True Fire should be beneficial for your cultivation of Buddhist arts. It’s useless to . That sword probably already cos imbued with Samadhi Fire,” he explained.
Xu Ming wasn’t lying.
As both a martial artist and a sword cultivator, all techniques and arts should serve his fists and sword. The only thing he truly relied on was his own strength and swordsmanship.
Thus, neither the Samadhi Fire nor the Chaos Beast held much utility for him.
Besides, the sword clearly carried its own Samadhi Fire.
On the other hand, the fla might help enhance Shi Xin’s Buddhist practices. After all, so legends tied the Samadhi Fire to both Daoist and Buddhist traditions.
As for the 1,500 soldier pellets Xu Ming kept, they were intended for Wu Yanhan. This elite force would undoubtedly be a trendous asset in critical monts.
With 1,500 soldiers who obey orders without question, Wu Yanhan wouldn’t just be a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield—attempts on her life would beco near impossible.
“That’s settled. No more arguing—just take them,” Xu Ming said decisively, making the choice for Shi Xin. He packed the two treasure chests into a storage bag and tossed it to her.
“As for refining the Samadhi Fire or raising the little Chaos Beast, you can ask your abbot when you return. I’m not responsible for that,” he added.
Raising his head, Xu Ming looked toward the long sword embedded in the stone mountain.
The sword stood there, silent and still, without emanating any spiritual energy or sword aura. It was as if it were a sleeping maiden, quietly awaiting soone to awaken her.
According to what Shi Xin had said earlier, this sword carried significant karmic ties. Accepting it would an bearing the weight of those karmic consequences.
It did sound like a daunting prospect.
But Xu Ming walked forward without hesitation.
In the era of great upheaval, calamities were inevitable.
Even if he didn’t take the sword, would the karma entwined with the world’s fate spare him? If he avoided it out of fear, he wouldn’t have made it to where he was now.
Standing before the sword, Xu Ming reached out and grasped the hilt.
The mont his hand closed around it, searing flas ignited, scorching his palm. Almost instantly, the flas extended to burn his very soul.
Xu Ming felt as though his entire being, inside and out, had been set ablaze.
Yet he did not let go. He could sense that the sword was resonating with him, forming so sort of connection.
“Whoosh!”
Blazing flas erupted, engulfing Xu Ming entirely.
Chaos Fla, Samadhi Fire, Purple Mist Fire, Three Purities Fla—the four great primal flas of the world intertwined.
Xu Ming’s brows furrowed as he wondered what kind of sword this could possibly be, to command all four of the world’s principal fires.
In the center of his brow, a faint fla-shaped Dao sigil began to flicker into existence.
The harder Xu Ming pulled on the sword, the fiercer the flas surged.
“Are you truly ready?”
As Xu Ming lifted the sword three inches from the stone, a woman’s figure appeared amidst the flas.
Her features were obscured, making it impossible for Xu Ming to see her face clearly.
The woman had shoulder-length short hair, exuding an aura of vibrant energy with her voice.
“When the great calamity descends and the world faces its harvest, the one holding this sword will have to bear a heavy burden,” she said.
Xu Ming smiled faintly. “And if I don’t draw this sword, does that an the calamity won’t fall on ?”
“This is the calamity of heaven and earth; no one can escape it. But~ maybe you could lie down and let soone else save you?” the woman replied with a playful smile.
“Forget it. I prefer to have my fate in my own hands.” Xu Ming tightened his grip and pulled with force. “Besides, it broke one of my swords—it’s only fair I get compensation.”
“Shhhrrkk!”
With a sharp sound, Xu Ming pulled the sword free. Flas erupted into a pillar of fire, crashing into the rocky walls.
The massive column of fire began to condense, compress, and twist, forming a swirling inferno.
“Boom!”
The flas, compressed to their absolute limit, could no longer hold together. They exploded outward, scattering the fiery energy that had engulfed Xu Ming.
Inside the cavern, flickering embers fell like a rain of fire, illuminating the dark space.
The woman’s figure began to fade, her silhouette dissolving into the shadows. Yet, before vanishing entirely, she smiled faintly, as if a heavy weight had finally been lifted from her heart.
“Do you know this sword’s na?” she asked.
“What’s its na?” Xu Ming held the sword horizontally before him, carefully examining it.
No one had ever told him its na, yet he felt as though he sohow knew.
It was a sensation that grew stronger by the mont, as though he was gradually uncovering her identity.
He and the sword had never t before.
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Yet, they were now connected, mind and spirit intertwined.
“Hongxiu,” Xu Ming said softly.
The mont the words left his lips, a fiery pillar shot into the sky above the Samadhi Cave, blasting through the clouds and painting the heavens in red flas.
In the Rootless Secret Realm, everyone who had survived instinctively looked up.
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