Red Heart Patrols the Sky

The sun finally sank in the west, and the entire land entered the night with a sigh.

In the corridors of Tongtian Palace, a tiny earthworm also finally completed its long journey and spit out a round and full Path Origin bead.

Dawn and dusk are the best times for cultivation in a day. The sun is warm but not harsh, nurturing without harming, especially for beginner cultivators, it can protect their Dao meridians well. There have been those who cultivated at noon only to be ignited by the Sun True Fire, which stoked their inner fire and destroyed their meridians.

This is what is called, "drawing the purple Qi at dawn, leading the rosy clouds at dusk."

Even Jiang Wang, who had been practicing martial arts since young, felt that his Blood and Qi Power was being squeezed to a certain threshold; pushing further would harm his Vitality. The earthworm inside the Tongtian Palace looked a bit listless as well.

Of course, the body doesn't feel weak at this threshold. The Path Origins nurtured within Tongtian Palace act like tiny hearts, constantly pumping out power.

All of this deeply impressed upon Jiang Wang the teachings he received in class; the transformation from the power of Blood and Qi to the birth of Path Origin is an elevation of power, the very premise for transcending the ordinary.

It is said that true martial cultivators do not nurture Path Origin but instead purely refine their physique and temper their Blood and Qi. That is yet another path to take.

In today's world, where rival lords rise together, countless sects stand tall, and the Hundred Schools of Thought contend, the Dao is infinite. It's undoubtedly an era thriving with cultivation opportunities, but for Jiang Wang in Zhuang Country, there were no other choices.

Jiang Wang cautiously manipulated the Path Origin beads within Tongtian Palace, moving them to fill in the Zhou Tian Xing Dou formation map that he knew like the back of his hand. This process was far from easy. Because just like the power of Blood and Qi, the power of one's spirit also has its limits at certain stages.

For a cultivator like Jiang Wang, who had just stepped onto the Transcendent path, moving Path Origins twice a day was already the limit; any more would lead to mental exhaustion and, in severe cases, possible damage to the mind.

Jiang Wang was acutely aware that the foundational formation he had chosen took a long time to construct, which is why he particularly dared not waste time and trod as if on thin ice. The slightest mistake would mean starting over.

And he hadn't allowed himself the time to start over.

With only two opportunities each day to arrange the formation's points, he couldn't afford to miss a single one! Even though the Zhou Tian Xing Dou formation map was much more complex and difficult than the Guiyuan formation.

Suppose someone was cultivating alongside Jiang Wang at the moment, and they chose the Guiyuan formation map for their foundation. With perfect point arrangement, they were destined to be much faster than Jiang Wang.

Jiang Wang himself didn't know whether his choice was correct, but since he had made it, there was no reason to turn back. He could only press on, doing his utmost to achieve the best outcome.

Luckily, he was doing quite well. When the day's final Meridian Rush Practice ended, dozens of Path Origin beads hovered within Tongtian Palace, each full and plump like ripe rice in the autumn fields, exuding the scent of a bountiful harvest. These Path Origins would be his sustenance to "Tongtian."

But for Jiang Wang, there was still something important left to do.

At this moment, the dormitory was empty. Ling He and Du Yehu had gone out on missions, and now that they had joined the inner sect, they naturally longed for the Channel-opening Pill even more.

Jiang Wang's mind sank, and he entered the Taixu Illusion Realm.

Today was the fifteenth of July, the challenge day of the month. If nothing unexpected happened, today he would face the challenge of the Qingyu Altar Master. He would be demoted successfully — and predictably.

The familiar scene unfolded once more, the vast starry sky.

Jiang Wang sat cross-legged, silently watching the shadow of the sundial, waiting for the moment the challenge would arrive.

He was eager to witness the strength of a true powerhouse in this world. Although he had "heard" such fierce confrontations back in the Dongzhen Observatory, he had never seen them with his own eyes. Dong Ah's action last time faced no resistance from the opponent.

Sitting amidst this starry sky, he felt his heart opening up as well.

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When humanity first looked up to the starry sky, the rush of history began. Compared to the vast Star River, everything in the human world seemed so insignificant and illusory.

It was unknown how much time had passed when five ink characters appeared on the sundial's shadow—'Challenger Forfeits.'

Jiang Wang felt a sense of relief, yet also an inexplicable regret.

He had preserved the monthly yield of cultivation from the Dongzhen ruins, but perhaps that was only due to the formidable deterrence of the former master of the land. That blazing figure known as Zuo Guanglie!

Those who enter the Taixu Illusion Realm usually conceal their real-world identities, and apart from themselves, no one knows what sort of reputation they have in the Taixu Illusion Realm. Therefore, very few people know that the master of the Dongzhen ruins in the Taixu Illusion Realm is the great Chu Tianjiao from the real world, Zuo Guanglie. Now, even fewer will know. Even if some had made accurate conjectures from their fighting style in the past, they would now have to be dismissed altogether.

Because generally, when a person in the real world dies, their identity in the Taixu Illusion Realm also vanishes. But Zuo Guanglie had forcefully spurred the power of the Zhurong True Body, almost burning through time and space, and because a powerful obsession entangled him, a mix of reasons brought about an anomaly. The Taixu Illusion Realm failed to reclaim the virtual key in time, and it was imprinted by Jiang Wang. Thereby, he inherited everything that Zuo Guanglie had in the Taixu Illusion Realm.

Fenglin twenty-three, Dongzhen ruins! Monthly cultivation yield 1850 points.

...

"Lectern of Dao." Jiang Wang murmured in his mind.

A bamboo desk simply appeared out of thin air in front of him, yet it didn't feel abrupt. It seemed as natural as crops growing out of the earth, although the process was ignored.

On the bamboo desk was nothing else but an open jade book, currently blank.

Jiang Wang had previous experience, he just needed to envision the cultivation technique he wanted to deduce, then invest the corresponding cultivation points, and the deduced technique would then manifest on the jade book. The foundational array diagram he had obtained before, the Zhoutian Xing Dou formation, was derived through deduction of the Return to Origin array.

Currently, his foundational array diagram was incomplete, the Dao rotation had not yet begun, and every Path Origin he used was one fewer remaining. Hence, deducing Dao techniques was not a realistic option. Even Jiang Wang himself had only simulated it in his mind and had never really practiced any Dao techniques. After all, at the early stages of cultivation, Path Origin was far too precious.

But it wasn't an option to let the cultivation points sit idly, to be used later. One must understand that on the path of cultivation, if you're not progressing, you're regressing. Tomorrow and accidents, you never know which will come first, so maximizing one's strength at every stage is the proper way.

Jiang Wang pondered for a moment and then selected a fierce style of swordsmanship he was most proficient in to deduce.

And the cultivation points he chose to expend were 1850!

The atmosphere throughout Zhuang Country prioritized Dao techniques over martial arts. But at this stage, Jiang Wang had no choice; with the foundation incomplete, he dared not use even the most powerful Dao techniques.

Since he had chosen to enhance his swordsmanship, he intended to do so thoroughly, leaving no stone unturned.

In an instant, many characters emerged on the jade book on the bamboo desk. They were ordinary sword techniques Jiang Wang had learned from the outer gates of the Dao institutions in Fenglin City, striking for their fierceness yet lacking any other excellence. But now, as the numbers of cultivation points in the sundial's shadow dwindled, the characters on the jade book began to change wildly.

Jiang Wang watched intently as those characters seemed to evolve into individual figures drawing swords and dancing. The dance became faster and faster until it all seemed to merge into one mass.

Jiang Wang couldn't help but narrow his eyes, almost feeling as if he was being stabbed by the sharpness!

When he blinked and looked again, the characters on the jade book had settled down, and before him was a sword technique he had never seen before, nor ever imagined—an arcane and profound sword manual!

Back in the outer gates, Jiang Wang was recognized as the number one in swordsmanship. But now, perusing this technique, he suddenly felt as if what he had previously practiced were mere farm hand moves, suitable only for tilling the field!

The cultivation points on the sundial's shadow had hit zero, but Jiang Wang let out a sigh of satisfaction.

It was all worth it!

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