Unlike Langyu who came along into the world of corpses, the Fu twins had each other to rely on while entering this alien landscape. Not alone, they could walk with more assurance, trying to peer into their master’s way, into their master’s heart.

“As expected, it doesn’t seem that we can cultivate this path.” It was something only natural. The twins had inherited the Quintessence Sword Dao back during the end of the past era, when they were still little girls and Heifeng Jiansui was the lofty Quintessence Sword Saint. At that time, they practiced the Three Scrolls of the Quintessence Sword Dao with heart and soul, but with their pure hearts lacking killing intent, it was impossible.

In the sea of blood, the bottleneck that surmounted them… was finally broken through. But the path ahead was shrouded by more difficulties.

Unlike Langyu whose eyes were hazed by the blood and killing intent, the twins only saw unsightly massacres and a mountain-like spiritual pressure. It was because they never killed. As long as you could kill, you could comprehend the realm Heifeng Jiansui had reached in the merit of killing. But as innocent as the twins were, they understood the realms that Heifeng Jiansui slaughtered through but not the true essence behind the killing.

In the world of blood, the twins tempered their heart. Sword cultivation was based on killing. Even their path that was focused by being bloodless was refined by the sea of blood.

+++

“Awaken.” Hearing a single word, Langyu woke up from the dreamlike haze. The world she saw was red, perhaps tinted by the sea of blood she saw. Beside her, the Fu twins awoke as well. Compared to her, they seemed cool and calm as ever.

“Wipe yourself.” Saying this, a white cloth was thrown at her. Instinctively wiping her face with it, Langyu finally felt cleansed. Looking at the cloth, she saw it covered with her blood, tears and sweat. While the tears and sweat could be easily explained, the blood…

Stroking her face with her finger, she realized that the pores on her face had opened up wide. During the brief time she gained insight into the Quintessence Sword Intent, her mortal body was forced through a tribulation. And the part that was under the most pressure… was her brain which housed her conscious mind. Her eyes had began bleeding sometime during the ‘meditation’.

The cloth in her hand flew away, and a pill was flicked in her mouth. She unconsciously swallowed it, and vitality returned to her body. Opening her eyes wide, she saw the twins, Heifeng Jiansui and a new woman beside him.

“So, how was my Quintessence Sword Dao? And what are your plans regarding cultivating it?” Heifeng Jiansui asked the trio.

“Your Sword Dao… is far too vast for us to fully comprehend… As before, we will train the Clear Jade Sword Dao as the core and the Quintessence Sword Dao as auxiliary, while cultivating our Five-Phase Immortal Domain.” The twins had not planned to change their cultivation path.

“Good. You two… Fu Li, you are now titled as my Second Disciple. Fu Ying, you are my Third Disciple. Take these, you are now my personal disciples.” Saying this, Heifeng Jiansui flung two tokens at them and they eagerly caught them.

“Langyu, what is your decision, then?” Looking at the girl who seemed to be in a daze, Heifeng Jiansui asked.

“Master… I… I’ll specialize in the Quintessence Sword Dao. I’ll train the Poison based techniques you imparted me on the side. As for the Clear Jade Sword Dao… I’ll give up on it.” Saying this, Langyu seemed regretful. But she knew her limits. Chaos Sovereign techniques seemed cool but it was likely that she wouldn’t be able to master one in a lifetime.

After Heifeng Jiansui imparted the Quintessence Sword Intent, she felt some hope in cultivating it. As for the Clear Jade Sword Codex, it would be better to give up on it quickly instead of wasting a billion years on a dead-end.

“…Good.” Heifeng Jiansui seemed actually surprised at her decision. But after saying a word to her, he began speaking once again.

“This is my Master and your Grandmaster.” Saying this, Heifeng Jiansui allowed Nineorigin to come forward. “Despite how she looks, she is a hidden expert who has experienced 9 chaos cycles and far surpasses me in strength.”

Giving the impression of a reclusive expert, Nienorigin gave a dismissive glance to the trio. When they were forced to bow their heads, Heifeng Jiansui took the opportunity to begin speaking.

“You now have some insight into the Quintessence Sword Dao, and will be successful in cultivating it. Now, I’ll show you a practical demonstration. I’ll battle your Grandmaster, with both of us using the Quintessence Sword Dao.” Saying this, Heifeng Jiansui waved his hand and the world transformed to a vast marbled arena.

“Oh, so you want to give a show for the kids, huh? I expected to see my disciple’s full prowess, but you are still a mortal now. Well, I might as well stretch my muscles instead of waiting for you for a thousand years.” Nineorigin seemed to have gotten into the play of a supreme expert while she was in truth younger than the twins.

“I won’t ask you to hold back even a bit. If it were anything else, I might be happy half-assing it, but this is my Sword Dao, the only thing I take pride in. Even though it will cost me, I’ll face you… at my strongest.” Saying these domineering words, Heifeng Jiansui raised his hand up. “Come, Ninelight Circuit Sheath!”

Sword intent bathed the world, and the Ninelight Stellar Circuit, a constellation formed from numerous Great Worlds and Minor Worlds seemed to tremble. A light earthquake shook the Arena as a pillar of light seemed to appear before Heifeng Jiansui. It was a sheath designed for a 3 foot sword, exactly the kind that a sword cultivator would carry.

This Sword Sheath seemed to hold a world within it. Of course, that was only to be expected. For what sheath could bear a sword that could cleave through worlds other than this one?

“Your qi, essence and spirit seem to have been crystallized in this sheath. No, that is the qi, essence and spirit of your past. At that time after your battle after your death, your body was swallowed by a black hole. To think… you actually refined it…” Nineorigin’s surprised voice trembled as she spoke.

“I made preparations for Nineprime and my body, my two most precious possessions, to not fall into enemy hands in case I died. My body was supposed to be refined in a hidden formation I set up using the entirety of the Ninelight Stellar Circuit. In a million years, it would be entirely refined into a treasure that would complement my Nineprime Sword. If the Black Dragon won, the Ninelight Stellar Circuit would break off from the Chaosworld’s remnants and launch into the boundless chaos, my Nineprime Sword flying along with it. Someday after eras upon eras, the consciousness of a World Spirit would evolve from the Ninelight Circuit Sheath. Well, I lost but you still ascended to become a World Spirit and reincarnated me, so my plan didn't need to come to fruition.” Saying this with a wry smile, Heifeng Jiansui grasped the sheath.

Running a finger down the sheath, Heifeng Jiansui tapped it. Magically, a sword seemed to appear within it, the Nineprime Sword that Heifeng Jiansui carried to achieve the Dao. Strapping the sheath on his hip, he adjusted his posture a bit before it was comfortably set.