Eternal Swordmaster
Chapter 894 - 889: Transmitting Skills and Exploration I

Chapter 894: Chapter 889: Transmitting Skills and Exploration I

Lin Xin stood inside the Taoist Palace, quietly waiting for that aura to emerge.

Before long, from the depths of the silver palace, a mist of red mixed with bright yellow quickly spread out.

The mist swiftly converged, transforming into a human shape, landing before Lin Xin and the others. It revealed Nan Shunqing’s extraordinarily aged face and body.

Nan Shunqing stared dazedly at Lin Xin, the face of the teacher from tens of thousands of years ago when he was still young, suddenly overlapping with the white-robed man standing before him now.

He trembled, wanting to say something, but nothing came out. All his burgeoning emotions could only manifest as uncontrollable shivers throughout his body.

His eyes brimmed with tears as he stepped forward two paces, reaching out to embrace Lin Xin, but suddenly remembered he only had one arm left.

"Hmm!!?"

Lin Xin’s gaze darkened immediately upon seeing that Nan Shunqing’s right arm was nothing but a naked stump.

"Qing’er, your hand!?"

"Master, it doesn’t matter. It’s good enough that you’ve returned... that you’ve returned... Qing’er feared he’d never see you again..."

Nan Shunqing’s aura remained robust and formidable, having reached the pinnacle of the Fifth Rank, the peak of the Polar Region.

A step beyond would be to become an Earth Immortal, but the Underworld doesn’t provide such conditions or discoveries for him to continue his cultivation practice.

Beyond this, Lin Xin carefully sensed that Nan Shunqing’s qi-blood cultivation was obviously showing signs of depletion and decay.

Clearly, it was an indication of his life’s end reaching.

"Qing’er, your aura..." He furrowed his brows.

Nan Shunqing responded with a carefree smile.

"Being able to see Honored Master one more time in my lifetime, I, Nan Shunqing, feel fulfilled in my sentiment. Life and death, the natural way of heaven and earth, cannot be forcibly pursued."

Yin Mantuo softly added from the side.

"I produce three Fruits of Longevity every millennium, each capable of extending life by a thousand years, but they can’t help with the soul’s life limit. My Fruit of Longevity can only extend the body’s life limit.

In fact, not only Nan Shunqing, but Dugu Lin also has merely a few hundred years of life remaining."

Only then did Lin Xin understand why Dugu Lin and Nan Shunqing could live for such a long time; it was because of the Fruits of Longevity produced by Yin Mantuo.

Lin Xin listened and became silent for a while.

"I have a method to let Qing’er extend his life again, but it requires a condition."

"I wholeheartedly listen to Honored Master’s teachings." Nan Shunqing was overjoyed. No one wants to die; even if he’s already come to terms with life and death, being able to live a bit longer is naturally something he doesn’t want to miss.

"Let’s go to Sun Spring first. It’s safer there; we can sit down and discuss the details." Lin Xin nodded.

Under Nan Shunqing’s guidance, the group quickly moved down, breaking through layers of formations, entering the secret path at the bottom of the Taoist Palace, and quickly arrived at the Sun Spring.

The golden Sun Spring flowed slowly along the underground river course, constantly emitting potent yang energies.

But for Lin Xin, who had returned from the Mortal Realm, it was just like river water in the human world.

Sitting by the riverbank of the Sun Spring, he stretched out his hand, amidst the astonished gazes of Nan Shunqing and the others, dipping his fingers into the river water and gently stirring.

The extreme yang spring water flowed over his skin, for Lin Xin, whose attributes had been elevated to terrifying levels, far beyond those seeking the Tao.

For him, this Sun Spring was no different than ordinary flowing water.

"I have a method that can resolve the limits on your life spans. However, it requires becoming a lower rank in my heart-spirit contract."

What he meant by lower rank was clear; it meant, within the contract, becoming a servant.

But there’s no other way; Lin Xin had long understood the flow principle of his attribute points.

This is a sort of free flow from top to bottom; his body is like a solidified container that can continuously transform external elemental energy into his own attribute strength.

Hence, the attribute points he added actually increased the container’s capacity instead of adding contents inside the container.

The attribute points transmitted to others were the contents inside the container.

This enhancement, Lin Xin referred to as sub-attributes.

He adhered to the main attributes.

Main attributes increase the power of a life’s essence container, while sub-attributes can only add the liquid to be stored within the life’s essence container.

It’s like a pot.

Main attributes increase the total capacity of the pot.

Sub-attributes add water to the pot.

Everyone is a pot.

What’s different is that Lin Xin’s pot can be reinforced through attribute enhancement, material transformation, increasing its capacity.

While others’ pots, relying on sub-attributes, can only temporarily increase the pot’s hardness, just like adding some metal to its surface.

Yet fundamentally, they remain unchanged.

Main attributes can increase the capacity of life essence, while sub-attributes can only fill life’s essence, allowing it to reach the limits a soul can achieve.

This is a vast difference.

"Main attributes enhance essence, while sub-attributes, once withdrawn, those lives enhanced by them will instantly revert to their original state."

Lin Xin understood this principle at heart.

Sub-attributes are closely linked with himself, equivalent to a projection of main attributes.

This is a false life, false enhancement.

Once he perishes, all who are extended by sub-attributes will instantly perish and weaken.

After converting this principle into the form of a secret technique and explaining it to the three of them,

Yin Mantuo was already in a master-servant contract, so it’s not a problem.

But Nan Shunqing and Dugu Lin pondered for a moment.

"Since the teacher has returned, Qing’er naturally wishes to follow the teacher’s path. Only...." he hesitated a bit.

"Just what? Haven’t you always longed for the old times, the life you had back when you were with the Teacher?" Dugu Lin countered, agreeing without a second thought.

She trusts Lin Xin not to use the contract to do anything bad to her.

Now it seems, contrary to expectations, that it’s Nan Shunqing who is hesitating.

Lin Xin also looked at Nan Shunqing, rather puzzled.

Even though his cultivation was enough to eavesdrop on the thoughts of the three around him, out of respect for the disciples, he withheld this ability.

"Tell me, what’s your reason?"

Nan Shunqing sighed.

"Actually... surely Honored Master remembers how I first became your disciple?"

He suddenly said, seemingly out of nowhere.

Dugu Lin and Yin Mantuo had no reaction, clueless, but Lin Xin’s eyes narrowed.

Yes.

Back then, when he was still the Villa Master of Spirit Heart Villa, to extend Xiao Lingling’s life, he owed a debt to a mysterious stranger.

Finally, by taking Nan Shunqing as a disciple, he repaid that debt.

"A stranger... you mean..." Lin Xin thought quietly.

"Yes..." Nan Shunqing sighed deeply.

"Actually, Honored Master, seventeen thousand years ago, I realized I was different from others.

Within me lies another force.

A force that makes me shiver even now."

"Oh?"

Lin Xin’s eyes narrowed more.

Nan Shunqing gave a bitter smile.

"That power is so strong, so strong, that it’s constantly trying to emerge and take over everything I am.

I often dream that I am merely the reincarnation—not even that, it would be too high an honor—of a great being."

I researched carefully for a thousand years to understand; I am simply the second soul naturally born within a powerful entity."

"A second personality..." Lin Xin instantly understood.

Dugu Lin and Yin Mantuo also understood.

"How can that be!!?" Dugu Lin’s face turned cold, "Who has the audacity, the capability, to mess with you, Qing?"

"It’s not a trick." Nan Shunqing gave a bitter smile, "I am but the awareness spawned from a mighty being’s body. Now it seeks to awaken by first devouring or destroying me.

But, he doesn’t want to be affected by my memories and emotions, so he waits until my natural soul perishes, to then reclaim this body."

"Are his powers and your powers completely separate?" Lin Xin suddenly asked.

"Indeed, his level is far beyond mine..." Nan Shunqing replied helplessly, "If it weren’t for this, I would have taken the Fruit of Longevity myself; how could I age so much more than Dugu Lin’s sister?"

"Sit down, let me take a look."

Lin Xin said calmly, though in reality, his soul was already extending, flowing toward Nan Shunqing.

He still remembered when Kai, the snow monster, was infiltrated by the Evil God King.

Though it was connected with the insufficient bond between the Tao soldiers and him, it indicated this kind of link was not safe enough.

If so, signing a contract to strengthen his body without first resolving Nan Shunqing’s inner issues could cause a great threat once the hidden danger erupts. It would be unstoppable.

Therefore, the best method is to investigate before any eruption.

Nan Shunqing walked up to Lin Xin, sat down cross-legged by the Sun Spring, closing his eyes.

Lin Xin extended his hand, pressing on the crown of his head at the Baihui point.

The soul that had originally spread out instantly surged fully into Nan Shunqing’s body.

Strengthened by attribute points to far surpass seeker-level, his soul power, like a steel drill into tofu, pierced effortlessly deep into Nan Shunqing’s heart core.

Splash.

As if breaking through a strange, inexplicable barrier.

Nan Shunqing’s whole body trembled slightly, suddenly opening his eyes, which no longer held the admiration and respect they once did, but turned as cold as mysterious ice.

"Foolish mortal! Do you know what you’re doing!?"

Though his lips barely moved, the voice resonated through the soul, penetrating Lin Xin’s and the minds of those around them, Dugu Linyin Mantuo.

"A mere native from a minor world, you must understand, beyond humans, beyond heaven, some things aren’t to be meddled with. One misstep can bring about immense calamity."

A faint purple glow flickered in Nan Shunqing’s eyes, and an aura entirely unrelated to his own cultivation and qi-blood emanated from him.

This aura was deep, ancient, carrying a divine presence that looked down upon Lin Xin and the three from above.

"Immense calamity?" Lin Xin laughed.

"Even the sky trembles before me, some trash from another universe dares to speak so brazenly before me."

He pointed a finger effortlessly but swiftly to Nan Shunqing’s forehead.

Splash!

Pure Purifying Force surged into Nan Shunqing’s body, along his soul, penetrating deeply and finding the hidden powerful soul within.

White purifying force, like white arrows or spears, pierced through before the purple soul had a chance to react.

"You!!??"

The purple soul’s eyes widened with disbelief, wanting to speak, but it was too late.

The purple soul’s aura rapidly weakened, immediately purified and dissolved within Nan Shunqing’s soul.