Evil Venerable of the Sword Dao
Chapter 404 - 054 Hidden Tears

Chapter 404: Chapter 054 Hidden Tears

The dark and cold aura intermittently enveloped the surroundings as it flowed with the air currents.

Zhou Yan had reached the peak of the Sword Soul Three Heavens, and his body had undergone a transformation, becoming immune to the influence of the environment here.

The terrifying gravity here had also been completely adapted by Zhou Yan, leaving him feeling no discomfort.

However, although the sense of mortal danger in his heart had disappeared, Zhou Yan was still cautious; having reached the realm of the Sword Spirit, his Twelve Sword Souls remained as Sword Souls and had not further transformed into Sword Spirits.

Continuous progression and transformation were still needed to complete this step.

Only when the Twelve Sword Souls transformed into the Twelve Sword Spirits would Zhou Yan be sure that his combat power could truly Break Nine.

Besides that, understanding the true principles and the Xuan Restriction was imperative.

After achieving a small success in the Original Dao, Zhou Yan realized that the Xuan Restriction was also a foundation of the Original Dao; one could not avoid understanding it simply because its power and effects were not as great as those of the Original Dao.

It was a foundation, and to advance further in the Original Dao, one must grasp the Xuan Restriction to an extremely profound degree and undergo transformation step by step.

Meanwhile, although he hadn’t reached the Void Realm, after his combat power neared nine, Zhou Yan came to realize the importance of the Void Nine Battle Line, which represented a grasp on the Dao, and the stronger this grasp, the further one could surge in the Sword Tribulation Realm.

While performing the Undying Rebirth Technique and the Nirvana Rebirth Technique to heal the War Sky Sacred Bear, Xiong Ba, Zhou Yan reflected on everything he had learned this time.

The Stinky Dog Bear itself was exceedingly sleazy and shameless; its graceless, obscenely moaning was quite repulsive, but Zhou Yan had gradually gotten used to its erratic personality.

In this world, those who often appear humorous and mischievous usually hide endless pain and vicissitudes.

The Stinky Dog Bear wasn’t human, yet it couldn’t escape this law.

Without deep pain, there couldn’t be a melancholic smile forced through gritted teeth.

Facing pain, some people confront it with cold, silent determination, solitary as a lonely crane traveling the world.

Others, however, would mask their sorrow with a playful and smiling face.

Zhou Yan didn’t misunderstand; rather, he understood all too well.

Extreme grief turns to joy; this is also a state of being.

Thus, even if the Stinky Dog Bear’s noisy moans were morally loose, he could now turn a deaf ear.

With a heart for cultivation, faith, and persistence, anywhere could be a Holy Land for cultivation.

...

Waves of Origin Energy entered Xiong Ba’s robust body, revitalizing him gradually; the moaning subsided, but the snoring grew louder.

Eventually, like a brute, he cast aside many worries and with a snore like thunder, fell into a deep sleep.

Zhou Yan gazed deeply at Xiong Ba, whose furry face relaxed, showing signs of relief; the indications of dust and fatigue were undeniably genuine, for no demon beast could feign such a soul-weary demeanor.

Although this bear had many flaws, its sincere heart and loyalty were its greatest strengths, compensating for all shortcomings.

A Creation Pill like the sky-high one was not found twice; such an elixir could even have restored Xiong Ba from his grievously wounded state to about thirty percent of a Saint’s strength, yet it chose the simplest way to give it to him.

From this, it was clear that Zhou Yan’s earlier injuries were beyond saving, and this pill saved his life!

This was an enormous act of kindness.

Zhou Yan gazed at the slumbering Xiong Ba, and finally, the nickname ’Stinky Dog Bear’ was erased from his heart.

"Having completed the physical transformation and restored the appearance and vitality of the Emperor Qi Sword Body, this also breaks through all of Yanyan’s painstaking efforts...

However, things might not be that simple. The Holy Daughter previously saw me—bearing the appearance of ’Lee Sha’—yet she ignored me completely, showing no reaction...

There must be a problem here.

Now, even though everything has been restored, I still need to face everything as a Thunderflame Sword Body during this trial. Once I’m out of the Ten Thousand Ghosts Sword Tomb, It will be good, then, I can directly manifest all aspects of the Emperor Qi Sword Body, but right now, that won’t work, I can’t make things worse."

Zhou Yan pondered for a long time and finally decided to once again transform his appearance back using the Natural Dao, deciding to temporarily follow Yanyan’s previous arrangements.

At the same time, he also concealed the aura of the Emperor Qi Sword Body within his soul.

Zhou Yan’s combat power was not affected at all, remaining a fusion of Emperor Qi and Thunderflame Sword Body, but others could only sense the Thunderflame Sword Body and not the Emperor Qi Sword Body, acting as a temporary ’screening of the Heavenly Mechanism.’

Although, this conflicted somewhat with his invincible heart and fearlessness by nature. Yet, the prudence now was for the sake of a complete explosion in a month.

It was worth it, revealing it earlier would only give the enemy means to respond.

After thinking for a long time, Zhou Yan finally made such a decision.

With this situation, Zhou Yan derived many possibilities and ultimately felt that this was most suited to the current circumstances.

After organizing the gains from his cultivation and healing Xiong Ba, Zhou Yan finally breathed a sigh of relief, and with a thought, his soul consciousness entered the Purple Flame Void in the center of his brows.

The Purple Flame Void had expanded significantly, like a grand new universe, vast and mighty.

In it, the Enlightenment Space, deep within the void, like a unique independent space.

This space was filled with a great amount of Origin Energy, which had already transformed into pools of clear liquid, much like lakes.

The Purple Flame Lotus was quietly burning on the surface of this lake, very serene, very peaceful.

Beside the Purple Flame Lotus, there was a crystal coffin, inside which Gu Xi lay peacefully like Sleeping Beauty, tranquil and serene.

Her eyes were gently closed, those long eyelashes looking exceptionally beautiful and heart-stirring.

Zhou Yan quietly watched the crystal coffin, and after a while, his soul consciousness shook. He then abruptly realized that this crystal coffin was identical to the one he had seen in the solitary grave at the Ten Thousand Ghosts Sword Tomb, the one that held Lee Sha’s body.

"This..."

Zhou Yan’s hands pressed on the lid of the crystal coffin, his body formed of condensed soul consciousness trembling slightly.

"What kind of connection is here? What secret does it hold?"

Zhou Yan murmured to himself.

He couldn’t come up with an answer, as this puzzle was temporarily destined to be unresolved.

"Xi’er... wait for me. I will become stronger as soon as possible, and then with treasures like Holy Daughter’s Life Soul, Extreme Cold Ice Soul Stone, and Thunderflame Soul Liquid, I will awaken you. Then, we’ll never be apart again, and I won’t let you suffer anymore."

Zhou Yan murmured to himself, his voice incredibly gentle.

As he murmured for a long time, the Jade Girl in the crystal coffin still lay peacefully in her restful sleep, but it seemed that there were traces of tears at the corners of her gently closed eyes.

But Zhou Yan’s soul consciousness was deeply immersed and did not notice this subtle change.