Chapter 219: Where the Net Exists, the Dao Exists

“Normally speaking, what enters the Primordial Wilderness Illusionary Realm is merely a strand of consciousness separated from the cultivator. Even if one becomes lost within the illusion, at most, one would suffer some damage. It should absolutely not endanger the life of the main body.”

“Yet the main bodies in the real world have remained unconscious all this time, ultimately becoming nothing more than living corpses…”

Li Shun’s expression gradually darkened.

When trapped within an illusion, there was no way to know what was happening in the outside world.

Under normal circumstances, those trapped within would gradually fall into despair. In their desperation to escape, they would slowly become deranged and be willing to pay any price.

This was dictated by the instinct to survive.

Unless one had already resolved to die from the very beginning, it was inevitable that such thoughts would arise.

But then again, those capable of participating in the Hundred Schools Grand Gathering and entering the Primordial Wilderness Illusionary Realm were all elite talents carefully selected from their respective schools.

Their futures were boundless, their prospects brilliant.

And they were all in the prime of their youth.

How could they possibly be willing to sit there and wait quietly for death?

Yet after his initial anxiety, Li Shun soon calmed down.

“Unlike ordinary people, I have the protection of the Fangcun space. In theory, whether this strand of consciousness lives or dies should have no substantial effect on my main body.”

“Even without Li Shun, there is Fang Han. And there are the other puppets.”

With that thought, Li Shun became completely unhurried.

“That net-like structure entered my body. It seems to want to use me as a vessel, leave this place, and return to the Great Qian of the real world.”

“Hmph…”

“It certainly has beautiful dreams. Then let us slowly decay here together.”

That was what Li Shun thought.

And that was exactly what he did.

From the day he made up his mind, Li Shun never moved another step.

He simply lay quietly amid the enormous ruins of the Heavenly Court.

Within his mind, the experiences of his entire life replayed like scenes from a revolving lantern.

Looking back suddenly, Li Shun realized that he had never really possessed any clear goal.

He had simply drifted with the current, pushed forward by one major event after another.

“At first, I transmigrated into this world and became a laborer in Lengshan County.”

“At the beginning, I was indeed somewhat resentful. But later, I gradually became accustomed to it. I even felt that life wasn't so bad. After all, I had puppets to do the labor for me.”

“Thinking about it now, those years in Lengshan County were dull, but they were also peaceful and comfortable.”

“I never had any great ambitions. I only wanted to live my own life quietly.”

“Even after obtaining Fangcun, I never developed any particularly great ambitions.”

“But then Zhou Xunzhen’s Greed for Wealth Corrupts the Seal Tribulation destroyed all of that.”

“After that came the Imperial Mausoleum, Yunguan, Dongshan Town, and all sorts of other upheavals.”

“I have always been pushed forward by one worldly affair after another…”

“What is it that I truly want?”

Cut off from the outside world, it was as though he had once again returned to the days when he had been trapped within the sealed earth of the Imperial Mausoleum.

Back then, confined within the sealed earth, he had traveled throughout the lands of the former nations.

The sealed earth of the Imperial Mausoleum, much like this ancient Heavenly Court, was devoid of life and filled with utter silence.

For a full twenty-five years, his only companion had been the wooden horse given to him by Elder Mu.

Yet Li Shun had never felt particularly lonely.

All the disturbances of the outside world had been completely cut off.

Li Shun had an abundance of time to contemplate this question.

Nor did he obsess over it like a madman, desperately trying to force an answer.

He simply allowed himself to ponder it during his leisure.

For most of the rest of his time, he would either empty his mind, or contemplate and comprehend the various divine abilities and wondrous techniques he had learned.

For example, Threefold Self-Reflection, the Heavenly Being Codex, Empty Vessel Bereft of Self, Spring and Autumn's Subtle Words, the Sword of Regicide, and so on.

Immersed in his own spiritual world, he did not find it boring in the slightest.

“Eating simple food and drinking water, resting one's bent arm beneath one's head as a pillow, there is still joy to be found in it. With a single bowl of rice and a ladle of water, living in a humble alley, one does not change one's joy.”

“The words of the Sage are indeed true.”

Within the ruins of the Heavenly Court, it seemed that the concept of time did not exist.

And after Li Shun had completely abandoned the idea of returning, he stopped keeping track of time altogether.

Time had completely lost its meaning for him.

No one knew how much time had passed.

One day, Li Shun was contemplating ways to improve the Sword of Regicide within his mind.

Though he was merely working things out on his own without guidance, after pondering for such a long time, he had genuinely managed to discover some clues.

“Elder Wei once said that he used this sword technique to assassinate the Qian Emperor. In the end, however, he failed.”

“It was because the final move, [Old Friend], should likewise conceal all killing intent.”

“At the time, he failed to restrain the killing intent within his heart. It leaked out, causing the entire attempt to fall short at the final moment.”

“At first glance, this explanation seems contradictory. If there is no killing intent in one's heart, how can one possibly unleash that final, fatal sword?”

“I was never able to see through it before. But after thinking about it for so many days, I have finally understood.”

“The final move of Regicide should not be Kill.”

“It should be Return.”

Having completely grasped the key to the matter, a flash of enlightenment and delight appeared in Li Shun’s eyes.

“The twenty-eight swords of Regicide. The first twenty-seven moves are all laying the groundwork, entangling the opponent with memories of their past together.”

“From being as close as brothers, they gradually turn against one another, step by step, until they ultimately face each other in a battle to the death.”

“The reason this sword technique can bewilder the Qian Emperor’s mind is entirely because of the old friendship it evokes. But the final move severs every single bond, transforming them all into one heaven-shaking sword.”

“Even if the opponent is one's closest friend, they would never simply stand there and allow themselves to be killed.”

“Therefore, this final move must be changed.”

“It should be…”

At that moment, Li Shun seemed to turn to stone.

His entire mind appeared to freeze, completely immersed in his contemplation of the problem.

Who knew how much time passed before he suddenly awakened.

Overcome with excitement, he slapped his thigh.

“That’s it! The final move should be [Reunite]!”

“I am not trying to kill you.”

“I am trying to make you, my old friend, return to the beginning.”

“To sever all the grudges and attachments accumulated over the years, and bring everything to a complete end.”

“Once [Reunite] is unleashed, neither the one wielding the sword nor the one being struck can possibly survive…”

The more Li Shun thought about it, the more excited he became.

He immediately leapt to his feet and began dancing through the air with an imaginary sword.

Although the final move, [Reunite], was a technique meant for mutual destruction, meaning that ordinary practice could never display its true might, Li Shun could clearly sense that the Regicide Sword Art he had refined was more effective than the original version created by Elder Wei.

“It is a pity that this sword technique is only suitable for killing the Qian Emperor, and only suitable for Elder Wei himself.”

“If the two parties do not possess years of accumulated bonds, the power of this sword technique will be greatly diminished.”

After a while, Li Shun stopped practicing.

He still felt somewhat reluctant to stop.

Suddenly, he froze.

He stared blankly at his own hands.

“The Sword of Regicide is a divine ability of the Heaven-Earth realm.”

“What virtue or ability do I possess that I could actually improve it?”

“And I even succeeded?”

Li Shun knew very clearly that the [Reunite] sword he had derived was indeed a step superior to Elder Wei’s original creation.

Perhaps it was the ultimate form of the Sword of Regicide.

With Elder Wei’s cultivation and attainments, even after being trapped within the Imperial Mausoleum for so many years, he had still been unable to comprehend it fully.

Yet he had actually completed it through nothing more than his own seemingly wild deductions?

How was that possible?

A profound sense of absurdity suddenly arose within Li Shun’s heart.

He knew very well that he was by no means a genius.

With his current accumulation, there was simply no way he could derive or improve a divine ability of the Heaven-Earth realm.

Unless…

After so many years, Li Shun once again remembered the net-like pattern that had previously entered his body.