Who exactly is that fellow?

Yu Ci tapped his forehead, unable to find an answer, nor did he know what would be appropriate to say. Now, he was alone once again, desolate and solitary.

It was not without reason that he painted such a pitiable picture of himself. Looking up at the sky, his vision was inundated with a dense, blood-red hue, not the color of clouds or anything else, but that of the heavens themselves—dark and thick as clotted blood. The color was so intense that Yu Ci began to fear it might start dripping down at any moment.

In his twenty-six years of life, Yu Ci had never witnessed such a sky. Looking down at the ground, the soil mirrored the sky's hue, devoid of any living vegetation.

“Is this the realm of Xuanhuang?”

According to the map provided, this was the destination. Somewhere within this expanse of heaven and earth, Xuanhuang resided. Yu Ci strained his eyes into the distance but could discern no sign of it, and yet, unforeseen troubles had already begun to cling to him.

After standing amidst this world for a short while, he found his breathing growing increasingly labored, and even the circulation and inhalation of the Primordial Qi from the world around him was hindered—the external Primordial Qi seemed tainted with something, feeling more like drawing in ink, which permeated everything, inside and out, in an instant!

Upon being soaked in this "ink," Yu Ci grunted, feeling as if the "ink" was laced with some toxin that seeped into his body, immediately affecting his meridians as if igniting a fire within, his whole body burning, the suppressed injuries within him threatening to resurface.

“Good heavens, is this Xuanhuang's favored place?”

According to the claims of a certain individual, Xuanhuang, after being ambushed, had fallen to this place because it was most in harmony with its original essence, or in other words, where the Bloodthirsty Qi was most concentrated. Yu Ci did not understand how this place had accumulated such an immense amount of Bloodthirsty Qi, causing the world to change its color, and the Primordial Qi to become polluted, but he knew that now it was impossible to disagree with that person.

He was quick to sense the urgency, immediately entering a state of internal breathing and sitting cross-legged. He also consumed a Qi-Boosting Pill, using the refined essence within the pill to temporarily replace the role of the world's Primordial Qi. By sealing the external and blocking the internal, he finally managed to control the "ink," expelling it from his body bit by bit.

Time passed indeterminably until the Primordial Qi within him became clear, and the Yin-Yang Ascension and Descension operated normally, Yu Ci's state of mind also stabilized. Since it was not advisable to move for the time being, and even cultivation proved difficult, he decided to exercise his mind instead—after all, there was a puzzle in his heart urgently awaiting resolution.

Yu Ci remembered clearly when he first encountered that person, they had remarked, "You and I share a predestined affinity," which did not seem like a lie. However, at that time, he had no clue about its meaning. Of course, time was of the essence then, and Yu Ci had not dwelled on it, but now, it seemed like an opportune moment.

“Why not start from two years ago when I first arrived at the Broken Realm Mountain Range and sift through each encounter meticulously, leaving no stone unturned?”

With that thought, Yu Ci's eyelids lifted, and two beams of intense light shot forth, then lowered once again as the light reflected back into the depths of his Brain Palace, illuminating his Divine Soul, momentarily radiant.

This light reflecting back into the Brain Palace was the unique secret technique of the Lichen Sect, "Divine Light Reflection," a method refined daily after the achievement of the Yin Spirit and was also included in the Primordial Root Qi Method, albeit with some modifications. When the strong light shone into the Divine Soul, the three-tiered structure of the manifest consciousness, latent consciousness, and the Yuan Shen became vividly clear.

At this juncture, Yu Ci had attained the state of Yin Spirit, where the visible and the invisible merged seamlessly, the boundaries between them nearly indiscernible. His form appeared lucid and translucent, with only a sparse few patches of obscurity that, when bathed in strong light, would also become illuminated. Encapsulated within were the memories of Yu Ci's entire life, along with a vast and complex collection of information gathered unconsciously—truly as boundless and inexhaustible as a sea of smoke.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

In theory, now that Yu Ci had achieved the Yin Spirit, he could refine himself unimpeded, with the capacity to introspect upon all memories since his birth, including the muddled years of infancy, without exception. However, reality was far from simple. Even with all memories laid bare before him, devoid of concealment, extracting order from this immense ocean of recollections, to align them coherently, proved no easy task. This very chaos was, in itself, a part of the inner demons of the human heart—the path of refinement was long and arduous. Fortunately, the memories from two years prior were less troublesome; with a bit of effort, Yu Ci managed to untangle the initial threads.

What followed was the meticulous sorting of clues and filling in of details, which showcased the marvel of the Primordial Root Qi Method. What should have been an exceedingly intricate task was simplified by Yu Ci's utterance of "manifest," projecting the scene into the Inner Void of the Heart. Countless details rearranged themselves in the most logical fashion, connecting into a coherent whole, and materialized in the most vivid manner possible, almost as if the events were replaying before his eyes.

The vast, dusky mountain forests at night, the dilapidated Daoist temple teeming with demonic revelry, the howling cold winds, and the undulating cries of owls—all came to life, as if he were physically present within that very moment.

Observing this scene, Yu Ci seemed to step into the reverse flow of time's long river, and in an instant, he felt a touch of emotion.

The scenario continued to unfold, with Yu Ci sometimes immersing himself within it, at other times observing from a detached perspective, and at times even rewinding unclear moments to watch them over and over until he fully comprehended them.

This approach seemed logical and natural, yet without the miraculous Primordial Root Qi Method and the "Analysis"—a Lifebound Divine Ability Yu Ci had developed recently—it would have been impossible to so effortlessly and spontaneously arrange and transform such a myriad of intricate details and elements.

All at once, Yu Ci realized that he had found a cultivation technique eminently suited to him.

Regrettably, such a state could not be sustained indefinitely. Refining the Yin Spirit was bound by time constraints, and the frequent use of Lifebound Divine Abilities would consume his innate Primordial Qi, diminishing his lifespan. After a while, Yu Ci knew to cease when advantageous, taking breaks before recommencing. After repeating this process several times, he finally filtered through nearly two years of memories.

At this moment, the once chaotic memories of the past two years were strung together like a necklace of precious pearls, sorted and aligned neatly. Within the Divine Light Reflection, there emerged a rhythmic beauty that amazed Yu Ci. Moreover, unbeknownst to him, the strength of his Divine Soul had grown, his Heart-Mind was clear and transparent, and when the divine energies converged, there was a palpable sense of progress.

In such circumstances, Yu Ci's initial calculations came to naught. In that brief span of time, he had scrutinized the hundreds, if not thousands, of characters he had encountered over two years, had his suspicions, but upon further analysis, each was dismissed in turn, leaving him without a single lead.

"How peculiar, could that fellow have been speaking off the cuff?"

Yu Ci shook his head repeatedly, more inclined to believe he had overlooked some detail, or fallen into a cognitive trap. Regardless, he could not afford to ponder any longer; obsessing over it might only ensnare him further.

At this moment, the enigmatic figure had yet to return, the external environment remained unchanged, if not worsened. Yu Ci had long lost his sense of time, his concern for Xuan Huang slowly burning within him, unsettling his state of mind.

"That fellow said he was off to the rescue; he must have some assurance..."

With a barely satisfactory reason, Yu Ci calmed his Heart-Mind, once again entering the Inner Void of the Heart. This time he did not sift through memories but focused his spirit on observing the changes in the Life Death Talisman.

The Inner Void of the Heart was now a vast expanse where sea and sky met, and Yu Ci's Divine Power External Appearance formed a solitary island, adrift upon the waters, at the heart of which lay the Life Death Talisman.

Any shift in Yu Ci's Physical Spirit state would faithfully reflect upon the Life Death Talisman. Even if it could not touch the core, it would form corresponding fractals on the periphery. Among these peripheral fractals, two known to Yu Ci were of significance: one was the ring structure encircling the Core Talisman, and the other, the Seed True Talisman adorning the "ring."

At this time, the structure of the latter seemed to have changed.

"Perhaps the Sword aura has been influenced by the True Essence of the Heavenly Dragon."

Yu Ci scrutinized carefully, seeking to unravel the mysteries of Sword Intent Purification. However, after a moment, a thought struck him: in the end, it is still a talisman, isn't it? No matter how it generates Sword Energy, it is but a talismanic mimicry of Sword aura, so where does the notion of purification stem from?

With these thoughts, Yu Ci understood why he had been told he was "not pure enough." Indeed, after years of delving into Talismans, learning the Primordial Root Qi Method from Master Lian, and recently receiving direct guidance from the venerable Master Zhu, a profound imprint of Talisman lore had been etched into his very bones, rendering his thoughts incapable of the purity found in Sword cultivation.

"That is the very essence of the sword's approach... Eh?"

A flash of insight streaked across Yu Ci's mind, but before he could grasp it, a gale rose around him. The intense tremor swept past, and it took him a moment to realize this was no mere "gale," but the powerful and vast cry of a sword's howl.

The heavens and earth resonated in unison.

In a trance, Yu Ci heard a voice, issuing a sharp and agonized roar amidst the fierce winds:

"Slay, slay, slay, slay, slay, slay..."

...