The Quest for Immortality

In the Refining Demon Mountain, the morning sun bathed the peaks, and the grass and trees were lush and verdant.

Although the mountain forest was filled with dangerous Monster Beasts, Mo Hua seemed as carefree as if on a spring outing. His expression was relaxed, his steps were brisk, and he even hummed a little tune.

Upon reaching the foot of a slope, Mo Hua stopped, took out fruit wine, pastries, and dried meat from his Storage Bag, and began to leisurely enjoy his food while admiring the morning landscape.

After a while, a figure appeared in the distance.

Mo Hua immediately stood up, his face lighting up with joy, and waved enthusiastically while shouting:

”Situ, over here!”

A tall and handsome young man carrying the Li Fire Sword on his back looked over and, with a smile, returned the greeting before walking toward Mo Hua.

The newcomer was none other than Situ Jian.

Coincidentally, he was the ”sparring partner” Mo Hua had sought for practicing Sword Control.

Both of them hailed from Li State, making them unofficial ”fellow villagers.”

Back when Mo Hua lived in Li State, he had connections with the Situ Family and was acquainted with Situ Fang, Situ Xiu, Situ Jin Elder, and other cultivators from the clan.

However, since the Situ Family was quite large, those individuals were likely from a branch family and were probably not familiar with Situ Jian.

Mo Hua decided not to bring it up.

In the mountain, under the morning sun, the two enjoyed fine wine and delicacies together.

Once they had their fill, they officially began training with their swords.

Before starting, Situ Jian couldn’t help but ask curiously:

”Junior Brother, you’re not a Sword Cultivator, so why the sudden interest in Sword Control?”

Mo Hua’s face took on a serious expression as he made up an excuse off the cuff:

”The Sever Gold Sect is inherently stingy and their methods underhanded. Although they’ve quieted down for now, it’s hard to say they won’t come back stronger in the future. So, it’s best to be prepared and study Sword Controlling Methods properly.”

”Not only them—here in the Qianxue State Boundary, there are so many Sword Cultivators. It’s crucial to learn more to avoid falling into their traps someday...”

”Know thy enemy, and you’ll never lose a battle.”

”Oh.” Situ Jian slowly nodded and praised, ”Junior Brother, you really think far ahead.”

”Far ahead?”

”Yes.” Situ Jian replied, ”True ’Sword Control’ can only be learned in the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, and its sword moves are only attainable in the Golden Core Realm.”

Mo Hua stared blankly, ”That far ahead?”

Situ Jian silently looked at Mo Hua, thinking to himself, turns out Junior Brother doesn’t know a thing...

Situ Jian sighed and found a large rock to sit on, then began explaining to Mo Hua from scratch:

”For any Sword Cultivator, training always starts with Sword Qi. Using Spiritual Power to transform it into a sword is the foundation to entering Sword Dao.”

”However, when Sword Cultivators first begin, the Sword Qi formed by their Spiritual Power is weak, so they must rely on Spirit Swords to amplify their Sword Qi and enhance their killing power.”

”The earlier the stage, the shallower the cultivation, the weaker the Sword Qi, and the more reliant Sword Cultivators are on their swords.”

”When reaching later stages, when cultivation deepens, Sword Qi strengthens, it’s possible to wield no sword in hand yet embody the sword itself, reducing the dependency on sword weapons.”

”Of course, Sword Cultivators with swords are still exceptionally formidable.”

”This is because the union of Sword Qi and sword weapons in ’Sword Control’ creates a cumulative effect with astounding killing power.”

”How strong can it get?” Mo Hua asked with keen curiosity.

Situ Jian shook his head, ”I don’t know...”

Mo Hua: ”...”

Situ Jian awkwardly added, ”Anyway, very strong... but I haven’t mastered the true ’Li Fire Sword Flight Art’ yet, so I can’t say how strong.”

”So, that means the Sever Gold Sect senior we encountered before, using the Sever Gold Sword Control Jue, wasn’t really performing ’true Sword Control,’ right?”

”Which Sever Gold Sect senior?”

”The one who got stripped, tied to a tree, and had turtles drawn all over him.”

”Oh.” Situ Jian recalled the incident and nodded, ”Right.”

Situ Jian explained to Mo Hua, ”He did cultivate the Sword Controlling Technique, but his cultivation and Sword Dao comprehension weren’t high enough to display real Sword Control. So his Sword Control was still stuck at the elementary Sword Qi level.”

”True Sword Control...”

Situ Jian’s expression became serious, his eyes filled with yearning:

”It all starts with cultivating Sword Qi to an immensely powerful level.”

”Then fusing Sword Qi with the sword itself.”

”And finally, using Divine Sense to control the Spirit Sword melded with Sword Qi, lock onto the enemy, and kill them from a distance with the Flying Sword.”

”Only when Sword Qi, sword weapons, and Divine Sense unite can one truly reach higher levels and gradually cultivate ’Sword Intent’...”

”Sword Intent?!”

Mo Hua’s expression drastically changed in shock.

Situ Jian was startled and softly asked, ”Junior Brother, is something wrong?”

Mo Hua realized his reaction had been over the top, quickly composed himself, and patted Situ Jian’s shoulder while saying:

”No, you’re absolutely right!”

”Carry on...”

Situ Jian hesitated for a moment and then shook his head, saying, ”That’s it...”

Mo Hua was taken aback, ”That’s it?”

Situ Jian nodded, ”What comes after Sword Intent is too advanced. Since my cultivation is still shallow, I can’t comprehend it...”

Much less Sword Intent—he hadn’t even properly learned ’Sword Control.’

”Alright then.” Mo Hua sighed.

Although not learning more about the deeper mysteries of ’Sword Intent’ was a bit disappointing, at least he had grasped one critical point:

Divine Sense Sword Control, Sword Qi, sword weapons, and Divine Sense melding into one are the key to nurturing ’Sword Intent.’

Sword Control is the consummate method of combining Sword Qi and sword weapons.

At the same time, it also marks the beginning of cultivating ’Sword Intent.’

Such advanced concepts went beyond the standard sect curriculum; even the Taoist Skills taught by sect instructors wouldn’t cover this.

Sword Controlling Methods...

If they could only be learned in the Foundation Establishment Late Stage and perfected in the Golden Core Realm...

Then at the earliest, it’d be next year during the Foundation Establishment Late Stage courses, or perhaps even after entering the Inner Gate, that this knowledge would be imparted.

Indeed, there’s wisdom in ”having three people and learning from one teacher.” It’s always worthwhile to seek advice from fellow sect members whenever possible.

Mo Hua nodded inwardly in approval.

”Then Divine Sense Sword Control—how exactly does one control the sword?”

”Is it similar to Divine Sense Manipulation of objects?”

”Do you just use Divine Sense to control the Spirit Sword and stab forward from a distance?”