Chapter 321: Flowing Light

“They’re the states that martial artists cultivate. Human Martial Arts, Xuan Martial Arts, Sky Martial Arts, Real Martial Arts, God Martial Arts, and Holy Martial Arts. Once you have gotten through the ninth-realm of Holy Martial Arts, you can become a true god. The early states are split into beginner period, moderate period, adept period, and apex period. But from Real Martial Arts, the states are split into nine realms. Thus, known as the nine-realms.”

Xuan Ji abruptly opened her small mouth and revealed a mouthful of white teeth. Although Ding Ning knew that this was an old monster who had lived for thousands of years, he still felt that this motion was very cute.

But once he remembered that there was a Holy Martial Arts beyond God Martial Arts, which was already considered a legend, he could not help but smile bitterly. “I’ve heard of God Martial Arts but it only exists in legends. I’ve never even heard of Holy Martial Arts. Oh right, Xuan Ji senior, what realm were you in?”

“Back then, I was in the eighth realm of Holy Martial Arts, just two more realms and I would have been a god.”

Xuan Ji said sadly.

“Ack!” Ding Ning involuntarily sucked in a cold breath. “But Chiyou was even stronger than you, what realm was he?”

“His realm should be about the same as me but his battle power was something I could not compare to.”

A touch of admiration appeared in Xuan Ji’s eyes. “The god, Pan Gu, split apart heaven and earth. He was of the Wu way, but the Wu way had long been lost. Yet, Chiyou used his natural talent and wisdom to re-create the Wu way and cultivate it himself. He was indeed brilliant.”

Ding Ning’s mind swirled. Pan Gu, ah, that was a proper god of creation but that was very distant from him. The pressing matter at hand was to figure out how to get out. He had no idea how much time had passed. Luoxue was probably very anxious.

“Xuan Ji senior, what’s with the mermaid and stone statue outside?”

Xuan Ji looked at him with deep meaning. “The stone statue was a puppet Chiyou created as an outside perimeter guard for Wu Shen Palace. As for that mermaid, it is one of the nine Jiuli totems. If not for her, I would have died long ago.”

“The mermaid is a totem?”

Ding Ning’s expression underwent very exciting changes. Silently, he wondered to himself, the mermaid was clearly a great beauty, how could she be a totem? Wasn’t a totem a drawing?

“The Jiuli consists of Nine Tribes—Gengjin, Qingmu, Tianshui, Lieyan, Houtu, Heifeng, Miwu, Shanglei, and Anying. Each of them has their own totem. The mermaid outside is the totem of Tianshui. Other than Chiyou, there is probably no one who knows the history of the totems. But they have a mysterious power. In the great battle back then, most of Chiyou’s eighty-one brothers and adult warriors were killed in battle but the nine totems did not join the battle. When I escaped here, heavily injured, I defeated the puppet guard and found the Tianshui totem deeply asleep in this ice coffin. In order to preserve my life, I pierced her with the demon-sealing chain and locked her in the lake at the entrance of the secret place. I took over the ice coffin, sealed my life, and waited for your arrival.”

A touch of sadness appeared on Xuanji’s face. “I had originally planned on using the Tianshui totem’s healing power to heal myself but after the Tianshui totem was sealed by the demon-sealing chain, she lost her ability to heal. I had not expected this. Furthermore, with the passage of time, she gradually developed another spirit and became a living body, and had to eat to survive. With no other choice, I could only pass on Miwu and Qingmu totems’ special abilities that I gained through the stone man to her through the demon-sealing chain so that she would not starve to death.”

Ding Ning’s expression was very unpleasant. He had not thought that the main culprit of all this was Xuan Ji. He didn’t care about her causing Chiyou’s death in the past, after all, although he was definitely Chiyou’s descendant, he had no emotional connection to him. However, the mermaid was so innocent and lovable, yet she could still bring herself to do such a thing. This woman’s heart was so cruel.

Seeming to see the discontent in Ding Ning’s heart, Xuan Ji smiled bitterly and said, “I know you must think that I am very ruthless and cruel but you do not understand the power of a totem. If I didn’t do this, once she woke from her slumber, she would have killed me. I had to wait for your arrival, so I could not die.”

“Then can you unlock the demon-sealing chain?”

After listening to her explanation, Ding Ning felt calmer. After all, everyone was selfish. In order to survive, Xuan Ji’s actions were understandable.

“If it was just the demon-sealing chain, I would be able to unlock it but unfortunately, there is a layer of Fire of the Underworld on the demon-sealing chain which burns at my spirit constantly. I am growing weaker and weaker, so I no longer have the strength to unlock the chain.”

Seeing the unfriendly expression on Ding Ning’s face, a touch of bitterness appeared on her face. “My sins are numerous and death is too good for me, and you’re the only person who can save her now.”

“How?” Ding Ning asked urgently, delight rising in his heart.

“Open the first floor of Wu Shen Palace, obtain the General’s inheritance, take out Chiyou’s soul severing knife and chop through the demon-sealing chain, thus killing me. The Fire of the Underworld is targeted at my spirit. As long as I am dead, the Tianshui totem can be freed.”

A touch of sadness flashed across Xuan Ji’s face.

“How, how could I do that? Never mind the fact that I cannot open Wu Shen Palace, even if I could, how could I bring myself to do this? Is there another way?”

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Ding Ning was in a difficult situation. Although he did not have a good impression of Xuan Ji, he would not be able to bring himself to kill her just because her face was exactly like the demon’s.

“Killing me is helping me. For these thousands of years, my spirit has constantly been burned by the Fire of the Underworld. Such pain is the worst torture for me. Death, for me, is the best release!”

Xuan Ji smiled sadly and looked at Ding Ning tearfully. “I have thought about ending everything countless times but I am discontent. I have held out until now to wait for your arrival. I only beg of you that if you become a god one day, I hope that you will look after the Xuan Nv tribe. Consider it atonement for my crimes.”

Ding Ning’s expression changed. He had not thought that Xuan Ji had suffered thousands of years of torture just to atone for her crimes. This greatly changed his perception of her and he replied solemnly, “I promise you, if I become a god one day, I will certainly protect the Xuan Nv tribe. If I have the power, I will clear the wrongs of the Xuan Nv tribe.”

“The Wu Shen Palace is a nine-level mystical space tool that Chiyou personally crafted. With the Tianshui totem and stone man in hand, you can enter the first level of the palace, obtain the inheritance of tool creation, and take out the soul severing knife.”

Xuan Ji revealed a gratified expression and looked at him deeply. “Since you do not have the heart to kill me, I will use a secret technique to end things as repayment for your promise. I will also remove the mind mark on the flowing light and turn this mystical tool into a master-less item so you can drip blood on it and make it your own.”

“Flowing light?” Ding Ning’s gaze focused on the handle-less blade protruding from Xuan Ji’s chest.

Xuan Ji nodded. “Exactly, the flowing light is a mystical tool that God granted to the Yellow Emperor to kill me with. Over these years, much of its power has been locked away by me with a sealing technique. As long as I wipe away the mental mark on it, this mystical tool will become master-less. After you drip blood on it and claim it, the seals will gradually unlock as your cultivation increases and its strength will also increase.”

“I don’t know how to use a sword and this one doesn’t even have a handle, why would I want it?”

Ding Ning shook his head and said. Chiyou was a master of soldiers, a first-rate tool creator. He was very interested in the soul severing knife but once he remembered that Xuan Ji would die because of this, he felt a sense of resistance in his heart.

“Stupid boy, flowing light is a mystical tool formed of the godly light from the ethereal realm. It is not a weapon, it is a streak of light, a light that can be controlled through using spiritual strength. Not only can it change shape with your thoughts, but it can also kill silently. I will teach you a sword technique, once you have learned this technique, killing enemies stronger than you will be easy.”

Xuan Ji looked at Ding Ning with a warning gaze. “But you must remember, this flowing light will be coveted even by gods in the ethereal realm. So unless you do not use it at all, if you use it, you must kill all and leave no one alive. Otherwise, if this news gets out, even gods will use their devotees in the human world to come make trouble for you.”

Ding Ning’s head just calmed himself when he was doused with cold water and he shivered all over. My god, if he was targeted by the gods, he was as good as dead. Was this not a case of an innocent and common man being killed for his treasure? He could do with not having this flowing light.

Xuan Ji seemed to see through his thoughts and smiled lightly. “You don’t need to worry. At worst, you could just not use the flowing light until your life is in danger, so it would be good to have it as a life-saving trump card in crucial moments. According to what you said, there are probably not even practitioners in the God Martial Arts Realm so you have nothing to worry about. Once you have reached Sky Martial Arts realm and can easily kill those in the Real Martial Arts realm, even if the gods covet the flowing light, they would not be able to attack you directly. After all, the rules of creation still stand. At most, they would send their devotees to cause trouble for you. With the flowing light in hand, what do you need to worry about? Trouble will only come once you become a god but at that point, given your battle strength, those gods are probably not a match for you, so what is there to be afraid of? In the past, Chiyou ruled the world and no one dared to challenge his authority. You are his descendant, how could you weaken his name?”

“Senior, you are correct, there is nothing for me to fear.”

Heroic spirit abruptly rose in Ding Ning’s chest but remembering that all this came at the cost of Xuan Ji’s life, he felt very unhappy. He hung his head and said sadly, “But… if you teach me sword techniques, you are my master. How could I watch you die and do nothing?”

Xuan Ji’s beautiful eyes flickered and she said gently, “Over these thousands of years, although I have been constantly tortured by the Fire of the Underworld, it has not been for nothing. Disaster and happiness rely on each other. My soul is now hundreds of times stronger than before. If you wish, I will seal a trace of my soul within the flowing light. I trust that when you become a god, you will have already obtained the highest inheritance in Wu Shen Palace. There is some hope in resurrecting me.”

“Are you for real?” Surprise appeared on Ding Ning’s face.

Xuan Ji’s heart trembled. As the chief of the Xuan Nv tribe and the most powerful martial artist in the world, she had always been respected. From a young age, she had been empty of desires and only sought the ultimate path and had never experienced the joy between man and woman. She had never even had a friend of the opposite gender.

For these thousands of years, her heart had been filled with self-blame and regret. She also had to constantly endure the torture of the Fire of the Underworld. It would not be an exaggeration to say that her heart had turned to ash and she had survived to now through sheer willpower. Now that her wish had come true, she would go into death gladly without anything further to hold onto.

But seeing Ding Ning’s true feelings come through, the feeling of being cared about by someone else touched the softest part of her heart. A strange warmth slowly flowed into her heart.

A blush rose on her pale face and she whispered to herself silently that if he could resurrect her one day, he would be good enough for her and she would become his partner in cultivation.

A shallow but heart-tugging smile curved the corner of her lips. “I can’t be sure because I don’t know what Chiyou’s core inheritance is, which he valued the most that he hid within Wu Shen Palace. I can only gamble on a hope.”

“You can’t be sure?” Ding Ning did not hide his disappointment.

Xuan Ji’s eyes sparkled and she stared straight at him as she asked, “Is my life and death so important to you?”