Shu Xin had just found a meditation cushion to sit on when the Sword Spirit began rambling on about everything it knew regarding secret methods for surviving the tribulation.
【The things Xu Guan gave you are somewhat useful, but they can only treat the symptoms, not the root cause. The reason fewer and fewer people are ascending these days is partly because there isn’t enough spiritual energy, but also because everyone only cultivates their Dao and neglects their heart.】
【In the past, many cultivators used all kinds of secret methods to survive their tribulations and successfully become Earthly Immortals, only to discover that they could no longer ascend. And since they happened to live for a very long time, what else could they do but wreak havoc upon the world?】
Whenever the Sword Spirit mentioned those Earthly Immortals, its disdain was unmistakable.
In its view, spiritual energy had simply been too abundant in the past, and there had been too many treasures left behind by the various immortals who ascended. As a result, the disciples and descendants who came later had gradually forgotten the true purpose of cultivation, striving only to increase their cultivation level.
In the end, this had caused the entire cultivation world’s ecosystem to deteriorate at an alarming rate.
Cultivators who still diligently cultivated both the Dao and their hearts had become an endangered species.
“Fine. Then tell me, how exactly am I supposed to survive the tribulation?” Shu Xin asked.
【Er… you know, I’m ultimately just a sword. But I once heard my former master say that the Three Winds and Four Fires test only the things that you alone know. So as long as you see through falsehood and remain firm in your Dao heart, you should be able to pass safely.】
【In short, just believe in yourself.】
“You’ve said a whole lot of perfectly correct nonsense,” Shu Xin said sourly. “All right, protect me. I’ll handle it myself.”
【Um… don’t push yourself too hard, either.】 The Sword Spirit hesitated before continuing. 【My rank is fairly high. If you really can’t get through it, I can suppress the inner demons for you and help you pass. Of course, that’s a last resort. I generally wouldn’t help you.】
“You never mentioned that you could do that before. Were you afraid I’d lose my nerve and start relying on you?” Shu Xin couldn’t help laughing. She patted the sword’s body. “Don’t worry. There are so many idiots in the Longevity Dao Sect who managed to get through their tribulations. How could I possibly be worse than them?”
Hearing this, the Sword Spirit immediately relaxed.
That was right. No matter what, Shu Xin was still better than those people.
Shu Xin began meditating seriously and soon entered a state of deep concentration.
Her foundation was already exceptionally solid. The reason she had delayed breaking through while at the Longevity Dao Sect was simply that she hadn’t yet accumulated enough capital to protect herself.
Now that she had escaped danger—and happened to need a dramatic “turning the tables in the face of adversity” scene to make a name for herself—there was naturally no longer any reason to keep suppressing her cultivation.
When Shu Xin closed her eyes and relaxed her body and mind, the Three Winds and Four Fires tribulation belonging to cultivators arrived as well.
Although cultivators had categorized the Three Winds and Four Fires, in practice, they came at random when someone underwent the tribulation, leaving the cultivator little time to react.
Still, cultivators had managed to discern certain patterns. Usually, whatever came first was the area in which the cultivator was weakest.
Shu Xin was rather curious to find out what her greatest weakness was.
Would the Fire of Fame and Fortune come first, or the Fire of Karma?
Just as Shu Xin focused her mind and prepared to thoroughly question her own Dao heart, she suddenly felt an invisible yet searing flame ignite within her dantian. In an instant, it nearly burned away her reason.
Countless cultivators suddenly appeared in her mind.
Some were short-video creators she had come across in her previous life. Some were minor favorites she had once followed. There were even the stars from certain nude films she had watched in her foolish youth. Naturally, there were also all kinds of rather handsome cultivators she had encountered after transmigrating to this world.
There was something for everyone.
The crucial point was that they were either wearing very little or nothing at all.
They all smiled at Shu Xin, as though she could possess everything simply by reaching out her hand.
At the same time, Shu Xin could feel her breathing grow rapid and her heart begin pounding faster and faster.
It was as if a little deer had started charging wildly around inside her chest, with no intention of stopping.
It was the Fire of Passion?
It was actually the Fire of Passion!
Shu Xin was stunned. She simply couldn’t believe it.
She never would have imagined that her weakness was the Fire of Passion.
Was this even reliable?
Shu Xin rolled her eyes without the slightest trace of grace. Then she circulated her spiritual energy and calmed herself down a little before relaxing her body and beginning to admire the various beauties conjured by the illusion.
“Why are there foreigners too? Well, I suppose I did watch foreign films back then.”
“The blond hair and blue eyes on this foreigner are clearly not authentic enough. The tribulation of the cultivation world still doesn’t understand the physical structure of different races very well.”
“Wait. Fine, I can accept both Chinese and foreigners, but why are there even demon cultivators who haven’t fully completed their transformations? Is the preference conjured by this Fire of Passion really that bizarre?”
“Situ Jian’s model isn’t very good… Wait, how did he get in here?”
After Shu Xin finished commenting on every single one of them, the flame in her heart disappeared without her realizing it.
Apart from the cold sweat covering her body, it was as though nothing had happened at all.
“Phew…” Shu Xin touched her head, her hand coming away covered in sweat.
Clatter. Clatter.
The two swords that had been standing guard beside Shu Xin fell to the ground.
Shu Xin turned her head. As if realizing what had happened, she blushed slightly. “Aren’t you supposed to have seen everything there is to see, Sword Spirit? Why are you making such a fuss over a tiny Fire of Passion?”
【I shouldn’t be making a fuss?】
【I’m bonded to a cultivator, not someone from the Hehuan Sect.】
【Why were all the people conjured by your Fire of Passion practically naked?】
【And why are you attracted to demon cultivators who haven’t even fully transformed?】
The Sword Spirit was utterly baffled.
【And why did people from foreign lands appear in your illusion? Those people have been extinct for ages. Where did you even see them?】
Shu Xin felt that perhaps the Fire of Passion hadn’t been trying to burn her to death at all. It had simply wanted to make her die of embarrassment.
“In my world, that’s just basic sex education. You wouldn’t understand.” Taking advantage of the fact that the Sword Spirit had never visited her world, Shu Xin bluffed shamelessly. “Honestly, you’re making a mountain out of a molehill. Looks like you’re not as capable as you claim.”
The Sword Spirit still wanted to say something, but Shu Xin had already closed her eyes and continued with the rest of the tribulation.
Please, don’t toy with me anymore.
Even Shu Xin, who considered herself thick-skinned by now, was finding it a little too much to bear.
Soon, another rather forceful wind swept toward Shu Xin.
She felt that the wind was somewhat chilly, like the breeze that came after a winter rain. It carried a distinct coldness, but it was still bearable.
A demonic cultivator whose features were impossible to make out then appeared before Shu Xin and began babbling something as he stared at her.
Shu Xin kicked him away and discovered that he was merely at the Core Condensation stage. One kick was enough to send him vanishing into nothingness.
Immediately afterward, several more flames wrapped around Shu Xin and began to burn, but they barely harmed her flesh, bones, or meridians.
After a long while, the winds and flames finally died down.
Shu Xin waited.
Then she waited some more.
She hadn’t even shifted her rear an inch on the meditation cushion.
After a long while, a faint breeze finally stirred. It brushed lightly across Shu Xin’s face, as though merely passing through for appearance’s sake, then vanished in the blink of an eye.
Shu Xin blinked, unable to believe it. “Sword Spirit, I… Did I really make it through the Three Winds and Four Fires?”
【It seems you did.】
“Isn’t this a little different from what you told me?” Shu Xin scratched the back of her head. “I didn’t feel anything difficult at all.”
【Your Dao heart is simply too steadfast.】 The Sword Spirit tried to explain. 【The Fire of Passion was your weakest point, but aside from being a little embarrassed, you didn’t seem to react much. After all, they were all naked, so you only had a slightly faster heartbeat.】
【As for the Fire of Cause and Effect, that should have been the demonic cultivator that manifested in the illusion.】
“Oh. I used to fight demonic cultivators above my cultivation level all the time, so he was just too weak.” Shu Xin hammered a fist into her palm. “I knew pretending to be a newbie and ambushing those overconfident idiots would pay off.”
Please, stop talking. I’m begging you. If you keep this up, the cultivators who died beneath the Three Winds and Four Fires will climb out of the underworld and challenge you to a group fight.
Even the Sword Spirit had never imagined that Shu Xin’s Dao heart would truly be this clear and unshakable.
Was this what came from never losing a fight?
“As for the Fire of Lifespan or whatever, I’m still young. Most people my age would be pleased just to form their Core. Look at me—I’m amazing.” Shu Xin could not resist praising herself. “And I’ve trained my body pretty well too. I used to be afraid that someone would stab me in the back, so I even took the time to learn some body-tempering techniques from body cultivators.”
During those hundred years when she could not break through, Shu Xin had simply learned other skills to make up for her shortcomings.
The more skills, the better.
The direct result was that her foundation was extraordinarily solid and her Dao heart exceptionally clear. When it came to breaking through from the Dao Infant realm to the Dongtian realm, she encountered practically no resistance.
The Three Winds and Four Fires had truly been nothing more than a formality, allowing her to pass through the tribulation with ease.
“How long did it take me to complete everything from the moment I began meditating?” Shu Xin asked.
【Three shichen.】
【That’s… pretty good, I suppose. My previous masters all passed through it quite easily too. The fastest only needed one shichen.】
In truth, the fastest had taken an entire day.
Even in ancient times, those who could pass through a tribulation so smoothly were few and far between. They were either born sages or people blessed with tremendous fortune. Every one of them had the power to turn the cultivation world upside down.
Could there truly be nothing in this world capable of troubling Shu Xin—or making her reluctant to let go?
The Sword Spirit’s feelings were complicated, but it still stubbornly said, 【You don’t need to be too proud.】
If she became any prouder, the world itself might not be able to contain her.
“Heehee.” Shu Xin lay down and crossed one leg over the other. “Keep watch outside for me. I can’t leave too early. I’m already talented enough. If I become any more monstrous, the people of the Everlasting Dao Sect might really lose their composure.”
“Remember to keep an eye on things and time it carefully before I enter meditation to break through again.” Shu Xin yawned. “I’m a little sleepy. I’m going to get some proper sleep.”
【Go ahead, go ahead. I’ll keep watch for you.】
That was what the Sword Spirit said.
Perhaps the Three Winds and Four Fires had still consumed a great deal of Shu Xin’s energy and spirit. She soon fell into a deep sleep.
The Sword Spirit coiled its own blade and guarded Shu Xin firmly from both sides, preventing anyone from approaching her.
Cultivators had no need to sleep; meditating for a short while was enough to restore their energy.
Yet over the past hundred years or so, Shu Xin had hardly ever truly slept.
The Sword Spirit remembered that the last time Shu Xin had fallen asleep was when she had been traveling through the mountains with the young Situ Jian. They had taken shelter from the rain in a ruined mountain temple, and Shu Xin had drifted into a deep sleep to the sound of rainfall.
After that, throughout all the time she spent in the Everlasting Dao Sect, she had either cultivated, hunted down demonic cultivators to restore her strength, or traveled among various aristocratic clans.
Every day, she had countless things to do.
But she had always been alone.
Ten days later.
The confrontation between Xu Guan and the Lin family ancestor finally roused Shu Xin from her dream.
Shu Xin stared blankly at the scene before her for quite some time before realizing that she had already woken up.
“It really is better to be a cultivator. Even after sleeping this long, I’m not hungry.” Shu Xin quickly regained her energy and stood up to stretch her arms and legs.
“How are things outside?”
【That old bastard from the Lin family is in the middle of trading insults with Xu Guan. If they really start fighting, he won’t be able to beat Xu Guan. But he has plenty of magic treasures, so even if Xu Guan wins, he’ll probably be injured.】
“If he weren’t strong, Situ Jian wouldn’t have chosen him as his master. The stronger he is and the more profound his cultivation techniques, the stronger Situ Jian can become in the future.” Shu Xin sighed twice. “Then let’s make some preparations and give that old man outside a shock delivered by the wandering cultivator he looks down on.”
Shu Xin took spirit stones from her storage pouch. They had already piled up around her like a small mountain.
Now that the Three Winds and Four Fires tribulation had passed, the only thing standing between her and the Dongtian realm was filling herself with enough spiritual energy.
When all the spirit stones around her had turned to dust, Shu Xin could clearly feel that every aperture in her body had absorbed its fill of spiritual energy. Yet they continued drawing in the spiritual energy around her without the slightest fatigue.
Shu Xin took out another enormous pile of spirit stones and let her body absorb the spiritual energy at will.
She had no idea how many times she repeated the process before she heard what seemed to be the sound of some invisible shackle shattering within her.
The next moment, thunder rumbled in the heavens.
Shu Xin raised her hand and gave it a gentle wave.
The spiritual energy she could no longer absorb dispersed back into the air and began spreading outward in every direction, with her at the center.
Outside, Xu Guan’s delighted voice rang out.
“Hahaha! My good disciple is about to reach the Dongtian realm!”
Anyone who was not blind could sense the disturbance in the surroundings.
Whether it was Yuan Dawei, Li Qinghe, and the other disciples of the Asking Gods Sect; the servants Shu Xin had captured; or the cultivators in the ceremonial procession brought by the Lin family ancestor, they all turned toward the place where the phenomenon had appeared.
Breaking through from the Dao Infant realm to the Dongtian realm—
Even in the Everlasting Dao Sect, where spiritual energy was abundant, it was not easy.
For those who advanced quickly, it might take anywhere from a month to a year.
For those who progressed slowly, it could take five or ten years of struggle.
But how long had Shu Xin taken?
Even counting from the day she left the Everlasting Dao Sect, the total time had barely reached a year.
And the time she had actually spent might have been only half a year—or even just a few months.
Such talent… Could she truly be the same Shu Xin whose cultivation had not advanced in the slightest over the past century?
Lin Jian, the Lin family ancestor, was no fool. He instantly recognized the crux of the matter.
Shu Xin must have been capable of breaking through at any time. She had simply continued to temper and refine herself, finally reaching this moment of accumulated power bursting forth.
But that was not how it appeared to outsiders.
Shu Xin had spent a hundred years struggling in the Longevity Dao Sect without making the slightest progress in her cultivation. Yet after arriving at the Seeking Gods Sect, she began advancing by leaps and bounds, breaking straight through to the next realm.
A cultivator of the Grotto-Heaven Realm—a Grotto-Heaven True Person—was no longer an insignificant figure, even in the Longevity Dao Sect. Such a person held genuine authority.
Lin Jian’s expression turned terribly grim as he looked at Xu Guan, his eyes seeming to drip with venom.
“A disciple like this is beyond what your Seeking Gods Sect can contain. Let her return to the Longevity Dao Sect with me. I guarantee she will be looked after there. There may even be a major figure willing to take her as a disciple.”
Xu Guan laughed without the slightest politeness.
“Fellow Daoist Lin, why deceive yourself? With the way you look right now, you practically want to eat her alive.” Xu Guan had been prepared for this day ever since Shu Xin became his disciple. After all, she had warned him that something like this would happen.
But Xu Guan was a cultivator himself. He knew how difficult the Three Winds and Four Fires were, and he also knew that no one could guarantee a successful breakthrough.
Shu Xin had only been in seclusion for ten days, yet she had already broken through?
If she had displayed such talent in the Longevity Dao Sect, then perhaps…
She would have died without even leaving a corpse behind long ago.
No. That was not quite right. She would probably have become the lofty wife-lord of some great clan.
They would have smiled as they sent over countless outstanding disciples from the sect and legitimate sons from prestigious clans, allowing Shu Xin to choose among them. Then, in perfect harmony, they would build her a clan of her own—one called the “Shu Clan.”
The quickest way to destroy a person was not only to crush them completely. One could also drag them into the mire and make them wallow in it together.
The great clans of the Longevity Dao Sect would never allow such an astonishing genius from a rogue-cultivator background to emerge.
They would use the bond between master and disciple, the greater good of the sect, and honeyed words to destroy a cultivator’s Dao heart.
They would temper her into a sharp blade and a sturdy shield.
Anything but allowing her to remain simply a cultivator named Shu Xin.
“See that? The disciple your Longevity Dao Sect couldn’t teach, our Seeking Gods Sect managed to bring forth. The disciple you suppressed will one day become a pillar of our Seeking Gods Sect, bringing glory to our gates.” Xu Guan threw his head back and laughed, releasing all the frustration that had plagued him for years in a single stroke. “Fellow Daoist Lin, you should be thinking about how you’ll report this to your sect once you return. Thanks to your Lin family, you’ve given this poor Daoist such an outstanding disciple!”
Without warning, Lin Jian’s figure blurred as he shot toward the place where Shu Xin was breaking through.
“Impudent!”
Xu Guan flew into a rage. On the territory of his Seeking Gods Sect, did this old bastard from the Lin family actually intend to attack and kill someone?
In the blink of an eye, Xu Guan had already blocked Lin Jian’s path.
“Move.”
Lin Jian naturally knew what it meant to attack a sect master within the Seeking Gods Sect.
Even so, he had to kill Shu Xin first.
A girl so young had already attained the Grotto-Heaven Realm. Once she reached the Immaculate Realm and replaced Xu Guan as the youngest Immaculate Realm cultivator of her generation, would the Longevity Dao Sect not extend an olive branch to Shu Xin once more?
And when that time came, his Lin family would be the perfect offering to atone for its sins.
Before matters deteriorated to that point, all he had to do was kill Shu Xin. Everything would become simple.
With a single gesture from Lin Jian, the cultivators who had been waiting outside obediently immediately drew their magical weapons and surged into the Seeking Gods Sect in a mass.
“Master, we’ll stop them.”
Yuan Dawei and the others stepped forward without hesitation, swords in hand, blocking the cultivators outside the sect who wanted to rush in and aid Lin Jian.
They might not be able to help their master much, but at the very least, they could keep these vermin from obstructing their master and senior sister.
“Move.” Lin Jian had completely lost control. Countless magical treasures poured out from his body, each one shining with powerful spiritual light and shielding him so thoroughly that not even a breeze could pass through.
Yet Xu Guan showed no sign of being at a disadvantage. With nothing more than the horsetail whisk in his hand, he was able to hold off Lin Jian and all his magical treasures by himself.
Shu Xin was at the crucial stage of stabilizing her cultivation after breaking through to the Grotto-Heaven Realm. If she were disturbed and left with hidden flaws, it would affect her future prospects in a major way.
Neither Shu Xin nor Xu Guan had expected the Lin family ancestor to be so ruthless and decisive—to risk bearing the blame for provoking a conflict between two sects simply to forcefully kill Shu Xin.
It was clear that his assessment of Shu Xin had risen from that of an insignificant enemy to someone who absolutely had to die.
In the time it took to speak, the situation changed again.
Just as Xu Guan was preparing to unleash a powerful technique and cut Lin Jian in half, a voice rang out.
“Master, move.”
An elegant figure emerged against the light.
She held a sword in each hand, while spiritual energy surged around her body as if it had become tangible.
Her entire form radiated killing intent.
Shu Xin swung both spirit swords. Two crossing arcs of sword energy shot through the air, carving a long, deep trench into the ground.
Xu Guan retreated at the sound of her voice.
Lin Jian, however, neither dodged nor evaded. Instead, he drove the magical treasures around him forward in a fierce assault, meeting Shu Xin’s sword strike head-on.
A cultivator who had only just reached the Grotto-Heaven Realm thought she could block an Immaculate Realm cultivator? Ridiculous.
That thought remained in Lin Jian’s mind for only an instant before vanishing completely.
Because he saw that the two seemingly ordinary arcs of sword energy suddenly transformed into countless streams of blood energy when they collided with his magical treasures.
That blood energy came from demonic cultivators and was exceptionally effective at defiling magical treasures.
Struck head-on, the magical treasures under Lin Jian’s control immediately dimmed. Their spiritual light weakened, and even their colors faded.
Likewise, the damage to the treasures affected Lin Jian himself.
His figure jolted, but before he could recover, Xu Guan once again blocked his path.
“Your disciple of the Seeking Gods Sect actually uses techniques of demonic cultivators?” Lin Jian shouted furiously. “This blood energy that can defile magical treasures is beyond what ordinary demonic cultivators can produce. And you still claim you have no dealings with them?”
“Oh my, isn’t this Elder Lin?” Shu Xin slid her sword back into its sheath and deliberately spoke in feigned panic. “The blood energy was seized from the demonic cultivators of the Blood Demon Sect when they came to cause trouble at our Seeking Gods Sect a few days ago. I had just broken through and suspected that this blood energy was disturbing my mind, so I released it. How could I have known it would hurt you, Elder Lin?”
“No, wait. Surely not. You’re an Immaculate Realm cultivator, Elder Lin. How could you have been injured by a little cultivator like me, who has only reached the Grotto-Heaven Realm?”
“Oh, right. Isn’t this the Seeking Gods Sect?” Shu Xin was truly merciless when she spoke, each word capable of infuriating a person to death. “Elder Lin, could it be that the Longevity Dao Sect cast you out as well, leaving you no choice but to seek refuge with our Seeking Gods Sect? Unfortunately, that won’t do. The cultivators of our Seeking Gods Sect are all young and beautiful. Your age and aptitude simply don’t meet the requirements.”
Xu Guan let out a sudden laugh, unable to hold it in.
“You… you…” Lin Jian was already suffering terribly from the backlash caused by the damage to his magical treasures. He had never expected to be mocked by an ant-like cultivator as well, and he nearly became so enraged that he lost control of his qi.
Who knew Shu Xin still wasn’t satisfied? He pressed on, making matters even worse. “Ancestor Lin, surely you didn’t come here for my sake, did you? Thanks, but no thanks. If I’m going to choose a master, I’ll choose one who cultivates through his own ability. I can’t learn those crooked, unorthodox techniques of yours.”
Shu Xin waved his hands repeatedly, sighing and lamenting.
The Lin family ancestor finally lost control and spat out a mouthful of blood.
