Chapter 329 Shrinking the Abyss
It had been a long time since I last carefully observed the Yama Sword. Back then, I was completely ignorant, lacking even experience in fighting other Great Completion Realm experts. My power was essentially dormant, and my perception was as dull as if I were asleep. To me then, the Yama Sword seemed no different from an ordinary Impermanence Sword.
Re-examining this legendary artifact passed down through the Zhu family, which is said to possess immense power, evokes a different feeling.
This sword is practically a condensed mass of power.
It was as if a blindingly bright white light had been compressed and condensed into a solid state, making it impossible for me to see the original appearance of the Yama Sword. I only saw it as an incredibly dazzling silver-white light sword. In the past, Zhu Shi often used the Yama Sword to launch white sword energy or sword light in battle, and those moves were exactly the same as the white light before my eyes.
Moreover, I also felt a sense of familiarity with this phenomenon of force compression and condensation from another perspective.
This sword, like the "Golden Elixir" of the naval Xuanwu, is a super weapon that compresses and stores power in a certain form, and releases it when needed.
This argument might sound like the Zhu family's creation of the Yama Sword was a blatant copy of the Naval Xuanwu's "Golden Elixir," but the truth could be the opposite. In terms of craftsmanship, the Zhu family's creation of the Yama Sword and the Naval Xuanwu's "Golden Elixir" are worlds apart, to the point that the latter seems like a clumsy imitation of the former.
Considering the past relationship between Zhu Yi, who was once the Great Impermanence, and Xuanwu, the naval commander, which seems to have had a hidden friendship, the similarity between forging the Yama Sword and the "Golden Elixir" is likely not a coincidence.
From the perspective of total power, the total amount of magical power contained within the Yama Sword far surpasses that of the "Golden Elixir".
To say something that might be hard for many to believe, even if I were now the Great Impermanence, the total energy of my full-force attack would still be less than the Xuanming Strike unleashed by the Water Master Xuanwu after shattering its "Golden Core." Being struck by such a massive energy mass would not have left me unharmed; to say that it was a deadly move capable of killing the Great Impermanence is absolutely no exaggeration. The reason it lost to me so easily was simply because the Water Master Xuanwu couldn't effectively control that excessively vast power.
Since the Yama Sword has sealed such unfathomable power, if one could fully master it, becoming the Great Impermanence would be more than enough.
After hearing my evaluation, Old Master Zhu looked at the Yama Sword with the eyes of someone whose worldview had been shattered and forced to be rebuilt. Zhu Shi almost dropped the Yama Sword, then quickly gripped it tightly, looking at the magical weapon he knew so well over and over again, before saying stupidly, "No way, really... am I going to get a power-up?"
"Speaking of which, isn't it true that the Yama Sword can't be hidden and revealed at will like the Impermanence Sword? But I saw you summon it just now as if it were perfectly natural..." I asked Zhu Shi.
Mr. Zhu replied, seemingly subconsciously, "...Because I've recently been teaching her how to further communicate with the Yama Sword. She's learning very quickly and has already grasped the knack..."
Zhu Shi replied, "That's right... I now possess combat strength at the Cheng level."
As she spoke, she seemed a little proud, but when she saw my Great Impermanence and Ma Zao's Great Completion level, her smug expression immediately collapsed.
I asked curiously, "Since Zhu Shi and all the successive generations of the Zhu family have established connections with the forging of the Yama Sword, why has no one discovered the true power within the Yama Sword?"
"Perhaps it's because... 'being difficult to perceive' is also one of the characteristics of the power of the Great Impermanence." Old Master Zhu seemed to have barely digested the astonishing fact. "Taking you as an example makes it easy to understand. Ordinary demon hunters cannot perceive your mana fluctuations; at most, they can only perceive the mana fluctuations of the flames that are essentially your clone. This is because when the power rises to a certain level, it becomes so enormous that it exhibits a nature that is difficult to perceive."
"As the ancients said, 'The greatest form is formless, the greatest sound is silent,' and 'We cannot see the true face of Mount Lu because we are in the mountain ourselves.'... The Great Impermanence and those qualified as Great Impermanence are super beings capable of changing the phenomena of heaven and earth; their power is on a different dimension from that of ordinary things. Just as two-dimensional beings cannot perceive or interfere with three-dimensional beings, unless you actively lower your level, ordinary demon hunters will not be able to normally perceive your magical fluctuations."
"Of course, just as elementalization can be imitated, this imperceptible characteristic can also be imitated. Those who were your enemies in the past must have noticed that they couldn't sense your magical fluctuations. Some of them might realize the truth before they die, while others might mistakenly believe that you have mastered the ability to conceal your aura..."
"And our Zhu family did not believe that the power of the Great Impermanence existed within the Yama Sword simply because we could not perceive its true magical level. On the contrary, I always thought that the reason why such 'rumors' were spread was because the power of the Great Impermanence possessed that kind of property, which caused some people in the family to have unrealistic fantasies in the past... but I did not expect that the 'rumors' were actually true."
“But even if our Zhu family can’t figure out the details of forging the Yama Sword, shouldn’t the other Great Impermanences be able to? After all, Zhuang Cheng could.” Zhu Shi said doubtfully, “Hasn’t any of the other Great Impermanences ever taken a look at the magical artifact left by our ancestor Zhu Yi? Or did they take a look but refrain from making a move on forging the Yama Sword due to some kind of concern?”
“What could the Great Impermanence possibly have to worry about? The reason why no Great Impermanence has considered forging the Yama Sword is probably because they don’t care.” Old Master Zhu shook his head. “First of all, forging the Yama Sword is a magical artifact that only our ancestor Zhu Yi and the Zhu family can use. The magical power sealed within it can only be used by us. Even if other Great Impermanence obtained it, it would be of no use to us.”
"Secondly... the Great Impermanence probably don't care whether the Great Impermanence will reappear among the descendants of the Zhu family."
Now I can probably understand that mentality.
The Great Impermanence beings of the past were essentially without any ideology or stance, and were certainly not emperors or generals who manipulated political resources in the mortal world. They were transcendent individuals, detached from society, and free and unfettered between heaven and earth. There was no cake to be divided before them, and they had no worries about "if there's one more person to share the cake, I'll get less."
I even think that the current Great Impermanence doesn't have any so-called ideology or stance, such as transcendence, governance, or whether mortals should be turned into their own resources and consumables—do mortals even qualify to be the Great Impermanence's resources and consumables? Human flesh, bones, and souls can indeed be powerful materials for many rituals and spells, but if the Great Impermanence wants to achieve any miracles, why would they need so many roundabout steps?
From this new perspective, I can't help but re-examine geopolitics and transcendence, as well as the fickle nature of supporting both sides.
What exactly are they planning to do?
Getting back to the main point, the Zhu family must have had people repeatedly test the true nature of the Yama Sword in the past. However, it is estimated that the seal that preserves the power of the Great Impermanence inside the Yama Sword is too strong, and ordinary testing methods cannot detect it. Moreover, none of the successive generations of Zhu family members have had the talent to push their communication with the Yama Sword to the ultimate level.
Speaking of communication, I am reminded of Zhu Shi's past possession of the "True Position Law of Heaven and Earth" and the evaluation of Zhu Shi by the creator of the freak.
"If one possesses the power to freely communicate with all things in nature... then could one fully communicate with the Yama Sword and unleash all its power?" I asked.
"I don't know, but it should be possible in theory," Zhu Shi replied. "Grandpa once said that if I still had my past talent, I could unleash all the power to forge the Yama Sword. There's even hope that by forging the Yama Sword, I could reach the Great Perfection level in my lifetime..."
Mr. Zhu sighed and said, "If I had known from the beginning that forging the Yama Sword would have the power of great impermanence, no matter what Ajiu said, I would not have let my granddaughter play all day and waste her time."
"Ma Zao, with your power of return, can you restore Zhu Shi's 'Mount Buzhou' to its 'proper position of heaven and earth'?" I asked.
"Huh?" Zhu Shi was startled.
If this can be achieved, it means that Zhu Shi has the opportunity to skip the Great Completion stage and ascend directly from the Completion level to the Great Impermanence realm by forging the Yama Sword.
This is tantamount to gaining a powerful warrior at the Great Impermanence level in our camp, which is undoubtedly a great thing. In the future, should Ming Zhuo secretly attack the Zhu family due to our hostile relationship, the Zhu family will be able to provide a strong defensive and counterattack capability.
Asaha thought about it very seriously, and then said, "...My power of return can directly affect the abilities of other people. Even if the abilities have been corrupted, they should be able to be reset back to their past form through my power... However, I don't know if the power of return can also affect the divine talents of the descendants of the Great Impermanence."
"What if we fail? Will it have negative consequences for you and Zhu Shi?" I asked cautiously.
"No," Mazao replied earnestly.
“Then we can give it a try,” I said.
"Let's find a more open space first," Mr. Zhu advised. "The one who forged the Yama Sword is extremely violent. If there is a problem in communication with it, its power will leak out and damage the surrounding environment."
This sword actually has its own personality?
That makes sense, since most magical powers are manifestations of spiritual and soul power, it's not surprising that some might exhibit personality traits.
This would make it inconvenient to try it in the room with Zhu Jiu, the "patient," present. Although the villa has its own small garden, it is, after all, located in an upscale neighborhood in the city center. If they cause any disturbance, attracting attention would be secondary; causing the power of the Great Impermanence to erupt in the city is not something that can be taken lightly.
I remembered a place where it didn't matter how much it was damaged, so I reached out and grabbed Zhu Shi's shoulder.
“I know a good place,” I said.
"Oh, I see... But why did you grab me?" Zhu Shi asked, puzzled.
“That’s true.” I thought for a moment and said, “Actually, it doesn’t necessarily have to be the action of ‘grabbing’.”
After I finished speaking, I unleashed a large amount of flames, engulfing everyone present except for the unconscious Zhu Jiu.
In the brief moment before anyone could react, I took a step northward.
Then, the flames from all directions vanished, and the surrounding scenery underwent a dramatic change. This was no longer the Zhu family's villa, but the desolate Moonlit Mountain. It was midday, with blue skies and white clouds, and sunlight streaming onto the barren, shattered landscape. I wasn't the only one there; Ma Zao, Zhu Shi, and Old Master Zhu were also present.
In just a moment, we traveled from Xianshui City to Yueyin Mountain, more than a thousand kilometers away.
(End of this chapter)
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