There was an expensive and gorgeous carved agarwood desk, which was broken into sawdust all over the floor, and the fresh and non-greasy agarwood fragrance filled the room.

A man's figure stood in the pile of sawdust.

Half of his body was hidden in the darkness, and the other half was covered by the moonlight falling from the window, a layer of light like water.

"Did you see it?"

Gui asked.

"What do you see?"

"Wu Fu."

Zhao Rong rubbed his face which still had some blush on it and nodded, "...I saw it."

The sword spirit was silent for a while, then suddenly asked, "What else?"

Zhao Rong frowned slightly and looked down at the desk that he had accidentally smashed.

This warrior who came from nowhere seems to feed on dragons. His surging blood and strength seem to be related to the dragon descendants. This is a completely different path from the Kunpeng warriors in the Xuanhuang Realm. In terms of blood and physique, he seems to be even stronger.

However, the most important thing is that this amazing physique seems to be accompanied by a very strange phenomenon.

Negative emotions accumulate in the qi, blood and flesh.

Zhao Rong was in a trance, and the drop of water from the Heart Lake that he had just borrowed flashed before his eyes again, and the scene he witnessed:

In the blood mist, strange negative desires arose.

The residual souls of dead real dragons "raised their heads" in this carnival of flesh and blood, some with joy, some with rage, some with greed, some with evil... a riot of demons.

This was definitely not as simple as the 'whale fall' he had seen in books.

After the death of giant beasts like Kunpeng, their corpses with surging blood and energy will indeed become natural nutrients, nourishing thousands of monsters.

But these are natural phenomena, and the monsters HP encounters are of all kinds, regardless of whether they are good or bad.

However, the unknown warrior Zhao Rong witnessed seemed to have some kind of evil in his blood, energy and flesh. These accumulated negative emotions of the residual soul of the real dragon... or desires, would drive a mortal crazy and die of madness just by looking at them...

No wonder Gui at that time had to stay where he was and burn the warrior's body with the fire of karma.

Even he, who had always been confident in his willpower, almost couldn't hold on.

You have to know that Zhao Rong just used Gui's heart lake projection and its eyes to take a look at the ancient scene that took place somewhere in the distant Suzaku constellation tens of thousands of years ago.

He had a vague understanding of the height at the top of the mountain where this nameless warrior stood, and the power of Gui who could kill him.

At this moment, the young scholar rubbed his face and murmured softly:

"And saw... a strange sense of Zen?"

"Zen? What is that?"

I am confused, why does this guy always say things that I have never heard of?

Zhao Rong thought about it and shook his head, "Nothing."

No more sound.

However, for a moment, he couldn't get rid of the shocking scene he just saw:

Dragon-eating warriors, self-immolating corpses, raging blood evil, gnawing dragon souls, and negative emotions that have accumulated to the point of exploding...

And after the warrior's body was burned to ashes, surrounded by this hellish scene of desire, only a skeleton of pure blue glazed color remained.

The bones are pure and spotless, the inspiration is beautiful and extremely holy.

Zhao Rong always felt that this strange scene was like a scene that often occurred in a certain religious mythology, with an inexplicable Zen meaning.

He suddenly remembered a certain sect that did not exist in the Xuanhuang Realm.

Where exactly is the 'hometown' of this distant warrior?

At this moment, Zhao Rong moved his feet and touched the sawdust on the table under his feet.

The books and study items that were previously on the desk were also scattered all over the floor.

He glanced down, frowned, and a sense of annoyance surged from the bottom of his heart.

Zhao Rong turned around, lit the lamp again, took a broom and swept up the broken wood.

Gui also calmed down temporarily at this time. After giving a drop of Heart Lake Water to Zhao Rong, it seemed to have consumed a lot of its accumulated soul power. After speaking a few words to Zhao Rong, its voice sounded a little tired.

There was silence between the two for a while.

After Zhao Rong finished sweeping the floor, he put away some books and other things.

But now I have lost my desk.

He let out a breath and glanced around the room with a slightly annoyed look. The next second, he went to the outer room and brought in a table where he usually ate with Xiao Qian'er and the others.

This table is also square and of suitable height, so it can temporarily serve as a desk.

Gui Hu said: "Zhao Rong, I am tired. I need to take a rest these few days and talk less. I have something to entrust to you..."

"Why are you the only one who has so much trouble and sleeps every day?" Zhao Rong interrupted it impatiently after hearing just a few words.

"Oh, your temper has gotten worse, yelling at me." The sword spirit laughed.

Strangely enough, it wasn't angry at all, and its tone was inexplicably smiling.

Zhao Rong pursed his lips and did not reply, feeling that his tone just now was a bit harsh.

The reason why he felt tired now was because of the help he had just given him.

But Zhao Rong didn’t want to apologize now. For some reason, he always felt impatient at this moment, and his heart was full of mixed thoughts.

He snorted softly, and then, out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a greasy stain on the new desk.

The young scholar frowned, took out a tablecloth, spread it on the new desk, and rearranged the four treasures of the study.

The tablecloth was quite large. After covering the desk completely, it hung down from all sides of the table and still had some space left after touching the ground.

He took a look and kicked the hanging tablecloth in annoyance, but was too lazy to care about it anymore.

Zhao Rong didn't know that at this moment, a few strange blood lines were faintly appearing on the edges of his brown pupils where they met the whites of his eyes.

The blood streaks were fleeting, and even if someone was around, it would be difficult to detect them with the naked eye...

"Okay, go ahead and sleep if you want, but where is the technique you promised me? You haven't given it to me yet. You asked me to take a look before, and I have seen it. It is indeed breathtaking, but if you don't give me the specific technique, how can I practice it?"

Zhao Rong was not happy.

Gui Youzai said: "I have said before that if you want to practice this skill, you must first understand your mind and see your nature."

"Isn't what you just showed me a test to see my true nature?"

"Oh, this is just the beginning. Do you know what it means to see one's true nature?"

The sword spirit paused, and then asked in a serious tone:

"From the Fuyao realm, it is no longer just about cultivating strength. From now on, cultivating the Tao must cultivate the mind. Where is the Tao? In the depths of the lake of the heart, or wandering between heaven and earth?

"A cultivator has five senses and six perceptions, and the water in the lake of the heart contains a myriad of thoughts. How can you capture the thing that is the 'Tao' among all these feelings?

"If the mind is not clear and the true nature is not seen, it is like a blind man touching an elephant! If he touches one and says it is the Tao, how can such a half-baked person pursue the Great Way?

"What is Tao? What is Tao? Have you explained it clearly? No one knows. Only you can understand it yourself, because everyone's feelings and experiences are different, and everyone's Tao is also different.

"To see one's true nature means that you have truly faced your seven emotions and six desires, and have seen through all the dirty thoughts in your heart. From these, you have sorted out your thoughts, stopped deceiving your heart, and found the thing called Tao!

"Once you succeed, then no matter where you start from now on, you will know that it is the Tao... The prerequisite for all this is that you can see your true nature clearly."

The sword spirit spoke:

"Is the warrior I just showed you scary? Is he powerful?

“Even though the blood and flesh have been polluted and become extremely filthy, under the cover of the extremely evil blood mist and the evil dragon soul, it still has a pure blue glass color, clean and flawless, indestructible.”

"Even if these evil thoughts and desires were a hundred or a thousand times stronger, they would have no effect on him. His heart of Tao is like that skeleton, clear as glass."

It spoke each word with sonorous force, "This is the peak martial artist who can control this strange technique!"

Zhao Rong was silent, put his hands on the table, crossed his fingers, and supported his chin.

He said solemnly: "What should I do?"

Gui chuckled: "You don't have to do anything deliberately. Know your mind and see your nature. Know your mind and see your nature. Ha, Zhao Rong, do you still remember what happened at the foot of Youshan Mountain a few months ago when you first arrived in Duyou City?"

Zhao Rong frowned slightly and nodded.

"Remember."

That time, he was awakened by Gui Changkai's scolding.

It told him to look directly at his heart...

Gui smiled, "This time, I won't scold you. Whether you can truly see your true nature depends on you. I'm taking a break these few days, so just pretend I don't exist and do your own things normally. You don't have to think about this matter deliberately...

"I'll wait for you for a few days. When you finally see the truth, the rest will be easy. Heh, you're actually asking me for the technique..."

The sword spirit shook his head.

"Zhao Rong, please don't keep me waiting too long. Haha, whether you can see your true nature depends on the choices you make in the first few times. The countless choices you make later may seem like choices, but in the end, they will all follow the path you took in the first few times. This is true for many things..."

It has a quiet tone.

Zhao Rong was silent.

"By the way, there is one more thing you need to do as soon as possible." Gui said suddenly.

Zhao Rong nodded without saying anything, "You go ahead."

"I just heard you say that you came to this place called Dali to do some Fengshan ceremony. Will you be back to the academy in the next few days?"

Zhao Rong shook his head: "Brother Yiwu and I have no plans to go back before the Fengshan ceremony is over."

He was curious, "Why are you asking this?"

Gui said directly: "You have to get some more water from the Zhengguan Well. When you see your true nature, you can practice this strange technique. The dragon energy in this well water will be of great use..."

"You'd better try to go back as early as possible," it warned.

Zhao Rong heard this and reported it.

He always puts spiritual practice first.

At this time, the young scholar thought for a moment, and said thoughtfully:

"It's not that I don't have time to go back. Brother Yiwu and I were at the Ministry of Rites this afternoon and have almost arranged the matters for the Fengshan Ceremony. These few days, we will mainly wait for the stipulated period of Dugu and the little emperor's vigil to be over, and then go to Jiyue Mountain together..."

"But if I go back just for a personal matter, wouldn't that be a bit inappropriate...

"Wait, there is one more thing. A student from the academy said he would come here to take a look, but he never came. Brother Yiwu and I were discussing whether we should send a letter back to remind him..."

The sword spirit listened to Zhao Rong talking to himself for a while, "Okay, you can make your own arrangements based on the situation."

Zhao Rong nodded and had some ideas in mind.

Afterwards, he stopped thinking about it and focused on the immediate priorities.

Zhao Rong calmed down, thought about it carefully, and still couldn't help asking doubtfully:

"To see one's true nature...Does that mean I need to suppress all distracting thoughts, discard all desires, and achieve a clear mind?"

Gui didn't say anything, but just chuckled and asked, "Desires and distracting thoughts, a monkey heart and a wild mind, can you really suppress them?"

Zhao Rong fell into deep thought again.

Gui yawned, "Well, I'm just giving you a friendly tip. Think carefully, have you become a little different since you just watched the image of the Heart Lake?"

Zhao Rong was stunned.

He slowly lowered his head and looked at the newly changed desk and the tablecloth he had just pulled over.

The sword spirit glanced at the young scholar's heart and said, "Some things, once you have seen them, have already left a mark in your eyes and in your heart. Change... has already begun."

"You mean..." Zhao Rong wanted to ask again.

"Alright, alright, think about it yourself and don't bother me."

The sword spirit yawned and interrupted the words.

After he finished speaking, it no longer paid any attention to him and remained silent in the lake of its heart.

Inside the house, at the table.

Zhao Rong's brows gradually furrowed.

"Enlighten your mind and see your nature...Enlighten your mind and see your nature..."

He stood up and paced around the room for a few steps, frowning and nodding.

No wonder I felt something was wrong just now. My mind was inexplicably irritated, and all kinds of desires and thoughts were growing in my heart.

Moreover, as long as there is a slight trigger from the outside world, his emotions and desires will be infinitely magnified, and he didn't realize it at the beginning...

Zhao Rong stopped and a look of alert appeared on his face.

"Stop thinking, I want to stop thinking, try to calm my thoughts and keep my mind as calm as still water."

When is his heart calmest?

Reading and writing, practicing boxing and martial arts, and also when being pressed by Yu Huaijin, practicing the piano and calligraphy.

So he did it. Zhao Rong returned to the table, took out paper money and inkstone, and began to write quietly.

After an incense stick of time, he gently put down his pen, turned around without saying a word, and practiced boxing and walking around the house...

After going back and forth like this several times, Zhao Rong's heart became as calm as a lake, and nothing was agitated anymore.

Hey, it really works...

He paused with his fist, and couldn't help but feel a little happy for a moment, but the next second, he reacted and said to himself, "It's broken."

This little bit of joy was suddenly magnified, causing his heart to surge with joy...

"How the hell can this person see his true nature?"

Zhao Rong was speechless and complained.

At this moment.

Dongdong——Dongdong——

There were several rhythmic knocks on the door.

Zhao Rong was stunned.

Who is knocking on the door in the middle of the night?

He wiped the sweat from his forehead, walked over with a puzzled look on his face, and opened the door.

Look clearly at the person outside the door.

He was stunned.

"Qing...Qingdai? Why are you here?"

Zhao Rong couldn't help but glance at the west wing behind her. The room was dark and there was no light on.

At this time, outside the door, a beautiful woman in a black dress and long hair stood on tiptoe, blew a sweet breeze into the man's ear, and whispered sweetly:

"Don't worry, she's asleep~"

Zhao Rong: “…”

You... you are not right...