Volume 3 - Chapter 419: Sculpting the True Meaning, Shi Miao Awakens (Part 2)
The completion of the twelve segments of sculpting granted Li Hao a new power—one forged from all the insights he had gathered through sculpting: the Blade of Time!
Sculpting and the Painting Dao shared certain resonances, yet each bore their own uniqueness.
Li Hao's mastery of the Painting Dao manifested as the Realm of Time, allowing him to wield the power of the Time-Origin to its fullest within his domain.
But the Blade of Time was even sharper—more intimately connected to time itself than the Realm of Time ever was.
With it, he could sculpt his cultivation, sculpt his own being—and even sculpt away the power of his enemies!
"At the cost of soul lifespan, I can use the Blade of Time to sculpt myself into a stronger cultivation realm—temporarily!"
Even the source of the Great Dao could be sculpted. So too could cultivation realms. This power was terrifying. Not once had Li Hao seen any of the other monstrous prodigies he fought—those demonic geniuses—possess such an ability.
If he were to face that Black Ji again, he wouldn't even need to burn his primordial spirit. By sculpting himself with the Blade of Time, he could elevate his strength to match hers, eliminating the need to suffer the drawbacks of soul burning. He could face her head-on without injury!
And if he did burn his spirit again, he could even kill her outright—give her no chance to flee!
More than ever, Li Hao sensed that the Chess Dao, the Sculpting Dao—these so-called "arts"—were in no way inferior to the Nine Sequences Dao Paths!
After all, just by delving into a single "art," he had triggered breakthroughs in several of the Nine Sequences Origins. Ordinarily, the Nine Sequences would evolve to derive all things. But now, these arts were capable of giving rise to new insights within the Nine Sequences themselves—a testament to their mystery and power.
Returning to the present moment, Li Hao looked toward Su Jiuzhe. The elder’s posture hadn’t changed at all. Li Hao’s heart filled with gratitude, and he rose to his feet.
“Thank you, Senior, for your guidance.”
“I merely sat here,” Su Jiuzhe replied with a calm smile.
He studied Li Hao. The youth’s aura had become far more restrained—profoundly transformed. But it was not a change that showed through his cultivation realm. Perhaps it would only become evident in battle.
“To comprehend the essence of the Great Dao through an art like sculpting—you are indeed a rarity across the ages,” Su Jiuzhe remarked.
Li Hao was surprised. “There were others who also entered the Dao through such means?”
“Of course.”
Su Jiuzhe explained, “You’ve mastered the Dao-Origin Immortal Seal, so you should understand—All paths return to One. Whether grand or minor, all Daos, when cultivated to their peak, converge upon the same summit: the forging of one’s own Imperial Path.”
“Throughout history, countless have entered the Dao through side-paths like yours. But few persist to the end. The pressure of competition in the cultivation world is immense. Paths like yours are slower, and thus rarely able to keep up with the pace of those who cultivate the greater Daos.”
“Moreover, not everyone possesses your level of perception and persistence—to take such a path to this depth.”
Li Hao nodded slightly. He understood well the kind of pressure that cultivators from great clans faced. To pursue a so-called ‘side path’ was to go against tradition—against expectation.
“Do you know how long it’s been outside?” Su Jiuzhe asked.
“Outside?”
Li Hao was puzzled. He had been immersed in sculpting and had lost all sense of time. “Has it… been long?”
“Not too long—three years,” Su Jiuzhe said. “But you sculpted using time. The spacetime you were in lasted ten years. Your soul lifespan increased accordingly by ten years, while the outside world passed only three.”
“I was sculpting for ten years?”
Li Hao was shocked. In all his life, he had only experienced a few spans of ten years. To have spent a whole decade on a single sculpture?
Three years outside… that was a long time.
He hadn’t yet grown accustomed to closed-door cultivation that spanned centuries or millennia. He chuckled wryly at the thought. But when he looked again at the sculpture he had completed, he felt it was worth it—no, more than worth it.
Even if given another ten years, he might not be able to craft such a piece again. Perhaps it would take even longer.
After all, the sculpture’s surroundings were warped in layered folds of space. To carve such a form with the momentum of time… it had cost him everything—heart, blood, and sleepless effort.
“This shall be your little gift to me, then,” Su Jiuzhe said, raising a hand to receive the small sculpture of himself that Li Hao had carved.
This was no mere ornament. It was a reflection—a manifestation—that could unleash formidable power and even replicate some of Su Jiuzhe’s techniques.
Li Hao knew how precious it was. It could rival a top-tier immortal weapon. But he could always sculpt again. And without Su Jiuzhe’s help, he might never have broken through by sculpting alone.
“As long as you like it, Senior. If there’s a chance in the future, I’d like to sculpt using your imperial weapon,” Li Hao said with a smile.
“You certainly know how to strike a bargain,” Su Jiuzhe replied with a faint chuckle. His hand closed over the sculpture, and instantly the visions of Great Dao Origin swirling around it were sealed away. It transformed into an ordinary wooden carving—yet still brimming with divine charm.
He tucked it into his robe and waved his hand. “Go on, then.”
Li Hao rose, gave a deep bow, then picked up the basket of pastries he had brought and descended the mountain.
At the foot of the mountain, his fourth uncle saw him at last. He immediately noticed something had changed about Li Hao. His aura was different—and his soul lifespan had grown.
Even without the Soulspan Mirror, someone at his level could sense the shift clearly.
“Did the Ancestor guide you?” Fourth Uncle asked with a smile.
Li Hao nodded. “More or less.”
Then he waved farewell and quickly departed the ancestral ground, heading for the Exiled Immortal Court.
Three years had passed in a blink. He didn’t know if she had awoken yet.
A faint trace of guilt rose in Li Hao’s heart. He had promised to be by her side—yet somehow, he had drifted away.
Comments
Post a Comment