Imperial Cultivation

Chapter 387: Chapter 384: Toad

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He pondered as he slowly opened the pitch-black Sealing Spirit Box.

In the next moment, a vast, majestic force descended from the sky, pressing down directly, like a mountain falling, ready to crush him into powder.

The scales beneath Chu Zhiyuan’s skin lit up, dispersing the violent force instantly.

He straightened his back and looked towards the void.

In the void, a gigantic silver toad appeared, extending its tongue towards him.

The tongue seemed infinitely long, stretching down from a kilometer high or even higher, aiming at him.

Chu Zhiyuan knew this was just an illusion, not a real toad.

The long tongue was not a physical object either, just a concentration of power.

Otherwise, he would have been dead by now.

He formed a Fearless Seal with his hands; the best way to deal with Outer Heaven Power is to fight poison with poison.

The Fearless Great Perfection Handprint summoned the power of the Fearless Realm, clashing with the void’s toad.

”Boom!” Thunder seemed to rumble in the void.

The toad slowly dissipated.

He exhaled deeply, his body aching as if it had fallen apart.

He inhaled sharply and looked at the small toad statue inside the Sealing Spirit Box.

The pitch-black toad, only the size of a palm, was exquisite and lifelike.

At first glance, it seemed like a living toad, ready to leap out of the box at any moment.

The slightly open mouth seemed about to extend its tongue.

Especially its pair of eyes, gleaming like gemstones, like a living creature.

Chu Zhiyuan’s expression turned solemn.

An invisible power enveloped it, rendering Super Sense incapable of fully perceiving it, forcing reliance on the naked eye.

No matter how he looked, it was just a small trinket, not a precious creation, much less something divine.

Chu Zhiyuan frowned in contemplation.

The earlier illusory attack was triggered by this toad statue.

Could it be a divine statue?

Capable of drawing down Outer Heaven Power from the void, borrowing its power?

He couldn’t help but ponder, what was the mystery of this toad?

Why did the disciples of the Swallowing Heaven Sect bring it?

If it were important, shouldn’t it be placed in a significant location instead of carried on their person?

Of course, it might also be that they were wary of each other, trusting no one, so carrying it themselves was safer than leaving it elsewhere.

Chu Zhiyuan extended his hand, slowly reaching towards the pitch-black toad, but stopped just before touching it.

Just as he was about to touch the toad statue, he suddenly had a premonition of danger.

He scrutinized the black toad statue, lost in thought.

Why did he sense danger? Having mastered Refining Scales, ordinary dangers posed no threat to him.

He didn’t even take out a Flying Knife to test; the knife was linked to his spirit.

A small pebble flew out from his sleeve, gently hitting the toad statue’s mouth.

The pebble silently crumbled into powder, drifting slowly onto the bed.

He flicked his sleeve.

At the same time, he Insight into the differences between the pebble and the powder, examining what residual power it held.

He discovered an unusual aura circulating within the powder.

The gray powder was swept off the bed, flew out the window, landing on the blue bricks outside.

”Sizzling...”

The bricks developed a dense array of tiny pits, as if shot by numerous arrowheads.

With Insight continued, only after this destruction did the aura within the powder completely dissipate.

Chu Zhiyuan shook his head.

The power emitted by this toad was not only extremely strong but also insidious, hard to guard against.

If it weren’t for his acute danger intuition, he truly wouldn’t have been able to fend off this silent force.

If his hand touched the statue, would it vanish silently?

Could the power of Refining Scales withstand the toad statue’s force?

Just as he was about to test again with a Flying Knife, he suddenly sensed something, quickly closing the Sealing Spirit Box.

Moments later, Su Qiuyan’s voice sounded outside: ”Princely Heir.”

Chu Zhiyuan stored the Sealing Spirit Box within the Iron Ring, smiling: ”Mr. Su, please come in.”

Su Qiuyan’s face appeared at the window.

Chu Zhiyuan had already dismounted the bed, clasped his hands in salute, and greeted outside with a smile: ”No need for Mr. Su to come personally; I could’ve gone to retrieve it myself.”

Su Qiuyan smiled: ”I’m impatient; unless I hand it to you, I feel uneasy.”

Chu Zhiyuan extended his hand: ”How about Mr. Su have a cup of tea?”

Su Qiuyan shook her head with a smile, retrieving a thick, yellowed scroll from her sleeve, handing it to Chu Zhiyuan: ”This is the Sword Technique inheritance I obtained, for you to see as a reference. There’s no need to practice it anymore.”

Chu Zhiyuan smiled: ”Mr. Su, have you practiced it?”

”I did.” Su Qiuyan shook her head: ”A complete mess; nearly ruined myself.”

Chu Zhiyuan was puzzled.

Su Qiuyan said: ”You’ll understand once you read it, it’s full of contradictions.”

”Then I’ll study it,” Chu Zhiyuan smiled.

Su Qiuyan clasped his hands: ”Farewell.”

Before Chu Zhiyuan could return the gesture, Su Qiuyan had already disappeared in a flash.

Chu Zhiyuan looked at her disappearing spot, sighing.

A Great Grandmaster still overwhelmingly outmatches him, not to mention anything else, even their Qinggong is like this.

If not for his Super Sense, he wouldn’t even detect a Great Grandmaster approaching, let alone discover in advance like now.

A Great Grandmaster’s advantages are not merely one-sided but comprehensive and multifaceted.

...

He looked down at the yellowed thick tome.

This brick-thick tome, evidently weathered by time, exuded an aura of antiquity.

He first looked at the first page, which bore the four large characters ”Void-cutting Saber Technique.”

Chu Zhiyuan raised an eyebrow.

These characters were in the current common script, not the ancient script.

He subsequently read through it, finding the entire text in current script.

Evidently, this was a transcript, not the original Secret Manual.

As for the original’s whereabouts, there’s no way to verify; otherwise, Su Qiuyan would have already obtained it.

He intended to see why Su Qiuyan, even as a Great Grandmaster, didn’t think highly of the Void-cutting Saber Technique.

Once he finished reading the over a hundred pages volume in one go, he closed his eyes without moving.

He felt he had gained a deeper understanding of Sword Technique.

The theory of the Void-cutting Saber Technique was indeed remarkable, seemingly contradictory.

But this contradiction lay in the virtual-real dichotomy.

Su Qiuyan perceived contradictions because she failed to grasp the virtual-real transformation.

Virtual thus real, real thus virtual, constantly transforming.

Virtual-real is also life-death, Yin Yang; without understanding this principle, the Saber Technique indeed seems baffling.

Chu Zhiyuan shook his head.

It seems even Great Grandmasters aren’t necessarily profound and knowledgeable; sometimes they’re quite ignorant.

Especially their comprehension of the world, indeed lacking compared to his own.

Chu Zhiyuan felt this might stem from his prior life’s education, with knowledge of astronomy and physics, alongside influences from Taoist and Buddhist philosophies.

This influence was intangible, subtly altering one’s understanding.

Without his previous life’s environment, gaining these perspectives in this world was almost impossible.

He found the mysteries of the Saber Technique easy to understand, while in others’ eyes, it was like reading a heavenly script.

The Void-cutting Saber Technique was indeed extremely profound.

Transform virtual into real, and real into virtual; mastering the Sword Technique to this level makes it nearly impossible to evade.

Currently, for his Flying Knife to hit every time, he needs the Divine Blade to make it curve or change speed.

If he mastered the Void-cutting Saber Technique, such effort wouldn’t be necessary.

At that point, a single change in the void is enough.

That would truly be a strike that never misses.

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