After that month in the Sacred Ground ended, grey clouds gathered in the sky.
Then, in an instant—
GRRR!
Thunder struck the sky, and the earth shook violently. This was certainly not a natural phenomenon.
Lightning struck an isolated area of the Sacred Ground, and the one in that place was Zhang Yong. But he wasn't training.
The grey clouds were condensing above the Sacred Ground, and lightning crisscrossed the sky like angry serpents.
The air became heavy with destructive energy, and the ground beneath their feet began to shake violently.
A blaze of purple flame flared before Zhang Yong, and at its center were three swords.
"A little more, I'll refine these weapons a little more," Zhang Yong's gaze was sharp.
The presence of Heavenly Thunder only meant that the weapons he was forging were of the Heavenly rank. But upon closer inspection, what Zhang Yong had made was only one sword of the Heavenly rank, along with two other swords.
After the atmosphere settled somewhat, Zhang Yong looked at the three swords he had refined with intense focus.
The main sword glowed with a faint purple light, while the other two gleamed with a lesser but no less powerful brilliance.
Zhang Yong smiled with satisfaction. "Finally... it's complete. These swords."
Suddenly, Ping Ping appeared with great urgency, waving its arms in panic. "Master! The Heavenly Thunder that swept through the Sacred Ground... it caused some damage in the northern region!"
Zhang Yong nodded his head. "I know. It's near the Red Steel Mountain. Bring Su Ming."
It took only moments for Su Ming to appear, his hair flying and his eyes blazing with sharp intensity. "You summoned me? I felt a violent tremor."
Zhang Yong pointed to the three floating swords before him. "It's time to upgrade your weapon." Then he reached out toward a crystal sword with a purple glow, but it appeared broken, covered in countless cracks.
Su Ming took the sword and looked at it in astonishment. "This... you used the deer horn? And why is it cracked?"
"It's a Heavenly-rank weapon," Zhang Yong said nonchalantly, picking his ear. "And it's a Dharma Treasure as well."
Su Ming's jaw dropped in shock. "What?! How... what, huh?!"
Dharma Treasures were rare treasures that evolved alongside the user and bonded with their soul. After that, they would never be separated unless the weapon was destroyed.
After Su Ming absorbed the shock, he looked at the cracked sword in his hand with a mixture of wonder and awe. "A Heavenly-rank Dharma Treasure... but why does it look so fragile?"
Zhang Yong smiled, extending his hand to hand him the other two swords. "Appearances can be deceiving. This sword is made from the Rainbow Shadow Deer's horn and Crystal Heart Tree leaves, mixed with other materials from the Sacred Ground. We were traveling through those previous places so I could make this for you. The cracks you see are channels for directing spiritual energy. Try it."
After Su Ming grasped the cracked crystal sword, he felt an unexpected weight and a strong pulse of energy within it. As he tried to inject a little Qi, the sword suddenly vibrated and split into thousands of fine crystal shards that shimmered with rainbow colors, hovering in the air like a swarm of glowing fireflies.
Su Ming's eyes widened in surprise. "This... it controls the shards through mental energy!"
Zhang Yong smiled proudly. "The Rainbow Sword. Its shards can penetrate any defense and form countless attack patterns. And most importantly..." Zhang Yong winked. "It grows with you."
Then Zhang Yong extended his hands toward the other two swords and held one in each arm. In his right hand, he held Ling Xi's sword. He had melted down Emperor Kuan Ling's sword and used it to strengthen Ling Xi's sword further. Now, it was of the best quality and beauty.
"This is what I call an upgrade," Ling Xi said enthusiastically.
In the other hand was a silver sword. This sword was special. Using his knowledge of Teigu, he had managed to combine Yatsufusa, Incursio, and Grand Chariot into a single sword.
Using Grand Chariot's and Incursio's abilities, Zhang Yong was able to prevent Incursio from absorbing its owner, while retaining its evolution ability. And using Yatsufusa, he was able to add another ability.
"I will name it, the Twin Dragon, since it is primarily composed of Incursio and Grand Chariot," Zhang Yong smiled to himself before returning his swords to storage.
Then Zhang Yong turned toward Su Ming. "Gather the brothers. We'll prepare to leave the Sacred Ground."
Su Ming nodded his head and left to call everyone. Meanwhile, Zhang Yong took out a small crystal.
Originally, there were cracks on it, but after being repaired with the mysterious soil from the Sacred Ground, it was fixed.
Zhang Yong inserted his consciousness into the crystal, and light emerged from it.
In an instant, the spirit of the Great Library, Beatrice, appeared.
Beatrice slowly opened her eyes, a look of deep confusion in her eyes. Her gaze turned toward Zhang Yong, who stood before her, then she looked around at the strange environment of the Sacred Ground.
Her voice was wavering, full of confusion and weakness. "Where... is this place? Why... didn't I die? And who are you?" Then, after staring at Zhang Yong for a while, she noticed his aura and recognized him immediately. "You... that person who... no, that's impossible."
Zhang Yong approached her and crouched down to her eye level. "Yes, I know. Don't worry, I've repaired your crystal. I won't hurt you. I know you have many questions, but things are not as you think."
Beatrice stepped back, her eyes widening with confusion and pain. "How dare you... how dare you speak of that? You destroyed everything! Arthur was..."
Zhang Yong looked at her gently. After all, she had been deceived, and it wasn't her fault. Then he said firmly, "What was he? Is he still important to you after he tried to throw you away and cause your death? And you know that if I truly wanted to get rid of you, I would have done so. But instead, I repaired your crystal. Why would I do that, do you think?"
Beatrice froze for a moment, her eyes wavering between anger and confusion. The memories of Arthur pushing her to face the strike were still vivid in her mind.
"That... that was..."
"It was a desperate attempt by a man who knew he was defeated," Zhang Yong said in a calm but firm voice. "He used you as a human shield at the last moment. Is that how 'that person' treats you?"
Zhang Yong's words struck like arrows, each one hitting its mark. And this was necessary. He had to shatter the illusion of Arthur in her mind before he could win her over.
Beatrice stepped back again, but her arrogance was beginning to crack. Her voice trembled. "How... how do you know? You... also..."
Zhang Yong sighed and extended his hand toward her. "If so, use Mana Drain."
Beatrice's eyes widened slightly. How did he know?
Unlike most spirits, Beatrice did not absorb mana from the atmosphere. Instead, she obtained it from living beings. By touching someone, Beatrice could absorb the mana stored in their body, enhancing her own mana reserves
The person affected by this technique would experience physical exhaustion if enough mana was drained
But more importantly, by absorbing someone's mana, Beatrice could also tell if the target held hostile intentions toward her.
Thus, Zhang Yong's offer to do this meant exposing himself to her. But more importantly, how did he know this? This was her special feature as an artificial spirit.
Zhang Yong extended his hand toward her. "From your expression, I can tell you're surprised. I'll explain everything to you later."
Beatrice trembled slightly, then hesitantly extended her hand. When she touched Zhang Yong's hand, her fingers glowed with a faint blue light.
Suddenly, her eyes widened in slight shock. "You... you hold no hostile intentions... but... how did you know about my ability?"
Zhang Yong smiled and opened his mouth, then began to reveal everything, everything Beatrice needed to know.
Beatrice's eyes widened throughout, and she began to cry. Zhang Yong looked at her and simply sighed, then pulled out the crystal. "You can return inside. You'll need time to absorb everything." Zhang Yong gently patted her head.
Beatrice shook her head, then Zhang Yong returned her to the crystal
Then he lift a white talisman, it was a seal talisman to let Beatrice perserve her energy
Then he felt the others approaching. He turned to see Wang Fei, Liu Yan, and Liu Yin approaching, while Su Ming walked behind them.
Everyone noticed the change in Zhang Yong's aura; it had become deeper and more mysterious, as if his consciousness had expanded to the point that their own awareness felt compressed.
"Little Brother, is everything alright?" Wang Fei asked cautiously, hinting at the crystal that had disappeared into Zhang Yong's hand.
"Everything is perfectly fine, Big Brother Wang," Zhang Yong smiled reassuringly. "I just settled some old matters. The important thing now is our next step."
"Are we ready to leave the Sacred Ground?" Liu Yan asked enthusiastically, her gaze examining the changes in the surroundings.
Ever since they followed Zhang Yong, they had been reaping gains, to the point where it made them feel that Zhang Yong was a magnet for opportunities, and thus they followed him. Who knew what kind of opportunities they would get next?
Zhang Yong looked at their expressions before internally scoffing, then replied, "Yes." He nodded. "We've spent valuable time here, and it's time to continue our journey."
"Where to next?" Liu Yin wondered in her quiet voice.
Zhang Yong looked toward the horizon, where the Sacred Ground's sky met its golden clouds. "Well, let's see. The next destination will be the Phoenix Mountains."
Everyone's eyes widened immediately. The Phoenix Mountains were the region where historians debated the location of the Phoenix's fall.
From the tales of humanity's ancestor
It was said that the Phoenix pursued the Golden Crow high in the sky.
But the sun's glare was scorching, causing it to become blind. When it opened its eyes again, everything around it had changed. It was sitting on the ground.
It had two legs and two arms, and yellow wings stretching behind its back. It had a human body.
When it realized its condition, it felt immense indignation. It looked at the sun and pointed at it.
"What are you doing, O Sun? Why have you turned me into human form?" the Phoenix spoke with disdain.
But the Sun flashed in a gleam. "What is it, Phoenix? Do you no longer wish to pursue me?"
The Phoenix snorted coldly. "Who said that? I will pursue you and overcome the Crow."
The Sun flashed again as it spoke. "Then it's best you start advancing. The Crow is about to arrive."
The Phoenix's eyes widened. But before it could take off, it stood and thought: How can I fly there?
Then it looked at its wings, but it couldn't fly in a human body.
Then it began to walk, a plan forming in its mind. It went to the peak of the highest mountain in the continent and stared at the horizon before it.
"Beware of falling. The path is without return," a voice appeared beside the Phoenix. Just as it looked toward the voice, it saw an old man with brown skin and red tattoos on his frail body.
He was from the Barbarian tribe.
"And what business is that of yours?" The Phoenix looked at the old man with disdain.
"Certainly none of my business. But I think it's foolish to throw your life away without purpose. Don't you agree?" the old man smiled calmly.
The Phoenix stepped toward the edge and spread its wings. Just as it prepared to take off, it heard the old man's voice.
"Don't fly too high, or you'll burn. And don't fly too low, or you'll die. Human bodies were not made for flight."
The Phoenix nodded and heeded the old man's advice.
But when the Phoenix leaped and began to fly high toward the sky, its wings stretched high and it soared far away.
When it looked at the world below, something strange happened. It was captivated by the view.
But it realized that the lower it flew, the less of the view it saw, and the higher it flew, the better the view.
Suddenly, it no longer cared about its position, and so it flew high directly toward the sun.
It flew high, and as the old man had warned, its wings began to burn. It knew already: its path was reckless and dangerous.
But it continued to fly, no longer enjoying the goal, but the view, even if it led to its own destruction.
Then the Phoenix's wings burned completely, and it began to fall. But there was a strange feeling of contentment within it.
This prompted the Sun to respond: "What is it, Phoenix? Do you no longer wish to pursue me?"
But there was a smile on the Phoenix's face. "Yes, I wish to pursue you."
The Sun replied, its tone unclear. "The Crow is still ahead of you."
But the Phoenix did not scream or panic; it laughed. "Pursuing the Sun was the Crow's choice. I have no interest in it. Yes, I could walk the path of others. But the only way for my path to be mine is to surpass them."
In an instant, the Phoenix shed all the jealousy it had toward the Crow. It wasn't jealous of it; it looked up to it.
Because he wanted to give his life meaning. What was the point of life?
Life is a journey. But in the pursuit of goals, many focus only on the goal itself. What mattered was the journey that led to that goal.
The Phoenix wanted to reach its goal, but it failed and died. It didn't want to die, but it was never afraid of it, and it had no regrets even in its death.