Chapter 2: 2. Chapter 2: The Way of Ruthlessness

Chapter 2: The Path of Ruthlessness

She had been with the Longyin Sword for ten years. She had poured all her efforts into nurturing this precious blade, even going so far as to forgo a strict sword spirit contract so that Long Yan would not feel enslaved.

Or so she thought.

She believed the trust between them had transcended any contract.

But now.

The sword spirit she trusted most was manipulating the blade, driving it deep into her dantian.

Blood welled at the corners of Li Shuang’s lips. She looked at Long Yan, dazed. "Why..."

Long Yan knew Li Shuang was as good as dead. He gritted his teeth and spat, "As long as you die, I can choose a new master! The only master I have ever wanted from the very beginning is Ye Zhaozhao! Li Shuang, you might as well die in peace."

Li Shuang coughed violently, and blood burst from her wound.

Suddenly, she began to laugh.

Long Yan wanted Ye Zhaozhao as his master.

The master she served wanted Ye Zhaozhao as his disciple.

Her junior brothers and sisters had eyes only for Ye Zhaozhao.

She, Li Shuang, was nothing more than an entirely redundant person.

She had treated everyone with sincerity, yet now, not a single soul returned that sincerity to her.

She had always taken pride in being a disciple of Master Lingxu; she had strived to fulfill her duties as the Senior Sister, valuing the bonds of their sect above all else.

But who could have imagined that the affection built over so many years would prove so fragile the moment Ye Zhaozhao appeared?

They didn't even have a shred of trust in her.

Fine. Such master-disciple bonds—she didn't care for them anymore.

On Li Shuang’s chest, a jade carving shaped like a furnace was glowing faintly.

Li Shuang was too far gone to notice this anomaly.

On the verge of death, her mind was strangely clear.

These people...

They had all abandoned her.

The sword spirit stood by, waiting for her to die.

She truly did not want to grant them their wish!

In the depths of Li Shuang’s mind.

A passage of scripture suddenly surfaced with absolute clarity.

"The Supreme Path of Forgetting Emotions!"

This cultivation technique was rumored to be the one practiced by the founding ancestor of the Sword Sect. However, ever since the ancestor ascended, no one in a thousand years had managed to successfully enter the path.

Nowadays, many disciples believed that the story of the ancestor’s technique was nothing more than a rumor—that it was impossible to cultivate.

The entire Sword Sect had long since switched to other techniques. Only Lin Qingling, the Peak Master of Ruthless Peak, and her lineage remained steadfast in the ancestor’s will, pondering the secret method day and night.

To encourage more people to attempt the technique, Lin Qingling would grab any disciple she could find and force them to memorize the incantation. Most of the sect had been accosted by her at some point.

Li Shuang, too, had been caught and made to memorize it.

Strangely enough, she had never taken the Supreme Path of Forgetting Emotions to heart, yet at this very moment, every word and every line of the technique surfaced with perfect clarity.

Li Shuang whispered subconsciously

"The Dao gives it its appearance."

"Heaven gives it its form."

"Do not let likes and dislikes internally injure your body."

All the things she had previously failed to understand or see through suddenly became crystal clear in this instant.

As she murmured the words, a pure white light slowly emerged from her dantian.

The fatal wound at her dantian was actually healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Long Yan’s expression shifted.

What was happening?

Zhaozhao had instructed him to deliver the final blow when Li Shuang was at her most desperate.

He had seized the opportunity and struck the fatal blow.

By all rights, Li Shuang should have been waiting for death. Why were her wounds beginning to recover?

Long Yan gritted his teeth and manipulated the Longyin Sword to strike at Li Shuang’s dantian once more.

But the jade carving on Li Shuang’s chest emitted a dazzling light. The Longyin Sword was sent flying, and Long Yan was uncontrollably pulled back into the blade, unable to move a muscle.

Li Shuang was already completely immersed in a brand-new world.

She looked up at the sky.

The world was vast and boundless; she was meant to soar freely, so why had she bound herself?

In an instant.

Some kind of shackle was completely shattered.

"Heaven and Earth are born with me, and all things are one with me."

Li Shuang said softly. A surge of incredibly pure energy rushed forth from her dantian.

A calm smile appeared on her lips.

The supreme secret technique of the Sword Sect: The Supreme Path of Forgetting Emotions!

She had actually entered the path at this very moment.

Only after truly entering did Li Shuang realize that the title of "supreme secret technique" was well-deserved! The profound mysteries of this technique far surpassed the Mirror Heart Technique she had previously practiced!

Her original cultivation was completely dissipated, and the Nascent Soul she had painstakingly condensed was discarded by Li Shuang without a moment’s hesitation.

Her cultivation dropped back to the Qi Refining stage.

But a brand-new, incredibly pure spiritual energy slowly emerged from her dantian.

Under the miraculous effects of the Supreme Path of Forgetting Emotions, the fatal wound in her dantian was also being completely repaired without her even realizing it.

Li Shuang sat cross-legged and circulated the technique a few times. She felt her mind clear and her entire being light and transparent.

Though she was only at the Qi Refining stage, she closed her eyes and felt that every part of her body was under her complete control.

Even the clear air she inhaled and the turbid air she exhaled with every breath felt exceptionally distinct.

Suddenly.

Li Shuang froze.

In this state of clarity, she discovered that, at some point, a slowly rotating furnace had appeared in her sea of consciousness.

This furnace...

Li Shuang’s pupils contracted, and her hand instinctively reached toward her chest.

Before her mother passed away from illness, she had given her a jade carving shaped like a furnace. She had cherished it dearly and kept it close to her at all times.

But now.

The jade carving was gone.

In its place, an identical furnace had appeared in her mind.

Li Shuang hesitated for a moment, then slowly probed it with her consciousness.

The next moment, a line of information appeared in her mind.

"Heaven and Earth Furnace (Locked): Break and then stand; the furnace manifests."

Break and then stand?

Li Shuang’s pupils constricted sharply.

Could it be that it was because she had walked through the gates of hell that she had accidentally unlocked this Heaven and Earth Furnace?

Thinking back, her newly cultivated spiritual energy was still very weak, and Long Yan was a sword spirit she had carefully nurtured; that bit of energy shouldn't have been enough to block Long Yan’s attack. It seemed... it was the jade carving that had emitted the light to block the blow for her.

Was it her mother... protecting her?

Just as Li Shuang was thinking this, another line of description appeared.

"Current furnace unlocking progress: 0%. Invest heavenly treasures to increase progress. Once progress reaches 100%, the furnace can be activated."

Invest heavenly treasures to activate the furnace?

Li Shuang’s expression turned grave. Not to mention that this furnace was certainly no ordinary object, even if it had no use at all, it was something her mother had left her—she was determined to activate it!

How could her mother, a mere mortal, possess such a treasure?

What was her mother’s true intention in giving it to her?

There were too many secrets hidden within this.

However... heavenly treasures?

Li Shuang gave a bitter laugh. Over the years, she had been constantly going on missions, but the things she earned were either used for the Longyin Sword or given to her junior brothers and sisters. Now, she didn't have a single thing left in reserve.

Fortunately, from this day forward, she would never again be dragged down by these so-called bonds.

The sky is high and the sea is wide; I shall roam as I please.

From now on, Li Shuang is only Li Shuang.

Sword Sect.

At the moment Li Shuang began practicing the Supreme Path of Forgetting Emotions.

Lin Qingling, the Peak Master of Ruthless Peak, suddenly opened her eyes.

A flash of surprise crossed her gaze. This is...

To confirm her intuition, she moved her hand slightly, and a jade slip appeared in her palm.

The jade slip, which had been silent for so long, was now flickering with a faint light.

Lin Qingling’s voice trembled with excitement.

"The Supreme Path of Forgetting Emotions—someone has truly entered the Supreme Path of Forgetting Emotions! But the light of the resonance slip is faint; this person is likely not within the sect. Could it be one of the disciples who went out on a mission?"