Chapter 163 - River Styx Genesis

Three months had passed since Sect Master Jun Tianya had flattened the Black Crow Ridge demonic stronghold into dust.

Inside the quiet cultivation chamber on White Lotus Peak, Su Ming sat cross-legged with his palm open. Hovering inches above his fingers was a flowing ribbon of yellow-jade liquid, moving without a sound. It spiraled smoothly between his fingers, leaving faint ripples in the air with every turn.

This was River Styx Primordial Water, one of the seven Primordial Waters governing the domain of Death and Reincarnation.

From the storage ring claimed from Chen Wuhen, he had obtained the Nether Jade Gourd containing essence drops of this water. Each drop was capable of calling forth massive waves of this water through the River Styx Guiding Art. But the water floating above his palm did not come from the gourd. It was created entirely from Su Ming’s own Qi.

Demonic Ancestor Mo had used this primordial water to temper his undying flesh and fuel his demonic arts. Yet the water itself was not evil. Only the intent behind the hands guiding it mattered. Through the Yin-Yang Origin Law and his study of the River Styx Guiding Art, Su Ming had come up with a new technique.

The River Styx Genesis Technique.

With it, he could not only command the primordial water safely, but synthesize it directly from his own origin energy.

’A good technique,’ Su Ming thought, closing his hand with a faint trace of satisfaction as the yellow-jade water dissolved into the air. ’But I should be careful. I must never reveal this technique to anyone, nor use it in public.’

As a peak master of a righteous sect, explaining why he was wielding such a signature demonic water technique would be rather difficult.

The sect had rewarded him generously for the extermination campaign. Tracking down the ninth vessel and eliminating Chen Wuhen had earned him a huge amount of contribution points. Following the battle at Black Crow Ridge, Sect Master Jun Tianya had demanded all captured storage rings and demonic artifacts from the captured stronghold, and reduced every corrupt manual and technique to ash with his divine lightning.

Fortunately, Su Ming had moved his most valuable spoils into his Grotto-Heaven before turning in the rings. Among them were the Nether Jade Gourd, the River Styx Primordial Guiding Art, and the Amethyst Poison Lotus plant.

Inside his inner world, various spiritual herbs flourished in the fertile spirit soil, nourished by dense origin energy after being transplanted from his mountain gardens.

With a faint mist of purple poison hovering around it, the Amethyst Poison Lotus plant was far too dangerous to cultivate on the peak or leave among ordinary herbs. It grew only where Yin Qi was thick enough to completely swallow Yang Qi.

Once fully bloomed, its fragrance alone could kill Qi Condensation realm cultivators, and a single refined petal was enough to create highest-grade poison elixirs. Because it also required periodic nourishment of poison blood qi to survive, Su Ming had sealed it away inside an isolated cave deep within his grotto, keeping it completely separated from the rest of his plants.

Reaching into his storage ring, Su Ming brought out a small jade box. Inside lay a dull grey stone no larger than a thumb. It was a True Dragon Bone Sarira, a fossilized dragon relic he had nearly overlooked among Chen Wuhen’s belongings.

Studying the stone with his essence eyes, Su Ming had realised its potential.

’I should show this to Elder Tie. It could serve as a valuable ingredient while reforging the swords.’

Yet inspecting the ancient bone also brought another realization. The trapped ancient dragon soul he had slain in the Thunder Fire Secret Realm was probably an Ancient Crimson Dragon, not a True Dragon. Maybe it carried a trace of True Dragon blood, but it was not the real thing. There was a clear distinction between Ancient Dragons and True Dragons, but nowadays, with Ancient Dragons all but extinct, most cultivators wouldn’t know the difference anyway.

Beside the fossil, Su Ming had transcribed two of Demonic Ancestor Mo’s primary scriptures. The first was the Nine Seed Transference Art, which required severing one’s Nascent Soul from one’s body. This greatly harmed the cultivator, but at the same time the technique was formidable and versatile.

The second was the Demonic Puppetry Technique, an evil art that stripped free will away from people. But that too offered great insights to defend against it and regarding puppet constructs. Along with notes detailing various demonic secret arts related to the mysteries of the soul.

It was a goldmine of information, though if the Sect Master ever discovered it in his possession, he would probably chase Su Ming to the ends of the world.

Su Ming exhaled slowly, checking his internal cultivation. His Qi cultivation remained steady in the middle stages of the Nascent Soul Realm, whereas his physical body had reached the peak of Stage Six in the Primordial Yang Sovereign Body Art.

***

During these three months, Su Ming had also traveled with Jian Wushen to the secluded back mountain to seek guidance from the Sword Saint. He recounted his clash with Chen Wuhen, explaining how he had briefly crossed the boundary beyond sword will.

The old ancestor had only smiled faintly. "To touch that realm is one of the hardest steps. Do not rush. Intent does not come from straining the mind. It arrives when the sword becomes as natural as breathing."

Wang Tian, on the other hand, was also making steady progress. With things returning to normal, Heavenly Sword Peak held the Sword Path Tournament once again, and Wang Tian came out on top.

His Shattered Sword Physique allowed him to master sword techniques very fast, but he was nowhere near finding his own sword path unlike Lin Yao. Upon Su Ming’s request, Jian Wushen had agreed to personally mentor Wang Tian with his sword physique.

Then there was the urgent matter of Su Ming’s own weapons. Both the Crimson Heaven Sword and the Dragon Emperor Sword had been destroyed during the fight against Chen Wuhen, leaving him in need of a new sword as soon as possible.