For most people, the martial path means nothing but outer force and inner force. Guys like us, even if we've seen a bit more, have just barely set foot in the Vajra Realm. But compared to your cheat-level talent? We're not even in the same game.
Dominic Ding stood in front of Evan Lin, looking super respectful. "Vajra Realm comes in five grades. Fifth-grade Vajra can blast inner force outside your body. Fourth-grade? You can actually shape your inner force. Third-grade lets you split it into three forms. Second-grade Vajra—that's me, by the way—barely manages a few dozen streams of sword-qi. Not exactly impressive compared to you."
"Only when you reach first-grade Vajra do you truly have a 'body like Vajra.' Your bones are tempered a thousand times over, and regular inner force can't even scratch you."
"Back over a decade ago, Master Mo Yang roamed Seacrest and Jinnan. With his first-grade Vajra cultivation, he was basically invincible."
Dominic took a deep breath. Just mentioning the name 'Mo Yang' made his face light up with awe and respect.
Even after more than ten years, that lone, mountain-peak silhouette is still burned into my head. No matter what, I can't shake it.
"Mo Yang."
Hearing the name again, Evan Lin raised an eyebrow. "Where's he now?"
"Master Mo Yang is a mystery. No one's seen him in over ten years, but he did leave a disciple behind in Seacrest—someone named Drake Huang. He might've known Mo Yang's whereabouts. Only, I heard recently that Drake Huang was killed by Master Lin from Seacrest..."
Dominic blurted it out, then suddenly froze. He glanced at Evan Lin sitting in front of him, mouth half open, the rest of his words stuck in his throat.
Master Lin from Seacrest.
Wait a minute—wasn't that Evan Nine Mysteries Lin right here?
So, Evan Lin and Mo Yang are destined to clash.
Just thinking about how terrifying Mo Yang was made Dominic's heart skip a beat.
"Drake Huang was killed by me. His strength was nothing special."
Evan Lin said calmly, "I'm curious about Mo Yang's true power. Hope he shows up one day so I can see if he's worth a fight."
Evan Lin slowly stood up.
"Master Mo Yang left the world behind, probably went into seclusion to break through the Vajra Realm. Above Vajra... there's the Pointing-to-Mystery Realm."
Dominic bowed low, his voice full of longing.
For ordinary folks, entering the Vajra Realm already makes you a big shot. But if you break through from Vajra to Pointing-to-Mystery, you're not just a local tyrant anymore—you're something truly transcendent.
"Pointing-to-Mystery."
Evan Lin mulled over those two words, face thoughtful.
"All I know is that Vajra tempers the body, but Pointing-to-Mystery refines something even deeper and more mysterious. As for the details, I honestly have no clue. People at that level are so rare, maybe only hidden powers like the Profound Clarity Sect have them."
Dominic Ding shook his head and gave a bitter laugh.
He felt small all over again.
"Get me a Misty Rain Sword, an Enlightenment Sword, a Sudden-Clarity Sword, and a quiet place to stay. Make sure nobody bothers me."
Evan Lin gave the order.
Dominic quickly arranged a secluded house for Evan at the summit, and sent people to dig up three Sudden-Clarity Swords from the Thousand-Sword Burial Ground.
Since Evan Lin shattered the Prison-Sword Formation in the Thousand-Sword Burial Ground, all the swords were lying scattered on the ground. The sword sect suddenly found itself flush with new treasures.
Inside the secluded courtyard—
Evan Lin sat cross-legged.
His backpack was tossed nearby. The Three Maiden Spirits and the Fire-Python Spirit hovered around him as guardians, poking their heads out and sneaking glances at Evan from time to time.
After devouring the black-robed patriarch, the Three Maiden Spirits had grown even stronger and more alluring. They might not be drop-dead gorgeous, but any ordinary guy would remember them for life after just one look.
In front of Evan, four swords lay neatly arranged.
To his left, the Misty Rain Sword glowed with a cool blue light.
On his right, the Enlightenment Sword gleamed with keen spiritual energy, almost alive.
A bit farther ahead, the Sudden-Clarity Sword flashed white, faint rays of light swirling around its blade.
Closest of all was Dustleave, the ancient Mu Family sword—its edge was sharp, its aura full of ancient history and a sense of time-worn power.
"Each of these four swords is unique, but Dustleave is the strongest. You'll be the core of my Four-Directions Sword Formation."
Evan Lin made up his mind, brushing his right hand over Dustleave. The sword shot into the air and he guided it straight into his black Four-Directions Sword Casket.
Dustleave plunged into the sword casket and landed right in the middle of the faint red spirit pool at its core.
Evan Lin closed his eyes, focused his mind, and used his spiritual qi to control the red pool, slowly refining Dustleave.
Reddish qi crept up from the sword tip. Wherever it touched, Dustleave let out sharp, ear-piercing sword cries—like it was howling in pain.
The whole sword trembled nonstop, like it was trying to break free.
Evan Lin kept his face cold, locking the red qi in place as it spread.
Soon, the red qi swallowed up Dustleave completely.
The qi seemed almost alive, prowling along the sword's edge.
After a long while, once the whole sword and even the hilt were soaked through and glowing faint red, Evan Lin finally opened his eyes.
With a flick of his wrist, Dustleave shot out of the Four-Directions Sword Casket and landed in his hand.
Now, Dustleave looked a little less ancient, but way hotter and sharper—like a whole new sword.
The moment Dustleave appeared, the Misty Rain, Enlightenment, and Sudden-Clarity Swords all trembled, like vassals bowing to their king.
"The spirit pool inside the Four-Directions Sword Casket is saturated with qi that's been boosted by my Fire-Spirit Mortal Body. It's way more domineering than normal spiritual qi. I thought I’d need another mouthful of my own qi to finish refining Dustleave, but this went smoother than I expected."
Evan Lin smiled slightly.
Right now, Evan's own spiritual qi was pretty low—most of it generated slowly by the Grand Dao Foundation Art. The amount was small, but the power was strong. Lucky for him, he hadn't run into any real enemies yet, so this was good enough for now.
"Next up: time to assemble the Four-Directions Sword Formation."
Evan Lin's eyes sparkled as he stared at the four swords in front of him.
"The Four-Directions Sword Formation is a 'basic' sword array from the Glazed Glass Palace. 'Basic,' but unlike other sword formations, this one can grow way stronger over time."
"Right now, I've only got these four swords. If I find better swords later, I can always add them in and re-refine the whole formation."
With that thought, Evan Lin stored all four swords into the sword casket.
He wove a dozen or so sword-controlling seals with both hands, channeling spiritual qi as a guide. In midair, he drew golden runes and slapped them one by one into the Four-Directions Sword Casket.
Evan Lin's face was deadly serious. He didn't even notice the countless sword-qi streams swirling around him with every move.
Those sword-qi currents crisscrossed around him, ripping through the air with faint sounds of wind and thunder.
A true once-in-a-generation genius—peerless and unmatched.