Dao Rhyme Stone!

Li Guanqi followed one of the division masters toward the core area of the Six Ancient Sacred Sect. The old man felt deeply uneasy the entire way; after all, Li Guanqi's strength and methods terrified him. Both his might and his decisive ruthlessness were staggering. Anyone present could tell that Li Guanqi and Sun Zhen had definitely been past acquaintances. Even so, the moment Sun Zhen showed hatred and resentment, Li Guanqi had struck. Without the slightest hesitation or wavering, the instant Sun Zhen flashed that look, Li Guanqi had already made his decision. Such resoluteness was exceptionally rare, yet from the bottom of his heart, the old man admired this approach. From the moment Li Guanqi killed Sun Tianqi, the enmity between him and the Sun clan was already irreconcilable. Killing one or killing a hundred... the outcome was the same. Sensing the fluctuations in the old man's thoughts and emotions, Li Guanqi couldn't help but chuckle. "Senior, what has been on your mind all this way?" The old man gave a dry laugh, and Li Guanqi's teasing tone helped him relax considerably. "This old man was merely wondering why the Sword Venerable didn't kill the rest of the Sun clan members." With his hands clasped behind his back, the corners of Li Guanqi's lips curved slightly, and he said softly, "Because they pose no threat to me at all." "If I wanted to kill them, it would only take a breath." The old man wore an understanding expression. It seemed this Sword Venerable had absolute confidence in his own strength! Passing pavilions and terraces, they encountered many disciples of the Six Ancient Sacred Sect along the way. Whenever these disciples met the two, they stopped and bowed low in respect. Li Guanqi looked up and scanned the surrounding peaks, where six hundred-zhang-tall stone gates caught his eye. Li Guanqi asked softly, "These six gates must have a story behind them?" Hearing this, the old man nodded slightly and murmured, "These six stone gates are six ancient-treasure-grade artifacts passed down from our forebears." Li Guanqi smiled faintly and said, "I imagine these six stone gates are actually a complete set of dharma artifacts?" The old man glanced at Li Guanqi in astonishment. That secret was known only to the six division masters and the Sect Master! Yet Li Guanqi had accurately guessed it relying solely on his perception! The old man did not deny it, murmuring, "The six stone gates correspond to the six desires: joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, and hate!" Li Guanqi nodded silently. It seemed the trial of these six gates was truly formidable. The reason Zhou Shiyu had only overcome five gates was likely because the final Gate of Hate was too perilous for him. The old man smiled. "These Gates of the Six Desires probably wouldn't pose any challenge to you." Li Guanqi smiled and shook his head, saying softly, "However, I'm rather interested in the gate that results from combining the Gates of the Six Desires into one." "I cannot make that decision; I'm afraid it would require the Sect Master's approval." "We're almost there." With a sway of his body, the old man led Li Guanqi through layer after layer of sealing barriers, finally arriving deep underground beneath a mountain col. Buzz! Passing through the sealing barrier, Li Guanqi saw a formation altar spanning a full hundred zhang! Constructed entirely from stacked black boulders, the altar was engraved with countless densely packed, extraordinarily intricate formation runes. The sheer complexity of these formation runes made even Li Guanqi furrow his brows. Standing before the zhang-high altar, Li Guanqi reached out and touched a black boulder. It was cold to the touch, seemingly containing a faint sealing power. Li Guanqi gently pulled his hand away and inquired softly, "What kind of stone is this?" The old man chuckled and said, "This stone is called Daochan stone, a unique stone from the Daochan Domain." "The divine rhyme of the Dao comprehension stone continuously emanates outward, so Daochan stone is needed to seal it within." Li Guanqi nodded slightly, and the old man added casually, "If the Sword Venerable wants some, I can arrange for someone to check our storehouse." Li Guanqi grinned at the offer. "Then I'll trouble Senior for it." Layers of distorting crimson barriers veiled the view atop the altar. The old man took out an identity token and slowly slotted it into a groove on the altar. Forming hand seals, he concentrated spiritual light at his fingertips and shot it forcefully into the barrier. "Go ahead, Sword Venerable. There is no time limit; you may use it for as long as you wish." Li Guanqi smiled, nodded, and cupped his hands before flashing into the barrier. Buzz! The moment the barrier closed, countless intricate golden lines slowly emerged across the pitch-black boulders of the altar below. The old man muttered with a twinge of heartache, "The Old Sect Master really spared no expense this time..." Every two hours, this altar consumed... fifteen thousand high-grade spirit stones! Li Guanqi looked down at his feet. In the center of the black boulders lay an irregular stone only a zhang or so in size. The stone was entirely purplish-black, its surface smooth as a mirror. The sword spirit's figure suddenly emerged. Gazing at the stone before them, she murmured, "A Dao Rhyme Stone!" Li Guanqi's brows furrowed, and he asked in a low voice, "You know what it is?" The sword spirit nodded slightly, stepped beside the Dao Rhyme Stone, and reached out to touch it lightly. With a trace of disappointment in her eyes, she said, "This is something from the Immortal Realm. It's just that there isn't much divine rhyme left in this Dao Rhyme Stone; it can only be considered the lowest of the lowest grade." "Still, it's more than enough for you." "You can use the power of the Dao Rhyme Stone to synthesize and master all your current strength." Li Guanqi rubbed his hands together, eager to begin, and darted forward to sit cross-legged atop the Dao Rhyme Stone. Buzz! The boulder trembled slightly, and immediately an inexplicable aura enveloped Li Guanqi completely. From a distance, he looked wholly engulfed in a shroud of purple mist. In mere breaths, Li Guanqi's consciousness sank into a hazy void. An epiphany! All the past doubts in his mind suddenly became crystal clear in this instant. Li Guanqi's consciousness was completely lucid; he felt a clarity unlike anything he had ever experienced before. In an instant, countless phantom figures of himself appeared in his mind, practicing fist techniques and brandishing swords. And the two sword stances he had envisioned were gradually taking shape. Gradually, countless phantom silhouettes of lightning and spiritual light appeared around Li Guanqi. These phantoms were in constant flux, each seemingly demonstrating a complete sword art. Inside Li Guanqi's body, his primal energy surged and churned, attempting different circulation paths time and time again. The first sword strike in his mind shared the same name as his alias: Wuji! This was the core of his newly created sword strike—drawing the sword without restraint, boundless and unhindered! The second strike was even more difficult. It was the manifestation of his killing intent, born from what he felt when he exterminated the Liu clan. He wanted to create a sword strike of pure slaughter! As time flowed by, Li Guanqi's comprehension of these two sword styles grew ever deeper. In the grand hall of the Six Ancient Sacred Sect, Zhou Shiyu, whose aura was once exceedingly unstable, slowly opened his eyes. By now, not only had Zhou Shiyu avoided regressing in cultivation, he had actually stabilized his current late Void Refining Realm. What was more, he had ultimately refined that spirit treasure chain into the Dao platform within his sea of consciousness. It had not only repaired his crack-riddled sea of consciousness, but had also become a priceless treasure guarding it. Having opened his eyes and learned everything from Gu Huai, Zhou Shiyu felt a sharp glint flash in his eyes as he murmured: "So that is Li Guanqi..."