In the past, when Lu Changsheng's comprehension reached one million points, he had already attained the status of a "Natural Sage."
That Natural Sage comprehension had made his cultivation proceed with supreme ease.
His advancement to Earth Saint and Heavenly Saint had been smooth beyond compare.
Everything had gone without a single hitch.
Lu Changsheng had even felt that with his Natural Sage comprehension, reaching the realm of Martial Dao Sovereign would pose no real difficulty; it was merely a matter of taking a bit more time.
Yet Lu Changsheng did not wish to spend vast stretches of time cultivating the Martial Dao and fathoming the Immortal Blood.
Especially the Immortal Blood.
With his current Natural Sage comprehension, he seemed incapable of unraveling the mysteries buried within it.
Therefore, his comprehension had to undergo another transformation.
And now, that transformation was underway.
Going from one million points to ten million points was a qualitative leap.
Yet what would a Natural Sage transform into?
Even Lu Changsheng did not know.
*Hum.*
Lu Changsheng could clearly perceive the process of his comprehension transforming. It seemed to take a very long time.
This was different from before.
Previously, even when he transformed into a Natural Sage, it had happened in a single instant.
It had completed itself naturally.
Now, however, it required an extended process.
And amidst this transformation, Lu Changsheng clearly felt his comprehension evolving step by step.
First came the rules.
In the past, as a Natural Sage, Lu Changsheng had only been able to vaguely sense the rules.
It had seemed as though rules were omnipresent throughout the Immortal Martial World.
Now, however, Lu Changsheng could do far more than merely sense them.
He could see them directly with his own eyes.
Within his field of vision, the entire world gradually changed.
Across what had once been empty void, rule after rule began to emerge.
These rules were like threads of silk, densely blanketing the void.
Lu Changsheng could even look right past the walls of his immortal cave out into the broader expanse of the void.
Across that boundless void, countless rules continually intertwined, extending into every corner of space.
They wove together like a colossal net enshrouding the entire Immortal Martial World.
Lu Changsheng sat enveloped directly within this immense web of rules.
"Rules..."
Lu Changsheng extended a hand.
He wanted to pluck at these rules.
Of course, rules could only be perceived.
They were not physical objects and could not be touched by hand.
Thus, Lu Changsheng's hand passed effortlessly through the rules without affecting them in the slightest.
"What about the Martial Dao, then?"
With a thought, Lu Changsheng unleashed his Martial Dao.
Instantly, his Martial Dao manifested.
The dense thicket of rules in his surroundings was immediately suppressed by the Martial Dao, and the rules even warped.
Consequently, the void itself faintly began to fracture, giving rise to fine, black fissures in space.
Seeing this, Lu Changsheng understood.
The Martial Dao could interfere with, suppress, and even shatter rules.
It was precisely because of this that the might of the Martial Dao was so terrifying.
"Comprehension..." Lu Changsheng murmured softly.
At this moment, the rules held no secrets before him.
This was comprehension!
Or rather, his transformed comprehension had already allowed Lu Changsheng to transcend a Natural Sage and reach an unfathomable realm.
This was purely a realm of comprehension.
It had nothing to do with cultivation realms in the Martial Dao.
The higher one's realm of comprehension, the greater the achievements one could attain in any pursuit, even without practicing martial arts.
"If rules hold no secrets in my eyes, what about the Martial Dao?"
With a thought, Lu Changsheng released his Infinite Martial Dao.
At a single glance, he could see that the Infinite Martial Dao contained nearly ten thousand distinct martial daos.
These ten thousand martial daos all rested upon the foundation of the Infinite Martial Dao.
Yet they had not fully fused into one with it.
These martial daos seemed even more complex than rules.
Each martial dao represented the will of a martial artist.
Now, however, as though unraveling a cocoon thread by thread, those intricate martial daos lay crystal-clear before Lu Changsheng's eyes.
The complexities that once baffled him no longer held any secrets.
"This is... the Sword Dao!"
With a shift of his mind, Lu Changsheng began to contemplate the Sword Dao.
This particular martial dao had merely been seized by him and incorporated into his Infinite Martial Dao.
In truth, he had never fully grasped it.
He was still far from bringing it to perfection.
Had he proceeded step by step with his former Natural Sage comprehension, it would have taken him at least ten years to cultivate this Sword Dao to perfection.
And now?
Even with a Sword Dao so immensely complex—one that Lu Changsheng had barely understood before—his brief attempt at cultivating it revealed a staggering difference.
At this rate of efficiency, it would not take eight or ten years.
Perhaps a single year would suffice to cultivate the Sword Dao to perfection!
*Hiss.*
Lu Changsheng could not help drawing a sharp breath.
One year!
His efficiency had increased nearly tenfold!
What once required ten years now took only a single year.
"My comprehension can still improve. After all, that martial dao fragment hasn't been completely refined yet."
Lu Changsheng continued to refine the martial dao fragment.
As the fragment was refined, his comprehension continued to climb.
In the blink of an eye, three months passed, and Lu Changsheng finally finished refining the martial dao fragment.
He immediately called up his attribute panel to inspect his status.
Host: Lu Changsheng
Comprehension: 12,980,000 (Peerless Through the Ages)
Infinite Martial Dao: Master of Ten Thousand Daos
Flesh Martial Dao: Septenary Growth
Looking at the attribute panel, Lu Changsheng saw that his comprehension had reached nearly thirteen million points.
What a terrifying degree of comprehension!
A complete Earth Saint-level martial dao fragment had indeed granted him five million comprehension points all at once!
Moreover, so long as he continued to refine martial dao fragments, his comprehension would surely continue to increase.
Even if he could not find Earth Saint-level martial dao fragments, that was fine too.
Settling for the next best thing, the martial dao fragment he had previously obtained from the second secret world had provided one million comprehension points, which was quite good in its own right.
If he spent time continually gathering them, would reaching twenty million, thirty million, forty million, fifty million, or even a hundred million comprehension points be far off?
Once his comprehension reached one hundred million points, it would surely undergo yet another transformation.
Lu Changsheng saw that the title following his comprehension had changed from "Natural Sage" to "Peerless Through the Ages."
This was clearly a qualitative leap as well!
Furthermore, as Lu Changsheng carefully focused on the title of "Peerless Through the Ages," a line of small characters suddenly surfaced on the attribute panel.
"Your comprehension is unprecedented and will remain unmatched for all time, meeting the conditions to unlock 'Comprehension Deduction.' 'Comprehension Deduction' is now unlocked."
Immediately afterward, a new function called Comprehension Deduction appeared on Lu Changsheng's attribute panel.
Host: Lu Changsheng
Comprehension: 12,980,000 (Peerless Through the Ages)
Infinite Martial Dao: Master of Ten Thousand Daos
Flesh Martial Dao: Septenary Growth
Comprehension Deduction: Massive amounts of comprehension can be consumed to perform deductions.
Looking at the newly appeared Comprehension Deduction on his attribute panel, Lu Changsheng paused in surprise.
What was this?
Comprehension Deduction?
It could even consume comprehension to carry out deductions.
What was its exact purpose?
Lu Changsheng was very curious.
He thought of the Sword Dao he had just contemplated.
Even with the supreme comprehension of Peerless Through the Ages, it would take a year to cultivate it to perfection.
Could it be made even faster?
Thus, Lu Changsheng attempted to activate the Comprehension Deduction function.
"Deduce the Sword Dao."
Instantly, Lu Changsheng saw the comprehension points on his attribute panel plummeting at high speed.
One thousand, three thousand, five thousand, ten thousand...
His comprehension points fell continuously.
From several thousand, it reached ten thousand.
Yet that was merely the beginning.
The points continued to dwindle rapidly.
Ten thousand, twenty thousand, thirty thousand...
As the points decreased, they were effectively consumed.
Then, Comprehension Deduction took effect.
Lu Changsheng felt faintly as though he had become a dispassionate deity, looking upon all martial daos with detached clarity.
He could even see every subtle shift in the Sword Dao unfold before him.
The sensation was extraordinary,
and it felt entirely novel to him.
It was as if the Sword Dao had been laid bare and thoroughly dissected right before his eyes.
He saw how the Sword Dao had been comprehended by someone, how it took shape, how it was seized during the Battle of Dao Transformation and merged into his Infinite Martial Dao,
and then how various transformations had ensued.
It was as though Lu Changsheng had personally experienced every stage of the Sword Dao's evolution.
It was so vivid, so detailed.
Almost in an instant, Lu Changsheng grasped the ultimate secrets of the Sword Dao.
*Hum.*
The next moment, Lu Changsheng's Sword Dao trembled slightly.
Immediately after, a vast and piercing aura of the Sword Dao swept through the Infinite Martial Dao,
stirring all the other martial daos into a flurry of agitation.
*Whoosh.*
Lu Changsheng opened his eyes.
His gaze shone with brilliant, radiant light.
Within his eyes lay a trace of astonishment.
"It's... already perfected?"
Lu Changsheng was thoroughly shocked.
The Sword Dao had actually reached perfection!
Counting the time, how long had it been?
One hour?
Two hours?
Or perhaps three?
In any case, it had certainly been less than a single day.
To Lu Changsheng, it felt as though he had cultivated the Sword Dao to perfection in the blink of an eye.
Such efficiency and speed were simply inconceivable.
Even with the comprehension of Peerless Through the Ages, he could never have achieved such terrifying efficiency.
There was only one answer.
Comprehension Deduction!
All of this was the effect of Comprehension Deduction.
Lu Changsheng looked at his comprehension points once more.
At this moment, the number had shifted from 12,980,000 to 12,880,000.
Lu Changsheng knew all too well what the change between these two numbers signified.
One hundred thousand!
A consumption of merely one hundred thousand comprehension points had allowed Lu Changsheng, through Comprehension Deduction, to bring an entire Sword Dao to perfection within a few short hours.
This was simply... miraculous!
Or rather, it was unbelievable, like something out of a fantasy.
Of course, one hundred thousand comprehension points was by no means a small sum.
Previously, Lu Changsheng had gained only ten thousand comprehension points a month,
which amounted to just one hundred and twenty thousand in a year.
A single deduction consumed one hundred thousand points, equivalent to an entire year of his previous accumulation.
This expenditure was exceptionally heavy.
Even without deductions, Lu Changsheng could slowly bring these martial daos to perfection one by one.
Did that mean the deduction function was useless?
Of course not.
Lu Changsheng realized that this was merely the cost of a hundred thousand points.
What if he consumed a million points?
Could he comprehend higher-level powers—powers that might otherwise require a century, a millennium, or even ten millennia to fathom?
A single deduction took only a few hours.
Even if it took longer, it would be a few days at most.
Yet it could save hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of years.
This deduction function was immensely formidable!
"Deduction consumes comprehension points, and the consumed points are permanently gone."
"If I don't replenish them in time, my comprehension will drop."
"Therefore, even if I use the deduction function, I must exercise careful restraint!"
A strange glint flashed through Lu Changsheng's eyes.
He calculated carefully.
If bringing a single martial dao to perfection required a hundred thousand comprehension points through deduction,
then perfecting ten thousand martial daos would demand a billion comprehension points.
Clearly, that was not worthwhile.
Where would Lu Changsheng go to acquire a billion comprehension points?
If his comprehension points truly reached a billion, he likely would not need deduction at all; a billion comprehension points would allow him to cultivate martial daos to perfection in an instant on his own.
Therefore, using the deduction function solely to cultivate ordinary martial daos was not cost-effective.
"What about the Immortal Blood, then?"
Lu Changsheng thought of the Immortal Blood.
This Immortal Blood contained the secrets of the Giant Spirit Ancestor.
And according to the Martial Ancestor, that Giant Spirit Ancestor stood even above the Martial Ancestors themselves!
Previously, not even the Martial Ancestors had been able to comprehend the secrets of the Immortal Blood.
Lu Changsheng's Natural Sage comprehension had indeed given him a faint perception of the Immortal Blood.
He had sensed a terrifying energy contained within it, but he had been unable to comprehend it, let alone utilize it.
Now, his comprehension had undergone a qualitative leap, becoming Peerless Through the Ages.
What could he comprehend from the Immortal Blood now?
This was of paramount importance to him.
After all, enhancing his physical body solely through the Giant Spirit Ring and the Kui Cow hide would ultimately remain exceedingly difficult.
It would require an immense amount of time.
Shortly thereafter, Lu Changsheng brought the Immortal Blood before his eyes once more.
This time, things were indeed different.
The moment Lu Changsheng's terrifying Peerless Through the Ages comprehension fell upon the Immortal Blood, intermittent visions seemed to surface within his mind.
Looking at the Immortal Blood, he could seemingly behold the terrifying energy dwelling within it.
He could even faintly glimpse scenes of the Giant Spirit Ancestor.
It was a majestic giant,
wielding a colossal axe.
With a casual swing,
heaven and earth were cleaved apart,
and a world was born.
Yet Lu Changsheng also seemed to perceive something unusual.
"Hmm?"
"The Giant Spirit Ancestor... he didn't perish?"
"He didn't exhaust his power after cleaving the heavens to merge his body with the world. Instead, he left..."
"Yet what was the Giant Spirit Ancestor searching for? His creation of this world seemed to be an attempt to verify something."
Lu Changsheng kept his gaze locked onto the Immortal Blood.
However, the vision vanished.
Just as the Giant Spirit Ancestor raised his hand to tear open the void, the vision dissolved.
Lu Changsheng understood that this was because his comprehension was still insufficient.
His current comprehension could only perceive this much.
Yet he also faintly realized that the scene that followed—the actions the Giant Spirit Ancestor was about to take—was what truly mattered most.
It was even more important than creating a world!
"Deduce!"
Without hesitation, Lu Changsheng activated the deduction function.
Instantly, his comprehension points burned away at rapid speed.
Ten thousand, thirty thousand, fifty thousand, one hundred thousand...
In a short span, over one hundred thousand comprehension points vanished, and the consumption continued violently.
Yet Lu Changsheng did not care.
His comprehension points stood near thirteen million.
He had an ample reserve and was not afraid of expending them.
As points were consumed in vast amounts, Lu Changsheng entered a state of deduction, and his comprehension surged again.
He felt as though he could penetrate straight through the secrets of this drop of Immortal Blood.
His vision seemed to pierce through layers of obstacles,
seeing through a fragment of information contained within the Immortal Blood.
It was a vision,
identical to what Lu Changsheng had seen before.
It was still the Giant Spirit Ancestor.
After cleaving open a world, the Giant Spirit Ancestor's true body had not perished; instead, he seemed to be searching for something.
"Open!"
The Giant Spirit Ancestor cleaved open the void once more.
This time, he appeared to have found his mark.
With stroke after furious stroke of his axe, he rent the void apart.
Yet beyond the void lay no chaotic spatial turbulence.
Lu Changsheng's eyes went wide.
What was he looking at?
Behind the shattered void, a road had actually appeared!
Yes, a road!
"What is that?"
Lu Changsheng stared fixedly at the vision.
This road was seemingly what the Giant Spirit Ancestor sought.
"The Road to Ascending Heaven!"
Lu Changsheng seemed to hear the Giant Spirit Ancestor speak.
"The Road to Ascending Heaven?"
Lu Changsheng was taken aback.
Yet the next moment, the Giant Spirit Ancestor seemed to catch sight of something, and his expression changed drastically.
The Giant Spirit Ancestor cast one hand seal after another,
and the road grew increasingly broad and stable.
However, when the Road to Ascending Heaven extended to a certain length,
the Giant Spirit Ancestor suddenly saw that it was severed.
Yes, severed.
A broad Road to Ascending Heaven had simply snapped off.
Beyond it lay pitch-black nothingness, void of all things.
"The Road to Ascending Heaven is severed! How can one ascend to heaven now?"
"No, I will mend this Road to Ascending Heaven..."
The Giant Spirit Ancestor roared, attempting to repair the road.
Yet no matter what method he employed, he failed.
Afterward, as though seeking something out, the Giant Spirit Ancestor strode away and vanished without a trace.
As for the world he had cleaved open,
a faint drop of blood trickled down, silently falling into that realm.
Lu Changsheng understood completely.
That drop of blood was the Immortal Blood!
In truth, it was merely an ordinary drop of blood from the Giant Spirit Ancestor.
It was not even an essence blood drop.
Yet even an ordinary drop of blood belonged to a terrifying existence capable of cleaving open the Road to Ascending Heaven.
The scenes from moments ago were simply memories preserved within the Immortal Blood.
These memories were exceptionally well-hidden.
Unless one possessed a power capable of penetrating the secrets of the Immortal Blood,
no one could ever witness them.
Yet Lu Changsheng had seen them.
At last, Lu Changsheng closed his eyes once more.
The vision ended.
When he reopened his eyes, the first thing he looked at was his attribute panel.
Host: Lu Changsheng
Comprehension: 11,880,000 (Peerless Through the Ages)
Infinite Martial Dao: Master of Ten Thousand Daos
Flesh Martial Dao: Septenary Growth
Comprehension Deduction: Massive amounts of comprehension can be consumed to perform deductions.
On the attribute panel, Lu Changsheng's comprehension points were down by a full one million!
Yes, one million comprehension points had vanished.
Just by using the deduction function to penetrate the secrets of the Immortal Blood for that brief moment, he had expended a million points.
No wonder even the Martial Ancestors had been unable to fathom the mysteries of the Immortal Blood.
Yet was the consumption of this one million comprehension points worth it?
Lu Changsheng could not help recalling the visions he had witnessed.
It was worth it!
It was worth every single point!
Within those visions might very well lie the true secrets of the entire Boundary Sea!
"The Road to Ascending Heaven is severed..." Lu Changsheng murmured softly.
He did not know what those words signified.
Yet to drive an existence like the Giant Spirit Ancestor to near madness, the severance of the Road to Ascending Heaven was clearly no good omen.
Still, such secrets were of no use to Lu Changsheng for the time being.
What truly delighted him was the Immortal Blood.
Those one million comprehension points had not merely shown him a few visions;
they had allowed him to see through the mysteries of the Immortal Blood itself.
Therefore, Lu Changsheng could now make use of this drop of Immortal Blood.
However, he still needed to consider things carefully.
"This drop of Immortal Blood is the blood of the Giant Spirit Ancestor."
"If I refine it according to my Flesh Martial Dao, now that I have unraveled its mysteries, I am indeed capable of doing so."
"Yet once refined, my physical body will trend toward that of the Giant Spirit race. Though it won't be entirely identical, the Giant Spirit race walks the path of the physical body. Even the Giant Spirit Ancestor possessed a physical form that reached an unfathomable realm, one surpassing even the Martial Ancestors."
"I am different, however. My foundation remains the Martial Dao of the Immortal Martial World. No matter how strong the physical body becomes, in the end, it must attain the Unified True Self, merge with the Martial Dao, and achieve the realm of Martial Dao Sovereign."
"Thus, the blood of the Giant Spirit Ancestor must be used with caution. At the very least, I cannot allow my body to transform too much toward the Giant Spirit race. Otherwise, achieving the Unified True Self in the future might become difficult."
Lu Changsheng already had some thoughts and directions in mind.
The Giant Spirit race was undeniably powerful.
Yet hadn't they been defeated by the Martial Ancestor in the end?
One of them had even been captured, placed inside the Tower of Heaven to serve as a tower spirit, and ultimately slain by Lu Changsheng.
Within the Giant Spirit race, the only truly supreme being was perhaps the Giant Spirit Ancestor himself.
Aside from him, it was difficult for anyone in their race to produce an existence rivaling a Martial Ancestor.
In comparison, Lu Changsheng believed that the Martial Dao cultivation of the Immortal Martial World held greater potential.
Moreover, he had cultivated the Martial Dao of the Immortal Martial World all along and naturally would not abandon it halfway.
His decision made, Lu Changsheng resolved himself.
"Let us begin."
With that, he opened his mouth and swallowed.
He swallowed that drop of Immortal Blood directly into his mouth.
Yes, he swallowed it whole.
Immediately after, Lu Changsheng began circulating his Flesh Martial Dao,
slowly refining this drop of Immortal Blood.
Of course, completely refining the drop of Immortal Blood for his own use would by no means be simple.
He had to remain constantly vigilant against being influenced by it.
He also needed other body-tempering treasures and resources to cultivate alongside it.
Fortunately, with the full backing of the Martial Ancestor, Lu Changsheng had no need to worry about a lack of resources.
Three months later, the Martial Ancestor sent over a bracelet crafted from the Kui Cow hide.
This was a rare treasure.
Though not a spirit treasure, it contained the lightning of the Immortal Martial World.
It could continuously draw down lightning, effectively keeping itself charged.
Then, through the Kui Cow hide, it would release that power slowly, tempering the physical body at all times.
Such an item was a top-tier body-refining treasure.
Even with the Immortal Blood in hand, it remained immensely useful to Lu Changsheng.
He dubbed it the "Thunder Ring."
Moreover, even if he no longer needed it in the future, he could pass it down to the forces under his command.
This was a treasure capable of laying the foundation for generations to come!
Both the Giant Spirit Ring and the Thunder Ring were such treasures.
Inside his immortal cave, Lu Changsheng devoted all his efforts to cultivating with the Immortal Blood, the Giant Spirit Ring, and the Thunder Ring.
From time to time, he would also refine the martial dao fragments sent by Elder Feng,
and he continued to utilize his terrifying comprehension to contemplate the Martial Dao.
Three months, six months, a year, two years, three years...
Lu Changsheng had never been in secluded cultivation for so long.
Yet this time, he truly experienced what it meant for cultivation to know no passage of time.
Finally, after three years, a rumble echoed from within Lu Changsheng's physical body.
A terrifying aura emanated from his flesh,
one that faintly transcended the level of an Earth Saint.
*Whoosh.*
Lu Changsheng opened his eyes.
Chapter 314