400: Chapter 40 Unrecognized

["Heh..."]

[The corners of your mouth twitched as you let out a bitter smile.]

[After calming your emotions, you continued to ask:]

["Senior, can I find a place to break through to Void Refining before heading to the Immortal Realm?"]

[The Shura Demon Lord simply smiled indifferently and said calmly:]

["Your Dao Rhyme is not innate; I fear you have no hope of reaching Void Refining in this lifetime."]

["If you do not believe me, I can give you a hundred years."]

["When the time comes, you can head to the Immortal Realm with peace of mind."]

[You frowned slightly.]

[His words were exactly the same as what Venerable Cang Xuan had said.]

[By the time you snapped back to your senses, there was no one left in front of you.]

[The Shura Demon Lord had departed at some unknown point, as if he had never appeared at all.]

[Gazing at the empty surroundings, you took a deep breath and turned to head toward Asura City.]

[In the forty-third year,]

[You ventured deep into the Demon Realm and found an abandoned Immortal Cave on a desolate Shattered Star Continent, where you began your secluded cultivation.]

[Perhaps because of the chaos demon seed within you, you found that even without much concealment, your aura naturally blended with the environment of the Demon Realm, requiring almost no disguise.]

[The primary condition for breaking through to Void Refining is that one must comprehend a certain Law to Perfection.]

[Due to your Physique, you are currently best suited to pursue two paths: the Law of Poison and the Sword Law.]

[Without much thought, you immediately chose the Sword Law.]

[You activated the xuantian treasure mirror, and under a hundredfold acceleration, you sat in meditation on the Dao of the Sword with the immortal slaying sword, refining it day and night.]

[In the forty-fourth year,]

[Your Sword Law progressed from Entry-level to Minor Achievement.]

[One day, you opened your eyes and casually made a slicing motion with your fingers.]

[There was no fluctuation of spiritual power, and no sword light flew out.]

[However, in the three feet of void before you, a thin crack silently appeared, only slowly healing after two breaths.]

[In the past, when you struck with a sword, you controlled it with force; wherever the blade pointed, nothing could withstand it.]

[Now, when you strike, you control the Dao with intent; wherever your thoughts reach, there is no need for a sword or force—the void cracks on its own, and the Laws make way.]

[This is the difference between Minor Achievement and being a mere beginner: now, you are using the rules of the sword.]

[In the forty-fifth year,]

[The xuantian treasure mirror continued its acceleration.]

[This year, your Sword Law progressed from Minor Achievement to Major Achievement.]

[You didn't even lift a hand; with just a slight movement of your mind—]

[Within three feet of your body, the void suddenly solidified.]

[It was not Spiritual Pressure, nor was it a restriction.]

[It was something more fundamental—a "submission" from the level of rules.]

[Every wisp of Spiritual Qi, every grain of dust, and even light itself within this space were governed by the will of the sword at your single thought.]

[You pointed your fingers into the air.]

[There was no sword light, no sound of breaking air.]

[On the sword-testing stone in the corner of the Immortal Cave, cast from ten-thousand-year cold iron, a straight, mirror-smooth cut suddenly appeared.]

[At the edge of the cut, there was no charred blackness from spiritual power, no roughness from brute force tearing—only the purest mark of "being severed."]

[With the Sword Law at Major Achievement, there was no longer a need to "strike with a sword."]

[It was as if you weren't swinging a sword, but making a ruling—ruling that this place shall be divided, ruling that that place shall be severed.]

[The Laws of Heaven and Earth follow your command.]

[In the forty-sixth year,]

[After a hundred years of cultivation, you no longer had any obstacles on the Dao of the Sword; once a sword strike is made, the Laws follow.]

[The Sword Law has reached Perfection.]

[You hadn't even formed a thought or circulated your power.]

[Yet, the three feet of void around you began to disintegrate on its own.]

[It wasn't crumbling or exploding—it was like morning mist dispersing, silently yielding an absolute vacuum.]

[In this vacuum, there was no Spiritual Qi, no Devilish Qi, no light, no dust, and not even the concept of "existence" itself.]

[There was only the sword.]

[Or rather, only the ultimate rule of "severing" was manifested here in physical form.]

[It was as if you yourself were the Sword Law.]

[You raised your hand, and an invisible sword of Law had already condensed in your palm.]

[You then took out that Magic Treasure, the youguang sword.]

[At your single thought—]

[Buzz!]

[The sword of Law let out a low hum.]

[The youguang sword snapped on its own.]

[Silently, it broke in half, the cut as smooth as a mirror.]

[You looked at the broken youguang sword and remained silent for a long time.]

[So it turned out that Perfection was not sharpness, but non-attachment.]

[With the sword in your heart, there is nothing that cannot be severed.]

[If the sword is laid down, all things become empty.]

[This sword strike was now formless, nameless, and without technique.]

[You finally understood Qin Han's strength—it turned out his mastery of the Laws had reached Perfection, which was why he possessed such power.]

[Therefore, his attacks could tear through everything!]

[No wonder those Mahayana Cultivators were so powerful.]

[It turned out that when their control over the Law Power reached Perfection, your own Entry-level control was like that of a child before them.]

[This absolute mastery of the Laws was simply not on the same level anymore.]

[And now, your Sword Law had also reached Perfection. It could be said that your strength had reached the half-step Void Refining stage.]

[Once you break through to the Void Refining Realm and master Void Power, your own life level would leap once more.]

[Furthermore, the survival capabilities of a Void Refining Cultivator are not something a Spirit Transformation Cultivator can compare to.]

[Thinking of this, you suppressed your excitement and began to prepare for the matters of breaking through to Void Refining.]

[In the forty-seventh year,]

[You stopped all cultivation and focused on refining your essence, Qi, and spirit.]

[This is the most critical foundation before breaking through to Void Refining—only when essence is sufficient, Qi is abundant, and spirit is full, forming a seamless whole, can one attempt to tear through the void and fuse with the Laws.]

[This year, you pushed all your states to the absolute limit.]

[In the forty-eighth year,]

[You made your first attempt to break through to the Void Refining Realm.]

[Using the perfected Sword Law as a blade, you tore a rift in the void.]

[Then, you guided your Primordial Spirit to probe into that boundless void world filled with the Law Origins and turbulence, attempting to establish a deeper Fusion and resonance between yourself and that world.]

[And then—you failed.]

[The backlash from the three thousand Law Origins surged like a tide; your Primordial Spirit shook violently, nearly shattering on the spot!]

[You vomited a large amount of blood, your aura flickering like a candle in the wind, your Divine Soul dimmed, and your life hanging by a thread.]

[Just as you were about to be completely swallowed by Void Power, the chaos demon seed that had been dormant in your Qi Sea for many years suddenly erupted with a halo of dark light.]

[That cold, domineering power instantly protected your Primordial Spirit, which was on the verge of collapsing, and forcibly dragged you back from the void rift.]

[You saved your life, but your Origin Qi was greatly damaged.]

[In the forty-ninth year,]

[After your injuries healed, you refused to accept defeat and attempted to break through once more.]

[This time, you prepared more thoroughly, adjusted yourself more perfectly, and the Sword Intent used to tear the void was even more condensed.]

[Yet, you still failed.]

[The force of the backlash was even more violent, nearly tearing apart your Physical Body and Primordial Spirit together.]

[The demon seed acted again, a flash of dark light pulling you back from the brink of annihilation.]

[Reviewing these two experiences, you immediately felt—you were not being acknowledged.]