Chapter 1352: Jiang Ding's Happy Troubles

"What is there to thank me for?"

"Combat and merit are matters of course; they were yours to begin with."

Jiang Ding shook his head slightly, then nodded: "The Upper Realm is where countless geniuses from Minor Thousand Worlds and Zhong Senior Qian Shi Gao Jie gather. Even I sometimes feel the vastness of heaven and earth, a desolate loneliness of being alone."

"Since you have come, that is good."

"In heaven and earth, there are finally one or two old friends from the past, so that I no longer look at every person in the vast world as a stranger."

"However, the timing is not good now; you might face danger..."

Jiang Ding sighed slightly.

"Danger?"

Han Lin's heart jolted, and his vigilance immediately sharpened.

If even this person says it is dangerous, then it must be extremely dangerous, the kind that costs lives.

"Great Love Canghai Tianjun,"

"Do you know what the danger is?"

Jiang Ding asked.

This Daoist friend is said to be unmatched in divination arts; he himself has claimed as much.

As long as the other party had not violated the Master Tushan Laws, Jiang Ding believed him and would not pry into anyone's privacy.

"I wish for the Canghai Tianjun,"

"Victory in the first battle!"

Great Love Canghai Tianjun did not pretend to be foolish this time; he bowed again, offering a deep bow: "I wish for you to slay the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong's lineage, advance further in the Sword Dao, progress further on the Great Dao of Immortality, and widen the path to eternal life by one step."

In these words, there was also a measure of genuine intent in his heart.

The Great Sun Sword Master was not kind to him.

For instance, he did not receive the many favors granted to Li Qingyun Canghai Tianjun; the distinction in treatment was very obvious. In his heart, he did not quite like him, and there was even a faint, barely perceptible hostility.

However, the Great Sun Sword Master was very strict about rules.

As long as something belonged to you according to the rules, he would give it to you; he would never withhold anything, nor would he attack you without cause, even if you were merely a mortal.

Such a person is not considered a great good man in traditional morality; indeed, whether he is a good man at all is debatable.

But in the Cultivation World, compared to what many cultivators actually do rather than what they say, this is already extremely rare, and there are many aspects where one can leverage him.

"You indeed know."

"Then you should also know that you carry my karmic ties; since we originate from the same Lower Realm, you might be implicated in certain matters."

Jiang Ding nodded slightly: "In this battle, if I die, then I die; there is nothing more to say. I would become another karmic opportunity for the Sword Dao lineage of Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong, adding to the foundation of his Sword Dao, merely one of the countless living beings who have died beneath the swords of the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong's Sword Dao lineage; there is nothing strange about that."

"But if I win, and successfully escape,"

"then someone might vent their anger on you. You know that in the world, there are always many cultivators who only allow themselves to use others' lives to temper their swords, yet do not allow their own people to die in others' hands; such is the injustice."

"It is very regrettable that this injustice seems to be the norm in the Cultivation World."

"I suggest you immediately flee far away to the Thunder Flame Domain, stay far from here; you might consider the Demon Beast territories."

Jiang Ding said calmly: "Although this may not be of much use, Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong is still far too powerful for us; they possess various divination arts we cannot even imagine."

He had once thought of giving these two some teleportation talismans for survival, and felt some guilt in his heart, but he abandoned the idea.

Because that would further solidify their connection to him, potentially inviting even greater danger.

Of course, this guilt in Jiang Ding's heart would not change his plans in any way; this is the evil of the enemy, having nothing to do with him; when he has the ability in the future, he will simply take revenge casually.

He is merely a small Soul Transformation cultivator; against the evils committed by Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong, he is powerless.

"Of course, this is the general rule."

"The two of you might also not be calculated by Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong; after all, you two Daoist friends are not ordinary people."

Jiang Ding added another sentence.

"Thank you, Canghai Tianjun, for the reminder."

Han Lin and Great Love Canghai Tianjun felt heavy-hearted and nodded solemnly.

This heaviness, Han Lin likely felt truly, while for Great Love Canghai Tianjun it was unknown; Jiang Ding could not penetrate his inner thoughts.

"Very well, let us not speak of these heavy matters."

"Recently, I have had some slight insights on the Great Dao; we could exchange a few words, improve each other, and promote one another together..."

Jiang Ding changed the subject, shifting to cultivation.

Cultivators in the Cultivation World often face life-and-death crises; this seems to be an inevitable fate. No matter the crisis, life must go on, and the Great Dao of Immortality must be walked forward without regret until eternal life is achieved, or until the end of life, having lived a life without regret.

"Haha, the Canghai Tianjun expounding the Dao! It has been many years since I last heard it!"

Han Lin and Great Love Canghai Tianjun were overjoyed.

"Nowhere, nowhere; it is merely mutual exchange."

Jiang Ding was very humble.

The three discussed the Dao, sharing what they had gained in their cultivation. Often, it was Jiang Ding who spoke, explaining the foundations of the Soul Transformation Realm, how to break through to Void Refinement, and how to construct a Void Refinement rule-world within the body. As long as it did not involve the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong's lineage secrets, he tried to explain everything in an accessible way, making the profound simple.

This was not difficult; apart from the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong's lineage, Jiang Ding also mastered numerous Void Refinement lineages.

Sometimes, Jiang Ding also gained insights, receiving many train of thought from Han Lin and Great Love Canghai Tianjun that he had never considered before.

Great Love Canghai Tianjun actually possessed surprisingly deep attainments in the Dao of Time and the Dao of Space,

especially the Dao of Time, a realm Jiang Ding had not yet touched; he was truly an anomaly.

Han Lin, on the other hand, had profound attainments in the Dao of Wood, with many whimsical and imaginative ideas, unrestrained by trivialities, leaving people in admiration; he was far from an ordinary person.

"When three walk together, there must be one who can be my teacher." Truly, these are the words of truth.

Time was very short; after several days of discussing the Dao, the three parted with reluctance.

Time was very brief; after a few days of discussing the Dao, the three parted reluctantly.

"With this parting, I don't know when we'll be able to meet again in the future."

Jiang Ding cupped his hands in a bow: "I wish the two fellow Daoists that your great Dao may be achieved in the future, and that the future holds promise."

"I wish the Canghai Tianjun will cut down the Taiyi Qingmu Xianzong's legacy in formation, and that your Sword Dao will advance another step!"

"I wish Little Martial Uncle will achieve immortality in the future!"

Han Lin and the Great Compassion Canghai Tianjun hurriedly returned the bow.

At this moment, even the deeply scheming and cold Great Compassion Canghai Tianjun felt a slight stirring in his heart.

Three Hua Shen Qi ants of the lesser realms, yet at this moment they mutually wished each other a future of achieving immortality and attaining the Dao—the sentiment between them was utterly pure.

Of course, this sentiment in no way affected the possible life-and-death battles between them in the future.

Yet the emotion of this moment was undeniably real.

"Farewell!"

"Farewell!"

Jiang Ding cupped his hands once more, turned, and departed, his figure gradually vanishing from everyone's sight.

In place, only two people remained.

In an instant, the surrounding atmosphere became thick with killing intent, nearly freezing the very space.

"Fellow Daoist Li Qingyun,"

"Let this kind of thing not happen a second time!"

The Great Compassion Canghai Tianjun said coldly: "Otherwise, fellow Daoist, don't blame this Canghai Tianjun for disregarding the bond of fellow countrymen…"

"Rest assured, fellow Daoist."

The Li Qingyun Canghai Tianjun remained calm and composed.

"Hmph!"

The two each flicked their sleeves and departed.

……

Mire Demon City.

Jiang Ding appeared here once again, his gaze fixed on the distance.

"According to intelligence, the Light Thunder Canghai Tianjun is currently burning incense and bathing at the barrier, meditating in quiet contemplation—this is his habit. Whenever conditions allow, he will inevitably adjust himself to peak condition before every battle, regardless of who the opponent is."

"Referring to his past, in at most one year, he will formally begin seeking opponents for sword duels."

"Will he come looking for me first?"

"Or will he go find the legacy disciple of the Great Yin-Yang Sword Realm first?"

"What a headache. I currently don't know where the legacy sword cultivators of the Great Yin-Yang Sword Realm are—their movements cannot be observed."

Jiang Ding said with a somewhat blissfully troubled air.