Chapter 46: The Key to Breaking Limits: The Hōgyoku

Ye Xuan slowly raised his hand; the Emperor Armor dissolved into golden light and reformed into its original majestic stance, standing where it was.

Even with his composure, he could not suppress the slight curve of his lips.

In this chaotic age of spiritual energy’s revival, he finally possessed a trump card capable of handling anything.

Yes, anything!

Whether it was human technology or the guardian deity of Daya!

But soon, Ye Xuan’s gaze shifted away from the armor, his fingers unconsciously tracing the pattern of the Rat Talisman.

The armor was merely an external tool, and even the power of the Rat Talisman was still external.

If he were to grow complacent merely because he had fished up the Rat Talisman, losing his drive to pursue greater strength, he would be far too easily satisfied.

Moreover, the power of the Rat Talisman was not limited solely to things that could greatly enhance his strength.

Thinking this, Ye Xuan’s gaze turned to the depths of the display case, where a gem emitting a faint blue glow rested quietly on a velvet pad among countless Shinigami captains’ figurines.

“Hōgyoku!”

In the Shinigami world, the fusion of Urahara Kisuke and Aizen’s Hōgyoku could manifest one’s innermost desires according to their will, provided they possessed the potential to realize such a wish.

Fortunately, Ye Xuan was not lacking in potential.

Whether as a human himself, the innate talent inherited from the Wangquan Baye template, or the bodily transformation brought by the Three Thousand Flame Fire reshaping his body—he had no shortage of potential.

What he lacked was time to transform that potential into actual power.

“The key to breaking through limits.”

Ye Xuan reached out and took the Hōgyoku; a soft light shot from the Rat Talisman in his hand, and in an instant, the gem—once merely a figurine—exploded in blinding blue-black radiance, then gradually receded into a gentle, luminous glow that flowed across his palm, radiating a sense of kinship, as if alive.

He gently pressed the Hōgyoku against his chest; the gem melted into his skin like liquid, and an odd warmth surged through his entire body—deep within his consciousness, some invisible chain seemed to quietly snap open—

The sword techniques he had long since perfected suddenly reorganized and transformed; every detail of the Wangquan Sword Art expanded infinitely in his mind, and the forms he once believed reached their ultimate limit now revealed entirely new variations.

Ye Xuan froze slightly.

He had assumed that, with his current strength, even if the Hōgyoku could awaken potential, it could not produce immediate results; yet he had overlooked the foundational sword techniques within the Wangquan Baye template—the ordinary sword moves passed down for a thousand years within the Wangquan family, far weaker than “Heaven and Earth One Sword.”

Because they were merely basics, Wangquan Baye had already refined them to the point of no further improvement, so he had never paid them attention, let alone practiced them.

But now, under the Hōgyoku’s guidance of potential, these sword techniques, long buried in his memory, began to transform.

“So that’s how it is.”

Ye Xuan unconsciously closed his eyes; golden sword intent spontaneously rose around him, and he seemed to see countless versions of himself within his consciousness swinging swords, each strike breaking through old constraints.

Even the Wangquan Sword Intent improved.

Sword intent is an extension of the sword; his understanding of the sword had deepened beyond before, so the Wangquan Sword Intent could not possibly remain stagnant.

When Ye Xuan opened his eyes again, a strand of Wangquan Sword Intent coalesced at his fingertip—its pure gold now more refined, more perfect.

On the charred grass, Ye Xuan and a red-clad figure exchanged high-speed blows.

“Thud!”

Amid the muffled impact of fists and kicks, the woman in red leather leapt back lightly; her long hair flowed free, her skin as pale as jade, and in her eyes, a stream of green data flashed:

“Brother Ye Xuan, your right shoulder dropped 0.3 centimeters, affecting power angle; left leg muscle load has reached 87%. Suggestion: adjust center of gravity distribution.”

Her crisp voice precisely recited a string of data.

“There is a 0.05-second gap during the transition of the third technique of Wangquan Sword Art; energy utilization is only 88%.”

Ye Xuan’s expression did not change; his posture adjusted instantly; his sword forms flowed like clouds and water, sword qi carving perfect arcs through the air.

“Warning! Left-side defense at thirty degrees is weak; enemy attack probability: 92%—”

Before she finished speaking, the red figure slipped like a ghost into the blind spot, her slender fingers streaked with blue electricity striking straight for his throat; Ye Xuan blocked but was still thrown back over ten meters, leaving two deep furrows in the grass.

“Battle rhythm prediction: continuing current pattern, Brother Ye Xuan will lose in 2 minutes and 17 seconds.”

The opponent hovered midair, her red leather suit snapping in the wind.

Ye Xuan wiped sweat from his brow and spoke calmly.

“Stop. That’s enough for today.”

Upon hearing Ye Xuan’s words, the red-clad woman landed, her data streams fading, revealing a look of concern.

“Are you tired, Brother Ye Xuan?”

“Should Shao Niu activate the medical function to treat you?”

Ye Xuan shook his head, his gaze fixed on the girl before him, an involuntary smile of satisfaction tugging at his lips.

Shao Niu, a high-tech android from the Magic Phone, born from future technology of 2060, possessing dozens of special abilities including communication, memory, and medical functions.

Though called a phone, its capabilities far surpassed any ordinary mobile device.

Initially, Ye Xuan had merely wished to use the power of the Rat Talisman to manifest a training partner capable of applying sufficient pressure.

He had originally considered Tu Shan Honghong, wanting to compare his Three Thousand Flame Fire against her Demon-Exterminating Divine Fire—whether it was inferior or superior—but abandoned the idea due to the figurine’s size.

Though her power wouldn’t diminish, the thought of fighting a palm-sized Tu Shan Honghong felt absurd; then he noticed the crystal doll beside it.

Ye Xuan hadn’t expected that a store specializing in two-dimensional merchandise would even carry something like Shao Niu from a TV series—and apparently, many had bought it.

Was the idea to bypass the phone manufacturers entirely and use dimensional intrusion to make their Shao Niu real?

But given Shao Niu’s time-space travel function, it would not realistically manifest in reality anytime soon; even if it did, it could not fully activate its capabilities.

Yet perhaps they weren’t concerned with that anyway.

Ye Xuan shook his head, dismissing such thoughts; based on his recent experience, Shao Niu’s functions had satisfied him completely.

She could provide precise combat analysis and adjust pressure according to his strength—an ideal, tailor-made training assistant.

Though the time-space travel function was unusable, only that function was unusable.

After all, the Magic Phone world was not powerful; even figures like Sun Wukong and Niu Wang, mythological legends, were generally weak—Sun Wukong’s Indestructible Body couldn’t even withstand pesticide.

That Shao Niu had been able to suppress him had surprised him; he didn’t know whether the Rat Talisman had enhanced her functions.

(End of Chapter)