Chapter 157: Level 60

Ning Fengzhi's Eight Treasures Glazed Pagoda assistance was indeed very powerful; Yang Xiong's whole body quickly fully recovered, and even his spiritual power seemed immensely abundant.

Sword Douluo, after Yang Xiong recovered, spoke: "How's it, Xiao Xiong, how do you feel about the killing aura on you now?"

Yang Xiong thought carefully before speaking: "Sword Teacher, I think that during the clash of our killing auras just now, although I was completely suppressed by you, I could still sense my own shortcomings."

Sword Douluo nodded: "That's normal. You must have passed the Killing City assessment, initially gaining the Killing God Domain, but you haven't fully mastered the Killing God Domain yet; it's still relatively rough."

"Moreover, you're only a mere Soul King; I'm a Level 97 Title Douluo. The gap in our soul power is huge, so I can easily suppress your Killing God Domain."

"Of course, if your soul power were higher—if you reached Soul Douluo or even Title Douluo—I wouldn't be able to suppress you so easily."

Yang Xiong said: "Thank you, Sword Teacher, for the guidance."

Sword Douluo said: "Do you have any plans next? Letting all that killing aura out like this isn't a solution, and your current state is prone to losing control."

Yang Xiong thought carefully before replying: "Sword Teacher, I intend to find a secluded mountain forest to recuperate slowly, and by sensing the life of nature, control the killing aura within my body."

Sword Douluo nodded: "It's indeed an idea. Nature holds endless life; you might gradually master the Killing God Domain through the breath of life, but the pace would be slower and might not be ideal for your future development."

Yang Xiong hurriedly asked: "Then, Teacher, what should I do now?"

Sword Douluo said: "When I broke through to Title Douluo, I awakened the Seven Killing Domain, which is also pure killing aura, but unlike your Killing God Domain, the Seven Killing Domain is inherent to the Seven Killing Sword martial soul, whereas your Killing God Domain was obtained through killing, making it harder to control."

"I suggest you proceed in two steps: spend part of the time in solitary contemplation, and the other part focusing on the application of killing aura. If your killing aura is only the Killing God Domain, it's somewhat wasteful."

Yang Xiong's eyes brightened at the words: "Sword Teacher, I indeed have that thought. Over the years I've been studying the Seven Kill Sword Technique, and since the killing aura entered my body, the sword qi I wield seems to have changed, becoming more imbued with killing aura and far more powerful."

Sword Douluo said: "You do have some ideas. Next, we'll have you cultivate in the back mountains of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect; no one will disturb you there."

"Ning Fengzhi and I will visit you once a week; then I'll guide you on the use of killing aura, perhaps sparring with me will give you some improvement, and additionally Ning Fengzhi's Eight Treasures Glazed Pagoda will also aid you."

……

In just half a day, a small thatched hut was already erected on the back mountains of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, fully equipped inside, with various flowers and plants transplanted around it.

Yang Xiong then moved into that thatched hut.

The reason it was built as a thatched hut is that such a hut is closer to nature, bearing more of the breath of life and living.

Yang Xiong enjoyed a rare natural sleep, especially in this secluded place where the life breath is extremely dense, seemingly able to subtly assimilate the killing aura within his body.

From then on, Yang Xiong's days were very simple.

Each day his main activities were writing, practicing tai chi, and pruning flowers.

Whenever Yang Xiong held a pen, he always felt the pen in his hand was like a weapon, and the paper his opponent, causing his whole hand to tremble slightly.

But Yang Xiong forced his inner killing intent to endure, and began to write slowly, stroke by stroke.

What he wrote was not complex; the main content came from the Tao Te Ching or the Heart Sutra.

Regarding these two timeless classics of Taoism and Buddhism from his past life, Yang Xiong could not read them fully, but he knew some of the more classic passages.

The key in the Tao Te Ching is: The Dao gives birth to one; one gives birth to two; two gives birth to three; three gives birth to all things.

In the Heart Sutra it says: Form is emptiness, emptiness is form; form is emptiness, emptiness is form.

These are profound sayings of the Buddhist and Taoist schools, containing the great Dao of heaven and earth and the principles of being human; after each writing, Yang Xiong would have a special insight.

He also wrote some Tai Chi theory: Tai Chi gives rise to the two principles, the two principles give rise to the four symbols, the four symbols give rise to the eight trigrams.

After writing and contemplation, Yang Xiong always felt his heart unusually ethereal; these sayings appear simple, yet their content is extraordinarily extraordinary.

Whenever Yang Xiong felt he was about to lose control, or his hands itched, he would practice tai chi alone in an open space.

Tai chi emphasizes the harmony of hardness and softness; during its practice, the killing aura on his body seemed to change imperceptibly, becoming peaceful along the flow of tai chi.

Especially since the killing aura is fierce and direct, while tai chi is extremely gentle, they seem to perfectly counterbalance each other.

The final activity is pruning the flowers and plants.

This task was mainly taught by Sword Douluo and is only carried out when Sword Douluo is present.

Each time Yang Xiong held the small scissors, he felt an urge to cut the flowers and plants into fragments.

But under Sword Douluo's gaze, Yang Xiong, gripping the sharp scissors, trembled as he snipped at the tangled foliage; each cut seemed to cause the killing aura to reconsolidate.

Yet the flowers and plants swayed before Yang Xiong's eyes, as if displaying a robust life, a miracle of existence.

And the scissors in Yang Xiong's hand seemed like the world's killing; only when fully controlled can one prevent true wrongdoing.

Of course, besides these, Yang Xiong also brews tea, drinks wine, and the like.

……

Moreover, whenever Sword Douluo and Ning Fengzhi arrived, Yang Xiong would exert all his strength to spar with Sword Douluo, essentially unleashing his killing aura to the utmost.

According to Sword Douluo, such killing aura, rather than being suppressed, should be released explosively; only by truly venting it can one truly master it.

And each time Yang Xiong was exhausted, Ning Fengzhi would assist him with the Eight Treasures Glazed Pagoda.

Ning Fengzhi's Eight Treasures Glazed Pagoda truly is a top‑grade auxiliary martial soul; similarly, the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda is the pinnacle of gemstone martial souls, and after Yang Xiong is drained, the shining light of the Eight Treasures Glazed Pagoda greatly benefits his body.

Yang Xiong couldn't help but recall Tang Yuehua of Yue Xuan; Tang Yuehua's martial soul, the Ruyi Disk, possesses a Noble Domain, and the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda also boasts gemstone splendor, so in a sense the Ruyi Disk and the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda are somewhat similar.

Initially, Ning Fengzhi also suggested that Yang Xiong study at Yue Xuan, but Yang Xiong declined.

Yue Xuan is a well‑known spot in Heaven Dou City, especially since Tang Yuehua was born into the Clear Sky Sect; such a fact could not be hidden from Ning Fengzhi, and even Yue Xuan enjoys the backing of the wealthy patron Ning Fengzhi.

Moreover, during that year, Ning Rongrong secretly came to meet Yang Xiong; the two enjoyed flowers, the moon, and the stars together, their bond warming, and even Ning Fengzhi and Sword Bone Douluo and others turned a blind eye.

Time flew, and soon a year had passed.

During that year, Yang Xiong's whole body and temperament underwent great changes; the killing aura on him seemed to have fully merged with his body, making him appear as an ordinary person who loves nature.

Especially in appearance, his once blood‑red hair gradually turned black, though whenever he fought Sword Douluo, his hair would turn entirely blood‑red.

And Yang Xiong's heart became exceedingly peaceful, no longer ambitious nor scheming.

After gaining full recognition from Sword Douluo and others, Yang Xiong finally left the back mountains of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect.

When Yang Xiong returned home, his father Yang Lin and mother Sun Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Throughout the year, Yang Lin, Sun Yu, and Lin Gong visited the back mountains to meet Yang Xiong many times, but because his condition was too abnormal, each encounter was brief, and the others never saw him.

Even though that year Yang Xiong performed no Meditation, in fact he hadn't Meditated for three full years, his whole soul power grew naturally, reaching the Liu Shi Ji (Level 60) completion.

Yang Xiong also knows that his time is running short.

It has already been a full four years since the original Soul Master Competition, leaving only one year until the Spirit Hall's Soul Hunting Operation; during this period I must improve as much as possible, and likewise raise the strength of everyone around me, for only then can we hope to face that terrifying war.

Yang Xiong knows very well that no matter how much the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect improves its strength, and no matter how his Body Sect gathers forces, the gap with the Spirit Hall remains too large.

According to what Yang Xiong knows, the Spirit Hall has Nine Great Elders and Seven Great Offerings, and with Bibidong added, there are a full seventeen Title Douluo, including Bibidong and Qian Daoliu, the two 99‑level peerless Douluo; even a 98‑level Gold Crocodile Douluo would be beyond the current strength of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect.

Although the Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo have been diligently cultivating these years, the Sword Douluo remains at 97th level, and the Bone Douluo is only at 96th level, and there seem to be no signs of breakthrough in the short term.

As for Lin Gong and Long Gong, both have Soul Ring configurations of two yellow, three purple, four black; the early foundation impact is too great, so after becoming Title Douluo it will be hard to achieve much improvement, and even though Lin Gong has taken Ink Jade Divine Bamboo, it cannot ultimately make up for the foundational deficiency, so their ultimate ceiling is likely only the 95th level.

Of course, Yang Xiong has also thought that if a Soul Core could be researched quickly, it might fundamentally boost the strength of the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect and the Body Sect.

But now Yang Xiong hasn't even reached Soul Saint, so he has neither the mind nor the means to research it.

Yang Xiong meditated at home for an entire night and felt his cultivation speed surge again; this is not only the improvement in physical quality from the Body Soul Weapon Gold Level Awakening, but also a recent insight into Meditation.

Yang Xiong's Tai Chi Meditation Method had long been fully accomplished, but after a year of mastering the Killing God Domain, its application has become smoother and deeper.

Early the next morning, Yang Xiong went to find Lin Gong.

Lin Gong was surprised to see Yang Xiong and said, "Xiao Xiongzi, I didn't expect you to emerge from seclusion so quickly; it seems your growth over this year has been quite good, I'm even a bit unclear about your exact strength now."

Yang Xiong laughed, "Teacher Lin, you're being too modest; Ning is a distinguished Title Douluo, how could he possibly not sense this little Soul King of mine?"

Lin Gong curled his lip and said, "There's no Soul King like you in this world; I reckon even a Soul Saint might not be able to defeat you now."

……

After a few idle words, Yang Xiong finally got to the point.

"Teacher Lin, nothing has happened in the Body Sect these three years, right? Have any abnormal incidents occurred?"

Lin Gong laughed, "You idle shopkeeper actually still cares about your sect's affairs; it seems you have some self‑awareness, knowing you're barely a Sect Leader."

Yang Xiong smiled, "I've been a burden to you these years, but Teacher Lin, you are at least the Grand Elder of the Body Sect; isn't it your duty to serve the sect?"

Lin Gong sighed, "I don't even know if I owe you anything; I was teaching leisurely, and now I've ended up as your so‑called Grand Elder of the Body Sect—I feel I'll eventually be ruined by you."

"You toiled away in Killing City for two years, then secluded yourself for another year; was spending three years on this Killing God Domain really worth it?"

Yang Xiong's mouth twitched with a smile, "Of course it's worth it; it's not just a Killing God Domain, and who knows, there may be other surprises later."

Lin Gong gave Yang Xiong a cold stare, "Don't talk to me about surprises; just don't scare me. An old man of my age can't endure this kind of nonsense."

(End of chapter)