Chapter 404: The True Form of the Longyuan Sword Spirit

What is that supposed to mean? What do you mean by a man who is "no good"?

Why is this Sword Spirit so infuriating? If it weren't for the fact that she wears Lingxiang's appearance, Long Qi might have really laid a hand on her.

Long Qi felt his teeth itch with irritation, yet he was helpless; after all, he could not possibly hit Lingxiang.

Besides, even if the Sword Spirit didn't look like Lingxiang, Long Qi would certainly not be able to beat her.

While Long Qi forcefully suppressed the breath in his chest, the Sword Spirit continued to speak on her own:

"Although I do not understand your Witchcraft, I do understand that Spirit Power originates from the Triple Burner, takes the meridians as its path, enters the meridians from the collaterals, and travels to where it is needed."

"Witchcraft requires a steady flow like a fine stream, but when you wield your sword, your Spirit Power is like a tide—excessive in its surge but lacking in staying power. This is because you always pour out all your Spirit Power at once, leaving the source of the Triple Burner unable to turn and recover in time, which is why you cannot perform Witchcraft."

Upon hearing this, Long Qi finally understood the logic behind it. Deep in thought, he cast his dissatisfaction with the Sword Spirit to the back of his mind.

"What about talisman arts then?"

Long Qi was somewhat puzzled. According to the Sword Spirit's explanation, it was because he could not store his power, but now that his Spirit Power was restricted and had gathered quite a bit, why was he still unable to perform talisman arts?

"As far as I know, talisman arts are the entry-level skills for a practitioner of the Dao, but the more entry-level they are, the higher their potential ceiling."

"From drawing talismans to chanting them, and finally pinching seals to cast spells, it is extremely demanding on the control of Spirit Power. Someone like you, who cannot control Spirit Power with ease, naturally cannot practice them."

So that was it!

When they were at the Xianyun Abode, Lingxiang had once said that her Spirit Root was incomplete and her Spirit Power limited, so she was always extremely cautious whenever she cast spells; she would not use them easily unless forced to.

But when walking in the mortal world, there were times when one inevitably had to act, which was why Lingxiang would tinker with some strange gadgets; at critical moments, they could not only save her life but also overcome enemies with cleverness.

Just as Long Qi was thinking this, he heard the Sword Spirit speak again:

"The Pill that little girl fed you seems to have restricted your meridians, but in reality, it is helping you develop the habit of storing power. When the restriction is lifted in the future, you will be able to pinch seals and cast spells with ease. Moreover..."

Moreover?

"Besides this one thing, there is an even greater benefit."

"What benefit?"

"The Spirit Power you have accumulated will, at the moment the restriction is lifted, course through your entire body's meridians, washing your marrow and changing your sinews. At that time, your cultivation will advance by leaps and bounds, and you might even break through your realm. As for exactly what level you can reach, that will depend on your own destiny."

Put that way, the disadvantages actually outweigh the advantages, but...

But this Sword Spirit has always looked down on him; why would she tell him all this today?

Long Qi was thoughtful, feeling that something was wrong, but after thinking for a long time, he had no clue.

He remembered the Sword Spirit once saying that since ancient times, she had served many masters, but as far as Long Qi knew, the history of the Longyuan Sword was not that ancient. And...

And the Longyuan Sword that Long Qi knew was definitely not such a clumsy, giant sword.

"You... who exactly are you?"

"What?" The Sword Spirit didn't react for a moment. "Has your brain rusted?"

Why does this silly boy speak so incoherently?

Long Qi stood up and walked in front of the Sword Spirit. This time he did not avert his eyes, but looked directly at the Sword Spirit, who wore Lingxiang's appearance, and voiced the question in his heart.

The Sword Spirit pondered for a long time after hearing this, then looked up and smiled.

"Do you truly want to know?"

Looking at the Sword Spirit's playful expression, Long Qi nodded solemnly.

Wuwei Laozu had previously said that he had not yet seen the true form of Longyuan, and Sutong had also mentioned this matter.

Long Qi was completely baffled—what exactly was this so-called true form? Now that he thought about it, why not just ask the Sword Spirit directly?

The Sword Spirit glanced at Long Qi scrutinizingly and said with a half-smile: "Then as you wish."

In ancient times, there was a riding dragon, a disciple of Tianfei, who obtained a decree to assist the Goddess Wa in mending the heavens. However, he was led astray by his greed for wine and was punished by the True God Tianfei; his Demon Bone was shaved away, and he was banished to the mortal world.

At that time, there were many demons in the world, and the demon spirits were in Chaos, wreaking havoc among humanity. To avoid being entangled by evil desires, the Primordial Great Demon cultivated his body and spirit, cast the Turbid Qi into the Netherworld Land, and ascended with the Clear Qi; from then on, the Divine Realm was established.

Over the long years, the Turbid Qi in the Netherworld Land went unnoticed; it gathered and accumulated, eventually gaining intelligence. However, it possessed no physical body, so it wandered between heaven and earth as formless Qi, confusing people's minds and bewitching all living things.

Seeing this, the True God Tianfei could not bear to see the living beings of the world suffer, so she used the Demon Bone of the riding dragon to imprison it.

When the Divine Realm was first established, the Divine Court was empty and lacked divine officials, so the upper realm entrusted the Immortal Realm to promote the great cause of the Conferment of the Gods.

Although the great cause was accomplished, the monsters still remained. For over a hundred years, they continued to plague the common people and act tyrannically. At that time, the various demons were led by Zhuyan, which was why there were so many wars in the world.

During the Spring and Autumn period, there was a master craftsman whom the world called Ouyezi.

Taiyi commanded Ouyezi to forge a sword on Chijin Mountain using the Demon Bone of the riding dragon, the Nine-Colored Deer Antler, Heavenly Profound Iron, and the stars of the heavens. The Rain Master sprinkled rain, the Thunder God struck the bellows, the Flood Dragon held the furnace, and the Heavenly Emperor loaded the charcoal, finally creating the Three Treasures. The gods descended to the mortal world and infused their spirits into them; one of these was the Seven-Star Longyuan.

The upper realm obtained these Three Treasures and became like a tiger that had grown wings, subduing the various demons and suppressing them within Jiuque Mountain, while also commanding three families to guard the Three Treasures for generations.

Because the Demon Bone of the riding dragon was used, the Turbid Qi in the Netherworld Land was able to catch its breath and, while the demons were being suppressed, escaped into the Netherworld Land. The Netherworld Land was the place where the incarnation of Houtu resided; the upper realm had no authority to interfere and could only let it be.

It so happened that the soul of the Human King's descendant had been wandering in the Netherworld Land for a hundred years. The Turbid Qi found an opportunity to merge into his soul; he was neither ghost nor demon, neither god nor immortal, and no one knew what he was.

In less than ten years, this entity created the Hao Dang Clan and wished to return to the human world to reclaim hegemony.

The upper realm learned of this and, deeply aware of the stakes, feared that the line of the Human King would once again rival them, so they ordered the three families to use the Three Talents Array to suppress them.

The Hao Dang Clan could not escape the heavenly array, so they identified themselves as the Demon Race and formed their own realm within the Netherworld Land; from then on, the Demon Realm was established.

"So what does this have to do with who you are?" Long Qi impatiently interrupted the Sword Spirit's rambling.

The Longyuan Sword Spirit glared at Long Qi with dissatisfaction. She had finally worked up some enthusiasm, only to be interrupted by this reckless fellow—how truly boring!

"Didn't you ask me who I am? Am I not telling you now?"

There was so much clutter, and it was nothing more than how the Demon Race came to be, but Long Qi didn't care at all about these entanglements between gods and demons. If it were any other day, Long Qi might have listened to it as a story, but right now he had to go save Lingxiang; he didn't have that much time to listen to the Sword Spirit tell ancient history.

The "riding dragon" in the Sword Spirit's story was the Long Family's Old Ancestor Wuji, and the Seven-Star Longyuan was made from the Old Ancestor's dragon bone; he had already learned all this from the Old Ancestor. Although it was the first time he had heard about the subduing of demons and monsters, Long Qi didn't care; what he wanted to know was the true form of Longyuan that the Old Ancestor had mentioned.

Only by knowing the true form could he know how to wield Longyuan, and only then would his chances of saving Lingxiang be greater.

"Tsk! You brat, you really have no patience at all. I've been talking for so long, can't you even hear the meaning behind it?"

Meaning? What meaning?

Long Qi carefully ruminated on the old stories the Sword Spirit had told: Turbid Qi... exterminating demons... suppressing the Demon Race...

"Could it be!"

"You've finally got a bit of a brain..." The Sword Spirit rolled her eyes, lay back down on the hammock of her own accord, crossed her legs, and began eating the snack in her arms.

The Demon Bone of the dragon-riding Wuji was originally used to seal and suppress Turbid Qi, and since the Demon Race was born from Turbid Qi, the blade forged from it could slay the Demon Race!

It seemed this trip was not without a chance of success, but...

"But what does this have to do with your true form?" Long Qi still could not grasp the thread of it.

The Sword Spirit laughed loudly and shook the squealing snack in her hand toward Long Qi.

"What do you think these things I'm eating are?"

"Are... what are they?"

Long Qi was naturally curious, but those things looked quite disgusting, so he had chosen to turn a blind eye to them.

The Sword Spirit pursed her lips, looking as if she were disappointed in his lack of progress.

"You ask about my true form; you must have investigated some things, and you should know even better that since ancient times, the Longyuan Sword lineage has never had any talk of a greatsword."

Yes, that was correct; these were exactly what Long Qi had discovered, but what did that have to do with the snack in her hand?

"The reason the Longyuan Sword can form its own lineage is because this Seven-Star Longyuan can slay demons and eliminate evil, and as the original Longyuan, having gone through the great war of demon extermination, it naturally killed many demons and evil spirits; these..."

As the Sword Spirit spoke, she stuffed the snack in her hand into her mouth and said vaguely: "... are the demon souls that died under the Longyuan Sword."

Upon hearing this, Long Qi felt a sudden chill.

This Sword Spirit spent her days wearing Lingxiang's appearance, yet she ate demon spirits one after another, and even smacked her lips with relish—how could Long Qi accept this?

However, Long Qi understood what the Sword Spirit meant.

The reason the Seven-Star Longyuan had become what it was today was because it had absorbed a great deal of demon power, while the true Longyuan had been nothing but a long sword from beginning to end.

But what was the intention behind the ancestor's words about seeing the true form? And how could one see the true form of the Longyuan?

Long Qi pondered for a long time but could not figure it out. He hurriedly asked the Longyuan Sword Spirit, but the Sword Spirit merely waved her hand, crossed her legs in a devil-may-care manner, lay back on the hammock of her own accord, and tossed a sentence at him:

"The time has not yet come."

They were at such a critical juncture, yet she was still being mysterious!

But Long Qi had no choice; he couldn't very well argue with her, so he could only sulk in frustration.

Seeing Long Qi sit down, the Sword Spirit was, on the contrary, surprised.

"Are you not leaving yet?"

Leave? Go where?

Long Qi had been too busy sulking to react for a moment, and only after coming to his senses did he roll his eyes.

"I would like to leave! But how do I go?"

The Sword Spirit gave a scoff and raised her hand to point at the courtyard gate.

"Listen, someone is calling you!"

Long Qi looked toward the outside of the gate in confusion and listened carefully; sure enough, someone was calling his name, but it was hidden within the noisy marketplace, making it somewhat unclear.

"Long Qi..."

"Long Qi..."

This was Long Qi's own Qi Pool; the street scene outside the gate was nothing but clouds and mist—who could be calling him there?

Long Qi moved closer to listen; those voices became slightly clearer, and it seemed there was more than one person.

"Long Qi!"

"You reckless fool!"

"Brother Seven!"

Hearing this call, Long Qi finally remembered: he was currently crossing the Ghost Gate Pass with his brothers!

Coming to his senses, Long Qi rushed toward the outside of the gate, and the moment he stepped over the threshold, a blinding white light rushed toward his face, instantly engulfing his figure.