By noon, a light drizzle began to fall.
Around the mystical stone, the scenery remained unchanged—waterfalls cascading into clear springs, now accompanied by lush green grass, the melodious chirping of birds, and a tranquil pond reflecting the moonlight.
There was also a new addition: a cave.
Every time someone gained enlightenment from the mystical stone, the lingering essence of their insights would manifest as wondrous phenomena.
After Li Mo's enlightenment, a hollow had appeared in the cliff face behind the waterfall.
"It really does resemble the Water Curtain Cave..."
Circling around the mystical stone, he stepped into the cave entrance.
A faint sense of familiarity arose in Li Mo's heart—perhaps because it reminded him of the cave he had dug near the Autumn Water Pavilion, or maybe it simply matched his imagination of the birthplace of a certain legendary Monkey King.
Sitting cross-legged inside the cave, he immersed his consciousness into the Seed of the World.
Hum—
Within the Seed of the World, the Primordial Star-Shattering Hammer trembled slightly.
The hammer-spirit still wanted to smash something.
"Be good. The stone can only lie one way down for now."
"When the stone can lie either way, I’ll definitely let you hammer it again."
Li Mo reassured it earnestly.
Sensing his sincerity, the hammer-spirit relented and obediently went off to play with the Scarlet Sky Sword.
Taking out the Four Treasures of the Study and a collection of rare treasures to replenish his spiritual energy, Li Mo took a deep breath.
"Last time, I barely managed to copy a tenth of the mystical stone."
"Now, I’ve opened two apertures in my Observation of the Divine, greatly enhancing my spiritual energy and mental clarity."
He swallowed a five-marked Yinxu Pill.
Spreading the Azure Vein Jade Slip across a flat stone, Li Mo poured his spiritual energy into the brush tip and began painting with focused strokes.
To paint a stone, one must not merely depict a stone.
One must paint the countless years of wind and rain it has endured...
The countless beasts and birds that have passed by its side, the endless cycles of sunrises and moonsets it has witnessed.
And perhaps even the strikes of a hammer...
Li Mo’s brush danced like a dragon.
If even the slightest stroke was off, he would discard the paper and start anew.
Just as he was deeply engrossed in his painting—
Tap—
A footstep echoed outside the Water Curtain Cave.
Li Mo lifted his gaze.
There stood a woman with a bob cut, dressed in the simplest of Hengyun Sword City disciple robes, her face framed by a pair of round crystal glasses.
Due to the various phenomena formed by the mystical stone’s essence, she seemed unaware that a cave—and a person—had appeared behind the waterfall.
She sat down with practiced ease and began earnestly contemplating the mystical stone.
"Senior Xu’s disciple?"
Senior Xu was the white-haired youth’s Dharma Body.
When Li Mo had arrived earlier, Senior Xu had mentioned his disciple—also the senior sister of Hengyun Sword City.
Many of the city’s renowned martial arts techniques had been derived from her insights. Aside from studying the mystical stone and practicing swordsmanship, she rarely ventured out.
"I smell the aura of a tech-obsessed shut-in."
Li Mo shrugged and returned to his work.
The two of them coexisted without disturbance.
Another half-hour passed.
Staring at the painting before him—now bearing an eighty percent resemblance to the mystical stone outside—Li Mo shook his head.
"This is the best I can do today."
"It seems my current spiritual energy and painting skills still aren’t enough to capture its true form..."
Li Mo wasn’t discouraged.
Senior Brother Ouyang had dedicated over a decade to the art of painting and had only ever managed to capture the true form a handful of times.
His progress was already remarkable.
If he kept at it, success would come—and it wouldn’t be too far off.
"The Ice Block’s lecture should be ending soon."
Glancing at the sky, Li Mo rose to leave.
But just as he reached the cave entrance—
Hm?
The woman with the round glasses now sat pale-faced, muttering something under her breath.
Activate: Heavenly Eye of Fate!
[Name: Wei Zhaoliu]
[Age: 26]
[Constitution: Eight Directions Sword Body]
[Realm: Observation of the Divine, Seven Apertures]
[Fate: Purple]
[Evaluation: Having studied the sword-marked mystical stone for decades, she revered the sword marks as divine relics. She believed all her martial arts stemmed from them and aspired to one day surpass their legacy.]
[Recent Events: After emerging from seclusion, she returned to study the mystical stone—only to find the sword marks gone.]
Li Mo: "..."
Hadn’t the elders of Sword City claimed the stone could still be studied without the sword marks?
Weren’t the marks mostly symbolic?
"Younger... brother?"
Wei Zhaoliu finally noticed Li Mo and asked,
"Have you noticed anything different about the mystical stone today?"
"Haha... well, a little."
Li Mo nodded.
Wei Zhaoliu suddenly seemed to recall something.
"Ah, I remember now."
"My master mentioned a girl with unparalleled sword talent who, while studying the stone, caused it to flip over."
"Have you met her, younger brother?"
"..."
After a pause, Li Mo replied, "We’ve... spoken a few times."
"I heard she’s lecturing at the Sword Pool now. I’ll visit her when I have time."
As she spoke, a keen interest flickered in Wei Zhaoliu’s eyes.
"Her lectures are truly exceptional."
"So you’ve attended them, younger brother?"
"Yes. Frequently."
"With her talent, I wonder which of us will leave our sword marks on the mystical stone first."
Wei Zhaoliu sighed.
She doubted her talent surpassed the girl’s, but after studying the sword-marked stone for over a decade, she had experience on her side. There was still a chance.
As she spoke, she walked over and casually flipped the stone over.
"Wait—"
Plop. The stone turned.
"Wait for what?"
Wei Zhaoliu blinked.
Then, as her gaze lowered, the light in her eyes froze.
"The sword marks... are gone?"
Her pupils dulled, as if her soul had fled.
"..."
Li Mo facepalmed.
He hadn’t expected Wei Zhaoliu to flip the stone. By the time he tried to stop her, it was too late.
Wei Zhaoliu now stood like a hollow shell, her entire being drained of color.
"This is... a hammer?"
Upon closer inspection, her pupils trembled violently.
"If neither of us is mistaken... yes."
As Li Mo spoke, he noticed a change in Wei Zhaoliu’s status within the Heavenly Eye of Fate.
[Recent Events: Discovered the sword marks have been replaced by a hammer. Her Dao Heart is shaken, teetering on the brink of collapse.]
Nearby, Wei Zhaoliu collapsed to the ground, her body radiating sharp sword energy that carved deep gashes into the surroundings.
It wasn’t deliberate—just uncontrolled leakage.
She desperately tried to calm herself, but it was impossible.
The object of her lifelong pursuit had vanished.
And been replaced by a hammer.
Then...
What did that make everything she had learned from it?
But then—
A soft, silvery glow suddenly illuminated her chaotic mind.
Her scattered focus sharpened instantly.
Her gaze refocused, and she saw the younger brother from earlier, a faint moonlit silhouette shimmering behind him.
It carried a serene, soothing energy, like invisible hands smoothing out the turmoil in her heart.
After opening his second aperture in Observation of the Divine, Li Mo’s spiritual energy had gained the ability to pacify negative emotions.
At the same time, a notification chimed.
[Congratulations, Host. You have successfully invested in ‘Wei Zhaoliu,’ preventing damage to her Dao Heart.]
[Investment Reward: Thirty Years of Martial Insight.]
However—
Once her mind cleared, Wei Zhaoliu gritted her teeth and demanded:
"Who... did this?"
"Junior Brother, you've watched the Martial Arts Summit. Have you gained any insights?"
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
