I Can See Your Combat Power

Chapter 784: Chapter Seventy-eight: Controlling the Spirit but not the Heart, Cultivating Qi but not the Soul

Inside the Four Imperial Spirit Realms, next to the Han River’s Holy Altar, Tang Luo’s face grew stern as he listened to Gong Shu’s tale.

In the ancient times, monstrous beasts rampaged, and the dynasty was tyrannical. The human race faced not only the threat of the beasts but also the oppression from their own kind. The law of the jungle stripped the dignity of those at the bottom.

At that time, there was the Divine Dynasty called Qi, ruled by the Gao clan, later known as Gao Qi. Their clan understood beast language and demon speech. Longzhou was occupied by countless Demon Kings, but only Gao Qi’s dynasty remained unharmed. Therefore, the people of Longzhou regarded Qi as a holy place and flocked to it.

However, no matter how many humans flocked to Qi, which was free from monstrous beast invasions, the population never increased. Apart from each generation of Qi’s rulers being cruel and brutal, it turned out that the peace kept by the Qi Dynasty was the result of a sordid deal between the Gao clan and the Demon Race.

The Qi dynasty offered one hundred thousand souls every month to the King of Demonic Bats, who was not yet the Blood Lord, in exchange for his protection of the Qi capital.

When the chancellor of the divine dynasty learned the truth behind the peace of Qi, he alerted the world and, taking several vassal families, sought refuge in the Minor Spiritual Realm. To prevent being found by the Gao Qi Dynasty, they shattered the realm stone, allowing the Minor Spiritual Realm to drift in the Endless Void for over 1,200 years.

“So, you’re the descendants of the chancellor of Qi who took refuge in the Spirit Realm?” Tang Luo interrupted Gong Shu with a wave of his hand and a frown, “Then explain to me why this Minor Spiritual Realm has been wandering in the void for more than a thousand years without accumulating enough spiritual power to stabilize. Is it because the drifting of the Minor Spiritual Realm was invigorating, or you were trying to fool me?” He glanced at the severed arm on the ground and said lightly, “It seems that losing an arm hasn’t taught you honesty…”

“No, no, no, don’t get us wrong, please! Let me explain!!” Gong Shu looked nervously at Tang Luo, his heart jumping in fear. He hurriedly explained, “This Minor Spiritual Realm is not an ordinary one. It’s a fragment of a certain collapsed Great Thousand World. The spiritual power required to stabilize it is vast, like the sea. I did not lie!”

The other two middle-aged men also echoed him, their earnest looks suggested that they were not lying, which puzzled Tang Luo even more.

“Even if this Minor Spiritual Realm is extraordinary, hasn’t it gathered enough power to stabilize after more than 1,200 years of void wandering?” Tang Luo said with a frown. “And it’s been over a thousand years. You haven’t thought about returning to the Great Thousand World?”

The Minor Spiritual Realm, as the name suggests, is a small independent world. Not only is the spiritual power limited, the land is limited, and the regenerable resources are also limited. Although it is top-tier for a refuge, treasury, or a research room, it is not so abundant in other areas.

In the absence of natural enemies, these people could stay here for a thousand years. Weren’t they bothered by the overcrowding?

Tang Luo was full of suspicion and felt that the three men in front of him had hidden many things. His eyes flashed coldly, the Heavenly Dragon’s Shadow lifted the three into the air. Gong Shu and the others felt as if their bodies were about to be shattered from all around. The wound on the severed right arm burst open again, splashing a column of blood. They looked terrifying.

Gong Shu was terrified. He didn’t expect Tang Luo to be so brutal. He thought that if they disobeyed, Tang Luo would crush them. He quickly cried out, “Mercy, mercy! I will talk, I will tell you everything!”

The shadow of the dragon faded, and the three men fell to the ground, barely able to stand. One of them even fainted from pain. Tang Luo was surprised. It was only a little pain, and a warrior of the Fierce Realm had fainted. How frail his body must be, and how weak his spirit must be.

“You’ve been in the Minor Spiritual Realm for over a thousand years. Why are your martial arts not even as good as a third-rate family? How did you cultivate to the Fierce Realm with such a weak body and spirit?” Tang Luo scornfully said, “In terms of physical strength alone, any of my people who have transformed could easily defeat you several times over.”

“In response to your question,” Gong Shu held his severed arm, glanced at the unconscious Gong Yang, and said with a bitter smile, “We did not want to be this way either, but we cannot practice martial arts in the Four Imperial Spirit Realms. Our physical weakness is something we could not avoid.”

“Huh?” Tang Luo wondered, “If you cannot practice martial arts, then how did you break through to the Fierce Realm?”

“We have never broken through the Fierce Realm, nor have we condensed our spirit. We rely solely on the Four Imperial Spirit Seals to collect spiritual power.” Gong Shu pointed to the Holy Altar in the distance and explained, “In this Minor Spiritual Realm, all the spiritual energy absorbed by breathing is quickly returned to heaven and earth. Unless one reaches the seamless body-forging realm, only the divine seal can stop the dissipation of spiritual energy.”

“The divine seal? You are referring to the mysterious symbols on your hands?”

“Yes.” Gong Shu further explained, “This Holy Altar is a remnant of another civilization in the Great Thousand World. Although it also cultivates spiritual energy, it differs greatly from martial arts in style.”

“What’s the difference?”noveldrama

“We control energy, not our hearts. We cultivate energy, not our souls.”

“Isn’t that heresy?” Tang Luo chuckled, understanding suddenly: “No wonder your will is so weak. You can’t stand a bit of pain. It turns out it’s because of the training method.”

After Gong Shu finished speaking, he kept observing Tang Luo’s expressions. Although Tang Luo didn’t say a word, his dismissive laugh stung the heart of this warrior.

Although they switched to cultivating the Four Imperial Spirit Seals out of necessity in this world, after 1,200 years of immersion, every warrior of the Four Imperial Spirit Realms had grown to consider this cultivation method their lifeline. Even if it was for survival, Gong Shu couldn’t suppress his pride when his greatest pride was looked down upon.

“Senior, although we lost to you, it does not mean that the Four Imperial Spirit Seals are inferior to martial arts.” Gong Shu said sternly, “Every individual in the Four Imperial Spirit Realms cultivates the divine seals. A child of five years will bear the mark and by the age of thirteen, they will usually reach the soul-soothing realm. By their fifties, they could reach the spiritual master realm with power comparable to a Fierce Realm warrior. Even though the Four Imperial Spirit Realms are only a minor realm, the number of spiritual masters who can rival the Fierce Realm is not short of the entire human race of Xiehe. Is this not enough to prove the superiority of the divine seals?”

It is indeed true that one’s perspective determines one’s limitation. A clan that couldn’t even stabilize their realm actually believed that they were superior to Xiehe in terms of combat prowess. It was both infuriating and amusing. Looking at Gong Shu’s stubborn expression and serious demeanor, Tang Luo laughed, “Is that so… may I ask how many people are there in the Four Imperial Spirit Realm, and how many of them are spiritual masters?”

“The Four Imperial Spirit Realms consist of the Water, Cloud, Flame, and Earth clans, with a population of over a million. Everyone cultivates the divine seals. Those over fifty years old are all spiritual masters!” Gong Shu, who had lost an arm, said proudly, “Your arrival from outside indicates that the Minor Spiritual Realm has finally succeeded in stabilizing. Soon, we, the Four Imperial Spirit people, will return to Xiehe, establish the unparalleled Divine Dynasty, cleanse the Demon Race, and restore Xiehe to its former glory!”