In the quiet room, Ji Yuan sat cross-legged on a futon, a luminous pearl inlaid in the ceiling, casting a soft, bright glow.
He exhaled deeply, as if myriad streams of light flickered within his eyes, and his aura began to surge uncontrollably.
As his eyes slowly closed, a question quietly surfaced in his mind.
What is the Ming Dao Heart?
Simply put, it is to understand the reason behind one's own Dao Heart!
Ji Yuan had already formed the雏形 (chú xíng - embryonic form) of a Dao Heart and had a clear direction for his Great Dao.
However, for a long time, he had overlooked a crucial point.
Why cultivate the Dao?
Some sought longevity, some sought ascension to immortality, some desired power and wealth, and some craved supreme might.
There were youths in the world who practiced martial arts assiduously to avenge a deep-seated hatred.
There were scholars on the path of officialdom who, weary of the corruption in the bureaucracy, retreated into the mountains to live in seclusion.
There were also those who, having seen through the vanity of the mortal world, became monks or Daoists, dedicating themselves to cultivation thereafter.
The reasons for cultivating the Dao were myriad, with no two people’s reasons being the same.
After a moment, Ji Yuan did not answer the question in his mind, but instead asked himself again.
Why cultivate?
Several scenes flashed through his mind: the Baiyun Temple in Qianyu City, and a dejected scholar in the slum.
It seemed that it was from their words that he had begun to understand the notion of cultivation, leading him to sneak into his master's room when no one was around, and borrow some Daoist scriptures for perusal.
It was from that time onwards that he smoothly achieved enlightenment and embarked on the path of cultivation.
Yet, at the very beginning, he didn't even know what cultivation was.
Until the ancestral master's sword, hanging from the beam, fell and struck directly into his sea of consciousness between his eyebrows.
Until he accidentally found the Great Dao Syllabus and read the principles of elixirs and talismans within.
But whether in Qianyu City or later at the Jiuxuan Sect, he never considered why he himself was cultivating.
For eternal life?
He was only twenty years old and had no direct experience or feeling towards eternal life.
For the Dao and ascension to immortality?
Ever since the war between immortals and gods tens of thousands of years ago, no one had ascended to immortality in the world.
Ji Yuan suddenly recalled that when he conversed with Li Junxian and Zheng Wanrong, he had stated that for the Xuantian Temple and his master's expectations, he had to successfully condense a Golden Core within thirty years.
But in retrospect, that was merely an excuse he had made for himself.
He simply did not want to admit that his own curiosity had caused his master to abandon decades of peaceful life and, with his aged body, accompany him to another prefecture.
Yes, curiosity.
Eternal life, ascension to immortality.
Ultimately, it was merely his curiosity.
He seemed to be inherently curious about everything.
Curious about the realms of cultivation, curious about the scenes of heaven and earth.
"So, I embarked on the path of cultivation to satisfy my curiosity?"
Ji Yuan murmured to himself, the answer already forming in his heart.
Initially, upon hearing and seeing about cultivation from the old monk and the scholar, his curiosity was piqued, leading to the subsequent secret perusal of Daoist scriptures.
Up until now, this curiosity had never diminished in the slightest.
"The reason for cultivating is, in fact, to satisfy curiosity."
As the answer emerged in his mind, the insurmountable barrier that had blocked him for months vanished instantly.
Ji Yuan's aura grew rapidly, his spiritual power surged freely through his meridians, and the general outline of the Xuantian Dao Scripture's cultivation method immediately appeared in his mind.
A Dao rhythm began to brew within him, from ethereal and indistinct at first, to tangible and condensed later, finally transforming into a seed that merged with his soul in his sea of consciousness.
At the same time, the gate of Ji Yuan's sea of consciousness between his eyebrows opened, a lake of sword energy began to boil, and a seed of sword energy rose from the bottom of the lake, rushing out of the sea of consciousness with boundless sword energy!
Countless streams of sword energy, led by this seed, surged through his meridians along with his spiritual power!
In an instant, the Xuantian Sword Art's cultivation method appeared in Ji Yuan's mind. Using the circulation route of this technique, he mobilized his spiritual power and sword energy, circulating them within his meridians!
The two forces sometimes surged wildly, sometimes stopped abruptly, sometimes flowed like a mighty river, and sometimes trickled like a stream.
Starting from the Dantian and ending at the Dantian, completing one full circulation of the technique counted as a small cycle.
According to the Xuantian Sword Art, seventy-two small cycles constituted one great cycle.
And only by circulating thirty-six great cycles in one breath could one cultivate the seventh level of the Xuantian Sword Art, merging spiritual power with sword energy, allowing the sword energy seed to take root and sprout, finally combining with the True Essence to give birth to a wisp of Sword Essence.
Once Sword Essence was formed, Ji Yuan could smoothly advance into the Third Realm, thereafter his spiritual power would be sword energy, and his sword energy would be spiritual power. With a natal flying sword, defeating a later stage opponent would be as easy as flipping one's hand.
Just as Ji Yuan comprehended his Dao Heart and began to break through his current realm,
The spiritual energy of the entire residence began to converge towards the quiet room where he was located, and the range of this phenomenon continued to expand.
Both the cultivators of Xiaoyuan Mountain and the disciples of Xuantian Peak felt the anomaly in the heaven and earth at this moment.
Upon discovering that it was caused by Ji Yuan, a thought immediately arose in everyone's mind.
The Ming Dao Realm!
The first three realms of cultivation were called the Foundation Building Three Realms, signifying the laying of the foundation for achieving the Dao.
The Enlightenment Realm was most dependent on comprehension and opportunity; no matter how strong one's innate talent and physique, it was difficult to achieve enlightenment without sufficient comprehension.
The Spirit Pointing Realm was a process of accumulation, gathering the necessary foundation for a solid base.
The final Ming Dao Realm was the most difficult and crucial step.
It involved comprehending one's own will, condensing a complete Dao Heart, and thereby completely controlling oneself.
Once one entered this realm, a divine sense would be born, and everything within the body would become a unified whole. With a Dao Heart, one could also perceive the ubiquitous laws of heaven and earth.
However, comprehending the Dao Heart was easily said than done, but achieving it was extremely difficult.
The human heart was complex, filled with chaotic thoughts; the difficulty of truly understanding one's own heart was unimaginable.
This was why many cultivators ultimately got stuck in the late stage or even the peak of the second realm, unable to take the final step.
Just like Ji Yuan, who had been trapped in this state for months. If not for lecturing the disciple Chen Yuluo and seeing the look in his eyes, he would not have been moved and found an opportunity to break through.
Now, having comprehended his own will, his nascent Dao Heart was transforming, gradually moving towards completeness.
There was no longer any peace on the path to the Ming Dao Realm, and taking the final step was only a matter of time.
In the following days, the people of Xiaoyuan Mountain and Xuantian Peak put aside their tasks and, at the fastest speed, returned to the residence in Hengshan County.
Even Zhang Qingyang and Wu Tieshan, upon receiving the news, dispatched hundreds of soldiers to heavily guard the perimeter of the residence, forbidding anyone from approaching.