Chapter 142: Chapter 140: The Strongest Path

The blazing fire that threatened to incinerate the world slowly died down.

The fireball that had descended from the sky also slowly dissipated during its fall, vanishing into nothingness!

The world fell into a deathly silence!

Martial Artists have their strengths and weaknesses. Those who can grasp a True Meaning of the Martial Dao and fight above their level are considered geniuses!

Such geniuses are known to be invincible among their peers!

However, Fire Wolf, a master of the True Meaning of Fire, had actually died at Jiang Chen’s hands.

More importantly, the final move Jiang Chen had used replayed in everyone’s mind like a nightmare, lingering long after.

"Am I... am I hallucinating? The move that kid just used... was that the True Meaning of Fire?"

"No... it’s not a hallucination. He really has mastered the True Meaning of Fire, and he broke through in the middle of the fight!"

"My god... He had already mastered Wind Sword Intent, and now he’s comprehended Fire Sword Intent? One person mastering two great Martial Dao Intents... is he even human? Could he be the reincarnation of an Ancient Divine Spirit...?"

Xiong He trembled all over, his eyes filled with despair and terror. He gulped frantically, his heart overflowing with regret. ’A super genius who has mastered both Wind Sword Intent and Fire Sword Intent... I... how could I have been so reckless as to provoke a monster like that? I have to report this to the Young Master immediately...’

Xiong He was just about to leave.

But at that very moment, he felt a cold gaze fall upon him, sending an involuntary shiver through his body. He looked up to see Jiang Chen standing in mid-air, a slight smile on his lips as he stared at him with narrowed eyes.

GULP!

Xiong He’s face was a mask of bitterness and despair. ’I’m done for...’

A sword strike tore through the air with a SWISH.

A sharp and swift stream of Sword Qi, mixed with Blazing Fire, came whistling toward him.

"Giant Rock Shield!"

Xiong He threw his arms open. The True Essence in his body surged like a mighty river, and an earthy yellow True Essence Light enveloped him.

DONG!

The earthy yellow True Essence coalesced into a massive, rock-like shield in front of him.

This was a Low-level Profound Tier Defensive Martial Skill, the Giant Rock Shield. Once cast, it could solidify all of one’s True Essence, enough to block a full-powered attack from a warrior at the Peak of True Martial Realm Sixth Stage.

’The Giant Rock Shield should be able to block one or two of his attacks. I have to use this time to escape!’ Xiong He thought.

Unfortunately, his hopes were high, but reality was cruel!

BANG—

The sword light was incomparably sharp, cutting through the shield as if it were bamboo. In the blink of an eye, it pierced the Giant Rock Shield. The earthy yellow True Essence shattered into specks of light that rained down, and the fiery ball of Sword Qi struck Xiong He.

BOOM—

Blazing Fire engulfed Xiong He, instantly turning him into a human torch.

In just a moment, Xiong He, a dignified cultivator of the True Martial Realm Sixth Stage, was reduced to ash in the Blazing Fire, vanishing without a trace!

"Run!"

"Dammit, this guy’s a monster! Let’s go!"

The experts from Blood Wolf Village were scared out of their wits, scattering like birds and beasts in all directions.

"Little Black, Little White, leave none alive!" Jiang Chen commanded coldly, still hovering in the air.

"Don’t worry, Boss!"

"It’s been a while since I’ve eaten anyone. Time to die!"

Little White and Black Emperor soared into the sky together. The two Demon Beasts, one white and one black, simultaneously unleashed a terrifying beastly aura!

Little White was shrouded in a terrifyingly cold aura. Everywhere it passed, the ground turned to icy glass. The earth froze into sheets of frost, and the desperate fugitives of Blood Wolf Village were frozen solid by Little White, turning into ice sculptures. With a single swipe of its claw, the ice-sculpted experts shattered with a CRACK, turning into a sky full of ice shards.

"Devouring Heaven and Earth!"

Black Emperor’s wings vibrated as it spat out a black vortex from its mouth.

Anyone enveloped by the black vortex froze, a dazed look appearing in their eyes before they were devoured by it!

Not even their bones remained!

The hundred-plus experts from Blood Wolf Village were all slaughtered, not a single one was left!

"Boss, all taken care of!" Little White flew back to Jiang Chen’s side, nuzzling its furry head against Jiang Chen’s leg in a fawning manner.

Jiang Chen smiled and patted its head. "Good job!" Then he frowned at Black Emperor, who was lying on Little White’s head picking its teeth with a small claw, and said speechlessly, "Little Black, can you be a little more restrained in the future? I’m human, after all. When you just swallow them whole like that, it puts a real burden on my conscience!"

"BURP—"

Black Emperor let out a satisfied burp and rolled its eyes. "I am the great Black Emperor, the Purple-winged Heaven-devouring Bat, supreme in all the Eight Desolates and Six Harmonies! I can eat True Dragons and Divine Phoenixes, so why can’t I eat a few measly humans?"

"..."

Jiang Chen pressed a hand to his forehead and shook his head, looking completely helpless.

After putting the Cyan Blade Sword into his Storage Ring, Jiang Chen began to clean up the battlefield. On Xiong He, he only found just over a million taels of silver and some pills, nothing else.

As for the other experts from Blood Wolf Village, they were dirt poor, so Jiang Chen didn’t even bother wasting his time on them.

In contrast, the Storage Rings of Mad Wolf and Fire Wolf gave Jiang Chen a pleasant surprise. ’As expected of the bandit leaders of the Hundred Beasts Mountains and Rivers. The treasures from these two combined are worth eight million taels of gold. And this Burning Flame Finger manual is actually a High-Level Profound Tier Martial Skill! That Fire Wolf really was pathetic. He probably never expected I could break through his defense so easily that he died before he could even use Burning Flame Finger!’

Burning Flame Finger was a High-Level Profound Tier Martial Skill that could generally only be cultivated and used by those at the True Martial Realm Seventh Stage and above.

Fire Wolf had comprehended the True Meaning of Fire, which was why he was able to practice this Finger Technique!

Unfortunately, he had underestimated Jiang Chen too much, and was slain by his sword before he even had a chance to use Burning Flame Finger!

’Burning Flame Finger has three forms: One Finger Shatters the Earth, Two-Finger Sky-Breaking, and Three Fingers Burn Heaven. Each form is stronger than the last. If one can use the third finger, it’s enough to slay an ordinary True Martial Realm Peak Powerhouse with a single strike!’ Jiang Chen nodded in satisfaction. After looking through it once, he had memorized the Cultivation Secret Technique for Burning Flame Finger.

However, now was not the best time to cultivate Burning Flame Finger.

He had just comprehended Fire Sword Intent and needed to fully consolidate it with his Sword Qi!

’Ordinary Martial Artists comprehend a True Meaning of the Martial Dao by deeply understanding the essence of the Martial Dao, causing a resonance with the will of the heavens and earth. Just like my Wind Sword Intent, which I comprehended by chance while cultivating the Aurora Sword Technique. My Fire Sword Intent, on the other hand, was derived from my Wind Sword Intent as a foundation.’

A wise light glinted in Jiang Chen’s eyes as thoughts raced through his mind. ’But a person’s energy is limited. It’s better not to bite off more than you can chew. The difficulty of raising several Sword Intents to their peak simultaneously is just too great. It would be better to specialize in one and use the others for support. I should continue to focus on Wind Sword Intent as my foundation, with Fire Sword Intent as a supplement!’

Just then, Black Emperor climbed onto Jiang Chen’s shoulder. Seemingly able to see into people’s hearts, it said, "Jiang Chen, are you considering prioritizing one of the two Sword Intents you’ve mastered over the other?"

Jiang Chen paused, then nodded. "It’s better not to bite off more than you can chew. I think it’s best to focus on mastering a single path, so I was preparing to major in Wind Sword Intent!"

In a Martial Artist’s cultivation, one should focus on a single, pure path! 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

This was the experience summarized by many Martial Dao seniors.

However, Black Emperor sneered at Jiang Chen’s choice. "Foolish. ’Focus on a single path’ is bullshit. If you really plan on doing that, then you’re a complete and utter fool, and you’ll have let the strongest path slip right through your fingers!"

"The strongest path?"

Jiang Chen was stunned.

Black Emperor nodded, jumped to the ground, and tucked its fleshy wings behind its back. It began to pace back and forth like an old man and said lightly, "Your so-called ’focus on a single path’ is just a limitation of the talent of those so-called Martial Dao seniors, who were unable to master everything. The true strongest path should encompass all things. Let me ask you, no matter how great and powerful a river is, can it ever compare to the Vast Sea?"

Jiang Chen shuddered. Black Emperor’s words struck him like a sharp blow to the head, and the pores all over his body seemed to burst open.

No matter how great and powerful a river is, it is still just a river.

How could it possibly compare to the Vast Sea?

Black Emperor continued, "The true ’single, pure path’ is the Martial Dao itself. Whether it’s Wind Sword Intent, Fire Sword Intent, Water Sword Intent... all True Meanings are merely rivers flowing across the land. Ultimately, they all become a Sea of All Rivers, merging into the great ocean of the Martial Dao. If you want to be a super genius in the eyes of common people, then stick to specializing in one. But if you want to become a peerless expert who reigns over the heavens, then you must walk the most difficult path—which is also the strongest path. The choice is yours to make!"

Having said its piece, Black Emperor returned to the top of Little White’s head, lying down lazily as if completely unconcerned with Jiang Chen’s choice.

’A super genius in the eyes of common people? Or a peerless expert who reigns over the heavens?’

Jiang Chen took a deep breath and clenched his fists. When he opened his eyes again, they were filled with a blazing fighting spirit. He said in a low voice, "A man in this world should naturally strive to be the strongest. Little Black, tell me how to cultivate the strongest path!"

"This path will be extremely difficult. Even the Celestial Demon Emperor Venerable, with his heaven-defying talent, got stuck on this road. Are you sure you want to walk it?" Black Emperor asked seriously, looking at Jiang Chen.

Jiang Chen grinned. "You either die, or you live forever. What the hell is there to be afraid of?"

"Good. I admire your courage!"

Black Emperor nodded. "Among the myriad daos of the heavens, every dao has its way. Humans have the human dao, beasts have the beast dao, and swords have the Sword Dao... Since you are proficient in the Sword Dao, the path you must walk is naturally the Strongest Sword Dao. The way of the sword has nine great True Meanings: Earth, Fire, Water, and Wind, life, death, space, time, and chaos... To walk the Strongest Sword Dao, you must comprehend all nine great Sword Dao True Meanings and fuse them all together. That is the Strongest Sword Dao!"

"Nine great Sword Dao True Meanings, and I have to fuse them?"

Jiang Chen’s eyes burned with determination as he nodded solemnly. "Alright. From now on, my cultivation will be directed toward this Strongest Sword Dao!"

PS: First Chapter of the day is here, Little Tian is working on the second! Still three Chapters today!