There was originally nothing; where could dust alight? My heart's fundamental essence of the Sword Dao was utterly sincere, my mind as still as stagnant water. The heart, still as water’s surface; the mind, sharp as the sword’s edge. Then, "Grand Puppet Command, submit!" Lu Yuan shouted. The Grand Puppet Command shot toward Xuanhuazi, beginning to emit wisps of malevolence, absorbing him. Xuanhuazi, Xuanhuazi, you once sought to use me for your cultivation; today, you instead become my puppet—truly the karmic retribution of cause and effect. If it were a Dragon Shark at the tenth level of Longevity, a mere instant would suffice. But to capture Xuanhuazi of the Grand Dao Realm took a considerable amount of time, slowly drawing him into the command. Simultaneously, Lu Yuan discovered he had to infuse a significant amount of spirit stones—even twenty mid-grade spirit stones—into the Grand Puppet Command. The mental feedback from the command informed him that the spiritual energy from these twenty mid-grade spirit stones was repairing the injuries Xuanhuazi had sustained. Twenty mid-grade spirit stones were an astronomical fortune; many cultivators at the tenth level of Longevity possessed only that much in total assets. However, Lu Yuan felt no reluctance. To possess a puppet at the first level of the Grand Dao Realm—what sheer fortune that was! In the future, when facing anyone at the first level of the Grand Dao Realm, he would not be at a disadvantage. Extremely satisfied, he tucked the Grand Puppet Command into his embrace.

Lu Yuan swept his divine sense over the final message left by the former South Sea Sword Master. It revealed that after obtaining a puppet at the first level of the Grand Dao Realm, he could send such a puppet out to battle, but he could also temporarily channel the magical power of a Grand Dao Realm first or second-level puppet into his own body. Excellent! If he channels Xuanhuazi’s magical power into himself, he too can temporarily contend against figures at the first level of the Grand Dao Realm. Let’s go; the Xuan Zhi Ji can also be practiced. Lu Yuan flipped open the book, Xuan Zhi Ji. This technique was extremely difficult for Xuanhuazi to master, requiring Lu Yuan’s water-element spiritual bone to succeed. But for Lu Yuan, it presented no difficulty at all. Lu Yuan gazed at the Xuan Zhi Ji and began practicing it swiftly. “Xuan Ming Ling Yin,” Zhé Chóng Gài Zàng.”

The book Xuan Zhi Ji began with these eight characters, which were actually the total secret formulation for the Xuan Ming Zhi Ji. Each of these eight characters was written with extreme austerity. Just by seeing them, Lu Yuan felt his entire sword aura surging, seemingly yearning to transform into a chilling essence. In the Cultivation World, some ancient texts cannot be understood without viewing the original manuscript. For instance, the same eight characters—Xuan Ming Ling Yin, Zhé Chóng Gài Zàng—if you read the original book, infinite profound mysteries embedded within those eight words pour directly into your divine sense. But if you read anything other than the original text, these eight words elicit no response whatsoever. This is the commonly used “Dian Ji Cang Shen Great Method” in the Cultivation World. Various sects employ numerous methods for storing their canonical texts this way. By placing the texts in a sect's most vital location, their ultimate techniques are hard to transmit externally. However, this Dian Ji Cang Shen Great Method is exceptionally difficult to execute, and very few in the Cultivation World can perform it; it is basically controlled by the Five Great Immortal Sects. Lu Yuan never expected the foundational treasure of the Xuan Ming Sect to be this method.

However, Xuanhuazi had only obtained this initial portion of the Xuan Zhi Ji. Flipping further to the second page, the characters displayed were, “Xuán zhī yòu xuán, zhòng miào zhī mén” (Profound and yet more profound, the gateway to all mysteries). These eight characters originally came from the Tao Te Ching, but here they were clearly imbued with new meaning. An expanse of ten thousand miles of frozen ice seemed to appear before Lu Yuan’s eyes; within these eight characters, there were at least eight hundred and eighty-eight types of extreme elemental ice of the world. Lu Yuan was momentarily stunned.

And the characters that followed flashed before his eyes one by one. In an instant, countless infinite marvelous methods appeared in his mind. Simultaneously, endless streams of various forms of ice coalesced into one—no, it could only be called half a Flood Dragon. Xuan Zhi Ji represented half a Flood Dragon; Ming Zhi Ji represented the other half. All the cultivation methods that formed the Ice Dragon flashed through his mind. The Xuan Ming Sect was currently at the nadir of decline, but in its past, it once enjoyed supreme prosperity, holding a position even within the Great Yong Kingdom, the strongest nation in the South. It even possessed the ultimate technique that could transform into an Ice Dragon: the Xuan Ming Huá Lóng Jue (Xuan Ming Dragon Transformation Art). Once this technique was cultivated to its peak, one could transform into an Ice Dragon, no weaker than the Cloud Dragon formed by the Ten Transformations of the Cloud Dragon. Furthermore, Lu Yuan understood from the introduction to the Xuan Zhi Ji that Dragon Transformation was not the ultimate limit. In the Jin Kingdom, once your magical power transforms into a dragon, you can become a top figure in the state. But this is not the case across the entire continent. Transforming your magical power into a dragon merely signifies you possess the strength of one dragon. Afterward, there are those who can achieve the strength of ten dragons, a hundred dragons, or even a thousand dragons. Legend speaks of the most terrifying strike capable of shattering the earth—the strength of ten thousand dragons. In contrast to such formidable magical power, later stages also feature various wondrous techniques, such as the Ten Dragons Returning to Heaven Art and the Eighteen True Dragon Palms! In the wider world, a single palm strike can overturn heaven and earth, booming like thunder, resembling a fierce battle among dragons; cultivators possessing dragon-like strength are not few.

Returning to the immediate subject, the Xuan Ming Huá Lóng Jue was divided into two parts: one was Xuan Zhi Ji, and the other was Ming Zhi Ji. Lu Yuan now possessed the Xuan Zhi Ji.

Lu Yuan practiced according to the text, and before long, the Xuan Zhi Ji was mastered. A crystalline Ice Serpent appeared behind him, writhing, yet lacking vitality. It still needed the Ming Zhi Ji to form the complete Xuan Ming Huá Lóng Jue. However, even if he found the complete version, it would only be an Ice Serpent; only upon reaching a certain level of magical power could it advance to an Ice Jiao, and finally, the Ice Dragon.

But that wasn't all. Above his head, five streams of sword light had originally been circling. Among them, the White Emperor Sword Light was intensely white, like imperial majesty descending; the green sword light was gentle and mild, yet carried the solemnity of the Green Emperor. The other three colors of sword light were faint and scattered, having not yet achieved completion. But after mastering the Xuan Zhi Ji, Lu Yuan felt the black sword light above his head grow deeper, subtly acquiring a trace of majesty. This was the Black Emperor’s Dao! The Black Emperor Water Sovereign!

However, possessing only the Xuan Zhi Ji was not enough to achieve the true Black Emperor Sword Dao. If he could obtain the Ming Zhi Ji, he would attain the genuine Black Emperor Sword Dao. It seemed he still needed to deal with Ming Jianzi; dealing with such an unorthodox demonic path posed no pressure on Lu Yuan whatsoever.

By now, he had finally finished sorting through the spoils. The puppet was trained, the cultivation technique was practiced. This time’s haul was immense, beyond imagination. The effort expended and the reward received were proportional. The difficulty in utterly defeating Xuanhuazi of the Grand Dao Realm warranted this greater benefit, repaying him for the hardship of this endeavor.

Mountain delicacies have their merits; sea flavors have their charm. For a long time, Lu Yuan had eaten far more mountain delicacies than sea flavors. In mountain delicacies, there has always been the saying of the Eight Treasures of the Animal Kingdom and the Four Treasures of the Plant Kingdom. The Eight Animal Treasures are bear paw, elephant trunk, deer sinew, Zhù Fēng, ape lip, deer tail, monkey brain, and leopard fetus. The Four Plant Treasures are bamboo pith, bird’s nest, shiitake mushroom, and white fungus. Enumerating them, Lu Yuan realized something: among the Eight Animal Treasures, he had only eaten bear paw; the other seven he had never tasted. Fortunately, even without tasting these specific items, Lu Yuan had consumed numerous mountain delicacies. Lu Yuan didn't care about the fame of the food itself; if it tasted good, that was enough. What he ate most frequently was undoubtedly wild dog meat, mountain boar meat, and mutton—less of the vegetarian fare, because he was a carnivore by nature, and vegetarian food never felt quite right.

As for sea flavors, he hadn't eaten much. However, long ago, he knew a Daoist friend who lived by the sea. That solitary cultivator friend, also quite the epicure, had once told Lu Yuan that the so-called sea flavors had five key points: Cannon, Fin, Stomach, Sea Cucumber, and Crab. The "Cannon" naturally referred to the Cannon Fish. According to that foodie friend, among all the flavors of the sea, the Cannon Fish was the best. Moreover, the friend insisted that if you were to eat it, you must eat a two-head abalone; he claimed this friend often ventured deep into the sea just to catch two-head abalone out of gluttony, stating he absolutely wouldn't eat anything beyond a four-head Cannon, as it lacked flavor. The "Fin" was shark fin. This foodie friend claimed that among the dorsal, pectoral, pelvic, and caudal fins, the dorsal fin had the best taste. The "Stomach"? That referred to the fish maw. Allegedly, those who know how to eat find it extremely delicious, while those who don't find it quite repulsive. The "Sea Cucumber" refers to the sea cucumber itself. Its appearance isn't particularly appealing, but the taste when eaten is absolutely exhilarating! As for the fifth item, it referred to Crab.

Lu Yuan had listened to that foodie friend pontificate at length, nearly drooling the whole time. But he had never had the chance to reach the South Sea until now. Since Xuanhuazi’s matter was resolved and his mood was greatly uplifted, he finally had the leisure to enjoy a proper feast.

Lu Yuan was currently steaming his catch. Of the five great delicacies of the sea, the best crab, according to that foodie friend, was the Great Sea Crab. Lu Yuan always followed good advice; this steaming method was also taught by that friend. Don't doubt where Lu Yuan got his tools—a person like Lu Yuan was half a foodie himself and carried a full set of cooking utensils for boiling, stir-frying, and deep-frying. The crabs were nearly cooked now.

Lu Yuan’s method was a relatively rare, ornate steaming technique—steaming the crab with Huadiao wine. The moment he lifted the lid, a wave of fragrance erupted. “The aroma of Huadiao wine mingling with the scent of crab—life truly is no less intoxicating than a great draft.” Lu Yuan inhaled the air with immense satisfaction. True delicacies demand perfection in color, aroma, and taste. With such a superb aroma, how could one’s appetite not be whetted? Golden liquid bathed the crab on the plate. Lifting the shell revealed rich, yellow roe and sweet meat, complemented by meticulously prepared ginger-vinegar dipping sauce—truly supreme enjoyment. “The claw meat is liquid gold, the salted roe a fairy land. One must drink fine wine, soaring high beneath the moon.”

At this moment, Xuanhuazi was utterly forgotten. As for tracking down Ming Jianzi, seizing the Ming Zhi Ji, and the like—all could be temporarily set aside. What is the point of a life devoted solely to arduous cultivation? When it is time to enjoy pleasure, one must indulge. This is Lu Yuan’s method of cultivation: enjoying the mortal world while emerging from it. Not exactly entering the world, nor entirely leaving it. The three thousand worldly affairs, tumbling and churning. Yet, what do they have to do with me? I need not intentionally immerse myself in the world, nor need I intentionally withdraw from it. In all things, I proceed with ease, as if guided by Heaven’s will.