Zong Shou held the object in his hand, his brow deeply furrowed. Was it that Xiao Jin's ability was insufficient to dissolve this thing, or was this winged black iron of too high a grade? Unable to find an answer, Zong Shou turned his gaze toward the opposite side with a measure of anticipation. "Does Mr. Shen recognize this object?"

That Shen Yuexuan was equally curious, taking the item over. After observing it for a long time, he could find no lead and could only return it as it was. "I regret to say I do not recognize it. This thing is strange; it can isolate spiritual thought. However, judging by its material, it is likely even higher in grade than the Innate Violet Profound Dark Gold Qi. Our Mohist school has no record of it. But—" Shen Yuexuan paused, then continued uncertainly, "This item should be a finished magic tool, and moreover, something naturally formed by heaven and earth. It is undoubtedly a great treasure! Beyond that, I know nothing more. In my estimation, Your Majesty could carry this item with you; perhaps in the future, there will be an opportunity to unravel the mystery of this object."

Zong Shou was startled. Everything Shen Yuexuan said was tantamount to saying nothing. An object that could not be devoured by Xiao Jin, and one that remained unharmed even under the slash of the Spirit Refining Sword—it was obvious the thing was extraordinary— However, after Shen Yuexuan said that, Zong Shou completely abandoned the idea of having Shen Yuexuan refine it into a tool. After a moment of contemplation, Zong Shou sighed and casually tossed the object into a corner of the spirit ring he carried. No matter how extraordinary or mysterious the material, if it was useless, it was no different from trash. It was a shame he had anticipated it for so long, thinking it was truly some remarkable treasure.

Putting the matter aside entirely, Zong Shou’s gaze grew serious. "Do you have any leads regarding the matter of the Qin Emperor's Tomb?"

Shen Yuexuan also nodded solemnly. "I have been gathering my Mohist brethren these past few days. There were ten Great Artificers who participated in the construction of the Qin Emperor's Tomb, and each passed down their lineage to disciples. The orthodoxy I inherited is only a portion of that. We must pool our wisdom and gather these individuals together before we can possibly deduce the complete mechanical structure. Then, combined with the blueprints Your Majesty possesses, we can surely ensure Your Majesty can enter and exit safely." His tone carried a hint of cold sarcasm. "As for the Chongxuan, if my guess is correct, these people must be waiting for the ninth day of the ninth month, the time of the utmost Yang in heaven and earth."

"The ninth day of the ninth month, that is the Double Ninth Festival?" Zong Shou calculated carefully, then chuckled, "In other words, we still have two months?" This was quite plausible. The ninth day of the ninth month, the utmost Yang of heaven and earth. At that time, all worldly demonic evils, inanimate objects, and yin spirits would be suppressed to their extreme. It was indeed the optimal time to enter the ancient Qin Emperor's Tomb. Now that all preparations were complete, the only thing remaining was the orientation. But since there were still two months, he did not believe they would fail to find it.

Zong Shou let go of his worries, feeling quite relaxed in his mind, and smiled as he asked, "Does Mr. Shen wish to remain here and cultivate for a period?" This man was likely a Divine Realm expert. Although the consumption of spirit stones would certainly increase, Zong Shou was willing to bear it. However, Shen Yuexuan offered an apologetic smile. "I thank Your Majesty for your high regard, but I have other urgent matters to attend to, so I must decline your kind offer, My Lord."

Zong Shou knew in his heart that this man likely intended to participate in the Confucian Discourse Assembly. In Qiantian Mountain City, the Confucian Discourse Assembly had not yet ceased. The officials no longer paid it any mind, nor did they invest any more money. Yet, the scholars converging upon Qiantian Mountain City were only increasing daily, debating ceaselessly in the various academies and tea houses. It even bore some resemblance to the Hundred Schools of Thought contending in ancient times. While cultivating in the Hall of Astral Time could accelerate time, it was negligible compared to the rise and fall of the Mohist orthodoxy.

Zong Shou did not press him further, allowing Shen Yuexuan to depart. Zhang Huai also left at the same time. As Zong Shou's most capable subordinate, he managed countless affairs daily. Soon, he would replace Ren Bo as the Chief Grand Secretary of the Cabinet; having this month and a half free was already his limit. How could he possibly have so much leisure time available for cultivation?

Following that by several days, Hu Zhongyuan and the others also emerged from the Hall of Astral Time. These individuals lacked sufficient aptitude; within the Hall of Astral Time, they could glean no more insights into the Void-Shifting Divine Abilities. When Zong Shou preached, they found it increasingly difficult to comprehend. Their accumulated knowledge from previous years had been entirely exhausted, and there was no reason to remain there, wasting their limited lifespan. Over the span of four years, these few had gained a great deal, and it was estimated they would reach the Immortal Realm soon enough. However, to advance further, it would require at least another hundred years.

At that moment, only a sparse few remained in the hall. Ren Tianxing and Zong Yuan possessed exceptional talent and would only feel that time was insufficient. Kong Yao, in Zong Shou’s previous life, had once contended with the Divine Emperor. And Shi Ruolan possessed the most supreme bloodline of the Snow Lion Clan. Only Xuanyuan Yiren's aptitude was somewhat lesser, so she simply set up an alchemy furnace in the hall and focused entirely on refining pills. As for Chuxue, that girl had five divine beasts to enlighten her on the Dao. Every day, the Cold Gold Tiger and the Crimson Fire Golden Phoenix, among other divine beasts, would gaze at the murals in deep contemplation. When Zong Shou lectured, they would concentrate with fervor, daring not to miss a single word. Chuxue, meanwhile, was idle throughout the day, truly inviting the envy of others.

In the third month, Zong Shou finally finished reading the last volume of demonic scriptures he had collected. At this moment, within his spiritual consciousness, the once-incomplete character for 'Dao' finally took on a complete nascent form. A total of one thousand seven hundred and forty-two demonic texts, encompassing one hundred and fifty-seven Great Daos. And now, in Zong Shou's sea of consciousness, the number of stars had increased to one hundred and eighty-seven! The quantity of the Ten Absolutes Dao-Controlling Extinction Dragon Tooth Swords was also surging, reaching one hundred and ninety, surpassing the number of Star Dao Seeds for the first time. Of the three primary swords, one was the divine incantation of the character 'Control' (), one was the divine incantation of the character 'Execute' (), and one was the divine incantation of the character 'Borrow' (). This made the entire sword formation, although not touching the fundamentals of heaven and earth, incredibly powerful. Zong Shou had tested it once in the outer river of the Dimensional Realm: within a radius of a hundred thousand zhang, sword Qi was dense and sharp. Without employing the Martial Way of Kingship, over a dozen Immortal-tier spirit beasts were pulverized into dust the moment they entered the sword formation's range. Especially the latter two primary swords: one was a device formation refined by imitating the Supreme Demon Executing Scroll, and the other directly borrowed the divine patterns from the Blood Moon Saber. Upon refinement, their level was already so high that Zong Shou could barely control them.

"The methods of the Demonic Sect are indeed somewhat different from the Dao I have cultivated previously. Different perspectives lead to different outcomes, do they not?" The cultivation methods of the Daoist lineage involve treating one's own body as a heaven and earth, as a universe. One nourishes oneself, and upon reaching profound cultivation, requires almost nothing from external sources. The methods of the Demonic Sect, however, involve burning everything to forge one's own foundation. The higher the level, the more one must plunder from outside. Being labeled as the Demonic Path naturally has its reasons. In the Cloud Realm, the Sword Sect and the Cang Sheng Dao were actually branches of the same Daoist lineage, while the Buddhist school cultivated by borrowing the vows of the populace. Zong Shou did not concern himself with these methods of cultivation; he was only interested in the expositions on the structure of heaven and earth and the ultimate principles of the Great Dao contained within these demonic texts.

"It's a pity these demonic texts are still too low-level. There are only a meager eleven martial arts above the Tenth Grade Saint Spirit level. This is far from enough to merge the strengths of both schools." The thousand-plus demonic texts had only brought Zong Shou to a rudimentary level. At this moment, Zong Shou only regretted that his truce with Su Xiaoxiao had been agreed upon too early; he should have slain a few more for good measure back then. But at that time, the practitioners of the Demonic Path had nearly fled at the first sign of pursuit, sweeping away all their accumulated wealth before leaving. It was likely that continuing the pursuit would yield little further gain. In truth, to obtain higher-level, more profound demonic divine arts, there were only three places to look: the Celestial Demon Dome, the Primordial Demonic Sect, and the Star Demonic Sect.

"Fortunately, things are on the right track. Even without more demonic texts, I can deduce and perfect them step by step. As long as I continue this path, utilizing the Book of Cosmos, it will take at most twenty to fifty years to condense my own Dao path and truly step into the Divine Realm!" Zong Shou felt a surge of joy. The condensation of the Dao path did not merely represent an increase in cultivation. At that point, his swordsmanship could also ascend to a new level. Perhaps he could enter the Divine Realm of Sword Intent! Comprehending heaven and earth allows one to perceive the divine; transcending the mundane to achieve the divine! This was a realm of swordsmanship incomprehensible to ordinary people, and Zong Shou had only glimpsed hints of it in Ye Xuan. Yet, even the latter was still far from reaching it. Even peak cultivators were not guaranteed entry into this realm. Wei Xu used a saber, but his saber intent was merely the apex of the Soul Realm of Sword Intent. This was the ultimate extreme of the Dao of the Sword that Zong Shou yearned for. Reaching this stage would mean that the obsession and pursuit of his lifetime would be largely fulfilled.

Zong Shou drifted into a reverie for a long time, then let out a self-deprecating smile. Finally seeing the hope of verifying the ultimate attainment of the Dao of the Sword had almost made his mind lose control. It took him considerable effort to calm himself.

"Increasing the number of sword formations further is useless; I cannot control them. However, if I could integrate that Thousand-Eyed Blood Gaze Stone, it would be different. With mental differentiation, even a thousand sword artifacts could be commanded as if they were my own limbs. My current strength, without using the Book of Cosmos or the Martial Way of Kingship, even the most top-tier Divine Rank experts cannot harm me." This group of Divine Rank experts naturally did not include aberrations like Ao Kun or Ye Xuan. The latter, while in the Divine Realm, could directly damage his Dao foundation; Ye Xuan possessed supreme swordsmanship and could contend against three Saint Realm Venerables before his tribulation. "However, self-preservation within the Qin Emperor's Tomb might still not be enough!" He might not be able to utilize the Martial Way of Kingship inside the Qin Emperor's Tomb, so he needed to proceed with caution. The only way to rapidly increase his strength was through the Ten Absolutes Dao-Controlling Extinction Sword Formation. The tomb grounds were vast; he need not worry about space constraints for its deployment.

Opening his eyes, Zong Shou looked at the sword pellet in his hand. Over the span of one month and three years, he had nurtured it daily with his spiritual thought, allowing the object to merge with his divine soul essence. And the Yuan Yi Sword had completely dissipated. It could now be integrated into his primal soul! Without hesitation, Zong Shou made a hand seal, and the sword pellet flew toward the heavens, rushing into his sea of consciousness. In that instant, Zong Shou felt a torrent of magnificent primal energy surge through his limbs and bones. The true force within his body condensed continuously, while his sea of consciousness expanded. "Is this the power of the Thousand-Eyed Blood Gaze Stone? Wasn't it said that one must refine it into a pill to consume for it to be effective?" A trace of surprise flashed in Zong Shou's eyes. He knew that at this moment, with just one thought, he could enter the late Immortal Realm.