The essential dragon qi within this shard of space-time was, in fact, sufficient for him to absorb for another three days before finally being exhausted.
However, for some unknown reason, Zongshou had been experiencing a disturbing premonition for the past few days.
He constantly felt as if something extremely bad was about to happen.
Thus, even though he had three more days to enhance his physical body by another level, he was no longer willing to continue.
His spiritual sense stirred, and he recited an incantation while forming a hand seal. In an instant, the flow of residual essence suddenly accelerated, coalescing into a vortex that poured into the array.
Before Zong Shou, droplets of transparent, golden-yellow marrow fluid formed, perfectly round in shape, resembling amber.
These were Essence Marrow Pearls, an ancient method cultivators used to preserve their essence.
While a significant amount was still wasted, it was far better than abandoning everything entirely. For later use, these pearls only needed to be dissolved; the dragon qi within had already been separated by the Yuan Yi Sword.
Once all the essence in this area was condensed into pearls and preserved by Zong Shou,
this fragment of the minor world lost its support and began to break apart piece by piece.
Zong Shou was prepared; with a shift of his form, he leapt out of their original space with Su Xiaoxiao and Chuxue, entering the River of Void Space to avoid the temporal storm caused by the shard's explosion.
In truth, with his cultivation level, even without using magic—just relying on his physical body to withstand it—he could have emerged unscathed.
He dodged primarily because he did not want any relapse in Su Xiaoxiao's injuries.
"It should be done!"
Zong Shou was filled with boundless surprise as he gazed at the purple-gold greatsword before him.
His awakening at this moment was spurred both by the persistent sense of foreboding and because the Lian Shen Sword had finally crossed that boundary, ascending to the Divine Artifact rank.
Crimson and white light-lightning enveloped it, striking the blade and bombarding the artifact spirit.
Divine artifacts also face tribulations; once they pass this trial, it is akin to a cultivator stepping into the Zenith Realm.
The artifact spirit achieves eternal existence, and the Divine Treasure itself will never degrade, existing in perpetuity with the Dao. Even if shattered by a stronger Divine Treasure, it will 'resurrect' and reconstruct after a period.
Unless one person forcibly seizes the 'Dao' and merges with it, laying the foundation for their own Zenith Realm attainment.
However, a Divine Treasure undergoing its tribulation is much easier than a cultivator. Although it possesses a 'spirit,' it is ultimately an inanimate object.
His master, however, could not intervene; the Lian Shen Sword had to resist the tribulation using its own strength.
In fact, this tribulation itself was a process of self-tempering.
The crimson and white light-lightning flashed incessantly, and the Lian Shen Sword occasionally spat out sword auras. These auras circled in the air, incredibly agile, engaging and wrestling with the light-lightning.
Zong Shou watched quietly from the side, simultaneously immersing himself in comprehending the Dao contained within that lightning tribulation!
On one hand, this consolidated and enhanced his 'Dao Character' Divine Art. On the other, it allowed him to impress his understanding of these 'Tribulations Against the Dao' into the Lian Shen Sword.
He could not directly interfere, but this indirect method was permissible.
This made the latter handle matters with greater ease, as it cleaved through the endless light-lightning with every strike.
The sword qi accumulated, gradually spreading over a hundred zhang, illuminating the entire River of Space.
Only when the final bolt of light-tribulation was shredded and dispersed by the sword light did the boundless sword radiance suddenly retract, the brilliance fading, and the sword settling back into Zong Shou's hand.
Grasping it, Zong Shou immediately felt a sense of connection as if it were flesh and blood, as if he were holding the Great Dao itself.
It was similar to the feeling when holding the Blood Moon Saber, yet although the Lian Shen Sword was not his second primordial spirit weapon, its artifact spirit had accompanied him for nearly ten years.
The connection between their thoughts was something ordinary Divine Treasures and Immortal Artifacts could not compare to.
"What a beautiful sword—"
Chuxue exclaimed, her eyes shining slightly. Zong Shou then noticed the true form of the sword: a purple-gold blade covered in overlapping scales, resembling dragon scales.
And over these 'scales' ran streaks of blood-colored patterns, making the sword appear even more mystical, splendid, and pleasing to the eye.
These patterns were likely Innate Dao Patterns.
Zong Shou stroked them gently. These Dao patterns were spontaneously generated by the Lian Shen Sword during the tribulation, conforming to its inherent will under the impact of the heavenly lightning.
They could not compare to the 'Great Dao Celestial Mark' within the Supreme Tribulation Scripture, but they came infinitely close.
And the Dao contained within the Lian Shen Sword was, unexpectedly, as many as four types!
—The Divine Art of 'Containment' (Shou), the Divine Art of 'Refinement' (Lian), the Divine Art of 'Purity' (Chun), and the Divine Art of 'Supplementation' (Bu).
None of these Great Daos touched the root of the Dao. Except for the second, the 'Refinement' Divine Art, none were complete. Yet, they formed an unblemished chain, the four Daos almost perfectly integrated.
Zong Shou sensed silently for a moment, then released the Lian Shen Sword with a strange look in his eyes.
His heart was filled with immense regret; it was a pity that the last Great Dao was incomplete.
That 'Supplementation' Divine Art was not simple reinforcement, but the mending of celestial flaws, drawing from the excess of heaven and earth to compensate for deficiencies.
It could not only strengthen the Lian Shen Sword itself but also enhance his physical body, his primordial soul, his spiritual techniques, his martial path, and even the inadequacies in his own Great Dao.
It was a pity it was only half-formed, much like the Blood Moon Saber, which only possessed half of the 'Borrow' character Divine Art. Otherwise, this Divine Treasure would have been half of an Exquisite Profound Artifact for Holding the Dharma Wings.
He didn't know if it was due to heavenly jealousy or the considerations of the Xizi a myriad years ago that perfection could not be achieved,
preventing the innate Dao patterns coalesced by the Lian Shen Sword after its tribulation from being truly completed.
"What a pity!"
Zong Shou felt regret. This Divine Treasure could now absorb and refine all substances similar to soul matter and vital energy in the world, refining, purifying, and augmenting the self.
Ascending to the rank of Divine Treasure, it could multiply power, physique, and techniques by nine times!
Nine is the extreme of numbers, and the Lian Shen Sword had reached the zenith of what it could enhance. However, unlike the Exquisite Profound Artifact for Holding the Dharma Wings, it could not achieve a fundamental enhancement, elevating his early Divine Realm strength to the late Saint Realm by upgrading his twelve-tiered World-Ending Divine Abilities to the thirteenth-tiered Supreme.
Though it was an exceedingly rare Divine Weapon that the world yearned for, compared to the latter, it was still a step below.
However, Zong Shou was rather delighted by another function of this sword.
'Refine'—this sword could refine all things! It carried the meaning of refining and purification.
Originally, it wasn't particularly useful, but adding the character 'Purity' changed its meaning entirely.
Zong Shou willed it, and a pale white flame ignited in his palm.
It first entered his body, and he could feel his physical immortal power being burned.
In just an instant, Zong Shou knew that if he continuously seared himself with the fire generated by the Lian Shen Sword, his physical body and immortal power would advance at six times the speed of normal cultivation.
He then guided it into his primordial spirit, feeling waves of piercing pain. A considerable amount of subtle impurities were also melted and refined by this refining fire.
Zong Shou then grasped a Dragon Pill of Instantaneous Space. And in mere moments, ecstasy flared in his eyes once more.
It truly worked!
Recently, he had been worried about the Ten Absolute Dao Controlling Annihilation Sword Set and the Star Dao Bell. Although he had sufficient materials, he could not refine them.
Ordinary spiritual fires were enough, but they couldn't allow his divine sense to perfectly integrate into these artifacts, achieving unity of mind and object.
He could only slowly employ the method of slow attrition, carving and inscribing them with his divine sense.
He had even considered seeking out a white hole in that boundless world again.
Now that the Lian Shen Sword had advanced, it resolved his predicament precisely.
He also had an epiphany: this Refining Fire was unrooted and without substance, a fire without a source. It should be able to merge into any flame—
At this rate, in just a few decades, his Three Thousand Star Falls and Ten Absolute Dao Controlling Annihilation Sword Formation could begin to take shape.
Overjoyed, Zong Shou directly brought the Lian Shen Sword into his Qi Sea to nurture it.
The Soul Sea and the Qi Sea are the two core sources within a cultivator's body. The Soul Sea was occupied by the Yuan Yi Sword, so the Qi Sea naturally belonged to the Lian Shen Sword.
He then used his will to draw the Refining Fire throughout his entire body. Zong Shou prepared to burn himself with this fire daily from now on, unless engaged in battle.
Having just been forcibly infused with countless amounts of essence, much of which he couldn't absorb and remained settled in his body,
this Refining Fire was exactly what he needed to help him refine it.
Although this Lian Shen Sword was powerful—nearly twice as strong as the Blood Moon Saber—and could grant a Half-Step Zenith Realm expert the combat power equivalent to an early Zenith Realm cultivator,
in terms of its intrinsic nature, its auxiliary function was stronger than its combat ability.
It could save a cultivator six times the effort in their practice.
Such value was unmatched by ten Blood Moon Sabers.
In a sense, it could even be compared to the Exquisite Profound Artifact for Holding the Dharma Wings.
"This Lian Shen has been promoted to a Divine Weapon. I wonder what the situation is with the other six sword artifacts?"
Lian Shen was the leader and the primary sword of the Seven Swords, possessing the greatest potential for advancement. Its tribulation experience would also be sensed by the other six swords. Essentially, they would also improve, creating a chain reaction. Their chances of advancement would also greatly increase.
This is why Zong Shou held the Xi Zi of ten thousand years in the highest regard. As long as two of the seven swords successfully advanced, the remaining swords would have almost no chance of failing their tribulations.
That meant a complete set of Acquired Killing Divine Weapons!
Their inherent might was formidable, and once combined, let alone figures like Li Biexue, even a Half-Step True Realm expert could be—
Zong Shou's eyes flickered, and he suddenly realized.
This sword set was likely not just meant for sect protection, but perhaps to counter that peerless expert hidden deep behind the scenes,
one who stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the Xi Zi!
His heart skipped a beat again, and Zong Shou's face instantly turned pale as he was jolted awake from his contemplation.
The connection between the heart’s blood and the comprehension of heaven and earth was a genuine omen of misfortune—
Previously, the Black Dragon Qi had blocked his perception, and only as it gradually thinned over the past few days could he sense it, though vaguely.
If that were the case, then the ominous event must have already occurred several days ago?
What could it be?
Chuxue asked worriedly, not understanding, "Young Master, is there something wrong with the Lian Shen Sword's refinement? Xue'er thinks it looks fine; at least it's much better than my Blood Moon Saber—"
"It's not!"
Zong Shou shook his head slightly, suppressing his agitation. "Let's just go back first!"
Su Xiaoxiao had rebuilt her Dao foundation, but she was still relying on those nine top-tier Immortal Treasures to sustain her life.
The most urgent matter was to return to the Azure Sky Realm immediately to seek out Xuan Shuang's help. The second was to carefully inquire about everything that had happened during this past month.