Myriad Rivers to the Sea

Kuang Shan stood before the ancient brass scale and closed his eyes to focus his mind. He needed to project dominance after the humiliating string of defeats his faction had just suffered. He took a deep and steadying breath while gathering his centuries of comprehension. He had spent his long life meditating on the mysteries of the laws he chose and of course the mastery of the axe.

Before stepping closer to the scale, Kuang Shan glanced at the World Anchor Stele resting nearby. It was a sect defining treasure and wagering it was a monumental risk that he was taking. However, he felt secure in his own abilities and he believed his foundation was as unshakable as the mountains he meditated upon. He wanted to show this young upstart the difference between the energy of youth and true cultivated experience.

The scarred elder raised his right hand and pointed a thick finger at the right plate of the Dao Weighing Crucible. A dense yellow light poured from his fingertip and landed directly on the brass surface. The light carried no physical force but it contained the essence of his life's work.

The relic hummed a low note as it received that essence and then was actively scanning over the elder himself. The archaic runes etched into the central pillar flared to life and bathed the stone plateau in a bright golden glow. The right plate began to sink toward the floor as the scale translated his understanding into physical weight. The thick brass chains groaned loudly under the sudden burden.

The plate dropped lower and lower until it hovered mere inches above the cracked stone. The glowing runes on the central pillar climbed higher and higher to indicate a high level of mastery. Kuang Shan opened his eyes and offered a satisfied grin as the results couldn’t be much better. He had dedicated his existence to the Axe Dao and the relic validated his comprehension for all to see.

The Sundered Peak Sect disciples managed to muster a few cheers of encouragement from the outer ridge. Their morale was broken but seeing their elder achieve a high mark on the ancient scale gave them a small sliver of hope but a nagging feeling couldn’t leave their thoughts. The Heavenly Sword Sect elders frowned at the truly impressive display and crossed their arms in silent judgment. Even if Kuang Shan won here, there was little for him to gain but walking away from all of this in a neutral way so there wasn’t that much on the line here for the Heavenly Sword Sect.

Elder Huo Zheng stroked his scarred chin while observing the glowing runes. "He might be a coward for challenging a junior but we cannot deny the strength of his Dao. He has walked his path for a long time and truly is powerful. The density of his intent is like a continent pressing down on that brass plate. I fear our Holy Son might struggle to match such a concentrated focus since his path is varied, broad and young while Kuang Shan has dug a single deep well."

Sect Master Ling Wuji nodded in agreement with the assessment. "A broad path offers many tools but a narrow path often holds more mastery and understanding. We can only watch and trust in the foundation that both the Zhan and Li Clan as well as our Holy Son built."

"I have set the standard," Kuang Shan boasted while taking a step back from the glowing scale to let the plate rise back to its neutral position. "My path holds true weight and my Dao is firm. Now it is your turn to step up. Show us the depth of your foundation, Li Yu."

Li Yu walked forward with measured steps and was impressed by the results. He did not initially know what a great result looked like but from the talking happening around the area, Kuang Shan achieved one. He felt calm on the outside while his internal soul space remained foggy and unstable. He did not know what to expect from the ancient relic but he welcomed the opportunity to test his own limits with little downside. Li Yu stopped in front of the brass scale and looked at the empty left plate. The Dao Weighing Crucible hummed once more and reached out with an invisible scanning energy to measure his foundation.

The scanning energy pierced his physical body and touched the core of his being. It bypassed his Creation Lord physical body and ignored his opalescent Qi. The relic went straight into the cloudy fog where his Human Soul and Fisherman Soul resided. The intrusion acted like a stray spark igniting a hidden powder keg.

An ocean of killing intent exploded from Li Yu's body without a single warning sign as soon as it happened. The eruption did not carry the light of his standard aura or the shifting colors of his unique energy. It was pure and unadulterated hostility that swallowed the entire Canyon of Sleeping Echoes in a fraction of a second. It was the thickest and most powerful killing intent anyone present had ever felt in their long lives.

The sudden wave of hostility was so dense it felt like a physical ocean of red and purple water crashing down on the valley. The air turned frigid and tasted like dry ash. Elder Kuang Shan stumbled backward and instinctively summoned a thick shield to protect himself from the oppressive aura.

Sect Master Ling Wuji and Elder Huo Zheng flared their own sharp sword intent to brace against the suffocating pressure as well. The other powerhouses managed to stay on their feet while grinding their teeth against the overwhelming sensation of death and were stunned by the sudden change of events.

The disciples from both sects that were not close to a stronger elder were not as fortunate. Every single one from both factions collapsed as the intent washed over them. Lin Xue fell to her knees and gasped for air as her vision blurred into darkness. Zhou Ming dropped his sword and clutched his chest while feeling like his heart had stopped beating. Gongsun Bao and the other axe cultivators fell face first into the dirt while trembling uncontrollably.

They all experienced terrifying illusions of imminent death and their worst nightmares. They saw themselves being severed into pieces and crushed under an unstoppable force. The killing intent bypassed their cultivation realms and attacked their souls directly in a fashion they could do nothing against. It stripped away their pride and left them feeling like insignificant insects standing before a wrathful deity.

Gongsun Bao tasted dirt as he laid flat on the ground. The killing intent pressed against his spine like a frozen blade. He felt as though a pair of ancient eyes were staring directly into his soul while judging his every sin or action he has ever taken. He tried to summon his earth Qi to defend himself but his spiritual energy refused to answer his call at all. His own cultivation was terrified of the predator standing in the center of the arena. Lin Xue had tears silently going down her cheek as the cold intent felt like it had frozen the blood in her veins. She felt like she was standing on the edge of a bottomless abyss and one strong breeze would send her falling into the dark forever.

The canyon itself reacted to the sudden outbreak of deathly aura. The Canyon of Sleeping Echoes was a sacred graveyard filled with the lingering wills of ancient swordmasters who had dedicated their lives to the sword and overall to protecting. The swords embedded in the stone mounds began to vibrate in unison as the killing intent swept over their quiet resting places.

A soft silver light sparked from the closest grave and quickly spread across the valley like a rising tide. The graveyard had stood for millennia as a monument to those who died protecting something during their last moments and the residual wills of those fallen heroes sensed the children of their sect suffering under an unbearable burden. The swords acted as conduits for that protective will while the silver light grew brighter and formed a canopy of energy over the plateau.

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Spectral lotuses began to bloom across the sacred ground once more. The ethereal flowers pushed through the cracked stone and floated in the air around the struggling disciples. The blooming lotuses acted as a soothing countermeasure to the violent intent washing through the area. They radiated a calm and peaceful energy that shielded the minds of the juniors from the illusion of death. They shed glowing petals that drifted down to touch the kneeling disciples. Wherever a petal landed, a warm sensation bloomed and chased away the freezing terror. The ancient ancestors were rising from their slumber to shield their descendants from the terrifying force their own Holy Son was emitting.

The canyon became a surreal painting where a suffocating dark ocean of hostility clashed against a rising tide of silver lotuses. The juxtaposition of lethal danger and peace created a breathtaking scene that left the conscious elders speechless and unsure with what was happening. They watched the ancient graveyard rise up to balance the terrifying aura pouring out of Li Yu.

Li Yu stood frozen in front of the crucible while his mind was pulled inward by his own souls. He found himself standing within his own soul space, a place he did not have access to for some time now. The cloudy fog that had obscured his vision for so long was churning violently under the active scan of the ancient scale.

He looked up and much to his surprise saw his Human Soul radiating the thick space swallowing killing intent. The figure was shrouded in dark energy and seemed ready to tear the very fabric of the universe apart. In another area of the soul space stood the Fisherman Soul on his island and the sight of him wasn’t too surprising. The dark figure was smiling eagerly at the prospect of violence with his own thick killing intent and egging the Human Soul forward with silent encouragement.

It was at this moment that the lotuses from the outside world started to impact his soul space and slowly some appeared within. It was as if they were reminding Li Yu’s Human Soul of what it had done earlier for them and the peace it had brought. The Human Soul seemed to react to the lotuses slowly appearing within this space and stopped radiating the dark hostility as a new realization washed over it. The shadowy energy cracked and peeled away to reveal a brilliant radiant light burning underneath as it had done a few days ago.

The radiant light expanded and illuminated the soul space in a blinding fashion. It acted like a cleansing fire that chased away the cloudy fog and brought striking clarity to Li Yu’s mind. He felt as if he was standing at a higher level now and could peer into anything at all but this feeling was fleeting. The Human Soul raised its hands and began to reabsorb the killing intent that was flooding the physical canyon. The dark energy rushed back into Li Yu's body and swirled around the brilliant light.

The radiant light and the dark killing intent did not destroy each other or one overtook the other. They began to circle one another in a harmonious rhythm and were both growing stronger. They formed a perfect Yin and Yang balance that hovered right in the center of his soul space and was feeding off of one another. The light represented his desire to protect and live life while the dark intent represented his willingness to sever any threat that stood in his way. One could not exist without the other and both would be much weaker without the pair.

The Fisherman Soul watched the balance form from where he was and was still radiating his normal killing intent. The Human Soul looked at the Fisherman while radiating the blinding light and at this moment the two looked at one another. The eager smile on the Fisherman’s face faded into a look of solemn realization as the dark figure observed the shifting energies and gave a slow nod of his head to the Human Soul.

'I understand now,' the Fisherman Soul thought to itself.

The figure sat down by the water and ceased his violent urging of the Human Soul. The internal conflict that had been bothering Li Yu over the last few days settled into a state of clarity for both sides but the true outcome was unknown. The bottleneck he felt in his comprehension began to loosen as he more clearly understood the duality of his own existence and his strange souls. He did not need to choose, he needed to wield and use both with equal mastery.

Back in the physical world, the ancient relic was suffering under the extreme fluctuations of intent. The Dao Weighing Crucible groaned loudly as the initial wave of killing intent pressed down on the left plate. The brass chains strained and the archaic runes flickered erratically under the intense killing intent from both the Human Soul and Fisherman Soul. They both originally deemed this treasure not worthy of judging them.

The groan turned into a high pitched metallic screech when the intent suddenly shifted. The physical wave of dark hostility vanished and was immediately replaced by a wash of brilliant radiant light. The sudden transition from overwhelming death to boundless radiant energy overloaded the treasure completely.

The left plate slammed down into the stone floor with the force of a falling meteor. The central pillar cracked down the middle and the glowing runes shattered into a shower of golden sparks. A loud explosion echoed through the canyon as the Dao Weighing Crucible blew apart into hundreds of jagged brass pieces. The ancient scale was destroyed before it could even display a final judgement or measurement for Li Yu.

The radiant light faded away and left Li Yu standing amidst the scattered debris. He opened his eyes and let out a long breath while feeling more refreshed than he had in some time. This had all happened so quickly and suddenly that few were able to process what had just happened here. There was only the aftermath of what they could see and the lingering memories of what they had just experienced.

Silence reigned over the valley once more. The disciples slowly pushed themselves off the ground as the spectral lotuses faded into the wind. They looked at Li Yu with a mixture of lingering terror and awe. They had felt death brush against their necks and they knew that somehow the man standing before them held the power to end their lives.

Elder Kuang Shan stood frozen with his mouth hanging open and wasn’t in any better condition. He stared at the broken pieces of his ancient treasure and could not find the words to speak. The relic had survived for countless generations and tested thousands of geniuses but it had exploded after scanning the Holy Son for just a few seconds. His own display of laws felt incredibly insignificant compared to the terrifying forces that had just washed over the canyon just now.

Ling Wuji cleared his throat and stepped to the edge of the high pavilion. He looked at the shattered brass and offered a rare bright smile. For one reason or another he couldn’t help but think to himself that he had been smiling a lot more recently. ‘Could this be because of the presence of the Holy Son?’ He thought to himself. He did not care that the relic was broken because he only cared about the message it sent to their rivals.

"It seems the crucible could not handle the depth of your comprehension," Ling Wuji announced while projecting his voice across the valley. "The relic broke under the weight of your Dao and that leaves you as the undeniable winner of this challenge, Li Yu!"

Kuang Shan wanted to argue that no measurement was actually taken but the words died in his throat. He had felt the killing intent and he had seen the radiant light. He knew in his heart that his own understanding was nothing compared to the terrifying duality he had just witnessed. Kuang Shan had already belittled himself to challenge Li Yu in such a way and did not want to lose anymore face by arguing against a result everyone would agree to. Everyone present accepted the explosion as proof that Li Yu's comprehension was too profound for an artifact to measure.

Li Yu looked at Kuang Shan and spoke with a serene tone without any mockery at all. "You wanted to teach me a lesson about the weight of the Dao. It seems your ancient scale was not sturdy enough to finish the lecture. Perhaps you should take out another treasure and we can have round two."

Kuang Shan trembled but kept his mouth shut since he had no counter argument. Because Li Yu said it without any mockery in his voice, Kuang Shan did not have a thick enough face to challenge Li Yu to something different.

Li Yu looked down at the ruined scale and then turned his gaze toward the pile of wagers. He had won the final challenge and he had gained something much greater.