It had been so long since he had experienced the indescribable sensation of an epiphany that Ren was caught by surprise. The first had been when he discovered his dao and its connection with karma. The second had been during the inheritance trial when he perfected his cultivation manual, the Causality of Karma for the foundation realm. But those had happened so close together that Ren had taken them for granted.
It was only much later that he realized how precious true epiphanies were and not just because of how rare they were. He had fully been prepared to go for decades without another. As such, he had been caught completely unawares. He didn’t have any suitable pills to boost it! He didn’t have much time left as qi began to swirl and rush toward him. In those precious few moments, Ren identified what had triggered it and decided what to focus the epiphany on.
A natural epiphany was an extremely mysterious situation where a cultivator entered a trance state where they were permitted to peek behind the veil at the secrets of the world. In that trance, one could find answers to impossible problems, clear bottlenecks, or even reignite their exhausted momentum. Too little was known about how to direct it, but Ren knew from experience that certain questions could be pushed to the forefront.
His body was filled with qi that flowed through his meridians in patterns even more profound than before. But the blissful sensations didn’t erase all thought this time. On the contrary, his mind was unprecedentedly clear. Ren wanted to make the most of this opportunity, and improving the Causality of Karma in the current stage was just a minor benefit.
‘No. This epiphany is rooted in the concept of Rebirth and with it, both my potential and my future will be remade. And the single best chance I have to do so is to find a path forward.’
The fragments of Ren’s manual referring to the core formation stage had been more damaged than all the rest. He had actually spent contribution points to study other cultivation manuals to see how they differed and to see if he could salvage any useful sections from them. He had had plenty of time to come up with various ideas on how to advance his cultivation but had hesitated to commit to anything before it was necessary to do so.
In his elevated mental state, bits and pieces of different manuals floated up to the surface of his thoughts. Not just cultivation manuals, but even techniques, crafting methods, and his body cultivation manuals were being referenced. With all the time Ren had devoted to his studies, the epiphany let his mind choose from an abundance of choices. But there was one that stood out even among those. It was his own partially created technique built using the memory and divination techniques.
Ren had cannibalized the Serene Pool Mind Arts ability to calculate and the predictive ability of Heavenly Trajectories, which was an offensive divination technique that used a folding fan. With all his experience in piecing together shattered manuals, Ren had come up with an offensive technique of his own where he used divination to predict an opponent's movements. He had just started to refine it during his intense spars with Bao Hua. His sword array art had been like a tiger given wings when he used them in conjunction, allowing him to dominate weak opponents like that Young Master’s underlings yesterday.
To his surprise, the epiphany revealed that his partially formed technique resonated greatly with Causality of Karma in the core formation stage! Pathways were created, tested, and discarded only to be reformed better. Ren couldn’t provide any reasoning behind his creations, going instead by feeling and instinct. The manual was put together with blistering speed, but to proceed beyond a point, it became clear to Ren that he had a choice to make between the theories he had previously come up with.
The Karmic strand constructs he created to connect with others served as the first step. From there he could use the strands to form a wide web of connections or twist the strands into a thicker thread. He could barely comprehend the importance of either, but in that moment it felt like a choice between interconnected and vast or concentrated and strong, and those concepts barely made sense! At that moment, Ren could already feel the epiphany start to decline. Without much time to think, he chose by instinct, and the rest of the manual was customized to his choice as the fugue state weakened.
The epiphany continued to fade, but Ren soon finished with the manual, leaving him a precious few moments. To make the most of this opportunity, he tried to push another question forward. The constructs that Elder Yun had highlighted the importance of and what he should do with them. It was a vaguely framed question, but it was all he could manage.
Unexpectedly, instead of an answer, the words that floated up into his consciousness were about the heavens sending eradicating tribulations that turned into rewards if survived. With that, the epiphany completely faded, leaving him to puzzle over that final cryptic clue.
As much as Ren would like to sit and meditate on his epiphany for weeks, he didn’t have that kind of time. He memorized as much as he could, but the deluge of information he had received in this short span of time would need months to analyze and interpret. But he had more pressing concerns.
Ren had to find Hua and learn more about the cause of the conflict they had become embroiled in. Ren would climb a mountain of blades and swim across a sea of fire for his best friends, although he would prefer not letting matters escalate to such a point in the first place. Still, he knew when to face reality upon learning the details. Their feud was all but set in stone, and he already knew how those families thought. Neither side could live under the same sky now.
While Cheng Lei wouldn’t be accompanying them on this journey, he would certainly stir up trouble in their absence. Ren could already predict a few avenues of attack, such as their respective mountain abodes and their friends. These base attacks aside, Ren prayed that the Cheng family’s elders or that one humiliated dao guardian would still respect the sect’s laws and not act directly.
Ren spent a few sleepless nights trying to manage it all, but he visited many of his acquaintances to caution them about Cheng Lei and about the coming calamity. Though Elder Yun hadn’t expressly forbidden him from sharing knowledge on the approaching disaster the sect faced, he had emphasized how dangerous the knowledge could be. With that being the case, Ren had to censor himself and only pass on a few hints and warnings to his friends. He couldn’t bring himself to completely leave them in the dark.
Mei Ling had to have noticed some of the troublesome signs of the calamity, and coupled with his warnings, Ren detected the light of understanding in her eyes. She wouldn’t be accompanying Ren and Hua on this journey, and though she had her master to protect her, Ren wanted to do what he could. She handed him a large number of medicines and poisons and promised to pass on the message to Xi Yuan, who was out on another of her master's training missions. On further thought, Ren realized Xi Yuan probably already knew about what the sect faced given how unusually somber and melancholic she had behaved during their last meeting.
Ren also managed to give the warning to his friends Hu Yan and Daoist Tealeaf. The former took his words seriously, but the latter couldn’t be bothered. On the contrary, she was more interested in what Ren had to say about the tea Elder Yun had served him! Ren couldn’t help but shake his head at her single-minded focus. He could only wish her well and hope she wasn’t too affected by either his feud or the coming calamity.
On that note, Ren also had high hopes for the sect's elders. Elder Yun had promised that the sect leaders had a plan, and he was sure they would find a way to protect the sect. Even the fortuitous timing of the epiphany on the eve of his journey’s departure had to be a good omen that indicated everything would work itself out!
The closer it got to the date of the departure, the more hectic his days became. Ren had swapped most of his contribution points for spirit stones to power his beast pouch, but he still clenched his teeth and sent a significant portion to his Zhao clan. They had come to depend on his favor, and he couldn’t withdraw his hand without warning or their plans would suffer.
He warned them it might be the last time he could send them anything for a long time. It would have to suffice for them to make alternate arrangements. And now that he had talented cousins, maybe they could take up some of the burden. Yet if Ren was being honest with himself, he didn’t exactly consider it a burden.
Just as his clan benefited, so did he through his cultivation. Even without being able to see them, Ren knew that strong karmic ties with his family were natural and unavoidable. Because they were mortals, and his lifespan was already around 500 years, those ties would inevitably be cut.
As a karmic cultivator, he was even more prone to the impact of such an event. By repaying them tenfold for all they had invested in him, he became the benefactor, and with his greater cultivation, he could eventually sever the connection without repercussions, thus protecting himself.
He conducted his final class and tried to visit Elder Yun again, but for the first time, the desk at the Hall of Scripture was abandoned. That empty desk disturbed Ren more than he could predict. The perverted elder with his books and his tea were a constant and calming presence without which Ren was wracked with doubt. That night before his departure had been a sleepless one despite his exhaustion.
The air near the sect gates was festive and joyous, completely contrasting Ren, who looked like a panda with the enormous dark circles under his eyes. The whole sect had gathered to bid farewell to their heroes and to catch a glance of the artifact the sect would bring out to transport them. Ren even spotted four different stalls of Surprise Dumplings! That young disciple from the tournament days had surely done well for himself if he owned so many stalls now. It was heartening to see.
In the position of honor in front of the crowd, the heroes awaited the appointed hour. Ren and Hua were standing at the front of the disciples as they were among the top 25 contenders. They had already finished saying their farewells to all who had come to see them off. Ren had positioned himself carefully behind Elder Ding while they waited.
The other Elders who would be accompanying them were the captivating array expert, Lady Jiao Yue, and the graceful Lady Vice Sect Leader, whom Ren only knew by title. He had been extremely surprised to see either of them because Elder Yun had hinted that everyone other than Elder Ding on this journey was untrustworthy.
To add fuel to the fire, the Sect Leader himself didn’t show up to send them off. It was yet another sign that dark times were ahead if even the Vice Sect Leader couldn’t be relied on. But those thoughts were buried deep within his mind to avoid leaking even the slightest indication of his concern to the mighty elders.
When the bell rang, the vice sect leader stepped forward and waved her hand. An enormous sword, longer than a pagoda, emerged and hovered over their heads. It had room enough to hold 10 enormous mansions! There were amazed gasps from the crowd as everyone looked on in awe at the extraordinary artifact with its glowing lines and elaborate design. Ren shared a glance with Hua before they both jumped up.
There were loud cheers below them, but the sound was slightly muffled. The vice sect leader addressed them calmly but sternly.
“You may thank your ancestors for your luck that this Leaping Dragon Sword will carry us to our destination instead of the sect’s usual flying ships, which are needed elsewhere. It will carry us to the Golden Light Monastery in a month instead of the 3 it would have taken otherwise, so prepare accordingly.
Now, I ask you to remember that you are proud disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect, and your actions represent us all. Comport yourselves well because with the Heavens as my witness, I shall personally end the lives of any who would bring dishonor upon us!”
With those chilling words, the sword launched itself across the skies so fast everything turned into a blur. Their journey had begun!
A/N: A new arc begins!