Chapter 16: The Upper Clearness Breaks Through the Clouds

  Yao Guang didn't suddenly want to cast a sword out of thin air, but had been planning this for a long time.

  Since the Yu Qing sword broke and she didn't die but instead mysteriously arrived in this world, Yao Guang has been intentionally casting a sword. Her dilemma is only whether to re-cast the Yu Qing or re-cast a completely different sword.

  For ordinary warriors and swordsmen, a sword is just a weapon, as long as it's handy and sharp, what kind of sword it is doesn't matter. However, for those who cultivate the way of the sword with a strong sense of purpose, the meaning of the sword is entirely different. What they hold and cultivate is not just a weapon, but an embodiment of their ideology, creed, appeal, and all sorts of complex things that can be summed up in one word - Tao.

  Sharpening the sword is sharpening the way.

  The sword in the hand of a swordsman is not only an instrument for correcting and eliminating evil, but also an externalization of his Tao. That's why there is a saying that "one swordsmanship lasts a lifetime, one lifetime masters one sword".

  Alone with his sword, who needs to spend a lifetime on it? It's just that the sword he has cultivated is the Tao he has cultivated. As long as his mind doesn't change, the sword he cultivates won't change either. As long as his mind isn't destroyed, the sword he cultivates won't be damaged either. Even if the sword is damaged in form, as long as a thought remains, the sword's spirit won't disperse. Recasting its physical body to rely on it, the cast sword will still be that previous one.

  Yao Guang is now facing a problem like "sword-shaped damage".

  Jade Light had been a disciple of Pure Yang under the gate of Wisdom, worshiping the Three Pures and cultivating the most orthodox Jade Clear Taoist methods. Her ultimate pursuit was "Tao Fa Ziran, Tian Ren He Yi" (The Tao is natural, heaven and man are one), and her creed was "Qing Jing Wu Wei, Ji Shi Jiu Ren" (Clear and calm, non-action, saving the world and rescuing people). Every day, she only regretted that she couldn't achieve the state of "Bei He Huan Yu" (Wearing a coarse garment but having jade in one's bosom), otherwise, her cultivation had never been lazy for a single day. The sword Jade Light held was called "Yu Qing Xuan Ming" (Jade Clear Mystery and Brightness). Originally, it belonged to the founder of the sect, Lü Chunyang, but later it was given to Li Wangsheng, and then Wisdom gave it to her after Jade Light asked Li Wangsheng for this sword. From that day on, Jade Light knew what her master Wisdom expected from her. She didn't need to cultivate her own Taoist heart to nurture the sword, she only needed to comprehend the heavenly Taoist intention in the sword and use it to temper her own heart, which was a hundred times easier than others. If she were lazy, how could she have the face to return to her master's gate? Therefore, Jade Light didn't dare to put down the sword for a moment, cultivating diligently without stopping. In five years, her sword path had been accomplished, and her Taoist heart had also been accomplished. The Taoist method she cultivated was from the sword, so how important the Jade Clear Sword was to her is self-evident.

  The battle of Ye Cheng, Yao Guang self-cut long sword, the mind also has some disturbance, until the reversal of life and death, the change of the world, Yao Guang's heart that little disturbance becomes more apparent.

  Following Heaven and moving forward, being calm and taking no action, is naturally without error. However, if one only cultivates a clear and empty self-protection, although it can preserve one's own body, what benefit will it bring to the world?

  The Way of Heaven reduces what is excessive and adds to what is insufficient. The way of man is not so, for it reduces the insufficient to offer to those who have too much.

  Who can have excess to serve the world? Only those who follow the Tao.

  There is surplus when one serves Heaven and the world.

  The world has gentle breezes and fine rains that nourish things without a sound, but also thunderclaps that shake the heavens.

  In times of peace and prosperity, nourish life with gentle warmth; in times of turmoil and chaos, cut them off with thunderbolts!

  Jade Light's heart was already wavering, and she became even more hesitant about whether to re-cast the Jade Clear. In the midst of the battle in the Mechanism City, under the impact of the remaining sword intent of Yuan Hong, she suddenly felt a kind of inexplicable connection with Yuan Hong, as if they had an affinity that couldn't be explained. According to Taoist principles, it was "this object and I have fate". Jade Light had once ridiculed this phrase for being too mysterious, but when she herself truly encountered it, she understood the kind of heart-moving, thought-provoking sensation it was. Therefore, she made up her mind to ask Gai Nuo for a sword, and fortunately, Gai Nuo was generous and gave her one. It wasn't until they were in the Xianyang Palace that Jade Light was moved by the sword intent within the Tianwen Sword, and finally made up her mind with determination.

  She wants to cast a sword, not recast Yu Qing.

  The mind has moved and cannot be restored. Recasting the Jade Clearness is also in vain. It's better to infuse this moment's mind into the sword, truly casting a sword that belongs to "Jade Light".

  Yao Guang opened the furnace and cast a sword, and it took half a month just for one piece.

  The fiery furnace almost turned the night into a warm red color, and the clear sound of iron hammering on the sword blank echoed throughout Xianyang Palace, day and night without interruption.

  What kind of place is Xianyang Palace?

  The palace where the emperor resides.

  If it were someone else, carrying a weapon in the Xianyang Palace would likely result in being accused of being an assassin and taken away on the spot. Being able to carry a sword in front of the Emperor is already a great honor, let alone dancing with swords or even forging swords in the Xianyang Palace.

  Yao Guang spoke of casting a sword that day, Ying Zheng gladly agreed and was even extremely delighted to invite the best craftsmen in Xianyang City to assist on the spot. He personally led Yao Guang to the sword furnace and proudly said that since the establishment of the palace, he had prepared a place for Mr. to cast swords, with all kinds of materials available under heaven, all at Mr.'s disposal.

  This is an honor that can never be repeated, this is the unique honor given by "Qin Shi Huang Ying Zheng" to "Mr. Yao Guang".

  Because in the past "Yaoguang" had no desires, therefore Qin Shi Huang was even more eager to grant his wishes, if not, he could not be at peace.

  Looking around the world, what other place can be compared to Xianyang Palace in terms of its grandeur and majesty?

  As a result, Yao Guang, who was still recovering from his serious injury, was able to safely cast swords in the Xianyang Palace without worrying about being disturbed, with everything he needed within reach. He was therefore able to devote all of his energy to casting swords.

  All materials needed for casting the sword have been prepared.

  The broken Yuqing sword was used as the base, and the Hengyu Hong was melted into it. After repeated forging and tempering, the two were combined to form a sword blank, which was then hammered and refined hundreds of times to recreate the shape of the sword.

  Every moment of scorching fire, the refined and purified is the Dao heart of jade light; all kinds of hesitation and confusion are burned out one by one. Every strike of the great hammer, the tempered and refined is also the Dao heart of jade light, repeatedly hammered and repeatedly questioned, from vague to clear, from wavering to firm.

  Transform the mind into the external, gather the energy of heaven and earth to form a sword shape. The swords she forged were not decided by her, but the will of the sword had already been formed, the heart of the sword had already been born, and heaven and earth only lent her hand to give birth to the sword.

  Yao Guang's entire being was focused on the sword, and she hadn't even noticed that she had been growing thinner by the day, her already slender body almost skeletal after half a month, as if she had poured all her life force into the sword. If not for the warmth of the furnace, there wouldn't have been any color left in her face, which was gaunt and pale, except for those bright eyes that seemed to dare people to stare at them, as if a sharp sword intent was about to shoot out from within. However, after another three days passed, her eyes lost their previous sharpness, instead becoming warm and gentle, like they were veiled in a layer of mist.

  At first, several craftsmen were still watching the furnace fire on the side. Later, the furnace fire was burning more and more fiercely, and as long as fuel was added, there was no need to worry. The few people then shifted their attention to the sword casting of Yao Guang, eagerly seeking knowledge and staring at every move she made.

  To them, every move the girl made beside the anvil was extremely simple, without any embellishment, just lifting and falling, yet the trajectory of the large hammer in the air inexplicably made it impossible to look away, as if there was something hidden behind those simple movements, as if there was a deeper meaning that needed to be revealed from these countless simple hammer strikes.

  The rhythmic sound of the hammer striking metal was so regular that it was almost like music, and after listening for a short while, even one's heartbeat couldn't help but follow the beat.

  Bang, bang, bang.

  Day after day, people almost developed a kind of illusion: was this heartbeat sound theirs or transmitted from the sword?

  They watched as the sword took shape in Yao Guang's hands, looking more and more like a sword. As that sharp edge gradually emerged, they heard the heartbeat sound more clearly.

  This is...

  The birth of a sword.

  On the night of the full moon, Yao Guang stared at the long sword in his hand, and a sharp light flashed in his eyes. Without hesitation, his right hand fell down with the final blow.

  The sword is complete.

  Sword born.

  Whenever sacred weapons and fine instruments are born, heaven and earth respond, and strange phenomena appear.

  The night sky on this full moon night was originally clear and cloudless, but at this moment it had unusually gathered thunderclouds in a short period of time.

  The bright moonlight was blocked by the thunderclouds, and the nine states of the land were suddenly plunged into a starless and moonless darkness. Just in the next instant, a bolt of lightning cut through the night sky, almost illuminating the entire landscape. The rumbling thunder followed suit.

  This omen caused countless people to wake up in the middle of the night, and all those who were slightly familiar with the principles of divination began to make calculations.

  The result of calculation may not come out so quickly, but there is one thing that many people can see.

  That unusual and astonishing flash of lightning was heading straight for Xianyang Palace.

  Yao Guang threw down his iron hammer and raised his long sword, charging towards the lightning bolt without hesitation.

  In an instant, Yao Guang was enveloped by a burst of lightning.

  Dazzling white light engulfed everything.

  It was just a momentary thing.

  To anyone else, it was just a fleeting moment, but for Yao Guang, it wasn't.

  In that instant, countless scenes flashed before her eyes.

  Joyful, sorrowful, gorgeous, pale...

  The short fourteen years of her life, the lands she had traveled, the snow-capped Mount Hua, the turbulent half-wall of the Tang Dynasty, even the Xianyang Palace where she stayed for less than a month...

  Various scenes flashed by like a revolving lantern.

  Jade Light seemed to have seen Master Rui's figure.

  Yu Rui stood in front of the Pure Yang Palace, gazing at her from a distance, his eyes seeming to hold disappointment and yet another deeper meaning. After a moment, Yu Rui turned around to face the statue of his master Lü Chunyang, not looking at Yao Guang again.

  Yao Guang rushed over anxiously, but no matter how hard she ran, she couldn't get any closer, and instead got farther and farther away from Rui. She was so anxious that she shouted loudly "Master, wait for me!!", but the person in front didn't even hesitate, walking forward without looking back, and the Chunyang Palace followed suit, advancing forward until everything disappeared into a thick white mist, leaving only Yao Guang standing alone amidst the snowy landscape.

  Why?

  How can Master Shifu not wait for himself?

  Yao Guang found the answer without needing to think when she asked herself like this.

  Because she abandoned the Jade Clear Sword bestowed by her master.

  Because she abandoned... The oath she had sworn in front of her master's ancestors.

  She was unwilling to continue walking along the broad road laid down by her master.

  Yao Guang hesitated for a moment, but the next instant she forcibly wiped away that hint of guilt, reluctance and sorrow, and re-firmed her determination.

  Is there a shortcut to spiritual practice?

  The Yu Qing sword refers to the Tao cultivated by Shi Zu Chun Yang Zi, not the Tao of Yao Guang. Even if she follows in his footsteps, she may not necessarily be able to continue on that path.

  The mind is already made up, even if there are a thousand difficulties and dangers, hundreds of thousands of calamities, what's the harm?

  I will make one effort and cut it down, to open up the way to Heaven!

  The lightning flashed and disappeared, revealing the girl in blue and white Taoist robes in the center. Her long sword was full of light and contained a powerful aura, its energy stretching out in all directions, as if it were a natural part of the heavens.

  On the back of the sword, a sword mark suddenly appeared for some reason.

  Memorial to the Emperor

  Upper clarity breaks through the clouds.

  The way of the mind is already formed, the spirit of the sword is already born, heaven senses its intention, and therefore gives it a name. This is called the naturally formed sword.

  This chapter is Chapter 16 Upper Clearness Breaks Clouds. If you think this chapter is not bad, please don't forget to recommend it to your friends on QQ group and Weibo!