A Spirit Transmission Tower Title Douluo—Luo Sheng—looked at his companion in shock: "What? You're saying Lord Huo Yuhao's title is Spirit-Ice? But he's the Fire God! Why would he use the Spirit-Ice Ancestor's title? That's too strange! Is this rumor even reliable?"
"Rumor?"
His companion rolled his eyes. "Do you think my information comes from Zhao Yao? I heard it from Tower Master Qianku—no, I should say Lord Qianku now. How could it be a rumor?"
"So it's true?"
Luo Sheng's expression shifted sharply, his brow furrowing. "I admit that a deity inheriting the Tower Master position is unprecedented. But even if he's a deity, the higher-ups shouldn't let him use that title! Never mind that it doesn't suit him—the title Spirit-Ice itself carries special meaning for our Tower."
"I understand that. But I don't know the specifics,I didn't ask at the time." His companion sighed.
The Spirit-Ice title held the same weight for the Spirit Transmission Tower as the Silver Moon title did for Mingde Hall,perhaps even more.
Back then, when some stubborn fool from Shrek Academy used the "Silver Moon" title, he'd been beaten up by Mingde Hall members who ambushed him.
Of course, since Huo Yuhao was the new Tower Master and a genuine deity, the opposition couldn't be as extreme. But objections clearly existed.
"Unless that Lord achieves feats comparable to or surpassing the Spirit-Ice Ancestor's, I won't acknowledge it." Luo Sheng's tone was firm, tinged with indignation.
Compared to his stubbornness, his companion was much calmer: "The higher-ups' respect for the Spirit-Ice Ancestor is no less than ours, especially the spirit beasts who lived through his era. Since they have no objections, there must be a reason."
Perhaps that Lord had truly achieved feats on par with the Ancestor's. Or perhaps there was something they hadn't considered.
Hearing the implication, Luo Sheng's expression shifted, his attitude gradually softening: "You have a point. We'll understand everything once we see that Lord in person. Speculating here only creates unnecessary worry."
Seeing him calm down, his companion breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
He knew Luo Sheng's personality well—stubborn and rigid. If that mule said something inappropriate at an important occasion, the consequences would be dire.
From their conversation, it was clear that opinions on Huo Yuhao adopting the "Spirit-Ice" title varied widely. Some were confused and indignant, like Luo Sheng. Others thought rationally, like his companion.
And some had already touched upon the truth.
At the Spirit Transmission Tower's Execution Department, Ye Guyi watched with interest as Dark Phoenix Douluo instructed her juniors.
After disciplining Gu Ruiqiu, she'd begun exploring things that interested her while recovering.
The Execution Department's evil martial soul wielders were naturally one of those interests—evil soul masters reforming was unheard of ten thousand years ago.
Dark Phoenix Douluo felt increasingly uncomfortable under that watchful gaze. She paused briefly in her instruction but forced herself to continue.
This was a Tower ancestor—she couldn't exactly ask her to leave.
If she were accused of "disrespecting the ancestor," she'd probably end up back in the Extreme North learning her lesson.
While instructing her juniors, Dark Phoenix Douluo was also amazed that this ancestor had survived to the present.
Living ten thousand years—for soul masters like them, it was nearly inconceivable. Only by becoming a deity could one achieve immortality; that had been the continent's iron law for tens of thousands of years. Yet Ancestor Ye Guyi clearly held no divine seat, yet stood here alive, her aura steady, showing no signs of aging. It was a miracle.
And if Ancestor Ye Guyi was still alive and standing before her, then could the current Spirit-Ice Douluo be—
Dark Phoenix Douluo swallowed, feeling her mind buzz.
When she'd first learned Huo Yuhao was a reincarnated deity, she'd been shocked enough. Now an even more absurd possibility presented itself,she instinctively wanted to deny it. How could he be the Spirit-Ice Ancestor?
But once the thought surfaced, it couldn't be suppressed.
Why had Snow Empress treated him so specially? Why had Qianku Dongfeng willingly stepped down? Why had he chosen "Spirit-Ice" as his title?
All those "irrationalities" that had once puzzled her now made perfect sense under the premise that "he is the Spirit-Ice Ancestor."
"He really must be the Spirit-Ice Ancestor. Thankfully, I never disrespected him." Dark Phoenix Douluo patted her chest, secretly relieved.
And she wasn't the only one who'd deduced Huo Yuhao's identity through clues. Some observed silently, some pondered in thought, sensing the truth. Others chose the most direct route—asking their elders who knew the inside story.
Mingdu, Ji Clan.
Ji Feihong, having returned from out of town in response to the summons, had also heard about Huo Yuhao. He'd intended to ask his father directly. But the moment he stepped through the gate, he sensed something amiss.
The usually lively Ji ancestral home was unusually quiet today. Most clan members stayed indoors, cultivating in their rooms, occasionally emerging for air.
"What's going on?" Ji Feihong grabbed a younger cousin.
The cousin's tone was solemn: "The Sword Fanatic Ancestor has returned!"
"Who?!" Ji Feihong's eyes nearly popped out.
"Ancestor Ji Juechen! The Sword Fanatic Ancestor from ten thousand years ago!" The cousin swallowed. "He's in the back hall. Father's been accompanying him. These past few days, many of us have glimpsed their sword intent exchanges and gained some enlightenment, so we've been in deep cultivation."
"The Sword Fanatic Ancestor?!"
Ji Feihong stood frozen, his mind blank.
Ji Juechen—the portrait that had hung in the ancestral hall for ten thousand years, the first name on the genealogy, the ancestor the Ji clan had venerated for generations. Hadn't he—
No.
The records didn't explicitly state that their ancestor had passed. He'd last traveled to the Extreme North; what happened afterward, his descendants didn't know.
At this thought, Ji Feihong seemed to understand something.
"You go on." He patted his cousin's shoulder and strode toward the back hall.
The back hall door was slightly ajar.
Ji Feihong took a deep breath and pushed it open.
Inside, Ji Xuanqiu stood to one side, maintaining a barrier. Within it sat a middle-aged man—eyes closed, his aura completely restrained, like a sheathed sword.
Ji Juechen.
Ji Feihong's pupils trembled.
Not a portrait, not a legend—a living Ancestor Ji Juechen!
"You're back?" Ji Xuanqiu saw him and waved him over. "Come here. The Ancestor is comprehending the Dao."
Ji Feihong nodded, approaching Ji Xuanqiu, his throat tight, his voice dry: "Father, since the Sword Fanatic Ancestor is here, then that Lord—could he be—"
"Haven't you already figured it out?"
Ji Xuanqiu didn't look at him, his gaze fixed on the seated figure within the barrier, his tone as calm as if stating something ordinary.
Ji Feihong fell silent, his expression dazed.
First deities appeared, and now ancestors from ten thousand years ago were emerging one after another. This world was becoming stranger by the day.
Just as Ji Feihong fell silent, the air within the barrier suddenly stilled.
Ji Juechen's eyes snapped open.
No sword drawn, no spirit power fluctuation, no warning—he merely opened his eyes. But in that instant, Ji Feihong felt a chill at his throat, as if an invisible blade pressed against it.
Not killing intent—sword intent.
Pure, absolute, undeniable sword intent.
Ji Juechen slowly rose. As he straightened, a piercing aura spread from him, penetrating the barrier, the walls, shooting into the sky.
Above the heavens, the essence of the sword unfolded like a tangible presence!
"This is—" Ji Feihong's pupils contracted sharply, his voice trembling, "Sword God!"
Ji Xuanqiu nodded, his tone one of admiration: "The Ancestor is truly a genius of the sword path. In just three days of exchanging insights with me, he has comprehended the current sword path, fully integrating sword intent, sword soul, and Sword God realms, reaching a pinnacle."
As Ji Xuanqiu finished speaking, the figure within the barrier spoke.
"After seeing the path ahead, it's merely building on a foundation." Ji Juechen's voice wasn't loud, but it reached them clearly. "Compared to you, who comprehended the Sword God realm before even becoming a Title Douluo, I can hardly be called a genius."
"You flatter me, Ancestor," Ji Xuanqiu said, bowing his head slightly, his tone modest. "I only had the guidance of predecessors' insights—not entirely my own achievement."
"Guidance from predecessors still requires sufficient aptitude to absorb. Not everyone can touch the Sword God realm. You deserve the praise."
Ji Juechen's tone was firm.
Seeing the Ancestor's insistence, Ji Xuanqiu stopped declining and simply bowed deeply.
Ji Feihong also took the opportunity to step forward, casting an admiring glance at Ji Juechen and bowing: "Junior Ji Feihong greets the Sword Fanatic Ancestor."
The Sword Fanatic Ancestor had also been his idol in his youth.
Ji Juechen glanced at him, nodded slightly, and said no more, closing his eyes again. A faint, rare smile appeared on his usually expressionless face.
Though his body hadn't yet recovered and he hadn't broken through, Ji Juechen understood that his bottleneck had shattered the moment he comprehended the Sword God. Once his body recovered, he could naturally step into Level 98!
How could he not be happy that his long-standing bottleneck had finally broken?
In this era, the Limit level was no longer an unreachable realm for him!
After another moment of contemplation, Ji Juechen slowly opened his eyes. The sharpness in his deep gaze had fully receded, leaving only a clear calm.
Seeing this, Ji Xuanqiu finally dissolved the barrier.
"Ancestor, now that you've comprehended the Sword God, what lies ahead—"
"Sword intent, sword soul, Sword God—the three unified, I understand." Ji Juechen interrupted, his tone flat.
Though sword intent, sword soul, and Sword God were three realms, they complemented each other, like essence, energy, and spirit united. To unleash the brightest sword light, one had to fully integrate and merge them.
And regarding this, though he'd just entered the Sword God realm, Ji Juechen already had some leads.
What he cared about wasn't this, but—
"After that? After comprehending the Sword God and unifying the three, where do we go from there?" Ji Juechen frowned. "After breaking through to the divine level, how do we advance our sword path?"
At this, Ji Xuanqiu hadn't yet spoken, but Ji Feihong was stunned.
His father had never become a deity—how would he know the way forward? Wasn't the Ancestor asking too much?
He opened his mouth, about to say something to smooth things over, when he heard Ji Xuanqiu speak in a low voice: "I don't know if this is correct, but there is no Sword Law in the world. Perhaps our future path is to elevate our swords—to the level of laws!"
The sword is a tool—something forged through human effort. In the natural laws of heaven and earth, there is no Sword Law.
The closest is the Metal Law, but ultimately, it's not the same.
Since they couldn't gain insight and enhancement from the Sword Law of heaven and earth, they would have to forge their own path.
Ji Juechen closed his eyes at this, finally speaking ten words.
"Skill approaches the Dao; sword intent becomes law."
This was the path ahead he had realized from combining his own insights with Ji Xuanqiu's.
But as for how, he wanted to seek verification.
"Skill approaches the Dao; sword intent becomes law?"
At the Spirit Transmission Tower, Huo Yuhao looked at Ji Juechen before him and smiled. "Since you've already realized your path, simply walk it. Not all deities' paths have corresponding heavenly laws—the Asura God, for instance, didn't have a pre-existing Killing Law to comprehend."
He paused, then added, "Seek within yourself, or seek the Dao without—both can break through to the divine level. Don't be constrained by form. The Asura God attained the Dao through killing; you through the sword. The essence is no different."
Extending one's chosen path to a level comparable to laws, and using that as the foundation for breaking through to the divine level and future growth—this was certainly possible.
Even in Soul Land IV, there was a sword martial soul wielder named Ye Moyong who walked this very path, specializing in the sword to the point where his sword intent and sword qi nearly matched laws. He earned the praise: "Not a deity, yet surpassing a deity."
Lan Xuanyu had fought him and lost—though Lan Xuanyu was at six rings, still some distance from breaking through to the divine level at seven rings, while Ye Moyong was only a hair's breadth from the divine level. Still, being able to suppress a cheater like Lan Xuanyu spoke volumes.
"However—"
Huo Yuhao's tone shifted. "There's no external Sword Law in the world. You can temper your sword intent to the point where it initially rivals laws, substituting for the law comprehension and control needed for the divine level to breakthrough. But in doing so, after becoming a deity, you'll have to forge your own path step by step."
How far this path could go—whether it could reach the level of the first Asura God—would depend entirely on himself.
Ji Juechen nodded and asked no more questions.
This was a path he'd realized himself, so he naturally believed in it. But since he'd never become a deity, he wasn't sure if there were hidden pitfalls. Now that Huo Yuhao had clarified the key, the last trace of hesitation in his heart vanished.
He said, "Knowing the path ahead is open is enough."
He paused, looking out the window at the square below.
A number of Title Douluo were already arriving at the Tower.
"The time has come."
Ji Juechen withdrew his gaze. "They're all here."
"Yes." Huo Yuhao rose from his seat with a faint smile. "Want to come watch?"
"No need." Ji Juechen said flatly. "Since I can't participate in this battle, I won't go."
"Then I'll leave the Tower to you."
Huo Yuhao didn't insist, stepping toward the door.