I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times-Chapter 350Book 2: : Dao Fruit Treasure, Trapping Immortal Sword Spirit
Vol 2 Chapter 350: Dao Fruit Treasure, Trapping Immortal Sword Spirit
Shi Nandang's blatant favoritism made everyone on the mountaintop look at Zheng Fa with envy.
Yet no one found it inappropriate.
Zheng Fa had plundered the most spiritual materials from the Hundred Immortals Alliance, likely making him the only highlight Shi Nandang could report to the sect.
Now he was also a disciple under the Sacred Ancestor, practicing the orthodox Vermilion Heaven Jade Manual—so orthodox it couldn't be more so.
In Zheng Fa's understanding, this was equivalent to having your company's top salesperson be your brother-in-law—promoting him would be "not avoiding nepotism when recommending the worthy."
Seeing everyone silent, Shi Nandang turned to Zheng Fa and instructed: "My only expectation for Zhongxuan Sect is this: do your best to hinder the Hundred Immortals Alliance's development. While obstructing Zheng Fa, ensure Zhongxuan disciples become familiar with our sect's true methods to enhance their cultivation."
"Also, since you'll be managing the grand formation, you'll likely be overwhelmed. Li Hao, select a group of disciples and teach them part of the formation methods, have them engrave spirit stones."
The mountaintop group fell even more silent.
The Zhongxuan Sect Master lowered his head without speaking.
The Ninth Elder had once told Zheng Fa that Haori Mountain's generosity in bestowing pills and techniques was actually for the Heaven and Earth Divine Fiend Array—the day the formation was fully completed would be when these Zhongxuan Sect disciples perished.
Come to think of it, Zheng Fa found this method quite familiar: the Great Freedom Demon Ancestor had done something similar back then.
Shi Nandang glanced around at everyone, noticing the reluctant Zhongxuan Sect Master: "You have objections?"
"Not at all!" the Zhongxuan Sect Master hastily replied. "It's just... this is our ancestral legacy, and this humble one finds it hard to bear."
Shi Nandang nodded slightly, his tone still mild: "That's only human nature. The Sacred Ancestor isn't unreasonable—didn't he permit you to send a group of disciples back to the mountain the other day?"
"This humble one is eternally grateful for the Sacred Ancestor's mercy!"
The Zhongxuan Sect Master quickly expressed his loyalty.
"I don't need your eternal gratitude—just do your utmost when refining the Trapping Immortal Sword," Shi Nandang said impassively. "Truth be told, if the Trapping Immortal Sword weren't so difficult to refine, the Sacred Ancestor wouldn't resort to such methods."
Noticing Zheng Fa and the other three glancing toward the volcano crater, as if curious, Shi Nandang added:
"You'll all need to assist in refining the Trapping Immortal Sword eventually. So do you know what powers this sword possesses to warrant such effort and resources?" ᚱΑ𐌽ỐВĘŜ
Everyone shook their heads.
Even Zheng Fa was full of anticipation—he only knew the sword's origins, not its capabilities.
"This Trapping Immortal Sword originates from the Tianhe Venerable."
"The Tianhe Venerable?"
The Zhongxuan Sect Master exclaimed, clearly puzzled why Tianhe Venerable's treasure would be in Haori Mountain's possession.
"Indeed, the Tianhe Venerable," Shi Nandang continued, seemingly unwilling to explain that point. "After achieving enlightenment, the Tianhe Venerable gathered all the world's techniques and materials to forge this supreme treasure."
"In terms of power alone, this sword ranks among the strongest immortal swords in the Xuanyi Realm."
"Throughout history, few weapons of slaughter could rival it."
The three from Zhongxuan Sect exchanged glances. Though Shi Nandang described it simply, the Trapping Immortal Sword's origins were astonishing.
These few words of appraisal carried immense weight.
"The sword has been in our Sacred Ancestors' possession for hundreds of thousands of years, but its unruly nature made it impossible to tame. After exhausting all methods, we created the Heaven and Earth Divine Fiend Array, hoping to refine it by leveraging timing, geography, and human effort."
Zheng Fa couldn't help but ask: "So that's why we need to destroy all of the Hundred Immortals Alliance's spiritual veins?"
Shi Nandang glanced at him and smiled: "Seems you understand—our sect's primary goal is refining this Trapping Immortal Sword."
Zheng Fa now understood—
According to Shi Nandang, the Heaven and Earth Divine Fiend Array was designed specifically to refine the Trapping Immortal Sword. As for cutting off the Hundred Immortals Alliance's spiritual veins, that was just killing two birds with one stone.
This showed they valued the Trapping Immortal Sword more than him or the Hundred Immortals Alliance.
He felt somewhat puzzled:
What was Haori Mountain thinking?
Looking down on his Fusang Wood?
"Esteemed One, what exactly are the Trapping Immortal Sword's powers?"
The Zhongxuan Sect Master, also catching on, asked curiously.
"Our Haori Mountain excels at artifact refinement. Do you know how treasures are classified in the Xuanyi Realm?"
"Artifacts, treasures, spirit tools, and spirit treasures," the Zhongxuan Sect Master replied fluently, as his sect also specialized in refinement. "They roughly correspond to cultivators—artifacts have Foundation Establishment-level power, treasures match Golden Core."
"As for spirit tools and spirit treasures, only Nascent Soul cultivators possess them—this humble one knows little beyond that."
Shi Nandang nodded slightly: "You're mostly correct. Actually, this classification originated from the Tianhe Venerable."
"Originally, only Nascent Soul cultivators could refine treasures, but the Tianhe Venerable..." Here, Shi Nandang sighed. "With his unparalleled talent, created the method of Lifebound Treasures."
"This allowed cultivators at the Golden Core stage to begin refining their own treasures, which would fully form at the Nascent Soul stage."
"More importantly, spirit tools and spirit treasures correspond to Yang Spirit and Corpse Liberation stages respectively."
"Having treasures grow alongside cultivators—the Tianhe Venerable's Lifebound Treasure method is truly a monumental contribution."
As he spoke, Shi Nandang couldn't hide his admiration.
From his knowledge of the Trapping Immortal Sword, Zheng Fa guessed he knew something of Tianhe's history and that Haori Mountain and Tianhe Venerable were enemies.
Yet even now, he spoke with genuine reverence.
This showed how greatly the Lifebound Treasure method had benefited Xuanyi Realm cultivators.
"Then... what rank is the Trapping Immortal Sword?"
"Far above spirit treasures." Shi Nandang gazed at the volcano crater, his voice carrying a craftsman's fervor. "You've heard of Dao Fruits, yes?"
They all nodded—after the Six Sects Alliance meeting, everyone understood the terror of Dao Fruit cultivators.
"The Trapping Immortal Sword corresponds to Dao Fruit."
Zheng Fa remained unfazed—every major faction had a few Dao Fruit treasures.
"And not just any Dao Fruit."
Just any Dao Fruit?
Zheng Fa frowned at Shi Nandang, now paying serious attention.
Did this mean Dao Fruits had varying strengths?
The others also realized this, looking at Shi Nandang with curiosity.
"I'm not entirely clear on this matter either." Shi Nandang glanced at Zheng Fa, as if explaining specifically to him.
"But the Sacred Ancestor once said: 'Dao Fruit' is just a general term. Those newly entering the Dao Fruit realm are called Loose Immortal Dao Fruits—they have no lifespan concerns but face Loose Immortal Tribulations."
"After overcoming the tribulation, one becomes a True Immortal Dao Fruit. At this stage, true immortality is achieved—beyond the Five Elements."
"As for what lies beyond, that's unknown to me."
Zheng Fa was inwardly shocked. Only now did he understand Dao Fruit's true meaning:
From this Dao Fruit cultivator's words, Dao Fruit meant immortality!
Not just him—even the six Nascent Souls beside him were breathing rapidly, eyes filled with longing—like travelers in a desert finally glimpsing a snow-capped mountain in the distance.
"As for Dao Fruit treasures, they correspond to different Dao Fruit stages."
"And the Trapping Immortal Sword is a True Immortal-stage Dao Fruit treasure."
Zheng Fa had a thought and asked: "Might I ask what stage the Sacred Ancestors have reached?"
"Immortal Yang is the youngest, still at the Loose Immortal stage. The other two Sacred Ancestors are True Immortals."
Zheng Fa felt a toothache.
Now he understood Tianhe Venerable's dominance—the Four Slaying Immortal Swords were equivalent to four True Immortals.
Tiny Haori Mountain was no match for him.
How did they lose then?
No wonder Haori Mountain valued the Trapping Immortal Sword so much—refining it would mean gaining another True Immortal ancestor.
Truth be told, while his Fusang Wood was powerful, it struggled against even Immortal Yang (a Loose Immortal) and couldn't compare to the Trapping Immortal Sword.
"Can... can we really refine the Trapping Immortal Sword?"
The gaunt elder among the six Nascent Souls looked doubtful.
Seven Nascent Souls might seem like a lot, but they were a whole generation below Dao Fruit—the sword could probably kill them all with one strike.
"The sword has been suppressed by our sect for hundreds of thousands of years and isn't complete anymore—it's lost some of its spirituality. More importantly, the Heaven and Earth Divine Fiend Array was built specifically for it. No matter how strong the sword is, it can't resist this formation."
"We only need to operate the formation."
Zheng Fa also understood—they were just operators;the real power lay with the formation.
"I'm telling you this so you understand: no matter how many Nascent Souls the Hundred Immortals Alliance gains, as long as we have the Trapping Immortal Sword, it's irrelevant."
"Successfully refining it would make us monumental contributors to the sect."
"I'll benefit, and so will all of you."
The Ninth Elder was taken aback by Shi Nandang's words.
So you're worried about morale and using the Trapping Immortal Sword to motivate us?
She sneakily glanced at Zheng Fa, who was staring intently at the volcano crater, looking highly interested:
...Seems Alliance Leader Zheng is very motivated, full of fighting spirit.
...
The motivated Zheng Fa immediately began shift work:
Haori Mountain provided numerous spirit pills and medicines to replenish the spiritual power and souls of Shi Nandang's group and Zheng Fa's team.
Operating the Heaven and Earth Divine Fiend Array mainly fell to Shi Nandang's seven.
Zheng Fa's group only stepped in when one of the seven Nascent Souls exhausted their power—keeping the formation running nonstop with barely any breaks.
Understanding this, Zheng Fa looked at Shi Nandang with sympathy:
Working an assembly line for twenty years straight—no eating, no sleeping, only relying on pills to stay alert.
Who wouldn't shed tears hearing that?
Recalling they'd originally planned to do this for forty years, Zheng Fa felt his idea of stealing the Trapping Immortal Sword was practically humanitarian.
Because they needed to operate the formation, Zheng Fa finally saw its full layout:
What Shi Nandang's group would do over twenty years was just preliminary work—
Using celestial star power to suppress the Trapping Immortal Sword, painstakingly linking it to the formation.
This simple task required seven Nascent Souls and four Golden Cores working nonstop for twenty years...
This showed how troublesome the sword was.
The real refinement would come at the final step:
Combining celestial star power with drained spiritual veins from the Hundred Immortals Alliance and the lives of Zhongxuan Sect disciples to reshape the treasure.
"How's your progress?"
"This humble one has mostly memorized it."
The Zhongxuan Sect Master said respectfully.
Zheng Fa also nodded.
"Show me."
Zheng Fa and the three Zhongxuan Sect Golden Cores began forming hand seals.
Shi Nandang scanned the four, finally focusing on Zheng Fa, eyes brightening.
Thanks to modern research, Zheng Fa understood the Heaven and Earth Divine Fiend Array far better than Shi Nandang realized.
Some of its nodes were even under his control.
Thus he learned exceptionally quickly.
Among the four, he immediately stood out.
The Zhongxuan Sect Master and the other two initially demonstrated their techniques together, but soon stopped, staring at Zheng Fa in astonishment.
We learned together—how are you so skilled already?
Have you no respect for teachers?
Shi Nandang, however, was delighted: "I always knew you were talented, Li Hao! If you weren't only at Golden Core, we wouldn't need twenty years!"
"Come, give it a try!"
With that, he stepped aside from his position.
Zheng Fa entered the formation, watching the smiling Shi Nandang below and suspecting his joy came from finally getting to slack off.
He nodded to the other six Nascent Souls, formed hand seals, and connected his energy with theirs. Suddenly, a star in the sky brightened, streaming an unusual power that enveloped him.
As he continued forming seals, this stellar energy poured endlessly into the volcano crater, cleansing the Trapping Immortal Sword within.
For the first few days, Shi Nandang watched Zheng Fa closely, uneasy.
Seeing Zheng Fa perform flawlessly for days, he finally relaxed, sitting down to swallow a spirit pill and meditate.
Noticing this, Zheng Fa stirred, linking his divine sense to the formation.
Mist swirled atop the mountain, masking his aura.
He altered his technique internally, circulating energy according to the Trapping Immortal Sword Canon, eagerly watching the sword.
He wasn't reckless enough to steal it now—just testing whether the canon affected it.
To his confusion, the sword showed no reaction...
Had Sect Master Yan given him a counterfeit?
Just as he wondered, his forehead suddenly cooled—an uninvited guest appeared in his mind:
A black-robed figure, slender with a youthful face, large eyes, and two small hair buns.
Her face and size suggested a girl around four years old.
Blinking sleepily, she gazed up at Zheng Fa with familiarity.
"Your technique feels so familiar..."
"Who are you?"
A guess suddenly struck Zheng Fa.
The girl pointed downward: "I'm that."
So it was the Trapping Immortal Sword—no, the sword's spirit.
Zheng Fa grew even more surprised.
Apart from the Jiushan Ancestor, he'd never seen a true artifact spirit—Xie Qingxue probably didn't count.
But if there really was a Trapping Immortal Sword spirit, shouldn't it be one of the Tianhe Sect's four lineage ancestors?
Had his and Senior Sister Zhang's deductions from the Trapping Immortal Sword Canon been wrong?
"Are you here to save me?"
"Save you?"
"It hurts."
The sword spirit clutched her head, swaying as if in pain.
Seeing her furrowed brows and pained expression, Zheng Fa believed her.
The Heaven and Earth Divine Fiend Array was essentially a refinement method—from its contents, similar to what Zheng Fa had done to the Jiushan Ancestor:
Erasing parts of the sword's engravings, then reshaping it with Haori Mountain techniques.
But Zheng Fa had only removed parts foreign to the ancestor, which helped rather than harmed.
Haori Mountain, however, seemed intent on erasing the sword spirit's consciousness to control it.
"Are you here to save me?"
Before Zheng Fa could answer, she repeated: "Save me, and I'll kill for you."
"..."
That didn't sound right.
"Save me."
"How?"
"Break this formation, and I'll be free."
The girl pointed skyward.
Zheng Fa pondered.
Personally, he leaned toward helping her.
Whether out of respect for Tianhe Venerable or his own safety, he couldn't let Haori Mountain refine this legacy.
Moreover, the formation sought complete control—likely diminishing the sword's power.
Even if they didn't intend to, Tianhe Venerable could craft four True Immortal treasures, while Haori Mountain's strongest were only True Immortals...
Such modifications usually weakened treasures.
His hesitation stemmed from not knowing the spirit's relationship to Tianhe's four ancestors.
Freeing a Tianhe ancestor would be disastrous.
He also worried about Haori Mountain's reaction if he disrupted their plans.
"Save me!"
"Save me!"
"Save me!"
After just moments of thought, desperate shrieks echoed in his mind.
Looking down, he saw the girl's face contorted—eyes bulging larger than her fists, gaze piercing his soul.
"Save me!"
His spirit felt stabbing pain.
"Free me!"
"I'll kill you!"
"Kill you!"
"Haori Mountain must die."
"Tianhe Sect must die!"
"All mortals must die!"
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
"Slaughter all life to prove my Dao!"
Within moments, her voice lost all childishness, shifting between tones—
An old man's wail.
A woman's lament.
Finally, four or five voices shrieked in unison, each horrifying.
As they screamed, the Trapping Immortal Sword in the crater jerked violently, lunging at Zheng Fa like madness.
Startled, Zheng Fa shifted his energy from the Trapping Immortal Sword Canon to the Vermilion Heaven Jade Manual.
As his technique changed, the girl vanished from his mind.
Still uneasy, he unleashed stellar energy through hand seals, forcefully suppressing the sword.
Everyone noticed something amiss but didn't understand.
Shi Nandang also awoke from meditation, studying the sword before shrugging: "Its temperament is unpredictable—it often acts up. As long as the formation holds, it's fine."
He smiled at Zheng Fa:
"Scared? Want someone else to take over?"
Zheng Fa shook his head: "This disciple still has energy!"
He poured power into the formation, appearing highly motivated.
This thing's insane!
First a crossdresser, now a schizophrenic—no wonder Haori Mountain wanted to refine it.
Just another mental case—and he had surgical experience!
