No matter how good a weapon is, once it loses human care, it will lose its spirituality and everything it once had.
And a broken sword, with all the formations contained within it completely shattered, naturally becomes useless.
Ji Hao frowned, "Burial object?"
Zhou You nodded, "I guess so."
Ji Hao scoffed, "But what value could that have?"
Zhou You grasped the hilt, picked it up, and said, "If there’s a cultivation method, then it naturally has value."
Clearly, there was nothing in the wooden box except for the broken sword.
And all that remained was a faint wisp of sword intent.
Zhou You gripped the broken sword, closed his eyes, and began to carefully sense it.
The so-called ‘intent’ is a kind of ‘feeling’.
This kind of thing is inherently ethereal; even if someone explains knowledge in this area to you, you won't understand it.
Simply because your heart lacks that ‘feeling’.
People often say, 'enlightenment' or 'sudden realization,' which is actually when that instantaneous ‘feeling’ arrives.
When the feeling comes, it’s unstoppable.
After a moment, Zhou You murmured, "Good stuff."
Ji Hao’s eyes showed disdain; it was just a broken thing.
What's so good about it?
Truly a Za Yu who hasn't seen the world.
In an instant, Zhou You’s body trembled, and a ray of light surged from the sword hilt into his body.
At that moment, a vast sword intent spread out with Zhou You as its center.
Ji Hao was startled; he had already felt Zhou You’s sword intent several times.
But this time, it was three to five times stronger than every previous time!
Even standing in front of him and looking at him, he just felt like he was looking at a sword, a sword about to be unsheathed.
"So that's how it is."
Zhou You opened his eyes, and the broken sword in his hand had turned into dust, scattering in the wooden box.
As the sword intent receded like a tide, Ji Hao asked, puzzled, "What did you discover?"
"Sword Dao."
Zhou You answered truthfully.
"Sword Dao?"
Ji Hao raised an eyebrow, his eyes wide with shock.
"Yes."
Zhou You nodded, "Stepping into the realm of ‘Dao’ is when a technique truly reaches its pinnacle. And Dao is infinitely variable, moving with one's will. Therefore, everyone has a different understanding of ‘Dao’, and it is because of this difference that even if different people comprehend the same thing, the final result is different. This person once stepped into Sword Dao, and his Sword Dao was ‘virtue carries all things’."
Ji Hao suddenly understood, "It actually contains such things. So, does that mean you've stepped into Sword Dao?"
"Not yet."
Zhou You shook his head, "Above sword intent is Sword Dao. Although I have condensed a sword heart, my heart is empty. If my heart is empty, my Dao is empty."
He was very clear about his own state.
Or rather, this was the Old Man’s evaluation of him.
The Old Man’s lectures to him were always unsparing, completely unafraid of hurting Zhou You’s fragile self-esteem.
Ji Hao frowned, "Didn't you obtain his Sword Dao? Couldn't you just follow his?"
"His is his, mine is mine."
Zhou You closed the wooden box, "I can only say that his Sword Dao pointed me to the path, but how to walk it, how to do it, that's another matter. After all, my strength is too weak."
As he spoke, he picked up the wooden box and placed it under the tree, sincerely saying, "Thank you."
Ji Hao scoffed, "Why are you talking nonsense to a broken tree?"
Zhou You murmured, "One must be polite."
Ji Hao sneered.
Zhou You pointed at the big tree, "Say thank you."
Ji Hao bared his teeth.
Zhou You looked at him, unafraid.
Ji Hao took a deep breath, "Thank you."
"Mm, good boy."
Zhou You nodded in praise.
Ji Hao clenched his fist, "Do you believe I’ll beat you to death?"
Zhou You walked towards the pond, "How long do you need to recover? I'm really hungry."
Plop!
Ji Hao jumped into the pond and began to dive deep.
Zhou You sat down cross-legged.
After a while, Ji Hao held two Ju Ling Fish in his hands, "There are very small crevices down there; I couldn't find any more."
He activated his hands, then threw one to Zhou You.
Zhou You slowly began to eat; the cooking method wasn't important, primarily because the ingredients were good.
Ji Hao ate for a while, "Don't you find it troublesome carrying so many burdens around with you?"
"Troublesome?"
Zhou You shook his head, "Not troublesome. I'm an elder, so it's my duty to look after the younger generation."
Ji Hao said coldly, "Who stipulated that elders must look after the younger generation?"
Zhou You chuckled, "I do it because I want to. If one day I don't want to, then I naturally won't."
Ji Hao shook his head, "I don't understand."
Zhou You chuckled, "They are the blood descendants of my Big Brother, so I will naturally look after them. Besides, I still expect them to protect me in the future."
"Cough, cough, cough."
Ji Hao choked, "You expect them to protect you? I'd believe it if you said you expect them to visit your grave."
Zhou You finished his last bite, and after a while, said, "Perhaps, it's a debt."
Ji Hao didn't respond.
Zhou You quietly looked ahead; it was indeed more of a debt.
He was merely repaying his Big Brother in this way, repaying him for always looking after their parents while he was away.
On the mountain, he didn't need to think.
After descending the mountain, he had too many things to think about.
Zhou You smiled at Ji Hao, "Let's not talk about me. Are you happy in the Evil Forces?"
"Happy?"
Ji Hao froze, then after a moment, shook his head, "I don't know."
Zhou You chuckled, "How could you not know? If a person is happy, they will smile from the bottom of their heart."
Ji Hao hesitated, "Actually… I've never met my master. I was taught by Third Brother. Most of the time, Third Brother's words are very brief. If I did well, it was just a 'good' word. If I did poorly, it was just a look. Except when discussing matters, he hardly ever said an extra word to me."
Zhou You was surprised, "You haven't met your master?"
Ji Hao nodded, "Yes, I only heard his voice when I first bowed to him, the Old Man."
He suddenly seemed a little constrained and uneasy again.
Zhou You lightly rubbed his chin, "This strange way of interacting, it's the first time I've heard of it."
Compared to Ji Hao, he himself stayed with his master every day, and they even often slept together when he was little.
Ji Hao lowered his head, "Master is very busy, so it's understandable, right?"
Zhou You hummed, "Yes, everyone has their own difficulties, I suppose."
Ji Hao seemed to let out a sigh of relief, "You don't seem to dislike us, the people of the Evil Forces, very much?"
Zhou You looked at Ji Hao amusedly, "Besides you, I don't know anyone else, so what is there to dislike? At most, if we meet and don't get along, I'll just kill them. Where do all these inner dramas come from?"
Ji Hao looked at Zhou You, "You are a very strange person."
Zhou You laughed heartily, "Everyone is strange, just like everyone has hair."
He stood up again, "Let's go, time to head back."
Having rested, there was nothing left to stay for in this place.
Ji Hao honestly hummed, "I'll take you up."
Zhou You transformed into an Earth Dog, and Ji Hao, holding him by the scruff of his neck, rushed upwards with all his might.