Chapter 374: Sharpening the Sword on the Eve of Battle (Part 1)
If one were to regard the Wisdom Sword as a problem, that problem had too many initial conditions, too many parameters, too much information. Even confirming them was extremely difficult, let alone calculating the final result.
Chen Changsheng was certain he could not complete such a deduction, at least not in the heat of intense combat. He even began to doubt whether anyone could complete such calculations. However, Su Li had already proven in that morning's battle that at least he could do it. Su Li was certainly no ordinary man, but the fact that he could do it proved that this task was achievable.
The nocturnal lake and distant mountains lay before him. He quickly shook off his feelings of discouragement and fear of difficulty, thinking to himself: the positions of the Yashra Step were so numerous, yet he could recite them backward and forward and even use them. Even if he lacked the talent for calculation and insight into people's hearts, perhaps he could still achieve his goal through this brute-force method. If there was no time for calculations during battle, then he would do countless practice problems in advance, until this calculation became instinct. That might actually save some time.
But how could he do countless practice problems in advance? If he returned to the capital, it might be possible. But now, where could he find so many Star Condensation experts to fight? And even if he couldn't solve that problem, wouldn't he just be killed by his opponent?
He noticed countless points of light in the nocturnal lake before him—reflections of stars. He looked up at the night sky, seeing countless stars on the black canvas, silently watching him.
"Human beings (the Divine race) are the most complex subjects of study in this world, because they have different levels of intelligence, different life experiences, and their emotional changes and psychological activities are mostly in a state of randomness. Thus, the objective appearances they ultimately present are all different, incredibly complex, comparable only to our vast starry sky."
This was a sentiment expressed many years ago by that most learned Pope, who contributed the most to human knowledge, as he gazed at the starry sky. It was recorded in the scriptures of the State Religion. In that same era, there was also a great demon scholar named Tongus, who, while traveling south to the Yongxue Pass and seeing the sky full of stars, was similarly awestruck and uttered similar words.
Looking at the starry sky, Chen Changsheng recalled these words. He sensed that distant red star of his own, invisible to the naked eye, then raised his right hand, pointing at a certain starfield in the night sky. He plucked a star chart from that place and brought it before his eyes—of course, this was a figurative description, not something that actually happened.
On the last night of observing the steles at the Heavenly Book Mausoleum, he had combined the lines from the seventeen front mausoleum steles into a star chart—the very one before his eyes now. This star chart was an extremely tiny portion of the entire starry sky, but it contained billions of stars, emitting light both bright and dim before his eyes, appearing solemn, eternal, and motionless.
But he knew that these stars were moving every moment.
Each star was a condition; a moving star represented a changing condition. For example, the increase of age, the decline of physical strength, the waning of courage, the gradual emergence of a death wish. If the traces in the starry sky represented fate, then the changes of these stars represented the changes in the many factors that determine fate?
The combination of star trajectories was fate; everything was contained within.
Even the starfield of a Star Condensation expert could not exceed this scope. Stars flowed like breath; the brightness and dimness of stars were like the strength and weakness of breath. Any condition, any information, could be analogized by the trajectories of stars. However, those conditions were more real, no longer so mysterious. Or, to put it simply, those conditions could be calculated and observed.
If one could see the vast starry sky as simple, if one could find a way out from the multitude of stars, then one could naturally find the weak point of a cultivator's starfield. But... stars were moving, and the many factors constituting a cultivator's whole were also constantly changing. So how could one arrive at that final, definite result?
It didn't take long for Chen Changsheng to understand. Just like this star chart, the position of a star didn't mean it was always there, but rather that it most frequently appeared there over billions of years. This was a matter of probability. A star was most likely to be somewhere, so it was there. A sword was most likely to strike somewhere, so it would strike there. A starfield was most likely to change in a certain way, so it would change that way. This was difficult to describe clearly in words, but he understood. Then, he began his first attempt at solving the problem.
The first time he cultivated the Wisdom Sword, he didn't cut at a Star Condensation opponent, but at the entire starry sky. He quietly looked at the starry sky, countless streams of light flashing through his bright, clear eyes. Each stream of light was a condition or parameter. He carefully recorded everything before him, then calculated, until he was completely absorbed.
At five in the morning, Chen Changsheng opened his eyes. He hadn't slept the entire night. The positions of countless stars were gradually imprinted in his sea of consciousness. The extremely complex calculations had consumed immense mental energy and effort. Yet, for some reason, he didn't feel tired. The morning breeze on his face even made him feel refreshed.
He had touched upon the true meaning of the Wisdom Sword.
Of course, he was well aware that he was still at least many nights away from truly mastering the Wisdom Sword.
Su Li, leaning against the warm body of the woolly deer, looked at him with some surprise, then smiled.
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For the next several nights, Chen Changsheng continued to observe the starry sky and hone his Wisdom Sword, which didn't even have a rudimentary form yet. Su Li no longer gave him any guidance, sleeping soundly every night, but deliberately slowing down their southward journey. Su Li understood that Chen Changsheng was at a critical moment. If he could truly master the Wisdom Sword, then when facing a Star Condensation opponent in the future, he might be able to achieve an unexpected victory. So he was willing to sacrifice some speed.
Yes, whether it was Su Li, who was teaching the sword, or Chen Changsheng, who was learning it, from beginning to end, they limited the opponents they might encounter on the southward journey to the Star Condensation realm. This was because cultivators below the Star Condensation realm basically couldn't defeat Chen Changsheng. And if, by some chance, an opponent above the Star Condensation realm—one of those ancient monsters who had attained sainthood—appeared, what meaning would sharpening the sword on the eve of battle have?
If things had continued like this, perhaps after a few dozen more nights, Chen Changsheng might have been able to use the starlight to hone his Wisdom Sword into shape. Unfortunately, this world wouldn't give the severely injured Su Li that much time. Even more unfortunately, Chen Changsheng's opponent finally appeared. With battle imminent, this meticulous task of sharpening the sword seemed, no matter how you looked at it, already too late.
On an ordinary, unremarkable day in late spring, when Chen Changsheng was still dozens or even thousands of nights away from honing the Wisdom Sword, in a desolate mountain two hundred li from Tianliang Commandery, an extremely enchanting man appeared. This man wore lipstick and a dancing skirt, looking just like a dancer. In short, just like the Xue He they had encountered a few days earlier, he didn't look like an assassin at all.
Chen Changsheng asked in confusion, "Why don't any of them look like assassins when they appear? Or is it that to be a good assassin, you have to not look like one? Is that the assassin's creed?"
"Assassin's creed? What bullshit is that?" Su Li mocked. "You think they're happy showing up looking like this? They came in such a hurry, there was no time to change clothes."
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(Sorry for the late update. Time and energy have been a bit tight lately. Tomorrow's update will definitely be very, very late as well.)