Celestial Taoist

Chapter 35 Accepting the Trial Mission

As his emotions surged, the testing room gradually quieted down. Li Mofan stood there, letting exhaustion wash over him.

He looked at the testing device in front of him, which still bore the marks of sword wounds and spiritual energy impacts, and recalled the hardships he had endured along the way.

Having cultivated the Dao and embarked on the path of transcendent cultivation, one's fate remains beyond one's control. Is cultivation merely a means to gain power, yet one remains trapped in a cage beyond one's own power?

In a flash, his mind suddenly became clear and empty. The surrounding spiritual energy slowly gathered towards him, and the dormant golden Dao foundation around him began to faintly glow again.

Past experiences, the sword intent of the passionate swordsman, and the resonance of the Dao foundation intertwine and merge at this moment.

He suddenly understood.

Cultivating the Tao is never about pursuing overwhelming strength, nor is it about seeking charity from others, nor is it about hoping for a smooth and worry-free life.

The Way lies within oneself, not in others; one's heart is determined by oneself, not by fate.

When you're caught up in a situation, you're bound to be powerless; but if your heart is aligned with the Way, you can rise and fall at your own pace.

The Amorous Swordsman embodies emotion in his swordplay. He had previously only grasped the connection between passion and killing, but now he truly understood that the Amorous Swordsman's passion was genuine ruthlessness. The death of a beautiful woman and the pain of separation did not change his heart. He was not bound by emotions, nor disturbed by worldly affairs. The resonance of the Amorous Swordsman's intent was precisely because it shared a similarity with his own. He seemed to be that kind of detached person as well. When he first came to the world of Heavenly Punishment, besides being frightened, he was more eager for new things and had little intention of exploring the way home.

His emotions were solely focused on himself, and the most fundamental logic in his heart remained unchanged: "I came into this world with nothing, all alone, and every bit I gain is a free gift, a bonus." He accepted anything that could help him without hesitation. His true intention in approaching Su Qingyao was to obtain her guidance and benefits. He had little apprehension about discovering that the mysterious old man had become his spiritual root; he would accept whatever came his way.

The manipulation of fate, the indifference of others, and the hardships ahead are all insignificant and have no impact on oneself.

In the instant of enlightenment, the dormant spiritual power within his body began to circulate on its own, and the originally exhausted omnipotent energy began to slowly regenerate. The Dao foundation trembled gently within his body, and the patterns became more refined and profound, showing a faint tendency to move towards perfection and refinement.

The barriers to cultivation are quietly loosening, the mind breaks through the barriers, and the cultivation is replenished.

Li Mofan slowly closed his eyes, exhaled a long breath, and all the pent-up emotions in his chest vanished, replaced by a sense of clarity, calmness, and determination.

No longer agonizing over romantic love, no longer resentful of the injustices of the world, no longer lamenting being powerless to control one's own destiny.

He cultivates his own path, practices his own sword, strengthens his own body, and forges his own way forward.

No matter how others view you, how cold or warm human relationships may be, or how turbulent your circumstances may be, you can remain indifferent to it all.

A moment later, he opened his eyes. The previous disappointment and irritability were gone from his eyes, replaced by a clear and sharp gaze, like the edge of a sword after it has been polished, its sharpness concealed, its heart as calm as an abyss.

The golden Dao Foundation transformed into sword intent, and with a single strike, the test dummy snapped in two. Clearly, this attack had exceeded the limit of the Dao Foundation realm's offensive power, and only then could he truly comprehend the Grandmaster Sword of the Amorous Swordsman.

With a single sword strike, his meridians were instantly emptied, and all the spiritual energy flowing through his body was completely depleted, leaving nothing behind.

Li Mofan turned around and slowly walked out of the testing room.

A moment later, Li Mofan rang the doorbell of Su Qingyao's cultivation room. The stone door slowly opened, and Su Qingyao's clear, cool voice, accompanied by a breeze through the crack in the door, came through, carrying a hint of surprise: "Why are you here again?"

Li Mofan stood upright, bowed slightly with his hands clasped, a smile on his face, and spoke respectfully yet humbly: "I have come here to ask the captain to bestow upon me the cultivation method after I have opened the path of cultivation."

Su Qingyao's eyes flickered slightly as she looked at Li Mofan, scrutinizing him for a moment: "There is no cultivation method on the path of cultivation. I know what you want. Once you obtain the title of a beginner talent, it will naturally be in your Heavenly Punishment System."

After she finished speaking, she didn't say anything more or try to stop her. She took a slight step back, and the heavy stone door slowly closed, silently isolating the inside from the outside.

Li Mofan stood quietly in place. He had come here simply to ask the question, and this answer was enough for him.

He turned and slowly walked out of the corridor outside the meditation room, returning to his room and sitting down.

With a thought, Li Mofan summoned the Heavenly Punishment System.

A pale blue virtual screen instantly floated before his eyes, its interface subtly shimmering with light, its rows and columns perfectly aligned. He lowered his gaze, quickly finding the task section. With a thought, he activated the system's forced task feature, and a striking red text leaped into view.

[Trial for Beginner Talented Individuals] Acceptance Time Limit (20th, 7:41:39)

Although there was still plenty of time, his strength had already improved by leaps and bounds, so there was no need to rush to accept the mission. He simply chose to accept it.

The next moment, the system screen lit up slightly, and a new task prompt popped up:

[Task accepted]

[Note: You need to go to the Recruit Camp Hall to report your identity. A designated person will register you and assign you a trial instance.]

Failure to report by the deadline will be considered an automatic withdrawal from the trial.

After reading the system notification, Li Mofan understood.

It turns out that simply accepting the trial mission from the system isn't enough; you have to go to the Hall of Affairs in person to complete the process before you can start the trial.

He put away the Heavenly Punishment System and sat quietly, breathing exercises.

After meditating all night, Li Mofan recovered his spiritual power and accumulated some omnipotent energy. After calming his mind and state, he got up and went out, heading straight towards the Hall of Deacons in the recruit camp.

The person in charge of registration was a tall, composed man dressed in black.

It was the same personal attendant who had reported the intimate news of Li Mofan and Su Qingyao together to the young man in the white Taoist robe at the Cloud Villa that day.

The attendant looked up, and when his gaze fell on Li Mofan, a subtle, unspoken meaning flashed in his eyes, but his face remained expressionless, and his tone was calm and composed: "What brings you to the Hall of Affairs?"

Li Mofan remained calm and composed, neither humble nor arrogant, and replied with a cupped hand: "Greetings, Steward. I am here to take the trial for beginner-level talents."

The attendant spoke calmly, his fingers barely touching the screen: "System mission accepted?"

"It has been accepted," Li Mofan replied.

The attendant raised his hand and took out a black token engraved with patterns. With a flick of his finger, he entered the divisions of the trial realm, the entry order, and the rules of the challenge into the token, and then handed it over: "Registration complete. Keep the token safe. Wait over there. Someone will guide you to the entrance of the trial realm shortly. Enter with your token."

Throughout, his tone was calm and his demeanor proper, seemingly just going through the motions, but his gaze lingered on Li Mofan several times, as if he were secretly trying to figure him out.

Li Mofan accepted the bronze trial token and bowed slightly, saying, "Thank you, deacon."

Upon reaching the rest area indicated by the black-clad butler, Li Mofan discovered that several people were already waiting there, clearly all of them participating in the beginner talent trial, just like him.