Volume 12 is missing Chapter 9: Outsiders, Breakers
"If one wants to stand shoulder to shoulder with the sky, it means that this practitioner is already strong enough, has surpassed the nine realms, and has walked a long way."
"But the problem is that this kind of strength is only relative to the creatures in the world. It is not enough for the sky."
"Do you know why?" Chu Mushen asked back.
Lu Qingshan thought quietly for a while, and then asked tentatively: "Because the sky is too powerful?"
“It’s a small part of the reason, but it’s not the main reason.”
"The sky is not as powerful as you think."
Chu Mushen shook his head and denied Lu Qingshan's answer.
If someone else said this it would seem too arrogant, but what Chu Mushen said was just right.
The swordsman who loved eating fish took a spoon and drank the fish soup in the bowl slowly and leisurely, looking quite relaxed. Then he pointed upwards with the spoon.
Lu Qingshan couldn't help but look up at the clear blue, cloudless sky.
"Because this world operates according to the laws of heaven, and the birth of all living beings follows its rules. In addition, even the avenues that are traversed by those cultivators above the ninth realm are only part of the laws of heaven."
"In this world, the Way of Heaven is the highest avenue."
“I cannot see the true face of Mount Lu because I am inside it.”
"Every flower and grass, every tree and wood in this world, even the air you breathe and the spiritual energy you need for cultivation, all come from the origin of the world."
"Your birth is the law of heaven, and the road you walk is a small part of the way of heaven."
"So , how can people fight against nature?"
"As I just said, cultivation is a very difficult thing. However, with such a large number of humans and such a long period of time, there will always be some cultivators who can cross the nine realms and reach the other side, and are about to touch the sky."
“But they all failed in the end.”
"Because their strongest weapon is only a part of the Way of Heaven."
"Heaven is therefore omnipotent. It can calculate everything, see through your weaknesses, and even deprive you of your power."
"That is what we often say: Heaven is omnipresent and omnipotent."
“Since it is omnipotent, why does it have to wait until someone comes to ‘provoke’ it before taking action, instead of nipping the threat in the bud?
Since it is omnipotent, why did Xia Daozu still break through to the ancestral realm?" Lu Qingshan raised his question.
Chu Mushen smiled, then gradually faded away and said calmly: "I will answer your first question first."
"Because even the Way of Heaven must follow rules."
"It's like the emperor of a country. He is the supreme ruler of the country and has the highest power, but he cannot act recklessly and must abide by certain rules. If he violates the rules, the country will perish."
"If the country is destroyed, can the emperor still be called the emperor?"
Lu Qingshan was silent.
"Those cultivators who have crossed the Nine Realms are 'rebels' to the Heavenly Dao. Even if you are the Emperor, you can't just randomly designate someone as a rebel and then kill him without evidence, right?"
"After all, those who can meet the criteria of "rebellion" are the most powerful people in a country.
If they were all killed for no reason, the country would be doomed," Chu Mushen used a very easy-to-understand metaphor to answer Lu Qingshan's question, "Similarly, their strength will make the country stronger."
"There needs to be a balance in between."
"So in order to make the 'country' stronger, the Heavenly Dao can only sit back and watch the threat grow until it challenges it?" Lu Qingshan was still puzzled.
After all, in the Daoyuan Realm, the Heavenly Dao once tried to destroy all human beings to eliminate the threat.
"Who said that?" Chu Mushen glanced at Lu Qingshan, then looked up at the sky, "Hasn't it been trying to eliminate the threat all along?"
Lu Qingshan was startled for a moment, then suddenly came to his senses and murmured, "Heavenly Tribulation..."
Once a cultivator’s cultivation reaches the Tribulation Crossing Stage, he will face a heavenly tribulation.
Is this a test?
No, this is just one of Heaven's ways of eliminating threats.
I don’t know how many cultivators have died on the path of cultivation or have been unable to move forward on the path of cultivation because of heavenly tribulations.
If there were no heavenly tribulation, the number of high-level cultivators in Cangqiongtian would be several times or even dozens of times what it is now.
After all, there is no limit on the life span for cultivators at a high level.
"You react very quickly," Chu Mushen nodded, confirming Lu Qingshan's guess, and then said: "Now answer your second question."
"Yes, since the sky is omnipotent, why are there still exceptions? Why is Xia Zu the only exception?"
"Like you, I also started thinking about this problem."
"I was wondering, what is the difference between Xia Zu and the others? It must be this difference that makes him the exception."
“But whether it’s his training method or his physique, Xia Zu is not unique.”
“So I started thinking about other possibilities.”
"But I have overturned all these possibilities one by one."
"Until later, someone told me the answer." Chu Mushen said.
"What is it?" This time Lu Qingshan was not cooperating, but was truly concerned and curious.
"The answer is simple and reasonable," Chu Mushen sighed, and then said, "It is also difficult to replicate."
"The ancestral realm is a road that goes against the will of heaven, there is no doubt about that. This is the world of heaven, its territory."
"Trying to defeat it on its territory... that's why no one has ever succeeded."
"The most fundamental reason why Xia Zu was able to defeat Tian Dao is... he is not from Cang Qiong Tian."
“He’s from another world.”
“So he succeeded.”
"If this world is a dead end, we are all chess pieces in the game, and Heaven is the one who can control the chess pieces. Xia Zu came from outside the game, so he is an outsider, so naturally he can be the one who breaks the game."
Lu Qingshan felt his mouth a little dry.
"Xia Zu... is he from another world?"
"Are you referring to another world like the Abyss, the Underworld, or the Wasteland?" he asked.
“Of course not,” Chu Mushen shook his head calmly, “If it were that simple, I would have crossed the sea boundary and headed to the abyss to try to break through the ancestral realm.”
"In our world, the sky is round and the earth is square."
"In Xia Zu's world, both the sky and the earth are round." Chu Mushen stared at Lu Qingshan's face with his eyes sharp.
Lu Qingshan was speechless.
Whether it was taking over the position of Sword Sect's leader or facing the provocation of the Sword Washing Pool, his pressure had never been as great as it was at this moment.
He subconsciously glanced at the azure sky, and suddenly felt as if the entire sky was pressing down on him.
"Xia Zu succeeded, but also failed." Chu Mushen continued.
“No one knows the specific reason.”
"But the person who told me the answer and I made a very reasonable guess."
"Xia Zu was successful because he was not from our world."
"The reason why he failed... is because he ultimately followed the path of heaven."
"He is a Dharma cultivator."
Chu Mushen looked at Lu Qingshan and smiled, "You should understand what I mean."
"All cultivators in the world follow the path of harmony with the Dao. They are in harmony with the innate Dao, that is, the Dao of Heaven. This also means that they are destined to never be able to transcend the Dao of Heaven."
“Only sword cultivators cultivate the acquired way, and only open the way when it does not conform to the way.”
"This makes the path of sword cultivators particularly difficult, but it also means that sword cultivators are not restricted by the laws of nature."
The fire in the bronze tripod on the table had been turned off at some point, and the fish soup had stopped boiling.
"That is to say, if there is really someone who can transcend the heavenly way and reach the ancestral realm, he must meet these two conditions at the same time..."
"An outsider."
"Sword cultivator."
Chu Mushen looked at Lu Qingshan and smiled.
"That means you."
"Lu Qingshan."
