Chapter 251: The Purple Vertical Eye
...So in the end, you simply couldn't bear to give up your life in the mortal world, and you still wanted to be an emperor.
Ji Yuan rose to his feet and cupped his hands in salute toward the Ice-Fire Elder seated upon the Dragon Throne. "Greetings, Your Majesty."
"No need for such formalities, worthy nephew."
The Ice-Fire Elder waved his hand.
"What I'm doing now... is merely because I miss those days. In the end, I still cannot escape the mortal world."
After speaking, the Ice-Fire Elder sighed to himself.
"I imagine you're quite curious why the me you met before and the me before you now are completely different, aren't you?"
"This... this junior is indeed rather curious."
Ji Yuan answered stiffly.
But ever since confirming that the person before him was also the Ice-Fire Elder, he had already formed a vague guess in his heart. He simply hadn't dared to be certain.
That was...
Split personality.
The person before him and the one who had come to receive him several days ago were both the Ice-Fire Elder.
Only... they had split into two different Ice-Fire Elders.
"The world knows that I fell into the Ice-Fire Pool, and that I was the only person ever to emerge from it alive."
"The world also knows that after I came out of the Ice-Fire Pool, I developed a strange illness. But very few people know what that illness actually is..."
The Ice-Fire Elder fell silent for a moment before continuing.
"Another person appeared inside my body. At first, I thought someone had possessed me. But later I discovered... that person was also me."
...As expected, it really was split personality!
Ji Yuan finally understood inwardly, though outwardly he feigned great astonishment.
"I never imagined such a bizarre thing could exist!"
"Indeed. That person's temperament is the complete opposite of mine. For something as trivial as you wanting to refine your flying sword in the Ice-Fire Pool, why should you have waited so long? If you wished to go, you should have gone. Yet he deliberately delayed you. Truly petty."
The Ice-Fire Elder shook his head in utter disdain.
"If I had any way of dealing with him, I would have long since suppressed and killed him. He occupied my body and even comes out from time to time to cause trouble."
Only then did Ji Yuan finally understand what Li Changhe had meant before the journey when he referred to the Ice-Fire Elder as a "strange man."
In this world, wasn't split personality the very definition of a strange person?
Especially someone like the Ice-Fire Elder, whose personalities were complete opposites.
"Senior's condition truly is extraordinarily strange. This junior has never heard of anything like it."
Ji Yuan sighed while shaking his head.
"Mm. After all these years, I've long since grown accustomed to it."
The Ice-Fire Elder had never expected Ji Yuan to provide any answer. The only reason he explained everything today was because he felt somewhat guilty that his other "self" had neglected Ji Yuan for so long.
"It's getting late. Stay here tonight. Tomorrow morning, I shall personally take you to the Ice-Fire Pool."
"Yes. Then I'll trouble you, Senior."
Having finally received a definite answer, Ji Yuan relaxed. He rose once more and cupped his hands toward the Ice-Fire Elder.
At the same time, he finally figured everything out.
The Ice-Fire Elder before him, the one who enjoyed being an emperor, was the original personality.
The other one was merely the personality that had split off.
Even their auras hinted at this.
The Ice-Fire Elder had originally cultivated fire techniques. Only after falling into the Ice-Fire Pool and surviving had he begun cultivating ice techniques as well.
As for their personalities...
Judging from what this Ice-Fire Elder had said, the one before him was straightforward and generous, while the other one was... more frugal and careful with resources?
After all, Ji Yuan was already borrowing the man's Ice-Fire Pool to refine his sword.
Calling him stingy would be rather inappropriate.
As for spending the night in the Imperial Palace, Ji Yuan honestly wasn't very willing.
He worried that if he stayed the night, the other Ice-Fire Elder might appear again and prevent him from entering the Ice-Fire Pool.
If that happened, what then?
Driving him away probably wouldn't happen.
At worst, he'd simply have to wait even longer.
Soon afterward, Ji Yuan was led out of the grand hall by a female cultivator.
Naturally, he wasn't arranged to stay within the imperial harem. Instead, the maid-like female cultivator escorted him to a side palace named Qianyuan Palace.
The interior remained just as magnificently lavish, and more than ten maidservants attended the place.
Ji Yuan swept his gaze across them.
There were no Foundation Establishment female cultivators among them.
All were Qi Refining cultivators.
Apparently, there weren't many Foundation Establishment female cultivators on Ice-Fire Island.
Those qualified to serve the Ice-Fire Elder were even fewer.
Half an hour later.
Ji Yuan politely declined the maidservants who had come to assist him with bathing and changing clothes.
Instead, he cultivated throughout the entire night inside Qianyuan Palace.
By the following morning, the Ice-Fire Elder once again sent someone to summon him.
When Ji Yuan saw that the Ice-Fire Elder was still wearing the fiery-red Dragon Robe, he finally relaxed.
Afterward, he shared breakfast with "His Majesty."
Only after the lengthy and complicated formalities were completed did the Ice-Fire Elder finally say,
"Worthy nephew, come with me."
With those words, both figures transformed into Escape Light and immediately departed from the Imperial Palace.
They did not travel far.
They merely moved from the imperial palace within the valley to an open clearing halfway up the mountain.
Before them lay a deep cave.
Standing at the entrance, Ji Yuan could already feel waves of cold air flowing out.
So the Ice-Fire Pool was actually located here?
If so, then the Ice-Fire Elder had likely settled here to guard the Ice-Fire Pool.
"It's inside."
After speaking, the Ice-Fire Elder took the lead into the cave.
Without hesitation, Ji Yuan followed behind.
As soon as he entered, the cool air became even more obvious.
After extending forward for some distance, the tunnel gradually sloped downward.
By this point, Ji Yuan could already feel the bone-chilling cold rushing directly toward him.
...Damn, it's this cold?
Wasn't the Ice-Fire Pool supposed to become a pool of fire during the day?
Perhaps because they had reached the place of his greatest sorrow, the Ice-Fire Elder fell completely silent and simply continued leading the way.
Half an hour later.
Ji Yuan estimated that they had already descended for the time it took to burn one stick of incense.
Based on their pace, they were now dozens of meters beneath the surface.
Absentmindedly, Ji Yuan stepped forward.
The cold surrounding him instantly disappeared.
Instead, the air around him became incomparably scorching.
His footsteps paused slightly.
He took one step backward.
The heat remained.
Refusing to believe it, he retreated several more steps before finally feeling the coolness return.
He understood.
The cold air was actually being forced outward by the heat.
After lingering briefly, he had already fallen some distance behind the Ice-Fire Elder.
He quickly hurried after him.
The two continued descending another several dozen meters underground.
By the time even Ji Yuan could no longer endure the heat and was forced to activate the protective effect of his Spiritual Robe, the scenery before him suddenly opened up.
No longer the narrow passageway from before.
Instead, it was a vast and spacious stone chamber.
Looking past the Ice-Fire Elder standing ahead, Ji Yuan saw at the center of the chamber...
A pool of magma!
Its area wasn't particularly large, only around one zhang across.
The molten lava continuously churned like a volcano on the verge of erupting.
Could magma really contain Water Fortune?
Could the Blazing Flame Sword truly be condensed here?
"This is the Ice-Fire Pool. Right now it's daytime, so it's the Fire Pool. Although what you see resembles magma, it's actually only boiling water... water that's simply reached its absolute limit."
"Once night falls, the pool will transform into an icy pool. Remember this well—you must never approach it. As for your Li Family's method of condensing a flying sword embryo, either day or night is acceptable. The choice is yours."
After finishing, the Ice-Fire Elder remained silent.
Ji Yuan did not immediately say he intended to condense the Blazing Flame Sword during the day.
Instead, he pondered before replying,
"This junior wishes to observe this place first. After comprehending the differences between the Water Fortune during day and night, I'll then decide which flying sword to condense."
"Excellent."
The Ice-Fire Elder finally revealed a trace of a smile.
"Then remain here and comprehend it. I won't disturb you further. Just remember one thing—whether day or night, you must never step into the Ice-Fire Pool. Once you enter... even immortals themselves won't be able to save you."
His final sentence was spoken with utmost seriousness.
Ji Yuan solemnly nodded.
"Senior, please rest assured."
"Very well. Cultivate diligently."
After speaking, the Ice-Fire Elder transformed into a streak of fiery-red Escape Light and departed along the path they had come.
At this point, Ji Yuan was the only person left within the stone chamber.
He took a deep breath before lightly patting the Storage Pouch at his waist.
Four streams of light flew out.
They landed upon the surrounding stone walls and transformed into four luminous pearls, instantly illuminating the entire chamber.
With the chamber now lit, Ji Yuan discovered that the pool before him truly wasn't magma.
Instead, it was violently boiling water.
Water that resembled... molten iron.
'As expected of a cultivation world. The world is vast, and nothing is too strange.'
Ji Yuan had just been about to sit down when he remembered the Ice-Fire Elder's warning.
He retreated several more steps before finally sitting down with peace of mind.
Within only a few breaths, he sensed the dense Water Fortune permeating the entire stone chamber.
It actually exists!
Just moments ago, Ji Yuan had been thinking about how each previous time he condensed a flying sword embryo, it had taken him four or five days before it was fully formed.
But that had been elsewhere.
Here...
That simply wouldn't work.
The water changed once every day.
If he began condensing the Blazing Flame Sword in the morning and still hadn't finished by nightfall, then once the Water Fortune transformed, how could he continue condensing it?
Now, however, there was no need to worry.
With such abundant Water Fortune, it would certainly be possible to complete the flying sword within a single day.
'Of course. This is a flying sword refinement site personally verified by the Li Family. How could they possibly have overlooked something so obvious?'
After that thought, Ji Yuan began carefully comprehending the Water Fortune here.
He wasn't in any hurry to absorb it.
Although he had originally planned to condense the Blazing Flame Sword, he still wanted to observe the Water Fortune at night first.
If the nighttime Water Fortune proved superior, then condensing a Cold Mirage Sword would not be a bad choice either.
After all, he had already come this far.
There was no need to rush.
Thus he waited for over half a day.
The boiling waters of the Ice-Fire Pool suddenly calmed.
Ji Yuan immediately opened his eyes.
The crimson bubbles that had previously surged across the pool had completely disappeared.
The water became incomparably calm.
Its original crimson hue gradually faded away.
Within only a few breaths, the center of the lake had already turned crystal clear.
...How truly miraculous!
Ji Yuan watched the transformation unfold with his own eyes.
Moreover, the cooling speed became faster and faster.
A short while later, not a trace of crimson remained within the entire deep pool.
The pool water...
Had returned to normal.
But that normal state lasted for fewer than several breaths.
Immediately afterward, Ji Yuan felt an icy aura spreading toward him from the pool.
"Crack... crack..."
The lake surface instantly began freezing over.
Yet the newly formed ice rapidly shattered inch by inch.
After the broken ice sank beneath the surface, the pool showed no further signs of freezing.
Only boundless cold remained.
Fortunately, Ji Yuan's physique far surpassed that of ordinary cultivators, allowing him to withstand it.
Otherwise, merely condensing a flying sword in such an environment would have been an almost impossible task.
The water appeared perfectly ordinary.
It did not freeze.
Yet it remained incomparably cold.
That alone proved the water before him was anything but ordinary.
Ji Yuan greatly wanted to collect some into a jade bottle and bring it back for Hua Yaoyue to examine.
But after careful consideration, he ultimately gave up.
Even if he intended to do so, he would wait until after successfully condensing his flying sword.
He then resumed comprehending the Water Fortune.
Again, after only a single breath, Ji Yuan sensed incomparably rich Water Fortune.
There's hope!
Moreover, it was entirely different from the daytime Water Fortune.
The daytime Water Fortune was scorching and overbearing.
The nighttime Water Fortune, however, was icy and gentle.
After comprehending it for half an hour, Ji Yuan finally reached his decision.
He would condense the Blazing Flame Sword during the day!
As for the Cold Mirage Sword...
He decided against it.
His current collection—the Canglan Flying Sword, Dragon Fortune Flying Sword, Cloud Palace Sword, and Firefly Sword—all leaned toward water-based flying swords.
Another Cold Mirage Sword would contribute little.
He would rather try condensing a Blazing Flame Sword.
Perhaps it would produce unexpected effects at a critical moment.
Having made his decision, Ji Yuan no longer hesitated.
He remained beside the Ice-Fire Pool throughout the entire night.
When dawn arrived and the pool once again began boiling violently, while the surrounding Water Fortune shifted...
Ji Yuan made his move.
He began absorbing the Water Fortune drifting through the air, channeling it into his Dantian.
Under the guidance of his five existing flying sword embryos, a brand-new flying sword embryo gradually came into existence.
Unlike his previous experiences condensing flying swords, when absorbing Water Fortune had been an extremely slow process...
Or more accurately, because it had been scarce.
But this time?
The moment he circulated his cultivation technique, the Water Fortune flooded into his body as though it were free.
It even felt as though it were scrambling to force its way inside him.
The consequence, however, was heat.
Scorching heat.
At present it was daytime.
The Water Fortune born from the Fire Pool carried blazing heat within it.
As it entered Ji Yuan's meridians together with the spiritual energy, it felt as though his meridians themselves were being scorched by flames.
The very first surge nearly made him shudder from the intense heat.
Only after gradually adapting did it become slightly more bearable.
Even so, Ji Yuan still felt as though his entire body were on fire.
"Endure... just endure a little longer..."
While gritting his teeth and persevering, Ji Yuan devoted all his attention to the increasingly abundant Water Fortune within his Dantian.
Half a day later.
The Water Fortune inside Ji Yuan's Dantian had reached its limit.
The five flying swords then automatically formed a brand-new sword formation within his Dantian.
The instant the sword formation took shape, all the chaotic Water Fortune naturally flowed into it.
Compressed.
Condensed.
Finally, amidst the sea of crimson Water Fortune...
Ji Yuan saw a brand-new sword embryo slowly taking shape.
The Blazing Flame Sword's color perfectly matched the Fire Pool itself.
It shone with dazzling crimson brilliance.
Within it, faint strands resembling flowing molten fire could even be seen.
'Its appearance certainly isn't bad. I just wonder how effective it'll be in actual combat.'
Once the sword embryo had taken shape, there was no longer anything Ji Yuan needed to worry about.
Everything proceeded in an orderly fashion.
The amount of Water Fortune being absorbed gradually decreased.
The burning sensation in his meridians also subsided considerably.
He was finally able to catch his breath.
Another half day passed.
Until the final strand of wandering Water Fortune within his Dantian had been absorbed into the sword formation.
At the very center of the formation previously formed by the five sword embryos...
A crimson-red sword embryo finally appeared.
"Out!"
With a single thought from Ji Yuan, the Blazing Flame Sword shot out from his body and floated before him.
Looking at the tiny crimson sword, he naturally found it extremely pleasing.
At first, the Blazing Flame Sword simply hovered before him.
Then, under his mental control, it began circling endlessly around his body.
Its range gradually expanded until it was flying throughout the entire stone chamber.
Ji Yuan also discovered that whenever he wished, wherever the flying sword passed, waves of fire techniques would descend.
Either to kill enemies.
Or to protect himself.
'With this, "Killing and Arson Bring the Golden Belt" will truly become possible in the future.'
Ji Yuan happily indulged in the fantasy before recalling the Blazing Flame Sword with another thought and carefully sensing the sword embryo before him.
'Hmm... If I'm ever forced to do something morally questionable in the future, I can simply release the Blazing Flame Sword and disguise myself as a fire cultivator. That way, even if people investigate, they'll never suspect Ji Yuan, because Ji Yuan cultivates water techniques.'
The thought of having yet another method for deceiving others immediately put him in an even better mood.
Finally, he released his other five sword embryos as well.
All six floated protectively before him.
Unfortunately, he had already tested this previously.
If he wanted the sword formation to unleash truly overwhelming destructive power, he would need at least seven swords.
At present, with only six...
It was still lacking.
But that didn't matter.
Next, Ji Yuan planned to remain in secluded cultivation on Ice-Fire Island for some time longer.
He intended to continue comprehending the 《Canglan Nine Tribulations Sword Manual》 until he could condense his next flying sword before continuing northward.
Along the way, he would pass through Thunder Marsh.
There, he could condense his seventh sword embryo.
With seven sword embryos in hand, not only would his cultivation improve, but the sword formation would finally become complete.
By then, his strength would surely undergo another tremendous increase.
Although he was only at the Late Foundation Establishment Stage, relying solely on his own strength, he should then be capable of threatening Peak Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Unlike now, where killing a mere Pseudo-Core Cultivator still required the use of a Golden Core Corpse Servant.
After finishing his pleasant fantasies, Ji Yuan recalled all six flying sword embryos into his Dantian.
He then stood up and cast one final glance toward the Ice-Fire Pool.
But just as he was preparing to leave...
He suddenly noticed what appeared to be...
An eye within the pool.
A gigantic purple vertical eye occupied the very center of the Ice-Fire Pool.
Since he was already standing extremely close, Ji Yuan could even see the eyelashes on either side trembling slightly.
The pupil at the center was also purple.
It looked incredibly strange.
Yet somehow...
It also possessed an indescribable, eerie beauty.
The instant Ji Yuan saw that purple eye, he immediately realized something was wrong.
Instinctively, he turned to flee.
But at that moment, the purple vertical eye blinked ever so slightly.
Then an ethereal voice echoed beside his ear.
"You... also wish to become an immortal?"