'A Sword Spirit Body? I've never specifically tempered my Sword Qi. Did I reach the level of a Sword Spirit Body just from a single fusion of our auras?'
Yang Xiao was a little surprised.
After leaving Xue Yi's consciousness, he immediately noticed the changes in his own body. A current of the Power of Origin Sword Qi from Xue Yi had also surged into him, somehow imparting a unique quality to his physique.
The essence of the sword.
This was clearly the sign of a Sword Spirit Body.
What surprised him even more was that he could feel a Sword Embryo vaguely beginning to gestate within his Divine Soul Sense. If he continuously polished and nurtured it...
...he might just be able to gestate a Sword Soul.
And possessing a Sword Soul...
'That would be a true Sword Body. Although it can't compare to Xue Yi's Innate Sword Body, at Great Success it would be on par with an Ultimate-grade Treasure Body. This aura fusion is unbelievably potent.'
At that moment, Yang Xiao was finally, completely convinced.
'His cousin, whose talent wasn't even that exceptional, might have really found ten thousand women with special constitutions to cultivate with. Otherwise, how could he have progressed so quickly? He even reached Dao Attainment Emperor before Junior Brother Xuan Yang and his Pure Yang Dao Body.'
'And then there was that lifelike world on the Xuanyuan Sword Wall.'
An idea stirred in Yang Xiao's heart.
But then,
he shook his head.
'I could never do something like that.'
Just as Yang Xiao thought it was all over...
...just as he was about to break the state of their fused auras, another power...
...surged forth.
The moment this power stirred, Yang Xiao's expression changed.
Because this was the Power of Time.
'How can this be? How does Xue Yi have the Power of Time? Could it be...'
'The Desolate Divine Fruit!'
Yang Xiao understood at once.
The power of the Desolate Divine Fruit—a power he had been utterly unable to resolve, at least not at his current level—was now, at this very moment, pouring back from her and into his own body.
This current of time's power, having resided within Xue Yi for three hundred years, was completely different from the Power of Time Yang Xiao had perceived when he first consumed the Desolate Divine Fruit.
It carried with it a true sense of refinement.
As if it had been polished by the passage of time.
'So this is the true mystery of time. How can one understand its true meaning without experiencing the long passage of years?'
A realization dawned in Yang Xiao's mind.
Yang Xiao, who had long been unable to achieve a breakthrough despite having comprehended the Nine-layered Time Secret Pattern to the Perfect Realm, now, in this moment, sensed the true meaning of time.
The Heart of Time.
It was about to coalesce.
Before that, however, Yang Xiao glanced over at Xue Yi.
He saw that her body hadn't withered away with the disappearance of the Desolate Divine Fruit's effects. On the contrary, it was being continuously nourished by the aura contained within his own True Greater Yang Fire.
His heart was put at ease.
He also felt a little smug.
'It seems I'm close to comprehending the Yin Yang Mutual Aid Dao.'
After his moment of smugness, Yang Xiao immediately composed himself.
He sat down cross-legged.
And began to meditate.
This was a golden opportunity. If he could seize it to break through and form the Heart of Time, his mastery of the Time Secret Pattern would be comparable to a Demigod's.
The boost to his power would be immense.
Naturally, he took it with the utmost seriousness.
And so, Yang Xiao instantly entered a meditative state.
Meanwhile, Xue Yi was also gradually recovering.
She had benefited just as much as Yang Xiao, if not more. Not only had her body's Essence Qi been restored to normal—and was even more abundant than before—but her previously non-existent cultivation had shot up to the Martial Grandmaster First Layer.
Tempered by the True Greater Yang Fire, her true combat strength was likely comparable to the Small Divine Power Fourth or Fifth Layer. This was several times stronger than before, nearly matching the power she had when possessed by the Evil Sword.
Moreover, though she hadn't gained any of his memories from the fusion of their Heart Spirits, she now had a much more intimate, intuitive sense of Martial Dao cultivation.
She understood that if she didn't cultivate the Martial Dao and only used her Origin Sword Qi for attacks, she would be squandering her own essence.
Thus, she began to take her own cultivation more seriously.
Immediately,
she too began to cultivate.
However...
...just as she began to cultivate.
Suddenly.
An unknown aura descended from the void.
Instantly.
It enveloped her.
Before she could even react, it whisked her away.
And all of this...
...happened completely unknown to Yang Xiao, who was deep in his cultivation.
「Three more days passed.」
A profound and terrifying power erupted from Yang Xiao's body. The entire world, the very space around him, seemed to be affected.
And yet, it also seemed as if nothing had changed at all.
Then, Yang Xiao opened his eyes.
'Success! I've formed the Heart of Time. My attainments in the Time Dao have finally reached Minor Achievement. There's so much more I can do now!'
Joy was written all over Yang Xiao's face.
Within his Sea of Consciousness, a small, golden heart had formed, beating intermittently. This was the Heart of Time.
It was the Origin of Time that Yang Xiao had cultivated.
But as he scanned his surroundings, Yang Xiao realized something was wrong.
"Huh? Where did Xue Yi go?"
His expression changed.
'Did something happen?'
Yang Xiao grew tense and released his Spiritual Power to search, but he found nothing. Then, an idea struck him.
He pointed a finger at the empty air.
Instantly, the Heart of Time in his Sea of Consciousness began to beat violently. A profound power acted upon the space before him, and he saw images begin to flash rapidly, like a film playing in reverse.
Finally, the image froze.
It showed the figure of Xue Yi.