Three years later.

"Indeed, cultivation requires talent."

"Senior, why do you say that? Now that you've reached Nirvana Ninth Layer, on the verge of breaking through to the Peak Realm, it shows that your talent is not lacking at all," Shi Hao said happily.

"..." Celestial Sword Elder fell silent.

His talent not lacking?

If it truly wasn't lacking, why did it take him eight hundred years to cultivate to Nirvana Second Layer?

As for the current Nirvana Ninth Realm... he knew well enough that his advancement to Nirvana Ninth Layer was entirely due to the forced elevation by the Supreme Being. It's fair to say that even up to now, none of the transformations inherent to the Nirvana Realm had occurred within him. This unchanged state essentially dictated that he would never reach the Peak Realm in his lifetime.

But does he regret it?

No, Celestial Sword does not regret!

With his naturally limited talent, if not for the favor of the Supreme Being who forcibly enhanced his realm, his life's limit might have remained at the Nirvana Second Layer.

"Alright, my old bones can't take it anymore. That's it for today's cultivation matchup," he said.

As he spoke, Celestial Sword Elder appeared disheartened.

In just three short years, he had ascended from Nirvana Fifth Layer to Ninth Layer, while the young man opposite him had advanced to Nirvana Fourth Layer. Despite this significant realm suppression, Celestial Sword Elder had already discovered that he was no longer a match for Shi Hao.

Celestial Sword had cultivated for eight hundred years.

Their cultivation differed by five realms.

Yet he was unable to defeat the young man opposite him.

If only things were that simple—but in a world where prodigies continually emerged, Celestial Sword Elder had long become accustomed over his eight hundred years.

What truly disheartened him was realizing since last year that Shi Hao, in sparring with him, had begun to intentionally avoid and dodge.

Nirvana Third Layer fought Seventh Layer.

Nirvana Fourth Layer fought Ninth Layer.

Nirvana Third Layer fought Ninth Layer.

To this day, Shi Hao had even suppressed himself to Nirvana Second Heaven to spar with him. Despite this, Celestial Sword Elder still found it incredibly difficult, even more so than when Shi Hao fought him with Nirvana Fourth Heaven's strength.

This realization led Celestial Sword to understand his own limits had been reached, while Shi Hao's limits far exceeded his. All he could do was become a stepping stone on the young man's path, aiding in his accelerated growth.

"Could it be that I truly have no talent for cultivation?"

As he left the martial platform atop Celestial Break Mountain Range and walked down the mountain path, Celestial Sword Elder felt a bitter taste he couldn't articulate.

Is talent truly that important on the path of cultivation?

Yes!

The answer is destined.

Talent is not confined to any particular realm; it applies to all realms.

Don't listen to others claim that talent is useless, saying that once a certain realm is reached, everyone's starting point is the same—those words are rubbish.

It's not that the words are incorrect; the true meaning is 'If you don't have that particular talent, you'll never reach that realm in your lifetime'!

Yes, after screening out those without enough talent, those who remain are the ones with heaven-defying talent, naturally equal in their starting points.

But to those lacking talent, what significance does this equality hold?

No significance.

Such a pity.

This reasoning, which makes life seem bland to Celestial Sword Elder, is, to Shi Hao, merely common knowledge instilled since childhood.

Once more returning to Moon Lake Blessed Lands.

Wandering the now transformed blessed land and asking various thought incarnations within, Shi Hao finally found Chen Zhixing in the Ten Thousand Snakes Cave.

Seeing his master standing inside a stalactite cave within the Snake Cave, watching a large golden snake shedding its skin in the earth cave ahead, Shi Hao approached with a grin.

"Master, what brings you here to watch snakes? Eh, I remember this snake was shedding three years ago. How come it hasn't finished shedding yet?"

"This is its ninth shedding within three years. It's about to transform into a dragon," Chen Zhixing said indifferently.

"Trans... transform into a dragon?"

Hearing the word suddenly, Shi Hao was utterly stunned.

No, he remembered that the Snake Cave once inhabited only a brood of ordinary black snakes, which initially were merely food kept by the Moon Bears... How, in just three years, did a black snake reach the cusp of transforming into a dragon???

Shi Hao couldn't understand, and could only look at Chen Zhixing with a bewildered gaze, hoping his master would explain it to him.

Seeing this, Chen Zhixing indifferently raised a hand and pointed at the black serpent.

A spiritual mechanism flew out. Under Shi Hao's curious gaze, this spiritual mechanism changed gradually in mid-air and by the time it landed before the golden serpent cluster, it had turned into an unusually shaped, green herb coiled like a python, which the rising golden python devoured in one bite.

"Dragon Transformation Grass?" Shi Hao's eyes lit up, already envious for a long time of his master's Great Divine Techniques of transforming spirit mechanisms into all things.

"Mm." Chen Zhixing said calmly, "This dragon python's path went awry, but by devouring countless similar species, it forcibly purified its bloodline multiple times. As its rarity is seldom seen, I've offered a bit of enlightenment."

Enlightenment?

It's more like an experiment!

Knowing the fundamental function of Dragon Transformation Grass, Shi Hao inwardly mourned for the serpent before him; after all, Dragon Transformation Grass's role is to activate the ancient bloodline hidden within oneself indiscriminately of exterior or intrinsic, inborn or acquired.

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