Chapter 1101: Summoning Ghost Talisman Comes True with One Sentence, Gifted Top Student

"The Ghost Sword Technique has three major thresholds for entry." Under the cover of night, Mei Si Ren spoke without delay.

Having imposed so many restrictions on Xu Xiaoshou, forcing him to fight a void creature solely with the Ghost Sword Technique and a soul, even Mei Si Ren believed Xu Xiaoshou had no chance of winning. However, victory or defeat was irrelevant. In Mei Si Ren's view, as long as Xu Xiaoshou could quickly grasp the Ghost Sword Technique under immense pressure—not to mention the Soul-Controlling Deception Technique—he would surely reach the peak given his age and time.

As soon as he spoke, Xu Xiaoshou turned his gaze. Even Granny Ghost, whose soul-body ears perked up, was somewhat astonished that this old sword immortal would impart his technique so openly, without any secrecy—displaying such "noble character."

Excellent! This was very "ancient sword cultivator"! Granny Ghost had little intention of secretly learning the Ghost Sword Technique; she knew her own capabilities. However, since Mei Si Ren spoke so plainly, it would be a disservice to the noble character of ancient sword cultivators if she didn't eavesdrop a little to prepare for Xu Xiaoshou's upcoming moves!

Mei Si Ren clearly understood Granny Ghost's intentions but still didn't use a voice transmission, instead stating fairly and openly: "The first step is to enter the path by perceiving 'All Things Are Swords,' deeply sensing the 'Spirits of All Things.' All things, regardless of life or death, possess spirit. Those with extraordinary spiritual perception or soul bodies can easily achieve this step. The untalented will never enter the door."

His form hovered in mid-air, robes swaying with the wind, his sword intent steadily rising with his words. Before long, this illusory world began to distort under the influence of his sword intent. Everything seemed to obey a decree: sand grains floated and sank, wind ceased, and sounds stilled.

"Rise." Mei Si Ren raised a hand. From the sand on the long street, the moss on building walls, and even the imperceptible microscopic organisms floating in the air, mottled specks of dim light were drawn forth.

"This is... 'Spirit'!" Granny Ghost's pupils trembled. From the perspective of soul cultivation in soul refining, she had already made a basic interpretation of Mei Si Ren's technique.

All things possess "Spirit." When a "Spirit" takes form, it can give birth to a "spiritual body" and develop "spiritual intelligence." The simplest example is a spirit herb that, after long-term nourishment and reaching a certain grade, might develop spiritual intelligence, becoming a precious item capable of independent cultivation and discerning good from bad fortune. For instance, if one of the nine ancestral trees, the Dragon Apricot, gains blood, its status would ascend to the highest. However, this is the evolutionary path for powerful life forms. For non-living or weak life forms to go from "spiritless" to "spirit-born" to "spirit-formed," it would likely take millions of years. For things like sand or mayflies to truly develop spiritual intelligence, while not impossible, it is exceptionally rare—one in billions.

Fully formed "soul bodies" are easy to find; Granny Ghost could easily locate them. But unformed "Spirits"... and especially the "Spirits" currently being drawn from sand and drifting wind—Granny Ghost was utterly astounded. She had made achievements in the path of souls, but she didn't believe she could so easily find such minute "Spirits" as Mei Si Ren had just done!

And now... for an ancient sword cultivator, this was merely one of the three major thresholds for entering the Ghost Sword Technique. Xu Xiaoshou, without any prior exposure to such things, was expected to instantly meet Mei Si Ren's requirements and reach his level of mastery. Granny Ghost suddenly felt the world was a joke, a little too amusing!

No wonder... no wonder ancient sword cultivators became extinct... Oh no, not entirely extinct, aren't there still two grand figures right here? But for ancient sword cultivators to be on the verge of extinction in the current era, there truly was a reason!

Granny Ghost looked at Xu Xiaoshou with amusement, curious to see what this fellow could learn. After all, Mei Si Ren's words had left her utterly bewildered, and she didn't believe Xu Xiaoshou could master this "Spirit Summoning Technique" after hearing just one sentence, without even learning any "mental cultivation methods," "incantations," or "techniques."

"This is 'Spirit.'" Mei Si Ren's gaze swept over Granny Ghost's soul-body expression, which had transitioned from shock to amusement, before settling on Xu Xiaoshou. He said no more, only offering that single explanation.

In the path of ancient sword cultivation, many things could only be comprehended, not explicitly taught. If Xu Xiaoshou's soul body wasn't strong, or if his "All Things Are Swords" hadn't reached the point where he could sense "Spirit," then no matter how much Mei Si Ren explained, it would be useless; Xu Xiaoshou would simply have to start from the basics. But clearly, judging by Xu Xiaoshou's previous "God-Buddha Before One's Eyes," his foundation was extremely solid. If his soul body weren't powerful, his spiritual body couldn't be powerful either, and in that case, he wouldn't have been able to visualize such a terrifying "God-Buddha Before One's Eyes" imagery without suffering backlash!

"This is 'Spirit.'" Xu Xiaoshou didn't actually need anyone else to explain. The moment Mr. Si Ren raised his hand, the knowledge in Xu Xiaoshou's mind was activated, and he understood how this technique was done, its principles, and how it could become one of the "three major thresholds" for practicing the Ghost Sword Technique.

"Is that right?" Meeting Granny Ghost's mocking gaze, Xu Xiaoshou pondered for a moment, then, mimicking Mr. Si Ren, he raised his right hand in the air and lifted it high. "Rise!"

With a whoosh, the long street, bathed in night, instantly lit up as if countless household lamps had simultaneously ignited. Countless, endless "Spirits" densely floated in the air. Their dazzling brilliance, at that moment, truly vied with the bright moon, like the light of fireflies!

Mei Si Ren's hand suddenly trembled, his expression instantly freezing. Xiao Kongdong's jaw dropped and then snapped shut, almost biting off his tongue. Granny Ghost, now only a soul body, had her eyeballs bulge forward, her expression so shocked it was as if she had seen a ghost instead of being one herself, filled with utter disbelief.

"Received Suspicion, Passive Points +3."

"It's quite simple, isn't it?" Xu Xiaoshou's lips curved upward as he happily looked at Mr. Si Ren, saying, "I have some experience with 'All Things Are Swords,' so this step can be skipped."

He had learned "All Things Are Swords" as early as when his "Swordsmanship Mastery" was still at its lowest tier. As this master passive skill continuously upgraded, Xu Xiaoshou had long since reached the pinnacle of mastery. And throughout his journey, having been tormented by various powerful figures... later, with "Perception," he was constantly exercising his mental resilience. With "Shattering Finger," he continuously triggered "Spiritual Awakening" to train his spiritual body and soul body's spiritual power. Drawing out so many "Spirits" simultaneously was utterly effortless for him.

"Some experience..." Even though Mei Si Ren had anticipated Xu Xiaoshou's spiritual power might be strong, he was genuinely startled by this display. This was "too experienced"! "Your mastery of 'All Things Are Swords' is already no less than mine... As for the strength of your spiritual body and soul body, judging by the performance of the Heart Sword Technique's 'God-Buddha Before One's Eyes,' even if it's slightly less, it probably isn't far behind mine..."

Mei Si Ren was stunned for a good while before gently nodding and calmly saying, "It's acceptable." "Uh, is that all you can call it—'acceptable'?" Beside him, Xiao Kongdong's lips twitched slightly. He thought, what Xu Xiaoshou had just displayed was already the level he himself had reached after many days of practicing the Ghost Sword Technique; this was clearly "very acceptable"!

A genius! An undoubted genius! It was one thing for him to be a genius in the Heart Sword Technique, but Xu Xiaoshou was also a genius in the Ghost Sword Technique!

At one point, Xiao Kongdong even entertained the thought of becoming Xu Xiaoshou's master and dedicating all his efforts to nurturing this talent. But he quickly quelled that wicked idea. Good heavens, that would be a massive promotion in seniority! Senior Wuxiu wouldn't allow it, nor would his teacher. Mr. Si Ren... well, he'd probably kill him!

"Impossible!" "Absolutely impossible!" Granny Ghost rubbed her eyes furiously and looked again, only to find that the "countless household lamps" were not an illusion created by illusory sword arts, but were genuinely real. She glanced at Xu Xiaoshou silently, her mind, previously like stagnant water, began to stir.

"Without the necessary 'incantations' for cultivation, without the 'circulation methods' required for spirit skills, how could Xu Xiaoshou instantly master the 'Spirit Summoning Technique'?" "Could it be that Mei Si Ren's teaching words contain some profound truth of the Great Dao that I failed to perceive?"

Granny Ghost meticulously recalled Mei Si Ren's words. She found that the old sword immortal had only uttered a single, simple sentence regarding the "Spirit Summoning Technique": "The first step is to enter the path by perceiving 'All Things Are Swords,' deeply sensing the 'Spirits of All Things.' All things, regardless of life or death, possess spirit. Those with extraordinary spiritual perception or soul bodies can easily achieve this step. The untalented will never enter the door."

She meticulously dissected and pieced together every word, trying to find the deeper meaning within, not even overlooking the interpretive supplement in the latter half of the sentence. Ultimately, finding no results, she even included the three words "The first step" from the beginning, yet still couldn't find the answer she sought.

"Could it be that even the actions matter?" Seeing Xu Xiaoshou's cultivation results, Granny Ghost truly didn't want to let go of this opportunity to secretly learn. She prided herself on her not-so-weak talent in the path of souls and her many years of cultivation experience. As long as she grasped the profound meaning in Mei Si Ren's words, she too could easily "summon spirits" like Xu Xiaoshou.

So, while the three in front focused their attention on Xu Xiaoshou, she subtly raised her hand, comprehending that "incantation" in her mind. She silently chanted, "Rise!"

A silent gust of wind swept through the air. Granny Ghost only saw a few blurry, large undead entities. As for spirits of sand, mayflies, or dust—she saw none!

"That's not right..." Granny Ghost furrowed her brow, wondering if she needed to vocalize the "incantation" to get a response. Acting on the thought, she silently repeated Mei Si Ren's "profound" words once more, then articulated them clearly, trying to keep her voice low, as she lightly called out: "Rise!"

*Whoosh*, the conversation of the three people in front instantly ceased. Three piercing gazes turned in the night, passing through the empty air before Granny Ghost, and landing on her soul-body's face.

Granny Ghost felt her face redden at a visible speed; she could even imagine the sound of steam rising from her face. That sudden "Rise"... It was incredibly awkward!

Xu Xiaoshou's eyes grew complex, then his expression contorted. Mei Si Ren's cheeks also puffed out slightly, the flesh on both sides of his face lifting imperceptibly, but he quickly reined himself in. But Xiao Kongdong couldn't hold it in...

"Pfft!" He burst out laughing on the spot, his mouth wide open. "Hahahaha!"

Endless mockery transformed into invisible pressure, invading Granny Ghost's soul body. She tried hard to suppress her shame, adding for herself, "Why can't this old one do it?" "Hee-hee-hee-ha-ha-ha..." The moment this was uttered, Xu Xiaoshou also couldn't hold back.

His strange laughter caused Mei Si Ren, who had almost lost his composure beside him, to stiffen. Mei Si Ren immediately suppressed the possibility of an emotional outburst, and with a pinch of his paper fan, gave Xu Xiaoshou a sharp rap on the head. "What kind of laughter is that...? Control yourself. Everyone has a desire to learn."

Xu Xiaoshou clutched his head, wiping away tears, thinking, "Teacher, you haven't seen my Elder Qiao. Are you looking down on... ah, no, can you not stand the laughter of Elder Qiao, the leader of the Saint Palace's Four Sons?"

Xiao Kongdong, clutching his head, finally curbed his mirth. He shook his head, amused, and said, "Granny, please give us ancient sword cultivators a little face, okay? The Ghost Sword Technique isn't that easy to learn."

"Then how did Xu Xiaoshou master it in one go...?" Granny Ghost pouted and looked away.

"Second step!" Mei Si Ren's single sentence brought everyone back to the main topic. Seeing his students looking, he internalized his sword intent, manifesting it as visible air ripples that gathered back into his eyes.

In an instant, Mei Si Ren's pupils dilated, and two dim, small swords, condensed from sword intent, appeared within them. Then, with a cold glance, the ethereal light emitted by the small swords in his pupils reflected onto the "Spirits" he had previously summoned.

"Gather sword intent back into the body, letting will reside within. Open a 'window of the eye,' using a method similar to the 'Heart Sword Technique,' but instead of focusing on the spiritual will level, focus on the soul level. Form 'Ghost Sigils' in the eyes, and command the 'Spirits' of all things."

"Ghost Sigil," a completely new term... Xu Xiaoshou's mind stirred, and he quickly found similar experiences in his internal knowledge base.

"'All Things Are Swords' for sensing 'Spirit' means focusing attention on the soul level..." "Borrowing this sensation, gather the sword intent at the pupil position, manifesting the invisible into visible form, producing those two dim, small swords—that's the 'Ghost Sigil'..." "The 'Ghost Sigil' is equivalent to the power of the spiritual master in the Heart Sword Technique's 'God-Buddha Before One's Eyes.' Now, it should be called the 'Soul Master,' or more precisely, the decree in the hands of the 'Soul Master,' which can enslave the 'Spirits' of all things."

While Xu Xiaoshou was still sifting through his knowledge base, Granny Ghost, the "good student" secretly learning on the other side, also began to study seriously. Granny Ghost didn't understand the previous words. But for the latter part, her thoughts shifted, and she realized: "Isn't this just a 'Soul Imprint'?" When she commanded ghost spirits, she also had to use a "Soul Imprint" to become their master before issuing commands.

Xiao Kongdong also had two such dim, small swords in his eyes. This was another interpretation of the "Soul Imprint" among ancient sword cultivators. Granny Ghost didn't even need to practice this move; she already knew it. She immediately turned her gaze to Xu Xiaoshou, a slight sneer on her lips.

Unlike the previous sensation of finding spirits, condensing a "Soul Imprint" truly required a great deal of skill and experience! Back then, she had no teacher and researched the cultivation methods of the soul path on her own. Just finding the sensation of condensing a "Soul Imprint" took her half a year—this was even harder than when Little White first refined spirits and tried to circulate spiritual energy through the meridians!

It took Granny Ghost several more days to successfully condense her first Soul Imprint, which was already considered exceptionally talented. However, her initial "Soul Imprint" could only command helpless spirits like chickens and ducks. It wasn't until the "Soul Imprint" grew capable of commanding large, battle-ready ghost spirits that more than half a year had passed.

Mei Si Ren held similar thoughts. He didn't possess extraordinary talent for cultivating the Ghost Sword Technique; he was merely generally strong. Therefore, based on his experience, he knew that the concept of "Ghost Sigil" might be somewhat difficult for a beginner of the Ghost Sword Technique to grasp. After finishing his statement, he was about to provide further explanation.

However, who would have thought that Xu Xiaoshou had already moved after sorting through the knowledge in his mind? "Is that right?"