The Unrivaled Tang Sect Volume 21, Chapter 192.3: In the Depths of the Clouds

The surrounding mountains meandered around this steeply sloped peak. However, even the tallest of the surrounding mountains only reached halfway up this kingly summit. An ocean of clouds drifted above the range of mountains, but an onlooker could only see the part of this peak that was below the sea of clouds; one would have to rise above the clouds to see what was above.
“We must be here. Truly hidden somewhere in the clouds!” Huo Yuhao exclaimed in awe. It wasn’t difficult for him to guess that they were nearing Wang Dong’s home with a sight as spectacular as this. However, what was up with this family? They actually built their home on a peak as steep as this!
This was the first time Huo Yuhao had ever come across something as magnificent as this. Furthermore, Wang Dong’s home was also there!
Wang Dong giggled and said, “Bingo! Let’s fly up. Do you think your flying-type soul tool can go that far up?”
Huo Yuhao said, “I don’t think it’ll be a problem. The only thing is that we will consume more and more soul power the higher we go. Why don’t we fly to the mountain’s waist, and then climb up? It’ll be safer that way.”
Wang Dong nodded and said, “Alright, let’s go then. Time to go home!” He shouted the last four words excitedly.
They unleashed their soul power and surged straight towards the steepest peak in the mountains. The distance was truly hard to gauge; it seemed from a distance that they were quite near, but it took them fifteen minutes just to reach it. Huo Yuhao could feel the immense pressure from the towering peak becoming stronger as they got closer. Its majesty and how tall it was made it seem like a sky pillar connecting the heavens to the earth.
They arrived on a smooth slope, and Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong withdrew the flying-type soul tools on their backs. Huo Yuhao looked around, feeling as if the clouds were right above his head, and he could touch them if he reached up.
Even this place was probably two thousand meters above sea level, and he still had no idea how high this peak actually was above the ocean of clouds.
He couldn’t wait to reach the top and look down at the all the tiny mountains below him. Huo Yuhao felt a rising elation in his heart, and couldn’t resist howling into the sky.
This howl echoed through the clouds, and even caused the surrounding mists to quiver and dissipate. Huo Yuhao’s eyes unwittingly turned golden as he gazed at the shifting clouds, and he sat down subconsciously. He seemed to grasp something at this moment, and his spiritual sea was faintly stimulated – it started to imitate the ocean of clouds drifting around.
The boundless spiritual sea could also be an ocean of clouds!
He sat there with his legs crossed as he stared into the distance with sparkling eyes. His entire body stopped moving.
Wang Dong landed on the mountain one step after Huo Yuhao did, and he immediately detected Huo Yuhao’s sudden transformation. Others would probably urge Huo Yuhao to hurry up the mountain, but not him. He was too familiar with Huo Yuhao, and Wang Dong immediately realized after observing the look in his eyes and the soul power rippling through his body that something was happening to Huo Yuhao.
Sudden enlightenment? Is this the sudden enlightenment that our teacher talked about?
Wang Dong vividly remembered that Elder Mu had once said soul masters could gain more from a single moment of sudden enlightenment than from ten years of toiling cultivation. Such a thing wouldn’t boost your cultivation – it pushed the boundaries back. For spiritual-type soul masters like Huo Yuhao, pushing one’s boundaries and widening the ambit was slightly more important.
Why was he able to use Sovereign’s Descent to suppress Ji Juechen? Because the Sovereign’s Descent was in a far higher realm than Ji Juechen’s self-invented sword mantra.
Huo Yuhao had a great teacher, but Elder Mu didn’t guide him according to his own path. Instead, he had helped Huo Yuhao search for the path that was most suitable for him. And at this moment, he was experiencing sudden enlightenment. Wang Dong was a little exasperated, but he was more than happy for him. He would never risk disturbing or interrupting Huo Yuhao in a time like this, as one would never know when the next sudden enlightenment would come if he missed this opportunity.
The Radiant Butterfly Goddess’ wings unfolded, and Wang Dong turned around before he flapped his wings and flew through the layer of clouds. He turned back around after a moment, sat down beside Huo Yuhao, and followed his gaze, staring far off into the ocean of clouds.
After another moment, gray figures emerged soundlessly from within the clouds, and they formed a circle around Huo Yuhao at a distance when Wang Dong signaled to them. Every one of them looked high-spirited, and were between twenty-five to thirty-five years old. All of their eyes sparkled, and over twenty of them quickly formed a strict and orderly formation.
Wang Dong whispered, “Remain here to protect him. Don’t let anybody or anything disturb him, do you understand? I’m going to visit my eldest uncle and second uncle.”
All the grey-cloaked figures bowed toward him respectfully, and didn’t make a single sound as they faced outward, their backs to Huo Yuhao.
Wang Dong glanced at Huo Yuhao one more time, and then soared away through the clouds only after he ensured that Huo Yuhao was all right.
Huo Yuhao himself didn’t know what kind of state he was currently in. All he could feel was that his mind was a complete blank, while his spiritual sea rippled faintly and rhythmically. His spiritual sea was originally liquid, but a golden mist now began to evaporate from its surface. The mist was pale and thin, but it imitated the ocean of clouds before him and gradually took its form.
The sea was boundless, and had no end. The transformation in his spiritual power wasn’t as vigorous as the last qualitative change, but it gave Huo Yuhao a different sensation. His sudden enlightenment was best described with two words: transformation and conversion.
He had always been using his spiritual power directly. Spiritual power had always been a force that was similar in nature to soul power to him. However, he now began to grasp another form of spiritual power at this moment as he experienced a fundamental change in his understanding of it.
Spiritual power was different from soul power. Spiritual power was at a higher level, but it couldn’t be used directly and activated like soul power could. The circulation of spiritual power was also empirically different from soul power circulation – soul power emphasized absorbing the vitality of heaven and earth for personal use, and it was a force that was born from a martial soul. On the other hand, spiritual power was a representation of the power of one’s spirit. It was something that every living thing possessed, and it was also one of the most empirical and original forces, while also the foundation for one’s ability to activate soul power.
His spiritual sea was converted into vapor from liquid form. The transformation wasn’t that great, because it seemed aqueous anyway. However, this transformation process was invaluable for Huo Yuhao. It meant that he would gradually have more control over his spiritual power, and he could better grasp the fusion between his spiritual power and his soul skills. This didn’t just represent using Sovereign’s Descent to merge them together. He would obtain a deeper understanding on a spiritual level, so that he could have more control over everything.
Wang Dong returned after about an hour to Huo Yuhao’s side. Just when he was preparing himself to wait for as long as he needed, Huo Yuhao’s body shifted, and the golden light in his eyes slowly receded.
Is it over? So fast? Wang Dong didn’t know that Huo Yuhao was in a meditative state for almost half a year because of his spirit’s qualitative change, so he didn’t know that Huo Yuhao’s spiritual power had already gone through a qualitative change. This sudden enlightenment only helped him better understand his spiritual power.
A layer of pale white mist rose from Huo Yuhao’s body. The winds billowing through the mountains were strong, but they couldn’t touch this mist coming from his body. The white mist slowly drifted upwards, and gradually took the form a clean and white flower above his head.
Huo Yuhao raised his head and took in a deep breath. The enormous white flower reverted to a misty sphere and flowed in through his nose.
“Hey!” Huo Yuhao suddenly roared into the sky. The layer of misty golden light flowed out from his body in that instant – yes, from his entire body, and not just his head.
During the process of the golden light mist’s eruption, Wang Dong and the grey-cloaked figures on guard could feel their spirits go dim, as everything around them became murky and blurry.
Huo Yuhao withdrew his mind and heart, while his eyes flowed with divine light. The Eye of Destiny on his forehead opened, and the permeating golden light mist instantly transformed into specks of flowing light as they returned to his body.
He raised his head and gazed at the rolling clouds above him. He opened his eyes wide, as a purple-gold radiance flickered once and disappeared. Light didn’t come out this time, but his Spirit Eyes were now a different color. A tremendous whirlpool appeared in the ocean of clouds in the distance and spun vigorously. The whirlpool caused the clouds and mist around it to surge through the sky, and went on for about ten seconds before it was swallowed by the sprawling ocean of clouds once more.
“Oh…” Huo Yuhao reoriented himself, and there was only elation in his eyes. This sudden enlightenment undoubtedly gave him more control over his spiritual power, and that would be beneficial for his cultivation. Having more control over his spirit meant he would have better control over using his spiritual power to manipulate soul power, and better control naturally meant a faster cultivation speed.
When he suddenly discovered the grey-cloaked people around him, he immediately felt everyone staring at him as if he were a monster. It was clear that they had no clue what had just transpired.
Not even Wang Dong, who was beside Huo Yuhao, knew what had happened.
“Are you alright, Yuhao?” Wang Dong’s voice lowered the alarm and guard that Huo Yuhao had just raised.
“I’m alright. I think I suddenly understood something – I think this is what our teacher referred to as sudden enlightenment,” Huo Yuhao scratched his head as he spoke with a little embarrassment.
Wang Dong snapped, “Don’t you feel ashamed saying that? Your sudden enlightenment is fine, but you made me so worried! Thankfully, it didn’t take very long.”
Huo Yuhao chuckled and said, “I have to grasp the opportunity when it comes my way. Sorry, sorry. Are these your family members?” He pointed at the grey-cloaked people around them as he spoke.
Wang Dong nodded and said, “Yes.” He turned towards the grey-cloaked people and said, “Thank you, everyone. You can go back now.”
“Yes.” The grey-cloaked individuals finally spoke, their voices were organized and uniform. Nobody asked any questions, and it was obvious that they were extremely respectful toward Wang Dong. They leapt into the sky and vanished among the clouds.