I was a mineral prospector in Chengdu, who transmigrated into the body of a mortal sword immortal.

Li Bai's figure disappeared into the depths of the stairs.

The cracks in the altar slowly closed, sealing the trial grounds once more. Suddenly, the bells around the bronze tree vibrated in unison, emitting an ancient and resonant harmony, as if witnessing yet another successor embarking on their journey. In the plaza, the high priest's scepter trembled slightly—cracks began to appear in the silver aura at the edge of the passage.

The red-robed elder's expression changed: "High Priest, the spatial structure can't hold!"

Duan Qiniang rushed forward a few steps, but was blocked by the barrier, and could only anxiously look at the gate of light. Half an hour was passing by, second by second.

The high priest took a deep breath and slammed his scepter heavily on the ground.

"Hold on!"

The purple crystal burst forth with dazzling light, and the four elders simultaneously channeled their spiritual power, stabilizing the previously fluctuating edges of the portal. However, everyone could sense that the energy required to maintain the passage was rapidly increasing.

Elder Aoki's forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat, and his voice was hoarse: "At most... just another quarter of an hour."

The high priest did not answer.

Her gaze pierced through the portal, looking into the depths of the Sanxingdui Mystic Realm. There, Li Bai had already stepped into the Trial Grounds, and the final revelation from the Guardian Spirit had only just begun to be transmitted.

***

The Sanxingdui Secret Realm, beneath the altar.

The steps descended, the walls on either side inlaid with luminous jade stones that emitted a soft, milky-white glow. A faint metallic rust scent mingled with the lingering aroma of some ancient incense. With each step Li Bai took, the stone slabs beneath his feet resonated subtly, as if the entire altar were responding to his arrival.

After descending about a hundred steps, the view suddenly opened up before me.

This is a huge underground space.

The dome, about ten zhang high, was inlaid with countless star-like luminous crystals arranged according to some mysterious star map. The ground was as smooth as a mirror, paved with a single piece of black jade, its surface so smooth that it reflected one's image. In the center of the space stood a colossal statue.

The statue was about three zhang tall, neither gold nor jade, its material neither stone nor wood. Its surface had a warm, grayish-white hue, as if it had weathered countless years. The statue was a human figure sitting cross-legged, with his hands in a mudra on his knees. His face was indistinct, but his eyes—at this moment—were radiating a soft yet urgent light.

Within the light, images flowed and shifted.

Li Bai stopped in his tracks.

The Azure Lotus Sword vibrated violently at his waist, the scabbard rubbing against the blade with a buzzing sound. He could feel a profound connection between the sword and the statue.

"This is the 'Guardian Spirit'."

A voice came from behind.

Li Bai turned around abruptly, only to see the High Priestess appear at the entrance of the stairs. She held a scepter, her white robes shimmering faintly in the light of the crystals, and her face wore a complex expression—awe, expectation, and a hint of barely perceptible worry.

"How could you..." Li Bai frowned.

"The passage is temporarily stable." The high priest walked in slowly, his gaze never leaving the statue. "I used a clone technique to enter, while my main body is still outside maintaining the barrier. Time is short; I can only stay for half an incense stick's time."

She walked to Li Bai's side and looked up at the guardian spirit.

The light in the statue's eyes shone even brighter.

The shifting images became clear—mountains crumbled, floods raged, and countless lives struggled in the disaster; then a group of people dressed in strange attire appeared, wielding magical artifacts and setting up a grand formation to quell the catastrophe; and then, these people built secret realms, sealing the seeds of civilization within them…

"The Xiling Divine Kingdom, the Sanxingdui Secret Realm, and several other hidden places on the land of China all belong to a lost ancient civilization." The high priest's voice echoed in the empty space. "We call it the 'Xiahou Clan,' or an even earlier era—an era in which mythology and history intertwined."

Li Bai gazed at the scene.

He saw a colossal bronze tree, identical to the one on the altar outside, only much larger. Instead of bells, its branches were adorned with luminous orbs. Beneath the tree, priests in long robes were performing a ritual, chanting ancient incantations and channeling some kind of power into the depths of the earth.

"They are the guardians," the high priest continued. "They protect the earth's veins and the flame of civilization. These secret realms are both 'observation stations,' monitoring changes in the heavens and earth and fluctuations in the earth's veins, and 'refuges,' preserving the legacy of civilization in the event of disaster."

The scene changed again.

This time, Li Bai witnessed war.

Two armies clashed on the plains, one clad in ancient armor, the other shrouded in black mist. Wherever the black mist passed, vegetation withered, and life was ravaged. The armored army retreated in disarray, finally disappearing into a secret realm.

The moment the entrance to the secret realm closed, the black mist was blocked outside.

But the scene didn't end.

Li Bai observed that within the secret realm, the guardians were beginning to split. One group advocated holding their ground and waiting for an opportunity; the other wanted to take the initiative and completely eliminate the source of the black mist. The disagreement escalated into conflict, and the conflict into civil war…

"This is the origin of the ancient demons." The high priest's voice deepened. "Those black mists are some kind of evil force from beyond the realm. The civil war within the secret realm caused cracks in the seal, sealing some of the demons deep within, while others... escaped."

The image freezes on a sword.

It was a long sword, entirely blue, with a slender blade and lotus patterns carved on the hilt. It was almost identical to the Azure Lotus Sword at Li Bai's waist.

"The Azure Lotus Sword," the High Priest said, looking at Li Bai, "is one of the keys connecting various secret realms, possessing partial 'judgment' authority. The wielder of this sword can travel between secret realms, mobilize some of their power, and even... influence 'destiny' to a certain extent."

"Destiny?" Li Bai repeated the word.

"The trajectory of fate, the chain of cause and effect," the high priest explained. "The ancient guardians believed that everything has its predetermined trajectory. But there are always some 'outliers' who can break this trajectory. You—"

She turned around and looked directly at Li Bai.

"You come from the future, your soul traversing a thousand years of time and space. You are entangled in karma across three lifetimes with a specific person—a woman named Yang Xiaohuan, or rather, Yang Yuhuan. All of this makes you that 'outlier'."

The light in the statue's eyes suddenly intensified.

The scene shifts again, and this time, Li Bai's familiar figure appears—

On the streets of Chengdu in 2003, he adjusted his glasses and watched as Yang Xiaohuan was held hostage by two burly men. A dagger pierced her chest, and blood stained her shirt.

In the prosperous city of Chengdu during the Tang Dynasty, fifteen-year-old Yang Yuhuan turned her head amidst the flowers and smiled sweetly.

In the ICU ward, the electrocardiogram turned into a flat line, and then started beating again.

The three images flashed alternately and finally overlapped.

"The guardian spirit is telling you," the high priest's voice carried a solemn tone, "that your transmigration was not accidental, your encounter with her was not accidental, and your acquisition of the Azure Lotus Sword was not accidental. All of this conforms to some ancient 'destiny' condition. You were chosen by the secret realm, chosen by the Azure Lotus Sword, and became the 'successor' of this generation."

Li Bai felt a tightness in his chest.

He recalled the deep sorrow and helplessness he saw in Yang Xiaohuan's eyes before his death in his previous life. He remembered the stirring deep within his soul when he first saw Yang Yuhuan after his rebirth. He remembered the resolute determination with which he embarked on his journey to Mount Shu in search of power…

Was all of this really preordained?

"No," Li Bai suddenly spoke, his voice echoing through the space, "I am not anyone's pawn."

The high priest looked at him, a hint of admiration flashing in his eyes.

“That’s right,” she said. “‘Destiny’ is just a condition, not a shackle. The guardian spirit chose you because you meet the conditions, but ultimately, how you choose and how you act is still up to you.”

She raised her scepter and pointed it at the statue.

"Now, the guardian spirit will deliver its final message."

The light in the statue's eyes began to dim.

The fleeting images vanished, replaced by lines of ancient text. The text was neither seal script nor oracle bone script, but a more primitive, more pictographic symbolic system. Li Bai didn't recognize the characters, but when his gaze fell upon them, the meaning flowed directly into his mind—

**"Deep within the Sanxingdui mystery lies the secret of 'the alteration of destiny'."**

**"Causality can be corrected, and trajectories can be shifted, but at a huge cost."**

**"To wield the Azure Lotus, one must pass the 'Trial of the Sword Heart'."**

"The trial grounds are located at the heart of this secret realm."

"Danger and opportunity coexist; life and death hang by a thread."

The text flashed three times and then disappeared.

The light in the statue's eyes dimmed completely, returning to its original grayish-white. The entire underground space fell silent, save for the soft glow emanating from the jade and Li Bai's slightly rapid breathing.

The high priest reclaimed the scepter.

Her figure began to become transparent—the time for the clone technique was almost up.

"You've seen it all," she said. "Deep within the Sanxingdui Secret Realm lies the secret of how to alter destiny and correct cause and effect. But it is also fraught with immense danger—the remnants of ancient demons, the out-of-control array of the secret realm, or perhaps... something else entirely."

She paused, then looked at the Azure Lotus Sword at Li Bai's waist.

"To truly master this sword and gain the power to change your destiny, you must pass the 'Trial of the Sword Heart.' The final location of the trial is at the core of the Sanxingdui Mystic Realm—deeper than here."

Li Bai remained silent.

He could feel the Azure Lotus Sword slightly warm in its sheath, as if urging him to make a decision. Deep within his soul, that call became clearer and more urgent.

"What is the Sword Heart Trial?" he asked.

"I don't know." The high priest shook his head. "The content of the trials is different for each generation, depending on the successor's heart. It might be a test of illusion, it might be actual combat, it might be a tribulation of inner demons... The only certainty is that the trials are nine out of ten times dead."

Her figure became even more transparent, and the edges began to fade away.

"Moreover, once you enter the trial, it may trigger unpredictable ripples in spacetime." The high priest's voice became ethereal. "Your soul already transcends spacetime, and the trial may amplify this characteristic, causing the boundaries between past, present, and future to become blurred. You may see things you shouldn't see, you may encounter people you shouldn't encounter, and even... you may change some things that have already happened."

Li Bai gripped the hilt of his sword tightly.

He thought of Yang Yuhuan.

He remembered her future as a concubine, her tragic end at Mawei Slope. He remembered his past life, powerless to protect Yang Xiaohuan, watching helplessly as she sank into the mire. He remembered this life, where he possessed power, yet still felt utterly powerless before imperial authority and history…

If there really is a chance to change fate.

If it were truly possible to correct cause and effect.

Then——

"The trial is fraught with peril, and once entered, it may trigger unpredictable ripples in spacetime." The High Priest's final voice echoed, clear yet heavy. "You... are you willing to go?"

Her figure vanished completely.

In the underground space, only Li Bai remained, facing the silent statue of the guardian spirit.

The air was filled with the glow of jade and an ancient aura. The black jade ground beneath one's feet was icy cold. The Azure Lotus Sword hummed continuously in its sheath, as if awaiting its master's decision.

Li Bai closed his eyes.

Countless images flashed through my mind—

The sorrow in Yang Xiaohuan's eyes when she was taken hostage.

Yang Yuhuan's gentle smile as she glances back amidst the flowers.

The image of Duan Qiniang playing the zither in Pingkangfang, Chang'an.

The silhouette of Du Fu reciting poetry in his thatched cottage.

And... that man sitting on the dragon throne, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Li Longji.

He opened his eyes.

His gaze fell on the Azure Lotus Sword.

The lotus pattern on the scabbard swirled in the light, as if it had come alive. He could sense the dormant spirit within the sword, and feel the yearning to be truly awakened.

In his previous life, he was just an ordinary geological engineer, powerless against the forces of evil.

In this life, he became the poet Li Bai, yet he still felt powerless in the face of imperial power.

But now—

He has the opportunity to gain the power to change everything.

I have the opportunity to protect the people I want to protect.

There is an opportunity to correct those regrets and tragedies.

Even if the road ahead is fraught with peril.

Even if it might lead to unpredictable consequences.

Li Bai took a deep breath, gripped the hilt of his sword, and slowly drew the Azure Lotus Sword.

The moment the sword was drawn, a cyan light illuminated the entire underground space. The sword's cry was high-pitched and clear, like a dragon's roar echoing through the heavens. The lotus patterns on the sword bloomed layer upon layer, radiating a powerful sword intent.

He looked up at the statue of the guardian spirit.

The statue did not react, but there seemed to be a faint shimmering light passing through its grayish-white surface.

"I am willing to go."

Li Bai's voice echoed in the space, firm and clear.

The moment the words were spoken, the underground space began to shake.

The ground in front of the guardian spirit statue cracked open, revealing a downward spiral staircase. The staircase seemed bottomless, with a dark red light emanating from its depths, exuding a chilling aura.

At the same time, Li Bai felt the Dingkong pendant at his waist begin to heat up.

That was a temporary artifact given to him by the high priest to stabilize space. At this moment, the Space-Stabilizing Pendant was getting hot, which meant that the outer passage was about to collapse—he had to make a decision as soon as possible: either return now or enter the trial.

No hesitation.

Li Bai held the Green Lotus Sword horizontally in front of him and stepped onto the spiral staircase.

As soon as the first step was taken, countless runes suddenly lit up on both sides of the stairs. The runes shimmered with a dark red light, forming barriers that completely blocked any escape route.

As you step down the second time, the steps beneath your feet begin to rotate and descend automatically, at an increasingly faster speed.

With the third step, the entrance above their heads slammed shut.

Darkness enveloped everything.

Only the azure light emanating from the Azure Lotus Sword illuminated the area three feet in front of them.

Li Bai could feel himself descending to the deepest part of the secret realm. The concentration of spiritual energy in the air was rising rapidly, almost solidifying, and each breath felt like swallowing nectar. But at the same time, a heavy pressure surged from all directions, as if the power of the entire secret realm was pressing down on him.

He circulated his cultivation technique, and the spiritual energy of the early Foundation Establishment stage surged through his meridians.

The Azure Lotus Sword emitted a cheerful hum, actively absorbing the surrounding spiritual energy and transforming it into pure sword essence to nourish its master. Li Bai could feel his cultivation level increasing at a visible rate—advancing from the early Foundation Establishment stage to the middle stage.

But this is not enough.

The Sword Heart Trial tests not one's cultivation level, but one's sword heart.

What is Kenshin?

Li Bai recalled the guardian "Qi's" last words: "The true heart of the sword lies not in what it cuts, but in what it protects."

He recalled his experiences of being reborn twice.

In his past life, he wanted to protect his wife Yang Xiaohuan, but he was powerless to do so.

In this life, he wants to protect Yang Yuhuan, but he faces obstacles from imperial power and history.

So, what exactly is his sword heart?

Is it to protect loved ones, even at the cost of being an enemy of the world?

Or is it for the greater good, to sacrifice the individual for the sake of all living beings?

Amidst my chaotic thoughts, the spiral staircase finally came to an end.

A door appeared ahead.

A door made of countless sword blades.