He could feel himself slowly sinking into the depths from which there is no return.
Bubbles raced upward as he plunged below ; deep here in this hazy blue world they were his only companions who deserted him so soon each taking a little bit of his fading breath with it .
What ungrateful bastards !
They should have stayed for a little while at least .
What would he do on his own in this strange realm which was so empty except for the overwhelming wetness that soaked deep inside his marrow .
His hand reached for the surface in a last futile attempt to grasp the floating spheres that were precisely the stuff that dreams were made of.
So sublime .
In this ethereal world he could see the reflected rainbow forming shapes that danced at the edge of his vision bringing some relief to his aching heart.
So sublime .
The bubbles popped one by one ; unbelievably the solid transformed into vapour that merged into the vast ether that existed in a fantastical world far far away from here .
Subliminal or was it Sublimation ? He wasn't sure how exactly to describe the illusory scene right in front of him plagued as his eyes were by mirage like colours that obscured his rationality .
Deep in the fathoms where no light ever reaches he could feel the rigid form that comprised him slowly wane as this phantasmagorical realm claimed him for it's own .
Eternal silence was forthcoming yet the hunger inside him did not decrease the slightest.
What a pain.
His limbs dissolved into mist ; his body went numb as it became one with the ripples that were affected with chronic wanderlust , his breath arose high in a gigantic fog that shrouded the entire world .
That was it .
Even as momentous tremors passed right through him he witnessed his memories playing forth in slow motion ; some were brighter than the others and others far darker than their compatriots .
He made no comment as he emotionlessly watched the tangled knot that constituted his life unravel right before his eyes.
When the final scene ended he closed his eyes waiting for the inevitable .
Time froze and the currents stirred washing away all filth .
Strangely though the inevitable didn't arrive ; even as the darkness finally descended the final spark of light remained at the edge of his vision , unable to be extinguished .
Why ?
Why after all this time ?
The light quivered in response as if it were answering his accusations .
He took no notice of it and simply scoffed in riposte.
Nevertheless the little radiance didn't disappear and instead grew larger and larger as it neared him ; eventually turning into a blazing sun as it nestled right beside his non-existent arms .
The warmth was intense .
Enough to boil away what little remained of his flesh turning it into a cloud of mist that slowly rose above from the depth.
The light of the sun was obscured by the vast amounts of water that flowed over but it had done its job already.
From where the mist was the distant moonshine was clearly visible penetrating the fog and reaching the core hidden deep inside.
How sublime .
As he watched his body slowly sublime as it accelerated upwards myriad thoughts materialised and faded away in his beleaguered mind.
Perhaps that's why the process that he was undergoing was termed ' Sublimation ' , truly it was transcendental to watch solid flesh with it's innumerable worthless concerns being rent apart into a new form with boundless freedom.
Such a transformation could only take place when who was on the cusp of travelling to the other side had peeked through a keyhole at the door that separated that forbidden world from the Realm of reality.
Though the opportunity to begin a new journey was lost as a compensation you could at least feel the wind beneath your soaring wings .
That's what he felt.
He took a deep breath and his hand condensed by the mist broke through into the world of the surface.
Jiao San felt a newfound power coursing through his veins.
He subconsciously stared at the hollow sky and let out a soundless roar the aftershocks of which radiated outwards devastatingly.
He gazed pitifully at the toy which had been discarded by him long past and had returned to him of it's own volition.
How strange.
He would never understand what passed through in the minds of others even if they happened to be the playthings that he had enjoyed so much.
No , he couldn't understand especially if they were his playthings.
Even after becoming an adept puppeteer there was no way for him to be sure that pulling the same strings would always lead to the same results.
Sometimes the strings became entangled in ways which were unrealised by him and when they unravelled they ended up creating an all new doll with an unpredictable behaviour
Like the one before him right now.
Even after it's strings had snapped long ago it insisted on coming back .
How foolish.
Still there was no harm done , in fact he had only benefited to the contrary !
This strange sensation of sublimity that affected him right now giving rise to melodies that wouldn't have arisen any other way was certainly a huge gift that he felt grateful for.
In that case as courtesy dictated it was only right that he dance the little puppet to the melody that it begged for so much.
He lifted his face and addressed the forlorn man who was standing in a defensive stance , perhaps because he was paralyzed in the aftermath of what happened.
" Do you lust for the sword ? "
He said softly his voice flowing as silkily as the forked tongue that gently graced his fangs.
The man's brows quivered momentarily even so his face was as resolute as it was before .
Clearly he was extremely suspicious after all they were enemies engaged in a battle and it was understood by all that deception was the true essence of warfare.
However this time he was sorely mistaken.
He , Jiao San regardless of possessing faults which when numbered could far outstrip the quantity of stars in the night sky or the hair that were present in the hide of a sheep ( as a side note he had carefully counted both and had concluded that the latter was undoubtably greater than the former , but that is a matter for another time ) still knew how to honour his debts.
Therefore he continued , bound as he was by his non-existent principle , " What does your sword mean to you ? "
The man whom he didn't remember at all even if he had been his playmate long ago stared inquiringly back at him , when confronted by his curious eyes his face eased a bit .
Though he was cautious for fear of a trap the confidence in his answer was unshaken , "My sword is my unalienable partner . In life and death we are inseparable ! "
On hearing his response Jiao San nodded thoughtfully for a moment before letting out a heartfelt sigh .
" It is this obsessive attachment of yours to your sword that is stopping your progress on the [Path Of The Sword] ."
" What do you mean ? " he asked skeptically , flummoxed as he undoubtably was by the sudden discussion on the [Way of The Sword ].
" You have clearly reached the stage of [Two Minds United , Two Hearts beat as One ] and your [Sword Intent ] is congealed and precise , your Sword has also condensed the [Basis of life] which is admirable . In that case you should be aware that your process has stagnated with the only hope of progress being , receiving the [Enlightenment ] that allows you to reach the next stage . Isn't that so ? "
The other man was just as disbelieving as he was before the only difference being that he now had a spark of curiosity in his eyes where there had only been stillness before.
Therefore unwillingly or otherwise the man responded and continued their conversation which had already dragged on far longer than he had expected it to be .
"Yes , unless I reach the next stage of [ Body and Soul as One ] there is no hope of progress left in my life on the [Way of the Sword ] "
The unwillingness could be seen in the man's eyes as clearly as the moonlight . No doubt , he was some talent in a remote area and was expected to go on to accomplish great things ; being confronted then with a pitfall not once but twice was certainly not helpful for his already fragile confidence.
Hmm.
He didn't quite recollect why he had tossed this particular doll away long ago but the fact that he managed to mend himself to the extent that he managed to push him this hard was quite commendable.
Regretfuly then , he would have to inflict another cruel blow .
There was no way of telling if the cute , little doll would manage to survive or would instead be broken into pieces.
" In that case why not let me show you the stage of [ Body and Soul as One ] perhaps that will be conducive to your progress . That's decided then I am definitely going to do my best to show you the true meaning of having reached unity with the sword as a thanks for the help that you have given me ."
The man's eyebrows drew together and his shoulders tensed up as he waited expectantly for the attack that was going to arrive soon.
Unfortunately for him it would make no difference since he Jiao San had decided to his best .
He took a deep breath and inhaled the stale air that was heavy with dust accumulated as a consequence of the doll's last indiscriminate strike that had taken apart the environment along with the bodies of both of them.
Instantly he found himself sinking once more into the waters this time however he had a clear sense of direction and dived hard and deep along a particular path that was only visible to him .
Walking under the sea , escorted by feeble wisps that flickered with a ghastly radiance he wandered along unconcerned till he reached his destination which was at the edge of a massive trench that plunged all the way towards the Nether Realm located at the bottom of the universe.
A gentle light steadily radiated outwards from a tightly bound chest located by the side of a cliff that overlooked the abyss.
The light contrary to it's appearance evoked no gentleness in him all it did was to stabilise his twisted mind in a sense that it acquired a sense of purpose , it was being honed into a fine blade that can pierce through all obstacles.
He deftly undid the clasp of the chest and grasped the sword lying inside , once more when his impure flesh came in contact with the sword it frothed and bubbled as it evaporated rapidly turning into an all too familiar mist.
Once more he was experiencing the sublimity of sublimation.
When his slits opened in the [Battle Space] they were no longer the eyes of the living instead they were the eyes of a sword .
Peerless and incomparably sharp with a will to stab the firmament itself if possible.
The aura of this being which was a Sword clad in the flesh of the living climbed up rapidly until the space itself began to vibrate , it being unable to handle the massive splendour that was being radiated from this mythical being.
When he saw the changes that were occuring around him Jin Wangsun's faith was shattered in an instant . His face became pale and the hand holding his dearest sword shook in indecision and horrified shock.
" Im .. Impossible " , he gasped involuntarily .
How could a monstrous being such as that which in no-manner whatsoever showed the conduct that was appropriate for a cultivator who pursued the legendary [Path of the Sword ] be able to reach the state that had eluded generations of [ Sword Cultivators ] ?
For the first time since he had contacted the illusory [Path Of Immortality ] and had chosen to spend the rest of his journey with the sword in his hands he questioned himself regarding the true meaning of being a [ Sword Cultivator ] .
Unfortunately for him the brief moment of indecision was all it took for the being to acclimatise.
If he had attacked it within the brief timespan that it was being materialised he might have still managed to pull off a victory though it would have been a pyrrhic one moreover his [Sword Heart ] would have been tempered further and he would have finally approached the [Gate Of Good Fortune ] that precedes the onset of [ True Enlightenment ] .
Now there was no chance left for him at all.
After his heart was shaken , the sword shaped will he possessed collapsed and turned into mist , subliming in a subliminal manner as it forsook him , attracted as it was by the gravitational pull of the new being in front of it.
That was all it took .
A strike from one Sword.
A Parry from Another.
The Weaker shattered and broke apart .
The Stronger pierced through unimpeded and devoured the soul of the Weaker one.
The corpse of the Weaker faded away along with the world that sheltered the last remnants of it's will.
Sublimation was inescapable.