Situ Cheng was completely enraged.
"A foolish child cannot be taught, a rotten log cannot be carvedïŒ"
You bastard, did you even bother to feel it properly?
That bratâs rank, could it really be higher than mine, Situ Cheng?
Then should I hand over the position of the Four Great Divine Swords to him?!
"In this world, there are only two sword cultivators whose rank surpasses mine."
"One is my senior brother, who is slightly stronger than me."
"The other is Jiang Zhi, who, even after voluntarily dropping his realm, still remains unfathomableïŒ"
On this point, Situ Cheng was very clearâthere could never be a third person!
That gaunt Daoist nun of the Dao Gate did indeed have an extraordinary sword Dao talent, her strength far exceeding what a Seventh Realm should possess.
"But for her to surpass me, she must first break through the bottleneck of the Seventh RealmïŒ" he said inwardly.
At this moment, he sat in the small courtyard, raising his head to look toward Hidden Spirit Mountain.
Because he was in the Dao Gate, he instantly recalled that sword.
"Oh right, aside from Senior Brother and Jiang Zhi, there is also that sword!
That matchless sword, before which even the Sword Sovereign was no opponent!
Situ Cheng had once gone up the mountain to challenge it. The Bronze Swordâs sword spirit ranked extremely high, pressing him down.
At this moment, he snorted coldly at Mo Lingfeng.
"Since your heart is already in turmoil, go seek the reason yourself."
"Perhaps, this is simply a tribulation you are destined to crossïŒ"
So foolishâthere was no way this old man could save him.
Geng Tianhe, listening at the side, also felt that Junior Brother Mo must have gone insane.
"He must have been driven into madness by Chu Huaixuâs words, âYour sword fears me.â"
"To actually say such disrespectful things to Elder Situ."
Mo Lingfeng opened his mouth, feeling somewhat wronged.
Clearly, it had been Elder Situ who kept pressing him with questions.
Moreover, after he had given his answer, the sword spirit that resonated with his heart had agreedâŠ..
But now that Elder Situ was clearly furious, even if Mo Lingfeng was stupid, he absolutely dared not say another word.
Wouldnât that be courting death?
In truth, he himself didnât understand what exactly the Heavenly Stone Swordâs sword spirit feared about Chu Huaixu.
The look of fear it displayed on the arena, as though submitting to him!
Elsewhere, Chu Huaixu had already returned home.
As for the Heavenly Stone Swordâs reaction, he was not surprised.
Because when he climbed Hidden Spirit Mountain, werenât all the swords on that mountain the same?
Even though the black small sword in his Sea of Consciousness was sickly, it was as if a single glance from it would still force them to kneel, unable to raise their heads.
At this moment, he sat on the meditation cushion, organizing his harvests. "The second stage of the main mission ăEastern and Western Continentsâ Grand Competitionă has also been completed."
Chu Huaixu successfully claimed the stage rewards, obtaining 30,000 Experience Points, as well as one ăYellow-rank Technique Upgrade Voucheră.
"As the name implies, the upgrade voucher is used to upgrade skills."
"When ăComprehensionă meets the requirement, the most efficient method is to use it to upgrade from level 3 to level 4."
"That is, to raise a technique from the Great Accomplishment stage to Great Perfection."
But right now, things were a bit awkward.
Chu Huaixuâs techniques were all at the Profound-rank.
And this item was virtual, unable to be given to others.
For the moment, it seemed a little useless.
"I could go check the Scripture Pavilion. Some special techniques, though Yellow-rank, can still be learned."
Some techniques, though only Yellow-rank, might have great side effects, but their power was not weak.
And there were also Yellow-rank techniques that served as foundations for Earth-rank or even Heaven-rank techniques.
You first had to master them before advancing to inherit higher-level techniques of the same lineage.
"These two categories of techniques are worth considering."
"My pain tolerance is high, and my regeneration is abnormal. If some Yellow-rank techniques are similar to the ăSixfold Snow and Lightningă Little Xu gave me, I could learn them."
"As for the latter typeâthe foundational onesâthey are usually stronger than their peers at the same level."
With that thought, he rose and headed toward the Scripture Pavilion.
Just as he stepped out of the bamboo hut, he turned and knocked on Han Shuangjiangâs door.
"Iâm planning to go to the Scripture Pavilion. Do you want to come?"
"Didnât you say before that you felt you still lacked a defensive techniqueïŒ" said Chu Huaixu.
"I wonât be exchanging anything this time." As always, Han Shuangjiang, who had no means of production, was strapped for contribution points. She said: "But I can accompany you for a stroll."
Right now, she still owed Chu Huaixu several thousand Sect Contribution Points.
Of the 300 points she had left, 200 had already been spent in the Gambling House.
As someone ranked second on the ăMust-Eat List of Play Companionsă, Chu Huaixu immediately saw through her plight.
But he was differentâhe had the Medicinal Cauldron ăDao Birth Oneă doing âunder-the-table workâ for him, refining pills day and night automatically, making him already an Outer Sect rich man.
You remain poor as always, and this rich man is very satisfied. Youâre willing to accompany me for a stroll, and this rich man is very happy.
Thus, the two of them set out together for the Scripture Pavilion, each exchanging for a technique on the way.
Under Chu Huaixuâs persuasion, Han Shuangjiang, who had originally only planned to browse casually, once again resorted to borrowing for high spending.
Her debts piled higher and higher.
As for himself, he also found a technique that suited his liking.
The Profound-rank defensive technique Han Shuangjiang exchanged for was strongly recommended by Chu Huaixu.
Because in ăBorrowed Swordă, this was one of her early life-saving techniques. Its name was ordinary, called ăIce Crystal Lotusă.
As the name suggested, it manifested a lotus of solid ice around the body for protection.
As for the Yellow-rank defensive technique Chu Huaixu chose, its name was also plain, called ăInk Splashă.
After circulating his Spiritual Energy, an ink-like airflow swirled around his body, forming a protective shield.
It was the foundation of an Earth-rank technique, and its name was rather interestingâit was actually called ăStained by Inkă.
This technique was also primarily defensive in nature. Similarly, streams of ink-colored airflow would circulate around the body, but its defensive effect was even stronger.
Moreover, the reason it was called ăStained by Inkă was that once the enemy was tainted by this airflow, they would be âmarked by ink,â equivalent to being tagged, allowing precise tracking!
Chu Huaixu felt this technique could be used together with the sword scabbard ăDing Fengboă.
The scabbard stored multiple streams of sword qi. In group battles, once the âink-markâ effect was triggered, no matter how scattered the opponentsâ positions were, sword qi could strike them with pinpoint accuracy.
Of course, there was one more important point: "This thingâs special effect looks amazing!
Itâs like having a brush dipped in ink painting strokes all over your body.
An ink-painting styleâit certainly doesnât lack a sense of refinement."
After leaving the Scripture Pavilion, Chu Huaixu and Han Shuangjiang headed together toward the Martial Arena.
From the timing, in just a quarter of an hour, it would be Little Xuâs match.
Little Xuâs draw of lots was similar to Han Shuangjiangâsâthey had never pulled weak opponents like Lang Yue.
Clearly, the World Protagonist had to endure all kinds of trials.
He carried a massive sword case on his back, winning with considerable difficulty.
But both Chu Huaixu and Han Shuangjiang noticed that Xu Ziqingâs magical treasures were increasing.
The white robe he wore was also a Mid-grade Spiritual Artifact.
Even the pair of shoes on his feet were Mid-grade Spiritual Artifacts.
"Eh, did that Little Martial Uncle Ancestor even outfit him with gearïŒ" Chu Huaixu thought with surprise.
But soon he couldnât help but smile: "If I went to Little Xu to ask for some, heâd surely give them to me, wouldnât he?"
After the match ended, the three of them found a quiet spot to chat briefly.
The three of them, like a family, didnât see each other often. For Chu Huaixu and Han Shuangjiang, it was like their child had gone to boarding school, with only one âparent visitation dayâ per week, when they could see him at night.
Before parting, Xu Ziqing handed Chu Huaixu a pill.
"Senior Brother, this is a ăBone-tempering and Marrow-washing Pillă. For Body Training cultivators of the first three realms, itâs an extremely rare spiritual medicine."
"The Second Elder refined ten for me in total. I now seem to have reached the limit of its medicinal effect."
Chu Huaixu knew this was a third-grade Spiritual Pill.
At his current level, he couldnât refine it himself.
Little Xuâs recent rapid progress must have been related to it.
He deliberately put on a stern face, speaking in a dissatisfied tone: "So youâre giving me the leftovers?"
The delicate-faced youth immediately looked flustered, utterly unable to explain himself, only feeling he had spoken clumsily.
He even hurried to add: "Then in the future, whenever the Second Elder gives me pills, Iâll eat half and secretly save the other half for Senior Brother."
"Senior Brother, itâs not that I donât want to save more, I just fear the Second Elder and Little Martial Uncle Ancestor will find outâŠ"
Han Shuangjiang saw the Dead Foxâs mischievous expression and couldnât help wanting to lightly kick him.
"Stop teasing himïŒ" she said in dissatisfaction.
"Junior Brother Xu, donât mind him, heâs just playing around with you."
"If you have Spiritual Pills, take them yourself and cultivate well. Do you really think if you eat half and hide half, the Second Elder and Little Martial Uncle Ancestor wonât notice? Youâll be in for it thenïŒ" The Big Ice Block earnestly warned him.
Since even she had spoken up, Chu Huaixu stopped teasing the boy.
He wasnât the kind of adult who spoiled the mood by rejecting a childâs filial piety with talk of âtoo expensive, unnecessary, a waste of money.â
He accepted the pill bottle, smiling: "Youâve been thoughtful. Iâll take it tonight."
Hearing this, Little Xu finally let out a sigh of relief. Just those wordsââYouâve been thoughtfulââmade him happier than his victory in the match just now.
"Oh right, Senior Brother! Iâve gained new insights into the ăSixfold Snow and Lightningă. Let me show you my practice nowïŒ" The youth was eager to demonstrate.
Chu Huaixu was startled.
If youâve raised the completion level, the Experience Points Iâll need when learning it again will increase!
Even if I learn the incomplete version now, Iâll still need to pay the Experience Points to convert it to the complete one later.
The problem is, my current ăComprehensionă meets the requirements. If you complete the full version now, I might not qualify to learn it anymore!
He immediately began shooing him away.
"Go, go, goâhurry up! Donât keep the Little Martial Uncle Ancestor waitingïŒ"
Time passed, and the sixth round of the Eastern Continent Grand Competition began.
By now, only 64 people remained.
Winning this round meant reaching the Top 32!
At that stage, for every match, the Dao Gateâs high-ranking elders and the leading figures of other sects would all attend the Martial Arena to observe.
The scale could be said to have reached its peak.
For Chu Huaixu, every round he won now meant claiming another mission reward.
And starting from this round, the mission rewards became truly generous.
"The Experience Points reward remains 30,000, but the special item reward has now become a ăProfound-rank Technique Upgrade VoucherăïŒ"