Shenwu Academy

  In a rather spacious and luxurious four-story courtyard, an eighteen or nineteen-year-old woman was practicing swordsmanship in the center of the courtyard. Beside this woman stood two men and two women, quietly watching her strengths and weaknesses in swordsmanship.

  Each of the four men was dignified and extraordinary in appearance, obviously from a noble family. However, anyone who saw the four men at first glance could clearly see that among them, one 22 or 23-year-old man was the leader.

  And that man, just standing there, had a kind of majestic and powerful aura, making people involuntarily feel submissive and trusting towards him.

  This man was none other than Gu Wu Shuang, the most outstanding young martial artist of the Great Xia Dynasty, known as the unparalleled genius of the heavens.

  "Xiao Yishui's 'Tian Shui Jian Shu' has become even more refined, the swordsmanship within it is almost seamlessly connected, like a vast and endless river. It's likely that only someone with the powerful strength of a Sword Master could break through this technique with brute force; otherwise, any top-level swordsman who falls into your swordsmanship will be defeated by this relentless technique."

  Watching the woman finish her sword practice and gradually put away her form, Gu Wushuang couldn't help but let out a sincere compliment from beside her.

  "Gǔ xué zhǎng guò jiǎng le, wǒ de zhè xiē diāo chóng xiǎo jì, rú hé rù dé liǎo gǔ xué zhǎng de fǎ yǎn, tiān shuǐ jiàn shù huò xǔ yǒu xiē shén tōng, kě zài gǔ xué zhǎng de zhōu tiān xīng yǔ jiàn shù miàn qián, què jī běn bù zhí dé yī tí."

  Translation: "Gu Xue Zhang has surpassed me, my minor skills are not worthy of his attention. The heavenly water sword technique may have some divine power, but in front of Gu Xue Zhang's Zhou Tian Star Rain Sword Technique, it is not even worth mentioning."

  The maiden sheathed her sword and stood elegantly in the courtyard, smiling sweetly as she replied.

  "The power of the Zhōu Tiān Xīng Yǔ Jiàn Shù is great, but unfortunately, it consumes a lot of true yuan when used. I am only at the first stage of sword mastery and have not yet condensed my true yuan vortex. Relying on the true energy obtained through cultivation, I must spend time refining it to transform it into true yuan. As a result, the amount of true yuan contained and its recovery speed are slower than others. Only by advancing to the second stage of sword mastery, where the true energy in my body forms a vortex, can all the energy obtained through refinement be automatically transformed into true yuan within the vortex, allowing me to truly unleash the power of this top-level sword technique."

  A man beside Gu Wushuang smiled and said, "Brother Gu has always liked to do things with 100% certainty. That's why he hasn't started attacking the second level of Sword Master yet. If I'm not mistaken, Brother Gu's chances of breaking through to the second level of Sword Master are absolutely over 80% now."

  "Swordsmen, although they have truly entered the gate of cultivation, can only be equivalent to the first step in the path of cultivation. The road must be walked one step at a time, and food must be eaten one mouthful at a time. Only by progressing gradually can one truly reach the top and laugh proudly at all directions. Without sufficient grasp, forcibly charging into higher realms is actually equivalent to wasting one's own potential. By relying on this method, one can cultivate up to the Swordsmen stage, up to the Great Swordsmen stage, and even up to the Sky Swordsmen stage. However, in front of the true path of contending for the throne, all the shortcomings of an unstable foundation will be exposed, making it impossible to reach the realm of the king for one's entire life. In the Shengxu Sect, strong practitioners are as numerous as clouds, and even Sky Swordsmen cannot enter the true core of power. Only those who contend for the throne are truly equivalent to entering the cultivator's gate to heaven."

  "Contend for the throne!"

  The two men and two women around Gu Wushuang listened to his heroic words, with a look of reverence in their eyes. The woman named Xiao Yishui had a hint of admiration and adoration between her eyebrows.

  Most of the students in the entire Shenxu Academy have a goal that is limited to becoming a Great Sword Master. In their minds, as long as they become a Great Sword Master, they can stay permanently in the Shenxu Sect and become a true member of the Shenxu Sect. Even those with ambition only dare to think about becoming a Sky Sword Master. After all, a Sky Sword Master is also a giant figure in the six countries of the southeast, a hegemon who dominates a state. But Gu Wu Shuang...

  The great swordsman, the Sky Sword Master, had never been taken seriously by him from the start. His goal was to challenge the king and he took steady steps towards it, constantly striving.

  Only such a person can be considered a true strongman, and only they are truly worth following and admiring.

  "Old big brother!"

  At this time, a shout came from outside the courtyard.

  Right after that, Sima Wuhen, who had just been frantically bidding with Qin Tianyi at the high-end auction, walked over quickly.

  "Traceless."

  Gu Wu Shuang saw Sima Wu Hen and a smile also appeared on his face: "Back? Looks like this time's excursion to cultivate, the harvest is not small."

  "Haha, in any case, you can't surpass Elder Gu."

  "It doesn't matter, the day of the opening of the Divine Void Holy Mountain is approaching. This time, we will definitely show our skills and obtain all the treasures within the Divine Void Holy Mountain."

  "With your strength, Big Brother Gu, it's definitely no problem. The fact that Yan Tianqi can occupy the first place on the Divine Communication List is just because he is two years older than you. I believe that when you advance to the second stage of Sword Master, you will definitely be able to trample him underfoot."

  "Yan Tianqi? His innate talent is indeed exceptional, and he has the support of the Great Yan royal family behind him. However, I am not inferior to him now, but rather accumulating strength, waiting for the right moment to strike. The true battlefield between us should be in the Shengxu Sect. When we meet at the Shengxu Sect, I will make him understand who is the number one genius among the younger generation of the six countries in the southeast, aside from that person from the Ning family."

  Simawei nodded slightly, for his sworn brother, he was quite understanding. It was precisely because of this understanding that he realized the depth of his brother's accumulation. Once he entered the Shenvu Sect and thoroughly erupted, it wasn't just stepping into the second or third stage of Sword Master that would be possible, even advancing to the Great Sword Master realm in a short period of time wouldn't be an impossible feat.

  "By the way, Brother Gu, on my way back to Shengxu Academy, I met Qin Tianyi."

  Qin Tianyi?

  A flash of insight in the ancient twin eyes: "This Qin Tianyi is just a foolish young man, not worth mentioning. The reason I attach so much importance to him is actually because I want to dig out the secret of his rapid rise to become a great swordsman in just seven short months, as well as that one forbidden technique that can make someone burst forth with the power of a great swordsman in an instant."

  "Even if Gu Da Ge is not too careless, this time when I met Qin Tian Yi, I had already tested him. This kid has become much more stable, facing my several provocations, he was actually able to endure it, and he seems to have received the secret support of a certain deputy dean. The various treasures on his body are not few in number, plus he has also joined forces with Xia Bing Yu and others, after some time, I'm afraid he will become a force to be reckoned with."

  "Has he become a formidable opponent? Three years ago, I could crush him like an ant in my hand, easily severing his meridians and rendering his true energy useless. Three years later, I can still do the same."

  "It's better to be cautious, this kid bought a Virtual True Refining Spirit Dan at the Great Xia Wangdu Trading Conference, obviously wanting to use the power of the dan to advance to the Sword Master realm. Once he advances to the Sword Master realm, it will likely take some effort to deal with him."

  "Is it the True Spirit Creation Elixir?"

  "This kind of elixir, however, did make Gu Wu Shuang slightly surprised, but that was all: 'He dares to take the elixir to advance to Sword Master, he must have some confidence, and taking the Void True Creation Spirit Elixir, the possibility of advancing to the Sword Master realm is not small. However, relying on elixirs to advance to Sword Master, how can one be considered a true Sword Master? Without corresponding swordsmanship, at most it's just a roughneck who refines his true yuan.'"

  Siman Wuhen nodded: "With your strength, Brother Gu, even if you encounter some second-rate swordsmen, it shouldn't be a difficult task. As for Qin Tianyi, he can be easily dealt with in the God Void Holy Mountain."

  "This guy named Qin Tianyi is really despicable, actually becoming an enemy with you, Big Brother Gu. Doesn't he know that the most important thing for you right now is to prepare for entering the Shenvu Sect?"

  Xiao Yi Shui's face showed a hint of discontent as he said this beside her.

  Gu Wu Shuang's expression was calm, with a hint of pride in his tone: "Xiao Yi Shui, junior sister, no need to get angry. The day when the Divine Void Holy Mountain opens is approaching soon. At that time, I will make him and those people like Xia Bing Yu understand what it means to go against me."

  ……

  Qin Tianyi in Dashawangdu did not know about Sima Wuheng and Gu Wushuang's discussion about him.

  At this moment, he has put all his energy into impacting the Sword Master realm.

  Three days of rest time, in the blink of an eye it's over.

  After adjusting his mental state to its peak, Qin Tianyi chose not the Nine-Refined Reversion Dan, but the Void True Creation Dan.

  Xu Zhen Cáo Huà Líng Dān is a living being that breaks through the realm of the Great Sword Master, although it's not considered the best elixir for breaking through, after forming a true energy vortex in the body, whether it's intensity or stability, it far surpasses the previous Jiǔ Liàn Guī Yuán Líng Dān.

  Relying on the vortex formed by the Xū Zhēn Zào Huà Líng Dān, which continuously compressed and refined, Qin Tiān Jī's true energy was rapidly liquefied, transforming from true energy into true yuan.

  The first day, 50% liquefied, the second day, 60% liquefied.

  On the third day, the medicinal effect of the Xū Zhēn Zào Huà Líng Dān disappeared. However, relying on the 60% true energy liquefaction, even if he no longer took any elixirs, he could still rely on time to slowly complete the process of fully converting the true energy in his body into true yuan.

  Even so, after the true energy in his body had liquefied to sixty percent, Qin Tianqi could still feel the great difference between the realm of a Sword Master and that of a Great Sword Master.

  No!

  To put it precisely, it is the great disparity between True Yuan and True Qi.

  If we say that true energy is a sword, then the true yuan in the body of a swordsman is equivalent to a fine iron sword. The true energy of a great swordsman is only a wooden sword. No matter how sharp or beautiful the wooden sword is polished and crafted, when it collides with a real fine iron sword, there will only be one result: it will turn into sawdust.

  This is an essential difference in energy.

  Only when one has truly entered the realm of a sword master, condensed the true yuan, can it be said that they have thoroughly stepped into the gate of a cultivator and completed the process of building their foundation.

  Next, relying on the various wonderful uses of Zhenyuan, every time a cultivator advances to a higher realm, their strength will undergo earth-shaking changes, and they will gradually complete the process of transcending the ordinary and becoming a saint.