Chapter Eight: The Next One

The surrounding sword energies were sharp and wild, clashing against Lin Fei’s pure black robe with crisp, metallic sounds.

Finally, the white-haired elder on the bamboo tower stirred slightly, lifting his previously cloudy eyes with a hint of surprise.

Soon, Lin Fei effortlessly crossed the narrow wooden bridge and reached the summit of the steep rock.

He focused his gaze into the distance. Amidst the swirling mist, countless silver-white sword energies darted beneath the vast sky, sometimes intertwining and colliding, other times dispersing gracefully, like ethereal spirits dancing freely.

This vast sea of sword intent and sword energy had solidified into a dazzling, silver-white ocean—both illusory and beautiful.

Yet Lin Fei could clearly sense the danger behind this beauty. Every strand of sword energy in the sea contained unimaginable power; even a highly skilled cultivator could suffer a tragic fate of soul shattering if careless.

Lin Fei nodded slightly, satisfaction flickering in his eyes. He then gently closed them and took a deep breath.

Recently, the spiritual energy within him had hit a bottleneck, growing slowly. He desperately needed new stimulation… such as this pure and wild sword energy.

With his breath, silver-white sword energies flowed through his nasal passages into his body, merging between his chest and abdomen.

The first, the second, up to the ninth.

Within just nine breaths, Lin Fei had absorbed nine strands of sword energy into his body.

After the nine breaths, the bird songs atop Beiyou Mountain abruptly ceased; the thunderous sounds within the sword sea vanished without a trace, and even the once-boiling sword energies around fell into an unusual silence.

The world suddenly plunged into a profound stillness—so quiet that even the fall of a needle could be heard. Beneath this calm, some unpredictable change seemed to be brewing.

The elder in the distance witnessed this and let out a soft exclamation, his gaze piercing through the sea of clouds with astonishment.

Suddenly, Lin Fei’s spiritual power surged like a tide, then, in an instant, retracted like waning moonlight, swiftly returning to his body and disappearing.

The young man in black opened his eyes; his aura seemed to have undergone a subtle change, yet everything appeared as normal.

Lin Fei turned and calmly left the mysterious sword energy sea.

“What’s your name?” the elder’s voice drifted on the wind as Lin Fei returned to the cliff’s edge.

“Lin Fei,” he answered simply, knowing well that the sword sea was a sacred ground of the Sword Sect and that without the elder’s consent, approaching it was difficult.

“Are you the Lin Fei from Tianya Peak?”

“Yes.”

“Heh, the outside world’s opinion of you seems somewhat biased. You’re quite impressive. Interested in joining my Beiyou Mountain?”

“And you are?”

“Xiao You.”

“Xiao You, the peak master of Beiyou Mountain?”

“Exactly.”

“I haven’t decided yet,” Lin Fei said. “If needed, I will consider it.”

Xiao You nodded, unfazed by Lin Fei’s refusal, and waved his hand, signaling his departure.

“Back then, Shui Li, that girl, observed the sword sea here. Outsiders thought she trained here for a year, but little did they know she spent most of that year playing around. Her true breakthrough took only nine days—one realm per day. After nine days, she had already entered the Mortal Realm.”

Watching the young man in black descend the mountain, the elder couldn’t help but exclaim, “And this boy, step by step, breath by breath, one realm per breath, has nearly leapt into the Mortal Realm in a single step. Such an astonishing method of advancement—could it be that after decades, our Sword Sect is about to welcome another Saint Realm Sword Immortal?”

...

Lin Fei leisurely walked toward the mountain peak, utterly uninterested in the so-called entrance trials.

This place was several hundred miles from Tianya Peak; without Di Yuan leading them by air, he would have to return on foot.

It had been many years since he last walked on foot like this.

Upon reaching the summit, his eyes fell upon a figure being hurled backward from the center of the plaza’s arena.

Zhao Xiuyuan, the favored disciple of Tianya Peak, stood proudly atop the arena, arms crossed, his face full of arrogance and confidence.

As the first combatant in the ten-person arena battle, Zhao Xiuyuan had consecutively defeated five opponents, his momentum unstoppable.

Especially as he sensed the cheers and admiring gazes of the female disciples his age in the audience, his spiritual energy circulated even more smoothly.

At midday, the blazing sun scorched the earth like a raging fire.

Lin Fei estimated there was still time and found a green patch near the arena to sit leisurely, enjoying a brief moment of coolness.

Before the arena, Ye Liuguang watched the fifth disciple fall, yet maintained a composed and satisfied smile, saying to Di Yuan, “Brother Di Yuan’s disciples are truly remarkable. I admire them.”

Di Yuan’s face was impassive as he replied calmly, “The path of cultivation ultimately depends on the individual. I have not taught them much.”

Ye Liuguang nodded slightly, smiling warmly. “Since Brother Di Yuan is so humble, we should not hold back.”

No sooner had the words fallen than a dark-skinned youth shot out from the crowd like an arrow, leaping onto the arena.

Zhao Xiuyuan looked up at him and asked, “Next challenger?”

The dark youth smiled playfully but remained silent.

Zhao Xiuyuan frowned, displeased. “Mute?”

“One move will suffice,” the youth said coldly.

“What did you say?”

“Get lost!”

In the next instant, the dark youth bent his knees and exploded forward, several afterimages slicing through the air as he closed in on Zhao Xiuyuan in mere moments.

Behind him, a trail of black marks stained the marble floor, testament to his astonishing speed and power.

Zhao Xiuyuan’s pupils shrank sharply; he hurriedly circulated his spiritual energy, instinctively crossing his hands before his chest.

The dark youth surged forward, a fist crashing down like thunder onto Zhao Xiuyuan’s chest.

Boom!

With a tremendous explosion, Zhao Xiuyuan’s body flew backward like a kite with a broken string.

The dark youth showed no mercy, instantly pursuing and violently dragging Zhao Xiuyuan back, then delivering a brutal kick to his head.

Without his arms to defend, Zhao Xiuyuan took the full force. He spat blood skyward, collapsing heavily outside the arena, groaning twice before losing consciousness.

Having swiftly dealt with Zhao Xiuyuan, the dark youth snorted disdainfully and shouted loudly, “Next!”

The atmosphere inside turned tense.

The disciples of Tianya Peak, witnessing the once-mighty Zhao Xiuyuan so quickly defeated, were momentarily stunned.

But when they saw the dark youth’s scornful demeanor, their shock turned to anger.

Ignoring that Zhao Xiuyuan was their strongest cultivator, the second disciple stepped onto the arena, fueled by fury.

Yet the outcome remained unchanged. In just a few breaths, the second disciple was similarly flung out without contest.

“Next!”

Then the third, fourth, fifth—all met the same fate in succession.

“Next!” The dark youth’s call grew louder and more arrogant with each challenge.