About half an hour later, Chu Feng finally recovered, slowly pushing himself up with the sword.
That move… really shouldn’t be used lightly. It clearly harms both the enemy and the user.
Next up was the “Touch Stone, Turn to Gold” spell.
This one was simple. Chu Feng learned it at a glance. But…
He stared silently at the grain-sized piece of gold in his hand. That was his limit. Any bigger, and it wouldn’t work.
What the hell?!
Can’t master sword techniques, can’t do alchemy either.
Good thing he’s not bad at fighting… Wait, why would he even think that? It’s not like he wants to play Boom Beach.
After preparing himself again, Chu Feng gave the Three-Breath Sword Draw another go.
Boom—
This time, he didn’t rely on Little Bai at all. He did it completely on his own. The powerful sword qi swept through everything before him. That strike alone could rival the power of a Second Rank cultivator.
However…
Thud!
Once again, Chu Feng collapsed and weakness spread through his entire body.
“Ow ow ow! Yeah… definitely shouldn’t use that move so casually from now on.”
By the time Chu Feng fully recovered, night had already fallen. The bright moon hung high in the sky, casting its cold, clear light over the wreckage around him.
With a blade of grass in his mouth and both hands tucked behind his head, Chu Feng sighed.
Come to think of it, this was the first time since arriving in this world that he’d had the leisure to simply gaze at the moon like this.
When he first got here, life had been all about survival in the wilderness. There was no time to care about the night sky. Then he joined the Heaven’s Pinnacle Sect, and one thing after another had kept happening ever since.
Floating nearby was Little Bai. It was hovering silently in mid-air and following Chu Feng around.
Glancing at the sword his master had given him, Chu Feng couldn’t help but feel like he was raising a pet, one that trailed behind him everywhere… albeit not a very friendly one.
He suspected Little Bai was probably close to developing a weapon spirit. That’s how it usually went in cultivation novels, right? All the great artifacts ended up with spirits inside them.
“Hey, Little Bai. You know, your blade is white. If you do end up with a spirit, could it be… a white-haired beautiful girl?”
A white-haired beauty…now that’s a great fantasy right there. Don’t tell me you wouldn’t like that too?!
Upon hearing this, the sword’s hilt tilted slightly, as if to ask, “Why?”
Chu Feng sighed at the reaction.
Haah… still no common language between us.
“A true kindred spirit is hard to find!”
Back at his residence, Chu Feng went straight to bed. He was exhausted from sword training. Whatever needed doing could wait until tomorrow.
***
“Lin Ruo, since I’ve accepted you as my disciple, I won’t treat you unfairly. Here, take this.”
The Ninth Elder handed Lin Ruo a black token. It was his personal token. Possessing it was equivalent to the Ninth Elder being present in person.
“With this, you can freely choose any cultivation technique from the eighth floor of the Martial Arts Pavilion and below.”
Hearing this, Lin Ruo’s heart trembled slightly.
“Master, may I ask… is it possible to enter the tenth floor of the Martial Arts Pavilion?”
“The tenth floor?”
The Ninth Elder narrowed his eyes and fixed them on Lin Ruo.
Shit!
Lin Ruo cursed himself inwardly; he shouldn’t have asked that!
“I heard that the tenth floor holds the most advanced techniques in the entire Heaven’s Pinnacle Sect, so I… couldn’t help being curious,” Lin Ruo said carefully.
After being stripped of his status as a personal disciple by the Moonlight Sword Fairy, the last thing he needed was to upset the Ninth Elder too.
“Lin Ruo, even though you are now my disciple, the tenth floor of the Martial Arts Pavilion is off-limits. Even I am not permitted to enter it freely. Do not bring this up again in the future.”
Just now, the moment Lin Ruo mentioned the tenth floor of the Martial Arts Pavilion, the Ninth Elder had already begun quietly circulating his true qi. However, after a moment’s thought, he decided that a mere first-level disciple couldn’t possibly stir up much trouble.
“Yes, Master. I will obey!”
Lin Ruo let out a silent sigh of relief. Thankfully, he hadn’t aroused any suspicion.
“Alright, tomorrow you can go to the Martial Arts Pavilion and choose some techniques that suit you.”
With that instruction, the Ninth Elder left Lin Ruo alone to cultivate.
“Respectfully seeing Master off!”
Only after the Ninth Elder had completely left did Lin Ruo straighten his posture. Looking down at the token in his hand, his eyes sparkled with excitement.
***
The next day, after waking up and cultivating for a while, Chu Feng felt refreshed and clear-headed.
Time to head to the Martial Arts Pavilion and pick out a few more techniques.
Of the two he chose yesterday, one turned out to be nearly useless, while the other was like chicken ribs. It was tasteless, yet a waste to throw away. It could harm the enemy, yes, but it would hurt the user just as much. It was only to be used as a last resort.
Well, wouldn’t you know it? Just as Chu Feng entered the Martial Arts Pavilion, he spotted a familiar figure…Lin Ruo.
Why did I have to run into him?!
Chu Feng was about to slip away. Getting involved with the protagonist never led to anything good, especially since he’d already offended him once.
Chu Feng had no intention of stirring up trouble. But that didn’t mean Lin Ruo felt the same.
Since joining Heaven’s Pinnacle Sect, nothing had gone smoothly for Lin Ruo, and that only fueled his frustration.
Out of the corner of his eye, Lin Ruo caught a glimpse of a familiar figure. He turned his head. So it was him!
Hmph! Last time, that woman suddenly showed up. But this time? No such luck!
Chu Feng saw Lin Ruo walking toward him. Not good!
He immediately tried to leave, but in the next instant, Lin Ruo’s figure appeared in front of him like a ghost.
“Haha, Senior Brother Lin Ruo, there’s no real grudge between us. No need to press me so hard.”
Chu Feng said.
Lin Ruo had entered the sect a few days before Chu Feng, so calling him “Senior Brother” was acceptable.
Chu Feng figured he’d take a step back. As the saying goes, “One doesn’t hit a smiling face”. Surely Lin Ruo wouldn’t keep pushing with so many people around.
Lin Ruo sneered and said, “Now you regret it? Too late. There’s no such thing as a regret pill in this world.”
“Senior Brother Lin Ruo, how about this…. I’ll give you ten spirit stones, and we call it even!”
Chu Feng winced inwardly. His master had just given him 300 spirit stones, and now he was about to lose ten of them in one go. Still, he consoled himself: better lose money than suffer.
“Ten spirit stones… Enough talk! Draw your weapon!”
Lin Ruo gripped a trident glowing with a cold, eerie light. He felt insulted….was he only worth ten spirit stones?
You’re not playing by the rules!
Chu Feng couldn’t believe it. He had already backed down, offered ten spirit stones, which was enough to chat with one of the charming demon girls from Fragrant Flower Pavilion!
Now that he thought about it, he was flush with cash these days. Maybe he’d take a trip down the mountain sometime and help support those demon sisters. Check in on how life was treating them.
The surrounding disciples who had gathered to watch the drama were stunned by Chu Feng’s offer.
Ten spirit stones? What, are you giving alms to a beggar? Even begging outside the Heaven’s Pinnacle Sect gate could earn you more than that in a day. Especially if you ran into a few rich and kindhearted senior sisters.
Left with no choice, Chu Feng called out, “Little Bai!”
A long sword floated to his side.
“Alright then! Come at me!”
Lin Ruo began circulating his true energy, ready to strike.
“Hold on a second!”
Chu Feng raised a hand, then pulled out a single spirit stone, weighing it in his palm.
“How about this: I toss this stone into the air. Once it hits the ground… we settle this!”
Chu Feng kept his eyes fixed on Lin Ruo as he spoke, while secretly channeling his true qi into Little Bai’s blade.
“Alright!”
Lin Ruo agreed without hesitation.
“Then let’s begin.”
With that, Chu Feng hurled the spirit stone high into the air.
Lin Ruo stared at the stone without blinking. The moment it hit the ground, he’d let this brat taste the power of his name.
Seeing Lin Ruo’s full attention locked onto the spirit stone, Chu Feng’s lips curled into a smirk.
Heh, there’s a saying, “All’s fair in war.” Today, this junior will teach our dear protagonist a little lesson.
The energy in Little Bai’s blade surged to its limit. The spirit stone was still a quarter of the way from hitting the ground, and Lin Ruo was already preparing to make his move.
“Haaah!”
Before the stone even touched the earth, Chu Feng unleashed all his true qi, executing the Three-Breath Sword Draw to end the fight in one stroke.
Booooom—
The compressed energy exploded forth, sending a massive wave of sword force slashing toward Lin Ruo.
“!!??”
“You despicable coward!”
His words were swallowed by the roaring sword energy.
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