Gu Yuan closed the book, exhaled a breath of stale air, and placed the book on the pile of others. These were all books he had read in the past few days, having finished all those borrowed from the Sutra Depository.
To him, this world was unfolding before his eyes, and understanding more history and knowledge would be immensely beneficial for his future development.
With a wave of his hand, he collected the pile of books into his storage ring, planning to return them to the Sutra Depository later.
He stood up from the meditation cushion, his bones creaking, and stretched. Gu Yuan opened the formation of his cave dwelling and stepped out.
Arriving at the stone platform jutting out from the cliff, he gazed at the exceptionally beautiful scenery within the Zhen Tian Sect. He took a deep breath of fresh air, feeling purified. The fatigue from days of continuous reading was somewhat dispelled by the mountain breeze.
After admiring the scenery for a while, Gu Yuan turned and walked back to his cave dwelling.
"?" Gu Yuan frowned slightly as he saw a letter pinned to his cave dwelling wall with a short sword.
With a wave of his hand, the letter flew into his palm.
Gu Yuan opened it, and his furrowed brow gradually relaxed, the corners of his lips curling upwards.
"Interesting!"
He hadn't expected someone to challenge him to a fight, and it was someone also at the Dharma Aspect realm, and the top disciple of the Zhen Tian Sect's inner sect. Why would he come to challenge him, Gu Yuan wondered.
He had only just arrived and hadn't offended anyone.
A flow of force circulated through his hand, and the letter instantly turned to dust, scattering in the wind.
He hadn't expected someone to come to him wanting to show off. It had been a while since he had stretched his limbs, and it was a good opportunity to witness the combat style of humans on the Myriad Spirits Continent.
Gu Yuan's thoughts raced, and his figure vanished from his spot.
...
The main peak of the sect, the battle arena.
The spectator stands, which could now accommodate thousands of people, were already filled. On the central stage, a man sat cross-legged.
This person was the top disciple of the Zhen Tian Sect's inner sect: Qu Ling.
From the spectator stands, people looked at Qu Ling and chattered amongst themselves.
"It's been two days, is that Gu Yuan coming or not? Is he scared?"
"Who knows? I heard he borrowed a lot of books from the Sutra Depository. Maybe he's in seclusion right now."
"Hmph, I think this Gu Yuan is just scared. He's probably just a blusterer. Unlike our Senior Brother Qu, whose strength has been evident for so many years since joining the sect." The person speaking looked at Qu Ling in the arena with eyes full of worship.
The people around them subtly moved away from him, thinking, "Brainless fan, don't touch me!"
If they agreed, they might offend Gu Yuan, who was also a Dharma Aspect realm expert and not someone they, as mere inner disciples, could compare with, especially if Qu Ling protected him.
Just as everyone was discussing, Qu Ling, who was sitting cross-legged in the center of the arena, opened his eyes. Two golden beams shot out, and he stood up abruptly, looking towards the entrance of the arena.
Qu Ling's action immediately drew everyone's attention. They all looked towards the arena entrance, where a young man with a handsome and ethereal face, dressed in white, was slowly approaching.
This made many waiting female disciples' eyes light up. "He's so handsome!"
It wasn't just his features, but the aura he exuded, a blend of refinement and a touch of nonchalance. (Honestly, still less than one percent of you readers.)
If Gu Yuan knew, he would truly be speechless. The books in his cave dwelling possessed spiritual energy, and as Gu Yuan perused them, he absorbed some of this refined aura.
"Is this person Gu Yuan? He certainly has a good appearance." Someone asked curiously, their gaze constantly scanning Gu Yuan, trying to discern something, but to no avail.
"What's the use of looking good? In this world, it's ultimately about strength. If your strength is insufficient, sometimes good looks can even be a sin." Someone sneered. Although unpleasant to hear, this was the reality of the cultivation world. It only spoke of strength. If you have strength, you are king!
Gu Yuan heard the surrounding discussions but paid them no mind. The Heaven's Dao Map in his mind began to emit a faint glow.
[Illumination: Qu Ling!]
Gu Yuan wanted to see what differences there were between the humans of the Myriad Spirits Continent and the humans of the Azure World.
[Name]: [Qu Ling]
[Life God]: [Dragon of the Spirit Sea!]
[Destiny]: [None]
[Cultivation]: [Dharma Aspect Realm (Minor Accomplishment)]
[Fortunes]: [Body of a Hundred Battles (Red)], [Dragon Body (Purple)], [Spirit Linked to the Sea (Purple)], [Person Without Fate?? (Purple)], [Sword Master (Purple)], [Unyielding (Green)]
"???" Gu Yuan's eyes flickered with confusion. "Person Without Fate," what kind of destiny was that? It had never appeared before.
He didn't have time to ponder further. Qu Ling, standing in the center of the arena, looked at the approaching Gu Yuan and said loudly, "Gu Yuan, I thought you were scared?"
Scared? Gu Yuan smiled and shook his head, chuckling softly, "Qu Ling, although I don't know why you challenged me, I want to tell you that the word 'fear' is not in my dictionary."
Gu Yuan leaped onto the stage and stood opposite Qu Ling. He extended his right hand and said word by word, "Let me smash you!"
The entire audience erupted in an uproar. Who could have imagined that this unknown individual would utter such arrogant words?
Hearing Gu Yuan's incredibly arrogant words.
"Good, good, good. I'd like to see how you'll smash me?" As the last word fell, Qu Ling's face contorted savagely. The spiritual energy that had been accumulating within him for a long time erupted like a volcanic outburst, unleashing an immensely powerful force.
Qu Ling instantly transformed into a blue streak of light and charged towards Gu Yuan. A sapphire longsword appeared in his hand, emitting faint sounds of surging waves, his aura extraordinary.
"It's over, it's over! Senior Brother Qu has even taken out his Surging Wave Sword. It seems Gu Yuan's words have greatly angered Senior Brother Qu." Someone who was closely watching Qu Ling recognized that he had even brought out his natal spiritual weapon.
In mid-air, an elder gently waved his hand, and a light barrier rose around the arena. This was a defensive formation to prevent the battle's residual waves from affecting others.
After all, Gu Yuan and Qu Ling were considered masters in the outside world. At their level of cultivation, destroying mountains and rivers was not difficult.
This elder was none other than the Outer Sect Grand Elder Zhao Xi. When he heard that Qu Ling, the top inner disciple, was going to fight Gu Yuan, he immediately took on the role of referee to prevent them from truly losing control. After all, he was extremely curious about Gu Yuan.
Gu Yuan calmly watched Qu Ling charge towards him with his sword. In an instant, he was before Gu Yuan.
Boom!
Countless blood qi erupted. Since Qu Ling respected him so much as to draw his natal spiritual weapon, he would not hold back either.
The blood qi instantly transformed into a semicircular barrier, spreading out wildly. It also carried extremely high temperatures. Even separated by the defensive formation, the onlookers could feel the searing heat of Gu Yuan's blood qi, distorting the air.
Qu Ling's eyes narrowed, and he made a decisive move. His figure instantly turned into a blue sword light and retreated to his previous position.
He hadn't chosen to continue forward because Gu Yuan's blood qi had the effect of isolating divine soul detection. He couldn't sense the aura behind the blood qi barrier, so he retreated. He needed to be cautious; he absolutely could not afford to lose to Gu Yuan due to a lack of caution.
Whoosh~
The crimson blood qi barrier slowly dissipated, and a figure slowly stepped out. In his hand, a mass of silvery-white metal continuously changed shape, eventually transforming into a snow-white saber.
With a casual flick of the saber, Gu Yuan pointed his long saber directly at Qu Ling and, with a sound explosion, vanished from his spot.
"Wait, did Gu Yuan rely purely on his physical body to achieve such speed? I didn't seem to sense any blood qi or spiritual energy from him. Just how powerful is his physique?" Someone exclaimed in shock, clearly stunned by Gu Yuan's physical cultivation.
Qu Ling's pupils constricted. The longsword in his hand glowed with blue light, and the sound of surging waves clearly reached everyone's ears.
Gu Yuan ignored it, his saber drawing a cold, ten-foot-long arc, slashing directly at Qu Ling.
Qu Ling was not one to yield. The longsword in his hand emitted a soft blue light, the Surging Wave Sword vibrating continuously, releasing invisible sword qi that left sword marks on the ground.
With a sweep of his sword, it was as if a vast ocean appeared behind Qu Ling, the sound of waves echoing throughout the entire arena.
Gu Yuan's lips curled. "He's already using his Dharma Aspect? It seems his strength is a bit weaker than I imagined."
The Dharma Aspect realm's greatest power lay in the Dharma Aspect cultivated by the individual. A Dharma Aspect could connect with heaven and earth, much faster than a human doing so. Furthermore, the Dharma Aspect realm possessed its own domain. Within the range of the Dharma Aspect's light, all powers except for the Dharma Aspect's own would be suppressed.
"Senior Brother Qu has used his Dharma Aspect? It seems Gu Yuan is putting a lot of pressure on Senior Brother Qu."
"I wonder what kind of Dharma Aspect Gu Yuan has. Can it contend with Senior Brother Qu's Dragon Aspect?"
As the crowd debated, their weapons collided.
Gu Yuan's Blood炼金, which had consumed numerous exotic metals, did not hold an advantage in sharpness. It seemed Qu Ling's spiritual weapon was of a high grade.
Clang!
A shower of sparks erupted between them. Gu Yuan knew that Qu Ling's swordsmanship was profound and decided to compete with him in saber techniques.
With a graceful turn of his saber, like a ferocious dragon, Gu Yuan fiercely lunged at Qu Ling's arm.
Qu Ling calmly reacted, moving his mind, and instantly blocked Gu Yuan's attacking saber.
White Tiger Seven Kill!
Gu Yuan's eyes emitted a chilling white light. This was a close-combat saber technique he had recently created by observing the White Tiger Jian Xing Divine Lord within him and combining it with numerous saber technique inheritances in his mind.
The White Tiger Geng Metal Qi was heavy on killing, especially the White Tiger Jian Xing Divine Lord, who mastered the aura of warfare, with a fierce aura comparable to a top-tier martial artist.
Gu Yuan integrated this into his saber technique, and instantly, his entire being exuded an incredibly chilling aura. The saber in his hand erupted with countless saber slashes, faintly forming a White Tiger Divine Lord holding Geng Metal Qi in its mouth around Gu Yuan!
"Not good!" Qu Ling's pupils dilated. This time, he felt a strong sense of danger within Gu Yuan's saber slashes.
He quickly retreated, formed a sword seal with his hand, and the Surging Wave Sword instantly detached, hovering in mid-air. He chanted:
"Surging Waves Connect the Clouds!"
The Surging Wave Sword immediately emitted countless azure spiritual energies, mixed with fine cloud-white mist. These spiritual energies, the moment they appeared, condensed into numerous blue and white swords, resembling the Surging Wave Sword in shape.
The swords were manipulated by Qu Ling, fiercely stabbing towards the White Tiger saber qi unleashed by Gu Yuan.
Although they were transformed from sword qi and saber qi, their collision produced sounds of metal striking metal, as if real weapons were clashing.
Just as the Surging Wave Sword and the White Tiger Divine Form were entangled, Gu Yuan formed a fist seal, and a sense of suppression instantly permeated the air, spreading throughout the arena. The once chaotic spectator stands fell silent.
After a long while, someone slowly spoke, whispering, "That looks like the Zhen Tian Seal!"
"What the hell, how did he, who just joined not long ago, learn the Zhen Tian Seal? I've been in the inner sect for two and a half years, and I still can't fully execute the Zhen Tian Seal. How can he?" Some people were incredulous. If someone had been a true disciple for a long time, they wouldn't have any objections, but Gu Yuan had only joined for a few days?
A week, or two weeks?
"Sigh, people really make you want to die. We're the same age, why are you so outstanding?" Someone couldn't help but sigh.
Zhao Xi, who was watching the fight with great interest from above, looked at the two with satisfaction. They were the future of the sect, truly excellent!
Look at the crisscrossing saber qi, the sharp flying swords, truly magnificent!
He praised them a few more times in his heart. Although he was known as the Iron Fist Yama, that was towards disciples who made mistakes. Since he took office as the Outer Sect Grand Elder of the Zhen Tian Sect, the number of disciples from the outer sect who joined the inner sect had significantly increased. Most outer sect disciples had attended Zhao Xi's lectures and respected this elder from the bottom of their hearts.
He stroked his goatee, his gaze constantly fixed on the situation in the arena. These were the sect's future, and there could be no casualties.
When Gu Yuan formed his fist seal, exuding a suppressive aura all over his body, Zhao Xi's fingers trembled, and he pulled out a few white whiskers without realizing it.
He stared at Gu Yuan, his gaze fixed, sensing the suppressive aura emanating from him. He could clearly feel that it was different from the Zhen Tian Seal inherited by the current Zhen Tian Sect. This aura was more primal and more overbearing.
This was the unadulterated Zhen Tian Seal, with a taste he would never forget.
When he cultivated the Zhen Tian Seal back then, he had been tormented relentlessly, constantly being suppressed, and only then had he barely grasped the original suppressive intent, a supremely domineering one that ordinary people couldn't comprehend. In the end, he discovered that very few people had successfully cultivated it in the grand Zhen Tian Sect.
Therefore, after generations of modifications by the powerful figures of the Zhen Tian Sect, the cultivation threshold of the original Zhen Tian Seal was lowered. Correspondingly, the strength of the Zhen Tian Seal also decreased somewhat; it no longer possessed the aura of suppressing all things.
However, the advantage was that the majority of disciples could comprehend the阉割版 (castrated version) of the Zhen Tian Seal, with both advantages and disadvantages.
Returning to the arena.
Qu Ling felt the suppressive aura emanating from Gu Yuan, and his face was filled with disbelief.
"This is impossible! How did you comprehend the original Zhen Tian Seal? You've only been here for a few days?"
Gu Yuan heard Qu Ling's words, blinked in surprise, and frowned. "Original Zhen Tian Seal? What is that?"