ã€ŠDual Sword Godã€‹


 -1 Prologue

    In an old worn-down shack within an unusually quiet district, a 15-year-old boy was lying on the ground. His clothes were torn to shreds, and bloodstains covered both him and the wooden floor. His attractive face was bruised and battered, and his long red hair was unkempt. A few strands of hair dropped across his pale white face giving him a sickly look, as the severe blood loss from his grave wounds made his skin grow paler by the second.

    Outside of the shack, two figures were currently chatting.

    "We are finally done." A young man said after wiping the sweat from his forehead, he was dressed in black clothing and bared a handsome semblance, but this was ruined by the unpleasant ''sideways-smirk'' on his face. If someone was to look closely, they would see traces of blood dripping from his hands.

    "Haha! Now that we''ve got this over with, we should go before someone spots us here." The slender looking figure dressed in luxurious clothing whispered. With a face like that of a mouse, and eyes that were sharp portraying his cunning nature, he looked around nervously as he gestured towards the bloody body, or rather, the half-corpse that laid lifelessly on the ground.

    "Brother Xiang! Don''t worry, I''ve personally arranged for no one to visit this district at this hour." The youth in black clothing said with a sly look on his face.

    "Very good, humph! Feng Yu, this is what you get for standing in this young master''s way to glory. Brother Huan, come, let''s go!" The youth wearing luxurious clothing said as he sped off into the distant district at a high speed.

    The youth in black clothing shook his head silently for a while as he looked at the body one last time before following the youth who was now a distance away.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Later that night, the stars were shining brightly in Machen Town.

    Various lights shone on the streets as the night was getting livelier, there were many individuals idling about the districts and the pubs were filled with activity. Every now and then, a different type of event took place within the crowded central square. The dancers were dancing, performers were performing, and martial artists were competing in friendly spars.

    However, far away from the liveliness of the central square, there was an unusual aura growing around the empty and silent District 7.

    A strange mist slowly began to fill the area, settling around the old and worn-down shack. The round moon hung high in the sky had started to glow in an odd and unrecognizable color, as an unusual array of lights formed in this strange starry night sky.

    These lights were of twelve different colors and were arranged in the form of a pentagram, the lights didn''t stay in one fixed area, but instead, they started to rotate faster and faster, creating a mirror-like space within the center of the diagram.

    Pzzzzzzzz! Suddenly, there was a change.

    Following an almost imperceptible sound, the stars that were rotating spun so fast they created a crack in the mirror-like space. As this mirror-like space broke to pieces, a shadow instantly appeared and quickly plunged towards the old shack at lightning speeds.

    Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

    In an instant, time seemed to have stopped as the portal disappeared, and the night continued undisturbed...

 1 Feng Yu

    The sun rose brightly today, bringing with it a warm light that was starting to melt away the cold darkness of the night. Faintly, the crowing of roosters was heard within the distance, breathing life into the silent districts and public squares.

    Dawn has come to Machen Town.

    Within District 7, inside of the old-shack.

    Warm rays of sunlight beamed their way through the cracks of the wooden structure, creating specks of light on the wooden floor. A beam of light made its way across the face of Feng Yu pausing briefly over his closed eyes. He started to stir, opening his eyes bit by bit then gazing towards the old wooden ceiling.

    "Where?... Where am I?" Feng Yu muttered to himself.

    Slowly, he started to look around the small space with a confused expression on his face. There was a stash of old rusted weapons stored into barrels placed on top of tables and scattered around on the wooden floor. He then looked carefully at his body and noticed his blood covered torn up clothing along with some dried-up blood and bruises on his skin. On the floor, he saw even more dried blood that must have been there for a while.

    "What''s going on here?! Shouldn''t I... be dead? How could I ---?" With a shocked expression, Feng Yu called out in alarm. Suddenly, his head started to hurt like someone was using an axe to split it from the inside out. He grabbed it with both of his hands as he groaned in agony.

    "Damn this pain! What the hell is going---?" Feng Yu angrily exclaimed, but before he could finish his sentence, a stream of unknown memories started to flood his mind. After some time, the pain faded away. He then let go of his head in relief and looked at the token in his hand, it was a strange symbol of a red bird with a crown on its head.

    "The Feng Clan huh! Interesting, who would have thought that I''d have a second chance at life? I Feng Yu will certainly reach the peak in this life if it''s the last thing I do!" Feng Yu declared while slowly picking himself up off the ground and adjusting his tattered clothes.

    "Still, this poorly fated fellow surely has had it rough... to be betrayed by your best friends. Hmph! No matter, now that I''ve taken charge; you are me, and I am you. Your enemies are my enemies, so I will certainly make them pay!" Feng Yu said with a firm look on his pale face, his eyes gleamed with a sharp light sparking the fire of revenge.

    In his previous life, Feng Yu was a martial practitioner that managed to cultivate the peak of Warrior realm. Sadly, due to his poor constitution, he was unable to achieve any further breakthroughs. Because of this, he ended up having to risk his life adventuring into dangerous ''mystic realms'' as well as ''forbidden-zones'' to seek a chance of a breakthrough. What a pity! The destiny that found him on his previous journey was death.

    After stumbling upon an ancient unstable formation and mistakenly activating it, the Mystic Realm''s ruins exploded with a devastating blast, which not only destroyed his physical body but also, sent his soul through various dimensions of time and space.

    The body he came to possess was also called Feng Yu, who was the only child of the leader of the Feng Clan in Machen Town, Feng Yunlong. A father that was fond of his son despite his incompetence and laziness.

    The Feng Yu of this world was always out chasing skirts and causing trouble with his friends Xiang Shu and Huan Shan. Because of this, his father became prone to stress as he began to worry about the successorship of the family. Still, he didn''t try to force Feng Yu as he believed it to be a way of rebelling to fill the gap of a missing mother in his child''s life. In Feng Yu''s early years, his mother was said to have died of a chronic illness that no alchemist in the entire Machen Town could cure.

    However, recently, there was an announcement released by one of the top martial sects in the Bright Flame Kingdom, the Sky Splitting Sword Sect that there would be an emissary visiting Machen Town in less than two months of time to hold a ''Talent Selection'', which came as a shock to the Machen Town''s residents, as this was the first time a selection would take place in such a remote area. The prominent clans in Machen Town upon hearing this news began to direct all their resources to the main family descendants with the most talent, to ensure that they get selected.

    A family expert checked Feng Yu''s talent at his recent coming of age ceremony, which to their surprise showed that he had a ''top-tier aura pulse''. That discovery shocked the Feng Family Clan to the point of jubilant celebration; they invited all the prominent clans and held an event for two days.

    However, a day after the event, Feng Yu was called out by his best friends to go out drinking and partying. After an afternoon of idleness, they then brought him to a remote area where they violently beat and killed him. This resulted in the switching of Feng Yu''s souls.

    "Hmm, my body''s adaptability with the energies of heaven and earth is amazing. So, this is what it feels like to have an aura pulse! I need to leave here and recuperate quickly, so I can start training," Feng Yu said as he quickly made his way through the foggy district.

    The coldness of the morning was beginning to fade, after walking out of the district and approaching the central area, Feng Yu noticed that most shops were already open and running. While others had also begun to quickly set up for business as people were starting to gather bit by bit. The citizens of Machen Town were used to the early activity, which contributed to the liveliness of the morning. Some individuals were even doing short exercises in open spaces.

    One of the peddlers soon noticed Feng Yu passing by and quickly his excellent mood began to fade away.

    "Damn! What''s this troublemaker doing out so early? Could he have something planned today?" He said while trying to hide his most valuable stocks.

    Another peddler overheard and looked up in shock; he then quickly moved to gather his valuables as his life depended on it.

    The sudden commotion sparked a domino effect, and all peddlers began to complain secretly to themselves while on the surface acting business friendly.

    Looking at their reactions, Feng Yu felt uncomfortable in his heart. "You know, this young master has done nothing wrong. Sigh..." He muttered silently. Sadly though, that couldn''t be changed, as the previous Feng Yu was too much of a nuisance.

    "Dammit! I''ve got to clear this shitty reputation soon." Feng Yu took a quick glance at them, then no longer paid them any mind.

    One of the peddlers managed to work up some courage as he went forward in hopes of driving the evil spirit away. "Young Master Yu! You''re out early today, what are you seeking to purchase on this fine morning?"

    "Nothing! I''m fine, just heading home." Feng Yu said indifferently, as he nonchalantly gestured at the peddler while walking towards the northern district of Machen Town.

    "Am I dreaming? How could this brat not cause us any trouble in the morning?"

    "I don''t believe it! Maybe, that brat is planning to do something tonight."

    "That''s right!" A peddler said as he sighed, "We better clear out early today."

    The peddlers couldn''t believe it and started making plans for the afternoon. Thankfully, Feng Yu didn''t seem to overhear their following conversations.

    In a large section of the northern district of Machen Town, the Feng Clan Manor stood out imposingly with a large courtyard the size of two training fields. It had an arrangement of structures that surrounded the main building, and the entrance gate was of medium height by this world''s standard. Hanging high on top of the gate was the symbol of the Feng Clan, being that of the Phoenix, giving off an aura of ancient history and noble prestige.

    The Feng Clan was a family of ancient history which had existed for countless years. Sadly though, due to the mark of time, it began to decline, which lead to it settling down here in Machen Town about a hundred years ago, or so it was said.

    Noticing someone approaching the gate dressed in shabby clothing covered with dirt and dried up blood stains, the guards that were on the lookout immediately acted.

    "Halt! You are approaching the Feng residency, state your purpose for visiting or leave." One of the guards gestured at the figure threateningly while holding the hilt of his sword.

    "It''s me Feng Yu, clear the path!" Feng Yu, still feeling upset about the encounter with peddlers, shouted at the guards while showing the family token.

    Hearing the familiar voice and seeing the token in Feng Yu''s hand, the guard then bowed promptly as he replied. "Young Master Yu, pardon my negligence!" He then waved his hand at the other guards who opened the gate letting Feng Yu pass through, after which the gate quickly closed with a loud boom.

    After entering the residence, Feng Yu made his way through the courtyard along the neatly tiled path towards the main building. Spirit orchard trees lined the path towards the main building creating a magnificent scenery. Maids were cleaning the various areas of the courtyard. A few members of the family were scattered about on different practice fields training and doing other exercises.

    No longer paying too much attention to the scenery, he quickly entered the main building and headed toward his room. As he was about to enter his room, he heard a loud beckoning.

    "Feng Yu! Get in here now!" The voice of Feng Yunlong could be heard echoing even to the guards at the gate. Feng Yu looked around the main room finally resting his gaze on a large door located at the end of the hallway.

    Feeling a bit awkward, he sighed while making his way towards the large door.

 2 The Will of A True Dragon

    In a vast and brightly lit room, a middle-aged man dressed in simple clothing sat on top of a strange looking mat. He had dark red hair with streaks of silver appearing on the edges, and a hard face that seemed as if a chisel had sculpted it. His eyes not only showed a trace of weariness but a firm spirit that has shouldered most of the wind and rain in life.

    There were many piles of documents and jade slips scattered around his figure on the floor. In front of him stood a table, the height of a stool, with a variety of scrolls along with an ink container placed at the side.

    The man was Feng Yunlong, the current clan leader of the Feng Clan, with a cultivating achievement of 9th tier Aura Disciple realm which was only one pace away from the True Foundation realm. He was one of the dominant individuals in Machen Town.

    "Father, you called for me." Feng Yu said while closing the door behind him and bowing politely.

    "Come, sit down." Looking at the pale and distressed appearance of his son, Feng Yunlong was finding it very difficult to keep his rage at bay. He gestured at Feng Yu to sit in front of the table.

    Feeling a bit skeptical, Feng Yu quickly sat down and looked at his father, or rather, his new father.

    "Who had the gall to injure you, my son? How did this happen to you? Quickly tell me so that I can get to the bottom of this immediately!" said Feng Yunlong.

    Seeing the flustered love filled with concern and boiling rage expression of his father, Feng Yu felt something he never had the chance to experience in his previous life. "A parent''s love for their children is a child''s precious treasure indeed..." He thought to himself as he decided to say his ordeal rather than keep it hidden. Of course, he didn''t reveal the fact of him being a reincarnated soul.

    As was expected of Feng Yunlong, after hearing about the betrayal and treatment his son received from the Xiang and Huan Families descendants, he only ended up getting more infuriated.

    "Good! Very good! Their sons dare to do this to you; I must have a look at what kind of response they will give me today!" Feng Yunlong shouted in a rage as he promptly stood up causing his aura to over-fluctuate which led to the surrounding books becoming a mess, and the table flying towards a corner of the room soon after colliding with the wall.

    However, as he was about to storm outside of the room, he quickly was interrupted by Feng Yu.

    "Father, wait! Let me solve this matter on my own, after all; a man must learn to solve his own problems. I will challenge and beat them both to death in the approaching Talent Selection!" A confident expression appeared on Feng Yu''s face even though he looked pale and weak due to his current wounds. With his knowledge, he was confident that he would be capable of not only securing a quota but also, defeating both Xiang Shu and Huan Shan.

    Feng Yunlong, on the other hand, was shocked by Feng Yu''s sudden declaration. He looked at Feng with curiosity as he pondered to himself. "What''s going on? Was this my usual Yu''er playing his antics? Or is it possible that he''s grown up a little after having experienced such an ordeal?"

    Regardless of the true cause, he felt proud of the slight change in Feng Yu''s mindset. "At least it looks like there''s hope for him to improve." Feng Yunlong thought, but soon after he shook his head and muttered to himself silently. "But that''s something for the future."

    With less than two months left to prepare for the selection, wanting not only to earn a spot in the quota but also defeat Xiang Shu and Huan Shan, who were both already practitioners at the 7th tier of Body Training realm, was impossible, even for the most startling talents.

    Just as he was about to reject the idea, the sound of clapping was heard coming from behind him...

    Clap! Clap! Clap!

    "Well said, Yu child! Brother, I agree with little nephew, let him solve his problems." A tall man said who bore similar facial features to that of Feng Yunlong, his only difference being that he was slim and carried a large scar on the left side of his face that trailed across his left eye onto his cheek.

    This man was called Feng Junling, the older brother of Feng Yunlong. He rarely stayed in Machen Town as he likes to wander and explore the vast continent; he is also the only True Foundation realm expert residing in the Feng Clan.

    "Junling! There is no way I''m going to let him compete. He still hasn''t started training yet, and the selection is soon. It would be far too dangerous." Not feeling surprised at his brother''s sudden entry, he denied the possibility of making Feng Yu attempt such an impossible task.

    "But Father I... "Not feeling quite convinced of the danger, Feng Yu wanted to convince his father but was rejected again.

    "No buts! Even if you are talented, cultivation takes time and effort. You can always try for a different selection in a different city after you''ve trained properly." Feng Yunlong said sternly.

    "Brother! A ''true dragon'' cannot soar the nine heavens if it still lingers in a river. A real man makes do with the current and pushes forward given the opportunities," Feng Junling reproached as he gave Feng Yunlong a meaningful look.

    Hearing what his brother just said, a distant look came over Feng Yunlong. He considered the possibilities while looking through the window of the room gazing calmly at the view outside. Vaguely, a silhouette was looking towards him with a gentle gaze. It briefly smiled for a moment before vanishing into thin air.

    "Sigh, A ''true dragon'' indeed, you are right. It seems I have become weary during these years..." a sad gleam soon came over Feng Yunlong''s eyes, but he quickly recovered and stared at Feng Yu.

    "Yu''er! A real man never backs down no matter what he faces, and while we men of the Feng Clan are not ''Dragons,'' we are not inferior. As the ''Phoenix,'' we must challenge the heavens and bear the flames of adversity. For this is the only way that we could stimulate our noble bloodline to rise from the ashes and get reborn to stand stronger than before, taking what is rightfully ours." After which he nodded to Feng Junling and left the room.

    "Father, Yu''er will not disappoint you!" Feng Yu said while feeling excited about his father''s permission and advice. He also began to realize that his family''s name was more than it seemed, but, without strength, there would be no point in trying to figure out more.

    Suddenly, he remembered that he hadn''t greeted his uncle, he promptly placed his hands together making a cultured bow as he spoke, "Feng Yu greets Uncle Junling!"

    As he looked at his nephew, a proud feeling rose up within Feng Junling. He had always believed that Feng Yu would grow into a mighty expert someday, while he had not shown interest before and spent most of his time idling about; it seems that this recent setback had caused him to develop a new ''mindset.''

    "Growth starts from the heart..." Feng Junling thought to himself as he waved his hand tossing a small ring towards Feng Yu.

    "Em. Little nephew here''s a little something I got for you. Though, I''m late in handing it over due to missing your coming of age ceremony. Inside there are a few items necessary for cultivators to get started. Inside of the storage ring, there are medicinal pills, a few mortal-tier martial skills, and the family''s main cultivation art. There is also a sword placed inside for your convenience. Well, that''s it, go and tend to your injuries. If you have issues with your cultivation seek me out whenever you need me." After saying this, Feng Junling vanished leaving a remnant shade of his previous self in the location.

    After catching the ring, Feng Yu noticed that it had an elaborate engraving with a jewel attached to its core. "It''s a Storage Ring!" Feeling excited at the fact that he could receive one so early in a small area like this, he was satisfied. "This should make things a lot easier!" He thought while quickly placing it on his index right finger and making his way towards his room to recover.

    Standing in a nearby corner looking at Feng Yu''s retreating figure, Feng Junling thought to himself. "I wonder, will he be able to cultivate that art?" A strange light shone in his eyes similar to that of flames, it flickered briefly before vanishing. The corner of his lips rose into a smile before it faded away, "Don''t disappoint me Yu''er."

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    It was approaching noon and the day was reaching its peak. Wanderers and locals mixed amongst the crowded, bustling streets while the merchants were yelling at the top of their lungs to attract sales, as the rowdy atmosphere of commerce was in full swing.

    In the eastern district''s most central area, there was a significant mansion with a large courtyard comparable to that of the Feng Residence. It was a space with only one massive building and a large patio surrounded by tall walls with an extremely domineering gate and two giant tiger statues on both sides.

    This place was the home of the Xiang Clan, another of the four large family clans, in Machen Town.

    Inside the building in a huge room, there was a constructed battle platform on which two figures were currently engaged in heated combat. Off to the sides, two characters were seated on a higher platform chatting while observing the combatants.

    The two individuals fighting on the battle platform were Xiang Shu and Huan Shan. Xiang Shu was being pressured by Huan Shan.

    Huan Shan had unleashed a barrage of kicks hitting Xiang Shu''s underbelly and sending him flying towards the edge of the platform while coughing up a bit of blood. Seeing such a great opportunity to perform a finishing blow, he then leaned forward and started to sway side to side as if transformed into a snake slithering towards Xiang Shu.

    "Brutal Snake Style - First Form: Staggering Snake Steps!"

    He roared and within a moment, quickly arrived at the edge of the platform behind the still airborne form of Xiang Shu and promptly unleashed his finishing blow.

    He crouched his body down on the floor assuming running posture, pushing all the power he had into his lower body. Then he unleashed a kick that lashed out quickly towards Xiang Shu carrying with it the force of the wind because of its extreme speed.

    Sreeecccchhhh! A sharp cry resounded as he shot through the air like an arrow with his focus entirely on controlling the force of his kick.

    "Brutal Snake Style - Second Form: Brutal Snake Strike!!!" Huan Shan cried out loudly.

    "Haha! Brother Tian! It looks like my Shan''er will be the one winning this time around. After all, he has already achieved small accomplishment over his

    ." The figure observing the match on the right was getting excited as he saw that his son was gaining the winning edge over his opponent.

    "Don''t be so quick to judge Brother Mang. Look, the situation is about to change." said the figure on the left with a smile on his face and a confident appearance.

    "Ha! I don''t believe he can make a comeback at this point!" Said the figure on the right not feeling convinced.

    The figures observing the match were none other than two of the significant Family Clan Leaders in Machen Town. Located on the right was Huan Mang of the Huan Family and on the left, was Xiang Tian of the Xiang Family. Huan Mang was a slim man wearing decorated loose clothing while Xiang Tian was a robust man with an unshaved beard and decorated robes.

    On the battle platform, when all seemed to have been decided, there was a sudden change.

    Whoosh! As Xiang Shu was about to be defeated, a strange light shone intensely inside of his eyes, it was as if he could see the kick approaching towards him from behind. Quickly, he began to maneuver his body while remaining airborne. As if transforming into a kite, he started to glide in the air swaying to the side effortlessly to avoid the potentially fatal kick.

    "What! How could?" Momentarily shocked by witnessing an impossible stunt. Huan Shan lost his balance and fell towards the ground due to the excessive wind pressure.

    Thud! Quickly doing a roll on the ground and regaining his balance, Huan Shan tried to make a counter-attack but was hindered slightly due to an injury to one of his legs. Sadly, Xiang Shu would never give him another chance for an advantage.

    Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

    "Jade Wind Arts - Movement Style: Aerial Gliding Steps!"

    Like the gust of the wind itself, he swiftly appeared behind Huan Shan using the same strange gliding motion and then raised his right hand forming a palm strike which he directed towards Huan Shan''s unguarded back.

    "Jade Wind Arts - Combat Style: Aerial Palm Strike!!"

    Suddenly, an intense burst of wind followed the direction of the palm strike and the wind gathered from the momentum of the technique was now unleashed pushing Huan Shan away like a leaf blowing in a strong wind.

    He flew out of the platform and crashed into the sidewall creating a deep impression on the surface behind; he then pushed himself up off the ground and began to work on balancing himself as he panted heavily.

    "Aerial Gliding Steps! Aerial Palm Strike! How can this be? Did your brat finally achieve initial comprehension of your family''s Advance Level Mortal Tier Skill <Jade Wind Arts>!" Slamming his fist hard on the table, Huan Mang looked at the victorious Xiang Shu on the platform while shouting in surprise.

    "Ha! What do you think? After five months of training, he''s finally grasped initial comprehension away from small success stage by one pace." With a gloating expression on his face, he then waved at both Huan Shan and Xiang Shu to make their way over to them.

    "Incredible! It looks like your Xiang Clan is truly a destined place for talented successors, first Xiang Fang and now Xiang Shu." Huan Mang praised while sighing to himself.

    "Greetings Clan Leaders!" he said arriving in front of their fathers, Xiang Shu and Huan Shan then bowed respectfully.

    Looking at his son proudly for a moment, Xiang Tian said in a strict tone "Did you accomplish the task given to you?"

    Hearing his father''s question, he quickly replied "Yes Father! We made sure to take care of that brat last night during the town event. Huan Shan also did some interworking behind the scenes which ensured that there were no witnesses in the old district as well."

    "Good Work! Now that the nuisance is gone we can..." feeling excited Xiang Tian praised his son and then looked towards Huan Mang to discuss the next phase of their plans. But suddenly, he was interrupted by a loud commotion.

    Slam!

    The large door of the room was opened abruptly, rushing in was a man wearing black clothing.

    "Who dares to come in here without my consent? You there, if you don''t give me a good enough explanation for your actions, then you can forget about leaving from here today!" angered by being interrupted, Xiang Tian roared at the servant while oppressing him with his aura of an 8th Tier Aura Disciple.

    Struggling to catch his breath due to the oppression, the servant started gasping and sweating while trying to explain.

    "Cough! Cough! Sorry, Clan Leader, this servant is bringing urgent news. The Feng Clan leader just released an announcement saying that they will no longer provide weapons and resources to both our clan and the Huan Family Clan."

    Boom! The table shattered to pieces as both Huan Mang and Xiang Tian got up in anger. Huan Mang walked over and shouted towards the servant "Explain to me what is going on here! Why did he do this?"

    Quickly dispersing his oppressive aura, Xiang Shan also walked over and said, "Quickly Speak! And don''t leave out any details."

    Abiding by their commands, the servant began to explain what happened. Feng Yu was alive but severely wounded, and upon finding out the cause of Feng Yu''s injuries, the enraged Feng Yunlong ordered that the provisions of weapons and equipment should no longer be sold to the two clans involved in the case.

    Hearing that Feng Yu was still alive shocked Xiang Shu, he wanted to explain.

    "Father we..."

    "Enough!" said Xiang Tian waving his hand to cut off his son''s, "It seems that you were not careful enough and did not ensure that the Feng clan kid was dead. Dammit! Now we have to delay our plans."

    Looking at the door, Xiang Tian gripped his fists hard in fury.

    "Brother Xiang! What are we to do now? We can''t do any damage to the Feng Clan if we fight them directly." Huan Mang was getting anxious; he started to wonder if it was okay to carry on this plan.

    "Hmph! No matter, even if he found out, it makes no difference. Even with his son''s talent, it will still take him time to develop. With so little time left, what could he possibly accomplish? And on the likelihood he becomes a dazzling supreme being; don''t forget my Xiang Clan also has Xiang Fang."

    Hearing the name ''Xiang Fang'', Huan Mang began to calm down. The two of them looked out of a large window staring deep into the sky, passing through the clouds, traversing the dangerous mountains that stretched across thousands of kilometers towards the distant horizon.

    In a distant area, far away, a figure was journeying through these unknown lands. It was a young man, at the age of twenty-five at the prime of his youth, wearing a decorated robe while shouldering a giant blade on his back. The young man had a handsome face, but he carried with him a murderous aura as if he had slaughtered countless lives. He looked ruthless but divine at the same time giving an odd sense of balance.

    As if he felt something, he looked towards the distance. Oddly enough, despite it being daytime, stars could be seen glittering in his eyes. He muttered in a soft voice that trailed off into the wind, "The Stars of Destiny have shifted. Fate seems to be beckoning me."

 3 An Unusual Aura Pulse, Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique

    Inside of the Feng Clan''s Manor, within Feng Yu''s room, after being seated in a crossed-legged position for most of the daytime, Feng Yu finally let out a breath of fresh air. "Whew! These medicinal pills are quite effective despite being mortal tier pills. I''m roughly 90 percent recovered. Hmm, now let''s have a look at this body shall we," Feng Yu said as he wiped the sweat from his forehead and began to look inside his inner consciousness.

    Within his sea of consciousness was a vast misty space filled with water that continued to stretch seemingly without end. As Feng Yu inspected the size of his inner-space within his inner-consciousness, he was shocked!

    "Such an incredibly powerful soul! The size of this space is about 500 meters. Could this be an after effect of our souls merging? In my previous life, the largest my inner consciousness could be before training was roughly about 250 meters. I wonder how large it will grow once I start to cultivate." He muttered while admiring the strength of his soul.

    Typically, a mortal would have about 50 to 100 meters width of space before they started cultivating. Any higher than that was considered the talent range.

    The power the soul had did not affect battle strength in the early stages of cultivation, but instead, assists in the comprehension of martial skills. The stronger the soul one has, the quicker and easier it is to comprehend and gain insights into not only martial skills but also laws governing heaven and earth.

    Feng Yu''s soul was considered a ''top-level soul'' in his previous life. He could easily and quickly comprehend even the most complex of skills, but that was the limit of his abilities. He did not have an aura pulse which made it hard for him to progress in cultivation. In fact, cultivating to the peak of Warrior realm was already an incredible feat.

    After looking around the region within his consciousness for a bit, he soon came across something unique. Floating at the center of the misty space was a black spheroid pulsating at a regular interval. It had nine rings circling it each with a different color; he noticed that another ring was slowly forming around the central position of the sphere.

    The spheroid was about 10 meters in width, and within it, flames and lightning were dancing about as if trying to compete for supremacy. The aura it gave off was that of pure dominance and supreme might.

    Shocked by what he saw, Feng Yu called out in alarm, "What! What kind of aura pulse is this? Dual elements, lightning, and flame, incredible! Both are of a destructive nature. Hmm, nine rings, he truly is a Top-Tier Talent. Even within my old world, this kind of talent is of top grade. Wait, that''s not right! A 10th Ring is forming, could this be the fabled Half-Step Supreme Tier Talent? Is it possible that my talent has mutated as well?"

    Supreme Tier Aura Pulse was a myth thought to be something that can only exist in legends. A type of talent that belongs only to the most powerful beings of ancient primordial times. If one were to ask any figure whether there was a likelihood of a supreme grade talent appearing in the current era, they would all give the same reply, ''one in a trillion of every hundredth thousand years.

    "Great! With this kind of talent, even I don''t know the heights I can achieve. Perfect, now I only need to find a cultivation technique. Hmm, the main element of this body seems to be that of fire, with lighting as its sub-element. I don''t have any cultivation techniques that fit either of these categories. Maybe I should look at what Uncle Junling brought me," Feng Yu said still excited about his talent.

    He promptly left his inner consciousness space returning to the scene inside the room.

    Feng Yu looked towards the storage ring on his finger and sent his will inside it. Soon, a space of about ten cubic meters appeared within his mind, quickly browsing through it, he counted a total of two Low-Level Mortal Tier Skills, one Advance Level Mortal Tier Skill, and an Ungraded Cultivation Technique.

    He willed for it, and the cultivation technique quickly appeared in his hand. Looking at the old and ancient looking scroll he pondered "Strange... such a unique aura it''s as if this scroll came from ancient times. What secret could it be hiding?" Opening the scroll, he saw a drawing of a small flame with complicated runes surrounding it.

    After inspecting it further, he gained no results; he couldn''t understand how to cultivate it.

    Feng Yu pondered, after a short while he decided to try and bind it as one would do a magic treasure. He bit his finger to let it bleed and swiped it across the scroll following a strange line on the center of the drawing.

    Suddenly, the scroll that was in his hands began to shine radiantly, quickly filling the entire room with a hot light, "Could this be?" Feeling surprised by the sudden reaction of the scroll, Feng Yu was once again excited.

    He suddenly heard an ancient voice resounding in his mind, "It was from the fire we came, and it is through fire, we shall live again. The blaze of the nirvana shall exist for all, eternity...".

    Boom! His mind became filled with an explosive amount of knowledge coming from the scroll. After what seemed like an eternity, the lights filling the room began to fade away, and the scroll that sat within his hand started to burn slowly and turn into ash.

    Suddenly, Feng Yu opened his eyes. He looked at the remnants of the faded scroll in his hands and smiled while pondering, "Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique, such an incredible technique. It truly is beyond what it seems! If I draw on the fire essences of heaven and earth to temper my body it will become stronger, and as my cultivation levels increases, the stronger the flames I will be able to cultivate will be. A different tier for every level. There is no grade because it needs no grade. A technique that grows only with bloodline users, to think I''d get my hands on such a rare X Tier Cultivation Technique!"

    Cultivation techniques are divided into different ranks, as known by all cultivators. Separately, they were called Mortal Tier, Earth Tier, Heaven Tier, Mystical Tier, and the highest known to all Supreme Tier. Each of these affects cultivators in different ways. Typically, the higher the tier, the faster the cultivation speed, and the stronger the cultivator would be over the lower tiers. However, there are exceptions. In family clans with ancient bloodlines passed down from old generations, there are cultivation techniques which were created by powerful ancient individuals.

    X Tier Cultivation Techniques can be very rare and powerful depending on the Family''s ancient legacy. These techniques can only be cultivated by people of the highest talent and most concentration of ancient family blood. The higher the cultivation requirements, the stronger the techniques.

    Looking around the room, Feng Yu frowned "I need to find a better place to cultivate. The essences here are too weak. Hmm, traveling outside of Machen Town with no cultivation is the same as seeking death, not to mention being wanted dead by those of the Xiang and Huan Family Clans." Thinking for a while, he came up with a simple solution. Getting up from the lotus position, he went to the small courtyard connected to his room.

    The night drew close once again in Machen Town, and the sky looked dusky as the sun was slowly beginning to fade away into the distance. Within the courtyard, Feng Yu looked towards the sunset in surprise, "Well! It seems that it took me quite a while to digest the information on <Nirvana Cultivation Technique>. Oh well, it''s time to cultivate."

    Choosing a random location, he took out a stone half the size of a fist from his storage ring. This stone was glowing in many different colors, and it gave off an aura similar to that of heaven and earth.

    "A pity that this is a normal ''Essence Stone'' and not an elemental one. Using it would only waste cultivation time, but if I were to use it as the core of a simple <Fire Essence Gathering Formation> things would be different."

    With a smile on his face, Feng Yu tried to recall a primary gathering formation he studied in his previous life. Quickly, he willed for his sword to appear and began to draw on the ground a pentagram 10 meters wide with stars and mountains circling a small flame placed at the center of a pentagram.

    "Great! Now for the finishing touches." Reviewing it carefully, Feng Yu crushed the essence stone into a star-like powder carefully sprinkling it along its outlines, giving the formation a strange bright gloss, which illuminated the surrounding area.

    As night has now approached, some of the main family descendants that were lingering about started to notice his strange activities. Curious, they began to make their way over to observe.

    "Eh! What''s Cousin Yu doing over there?" a tall man asked in a loud surprised manner.

    "Hmm... I''m not sure it looks like a type of a Formation Array?" said another person close by.

    Quickly more and more individuals got interested. The once vacant section of the courtyard was becoming crowded with people.

    "Look! Look! Something is happening." Shouted one in surprise, while pointing towards Feng Yu who made a strange movement.

    Soon all onlookers calmed down and were observing Feng Yu quietly as not to cause any disturbances. The Clan Leader Fen Yunlong was also standing at a distance on top of a tree, as he saw the behavior of the clansmen, and seeing his son working on the formation filled his heart with pride.

    "When was it that Yu''er learned the Way of Formations?" A questioning look passed over Feng Yunlong''s face.

    Standing to the side, Feng Junling muttered, "It seems to be a type of Essence Gathering Formation, but not like any I''ve ever seen recorded before. I''ve never heard of one that uses these strange chants either. How interesting! It seems my little nephew must have come across some good fortune at the Mystery Pavilion."

    "Hmmm it seems so indeed" Feng Yunlong then started to observe more seriously.

    Feng Yu had placed his hands on the ground and began to mutter a strange language.

    "Shao! Jiao! Shouji! Liushi! Rang! Huo!"

    While chanting the unfamiliar words, essences that were in heaven and earth had begun to change. As if drawn to a magnet, all the powerful essences started to flow towards the source kicking up a gust of wind in an exciting manner.

    "What... what''s going on?" Someone cried out while looking at this phenomenon.

    "The essences are beginning to gather. Could it be a gathering formation?" A youth who seemed to have some underlying formation knowledge asked.

    "That''s impossible! A gathering formation would require more than a single piece of essence stone set in a unique arrangement. There is no way this could be done. Not to mention, he already crushed the stone into powder!" A slightly older family member stated in denial.

    "If not, then how do you explain the collecting essences?" A sharp female family member immediately retorted.

    Watching the scene in front of him, Feng Yunlong was astounded; he gave a meaningful look to Feng Junling. Seeing the look from his younger brother, he nodded with a strange glint in his eyes.

    He quickly waved his hand forming a barrier that instantly isolated the surrounding courtyard. If one were to look at the Feng Manor from the outside, all that could be seen would be a silent and peaceful courtyard.

    Suddenly, Feng Yu clasped his hands together, as if driven by an unknown force, all the rampaging essences became still. He then slowly opened his eyes causing a bright red light to shine, if one looked carefully, they would see a fire glowing brightly within him.

    Carefully directing his palms at the gathering formation before him, he then shouted out, "Dianran!"

    His voice echoed through the wind, lingering throughout the quiet courtyard. In an instant, a beam of scoring scarlet light shot from the sky right onto the formation array.

    Phew! The essences gathered within the Formation Array and started swirling at an alarming speed, quickly transforming the entire 10-meter zone into a blazing field of mortal flames. The flames bursted upwards, stretching from the ground up to the sky as if they were trying to create a pillar to heaven. However, before it could grow to a size beyond that of Feng Manor walls, an invisible field appeared, keeping the flames at a fixed height.

    "Phew! That was a close one. This nephew of mine certainly knows how to cause trouble. Maybe I was too quick about my earlier judgment." Feeling exhausted, Feng Junling thought to himself.

    As if knowing what was going on in his brother''s head, Feng Yunlong sneered, "Serves you right! Think of it as paying for your mistakes."

    It seemed that he was bearing a grudge for Feng Junling that was only now appearing from the coming of age ceremony.

    "Sigh... That was more burdensome than I thought it would be. It seems like this can''t be attempted easily without any cultivation, thankfully it didn''t fall short." Feng Yu, who was now finished with his chanting, finally took a breath of fresh air.

    "Woah!!! It''s a Flame Gathering Formation Array!"

    "I can''t believe it! There''s a unique way to create such a complex formation."

    "Cousin Yu! Where did you learn this?" a female member with bright eyes asked.

    Quickly, the family members crowded around him, harassing him for answers.

    Feeling a bit surprised at the crowd, he scratched his head laughing.

    "Ha, I just had a bit of luck. That''s all. Sorry guys, I need to start cultivating so let''s chat later when I am done." Not bothering to explain any further, he took off his shirt and plunged into the flames looking like a brave hero.

    Before anyone could react to Feng Yu''s sudden act of suicide, the flames started to shrink at a visible pace. A figure was sitting in the lotus position, unharmed by the fire.

    "Eh! How could he be cultivating inside the flames?" someone said.

    Looking at the body that seemed to be gathering endless strength from the flames, Feng Yunlong started to tremble with excitement. He shouted out in a loud manner unbecoming of the Family Leader.

    "Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique! Could this be?" Feng Junling said as he looked towards Feng Yunlong in shock.

    "The Heavens help me! Did Yu''er manage to cultivate it?" Fen Yunlong said in excitement as he looked towards Feng Junling.

    Feng Junling was just as excited, "Hahaha! He did not disappoint me!"

    "The Feng Family will rise again!" Feng Yunlong''s eyes were filled with flames of ambition, like a dried up well finally recovering its source of water. He gripped his fist in excitement looking at the form bathed by flames.

 4 The Path of Body Training

    Seated within the sea of fire, Feng Yu felt as if he had left the mortal plane and traveled to the deepest layer of hell. His skin began to turn to black giving off the pleasant scent of roasted meat "AHH! Dammit! Such a ruthless cultivation method. How is anyone supposed to cultivate like this? I have to hurry, or I''ll be cooked alive!"

    Quickly, he began to circulate the cultivation method as if it was ''burnt'' into his heart. The intense concentration of fire essences in flames started to gather towards him in streams. If one were to look carefully at his skin, they would see that as more and more of the essences flowed into his body, the scorched areas started cracking and falling apart to expose a new surface of a healthier tone with stronger durability. Thus, taking longer to get burnt from the flames, soon his entire fleshy body started to undergo a drastic change.

    "Ahh! Endure! Endure! Through Fire, I Came... and Through Fire... I live Again!" Clenching his teeth hard to bear the endless pain, Feng Yu pushed all his effort into completing the initial stages of Body Training Realm.

    Cultivation is divided into multiple realms or sometimes called by other stages. These are categorized from an ordering of weakest to strongest starting with Body Training Realm, Aura Disciple Realm, True Foundation Realm, Warrior Realm, True Soul Realm, Heavenly Realm, Mystical Realm, and the known strongest Transcendent Saintly Realm.

    For mortals to begin on the path to cultivation, there are a few requirements to succeed. Firstly, one must have an ''Aura Pulse'' as with this it shows that a person can advance without setback when gathering aura from the heavens and the earth. They will be able to progress smoothly at varying speeds depending on their respected ''Tiers'' even after advancing to later cultivation realms. Experts use this fact to identify talents from ''common cultivators.''

    Another requirement is to have firm willpower, a heart that holds steadfast as boulder would when faced with the raging waves of a stormy sea. Willpower would not only let the cultivator be immune to most illusions of the mind and heart, but it also allows them to attune themselves with nature more naturally.

    The final and most important requirement would be that of the body, it is the core of the cultivator and thus the stronger the bodies'' foundation, the higher the potential and smoother efficiency in battle it will have at later stages.

    Body Training Realm is divided into three major stages, that of Fleshy Body Tempering which is the strengthening of the muscles and toughening of the skin, then Bone Refining where the bones are refined to become as tough as steel and lastly; the Internal Organs and Inner Veins Tempering which serves as the core for aura development.

    1st Tier to 3rd Tier represents Fleshy Body Stage of Body Training, 4th Tier to 6th Tier represents Bone Refining Stage, and finally, 7th Tier to 9th Tier represents Internal Organs and Inner Veins Strengthening.

    Soon the night was at its peak. As darkness covered the world once more, the pillar of ''Mortal Flames'' still hung tall within the Feng Courtyard. It has been five hours since Feng Yu started cultivating the <Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique> by now the family members had already calmed down as Feng Yunlong, and Feng Junling explained the details.

    Hearing that the ancient family technique had been cultivated, the elders were excited as they knew exactly what that meant. The younger generation not understanding why cultivating the technique meant such a big deal to the elders were soon enlightened by a young woman dressed in night robes. She was a beauty with red hair that sparkled brightly in the night as if a star had descended to the world. This woman is known as Feng Xingyu, the Aunt of Feng Yu and Little Sister of Feng Yunlong and Feng Junling.

    "Hmph! Haven''t you guys read the scrolls in the family archives. Sigh, by cultivating the Nirvana Flame Technique not only would he be able to awaken his bloodline''s power, but when he advances in his cultivation, he will be drawing closer and closer to his initial awakening. Once this is so, he will be able to achieve the ability to draw upon his ''Bloodline''s Prestige.'' By the governing laws set and by the will of ancient ancestors. Upon his successful cultivation of the technique, the members of our family bloodline will have a high likelihood of achieving self-awakening, through which we can call upon the powers the bloodline sealed dormant within us!"

    Hearing that they could call upon their bloodline powers in the future, the younger generation members became excited.

    "Haha! Who would have thought the troublemaker Feng Yu would grant us such good fortune?" said an excited youth.

    "HAHAHAHA!" The crisp sound of laughter filled the entire courtyard.

    "Hmph!" Suddenly, a snort that seemed to have the power of heaven spread throughout the courtyard silencing everyone from the joyful atmosphere. Looking at the form standing on top of a tree nearby, the people began feeling pensive.

    "Ahem!" Clearing his throat, Feng Yunlong looked at the descendants and elders with a slightly warmer expression, he quickly changed the subject, "As Feng Yu has now successfully cultivated the ancient technique, it is now the right time for us of the Feng Clan to prepare. Do not forget your past! Do not forget our grievance! We must strive forward with all efforts to awaken our bloodline and reclaim what we once lost!"

    Listening to the directives given by the clan leader, the Feng Family members became more focused and started to engage in the discussion of the family''s future.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    The night quickly faded away bringing daytime once more to the town. After an entire night of planning, the Feng Family members had long since dispersed to go about their daily activities as well as duties. Feng Yu, however, was approaching the final stage of his cultivation.

    "Woosshh!"

    Suddenly, the remaining flames of the pillar within the courtyard soon contracted towards Feng Yu who took a deep breath.

    Bang!

    Within his body, there was a loud explosion that created a burst of fire energy around the courtyard blowing away all the stones in the vicinity leaving a small crater below Feng Yu''s body.

    Opening his eyes and observing his body, Feng Yu smiled in celebration, he gripped his fist and flexed his biceps which created a cracking sound, feeling the endless might of his body, Feng Yu felt as if he was in a dream.

    "To think I would reach 5th Tier Body Training Realm in one go, there must have been quite a large amount of mortal flame essences gathered last night."

    Diving his consciousness into his body, he began to inspect his bones. Currently, they were bright silvery in color and gave off a metallic shine, it could be seen that they were changing into a crystal-clear tone.

    "It is truly an amazing cultivation technique! Regarding bone refinement alone. I could have already been said to have achieved perfection in this realm as my bones are far beyond that of ordinary steel and are about to step into precious irons level. Hmm, I need to test my strength."

    Looking around the destroyed area of the small courtyard, he suddenly felt that this damage will be coming out of his monthly resources. He got up and made his way towards the training hallway. While passing the area, he noticed that no one seemed to be inside of the mansion today, and instead, it seems that most of the younger generations and elders were busy doing something. Thinking for a bit, he vaguely remembered something.

    "Hmm... I believe I heard something about our bloodline last night. Maybe I should first go and talk to Uncle Junling," After a quick thought, he made the decision and headed towards his Uncle''s resting space.

    Soon, he arrived at the west side of the Feng Manor where there was a small lake, and a bridge was built above it that was connected to a platform located at the center of the lake. Here, a simple hut was constructed surrounded by green grasses and flowers.

    Making his way across the bridge and standing in front of the hut, he reached out his hands to knock on the door.

    "Little Yu! Come let uncle see your results." Feng Junling''s voice suddenly came from inside the hut interrupting him from knocking. Quickly, he opened the door and entered the room.

    After entering the room, Feng Yu looked at his Uncle Junling and then bowed while saying "Greetings Uncle Junling!"

    Observing Feng Yu for a while, Feng Junling nodded while praising "Very Good! To have cultivated to 5th Tier of Body Training Realm in only a single night, HAHA! just the thought of it alone would scare many individuals senseless, it truly is a technique of legends."

    "Uncle''s praises are unfounded. I had to rely on the gathering formation to achieve this result. Otherwise, just by using the natural essence of Heaven and Earth, it would have probably taken me more than two weeks of hard training," Feng Yu said humbly.

    "Heh! That is part of your strength; we all have our methods through which we cultivate. Not to mention the fact that other cultivators would still need a year or a few months to advance to this stage assuming they are quite talented. Don''t downplay your abilities, now let me test your strength attack me with all the power you''ve got!" Feng Junling replied.

    "Here I come then, Uncle Junling! Please, forgive my offending!" Complying immediately to his uncle''s command, Feng Yu dashed towards Uncle Junling at high speed while channeling all the power of his fleshy body into his right hand, his muscles began bulging like a balloon.

    "TAKE THIS!!" swiftly appearing in front of Feng Junling he struck out a blow unleashing all his stored power. The essences in the room were sent into turmoil, and the might of the punch stirred up the surrounding objects. However, Feng Junling only observed calmly, with a smile on his face he lifted one finger and pushed it towards the incoming punch.

    BANG!!!

    A loud explosion occurred between the two sending a cluster of energy in all directions, strangely though nothing in the room seemed to have been destroyed.

    Whoosh!! Thud!

    Like an animal hit by a truck, the figure of Feng Yu was blasted towards the outside of the hut crashing into the ground close to the lake. Shortly after the sound of footsteps, Feng Junling appeared outside of the room looking at Feng Yu approvingly.

    "Incredible! That punch of yours had about 1000 pounds of force, which is double the force of an ordinary cultivator at the same Tier in Body Training Realm. The <Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique> is Incredible!"

    After picking himself up, Feng Yu then bowed and responded, "Thanks for the help Uncle Junling!"

    As he felt happy in his heart, Feng Yu started to ponder, "Never have I heard of someone gaining so much strength even with top-tier cultivation techniques. Hmm, probably the only techniques that could compare to this would be that of Supreme Tier."

    Remembering his main goal for coming here today Feng Yu said to Feng Jun Ling, "Uncle Junling! I want to ask about our family blood----" He stopped him before he could finish.

    Feng Junling casually responded, "Ah! It''s about time I mentioned that, come let''s go back inside, I''ll explain to you about the history of our bloodline."

 5 The Ancestral Phoenix Clan

    Sitting on a mat in the center of the hut, Feng Junling reached for a jar of wine and started to chug it down. He looked at Feng Yu, who currently sat before him, with an earnest appearance on his face.

    "Our Feng Family Clan has an extremely ancient history. It was only about 100 years ago that we used to reside in a place far away from here. This place was known as, the ''Sacred Domain''. It is a land situated within the core of this continent we live in, which is known as the True Yuan Continent."

    Listening carefully to his uncle, Feng Yu was suddenly enlightened. He thought, "So that''s how it is. No wonder our bloodline is so special. It seems that this world is as vast as my old world."

    Not paying much attention to his nephew, Feng Junling continued with a lost look on his face, "There are 7 Supreme Bloodline Families in the world, each of them unique due to being connected to a mighty Primordial Ancient Being. The Thunder Dragon Clan, Elf Monarch Clan, Fairy Tribe, Devil Emperor Clan, Beastman Clan, White Tiger Clan, and lastly our Ancestral Phoenix Clan. "

    "Apart from these clans, there are hundreds of other groups with minor bloodlines from beings of a common heritage. But this does not mean our bloodline clans are the strongest. Apart from bloodline clans, there are Ancient War Saint Heritages, these clans are in no way inferior to either our Supreme Bloodline Clans or Lesser Bloodline Clans. These Families practice Inherited Techniques classed as Supreme Tier. These typically emphasize a weapon of mastery and ''Secret Techniques'' that can increase battle prestige no inferior to bloodline prestige.

    Curious Feng Yu suddenly asked, "Uncle Junling, I find it strange that they can still compare to bloodline might. Couldn''t we use those mystical techniques to increase our bloodline might?"

    Smiling at Feng Yu''s question, Feng Junling gestured towards a table. Following his gesture, Feng Yu was even more confused as he looked at a full glass jar of water.

    Suddenly, Feng Junling motioned his hand towards another jug of water which was so full, it flew over. Then, he looked at Feng Yu and said, "A Jar can only hold so much water, what do you think will happen if you constantly add more water while preventing any of it from escaping?"

    Snapping his finger, one of the Jars floated and began to pour water into the already filled jar. Strangely enough, it seemed that some force was preventing the water inside of the jar from overflowing. Soon, cracking noises could be heard from the pot.

    Bang! After a loud noise, the jar broke into pieces spreading water all over the table. Its parts scattered about the floor.

    Surprised and more enlightened, Feng Yu blurted out "Ah! So that''s how it is! No wonder those bloodline warriors didn''t overthrow my----" as if realizing his mistake, he quickly rephrased his statement, "My... my idea of the world in the past..."

    A confused expression appeared on Feng Junling''s face. He looked at Feng Yu''s face carefully, but then he paid no more attention and continued to speak.

    "That''s right. Mystical Techniques are from a similar source of power that increases the power of the blood that exists within the hosts of its practice. Because of this, it will not do bloodline cultivators any good, seeing as we can already summon our prestige through our powerful bloodline. Doing so would cause a conflict between both forces. This would prove to be rather catastrophic. It is because of this that Ancient War Saints Clans and Minor War Heritage Clans keep up with our Bloodline Lineages."

    "As our clan was once a powerful Supreme Bloodline family that existed within Sacred Domain, we naturally would have better-inherited techniques and roots compared to any other clans within this small and remote empire. Sigh, but as fate would have it, our clan has declined to this state."

    With a sad look on his face, Feng Junling continued, "Among all of the Supreme Clan bloodlines, our Phoenix''s clans X Tier Technique was too complex to practice. If the individual did not have a deep understanding of the ''Nirvana'' intent as well as an extremely high concentration of our bloodline, it would be impossible to cultivate it."

    Feng Yu was baffled "Nirvana... Nirvana, could it be..." he muttered in a soft voice while listening to his uncle.

    Feng Junling scratched his chin nodded "Hmmm, I believe the reason that you must have been able to cultivate it was because you have such a strong bloodline concentration. The near-death experience you recently suffered must have given you a decent comprehension of Nirvana."

    Seeing that Feng Junling was so focused on the cultivation of the technique Feng Yu asked. "Uncle Junling, is there a drawback for not having someone cultivate using the <Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique>?"

    Feng Junling replied, "Indeed so, if there is no one to cultivate using the <Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique> to awaken his bloodline, then all of the clan members suffer a backlash. This restricts their ability to draw upon their bloodline powers, which also hinders their cultivation. The reason is that the strength of our ancestral bloodline is too powerful. It requires a talent worthy of its standard to cultivate its technique. This means all successful generation cultivators of the technique would be closest in terms of bloodline concentration to that of the ancestor, which makes them the core of the bloodline for the entire clan."

    Feng Yu frowned feeling puzzled then said, "But if it''s like this for our bloodline, what of the bloodlines of those other Supreme Family Clans."

    "All Supreme Bloodlines have a similar setback but are manageable due to their families having multiple individuals capable of sharing the bloodline''s burden. The easier it is to cultivate, the more people will be able to cultivate the art. This keeps the supreme bloodline clans in order. Sadly, our Phoenix clan has only had one successful cultivator in every era. Since the previous successor to our bloodline died in a calamity 10,000 years ago, our clan kept declining which led to an eventual disaster."

    In recalling memories from the past, Feng Junling''s face became filled with extreme hatred. He looked out the window of his hut staring deep into the sky on the clouds. Soon, a scene started to become visible. A palace could be seen far upon a grand mountain hidden by the clouds. He began to reminisce about a story that happened a long time ago.

    "It was only about a 100 year before you were born. Your grandfather Feng Tianlong was invited to the Thunder Dragon Clan to celebrate the successful union of your mother and father. All went well, and nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. However, it was only after completely letting our guards down did we realize what a big mistake we had made. At the party was a gathering of three of the Supreme Bloodline clans, two of which we have always been on bad terms with since ancient times: The Devil Emperor Clan and the Beastman Tribe."

    While gritting his teeth and clenching his fist hard, he then continued, "It seemed that without us noticing, the Thunder Dragon Clan had signed some agreement with those two clans. In the past, we had always suppressed the activities of both clans due to their harmful nature and disruptive activities. This unexpected betrayal caused many casualties to both parties including our own. This caused the hatred between our clans to grow and over time, it was irreconcilable. These three Clans Leaders had suppressed your grandfather and began to carry out a slaughter prepared beforehand towards our clansman at the headquarters. During this conflict, your mother, who was pregnant with you and unable to properly fight, suffered an unexpected attack launched by a member of the Devil Emperor Clan."

    "Filled with rage, your father and I went on a massacring spree, killing most of the enemies. As we were about to find a way breakthrough, an individual who was among our family captured your injured mother Lei Shangan and threatened us by using hostage tactics. Seeing that he couldn''t do anything to help us, your grandfather offered a plea towards the three clans to give the remaining members a slim chance. The Clan Leaders, who had already achieved their goal, then agreed by setting the harshest condition possible. They discarded all the cultivation of the clan elders and destroyed all the techniques handed down from within our clan''s Ancient Heritage. After which, they fatally wounded your grandfather and forced the clan to leave the Sacred Yuan Domain."

    A teardrop could be seen falling from the eyes of Feng Junling, as he continued his recollection. "It was while traveling from the treacherous Sacred Domain Border to the Outer Continent. Your grandfather exhausted his last bits of strength to teleport us to an extremely distant location after being ambushed by powerful creatures that seemed to know of our traveling route. After being teleported, we found ourselves in a location close to the current kingdom we now reside in. All forms of communication with your grandfather have been lost since then."

    Feng Junling sighed as he circulated his aura within his palm. "We had no power to go back and had only a limited amount of resources remaining. I, along with your father, your mother and your aunt as well as the remaining elders, eventually decided to settle down in this small town. However, because of our severe injuries, we suffered from the crippling of our cultivation. Even when we tried to re-cultivate, we remained unable to progress as smoothly as we did before. This is why our cultivation bases remained at this stage, despite using dozens of years to rebuild. Our enemies let us go due to this very fact. Without unsealing our bloodlines, we have not been able to recover our strength¡­ destined to fade away by the fetters of time. "

    Suddenly hearing about his grandfather''s and mother''s tragedies, imperceptible to Feng Yu''s noticing, a wave of emotion instantly began to fill the deepest part of his soul and began to overflow. Feng Yu suddenly became filled with endless killing intent and hatred.

    "They dared to do this to my mother and grandfather! I, Feng Yu, swear to seek Vengeance even if I die trying!" While filled with rage and shouting out his declaration in his mind, there was a glow from the most profound place within his soul. The last remnant of the previous Feng Yu became content. It fully merged its killing intent with the current Feng Yu''s, and the two souls became one true new being.

    Subconsciously, Feng Yu no longer considered himself an outsider, but the true Feng Yu of this world with a previous life experience of another.

    Recovering from his dry mood, Feng Junling looked at his nephew and started to feel better. "Hearing the might of our enemies and still having the guts to seek revenge on them to the very end, a true Dragon, no... a true Phoenix indeed. It''s a pity your mother still ended up dying. Even after being treated with all kinds of treasures she bore the burden of suffering a curse. Because of the devilish curse arts used by the devil who attacked her, it was only when you were born that she was finally released from the curse immediately dying, leaving us behind.

    Ending his recollection, Feng Junling said, "Now, enough about the past. Seeing that you have managed to cultivate the technique, you should now start to tap into your bloodline and seek out awakening. The best way to do this is through combat experience. Try taking a visit to ''Tydol Mountain Range.'' It would also be an excellent way to consolidate your foundation further, eliminating any hidden injuries. Before you head out, make sure to train at least one of the combat martial arts inside of this storage ring.

    Tossing a pouch at Feng Yu, he said, "Don''t worry about the other main clansmen. Now they are all trying to inspire their bloodline''s sealed potential now that the restriction has been lifted. Here is your allowance for the next two months; your father asked me to pass it on to you before you head off training."

    Looking deeply at Feng Yu he said solemnly, "Little Nephew, your future depends on you. The path of a True Expert lies in continuous tempering and self-reflection through experiences. Now go."

    Bowing deeply to Feng Junling, Feng Yu said "Uncle Junling, thank you for explaining our clan''s history to me. I promise to not let down not only our clan members but also Grand Father''s sacrificial efforts."

    With that said, he then made his way out of the hut and wandered off to the distant courtyard.

    Looking at Feng Yu''s back, Feng Junling smiled and then got into a cross-legged position continuing to derive his bloodline.

 6 Lightning Flash Steps, Blazing Mantis Palm

    The weather was great today. As the winds blew, fresh leaves scattered throughout the training field among dozens of others clustered within the grass. A figure was dressed in red shaolin-style robes with a black sash tied around his waist. He sat silently within the vacant field, unmoved by the force of the wind flowing around him.

    "Hmm, the <Blazing Mantis Palm Arts>, the Martial Skill Uncle Junling found, is quite interesting due to its capability of using the fire essence deep within my body core to launch swift and profound palm offensive techniques. It seems to be based off an actual Demon Flame Mantis. In my past life, I focused on those types of lighting techniques that ''Old Master'' taught me. Sigh, it is a pity that all of them are more based on martial techniques and have no real value to my overall offensive power. This body also leans more towards fire essence as the primary element with lightning as its sub-element." Looking at the scroll in his hand, he spent a few minutes reviewing it; he then deposited it back into his storage ring.

    Feng Yu quickly stood up from the floor and positioned himself in a combat stance with one foot forward, and one-foot to his side slightly bent. He held both of his hands in front of him at different heights, while his palms folded over making his entire posture assume the form of a mantis.

    He then began to breathe in and out in a slow, repetitive manner, "Humm... haaaaa... hummmm... haaaaa..."

    Shortly after, the essence of fire deep within the core of Feng Yu''s body began to gather, flowing through his body making its way from his Dantian through his veins and finally to his hands concentrating on his palms. The wind of daytime began to blow wildly, kicking up even more petals in a disorderly manner. Some of them made their way over toward his position and were about to sweep beyond his figure.

    Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!

    Without warning, Feng Yu struck his palms out making tree swipes in the air. Like a pair of blades. His palms moved in a fluid and unrestrained style as if in slow motion. The leaves floating nearby began to drift sluggishly. Feng Yu who was still in mantis posture had three streaks of red lights appear momentarily around his form before vanishing as quickly as they came.

    Time soon quickly began to speed up as if nothing happened. The packs of leaves swiftly swept past Feng Yu vanishing into the distant parts of the training field. If one looked carefully at the leaves, burn marks were lingering at their edges slowly burning the leaves, extinguishing after a short while.

    "Hmm, the Blazing Mantis Palm Arts First Stance: Scorching Mantis Palm Strikes is not as easy to master as I thought it to be despite having a mutated soul. It seems like it will take a while to master all three stances, as expected of an Advance Mortal Tier Martial Skill. No matter, I''ve already gained initial insights into its true essence. A bit more, and I will be able to achieve small successes very quickly," Feng Yu said while feeling a bit disappointed about these results, he made up his mind to master all of them as quickly as possible.

    Feng Yu then positioned himself back into the mantis stance, where he continued to practice the <Blazing Mantis Palm Arts> throughout the windy field.

    If one viewed from a distance, they would see a ghostly scene, as multiple flashes of red light would flicker about the area at each swing of his palms and sway of his body.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Quickly, four days of time passed.

    In the tranquil training field, Feng Yu could be seen moving his hands at alarming speeds. He quickly swiped his palms at a group of approaching leaves leaving nothing but countless blurs in motion. The group of leaves swiftly passed by him through the rush of the wind. Soon they began to split into two sections, burning from the center to their edges and leaving behind ashes.

    "Whew! I''m finally done with all stages." Feng Yu said while letting out a breath of fresh air and wiping his sweat off, taking himself out of fighting stance. After thoroughly mastering the second stance of the <Blazing Mantis Palm Arts> - Blurry Mantis Palms... The next phase would be to understand its true form of completeness which is called true success.

    "Trying to grasp the true success stage is impossible at the moment. I''m going to need actual combat experience to comprehend the technique''s true essence. Uncle Junling suggested Tydol Mountain Range, and if I recall correctly, Tydol Mountain Range should be about 30 kilometers south of Machen Town," Feng Yu muttered.

    "The essences there should be of a higher concentration than here as well. I should be able to make a few more cultivation breakthroughs if I set up another <Fire Gathering Formation>. It should also have quite a lot of essence beasts roaming the area. It looks like I need to practice a life-saving art before heading to the place."

    He sat down on the ground and looked around. Noticing no one was present, even after two days of training, he smiled wearily, "It seems like everyone is quite eager to stimulate their bloodlines. Haha! I guess I shouldn''t slack off either."

    Searching his sea of memories, he began to recall a technique his master taught him for the Body Training realm in the past. Soon he saw a bald old man smiling at him with a strange marking on his head. He was wearing old Daoist robes that seemed to have existed since ancient times. He had a unique aura, similar to that of a mortal but yet immortal-like. With a gentle expression on his face, he stroked his white beard and said, "Little Yu, right now you are weak but being weak isn''t a sin. All creatures have their starting point. Be it that of a dragon or a snail. You''re just a bit weaker than most. As such, you need to have ways to protect yourself. Look carefully now! I will show you a technique I created many years ago that will do more than simply save your life."

    Soon the old man began to perform a series of movements, abruptly vanishing with every step like a flickering bolt of lightning. Strangely though, after he finished performing this movement technique, he looked directly at Feng Yu who seemed to be in a daze. A look of approval gleamed in his eyes as he waved his hand towards Feng Yu and smiled. Instantly Feng Yu woke up from his state of sudden enlightenment.

    Feeling strange Feng Yu touched his head and spoke in a confused manner, "Strange... It feels as if I was back in time just now. How could I experience enlightenment while in my memories?" No longer paying attention to this, he quickly recalled the technique he was looking called <Lightning Flash Technique>.

    "A top-tier mortal grade movement skill! If I recall correctly, it is only one stance, spark flash. Based on the little insight I just gleaned from that enlightenment, I should be able to grasp it to success with a few more days of training."

    Positioning himself in a running stance, he began to train the spark steps within the courtyard.

 7 Monkey liquor!

    Mount Tydol was a vast and mysterious mountain range filled with many kinds of unusual plants and strange beasts. There are many varieties of spiritual herbs and plants scattered about the rough grassy terrain, with spirit fruits growing from humongous ancient trees. Their branches have become so large that they appeared to have blocked off the sky as they stretched across the wild forestry deep within the mountain range.

    Roar! The cries of various essence beasts were heard faintly resounding throughout the entire region, further increasing the wild and untamed atmosphere.

    The sky was getting bleak, as water drops started to fall from the clouds. One drop of water fell on top of a colossal tree towering the area, it slid down a large leaf the size of two men, finally, dripping on Feng Yu, who was hiding underneath the tree.

    Pat!

    "It seems that it''s about to start raining," Feng Yu said while wiping the raindrop from his forehead.

    He was silently perched on top of a large branch. His form camouflaged by many gigantic leaves. Occasionally, his ears would make a slight twitching motion as he carefully scouted the region. Soon, his gaze became fixed towards a specific location within a dense field of tall grass. Shortly after, a figure became visible, swiftly making its way through the tall thickets with high speed and skill. It was a panther moving carefully and with agility. This panther was three meters tall, five meters in length, with purples stripes covering its black skin.

    Strangely enough, despite its massive frame, it made no sound as it swiftly made its way through the shrubs. Very quickly, it arrived at Feng Yu''s location. It seemed to have picked up his scent as it carefully sniffed the region. An intelligent gleam shined in its dark eyes.

    Swish! "Scorching Mantis Strike!" Seeing an opening, Feng Yu quickly launched an attack utilizing the first stance of the <Blazing Mantis Palm Arts>.

    As if sensing the danger beforehand, the panther promptly evaded by leaping backward leaving an afterimage in its wake demonstrating astounding flexibility. Sensing that its opponent''s cultivation was no stronger than itself, it immediately repositioned itself into an attack posture and gave off a loud roar while dashing towards Feng Yu.

    Rooaarrr! Swoosh!

    "Shit! It''s fast!" Feeling a bit surprised by the panther''s speed, Feng Yu frowned while grumbling. However, he didn''t dare let his guard down either. He quickly got into the ''Mantis Stance'' preparing to counterattack the panther''s speedy assault.

    A cunning glint gleamed in the panther''s eyes as it made a mocking expression. With a slight shake of its body, another afterimage appeared. This afterimage then branched off into multiple similar afterimages agilely traversing the distance while shuffling amongst each other creating an illusive scene.

    Swish! Swish! Swish!

    "Hmph... Such a cunning cat. Are you forcing me into a frontal assault? It seems that your specialty is quite exquisite indeed. Sadly, you''re underestimating me too much!" Feng Yu inwardly praised its Movement Technique while sneering. He dashed towards the images of the panther utilizing his <Lightning Flash Steps> Movement Skill.

    Flash! Flash! Flash!

    After a series of lines similar to lightning, Feng Yu''s figure abruptly appeared within the center of the panther''s afterimages. As if in slow motion, he lifted his hands slowly and began swiping his palms out in a fluid style, leaving many remnant outlines after each swipe. Soon, his hands became blurry due to the speed of his palm attacks. They struck all the images of the panther instantly dispersing the illusion ability caused by its stunning movement speed.

    A look of shock appeared in the panther''s eyes as it swiftly started to retreat.

    Seeing this act, Feng Yu mocked, "HA! You''re too late!" With another flash, he quickly disappeared from the panther''s field of vision leaving only a bright trailing line of lightning.

    Before the panther could react, a flash of red light swept across its neck all the way towards its sternum.

    Like a ghost, Feng Yu appeared below its underbelly with his back facing the front of the panther, while sustaining the Mantis Attack Stance. He crouched on the ground, with one leg in front of the other. His right hand was positioned towards the ground while his left hand was held high above his head with its palm curved over. Droplets of blood dripped from the index finger onto his right palm and then to the ground.

    Pat. Pat. Pat.

    Roooaaaarrr! Looking at the undefended prey in front of him, the panther roared in rage preparing to unleash its most powerful method.

    Puff! A line of blood appeared trailing from the back of its neck all the way to front. The panther panicked and wanted to run away, but the situation was already decided.

    Soon the light in the panther''s eyes faded away, and its head flew from its body, leaving traces of burn marks on the ripped surface. Bloodshot forth like a geyser, spraying around the green grass and covering the area in shades of bloody red. The pungent scent of blood began to linger throughout the air.

    Wiping the blood off his hands, Feng Yu then said in a disappointed manner, "It seems I''m still far away from achieving insights into the third stance. I imbued my ''Blurry Mantis Palms'' with the strength of fire essence to the Complete State finally. However, I don''t have a slight clue as to how to execute the Third Move: Blazing Palm Wave. Sigh, it''s only been four days since I started hunting; there should still be plenty of time."

    "This purple striped Black Panther should be my 5th Five-Star Tier 1 Essence Beast. Now that I''ve warmed up, I should go try some stronger creatures."

    Essence Beasts are creatures that could cultivate using the essences of heaven and earth. These beasts are no less intelligent than human beings. Like cultivators, they are divided into different tiers according to the strength. Tier 1 Essence Beasts have the strength of a Body Training realm expert, ranging from low levels to high levels using the ''Star Ranking System.''

    Generally, from 1 Star to 9 Star would be the same as the 1st Tier to 9th Tier of each corresponding martial cultivation realm. Tier 1 - Tier 4 beasts are usually referred to as Essence Beasts, while Tier 5 to Tier 8 beasts are referred to as Supreme Beasts.

    There are stories of another type of creature that is unable to be categorized as merely ''Beast Kind,'' but that is a story from a distant and ancient time.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    The rain was falling harshly within the mountain range, and the thunder echoed throughout the surroundings. The liveliness of the environment disappeared due to the gloomy atmosphere of nature once again revealing its might.

    FLASH! KA-BANG!

    A flash of lightning struck a distant location; instantly destroying a large rock hidden within the forestry of the steep mountainside. Shortly after, however, another three flashes of lightning appeared swiftly traversing through the region, leaving a long trailing line for each ray.

    Flash! Flash! Flash!

    Feng Yu''s form was flashing from location to location within the mountain''s forest. Each flash took him 15 meters away from the last. This was a sign that he had reached the perfection in the simple stage in the <Lightning Flash Steps> movement skill.

    He soon arrived at an area with a dense collection of trees. Carefully making his way through the branches of the trees, Feng Yu saw a field in front of him hidden away from the outside due to trees.

    "Oh, there should be a good place to take a rest from this awful weather. Hmm, maybe I should give it a quick inspection first to be sure," After making a quick decision, Feng Yu then headed towards the field.

    Hou! Hou! Hou!

    As he drew closer to the area, sounds of apes could be heard within the field.

    "There are creatures here. I should be a little more cautious." Swiftly he flashed and vanished into a shrubbery the size of a fully-grown man.

    Now the field was in full view. Looking through the dense shrubbery in front of him, he saw a community of apes playing around in a small lake. These apes had beautiful silver fur and had long muscular arms. A few of the young apes were eating fruit and lying on the ground while the elder apes were mixing collected fruits into a large jar carefully.

    Soon the smell of liquor drifted towards the surroundings. Taking a quick whiff, Feng Yu instantly became excited.

    "Monkey Liquor! What great luck! To come here at such a time when it''s about to be brewed. Hmm, that color, these must be Silver Furred Apes."

    Curious, Feng Yu wanted to try out the strength of these Silver Furred Ape''s but decided against it. His priority now was to steal the Jar of Monkey Liquor.

    Monkey Liquor is said to be a rare medicinal alcohol created by ''Ape Kind.'' Not only is it capable of healing severe injuries, but it could also help one build a firmer foundation, making a practitioner experience more natural breakthroughs in lower cultivation realms.

    "With this liquor, I should be able to stabilize my foundation at a quicker pace and clear up the hidden effects of the multiple realm breakthroughs I had back at the clan," Feng Yu said as he calmed his thoughts and carefully observed the situation.

    Soon the Monkey Liquor was completed, and all the Silver Furred Apes began to shout excitedly as they gathered around the Jar.

    ROOOAAAARRRR!

    As the saying goes, ''Birds Die in Search of Food.'' Like birds, many animals share the same basic instinct. Suddenly, a Gigantic Red Tiger that was 10 meters in height and 15 meters long appeared with a golden crown that had nine stars shining brightly on its forehead. It lifted its head and roared towards the sky demonstrating its prestige for a moment, soon after, it charged towards the area of elder apes with the Jar of monkey liquor. A look of greed was gleaming in its eyes as it stared at the jar of monkey liquor.

    Feng Yu called out in shock, "Golden Crown Red Tiger King!"

    Hou! Hou! Hou!!

    The apes were furious; they rushed out in an attempt to block the Red Tiger King but were soon ripped to shreds with a swipe of its humongous paws.

    Still shocked, Feng Yu pondered, "A 9 Star Tier 1 Essence Beast like this is willing to fight these Silver Furred Apes for the Monkey Liquor. Could it be on the verge of a breakthrough towards Tier 2?"

    Smashing away all the weaker Silver Furred Apes, the Tiger King was excited because it was about to reach the Monkey Liquor.

    "RED TIGER, HOW DARE YOU!"

    Suddenly the essences of heaven and earth became chaotic once again as a voice echoed across the perimeter.

    WHOOSH! BOOM!

    An Ancient Tree, 50 meters tall requiring at least 35 men to surround it with their arms, was instantly snapped in half. The figure that appeared was like that of a Silver Furred Ape but was golden in color. It had a height of 30 meters with arms as thick as large water barrels. There were nine stars also shining brightly on its chest. It gave off a primordial aura of ancient and supreme might.

    "GOLDEN FURRED APE KING!" Feng Yu was stricken with fear.

    As if sharing the same shock as Feng Yu, the Golden Crown Tiger King looked with an expression of terror on its face.

 8 A Dangerous Situation, Golden Furred Ape King

    The harsh rain soon ended abruptly, as if nature could feel something wrong. The clouds slowly began to part away revealing rays of light that shone down upon the forestry within the mountain range.

    A shadow was immersed by one of the sun rays creating a golden luminance throughout the area. It stood on top of a broken tree that was once a towering construct of nature reaching towards the vastness of the heavens.

    The air in the field was now very thick, and it was as if a knife could be used to slice the tense atmosphere. The Golden Furred Ape King stared at the injured members of its tribe in anger. Seeing that the Golden Crown Red Tiger King was still dazed, it swiftly rushed towards him creating sonic booms as it traversed the distance almost within a flash.

    BOOM! WHOOSH!

    "YOU DARE TO INJURE MY CHILDREN! I, APE KING, WILL NOT LET THIS REST!" The Golden Furred Ape King shouted as it approached, with a blinding speed that touched the limit of the sound barrier, the Golden Crown Red Tiger King.

    Suddenly, a tornado formed in the region resulting from the Golden Furred Ape King''s swift charge. It began to expand, collapsing most of the nearby bushes and smaller trees. Some of the injured apes were pushed towards further trees while the stronger elder apes were capable of holding their positions. The Golden Furred Ape King was not slow due to its size. In fact, besides having an immense amount of strength, it had a great speed.

    "ROOAAAARRRR!"

    Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

    Recovering from its fear-stricken state and letting out a roar of might, the tiger king immediately prepared for battle knowing full well that trying to escape would be meaningless. A furious expression formed on its face and a sharp light shone within its eyes. It quickly gathered power into its legs, crushing the ground where it stood, as it propelled itself forward towards the Golden Furred Ape King for a head-on collision.

    KAABOOOMMMM!

    Their clash caused the already turbulent environment to become even more of a disorder. As if assaulted by a hurricane, all the silver-furred apes were tossed into the air flying tens of meters away from the central location.

    Feng Yu, who hid in some shrubbery nearby, was instantly exposed because of the powerful shockwave caused by the 9 Star Essence Beasts collisions. While being blown away through the air, he swiftly stabilized himself by performing a spinning motion with his body. Then he immediately used <Lightning Flash Steps> to avoid the remaining wind pressure.

    Flash!

    Instantly, he arrived on top of a large tree a couple of meters away from the battle zone. Feng Yu looked towards the distant battling creatures. They seemed to reshape the environment with a single swipe of their hands. He then glanced at the unguarded Jar of Monkey Liquor resting between sturdy stones at the center of the field.

    "Not Good! Why would a ''Variation Essence Beast'' be here? Dammit! Who cares? It''s all or nothing!!" Screaming out in defiance towards the heavens for playing such a trick, Feng Yu decided to take this opportunity to steal the Jar of Monkey Liquor.

    Variation Essence Beast are creatures born with unique talents different from ordinary essence beasts. Some awaken with ancient bloodlines and others with unique gifts bestowed by the Heavens. These creatures are said to be Invincible in the same rank and are capable of realm crossing during combat due to their natural endowments. There are some born with incredible wisdom, no different from that of a human, making them break away from the fetter of needing a high cultivation base to speak.

    FLASH! FLASH! FLASH!

    Moving quickly, Feng Yu transformed into a streak of lightning as he traveled towards the central location at high speeds.

    He arrived at the location of the monkey liquor that was positioned between two large rocks firmly holding it in place. He reached for the jar and immediately transferred it into his Storage Ring.

    "Good! HAHA! Time to get out of here!" Excited about stealing the monkey liquor, Feng Yu began to run away at top speed.

    BOOOOOMMMM!

    Soon the battle of the Tiger King and Golden Ape reached the center of the field. The Golden Fur Ape King took a quick glance at the location of the Jar and saw that it was missing. It was shocked, looking around the area then it eventually spotted Feng Yu''s retreating figure causing a feeling of rage boil within its core.

    "SHAMELESS HUMANITY! KILL HIM NOW!"

    With rage-filled eyes, the Golden Furred Ape King''s put the Golden Crown Red Tiger King into a pincer hold as it roared giving commands to nearby uninjured Silver Furred Ape Elders.

    "ROOAARRRR!"

    Suddenly, it started glowing with a red shade as it quickly grew two times its previous size, burst out of the pincer hold, dashed forwards, and repositioned itself for another attack towards the Golden Furred Ape King.

    Seeing that the red tiger king was not giving up anytime soon, the Golden Furred Ape King became even more furious. It vanished from its position and attacked the Golden Crown Red Tiger King from its right side.

    Swoosh! The Golden Crown Red Tiger king dodged the attack and swiped out its claws towards the Golden Furred Ape Kings chest. It seemed that both its power and speed had increased by a sizable amount in relation to its size. Observing the claw attack that was approaching its chest, the Ape King sneered at the Red Tiger King as it proudly puffed out its chest to receive the attack.

    KLANK! The sound of hard iron being hit rang loudly as if its claw had hit metal. Sparks went flying into the air. White claw marks appeared from the attack. The Red Tiger was surprised once more.

    As if it hadn''t played with a decent opponent in a long time, the Golden Furred Ape King stretched its hand out towards the Red Tiger King and waved mockingly.

    "Hmph! Is that all you''ve got Red Tiger King! Such a pity. Give me more of a challenge!"

    Not liking the feeling of being mocked, the Red Tiger king rushed back into combat with the Ape King. Booms rang out as they continued to ruin the environment from clashing back and forth producing shockwave after shockwave seemingly to no end.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Hou! Hou! Hou! Hou!

    With the discipline commonly seen by soldiers, the silver-furred ape elders soon responded after determining the position of the retreating Feng Yu.

    Looking at the four Six-Star Tier 1 Silver Furred Apes approaching fast from behind him, Feng Yu cursed in his heart, "Damn! They noticed too quickly; I have to get out of here fast!"

    He pushed all of his efforts into deploying his <Lightning Flash Steps> movement skill. Sadly, these Silver Furred Apes were not ordinary essence beasts. Not only were they known for their brute strength, but they were also well versed in speed.

    Sou! Sou! Sou! Sou!

    Very quickly, he was overtaken and flanked by the apes on all four sides.

    HOU! One of the apes walked forward in a dignified manner with a smirk on its face, as it gestured towards Feng Yu with its fingers.

    Seeing that he was flanked from all corners, Feng Yu did not panic. Instead, he was calm. He observed the situation and realized that there was indeed no way out. Thus, he decided to give it his all.

    "Hmph! You think you can have your way with me because I''m cornered. Well, guess again!"

    Feng Yu instantly assumed his combat stance starting with the ''Mantis Form'' of the <Blazing Mantis Palms Arts>. Seeing that Feng Yu had refused to answer to its request, a ruthless gleam shone in its eyes, glancing towards the other apes for a moment.

    Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

    In an instant, they collectively charged, reaching out there arms as if they intended to grab him then rip him to pieces from all four sides.

    Feeling an imminent sense of doom, Feng Yu closed his eyes with his right hand positioned above his head, and his hand to his left side stretched out in front. He began to sense the changes in the air with his powerful Soulforce. Shortly, he figured out the attacking points of the silver-furred apes and decided to strike before they could reach him.

    Swisssh! Swisssh! Swisssh! Swisssh!

    "Blazing Mantis Palm Arts: Second Stance: Blurry Mantis Palms!" Feng Yu shouted, utilizing the most powerful stance he currently grasped within the <Blazing Mantis Palm Arts> Martial Skill. Quickly, his arms started to move, leaving blurry images in the air at all angles, accurately striking the silver-furred apes'' chests with his palms. The strike pushed the apes a few meters away creating a narrow opening.

    Seeing the opening, Feng Yu was about to take the opportunity to escape the encirclement. However, the Silver Furred Apes quickly recovered from being pushed back by repositioning themselves surrounding Feng Yu on four sides. They looked at the burn marks on their chests and started to beat them furiously while staring at Feng Yu.

    HOU! HOU! HOU! HOU!

    "Shit! Even though my strength would put me on par with ordinary cultivators of the 6 Tier of body training realm and the <Blazing Mantis Palm Arts> second stance is quite powerful, it is not enough to make up the gap in strength between essence beasts and cultivators of the same rank. I need to acquire a weapon; something to make up for my weak attacking power. Wait..." while complaining about his current circumstance Feng Yu suddenly remembered that he had a weapon within his storage ring.

    He reached his consciousness into the ring and quickly willed for the sword his uncle, Feng Junling, had given him.

    It was a dark colored sword with a black handle that had wrappings around it. The edge of the sword gave off an ominous glint proving its sharpness.

    Using his soul to inspect the sword in his hand, Feng Yu was happy, "This is a great sword! It seems to be of top-tier mortal rank. With this weapon, I should be able to injure these bastards at least to the point of being able to escape."

    Looking at the silver-furred apes, Feng Yu shouted, "Now then, let''s try this again. Come at me!"

 9 A Narrow Escape

    Within the forestry of the mountain range, there was a grand faceoff between Feng Yu and the four silver-furred apes. They stood off on an open field that was surrounded by countless tall ancient trees.

    A gust swept across their battlefield kicking up clusters of petals which continued to flow amongst the distant trees at the edges of the field. Rays of sunlight beamed down through the spaces between the trees leaves, bathing all the forms locked into the standoff.

    The glossy silver fur on the bodies of the elder apes flowed with the wind making them look like divine entities sent from the heavens. Standing at the center was a man with bright red hair dancing about softly in the wind. Observing this scene from a distance, it seemed as if it was the final battle between the divine entities of heaven and the Red-Haired Demon King.

    The atmosphere soon became sharp, as the Silver Furred Apes grew more severe upon seeing a sword appearing in Feng Yu''s hand. They could all feel the great threat of the sword itself. They reached for objects in the surroundings each of them choosing one to use as a weapon.

    Seeing them arm themselves for battle, Feng Yu felt that this was not going to be as easy as he imagined.

    He then positioned himself for battle, not by his previous combat stance, but instead assuming basic combat form with both his arms holding the sword over his head, while crouching down with one foot in front and the other facing outward.

    "I''ve never used a sword before in my previous life, but at least I have an idea towards its basic combat form. I''ll have to get a sword scroll whenever I get the chance in the future." Feng Yu muttered while observing the Silver Furred Apes.

    Swish! One of the Silver Furred Apes in front of Feng Yu moved, creating a remnant shade in its previous location. It quickly arrived at Feng Yu''s front brandishing the large bat shaped boulder towards his skull.

    Wooosshh! The pressure from the force of the strike caused the space in front of Feng Yu to grow disorganized. However, he did not move. Carefully inspecting with his Soulforce once again he found the perfect spot for an attack.

    Flash! With a sway of his body, Feng Yu used the <Lightning Flash Steps> transforming into a streak of lightning swiftly appearing to the side of the silver-furred ape. His hands still grasping the sword and then slashing violently towards the Silver Furred Ape''s unguarded hand.

    Shiiinnngg!

    The sword cry resounded throughout the silent space. The Silver Furred Ape, noticing that his opponent had vanished, felt an ominous omen. It tried to move its hand in time, but it was too late.

    Puichi! The sound of meat getting sliced resounded throughout the field. The sword in Feng Yu''s hands was plunged deep into the fleshy hand of the Silver Furred Ape. Sadly, it was stopped at the bone unable to advance further.

    "Sigh, ''One must learn to walk before they try to run.'' Although the sword I have is quite a powerful one, I can''t utilize its power effectively. Therefore, I''ll have to get a Sword Technique as soon as possible," Seeing the result of his assault, Feng Yu was slightly disappointed.

    The boulder that was in the Silver Furred Ape''s hand fell towards the ground as it began to howl while holding its injured hand mournfully, "Hooouuuu!"

    Seeing an excellent chance to escape, Feng Yu implemented his <Lightning Flash Steps> instantly moving 15 meters away.

    Hou! Hou! Hou!

    The momentarily stunned Silver Furred Apes, upon seeing Feng Yu trying to escape, quickly pursued once more.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    A figure would momentarily appear and disappear after a series of flashes. It would then slash its sword at a creature that flanked it from the side, only to end up getting attacked and injured by another assaulting creature assaulting it from its unguarded side.

    After vanishing again and appearing a distance away, the figure would swiftly relaunch slashes into the air blocking projectiles sent flying from a nearby range by a third creature preventing him from escaping with continuous ''Flashes.'' It was a stunning display of ''Gorilla Tactics'' or, in this case, Ape Stratagem.

    Soon, these figures would once again turn into remnant shades pursuing a distant line of lightning trailing further and further into the depths of the mountain range.

    With his entire body in a bloody mess, Feng Yu continued to use his <Lightning Flash Steps>. Due to extreme life and death situation, his progress could be considered as astounding. A single flash could now take him to 30 meters instead of the previous 15 meters steadily. He was making his way towards full success stage.

    "This isn''t looking good. I have to find a way out!" Feng Yu said exhaustedly.

    After nearly 6 hours of being chased, it was now getting dark and approaching the mountain''s forest most dangerous period. Feeling that the situation was getting worse, Feng Yu began to worry. He launched out his Soulforce to find a slim chance of survival. Soon, he found that within the distance there was a cave that appeared to have been covered up with some large stones, leaving only a part of it out in the open.

    Excited with his discovery, Feng Yu was motivated harder to strive for survival. Sadly, in the distance, a loud noise was dampening his mood.

    HOOOUU! HOOOUU!

    With one hand dragging the Golden Crown Red Tiger King''s Corpse, the Golden Furred Ape King appeared in the distance. Looking over at the undergoing chase lead by its clansmen elders, an excited expression appeared on its face as it noticed it wouldn''t take long for the dirty human to be caught.

    "LITTLE HUMAN! YOU THINK YOU CAN GET AWAY, HAHAHA! GIVE UP ANY IDEA OF, HMMM-----"

    The Golden Furred Ape King shouted in an excited manner teasing Feng Yu. However, a puzzled expression came on its face as it looked towards the location Feng Yu headed.

    With its keen eyesight, it spotted a small cave entrance covered by many brushes. Upon noticing this, the Golden Furred Ape King went mad; it tossed aside the Red Tiger King''s corpse and rushed forward at full speed.

    Swish! Swish! Swish!

    "DAMN HUMANITY! DIE ALREADY!" The Golden Furred Ape King roared in anger as it rapidly ran behind him.

    Within a few moments, the Golden Furred Ape King was already closing in on Feng Yu. Its sheer speed regarding its size would make anyone baffle in awe.

    A pity Feng Yu was in no such position.

    RUN! RUN! RUN!

    "I must run faster!" Feng Yu forgot his surroundings and concentrated only on moving as fast as he possibly could with <Lightning Flash Steps>. Shortly, his body began to glow with a vague aura of lightning.

    KA-BANG! FLASH!

    As if breaking through a barrier, the sound of thunder was heard as Feng Yu''s form instantly vanished and appeared 60 meters in the direction towards the cave. Looking at the distance shrinking faster and faster, Feng Yu was too preoccupied with survival to notice his breakthrough to the full success stage of the <Lightning Flash Steps> movement skill.

    He continued to use the <Lightning Flash Steps> leaving thunderous booms at every jump into the distance. The trail of lightning shown behind him was getting more realistic after each use of the technique.

    600 meters, 540 meters, 480 meters, 410 meters, 350 meters, 290 meters, 230 meters, 170 meters.

    "ALMOST THERE!" Feng Yu roared at the top of this voice.

    "DIE! EARTH SHRINKER!" The Golden Furred Ape King was furious at the prey that slipped out of its reach. As it roared and started to glow in a golden color, it was now using one of its innate-abilities bestowed to it by the heavens.

    Phew! Like a streak of light, it instantly appeared behind Feng Yu from its previous distance of over 500 meters. The Golden Furred Ape King raised its right-hand gathering all the power it could muster into its palm. Soon, its palm started to glow as it launched out a palm strike towards Feng Yu releasing the condensed essence-energies gathered within it.

    A feeling of inescapable death came over Feng Yu. Knowing full well that he could not escape it, he decided to go out by giving it his all in one final attack.

    "I''ve died once before! What''s the point of being scared about dying again?" With a firm look in his eyes and a determined expression on his face, he swiftly turned around and raised his right hand.

    Looking at the stream of gold essence energy rushing toward him from the Golden Furred Ape King''s palm attack, he instantly understood what he was missing for his full success stage of the <Blazing Mantis Palm>. His entire collection of fire essence energy gathered inside of his palm, and with his full strength, he launched it towards the opposing Golden Furred Ape King.

    "Blazing Mantis Palm Arts: Third Stance - Blazing Palm Wave!"

    Swwoossshh! BANG!

    The fire essence energy rushed out of his palm towards the opposing gold essence energy creating an explosion that knocked Feng Yu backward causing him to cough up a mouth full of blood. Although he could now unleash his essence energy, it was still far from being a match for the 9 Star Golden Fur Ape King.

    The Golden Furred Ape King was surprised after seeing Feng Yu survive its assault. It rushed forward once again roaring angrily and unleashed another death blow towards Feng Yu.

    Utterly exhausted after unleashing all the essence-energy stored within his body, Feng Yu was now too weak even to make a counter attack. He looked at the sinister sneer on the Golden Furred Ape King''s face as its massive fist soon eclipsed his view of the rest of the world.

    "I will not sit here and wait for my death!" Feng Yu mustered up his last will and looked at the sword still in his right hand. He noticed the name of the sword engraved on its blade in fine writing, ''Black Lightning.''

    "Black Lightning, Eh! Shall we give it one last shot..." An in-depth look appeared on his pale face as he gazed at the sword in his hand, as If responding towards Feng Yu''s gaze; the sword began to give out a soft cry.

    "I will not die! Block for me!" gripping ''Black Lightning'' with his two hands he slashed out with every ounce of strength left in his injured body.

    "HMPH! DEATH!" The golden Furred Ape King roared in excitement as his fist smashed into Feng Yu.

    Crack-crack! Swwwoooossshhhh!

    Like a comet, Feng Yu''s body was blasted away crashing into the cave that was now only a few meters behind him. He tumbled down and continued to fall all the way deep into the cave.

    The remaining force of the Golden Furred Ape King''s attack was relentless as it smashed into the cave exterior causing the entrance to cave-in.

    CRASH! BOOM! CRUMBLE!

    Looking at the collapsed cave entrance, the Golden Furred Ape King was once again upset. It roared into the sky and started to destroy everything within the area.

 10 The Sword Is My Life, Hot Bath Rebirth

    Drip¡­

    Drip...

    Drip¡­

    Within the collapsed cavern, sparkles of moonlight were flowing through the small cracks of the clustered rocks and boulders. There was a long trail of blood on the floor, which led all the way to an obscure corner. A fair distance away, the radiant moonlight shone through the cracks of the collapsed boulders.

    Looking closely, a figure was lying on the ground. He was covered in blood that flowed all the way down his body onto the solid stony ground, his clothes were torn to pieces, his hair was in disarray, and his skin was ruptured in multiple areas.

    Feng Yu felt as if he was now on the verge of death. He tried to move around. Sadly, his arms and legs were broken. Giving himself a quick inspection with the little strength left from his inner conscious, he realized that he was suffering from multiple internal and external injuries. If it weren''t for the fact that his body was tempered beyond that of an ordinary cultivator at the same stage because of practicing the <Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique>, he would have already long since perished.

    "Sigh... To think I barely made it away... cough!" He coughed up some more blood, and his vision started to get dizzy.

    Looking around the cave, he saw the sword ''Black Lightning'' in a distant corner. Slowly, he tried to reach his hands out in front of him to crawl towards it, but his arms were broken and in extreme pain, he could hardly move them properly. He had to use his entire body''s strength just to push himself forward because of his broken bones.

    After a long while, he got to ''Black Lightning'' leaving a long trail of blood behind. Upon seeing the state of the sword in front of him, he began to feel a pain inside his soul. This sword had saved his life at the most crucial moment when he placed everything into one final attack; it erupted with all its prestige using its full power to protect his life, only to be left with nothing to protect its core. Finally, resulting in a few broken pieces becoming useless scrap metal.

    "If it wasn''t for you... I would have died... from now on... the sword... is... my... life..." Feng Yu muttered while trying his hardest to stay conscious.

    He bit the broken sword with his teeth and tried his hardest to flip his body over.

    Thud! PUFF!

    "AHH! Cough! Cough!" After barely managing to turn himself over, he coughed out a mouthful of blood while screaming due to immense pain. He then spat the sword out onto his chest and hugged it with his broken arms.

    "The... Monkey Liquor..." Feng Yu tried his hardest to will some essence into the storage ring, after which he the Jar appeared in front of him on his chest. Slowly, he pushed his hands forward hitting the Jar over then biting into the cork.

    Pop!

    After a bit of struggling, the cork was popped off by his teeth. Without wasting a single drop of the liquor, he spat out the cork and started to drink from the Jar.

    After a bit of time, the monkey liquor in the Jar was gone. Feng Yu felt his insides burning as if they were continually being destroyed and rebuilt, again and again. He coughed out a few more mouthfuls of blood and was now losing consciousness.

    "Cough! I... Will, Not, Die, Again!" Feng Yu said while blackness was slowly beginning to overcome his consciousness.

    Gazing at the condition of the sword on his chest, his vision became firm. "Soon, I will repair you... and together... we will journey... to the peak of this world... Part---ner..." Feng Yu muttered with the last of his consciousness as he fainted into a deep sleep.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Feng Yu was currently in a space curled into a fetal position. He was surrounded by an endless sea of fire.

    "Where am I? Did I die again? Sigh... how could this be my fate?" Looking at the sea of fire that surrounded him, he didn''t know why, but he felt comfortable in his heart. He felt as if he had returned to his roots.

    Soon, the fire that was around him began to change. It was no longer the color of ordinary flames. It turned bright scarlet with a bit of a golden hue giving off a noble prestige.

    "WHYYYY?" An ancient and profound voice filled with dignity began to resound throughout the flaming world.

    Feng Yu was stunned. After hearing the voice, he shouted, "Who! Who are you?"

    "WHY... DOES THE PHEONIXXXXX... FEAR... IT''S DEMISEEEEEE...?" the voice replied.

    Feng Yu felt confused, "Who are you! and What''s with your question? What being in existence doesn''t fear its death?"

    "WHO I AMMMM... DOESN''T... MAATTEEERRRRR... YOU SHOULD CARE MOREEEE... ABOUT WHAT... YOU AREEEE...." said the voice.

    Feng Yu thought for a moment, "What I am... not who I am..." Suddenly, he remembered the <Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique> and the phrase used by the ancient will.

    "From fire, I came... and through fire, I live again... the blaze of the nirvana shall exist for all... eternity..." enlightened Feng Yu suddenly came to an understanding.

    As if feeling the stage of enlightenment within Feng Yu, the fire surrounding him began to grow more intense and was now glowing in a golden hue.

    "WE ARE THE PHOENIX... THROUGH OUR NIRVANA.... WE EXIST, THROUGH ALL... ETERNITY...." Feng Yu and the Eternal Ancient said as their voices synchronized, resounding throughout the flame space.

    BANG! The world was thrust into an endless fire, and Feng Yu''s form instantly vanished from existence.

    Within the cavern, Feng Yu''s form that was laying on the ground suddenly started to glow in a scorching golden red color. Soon, the clothing on his body began to burn and turn into ashes, as the golden red light continued to grow. Finally, it surrounded a space of 10 meters creating a ball of golden red fire.

    Feng Yu was now floating inside this ball of flames, curled into the fetal position. He looked like a Fire God that descended from the ''Purgatory Realm.'' His blood began to glow, and a powerful ancient aura soon began to radiate from his entire being.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    All the family elders and main descendants were gathered here seated in the lotus position. The collateral members were out handling the day to day tasks of the family.

    At the center of the family members were two men seated within a central formation, each connecting to the elders and then the juniors.

    They were Feng Yunlong and Feng Junling, today they both felt that they were on the verge of genuinely awakening their bloodlines and wanted to use this chance as a means of helping the others in the family stimulate their bloodlines. Although it was a long shot, it was better than just going at it alone and leaving the other members struggling to derive the seal on their own.

    Suddenly, there was a significant change in Machen Town; one that would be remembered for countless eons to come.

 11 Night Turns to Day, A Startling Phenomena

    It was quiet tonight in Machen Town, and the festive atmosphere wasn''t in its usual full bloom. Most of the residents and travelers were busy preparing for the upcoming Sky Splitting School''s talent selection.

    However, there was still an average amount of public activity due to some shops being open. Inside a famous pub, quite a few individuals crowded around enjoying a wild atmosphere. Beautiful women dressed in revealing clothing were flaunting about entertaining the lonely guest bringing a sense of warmth on this chilly night.

    In a quiet and remote corner, a stranger was seated around an empty table observing the crowd while drinking a small cup of wine. He was dressed in strange clothing that appeared to have been made from the hide of unknown creatures, Streams of light were flowing in a peculiar and unique style with unusual patterns arranged across his garments. Smiling, he looked out the window; with his gaze wandering off into the starry night sky.

    "So, a small place like this can have such an atmosphere. Hmm, the stars seem a bit strange tonight." Lost in thought, the stranger found that something was peculiar. He quickly vanished from his previous position appearing in the distant sky. He stood in the air as one would on flat ground, floating as if it was some kind of a fundamental instinct.

    If there were anyone currently capable of seeing this far into the sky, they would have indeed been shocked. As this was an inherent ability, available to only those who have crossed the ''threshold,'' shedding the mundane.

    The night sky was getting brighter and brighter eventually becoming eclipsed with a bright golden scarlet hue.

    "How can this be? Who in this world could inspire a ''Heavenly Recognition'' at this standard!!! Could it be related to that?" The man was filled with shock; he waved his right hand in the air creating a sequence of elaborate runes. Following which, a stream of many intricate pieces of information flowed back and forth in his eyes as if trying to deduce the laws of the world.

    Puff! He spat a mouthful of blood, and his countenance instantly became pale.

    "Incredible! It is capable of even interfering with my deductions. My Lang Shang has never failed a deduction from the day I confirmed my ''Dao'' through Laws Governing the Heavens and the Earth. Interesting, HAHAHA! The world will see a new era once again." The strange man began to laugh as he stared at the heavens feeling shock and excitement in his heart.

    Pheww! After a loud and piercing sound that resounded throughout the heaven itself, the sky quickly became filled with scorching flames that eclipsed the entirety of the night. In an instant, the night turned into what seemed like the day, as a blazing light shone brightly across the world covering a quarter of the entire True Yuan Outer Continent. Shocked by the sudden occurrence, all the citizens within their respected empires began to worry.

    "What! What''s going on?"

    "How could it be daytime already?"

    "No that''s not daylight, look into the sky quickly!"

    "Oh my god! The sky is burning!"

    As the citizens of the empire were beginning to lose their wits, the more experienced cultivators were on the verge of losing their minds.

    An old man seated on top of a mountain carefully investigated the sky. His eyes were filled with a glint of wisdom. After observing the phenomena for a while, he soon became filled with astonishment.

    "Such a powerful Heavenly Recognition! What kind of bloodline is this? Who is awakening?" said the old man.

    Various sect masters and supreme elders were all pondering on the same question. Emperors and Empresses were all curious and began to search for the source of the phenomena. However, all their efforts were pointless as the scale of the phenomena was too large, and it was challenging to find where it originated from.

    Within a distant land far away from many of the empires on True Yuan Continent, a young man was sitting by a giant bonfire. In front of him was a creature or rather the corpse of that creature. It was 50 meters in height and 70 meters in length with a tail 10 meters long. This creature was covered in red scales. There were also 9 Stars on its forehead above the marking that said ''King''.

    If anyone in the cultivation world were to see this sight, they would have been shaken into an untimely demise. The creature lying before the young man was of noble lineage being a Tier 5 Variant Supreme Beast of the 9th Star called Red Scaled Dragon King.

    The young man had a huge handle blade plunged into the ground, and he was currently engaged in a sumptuous meal of dragon meat. Soon, however, he looked up into the distant sky, across the horizon he could see a bright tone of gold and scarlet that occupied the entire horizon line.

    "The Aura of the Phoenix? Interesting, not only that but the presence of the one connected to me by fate. No matter, the stars still control his destiny and destiny is as I see it." Xiang Fang smiled while looking at the horizon, the stars glittering excitedly in his eyes.

    Inside Feng Manor, Feng Yunlong and Feng Junling looked at the sky with excitement on their faces.

    Feng Yunlong said, "Everyone quickly, try to gather the Aura from the Scorching Sky, use it to stimulate your awakening now!!"

    Without wasting any time, everyone began to stimulate their bloodline seal. As if sensing something, the fire aura scattering among the heaven and earth began to surge towards the Feng manor in a wild fashion. Quickly, the cracking sounds were heard, and scorching golden-scarlet light drowned the entire main hall. Luckily all of this happened in such a chaotic scene. If anyone were paying close attention, they would have seen this spectacular event.

    After about 30 Minutes, the flames in the sky began to die down and the night quickly returned to reign supreme once again.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Feng Yu was currently lying on the ground. His injuries were now non-existent, and his body gave off an aura of an ancient and supreme prestige.

    Suddenly, he opened his eyes and looked around the cavern space. Within the area of 10 meters, there was a scorched segment of the ground as well as the walls, almost forming a complete spheroid shape. He saw that he was currently sitting in the bottom half of this crater-like shape.

    Feng Yu gripped his fists tightly and felt surprised, "Such Power! Is this what it feels like to truly awaken your bloodline? I feel like I can do anything, and I haven''t even inspired my bloodlines prestige yet."

    Looking within his inner consciousness, he saw the vast space once again. Now it was almost 1.5 kilometers in size. Nearly two times the size of a cultivator at the 9th Tier of Body Training realm.

    Looking at his body internals, he realized that his bones were now pure crystal with strikes of gold and his organs and veins felt sturdier. You can vaguely see that they were taking on a golden hue.

    "Peak 6th Tier Body Training realm! It looks like my advantage is not small. My foundation seems even firmer than before. It won''t be too long before I can break through once again." Feng Yu was excited. It seemed that life and death experiences have their own advantages. If one can live to tell the tale, that is it.

    Looking at his naked body, he quickly willed for some clothing within his storage ring and redressed himself.

    "Now that I recovered, I can start finding a way out of this cave." Feng Yu said, looking at the collapsed entrance in front of him.

 12 An Ancient Tomb

    A soft trail of wind was blowing through the cavern, trying to make its way through the massive cluster of rocks guarding the entrance. A loud snoring noise could be heard coming from outside its cover.

    "HUM! HAA! HUUM! HAAA! HUUM! HAAA!"

    Within what was once a beautiful field of grass and trees laid a massive golden furred creature. Its snore was so loud it reached an area of half a mile around it. Suddenly, it scratched its belly and glanced towards the entrance of the cavern, a violent and cunning gleam flickered brightly at the core of its eyes.

    "GASP!" Swallowing a breath of fresh air, Feng Yu felt surprised at the Golden Furred Ape King''s stubbornness. He sighed at the bottom of his heart while thinking.

    "It seems that this damn ape won''t be giving up that easily. Sigh... look at it acting as if it is the protector of the fallen cave. I have no choice. I have to find another way out of here."

    He looked at the broken sword ''Black Lightning '' on the ground beside him and picked it up. After cleaning it for a while, he then placed it in his storage ring.

    Feng Yu looked around for a bit before focusing his gaze towards the depths of the cavern. A warm light was gleaming about 200 meters downwards; it was coming from what appeared to be a bottomless cavern. After walking for a short while, the temperature began to rise for every step further downwards.

    This cavern was quite different from normal ones.

    While traveling further underground, Feng Yu noticed some interesting things, as there were ancient markings on the walls arranged uniquely. Faintly, both the walls and floor looked as if sharp weapons had sliced into it while specific areas were made into small craters by heavy blunt objects. These signs continued to trail all the way down to the very bottom of this cave.

    "It seems as if there was a battle here, but it happened quite a long time ago," Feng Yu said while noticing how moss and dirt had gathered in most of the gorges, along with the faded sword markings on the rocky walls. He clenched his fist tightly and punched the wall with seventy percent of his strength.

    BANG!

    The wall remained unharmed due to its incredible durability. It seems as though this cavern wall was imbued with some foreign source of strength that originated from the odd markings arranged on its surface.

    Feng Yu was shocked by the power of the cavern walls, "What type of augmented rune is this? I''ve never seen anything like this before. To think that even this amount of strength cannot break it. Could it be that those who fought here before are people of far greater power than I currently wield? I wonder who could have been the one to have made such a rune."

    Thinking for a bit, he decided to no longer pay attention to the strange runes as he had not been in this world for too long. It was natural that he wouldn''t know many of the strange things. After traveling a depth of 1000 meters, he arrived at the source of the warm light he had seen from previously.

    A blast of heat quickly surged across his face, casting his red hair backward and his clothing which began to make ''Flap'' ''Flap'' noises due to the sudden heat wave.

    "Hmm, the temperature here isn''t too bad." Feng Yu said while feeling slightly comfortable.

    If it were anyone else who came to this distance in the face of such a heat wave, they would have either burnt to a crisp or suffered severe burn injuries. After all, the temperature here was no less than 900 Degrees.

    In front of Feng Yu was a massive space of about 2 kilometers, with an endless amount of lava at boiling high temperatures. There was a solid platform about 500 meters wide at the center of the lava. Attached to it was a rocky pathway that was connected to the area where Feng Yu was currently standing.

    As Feng Yu observed the region, he noticed an assortment of pillars that arrayed around the entire platform. Standing proudly at the central position was an ancient tombstone that seemed to have been standing there from antiquity times.

    Across its surface was the very same rune markings seen on the walls previously that led all the way from the beginning of the path traveling down to the depths of the cavern. The only difference being that these markings were far more complex and profound.

    "Wow! I wonder who constructed such a thing. Could this entire cavern be a tomb...?" Feng Yu was curious about the new structures.

    After observing the surroundings for a while and seeing nothing out of the ordinary, Feng Yu started making his way towards the ancient looking tombstone at the center of the pillars.

    Quickly, he arrived within its vicinity. Looking towards the ground, he saw a bunch of skeletons, each with their chest armors and bones destroyed in the same violent method. A few weapons were also on the floor beside the skeletons.

    Feng Yu reached his hand out and picked up one of the weapons, but before he could even give it a good swing, it decayed into dust.

    "It seems that these guys have been dead for many, many¡­ years...." Feng Yu said softly while looking at the dust flowing down from his hands.

    "I wonder what or who killed them?" Feng Yu began to ponder. He then moved his sight from the skeletons and stared at the ancient tombstone. There a corpse of a man sat in lotus position on top of an old throne created below the tombstone. It wore an old torn up robe that was made out of a rare, ancient creature.

    The corpse held two scabbards in its hands, each giving off an exceptional aura. They also had ancient carvings, making both of them feel as if they came from ancient times.

    "Eh? A corpse, but how could its body be preserved to such a state? If my assumption is correct, this body was here for an even longer period than both these two dead skeletons. Hmmm, what interesting looking scabbards. Could they be Heavenly Artefacts?" Seeing the items before him, Feng Yu felt excited. After scanning them carefully with his soul strength, he did not sense any signs of danger. Thus, he reached his hand out to try and take the two scabbards, but soon, he was hindered by an unknown force.

    RUMBLE!

    Pheww! Suddenly, the platform began to shake in an unsettling manner as pillars that were surrounding the tomb began to shine with a bright golden light.

    "That''s not good! What''s going on? Did I trigger some sort of trap?" before Feng Yu could react, all the lights connected, forming a circular formation that beamed down a pillar which instantly surrounded Feng Yu. The corpse that had the two scabbards suddenly seemed to have been granted a breath of life.

    Whooosshhh!

    A stream of energy condensed around its form, and instantly it transformed the ancient corpse into a figure of an ordinary looking man. He was wearing a grand robe and had an imperial crown on his head. His hair was silver, and if one looked into his eyes, they would see a scene of profoundness filled with the ancient vicissitudes of time.

    "Who...?" The corpse said, pausing for a moment before continuing, "Who is it... that has awakened me!"

    A voice that was filled with weariness and dignity shook the cavern and reached to depths of Feng Yu''s soul.

    Shocked by too many things happening all at once, Feng Yu could only stare blankly at the man that appeared in front of him. Soon, the figure also took notice and stared at Feng Yu carefully observing him.

    Being stared at by the ancient being, Feng Yu, who was in a daze, suddenly regained his wits. He felt as if all the secrets hidden within him were exposed. He decided to greet the senior.

    "Young... Younger Generation Feng Yu greets the Ancient One!" Feng Yu''s voice echoed throughout the silent space.

    "Ancient One... HAHAHAHA! Ancient One indeed..." Suddenly a look of melancholy appeared on the face of the figure. However, it was soon replaced by a severe and solemn expression.

    "Little One, I am called by one name and one name only throughout this endless heaven and earth..."

    Seeing that the figure had stopped inspecting him, Feng Yu felt better. He curiously listened to the words that he was saying.

    "They called me Tydol, Tydol of the Phantasmal Swords!"

 13 Tydol of the Phantasmal Swords

    The atmosphere within the depths of the cavern was a ''boiling'' one indeed as heat waves gushed about everywhere. Occasionally, flares of flames would spurt out from the ground crashing unto the walls.

    As if some force controlled them, a few of the massive flares abruptly shot out from the lava soaring into the sky before threateningly traveling towards the central platform.

    Whoosh! Noticing the flames rushing towards them, the figure in imperial robes appeared as if it was not worth his attention. With an indifferent expression, he casually waved his hand causing the downburst of flames to collapse into sparkles of light that scattered across the platform. A few of the sparks of light flew across the face of a confused looking young man.

    Hearing the name of the figure, Feng Yu wasn''t shocked or startled but rather puzzled as he had never heard this name before. Even in his families archive from his memories, or at least not in their current archives.

    Regarding Feng Yu''s expression, Tydol wasn''t surprised. It was the reaction he was expecting. He looked towards the rocky ceiling of the cavern in a daze for a while before starting to speak once more.

    "It''s natural that you''ve never heard of me, as I am, after all... only a remnant of an old legend... an old tale of a forgotten man," Tydol said while smiling wearily.

    "They once called me the ''Emperor of Man.'' Eventually, I became known as the ''Emperor of the World.'' The day I found my Supreme Dao I had already ruled the masses of the Greater World for thousands of eras. Soon, I became known throughout time as the one called Tydol, Tydol of the Phantasmal Swords. But, that was countless years ago..."

    Feng Yu who was listening with interest suddenly began to ponder, Greater World, Supreme Dao, what is he talking about?

    Tydol soon recovered from his dazed state and looked towards Feng Yu. An interested gleam appeared in his eyes as he smiled and said strangely, "Interesting, you were sent to this ''Planar'' by a form of destiny. But strangely, your ''Destiny Star'' isn''t controlled by fate''s workings. Instead, it is guided by a will that exist above fate itself. Now then, who? Or better yet what-----" Sensing something strange Tydol abruptly looked towards the ceiling. It was as if his gaze could pierce through time and space itself, as his vision traveled through the skies of True Yuan World arriving at the endless and vast outer void. Deep within a region of the vacuum, a will materialized in the form an eye.

    It had a divine profound ''decree'' that seemed to declare that it is the only eye that should exist, and nothing seen by all life forms is rightfully perceived. The iris was green in color, and if one looked very carefully, there were unique runes arrayed together to form multiple complex diagrams. It looked towards Tydol for a moment before vanishing as if it never existed.

    "Interesting, very Interesting" Tydol muttered as he scratched his chin with one of his hands while trying to ponder some more details, but soon, he gave up after recalling the previous scene. Rapidly recovering from his state of thought, bringing his attention once more towards Feng Yu, the former aloofness he had before was gone as he took on a more interested and expectant gaze towards him.

    "Senior Tydol, what do you mean by Destiny Star? How do I..." Feng Yu was now completely confused. From the beginning, it seemed that nothing that Tydol was saying could be perceived in any sense.

    Looking back at Feng Yu, Tydol replied solemnly, "Little Phoenix, these are things you don''t need to concern yourself with, at least, not for now... seeing as you have a budding sword root. I will bestow unto to you a rare chance of fortune; strive to make the best of it now, young one..."

    He waved his hand, and the pillar of light surrounded Feng Yu began to shine brightly once more. Shortly, an ancient formation could be seen below Feng Yu''s feet.

    Shocked by the sudden seen, Feng Yu tried to ask for more answers regarding his current situation, but it was too late.

    PUUUIIIIIII!

    A beam of light quickly overcame him, and he was instantly transported to another location.

    Looking at the disappeared form of Feng Yu, Tydol smiled while muttering to himself "Little Phoenix tied by a higher fate, since we have met by its will then consider this as my sowing of Karma. If fate wills it, let us one day meet again. "

    Quickly, his form began to fade away, leaving only the corpse with the two holders placed at its side. Stillness returned to the lava platform as if nothing had changed in the beginning.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Feng Yu was now in an odd-looking graveyard. It was an endless field of swords that spanned across a vast and infinite horizon.

    "What am I supposed to do here? I came looking for the exit. Sigh, now it appears that I''ve been transferred to an even more complex place." He said.

    "Challenger! Challenger! Challenger!" a voice said as it resounded throughout the space.

    "Welcome to the Sword Graveyard. Here, I have left all the collections of sword skills I have mastered and taken with me to the peak of my strength. If you want to accept my sword arts, then you will have to earn it. Pass my trial, and you will gain a reward befitting that of your results..."

    The voice of a mysterious being soon rang out within the void. Feng Yu, upon hearing the voice, was startled, but soon he became at ease. He looked towards the source of the sound.

    Floating in the air was a form or rather a silhouette of a transparent being, it hovered in the air and seemed ethereal to all things existing within the material plane.

    "Senior, what kind of trial is this? What would I need to do?" He said curiously.

    "It''s simple. All you have to do is travel the path of swords. The further you go, the greater your chances of receiving my inheritance. The Pathway is 1000 Kilometers, and the 10-kilometer mark is where it begins, if you can reach 50 kilometers, you would have already proven yourself worthy of being given basic sword foundation skill. At 500 kilometers you will be given a sword art. However, if you can make it to 1000 Kilometers, you will receive not only the inheritance but a great surprise. Are you prepared to accept this challenge?"

    Thinking about it for a short moment, Feng Yu responded, "I will accept the challenge!" A firm light shone brightly within his eyes. He grasped his fist tightly as he stared at the endless graveyard of swords.

    "Good! Now then, you will have only three chances to pass this Trial, make the best out of it. Path of Sword Trial begins..." the voice said. Soon his voice trailed off into the wind after which was followed by a loud noise.

    RUMBLE!

    The world started to change once more, and the pathway was soon extended to an even broader and lengthier scale. Feng Yu, being at the entrance of the path, only saw everything around him disappear from the graveyard, leaving just an endless road in front of him.

    BUZZZ! THUD!

    Following a loud buzzing sound, the pressure in the area instantly increased to about five times the usual gravity. Feng Yu, who was not expecting the sudden change in pressure, fell to his knees on the floor.

    "It looks like this won''t be an easy journey." Feng Yu said while picking himself up off the floor looking towards the pathway. He placed himself into running posture and began to dash forward vanishing into the distance.

    "The path of adversity is challenged through firm willpower! I will not stop here!"

 14 The Path of Swords

    The Path of Swords was an endless sight to behold, stretching far away in the distance, beyond what the eyes could see. There were floating swords of varying sizes, scattered about at the sides with a pressuring sword aura flowing from within them, causing the gravity within the pathway to keep growing stronger and stronger at every pace taken further along its course.

    Feng Yu felt as if he was walking towards the core of the world. Beads of sweat were rolling off his forehead. With every step taken along the path, there were visible impressions shown on the surface of the solid ground.

    "Huff! Huff! The further I go, the stronger it gets, I have to give it my all to keep standing, and I''ve only just managed to reach a distance of 35 kilometers." Feng Yu complained while looking at the vast stretch of road paved out in front of him.

    Feng Yu had currently cleared the requirements for being accepted as a true challenger of the path having crossed the first 10 kilometers. However, due to him not feeling satisfied by having only gained acceptance, he continued to push himself onward in hopes of not only testing his limit but striving to receive the great reward. At his current distance, the gravity pressure in the field was already more than ten times its usual amount. Even crawling in this phase of the trial itself would be considered a rare feat for someone still at Body Training realm.

    As the transparent form observed Feng Yu''s distant struggling form, a strange light shone within the eye. It muttered to itself, "Hmm, not bad! But, if you want a great surprise, it will take a whole lot more than what you can currently achieve."

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Time couldn''t be told inside the path of swords, as everything within this space seemed to remain in a constant state. Feng Yu had already been struggling onwards for about ten days now, and because of moving for so long, his body was already reaching the point of complete exhaustion. However, his struggling proved not to be in vain as he has traveled a distance of 45 kilometers.

    In the distant misty region of the path, there was a vague cyan glowing light in the shape of a sword; as if it was taunting his efforts it hovered silently in the distance. Looking closely, many more swords of its kind were also brightly shining, however, due to their scope, they could hardly be seen.

    "Huff! Finally! The first checkpoint is visible; If I can make this point, I would have already cleared the first challenge earning a Fundamental Sword Skill. I''ve already wasted ten days I can''t afford to waste any more time here." Wiping the sweat off his forehead, Feng Yu was now feeling a bit more excited than tired. He pushed more energy into his already exhausted body and sped forward struggling to endure the pressure of his surroundings.

    After two more days, in front of Feng Yu, the hovering sword glowing in white appeared. Standing before the hovering sword, Feng Yu pondered, "Hmmm, I wonder what kind of Fundamental Sword Skill this sword will give me."

    Shortly the mysterious voice could be heard once again "Oh! Not too bad! To make it here with only 12 days of hard work, while you may not have been the best challenger I''ve seen to take this challenge. Your talent isn''t necessarily too far off from those previous challenger''s."

    "There were others before me? I wonder; who were those individuals? Could they be...?" As Feng Yu heard this, he began to recall the scene of corpses he passed by and became a bit frightened.

    Quickly though, he cleared his mind of those thoughts and looked towards the floating sword. He curiously asked, "Senior, which technique would I be receiving for traveling this far."

    "Technique? HAHAHA! No little one, one must learn to walk before they try to run, as a beginner of the sword, you can only start by building a firm foundation of Sword Skills."

    After speaking, the figure appeared beside the sword and quickly pointed its finger towards Feng Yu. A rush of energy soon flowed from the floating sword and into his body, following which; a vast collection of knowledge about the ''Fundamental Sword Training Methods'' was collected within his sea of consciousness in the form of an Ancient Sword Manual. The information of the sword shown in Feng Yu''s mind was enough for an average practitioner to get lost in practice for years upon years.

    "The Sword Foundation Tactics, such a profound set of fundamental sword moves. No wonder he said I''m not ready for a True Sword Technique. Learning the Way of the Sword is an entirely different world of practice when compared to Normal Martial Skills. I wonder how long it would take to master all of these skills." Feng Yu felt like he had just glanced across a whole new world. He was beginning to wonder if he would be able to grasp all of these essential styles successfully.

    "No matter, I decided that starting with ''Black Lightning,'' I will travel with the sword to the peak." A firm and hard willed light appeared in his eyes as he thought back to his broken sword.

    "Em! Good! It''s great that you have not given up after seeing its complexity. Hardship carves the hero. Now then, young sword novice, you can either choose to continue the path of swords Trial or give up and practice before treading the path once again. The next checkpoint is 100 kilometers. If you can reach this distance, you will be considered a true candidate for the Path of Sword Trial for successorship. Remember, you only have three chances, and you are currently on your first chance." Observing the look in Feng Yu''s eyes, the figure felt pleased. He quickly advised Feng Yu about his current options.

    Thinking about it for a while, Feng Yu decided to continue his first chance to see how far he could make it. He answered, "Senior, I will continue on the path first."

    "Good! Let the second phase begin." Waving his hand, the pressure in the area instantly increased by another five-fold.

    BANG! Feng Yu crashed to the ground. Both of his arms were held out in front of him while his knees where pressed hard against the floor. He couldn''t even set himself up straight much less walk.

    "Argh! I didn''t think it would increase this much. If I can''t even move properly, how will I even stand a chance?" Feng Yu was once again put into a state of peril; he tried his hardest to move only to fumble around on the solid ground giving himself blisters on both his hands and knees.

    After struggling for what seemed like forever, he finally managed to lift himself up and sit in the cross-legged position. Feng Yu sighed in relief while clenching his teeth tightly.

    "Sigh, it seems that I''ll have to rely on my bloodlines prestige. Hopefully, it will be powerful enough to help me get to the end of this phase." Not feeling entirely convinced of his situation, Feng Yu began to stimulate his bloodline according to the <Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique> guideline.

    His blood started to shine as it changed from its original red color and took on a golden-red hue. Quickly, his muscles began to bulge and compress tightly gathering even more power. His Aura Pulse also started to pulsate at a higher frequency increasing the essence-energies inside of his body, particularly the Flame Essence which has taken on a more sacred nature.

    Noticing a change happening within Feng Yu''s body, the figure floating in the void became surprised.

    "Well, are you trying to use your bloodline in this challenge? Haha interesting, let''s see how far you can make it with it." the figure smiled while observing Feng Yu''s transformation.

    After a while, Feng Yu''s body started to glow as his red hair became a mix of gold and red, his eyes turned golden, and if one were to look underneath his clothing, they would be able to see a series of ancient markings arranged on top of his skin.

    BANG! An earth-shaking Flame Essence was released from his entire body that, while not Aura Energy, was so condensed that it seemed similar to Aura Energy. Sensing that the pressure surrounding him drastically reduced, Feng Yu grasped his fist tightly feeling a bit more confident.

    "Much Better! I didn''t think I would become so powerful when using my bloodline. Hmm, it seems that I can''t maintain this state for extended periods at the Body Training realm. I can only last for about 50 minutes at my current stage of cultivation."

    Feng Yu soon realized that bloodline awakening had its weakness. No longer pondering about it deeply, he decided to press onwards with the remaining time quickly. He took a step forward and started dashing forwards.

    Swish! Swish! Swish!

    It was like he transformed into a blur as he made his way to the depths of the Path of Swords, feeling like nothing could stop him.

    A smirk appeared on the floating figure''s face as it stared at Feng Yu making his way further along the path.

    "Hehe, I wonder what the look on his face will be when he finally realizes!"

    Soon, after 40 mins of dashing, Feng Yu had finally managed to reach a distance of 90 kilometers. Currently, however, his entire body was feeling sore despite the powerful physique given to him while using his awakened bloodline form.

    Within a few moments it disappeared, and instantly, a wave of exhaustion flowed over him. He quickly forced himself into crossed-legged position bearing the heavy burden of the pressure once more as he glanced towards the shining sword a few more kilometers in front of him.

    "Huff! Huff! Almost there, just a little bit further and I... Eh? What''s going on? Why does the sword seem as if it''s the same distance it previously was before I activated my bloodline''s battle form?" While looking in front of him Feng Yu saw that path towards the sword did not get any closer.

    "It''s as you suspected, as you have used your bloodline, the challenge has not only increased, but it has also increased the pressure that you face. However, in your bloodline state, the next checkpoint distance increased from 100 kilometers to 200 kilometers, and the pressure increased by double. Once you recovered from your bloodline state, the path will recover back to the usual distance with the actual distance traversed represented in the ratio of 1:1 instead of 1:2. Like right now, you have only traversed a distance of 53 kilometers out of 100 kilometers," The figure said as it appeared out of nowhere in front of Feng Yu.

    "Do you wish to continue?" It said while smiling.

    "I will continue to the end!" Feng Yu shouted while reactivating his phoenix form and swiftly rushing to the point once again.

    "I''ll have you know once you have cleared half of the current phase, the pressure will again increase by tenfold."

    Hearing no reply and observing Feng Yu''s figure once again struggling, the figure showed Feng Yu a glance of respect.

    "Interesting! Shall we test your limits once again?"

 15 Sword Legacy? First Contact?

    Clumps of thick fog saturated the air, as an atmosphere of mystery lingered about an endless and narrow pathway. It stretched throughout the void as if trying to reach infinity. Across both sides of the path, there were swords erected uniquely as if representing soldiers welcoming the long-lost heir of royalty.

    Within the path, there was a string of impressions shown on the coarse ground. Looking closely, one could see that these dents were footprints and if one were to zoom out a little bit further, they would notice that this trail continued from an even distant point of origin.

    Following these footprints, the figure of a man appeared to be struggling to traverse the long pathway. It was as if the world was pressuring him to submit to a more significant force beyond his limit, but, because of his firm will-power, he remained focused on his course.

    If one looked at his face, they would see something unusual. His pupils, that should have been focused and filled with determination, seemed to be dilated as if they had lost all forms of focus. His body was swinging itself on its own accord further traversing the harsh pathway.

    Suddenly, a transparent form appeared out of the blue. It looked at the figure and shook its head slightly while observing the youth.

    "An act of instinct, such incredible willpower!" The figure sighed in amazement at Feng Yu''s unconscious form strutting about the pathway. It waved its hand towards Feng Yu, following which a stream of energy washed over his body instantly recovering his wounds and exhausted state.

    "Consider this as me being a bit more generous kid. The path of swords is now over! Phase Two has been failed!" after a loud shout, the narrow path soon disappeared replacing the entire misty space with a field of gravestones, each with different swords placed within them. The area was vast and had no apparent boundaries.

    Feng Yu quickly woke up after having his body healed by the mysterious figure floating in the air. Feeling a bit confused about what was happening, he looked towards his hands, after a short moment he soon regained his chain of thoughts. Feeling a bit disappointed, he gripped his fists tightly while clenching his teeth.

    "Sigh, so I didn''t manage to pass the second phase in the end. A pity, I wanted to try and at least gain candidate position," He complained about his failure while looking around. Noticing the floating form looking at him, he quickly made a polite and thankful gesture.

    "Senior, Junior Feng Yu gives his thanks for the allowance in the participation of this Trial. However, I have failed in completing the second phase. Thus, I hope this junior hasn''t disappointed the expectations of the senior." Feng Yu said while cupping his hands.

    Observing Feng Yu''s gesture and hearing his words, the floating form smirked, "Oho! What are you complaining about? Have you already forgotten the rules? You have two more chances remaining. Seeing as how you have successfully managed to pass the first phase of the Trial while also making it to a distance of 95 kilometers in the second phase meant for aura disciple level candidates, you have earned this Spirit''s respect. As such, instead of waiting for you to pass the second phase I will give you an extra privilege."

    It pointed once more towards Feng Yu causing a small token with the carving of a sword to appear before him, giving off a sharp aura that permeated its entirety.

    "Quickly take that sword token. You can consider it as a sign of acceptance as you have proven yourself worthy to be one of the candidates."

    Feeling excited at the Spirits words, Feng Yu quickly took the sword token in his hands politely cupping his hands towards the spirit once more.

    "Junior thanks senior for his graciousness once more," Feng Yu said.

    "Enough! You do not need to thank me and stop calling me senior as I am the remnant will of the Dual Sword Pagoda. You may refer to me as Uncle Sword." the spirit said smugly.

    Feeling a bit more curious about the token and pagoda Feng Yu asked: "Uncle Sword! What do I use this token for? What is the Dual Sword Pagoda?"

    The Sword Spirit looked towards Feng Yu with a pleased expression on its face it seemed to like the title ''Uncle Sword.'' Quickly replacing its appearance with a more solemn look, it responded.

    "As you have proven yourself worthy as a candidate for mastering Sword Legacy, I have bestowed unto to you the ''Sword Token.'' This token is a unique creation crafted by master in the past for his disciples. It will allow you to enter the ''Sword Pagoda'' anywhere you are in the world. However, that is only upon meeting certain conditions. As you are not a real disciple of the master, it will only allow you to enter the Trail fields. There are three levels, each corresponding to the three phases. As you have already cleared the first phase, that option is voided. The remaining conditions will be activated upon reaching the 5th tier of True Foundation level as well as the 3rd Cycle of True Soul realm," The Sword Spirit explained as it pointed towards the sword token Feng.

    "As for the Dual Sword Pagoda, once you have reached the required level and have successfully cleared the requirements for true initiation, I will explain to you about its true origin. Have you grasped everything?"

    After carefully digesting all the information given to him by the sword spirit, Feng Yu then looked towards the sword spirit once again "Thanks, Uncle Sword, I now have a clearer understanding. If I wish to earn this master''s inheritance, I will have to completely clear the trials once I have reached the required cultivation standards."

    "Good! Now that we have cleared all of the information, I will be sending you on your way. Young Phoenix, where would you like to go?"

    Thinking for a bit, Feng Yu responded, "Uncle Sword, I would like to be sent outside of the cavern away from the region around the cavern if possible."

    Upon hearing Feng Yu''s request, the Sword Spirit quickly sent its spiritual sense outwards scanning the entire mountain range, soon noticing the Golden Furred Ape King stubbornly overlooking the cave entrance "Away from the cavern, Eh? Such a nasty little fellow. Haha, you''d have certainly been in big trouble if I let you out here. Hmmm, Hehe, ok I know the right place." A strange and mischievous expression appeared on the sword spirits'' face.

    Seeing the expression on the face of the spirit, Feng Yu felt uneasy. Just as he was about to voice his concern, lights quickly began to form around him.

    "Haha! Small Phoenix! Have a great trip! Also, remember to thank Uncle Sword next time. Again, hurry and train so that you can clear the remaining Trials." With his farewell speech said abruptly as if trying to prevent Feng Yu from voicing his suspicions, he quickly snapped his finger causing a beam of light to shoot towards Feng Yu from the void.

    Phew! Swoosh!

    "Uncle Swor-------" Before finishing his sentence, Feng Yu''s form was enclosed by a ray of light which then beamed towards the void, passing through space itself. As he observed the location, the glow vanished. The sword spirit looked on with an expectant gaze.

    "Good little seedling; with such firm willpower and talent, maybe, one day, you will be able to achieve master''s wish..."

    His voice trailed off as his form vanished into the misty air becoming one with his surroundings.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    The weather was good today in the Tydol Mountain Range, as the sun shone brightly beaming its rays through the tall shrubs and towering ancient trees covering the land. Various essence beasts were also patrolling about areas ranging from gigantic pythons to smaller monsters assuming a size no different from ordinary creatures, such as rabbits.

    A fragrant scent lingered in the area, and it was to such a degree that any species which could be regarded as masculine by nature would be instantly attracted into finding its source. A small essence creature couldn''t withstand the flavor of scent and quickly rushed off through the hedge as if ''traveling on the sea, seeking land.''

    SPLASH! SPLASH! SPLASH!

    Soon, the sound of water rang in the vicinity as playful giggles sounded about the area. The small creature soon found its destination. As if stunned by the scene before its eyes, the creature stumbled in a foolish manner falling towards the ground.

    Boung! Boung!

    The creature that was expecting a harsh fall suddenly became confused, but soon it lost itself into a feeling of eternal bliss, as it was softy entrapped into a soft and bouncy object.

    "Eh! Sisters look what I found! It''s a baby Nether Cat!" A petite looking girl said in a gentle tone, it was as if a goddess had descended from heaven and assumed a mortal form.

    She had long golden hair that trailed all the way down to her knees, a large bust line that seemed to shoulder the world''s most precious mountains and a sleek, slender waist. With her slender and pure golden eyes that seemed to radiate an aura of purity, and a smile that could light up any field covered into darkness, she looked towards her companions that were also playing within a small lake.

    "WAAA! How adorable Such a cute Nether Cat! I must have it!" One of the other younger females said.

    "Let me play with it! I want to see it too!" Said another that shouted, soon filling the lake with more excitement, as the women crowded around the golden-haired girl.

    "No! It''s now mine and I will make sure to take good care of it." The golden-haired girl said with a stubborn look on her face.

    "Come Now! Girls! Stop troubling little Ling''er! Our time here isn''t long we need to hurry and head back to the meeting zone," A slightly more mature looking female said, as she walked over from the corner of the lake. She had a much fuller form compared to younger women and was only a little less beautiful compared to the golden-haired girl.

    "Yes Elder!" They all responded in unison.

    "Yes, Aunty Shuan!" The golden-haired girl said while looking at the cat. Looking at her niece lovingly, Aunty Shuan was about to prepare to leave, but suddenly she felt something strange. Quickly looking in the air, she began to observe with her powerful spiritual sense carefully.

    "What''s going on here? Where is this powerful aura coming from?" Aunty Shuan was confused.

    "Elder Shuan! What''s wrong?" said the girls as they looked up towards the direction she was staring towards.

    Rip! Swiiiiiii!

    Shortly after looking at the sky, a part of space was instantly ripped open momentarily and closed; happening so quickly that no one could have even perceived its opening. Only a beam of light could be seen crashing downwards at light speed.

    "Everyone! Get out of the lake now!" Aunty Shuan said solemnly, while quickly jumping backward. Soon after followed by the girls.

    Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

    Strangely, the golden-haired girl wasn''t paying attention to her surroundings as she was still engrossed in playing with the Nether Cat.

    "Ling''er! Get out of the Lake!" Aunty Shuan said in a panicked manner, as she noticed the golden-haired girl''s situation.

    Hearing her Aunt''s voice, she quickly looked up in shock at the closing beam of light. Just as she was about to avoid its collision, the beam of light exploded in mid-air.

    BANG! Phew!

    Lights scattered across the area, blinding the vision of everyone within the field for a few moments. Soon the lights vanished, and the area became visible once again.

    "Meow!" The nether cat now free, swiftly made its way towards the distant shrubs.

    Swish!

    Swiftly dashing towards her niece, Aunty Shuan was currently in a flurried state as she was wondering what to do if something happened to her. Soon, she came to a stop and an expression of shock appeared on her face.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Feng Yu frowned. He was currently not feeling well from the instant teleportation done by the sword spirit. He was confused as to why it sent him off in such a hurry. Soon, a bad feeling came over his heart. However, it was quickly replaced as he felt a very soft and pleasant feeling on his face.

    A pleasant scent soon quickly filled his nose that soon led him to fall into an even more profound trance of tranquility. Not willing to give up the feeling he was currently experiencing, he reached his hand towards the source and grabbed.

    "UN...." A soft, subtle moan could be heard quickly flooding his mind. Understanding the unusually suggestive sound, Feng Yu felt shocked. He looked down quickly, only to see what he had never before seen in his previous life, below his form was the body of the beautiful female.

    "A... a goddess from heaven itself, wait... this is no goddess." As he recovered from his strange state of mind, Feng Yu looked towards the girl''s necklace seeing an ancient talisman marking.

    As if influenced by Feng Yu''s action, the golden-haired girl soon woke up from her unconscious state. Quickly noticing Feng Yu above her body, she stared at Feng Yu''s eyes in disbelief. Soon, her face turned crimson red, and she let out a loud scream unbecoming of a practitioner.

    "KYAAAAAA!"

    "Ling''er! What''s wrong?" a tall female said.

    "Sister Ling''er! Are you alright?" said another female.

    The girls swiftly made their way over to the lake but abruptly stopped as they soon noticed the form that stood above her body. Their expression instantly changed from being in shock to extreme and violent anger.

    Aunty Shuan, who was shocked, recovered as she stared at the man with thick coldness, instantly assuming the stance of ''a widow who does not want to remarry.''

    Feng Yu, noticing the change in the atmosphere and feeling the dense killing intent coming from the surrounding females, soon felt something he had never felt before in his previous life. A feeling that he will remember for the rest of his life.

 16 Fu Ling

    The air was sharp, filling the area around the small lake within the forest with a dense and murderous pressure. Inside the lagoon stood multiple figures, eight women surrounded the forms of a man and a woman at the center. Each of these women was barely covered with any clothing, and if one looked carefully, they would see droplets of water scattered on top of their disarranged clothing that wrapped around their slender figures. It was a scene that would make any man boil with a raging fire from the depths of his soul.

    It was a pity, however, as the man located at the center had no time to enjoy this beautiful scenery brought about by chance. These women were currently staring violently at the man situated at the center, ready to charge at a moment''s notice.

    Seeing the situation wasn''t looking too good, Feng Yu complained to himself, "That Damn Spirit! No wonder he looked so smug while he was transporting me out of that space. Sigh, how do I solve this problem now?"

    Feng Yu wasn''t used to dealing with women, especially in this type of situation. Even with all the experiences from his current life along with the previous one, he was puzzled in deciding what approach to take.

    Suddenly, the golden-haired girl that was on the floor stood up glared harshly at Feng Yu. While covering her exposed body parts, she quickly made her way over to Aunty Shuan after a golden flash.

    Sou! Sou!

    Seeing this Feng Yu was surprised, "So fast! She is no slower than me using my <Lightning Flash Steps>."

    Quickly donning some new clothing, the girl then turned around and stood beside her aunt. Strangely, there wasn''t any look of anger seen on her face anymore, as it was replaced with a more complex but determined appearance.

    After having rearranged her niece''s clothing, Aunty Shuan then refocused her gaze towards Feng Yu. She did not rush to attack but carefully observed him for a short moment before talking.

    "Who are you? And how did you get in this lake?" It seemed that she was still wary regarding Feng Yu''s sudden appearance due to the strange scenario that previously occurred.

    Realizing that they weren''t going to attack randomly and were calmly inquiring, Feng Yu managed to put down his pent-up worries. Quickly reorganizing his thoughts, he then responded naturally.

    "Junior Feng Yu greets Madam! This Junior stumbled upon an ancient array at a faraway location during his travels. It seemed that it was a random teleportation point. As soon as I stepped onto it, I was instantly transported to this location. I realize that I may have currently caused a slight misunderstanding, and as such, this junior would like to offer his sincerest apologies to the young misses and the madam for this occurrence," Feng Yu cupped his hands and bowed with an apologetic gesture as soon as he explained his unique reason.

    Hearing his explanation, a look of surprise came over the faces of each of the women, Aunty Shuan was also surprised by his peculiar situation, but soon, her face instantly changed back to previous indifference. She walked out a few steps with her hands behind her back with her head held up high; it was almost as if she was looking down on the world.

    "Well! It seems that you''ve come across quite a few fortuitous encounters and while your situation appears to have indeed been a common accident, I''m afraid that I will not be able to let this go, as you have tainted my young mistresses'' body. As such, you now have two choices out of your current situation," Aunty Shuan explained as she solemnly looked towards Feng Yu.

    Feng Yu was currently confused, he frowned while pondering, "I explained my reasons, so why does this woman seem as if she isn''t going to let this pass?"

    "Madam, I have given you a clear explanation as to what has occurred. Why do you appear to be aiming to make this situation more difficult than it needs to be?"

    "Difficult?" Aunty Shuan frowned with a displeased expression appearing on her face. A towering aura instantly separated from her body, covering the entire region. The aura was in no way inferior to that of Feng Yu''s Uncle, Feng Junling. It was the power of an expert in the True Foundation realm, or so it seemed.

    "Youngster Feng!!! It does not matter what you say or whatever your circumstances may have been. The issue at hand here is that you have ''tainted'' the body of my family''s Young Mistress!! Seeing as you have a decent amount of talent to have successfully cultivated to such a level after your coming of age ceremony, which should not have been too long ago, I have not killed you directly. I am giving you a chance stated directly in the rules of my family clan. You have two choices, accept or don''t accept!" With a series of indifferent expressions, Aunty Shuan responded loudly at Feng Yu with no option for compromise.

    Seeing that the situation was more severe than he had imagined, Feng Yu decided to listen to her demands, as he was in no way a match for an expert in the True Foundation realm, "It seems that this Fu Family is quite the force to be reckoned with if her aunt is at such a level." While pondering inwardly, he looked over at the golden-haired girl, who was staring at him with an innocent but firm appearance and felt a bit wrong as he had indeed taken a minor advantage accidentally.

    "Sigh, Madam Shuan, seeing as the fault was indeed on my momentary lack of awareness. I will try to solve this issue through your demands. What are my choices?" Feng Yu said with a straightforward appearance, no longer avoiding the situation.

    As she saw the seriousness of the young man in front of her, a respectful gleam shone in Aunty Shuan''s eyes as she looked at Feng Yu with a bit of acknowledgment over her expressionless face.

    "Very Good! Willing to face up to your mistakes, as expected of a talented individual. Now then, first let me introduce you to my family''s young mistress. Ling''er, please step forward." As she said this, she gestured towards the golden-haired girl standing beside her.

    Hearing her Aunts words, the golden-haired girl soon stepped forward while staring into Feng Yu''s eyes. She bowed politely and greeted Feng Yu with the common etiquettes of practitioners.

    "Fu Ling greets fellow Daoist Feng!" With her hands placed together, she greeted Feng Yu.

    "Feng Yu greets Miss Fu!" Feng Yu replied with the same courtesy.

    Seeing the two greet each other, Aunty Shuan then responded, "Good! Greetings are now over. I will now state your only chances. The Fu family has been around for many years and is a family bounded by an ancient custom. All of our female offspring are to be pure until their successful marriages if one was seen or defiled by another before the selection of a marriage partner, the one who committed the offense will face one of only two choices. One, you will marry immediately into the Fu Family and change your surname to that of Fu."

    With that, Aunty Shuan paused for a moment to see Feng Yu''s reaction, and, as expected, Feng Yu was currently shocked.

    Feng Yu looked towards Aunty Shuan and shouted while stammering, "Ma... Marriage?! I haven''t even accomplished anything yet. Just what are you saying? Absolutely Not! I request to hear the second option!"

    Aunty Shuan''s face instantly hardened as she suddenly exposed a towering killing intent, "Humph! It seems that I was wrong about you in my previous judgment, the second choice is Death!"

    Upon saying this, a terrifying aura scattered about the area, the lake they were standing in burst into the air creating a swirling water cyclone.

    BAANNGG!

    As if they were waiting for this moment, all of the female disciples that were surrounding Feng Yu released their hidden auras as well. All of their Auras combined, causing havoc to fall on the environment inside and outside the lake.

    BANG! BANG! BANG!

    Seeing the aura of the disciples as well as Aunty Shuan that surrounded him, Feng was even more surprised inwardly. "Aura Disciples! They are not average Aura Disciples it seems." Despite all of what was happening around him, he did not panic instead he took a quick glance at Fu Ling. Noticing the determined gleam in her eyes and firm appearance she had, he soon made up his mind.

    "I Feng Yu have never been afraid of death in all my life! I will not lower my head to any form of oppression or unreasonable demand!! If you wish to take my life for this silly encounter, then I will fight you all to death!" With his statement made, Feng Yu no longer pondered about right or wrong. He instantly stimulated his bloodline prestige and transformed into his bloodline state.

    BANG! His essence energy instantly rose towards the peak, and a blinding golden scarlet energy shot towards the sky as his eyes turned golden and his hair turned golden scarlet with ancient markings covering his skin.

    Seeing Feng Yu''s sudden change, the women were shocked.

    "Oh! A bloodline warrior, interesting..."

    "Sisters! This little brat seems to be quite interesting. Instead of killing him immediately, let''s play with him a bit first, then take him back to the Union."

    Fu Ling was surprised. She revealed an interested gleam in her firm eyes, and her determination seemed to have gotten stronger.

    Aunty Shuan observed Feng Yu with a bit of surprise. She scanned his body with her powerful spiritual sense and exclaimed, "Such a powerful Bloodline Prestige! I''ve never seen or heard of a bloodline like yours in the True Yuan Continent. Boy! Where do you come from?"

    Feng Yu only stared at her in silence. He was ready to fight a deadly battle with no regrets.

    Seeing that Feng Yu was silent, Aunty Shuan shook her head silently, "Hmph! Fine! No matter. I can find out everything after we take you home. Disciples! Do not kill him! Break his legs and bind his spirit. We will be taking him to the empire capital!" She then turned around and walked towards an ancient tree outside of the lake.

    Hearing their master''s command, the girls became excited. They gathered their auras and readied themselves to beat Feng Yu into submission.

    "Let''s Go! Hehe! Don''t blame us little handsome, blame your bad luck!" One of the more impatient ones instantly rushed out to claim credits.

    Whoosh! She instantly transformed into a beam of aura light that shot across the lake at blinding speeds. Soon, she appeared 1 meter in front of Feng Yu and began to reach her palms out to grab him. A power constriction spread out suppressing all forms of movement within the space around him.

    Sensing the impending danger, Feng Yu pushed his concentration to the maximum as the opponent that charged towards him was at least at the 5th Tier of Aura Disciple realm. "No matter what, I have to use my all to get away from here!" He pondered inwardly while calculating his odds of escaping. With his powerful soul, he was no different than a supercomputer.

    "Wait!"

    Suddenly, a voice interrupted both parties from their engagement. Even the other females that were a step later in charging towards Feng Yu came to a stop. They each looked towards the source of the voice.

    Fu Ling walked out, soon approaching nearby Feng Yu. As soon as she reached Feng Yu''s front, one of the girls said interrupting the battle.

    "Sister Ling! Why are you telling us to wait? Didn''t you hear Elder Shuan''s command?"

    Aunty Shuan, who was waiting at the nearby tree, suddenly acted "Ling''er! What''s going on? Why are you stopping your senior sisters?"

    Hearing her Aunt''s questions Fu Ling responded, "Aunty, I would like to handle my affairs! Please let me decide on how to solve this problem."

    The female disciples after hearing her words, became quiet, they then looked towards their master to see what she would decide.

    Aunty Shuan looked at Fu Ling with a bit of surprise. Looking towards Feng Yu for a bit, she then smiled at the Fu Ling and responded.

    "Fine! Ling''er, since it is your problem, I will no longer interfere, but remember the clan custom cannot be changed! You know what the result would be for not abiding by it." After saying this, she closed her eyes as if she lost interest in what was happening.

    Seeing that she got the go-ahead, the girls that surrounded Feng Yu soon backed off leaving only Feng Yu and Fu Ling at the center of the lake. The two stared at each other silently with the wind blowing softly. Their clothing made ''flap'' ''flap'' noises as they danced through its breath.

 17 The Power of a Charmis

    In a lake within the forest, a man and a woman stood silently as they faced each other a few meters distance apart. Their clothes were dancing in the wind with their hair flowing about like immortals preparing for battle. A deep hue of azure blanketed the sky as the day was currently at its peak.

    The sun beamed its rays across the entire mountain range. The lights shone through the trees illuminating their figures underneath as colorful insects flew about at the edges of the lake.

    Feng Yu, who noticed that the situation might have taken a better turn, finally let out a sigh of relief. He looked towards Fu Ling carefully and inquired.

    "Miss Fu, how do you wish for us to solve this problem?" He asked in a polite tone.

    The girls, now observing from the lakeside, focused their visions on Fu Ling with an unusual expression. Aunty Shuan, who was watching, also had a strange glint in her eyes.

    As Fu Ling looked towards Feng Yu, she smiled sweetly then replied, "Daoist Feng, as I am a part of a Family Clan, there are customs that I must abide by. Not doing so will only lead to me paying severe consequences. As such, I will give you a choice by using another means. If you wish to avoid our marriage, then all you have to do is defeat me in a duel to the death, do so and you will earn the right to your freedom."

    Upon saying this, her sweet smile soon changed, replacing her expression to that of a serious and determined one. As he heard Fu Ling''s response and noting her firm appearance, Feng Yu soon realized that no matter which route he wanted to take, it would not lead to either her or the other females changing their minds.

    Quickly, Feng Yu cleared his thoughts and made his decision. He looked at Fu Ling staring intensely into her eyes as he replied: "Fine! I will accept your terms,

    Miss Fu. When do you wish to do this battle?"

    After getting his confirmation Fu Ling''er''s series expression soon lightened up. She smiled and replied, "Great! Daoist Feng, Hmm, my aunt said that you are about 15 years of age which means it hasn''t been long since you reached that age. Seeing as we are about the same age, how about we have a match right now? If you can persist my offensive for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, then you would have deemed yourself worthy of the death battle."

    Feng Yu who was feeling confident in himself smiled and replied: "As you wish! Let us test each of our skills then, Miss Fu." He swiftly postured his body for combat assuming the mantis stance of the <Blazing Mantis Palms Technique>.

    Noticing her opponent''s stance Fu Ling''s eyes light up as an excited look came over her face. It seemed as if she enjoyed fighting very much. After closing her eyes, she stood in the lake without assuming any particular stance as her hands were placed by her sides. She then turned them to face Feng Yu''s direction as she slowly started to spread her hands out a little distance away from her side.

    Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!

    Suddenly, five small objects flew out of her sleeves and started to rotate around her form, before coming to a stop at all corners. These objects were lustrous crystals in the shape of round balls, each being the size of a fist. Carved on each of their surfaces were a variety of unique characters:

    »ð - hu¨¯, Ë® - shu¨«, ½ð - j¨©n, ÍÁ - t¨³, Ä¾- m¨´.

    The colors of these crystals were scarlet, azure, gold, earthen, and emerald.

    Seeing these small crystals surrounding Fu Ling''s body, Feng Yu was shocked "An Elemental Charmist that controls Five Elements!! Such an incredible talent! I thought they only existed in legend! How could one appear in modern times?" He looked at Fu Ling''s trance-like state, and a solemn expression soon appeared on his face.

    "Sigh, it looks like this will not be an easy battle. I''ve underestimated the talents that exist in this world." Feng Yu thought as he started to gather the power of his essence while maintaining his stance.

    As if stimulated by Feng Yu gathering his essence energy, Fu Ling''s eyes that were closed abruptly opened.

    BANG! BANG!

    Two Essence energies erupted simultaneously throughout the area, causing the lake to ripple scattering about large waves from its center that traveled towards the hedges and trees surrounding it. A few of the smaller boulders, that were residing within the lake, were washed away and sent soaring through the air as they smashed through tall shrubberies colliding into tall trees.

    Aunty Shuan, observing the situation, waved her hands and formed an aura barrier that blocked all the waves and objects that were scattered from the lake.

    Sensing the amount of essence energy within Fu Ling''s body, Feng Yu was surprised, "Strange! She is only at the mid-level of 7 Tier Body Training realm. Why is it that her essence has the same concentration like that of a Body Training Realm cultivator around the mid-level of an 8 Tier?"

    Pondering for a bit, he realized, "Could it be that she has practiced a Mystical Tier Cultivation Technique? Interesting. My Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique focuses on strength incrementation while hers focuses on a warrior''s essence quantity."

    Fu Ling''er''s gaze soon focused back towards Feng Yu. Inspecting his aura, she smiled, "Hmm, it looks like your strength is only at the peak of the Bone Refining Stage of Body Training. You won''t be able to fight me if you don''t use your bloodline."

    Feng Yu smiled as he gestured with his right palm, "No need to worry about that Miss Fu! Ladies First!"

    As she heard Feng Yu''s statement, Fu ling frowned. She lifted her right hand towards Feng Yu and motioned her index finger drawing the symbol (Ë®) with her essence energy.

    "Shu¨« Charm: First Seal Prison of Water" She shouted as the azure crystal ball quickly overlapped the character symbol then shone within the area with the bright glow of azure.

    Swwwoossshhhhh!

    A large stream of water soon gathered within the area surrounding Feng Yu''s form. Eventually, it started to form a dome-like shape aiming to seal off all possible escape routes. Seeing the rushing water around him, Feng Yu remained calm as he revolved the <Lightning Flash Steps> movement technique.

    KA-BANG!

    "SparkFlash!" after a flash of light and loud roaring of thunder Feng Yu''s body instantly vanished, escaping the dome of water that threatened to surround him and appearing in the air by Fu Ling''s figure.

    A red glow quickly covered his palm as he launched his palm out in an aggressive manner not holding back in the slightest while shouting, "Blazing Mantis Palm Arts: First Stance - Scorching Mantis Strike!"

    Feeling the coming threat, Fu Ling felt surprised. She swiftly drew another ''Shu¨«'' character towards Feng Yu.

    "Shu¨« Charm: Second Seal Barrier of Water!" An azure ball of water instantly appeared covering Fu Ling''s body just as the palm strike was about to hit.

    BOOM! As Feng Yu''s Palm strike contacted the barrier of water, it sent waves upon waves of essence energy throughout the surroundings. As the attack forced itself deeper and deeper into the water barrier, it slowly began to weaken as the heat essence that was gathered on his palm soon receded, filling the region with steamy mist due to the contact with the barrier of the water essence.

    Swish! Swish!

    As both, Feng Yu and Fu Ling retreated; their figures were no longer visible due to the excess steamy mist that covered the lake.

    Feng Yu, who saw the situation, felt praise for Fu Ling, "She''s not only talented but intelligent. She managed to figure out the element I''m aligned towards because of my earlier eruption of bloodline prestige. As the saying goes, "everything has its counterpart", and my flame essence is in no way a match for her overly concentrated water essence. These Charmist''s are a truly terrifying group path of practitioners indeed."

    Feng Yu began to observe the surroundings and carefully sent out his soul power to find any unusual fluctuations. Suddenly, he heard a voice that sounded like it came from the entire surroundings.

    "Daoist Feng, your movement technique surprised me a bit, but it''s a pity you missed that chance. Now I''ve got you in my trap. Let''s see how long you can last." Her voice soon faded away leaving faint echoes within the mist.

    "Darn! She managed to set up that prison while the barrier was protecting her. Could it be she''s already reached the state of mind ''Doing two things at once''? Damnit! To think I''ve still been under evaluating her skills." Feng Yu, realizing his mistake, was shocked. He revolved his <Lightning Flash Steps> once more traveling towards one direction.

    Soon, a barrier of water came into view at the edges of the lake surrounded by mist. Seeing the water barrier, Feng Yu sent his palm out in an attempt to break through it.

    "Blazing Mantis Palm Arts: Third Stance - Blazing Palm Wave!" A rush of flame essence energy shot forth from his palm and collided with the barrier.

    KABOOM! The flame essence energy and the water essence energy from the barrier soon erupted with an explosion scattering the steamy mist within the area.

    After a few moments, the scene was once again in clear view. A sizeable azure dome surrounded the entirety of the lake with Feng Yu inside, as Fu Ling stood outside on top of a water pillar above the dome. Seeing that the water barrier was still in perfect condition, Feng Yu complained inwardly, "Damn! Her essence energy is far above mine. It''s not possible to break this even if I were in the same Tier unless I use other means of strength. Must I use my Bloodline Prestige? If only I had the chance to learn the sword arts."

    Fu Ling smiled while looking at Feng Yu, "Daoist Feng, trying to destroy my barrier without the power of your bloodline is meaningless. Now then, let''s see what you''re going to do about my next move?" She pointed her finger towards Feng Yu and drew another Shu¨« character in the void.

    "Shu¨« Charm: Third Seal of Water Dragons!" As she shouted, all of the water within the lake beneath Feng Yu turned into multiple water dragons, each being a height of 15 meters with the thickness of a large water barrel. The dragons gave off an aura similar to that of the practitioners at the 7th Tier of Body Training realm.

    ROAR! ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!

    As they raised their heads high, they let out roars throughout the region that scared away any nearby essence beasts that were still out in the field.

    Noticing Fu Ling''s control of the situation, Aunty Shuan felt pleased, "Good! Ling''er has managed to maintain both skills perfectly, and it won''t be long before she reaches the stage of myriad thoughts."

    The girls observing the situation were excited at the showdown and soon began to let out supportive cheers towards Fu Ling.

    "Great! Sister Ling, quickly crush this brat!"

    "Go! Go! Go! Sister Ling!"

    Not paying attention to them, Feng Yu focused his gaze on the water dragons. Sensing their water essence-energies, his gaze became solemn. He lifted his head and stared at Fu Ling''s eyes while saying, "Very well then! Miss Fu, if it''s my bloodline you want to face off against, then it is my bloodline you will get!"

    Shortly following, a dense amount of essence-energies began to collect towards Feng Yu. Once again, the cheering girls quickly became quiet as they observed Feng Yu in interest.

    Scorch!

    A dense collection of flames soon shot towards the skies, creating a pillar of scarlet golden flames that surrounded Feng Yu''s form. The Phoenix birthmark on his left shoulder began to shine as strange markings began to cover his body. Soon, his hair became golden red, and his pupils turned golden.

    PUFF! The dome of water soon disappeared forcing Fu Ling who was residing on the top of it to retreat. Quickly motioning her fingers, one of the more massive water dragons soon came below her, placing her on top of its head.

    As she looked at Feng Yu''s bloodline state, she began to feel excited. She smiled and said to Feng Yu, "Excellent! I didn''t know what kind of bloodline you were, but I''m expecting a much better challenge from you now Daoist Feng." She waved her hands, and a few of the water dragons began to fuse transforming into multi-headed dragons, each of which gave off the essence energy of 8 Tier Body Training realm.

    Seeing her excited expression and noticing the surrounding 7 Tier and 8 Tier water dragons, Feng Yu calmed his emotions and smiled as he spoke, "Well then, let''s get started..."

 18 Bloodlines Prestige Vs Dual Seal Charms

    The azure sky appeared more attractive than ever, and the aroma of the flowers and plants seemed to be cuter. Vaguely though, the color of the sky was beginning to transition into a warmer hue. The time of dusk approached once again, bringing with it a close to the bright daytime.

    It was a scene of utter chaos and destruction in its purest form. The trees snapped as boulders broke to pieces, the disturbed lake water flowed into deep craters and crevices formed by the myriads of collisions. If one looked closely though, there were a few figures standing on top of distant trees observing an area of what used to belong to a beautiful lake.

    BANG! BANG!! KA-BOOM!

    As collisions echoed, a squad of gigantic water dragons surrounded the figure of a man each ''showering'' highly concentrated shots of water pillars towards the tiny being daring to confront them head-on. Strangely though, the man seemed to have no fear as he charged straight through the water shots. With a flash of his body, a scarlet-golden remnant shade lingered at each place his form passed, followed by the collapse of any water dragon within his path leaving behind craters formed by their previous water shots.

    Feng Yu and Fu Ling have been battling for well over half a stick of incense of time. Standing on top of her Three-Headed Water Dragon, Fu Ling frowned as she glanced towards the half-burnt incense stick in her aunt''s hand.

    "To think he would be capable of breaking my 8 Tier water dragons like they were nothing. Even with all of my essence energy, it will be bad if this situation keeps up. It seems that I will have to use that Technique to gain the edge once more," She complained as she bit her lips and motioned her fingers towards Feng Yu.

    Noticing her sudden action, Feng Yu smiled, while maintaining a curious glance, "Hmm... finally giving up her current technique. I wonder what kind of charm she will use this time."

    Soon the characters (Ë®ÍÁ) were drawn, and instantly the energies of heaven and earth went into turmoil once again. Clusters of earthen and water essence gathered around the seals as both charm crystals superimposed replacing the written characters.

    "Shu¨«t¨³ Charm: Mud Dragon Come Forth!" With a loud shout, Fu Ling pushed a large quantity of her essence energy into the charm-crystal which then instantly reacted, blanketing the area with an earthen light.

    Swiiiiiiii! Rumble!

    The sound of the earth trembling could be heard even in the vast distance, as clusters upon clusters of rocks folded together along with large quantities of water. Soon, the form of a dragon became visible, with a muddy texture and tough-looking scales that seemed to be made of uncrushed rocks. It looked towards Feng Yu instantly releasing an oppressive aura as it roared to demonstrate its prestige.

    ROOAARRRRR!

    The energy from its roar sent the powers in the area into disorder, as if viewing the Mud Dragon''s prestige with disdain, the bloodline within Feng Yu''s body instantly acted, dispersing the oppressive aura with its own.

    Following the loud cry of a phoenix, the power of sacred fire gathered within the surroundings instantly turning up the heat evaporating most of the water essences in the area. The Mud Dragon that was made up of half water half earth soon retracted its roar gazing onto Feng Yu with a more serious and fearful look.

    While feeling a bit surprised, Feng Yu smiled and looked at Fu Ling who was getting short of breath. "Miss Fu! While your Mud Dragon is quite a powerful being at the peak of 8th Tier, it appears that it will not be enough to beat me due to your loss of essence energy."

    Not feeling wholly convinced, Fu Ling retorted, "We''ll see about that! Mud Dragon Attack!" She motioned her finger as she sent the attack command using up more of her essence power.

    ROAARR!

    The Mud Dragon roared as it charged towards Feng Yu in an indomitable fashion. Breaking through the earth as it agilely traversed the distance, Feng Yu saw the charging dragon. A stern look appeared on Feng Yu''s formerly calm face.

    "While she may be running out of essence energy, my bloodline prestige will not be lasting any longer than the remaining time¡­ I need to end this fight quickly." He pondered as he revolved the <Lightning Flash Steps> once more transforming into a streak of scarlet-golden lightning.

    KA-BANG!

    As the thunderous roar echoed, Feng Yu instantly appeared in front of the Mud Dragon with his right palm stretched out as blazing scarlet-golden flames dancing flowed around it.

    "Blazing Mantis Palm Arts: Third Stance - Blazing Palm Wave!" With a loud shout, he pushed his essence energy to the max as he aimed to eliminate the dragon in one strike. A blast of sacred-fire essence shot from his palm instantly enclosing the Mud Dragon''s form along with its surroundings.

    Seeing the situation, Fu Ling smiled as she motioned her fingers once more, "It''s not that easy, Mud Dragon Assault: Earthen Wave!"

    A bright light shone within the Mud Dragons eyes as it opened its jaws wide collecting all the power formed from its summoning and breathed out a massive wave of earth water essence energy. The two forces collided creating an enormous explosion that blanketed the entire lake region.

    KABOOM! PUFF!

    While coughing a mouthful of blood, Feng Yu''s body was instantly tossed backward due to the force of the explosion. However, with a twirl of his body, he spun around to position himself as he launched his <Lightning Flash Steps>, flickering and appearing on top of a distant tree within the region. He crouched forward while tightly gripping the tree branch to keep his figure together as his body was currently covered with a few severe wounds.

    After a few moments, the smoke within the region began to clear and the central lake, or rather, the place of their battle, soon became clear to view once more. Spanning more than 200 meters was a massive crater that had a depth of 20 feet. All previous surrounding trees and life forms were now non-existent, as a dark and oppressive atmosphere filled the area.

    Carefully observing the aftereffects of the battle, Aunty Shuan felt surprised, "To think that this child could battle Ling''er to this extent. Such a powerful bloodline! How could power such as this be from that place? Could he possibly be fro--?" While lost in her thought, she was suddenly interrupted as her vision fell onto that of Fu Ling''s form.

    Swish!

    Instantly, she vanished from her position and appeared in front of Fu Ling who was collapsed on the floor exhausted from overuse of essence energy. As she reached out to pick her up, her hand was held by Fu Ling who slowly lifted herself back up as she stared at Feng Yu far away on the distant tree.

    A steady light gleamed in her tired eyes "Daoist Feng! Our battle is just beginning; let us consider this bought as a draw. Next time, we will... we will conclude, our... b¡­a...t...t...l...e...!" As she finished her statement, she fainted, finally losing all forms of consciousness.

    Pat!

    Gently lifting Fu Ling and placing her on top of her shoulders, Aunty Shuan looked at Feng Yu with an interested expression.

    "Very Good young man. You are the first to have battled my family''s young mistress to this state. I hope you will live up to her expectations and not die an early death. Here! Keep this token with you it is the emblem of our clan. If someday, you happen to see someone from our clan, it will aid you." She said as she turned around to leave with the females.

    "Feng Yu thanks madam for her graciousness!" Feng Yu said as he cupped his hands politely while bearing his injuries. He then slowly made his way into the distance, away from the battlefield. However, as he was leaving, a voice soon reached his ears directly traveling to the depths of his mind.

    "There will be a talent meet four years from now held at the center of the great Golden Dragon Empire. If you wish to conclude the battle between you and sister Ling''er, strive your best as she is guaranteed to be there with an entirely different league of strength. Hehe, later then Boy!"

    Feng Yu looked behind him, there was no one in sight as everyone had long since vanished. Feng Yu looked towards the sky and pondered.

    "I would have lost completely if she had a bit more essence energy. It seemed that she was only capable of using a small amount of those charms prestige due to the severe lack of energy. Today''s battle was a valuable lesson against those who have mastered pure weapon arts. Now, I will dedicate my remaining time in Tydol Mountain Range to grasping the foundation of the sword and increasing my cultivation," Feng Yu gripped his fist firmly as he looked into the distance.

    "We will meet again Miss Fu..." With his whisper trailing off with the wind; he flashed and vanished leaving a remnant shade that faded along with daytime transitioning to the afternoon.

 19 Bloodlines Prestige Vs Dual Seal Charms

    The azure sky appeared more attractive than ever, and the aroma of the flowers and plants seemed to be cuter. Vaguely though, the color of the sky was beginning to transition into a warmer hue. The time of dusk approached once again, bringing with it a close to the bright daytime.

    It was a scene of utter chaos and destruction in its purest form. The trees snapped as boulders broke to pieces, the disturbed lake water flowed into deep craters and crevices formed by the myriads of collisions. If one looked closely though, there were a few figures standing on top of distant trees observing an area of what used to belong to a beautiful lake.

    BANG! BANG!! KA-BOOM!

    As collisions echoed, a squad of gigantic water dragons surrounded the figure of a man each ''showering'' highly concentrated shots of water pillars towards the tiny being daring to confront them head-on. Strangely though, the man seemed to have no fear as he charged straight through the water shots. With a flash of his body, a scarlet-golden remnant shade lingered at each place his form passed, followed by the collapse of any water dragon within his path leaving behind craters formed by their previous water shots.

    Feng Yu and Fu Ling have been battling for well over half a stick of incense of time. Standing on top of her Three-Headed Water Dragon, Fu Ling frowned as she glanced towards the half-burnt incense stick in her aunt''s hand.

    "To think he would be capable of breaking my 8 Tier water dragons like they were nothing. Even with all of my essence energy, it will be bad if this situation keeps up. It seems that I will have to use that Technique to gain the edge once more," She complained as she bit her lips and motioned her fingers towards Feng Yu.

    Noticing her sudden action, Feng Yu smiled, while maintaining a curious glance, "Hmm... finally giving up her current technique. I wonder what kind of charm she will use this time."

    Soon the characters (Ë®ÍÁ) were drawn, and instantly the energies of heaven and earth went into turmoil once again. Clusters of earthen and water essence gathered around the seals as both charm crystals superimposed replacing the written characters.

    "Shu¨«t¨³ Charm: Mud Dragon Come Forth!" With a loud shout, Fu Ling pushed a large quantity of her essence energy into the charm-crystal which then instantly reacted, blanketing the area with an earthen light.

    Swiiiiiiii! Rumble!

    The sound of the earth trembling could be heard even in the vast distance, as clusters upon clusters of rocks folded together along with large quantities of water. Soon, the form of a dragon became visible, with a muddy texture and tough-looking scales that seemed to be made of uncrushed rocks. It looked towards Feng Yu instantly releasing an oppressive aura as it roared to demonstrate its prestige.

    ROOAARRRRR!

    The energy from its roar sent the powers in the area into disorder, as if viewing the Mud Dragon''s prestige with disdain, the bloodline within Feng Yu''s body instantly acted, dispersing the oppressive aura with its own.

    Following the loud cry of a phoenix, the power of sacred fire gathered within the surroundings instantly turning up the heat evaporating most of the water essences in the area. The Mud Dragon that was made up of half water half earth soon retracted its roar gazing onto Feng Yu with a more serious and fearful look.

    While feeling a bit surprised, Feng Yu smiled and looked at Fu Ling who was getting short of breath. "Miss Fu! While your Mud Dragon is quite a powerful being at the peak of 8th Tier, it appears that it will not be enough to beat me due to your loss of essence energy."

    Not feeling wholly convinced, Fu Ling retorted, "We''ll see about that! Mud Dragon Attack!" She motioned her finger as she sent the attack command using up more of her essence power.

    ROAARR!

    The Mud Dragon roared as it charged towards Feng Yu in an indomitable fashion. Breaking through the earth as it agilely traversed the distance, Feng Yu saw the charging dragon. A stern look appeared on Feng Yu''s formerly calm face.

    "While she may be running out of essence energy, my bloodline prestige will not be lasting any longer than the remaining time¡­ I need to end this fight quickly." He pondered as he revolved the <Lightning Flash Steps> once more transforming into a streak of scarlet-golden lightning.

    KA-BANG!

    As the thunderous roar echoed, Feng Yu instantly appeared in front of the Mud Dragon with his right palm stretched out as blazing scarlet-golden flames dancing flowed around it.

    "Blazing Mantis Palm Arts: Third Stance - Blazing Palm Wave!" With a loud shout, he pushed his essence energy to the max as he aimed to eliminate the dragon in one strike. A blast of sacred-fire essence shot from his palm instantly enclosing the Mud Dragon''s form along with its surroundings.

    Seeing the situation, Fu Ling smiled as she motioned her fingers once more, "It''s not that easy, Mud Dragon Assault: Earthen Wave!"

    A bright light shone within the Mud Dragons eyes as it opened its jaws wide collecting all the power formed from its summoning and breathed out a massive wave of earth water essence energy. The two forces collided creating an enormous explosion that blanketed the entire lake region.

    KABOOM!

    PUFF!

    While coughing a mouthful of blood, Feng Yu''s body was instantly tossed backward due to the force of the explosion. However, with a twirl of his body, he spun around to position himself as he launched his <Lightning Flash Steps>, flickering and appearing on top of a distant tree within the region. He crouched forward while tightly gripping the tree branch to keep his figure together as his body was currently covered with a few severe wounds.

    After a few moments, the smoke within the region began to clear and the central lake, or rather, the place of their battle, soon became clear to view once more. Spanning more than 200 meters was a massive crater that had a depth of 20 feet. All previous surrounding trees and life forms were now non-existent, as a dark and oppressive atmosphere filled the area.

    Carefully observing the aftereffects of the battle, Aunty Shuan felt surprised, "To think that this child could battle Ling''er to this extent. Such a powerful bloodline! How could power such as this be from that place? Could he possibly be fro--?" While lost in her thought, she was suddenly interrupted as her vision fell onto that of Fu Ling''s form.

    Swish!

    Instantly, she vanished from her position and appeared in front of Fu Ling who was collapsed on the floor exhausted from overuse of essence energy. As she reached out to pick her up, her hand was held by Fu Ling who slowly lifted herself back up as she stared at Feng Yu far away on the distant tree.

    A steady light gleamed in her tired eyes "Daoist Feng! Our battle is just beginning; let us consider this bought as a draw. Next time, we will... we will conclude, our... b¡­a...t...t...l...e...!" As she finished her statement, she fainted, finally losing all forms of consciousness.

    Pat!

    Gently lifting Fu Ling and placing her on top of her shoulders, Aunty Shuan looked at Feng Yu with an interested expression.

    "Very Good young man. You are the first to have battled my family''s young mistress to this state. I hope you will live up to her expectations and not die an early death. Here! Keep this token with you it is the emblem of our clan. If someday, you happen to see someone from our clan, it will aid you." She said as she turned around to leave with the females.

    "Feng Yu thanks madam for her graciousness!" Feng Yu said as he cupped his hands politely while bearing his injuries. He then slowly made his way into the distance, away from the battlefield. However, as he was leaving, a voice soon reached his ears directly traveling to the depths of his mind.

    "There will be a talent meet four years from now held at the center of the great Golden Dragon Empire. If you wish to conclude the battle between you and sister Ling''er, strive your best as she is guaranteed to be there with an entirely different league of strength. Hehe, later then Boy!"

    Feng Yu looked behind him, there was no one in sight as everyone had long since vanished. Feng Yu looked towards the sky and pondered.

    "I would have lost completely if she had a bit more essence energy. It seemed that she was only capable of using a small amount of those charms prestige due to the severe lack of energy. Today''s battle was a valuable lesson against those who have mastered pure weapon arts. Now, I will dedicate my remaining time in Tydol Mountain Range to grasping the foundation of the sword and increasing my cultivation," Feng Yu gripped his fist firmly as he looked into the distance.

    "We will meet again Miss Fu..." With his whisper trailing off with the wind; he flashed and vanished leaving a remnant shade that faded along with daytime transitioning to the afternoon.

 20 The Way of the Sword

    The morning sun rose once again, bringing with it a warm light that brightly shone upon the earth marking the beginning of a new day. Suddenly, a wisp of scarlet-golden colored light from an obscure area seeped through the sparse mountain ranges flowing throughout the morning mist.

    A young man was seated in a crossed-legged position at its origin. He had a muscular physique built on top of a slender form, and, due to his tall and straight body, he gave off an aura full of heroic spirit.

    "Yawn..."

    After exhaling a mouthful of Essence energy, Feng Yu''s aura soon retracted, making his whole body very comfortable.

    "Whew, I''m finally at the peak of 7 Tier Body Training realm. To think it would have taken me less than a week of training with the gathering array. Now, let''s take a quick look" While smiling satisfied, Feng Yu wiped the sweat from his forehead. He then began to inspect his body by sending a wisp of his consciousness within his inner body''s core. Inside his body, his bones were utterly transparent as if transformed into the purest crystals with bright golden streaks, and his internal organs were more than half suffused with a golden hue.

    "Perfected Bone Refinement and almost Half Perfected Organ Strengthening. The ''Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique'' truly is one of a kind to make my organs comparable to that of a peak 8 Tier while at the peak of 7 Tier. Ha! If I were to fight you again Fu Ling, I wonder if you would be able to force me to inspire my bloodline. Hmm, I shouldn''t be too arrogant. It would be hell if she were to manage a fusion with three of those strange seals," While thinking about his previous encounter, Feng Yu quickly cleared his strayed thoughts and took out ''Black Lightning'' from his storage ring.

    "Partner! It looks like I may have the means to repair you after all." Feng Yu smiled as he recalled all of the information, he had browsed through during his cultivation session for the past week. Within his sea of consciousness, an old manual hovered. It glowed with a sharp aura that seemed to permeate his entire being slowly changing his nature to that of a sword.

    If one looked at the side of his aura pulse, they would notice a very small sword. It was transparent in color and roughly the size of about 1.5 inches. Streams of sword qi flowed from the manual towards this translucent sword and there will be a small improvement regarding the size and color of the sword.

    "My Sword Seed is growing slowly just from the Aura of this Ancient Sword Manual, but the quickest way to make it mature is to practice and comprehend the Way of the Sword. The <Sword Foundation Tactics> Manual states that to become a master of the sword, one must first understand the sword. One must know more than just the techniques and become capable of wielding the sword as if it was an extension of oneself. This state is known as ''Man and Sword Becomes One.'' In that state, one would be considered to have taken the primary path of a sword cultivator. The further one progresses, the taller their sword seed will grow and a sword seed with the height of 10 inches could only be achieved by those who have achieved ''One with Sword.''" Feng Yu pondered as he looked at the situation within his inner consciousness.

    "If I want to repair ''Black Lightning,'' then I have two methods. One is forging, which would require comprehensive knowledge of blacksmithing skills. The other would be to assimilate with the sword, making it my Primary Life Weapon. Hmm, fine then. Based on the techniques of the <Sword Foundation Tactics> Manual, I can make two swords as my Life Weapons. Since it is so, I may as well make you my first life weapon. Even if your materials aren''t the best, I can always find better metals to help you upgrade at a later time." After thinking carefully for a bit, Feng Yu finally made his decision. He bit his finger and dropped a bit of blood on the sword, following which, he drew a few seals with his lightning essence channeling his power towards his sword.

    Fwooossshhh!

    Crackle! Crackle!

    Suddenly, the pieces of black lightning started to hover in the air as sparks of lightning began to dance on top of their surface.

    Swish! Swish! Swish!

    After a couple of seconds, all of the pieces soon transformed into a beam of light and flew into Feng Yu''s sea of consciousness resting themselves below the sword seed that was slowly growing. The pieces then began to connect themselves as a small stream of sword qi flowed from the seed towards the sword resting below it.

    "Now time to start practicing these set of sword forms," After seeing the situation of his sword, Feng Yu felt satisfied. He began to review the stances of the <Sword Foundation Tactics> manual.

    "The Sword can be divided into three main stances: Attack Stance, D¨¦fense Stance, and Control Stance. These can further be broken down into simple styles such as Sword Unsheathe, Sword Advance, Sword Slash, Sword Plunge, Sword Deflect, Sword Guard, Sword Shed, Sword Fade, Sword False Edge and many more. Attack Stance pursues extreme offensive power with speed. D¨¦fense Stance pursues the act of parrying with balance, and, finally, the Control Stance pursues the epitome of elusive movement with unpredictable techniques. A true swordsman doesn''t pursue one aspect but aims at balancing all three stances. Ha! So exciting to try new things. Let''s begin¡­" With that said Feng Yu looked around the environment for a bit and soon found a flat wooden stick at the corner of some shrubbery beside a tall tree.

    After quickly walking over and picking it up, he instantly assumed the basic attack stance for the sword, holding the flat wooden stick as a sword at his waist side while imagining it inside of a sheath.

    With his eyes closed, he began to sense and visualize the movement of the sword, unsheathing technique, carefully analyzing the amount of sword force that was gathered and unleashed. Suddenly, he moved¡­

    Fwooossshhhh!

    With a flash of light, the flat piece of wood transformed into a blur as it flashed across the base of the towering tree that required at least 3 to 4 men to wrap their arms around. Shortly afterward, the blur of the piece of wood reappeared back at Feng Yu''s waist side as if it was slowly sheathing itself.

    CRASH! BANGGGG!

    The towering tree that stood in the field soon fell to the floor, causing the earth to vibrate for a short period as the dust scattered through the misty air.

    Opening his eyes, Feng Yu looked at the massive stump in front of him that looked as if something with uneven edges had sliced it. He said, "Hmm, for a piece of wood it''s not bad, but it seems I won''t be able to fully grasp the essence of the techniques without a real sword, I''ll wait a bit for my sword to repair itself before I continue practicing once more."

    Upon finishing his statement, Feng Yu quickly got back into a crossed-legged posture and focused his consciousness into his mind.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Another two weeks soon passed by in the blink of an eye, and the time remaining for the selections was now less than two weeks.

    Shing! Shing! Shing!

    Bang!

    Suddenly, three illusive beams of light flowed out in an arc throughout the mountain range. Following which, a succession of trees was soon felled in their wakes. Each of these tree stumps was cut in a fashion that one could only see created by the finest and sharpest of metals, leaving a clean, smooth surface.

    Swoosh!

    A figure appeared on top of a fallen tree, his red hair dancing in the wind along with his clothing. It was holding a black sword in his right hand that gave off an ominous glint. In front of him was a field of dense fallen trees, broken boulders, and scared hills.

    "Black Lightning is as sharp as ever. I even feel that it has exceeded its past sharpness. The <Sword Foundation Tactics> Manual holds right, as it seems that only by infusing my insight into these foundational arts, could one genuinely master the basics of swordsmanship. My Blurry Mantis Palms has now transformed into the Blurry Mantis Sword followed by my Blazing Sword Wave. Now, I only need to create a technique that can embody my Lightning Flash Steps movement skill as its essence. I believe that once I''ve managed to achieve that, I may be able to break through to the realm of ''One with Sword." Thinking about his recent progress with the sword, Feng Yu felt proud as his current sword seed has now grown to a height of 8.9 inches with his cultivation at the initial stages of 8 Tier.

    "It''s time I leave this place and head back home." Feng Yu said as he looked around reluctantly. After this period, he had begun to feel a sense of belonging to the mountain range.

    Soon, however, his vision turned sharp as his gaze fixed towards a particular location within the mountain range.

    "However, some matters need to be settled beforehand." He thought as a dense amount of killing intent radiated the area, and a sharp energy slowly gathered within the field.

    Flash!

    He vanished in a flash of light traversing 150 meters in an instant. Strangely enough, there was no sound of thunder after his use of the technique which was a sign of those who have reached the True Success Stage of the <Lightning Flash Steps>.

    Soon his form appeared in the distance as he made his way to the final confrontation of his training journey.

 21 The Battle Between Man and Beast 1

    The world was now covered in an ominous-looking hue of pure dark red, and the atmosphere began to change as if warning the world of something nefarious. From an obvious glance, one could see that the end of twilight, drew near¡­

    Screeeechhh!

    With a loud whistle tearing through the air, an arrow soared across the sky instantly traversing the distance of 800 meters from a faraway tree. It penetrated deeply into a large rock causing a massive explosion destroying not only the 10-meter boulder but all rocks and trees within the area of 15 meters around.

    Swish!

    Shortly after, a robust-looking figure wearing a sleeveless shirt and loose-fitting pants appeared. This figure glanced towards the destroyed area and noticed a crater that was roughly about 15 meters in length.

    "Whew! The 3rd bolt of my <HuiMan Bow Arts> has finally reached its crescendo. Now I can say that I am about ready for the selections. Still, it''s far away from cultivating to the next stage which requires - Bow Intent," Hui Ying said as he waved his hand, which then released a strange ripple of essence energy into the air causing the arrow that was previously shot to fly back towards him. He grasped the shaft and carefully adjusted it before placing it back into his quiver.

    "Oh well, one step at a time. I wonder if fellow Daoist Feng had already left," Hui Ying said while looking towards the blood-red sky that drifted into the darkness of night.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Flash! Flash! Flash!

    Like a ray of light, a figure beamed itself across the mountain range, flowing through the large shrubberies, maneuvering itself across tall ancient trees. Soon, however, it came to a stop resting atop its destination.

    Flap! Flap! Flap!

    Standing on top of an ancient tree that was 20 meters tall with a thickness that would require more than eight men to circle their arms around, Feng Yu stood silently with the resulting wind blowing his hair. His robe was making ''flap-flap'' noises, as he solemnly glanced at the slope of the mountain below him.

    It was a mountain valley, with a flattened section of land that was around 5 kilometers in length. The wild meadows that grew around it gave it a feeling of the savage wilds, but sadly, this area was occupied by more than just ''uncivilized'' creatures.

    Dozens of Silver Furred Apes were congregated around a central platform, and they were kneeling on the ground in reverence to the form that sat on top of the platform.

    The Golden Furred Ape King sat in crossed-legged position as if it were pondering the mysteries of the world. But, looking closely at this ape, one could see that it was very upset, as its brows were furrowed intensely as if trying to suppress an uncontrollable amount of rage. Briefly, it opened its eyes and glanced towards the destroyed cave that was a few meters distance from its, following a series of deep craters, destroyed boulders, and fallen trees.

    "Hmph! Golden Furred Ape King, you think I''d leave this mountain and not pay you back for my previous injuries. Today is the day we settle our score." With a snort, Feng Yu instantly declared his resolution towards the Golden Furred Ape King in his mind. As he remembered his previous dire straits because of the monkey liquor, a strong killing intent arose from deep within his being.

    "Huuum..." After inhaling a deep breath of air, Feng Yu looked towards the Golden Furred Ape King and shouted with all his might, "Golden Furred Ape King! I Feng Yu Have Come!"

    "I Feng Yu Have Come!"

    "Come!... Come!... Come!"

    The loud shout resounded throughout the entire valley leaving echoes that repeated itself over and over through ears of the Silver Furred Apes and Golden Furred Ape King.

    Hou! Hou! Hou! Hou! Hou!

    The Silver Furred Apes were sent into a panic but soon became furious because of the sudden shock caused by the shout. They began to look around the field in madness and fury. Soon, they found the source and started to make threatening noises.

    Noticing their reactions, Feng Yu felt pleased. He shifted his vision back to his target, the Golden Furred Ape King, and saw that it too was looking at him with its eyes radiating with great fury that seemed to be capable of reaching out to even the deepest reaches of the universe. It swiftly got up and roared at the human that dared to sully its honor and prestige for the second time.

    "HUMAN! YOU DARE SHOW YOURSELF TO ME ONCE MORE! YOU COURT DEATH!"

    Swwiiiiiiiiiiii! Blinding golden energies shot towards the sky, as the color of gold blanketed the entire valley, causing the region to erupt with a miniature earthquake.

    Rumble! Hou! Hou! Hou!

    The weaker silver-furred apes were sent into disarray once more as they scampered away from their king in an attempt to save their lives.

    As he saw the situation below him, Feng Yu smiled. Taking a big leap, he jumped from his current position, descending into the valley and landing softly on the floor, roughly a few hundred meters away from the blinding lights erupting from the Golden Furred Ape King. Gathering his essence power, he pushed himself to an optimal condition in an attempt to reduce the Golden Furred Ape King''s building momentum.

    Bang!

    The power of the initial stages of 8 Tier was released from his body, which then grew to form an endless amount of fire essence energy. It then expanded from his position and clashed towards the growing golden essence energy of Golden Furred Ape King. As the two powers crashed together, they began to wind around each other transforming into a pillar of golden-red light that soared towards the far reaches of the sky.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Somewhere within the mountain range, a few men in hooded cloaks stood still. One of the figures was sitting on a tree stump holding a large piece of meat, eating away joyfully. He was then interrupted by the bright light that lit up the central region of the mountain range.

    The hooded figure frowned.

    Swish!

    As another figure appeared, he knelt before the seated figure and said respectfully, "Young Master, after inspecting the entirety of the outer and middle regions of the mountain range, we have not found any trace of the Feng Clan''s Young Master. It is highly probable for him to have gone to an even deeper area of the mountain range. Therefore, I suggest that we leave here rather than continuing to search pointlessly and set up a net on the returning route. Since we have roughly less than two weeks of time until the talent selections, he should already be preparing himself to head back by now."

    Hearing his servant''s suggestion, the seated figure pondered for a moment before raising his head and looking towards the distant light shining from deep within the central region.

    "Fine then! We will have it your way, but only after we inspect that strange phenomenon going on in the central regions," he said as he waved his hands and placed them behind his back as he glanced at his subordinates.

    "Yes Sir!" The servants replied in unison.

    "Hehe! Who would have thought my luck would be so good? That light must be a sign of the birth of a treasure, who knows what kind of benefits I would receive if I successfully capture it? It''s possible that I may even find the key to beating that damn, Xiang Shu." He said as he clenched his fists tightly with a look of greed, as he dashed off towards the central region followed by his subordinates.

    Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    In another location, a strange old man sat on top of a tree meditating amongst a few other cultivators. At the center position of the area was a peculiar cauldron 25 meters in size marked with ancient runes that glowed with the profound truths of the world. They were all trying to grasp principles from these runes. As this old man pondered the mysteries that lay within the heaven and the earth, he noticed the changes in the atmosphere, and a solemn expression came across his aged face.

    "A Nefarious Aura.... How strange? How could this be?"

    Swish! He vanished into nothingness as if his existence here was nothing more than an illusion of time.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    As cultivators from all over gathered towards the central region, the collision of the energies between Feng Yu and the Golden Furred Ape King reached its climax.

    Like two beams of light, they both collided into each other back and forth. Feng Yu unleashed his palm techniques hitting the Golden Furred Ape King''s Fist techniques. Their collisions were creating aftershocks that rumbled throughout the area creating craters on top of holes as the essence-energies were still in conflict. One trying to suppress the other.

    Fwooosshhh!

    Soon, like the wind, the energies that were contending for supremacy faded, leaving only the aftermath of their destruction in their wake.

    The Golden Furred Ape King looked towards Feng Yu with shock and fury. It thought to itself.

    "How can this puny human withstand my 9 Star essence power with his 8 Tier strength? The last time we fought, he was nothing more than a small bug at the 5 Tier. I cannot let this damn humanity escape alive. I must kill him here!" Amidst its fury, a dense desire to kill radiated from its soul as it decided to use its full power to destroy the potential threat before it.

    It looked at Feng Yu and sneered, "Human! You are the first one I have seen with so much potential. First, you were capable of surviving my assault previously with such low cultivation and little strength, only to come back to stand before me at such an incredible level. Sadly, no matter how much of a genius you are, a dead genius will no longer be a genius. The reason you were able to escape with your life before was due to me not taking you seriously. Now, I will let you understand why it is I am called the Golden Furred Ape King. Variant Transformation: Battle Form!"

    Observing the confident Golden Furred Ape King and hearing him shout, Feng Yu responded with a smile, "Finally assuming your battle form. Very good, I would not have it any other way! My bloodline against your heavenly blessing."

 22 The Battle Between Man and Beast 2

    The pressure in the air rose sharply, as one man and one beast were locked in a momentary standoff. Their essence powers quickly rose causing the environment to become blanketed by curtains of energies.

    "URRROOOGGHH!"

    Following a loud roar, the Golden Furred Ape King soon began to contract his massive amounts of energy causing his body to start transforming. It reshaped into a slenderer figure with a more compact muscular structure. The hair that grew on top of his head lengthened at an alarming rate, becoming a dozen meters tall, flowing about in the air due to the rampant energies. Finally, his facial structure began to change giving himself a look similar to that of a fierce middle-aged man, with a hard-looking face, a broad forehead, and sharp eyes.

    As his essence-energies began to finish condensing, a new vague kind of energy began to emit from his body. It was as if this energy had a life of its own. It flowed around his body in small amounts which caused his golden hairy skin to shine with a metallic hue.

    "HAHAHA! Human! Witness my Ultimate Battle Form! Not only does it increase my speed to unmatchable degrees. My Innate Strength has been boosted with hints of aura. Today is the day of your death silly humanity!!" The Golden Furred Ape King said with an excited expression. After which, he positioned himself into running posture with both arms on the ground.

    As Feng Yu watched that scene, his gaze became more solemn as he looked on with his golden eyes, with scarlet-golden hair flowing through a significant amount of wind. He gathered his sacred flames essence-energies as he gripped the handle of black lightning.

    Clank!

    "Condensing Aura Energy. To think you could promote your strength to such a degree when assuming such a form. No matter, even if you were to become a Tier 2 Essence Beast, I''d still be able to send you to hell!!" After gripping his sword, Feng Yu assumed Guard Stance of the Foundation Sword Tactics with one leg in front of the other, and both his hands holding the sword upright close to his chest.

    "DIE!" The Golden Furred Ape King yelled.

    Whoosh! With a burst of energy, the Golden Furred Ape King abruptly vanished, leaving not even a trail in the air. It instantly appeared behind Feng Yu with its left hand stretched out as if locking onto its target. It pulled its right arm behind its head as it clenched its palm into a fist firmly, while its body assumed a position similar to that of the arc of a bow.

    "KONG BREAKER FIST!" roared the Golden Furred Ape King!

    A dreadful feeling of crisis shrouded Feng Yu, but he remained calm and gathered his breathing pushing his soul power to the maximum. Soon, the world became slow through his eyes and the attack of the Golden Furred Ape King, that was originally blinding and impossible to see, became the speed of an elderly person attacking.

    Shiiiiinnnnngggggg!

    With a movement of his sword, its cry resounded as it transformed into a line that abruptly came to the point between the ape king''s fingers.

    BAANNGGGG!

    Their clash caused a shockwave of energies to scatter, destroying everything that the wave of energy passed over, creating a leveled section of land. If one carefully looked at the terrain that was cleared; a vague diagram could be seen on the ground.

    This diagram spanned an area of 900 meters and only if one was to travel to the summits of the sky, would he be able to notice that this diagram was but apart from an even more complicated and extensive picture that trailed all the way to the depths of Tydol Mountain Range.

    Seeing that Feng Yu was able to resist his strike, the Golden Furred Ape King was shocked. He gripped his fists tightly and shouted, "Such an incredible defensive sword skill! But, I don''t believe that I can''t break you! Once more!"

    Feng Yu''s expression was solemn, he looked at his hands holding the sword and noticed that they were trembling nonstop, "His strength has increased by an alarming amount, I can''t face his blows directly. I''ll have to try and use his strength against him."

    In a split second, both of their forms vanished as Feng Yu utilized his <Lightning Flash Steps> to even the odds against the Golden Furred Ape King''s speed. The Golden Furred Ape King''s Battle Form was not just for show.

    Soon, he appeared at the flank of Feng Yu catching him off guard once more. His eyes glowed brightly in a golden tone as his fierce and ruthless expression intensified.

    With a shout, the Golden Furred Ape King roared with all his might, "HEAVEN SHROUDING KONG FISTS!"

    Phantoms of gigantic fist shades soon blanked the sky and area which Feng Yu occupied, leaving no room for any form of escape. Seeing the Technique that Golden Furred Ape King unleashed, Feng Yu''s fighting spirit couldn''t help but rise. Despite this being a life and death battle between two enemies, he had to admit that the Golden Furred Ape King was a truly worthy opponent.

    In an Instant, Feng Yu''s eyes became emotionless and indifferent. The approaching fist shades seemed to have slowed down once again as he wielded Black-lightning in a strange posture as if reverting to the form a mantis.

    "Sword Foundation Tactics: Control Stance - Blurry Mantis Swords!" shouted Feng Yu.

    Whoosh! With a flick of his body, his form soon became blurry after which a series of slashes soon followed in succession.

    Shing! Shing! Shing! Shing! Shing!

    Each movement of the sword was elusive and unpredictable as it transformed into beams of light parrying each of the Golden Furred Ape King''s blows unusually. The tip of the sword collided with the surface of each punch after which it would then direct the punches towards a different direction as if a gentle elder is instructing a child on how to eat by guiding him through moving his arms.

    The remaining forces of these blows were then redirected towards the terrain below both combatants, which caused even more destruction to spread across the previously leveled ground, creating craters upon craters of deep fist imprints.

    Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

    Soon, however, dozens of figures started to appear near the outskirts of the vicinity as they placed themselves on tall trees, remote hills, and boulders to observe the scene before them.

    "Ah! Using softness to overcome hardness. Such a talented Genius of the Sword. I wonder which Family Clan he''s from." A middle-aged figure let out a slight exclamation in response to the Sword Technique and control shown by Feng Yu.

    A slim and greedy looking figure soon arrived. After observing the area for a bit, the individual then focused his gaze on the battle before him and asked, "Hmmm, where is the treasure? Could it be that one of them has taken already it?"

    Observing more firmly he noticed what the man was fighting, and instantly he became filled with shock. He exclaimed, "A GOLDEN FURRED APE KING IN BATTLE FORM! HOW CAN THIS BE?!"

    "What! How could that be? You''re talking non----" another said but soon noticed.

    "Wait! It''s real but isn''t that kid emitting an essence level of the 8 Tier of Body Training realm? How could he be facing a 9 Star Variant Essence Beast that has assumed Battle Form?" He exclaimed.

    Swoosh! A youth appeared, standing on top of a tree shouldering a quiver with a bow on his back as he looked towards the battle scene in surprise.

    "Hmmm, such incredible power. Who could this guy be with such low cultivation yet capable of taking on a variant essence beast of this standard? Strange, why does he give me a familiar feeling?" Hui Ying felt puzzled and interested at the same time as he observed their battle, but as if sensing something, he glanced behind far into the distance noticing the appearance of few men in cloaks.

    After each of the men assumed a trained formation that surrounded a figure within its center. The man that stood at the head of the formation soon turned around after observing the situation for a bit and bowed politely to the figure at the center.

    "Young Master, apart from the two powerful beings fighting, there is no sign of any treasures within the vicinity. Subordinate assumes that one of those beings has already harvested the result which led to their current conflict."

    Crackle!

    While cracking his knuckles, the figure that was standing in the center of the formation cursed, "Chet! I will not leave here without any harvest. Even though those two are strong there will come a point when both will be exhausted. We will make use of that chance to kill them and search for their treasures."

    "Young Master, the two beings'' fighting are not of the same race. One is a human, and the other is a variant essence beast, Golden Furred Ape King. There would be no treasures to find even if we successfully manage to kill them." the subordinate soon advised.

    "What do you know? The variant essence beast blood can be used to concoct potions even if it doesn''t have any treasures. Now, enough talking! Get moving and keep your eyes open. Be ready to attack at a moment''s chance!" He barked orders as he flicked his sleeves while observing the vague scene from a distance.

    "Understood!" A few of the figures surrounding him soon disappeared into thin air rushing closer to the proximity of the battle.

    Hui Ying began to ponder, "So the top clans have gathered even such a group here in this forest. I wonder what they are planning."

    BOOOM!

    Following a loud explosion, he no longer continued to pay any attention to them and began observing the battle once again.

    A fog of dust clouded the region for hundreds of meters. After a short period, the mist began to clear, revealing the sight underneath being that of pure destruction and havoc. Craters upon craters were formed with broken trees, and massive boulders scattered across the ground. One crater was so deep, that even the very scene inside became different as if connecting to another world. A strange and nefarious fog flowed out from that area, and an odd untraceable aura soon filled the surroundings.

    Feng Yu felt strange, beads of sweat began to roll across his forehead, and he began to pant heavily. A feeling of immense danger overtook his consciousness, and the blood within his body began to boil as if warning him of an unstoppable threat that could not be avoided.

    Seeing his opponent''s pale face and poor condition, the Golden Furred Ape King became more excited as it had a feeling that victory was now in its grasps. It gathered its aura and vanished appearing at the highest reaches of the sky and glanced down at Feng Yu with a smirk on its face.

    "HMPH! FEELING REGRET NOW HUMANITY! WELL, IT''S TOO LATE! PREPARE TO MEET YOUR DOOM!"

    "HEAVEN BREAKING KONG PALM!" He roared at the top of his voice pushing all the energies it had into its ultimate attack.

    Swwiiiiiii! A massive palm appeared covering an area of 80 meters. It blanketed the region as it traveled downwards with an alarming momentum threatening to destroy everything in its path.

    "Not good! I can''t let this unknown feeling block my concentration; I need to finish the fight quickly!" Feng Yu said to himself while using his soul strength to force himself into a calm, serene state of mind. He then channeled all of the sacred flames essence-energies into his sword, his eyes began to shine with a fiery glow while radiating a sacred prestige.

    "Sword Foundation Tactics: Attack Stance - Blazing Sword Wave!" He roared at the top of his voice while transforming into a beam of scarlet-golden sword light that rushed towards the large palm rushing down from the heavens and slashed downwards with all his might.

    Shiiiinnggggg! The beam of sword light instantly traversed the remaining distance and like a knight cutting through tofu, it split apart the palm continuing its strike without decreasing its momentum.

    Sensing what might be behind the beam of light before him, the Golden Furred Ape King began to panic, "Oh Shit! What kind of sword technique is this? I have to prevent it at all cost! Block for me!" He reached out his left hand to block and redirect the sword beam that was threatening to cut him apart. From the center of his body, a golden metal gleamed coming from his arm.

    Pucchi!

    However, the struggle was futile as the sound of flesh being sliced apart resounded through the region, as the most terrible looking metallic left arm fell towards the ground, following which showers of blood began to spurt from the remaining piece of the upper arm still connected to the Golden Furred Ape King''s body.

    Vaguely, a red line started to slowly draw itself from the center of his chest all the way towards its left eye, leaving a massive wound that spewed blood nonstop.

    "ARGH! YOU BASTARD!" Gripping its remaining left arm with its right hand and forcing its body''s muscles to control the bleeding coming from his chest to the left section of his face, the Golden Furred Ape King roared in anger as well as pain.

    After falling back to the ground and standing on top of a large boulder, Feng Yu observed the scene while feeling bitter inside, "This Damn Ape!! How could its vitality be so strong? Sigh, my energy is almost drained, but I should be able to make one more attack. Let''s see if you survive one more of this move!"

    Just as he was about to channel his remaining energy to make one more final attack, the earth below him began to shake.

    RUMBLE!

    The observing individuals soon became shocked once more as the ground started to shake even in the remote vicinities.

    "What''s going on? Why is the earth-shaking to this degree?" a puzzled figure asked.

    "How can there be an earthquake in Mount Tydol? This has never happened before!" another said.

    "Could it be that the treasure is about to appear?!" A figure said excitedly.

    Hearing this last statement, the practitioners in the area soon began to get excited. A rush of greed soon overcame the fear in their hearts.

    Feng Yu fell into a dark state. His mind vanished from the present and appeared deep within his bloodline as if he was transferred into a different age, time, and space. Soon, a voice that was soft yet different rang in the air, as if it carried all the coldness in the universe and was threatening to freeze everything for all eternity putting it all to a stop.

    "Are... you... my... kin?!"

    "KIN! KIN! KIN!"

    The voice echoed from his consciousness to the outside world covering the vast mountain range shrouding it with an oppressive aura, and the world descended into darkness.

 23 A Shocking Scene! The Creature???

    A world of stillness¡­ the wind stopped blowing, the grass stopped moving, and all forms of life within a 1,000-kilometre radius were cast into a state of quietness. The darkness of the night could no longer be seen as a shade of gray blanketed the world in its monotone.

    Strangely, however, within this world of stillness in which even time had come to a stop, a heavy pulsation was heard.

    Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

    The sound continued to echo throughout the mountain range, living beings that were trapped by the confines of time itself were looking at a particular area in dread and deep fear. It was a strange place, or rather, an unknown world peeking outside of a broad and massive crack in the earth. Countless complicated runes and formations that were aged and destroyed were struggling to rebuild themselves trying their hardest to confine and close up the strange-looking gate. But sadly, all of their efforts seemed futile as a dark gray colored fog continued to seep outwards further expanding the region which became still.

    Suddenly, Feng Yu became conscious. He tried to move his body, but no matter how much energy he pushed forth, it could not overcome his state of stillness. Feeling a state of panic, Feng Yu decided to stimulate his bloodline once more.

    BLAZE! The sacred flames seemed to have found its natural enemy as it burned away the gray-colored fog that surrounded Feng Yu giving him the power to move and look around this strange scene before him.

    "What! What''s going on? Where is---" Looking around a bit further he began to realize that he was still within the same area of battle, he could vaguely see the Golden Furred Ape King floating at the highest point in the sky. Oddly though, he remained in the position neither falling nor moving. The hair on his body seemed to have entered a state of stillness, and the only life that could be felt from him came from his eyes which expressed a feeling of deep terror.

    Further looking around him, Feng Yu also noticed the spectating figures that came to view the battle who were also within this strange state. He pondered, "How could this be? What could have possibly caused this strange scene? Wait! That voice I heard, where did it----" Before he could finish his statement, there was an abrupt change.

    Thump! Swoosh!

    A final and loud pulsation resounded throughout the region, as all of the gray-colored fog that had escaped from the strange-looking seal started to gather towards a central location.

    Seeing the situation before him, Feng Yu felt puzzled and shocked; he realized that the feeling that was binding his movements was quickly disappearing. Soon, however, the blood within his body began to boil again as a feeling of impending doom began to overcome him.

    "I don''t know what''s going on, but it''s most definitely not a good sign. I have to get out of here immediately!" With a roar, Feng Yu revolved the small remaining amount of energy within his body as he flashed and disappeared within the distance like a beam of light.

    A pity though, for it was too late.

    Buzz! It was a loud and odd sound but after it sounded everything came to an end. It was a voice, one which seemed to have traveled from the earliest age in time. It echoed like the beginning that beckoned for the soon approaching end.

    "A strange one, you are...our auras are similar but opposite in nature, just as how mortal flames do with water, are you truly not my kin? No matter, for all shall come to an end!" The voice said.

    At the place where all the fog gathered, a being came into existence. It was ethereal in form but emitted an ancient aura that seemed to have transcended mortality. This being glanced towards the retreating figure of Feng Yu with a hint of puzzlement in its eyes, but soon it became filled with cold, emotionless indifference.

    "I have descended! You may call me ''Creature'' for I am that which should not exist.''" said the voice.

    A blinding aura swept the region. It was filled with a presence that belonged to a different state, that which could only be felt from a higher being. However, there was no divine prestige. It only exuded a dark and nefarious air that seeped into the bones of the many observers, threatening to bring a stop to their feeble existence.

    "God Dammit! What the hell is this? I have to get out of here now!" A voice said.

    "Get out of my way!" said another voice as he attacked the figure that was behind him as he attempted to run away.

    A few of the individuals, who managed to recover to their state of being, quickly decided to flee. Even the spectators that were once filled with endless greed believing there was a treasure unearthing soon came to their senses as they tried to flee with the rest.

    Sadly, their efforts were in vain.

    The creature looked towards these individuals that it had been previously monitoring through the space of the crack. The feeling of coldness in its eyes grew at an exponential rate, causing the energies within the environment to be sent into disarray.

    "Small and Weak Mortals! Dare you stare at me with Greed! Vanish from my very own Existence!" The voice said as its eyes started to glow with the same greyish fog energy.

    As if obeying a higher will, the energies of the heavens and earth itself started to act on its own carrying out its given order.

    Torrents of energies seemed to have gathered together creating a small dome surrounding many of the fleeing spectators, among which were more than half of the black-clothed figures that came with the pampered young master.

    Seeing the situation before him, the young master was shocked, "Quickly, get me out of here An''er, Dan''er!"

    The two unaffected figures in cloaks reacted quickly using all of their strength at the peak of 9 Tier and 8 Tier Body Training realms respectively as they pulled the young master away and vanished with him towards the distance, no longer paying attention to their trapped comrades.

    "Noooo! Let me out I don''t want to die!"

    "I have yet to reach my goals, I am not willing!"

    "Ahhhhh!"

    Within a few moments, all of the trapped spectators ceased to exist as their bodies faded out to nothingness leaving no traces behind. The remaining ones became silent as their souls were filled with a deep emotion that seemed to have transcended that of even fear. The creature, witnessing this result, was pleased as it eyes gleamed with contentment.

    Feng Yu was now closing in on the location of Hui Ying at blinding speeds as he pushed his <Lightning Flash Steps> towards maximum power.

    Swish! Swish! Swish!

    Like a ray of thunder, he continued to soar through the distance bouncing from trees to trees and boulders to boulders. The being now once again observed his figure slowly stretching out his arms; it pointed its finger towards Feng Yu.

    "Kin or not kin!! Your aura makes me uncomfortable! Prepare to accept your fate!" said the ethereal being.

    Pheww! A gray-colored beam shot forth from its finger, traversing thousands of meters and within an instance, it crashed into Feng Yu''s beamlike figure.

    Puff! Coughing out a large mouthful of blood, Feng Yu was beaten into a grievously injured state as all of his bones and entire soul seemed to be joining the state of stillness once again.

    "Damn! Cough! Cough! I... I won''t make it. His power is too great, father. I... am.... s... so... sorry...." With his final breath, Feng Yu was tossed into unconsciousness.

    His bloodline form vanished, and his body started to fall from the air descending towards the ground at a rapid pace.

    "Fellow Daoist Feng!" Seeing the falling form that turned out to be Feng Yu, Hui Ying was shocked. He quickly dashed forward, displaying his stunning movement technique once more, as he grabbed Feng Yu on his back and started to make a run for it.

    Swish! Swish! Swish!

    Feeling the coldness radiating from Feng Yu''s body, Hui Ying was uncertain, "This cold energy is eating away his insides. If I don''t do something now, he may not be able to make it alive."

    "Hmm, not dead. It seems that I have underestimated the aura that lies deep within you. No matter what, your attempt to escape shall only serve to be futile!"

    After seeing that the previous attempt to kill Feng Yu failed, the creature decided to act more seriously as he formed his hand into that of a palm, which faced towards the retreating figure of Hui Ying carrying Feng Yu. Soon, clusters of energies began to gather within the sky as a massive palm came into existence. It shrouded the entirety of the mountain range and began to radiate an immense might threatening to freeze all things.

    The creature''s eyes shone with coldness as it proclaimed its will towards the world.

    "All shall cease, and coldness shall reign for all eternity!"

    "NETHER... COLD... PALM!" A voice that seemed to trail away with the wind sounded into the mind of all beings residing in the area of the mountain, as the palm descended with full momentum turning everything in the proximity to eternal stillness.

    Hui Ying soon began to slow down as traces of ice started to show on his skin. His body was beginning to enter a state of stillness with unstoppable momentum. Feng Yu''s body that was already on the brink of death seemed to have begun to flicker away his final moments of life.

    Realizing that the situation was not good, Hui Ying became deathly pale. His vision began to blur as his once fast speed started to dwindle, only leaving him capable of dragging his legs forward with a slow movement.

    Soon, his mind began to disappear, and as soon as he was about to enter the state of eternal stillness, a vision came before him¡­

    It was a scene that could only be described as a truly brutal massacre.

    Countless bodies were scattered inside of a ruined temple, their blood soaking the marble. Red flowing endlessly towards the distant reaches of a burning kingdom.

    The call of death sounded in the area as endless amounts of souls began to swirl around their bodies, filled with grievances that could not be solved. At the center of this bloody massacre, a small body was lying down in the arms of a decapitated woman.

    The boy was only four years old, but strangely he didn''t utter a single cry; he just looked towards the sky with a look filled with endless hatred.

    A silhouette standing in the air said, "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, return what is to what was once thus..."

    Soon the scene faded away, leaving only a voice that lingered within the boy''s mind.

    "Damnit! Damnit!! I will not give up, not here... not¡­ not until I get my answers!" With his pure willpower, he forced himself to remain conscious as he dragged his body further and further towards the distance while fighting the coldness that seeped into his body.

    The creature frowned as it spoke, "Pitiful Mortal! Your struggle is in vain!"

    It reached out his hand further, as the descending palm pushed forward faster. It seemed to be just moments away from a full collision with the entire mountain range. But right when this palm was about to connect with the ground, a disturbance was felt.

    "HMPH!... HMPH!... HMPH!" A snort resounded throughout the region carrying with it a power that instantly destroyed the gigantic palm that was almost about to collide with the ground.

    BOOM!

    With an explosion, all of the gray fog scattered among the area dispersed along with the palm, leaving only the massive figure of the creature floating within the void. The beast was angry. As it looked towards the sky in a rage, it shouted.

    "You dare to block my path! You''re seeking death!"

    Swiiiiii! The sky glowed brightly as the night within the mountain range seemed to have turned into daytime once more. An ordinary man appeared standing proudly in the air. He was wearing a grand imperial robe with an ancient imperial crown on his head. His long silver hair danced in the wind as he glanced indifferently at the form of the creature below him.

 24 The Sword that Split the Sky

    Swwoooosssssh! The night wind blew fervently as the breath of life once again filled the entirety of the mountain range. One by one the cultivators that were either training or locked into combat came to their senses as they were freed from stillness.

    "Haha! I can move again. I''ve had enough of this damn mountain range. Brothers gather your things. Let''s get out of here before things get any worse!" A sizeable looking figure said as he pumped his fists excitedly at his partners.

    "That''s right let''s move!" said another

    Upon regaining their freedom, the practitioners didn''t waste any time to see the outcome of the sudden appearance of a stranger and the creature. They each began to utilize their most valuable means to escape from the vicinity.

    A distance away from the battle scene, two forms flashed across the fields leaving behind only a trail of bloody footprints behind.

    Swish! Hui Ying''s body was a total wreck, but he pushed onwards not even bothering to look at the scene behind him. While moving, he quickly took a glance at Feng Yu who was hung on his left shoulder. It seemed to have lost all signs of life.

    "Brother Feng! Hang in there. We are almost at the outskirts of this mountain range. A few more hours and we will be out of harm''s way. You must resist, do not lose yourself in the cold..." Hui Ying muttered as their forms vanished further across the vast mountain range in a sea of trees.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    At the highest reaches of the sky, a golden form was traversing the distance at high speeds, using its entire strength to escape the creature from the mountain range. It had only one remaining arm, which was dripping blood endlessly, and a large wound that was visible from its chest, spreading all the way to it''s now destroyed left eye.

    The Golden Furred Ape King glanced towards its back cruelly as it thought back to the previous scene of it almost being sliced into two separate pieces. Its right eye shone with dense killing intent as is it roared towards the heavens.

    "Feng Yu! Feng Yu---! I will certainly have my revenge. From now on I will go by one name and one name only. I will be known as Kong Jin Tian, and we will meet again!"

    Like a beam of golden light, he shot towards the horizon occasionally falling downwards to use a tree as his footing, launching himself further into the air once more traveling across the distance.

    Suddenly, deep within the sky, a few figures appeared. They were all beautiful women, each having their peerless bearings as if they could charm the masses of any kingdom and fuel the kings to start wars. A beautiful young girl looked towards the disappearing ape with a strange glint in her eyes.

    Looking towards her niece with a loving expression, Aunt Shuan smiled for a moment as she patted her gently, but soon she said in a strict tone.

    "A man should fight his own battles and only through life and death could an expert grow truly strong. Ling''er, do not worry needlessly about that boy called Feng, if you are destined to meet again, you will do so at the talent meet."

    As she said this, she looked at the scene behind her observing the figure that appeared while lighting up the sky with his immense aura. A dense feeling of fear soon shrouded her heart as she pondered.

    "Tydol Mountain Range, such a strange mountain range. An ancient being, an evil creature, and a child that blazes with flames that are sacred. Almost, almost as if they belonged to that of an Ancient Phoenix... Phoenix, Hmm, Wait! Could it be?" With a look of shock, Aunt Shuan thought back towards the ancient markings that appeared on Feng Yu''s body including the color of his hair.

    "How can this be? How can they still exist?" She looked towards the scene behind her in shock carefully searching for a while with her soul sense, only to not discover the target of her worries.

    After a short moment, she cleared her thoughts and regained her sense of calm, or rather, forced herself into that state as she looked towards her disciples and niece.

    "Children let us go; we will waste no further time here. Things are about to get serious." She said in a solemn tone.

    "Yes, Master!" All of them said in unison along with Fu Ling''er.

    "Good!" With a wave of her hand, the energy of the world soon gathered around all the forms of the girls once again as she reached out her hands towards them as if she was holding each of them with her separately. Soon, she transformed into the light that quickly shot towards the horizon far into the distance, leaving the mountain range, traveling the distant lands with the girls being pulled along with her.

    If Feng Yu were to see this scene, he would have had to have second thoughts about whether this gentle-looking aunt was a practitioner at the stage of True Foundation realm.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    The light shone brightly as it continued to suppress the creature''s aura below the man that stood above the heavens. He looked towards the creature with an indifferent expression as he spoke with a voice filled with an ancient prestige and dignity.

    "Evil creature, why have you descended to this planar?!" His voice echoed as it sounded throughout the region.

    Seeing the being before it questioned its will, the creature was surprised. But soon, it became filled with rage as it stared violently at the man who defied its nefarious prestige.

    "You dare question me!! This Divine One? Outrageous! Accept Your Demise! Death!"

    "DEATH!... DEATH!... DEATH!" The voice echoed throughout the world once more.

    RUMBLE!...

    The mountain range soon began to shake as if a massive earthquake was in the making. The nefarious energy that shrouded the form instantly turned into something of a demonic nature as its aura soon skyrocketed, covering half of the sky in a dark, devilish gray fog clashing with the auras of light released by the man.

    The form of the creature soon changed, removing itself from the state of etherealness and genuinely forming into a being in this world. It had dark gray skin and black feathers that formed a kind of dark armor around its body; its arms were long with black fingers that shone with a baleful and sharp light, and its face was covered inside of a dark feather helmet with its eyes glowing bright purple.

    After genuinely coming into being, the creature began to feel that the certain restrictions that were placed onto it by the world were slowly fading away. It looked towards the man with a wicked smirk on its face as it spread out its arms.

    Suddenly, the creature began to grow quickly becoming more than 100 kilometers tall.

    After reaching full size, it looked down towards the speck of dust below it as it started to gather its full power with its right palm. A blinding coldness shone from the very depths of its eyes, causing the weather within the span of thousands of kilometers to change to that of frozen snow.

    "ALL SHALL END! DEMONIC ARTS: DOOM... NETHER... FROST... PALM!"

    "NETHER FROST PALM!... NETHER FROST PALM!... NETHER FROST PALM!... "

    The sky became filled with coldness as clouds gathered out of nothingness, spreading a deep snow across the land, A massive palm started to fall towards the earth, it seemed as if the palm was the very essence of cold itself just by coming into existence. The area surrounding the Bright Flame Kingdom, spreading out for hundreds of thousands of kilometers within the massive world of True Yuan Continent, instantly became an arctic zone.

    All people looked with dead eyes, even the strongest practitioners within the nearby kingdoms stopped moving as everything came to an end. The very definition of pure stillness; the essence of death in its true form. The creature looked on with its demonic sense with pleasure. But soon, it knitted its brows as the palm once again stopped descending.

    The voice of the ordinary-looking man said, "Hmph! A Minor Frost Demon dares proclaim itself as a ''Divinity,'' a foolish creature indeed! Return to where you came!"

    Soon, two ancient sword sheets appeared within the figure''s hands, each having a strange marking of runes that were wounded around their surface. As if they were responding to something, both sheets began to glow with an unusual presence as a formless sword appeared inside of both sheaths separately.

    As he grasped the handle of a sword from his left sword sheath, the ordinary man looked towards the palm that was trapped by his endless aura while sneering towards the demon that towered above him and spoke in a calm voice.

    "Cut!....."

    "Cut!... Cut!... Cut!"

    Shiiiinnggggg!

    The sound of a sword being pulled out from its sheath resounded throughout the silent world. Oddly enough, there were no flashing lights, otherworldly sword beam, and earth-shaking destruction aura, only the sound of the sword which lingered in the void for a short while before abruptly vanishing.

    The creature looking down at the figure before was curious, but now it became filled with fear and endless dread when it saw what was before him. A massive sword that grew out of nothingness came into being. It was so large that it seemed to travel from another space itself using that very space as its sheath and traveling so fast that it seemed to have transcended the principles of the laws that governed time itself. The demon could only look as the sword quickly and efficiently sliced into its form with ease, further cutting deep into the void stretching out towards the vast horizon then pausing for a moment.

    It was at this moment that the stillness and coldness abruptly vanished, recovering freedom to those who were previously on the brink of destruction. Soon a man within a remote kingdom that was eating a meal looked up towards the distant sky and quickly became filled with shock.

    "A... A SWORD... AND A DEMON WHAT IN THIS WORLD!"

    "How could there be such a large sword? And what is that creature?" another figure in a distant place said.

    "Am I seeing things, what the hell is going on?" another within a remote empire pondered.

    However, before they could take a clear look at the sword, it faded away into nothingness appearing to have appeared but not appeared at the same time.

    The Frost Demon looked at the ordinary man with deep fear as it muttered.

    "You are... ''The Last Emperor of Man''... the one who wielded... the Ethereal Swords... You are.... ''The Phantasmal Swordsman''...."

    Tydol smiled as he looked towards the dying frost demon "Quite knowledgeable I see. It seems that my legend has yet to fade in your realm."

    As it felt its life fade away, the frost demon did not panic. Instead, a look of delight appeared in its eyes as it looked at Tydol.

    "Hahaha!! So, it seems that you are but a remnant. A pity, you shall not last against my own kin. My death... shall change nothing...." As its voice trailed off into the night wind, his massive form faded away after a flash of blinding light, ceasing to exist for all eternity.

    Hearing his statement, Tydol only looked on in silence as a look of melancholy appeared on his tired face. Soon, a look of firmness appeared on his face as he muttered towards the void.

    "As long as my blood still remains, I shall defend this planar for the rest of my own eternity..."

    Quickly raising his arms, he drew a strange seal within the void. That seal shone brightly as it fell towards the ground soon covering and replacing the broken seal that was suppressing the gray fog gate.

    RUMBLE!

    The earth began to shake as boulders upon boulders clustered together, quickly creating a massive terrain on top of the sealed area once more. Ancient trees began to sprout, and a grassland once again promptly grew to reclaim the field. Tydol looked at his handiwork with satisfaction, and then glanced towards a distant location for a moment while muttering.

    "Small Phoenix, troubled times draw near... quickly grow..."

 25 A Toast to New Friendship

    A week later.

    Within the Bright Flame Kingdom, Approaching Winter:

    There a was an unusual rumor going around, a ridiculous tale that seemed to have spread to even the most remote of kingdoms. In response to this rumor, the various kinds of countries and emperors decided to quell this news through means of distractions such as advertising popular social activities and other forms of diversions.

    Eventually, there remained only a few that held on to their stubborn views as the majority began to forget this strange and odd rumor. Within a crowded tavern, a few individuals sat around a relatively large table, each of them carrying a unique kind of bearing as they discussed amongst themselves.

    In a quiet and remote corner, three individuals were sitting, having talks of their own.

    "Hiss, it''s so cold here... to think that even by revolving my essence energy I''m not able to fully keep it from bothering me," A brawny youth said while shivering.

    "Well, we are nearby that rumored, ''Mount Tydol'' after all. You just have to suck it up and stop acting like such a p**sy." A pretty looking female said as she jeered at the youth in a manner unbecoming of practitioner decorum.

    "Chet! No wonder they say you''re ''cold-blooded.'' Keep this kind of attitude, and you won''t be getting any men in the future!" The youth sharply retorted.

    "YOU---!" It seems that the little beauty''s nerve was about to slip, but, before she could counterattack, there was a loud commotion.

    BANG! A table was broken to pieces as a skinny man was blasted hard on the ground. The man who assaulted the skinny fellow was a large guy with piercings in each ear, carrying a large beard and a bald head. Seated beside him were four other individuals who looked towards the fallen man with mock and ridicule on their faces.

    Suddenly, all of the conversations stopped, and the crowd within the tavern became silent as each observed this scene with keen interest. The big man seeing the scenario decided to demonstrate his prestige. He got up and pointed at the skinny man on the floor.

    "Mother Fu**er! How dare you continue to spout that kind of bullshit in front of this ''Daddy''s'' face?" He roared to gather all attention to himself.

    "Cough! Cough! I... I''m really telling the truth. I really did see a large demon appear for a brief moment, only to get cut apart by some weapon. It wasn''t only me either, there were many other individuals close to the scene after all." After spitting a mouthful of blood, the skinny man tried to make his statement known.

    Hearing his words, the surrounding listeners started to lose interest as they mocked him, before continuing their own business.

    "Hahaha! It looks like we''ve got another one over here. Do these people believe this nonsense?" A guy said while holding his belly.

    The youths seated at the corner table looked on with interest as they started to converse once more.

    "Do you believe that strange story?" The brawny youth said to the pretty girl while showing a puzzled look.

    "Hmph! I think it''s a bunch of bogus crap that was spread by the officials of this small affiliate kingdom. It''s no wonder they are doing this, after all, how could they even manage to garner any of our clan''s interests?" The beauty spouted harshly as she snorted in disdain towards the kingdom.

    Another youth sat silently amongst the two with his eyes closed and in silent meditation, as if the current happenings were not worth his attention. But suddenly, he opened his sharp eyes and looked towards the entrance of the tavern. It was as if his vision could pierce through the walls seeing what was outside.

    The guy and girl seeing this youth''s reaction instantly became solemn.

    "Brother Zang, is something wrong?" The pretty looking girl asked with confusion shown on her face.

    "..." The youth continued to look at the door in silence.

    The bald ruffian hearing this was instantly angered further, he looked at the man with raw killing intent.

    "Good! Good!! Good!!! Son of a b-tch! You made these people group us up together! Because of your bullshit, prepare to die!!" Just as the man was about to unleash the wrath of heaven, another interrupter appeared or rather two interrupters.

    Step! Step!

    Due to the silence within the tavern, two loud footsteps were heard originating from its entrance as two youths appeared.

    They were both wearing tattered clothing and in bad shape, as the slightly older and stronger looking young man was filled with leg scars that were visible through his torn-up pants. He was also wearing a dirty sleeveless shirt, while the younger-looking youth that had long red hair was wearing a ripped-up undershirt with torn up pants.

    The bald man, seeing these two individuals, was suddenly surprised but quickly recovered, and a vicious expression overtook his face.

    "Who the hell do you think you are to interrupt this daddy''s business? You bunch of filthy looking beggars'' better get out my sight immediately!" He shouted as he raised his hand threateningly towards the two haggard youths.

    Looking at the silly man who shouted in a rage because of their sudden appearance, both Feng Yu and Hui Ying were surprised.

    After a short period of time, they no longer paid any attention towards the man as they continued to walk past the scene towards a table in the same corner as the trio observing them.

    The bald man, seeing them ignore him, was so upset his face started to change color. He changed his target of aggression directly towards these infringers.

    "You dirty beggars dare to ignore me! Die!" He lunged forward with all his might to break them to pieces with his palms moving like a blur as his essence power skyrocketed, reaching the early stages of 9 Tier Body Training realm.

    Feeling the energy rushing towards them, Feng Yu frowned. His face instantly became several degrees colder as he raised his hand towards the approaching bald guy''s forehead with his thumb and middle finger curled together.

    "GET! -LOST!!" As if the voice came from the asura himself, a dense wave of killing intent rushed towards the bald cultivator which made him falter in his movements coming to a pause before both Feng Yu and Hui Ying.

    Pow! Whoosh!!

    With a flick of his finger, Feng Yu sent the man soaring through the air as he was knocked back through the entrance colliding, a couple of meters away, with a distant boulder.

    "Hissing..." As if well-coordinated, the observers took a deep breath as they witnessed the scene.

    Following this, Hui Ying sent glances towards those lackeys seated at the large table. Upon seeing his look, the lackeys quickly scurried about soon leaving the tavern and the messy desk.

    Hui Ying mocked "Hmph! A bunch of trash seeking nothing but trouble."

    Feng Yu smiled warily as he pointed towards the table beside the strange trio, "Haha! Brother Ying! How about that table in the corner?"

    Hui Ying nodded as he cleared the negative vibe slapping Feng Yu''s back in a rogue-like manner, "Let''s go! Let''s go! We brothers must first celebrate our escape through drinking."

    Seeing the two of them walk over, the youth and female looked on with interest. A look of curiosity appeared deep within the eyes of the silent young man as he suddenly sent out a sharp will power attack towards Feng Yu.

    Suddenly, Feng Yu felt a strong feeling of danger as he focused his attention towards the silent youth.

    Crackle! An indiscernible field of thunder appeared as two opposing forces seemed to have struggled for a bit then canceled out.

    Soon, the silent youth seated at the table with the two practitioners and let out a content smile as if he was a child that found a new toy.

    "Interesting, it seems that we didn''t come to this small kingdom in vain after all. We may be in for one or more surprises in this so-called selection," He said.

    The brawny youth, hearing this jeered, "Ha! Brother Zang, what are you saying? These aboriginals aren''t worthy of us coming here. This so-called training journey to this backwater kingdom has been nothing more than a boring trip so far." The petty girl seated in the corner said with an annoyed expression, "If my father didn''t force me to come with you guys, I would have been training with my sisters at the Xia Pavilion right now. So far on this journey, we have had no decent challenges. No decent encounters at all. What does father expect us to find in this remote kingdom? Sigh, brother Zang, it''s best to not get your hopes up for this so-called talent selection. After all, even that brute that just got beaten was even less than average trash."

    The silent youth looked at them while smiling, "While your statement has some truth, it is also flawed. The one who defeated the trash isn''t any weaker than you both." Following which, he no longer paid them any attention and wandered off back into deep meditation.

    "Hmph! I don''t believe it," both the guy and girl said unconvincingly.

    As Feng Yu and Hui Ying took their seats, their minds were entirely preoccupied with other things compared to the youth''s conversations.

    "Brother Yu, it looks like in this selection there will be tigers and dragons of a scale never shown before," said Hui Ying as a pale expression appeared on his face as he glanced at the youth in the corner.

    "Indeed, if all the people coming to this selection are as capable as him, I''m afraid we will be in for a desperate struggle," Feng Yu said as he calmly observed the opposite table''s youth a few meters from them.

    However, after a short while, they cleared their thoughts and focused back on their objectives.

    Hui Ying looked at Feng Yu with great interest as he said, "Still brother Yu, I can''t believe we made it out of that damn death zone alive and in one piece. Who would have thought that you''d have grown so strong after only a short time training since our last meeting?"

    As Feng Yu thought about their experiences, he sighed, "Sigh, indeed it was a perilous situation...."

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    One week earlier.

    A figure was lying on top of a field of dense white snow, his feet were severely injured, and he had lost all forms of strength making him unable to move any further. A little further away from him was another form that seemed to have already entered the state of death.

    "Da-o-i-s-t... Fe-n-g...." Struggling to say a few words, the exhausted Hui Ying lost his consciousness.

    "Sleep... Sleep! You have already done enough, and there is no point resisting, rest eternally, and you shall find true salvation..." a voice like that of Feng Yu''s softly echoed in a space with nothingness.

    Drip¡­

    Drip...

    Drip...

    Following the sound of dripping water, a form became visible. It was floating in the space of pure emptiness and coldness that seemed to have seeped into its very being. Vaguely though, a figure was standing in front of the form with his back bent slightly and his hands placed behind him. It was an ordinary-looking old man wearing Ancient Daoist Robes. He looked at Feng Yu with a gentle smile on his face.

    "Disciple! How long are you going to rest? If you lose yourself in your willpower, then how could it ever be considered as your own will?" said the ordinary old man.

    "It''s time to wake up," he said once more.

    "Wake up!... Wake up!... Wake up!" As if spoken by a soft and soothing voice, his word resounded throughout the realm deep within Feng Yu''s consciousness.

    Soon, the form of Feng Yu began to shake restlessly as he quickly became conscious of himself and conscious of the broken will that was forcing him to sleep for eternity.

    "My will is my own! Who dares force me to sleep?" With a firm will, he broke the illusion that was cast upon him by the residual coldness and stimulated his bloodline''s sacred flames.

    Blaze! "How can ice block my fire? I will extinguish it!" With a loud roar, his illusionary body instantly combusted as the entire bleak world of his consciousness became a sea of fire.

    Soon, the scenario began to change as his aura pulse quickly reformed through flames followed by his sword seed and soul space.

    Outside of his consciousness within the field of snow, his body began to rise slowly, soon reaching a height that was a few meters off the ground.

    Burst! A sea of flames soon spread from his body covering an area of more than 20 square meters, burning away the snow and turning it into water vapor.

    Oddly enough, the form of Hui Ying wasn''t burnt at all, but slowly, there were some improvements to his condition as even his badly scarred legs were beginning to look better.

    Suddenly, Feng Yu opened his eyes. After which, his vision shifted towards Hui Ying''s form. His eyes showed a bit of confusion, but after a short flashback, it was soon filled with gratitude.

    Moments later Hui Ying awoke only to see Feng Yu carrying him on his shoulder towards an exit of the mountain range.

    After a bit of silence, Feng Yu spoke, "Fellow Daoist Ying, I Feng Yu have been through a lot of things in my past and never have I encountered such a twist of fate. If you do not mind from now on, I will address you as Brother Ying."

    Hearing his word, Hui Ying smiled while responding, "Haha! There is nothing ever wrong about acquiring new friends. Sure, why not? This one here will now address Daoist Feng as Brother Yu from now on... assuming that''s your real name, is that?"

    Hearing his words, both individuals began to laugh as they traveled towards the distance within the bleakness of snow.

    ******

    Within the Tavern.

    Seated on the opposite side of the table, Hui Ying smiled as he slammed the table hard while shouting towards the waitress.

    "Come! Two Large Jugs of liquor to me!!" He said in excitement.

    After a few moments, the waitress came carrying two large Jugs of liquor with two large bowls.

    Seeing the liquor in front of him, Feng Yu smiled as he reached for the bowl, but Hui Ying stopped him.

    Looking at Feng Yu, Hui Ying smiled and gripped his large jug as he said: "Brother Feng, true brothers down their liquor in one go. We will drink from the Jugs!"

    In response, Feng Yu reached for his jug while responding, "Good! As new brothers! We must down this liquor as real men should!"

 26 Heaven gave you a chance, yet here you came looking for Hell

    It was a bright and cheerful morning. The birds were singing along with a rustling sound of footsteps as a few travelers were slowly making their way towards their destinations. The gentle wind carrying with a slight coldness as the winter was drawing ever so close, while pellets of snow were beginning to paint the world in an everlasting hue white.

    Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.

    The sound of rough footsteps rang in the distance, as the shadow of a man soon became visible within a snowy path surrounded by dense trees. This man had long red hair and was wearing a tattered looking gray robe. Hoisted to his side was a black sheath holding a long sword with a black hilt.

    It''s been one day since the celebration of a new friendship that both Feng Yu and Hui Ying shared through liquor at a tavern. After parting ways, Hui Ying decided to travel to his home to handle some personal matters before heading towards the Talent Selection, while Feng Yu chose to head straight home by traveling the fastest and shortest route.

    "Whew! After traveling for less than half a day, I''ve already covered more than half the distance. It seems that I''ve gotten quite fast. At this pace, even if I were to take occasional resting periods such as this, I''ll be able to reach home by the nightfall." Feng Yu said as he casually looked around at his surroundings.

    As he was traveling, he was also consolidating his knowledge from the battle with the Golden Furred Ape King and the sword techniques he used. Occasionally, he would wave his fingers causing a small amount of sword energy to shoot towards trees and rocks within the surroundings, creating splits and gaps within every object they contacted. It was fortunate that he took the less populated path to travel home, as he would have been a disaster in human form towards regular travelers.

    Inside of his consciousness, a tiny sword was floating below a giant black orb. It was about 9 inches tall with streams of energy traveling towards it from a hovering sword manual. Inspecting the sword seed, Feng Yu began to ponder.

    "Hmm, my sword foundation is still lacking, although my techniques have improved after the battle. I have still yet to reach the level where using the sword is like an extension of myself. This must be the reason why my sword seed has remained stagnant at 9 inches, despite being increased by a great amount from the battle with the Golden Furred Ape King. It seems that I should try to use the remaining days while I''m home to integrate my <Lightning Flash Steps> into the <Sword Foundation Tactics>." As he said this, he quickly withdrew his thoughts from his inner consciousness and focused on his journey.

    Soon, he came to a vast region that was about 15 meters wide. There were tall trees that surrounded each of the corners, and the current pathway was connected to a smaller channel located at the end of the region only about a few meters wide. It seems that this area was one that random travelers choose to rest, as a few spots with abandoned tents and pots were placed in those areas.

    Looking around at those spots closely, Feng Yu began to feel something strange as the area seemed to have recently been used.

    "Could it be that these individuals have left so quickly because of some sort of danger, or were it that they wanted to remove the excess weight to speed up their travels?" While pondering this, Feng Yu had already arrived at the center of the wide space.

    Swoosh! Suddenly, his ear twitched and with a movement of his body, he transformed into a blur as he backed up a few meters away from the central position.

    BANG!

    Sou! Sou! Sou! Sou!

    Following a massive explosion, four figures instantly dashed out from the surrounding trees. Each of these figures was wearing a black hooded cloak, and underneath their hoods, their eyes gleamed with a sharp and ruthless light as they looked towards Feng Yu.

    Realizing that the men had already surrounded all his escape routes, Feng Yu stayed calm as he observed these individuals.

    "Timely activating an explosive talisman that was set beforehand, I do not believe that you are bandits. Who are you and who sent you here?" While saying this, Feng Yu kept his guard up as he already had a clue as to who could have sent these people.

    Seeing their target trapped like a rabbit before their eyes, the hooded figures sneered at him in their hearts as they had already started to view him as they would a corpse.

    Clap! Clap! Clap!

    The sound of clapping began to resound throughout the silent space as a man dressed in luxurious clothing soon walked out from within the surrounding trees. He had an average semblance and deep within his eyes was a cunning and ruthless intent.

    "Good! Good! Brother Feng, your improvement is truly astounding. Truly indeed a Top-Tier Talent. If I didn''t see you avoid my family''s grade 1 burst talisman, I would not have believed it." He said this while smiling as if he just found his long-lost friend.

    Seeing the figure appear before him, the memories deep within Feng Yu''s mind began to churn as a wave of killing intent started to shine from the very depths of his soul. However, on the outside, he only looked on with an even calmer expression.

    "Huan Shan! Heaven has given you a chance, yet, here you came looking for the door to hell yourself. I have to wonder whether you''re prepared to face the consequences for the foolish actions you guys have done at our last meeting?" Feng Yu said as he looked at Huan Shan with a smile on his face.

    Hearing his statement, a look of surprise came on the faces of the surrounding men, but soon laughter began to fill the surroundings.

    "Hahaha! Feng Yu, did you also learn a sense of humor? A great talent you are indeed. I wonder, what kind of cultivation can a ''Supreme Talent'' like yours have in such a short time span for you to have become so arrogant. Even if there were to be some godly miracle and you had attained a high cultivation base, how could you defeat the remaining guards that I have brought with me here today? I''ll have you know that each of their cultivations is above the 7th Tier of Body Training realm, and, if I didn''t lose more than half of my men due that Damn demon incident, there would be more men at an even higher tier." Huan Shan sneered as he bantered away in mock towards Feng Yu.

    Feng Yu smiled carefully looking at the men that surrounded him inspecting their cultivation levels seeing that three of them were at the 8 Tier and one of them at the early stages of the 9 Tier.

    He looked at Huan Shan and said, "What a pity? Not only did you lose men because of your silly attempt to find me within the mountain range. Now you will lose more men and also your own life, because of you stubbornly trying to kill me."

    Hearing Feng Yu''s reply, Huan Shan was quickly enraged. He shouted towards the guards as he pointed towards Feng Yu with disdain.

    "You want to take my life? Ha, it seems that not only have you gained a sense of humor. You''ve also learned to spout nonsense. Men!!! Break his limbs and keep him half alive, I must have a look to see if you will act so tough when I torture you to death!"

    Hearing their master''s command, the three 8 Tier hooded men rushed forward at the top of their speed while the 9 Tier servant stood back to watch with an aloof expression on his face.

    Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

    "Hmph! Don''t blame me, kid. If you are given another life, remember not to offend those that are above offending," said the closest figure that was charging towards Feng Yu, as he ruthlessly stretched his hands out to grab both of his arms to rip them off.

    Seeing that the man was reaching for his arms, a cold light shone within Feng Yu''s eyes as he stretched his right arm out at blinding speeds leaving behind only a blur. Quickly, his palm was placed around the servant''s neck gripping him firmly in the air.

    The servant looked on in shock as his neck was tightly held by Feng Yu who looked on with eyes filled with dense killing intent.

    "Remember to take your words with you towards your grave. Your journey is now over." Feng Yu said as he gripped down violently without any shred of hesitation.

    "Wai----" Before he could beg for his life, his eyes went dead, as his soul faded away after a dreadful sound.

    Snap! Thud!

    After breaking his neck, Feng Yu tossed the corpse to the side with a flip of his wrist as if he was throwing away a piece of paper. He then focused his vision on the men that were stunned into a stop because of witnessing the scene before them.

    "How could you?!" One of the men said.

    "8 Tier Body Training realm, how could you grow so quickly in just this short amount of time? Growing to such a degree in less than two months, I do not believe you could have grown so fast, even if you had some miraculous treasure!" Huan Shan said as looked towards Feng Yu with shock and disbelief.

    The 9 Tier Body Training realm servants looked towards Feng Yu with a solemn expression. He quickly rushed forward while commanding the remaining two servants.

    "This boy is in the middle stages of 8 Tier Body Training realm and his body is a lot stronger than those within the same stage. Quickly fall back and join me!!! We will attack together with Tri-Blade Formation!"

    "Yes!" Quickly recovering from their shock, the two servants soon retreated with full speed, positioning themselves at both corners of the 9-tier servant.

    Soon after, they each placed their hands together with palms forming the shape of a triangle. While channeling their auras to maximum power, a wave of blinding blade light soon shone above all tree forms.

    Swiiiiiiiiiiiii!

    Suddenly, the wind began to change. As the coldness in the air started to diminish, three large blades formed above their heads, each of them being roughly 15 meters in length and 2 meters wide. They floated in the sky silently as the glow around them began to form a triangular diagram positioning them at its center. After entirely forming, the layout shone brightly releasing endless blade-light within the surrounding space.

    Feng Yu, feeling the oppressive aura, revealed a curious expression as he mocked, "An excellent group combination technique you have there! Sadly, it''s not enough. Let''s see what''s sharper, your blade or my sword!"

    With one hand placed on his sword sheath and the other gripping firmly on the hilt of black lightning, his hair began to rise into the air as his fire essence energy rose along with sharp sword energy that started to emerge from his body.

    Chiiiiiii!

    The scorching sharp aura began to melt away the surrounding snow within a 2-meter radius. As Huan Shan saw this scene, his face was overcome with an expression of terror. He looked towards his family servants and roared.

    "Kill him now!" He shouted at the top of his voice.

    "Kill!" Hearing their young master''s order, the servants who had just finished gathering energy into the formation shouted, as they gestured their hands towards Feng Yu''s form.

    Swing! The blades, hovering within the formation, instantly shot forwards at insanely high speeds. Like a beam of light, the three blades quickly converged creating a single edge, increasing their energies by three-fold.

    The world slowed down, as Feng Yu saw the incoming blades moving at the speed of a turtle trying its best to cross the plains. He stepped forward once, instantly appearing in front of the converging edges and drew his sword swiftly and fluidly and used a sword technique.

    "Sword Foundation Arts: Attack Stance - Scorching Mantis Sword Strike..." he said with a low voice.

    Shing! The scorching hot flame essence merged with the bright and sharp sword energy released from the sword. Feng Yu''s figure instantly transformed into a beam of red light; drawing a line that trailed from the tip of the enemies <Tri Blade Technique> all the way towards the back of the 3 figures that remained in attack position facing the direction of Feng Yu''s previous location.

    Time returned to normal, and the shocking energies quickly faded away as the three servants and Feng Yu remained motionless, facing opposite directions.

    Swoooossssh! Flap! Flap! Flap!

    The wind blew softly as the clothing of everyone started to sound with ''flapping'' noises due to its momentum. However, there was finally movement as Feng Yu began to slowly sheath his sword creating a sound that beckoned the end.

    Clink! Finally, the sword was sheathed.

    Puff! Puff! Puff! Thud! Thud! Thud!

    A geyser of blood had shot towards the sky as all of the servants collapsed on the ground with their body''s in two pieces, leaving their organs and intestines on the ground. The smell of burnt meat lingered in the air along with a scent of blood giving the scene a bloody '' flavor.''

    Bluaarg! Vomiting out his last supper, Huan Shan was filled with dread as he looked towards Feng Yu. It seems this kind of scene was above the level of violence could handle, even after previously beating Feng Yu to death. Seeing his reaction, Feng Yu could only shake his head silently as he started to make his way towards him.

    "You! You! You! Don''t come any closer stay where you are. If you dare to kill me, my father will---" Before he could finish Feng Yu tightly gripped his throat and he lifted him upwards with his hand.

    "I... a... m... S-o... r.... y...." As he tried to beg for forgiveness, the light in Huan Shan eyes began to disappear as tears started to flow from the corner of his eyes.

    Seeing this, Feng Yu remained indifferent as he coldly looked into Huan Shan''s eyes and said in a soft whispering tone.

    "Don''t take it personally. It''s only karma..." Following which, Feng Yu''s eyes changed to a golden color as he called upon the sacred flames within his bloodline.

    Blaze!

    "Ahhh-----!" Following a loud scream, Huan Shan was burnt alive quickly turning into ashes leaving not even his bones behind.

 27 The Bustling Machen Town

    The sky was dark as dusk began to fade into the darkness of night-time. Torrents of snow fell towards the land creating an endless stretch of white that blanketed as far as the eye could see. However, despite this gloomy-looking cold that would typically give the world a silent and desolate flair, there was an exception.

    At the remote edges of the Bright Flame Kingdom stood in one region whose current liveliness outshined even the activities of the capital.

    Surrounded by an arrangement of hills and mountains was a town that was situated on a broad plain. It was a small town that was about 2 to 3 square kilometers, enclosed by 8 meters high walls with a spacious entrance. From a distance, bright lights gleamed from individual sections of the town walls, including its entrance. Looking a bit further, lights were also hung high up on top of various buildings giving the town a colorful taste on the onset of night.

    A sea of people was traveling back and forth, leaving many footprints on the clustered snowy pathway leading towards the town. Many of these footprints belonged to martial practitioners as evident from their wares. Large carriages would also pass by now and then, carrying individuals of varying status. Some being that of luxurious designs pulled by mighty fierce beasts with the rest being ordinary.

    As soon as these people entered the town, they would either head towards the pubs or inns filling them up straight to the brim. The others who were more fighting-crazed headed towards the various martial arenas scattered about the town to test their skills and warm-up for the nearing selections.

    "Step right up and Claim your copy of the latest [Flame-Dragon-List]!" a peddler shouted.

    "Small Foundation Pill perfect for those looking to consolidate their cultivation base quickly!" another dressed in alchemist robes said.

    "Taking bets!! Who will be the Champion of the Arena? Bet now and earn big!!" said a muscular guy seated in front of the betting platform near a battle arena.

    "I''ll take one small foundation pill!" a young man said as he quickly made his way over to the alchemist.

    "Give me a copy of that listing!" A random traveler said as he stood before the peddler.

    As the liveliness of town was in full swing, a vague silhouette was slowly making its way along the path trailing towards Machen Town. It was the figure of a man with a bright red hair dressed in tattered robes with a black sword on his back. Very quickly after a bit of traveling, he soon appeared at the entrance of the town where he paused for a moment, briefly looking around at the lively and crowded atmosphere in surprise.

    "Hmm, that fellow and his companions were no joke; I have a feeling that this Talent Selection could be more than it appears. Oh well, no point pondering over the unknown. I should get myself a drink before I head back to the clan." Closing his thoughts, Feng Yu started to make his way through the crowd towards the nearest pub.

    As Feng Yu made his way through the crowded street, a few figures hidden in the alleyways were closely observing his character. Soon, however, they vanished traveling in a different direction.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Eastern District of Machen Town, Inside of the Xiang Family Manor.

    Within a large courtyard, the figures of two middle-aged men were sitting around a small table playing a round of chess. These two men were Huan Mang, patriarch of the Huan Clan, and Xiang Tian, patriarch of the Xiang Clan. Kneeling before them was a skinny looking youth who was none-other than Xiang Shu. As the two men continued to play chess, Xiang Tian soon knitted his brows as he looked towards the courtyard''s entrance followed by Huan Mang and Xiang Shu.

    Swish! A figure dressed in black appeared promptly cupping his hands and bowing politely towards them.

    "Patriarch, a few of our servants have just informed us about the latest movements on the side of the Feng Clan. It appears that all of the core family elders are still in seclusion. After inquiring about the details through the use of our ''eyes,'' there was no significant information gained. Only that over a month ago all core elders and descendants of the family were called back to the clan leaving all of their private estates and businesses to be managed by clan affiliates."

    Hearing his reply Xiang Tian frowned, as his face took on a contemplative look.

    "The Feng Clan has been acting strange, and I don''t like the fact that they''re up to something and we don''t have any useful information. Tell the ''eyes'' to use any means necessary. I must have more information about what Feng Yunlong is planning!" Xiang Tian said as he glanced towards the subordinate with a sharp look in his eyes.

    "As you command!" the figure said as he vanished.

    Swish!

    "Brother Xiang, this Feng Clan is too strange. Suddenly appearing roughly about 100 years later. Even the name of their clan leader remains the same after such a long time. In fact, back in younger years, the previous patriarch of my clan warned us to never provoke the Feng Clan as their origins are too mysterious." Huan Mang said as he looked towards Xiang Tian with a severe look.

    "Brother Huan, are you worried about such nonsense? It does not matter how mysterious their origins are. All I care about are the secrets they''ve kept hidden away from us. I do not believe that they can keep hiding forever. Once we destroy their clan, making ourselves the number one clan in Machen Town will no longer be a dream. It''s only a pity, Xiang Fang changed as he left the family to do his matters for so many years now, as we would have already dug them up!!"

    Hearing this, Huan Mang shook his head silently as he stared at Xiang Tian. When he was about to reply, there was a disturbance.

    Swish!

    Another subordinate dressed in hooded clothing appeared in the courtyard. He promptly kneeled to the ground and stated.

    "Patriarch! Our subordinates overlooking the town entrance just caught onto an individual whom they believe to be the young master of the Feng Clan. "

    Bang! A fist smashed the ground creating a small crater, Xiang Shu then abruptly stood up in shock as he roared towards the guard, "How?! What Bullsh----" But, before he could finish, he was interrupted¡­

    "Silence!" Xiang Tian looked at Xiang Shu with anger and disappointment in his eyes. Soon he moved his gaze towards Huan Mang to see the latter with a dark expression on his face.

    "Where is my son? Has he not appeared yet?" Huan Mang said as he looked towards the man.

    "Reporting to Patriarch Huan, we have sent scouts to search for his whereabouts, but they have yet to return with any news." The man said as he looked towards Huan Mang.

    "You may leave! Tell the inspection squad to continue their search. Also, leave the young master of the Feng Clan alone. We don''t know if any experts are protecting him in secret." Xiang Tian said.

    "By your command!" The man said.

    Swish! Huan Mang looked towards Xiang Shu with hatred, but soon his expression cooled down as he glanced towards Xiang Tian coldly.

    "Brother Xiang, I hope that the Xiang Clan will strive their hardest to find my son as the one who insisted on taking direct action against the son of the Feng Clan was your child!" With that said he vanished leaving a remnant shade on his seat in the courtyard.

    Xiang Tian sighed; he then looked towards Xiang Shu with a harsh expression.

    "Do you know what you''ve done?" he said in a cold and emotionless tone.

    "Father, I was just---" before he could finish his statement.

    "Hmph!" Xiang Tian snorted.

    Bang! Puff!

    With his snort, the form of Xiang Shu was flung into the air crashing into the courtyard''s walls spitting out a mouthful of blood.

    "If you did not insist on trying to kill the child of the Feng Clan and had just focused on cultivating, would the son of the Huan Clan have disappeared? Why would you do something so stupid when the very first attempt you made was that of failure? Did you think we wouldn''t find out?" Xiang Tian said as he stared at Xiang Shu.

    Wiping the bloodstains from his mouth, Xiang Shu looked towards his father; his eyes were filled with grief.

    "Father! I only wanted to prove myself to you. I wanted to let you see that I, Xiang Shu, am your one and only son and not that shit Xiang Fang!! He is not your son, and he is not my brother! I am the Talent!! I am the one deserving of your attention!" Xiang Shu said as he roared towards Xiang Tian.

    "Silence! You are nothing more than a bastard child, the child of a dead concubine!! How dare you curse the main born!!! Xiang Fang is a genius; it''s only natural for him to have an odd personality. Which genius among this heaven and earth is not unique?" Xiang Tian said as he reached his hands out to assault Xiang Tian, but soon he calmed down and only looked towards him disappointedly.

    "Father! You are wrong----" Xiang Shu feeling pained began to explain once more but was cut off.

    "Enough! You are dismissed. If you do not get into the top three positions of this selection, forget about calling me your father. You will no longer be a part of this clan. Now get out of my sight!" Xiang Tian said as he waved his hand dismissively.

    After picking himself up, Xiang Shu left the courtyard and made his way out of the manor. Looking back at it, a dark look soon overcame his face. As his eyes filled with hatred, a figure came before his eyes dressed in luxurious clothing staring at the stars. The figure looked towards him with indifference and disdain as he opened his mouth and spoke some inaudible words with only the last words recognizable.

    "The stars of fate are aligned since birth, as mediocre will always be, and its destiny cannot be realigned."

    Soon, Xiang Shu cleared his thoughts as he removed his gaze from the Manor walking towards the distant street.

    "I will show you all! I Xiang Shu am not a bastard! I will make the world realize that I am the true genius, and, as for Xiang Fang, I will kill you¡­" Xiang Shu muttered inwardly as a firm look shone in his eyes.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Inside of a Pub.

    Feng Yu sat in a quiet corner with a bottle of liquor in front of him drinking cups after cups, silently observing and listening to the commotion around him. The pub was loaded with all the tables currently occupied by all sorts of people talking about the selections. One particular table was in the heat of the discussion not too far away from him.

    "What do you guys think about this time''s selection? Why would they hold it in this small town compared to the previous ones that were held in the major cities?" a fat man said.

    "No idea, I only heard a strange rumor from a friend living close in the capital." said another.

    "Eh? What kind of rumor?" The fat man said.

    "Um, well it''s like this, there was this strange guy who came to our kingdom, and it was said that he came with a strange prophecy, one that caused all the great sects to jump into a large commotion. After deliberating for a bit, it was decided that the Sky Splitting School belonging directly to the King''s own family would hold its selection here." the guy said.

    "What Prophecy? Ha! Do you believe this kind of rubbish? I bet they made this nonsense up to distract our focus from their real objectives." the fat guy said.

    "Maybe so, but it doesn''t seem that odd to me." the guy said as he ate the meat in his hand.

    Feng Yu hearing this pondered, "Hmm... an odd prophecy, eh? Interesting..." soon he focused his vision on another table that was as loud.

    "Who do you think will make it to the top three in this time''s selection?" a somewhat beautiful woman said.

    "Tang Wu, of course, he''s the genius of Tang City. After all, with a cultivation of 9 Tier Body Training realm at only age 20."

    "You know nothing, haven''t you seen the flame dragon list? Xin Qing is the number one female in the kingdom''s listing. Hailing from the Xin Clan of the imperial city. I heard she would be attending this selection." A man said with an affectionate gleam in his eyes.

    "Hmph! She''s only recently been promoted to the 9 Tier, she''s only 19 years old, I do not believe that she can beat Tang Wu." the woman said sharply.

    "The Xiang Clan''s second young master isn''t too bad either I heard he successfully broke through to peak 8th Tier not too long ago! He''s only 22 years old." a local girl said seated around the table.

    The man and woman looked at her with unhindered scorn.

    "A pumpkin will always be a pumpkin and cannot see the vastness of the heavens when existing in a small well." the woman said, no longer looking at the girl.

    Feng Yu smiled and pondered, "Breaking through to the peak of 8 Tier. He must have put in quite a bit of effort. Tang Wu, Xin Qing... interesting, I should head home and finish consolidating my realm now that I''ve gathered some basic information."

 28 Return to the Feng Clan

    The round moon hung high tonight, surrounded by brightly shining stars that gave color to the monotonous darkness of the night. The liveliness of the town was still in full swing, as could be discerned from the crowded streets filled with various night-time activities.

    The arenas were still preoccupied with excited combatants and greedy betting pools, as a few young and beautiful women were also loitering around the entrance of different brothels, dressed in slightly revealing clothing and giving off suggestive gestures to nearby wanderers.

    As Feng Yu made his way towards the Feng Manor, he couldn''t help but give a second glance towards these females as he observed some of the battles while walking by nearby arenas.

    "It''s as they say, ''the night sees no end during prosperous times.'' It will only get more intense on the final night before the commencement of the talent selection. I''ve never seen such a lively scene at night-time even in my previous life," Feng Yu said as looked on in admiration.

    After a bit more traveling, he eventually arrived at the Feng Family''s domain, seeing the large mansion before him with the ancient phoenix symbol that was hung atop of its towering entrance. There was a slight fluctuation in his bloodline as a slight wave of comfortable energy started to flow within him. The guards standing at the entrance were as keen as ever, promptly inquiring about the haggard stranger before them.

    "You are approaching the Feng---" As one of the guards was about the say his trademark speech, he was promptly cut short by a familiar-looking guard, who tapped his shoulders as he made his way in front of him cupping his hands politely at the beggar in front of them.

    "Welcome Home, Young master Yu!" The other guard said after hearing his words. The previous guard quickly joined him by cupping his hands and bowing politely.

    Regarding the prompt response and action, Feng Yu was pleased, especially when he observed the reaction of the familiar-looking guard. He reached his hand out and tapped the guard''s shoulders as spoke to him.

    "Such keen eyesight, to think you''d be able to recognize my face even when I''m in dirt and rags. I wonder why you failed to recognize me during our last encounter? Hmm, what''s your name?" Feng Yu said as he looked towards him with keen interest.

    A wave of embarrassment came over the guard''s face as he replied: "This servant''s name is Dai Lin; I''d like to apologize once more to Young master Yu for my previous mishap."

    "Hmm, well then Dai Lin. Do you know if my father and the elders have exited their secluded session?" Feng Yu asked.

    "Unusual phenomenon? Oh well, I can inquire about this later. Where are they right now?" Feng Yu said with a bit of surprise in his tone. He thought to himself "How could de-archiving their bloodlines be so quick. Could it be related to my awakening or is it because of that phenomenon?"

    "Currently, the clan leader should be within the main hall room with a few of the core clan elders. If I remember correctly, today is the day when they are to meet once again." Dai Lin said as he tapped his forehead with his index finger slightly.

    "Hmm, Very Good! Dai Lin, here is a small token of my appreciation for your clear and concise information." Feng Yu said as he flicked his thumb slightly.

    Swish!! Tap!

    A small round pill was shot into Dai Lin''s hand, looking closely at the pill; Dai Lin gained a more favorable impression towards Feng Yu. Quickly storing it away, he bowed once again offering his thanks to Feng Yu.

    "Dai Lin thanks Young Master Yu for your gracious gift!"

    "Don''t mind it; I realized that your cultivation has stagnated at the peak of 8 Tier of Body Training realm. Once you take that small foundation pill, you should be able to clear up blockage caused by your impure foundation. Well then, see you later Dai Lin." Feng Yu said as he continued through the already open entrance leaving the two guards behind.

    Looking at Feng Yu''s disappearing figure, a light of gratitude shone deep within Dai Lin''s eyes, he made a polite gesture once more before reorganizing himself into guard duty once more. The other guard, feeling a bit envious, also followed suit with a bitter taste in his mouth.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Within the Feng Manor, Inside of the Meeting Room.

    Sitting around a large table where all of the core elders and officials of the Feng Clan.

    Seated at the head of the meeting table were three people, each of whom gave off a unique and noble prestige. Starting from left to right was Feng Xingyu, who wore a simple Unadorned Red Dress looking nothing like a martial practitioner, followed by Feng Yunlong, who was wearing the Clan Leader''s Martial Robes and Feng Junling wearing Black Robes with red patterns.

    At this moment, they were currently in a deep discussion about the steps to take now that the family members had recovered their bloodline. An elder seated amongst the individuals was currently sharing his views.

    "Clan Leader, fellow elders, and core members, it is as we''ve been discussing for a while now, we should fully consolidate our ''cards'' before heading back to the Sacred Domain. Even if our strength was to be recovered to its previous peak, there would be no difference between our loss back then and now." the elder wearing red robes and black wrapping over his bald head said.

    "It is not acceptable! How long do you want us to wait in this degraded land with such low spiritual aura? Are we to wait and bear patiently while our enemies grow stronger in a superior training environment? If we go now, we can make use of their blindside to slip into the sacred domain. By simply relying on the fact that our bloodlines are now awakened, we should be capable of growing at an even faster rate compared to our past efforts." Another elder said as he gripped his fists tightly, feeling confident in his increased rate of cultivation. He was a large fellow with a spiky red and white hair standing on top of his head as if lightning struck it.

    As the two elders continued to bicker back and forth, a few more elders along with some of the core family members started to share their own contradicting views. Realizing that the situation could continue with no conclusion in sight, Feng Yunlong, who was listening, decided that it was the time to step in.

    "Ahem!" as he cleared his throat, an invisible wave of aura quickly spread around the room, bringing a stop to the previously heated discussions. Looking at the elders and core members whose mouths were getting dry from constant talking, Feng Yunlong felt speechless.

    "Elder Duan, your statement was correct, as we could grow very quickly if we were to head back to the sacred domain immediately; however, you have forgotten one of the most important factors. We no longer have our clan''s main artifacts, as a large majority of them were destroyed. So, how could we safely travel through the treacherous route of the scared domain border with our current level of strength? I must agree that our bloodline''s ''Nirvana Trait'' is indeed incredible to the degree that it can quickly allow us to recover our lost strength, but it would take a few years at least for that to happen. As such, I will approve of Elder Chen''s suggestion, as this is the most viable option in the long run. The more ''cards'' we have within our grasps before we return to the domain, the better. "

    Hearing their clan leader''s words, the elders and core members pondered for a moment before finally nodding their heads in compliance. Elder Chen cupped his fists together while nodding towards Feng Yunlong. Seeing the situation solved, Feng Yunlong shifted his vision over to a man standing to his side dressed in dark red robes wearing a crimson mask.

    "What of Yu''er? How is the search for him proceeding at the Tydol Mountain Range?" Feng Yunlong said while placing his hands together.

    "Reporting to the Clan Leader, so far there has been no news regarding the whereabouts of Feng Yu. It''s as if he had disappeared from the mountain range altogether. Digging up a bit more information, we''ve also found out that the son of the Huan clan went missing on the mountain range as well." the man with the crimson mask said while bowing politely.

    Tap. Tap. Tap.

    "Sigh... Then what of the rumors? Is there any information regarding the strange happenings around Tydol Mount Range?" Feng Yunlong asked while tapping his finger on the table.

    "Yes sir. Based on the recent search done by our group, it appears that some of them were quite true, especially the rumor about the battle between two terrifying beings." replied the man with the crimson mask.

    Hearing the crimson mask man report, Feng Yunlong pondered for a moment, "A battle between ancient beings of such a scale is not something even Mystical Realm ''Titans'' can survive, much less a junior at the Body Training realm."

    Slam! Slamming his palm on the surface of the table, Feng Yunlong instantly made up his mind as he looked towards the crimson masked man once more and shouted, "Give the command! I want all members of the ''Crimson-Mask'' soldiers to mobilize. Find my son at all costs necessary!"

    "As you command!" said the crimson masked man as he started to make his way to the door of the meeting room.

    "Clan Leader, are you sure you want to send our ace division out at a time like this? What if they provoke the ancient being dwelling within the mountain range? It would be a substantial loss to the clan if we lose any of them." one of the elders said in surprise.

    "Yes, clan leader please think it through once more, it''s not wise to make such a rash move. We should just increase the manpower of the scouting division as I''m sure that they would be able to find his whereabouts with a bit more time."

    "Eldest Brother! Will Nephew Yu be ok?" Feng Xingyu asked in a slightly worried tone of voice.

    "Don''t worry Xingyu, Yu''er is too strong of a brat to die early. I believe he should be able to turn misfortune into an opportunity." Feng Junling said while giving an assuring glance towards Feng Xingyu.

    Hearing their replies, Feng Yunlong looked towards them in anger. Just as he was about to release his pent-up rage, there was an interruption.

    Knock! Knock! Knock!

    "Clan Leader! Clan Elders! Please forgive this servant''s intrusion, but, Young master Feng Yu has successfully returned from his training journey and is seeking permission to enter the meeting room." a voice said coming from outside the door of the meeting room.

    "Eh? Little Yu, He made it back?" said a core member.

    "What? Yu''er has returned! Quickly, let him in!" Feng Yunlong said with an anxious look in his eyes.

    Hearing this, all the clan members within the meeting room were surprised. They looked towards the door as Feng Xingyu, and Feng Junling also looked towards the door with expectant gazes.

    Creak! As the door opened, a young man wearing newly prepared red martial robes with dark gold sleeves entered the room. With his long red hair trailing behind him as he walked forward with steady steps. Upon reaching a good distance from the seated clan members, he cupped his fists together and made a slight bow before speaking.

    "Younger Generation Feng Yu greets clan elders and core members!" After finishing his greeting to them, he made his way over to the head of the table where he knelt and took a deep bow, before lifting his head and speaking once more with a slight smile on his face.

 29 A Strange Prophecy, An Unusual Talent Selection!

    The town of Machen, within the Feng clan manor. Inside of the clan head''s hall, Feng Yu knelt on the floor while he greeted his Father, Uncle, and Aunt. As the surrounding individuals saw this scene, some of the elders and core members who had interacted more with the ''previous'' Feng Yu were confused as they pondered to themselves, "It seems his bearing has changed quite a lot, this can be considered a good thing."

    "Yu''er, are you ok? What happened? Why did you take so long to return? And how did you escape from the chaos at Tydol Mountain Range?" As Feng Yunlong asked a series of questions, he looked impatiently towards Feng Yu as he pressed for answers, the concern visible in his eyes.

    Hearing his questions, all the family clan members within the room paid close attention as they did not want to miss any of the details.

    "Father, even I don''t know what happened as I was knocked unconscious for a period. If it weren''t for the help of a friend, I would have most likely perished within the mountain range. After I regained my consciousness, I took some time to recover and rest before traveling back home," Feng Yu said as he did not want to go into the details of killing the Huan clan''s Young Master, as well as the dangers he experienced while leaving the mountain range.

    "Good! Yu''er you must remember to invite this friend of yours next time, as my Feng clan owes him a debt of gratitude," Feng Yunlong said as he sighed in relief that someone was there to aid Feng Yu in his time of need.

    He couldn''t help but complain internally about his lack of vigilance in not sending any guards to protect Feng Yu, due to his preoccupation with the matter of unsealing the clan''s bloodline.

    "As you wish father," Feng Yu said as he nodded towards his father.

    "Yu child, how did your training go? What cultivation level have you achieved now?" Feng Junling asked as he looked towards Feng Yu expectantly. It seems the only thing a martial arts fanatic like him would care about was Feng Yu''s progress in cultivation rather than safety.

    Looking towards his older brother for a moment with an uncomfortable expression on his face, Feng Yunlong also followed up with an inquiry of his own, "That''s right! Yu''er, you''ve been out for training for a decent amount of time. How was your progress?"

    Hearing his father and uncle''s interest immediately shift to that of his cultivation and seeing the curious expression on their faces, Feng Yu laughed in his mind as he casually replied, "Replying to father and uncle, my training at the Tydol Mountain Range went smoothly. After tempering myself through various life and death encounters, I have successfully cultivated to the middle-stage of 8 Tier Body Training realm!" Feng Yu said casually.

    "What! The middle-stage of 8 Tier Body Training realm in only under two months, are you for real?" Elder Duan exclaimed as he looked towards Feng Yu with shock.

    "How can this be? Is this the true potential of his top-tier aura pulse? Or is it due to his rich awakened true bloodline?" Elder Chen thought to himself; he started to wrap his beard around his finger, lost in his thoughts.

    Feng Yunlong as well as Feng Junling were similarly surprised but did not overreact; they looked at each other for a moment before nodding as if they were exchanging messages.

    Feng Xingyu who was bored with the meeting soon got excited when she heard about Feng Yu''s cultivation, as she was about to go talk with him a hand lightly tapped her on the shoulder. Looking over to her side, she saw Feng Yunlong looking at her with a strange look in his eyes. Quickly, realizing what he meant she then stopped her movement and watched Feng Junling who slowly rose from his seat making his way towards Feng Yu.

    Feng Yu seeing his uncle standing before him felt strange, he began to ponder, "I wonder what Uncle Junling is planning to ask."

    As they saw Feng Junling''s actions all core members and elders soon became silent as if they realized what he was now going to do.

    "Yu child, how much do you know about the coming talent selection hosted by the kingdom''s Sky Splitting Sword School?" Feng Junling asked while looking at Feng Yu before him.

    "Uncle Junling, I don''t know much, only a few rumors here and there about some strange prophecy," Feng Yu said, as he recalled the scene at the pub.

    "Hmm, it''s to be expected, after all the only persons who truly know the details are those who exist at the top of the pyramid as well as certain capable outside parties," Feng Junling said, as he smiled while looking at the Feng Clan Elders.

    A feeling of smugness rose deep within the Feng Family Clan members'' hearts, but soon, it was ruined as Elder Duan shyly rubbed his nose with his index fingers while replying as if to claim credit, "Haha! My ''Hawkeyes Squad'' is truly capable indeed."

    "Che!" While some made noises of discontent no one voiced out their opinions as they all knew too well the capabilities of the squad.

    Seeing this expression, Feng Yu felt like laughing, but soon he cleared his distracting thoughts and asked Feng Junling, "Uncle Junling, then what exactly is this so-called prophecy? Who was it that said it? And why has it caused such a commotion?"

    "It''s pretty simple really; it was about three months ago the Bright Flame King hosted a banquet for a mysterious individual who is hailed as a ''Divine Prophet'' from a distant land. Based on the information we have gathered, we found that the Bright Flame King had wanted to use that opportunity to divine the future of the kingdom. But who would have thought that what the famous Divine Prophet would say would be on such a shocking scale!" Feng Junling said as he looked at Feng Yu.

    He then took out a piece of parchment with a few words written on it with exquisite calligraphy techniques and passed it to Feng Yu for inspection. As he saw the paper in front of him, Feng Yu quickly received it and started to recite the words:

    "The Ancient Dragon Will Rise from the East as New Chosen''s will be born in this Generation."

    "The Rosefinch will Burn the West as One Arrow shall Pierce the Heavens."

    "The Star governing Destiny will Fade as the Heavens and Earth will Fall into the Eternal Darkness."

    "And when one loses all, the ''Eternal Ancient'' will Ignite Once More Anew."

    Reading all of this Feng Yu felt confused as he looked towards Feng Junling and asked, "Uncle Junling, while these statements are profound, what does it have to do with the Talent Selections?"

    Hearing his response, Feng Junling smiled and replied, "Normally it would mean nothing to us, however, there was another crucial factor that got everyone riled up. It was the fact that a very long time ago there was a place where practitioners would go to temper themselves and seek fortune. A legacy of an ancient civilization that had reigned supreme during the Pre-Calamity Era of the True Yuan Continent. However, it''s been a very long time since the entrance to this place has appeared to the world."

    The family elders and core members listening soon had a light of excitement shone deep within their eyes, as Feng Yu''s aunty and his father both started to grip their fists tightly.

    Pausing for a brief moment, he took a deep breath to control the excitement inside of his heart and continued, "This place is known as the ''Ancient Dragon Battlefield.'' A place that can appear as it wishes with no particular time for its next appearance."

    Hearing this a spark of excitement shone within Feng Yu''s eyes as even back in his old world there was a term for places like this, he looked towards his uncle as he spoke in a hurried manner, "Uncle Junling! You don''t mean..."

    Promptly responding Feng Junling continued excitedly, "Em, that''s right! The battlefield of the Ancient Dragon Clan that used to reside at the center of the Pre-Calamity True Yuan Continent. This battlefield was said to have been lost to the ages of time, never appearing again since pre-calamity. An ancient ''Mystic Realm.''

    "A Mystic Realm!" Feng shouted in his mind excitedly choosing to ignore the memory of his last encounter with the one from his past life. He calmed down enough to ask Feng Junling another question.

    "But Uncle Junling, how would they know whether or not the entrance would appear just because of a single prophecy?"

    Feng Junling replied, "The answer to that is also related to the mysterious ''Divine Prophet'' but even our information squad had no means of looking up any further details. We only know that once the Divine Prophet made a second divination, all the powers hidden inside and outside of the Bright Flame Kingdom were secretly transferring some of their forces to the Kingdom, placing most of their human resources within the vicinity of Machen Town."

    "Eh? Machen Town? Why would they gather in Machen Town?" Feng Yu asked.

    "That we don''t know for sure, what we do know is that the Ancient Dragon Clan''s Mystic Realm most likely holds a certain relation to this remote and average town. The coming Talent Selection is only a guise for what remains hidden underneath the surface," As Feng Junling said this a look of certainty appeared in his eyes.

    "Then will we be making any particular movements?" Feng Yu asked as he noticed the clan''s strange atmosphere. Hearing his question, the core members of the clan soon began muttering to themselves.

    "Originally, we were going to avoid taking part in this complex situation, but who would have thought that fate or rather, destiny would give us the chance of having the fortune of an awakened True Bloodline Successor, now that our bloodline has awakened, we have grown to a level that should make us capable of partaking in this." Elder Chen said as he looked towards Feng Yu as if looking at a prized piece of gold.

    "Hahaha! Indeed, you''ve really come through for us this time Yu boy," Elder Duan said, hearing his words the core officials started to laugh. Upon seeing this scene, Feng Yunlong who was quiet all this time finally once again opened his mouth to speak.

    "Em, we do, but we will not be the ones to make the first move, as the saying goes - ''The mantis stalks the cicada unaware of the oriole behind.'' We will only act when all the hidden forces have revealed their cards in hand; our Feng Clan needs these kinds of opportunities if we want to regrow and become stronger. Now that this situation has gotten to such a state there is no meaning in partaking in the selections, we only need to lay in wait to reap the benefits."

    "That''s right, we do not need to send any of our talents to partake in such a fiasco when there is a much larger matter at hand," said a core official.

    "I''m still willing to participate," After listening to his elder for a while, Feng Yu finally replied.

    "Eh, you still want to go despite the current circumstances?" Elder Duan asked confusedly.

    "Yes, I want to test my strength against the ''talents'' from distant places, as for what happens after that I will act according to the family''s plans," Feng Yu asked as he looked towards his father and Feng Junling.

    "Hmm, fine. You have my permission to participate, come to my room later after the clan meeting," Feng Yunlong said as he looked towards his son with a hint of praise as he thought to himself, "Seeking to temper yourself even in the face of uncertainty is a demeanor of a true expert should have. It reminds me of Junling in his past glory."

    "Yes, father!" Feng Yu said as he stood up from the floor and headed towards a vacant seat near the table.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Far away at a distant location, there was an enormous city that rested between two gigantic mountains.

    The mountains were strange, almost lifelike as they wrapped around the edges of a city like a dragon coiled around itself. Looking with the naked eye one couldn''t see the end of the city, for a large variety of multi-colored divine lightning would endlessly fall from the heavens as if trying its utmost to destroy the mystical city beneath it.

    It was a pity, however, for all its power could only fade away upon meeting the two coiled up dragon-like mountains. As if treating the threatening divine thunders like they did not exist, many groups of practitioners could be seen casually going about their daily lives; A few of them prefer to travel on foot, while there were those among them who rode a variety of floating instruments that soared throughout the sky, travelling towards the distant parts of the city.

    At the center of the city was a towering wall that stretched out as far as the eye could see. It had a massive gate with two dragon sculptures that rested at its sides, each giving off an aura that could shake the will of any man. In front of this gate, there was a giant creature, with one humongous crystal-like eye on its forehead.

    A Cyclopean... hailed to be an ancient and mysterious race that was rumored to have gone extinct since ancient times. Suddenly, it opened its eye and looked towards a specific location on the broad and distant street.

    Step¡­ Step... Step¡­ Soon, the silhouette of a man had appeared from the distance, slowly making his way towards the gate. As this man walked, there was a strange rhythm per his movements. It seemed as if each of his steps took him further and further towards a distant time rather than the present. Noticing this man, the cyclopean then closed its eye acting as if it didn''t see him.

    Creak! Bang! The gigantic gate had slowly opened, before shortly after closing in a strange manner.

    Inside this gate was a different world, with a castle at its center that needed no guards, all the individuals whom walked along this stretch of space and loitered about gave off a vast aura, as if they were indifferent to all beings existing outside of this small world. However, for some reason, they would curiously and pensively glance at the strange man who walked in and headed towards the castle.

    Seated on a throne that emitted endless lightning, a youthful-looking man could be seen with a strange lightning bolt resting by his side. His eyes remained closed as if nothing in the world was worthy of his sight, as his body started to emanate an immense imperial aura filled with dignity and oppressive might. Not long after, he abruptly opened his eyes to gaze at the strange man who now stood a few meters before him.

    "Why have you come?" The man on the throne emotionlessly said.

    "There was an unusual fluctuation felt in the Outer Continent," The strange man said indifferently.

    "Hmm, that degraded and desolate place? Why is any of their matters our concern?" The man on the throne asked while knitting his brows uncomfortably.

    "Normally it wouldn''t be, but there was something felt from that fluctuation that felt extremely familiar. So, I had my subordinates use their means to identify this aura which leaked from the Outer Continent taking roughly about two months of time," The strange man said once again.

    "What was it?" The youthful man on the throne asked with sparse interest.

 30 Incoming Trouble! A Talk with Father

    Inside of a mysterious city, within a strange world. A youthful man seated on top of a golden throne frowned deeply, as he looked at the strange man before him. His veins were now clearly visible on his forehead, as his hair grew chaotic with snake-like streaks of bright lightning that flickered about randomly due to his extreme anger. In an instant, his entire body began to make cracking noises as an endless array of electricity gathered around his complete form. He then reached for the odd-looking bolt of lightning floating by his side and gripped it firmly.

    Crackle! Zap! Following a loud electrical sound, an oppressive might was instantly revealed to the world.

    A mass of dark clouds soon enveloped the entirety of the small realm, quickly making its way towards the outside world. As if sensing something, the previously domineering divine thunder striking the city soon came to an abrupt halt, following which, a new cloud slowly began to grow from the municipality. It grew at an alarming rate quickly blanketing the sky for a region spanning no less than 10 million kilometers.

    Ka-Bang! Along with the sound of a thunderous boom, a massive thunderbolt set forth from the vast cloud as if trying to display the ''Destroying Heavens and Extinguishing Earth Prestige.'' With its appearance, a shocking aura soon erupted that blanketed the entirety of this world''s region, the citizens of this mystical city along with the nearby experts now gazing at the sky filled prestige with nothing but fear.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    At a distant location, deep within an infinite-endless gorge that seemed to have reached the depths of the earth, masses of devilish aura gathered about around a strange-looking sacrificial altar. At its center stood a towering figure who emitted an overbearing amount of devilish qi, he had long black hair, glowing red eyes, and a face that one could only describe as ''Devilishly Handsome.'' As he sat upon a throne of made purely of odd bones, he would occasionally glance towards his subordinates that had congregated around the altar, performing a devilish ritual.

    Soon enough, he felt something strange in the distance. Promptly spreading out his devil-sense, he scanned more than 1 million kilometers where vaguely in the distance, he could see a mass of dark clouds brimming with an immensely domineering and mighty thunderbolt that demonstrated its prestige.

    "Fu Fu Fu Fu Fu! I wonder, who could have the gall to provoke the Thunder Monarch? Hmmm, this should be quite interesting..." The devilishly handsome man said as he tapped the rail on his throne excitedly with his finger, while pondering the various possible circumstances.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    At the very limits of this tower was a small creature with a very adorable appearance, it frolicked around the tower occasionally falling over itself as it sought different forms of entertainment. It was a small white tiger with little black wings and a peculiar marking on its forehead. Suddenly, it stopped playing and looked towards the distance as if it sensed something, quickly the small tiger vanished leaving a remnant shade in its earlier location.

    Swoosh-swoosh! Following a series of quick movements, it soon arrived at the entrance of a large room that stood at the top of the tower. At the center of this room was a large cushion, seated on it was a man with brilliantly shining silvery-white hair who had a divine looking appearance like that of a being with noble lineage. Across his skin were tiger stripes and markings giving his divine figure a wild edge, seated around him was a myriad of beautiful women each with their very own unique bearings and traits, there were some with foxtails as well as others with cat-like charms emphasizing their flirtatious nature.

    Noticing the small tiger that entered his abode the figure on the mat showed a gentle expression.

    Poof! After a flash of white light and a cloud of hazy smoke, the small white tiger soon transformed into a small female child no older than six years old, after which she immediately ran into the man''s embrace resting her head on the figure''s chest.

    "Papa! I sense danger!" The small girl said while trembling slightly.

    As he gently patted her back the man with tiger stripes then consoled his daughter, "Hmm, that''s my good Wan''er! There-there¡­ everything is alright now. It''s only a meager attempt to show off one''s prowess."

    After hearing her father''s words, the female child then soon felt contented, very quickly she surrendered herself into a deep sleep, enjoying the peace of her childhood. Handing his daughter over to one of his concubines and giving each of them a kiss on their cheeks; he quickly put on a white robe while walking towards the door, coming to a stop at the edge of the tower outside of the room. He then looked at the distant sky while lost in his thoughts.

    "The ''Thunder Monarch''s'' fury, I wonder what kind of storm could cause such an outburst. Gya-Gya! Just slightly thinking of it makes my blood boil, it seems that the time has come for me to leave the tower once more," He said as a shade of bloody red shone deep with his eyes, completely revealing the wild and ferocious nature he was previously suppressing.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Traveling back to the contained world, the Thunder Monarch sat on top of the thunder throne. His body glowed with endless might as he looked towards the strange man before with anger, but soon, he recalled his prestige and closed his eyes to try and calm his state of mind. After a short while, the towering energies vanished, and the oppressive aura faded away into nothingness. He once again opened his eyes and looked towards the strange man.

    "Did you find out its exact position in the Outer Continent?" He asked in a calm and unperturbed tone.

    Seeing the individual before him finally regained his state of mind, the strange man smiled slightly with a look of vague disdain in his eyes. Casually tossing a piece of parchment towards him with a flick of his wrist, then promptly turning around and starting to leave.

    Upon reaching the entrance of the door, he stopped for a moment and without turning his head back spoke in an indifferent manner, "The Sleeping Dragon Will Weep, as the Tiger Rises with the Devil Guises. All shall eventually fall to the Phoenix Devises."

    As he finished his statement, he walked away with a smile on his face while lost in his thoughts, "A foolish dragon trying to tamper with its destiny, only to be devoured by its own vagary."

    Hearing his statement, the light in the Thunder Monarch''s eyes flickered for a moment before shortly fading, quickly scanning over the information on the piece of parchment he then waved his hand towards the void and spoke, "Attend to me!"

    Swoosh-swoosh-swoosh-swoosh! Instantly, as if they just came into existence, a few forms materialized out of nothingness and knelt towards the monarch who sat on his throne.

    "We greet the Thunder Monarch!" They said in unison.

    Seeing his most trusted subordinates gather before him, the Thunder Monarch felt more at ease, he flipped his wrist causing the parchment in his hand to fly towards the figure at the foremost of the group.

    She was a beautiful woman with kingdom conquering charms, but the look on her face showed a strict and stern discipline. Lightning flowed across her eyes as she glanced at the content on the parchment with a look of surprise on her face.

    "This... this is..." She muttered in shock, but before she could finish her statement the Thunder Monarch spoke once more.

    "You are to head out at once and bring them back alive if you can, if not, spare no one. You also have my permission to use that ''Artefact'' if necessary," The Thunder Monarch said as the lighting around his body began to churn slightly.

    The look of shock grew further on the woman''s face, even the subordinates were stunned as they glanced towards each other. Soon though, they recovered to their earlier indifference and promptly responded, "By your majesty''s will!"

    As quickly as they came, they vanished once more fading into nothingness. The Thunder Monarch looked on in silence before once more closing his eyes, appearing indifferent to the world.

    "If they act quickly enough, they should be able to reach the outer continent in roughly 3 to 4 years. Humph! Nothing will stand in the way of my Thunder Dragon Clan, not even you..." As he said this, the figure of the strange man briefly flickered in his mind, soon after vanishing within his sea of thoughts.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    The weather was snowy today, as clouds blanketed the view of the sky.

    The morning wind mixed in with the coldness of snow creating an extremely frigid atmosphere. Within an empty courtyard surrounded by thick chunks of snow, was a figure of a youth who stood quietly gazing towards the sky with a pondering expression on his face.

    It would seem as if the young man was considering the most profound truths of the world, as his eyebrows knitted every once and while. Soon though, he removed his vision from the gloomy sky while muttering to himself, "What could it really be referring to? Even if it were to be true, I wonder what will truly become of this event," Feng Yu pondered as he went over the meeting that had just ended.

    Quickly, he cleared his mind of all distracting thoughts as he looked towards his father who was now standing before him. Not bothering to try and figure out how his father suddenly appeared out of nowhere, he made a respectful bow as he spoke to him.

    "What matter does father wish to speak with me about?" He asked politely.

    Upon noticing his son''s thoughtful expression, a curious desire rose in Feng Yunlong''s thoughts, but soon he ignored it and asked Feng Yu the matter he planned to talk about beforehand.

    "Yu''er, how is it? Do you have any trouble stimulating your bloodline?" He asked interestedly.

    Hearing father''s words Feng Yu decided to ask about something that was bothering him recently, "No father, so far I''m not experiencing any issues with inspiring my bloodline. It''s only..."

    "Only what?" said Feng Yunlong.

    "I''m not sure how to further advance its potential, as the ''Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique'' only elaborates on the intricacies of advancing through the later levels of cultivation. The only aspect it has concerning my Bloodline Prestige is the activation of my battle form," Feng Yu said with a slightly troubled expression.

    Hearing Feng Yu''s question Feng Yunlong smiled as he replied, "Haha! So, it''s this, you''re wondering why the ''Nirvana Flame Cultivation Technique'' doesn''t explain the usage of your bloodline powers any further? It''s simple really, it''s because once a ''True Bloodline Successor'' appears he would become the new generation of the entire Feng Family Clan. Therefore, the techniques used to further the increasing might of the Clan''s Bloodline Prestige can only come from his latent abilities and self-reflection skills, being able to find ways to draw upon the power that lay deep within himself. While the first aspect is something that requires talent, the latter can only be sought through tempering both body and mind, as one would be forced to stimulate their bloodline further and further to experience its ''second awakening.''"

    Pausing for a bit, he looked at Feng Yu before taking out a simple and unadorned scroll as he spoke to him once more.

    "Some techniques have been passed down from generation to generation, each being a symbol representing the glory and might of our earlier generation''s True Bloodline Successors. These are known as <Nirvana Battle Skills>, but sadly, most of them have been lost and destroyed due to the events of the past with only a few of the weaker ones remaining," As he said this, he couldn''t help but sigh at the clan''s circumstances.

    "Hmm, then am I able to practice them currently father?" Feng Yu asked while looking at the scroll in his father''s hands.

    A sophisticated look soon came over Feng Yulong''s face as he replied while flipping the scroll in his hands and placing it back inside of his storage ring, "While these remaining techniques are lower-tiered compared to the previous top-tier bloodline battle skills. They are still skills created by your predecessors at their primes before they reached their peak''s. You would have to at least reach the cultivation level at the True Foundation realm to begin practicing the one with the lowest requirements."

    Hearing this Feng Yu could only temporarily give up the idea of trying to increase the might of his bloodline. He looked towards his father and asked a question which he felt puzzled about from his talk with the guard Dai Lin the previous day.

    "Father, what was the unusual phenomenon that took place here about a month ago? What could cause the awakening of so many clan members?"

    Feng Yunlong smiled as he looked towards Feng Yu with a proud look, he then pointed towards the sky as he replied, "The phenomenon you speak of is known as a ''Heavenly Recognition.'' It is a sign of approval from the heavens when one who is born with a Unique Bloodline or Special Trait initially awakens its prestige, causing them to momentarily inspire its full might. As you are an individual of a Supreme Bloodline Clan, your awakening was of the highest grade, which is why it created a world phenomenon of that standard."

    He then waved his hand causing a shocking aura to erupt which recreated the scene of the fiery sky before Feng Yu, he then continued to speak, "The stronger the phenomenon, then the higher grade of talent that generation''s True Bloodline Successor is said to have. As when you awakened there was an extensive zone of sacred-fire that blanketed the sky, forming a fiery curtain that spread for hundreds of thousands of kilometers throughout the True Yuan Continent. Because of this abnormally strong bloodline awakening, we were able to achieve a kind of resonance with our bloodlines which ended up saving us a lot of time to truly awaken and break the seal caused by the bloodlines ban."

    "I... I didn''t even notice. How could such a thing occur and not be prominent within any of the rumors?" Feng Yu said while feeling shocked.

    "Heh, it''s simple, very much like what happened with the Mount Tydol''s scenario, the bloodline phenomenon was treated similarly by certain parties," Feng Yunlong said.

    Hearing this, Feng Yu started to feel that the information-handling capabilities of the upper class in this world is on an entirely different scale compared to his previous one. Placing his hands together he bowed towards his father and spoke, "I see, thank you for clarifying my troubles father."

    "Good! Now that that''s over with, there is another important matter that needs to be addressed," Feng Yunlong said with a severe expression on his face.

    "Huh? What matter?" Asked Feng Yu.

    "While it is a straightforward one, it should not be taken lightly, as it will affect your further path as the successor of the family. As we have now particularly healed from most of our injuries suffered from the past incident, we are currently no longer going to be as stagnant as we were before. Our clan needs resources to quickly aid in the cultivation of our forces, medicine pills, spiritual artifacts and ancient treasures alike are the key to the overall improvement of the clan''s forces. The only way for us to gather these items are through the exploration of mystic realms and operation of various forms of businesses. It is for this reason that we have involved ourselves in the matter of the Ancient Dragon Clan''s Mystic Realm," Feng Yunlong stated.

    He then looked towards Feng Yu once more with an expectant look in his eyes as he continued his speech, "As such, our clan members won''t be capable of providing you with any extra means of protection; you will have to create a team that belongs solely to yourself with people whom you can trust. For this reason, after the ''Talent Selection'' and matter regarding the Mystic Realm. I, Your Uncle Junling and remaining Core Elders have decided to allow for you to go out and journey amongst the land of the outer continent. Growth will only come from self-dependence and various forms of life experiences; a true expert cannot grow sheltered by a greenhouse."

    "Hmm, I understand father," Hearing his father''s and elders'' consideration for him a wave of warmness flowed through him, he promptly bowed his head once more.

    Seeing this Feng Yunlong nodded appreciatively, he then thought for a moment with one of his hands scratching his chin then said, "Hmm, now then Yu''er, do you have any ideas on who in the clan you would like to add to your forces?"

    Thinking for a bit a strange smile soon appeared on Feng Yu''s face he looked towards his father and said, "Since this is the case, I would like to officially make a request to the clan for one of its members to be my subordinate."

    "Oh? And Who would this person be to have caught your eyesight?" Feng Yunlong asked while he looked at Feng Yu curiously.

    "It''s no one that holds any key major roles only an average member," Feng Yu said mysteriously.

    "Eh? What''s this person''s name?" Feng Yunlong asked with interest.

 31 Insights into the Extremity Path, Dawnwing!

    The courtyard was lively as the disciples and members of the Feng Clan were going about their daily routines. Some individuals started to lift gravity enhanced weighted stones that were augmented with simple runes, while others gathered at the martial platform to begin their regular matches.

    Carefully examining the courtyard, a youth could be seen seated cross-legged within a field of bamboo poles; he sat with his eyes closed and his palms firmly holding the sheathed sword Black-lighting that rested in a horizontal position on top of his legs. Feng Yu currently felt as if he was in a different world, as his concentration was pushed to the utmost extreme, trying to comprehend the meaning of the sword from the floating sword manual within his sea of consciousness.

    Soon, an ancient and profound stream of words reverberated within his mind, a collection of memories appeared showing the details of how to practice and further grasp swordsmanship''s true essence:

    "To grasp the initial success of the sword, one must first master the foundational stances of basic swordsmanship: Attack Stance, Defence Stance, and Control Stance. It is only through mastering these basic stances could one truly have been said to have become a beginner practitioner who walks the path of the sword. To go further, one must think beyond the lines of thoughts of the basic swordsman."

    "The Sword should be as Swift as the Wind, as Flexible as the Clouds, as Fierce as the Waves at Sea and as Firm as the Mountain that shoulders the Weight of the World."

    "Only through mastering all four paths, could one truly be said to have attained the initial success of true swordsmanship. The way of the sword does not lean solely on one path; for its essence can only be found at the core of attaining everlasting balance, eruption, and speed. ''Balance'' can control any situation regardless of attack or defense, as ''Eruption'' is capable of inspiring overwhelming prestige, demonstrating domineering and oppressive power. ''Speed,'' on the other hand challenges the limits of time itself, seeking to be free from its fetters. This principle is known as the Extremity Path and is the path that is walked by only the most powerful of swordsmen."

    Swoosh! Rustle! Rustle!

    With the gust of the morning wind, the calmness of the region filled with bamboo poles instantly faded, as the poles swiftly began to rustle about due to the wind threatening to sweep them about the area. However, before they could wreak havoc, time seemed to have stopped, as a flash of white lightning fluidly swiped across the region. A series of precise sword movements that sliced apart the entirety of each bamboo pole, showing exquisite control at the zenith level of flexibility.

    Clank! As Feng Yu sheathed Black-Lightning into its scabbard, he looked towards the crumbling bamboo poles with slight disappointment, "Sigh, I''m still not capable of doing it. Trying to understand the principles of ''One with Sword'' is not as simple as I''d thought it would be, I''ll need to find a turning point. "

    After placing the sheathed Black-Lightning on his back, Feng Yu soon quickly recovered from his disappointment state of mind. As now his expression showed one of confidence, he smiled while muttering to himself, "However, where there are losses, there are gains. My insights into the sword have allowed me to truly fuse my <Lightning Flash Steps> movement technique into my sword arts, creating an entirely new sword skill, the <Thunder Flash Sword>"

    Gripping his fist together excitedly, he began to ponder the next direction his path of the sword should take, "Now my comprehension of the way of the sword has already attained all minor forms of the extremity path, my <Blurry Mantis Swords> embodies the Path of Balance, as it is elusive in nature capable of attacking or defending, while my <Blazing Sword Wave> embodies the Path of Eruption, as a destructive technique by nature, and finally my newly created <Thunder Flash Sword> which embodies the Path of Speed."

    As he thought this, he then placed his hand on his chin and thought to himself once more, "If I am to advance further, it would be to truly understand the depths of these techniques and evolving them into something of a higher scale, but right now my cultivation and sword realm is still too low. The best method for improving my strength now would be to assimilate a second lifeblood weapon and seek insights into the dual extremity path."

    Thinking up to here Feng Yu crossed his arms together while speaking his thoughts out loud, "Where... where can I get another sword that''s not too far off Black-Lightning''s quality?"

    As he pondered, the sound of a person''s steps approaching him from behind quickly pulled him away from his thoughts. Smiling, Feng Yu turned around looked at the form that was now standing behind him.

    "Young... Young Master Yu! This servant offers his greetings," The blue-haired figure said as he politely bowed his head and cupped his hands.

    "Dai Lin, do you know why the family has removed your position as guardsman of the gate and send you to see me?" Asked Feng Yu as he scrutinized Dai Lin''s expression.

    "This... this servant has his speculations, as Young Master Yu seems not to be the type of person to hold grudges over simple matters," Dai Lin replied as he looked towards Feng Yu curiously.

    "Hmm, then tell me, what has the family sent you to me for?" Asked for Feng Yu once more as strange gleam shone in his eyes.

    "Replying to the Young Master! If my speculations are correct, I believe it is because Young Master Yu has found a need for my services," Dai Lin said while looking towards Feng Yu curiously as he pondered his fate.

    Clap! Clap!

    Clapping his hands two times Feng Yu exclaimed as looked at Dai Lin with praise, "Interesting! Dai Lin, this is the reason I have asked them to send you to me. It is because you have a knack for gathering information and a keen eye for detail. I value your hidden skillset very much, as I believe with a bit of training you would be capable of serving as the core of my future forces. What do you say, Dai Lin, will you join me as we journey the continent and rise to the peak of this world?"

    Hearing Feng Yu''s statement a feeling that he had once lost slowly began to rise within him, Dai Lin felt that the world grew brighter as he stared at Feng Yu excitedly with his blood boiling to the brim. Promptly kneeling on the floor, he made a humble gesture as he gave his reply.

    "I, Dai Lin thank Young Master Yu for your gracious care and opportunity, with the heavens as my witness, I at this moment solemnly swear to become Young Master''s greatest aid. If I do not carry out this task, then let my body vanish, and my soul be extinguished forever unable to reincarnate!"

    Hearing Dai Lin''s words, a look of surprise came across Feng Yu''s face, but soon it became replaced by a look of pure admiration. He could not believe that Dai Lin''s determination would be to such a degree that he would even be willing to swear an oath to the heavens itself, one must know ''An Oath broken is no different from Yama''s token'' as judgment is sure to be followed out by heavens will itself.

    Promptly, he reached his hand out and firmly patted Dai Lin on his shoulder while replying, "Dai Lin, from now on we are not only master and retainer. We are brothers who will travel through hell and ride the tides of the dark currents from now on to the future. As the very first member of my guard squad, I would like to welcome you officially," Feng Yu said as help Dai Lin to once more stand on his feet, he then stretched his hands out and finished his statement, "Welcome to Dawnwing!"

    Hearing the words of his young master and seeing the stretched-out hand before him, Dai Lin felt a feeling of approval. Without hesitating in the slightest he gripped Feng Yu''s hand firmly, as the golden light from dawn''s rise illuminated their figures along with the family courtyard creating a grand scene.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Dawn faded away quickly, as the day flowed onwards to its peak.

    Inside of a vast room stood two young men, one of them had his hands placed behind his back, as the other currently sat down in a crossed-legged posture on top of the neatly tiled floor. The room was quiet; however, that mood had quickly been disturbed by the figure seated in crossed-legged posture.

    Bang! Zzzzzz! Along with the sound of a boom, a large current of essence energies shot from within the body of the seated form. Vaguely, a few small sparks of electricity had begun to gather within the essence power generated from the armored blue-haired young man sitting on the mat. These small traces of electrical energy released a peculiar aura as if they came from another world. After a long while, the youth finally managed to collect back all the rampant energies quickly stabilizing his power.

    The red-haired youth who stood to watch this scene became filled with shock as his thoughts went wild, "Such... such a peerless genius in the Way of Electricity. To think he would be so adaptable to my old master''s <Heavenly Shocking Circuit Scripture> that he was so proud of, I wonder if he would be pleased," Thinking up to here Feng Yu unknowingly made a distant smile as slightly remote look appeared on his face.

    "Whew! Young Master Yu, I broke through successfully to the 9 Tier of Body Training realm. However, I''ve found that in circulating this new cultivation technique my current cultivation speed compared with my earlier efforts is in an entirely different league of its own. I feel as if I can gather essence-energies 20 times greater." Dai Lin said a look of excitement came over his face while feeling appreciative of Feng Yu''s cultivation technique.

    Hearing this Feng Yu smiled while thinking, "Of course it would, it''s one of the highest tier techniques of that man after all and it would not be anything short of amazing. Who would have thought that this technique would truly find its successor here in this new life? Master searched for ages to find the right one, but no one can bear its burden even my previous life''s self who despite my lack of talent had a high affinity for thunder. Sigh, destiny is truly a mysterious path amongst the divine principles."

    Soon, however, he cleared his thoughts and replied, "Dai Lin, now that you''ve successfully broken through your bottleneck, and have already consolidated your cultivation with the effects of the small foundation pill. You will have no troubles in any of your further cultivation progress, as such, the first task at hand that I will leave for you is to break through into the realm of Aura Disciple quickly. "

    As Feng Yu said this, he quickly realized that he had forgotten something, quickly he willed for two pieces of jade-slips from his storage ring. After imbuing his thoughts into the slips, he then tossed them towards Dai Lin.

    Swish! Tap! "Eh? Young Master, what is--? " Catching the two jade slips tossed towards him Dai Lin felt confused, as he was about to inquire about them, he was cut off by Feng Yu.

    "These two jade slips are storing top-level mortal tier skills, the <Lighting Flash Steps> movement skill and the <Shock Palm> electric path technique. You may practice them while you''re in your cultivation seclusion, as for attaining more skills, that will depend on how deeply you can understand the <Heavenly Shocking Circuit Scripture>," As he said this, he promptly turned around and headed towards the outside of the room.

 32 Unusual Characters? Aunty Xingyus Troubles

    The day was at its peak, but due to the snowy weather, it couldn''t thrive in its usual manner, as the droplets of snow fell upon the lively city. The final days of the ''Talent Selection'' were closing in, and the atmosphere in Machen Town was vaguely undergoing invisible changes, as many powerful and unfamiliar faces slowly began to seep into this ordinary town. The once humble and straightforward town became a dwelling place for sleeping dragons and crouching tigers.

    However, despite this change, the citizens of Machen continued to enjoy the merry and joyful mood. As recently, even the battle arenas that had only a limited amount of people began to swarm with unusual and renowned characters.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    A vast mansion stood proudly at the center of Machen town. It was about twice the size of the Feng Clan mansion. Hung atop its gates was an iconic symbol that carried a high amount of local prestige, this place was the Town Lord Mansion.

    Standing in front of its gates were two town guards wearing standard armor, both giving off a cultivation level like that of a 9 Tier Body Training realm practitioner.

    Inside of this mansion, within a decorated and luxurious room. A few individuals were seated around a pristine glass table, a middle-aged man who had a mature lady seated quietly by his side, while on the opposing side of the table, was a voluminous looking young woman and an arrogant looking young man.

    The middle-aged man and mature woman were currently doing their best to offer their most hospitable service to these two individuals.

    "Madam Xuan, Young Master Bei, this lord feels honored to have been given a chance to cater for such prominent individuals from the capital city," The middle-aged man said as he bowed slightly.

    Seeing this the arrogant looking man nodded and replied, "Of course, usually we would not even place such an insignificant place in the eyes of my Bright Flame Kingdom. You should be honored. Now then, about that matter, my father inquired about, have you gathered the necessary information?"

    Hearing his words, a solemn look appeared in the eyes of the middle-aged man. He then looked towards the mature woman by his side and nodded, as she saw his gesture, she promptly took out a piece of jade slip and passed it over to the arrogant young man.

    After taking the jade slip, the arrogant young man quickly scanned the information concealed within it, "Oho! Interesting..." He said as he tapped his fingers on the table curiously.

    Hearing the words of the individual beside her Madam Xuan couldn''t help but gain an interest, she looked towards him and said in an unsatisfied manner.

    "Bei child, aren''t you going to share the information with me?"

    Seeing this, Madam Xuan could only shake her head and follow him as she said dismissively to the two people behind her, "You''ve done well gathering what we asked for, as such, compensation will be sent to your abode within three weeks'' time. Now then, I will be excusing myself."

    Witnessing the scene before them the Town Lord and his wife could only grit their teeth silently as they complained under their breaths.

    "Sigh, this is the third one that has visited our mansion this passing month, and each of these influences has asked about the same kind of information. Darling, it looks like this Talent Selection won''t be a simple one," The middle-aged man said with a weary look on his face.

    "It doesn''t matter, it has nothing to do with us, as long as we stay out of these troubled waters we will be able to continue just fine," The mature woman said as he looked at the direction the two characters left with a severe expression.

    "Un. Indeed, we have no need to partake in this scheme," The Town Lord replied.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    Inside of the Feng Clan manor, within an unoccupied courtyard.

    A young man could be seen walking towards a structure nearby the frozen pond, where the fragrant scent of roses permeated the air. Around this building, a garden of flowers had been artfully arranged, giving the area a slightly colorful taste within the snowy monotones of winter''s change.

    At the center of this garden, was a small structure with a few neatly positioned seats inside. Seated on one of these seats was a beautiful looking young woman, who seemed free from the mundane constraints of the world as she quietly and peacefully read her book.

    As Feng Yu approached, he couldn''t help but feel a slight sense of tranquility as his mood instantly became several times better. Vaguely, his overall abilities including his martial comprehension and his cultivation had slight indications of breakthroughs.

    However, this peaceful mood did not last forever, as upon seeing Feng Yu appear in the garden the quiet aunty instantly became her usual self once more. She jumped from her position reaching high into the air while she somersaulted before gracefully landing right in front of Feng Yu.

    "So, Yu''er has finally decided to pay aunty a visit! Come quickly, let aunty have a look at your strength!" As if she was waiting for an awfully long time and couldn''t hold back any longer, Feng Xingyu quickly started to unleash attacks towards Feng Yu.

    As he was not expecting such a sudden change, Feng Yu became filled with shocked, quickly he tried to explain his purpose for coming here, "Aunty no! I came for a reaso---" Before he could finish, he was caught into a ''clothesline'' that firmly wrapped around his neck. Then, he was violently pulled into the air as Feng Xingyu jumped to the sky, she revolved her body with him gripped firmly in her clutches increasing her momentum before falling downwards at bolting speeds, smashing Feng Yu into the field of snowy roses creating a white cloud of dust.

    "Araaaaghhh!" A mournful howl resounded throughout the Feng Clan as all the younger generation elders trembled, most them revealing an expression of deep reminiscence.

    Inside of the clan master''s hall, Feng Yunlong and Feng Junling sat as they discussed family matters. Suddenly they heard the scream and Feng Junling couldn''t help but reveal a slightly mocking expression. Seeing this scene, Feng Yunlong couldn''t remain silent.

    "Why didn''t you warn Yu''er about Xingyu''s behavioral patterns?" Feng Yunlong said as he looked towards Feng Junling.

    "Isn''t it for the same reason you did," Feng Junling replied as he sipped the tea from the cup in his hand.

    An embarrassed expression appeared on Feng Yunlong''s face as he replied, "That''s, that''s because..." But soon he quickly recovered and placed on a more serious expression as he continued.

    "Humph! A Young Phoenix cannot grow unperturbed, it must learn to face all circumstances including the unexpected, "Feng Yunlong said with a deep and profound expression.

    Seeing his brother like this Feng Junling sneered in his heart as he thought back to the days of early childhood, the form of small Xingyu violently beating the slightly older Feng Yunlong with utter dominance as she flaunted her immense innate divine strength.

    As he thought up the here, he suddenly sighed, "Such a pity, Xingyu''s circumstances are actually the most troublesome of us all, born with unlimited divine strength yet unable to use it due to the limitations of our family."

    Hearing this a pensive look appeared on Feng Yunlong''s face as he also replied while looking out the window, towards the garden covered with white clouds of dust in the distance, "A pity it is indeed..."

    Within a few moments, the dust cloud that blanketed the garden had begun to fade away, as snow began to fill the cleared earth once again. The figure of Feng Yu was now in a sorry state, he picked himself up off the ground while rubbing his neck as he looked at the happy mood his aunt was in after a moment of triumph.

    "Sigh, how could I forget to look up the memories I have on this aunty of mine? Eh? There''s nothing," Feng said in surprise as he realized that there was no memory of his aunt behaving in such a violent manner before.

    Seeing her nephew who held his head down while rubbing his neck, a gentler expression soon came on the battle crazed female face. She walked over and lifted him off the ground while offering to counsel.

    "There nephew don''t go crying on me now, It''s only a process of initiation. Now that you are truly apart of the clan''s cultivators, you would have had to be given the ritual done to many," Feng Xingyu said in a reasonable tone of voice.

    Hearing this Feng Yu instantly felt like vomiting blood, "A Ritual? You call beating the heck out me a ritual... sigh," He thought inwardly. Soon, however, he forced himself to stay on track and inquire about his problem.

    "Aunty Xingyu, It''s ok I''m fine. I only came to ask today for your help regarding a matter," Feng Yu asked as he quickly regained his composure and stood before Feng Xingyu.

    Hearing Feng Yu''s statement, a severe look soon came of Feng Xingyu''s face as she replied, "You want auntie''s help, ok I will help you, but first Yu''er will have to make a promise to aunty."

    "A promise? What kind of promise?" Feng Yu asked curiously and cautiously.

    "It''s nothing overly dramatic, aunty just wants Yu''er to do something for her," Feng Xingyu said in a more reassuring tone.

    "Ok, tell me what it is you need me to do," Feng Yu responded after hearing her statement.

    "Good! That''s my Yu''er, it''s like this ever since aunty was but a small child, I had always been blessed with an unusually powerful innate divine power, as such, when it comes down to physical combat, I had no equal. But this comes at the cost of having terminated inner aura cultivation veins, and as our Feng Clan does not have any types of body cultivation techniques that are suitable for our bloodline, my strength has always remained limited unable to advance the slightest. If Yu''er promises to create a suitable technique for aunty, aunty will do her best to aid Yu''er," Feng Xingyu said as she looked towards Feng Yu with hints of expectation.

    Hearing her circumstances, a look of understanding soon came across Feng Yu''s face, "It seems that aunty is suffering from a comparable situation to my lack of talent in my past life. Only, in her case, it''s having talent but not the means," He then arranged his thoughts and firmly replied, "Aunty Xingyu, Yu''er promises to do his best and make to the most powerful body cultivation technique for your practice,"

    "Good, good! Now, quickly tell aunty what you need help with," Feng Xingyu said excitedly as she saw her nephew''s determination for her sake.

    "Aunty Xingyu it''s like this, I currently walk the path of a dual swordsman, but I am missing a second sword. I was wondering if aunty would know where I could get another sword, one that is similar to the quality of the one I have on my back," As he said this, he quickly reached for Black-Lightning and unsheathed it in front of her.

    Shing! Upon seeing the sword in front of her, a curious gleam appeared within Feng Xingyu''s eyes, she quickly reached her hand out and took the sword before gently stroking the surface of its blade.

    "Oh, a top-tier mortal rank sword, this is a pretty good weapon... wait, something''s wrong the aura it emits is that of a mortal ranked sword, but it seems as if it is about to advance to the low-tier earth rank. Little Yu''er what''s going on? Did you create a lifeblood weapon?" Aunty Xingyu asked curiously as she looked at the sword in surprise.

    "Yes aunty, I had chosen this weapon to be my first primary life weapon, is there any weapon of a similar grade in Machen?" Feng Yu asked as he gently stroked the hilt of Black-Lightning.

    "Hmm, well while the materials used for this sword aren''t the best, it is still ranked at the finest class within its grade. If you want to find a sword like this in a small city like this it would be the same as trying to find a needle in a haystack," Feng Xingyu replied as she placed her finger on her lips while pondering.

    Hearing this Feng Yu became disappointed as he made the decision to leave and search elsewhere Feng Xingyu made an exclamation, "Hmmm, wait! I just remembered something; how could I forget something so important? Little Yu''er you may be in luck if it was any other time you may not have been able to find such a weapon. But it just so happens that in two days'' time there will be a special event in Machen''s biggest merchant facility."

    "Oh? What''s that?" Feng Yu asked in a curious tone.

 33 Lang Kuang and Miren Fei

    Inside of the Feng clan manor, within a quiet training field. The day had once again begun to slowly fade, as the curtain of night descended unto the world. A young man was currently seated in a crossed-legged posture as he drew upon the flame essences of the heaven and earth to temper his body. Beneath his fleshy exterior, his internal organs and inner veins were completely glowing with a golden crystal-like hue.

    Bang! With the sound of something overflowing, all the essence-energies gathered inside Feng Yu''s body burst out into the surroundings transforming the field around him into a small sea of flames and lighting. His eyebrows and hair were glowing with a bright golden-scarlet color, as his bloodline started to revolve on its own accord. Shortly after, his energies began to retract towards a central organ within his body flowing through his strengthened inner veins and settling nearby the organ.

    Suddenly, Feng Yu opened his eyes, as he looked towards the burnt area with a hint of excitement, "Great! I''ve finally striven a step further and achieved the peak of 8 Tier Body Training realm. Hmm, such a powerful cultivation technique my internal organs and veins have been tempered to a stage no way inferior to that of a peak 9 Tier Body Training realm expert. My Dantian is also on the verge of awakening, I wonder, will I be able to condense wisps of aura the moment I breakthrough to the 9 Tier. No matter, for now, I just need to focus and wait until the date of the auction to see if I can find a decent sword, then I should be able to make a bit more progress on my sword realm before the day of the selections."

    As Feng Yu was pondering his future direction for cultivation, a figure appeared in the vicinity and was walking towards him. He was wearing black qigong robes with black wrappings around his arms, and he had light blue hair with a handsome semblance, an angular face that was a bit above average with bright blue eyes that gleamed with intelligence. It''s a pity though, for most of it could hardly be recognized due to his large conical hat.

    Seeing this figure, Feng Yu revealed a curious expression, but soon it became filled with surprise. Quickly, the character appeared before him and promptly knelt on the ground.

    "Young Master Yu, I have successfully achieved initial success with my <Lightning Flash Steps> and <Shock Palm>. My cultivation has also already fully consolidated into the 9 Tier of Body Training realm," Dai Lin said as he cupped his hands together while kneeling.

    Hearing his words, an interested expression soon came over Dai Lin''s face as he was curious about what kind of individuals his young master would be willing to let join Dawnwing.

    "Yes, Young Master!" Dai Lin said as trailed behind Feng Yu.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    The scene in Machen was a lively one tonight, as groups of wanderers, practitioners, and locals squandered their time away in the streets. However, mixed amongst these people were a myriad of fresh faces and unfamiliar characters.

    Dressed in a conventional style of clothing was a strange old man who quietly sat in the middle of the street, calmly drinking from a large jug of wine. It seemed as if he existed but did not exist at the same time, for the individuals who walked the streetways would directly pass him by as if he was nothing but air. He had a very casual and straightforward expression as he would occasionally laugh while he glanced around at the clueless individuals.

    "Haha! Such a lively little place, but it''s such a pity no one is capable of even sensing this old man. Hmm, could the one I''m looking for truly reside in a place such as this?" The strange old man said as he showed a pondering expression on his face.

    However, as if he felt something, he glanced towards his right to see two individuals making their way through the streets. These two individuals were strange, as they made their way through the road, they would do so with a particular pattern as if they had practiced countless times to achieve a unique rhythm with perfect harmony. Vaguely, a hint of lightning energy could be felt in the areas they went by.

    Seeing this scene, the strange old man felt curious, "Oh! Such a magnificent display of footwork, who are these two little fellas?" As he said this, he couldn''t help but send out a bit of his spiritual sense.

    As if sensing something one of the youths looked towards his direction with an expression of uncertainty and caution, seeing this a look of surprise soon came into the eyes of the strange old man as he thought to himself.

    "Hmm, such remarkable senses, but he is not the one I''m looking for he does not carry any traces of a nefarious aura. Oh well, it seems that I may have to try from a different approach." The strange old man said as he started to phase away from existence.

    Swoosh! As if feeling the constraint that was placed on it disappear, the night wind that was pressured by some unknown force soon began to flow into the street once more.

    "Strange, why is there so much wind now?" Feng Yu muttered.

    Dai Lin who was standing behind him licked the tip of his fingers and pointed it in the air, after a short while he looked towards the direction the old was previously residing.

    "Young Master, I feel that this wind is quite unusual, as it seems to have originated from that area just now," Dai Lin said as he looked towards the area with a scrutinizing appearance.

    Hearing this Feng Yu also focused his attention on the area but seeing nothing out of the ordinary he quickly decided to forget this matter, both of them once more making their way towards the arena, as their silhouettes vanished beyond the remote district disappearing amongst the sea of people.

    ¡Þ¡Þ¡Þ

    It was a scene filled with hot-bloodedness brought about by intense action, as the martial atmosphere here was at its peak. The combatants who gathered at the local battle arena aimed to make a name for themselves while earning big rewards from the nearby betting pools.

    Bang! Thud! With the sound of a loud collision, the figure of a man could be seen tumbling down from the battle platform crashing onto the concrete floor instantly losing consciousness.

    The individual who remained standing on the battle platform raised his arms high into the air as he listened to cheers of the audience; he had short silver hair that flowed wildly with the wind, while his face looked angular as if sculpted by a fine knife. He was dressed in long trousers with a sash around his waist and wore nothing but a long silver scarf around his neck, exposing his bare upper torso and his well-toned body.

    "Wildwolf! Wildwolf! Wildwolf!" The crowd shouted unceasingly as they looked at the figure on the stage.

    "He''s done it again! Earning his 20th consecutive victory! Who will break his reign? Who can defeat, this rising champion?!" The announcer said.

    "Is there no one to fight?!" As if he wasn''t satisfied, the fierce-looking young man shouted as he gripped his fights tightly, flexing his muscles on stage.

    "Fight! Fight! Fight!" His voice reverberating throughout the area filled with the crowd''s cheers.

    As more and more practitioners gathered around the battle platform to observe, they couldn''t help but feel their blood boil with excitement due to the blatant provocation of the champion. Soon, the figures of Feng Yu and Dai Lin appeared within the vicinity as they made their way towards a remote corner to observe.

    "Young Master, I will go an inquire about the current champion," Dai Lin said and disappeared into the distant crowd, seeing this Feng Yu smiled as he thought to himself, "I cannot slack off the slightest, cause if I''m not careful his mastery of the lightning arts will exceed mine in no time."

    As Feng Yu inspected the combatant on the stage, he couldn''t help but praise inwardly, "Hmm, this fellow is pretty good, he must be practicing some type of beast cultivation art specializing in pure offensive power to have gotten such a physique."

    As the combatant on the stage looked around the platform, he started to grow disappointed as he thought to himself, "Sigh, how boring, I came to find a challenge and test my strength amongst the best. No one here is worth my time it looks like I''ll just have to wait until the talent selections to try my luck," As he was about to leave the platform, there was an abrupt change.

    Swish! A beautiful figure swiftly moved, as if like a leaf she glided through the air softly landing on the opposing side of the young man who stood on the battle platform. ?

    "Fellow Daoist Wildwolf, I Miren Fie would like to challenge you. Do you dare to accept?" The beautiful form said as she stretched out her right arm with her palms facing the sky, while her left arm was placed behind her back assuming an extremely confident posture.

    She had flowing long hair the color of jade, and she wore a dark-colored sleeveless wushu uniform with green patterns. She had a beautiful face that stood out among top-class beauties.

    Seeing the beautiful woman that came to challenge him a look of interest soon came over his eyes, he smiled and replied, "Humph! Beauty, while you do have some skill, it is not enough to make my Lang Kuang yield and withdraw. Come, let us see if you are able to make me reach my limit!"

    As he finished speaking, he couldn''t help but give a sly wink towards the beauty, as he crouched down and placed his two fists together in his front looking like a mountain of muscle.

    Bang! The essence energy of a peak 7 Tier Body Training realm was instantly released to the world once more. Seeing this the scene Miren Fie was in no mood to retort to his sly commentary, she instant unleashed her concealed energies.

    Bang! An equally significant amount of essence power gathered and formed around Miren Fie, and it soon clashed with the opposing energy of Lang Kuang creating a colorful scene within the snowy weather.

    Swish! As Feng Yu stood quietly to observe the battle quickly, Dai Lin appeared once more by his side, sensing his arrival without turning his head he inquired, "So, Dai Lin, how did it go? Who are the individuals fighting? And where are they from?"

    "Reporting to Young Master Yu, that guy standing on the far left is called Lang Kuang, he is about 19 years old and is also known as ''Wildwolf'' due to his fierce nature. It was said that he hailed from a remote hunting family in the hills area of the Grail Plains called the Lang Tribe. As for the beautiful miss who went to challenge him, she is the daughter of a wandering practitioner who was said to have perished not too long ago due to bandits," Dai Lin said as he switched his vision over to the female on stage and continued.

    "Her name is Miren Fei and she is roughly around the same age as Lang Kuang. She has a small fame within the circles of rogue practitioners going by the title of - Charming Jade," As Dai Lin reported the information to Feng Yu, he too was also carefully observing the clash on top of the battle platform.

    Hearing this Feng Yu nodded and replied, "Hmm, interesting. Dai Lin, you did well! Remember to keep a keynote of them we will contact them after their match is over."

    "As Young Master wishes!" said Dai Lin with a bright expression as he looked at the two on the platform.

 34 Trouble at the Arena! An Unexpected Gathering

    Within the town of Machen, inside of the battle arena square. The mood went dark as a towering figure soon made his way towards the platform, following behind him were two individuals. As he reached the center of the audience, the towering figure promptly pulled out two decorated chairs from his storage ring, skillfully placing them on the ground near the battle platform. He then calmly went to the side and watched the two individuals took their seats.

    Suddenly, one of the individuals focused their vision on the two combatants on the platform and clapped his hands together.

    Clap! Clap! As if backed by a strange power the soundwave of the clap instantly traversed the square, causing a few weaker practitioners to spit blood with the stronger ones among them feeling slightly uncomfortable.

    "Hello-Hello! Everyone, so far, your performance has been mediocre at best. So, this Young Master would like to offer a new rule to this game," The arrogant looking young man said.

    "Hehe! Xuan Bei, if you keep acting like this everywhere you go, you''re bound to get into trouble," The voluptuous Young Woman beside him said as she snickered.

    "Humph! In my Bright Flame Kingdom, what can this Young Master not do?" Xuan Bei said proudly, he then looked towards the towering figure who was quietly standing by the side as a smirk came on his face.

    "If anyone is capable of defeating this servant of mine, I will grant that person the right to follow me on my path to glory," Xuan Bei said as he glanced around at the individuals especially the two people on the stage.

    "What the hell is this? Who the hell does this guy think he is?" A practitioner who was disturbed by their sudden appearance said.

    "Yeah, do they think this arena belong to them? They can randomly waltz on over and start breaking the rules," Another individual said.

    As the practitioners and locals started to complain, Lang Kuang and Miren Fei halted their battle as they looked over at the figure with displeased expressions on their faces.

    "Oh! Look what we have here, to think I''d meet my first of these ''hidden visitors'' so quickly," Feng Yu said with a smile on his face he then looked towards Dai Lin and nodded.

    "Understood!" Dai Lin replied.

    Flash! With a movement, he transformed into a streak of lightning as he headed outside of the battle arena, while Feng Yu continued to observe the scenario in front of him with a look of interest on his face. With a flip of his wrist, he took out a scarlet chair from his storage ring and sat while observing.

    Seeing this scene, Madam Xuan sneered as she thought inwardly, "How foolish, a local bumpkin like you wants to beat Bei child is no different from seeking death."

    Looking the guy in front of him Xuan Bei frowned as a look of disdain came across his face, without even moving his arms he looked towards the towering servant. Without waiting for his master to command him, the towering man rushed out and cut off the path of the assaulting man.

    "Daring to get into my Young Master''s way, truly seeking death! Allow me to send you off," As he said this, the towering figure gathered all the energy he could into his right palm and launched out a swift and overbearing attack towards the assaulting practitioner.

    Bang-ka! Swoosh! Following a loud sound, the body of the practitioner was soon sent hurling through the air as he flew out of the square crashing into a shop in the distant street. The servant soon after blew his fist as he left his combat stance.

    "Hiss...." Seeing the power of the servant''s attack, the crowd couldn''t help but draw in a breath of fresh snowy air. Feng Yu who was observing couldn''t help but raise his eyebrows slightly as he muttered, "Oh... Innate Divine Power, very interesting. I wonder how many more surprises I''ll see," As he said this, he scanned his vision around the crowd and noticed a few individuals who seemed unmoved towards the scene.

    "When the tiger moves, the dragon uncoils," Feng Yu muttered mysteriously, as the corners of his lips rose into a playful smirk while observing the scene before him.

    "Hahaha! Well-well, if it isn''t little Prince Xuan, what did you come here to make? It seems that your ''Armstrong'' has made a few breakthroughs compared to our last meeting," A swarthy youth with a bald head said, he wore a set of extremely luxurious robes and had small eyes that glared at Xuan Bei with a tinge of superiority.

    "Prince? It can''t be! Could he be the kingdom''s Xuan Bei?!" An observing practitioner replied.

    "Heavens! How can the prince be here? Just what is going on?" Another said in shock as he could now clearly see Xuan Bei''s profile.

    Seeing this young man appear out of nowhere, Xuan Bei expression fluctuated slightly, but soon it became filled with arrogance once more as he replied, "Hmm, I didn''t think Brother Ji Weng would have been visiting my Bright Flame Kingdom, how was the journey from the Western Regions?"

    Hearing his reply, Ji Weng smiled, "It was quite a wonderful journey, granted there were some ''nuisances.'' However, my team and I made it here in one piece," As he said this, he couldn''t help but eye the surroundings for a bit and with a smirk on his face called out loudly, "Since so many of us have gathered here today, why not come out and greet each other?!"

    The crowd in the arena hearing this couldn''t help but be surprised, as they looked around at each other. Shortly though, a few individuals started to reveal themselves to the open.

    A sturdy looking young man with short black hair walked out, he was garbed in a loosely designed red battle robe with no sleeves, as he shouldered a giant blade on his back as he crossed his arms together and looked towards Ji Weng then replied, "Humph! The Western Region''s number one genius dares to interfere with Bright Flame Kingdom''s matters, I wonder if you think that you have the right to make any speech here."

    The crowd seeing him were shocked as they exclaimed, "Tang Wu!"

    "What''s he doing here? Why would he pay attention to the local battle arena?" A few practitioners said as they observed the number one genius from the ''Bright Flame Listing.

    Seeing a fellow member of the kingdom''s ''Bright Flame Listing'' Xuan Bei felt happy, he promptly greeted, "Brother Wu, I didn''t know you were in the vicinity. If so, I''d have found you earlier and we would have made our way here together. "

    Hearing the friendly means of address used by Xuan Bei, Tang Wu frowned as he snorted with a hint of disgust, "Humph!" No longer paying any attention to him, he focused his gaze back to Ji Weng.

    Xuan Bei seeing this instantly became angered as he muttered, "Damn! You dare not to give me face! If it wasn''t because your father is a big shot in the Golden Dragon Empire, why would I the prince of this kingdom bother to give notice to you."

    Madam Xuan seeing Xuan Bei''s expression spoke in a severe tone, "Bei child, it would do no good to get upset here, remember we can''t offend the Tang Family as they may very soon become a branch family in our Bright Flame Kingdom moving their main clan to the Golden Dragon Empire. It is in our best interest to maintain friendly relations."

    Hearing her words, Xuan Bei regained control of his mood and soon his superior expression return, "Humph! I know that!"

    "Brother Tang! You''re so mean, why did you ignore Xuan Bei like that? Hehe!" A sweet-sounding voice said as it resounded throughout the area with no set position.

    Shortly after, a beautiful looking female appeared within the region of all parties; she wore a black shenyi with gold sleeves, with a white cloth wrapped around her arms and feet. Her hair was parted into two sides and braided flowing all the way down to her feet that were covered by a pair of decorated sandals.

    As Feng Yu saw this girl appear, he revealed an expression of surprise, "She walks the ''Shadow Path'' and has a fairly high comprehension at that too."

    Swish! A figure abruptly appeared beside him once more and calmly observed the scene before him.

    "Did you deliver the information?" Asked Feng Yu.

    "Yes, Young Master Yu, the Clan Leader has already sent for scouting," Dai Lin replied.

    "Good." Feng Yu said as he continued to observe the scene before him.

    As Tang Wu saw the beautiful girl who appeared, he made a weary expression he replied weakly, "So, Sister Xin Qing is here too..."

    "What do you mean I''m here too? Are you expecting me to be somewhere else?" She asked loudly.

    Ji Weng who was watching in silence smiled as he motioned towards a corner, not long after, a dark looking young man appeared dressed in shaolin style clothing with baggy pants. He had a turban on his head, with strange tattoos on his body that were vaguely visible due to his dense amounts of clothing, following behind him was a few individuals dressed in similar clothing with turbans over their heads.

    As they saw this young man appear, the people that were watching became filled with shock.

    "The Southern Wasteland is here too! Just what the hell is going on here?!" A man exclaimed.

    "The Southern Wasteland¡­ I heard the journey from there to here is especially difficult, filled with dangers one cannot begin to imagine. How did these people manage to even get within the domain of the Golden Dragon Empire much less our remote Bright Flame Kingdom?"

    "Hmm, good! Since we''ve all gathered. Why not do something special for this occasion?" Ji Weng said.

    Hearing Ji Weng spoke once more everyone''s attention quickly gathered towards him. Xuan Bei, Madam Xuan, Tang Wu, Xin Qing, and the Southern Wasteland Youth also looked towards him silently.

    "Oh! What does the illustrious genius of the Western Regions want us to do today?" Xuan Bei said as he stared at Ji Weng.

    "It''s simple since we all came here for the Talent Selection, it makes no sense to fight amongst ourselves so soon. Why not have our servants compete for a bit to see who''s the best among them?"

    "..." Hearing his suggestion, the group state silent for a while as they started to ponder about it, after a while they had each accepted his proposal.

    "Fine, I agree!" Tang Wu replied.

    "Me too," Xin Qing said who stuck to Tang Wu like a tail.

    "Count me in!" Xuan Bei replied.

    "...Em...." The strange young man from the Southern Wasteland replied.

    Feng Yu seated in the distance smiled, he then looked towards Dai Lin and saw that his eyes had a hint of fire sparking within.

    "Dai Lin, do you wish to partake in their game?" Feng Yu asked.

    Hearing Feng Yu''s question Dai Lin bowed slightly and responded, "Replying to the Young Master, I would like to test my new-found skills."

    After pondering for a bit Feng Yu decided to permit him, he looked towards Dai Lin and spoke, "Hmm, fine, but remember our main goal. It is to recruit those two talented individuals standing on the platform."

    "Dai Lin thanks the Young Master, as for persuading the two of them, I already have an idea," Dai Lin said as he looked towards the two standing on the battle platform with confidence on his face.

    "Interesting¡­ then go, show me how you will bring these two to my side," Feng Yu said with great curiosity in his eyes as he saw the confident expression on Dai Lin''s face.

    "As the Young Master wishes!" Dai Lin responded.

    Flash! Instantly he transformed into a streak of lightning appearing on the battle platform, his sudden movements startling the two combatants, the spectating crowd, and the talents who were discussing how to proceed with their servants'' competition.

    "Who is he? Such a remarkable movement technique, where did he come from?" Xuan Bei said as he looked towards Dai Lin in surprise.

    Tang Wu observed with slight praise, "Hmm, such cultivation at his age, he could be considered a fairly talented expert in the world of rogue practitioners."

    The rest looked on in silence as Lang Kuang and Miren Fei had started to speak upon seeing him land on the battle platform.

    "Who¡­ who the hell are you?" Lang Kuang who recovered from his dazed expression asked in a solemn tone.

    "...." Miren Fei also looked on silently with her guard up.

    Seeing the two of their reactions, Dai Lin smiled as he responded, "Wildwolf and Charming Jade, you two are quite talented as such I would like to offer you an opportunity," As he said this a spoon soon appeared within his right hand, gripped firmly with his finger.

    Miren Fei, who was silent upon hearing his words frowned as she decided to ask, "Opportunity? And why should I even care about your so-called opportunity?"

    Lang Kuang looked on with a fierce look in his eyes.

    Seeing this Dai Lin revealed a mysterious smile and replied, "Because this chance I''m offering is more than enough to help Miss Jade grow strong enough for her vengeance, as well as solving Mr. Lang Kuang''s family issues."

    "You don''t mean?" Shocked by Dai Lin''s sudden declaration, both Lang Kuang and Miren Fei replied.

    "We can talk about that later, the question here is, do you accept?" Asked Dai Lin.

    After pondering for a short while both Lang Kuang and Miren Fei decided to accept the proposal, they looked at Dai Lin and nodded their heads, a firm light shining intensely in both of their eyes.

    "Good! Now then, the test is simple," Dai Lin said.

    "All you have to do is make me drop this spoon," As he said this, he moved the spoon and placed it in a vertical position on top of his index finger.

    The crowd who saw this behavior went quiet as the entire square became filled with deafening silence, the snow continuing to fall creating a strange kind of mood. However, the crowd soon woke up from the shock.

    "He is extremely arrogant!" One of the spectators roared in anger.

    "Hahaha! And here I thought he was some big deal, now I see he''s only a fool looking for fame," Xuan Bei said as he looked at Dai Lin with scorn.

    The other talents observing felt it strange but continue to watch quietly.

    Both Lang Kuang and Miren Fei thought he was joking, but they didn''t bother to care too much about it. Lang Kuang walked forwards and positioned himself for battle once more.

    "Come! I''ll be the first to try your challenge!" He said in a competitive tone as he was ready to battle.

    Dai Lin smiled as he pointed his other hand at them, before waving his index finger in a no-no, manner.

    "That''s not good enough, both of you¡­" As he said this, the lightning energy within his body started to gather bit by bit creating a static field around him.

    KA-BANG! A thunderous boom sounded as his entire body became suffused with electrical power, and his conical hat fell to the floor.

 35 Series Update.

    @@Dual Sword God has been at this time suspended here, in order for it be contracted it would have to be removed from Amazon but that is something I cannot do, at this time. However, if you would like to continue reading weekly updates of this series, visit my ******* or read on Amazon.

    https://www.*******.com/ShadowsFinger - P A T R E O N/Shadowsfinger

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07C7912KX - Amazon

    My current series and newest webnovel series are - Ascenders Rift and Digitize - Check them out and please enjoy!