20: Chapter 20: A Frenzied Sword Swing, Shock Levels Rush In!

On the back mountain of Changge Peak, by the mist-filled waterfall pond.

Ye Qingyao held a very ordinary iron sword, her expression determined and focused.

She repeated the basic sword forms that every Martial Artist knew, over and over again.

Thrust.

A sword thrust out; no sword light, no sound of breaking air.

Only a tiny ripple, the size of a needle tip, appeared quietly in the air before her.

Slash.

A sword stroke fell, the breeze it stirred brushing over the water, cutting a ripple in half.

Day after day.

Night after night.

She banished herself into this dull, lonely existence, completely cutting herself off from the outside world.

Hungry, she swallowed a Bigu Pill.

Thirsty, she scooped up a handful of mountain spring water.

Qi exhausted, she sat in meditation on the rocks beneath the waterfall for a moment.

Her world became infinitely simplified, leaving only the sword in her hand and those few monotonous movements.

The unusual activity on Changge Peak could not be kept secret forever, and it soon spread throughout the Taixuan Sect's inner Sect.

There were always a few curious and bold Disciples who couldn't hold back, sneaking to the edge of Changge Peak to take a peek.

They wanted to see what kind of shocking technique Ye Qingyao, the legendary Martial Uncle Ye who had caught the Little Martial Ancestor's eye and ascended to the heavens in one step, was Cultivating.

As a result, what met their eyes was a scene that shattered their worldview.

"Look, everyone! Martial Uncle Ye is actually practicing sword skills in the back mountain!"

"What sword technique? Wait... why do these moves look so familiar? Isn't this the basic sword form the outer Sect instructors forced us to practice when we first joined?"

"Hahahaha! I'm dying of laughter! Is this the supreme Divine Ability personally taught by the Little Martial Ancestor? I thought it was some kind of six-armed, three-headed technique, and it's just this?"

"I knew the rumors were wrong. All that talk about Epiphany and Breakthrough was just hype. I bet the Little Martial Ancestor himself didn't expect this, and could only teach his Disciple to practice this."

Harsh mockery and undisguised skepticism spread like a plague among the Sect Disciples.

Ye Qingyao turned a deaf ear to all of this.

Her heart, her spirit, and everything about her had sunk into her own world of the Dao of the sword.

On the first day, she swung her sword a thousand times; her arms were sore and numb, and the webbing between her thumb and index finger was worn raw and bloody by the sword hilt.

On the third day, she swung her sword five thousand times; her movements no longer had any trace of clumsiness, each strike as precise as if measured with a ruler.

On the seventh day, the number of times she swung her sword had exceeded ten thousand.

She entered a wondrous Realm, forgetting both herself and the world.

She forgot the time, forgot her fatigue, and even forgot herself.

In her eyes, only the trajectory of the sword blade remained; in her ears, only the faint hum of the blade cutting through the air.

When the number of sword swings crossed a certain threshold, she suddenly realized that the simplest actions concealed the most extreme changes.

A straight thrust could be as swift as lightning or as heavy as a mountain.

A horizontal sweep could be as soft as a willow or as violent as a tidal wave.

She began to infuse this realization into every swing.

Su Changge, concerned about his 'emotion points KPI', couldn't hold back in the end and snuck to the back mountain to 'inspect the work'.

After just one look, he froze in place.

Before the waterfall, the young girl's figure was so fast that only afterimages remained.

With a casual thrust of her sword, the tip of the blade dragged the airflow, emitting a sharp hiss!

With a backhanded slash, the air around the blade was violently rubbed, bursting with 'crackle' electrical sparks!

"Holy crap!"

"This is... the sound of wind and thunder?!"

Su Changge's eyes were about to pop out.

"This isn't Sword Qi... this is the prototype of Sword Intent!"

He was completely stunned.

I just looked for an excuse to have you practice basic sword skills so you wouldn't bother me.

How did you actually manage to make something of it?

Is this talent a bit unreasonable?!

What he didn't know was that as Ye Qingyao's Sword Intent became more refined, the occasional sound of wind and thunder leaking from the back of Changge Peak had completely ignited the entire Taixuan Sect.

Those Disciples who had once mocked Ye Qingyao behind her back were now terrified, their faces pale and their legs weak, after feeling from afar that sharp aura that seemed capable of splitting the Divine Soul.

"What... what is that sound? Why does it feel like my skin is being pricked by needles just from hearing it!"

"It's Sword Intent! It's the legendary Sword Intent! Martial Uncle Ye actually practiced the most basic sword skills into Sword Intent!"

"Turning ordinary iron into a divine weapon... how is this possible!"

"Little Martial Ancestor... we all misunderstood him! The Great Dao is simple, it turns out it's true! The Little Martial Ancestor is the true Master who has seen through the essence of cultivation!"

Su Changge's emotion points backend began to refresh crazily at an unprecedented speed.

Everything seemed to be on a broad, smooth road, and his grand enterprise of bluffing had a bright future.

However, easy days are always short-lived.

On this day, the Sect Head, Qingyunzi, actually came to Changge Peak in person, his expression grave, bringing news that made Su Changge's scalp tingle.

"Reporting to the Little Martial Ancestor."

Sect Head Qingyunzi bowed and saluted, his posture extremely low.

"The annual Eastern Wasteland 'Sect Competition' will be held in the Tianyan Holy Land in one month."

"According to tradition, our Taixuan Sect needs to send our most outstanding Disciples to participate..."

As Sect Head Qingyunzi spoke, he looked toward the back mountain with an incomparably fiery and expectant gaze.

Su Changge understood the meaning in that look.

His heart sank to the bottom in an instant.

The real test had arrived.