13: Chapter 13: Finally Obtaining the Innate Skill

Iron Eagle's eyes turned cold, and he sneered, "You choose the hard way."

He struck.

The speed of an Innate Early Stage expert was more than a level faster than the Post-Heaven Peak. His figure almost turned into an afterimage in your eyes, his right fist wrapped in sharp True Qi, heading straight for your abdomen.

You dodged to the side, thrusting your blade toward his ribs. The essence of the Golden Light Sword Technique lay in using speed to counter speed and finesse to break force; at the Great Perfection Realm, your sword moves were so precise they were almost instinctive.

Iron Eagle did not expect your reaction to be so fast. He dodged to the side, but the sword tip still sliced a hole in his sleeve.

His expression changed for a fleeting moment.

Toad Qian lunged from the other side, slashing horizontally with a short blade. You had no eyes in the back of your head, but the combat intuition granted by being a Martial Arts Prodigy was pushed to the limit at this moment—without turning around, your body reacted before your mind, and you flicked your iron sword backward, deflecting the short blade with a clang.

Two against one.

You gritted your teeth, pushing every move of the Golden Light Sword Technique to its limit. Sword light darted back and forth in the narrow alley, and for a moment, you were surprisingly evenly matched against two Innate experts.

But you knew in your heart that this was only an appearance.

The total amount of Internal Energy between the Innate and Post-Heaven Realms differed by an entire level. Every strike of yours required far more effort than theirs just to offset the gap in True Qi. The longer the fight lasted, the more you were at a disadvantage.

Sure enough, after thirty moves, your breathing began to grow rapid.

Iron Eagle noticed your fatigue and sneered, his True Qi suddenly surging as he slammed a fist onto your sword blade.

That force was far greater than before.

The web between your thumb and forefinger split open, and you nearly dropped your iron sword. Immediately after, Toad Qian's short blade cut in from the side, the edge grazing your left arm and leaving a wound deep enough to reveal bone.

Fresh blood gushed out.

You staggered backward, your back hitting the alley wall.

But your sword did not stop.

In the instant you retreated, you struck backhand, the tip of your sword piercing Toad Qian's right shoulder.

"Ah—!" Toad Qian shrieked, dropping his short blade and stumbling far away while clutching his shoulder. He looked down at the blood gushing from his shoulder, his face deathly pale, and cursed, "You stinking bitch! I'm going to kill you!"

Iron Eagle was also stunned. He looked at the wound on Toad Qian's shoulder, then back at you, a look of wariness appearing in his eyes for the first time.

"A Post-Heaven Peak, actually able to trade thirty moves with two Innate experts and even injure one." He stared at you, his voice dropping, "You are quite impressive; no wonder the Black Tiger Gang spent ten thousand taels of gold to find you."

You leaned against the wall; the wound on your left arm was bleeding continuously, and your right arm holding the sword was shaking. Your internal organs felt as if they had been violently churned, and a metallic, fishy taste surged up your throat, which you swallowed back down with difficulty.

You knew you couldn't hold on any longer.

If the fight continued, it would only lead to death.

Escape? With two Innate experts blocking the way, there was no way to run.

You hardened your heart and began to circulate your energy.

The vortex of the Mysterious Tiger Force surged madly in your Dantian, like a trapped beast, slamming against the barrier of the Innate Realm. With every impact, your Meridians felt a tearing pain.

The perception of a Martial Arts Prodigy told you clearly—forcing a Breakthrough would cause irreversible damage to your Meridians.

You didn't do this last time in the mountains because you still had a choice.

But now, you had none.

Iron Eagle and Toad Qian closed in from front and back, intending to seal your Internal Energy.

You closed your eyes.

Then, you opened that floodgate.

The Mysterious Tiger Force exploded within your body.

You heard the sound of your Meridians snapping—a faint, continuous "pop-pop" sound, like lute strings breaking one after another.

Pain.

Pain so intense your vision turned white.

But the Innate Realm—it was broken through.

A torrent of True Qi poured into your limbs and bones; every inch of muscle and every meridian was saturated with Innate True Qi. That qualitative change in power was not an accumulation of quantity, but a fundamental transformation.

You opened your eyes.

Iron Eagle's Qi blade had already reached you.

You raised your sword.

Golden Light Sword Technique, Seventh Form—Light Splitter.

You had never unleashed such power with this sword strike before. Innate True Qi surged along the blade, the sword light flared, cutting Iron Eagle's Qi blade in two, and without losing momentum, slashed directly into his chest.

Iron Eagle's pupils dilated sharply. He looked down at the sword blade buried half a foot into his chest, blood spilling from the corners of his mouth, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"You… broke through…"

You pulled out the sword and turned around.

Toad Qian scrambled to put distance between you, but your speed was no longer comparable to a Post-Heaven Peak. You took one step, and the sword light flashed.

Toad Qian's body froze, a line of blood slowly widening on his neck, and then he collapsed to the ground with a thud.

The alley fell silent.

You stood between the two corpses, gripping your sword. Blood dripped down from the wound on your left arm and from the corner of your mouth, landing on the bluestone pavement and quickly being absorbed by the ground.

Then, you bent over, and a mouthful of blood sprayed out.

It felt as if ten thousand knives were cutting through your Meridians simultaneously. The Innate True Qi rampaged through your shattered Meridians, every circulation bringing a new round of excruciating pain.

You knew that your martial arts cultivation for this lifetime would likely end at the Innate Realm. The damage to your Meridians could not be repaired; the Grandmaster and Great Grandmaster Realms above would be forever out of your reach.

You wiped the blood from the corner of your mouth and smiled.

It was a bitter smile.

But you had survived.

You searched the two corpses as quickly as possible, finding a few Cultivation Techniques and several hundred taels of silver notes, then leaned against the wall and walked out of the alley step by step.

You returned to Qingluan Martial Arts Hall.

The moment Su Wanqing saw you, her teacup slipped from her hand and shattered on the floor.

"Qin Shuang! Who did this?!" She strode forward to support you, but after her True Qi probed into your body, her expression changed drastically, "Your Meridians…"

"Hall Master," you interrupted her, your voice raspy, "Can you give me the Cultivation Technique first?"

"In your current state…"

"I have to leave." You raised your head, only calmness remaining on your blood-stained face, "Old enemies have tracked me down; I cannot implicate the martial arts hall any further. About the Cultivation Technique… consider it a favor I owe you, Hall Master."

Su Wanqing looked into your eyes and remained silent for a long time.

"When will this cycle of vengeance ever end?" She sighed deeply and turned to enter the inner hall.

You did not correct her misunderstanding.

When Su Wanqing came out, she was holding a yellowed, thread-bound book.

"The 'Azure Sky Heart Method', an Innate-Grade Cultivation Technique. It follows a gentle, yin-aligned path, most suitable for women to practice." She handed the book to you, "I had intended to teach you for another half a year, but now… take it."

You took the book and flipped through it quickly.

Eidetic Memory.

The content of every page, every meridian path, every mantra for circulation—all were branded into your mind.

After reading it, you put the book away.

"Thank you, Hall Master."