Beyond Soaring

Teachers' dormitory.

The four-bedroom, two-living-room apartment was quite large.

Liu Wenyan might not care about Bai Feng, but the Academy Head could not, nor could Nanyuan. No one could afford to disregard a researcher, even one with "assistant" added to the title.

Thus, Bai Feng's temporary residence was no worse than any other teacher's—if anything, it was better.

Bai Feng sat on the sofa while Su Yu and Liu Yue stood obediently beside him like elementary school students, waiting for him to finish watching television.

Splat!

Row after row of people were dragged out and beheaded!

Yesterday, the Great Xia Prefecture's Dragon Martial Guard had mobilized alongside the prefectural army, killing several thousand members of the Ten Thousand Races Cult and capturing over three thousand more. Nearly ten thousand people in total.

Great Xia Prefecture's policies were iron-blooded. Once they caught you, there was no need for a trial. Once your identity was confirmed, there was only one word—kill!

Today, the beheadings were being broadcast live.

Three thousand people did not sound like much, but in reality, they had already been chopping heads for over ten minutes and still were not finished.

Liu Yue did not dare watch for long and turned her eyes away from the television.

Su Yu also felt vaguely uncomfortable. It was not sympathy; seeing so many blood-spouting heads made him nauseous, even though he had killed two people himself yesterday.

Bai Feng, however, watched with great relish. Sipping tea, he commented with a smile, "The Ten Thousand Races Cult has many branches, but the Tianyi Divine Cult counts as one of the stronger ones. Its cult leader was an absolute expert, yet he came to Great Xia Prefecture only to fall flat on his face. The cult leader has died, and their elite followers have almost all been wiped out."

"Looks like Great Xia Prefecture made a killing this time."

Su Yu and Liu Yue did not quite understand what he meant. Made a killing?

"Don't understand?"

Bai Feng smiled. "Isn't it simple? The elites are all dead, and the cult leader is dead. Who killed him? How many people in Great Xia Prefecture could have killed him? For him to dare cause such a commotion here, he must have had something to rely on. He must have believed he would not die—no one willingly seeks death."

"Since that was the case, he definitely had confidence. What was that confidence? Could it have been the other cult leaders of the Ten Thousand Races Cult? No. It had to be the backers behind him who came, giving him the nerve to stir up trouble in Great Xia Prefecture!"

Su Yu's gaze shifted slightly. "Teacher Bai, are you saying that someone from the Tianyi Divine Race came?"

"Correct. They definitely came. Since the cult leader died, did one of those Tianyi Divine Race fellows die too?"

"If one did, wouldn't you say Great Xia Prefecture made a killing?"

Bai Feng smiled. "This time, I'm afraid the Prefecture Lord is in trouble."

"Trouble?"

"Yes, trouble! Just wait and see. The various War Academies, including the Civilization Academy, will probably surround him and apply for the Tianyi Divine Race's flesh, blood, and other treasures."

Bai Feng chuckled. "I wonder whether our academy's Academy Head has returned yet. We need to get some good things back as soon as possible. We're getting rich! Divine race essence blood, divine race flesh, divine race weapons, divine race cultivation methods... tsk, tsk. If this isn't getting rich, then what is?"

"The Prefecture Lord is probably about to be driven mad by the noise. I bet Great Xia Prefecture is in an uproar right now."

With him putting it that way, Su Yu and Liu Yue naturally understood.

Both wore eager expressions. It was not that they truly expected to receive such things. Just hearing about them made their blood boil. God-Demon Essence Blood and the bodies of Gods and Devils—those were all supreme treasures!

"Teacher Bai, was the person from the Tianyi Divine Race very strong?"

"Of course they were strong!"

Bai Feng looked at Su Yu and Liu Yue and smiled. "I speak rather bluntly, so don't take offense. To people from Nanyuan, the Soaring Realm is heaven itself. But to Great Xia Prefecture, the Soaring Realm is merely the backbone—the foundation from which experts begin."

"People from small places can spend their whole lives unable to imagine just how strong true experts are. In truth, there is no need for them to know. In their eyes, the Soaring Realm and realms above it are all the same. Either one could wipe them out with a casual gesture."

"On the path of cultivation, Origin Opening, Qianjun, and Ten Thousand Stones form the foundation. They strengthen the physical body and keep you from being burst apart by origin qi. Only upon reaching the Soaring Realm do you gain the right to speak in the major academies, great military legions, sects, Battlefields of the Heavens, ocean worlds, and sacred realms of mankind. Only then can you be said to have truly set foot upon the path of the strong."

Su Yu's eyes shone. This was the deficiency of his experience. Nanyuan was too small; its patch of sky was too small!

"Teacher Bai, I know there are realms above Soaring. My father once said that when he was in the Demon Suppression Army, the commander of ten thousand was in the Lingyun Realm. Is Lingyun a realm one level above Soaring?"

"Yes."

Drinking tea, Bai Feng said calmly, "How far can Soaring fly? How high can it fly? Soaring is ultimately only the beginning for the strong. Walking upon clouds, standing above the cloudline—only then can you call yourself strong! No matter how many Ten Thousand Stones or Qianjun cultivators there are, what can they do to you?"

"I walk upon clouds and never touch the ground, a thousand zhang above the earth. No matter how strong your arms are, no matter how formidable your military formation is, can you shoot me from the sky?"

"On the Battlefields of the Heavens, commanders of ten thousand who can lead ten thousand soldiers are almost all in the Lingyun Realm!"

"If you were in the Lingyun Realm, you would have more than enough ability to serve as a commander of a thousand in the Dragon Martial Guard!"

"Within the Dragon Martial Guard, the stronger squad leaders are Soaring cultivators, while the weaker ones are Wanshi Ninth Layer. Centurions are almost all Soaring cultivators, and generally at least mid-stage—Fourth Layer or above. There are five commanders of a thousand in the Dragon Martial Guard. Three are Lingyun, while two are Soaring Ninth Level!"

Su Yu's throat bobbed. They were that strong?

Then how strong was the Dragon Martial Guard Deputy General?

The commander-in-chief was the Great Xia Prefecture Lord, so there was no need to mention him. But how powerful was the deputy general?

Bai Feng caught the thought from the corner of his eye and chuckled. "Above Lingyun lies the Shanhai Realm! Splitting mountains and severing seas, every gesture shakes the four directions! With one strike, mountains collapse and seas run dry. Their power is unimaginable!"

"And above the Shanhai Realm..." Su Yu hurriedly asked, "I've heard of supreme experts and invincible experts. Are they in the Shanhai Realm?"

"No."

Bai Feng smiled. "The Shanhai Realm can hold down an entire region. Even on the Battlefields of the Heavens, they can independently command an army. At a single command, a hundred thousand people race into action, terrifying powerful enemies! They can serve as commander-in-chief or become the deputy general of a powerful legion, such as the Dragon Martial Guard Deputy General—a Shanhai Realm expert!"

"Above the Shanhai Realm, that is where the supreme begin. That is where the invincible stand!"

"It is too far removed from you. It is enough for you to know; there is no need to ask further. Once you reach Great Xia Prefecture, you will naturally learn these things. As for supreme and invincible experts, that is not our domain. What meaning is there in knowing?"

"Your heart is higher than the heavens, but your life is thinner than paper. You have not even entered Qianjun—would knowing somehow let you become invincible in a day?"

"You only need to know that they are strong, unimaginably strong! Eight or nine out of ten prefecture lords are supreme-realm experts. The founders of the great prefectures are almost all invincible experts. That is enough."

Su Yu's throat felt dry. For the first time, he felt just how low Nanyuan's sky truly was...

Ten Thousand Stones counted as strong, and Soaring counted as invincible.

Yet he had never even heard of a Nanyuan expert in the Lingyun or Shanhai Realm above them.

Lingyun Realm experts could serve as commanders of ten thousand on the Battlefields of the Heavens.

Shanhai Realm experts could hold down an entire region on the Battlefields of the Heavens, command an army, and become an overlord of a region.

And above them, there were actually supreme experts and invincible experts!

Bai Feng looked at their expressions and smiled, thoroughly delighted.

He enjoyed seeing such shocked expressions. It was a rather wicked little pleasure.

There was actually no need to explain these things in such depth. Once they reached Great Xia Prefecture, they would naturally learn them. Yet he had still said it, because Liu Wenyan's blow had left him unhappy. Su Yu... did this little genius from Nanyuan truly know how high the heavens were?

The next moment, Su Yu let out a long breath, suppressed his thoughts, and barely regained his composure.

Bai Feng glanced at him and thought, His temperament isn't bad.

He was merely a child who had never seen the world. Being able to calm down so quickly was already no easy feat.

As for Liu Yue, though she was excited, she had already settled down. Bai Feng did not look at her much. He could tell that this girl had long known these things. Her excitement was only a momentary longing.

The truly ignorant one was, in fact, only Su Yu.

Because he had been born in Nanyuan, raised here, and had never once left in eighteen years.

Su Long had protected him well, but Su Long himself was only Qianjun. Naturally, his knowledge could not reach very high. Liu Wenyan would not discuss such things with Su Yu, and Su Yu could hardly find them in books. Thus, he truly had been ignorant.

"These things are still far from you. Time is precious. Are you sure you want to waste it on this?"

Bai Feng did not invite them to sit, letting the two remain standing as he smiled. "I'll be staying here for two days. Starting now, you may ask whatever you wish to know or understand. I will tell you whatever I can. This opportunity is hard to come by."

Su Yu hurriedly asked, "Teacher Bai, what exactly is willpower? How is it cultivated? How is it judged? What counts as strong, and what counts as weak?"

"Willpower..."

Bai Feng looked at him and smiled. "Yours is not weak, actually. Of course, you have never specifically sensed it, cultivated it, or paid attention to it, so you cannot notice any of this. Senior Uncle sent you to the Civilization Academy because he sensed it, and thus did not want you to take the wrong path."

"In my view, willpower is actually much the same as physical strength. It is also a kind of power; one manifests outwardly, while the other manifests inwardly..."

As he spoke, Bai Feng picked up a black cup and covered its mouth with his hand. He explained, "Physical strength is the cup itself. If I use this cup to smash you, would you feel pain?"

Su Yu nodded.

"That is physical strength. If I smash you, you hurt. You can directly sense it and see it. How much it hurts depends on the nature of the cup. The harder, larger, and heavier it is, the more you suffer."

"And willpower is actually the force inside the cup. Right now, you cannot sense it. Cultivating willpower means pouring water into the cup."

He drew some water through the air and poured it into the cup.

"When the water inside the cup has not filled it, willpower has yet to manifest. Even if it reaches the rim, it remains useless. That was your teacher, Senior Uncle Liu's previous state. His cup was already full, but it had not overflowed."

"When willpower manifests and spills over the rim, that is manifestation!"

At that moment, the cup was full, and water overflowed.

More and more flowed out!

Under Bai Feng's control, more water poured forth, surging out.

"At this moment, if only a little water overflows, you may think it is nothing, not even as useful as a powerful body. But what if it isn't only a little?"

The water increased and increased!

Rumble!

Su Yu fell into an illusion. He saw the water become a river, surging out and flooding the room, flooding the academy.

Rivers, floods, waves—waves towering into the heavens!

Boom!

Heaven and earth were destroyed. Cities vanished beneath the water, mountains and rivers collapsed.

Bai Feng's voice sounded beside his ear. "This is willpower. It can turn water into ice, or gather water into rivers and seas. Fundamentally, it is the same as physical strength—merely another application of power."

"But it possesses a unique quality: there is no visible end!"

"At least for now, physical cultivation appears to have an endpoint. Of course, we cannot see it at our current level."

"Upon reaching the Soaring Realm, both paths are cultivated. But on our path, the water first spills out, then wraps around the cup to strengthen the body. The physical path starts with the cup changing from porcelain into stone, then desperately pouring water into it."

"If you ask me which path is better, they are actually the same. It depends on your choice and talent. Whichever is easier for you to walk, walk that path."

Su Yu's vision blurred, and everything from before vanished.

Bai Feng still held the cup in his hand. Su Yu panted before asking, "Then if it cannot be filled, or if it reaches the rim like my teacher's but does not overflow, does that mean it has no use at all?"

"You cannot put it that way. At the very least, your thoughts will be clearer and your energy more vigorous."

Bai Feng smiled. "If you do not even possess the ability to manifest, then whichever path you cultivate is the same—you are destined never to become strong. Is there really such a great difference between Qianjun and Ten Thousand Stones?"

"Before it is filled, can strength and weakness be judged?"

"It can."

Bai Feng explained, "Once you reach a certain point, you can actually sense it yourself. Of course, manifested experts can observe it as well. Take you, for example. The water in your cup is currently about one-tenth full. I can sense that clearly, but you cannot yet perceive it."

"Then when will I be able to sense it?"

"When it is half full. At that point, you can sense it very clearly. That power is inside you, but you cannot use it or bring it out. We call this stage Nurturing Nature!"

Bai Feng smiled. "Nurturing Nature is not considered a realm. Of course, you may understand it as Origin Opening, Qianjun, or Ten Thousand Stones—it is all fine! This period is very difficult to endure. It nurtures your temperament. You can sense power, yet have no way to use it. Wouldn't you be anxious?"

"You clearly feel that you could duel a Ten Thousand Stones cultivator, yet a Qianjun cultivator sends you flying with one slap. Wouldn't you be anxious?"

"You get beaten by a Qianjun cultivator until your head is broken and blood flows, while your water has actually reached the mouth of the bottle. The next moment should be Soaring. Wouldn't you be furious?"

"But no matter how anxious or angry you are, it simply will not overflow. Wouldn't that enrage you?"

"Being angry is useless. At that point, many people cannot hold on. They lose control, become heartbroken, and countless numbers switch to the physical path because it is too infuriating!"

Bai Feng chuckled. "I'm really looking forward to that day—to seeing you angry yet helpless! You should know that whenever this happens, the academy does something. During your Nurturing Nature stage, students from the War Academy come to exchange... which is really just them beating you up!"

"Abusing you!"

"Humiliating you!"

"Angering you to death!"

Su Yu was dumbfounded, and Liu Yue could not help asking softly, "Teacher Bai, why would the academy do that?"

"Simple. To provoke you! Only when you can settle your heart and recognize your own essence can you hope to manifest. It is a double-edged sword. It may drive students mad, anger them to death, and make them abandon this path, but those who endure it generally have good results."

Bai Feng smiled happily. "This is the Civilization Academy's grand spectacle. After you enter, you can watch how your seniors get abused. It is miserable! What War Academy students most enjoy saying is, 'Back then, I beat up so-and-so. Now that person is a Shanhai Realm expert, while I'm only Ten Thousand Stones...'"

"'Back then, I beat that Shanhai Realm expert until they pissed their pants and rolled around, crying their eyes out...' Many people think they are bragging, but they are not. It is true."

Su Yu could not help asking, "Teacher Bai, does everyone have to go through that? Then you..."

"Me?"

Bai Feng remained composed. "I did not, because I was very strong. Even during Nurturing Nature, I was very strong."

The moment Su Yu asked, he knew he should not have. He gave an awkward smile and did not ask again.

He did not?

That seemed unlikely. Perhaps Bai Feng had been beaten until he cried too.

Still, Su Yu's eyes had been opened. The Civilization Academy actually had something like this.

"As for cultivating willpower..." Bai Feng changed the subject and continued, "Read books! Study! Of course, not ordinary books or ordinary writing. You have all learned Myriad Races Language. You know this already."

"Why learn Myriad Races Language?"

"Myriad Races Language itself is nothing special. But some Myriad Races Language carriers that record cultivation methods and martial techniques are filled with willpower. When you read them, it is a contest of wills!"

"The stronger the cultivation method and the stronger the recorder, the harder it is for you to resist. This can actually serve as a test."

"At the Civilization Academy, when you can read the original copy of a Qianjun Realm cultivation method, it means your willpower can contend against a Qianjun Realm physical cultivator. When you can read the original copy of a Soaring Realm cultivation method, it means you can manifest!"

"Reading a Ten Thousand Stones original copy roughly counts as entering the Nurturing Nature stage. It is also the beginning of that stage."

Su Yu finally understood completely. At that moment, a white bone fragment suddenly appeared in Bai Feng's hand.

"This is a book of the Myriad Races that records a Qianjun cultivation method. Of course, it is only a fragment, one page. There is no shortage of such things on the Battlefields of the Heavens, nor at the Civilization Academy. When you first enter the academy, your main task will be studying these fragments."

"You can take a look now. The fragment's power is very weak. If you can see the writing, that means you are close to having one-fifth of your cup filled."

Bai Feng had just said Su Yu only possessed one-tenth of the accumulation, yet what he gave Su Yu required one-fifth.

Su Yu did not think much of it. He accepted the white bone fragment and examined it in his hand.

Bai Feng instructed, "Look with your heart. Just focus a little."

Su Yu nodded and looked carefully, fully concentrating.

Gradually, the bone fragment changed in his eyes. It emitted a faint glow, and vague writing seemed to appear upon it.

Su Yu was curious and focused even harder, wanting to see clearly.

Boom!

At that moment, it felt as though an iron hammer had struck his head. Light burst from the bone fragment. Su Yu cried out miserably and instantly threw it down.

Bai Feng had expected it and chuckled. "Reading books also comes at a price! This is a cultivation method. This is the Civilization Academy. Do not think that going to the Civilization Academy will be like Nanyuan, where merely reading translated copies is enough. That is nothing."

"Every confrontation tempers your willpower. Of course, you cannot do it too many times a day. Once or twice is enough, otherwise you will go mad. The Civilization Academy has no shortage of madmen. Many overestimate themselves and read original copies beyond their limits, so many people go mad."

Su Yu's head felt as though it would split apart!

Tears were nearly falling from his eyes. It hurt so much!

But... after roughly ten seconds, Su Yu opened his eyes, panted, and regained his composure.

It hurt just like being killed in his dreams!

But after being killed for so many years, he had grown used to it. Only at the very beginning was the pain a little hard to bear.

Bai Feng had just been about to continue, saying that it was fine if he cried for a while—after all, it was not as though only one or two new students cried...

Yet the words reached his lips and were suddenly swallowed back down.

He glanced at Su Yu, one brow lifting slightly.

He was certain that Su Yu's willpower had only filled one-tenth of the way, yet this kid... had endured it just like that?

How was that possible!

The willpower on this bone fragment was twice as strong as Su Yu's. Su Yu should have suffered for at least half an hour.

Bai Feng blinked. Not bad!

No wonder his martial uncle thought so highly of this kid. Perhaps his talent was not overwhelmingly powerful, but his resilience was terrifyingly strong. When cultivating willpower, talent was sometimes not the key—resilience was what determined one's future.

Su Yu recovered, baring his teeth slightly as he asked, "Teacher Bai, then how strong is an ordinary person's willpower?"

"One percent!"

Suppressing his thoughts, Bai Feng smiled. "That is an ordinary person's level. It means they do not have this talent. Your talent is fairly good. As for Liu Yue... she is slightly stronger than you, around fifteen percent."

Su Yu looked a little embarrassed. So I'm not even as strong as Liu Yue.

Bai Feng smiled but did not continue. He had actually already noticed that Liu Yue had read some original cultivation-method fragments!

That was why she was stronger than Su Yu. But in truth, Su Yu would catch up very soon.

Beside them, Liu Yue did not speak either, but the look she gave Su Yu was somewhat strange.

She had seen the originals before, so she knew exactly how agonizing that first collision was when one had not grown accustomed to it.

The first time she read one, she had cried for half an hour and slept for most of the day before recovering.

And Su Yu... was this guy a beast?

No, was this guy slow to react?

Did he not feel pain?

After seeing it for the first time, she had not wanted to look a second time. She had been afraid—terrified.

Yet Su Yu... actually took the bone fragment again, his face full of longing, as though he wanted to read it once more!

Bai Feng could not help but laugh. Earlier, he had not paid much attention to either of them, but now Su Yu had caught his eye. Smiling, he said, "I'll give it to you! Look at it no more than twice a day. Don't look too often, or you won't be able to endure it. When you can truly see the words on it clearly, you'll have reached twenty percent, one step closer to the Nourishing Nature stage."

"This is only one bone fragment. The complete book has three pages. Once you finish reading them—and read them all together—you'll reach forty percent."

"When you can read the Ten Thousand Stones cultivation method, you'll have reached the Nourishing Nature stage."

Bai Feng gave the bone fragment to Su Yu. It was quite valuable, but to him, it was nothing much.

Su Yu did not know its value, but Liu Yue did, and she felt somewhat envious.

Even her family, which was considered wealthy in Nanyuan, could not buy an original bone fragment from the Xia Family Merchant Guild without spending over a hundred thousand.

The two had come together. Clearly, she was stronger, yet Bai Feng had still given it to Su Yu.

From that alone, it was clear that Bai Feng was more interested in Su Yu.