Sparring

Zhang Tie had just collected his cultivation resources from the External Affairs Hall and was now standing before his master's cave abode. He had already called out three times, "Disciple Zhang Tie pays respects to Master," and now waited quietly for a response from within. Suddenly, a passage appeared inside the cave abode, and the stone door at its end slowly opened.

Without hesitation, Zhang Tie stepped straight inside. Though it was not his first time seeing the many Spirit Stones embedded in the cave walls, he still could not help feeling envious. Before long, he entered the main hall and immediately saw True Man Miao seated calmly in a chair ahead.

Zhang Tie hurriedly clasped his fists and bowed. "Disciple Zhang Tie pays respects to Master!"

"Rise." True Man Miao spoke calmly. "How has your cultivation progressed? I see that your Qi Refining cultivation has vanished. Could it be that you practice some technique for concealing your cultivation?"

"By luck, this disciple's body cultivation has reached the Meridian Casting mid-stage. This disciple has not cultivated any concealment technique. Something merely went wrong during cultivation, causing my cultivation to disperse temporarily. As long as I have sufficient Spirit Stones and pills, I can recover within one or two months," Zhang Tie answered respectfully.

True Man Miao's face brightened. "Not bad, not bad. As expected of someone with Profound tier body cultivation aptitude. Our chances in the Secret Realm Grand Competition have improved further. Did you come here because you encountered some difficulty?"

"Master, my body cultivation seems to have reached a bottleneck, and my cultivation speed is far worse than before. Therefore, this disciple wishes to first recover my cultivation at the ninth layer of Qi Refining as soon as possible. However, I lack Spirit Stones and pills. Relying solely on absorbing the Spiritual Qi of heaven and earth is simply too slow."

"Here are some Low-grade Spirit Stones and low-tier pills. Keep them and use them. Recover your cultivation quickly. There are still two years left, so you should focus more of your efforts on body cultivation." As True Man Miao spoke, he tossed out a Storage Pouch, which flew into Zhang Tie's hands.

"Thank you, Master. This disciple will certainly not disappoint Master's guidance. Then this disciple shall take his leave." Zhang Tie bowed again in thanks. True Man Miao waved a hand, and Zhang Tie withdrew from the cave abode and returned to his own.

Back in his cave abode, Zhang Tie eagerly opened the Storage Pouch. It actually contained twenty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones and fifteen bottles of Pure Yang Pills. Fifteen bottles of Pure Yang Pills was not much; Core Formation cultivators presumably rarely kept such low-tier pills, since they were of little use to them. But the number of Low-grade Spirit Stones truly astonished Zhang Tie. It was his first time seeing so many.

These Spirit Stones should be enough to charge the Undying Pearl three times, right? Still, the more the better. Should I ask a few senior brothers and sisters for help?

No sooner thought than done. Zhang Tie immediately took out the communication talismans of his six senior brothers and sisters, explained separately that he wished to borrow Spirit Stones, and sent them out. Not long after, he received replies from Second Senior Brother, Third Senior Sister, and Fourth Senior Brother. The others had yet to respond.

Zhang Tie did not wait any longer. He left his cave abode, leaped into the air, and headed toward Fourth Senior Brother Lei Hu's cave abode, since it was the closest.

The moment Zhang Tie landed, before he could even call toward the cave abode, the door to Fourth Senior Brother's cave abode slowly opened.

"Hahaha, Junior Brother, I was just idling around when I received your message. I have Spirit Stones, but you'll have to defeat me first." The voice came from within before its owner appeared. Then a powerfully built man emerged from the cave abode. It was Fourth Senior Brother Lei Hu.

"Fourth Senior Brother must be joking. How could I possibly be your opponent?" Zhang Tie clasped his fists and bowed. "But if Senior Brother is willing to offer this junior brother some pointers, that would be fine too."

"Haha, good. I like straightforward people like you. I won't bully you either. If you can exchange moves with me for longer than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, I'll lend you five thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones. How about it?" Senior Brother Lei said.

"Then I ask Senior Brother for guidance," Zhang Tie said with clasped fists.

The two smiled at each other and headed together into the forest at the foot of the mountain. The moment they steadied themselves, Senior Brother Lei attacked first. With a swing of his Thunder Sword, a thick bolt of lightning tore through the air with crackling force and shot straight toward Zhang Tie. Wherever the lightning passed, the surrounding trees instantly turned charred black. Yet Zhang Tie neither dodged nor evaded. Perfect. I can test the strength of my body. With a fierce shout, the muscles across his body bulged, and he actually took the lightning head-on with his bare body. Countless electric arcs burst across him as the lightning struck, but his body only trembled slightly before he regained his footing.

Seeing this, Senior Brother Lei changed his sword stance and muttered an incantation. Countless bolts of lightning intertwined before him, forming a massive Thunder Net that descended upon Zhang Tie. Let's see how you escape the restraints of this Thunder Net, Senior Brother Lei thought.

Zhang Tie's expression turned grave, and his heart tightened. This Thunder Net is formidable. I can't take it head-on. He stamped hard against the ground and shot toward Senior Brother Lei like a cannonball. Before the net could fall, he intended to get close.

Just as Zhang Tie was about to reach Senior Brother Lei, a fierce glint flashed through Senior Brother Lei's eyes. He thrust his Thunder Sword forward, and a sharp bolt of lightning sword qi howled forth. Zhang Tie twisted aside to evade it, but the sword qi still left a shallow wound on his shoulder.

"Senior Brother Lei, you can't hurt me!" he said with a grin. His speed increased again, and in the blink of an eye, he arrived before Senior Brother Lei and threw a heavy punch. Senior Brother Lei hurriedly raised his sword to block. Bang! With a thunderous crash, Senior Brother Lei was forced back several steps. This guy's strength is incredible, Senior Brother Lei thought in alarm.

Senior Brother Lei steadied himself and rapidly formed hand seals with both hands, casting the Thunder Explosion Spell! In an instant, the power of lightning in the surroundings gathered madly into a massive thunderball that blasted toward Zhang Tie.

Wherever the thunderball passed, rocks shattered and dust billowed into the air. Feeling its immense power, Zhang Tie did not dare lower his guard. He fully circulated the blood and qi within his body, gathering it all into his right arm in an instant.

The thunderball collided with Zhang Tie's right fist, producing an ear-splitting explosion. Smoke filled the air as both sides were hurled several yards back.

Seizing the opportunity, Senior Brother Lei cast the Spell Myriad Thunderbolts once more. Countless tiny bolts of lightning fell like raindrops, covering the entire battlefield. Gale winds swept the lightning about, turning the area into a Sea of Thunder.

Under the dense barrage of lightning, Zhang Tie was struck from time to time, but he continued to dodge and steadily close in on Senior Brother Lei.

Senior Brother Lei frowned tightly. Forming a hand seal with one hand, he tapped his flying sword. A wild dragon formed from purple lightning flew out of the Thunder Sword, baring its fangs and claws as it lunged at Zhang Tie. Zhang Tie had just reached Senior Brother Lei. With a roar, he threw both fists forward and met the purple lightning dragon head-on.

Immediately afterward, Senior Brother Lei retreated while forming another hand seal. Centered on him, a Sea of Thunder appeared from thin air. Countless bolts of lightning wove together into cage after cage, attempting to trap Zhang Tie and prevent him from getting close.

Zhang Tie charged left and right, yet he found it difficult to break free of the lightning prison's restraints. He could only stomp hard against the ground and retreat in an instant, withdrawing beyond the Sea of Thunder's range.

Senior Brother Lei was in no hurry when Zhang Tie left the Sea of Thunder. He threw out his flying sword and formed hand seals with both hands. The flying sword streaked toward Zhang Tie with purple electric arcs. Zhang Tie instantly gathered the power of his blood and qi into both fists and struck the flying sword again and again with bang, bang, bang, bang, locking them in a stalemate.

It looked as though Senior Brother Lei was effortlessly suppressing Zhang Tie by controlling his flying sword, but only Senior Brother Lei himself knew that he was using a low-grade spirit treasure, and one of the lightning attribute at that. Yet Zhang Tie could actually confront a low-grade spirit treasure barehanded. If Zhang Tie landed even one punch on him, he would be severely injured if not dead. At that moment, Senior Brother Lei knew that he had no way to deal with this junior brother of his.

Zhang Tie was not having an easy time either. Though he could repeatedly knock back the flying sword, electric arcs entered his body every time. The effect was minor, but as time passed, he discovered that the speed at which he could mobilize his blood and qi had slowed. It was not obvious, but it had indeed slowed. The power of lightning seemed to hinder the circulation of blood and qi.

Just as Zhang Tie was thinking this, the flying sword suddenly flew back and instantly returned to Senior Brother Lei's Storage Pouch.

"Junior Brother, your strength is impressive. Today's fight was very satisfying. I'll lend you the Spirit Stones. Take them." Senior Brother Lei suddenly spoke, then tossed over a Storage Pouch. Zhang Tie caught it and put it away.

"Thank you, Senior Brother Lei. And thank you even more for today's guidance. Then I'll head back first." After speaking, Zhang Tie turned and prepared to leave.

At that moment, a stream of icy qi suddenly shot in from their left. Zhang Tie inwardly cried out in alarm and swiftly gathered all the blood and qi in his body into his legs. With a whoosh, he lunged toward Senior Brother Lei and shouted, "Watch out, Senior Brother Lei!"