Zhang Yuan's voice rang out so abruptly that every gaze snapped toward him.
Some students looked startled and doubtful. More were simply stunned, at a loss for what he meant.
"Sword intent? What's sword intent?"
Most of the students looked puzzled.
The term sounded vaguely familiar, yet strange, as though they had heard it somewhere before.
But Fang Yuan and the other well-connected students from major lineages, who had seen more of the world, changed expression and frowned.
Sword intent?
In theory, the highest level of mastery in a martial technique was perfection.
With Extreme Shadow Swordplay, for instance, reaching the Extreme Shadow level was what everyone recognized as perfection.
But there was one exception!
One could grasp a technique's true essence, rivaling or even surpassing its creator, and comprehend its innermost heart—its intent!
That was a realm above perfection!
Yet even among ten people who had perfected a martial technique, there might not be one who could grasp its true intent!
It tested not only a Martial Artist's talent for martial techniques, but also whether the Martial Artist's nature matched the technique itself!
An old man nearing the end of his life, for example, would find it nearly impossible to grasp the true intent of a technique that demanded a surging, impassioned spirit.
Perfection was the form; above it lay intent!
Extreme Shadow Swordplay had no rank, but learning it was no easier than learning many first-rank techniques. Rumor held that its creator was a Mid Blood Nourishing Martial Artist whose entire family had been slaughtered as sacrifices by a Blood Nourishing Peak Martial Artist of the Heavenly Demon Cult. He had hidden in the forest for half a month, all for one Extreme Shadow strike!
In the end, one stroke of his sword had taken his enemy's head!
The true intent of his swordplay was an Extreme Concealment Strike of absolute resolve!
Principal Sun Rui looked surprised, but nodded. "Of course it counts."
Seeing the confusion on the students' faces, he explained what sword intent was and how difficult it was to attain.
At once, every student understood, but their doubts only grew.
Extreme Shadow Sword Intent after just one month?!
How was that possible? Who?!
That chubby kid right there?!
Baffled, everyone looked at Zhang Yuan.
Zhang Yuan did not drag out the mystery. With so many eyes on him, cold sweat had broken out down his back, and he was a little nervous. Even so, he gave Wan Yue a mocking sneer.
That'll teach you to mock me, you bastard! Let's see whose face gets slapped raw in a minute!
Why the hell is that fat bastard looking at me?!
Wan Yue's heart lurched. He remembered mocking Zhang Yuan in the group chat a few days ago, and a suspicion flashed through his mind. A shiver ran through him.
No way?!
Zhang Yuan shrugged and pointed at Su Ye with a chuckle.
"I'm asking for my Brother Ye, not myself."
Whoosh!
Every gaze swung toward Su Ye. The crowd stared in stunned disbelief!
Extreme Shadow Sword Intent?!
Even Ye Xingli, who had already stepped forward, paused midstep. Her beautiful eyes shone with wonder as she looked at the handsome student.
Su Ye gave Zhang Yuan a helpless look, though there was no reproach in it.
Now I really am in the spotlight!
But... what's wrong with a little attention?
The corners of Su Ye's mouth lifted. He turned to Yao Hong, who was also staring blankly, and said, "May I borrow your wooden sword? Thanks."
"Sure." Yao Hong blinked, then smiled and handed him the wooden sword.
Su Ye gripped the wooden sword.
In the next instant, his sword rose!
The martial path was a struggle!
If he stepped onto it only to cower, what was the point of training?!
Su Ye practiced martial arts to reach their summit, to contend with everyone of his age and level!
The moment his sword moved, everyone sensed something different!
It was unlike any demonstration of Extreme Shadow Swordplay the other students had given. It was... intent!
They felt as though they could sense that patient, decisive Extreme Assault Strike!
Killing intent burst forth like a sword leaving its sheath, erupting in a single instant as the blade slashed with unstoppable force!
A sword trail crossed the air, yet the sound of it cutting through the wind came from farther ahead.
That strike seemed to break the sound barrier. It truly was "Extreme Shadow"!
It was faster even than its own shadow!
Even the homeroom teachers, one after another, lost themselves for a moment as they watched Su Ye's sword!
Extreme Shadow!
True Extreme Shadow Sword Intent!
This was a stage beyond perfection!
Even among the seasoned homeroom teachers present, all of whom had reached the Blood Nourishing Realm, fewer than ten had mastered sword intent!
And who were they?
Which of the homeroom teachers at First High School had not graduated from a top school?
They had decades of teaching experience, had reached the Blood Nourishing Realm, and were among society's elite!
Su Ye, meanwhile, was only a senior in high school who had trained for a month!
A student who had only just turned eighteen!
The students who had yet to even begin mastering Extreme Shadow Swordplay did not know how to judge it.
But one look at the teachers and the top students told them enough: Su Ye really had developed Extreme Shadow Sword Intent!
The entire hall fell silent!
The students wore all manner of expressions. For a few of them, their feelings were especially tangled!
Wan Yue wanted nothing more than to be an ostrich, burying his head against the blue flooring and never raising it again. Regret gnawed at him!
When Zhang Yuan had said in the group chat that Su Ye had reached the Extreme Shadow level, Wan Yue had been the first to jump in and mock him, asking if he had a fever.
But Su Ye had done far more than reach the Extreme Shadow level. He had comprehended Extreme Shadow Sword Intent!
Even among ten Martial Artists who reached the Extreme Shadow level, there might not be one who could comprehend its sword intent!
Now Wan Yue looked like a clown!
And what about all the times he had sneered at Su Ye outside school?!
Ten Martial Bones, and a punch exceeding a thousand kilograms!
He had perfected Azure Cloud and earned full marks!
With Extreme Shadow Swordplay, he had grasped its true intent!
Su Ye might have no backing and come from an ordinary family, while Wan Yue enjoyed a privileged upbringing, with a father who managed the Pill Immortal Pavilion and a family fortune worth tens of millions.
But with talent like Su Ye's, how could his future be anything but bright?
Powerful figures would surely take notice and invest in him. He was unquestionably one of the school's candidates for the Five Top Academies this year!
Wan Yue wished he could slap himself, swallow a pill to cure regret, and take back every taunt he had thrown at Su Ye outside school.
Fang Yuan, too, stood dazed. For the first time, discouragement welled up in his heart!
The wooden practice sword Lin Qingyue had been holding fell to the floor with a clatter!
A few sweat-damp strands of hair hung loose around her face. Disbelief filled her expression!
Extreme Shadow Sword Intent?!
How? Su Ye was the one I'd looked down on, the one I'd broken off my engagement to so I could marry someone else. How had he comprehended Extreme Shadow Sword Intent?!
How could he outshine even me?!
Every eye in the hall was fixed on Su Ye!
"His Martial Bones, Breathing Technique, and martial technique—all three have stood out in these tests!"
"He tied for full marks in Breathing Technique, and he's unquestionably first in martial technique! Even with his Martial Bones, though he has one fewer than those two exceptionally gifted girls, his Foundation is stronger, and he set a record with a punch exceeding a thousand kilograms!"
When the students thought of Su Ye's performance, their minds reeled and their feelings tangled beyond words!
Only one word remained in their minds: Prodigy!
A Prodigy had emerged from their year!
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