The night haze hung heavy, and starlight flickered.
A full moon hung high in the night sky, its radiance spilling down and draping the entire earth in a bright veil.
Two candle flames burned inside the Cultivation Room.
Su Fan sat cross-legged atop the Minor Spirit Gathering Array and lit a stick of Soul-Nourishing Incense.
Its elegant, delicate fragrance spread through the room. Just one breath was enough to calm the mind and focus the spirit.
Several months passed. With the help of the Minor Spirit Gathering Array and Foundation Cultivation Pills, Su Fan finally cultivated Qi Refining Fourth Layer to perfection.
These past few days, he had vaguely sensed a glimmer of an opportunity to break through.
Su Fan took a Foundation Cultivation Pill from his Storage Bag, stuffed it into his mouth, and began circulating the Primordial Chaos Technique.
The surrounding spiritual energy surged toward him in a frenzy.
The fresh aura rushing over him made Su Fan feel as though every cell in his body were cheering and leaping for joy.
As the technique circulated, the pores all over his body opened.
A cool sensation repeatedly cycled through his meridians until it gathered into a stream.
Primordial Chaos Technique +1
A message popped up before Su Fan.
He was instantly overwhelmed with excitement.
Immediately afterward, his entire body grew hot, as though he had plunged into warm water. An indescribably pleasant feeling rose from the depths of his heart.
That sensation made him feel as though he had ascended to an immortal realm, drifting blissfully above the mortal world and forgetting everything around him!
He had finally broken through!
Only after completing the technique's ninth cycle did Su Fan slowly open his eyes.
He opened the Game Panel. The data for both the Primordial Chaos Technique and his realm had already been updated.
[Realm] Qi Refining Fifth Layer: 1/100 [Technique] Primordial Chaos Technique (First Rank): 44/100
After more than seven months, he had finally broken through to Qi Refining Fifth Layer.
Although this cultivation speed still could not compare with the genius disciples of those sects, it was already quite fast.
At the very least, ordinary sect disciples could only gaze at it from far behind.
To accomplish all this, Su Fan had paid a heavy price. Damn, it had cost far too many spirit stones.
One Foundation Cultivation Pill every two days—more than five hundred spirit stones in total.
The Minor Spirit Gathering Array required eighteen spirit stones every day. All told, that came to more than three thousand spirit stones.
Even so, Su Fan felt that the spirit stones had been well spent.
That was because after breaking through to Qi Refining Fifth Layer, each subsequent advancement would take even longer.
Once he reached Late Qi Refining, it would be even more outrageous—every step would be a climb into the heavens.
Moreover, with every step forward, the cultivation resources and spirit stones required would rise geometrically.
Su Fan rose to his feet and went outside the room.
At that moment, moonlight had washed the small courtyard until it gleamed white, suffused with a tranquility far removed from the mortal world.
He took out the Jade Slip Ye Tianhe had given him, pressed it to his forehead, then closed his eyes and began studying it carefully.
Only after quite some time did Su Fan open his eyes.
He had to admit, Old Ye was truly damn generous.
What was recorded in this Jade Slip was an invaluable treasure that no amount of spirit stones could buy.
After continuously studying and pondering it these past few days, Su Fan's understanding of the sword path had deepened considerably.
Moreover, his ability to control magical artifacts had also improved greatly.
Originally, the way he controlled magical artifacts had been extremely monotonous and rigid,
but now, when Su Fan controlled the "Shadowless Needle" to attack, its strikes were increasingly fierce.
The "Shadowless Needle" had always followed a sinister and secretive path, emphasizing curved trajectories to kill enemies.
Borrowing the methods sword cultivators used to control flying swords not only greatly increased its power, but also added a strange, keen edge.
He took a magic sword from his Storage Bag and began practicing Nine Extremes Consecutive Slashes in the courtyard.
His swordsmanship was now worlds apart from before.
Originally, he had relied only on his formidable physique, using brute force to work miracles and hacking wildly with no technique at all.
Now, every slash was smooth and natural, as though formed by Heaven itself, faintly carrying an inexplicable might.
Su Fan did not know how many times he practiced in the small courtyard.
As one proficiency increase after another kept appearing, it felt more and more right.
After performing the nine consecutive slashes once more, Su Fan sheathed his sword and stood still.
He was drenched in sweat and puffing heavily.
It took quite a while for his strength to recover.
The magic sword in his hand trembled faintly. He bent his knees and stretched his arm, then suddenly swept out with a sword.
As that sword swept forth, a wild gale seemed to rise from flat ground.
"Whirlwind Slash..."
His body spun violently, and a fierce Sword Momentum howled outward. A terrifying storm rolled through the entire small courtyard!
"Headwind Slash..."
A fierce and savage slash stirred up endless murderous winds. Wherever it passed, not a blade of grass remained!
"Sacrificial Slash..."
The sword fell as though he were on a battlefield, casting himself into a dead end to survive. Once the sword was drawn, there was no regret and no room left to hold back!
"Tidal Slash..."
The air around him seemed to transform into an unending, surging torrent, gathering into vast rivers before erupting with a thunderous roar!
"Ghost Wheel Slash..."
It carried a killing intent that seized the soul and ensnared the spirit, like Ghost Qi from the netherworld, bearing the winds of hell!
"Void Slash..."
It seemed like an invisible, intangible fluctuation. Visible ripples shimmered through the air as one sword split the void!
"Limitless Slash..."
Sword Qi surged vast and mighty, ripping apart the sky. Gods in the way were slain; Buddhas in the way were slaughtered!
"Ruthless Slash..."
One man and one sword, advancing with sword in hand—slashing others and himself alike, cutting down every mortal enemy beneath the heavens!
"Rage Slash..."
The small courtyard instantly filled with an immensely sorrowful and furious aura. Sword Momentum brimming with boundless sharpness crashed down in a single slash.
As the final move ended, tranquility returned to the small courtyard.
Su Fan could barely hold on to the magic sword with both hands. He was drenched in sweat, his body swaying so badly that he could hardly remain standing.
Not only that, his Spiritual Sense had also been consumed enormously.
He dropped the magic sword, lay down on the ground, and gasped for breath.
At that moment, a vast amount of information surged into his mind, all of it insights and experiences regarding Nine Extremes Consecutive Slashes.
Su Fan opened the Game Panel, a smile appearing on his face.
Nine Extremes Consecutive Slashes (Forming Momentum): 1/1600
After practicing for so long, his swordsmanship had finally advanced.
The realm after Microscopic Realm on the panel was actually Forming Momentum.
Just now, he had unleashed nine consecutive sword strikes, and every slash had carried an astonishing aura.
Compared with the Microscopic Realm, its power had increased several times over.
It was as though a door had opened, allowing him to glimpse an entirely new world he had never seen before.
Every slash had let him experience an unprecedented exhilaration.
It really did feel incredible—but it consumed far too much physical strength and Spiritual Sense.
He had only managed to force out those nine consecutive swords. By now, all his strength had been exhausted.
Su Fan knew very well that he had not actually grasped the true essence of Sword Momentum.
What he had mastered was merely the tip of the iceberg.
Now that his swordsmanship had broken through into the Forming Momentum realm, he had plenty of practice ahead of him.
If he could eventually raise all his spells and divine abilities to the Forming Momentum realm...
"Then that would be damn impressive..."
Next, he needed to raise the divine ability Lightning Ghost Step, combining it with Nine Extremes Consecutive Slashes in the Forming Momentum realm.
In future battles, as long as he managed to get close, he would dare test himself even against someone at Late Qi Refining.
Su Fan lay on the ground for a long while, but his strength still did not recover.
His head was also groggy, and he could not summon any energy.
He could not keep forcing himself like this. From now on, he would practice one sword at a time.
Su Fan struggled to climb up from the ground, staggered into the room, collapsed onto the bed, and soon fell into a deep sleep.
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