Great Accomplishment

Seventeenth Branch,

In the open space of the Inner Residence,

Zhang Qingyuan was testing the power of the Magic Tool he had bought at great cost.

Clang!

The longsword left its sheath. The wind trembled, Sword Light flashed repeatedly, and the razor-sharp Sword Qi filled the surrounding space with a deep, killing chill!

Each sword strike reflected the cold sky.

Fallen leaves whirled up,

His figure flickered, his body like a roaming dragon. Silver Shadow in his palm seemed to transform into a Flood Dragon, twisting through the air,

Shattering the leaves into Fragments in an instant!

The Sword Qi did not lose momentum afterward. It swept horizontally in a flash, carving a deep Sword Mark into a tree not far away.

His figure abruptly came to a stop,

The wind settled,

Looking At the Silver Shadow Magic Tool in his hand,

Zhang Qingyuan could not help but reveal a faint smile.

"Good! Those forty Spirit Stones were well spent!"

A Magic Tool was, After All, a Magic Tool.

As Spirit Essence circulated,

There was none of the obstruction he had felt when practicing martial arts with a Standard Longsword before.

Even his speed in cultivating the Cloud Water Thirteen Sword Styles had increased considerably.

[You diligently cultivate the Cloud Water Thirteen Sword Styles. You have become more familiar with the Cloud Water Thirteen Sword Styles. Your Cloud Water Thirteen Sword Styles proficiency +1]

During the earlier practice,

He had gained one point of proficiency after practicing it only once.

If he could maintain this momentum,

Then he would soon cultivate the Cloud Water Thirteen Sword Styles to Great Accomplishment!

The reason for this,

Zhang Qingyuan knew,

Was that Magic Tools were forged from Spirit Materials, so they did not hinder the flow of Spirit Essence like the ordinary weapons he had used in the past.

The smooth use of Spirit Essence naturally brought the sword techniques into greater harmony with himself.

And Silver Shadow's benefits,

Did not end there.

"The fourth layer of the Water Essence Art can actually draw out the cold aura within Silver Shadow. Combined with the gentle yet unbroken Spirit Essence of the fourth-layer Water Essence Art, its power is simply immense!"

"If someone fights me and we fall into a stalemate, the Spirit Essence produced by the fourth-layer Water Essence Art already possesses the qualities of softness and resilience. Add this chill to it, and the longer the battle goes on, the more gentle, resilient Water Essence Art Spirit Essence seeps into the enemy's body. The more chill it carries, the more it can disrupt and slow them."

"Once we become entangled in battle, the later it goes, the greater my advantage!"

Zhang Qingyuan carefully examined the cut his sword had made in the tree beside him.

On that cut,

A faint, inconspicuous chill lingered and spread.

It was an aura carrying a wisp of cold from the Spirit Essence of the Water Essence Art.

There was no ice,

Nothing unusual could be seen from the outside.

Only by touching around the wound could one feel that slight coolness, different from the surrounding areas.

But this was precisely what made it suitable.

If it were ice,

The opponent would sense this unusual attribute attack after a single exchange, making them wary and guarded.

But this wisp of chill,

After being layered with Zhang Qingyuan's fourth-layer Water Essence Art, that unbroken softness, that Spirit Essence resilient as silk, would seep Little by little into the enemy's body during battle, silently layering upon itself without the slightest sound.

Because in the midst of fierce combat, such a tiny force would not attract attention at all.

By the time the opponent realized it,

The gentle, resilient True Essence of the Water Essence Art, together with its chill, would already have accumulated to the point of causing the enemy great trouble.

"Very good. With this Trump Card, perhaps I can strive for a higher ranking in the Outer Sect Grand Competition half a year from now and enter the Inner Sect!"

Compared to before he had broken through to the Spirit Essence Realm Seventh Level a month ago,

Zhang Qingyuan's strength

Had increased by at least more than double!

With the power of the fourth layer of the Water Essence Art and Silver Shadow's strength, Zhang Qingyuan now even had the confidence to face somewhat weaker cultivators at the Spirit Essence Realm Seventh Level Late Stage!

And half a year later,

Before the Outer Sect Grand Competition, his Cultivation Realm would certainly improve again. Combined with his Martial Skill cultivation and other aspects, it might not be impossible for him to face cultivators at the Eighth Layer of Spirit Essence Realm by then.

If he could raise his Combat Power to the Eighth Layer of Spirit Essence Realm by then, he would have at least a thirty percent chance of successfully advancing in the Outer Sect Grand Competition!

Compared to the faint chance he had before,

Zhang Qingyuan felt that

The road ahead had become brighter than ever before.

Thus,

In the time that followed,

Zhang Qingyuan devoted all his time to cultivation.

On one hand, he diligently practiced the Cloud Water Thirteen Sword Styles, allowing his own strength to harmonize with Silver Shadow's power.

On the other, he continued meditating and cultivating, tempering the Spirit Essence from the fourth layer of the Water Essence Art Inside the Body. At the same time, he used the remaining two Spirit Stones to aid his cultivation, steadily consolidating and raising his realm.

After Half a Month of effort,

The Cloud Water Thirteen Sword Styles

Finally reached Great Accomplishment, becoming the Martial Skill with the highest attack power on Zhang Qingyuan's Proficiency Panel.

At the same time,

After digesting the Spirit Materials he had eaten at the Hu Family banquet, as well as consuming two Spirit Stones in meditation and cultivation over the following Half a Month, his Spirit Essence Realm Seventh Level cultivation improved once more,

Reaching the peak of the Spirit Essence Realm Seventh Level Early Stage.

Name: Zhang Qingyuan

Realm: Spirit Essence Realm Seventh Level Early Stage Peak

Cultivation Method:

Water Essence Art: (Fourth Layer: 11/10000(+12))

Techniques:

Spring Breeze Fine Rain Technique: (Third Layer: 887/1000(+2))

Light Body Technique: (Third Layer: 11/1000(+1))

Growth Induction Technique: (Second Layer: 91/100)

Spring Return Technique: (Second Layer: 49/100)

Manifestation Tracing Technique: (Second Layer: 3/100)

Martial Skills:

Nine Refinements Bone Forging Fist: (Great Accomplishment: 729/1000(+3))

Cloud Smoke Steps: (Minor Accomplishment: 4/100(+2))

Cloud Water Thirteen Sword Styles: (Great Accomplishment: 13/1000(+81))

After Half a Month of cultivation,

Every technique and Martial Skill had improved somewhat.

Among them, the one that had improved the most

Was naturally the Cloud Water Thirteen Sword Styles, which he had been relentlessly practicing. It had directly broken through Minor Accomplishment and entered the realm of Great Accomplishment.

In this,

The Proficiency Panel's assistance in displaying his own progress was extremely significant.

Looking At the "proficiency +1, +1" markings on the panel,

Progress visible to the naked eye

Was precisely the motivation that allowed Zhang Qingyuan to persist through such dull, repetitive training without giving up.

For anyone else,

They would likely cultivate enthusiastically for the first two days, then see no obvious Harvest on the third day and begin to slack off, unable to persist any longer.

After Half a Month of cultivation,

His strength improved once again.

Meanwhile, Hu Junshan, whom he had brought back earlier, had remained obediently at the Inner Residence, helping manage its various affairs with the diligence of a servant.

Moreover,

Around the residence, Hu Junshan had opened up a patch of barren Spirit Field according to Zhang Qingyuan's wishes, planting the Spirit Grain seeds obtained from the task of hunting Spirit Devouring Rats in Azure Mountain Town.

Of course,

Although the residence lay within the range of the Micro Spirit Vein inside the Seventeenth Branch, where Spiritual energy was denser than in the Outside world, allowing the land around the residence to be reclaimed as a barren Spirit Field for planting Spirit Grain,

If he wanted to avoid reduced yields, Zhang Qingyuan would still need to frequently use the Spring Breeze Fine Rain Technique to gather Spiritual energy for the Spirit Field.

But that was no problem.

In any case, Zhang Qingyuan had already decided not to accept tasks from Zones C and D. He could simply treat it as practicing the Spring Breeze Fine Rain Technique and raising that technique's proficiency.

Zhang Qingyuan was satisfied with Hu Junshan's work.

Whenever he grew tired from cultivation and had some spare time,

He would also offer Hu Junshan some guidance in cultivation.

This greatly improved Hu Junshan's cultivation.