Yun Qianyue's Invitation

One month later.

Inside the quiet room, the doors and windows were shut tight.

"Dong! Dong! Dong!"

These were sounds emanating from Qin Jue's body, one after another, like muffled thunder rolling deep within the clouds, causing the surrounding tables and chairs to tremble slightly.

Five Viscera Thunder Sound!

Over the past month, he had consumed the three bottles of fifty-year-old Stone Bell Milk in batches. Using its immense medicinal power, he had circulated the Nine Revolutions Viscera Refining Secret Record day and night.

"Hoo—hiss—"

As Qin Jue's chest and abdomen rose and fell with a distinct rhythm, the muffled thunderous sounds grew more frequent.

The medicinal power within his body was being frantically compressed, all converging in his kidneys.

The kidneys govern the bones and generate marrow.

His two kidneys were like two erupting volcanoes, continuously producing pure kidney qi that transformed into surging streams of heat. These streams flowed upwards along the great dragon of his spine, pouring into all two hundred and six bones of his body.

"Crack… Crack…"

Nourished by the massive amounts of kidney qi and the essence of the Stone Bell Milk, the faint golden patterns on the surface of his bones grew deeper. In the depths of his bone marrow, old blood was continuously expelled, and newly generated blood, thick as mercury, contained astonishing vitality and explosive power.

Nine Revolutions Viscera Refining Secret Record, Fourth Revolution Great Accomplishment!

Qin Jue's tightly shut eyes suddenly snapped open, a cold flash cutting through the quiet room.

He slowly withdrew his energy. The thunderous rumbling within his body gradually subsided, and the dark red hue on his skin faded, returning to its normal complexion. However, his skin now appeared more refined and resilient.

"So this is the Great Accomplishment of the Fourth Revolution…"

He stood up and casually stretched his limbs.

"Crackling!"

His joints popped instantly. Qin Jue clenched his fists, feeling the power surging through his palms.

"Peak of Hundred Refinements Fourth Layer, just one step away from Bone Penetrating Force. The fifty-year-old Stone Bell Milk is truly potent. Not only did it help me completely solidify my Jade Bone foundation, but it also pushed the Nine Revolutions Viscera Refining Secret Record to the Great Accomplishment of the Fourth Revolution. With my current physical strength alone, I can crush ordinary martial artists at the Hundred Refinements Fifth Layer."

Qin Jue looked at the empty jade bottle in his hand, a slight frown on his face.

"However, Stone Bell Milk is not a Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure like Earth Vein Stone Marrow. Excessive consumption will lead to a superficial foundation."

Resources are important, but the process of digestion is even more crucial. It's like eating; eating too quickly or too much will only spoil your appetite. He needed time, through actual combat and arduous training, to thoroughly refine the medicinal power into his bone marrow and make it his own. If the foundation is unstable, the higher the tower is built, the faster it will collapse. He understood this principle better than anyone.

"It's a pity that Earth Vein Stone Marrow, such a Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure, is rare and hard to come by. If I had a few drops, I could attempt to break through to the Fifth Layer," Qin Jue mused. "To break through to the Fifth Layer through pure hard training alone would likely still take some time."

Just then.

"Dong! Dong! Dong!"

A series of urgent knocks suddenly came from outside the door.

Qin Jue frowned slightly and asked calmly, "Who is it?"

Outside the door stood a young girl in a moon-white dress. She was pretty, but there was an innate arrogance in her expression. This was Yun Qianyue's personal maid.

The maid looked at the simple courtyard before her, disdain flashing in her eyes.

This is the residence of the Qin Jue who defeated Ning Zhiyuan? How shabby.

"Young Master Qin, my mistress, Yun Qianyue, invites Junior Brother Qin to the Listening Tide Pavilion for a sword discussion," the maid said haughtily, her tone matter-of-fact, as if it were a great honor for Qin Jue to receive an invitation from Yun Qianyue.

Hearing this, Qin Jue's frown deepened.

Yun Qianyue?

The image of the white-clothed girl he had glimpsed at Silver Moon Bay flashed in his mind. Seventh on the Outer Prefecture battle rankings, a direct descendant of the Yun family.

However, Qin Jue was not in the mood to deal with such matters right now.

This was a critical juncture in his cultivation. How could he afford to be distracted by a so-called sword discussion?

"No time," his voice was calm, with a hint of impatience.

The maid was stunned.

She never dreamed that Qin Jue would actually refuse! She had expected that upon hearing Yun Qianyue's name, the young man in the room would immediately be overwhelmed with flattery and welcome her. After all, who was Yun Qianyue? She was a proud daughter of heaven, seventh on the Outer Prefecture battle rankings of Qingcang Academy, a pearl of the Yun family's direct line! Countless young talents in the entire Skywind Martial City wished for an audience with her but could not obtain it.

Suppressing her anger, she raised her voice slightly, "Didn't you hear clearly? It's my mistress, Yun Qianyue! She values your swordsmanship and is giving you this special opportunity. Do you know how many people in the Outer Prefecture are begging for a chance to meet my mistress?"

However, the voice from inside the room became even more impatient.

"I don't care if you're Yun Qianyue or Shui Qianyue. I am in seclusion and have no time. Go back and tell your mistress that I, Qin, have no interest in drinking tea. If she wishes to discuss swords, we will meet at the grand competition."

"You..."

The maid outside the door was rendered speechless by his words. Having served Yun Qianyue for many years, she had seen countless young talents fawning over her mistress. When had she ever encountered someone so unyielding, so "unromantic"?

In seclusion? No time?

Is he treating my mistress's invitation as a mere disturbance to his cultivation?

"Fine! A fine 'no time'!" The maid stomped her foot in anger. "I hope you can still maintain this stubbornness at the Outer Prefecture Grand Competition! If you lose too badly then, don't blame my mistress for not giving you an opportunity!"

Inside the house, Qin Jue had already closed his eyes again.

To him, this was merely a minor interlude. Yun Qianyue? Outer Prefecture's seventh? So what.

On the path of martial arts, only personal strength is fundamental. Rather than attending those insincere tea parties and listening to a group of people praise each other, it's more practical to practice sword techniques a couple more times.

"Women only slow down my sword-drawing speed."

Qin Jue remained silent, then circulated the Nine Revolutions Viscera Refining Secret Record again, immersing himself in cultivation.

Three days later, early morning.

Deep within a rarely visited purple bamboo forest behind Qingcang Academy's back mountain.

The terrain here was treacherous, perpetually shrouded in a faint mist. Because the spiritual energy was no more concentrated than in the training rooms, and the terrain was complex, very few disciples were willing to suffer here.

But for Qin Jue, this was an excellent place to practice his sword.

"Swish! Swish! Swish!"

Sword light spread through the bamboo forest like mercury spilling onto the ground.

Qin Jue, holding his Cold Iron Sword, weaved through the strange rocks like a phantom. His sword strikes weren't fast; each thrust was heavy as a thousand pounds, and the trembling tip of the blade created violent ripples in the surrounding air.

This was the third stance of the Tide Rising Sword Technique—the Tidal Stance.

It wasn't purely offensive, nor was it rigid defense. It was a "momentum." Like the ebb and flow of tides, ceaseless, it swallowed and dissolved the opponent's force, then returned it twofold.

"It seems the medicinal effects of the Stone Bell Milk have been absorbed by seventy percent," Qin Jue said, sheathing his sword and standing still. He looked at a wisp of cold light on the blade that didn't dissipate, lost in thought.

Now, combined with his swordsmanship, ordinary Hundred Refinements Sixth Layer martial artists were no longer a match for him. Coupled with the Void Clarity Sword Heart's insight into weaknesses, if he faced Ning Zhiyuan again, he was confident he could slay him within a single move.

"Clap, clap, clap."

A round of crisp applause came from behind the bamboo grove not far away.

Qin Jue spun around abruptly. As the morning mist dispersed, a slender figure walked out slowly. Her skin was like snow, and strands of hair fell beside her cheeks. It was a beauty of extreme coldness, like a snow lotus on a high mountain.