South Capital

With his Qi and Blood past one hundred thousand, Ye Qiu had truly set foot on the path of a Body Cultivator!

Ye Qiu smiled and strode out of the Cultivation Tower.

He moved swiftly through the night.

He did not go home.

Instead, he went to Wen Zheng's courtyard.

When he entered, Wen Zheng was sitting alone at the Stone Table, drinking tea.

Ye Qiu walked over. Wen Zheng smiled. "Come, try this tea. It's expensive."

Ye Qiu took a sip. It really was good.

He looked at Wen Zheng. "Grandpa, I'm leaving tomorrow."

Wen Zheng stared at him.

Emotion stirred in his eyes.

Ye Qiu had been by his side for ten years now!

"Go on. This place was never somewhere you could stay for long," Wen Zheng said meaningfully.

With Ye Qiu's talent, keeping him in Nanshan City would be a terrible waste.

In fact, Wen Zheng had long wanted to send Ye Qiu to Southern State First Academy to study.

That was the cradle of prodigies!

But Ye Qiu's background was unusual, and the Ye Clan was in South Capital too. Wen Zheng had feared they would target him.

Now, though, things were different.

Lu Li did have a foul temper, but he was a disciple of Nan Qingyue, one of the three Super Mentors.

Ye Qiu would receive at least some protection there.

The Ye Clan would have little room to object!

Ye Qiu said, "Don't worry... Once I make Lu Li admit I'm better, I'll come back. It won't take long."

Wen Zheng glanced at him.

"I'm really strong now!" Ye Qiu said earnestly.

"You have my moral support," Wen Zheng said.

"You don't believe me, do you?"

Wen Zheng smiled. "How could I not? You're your grandpa's greatest pride. Of course I believe you!"

Ye Qiu looked at him. "Swear it. Swear on my mother."

Wen Zheng shook his head. "I won't."

Ye Qiu: "..."

He promptly lost all interest in talking. He drained his tea in one gulp and stood up.

"Wait." Wen Zheng took out a black Storage Ring. "There are one hundred thousand Spirit Crystals inside. You'll have plenty of expenses in South Capital."

"And I know you have spirit, but sometimes you need to learn to accept reality."

"That Lu Li isn't normal. Don't try to tough it out."

Ye Qiu was not happy. He's not normal? And I, Ye Qiu, am?

My Qi and Blood has reached one hundred thousand!

I'm already at the second level of Mystic Passage!

Why would I be afraid of him?

But Grandpa had given him too much money to argue. He bowed deeply. "Grandpa, you're too good to me!"

One hundred thousand Spirit Crystals!

His allowance in the Wen Family was already among the highest of all the disciples.

Even so, he received only one thousand Spirit Crystals a month.

One hundred thousand was an enormous sum!

After thanking Wen Zheng again, Ye Qiu took the Storage Ring back to his room.

He lay down on the bed, but his mind continued to contemplate the Fist Technique.

He was strong now, but to make absolutely sure nothing went wrong, he still had to seize every moment to grow stronger.

It was very late before Ye Qiu finally fell asleep.

The next morning, at dawn.

The Great Elder woke him.

After washing up and eating breakfast, Ye Qiu boarded the Black Wind Eagle. Escorted by dozens of people, including the Great Elder, Second Elder, and Third Elder, he headed straight for South Capital!

The foremost city in Southern State!

The Black Wind Eagle soared into the sky and sped away with a shriek.

Below, Wen Zheng watched in silence. He watched the enormous Demon Beast grow farther and smaller until it vanished, yet he continued staring for a long, long time...

His gaze was filled with complicated emotions.

On the Black Wind Eagle's back, Ye Qiu sat surrounded by the Great Elder and the others. He closed his eyes and resumed his contemplation.

Time flew by.

A day and a night soon passed.

But according to the Great Elder, they were still at least another day and night from South Capital.

Ye Qiu took a breath and ate a little. Then he sank his consciousness into the mysterious space.

Though it was called a space of consciousness, it seemed to exist independently. Ye Qiu could even bring physical objects inside.

"Brother Snake." He looked up at the Great Serpent.

The Great Serpent lifted his eyelids and saw what Ye Qiu held up.

It was a red bead.

It was as large as a fist.

Inside it, a miniature snake seemed to be swimming.

A Demon Beast Spirit!

The Great Serpent opened his mouth. The Demon Beast Spirit flew straight to him, and he swallowed it.

"How did it taste, Brother Snake?" Ye Qiu asked.

"No idea," said the Great Serpent.

Ye Qiu stared at him. The Great Serpent added, "It didn't even fill the gap between my teeth."

Ye Qiu: "..."

That Demon Beast Spirit had cost him a full ten thousand Spirit Crystals! He had asked the Great Elder to buy it for him!

The Great Serpent went on, "Still, your heart was in the right place. I appreciate that... But you must promise me you'll never, ever forget why you started. Don't go growing crooked..."

Ye Qiu raised three fingers. "Don't worry. I swear on my father's life that I'll grow straight as an arrow!"

"So, what's your question?" The Great Serpent was no fool. He saw right through him.

Ye Qiu grinned. "Brother Snake, you're a straightforward guy... Actually, my Fist Technique is only so-so. What I'm really good at is the Blade Technique!"

The Ye Clan cultivated the sword and possessed many legacies of the Way of the Sword, but Ye Qiu had refused to follow them. He had chosen the blade instead.

Blade and sword could not stand together!

He had started wielding a blade at seven, and over the years he had achieved a fair bit.

In the Nanshan City area, his Blade Technique ranked among the very best. It was his specialty!

Even many of the older generation admired his understanding of the blade!

The Great Serpent nodded. "So you want to ask me for a Blade Technique?"

"Yes... Preferably a Blade Technique that's a Divine Ability!" Ye Qiu said at once.

After the Human Tier, Mysterious Tier, Earth Tier, and Heaven Tier came the Divine Tier, also known as Divine Abilities!

But the Great Serpent shook his head. "You can't learn a Divine Ability yet."

Ye Qiu frowned. "Why not?"

"Your cultivation is too low. Even if I gave you one, you couldn't bring out its power."

"It would be like me telling you to lift a mountain weighing a million pounds to train right now. Does that sound realistic?"

Ye Qiu nodded.

The Great Serpent blinked. A profound insight appeared in Ye Qiu's mind, accompanied by an image.

A figure in black held a blade.

With one slash, the mountain peak ahead exploded and the void split apart.

Ye Qiu felt he had seen this before.

Wasn't this the same as the Fist Technique?

He looked at the Great Serpent. "Brother Snake, this Blade Technique... It isn't called One Saber Breaks Ten Thousand Laws, is it?"

"You're pretty clever," said the Great Serpent.

Ye Qiu: "..."

Wasn't this a trick?

You taught me the same technique twice?

I gave you that Demon Beast Spirit for nothing?

The Great Serpent said, "Then tell me: why can a Blade Technique and a Fist Technique produce the same effect?"

Ye Qiu frowned and thought it over. Then he looked at the Great Serpent. "You tell me."

The Great Serpent shook his head. "I won't."

Ye Qiu fell silent.

Brother Snake was testing him.

Some truths could not be understood just because someone explained them. He had to work them out for himself before he truly understood.

Ye Qiu sank into thought.

Then he closed his eyes.

The image of the Blade Technique flashed through his mind.

Then came the Fist Technique.

Time passed...

"We're here!" A voice rang out in the Outer World. Ye Qiu opened his eyes at the same moment.

"I understand!" he said.

The Great Serpent stared at him.

Ye Qiu said, "Essence Qi and Spirit! What you wanted to teach me wasn't a Blade Technique or a Fist Technique. It was the Essence Qi and Spirit behind that force capable of breaking ten thousand laws!"

The Great Serpent smiled.

He truly smiled.

It was strikingly human.

"Moves and forms are all empty things. If you're going to learn anything, learn that Essence Qi and Spirit."

"With that spirit in you, anything you learn will come as naturally as a fish taking to water."

Ye Qiu nodded.

It was true!

Whatever he did or learned, he needed that inner drive.

Without it, he would be nothing but a walking corpse!

But it was easy to say.

How was he supposed to learn that spirit?

That was the real question!

Still puzzled, he opened his eyes. On the Black Wind Eagle's back, the Great Elder and the others had risen and were gazing ahead.

Ye Qiu looked too.

The outline of a vast City filled his view.

It was far, far larger than Nanshan City.

This was where great clans held sway and prodigies gathered. This was the home of Southern State First Academy... South Capital!