Dao Physiques

He Heng felt a wave of chill sweep over him, followed by a bone-deep killing intent. A cold flash of light slashed toward him! He hurriedly turned, drew the long sword at his waist with his right hand, and met it with a flash of steel!

Clang!

The long sword He Heng had forged from Hundred Refinements Fine Steel snapped in an instant. He glanced helplessly at the broken hilt. As expected, the quality was subpar.

He turned around and saw a Green-clothed Woman approaching with a sword. Her figure was graceful, her curves striking, and a chill seemed to hang over her delicate features. Her beautiful hair was casually tied back, and she stood before He Heng with elegant poise.

When she saw Wang Bian, her eyes widened, a cold glint flashing in them as a chilling edge filled her gaze.

The woman's glare made Wang Bian's fat quiver all over as sweat streamed down his face. He hurriedly hid behind He Heng and clung tightly to his back.

"Second Sister, spare me! Please let me go! I'll never do it again!" Wang Bian wailed, tears and snot streaming down his face. He Heng was at a loss for words. Brother, could you not wipe your snot on my back?

"What are you crying for? Are you even a man?" The woman looked at Wang Bian's cowardly act. Her delicate face tightened, her brows furrowed, and she snorted.

Wang Bian stopped crying at once.

"@#%..." He Heng.

He Heng looked at the scene, speechless. He figured he should take the chance to slip away, but... what did Wang San mean by gripping the back of his clothes so tightly?

At last, Wang Bi noticed He Heng. She looked at him coldly. "You're He Heng?"

"That depends which He Heng you're looking for. I doubt I'm the only person in the world called He Heng." He Heng tossed aside the Fine Iron sword, now reduced to a hilt, and casually sized Wang Bi up.

"I don't care whether you're He Heng or not. Prepare to die!" A layer of frost seemed to cover Wang Bi's face. Killing intent filled her clear eyes as she suddenly drew her sword.

Shing!

A crisp sword ring echoed in every direction. He Heng felt a chill envelop his whole body as a brilliant sword light cut through the air toward him.

He didn't think his flesh and blood could withstand a blow any better than the Hundred Refinements Fine Steel sword he'd held earlier, so he naturally didn't dare take it head-on. He could try to disarm her with his bare hands. He bent his arm, shoved Wang San aside, twisted to the side, then bent down and hit the ground. With a clumsy roll, he dodged the cutting sword energy.

"Not bad. Again!" A cool voice rang in He Heng's ear, followed by another blade of sword energy slicing through the air.

He Heng's pupils contracted. Internal Energy surged through his Yongquan Acupoint. He lightly tapped the ground with his foot and tilted his body aside. The sword energy passed just by his ear. He could even feel its chill clearly as a strand of his hair was severed by its sharp edge.

"You dodged two of my strikes, so you have some skill. I'll give you a chance. If you survive one more strike, I'll let you off for today." Wang Bi's watery eyes rippled, then turned sharp. Another brilliant sword light came crashing down!

He Heng's expression had been as calm as still water, but in an instant it turned icily cold. All color drained from his eyes, replaced by a silver-white glint, cold and ruthless as Heaven itself!

"Great Dao Formless Fist!"

As if splitting heaven and earth apart, a terrifying fist shadow surged forth, like a Banished Immortal descending into the mortal world, Overlooking the Vastness with the might to topple mountains and overturn seas. Sonic booms rolled through the air as Gang Wind scattered in every direction, condensing into Gang Qi. A streak of emerald-green Internal Energy burst from his body, took the shape of a fist, and met the brilliant sword energy.

Without hesitation, He Heng's figure shot back ten zhang. He watched the spot with a cold gaze. Sword light and fist intent collided. The fist shadow was instantly cut apart, utterly overwhelmed. The sword energy faltered for a moment and dimmed slightly, then continued downward. It struck the very spot where He Heng had been standing, leaving a deep groove in the stone-paved ground.

"How powerful!" He Heng exclaimed at the sight of the sword mark. Leaving a mark on a stone slab wasn't difficult, but making only a single cut without shattering the slab—that degree of precision was what made the strike truly impressive.

"You're not bad either. If you had a decent sword and spent some time practicing swordsmanship, you could probably take at least ten of my strikes. You're only sixteen, which is remarkable."

Keeping her promise, Wang Bi sheathed her sword and studied He Heng for a moment. Her gaze was clear and cool, and her breath as fragrant as orchids.

"I never noticed anyone like you at the academy before. Being able to take ten of my strikes puts you among the best of your generation."

He Heng smiled warmly. "The academy gathers talented youths from all over the Nine Provinces. There are plenty of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, and everyone has their own abilities. My skills are nothing special, and certainly not enough to catch Senior Sister Wang's eye. It's only natural you never noticed me before."

"Is that so?" Wang Bi cradled her Three-foot Long Sword and gave He Heng a sidelong glance with her almond-shaped eyes, saying nothing more.

He Heng continued, glancing at her from the side. "Senior Sister, you barged in here today and struck me three times. May I ask what you intended? I hope you'll enlighten me."

"I came to cut you down, of course!" Wang Bi replied without reservation.

"May I ask what I did to offend you, Senior Sister, that you'd come all this way to settle the score?" He Heng looked up, his deep eyes fixed on Wang Bi.

"Hmph. A few days ago, my eldest brother, Wang Yu, was killed by Demon Sect scum at Linjiang Tower. You were there at the time, Young Master He, and then disappeared for an entire night. You didn't return until the next morning, covered in blood." Wang Bi stared at He Heng with clear, icy eyes.

He Heng's expression showed indignation mixed with helplessness. "Senior Sister Wang, I've already explained this matter. City Lord Wang even questioned me personally and confirmed my innocence. Why are you still giving me trouble?"

"Hmph. I don't believe a word of what you said. In my view, even if you had nothing to do with my eldest brother's death, you must know something important." Wang Bi's clear eyes swept across He Heng's face, a cold glint in them.

"Then do you have any evidence, Senior Sister Wang? A baseless accusation against me is bad enough, but slandering the He Family's reputation is far more serious. Even if City Lord Wang were here, I would never allow him to do that." He Heng shouted angrily, glaring at Wang Bi with blazing fury.

Wang Bi stared at every shift in He Heng's expression, at every flicker in his eyes, but in the end she found nothing. At last, she said indifferently, "I don't believe you had nothing to do with this. You, He Heng, are definitely hiding something. Just wait. I'll find the evidence, and then I'll cut you down!"

He Heng's expression didn't change in the slightest. He declared solemnly, "I'll await your evidence, Senior Sister Wang. The innocent have nothing to fear from false accusations. I hope you find this so-called evidence soon. The He Family's lineage has endured for countless ages, and no one can simply challenge us. You'll have to answer for what happened today."

"Hmph. Just you wait." Wang Bi gave He Heng a cold look, then turned and left with her sword. "Wang Bian, are you still not coming over here?"

Wang Bian, who had been hiding in the corner and watching He Heng and Wang Bi argue, trembled so violently his fat shook. He shot He Heng an apologetic look, then hurried after Wang Bi.

"Wang Bi..." He Heng watched the graceful figure standing proudly with her sword. His gaze grew increasingly profound.

This woman... was no simple character!

"Even Wang Panlong didn't notice any flaws in what I said, but she did. What keen Spiritual Sense." He Heng frowned and thought again about what he'd told Wang Panlong and the others. He couldn't find any holes in his story. After all, he'd spent over thirty years thinking it through in the Dragon Snake World and had gone over it countless times. There was no way it had any problems.

"So she really did judge me by instinct." He Heng could hardly believe it. Could someone really detect something off about him on the strength of a mere hunch?

"Right. Ancient texts say that Dao Physiques exist in this world. They are naturally attuned to the Dao and possess unparalleled cultivation talent. Their Spiritual Sense is likewise far more acute than ordinary people's. And Wang Bi is indeed extraordinarily talented in cultivation. She's not yet twenty, but has already reached the peak of the Second Marquis Realm. Judging by our exchange just now, she's only a hair's breadth from the Three Peng Realm. It's entirely possible she'll reach the Three Peng Realm before turning twenty, and then awaken her Yin God and Yang God and forge her Primordial Spirit by thirty."

"Such talent is truly extraordinary. Could she be a Dao Physique, which is why her instincts let her see through me?"

For now, no one could answer that question for He Heng.

In the Great Heaven World, after countless years, martial civilization had long since reached its peak. Research had been conducted into all kinds of fields, including the crucial question of cultivation aptitude.

Generally speaking, everyone's aptitude could be divided into two categories: Mortal Bodies and Spirit Bodies.