Rock Sword Saint

Lin Qin had returned to Red Flame City and immediately sensed that the atmosphere was different from before. More soldiers patrolled the streets, and none of them were weak. In the taverns, people talked about Saint Realm experts more often. Some even mentioned vague rumors like "War God Mountain has been acting strangely lately" and "Something big might be about to happen."

Lin Qin didn't pay much attention to it. He turned in his mission, dealt with his spoils, then returned to the inn and continued cultivating. After reaching the Saint Realm, every step forward required a deeper understanding of the laws. This was much harder than simply accumulating energy, but also far more important. He immersed himself in comprehending the Earth Element Profound Mysteries, constantly analyzing and experimenting, incorporating his new insights into his martial techniques and magic.

A few days later, Lin Qin decided to visit Red Flame City's largest public training ground. It was a place where the Empire's warriors met and sparred, and experts fought there often. Perhaps he could learn something.

The training ground covered a vast area, its surface paved with sturdy Blue Steel Rock and surrounded by powerful protective magic arrays. At that moment, two fighters were locked in fierce combat on the largest arena in the center. One was an Eighth-level Warrior wielding a great axe, his attacks ferocious; the other was a Seventh-level Warrior with twin blades, quick and agile. Warriors packed the area around them, their cheers and chatter filling the air.

Lin Qin stood at the edge of the crowd, watching calmly. A fight at this level posed no threat to him, but he could still spot flashes of skill in their techniques and glimpses of their thinking. Heaven Rewards Diligence had made him accustomed to learning from anything and everything.

Just then, a terrifying presence—heavy as a mountain and hard as steel—suddenly spread from the training ground's entrance. It wasn't ostentatious, yet it carried an absolute sense of oppression. The noisy training ground fell silent in an instant. Every warrior, including the two fighting on the arena, stopped in their tracks and stared at the entrance in shock.

A figure slowly walked in.

He wasn't particularly tall, and he wore an ordinary gray tunic. His features were unremarkable, and he looked like any laborer one might pass on the street. But each step he took seemed to resonate with the earth, giving the impression that nothing could move him. An ancient-looking greatsword, clearly worn with age, hung on his back without a scabbard.

"Th-that's the Rock Sword Saint! Lord Hederson!" someone recognized him and whispered, their voice trembling.

A collective gasp swept through the training ground. Every gaze brimmed with awe and fervor. Rock Sword Saint Hederson was a long-renowned Saint Realm expert of the O'Brien Empire, famed for his peerless defense and a sword style as steady as a mountain. He was an idol to countless warriors!

Hederson seemed to have come by on a whim. His gaze passed calmly over the warriors, then settled on Lin Qin at the edge of the crowd.

Their eyes met.

Lin Qin could clearly sense the profound fluctuations of earth laws within Hederson, far deeper and more refined than his own. This was undoubtedly a seasoned Saint Realm expert who had traveled far along the path of the Earth Element Profound Mysteries!

A flicker of surprise also crossed Hederson's eyes. He, too, sensed the pure, solid earth-element aura of a Saint Realm expert on Lin Qin. It seemed a little "immature," but Lin Qin's formidable foundation was enough to catch his attention. And the young man was younger than he had expected.

"A Saint Realm expert I don't know," Hederson said, his voice low and powerful, like rocks grinding together. "The aura of the earth within you is very pure."

The entire training ground fell utterly silent. Everyone held their breath, watching the two Saint Realm experts speak. They hadn't imagined that this unremarkable-looking young man was a Saint Realm expert!

"Lin Qin." Lin Qin gave his name. Even before this long-renowned expert, he remained calm. He could tell that Hederson meant him no harm; it was more like an assessment between strong warriors.

"Hederson." The Rock Sword Saint gave his name as well, then headed toward the central arena. The crowd automatically parted to make way. "Your foundation is solid, and you've grasped the power of the earth quite well. Would you care to trade a few moves?"

By "trade a few moves," he naturally meant a spar.

An uproar swept through the training ground. The Rock Sword Saint had actually invited an unfamiliar Saint Realm expert to spar! This was a rare spectacle!

Lin Qin's heart stirred. Fighting a powerful opponent was exactly what he wanted. Especially someone like Hederson, who had also devoted himself to the laws of earth. The insights would be all the more valuable.

"I'd be delighted." Without hesitation, Lin Qin strode toward the arena.

The two warriors who had been fighting there had already respectfully withdrawn, leaving the arena to the two Saint Realm experts.

Lin Qin and Hederson faced each other from several dozen meters apart. There was no referee and no rules. At their level, they knew how to keep a spar within bounds.

"Be careful," Hederson warned. He didn't draw the greatsword on his back. He merely raised his right hand and pointed two fingers together at Lin Qin from a distance.

It looked like a casual gesture, but Lin Qin instantly felt the air around him grow incredibly heavy and viscous, as if the entire space had solidified and was trying to pin him in place! A force of earth laws, condensed to the extreme, bore down on him like an invisible mountain!

This was an exceedingly skillful use of the "heaviness" and "oppression" aspects of the Earth Element Profound Mysteries!

Lin Qin's eyes narrowed. He didn't dare be careless. His Saint Power circulated as he drew on the power of the earth around him. Rather than resist the pressure head-on, he made a slight movement with his feet. His body seemed to become part of the earth's veins, swaying gently with the rhythm of the pressure. Like a slippery fish, he slid free of the invisible confinement, then clenched his right hand and punched forward!

The punch was utterly plain, nothing but pure strength, infused with the "concentration" and "eruption" of the Earth Element Profound Mysteries! The air rumbled along its path, and a solid, earth-yellow fist imprint shot toward Hederson like a cannonball.

A hint of approval flashed in Hederson's eyes. Lin Qin hadn't chosen the clumsiest approach of meeting force with force. He had used skill to overcome strength, then counterattacked with impressive speed and precision. His control over his strength was indeed remarkable.

Hederson still didn't move. He merely curled the finger he had pointed out, then flicked it forward.

"Clang!"

A clear ring, like metal striking stone! Lin Qin's fist imprint, powerful enough to shatter a small hill, seemed to collide with an invisible but indestructible wall several meters from Hederson. It burst apart in an instant, dissolving into pure earth-element energy. Hederson hadn't even stirred the hem of his robe.

"Your 'concentration' and 'movement' are already well developed. But your 'defense' and 'counterattack' still need work," Hederson said mildly, as if instructing a junior. He raised his hand again. This time, he spread his five fingers and pressed them toward Lin Qin through the air.

"Vmmm!"

Lin Qin immediately felt as though the arena beneath his feet had come alive. A vast surge of the earth's power rose from below. This wasn't simple oppression anymore; it was as if the entire earth had turned against him, trying to reject and overturn him! At the same time, the space around him solidified again, limiting his ability to dodge.

The pressure this time was several times stronger than before! It also carried an intent of "rejection" and "repulsion," making it difficult for Lin Qin to circulate his own power. It felt as though his strength might rebound and injure him.

Lin Qin took a deep breath. He knew this was the crucial moment. He sank his mind completely into comprehending the Earth Element Profound Mysteries, recalling the earth's fundamental qualities of "bearing all things" and "embracing everything." He stopped trying to resist or dodge. Instead, he opened up his defenses and connected his Saint Power to the earth beneath his feet on a deeper level.

He was like a stone dropped into a lake. No longer an intruder, he became part of the earth. When the surging rejection and pressure touched him, they seemed to lose their target, sliding past either side of his body or being quietly absorbed and dispersed by the deeper earth beneath him.

He stood firmly in place, his body swaying slightly but ultimately remaining unmoved! His face was a little pale, though. Clearly, dispelling that attack had not been easy.

"Oh?" Hederson was genuinely surprised this time. He hadn't expected Lin Qin to counter his "earth-vein repulsion" this way. It took an extremely refined sense of and control over the power of the earth, along with an understanding that verged on the Dao.

"Very good!" Hederson nodded, a spark of battle intent rising in his eyes. "Now take another move!"

At last, he moved! He leaned forward slightly. The ancient greatsword on his back remained in its place. He simply brought his palms together like a blade and slashed toward Lin Qin from several dozen meters away!

There was no dazzling sword light or earthshaking spectacle. But Lin Qin's hair stood on end, and he instantly sensed extreme danger! A force condensed and heavy to the utmost, as though it contained the weight of an entire mountain range, locked onto him. It ignored the distance and crashed down!

This "slash" had already surpassed a mere physical attack. It was an overwhelming force at the level of the laws!

There was nowhere to dodge!

Lin Qin's pupils contracted. His Saint Power surged through his body at an unprecedented speed, and all his understanding of the Earth Element Profound Mysteries came together in that instant. He cupped his hands before his chest, and the power within him resonated wildly with the power of the earth around him, compressing together!

"Thick Earth Seal!"

A palm-sized, earth-yellow seal formed before his chest in an instant, seeming to be condensed from the veins of countless mountains and plains! Light flowed across its surface, radiating an aura of indestructibility and eternity!

He had fused everything he had learned about the laws of earth into the Battle Qi techniques and magical control he had cultivated in the past, creating the prototype of a Saint Realm battle technique that was entirely his own!

At that very moment, Hederson's invisible Momentum Slash descended!

"BOOM—!!!"

A soundless explosion erupted in the space between them! The training ground's protective magic array blazed with dazzling light and shuddered violently, as if it might break at any moment! Even through the array, the warriors watching were knocked off their feet by the invisible shock wave, their faces deathly pale!

The Thick Earth Seal before Lin Qin trembled violently. Cracks appeared across its surface, but it didn't shatter outright! The immense force drove him backward more than ten meters. His feet carved two deep furrows into the hard Blue Steel Rock arena before he finally managed to stop. His throat turned sweet, and a trace of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

But he had blocked it!

He had withstood Hederson's strike, which contained a deeper understanding of the laws, through the prototype of his own battle technique and his formidable foundation!

Deathly silence settled around the arena. Everyone was so shaken by the clash, which was beyond their comprehension, that they couldn't utter a word.

Hederson slowly lowered his hand. He looked at the Thick Earth Seal fading before Lin Qin, which had successfully blocked his strike, and his eyes brimmed with undisguised admiration.

"Remarkable," he said sincerely. "You've only recently entered the Saint Realm, yet you took a strike with thirty percent of my strength and even created the prototype of your own battle technique. Your potential is far beyond what I expected."

Lin Qin wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and calmed the roiling blood and Qi within him. Though he had suffered a minor injury, excitement gleamed in his eyes. This fight had shown him what lay beyond, and revealed the limits of his current strength. Hederson's mastery of the Earth Element Profound Mysteries—especially how he combined "defense," "counterattack," and "force"—had inspired him enormously.

"Thank you for your guidance, senior." Lin Qin cupped his hands and spoke with heartfelt gratitude. This battle had been worth far more than months of solitary cultivation.

Hederson waved a hand. "There's no need to thank me. We both cultivate the way of the earth; we were simply learning from each other." He paused, then looked at Lin Qin meaningfully. "The Empire may not remain peaceful much longer. It seems a storm is coming. You're strong, so take care of yourself."

Without waiting for Lin Qin to answer, he turned and left with the greatsword on his back, soon disappearing through the training ground's entrance.

Lin Qin stood where he was, pondering their battle and turning Hederson's final words over in his mind.

A storm was coming?

He looked toward War God Mountain, rising high into the clouds at the center of Red Flame City, his gaze deep.

It seemed he had come to the O'Brien Empire at the right time. Whatever was about to happen, it would be an opportunity for him to temper himself.

He needed to grow stronger faster. The early Saint Realm was far from enough.

After leaving the training ground, Lin Qin returned to the inn and began another period of seclusion. He would fully absorb what he had gained from his battle with Hederson, further refine his Thick Earth Seal, and attempt to reach a deeper level of the Earth Element Profound Mysteries.

Meanwhile, news of "a mysterious young Saint Realm expert sparring to a draw with the Rock Sword Saint" had begun to circulate quietly among Red Flame City's upper circles. For the first time, Lin Qin's name had entered the view of the O'Brien Empire's most powerful experts.