Acquired Realm

Shen Yi drew a deep breath.

In his mind, he envisioned the wrathful glare of Vajra.

In an instant, his blood and qi boiled as they surged wildly through his limbs and bones. His sinews and skeleton rang in unison, like thunderous Buddhist chants that deafened the ear and shook the heart.

Li Wudang instantly sensed a weighty, vast aura flash across Shen Yi's body.

It was the true essence of Buddhism...

He had felt it on Fat Vajra as well!

But how long had it been? How could Shen Yi possibly possess the same body-forging cultivation as Fat Vajra?!

Yet before Li Wudang could recover from his shock—

He seemed to see a bolt of lightning burst from Shen Yi's blade!

A hurricane gathered, and thunder roared forth.

A blazing white thunderbolt cleaved through the raging wind and torrential rain, like heavenly thunder descending from the nine heavens in a sweeping slash!

At this moment, Shen Yi went all out!

His muscles bulged as though carved by knives and axes, his hair and beard flying wildly, like a god of thunder and justice descending upon the mortal world!

It was the ultimate technique of the Sixfold Wind-Thunder Slash.

Wind Slash Thunderclap!

Li Wudang's pupils trembled violently, his vision seemingly filled with that dazzling lightning! He could not help silently praising:

"What a blade!"

Unfortunately, such a blade technique—

Had come too early!

Li Wudang turned offense into defense. His Embroidered Spring Blade stiffened, and towering battle intent spread across its edge, as though becoming an impregnable iron pass!

Let the thunder bear the weight of ten thousand jun!

I alone would remain unmoved!

Clang!

Blade force collided with a boom that echoed through the deep night, and both men were sent flying backward at the same time.

Since their clash began—

This was the first time Shen Yi had forced Li Wudang back!

And the first time he had gained a moment to catch his breath!

Shen Yi silently recited in his heart.

He poured all six years of secluded cultivation into cultivating his internal arts. He would break through to the Acquired Realm in one stroke!

You continued cultivating the Nameless Heart Sutra in seclusion. Following the concept of circulating internal force through the heavenly cycle, you steadily opened your meridians, built circulation pathways, and consolidated the foundation of the Acquired Realm.

After two years of secluded cultivation, your internal force gradually accumulated in depth. Still, it was like a lake or deep pool; in motion, like surging waves. Its momentum was poised to erupt, nearing perfection.

After four years of secluded cultivation, your internal force surged like a great flood. Wherever it passed, every obstruction within your meridians crumbled like withered wood. Your Nameless Heart Sutra successfully entered the Perfection realm.

Your cultivation entered the Acquired Realm.

After six years of secluded cultivation, you thoroughly consolidated the Acquired Realm and further polished the Nameless Heart Sutra. Combining the mysteries of the various techniques you had encountered along the way, you attempted to deduce it to an even higher level.

You vaguely saw that threshold: the Ren and Du meridians opening to the mysteries, the Acquired returning to the Innate. Yet that threshold was like a heavenly chasm, with no path forward. You shut yourself away to build a cart behind closed doors and pondered bitterly, but ultimately achieved nothing.

Host: Shen Yi

Cultivation: Acquired Realm

Martial arts: Sixfold Wind-Thunder Slash (Perfection), Bone Dislocation Hand (Perfection), Grass Treading Flight (Perfection), Nameless Heart Sutra (Perfection), Vajra Body Forging Art (Major Accomplishment)

Ultimate techniques: Wind Slash Thunderclap, Water Treading Wave Step, Bone Dislocation Tendon Severing

Secluded cultivation: None

Shen Yi let out a breath.

Fortunately, his aptitude was not as poor as he had imagined. He had finally reached the Acquired Realm!

In an instant—

Shen Yi's retreating body spun through the air and landed steadily.

A vast aura abruptly rose around him, boundless and ethereal, like river tides rolling in from afar, its might mounting ever higher!

By then, Li Wudang had already stamped on the ground.

And lunged at him once more.

In his judgment—

Shen Yi's previous strike had certainly consumed a tremendous amount of strength. This should have been his moment of weakness, the moment to strike and take his life.

Yet unexpectedly—

While Li Wudang was still in midair, an even more terrifying aura erupted from Shen Yi, as though Shen Yi was no longer beneath him?

But how was that possible?!

Could it be that in this brief span of time, Shen Yi had broken through the First-Class Realm and perfected his Acquired Realm cultivation?!

In that instant, a trace of hesitation appeared in Li Wudang's heart, which had always been brimming with confidence.

Shen Yi keenly sensed the change.

Then he gave a soft laugh:

"What?"

"Is Trial Commander Li only capable of using force to crush others?"

Shen Yi ran one palm across Cold Night, raised his blade, and leaped toward Li Wudang. With a wild roar, he shouted:

"Come, let us fight again!"

Clang!

The blade edges crashed together within inches, and two similar yet utterly different currents of force crackled sharply!

This time, they were evenly matched!

The battle intent in Shen Yi's eyes grew fiercer. Like Vajra glaring in wrath, he bellowed as his arm swelled in an instant like a hill!

Boom!

Li Wudang was sent flying by a single slash!

Like a massive boulder, he fell diagonally and smashed heavily into the ground, blasting out an enormous crater.

Only then did the other Black-Clad Banner Commander catch up to the two, arriving at the scene with the clang of weapons.

Then he witnessed the horrifying sight of Li Wudang being sent flying by a single slash, and the black-clad man froze on the spot.

What was going on?

Even if Shen Yi possessed enormous potential and ranked among the Eighty-Eight Kirin—

He was still a genuine First-Class Realm expert.

How could he possibly send Li Wudang flying with one slash?

Li Wudang was an Acquired Realm expert, a genius of Dong Commandery's Pacification Office ranked sixty-seventh on the Qilin Rankings!

Yet—

No matter how hard the black-clad man rubbed his eyes with both hands, nor how unbelievable he found it in his heart, he could not change the fact before him...

Shen Yi and Li Wudang—

The tide of offense and defense had reversed!

Shen Yi was like a thunder god descending into the world.

With every stroke of his blade, wind and thunder stirred. He pursued Li Wudang, slashing madly with his blade.

Li Wudang, meanwhile, hurriedly swung his blade to parry.

Their blade shadows intertwined, their exchanges swift as a gale. Yet the black-clad man could still see that Li Wudang's decline had already appeared; he was retreating step by step.

He tried to intervene and help!

But a contest between two Qilin geniuses of the Acquired Realm was no longer something an ordinary First-Class Realm martial artist like him could interfere with.

Bang!

Li Wudang was once again sent flying by Shen Yi's true force, cultivated both internally and externally. He crashed heavily into a towering ancient tree.

The immense force made the trunk crack, snapping it in half on the spot.

Li Wudang gave a muffled groan.

Blood slowly seeped from the corner of his mouth.

He had already been completely suppressed by Shen Yi's battle intent.

His confidence, too, had been shattered by Shen Yi's stronger and more unwavering conviction.

At this critical juncture—

For some reason, Li Wudang's thoughts drifted away.

He recalled the time he had been selected to visit the capital's main office for an exchange.

Li Wudang had been chosen as the outstanding talent of Dong Commandery's Pacification Office. At the time, he had been full of confidence, believing himself capable of contending with the younger generation of the great sects under heaven.

Yet at the capital's main office—

He saw what true genius was.

The same techniques, the same realm, yet when facing those true geniuses, his spirit always seemed to drain away for no reason. Before battle even began, he was already afraid.

During Li Wudang's three days of exchange at the main office—

He lost all four fights.

What truly drove him to despair was that upright figure, a silver spear in hand and a red cloak flowing behind, mounted upon a horse.

After that, he returned to Dong Commandery in a daze.

He never entered the capital again.

In his haze, Shen Yi leaped into the air. That flamboyant figure seemed to transform into that red silhouette from the capital.

Resolute, indifferent.

Possessing the bearing of invincibility.

The snow-bright blade had been drawn, like lightning falling from the nine heavens.

It cleaved downward.

Clang!

Li Wudang's topknot was cut away, and a blade wound deep enough to reveal bone appeared across his chest.

Shen Yi swung his blade, intending to strike again!

"Shen Yi!"

"Qin Jianghe is in my hands!"

Shen Yi's eyes narrowed, but his blade momentum did not stop!

Li Wudang's hair hung loose, and he looked like a madman. With a sweep of his left hand at his lower back, he drew a broken blade and slashed horizontally to meet the attack!

This blade—

Was the treasured weapon that upheld Broken Blade Hall!

It was also the saber Qin Jianghe never let leave his side!

Boom!