Breaking Through

"Senior Sister, he was just talking nonsense. He's never even drawn a talisman before." Chen Jingjing hurried to explain. She was truly afraid Chen Fan would say something even more absurd the next moment.

"Chen Fan, stop making trouble for your sister and apologize already." Zhang Rumeng nudged Chen Fan too and urged him in a low voice.

Wang Yunlan, however, remained unmoved. She stared coldly at Chen Fan, seemingly waiting for him to speak—either to apologize or to offer some insight.

"The Five Elements Strange Sword Talisman, as its name suggests, is closely connected to the Five Elements. The key doesn't lie in bringing all five elements out at once, but in the way they generate and overcome one another. For instance, earth generates metal, metal generates water, and earth overcomes water; water can overcome fire. This contains the true meaning of the Five Elements. If you arrange the Five Elements Strange Sword Talisman into a Five Elements Array when deploying it, its power will multiply several times over. The overcoming aspect can be used to attack, while the generating aspect can be used to defend..."

By the time Chen Fan reached this point, Chen Jingjing could no longer stand it. Her red-rimmed eyes glistening with tears, she snapped, "Chen Fan, get out! Do you know how many years Senior Sister Wang has spent cultivating the Dao of Talismans? You've only just reached Qi Refining Layer 2, and haven't cultivated anything at all, yet you dare question Senior Sister Wang? I regret bringing you here."

"I was only sharing my opinion," Chen Fan said with a slight frown.

"Your opinion? You loaf around all day and even slack off when cultivating True Qi. Where did you get this opinion?" Chen Jingjing retorted.

"I got it from books. The Dao of the Five Elements is simply like this. Whether it's turned into a talisman or a sword, it can't escape..."

"Enough." Chen Jingjing interrupted Chen Fan again and turned to Wang Yunlan. "Senior Sister, I'm sorry. I don't know why he's acting like this today. I won't bring him here again."

"It's fine. It's a small matter. Wang Feng should be arriving soon. You can go back first." Wang Yunlan's expression remained blank as she dismissed them casually, without looking at Chen Fan again.

"Thank you, Senior Sister. We'll head back now." After saying that, Chen Jingjing didn't even acknowledge Chen Fan. She set off first toward the Teleportation Array.

Zhang Rumeng gave Chen Fan a complicated look, then followed along with him.

Only after they had returned to the plaza did Chen Jingjing turn to glare at Chen Fan, her voice cold. "You couldn't keep quiet for more than a few days before starting again. If you keep this up, I hope you never set foot in the Chen Clan again."

Her eyes were already brimming with tears. She turned and walked away, while Zhang Rumeng, too, forgot all about Chen Fan and hurried after Chen Jingjing.

Chen Fan frowned slightly. After watching the two of them walk away, he shook his head and looked at the enormous building not far off. He gazed at it for a moment, then strode toward it.

Chen Jingjing and Zhang Rumeng had already gone a long way. Zhang Rumeng handed Chen Jingjing a handkerchief and said softly, "Don't cry. Honestly, I don't think what Chen Fan just said was entirely unreasonable."

"Rumeng, why are you saying that too? You know what he's like. He loafs around all day, and after years of cultivation, he's only just reached Qi Refining Layer 2. How could someone like him have any understanding of the Dao of the Five Elements?" Chen Jingjing said.

"That's true..." Zhang Rumeng nodded.

The two of them continued down a street paved with white jade stones, just like the others.

Chen Fan had already reached the enormous building. Only then did he see the great plaque above its entrance, inscribed with the four characters "High Heaven Treasure Hall." The strokes were vigorous and powerful, carrying an air of might and immortal qi.

"What an impressive sight. Could they really have copied the Heavenly Court of the Immortal Realm?"

Chen Fan studied the four characters and frowned slightly. He was even more curious about the Immortal Palace Master. What kind of power and cultivation did it take to create a world on such a scale? Even with a World Seed as its foundation, accomplishing something like this was truly unimaginable.

After lingering for a few moments, he stepped into the great hall.

As for Chen Jingjing being so angry, he hadn't given it much thought. Immortal cultivators were supposed to cultivate their minds and nurture their character. How could she lose her temper so easily? Besides, she hadn't believed a single word he said and had immediately shut him down. It had left him feeling rather uncomfortable.

And after witnessing Wang Feng break through the First Layer of the Heavenly Court, an idea had stirred in his mind. If that was all it took, then it would be no problem for him.

The only thing troubling him was that, despite being a sword cultivator, he didn't even have a sword. Relying on Sword Qi to win would consume far too much True Qi. If his Sword Qi missed, he'd lose more than he gained.

Once he entered the hall, he found it bustling like a marketplace. Many people were carrying all kinds of Dharma Treasures and hawking them to other cultivators. There were even plenty of swords for sale, but none caught Chen Fan's eye. He only had one sword, and sooner or later, he would find it again.

"Young man, interested in buying a talisman?" A furtive voice came from beside Chen Fan.

Chen Fan turned his head and saw a sneaky-looking old man. The man held several yellow talismans and smiled at him.

"You saw that fellow successfully break through the First Layer of the Heavenly Court just now, right? Know what talisman he used? None at all! He used this Heaven-Opening and Earth-Splitting, Earth-Shattering and Spirit-Weeping Ancient Sword Talisman in my hand. Once this Sword Talisman comes out, who could stand against it? Want one? Just one Spirit Stone!"

"..." Chen Fan glanced at it, then looked away. It was clearly just an ordinary Sword Talisman, yet the old man was hyping it up like that.

"Hey, looks like you've got a discerning eye, young man. All right, I won't deceive you. Let me show you the treasure of my shop..." The old man wasn't about to give up and kept talking.

"Do you have a Five Elements Strange Sword Talisman?" Chen Fan interrupted him and asked.

"A Five Elements Strange Sword Talisman... You're no ordinary fellow, young man. You could actually tell those five talismans just now were the Five Elements Strange Sword Talisman. Looks like this deal won't work out. Talismans like those aren't something ordinary people like us can draw. Goodbye." Seeing that Chen Fan knew his stuff, the old man had no choice but to give up.

"Wait." Chen Fan looked at the old man's clothes. An idea struck him, and he suddenly called out.

"Hm?" The old man turned around, looking puzzled.

"Lend me ten sheets of yellow paper and a cinnabar brush. I'll give you a set of Five Elements Strange Sword Talismans," Chen Fan said.

"What? You want to trade a Five Elements Strange Sword Talisman for these little materials?" The old man looked incredulous. After sizing Chen Fan up, he laughed. "Young man, who would've thought you were one of us? But that's not very sporting. We're in the same trade—we shouldn't cheat each other."

"Will you lend them to me?" Chen Fan asked, his expression calm.

"Uh... Sure. It's just a few sheets of yellow paper. What's the big deal? It's just that the cinnabar is a bit expensive." As he spoke, the old man took out a pile of blank yellow paper. Just as he was about to haggle over the price of the cinnabar as well, Chen Fan moved.

With lightning speed, he snatched the yellow paper, brush, and a small dish of cinnabar from the old man's hands.

"This..." The old man stared in shock and was about to stop him, but Chen Fan had already begun drawing on the yellow paper.

His expression solemn, Chen Fan's brush seemed to dance with divine inspiration. A few breaths later, a small sword drawn in cinnabar appeared on the yellow paper. Looking closely, one could see talismanic runes and arrays carved across its blade.

"A Fire Attribute Sword Talisman." The old man knew his stuff. He recognized the talisman at a glance and stared at Chen Fan in shock, speechless.

Chen Fan paid him no mind. His brush continued to sweep across the paper, and talisman after talisman took shape beneath it.

A few moments later, ten talismans etched with little swords were complete in his hands.

"Five Elements Strange Sword Talismans—two whole sets..." The old man was overjoyed. His hands trembled as he gazed at the ten talismans, visibly thrilled.

"Goodbye." Chen Fan slapped five of the talismans and the brush into the old man's hands, then immediately turned and left.

By the time the old man came to his senses, Chen Fan had already vanished into the crowd. He was filled with regret. A money tree had just walked away like that.

Chen Fan tucked the talismans into his robe, found a quiet spot with few people, and sat down cross-legged to meditate. Drawing all ten talismans in one breath had drained some of his Divine Soul and True Qi. Fortunately, the spiritual energy here was abundant, and he could recover his True Qi in just a few breaths. His Divine Soul, however, would take a little time.

A moment later, Chen Fan opened his eyes and headed deeper into the hall.

"I'd like to challenge the First Layer of the Heavenly Court," Chen Fan said to a man who looked like an administrator.

"Qi Refining Layer 2? You're not joking?" The man looked astonished. He'd never seen anything like this.

"No."

"Uh... All right, then. Do you want to challenge it publicly or...?" The man asked as he lowered his head to record the details.

"Privately." Chen Fan answered without hesitation.

"Mm, all right. Here's a Recording Stone. Although the challenge won't be made public, both sides in your bout will receive one of these. It can record the simulated fight from every angle. If you lose, you or anyone else can use this stone to fight the opponent's model again and again. Each attempt costs 20 Immortal Qi; half goes to your opponent and half to us," the man explained.

"Mm." Chen Fan nodded and accepted the Recording Stone.

"Go through that door and keep walking straight. Then press your Heavenly Court Token against the surface above. The Teleportation Array will assign you a One-Star Heavenly Soldier automatically." After saying that, the man sat back down in his chair and watched Chen Fan leave.

After a long while, he shook his head and muttered, "There really are all sorts of birds in a big forest."

Chen Fan did as instructed. He stood in the Teleportation Array and pressed his token against a groove. Then he was transported to a Martial Arts Arena surrounded by darkness.

Before he could look around, white light suddenly flashed a few meters in front of him, and a Red-robed Woman appeared.

"Qi Refining Layer 2?" The Red-robed Woman furrowed her brows slightly.

Chen Fan looked at her calmly without saying a word.

"You're pretty lucky. These 50 points of Immortal Qi will be easy money for me." The Red-robed Woman smiled faintly, a flicker of disdain in her eyes.

A battle between Qi Refining Layer 6 and Qi Refining Layer 2 was a foregone conclusion. She didn't know why someone at Qi Refining Layer 2 had come here to die, but as long as she could get Immortal Qi for free, she had no reason to hold back.

As soon as she finished speaking, the Red-robed Woman flicked her hand, and three yellow sheets of talisman paper appeared. With a fierce wave, she sent all three talismans flying. They hissed as they turned into three blazing fireballs in midair and shot toward Chen Fan.