Bloodline Power

Open the Dantian and gather the spiritual energy of heaven and earth!

Zhou Heng sat cross-legged, actively circulating the Moon Shadow Heart Art to absorb the spiritual energy that had long since gathered around him. He absorbed it without hesitation, converting it all into spiritual power.

His True Essence Power had already been completely spent when he battered open his Dantian. At this moment, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth had not been converted into True Essence Power at all. Instead, it filled his body as spiritual power of a higher level.

Unlike before, when breaking through only meant overcoming a bottleneck without increasing one's strength in the slightest, reaching the Spirit Gathering Realm opened the Dantian, allowing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to wash through the body. Naturally, his strength soared.

Washed by spiritual power a hundred times stronger than True Essence Power, his body grew far more formidable. At this point, even if someone at the Twelfth Layer of Body Refining hacked at him with the Frost Cold Sword, they might not be able to break through his defenses.

A sharp weapon simply made it easier to penetrate a defense. The sharper the weapon, the less force it required; the duller it was, the more force it needed.

But once someone reached the Spirit Gathering Realm, it no longer mattered what weapon a person at the Twelfth Layer of Body Refining used to hack at them. The gap between their levels was simply too vast; the force required far exceeded anything in the Body Refining Realm.

Without entering the Spirit Gathering Realm, one could never imagine how terrifying its power was!

At last... he had entered the Spirit Gathering Realm!

It was an entirely new world. As Zhou Heng felt his body change, his spiritual awareness expanded. The scurrying of ants rang like thunder, and even the grains of dust showed patterns as clear as those on boulders—his sight and hearing had improved to a terrifying degree.

Zhou Heng drew a deep breath, the joy on his face gradually fading.

The Spirit Gathering Realm was only the beginning. He was nowhere near a point where he could be satisfied.

Still, the changes to his body were undeniably immense.

Vigorous with life, his strength was boundless!

Entering the Spirit Gathering Realm added a hundred years to one's lifespan. That benefit was still intangible, but Zhou Heng could clearly feel the vitality surging through him. It seemed that even a single drop of his blood could bring a withered tree back to life!

And that wasn't all!

He felt two mysterious powers within him suddenly awaken, stirring restlessly. One insight after another, indescribable and inexplicable, burst open in his mind, as if they had always been his memories, merely sealed away until now.

Boom!

He raised his right hand, and Purple Fire suddenly flared in his palm.

Could this... be the Bloodline Inheritance Zhu Zhihe and the others had mentioned?

And that wasn't the only one!

Zhou Heng held out his left hand. A flash of golden light passed over it, and his entire hand instantly became as if cast from gold. He walked to the cliff wall and reached out. The moment he grabbed a rock, it crumbled into dust in his hand.

What terrifying physical strength!

Zhou Heng couldn't help but click his tongue. He hadn't used any spiritual power at all—he had merely crushed the rock with his bare strength, yet had ground it to powder! That took more than sheer force. It also required an incredibly formidable body.

He could feel that his hand was now no different from metal. The Frost Cold Sword might not even be able to cut through it.

He would try it.

He drew the Frost Cold Sword and scraped it across his hand. A sharp, grating sound rang out, yet not even a mark appeared. He pressed harder, then harder still, but his arm remained completely unscathed. Instead, the Frost Cold Sword's edge had curled slightly!

There was no mistake: his body was now harder than the Frost Cold Sword!

Zhou Heng had a thought and returned his left hand to normal before scraping it with the Frost Cold Sword again. With only thirty percent of his strength, he left a bloody line on his arm. But the blood clung to the wound instead of falling, and it healed quickly, leaving a thin scab.

Two kinds of Bloodline Power!

There was no doubt about it: one came from his father, the other from his mother.

Zhu Zhihe and the other three had said that fewer than ten thousand people in the entire Hancang Kingdom possessed Bloodline Power. Without exception, their ancestors had all been extraordinary individuals who had passed their powers down through their bloodlines.

Purple Fire, Metal Incarnation!

Not only did he have a Spirit Body, he had two kinds of Spirit Body!

What dissatisfied him was that whether it was Purple Fire or Metal Incarnation, each could only cover an area about the size of two fists. However, neither was limited to that location. For instance, he could turn his head to metal or set it ablaze with Purple Fire.

In other words, his Bloodline Power wasn't very strong—at least, it couldn't compare to Jing Tian's. Otherwise, the Spirit Crystal Pillar would have drawn it out back then.

Zhou Heng put away his Bloodline Power. It should count as a martial skill, too. Whether he used Purple Fire or Metal Incarnation, both consumed spiritual power. The cost was particularly high when he slashed at himself with the Frost Cold Sword.

"Can this Bloodline Power stack with the Bright Jade Art?" Zhou Heng wondered. If it couldn't, then he really would have learned that defensive martial skill for nothing.

He turned his fist to metal again and then circulated the Bright Jade Art. A jade-like sheen immediately appeared on his fist.

It worked!

But... it consumed even more spiritual power!

Zhou Heng put away his Bloodline Power once more, sat cross-legged, and circulated the Moon Shadow Heart Art to absorb the surrounding spiritual energy, replenishing what he had just spent.

The Black Broken Sword in his Dantian hummed softly, then suddenly vanished!

What!

Zhou Heng was startled. Though this Black Sword had plagued him for ten years, it was also thanks to this divine sword that he had gone from the Body Refining First Layer, crossed the Ascension Path, and entered the Spirit Gathering Realm in just over half a year!

He hurriedly opened his eyes, about to leap to his feet, when he saw a completely ink-black broken sword floating before him.

...It had actually appeared!

Zhou Heng felt as if he were dreaming. He reached out for the hilt and grasped the broken sword that he had previously been able to see only with his mind.

A strange sensation, as if the sword were bound to him by blood, spread from his palm throughout every part of his body.

First Form of Heaven-Soaring!

Zhou Heng moved, sweeping the broken sword outward. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth around him immediately converged, gathering constantly along the blade and rapidly amplifying the technique's power.

Heaven-Soaring Second Style, Third Form of Heaven-Soaring!

After entering the Spirit Gathering Realm, Zhou Heng's strength had increased by an unknown number of times, giving him enough spiritual power to unleash all three forms of the sword art in one breath.

Fourth Form of Heaven-Soaring!

As naturally as water flowing down a channel, once the Third Form of Heaven-Soaring was complete, he followed through with a sweep, unleashing the fourth, fifth, and sixth forms!

One seamless sequence!

Seventh Form of Heaven-Soaring!

Sword Qi streaked across the air, reaching a cliff wall three or four zhang away. With a thunderous boom, it sliced away a layer of rock as large as a house!

So that was it! So that was it!

Zhou Heng burst into laughter. Strictly speaking, the Heaven-Soaring Nine Styles were actually one complete move. Each form was a process of gathering strength; when all nine forms were combined, the accumulated power would be unbelievably terrifying!

And only the Black Sword could withstand and perfectly accumulate that power. The sword and the sword art were both indispensable.

No wonder he had been completely drained after unleashing just one form before. The power needed to drive such a terrifying sword art naturally came at a fearsome cost to him as well.

But even now, he could only develop the Heaven-Soaring Nine Styles as far as the seventh form. Beyond that, his strength would give out. Clearly, he was still too weak to execute all nine forms in full!

What a spiritual-power guzzler!

Zhou Heng looked at the broken sword in his hand and wondered whether it could return after coming out.

At the turn of his thought, the Black Broken Sword vanished with a whoosh.

Huh!

He hurriedly looked inside his Dantian. Sure enough, the Black Broken Sword was floating there, like the supreme ruler of the nine heavens, radiating vast and majestic power.

Come out!

At Zhou Heng's thought, the Black Broken Sword appeared before him once more, suspended in the air for no apparent reason.

This must be a divine treasure!

Holding the Black Sword, Zhou Heng suddenly grew curious. "Which is sharper, this Black Sword or the Frost Cold Sword?"

With that thought, he quickly took out the Frost Cold Sword and lightly tapped the two blades together.

Clang! Sparks flashed. The Black Sword remained completely unharmed, while a small notch appeared in the Frost Cold Sword's edge.

"Seriously? I barely used any force!" Zhou Heng couldn't help gaping. He really had only tapped the two swords together lightly.

Swish, swish, swish! He slashed several times in succession. The Frost Cold Sword was like rotten mud, chopped into seven or eight pieces by the Black Sword!

—Poor Frost Cold Sword. How furious would Lin Fuxiang be if she found out? It was her precious weapon, after all!

A true divine blade, sharp enough to slice through iron as easily as mud!

Zhou Heng was overjoyed. With the Black Sword in hand, who in the world could stand against him?

"I'll try again. How much deeper can I dive this time?"

He had never been willing to give up on the Cold Pool. With a splash, he leapt back into it, held his breath, and kept diving. Thirty zhang, forty zhang, fifty zhang!

At a depth of seventy zhang, Zhou Heng stopped. He could go no farther. The cold was even more terrifying than he had imagined; even reaching the Spirit Gathering Realm hadn't helped.

He surfaced and returned to the shore. As spiritual power circulated through him, the chill vanished in an instant.

The Cold Pool was unfathomably deep. Even after diving seventy zhang, there was still no sign of a bottom, and this was as far as Zhou Heng's cultivation could take him.

It was time to head back!

Zhou Heng gazed up at the sky. Although he had only just entered the Spirit Gathering Realm, his Dantian was eight times larger than an ordinary person's. At the same level, his strength was nearly unmatched! Add the mysteriousness of the Flying Cloud Steps, and even if he couldn't beat someone at the Second or Third Heaven of Spirit Gathering, escaping would be no problem.

However, the Black Sword had stopped releasing energy a month ago. From now on, he would have to rely on his own efforts to improve his cultivation!

After stabilizing his cultivation, Zhou Heng left the valley.

With the Flying Cloud Steps, he swept onward like a gale. His speed was at least ten times faster than when he had been at the Twelfth Layer of Body Refining. In just five hours, he was out of the Heaven-Leveling Mountain Range, with the peak where the Nine Spirits Sect stood right before him.

He would go back and take a look first!

Zhou Heng returned to the foot of the mountain. He had no particular attachment to the Nine Spirits Sect. Although he had been a member for more than four months, he had spent less than ten days inside the sect. Still, Zhou Dinghai had been saved by the Nine Spirits Sect. He couldn't forget that kindness—and didn't dare to.

After reaching the Spirit Gathering Realm, he had returned to the ordinary, giving off no hint of his strength. Unless someone was at the same level, they would never be able to see through him. As he walked along, he looked like an ordinary person and attracted no one's attention.

Who could have imagined that a freak like him had left the sect for three months, only to advance from the Ninth Layer of Body Refining to the Spirit Gathering Realm?

"Zhou Heng, you're back at just the right time. Come with me!" Chang Kang came out from a side path. When he saw Zhou Heng, a hint of delight appeared on his face.

"What is it?" Zhou Heng asked casually.

"Fang Jianyu from White Jade Valley is challenging people in the Outer Sect. He's already beaten Ma Yunlong and Guo Gang, and he's shouting that no one in the Nine Spirits Sect can match him!" Chang Kang said, his face full of anger. "He's so damn arrogant. You've been away from the sect for more than three months, so you gave up the top spot without a fight. And Senior Brother Jing has become an Inner Sect disciple. Otherwise, that bastard wouldn't have had a chance to act so smug!"

"Let's go take a look." A hint of killing intent appeared on Zhou Heng's face. Even if he wasn't surnamed Jin, he still couldn't stand anyone from White Jade Valley.

"Yeah, you have to teach him a harsh lesson. That bastard's so arrogant, and his mouth is filthy. We all want to swarm him and beat him to death!" Chang Kang said bitterly.