A Heart That Moves Forward Unswervingly

Inside the massive palace, Bai Yuan walked in unimpeded.

Along the way, countless planetary-level and even stellar-level experts bowed to him in salute.

This palace was none other than the residence of his second uncle, Bai Tianning.

As a cosmic-level ninth-stage expert, Bai Tianning's strength might not amount to much within the Blade Clan as a whole, but he had another identity.

He was the commander of the Seventh Sub-Legion of the Blade Legion, wielding immense authority with over ten thousand stellar-level ninth-stage elite soldiers under his command, as well as ten cosmic-level battalion commanders!

Furthermore, he controlled over a thousand life-bearing planets, providing him with a steady stream of resources.

It was precisely this identity that made Bai Tianning's status uniquely special—even some domain lords were willing to do him favors.

"Second uncle, I've come to see you. Don't you plan on treating me to a meal?"

"A meal? How about a taste of the whip instead?"

Hearing Bai Yuan's voice, Bai Tianning walked out in a huff.

Bai Yuan gave an awkward smile.

He knew exactly why his second uncle was angry. He had just agreed to go to the training ground, only to turn around and hole up in his room for an entire day—that was a blatant slap in the face.

"Second uncle, I really came to seek your guidance this time. The clan's grand competition is about to start, and I want to earn a good ranking. That's why I came to ask you for special training."

"Special training from me?"

Bai Tianning frowned. What level was he? Cosmic-level!

Even if he wanted to teach something profound, he doubted this big nephew of his could understand it.

"Forget it. Since you've finally got the heart for it, let me see just how much weight you're carrying now."

"Alright!"

A sharp glint flashed in Bai Yuan's eyes as his battle blade instantly appeared in his hand.

The next moment, he transformed into a fierce golden streak of light, slashing straight at Bai Tianning at a speed too fast for the naked eye to track!

Buzz buzz buzz...

His body vibrated twelve times in an instant, unleashing twelve layers of hidden force in a single burst. The blade's momentum was like lightning, astonishingly fast!

Yet, before a cosmic-level expert, all these movements were fully captured.

Shock—utter shock!

Bai Tianning could hardly believe his eyes.

He knew this nephew of his inside and out. His strength had previously only reached the fifth form. Even if he had made a breakthrough in a single day, reaching the sixth form would have been impressive.

But the power of this strike was clearly the eleventh form!

To confirm his suspicion, Bai Tianning deliberately spread his arms and let the blade land on his force armor.

Bang!

With a whoosh, Bai Yuan was sent stumbling back three steps by the immense recoil, his tiger's mouth slightly numb.

Bai Tianning, on the other hand, stood like a mountain, completely unmoved.

"Hahaha! It really is the eleventh form! I didn't expect you, kid, to be so good at hiding! You even fooled me!"

Bai Tianning laughed heartily. In his view, Bai Yuan must have been deliberately concealing his strength before.

As for mastering the eleventh form from the fifth in a single day—that was absolutely impossible in his eyes.

If someone truly had such comprehension, grasping a domain or mastering fundamental laws would be as easy as reaching into a bag. A genius like that would be hard to find even once in ten million epochs.

Faced with Bai Tianning's misunderstanding, Bai Yuan simply smiled faintly. He couldn't casually reveal the existence of the system.

Shua shua shua shua!

Bai Tianning suddenly struck, moving so fast that afterimages were left in his wake.

This move caught Bai Yuan completely off guard.

He hadn't expected his second uncle, who had been grinning a moment ago, to suddenly attack him with a serious expression.

Clang!

At the critical moment, Bai Yuan crossed his blade to block, and an overwhelming force surged through the blade into his arm.

The force wasn't intense, but it was incredibly condensed—so much so that with his means, he couldn't break it.

"As expected of a cosmic-level ninth-stage expert! A casual strike is this terrifying!"

Bai Tianning pressed his advantage, lightning-fast as he seized Bai Yuan's sword-wielding arm while simultaneously chopping at his wrist, aiming to knock the blade loose.

Bai Yuan's arm was numbed and weakened by the earlier force. Seeing that he couldn't hold on, he simply let go and dropped the blade, hoping to distract his opponent.

The next moment, he lifted his foot and kicked at Bai Tianning's calf!

Unfortunately, before an "old monster" who had lived for tens of thousands of years, such petty tricks had nowhere to hide and were instantly seen through.

Bai Tianning raised his leg to suppress the attack while his other hand snatched the falling blade out of the air.

"Heh, these little tricks of yours are all things your Second Uncle left behind back in the day."

"Remember, a true stronghold must possess a heart that charges forward without hesitation, not rely on underhanded means to win."

With that, he handed the war blade back to Bai Yuan, then waved his hand, signaling to continue.

Bai Yuan shook his still-numb arm, his expression growing more focused.

His talent might not be outstanding, but his comprehension ranked around the middle among his peers.

Moreover, the blood flowing through his veins was ultimately that of the Blade Clan, and his will's tenacity was in no way inferior to anyone else.

The tempering of real combat far surpassed solitary cultivation.

In just two days of near-demonic special training, Bai Yuan's practical responses and power application had both improved significantly.

Boom!

The clan's grand competition commenced as scheduled, war drums shaking the heavens, the clamor surging like a tide.

Although the Blade Clan had long since connected with cosmic civilization, possessing virtual spaces and many other high-tech means.

The clan still adhered to tradition, insisting on real-body combat, testing martial arts with flesh and blood.

"Bai Yuan, you plan to participate too?" A young man in a black robe walked over slowly.

Seeing the newcomer, Bai Yuan smiled and greeted him.

This person was named Bai Guanren, sixteen years old this year, at the Apprentice ninth rank, just a hair's breadth from the Planetary level, and one of Bai Yuan's few close friends.

"Yeah, what about you? You should be able to break through to Planetary by now, right?"

In the Blade Clan, sixteen was adulthood, and by rights, one should have broken through long ago.

Under diligent cultivation, breaking through to Planetary at fifteen was considered normal, and many did so at thirteen or fourteen.

As for Bai Yuan himself, his talent was mediocre, and he usually didn't seek resources from his Second Uncle.

Even so, he had broken through to the peak of Apprentice eighth rank, hoping to reach Planetary before adulthood.

Hearing Bai Yuan's question, Bai Guanren nodded, a hint of helplessness in his tone:

"I can break through... but I'm not satisfied. If I can stand out in the clan competition, I might catch the eye of some great power and become their disciple. Then, roaming the cosmos later, I'd have a bit more backing."

In truth, this mindset was far from unique to Bai Guanren.

The Blade Clan were straightforward by nature, not foolish; if they could gain a strong one's favor, it would greatly aid their future cultivation.

Thus, many chose not to break through yet, willingly honing themselves at the Apprentice level, just to vie for a better ranking in the competition and carve out a more distant future.

"I don't aim high—just breaking into the top hundred and catching the eye of some Cosmic-level stronghold would satisfy me. What about you?" Bai Guanren asked.

Bai Yuan listened, then replied calmly, "Pretty much the same as you. I'll just settle for first place."

Bai Guanren first nodded instinctively, then suddenly widened his eyes, staring at Bai Yuan in disbelief.

First place and top hundred... that's called pretty much the same!

The key point was that Bai Yuan was only at Apprentice eighth rank, lower than his own cultivation.

Looking through history, there had never been a precedent of an Apprentice eighth rank winning first place in the competition.

Even the most dazzling prodigy of all time had only made it into the top ten.

And that one was already an existence unmatched through the ages.