Sword Qi in the Gourd

"Rest assured, Senior Brother."

Li Xiaoyu nodded slightly, his tone remaining calm. "This Junior Brother will certainly arrive on time for the appointment."

Having said this, he did not spare Shen Tiandou another glance. He turned toward the high platform, bowed to Shang Zhengliang, and retreated silently into the crowd.

The storm was thus easily defused by him.

The disciples in the Martial Arts Arena looked at Li Xiaoyu's retreating back, their eyes filled with a different light.

If his previous breakthrough had merely shocked them, then the composure and extraordinary intellect Li Xiaoyu displayed at this moment truly filled them with awe.

This former genius had not only regained his cultivation, but his state of mind seemed to have become even more unfathomable.

Watching himself become the laughingstock of the crowd, Shen Tiandou trembled with rage, yet he was helpless to do anything. He could only etch this grudge deeply into his heart.

On the high platform, Shang Zhengliang took in everything, and a satisfied smile finally touched the corners of his mouth.

Neither arrogant nor impetuous, steady and restrained, with his edge hidden from view.

This was the kind of pillar of talent capable of shouldering great responsibilities!

He cleared his throat to announce the end of the meeting, and the disciples dispersed one after another.

Chu Yuhong hurried to Li Xiaoyu's side, giving him a thumbs-up with a face full of admiration.

"Xiaoyu, you were truly amazing just now! With just a few words, you left that guy Shen Tiandou speechless!"

Li Xiaoyu smiled. "It was merely a sharp tongue; nothing worth mentioning."

"That wasn't just a sharp tongue!"

Chu Yuhong said earnestly, "That guy Shen Tiandou relies on being the Senior Brother to act tyrannically on the peak. Seeing him get snubbed by you today is truly gratifying!"

He paused, then added with some concern, "However, are you really confident you can defeat him in the small competition a month from now? After all, he is at the fifth level of the Jade Purity Realm, a full stage higher than you."

A glimmer of confidence flashed in Li Xiaoyu's eyes.

"A month from now, who wins and who loses remains to be seen."

He offered no further explanation, simply patting Chu Yuhong on the shoulder.

"Let's go. Time to return and cultivate."

Watching Li Xiaoyu's calm retreating figure, Chu Yuhong stood stunned for a moment before a smile appeared on his face.

He felt that the winds of change were blowing over Morning Sun Peak.

Returning to his wooden hut, Li Xiaoyu immediately closed the door and set up a warning barrier.

Though crude, it was enough to alert him if anyone approached.

He immediately took the wine gourd that had changed his fate from his robes.

The Immortal-Slaying Gourd!

Li Xiaoyu sat cross-legged, placed the gourd before him, and sank his consciousness into it once more.

Inside the gourd lay a wondrous space.

It was roughly ten zhang in size, surrounded by chaotic gray currents, while in the center of the space floated a churning golden mist.

This golden mist was one of the core functions of the Immortal-Slaying Gourd: the essence of spiritual energy produced after devouring and refining the spiritual energy of all things.

Li Xiaoyu could feel that the quality of this golden mist was far superior to the Taiji Profound Clarity Path spiritual energy he cultivated himself.

It was the feedback from this spiritual essence that had allowed his cultivation to skyrocket from the second level of the Jade Purity Realm to the fourth in a single night.

At this moment, the scale of this golden mist was much smaller than it had been last night.

Clearly, assisting his breakthrough had consumed a vast amount of spiritual essence.

"It seems this gourd needs to 'eat' as well," Li Xiaoyu muttered to himself.

His gaze pierced through the churning golden mist, looking toward the very core.

There, a golden thread as thin as a strand of hair hung silently.

It looked so small, so fragile.

But the moment Li Xiaoyu saw it, his soul felt a stinging pain, as if a peerless divine weapon were pressed against the center of his brow.

Innate Geng Metal Sword Qi!

This was the most powerful trump card of the Immortal-Slaying Gourd!

According to the information flooding his mind, this sword qi was a post-celestial sword qi condensed by Yun Zhongzi with great magical power, imitating the supreme sharpness of the ancient innate spiritual treasure, the Immortal-Slaying Flying Knife.

He did not understand the difference between innate and post-celestial.

But looking at the terrifying sword intent of this qi, he could see it contained the supreme, unyielding sharpness of Geng Metal.

It seemed capable of piercing anything and severing everything!

He knew it had to be extraordinary.

Li Xiaoyu felt a surge of excitement in his heart as he attempted to touch the Innate Geng Metal Sword Qi with his consciousness.

"Hum!"

The moment his consciousness drew near, an aura of extreme sharpness erupted with a roar!

Li Xiaoyu let out a muffled groan, feeling as though his very soul were about to be torn apart by this aura, and he hurriedly withdrew his consciousness.

His face turned pale, his heart still racing with lingering fear.

How terrifying!

Merely approaching it had nearly damaged his soul.

If he were to release it, how horrifying would its power be?

Li Xiaoyu did not doubt that even a high-level practitioner of the Jade Purity Realm, or perhaps even an expert of the Upper Purity Realm, would be unable to withstand a single strike from this sword qi.

This was, quite simply, his strongest trump card for survival at his current stage!

However, he also learned from the information provided by the gourd that the use of this sword qi was severely restricted.

There were two ways to use it.

The first, and most powerful, was to activate the entire sword qi using a secret technique, firing it directly to lock onto an enemy.

Once unleashed, it would be earth-shattering, causing even ghosts and gods to flee.

But the consequence was that this sword qi, cultivated with such painstaking effort, would be completely consumed.

To cultivate a new one would require vast amounts of resources and a long period of time.

This was a suicidal tactic; it must never be used lightly unless he was at death's door.

The second method was relatively gentle.

He could separate a faint wisp of the sword qi to imbue his own magic treasure flying sword.

In this way, even an ordinary iron sword could possess the sharpness of a divine weapon for a short time.

Moreover, this method consumed very little of the sword qi itself, and as long as there was sufficient spiritual energy to replenish it, it could recover quickly.

This is a pretty good choice.

Li Xiaoyu calculated in his heart.

He had just received the Autumn Water Sword from his master, which was an excellent magic sword.

If he used the Autumn Water Sword as a vessel and imbued it with a wisp of Geng Metal Sword Qi, the power...

He dared not even imagine it.

He suspected that even when facing an expert like Qi Hao of Dragon Head Peak, who was at the eighth level of the Jade Purity Realm, he would dare to put up a fight.

After the excitement faded, Li Xiaoyu calmed down.

He turned his gaze back to the golden mist inside the gourd.

These were the essences of spiritual energy refined by the gourd after devouring ambient energy; they could be used not only to nourish his own body and improve his cultivation but also to nurture the sword qi.

It seems that my future path of cultivation must be pursued on two fronts.

Li Xiaoyu had a clear plan in mind.

On one hand, he had to diligently practice the Taiji Profound Clarity Path to improve his own realm.

On the other hand, he had to exhaust every means to find rare treasures to feed the Immortal-Slaying Gourd and strengthen this Innate Geng Metal Sword Qi.

This was his greatest asset for establishing himself in this world!

He withdrew his consciousness from the gourd and let out a long sigh of relief.

Although the road ahead was full of challenges, his heart was filled with motivation.

Li Xiaoyu stood up, walked to the window, and pushed it open.

The afternoon sun was warm, and in the courtyard, a few butterflies danced among the flowers.

Everything appeared so peaceful and beautiful.

A determined light flickered in Li Xiaoyu's eyes.