Sword Force Carves the Dragon, Palm Force Takes Shape

However, Xu Huxiao needed to confirm one thing now: was his Martial Dao Essence Realm truly the "force" Grandpa Sword had spoken of?

This was very important. It concerned the direction of his future cultivation.

He wanted to experience it for himself.

"Grandpa Sword, I have a cultivation question that I need your guidance on."

Chen Xin grew interested. He was also a martial arts fanatic and loved studying cultivation most of all.

"Oh? But little Huxiao, you haven't even obtained your first Soul Ring yet. What cultivation question could you have? Tell me."

Xu Huxiao said sincerely, "I want to experience the 'force' Grandpa Sword spoke of."

Chen Xin put away his teasing expression and said seriously,

"You want to experience my Sword Force?"

"Yes."

"Good! Then I'll let you experience what 'force' is."

Xu Bayan, standing nearby, was somewhat worried.

"You foolish boy, your Grandpa Sword's Sword Force isn't something to be trifled with. Don't mess around!"

"Uncle Sword, this won't hurt Huxiao, will it?"

Chen Xin glanced at Xu Bayan as though looking at a wise fool, then said flatly, "Don't worry. Even if it hurt you, it wouldn't hurt my precious little Huxiao."

"Oh."

Xu Bayan felt somewhat uncomfortable under that look of concern for an idiot. He had simply been overly worried and spoken without thinking. With Uncle Sword's level ninety-six Peak Douluo strength, his control over releasing his cultivation had reached near perfection. There was no chance of him losing control and hurting someone.

Xu Huxiao walked into the Martial Arena, regulated his breathing for ten seconds, then looked firmly at the ordinary-looking old man opposite him and said,

"Grandpa Sword, I'm ready. Come on."

"Then we'll begin. Tell me immediately if you can't endure it."

"Mm."

The moment Xu Huxiao finished speaking, he suddenly felt a subtle shift in his surroundings. The transparent currents of air became sharp, and the hairs and skin across his body were stimulated into involuntary contraction.

Opposite him, the gray-clothed old man with white hair and beard, his hands clasped behind his back, seemed to become the center of heaven and earth in an instant.

A divine sword piercing the heavens.

"Pay attention, little Huxiao. Grandpa's Sword Force is about to strengthen."

Xu Huxiao had no time to answer before a vast, overwhelming presence descended upon him. His body suddenly felt as heavy as ten thousand jin, while the air around him turned thick and viscous.

It was tinged with a warped layer of gray.

In his eyes, nothing remained in the entire world except the terrifying phantom of the Seven Kill Divine Sword!

Xu Huxiao's legs trembled. The Golden Sun in his dantian spun rapidly as he struggled to resist the pressure, as though he would be crushed to his knees the next second.

"Th-this is the Sword Force of a level ninety-six... Peak Douluo?"

Grandpa Sword had clearly done nothing. He had not even summoned his Martial Soul. He had merely released fluctuations of Sword Force.

Yet it possessed such might.

It was simply terrifying!

One had to know that Xu Huxiao had undergone medicinal baths since childhood, laying the foundation for cultivating the Indestructible Diamond Divine Skill.

His Yang Origin Soul Power had fused into his meridians, internal organs, and bowels, nourishing and transforming his bones and physique.

In terms of physical constitution alone, his Eight Extraordinary Meridians were now fully opened. The toughness and vitality of his fleshly body might even surpass those of an ordinary Soul Elder.

Yet before such Sword Force, an irresistible feeling rose uncontrollably from the depths of his heart.

Buzz—

The sound of a sword rang through his ears.

The Sword Force continued strengthening bit by bit.

The warped grayness of the air currents grew ever denser.

Until Xu Huxiao's body was pressed into a bend, nearly forcing him face-first to the ground.

The Sword Force stopped increasing.

Xu Huxiao trembled all over, his breathing rapid. Blood energy surged around his forehead and neck, veins bulging as he struggled to lift his head. His gaze fell on Grandpa Sword, who stood not far away with a relaxed expression, and a heavy sense of helplessness welled up in his heart.

"Am I... really this weak? Just the initial release of Sword Force has already made it hard for me to breathe. I'm nearly suffocating. My body feels as though it has been frozen in an icy lake. My blood energy seems to be surging, but in truth it is stagnant like rusted iron, impossible to move."

"How can I comprehend Sword Force like this...?"

Countless thoughts raced through Xu Huxiao's mind as he struggled bitterly to endure. The Yang Origin Soul Power within him circulated at high speed under the pressure, continuously being consumed and continuously regenerating. It was only with the support of Soul Power that he could hold on for now.

However.

He was nearing his limit.

One breath, two breaths, three breaths... ten breaths...

Seeing this.

The surprise in Sword Douluo Chen Xin's eyes grew increasingly intense.

Originally, he had thought that this boy Huxiao wanted to experience his Sword Force before even obtaining a Soul Ring. It was like a child who had not learned to walk yet clamoring to run.

Once Chen Xin agreed, he had decided to press the boy flat to the ground, let him suffer a little first, then ease the pressure and give him time to carefully comprehend Sword Force.

In Chen Xin's expectations, his Sword Force should have instantly forced Xu Huxiao down.

But unexpectedly, the boy had held on!

When he had initially released it, he had set it according to the standard of a level twenty Soul Grandmaster.

Yet what shocked and delighted him was that after gradually raising it to the Soul Elder level, the boy was still persisting!

He wanted Xu Huxiao to suffer a little, but once it reached the Soul Elder level, further increasing the Sword Force might injure little Huxiao if he could not withstand it.

Thus, he could not strengthen the Sword Force further. At its current level, Chen Xin could guarantee there would not be the slightest problem. Now it depended on how long the boy could endure.

Under this crushing Sword Force, being able to remain standing for three breaths was already proof of exceptional natural talent. One had to remember that Xu Huxiao was only six years old.

Yet he had already remained standing for ten breaths. With such innate bones and physique, he absolutely possessed the aptitude to become a Title Douluo!

But that did not seem to be all...

Ten breaths, eleven breaths... fifteen breaths... twenty breaths!

This...

This was impossible!!

Because Chen Xin saw Xu Huxiao withstand the crushing pressure of his Sword Force and slowly straighten his body. Then, he gradually assumed the opening stance of that palm technique from before!

Chen Xin was not the only one shocked. Xu Bayan, Huxiao's father at the side, was also wide-eyed in astonishment.

He had deep insight into blood energy, and he could feel his son's blood energy boiling like a furnace!

Like a human-shaped sun!

What was happening?!

Then the scene that followed left both men utterly dumbfounded. As they looked at each other, a philosophical question arose between them: where am I, and who am I?

After Xu Huxiao assumed the opening stance of the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, Revisiting the Dragon, he began slowly practicing the palm technique, starting at a turtle's pace before gradually speeding up.

But this was beneath the crushing Sword Force of a level ninety-six Title Douluo!

How had this boy gone from barely holding on to moving freely?!

Xu Bayan and Chen Xin did not know, but they still possessed common cultivation knowledge. Seeing Xu Huxiao's peculiar state, they quickly thought of one possibility: he had likely entered an extremely precious state of cultivation enlightenment!

Though it was impossible.

But there had already been too many impossibilities. One more did not seem like much, and the two men had become somewhat numb.

Chen Xin could only continue maintaining the pressure of his Sword Force in a daze.

With an empty heart, the dragon soared through the heavens!

Xu Huxiao was indeed in a peculiar state right now. He practiced the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms move by move, his blood vessels heating up throughout his body. His palms and arms especially felt as though they were being roasted by blazing flames.

Yet it was not painful.

Instead, it brought an exhilarating sense of uninhibited joy!

Just as he had been about to collapse beneath Grandpa Sword's Sword Force, a flash of inspiration suddenly crossed his mind.

Using force against force was hard to withstand.

But what about using force against force?

The thought was immediately put into action. The countless subtleties of the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms flowed through his mind as he calmed himself and entered the Martial Dao Essence Realm.

Roar—

A dragon's cry resounded through his body.

The moment he entered it.

Xu Huxiao immediately discovered the difference.

It was like erecting a small boat of his own amid the stormy sea of Sword Force. When towering waves crashed toward him, he could always follow their momentum and find a gap to survive, avoiding being crushed or capsized.

It worked!

Then, following his own weak "force," Xu Huxiao moved with intent, and his body naturally began practicing the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms.

And this time was different from before.

Previously, he had always felt there were barriers and incompatibilities between the circulation route of the Nine Yang Divine Skill and the force-generating methods of the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms.

As a result, whenever he struck with his palms, he always felt that his power was misaligned and off-target, leaving him unable to exert himself properly.

But today, beneath the crushing weight of Chen Xin's Sword Force, he first resisted with his Yang Origin Soul Power. Then, intent arose from his heart, and he entered the Essence Intent Realm of the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms.

Under the immense pressure, he instantly understood the subtle barriers between the palm technique and internal cultivation method. Then, as he practiced from slow to fast, he continuously adjusted them.

Finally!

Who knew how much time had passed.

The Nine Yang Divine Skill and the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms fused together as seamlessly as water and milk!

Force became one, technique and form became one!

Enormous joy rose in Xu Huxiao's heart. At this moment, he forgot everything around him and became completely immersed in his comprehension of the Martial Dao.

Revisiting the Dragon attacked with seventy percent power while retaining thirty percent for oneself. It held back without exhausting all strength, embodying the "softness" of force that could be released and withdrawn at will.

Xu Huxiao bent his left leg slightly and drew a circle with his right palm. Faint dragon-shaped energy coiled and surged between his palms. With one palm thrust, force struck more than a zhang away, while the thirty percent of true power he retained remained under the control of his body, mind, and hand.

Then he leaped with the momentum, Flying Dragon in the Sky, striking down from above!

The force circulated through his body once, and a fierce palm strike carried forth a dragon's cry. Yet the force within him did not diminish; instead, it grew stronger.

Afterward, he executed the remaining six palms one by one. The weight and lightness of force, the fusion of hardness and softness, softness born from hardness, lifting heavy things as though they were light...

All manner of profundities came naturally to Xu Huxiao as he struck with his palms and circulated his force, fully integrated and mastered.

Just as it was said:

Essence intent remained within the palms, while the body moved like a true dragon!

Xu Huxiao flipped toward the sky and launched another palm strike. In that instant, technique, form, intent, and body became one, perfectly fused.

Roar—!!

A dragon's roar broke through the crushing pressure of Sword Force, and the world around him suddenly brightened.

Xu Huxiao was struck by sudden understanding. He closed his eyes and withdrew his palms. When he opened them again, golden light shot more than a foot from his eyes.

Sword Force carved the dragon; the Subduing Dragon gained spirit!

Perfect Essence Intent Realm!

At that moment, Xu Huxiao's five senses improved dramatically. Fragrant saliva filled his mouth, and the muscles, bones, skin, and flesh throughout his body became incomparably clear, supple, and agile, even releasing a momentary harmonious resonance of comfort.

There was no mistake!

Every sensation was exactly as described on Blue Star in his previous life. This was the realm of perfected Essence Intent!

"'...Essence intent condenses into Three Flowers; return form to essence, attain the Dao and seek longevity...' That was how the books from my previous life described it. Now, as long as I condense the Three Qi-Blood Flowers of essence intent, I can enter the Qi Intent Realm."

The Essence Intent Realm refined essence into qi. Once complete Three Qi-Blood Flowers were condensed in the centers of both palms and one inch below the navel, one would reach the realm where essence and qi circulated without leakage.

At that time, even without eating or drinking for ten days and nights, one would remain vigorous and full of life.

The gains from this time were enormous. Xu Huxiao could feel that the power of his Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms had increased by at least more than double.

It was only that he had no suitable opponent right now and could not test its precise power through actual combat sparring.

He would wait until he obtained his Soul Ring.

Whoosh—

After focusing his mind and circulating the Nine Yang Divine Skill through one cycle, Xu Huxiao's boiling blood energy and Soul Power calmed down, and the strange phenomenon in his golden eyes vanished.

"Thank you for your Sword Force, Grandpa Sword. It helped me comprehend the palm technique!"

Thud!

Xu Huxiao dropped to both knees and directly gave Grandpa Sword, Chen Xin, a proper kowtow.

Chen Xin, still somewhat dazed from shock, came back to his senses and immediately helped Xu Huxiao up.

"Silly child, it was only a small effort. Why perform such a grand gesture?"

Xu Huxiao said solemnly, "Grandpa Sword's small effort was a great kindness of imparting the Dao to Huxiao. This bow was only proper."

Hearing this, Chen Xin froze briefly before bursting into laughter.

"Wonderful, Bayan! You've given birth to an excellent son!"