The seventh floor of the Sword Tower had no stone walls, only a boundless void. At the center of the void stood a black stone stele roughly thirty feet tall. Its body was no ordinary stone, but condensed from ancient sword marrow. Its surface was carved with dense golden sword patterns, each one flowing like a living creature and emitting pale golden Sword Qi of utmost purity—this was the Sword Intent Stele that bore the inheritance of ancient sword cultivators, as well as the core of the Sword Tower Trial.
The moment Ling Yun stepped into the void, he felt a heavy "momentum" bearing down upon him. This momentum differed from the Sword Intent pressure of the first six floors. It did not target his meridians or attack his body, but acted directly upon his sword heart. It was as though an ancient sword cultivator stood behind the stele, scrutinizing the Foundation of Sword Dao beneath his gaze, making him unconsciously tighten his grip around the Sky-Rending Sword.
"What pure sword momentum..." A familiar voice came from beside the Sword Intent Stele. Ling Yun looked up and saw Murong Shuang standing gracefully before it. The Green Peak Sword was planted in the void—yet it stood as firmly as though embedded in the ground. Her brows were slightly furrowed, and the Wind Element Sword Intent swirling around her was more solid than before, yet it seemed somewhat sluggish before the Sword Intent Stele's golden Sword Qi. Clearly, she had been trying for quite some time, but had failed to touch the core of Basic Sword Intent.
"You actually made it to the seventh floor." Murong Shuang turned around, her gaze falling upon Ling Yun with complicated emotions. "You have no spiritual root, yet you broke through to the Swordsman Realm and even passed the clone trial... Your Sword Dao has truly surpassed my expectations."
Ling Yun did not answer. His gaze remained fixed upon the Sword Intent Stele. The golden sword patterns on its surface gradually became clearer in his eyes. The paths along which they flowed faintly aligned with the principle of "Sword Intent Dominion" recorded in the Momentum Chapter of the Qiankun Sword Canon—not the stacking of attributes, but Sword Intent's pull and control over the surrounding space. This was the essence of Basic Sword Intent.
"Don't waste your effort." Murong Shuang snorted softly and drew the Green Peak Sword. Her Wind Element Sword Intent surged, condensing into a translucent domain of wind before her. "I tried for three hours. The Sword Intent Stele's sword momentum only recognizes pure attributes. Only a Wind Spirit Physique can barely stir it. Your Chaos Sword Intent is too mixed and disorderly. You simply cannot resonate with the stele."
As soon as she finished speaking, she slashed at the Sword Intent Stele. Wind sword momentum, wrapped in sharp wind blades, crashed into the stele's golden sword patterns—the patterns lit up, and a pale golden Sword Qi rebounded, striking precisely at the weak point of the wind domain. With a crack, the wind domain instantly collapsed. Murong Shuang staggered back two steps, a trace of blood spilling from the corner of her lips.
"Do you see? Forcing an attack will only bring backlash upon yourself." Murong Shuang sheathed her sword, her tone carrying a hint of helplessness. "This is the limitation of talent. Your Chaos Sword Body..."
"It is not a limitation." Ling Yun suddenly spoke and walked toward the Sword Intent Stele. "Basic Sword Intent is not the power of attributes, but the power of Sword Intent to command heaven and earth. You cling too tightly to the wind element, and so you are bound by attributes instead. My chaos can accommodate the sword momentum within the stele. It does not distinguish attributes; it takes only the core of 'dominion.'"
Murong Shuang froze, about to refute him, when Ling Yun extended his right hand and lightly touched the Sword Intent Stele with his fingertips. In an instant, the stele's golden sword patterns flickered violently, and a vast sword momentum surged into his body through his fingers. This momentum possessed no attribute, only pure "condensation" and "dispersion," as though it could gather all power between heaven and earth into a single point, then spread it into a boundless domain.
"The Chaos Sword Body truly can bear ancient sword momentum!" Sword Elder's voice rang through his mind in wild delight. "Do not resist it. Let the stele's sword momentum merge into your Five Elements Sword Intent. Use the Momentum Absorption method of the Qiankun Sword Canon to transform it into your own Basic Sword Intent!"
Ling Yun followed his instructions. The five-colored Sword Intent Pearl within his dantian spun at high speed, while Chaos Sword Qi absorbed the golden sword momentum flowing into his body like a sponge. The scattered green, brown, gold, purple, and pale blue Sword Qi no longer merely circulated in a simple cycle under the pull of the golden sword momentum. Instead, they condensed into a "momentum core" of five colors wrapped in pale gold—this momentum core floated above the Sword Intent Pearl, giving off faint domain-like ripples. Even the surrounding void rippled subtly beneath those waves.
"This... This is..." Murong Shuang's eyes widened, her face filled with disbelief. She could clearly feel an entirely new sword momentum forming around Ling Yun—not the sharpness of wind, nor the heaviness of earth, but a force of dominion that embraced all things. Even her Wind Element Sword Intent was unconsciously drawing closer to that momentum core, as though it wished to be swallowed by it.
At that moment, Ling Yun abruptly opened his eyes, the Sky-Rending Sword angled toward the ground. Pale golden, five-colored sword momentum spread from his body, covering thirty feet of void—the freely flowing golden Sword Qi was drawn by his momentum, forming a rotating halo around the Sky-Rending Sword. This was the true form of Basic Sword Intent: using Sword Intent to command space and making the power of heaven and earth one's own.
"Impossible! How can someone without a spiritual root comprehend Basic Sword Intent?" Murong Shuang's voice trembled slightly. She had cultivated bitterly for years, relying on her Wind Spirit Physique merely to touch the threshold of sword momentum, while Ling Yun had completely mastered it in only a short while and had even formed a momentum domain far beyond hers. Proud as she was, a powerful sense of defeat rose within her.
"Your Sword Dao truly is stronger than mine." Murong Shuang took a deep breath and drew the Green Peak Sword. Her Wind Element Sword Intent gathered once more, but it was much more restrained than before. "But I still want to try. Just how strong is Basic Sword Intent?"
Ling Yun nodded. The Sky-Rending Sword rotated slightly in his hand, and the pale golden, five-colored momentum domain slowly contracted, becoming ever more solid—he did not wish to hurt Murong Shuang. He only wished to use sword momentum to prove that the path of the sword was not limited to a single road.
Murong Shuang struck first. This time, she did not use fierce wind blades. Instead, she merged her Wind Element Sword Intent into her footwork. Her figure darted through the void like a ghost, her sword moves becoming nimble and treacherous as she tried to evade the suppression of the momentum domain and attack Ling Yun's openings. Yet no matter how she moved, Ling Yun's momentum domain followed like a shadow. The moment her sword moves gathered, they were pulled by the golden Sword Qi within the domain, their trajectories involuntarily shifting. She could never come within nine feet of Ling Yun.
So this is... the power of dominion? Murong Shuang was shaken to the core. She swung her sword and unleashed one final burst of wind sword momentum, attempting to break through. Ling Yun no longer defended. He merely lifted the Sky-Rending Sword lightly, and the pale golden, five-colored momentum core poured forth along the blade, colliding with the wind sword momentum—there was no earth-shattering explosion. The wind sword momentum was simply slowly assimilated and dispersed by the momentum core, like a drop of water melting into the sea.
"I lost." Murong Shuang sheathed her sword, the pride in her eyes completely gone, replaced by recognition and admiration. "Your Sword Dao truly comes closer to the essence of 'momentum' than mine. I was narrow-minded before."
Ling Yun withdrew his sword momentum. The pale golden, five-colored momentum core returned to his body and merged into the Sword Intent Pearl—although his Basic Sword Intent had not yet reached perfection, he could already initially command space. His strength was at least three times greater than when he had just broken through to the Swordsman Realm.
Bzzz—
The Sword Intent Stele suddenly flickered violently. A golden pillar of light shot from its peak and condensed into two lines of ancient script in the air: "Sword Tower Trial, Seventh Floor cleared. Reward: Second Floor Scripture Depository Access Right, an ancient fragment of Treatise on Momentum, and one bottle of Basic Sword Intent Condensing Fluid."
Three items fell from the pillar of light: a yellowed ancient book—the fragment of Treatise on Momentum—a jade bottle containing the condensing fluid, and a bronze token engraved with the words "Second Floor." Ling Yun reached out and caught them. The instant the fragment of Treatise on Momentum entered his hand, it resonated with the Basic Sword Intent within him. Its pages flipped open by themselves, and the methods of "using momentum" recorded upon them happened to fill the shortcomings in his sword momentum.
"Congratulations, Ling Yun." Murong Shuang stepped forward and handed him a silver token. "This is the token of a core inner disciple. Having passed the seventh floor of the Sword Tower, you are qualified to cultivate in the core area. The spiritual energy and Sword Dao inheritances there are ten times better than those of the ordinary inner sect."
Ling Yun accepted the token, its icy touch passing through his fingertips. He looked up toward the void's exit, where a white light had already appeared—the passage out of the Sword Tower. Sword Elder's voice sounded in his mind: "The second floor of the Scripture Depository contains the complete sword manual for the Seven Streams Sword Technique, and you may also find clues related to the Ling Family sword manual. The cultivation environment in the core area can help you consolidate your Basic Sword Intent more quickly and prepare for the Misty Secret Realm ahead."
Ling Yun nodded and walked with Murong Shuang toward the passage of white light. Before leaving the Sword Tower, he looked back at the Sword Intent Stele—the black stele stood silently at the center of the void, its golden sword patterns still flowing, as though recounting the legends of ancient sword cultivators. At this moment, the fire of vengeance in his heart still burned fiercely, but it was joined by reverence and pursuit for the Sword Dao—revenge was no longer his sole goal. Exploring the true essence of the Sword Dao and protecting those worth protecting had quietly become his new conviction.
Outside the Sword Tower, the chief inner sect steward and Elder Liu stood upon a high platform. When they saw Ling Yun and Murong Shuang emerge together, surprise and gratification flashed through both their eyes. Elder Liu stroked his beard and said softly, "It has been a hundred years. At last, someone has comprehended Basic Sword Intent in the Swordsman Realm again... This Ling Yun may truly be able to change the future of the Flowing Cloud Sword Sect."
Ling Yun held the core disciple token and the Scripture Depository token, feeling the Basic Sword Intent and Five Elements Sword Intent circulating within him. His heart was incomparably resolute—next, he would go to the second floor of the Scripture Depository to search for sword manuals, consolidate his sword momentum, then face the approaching Misty Secret Realm. Step by step, he would advance steadily toward revenge and toward a broader world.
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