Chapter 208 - The Fifteenth Step
Chapter 208: The Fifteenth Step
Chapter 206
Chen Jingzhai moved about inside the Test of Swords.
The Test of Swords seemed to be a portal, but it was very spacious inside.
With every step he took, there was a sword technique displayed in front of him.
Only when he comprehended it, was he able to move on to the next one.
Without comprehension, it was difficult to advance further.
Even if someone forced their way forward, after the second step, the sword method would only get more difficult.
If three sword methods had gone without being comprehended, the person would be expelled from the Test of Swords.
The most important thing to note was not even this.
If it was simply a matter of comprehension, the Test of Swords would not have stumped so many people.
The three steps were just the beginning. After six steps, sword light was sure to manifest.
The sword light bombarded the body, and those who could withstand it could continue on. However, if they could not, injury was a very real possibility.
After nine steps, the sword method was getting increasingly difficult. Besides the sword light, there was also now the sword force to consider.
The sword force was more powerful than the sword light. If one failed to bear it, failure was certain.
Thus, it was continuous and endless. There was no time to find any loopholes or codes to crack the formation.
This was the difference between the Test of Swords’ sword formation and other ordinary formations.
In other words, only by quickly comprehending the sword methods could one continue to move forward.
It was impossible to back out. Backing out meant injuries and failure.
Chen Jingzhai took three steps at the beginning, and the three sword methods were easily comprehended.
After another three steps, as the seventh step was taken, the sword method got even more brilliant. It was the first move that contained the sword light.
At the same time, in the Test of Swords, sword light was being birthed, and bombarded Chen Jingzhai’s whole body.
There was no way he could avoid it, as he concentrated all his attention on the sword methods.
If he still had his robe on at this time, he would have been bombarded by more than just the sword lights.
This was the reason why it was necessary to put away defensive magic treasures of all sorts, as well as, spiritual items before entering the Test of Swords.
Going in without any kind of defense was the correct way.
“Nine steps already, that’s fast!” Qiao Haisheng looked at the figure in surprise.
Any ordinary Foundation cultivator would not be able to take nine steps in one breath.
Usually, the fourth step was where everyone stopped. The sheer number of sword methods alone was unbearable for most people.
“After all, he has comprehended the Dharma Intent,” Sage Lu said nonchalantly. “Not to mention that he has celestial bones and a naturally gifted physique, which makes him an ideal candidate for sword cultivation. If it wasn’t for the headmaster being partial to him, he should have been one of ours.”
“Ah, this…” Qiao Haisheng looked awkward and didn’t know how to continue the conversation.
There had been fervent rumors already about Chen Jingzhai’s acceptance.
Ever since Chen Jingzhai became the reigning champion at the battle forum, many branches were regretting passing him over!
However, Qiao Haisheng understood Sage Lu’s reasoning.
After all, Sage Lu was the immortal receiver back then, and he could have completely taken Chen Jingzhai down.
As a result, Chen Jingzhai became the Little Master-Uncle, who was also the direct disciple of Hongluan Peak.
Headmaster Fuyunzi’s move rendered all the branches speechless and completely ended any thoughts they might have had.
Now they were full of regrets, including the Golden Jade Sword Branch.
Even Qiao Haisheng’s master, who felt the inexplicable loss from time to time, said that the sword branch had missed out on a genius.
Step ten.
Inside the Test of Swords, Chen Jingzhai continued forward. After he took the tenth step, the sword method changed.
Under the guidance of his consciousness, Chen Jingzhai’s eyes no longer saw the swords, but the forces.
There was the force of heaven and earth, just as the mountain had its force, the water, the tree, the wind, and everything else.
At a glance, the heaven and earth were swords, and so was everything else.
At this time, all the sword methods in the Test of Swords became elusive.
Most cultivators would be stumped at this step, and forced to withdraw from the Test of Swords.
In addition to the difficulty in comprehending the sword methods, the more important thing was that inside the Test of Swords, the sword lights bombarded the body constantly and with massive amounts. The sword force, especially, was more coercive on one’s consciousness with the advancements in the sword method. Ordinary cultivators were hard-pressed to resist.
For Chen Jingzhai, it was not a difficult matter.
In the plane of complete Foundation Establishment, Chen Jingzhai’s body had reached the limit where he could resist spiritual items head-on.
His consciousness was tyrannical, and his divine mind was even broader.
Therefore, although Chen Jingzhai fought for half an hour at the tenth step, he was still able to pass through it safe and sound.
Next, the eleventh and twelfth steps were taken within half an hour.
Qiao Haisheng, who was watching outside, was scared, but at the same time in admiration from the bottom of his heart.
Chen Jingzhai, on the other hand, was immersed in various sword methods. He even divided half of his divine mind on the Supreme Sky Master, and directly entered the Primordial Essence Grotto-heavens to practice the sword method he acquired.
Just like this, he took the thirteenth step.
Once he had taken this step, the sword method changed again. In addition to the sword force, there was also a rudimentary form of the sword’s will.
Chen Jingzhai stayed at this step for about an hour before getting used to it completely.
His physique was bombarded by the sword vapor that was full of sharp power, and still, he remained safe.
The sword method experienced in this step was similar to the moves made by disciples of the Golden Jade Sword Branch such as Tian Feng at the battle forum.
The sword method at the rudimentary form of sword’s will would reign supreme among the cultivators of the Foundation Establishment Plane.
But for Chen Jingzhai, it was not enough.
However, he needed to comprehend the sword method now, not go against it, which accounted for the difference.
After getting used to it completely, he took the fourteenth step.
It took half an hour this time before he fully digested the sword method, and saw a different kind of rudimentary form of sword’s will.
With the passage of time, Chen Jingzhai began to comprehend a sword’s will that was all of his own.
In the Primordial Essence Grotto-heavens, the Supreme Sky Master continued to practice the sword methods.
In the vast heaven, the celestial phenomena were inspired by his sword methods, and a faint sword force was born from that moment onward.
When the fifteenth step was taken, Chen Jingzhai saw the sword again.
The sword of weight.
The sword of self.
The sword of heaven and earth.
The sword of mountains.
The sword of rivers.
The sword of kings.
Between heaven and earth, everything was swords, and he needed to choose one out of all of them.
That sword would be his sword.
Chen Jingzhai stayed at this step for a long time, and soon, it exceeded an hour.
The attention from the other branches did not lessen but increased. More and more people looked this way. Even Jin Zetian, who had been in the Test of Swords, also withdrew at this time.
“Greetings to Master-Uncle!”
“Senior brother Qiao.”
Jin Zetian was slightly stunned when he saw the two of them and didn’t understand why they were there.
One was a Golden Core Sage, and the other was a sword branch genius.
For the two of them, the Test of Swords was nothing at all!
“Junior brother Jin, Little Master-Uncle came today to challenge the Test of Swords, and he has already reached the fifteenth step,” Qiao Haisheng smiled and said to him, “You have to work harder, so you don’t fall behind too much.”
Jin Zetian’s eyes sharpened, as he turned his head suddenly to look. Sure enough, there was a figure inside the portal.
The fifteenth step!!!
Jin Zetian clenched his fists; he had only reached step ten, and he just beginning to experience the sword force.
All kinds of sword forces pressured him so much that he could barely breathe.
But even so, he felt that he was making rapid progress. After all, he was already on the Foundation Establishment Plane.
As long as he continued to challenge the Test of Swords, he would definitely master the sword force.
At that time, in the Beginning Foundation Plane, he would have mastered the sword force.
Even among the inner disciples of the Golden Jade Sword Branch, they were among the best.
Today, Chen Jingzhai’s performance was a blow to all of them, enough to cause Jin Zetian’s heart to sink.
The arrogance and the sense of accomplishment that he had been building up with great difficulty were crushed to smithereens.
“You don’t need to take it to heart so much.”
“After all, he is the Little Master-Uncle, so he can’t be measured by a common standard.”
“Even I have never slain a lord.”
Sage Lu spoke as he looked at Jin Zetian, whose expression changed.
Jin Zetian smiled bitterly when he heard those words, and remained silent.
Sure, the Little Master-Uncle had killed a lord.
Even though it was done with quite a lot of plotting, it was still a remarkable accomplishment.
Never mind that the Little Master-Uncle had also gotten the inheritance of a True Venerable Spirit.
What did they have to compare to the Little Master-Uncle?
But, he was still unconvinced and reluctant. They came in at the same time as aspirant cultivators!
This little bit of reluctance could never, ever, fade away.
Jin Zetian sat down, cross-legged, on the boulder next to him. Ignoring the two, he began to meditate.
It didn’t take long for a faint sense of pressure to emit out from him.
Sage Lu and Qiao Haisheng looked at each other and smiled. Each saw the satisfaction in the eyes of the other.
This pressure was created by the unique sword force that was unique to the Golden Jade Sword Branch.
In the end, Jin Zetian and Chen Jingzhai were two different people.
He was a disciple of the sword branch, cultivating the methods of the sword branch. Challenging the Test of Sword was not only training, it was also cultivating.
Jin Zetian was endowed with the celestial bone, and now he had begun to comprehend the sword force.
In the Advanced Foundation Plane, probably even the rudimentary form of a sword’s will could be understood.
This was the disciple of Golden Jade Sword Branch, and the two were naturally overjoyed.
Although Jin Zetian was reluctant, it was only because he had not yet truly gotten to know himself.
If he was not comparing himself with Chen Jingzhai, his progress was actually very fast, one of the best.
After all, he was a genius talent who had celestial bones in both arms. He mastered the sword methods very quickly and had strong willpower. In order to catch up with Chen Jingzhai, he cultivated ceaselessly, and his effort had already been observed by the Golden Jade Sword Branch.
Chen Jingzhai’s arrival this time may not have been a bad thing for Jin Zetian!