Chapter 271: The Prerequisite for Sword Essence (1)

Sitting cross-legged on the bed, Xu Yuan carefully examined the strange sensations coursing through his body after his breakthrough. Advancing from the Iron Body Realm to the Soul Condensation Realm was the first great bottleneck on the path of cultivation.

Soul sense was not something everyone could develop. A suitable secret art, sufficient comprehension, and natural aptitude, one could not be missing. Born within the sea of consciousness, soul sense brought an almost qualitative leap to a cultivator’s five senses. Once condensed enough to leave the body, it could even be wielded much like telekinesis.

A cultivator who had only just entered the Soul Condensation Realm would not possess particularly solid soul sense, but it could still cause an opponent plenty of trouble in battle. In a fight to the death, a single instant of disorientation could decide who lived and who died. That, however, applied only to ordinary cultivators.

The soul sense of someone with an Innate Dao Physique could leave the body from the very beginning of their cultivation. Xu Yuan had long since incorporated its use into his daily life. Because of that, he did not notice much difference in his soul sense. It merely felt somewhat more substantial.

Most of the strange sensations came from the source qi within his body. It was like a dam had burst. The amount of source qi he could hold had increased enormously. And it was not merely greater in quantity. During his breakthrough, it seemed to have been compressed by his soul sense, becoming exceptionally dense and refined.

As he considered this, Xu Yuan slipped on his boots and headed out of the side room. He could feel that every aspect of his fundamental strength had nearly doubled compared to when he had been in the Iron Body Realm.

There was a saying commonly passed among ordinary cultivators. All beneath Soul Condensation were mere mortals.

In the eyes of the Great Flame Empire’s common folk and lower-ranked cultivators, a Soul Condensation cultivator was already a terrifying existence.

Among some smaller clans, one would be powerful enough to serve as a retainer.

After all, when the steward of the Xu residence in Stillwater had received Xu Yuan’s verbal order to surround and kill the former protagonist, Qin Mo, the most he had been able to mobilize were a few seventh rank Bone Tempering cultivators. To call upon anyone stronger, he would have needed to submit a formal request.

Xu Yuan drew in his wandering thoughts and rose in silence. After putting on his boots, he prepared to find his maternal uncle and continue training.

The Soul Condensation Realm might already be considered powerful, but Xu Yuan felt no real sense of accomplishment from reaching it. He could plainly feel his strength increasing before his very eyes, yet the breakthrough still did not seem particularly impressive.

He silently stepped out of the side room, walked onto the stone path, took several steps forward, and then… a figure in azure appeared beside him.

It happened without the slightest warning. A second ago, no one had been there. The next, someone was.

Moments like these were why he felt no great joy in his breakthrough.

Within the Chancellor’s Manor, he had merely crawled out of the sewer and onto the paving stones. What sense of accomplishment was he supposed to feel?

Xu Changge said nothing.

Xu Yuan said nothing either.

The two brothers walked in silence toward the edge of the inner residence.

After leaving it behind and looking out over the green lawn in the courtyard, Xu Changge casually asked as though it were no great matter, “You broke through?”

Xu Yuan glanced sideways at him. “What do you want?”

Xu Changge frowned. “I heard some noise coming from your side, so I came over to ask.”

Xu Yuan withdrew his gaze and shot back, “With your cultivation, you couldn’t tell? You had to come all the way over and ask? What, is something wrong with you?”

Xu Changge’s expression shifted. He looked ready to turn on his heel and leave, but somehow restrained himself. “You broke through, Changtian. As your elder brother, naturally I came to check on you.”

Xu Yuan stared at him strangely. Then he slowly raised one finger, pointed at Xu Changge, pointed at himself, and tilted his head.

Xu Changge remained expressionless.

Xu Yuan suddenly snorted. “Xu Changge, did you take the wrong medicine today?”

Xu Changge said nothing.

Xu Yuan turned sideways and patted him on the shoulder. “Don’t be afraid. I may cultivate quickly, but I won’t beat you up before I reach the Origin Awakener Realm.”

Xu Changge drew a deep breath and stared at him. His aura began to seep out. “Changtian, you have only just entered the Soul Condensation Realm, yet you already dare challenge someone in the Origin Awakener Realm. Very impressive.”

Xu Yuan sneered, then looked behind Xu Changge. “Father, Xu Changge’s head is stuffed entirely with muscle. Aren’t you going to do something about him?”

Xu Changge froze for an instant. If their father had truly come over, it was entirely possible Xu Changge would not have sensed him. He immediately reined in his aura and turned around.

The vast courtyard stood completely empty. There was not so much as a shadow of their father.

Xu Changge turned back with a pleasant smile, only to see that Xu Yuan had already raised his sword.

Void Step Slash!

Xu Changge fell silent.

Xu Yuan vanished.

Staring at the spot where his little brother had disappeared, Xu Changge trembled with anger. He clenched his fists and looked toward the Sword Pavilion in the northwest, seemingly debating whether to chase the brat down and give him a beating.

A moment later, however, Xu Changge let out a quiet laugh. “Honestly. He is still exactly the same as ever. I had even planned to follow him and persuade Uncle to go easy on him. Now it seems I should let the brat enjoy himself at his leisure.”

With that, Xu Changge took two bottles of Foundation Strengthening Pills from his Sumeru Ring and sent them flying into Xu Yuan’s room. Shaking his head, he soared back toward his own courtyard.

??

Using the Sage’s soul power to teleport several hundred feet, Xu Yuan abruptly appeared atop the Sword Pavilion.

His arrival was sudden, but no sooner had he appeared than another figure materialized on the rooftop behind him, dressed in white as pure as snow.

Feng Jiuxuan was probably somewhat faster than Xu Changge. To Xu Yuan, however, there was no real difference.

Xu Yuan treated Feng Jiuxuan with proper respect. “Uncle, I broke through.”

Feng Jiuxuan swept his gaze over him. A trace of satisfaction appeared in his eyes. “Very fast. Very good.”

“With all those pills, medicinal meals, and herbal baths helping me along, naturally I would cultivate a little faster.” Xu Yuan grinned.

In less than a year, he had bulldozed his way from an ordinary mortal all the way into the Soul Condensation Realm. His own talent had played a part, of course, but the greater reason was the virtually inexhaustible supply of cultivation resources at his disposal.

Scholars could afford to be poor. Martial artists could not. More often than not, the reason you were not strong enough was simply that you had not paid to win hard enough. There was no shade quite like that of a great tree.

The amount of silver Xu Yuan had poured into cultivation was beyond counting. Especially since returning to the Imperial Capital, his total expenses had already reached roughly 400,000 taels.

There might not be a second person under Heaven who could swallow pills the way he did. Not even the Crown Prince could afford to cultivate like this.

Viewed over the long term, the resources he had already consumed would have been enough to raise several Grandmasters. Yet all of it had been spent merely to help a weakling like him raise his cultivation as quickly as possible.

If he continued cultivating by stuffing himself with pills all the way to the third rank, it would cost his father at least 1,000,000 taels of silver.

Feng Jiuxuan neither agreed nor disagreed. Instead, he changed the subject with mild interest. “That sword skill you used just now is rather unusual. It almost looked as though you teleported here.”

“It was created by an exceptionally gifted genius. It really is quite powerful.” Xu Yuan smiled.

“An exceptionally gifted genius?” Feng Jiuxuan asked bluntly,

“Qin Mo. The man Xu Changge went to Stillwater to kill.” Xu Yuan smiled faintly.

“That surviving wretch from Burial Village? He created a skill like that while only at the eighth rank…” A trace of solemnity entered Feng Jiuxuan’s eyes. “Among cultivators of the same rank, even your elder brother might not have been his match. Had he been allowed to grow, he truly would have become a grave threat.”

Xu Yuan spread his hands. “Dead men don’t grow.”