Three hours ago, a young sword cultivator arrived at Meiling. He carried a long sword on his back and wore a golden-yellow wine gourd at his waist.
Every time he drank a sip of wine, his grief increased, as if he was drinking not wine but extremely bitter tears.
The Federation Government blocked the outskirts of Meiling. Chen Qingniu leaped into the air, sprouting a pair of pale wings on his back, gliding over two hundred zhang, leaving the armed soldiers behind.
Upon reaching the core area, the Earth Immortals of Jiangyou Province's Immortal Martial Combat Hall recognized him, this young prodigy of exceptional talent.
Though he was indeed talented, he was still young and had not reached the first realm of Land Immortal — the Sky Realm. Why had he come?
"The master of the defeated district hall was his father. How could he not come?" the knowing Earth Immortal sighed.
Chen Qingniu drew his long sword, sprayed a mouthful of nectar onto it, wiping off every drop. The shining treasure sword reflected his face, and he proclaimed, "Good sword! Good head!"
He leapt up and shouted at the cultivators from Celestial Sword Mountain who were confronting the Earth Immortals of the Immortal Martial Combat Hall, "May I ask where Zhao Hao is? Chen Qingniu's head is here for him to take!"
A man from Celestial Sword Mountain stepped out with a sword, glanced at him, and shook his head, "My Senior Brother Zhao is too busy to take your head. Such a minor Vajra Realm stage, daring to stand out? What are you!"
Chen Qingniu laughed heartily, tears spilling from his eyes, "I, Chen Qingniu, may be insignificant, not worth mentioning at all, but since he killed my father, I'm here seeking death. Isn't that reasonable?"
The atmosphere instantly cooled down.
The enmity of a father killer is irreconcilable; everyone knows this, and no one dared claim Chen Qingniu lacked the right to challenge Zhao Hao.
No matter the disparity in their status or realms, the enmity of a father-killer deserves life-risking combat.
Chen Qingniu's challenge was not unreasonable but extremely sensible; no one in the world was more entitled to challenge Zhao Hao than him.
As Chen Qingniu said, he knew that fighting Zhao Hao meant certain death, with no chance of victory.
Zhao Rugou from Celestial Sword Mountain said, "My Senior Brother Zhao Hao is at Celestial Sword Mountain; you won't see him. If you wish to challenge, I will boldly fight on behalf of my Senior Brother Zhao Hao!"
Sword cultivators have sharp and defiant personalities, stronger in combat power than typical cultivators, hence their arrogant and ostentatious manner that makes others retreat. Their swords are their principles.
"Good! Good! Good!"
Chen Qingniu laughed wildly, killed his father's murderer, yet didn't dare to show his face or appear himself for the challenge but instead let others replace him.
Such contempt! Such absurdity!
"This sword should surely serve my father now!" said Chen Qingniu earnestly, pouring all his True Qi into the treasure sword in his hand.
Sword slashing!
A streak of sword light pierced through the sky.
This sword, once goes never returns!
...
Looking at the two empty bottles of Hundred Herbs Essence Liquid and the consumed fifteen units of Source Power, Wang Xuan felt it was worth it.
These fifteen units of Source Power saved him over three months of effort, accelerating his Mixed Element Stance from a Minor Achievement to first entering Great Success.
What's most precious in the world? Time. Wang Xuan was aware he was no longer young; at twenty-four, if he didn't strive to catch up, it would be hard to reach high realms in the future.
The Great Success Mixed Element Stance allowed Wang Xuan to feel as rooted as a mountain, even if a water buffalo charged at him, his stance remained as firm as Mount Tai.
This realm is usually exclusive to Bone Refining cultivators, yet he had already reached this height.
Standing in front of the mirror, Wang Xuan realized he seemed to have grown two centimeters taller, his weight slightly increased, feeling the powerful muscles contained strong forces.
In a few days, after further nourishment, his data would likely change again.
This is the effect of the Great Success Mixed Element Stance, exceptionally evident.
"My strength probably increased by twenty percent compared to the Minor Achievement realm. After consolidating the Mixed Element Stance realm, my body can achieve two thousand jin of force, similar to the peak of Bone Refining,"
Wang Xuan contemplated, despite his terrifying strength, his improvements in the Muscle Training Realm were similar to others, due solely to his Innate Divine Strength.
It's inborn, yet he consumed just as many resources as Bone Refining realm cultivators, constantly burning money.
Having returned from Meiling, now at seven or eight o'clock, busy without even remembering to eat.
He took out ingredients from fierce beasts - Wild Boar King, giant python, and Golden Pigeon meat, along with Ink Jade Flower, each costing twenty to thirty thousand Star Yuans. Wang Xuan decided to cook himself; he didn't want the kitchen's AI to squander the good stuff.
The human body needs numerous nutrients; drinking potions alone won't do. The flesh body is like a miniature cosmos, with great potential needing various substances to nourish it.
While cooking, Wang Xuan browsed online; the communities in Yuzhang City were in chaos, and concerned cultivators discussed what had happened in Meiling.
One by one, Land Immortals appeared beyond ordinary people's reach, and sword lights frequently slashed through the sky, making it evident something happened in Meiling.
There were a lot of online rumors, but none distinguished true from false, some about treasures, some about demon beast sieges, others regarding vengeance seeking.
After skimming, Wang Xuan didn't dwell on it, only focusing on strengthening himself, otherwise forget revenge, he wouldn't even qualify to wave his fist at Earth Immortals.
Sitting on the living room sofa, with several dishes on the coffee table, Wang Xuan ate from a massive bowl filled with rice that two people couldn't finish.
The term "glutton" truly fit him.
The door rang with the "beep-beep" of electronic fingerprints and iris verification, followed by the sound of a key turning; a click, and the door opened.
"La-la-la-la!" Su Xiaowei entered holding a small suitcase, joyful as ever.
But upon noticing Wang Xuan, she was startled and retracted her left leg, timidly asking, "Uncle Wang, aren't you supposed to be out?"
She hid the suitcase behind her, whispered, "Xiaowei is here to drop off some things."
"Have you eaten?" Wang Xuan asked her.
Su Xiaowei nodded, "I have eaten already." She patted her little belly, indicating she wasn't lying.
"Come over, sit." Wang Xuan gestured, "This house is originally your sisters' property anyway, and you're still my little landlord. It's okay to come in."
For a monthly rent of three to four thousand, Wang Xuan had paid for a year upfront, all handed to Bai Yuzhen, leasing the house to allow Su Xiaowei and Su Qiubai to live better.
Feeling as if she had committed an error, Su Xiaowei nodded, a smile appeared as she placed the little suitcase on the sofa and sat down.
"Uncle Wang, Xiaowei has left quite a few sketchbooks in the small room, all hand-drawn by myself, but my sister always likes to send them to friends one by one. I can't bear them to give away, so I secretly stash them here."
This house used to be a home for Su Xiaowei's family of four, and even now it retained the two girls' bedrooms, as stipulated in the rental contract; Wang Xuan never entered nor moved their belongings.
It held the memories of the two little girls' past home.
The little girl talked while opening the small suitcase, revealing four or five sketchbooks within; she flipped through pages, which were largely diary-style sketches recording her everyday life.
There were also creatively drawn anime characters, meticulously crafted, appearing to require much effort.
"Many of the characters are Xiaowei's original creations. After my sister showed them to her friends, my sketchbook was gradually sent away by her. I feel the drawn characters possess life, reluctant to give them away."
She said, while crinkling her delicate nose, attracted by the aromas from the dishes on the table.
The food really smelled delicious! But she had already eaten, and the realization saddened Su Xiaowei.
Wang Xuan had consumed half of his large bowl of rice, listening to the little girl's chatter, feeling truly fond, with Su Xiaowei being like a small sun, basking the surrounding land with light.
The little girl was multi-talented, seemingly skilled in playing piano, guzheng, painting, singing, and doing well academically, adept at anything she wanted to learn, so skilled her sister no longer bothered with these.
Wang Xuan furrowed his brow slightly, "Xiaowei draws so well, what if I wanted a picture from you? Would you paint one for me for a meal?"
Xiaowei happily replied, "Uncle Wang, what do you want Xiaowei to draw for you?"
Taking out a book from the study, holding it like reading, Wang Xuan mimicked the posture, exuding a certain aura, resembling a scholar.
"Just that, once you've painted it I'll give it to my parents as a gift."
Su Xiaowei nodded firmly, after taking a few photos she said, "I'll paint immediately upon returning! Can Xiaowei also have a meal?"
"There's cutlery in the kitchen, go ahead, but remember to exercise more, or you'll gain weight."