The next day.
After completing his morning meditation, Xu Tianyang came to the exclusive training room in the mansion, which Xu Yunxiao had specially built for cultivation, capable of withstanding attacks from a Spirit Emperor without damage.
After parting ways last night, the father and son had agreed on a time to test Xu Tianyang's growth over the past year and guide him in his cultivation.
Upon arriving at the training room, Xu Tianyang first saw the familiar blue figure, which was his fiancée, Xu Nianshuang.
She was still dressed in her pristine white combat attire today, with her perpetual blue hat, exuding a heroic and spirited aura.
"..."
"Have you been here long?" The two looked at each other in silence, the change in their relationship making Xu Tianyang unsure how to speak. After a long pause, Xu Tianyang finally broke the silence, asking.
In his memory, this was the first time he had ever conversed with Xu Nianshuang. At school, she was always cold and solitary, not even having anyone to talk to.
"Just arrived!" Xu Nianshuang's crystal-like eyes hadn't left Xu Tianyang since he entered. Hearing his question, she responded coolly.
Nodding, Xu Tianyang felt a bit awkward. Neither of them seemed like proactive people, and he didn't know how they should interact. Fortunately, at this crucial moment, Xu Yunxiao walked in from outside, followed by Feng Tianxiang.
"Very good, neither of you were lazy or late."
"Father!" "Uncle Feng!"
"Uncle Xu!" "Uncle Feng!"
They greeted each other. Xu Tianyang hadn't expected Xu Nianshuang to know Feng Tianxiang, but considering how inseparable Feng Tianxiang and his father were, it didn't seem so strange.
"Before you cultivate, eat this first." Xu Yunxiao looked at the two of them with a smile on his face, reaching out to take a box from Feng Tianxiang's hand.
The box opened, revealing dark, lumpy objects inside, like black steamed buns, their material indiscernible.
The two didn't ask further, took the buns, and began to eat. Although the buns were black and somewhat strange, they were soft and glutinous to the taste, so eating them wasn't odd.
"Don't let these strange things fool you. These are made from a thousand-year Ghost King Whale and a ten-thousand-year Wood Soul Dragon's meat. Just these few would sell for tens of thousands of gold Soul Coins. Normally, you wouldn't get to eat ten-thousand-year Spirit Beast meat, so you two are lucky this time."
Hearing Xu Yunxiao's introduction, Xu Tianyang and Xu Nianshuang's eyes immediately lit up, and they quickened their eating pace. These were all good things!
Finishing the bun in a few bites, a clear warm current flowed down his throat. In an instant, that warm current filled his body, flowing towards his limbs and bones.
The blood qi fluctuations emanating from both of them also grew stronger.
"Once you're done eating, come with me. Only in actual combat can these ingredients unleash their true energy. Let me see what your current strength is like."
Looking at Xu Yunxiao, who stood still to the side, Xu Tianyang, who had already walked to the center of the arena with Xu Nianshuang, asked in confusion, "Father, aren't you going to fight personally?"
"What are you thinking?" Xu Yunxiao rolled his eyes at Xu Tianyang and said with disdain, "How old are you? Just at the Spirit Master realm. Do I, your father, need to personally step down to guide you?"
"I've already heard about your exploits from the academy. First-year students are no match for you two, and you've even sparred in actual combat. I heard it went well."
"However, hearing is one thing, seeing is another. Now, you two will fight each other, and Uncle Feng and I can naturally understand your current strength."
"Only in battles where strengths are truly matched can one unleash their unknown potential."
Hearing his father's words, Xu Tianyang also nodded. He turned to look at Xu Nianshuang, only to see a strong fighting spirit erupting from her eyes. His heart immediately tensed, realizing that her strength had improved again.
However, I haven't been standing still either.
"Xu Nianshuang, a Level 15, One-Ring Battle Spirit Master!"
"Xu Tianyang, a Level 16, One-Ring Battle Spirit Master!"
"Here I come!" After their polite introductions, Xu Nianshuang adjusted her hat with her left hand, and at some point, her right hand had drawn the same ice-blue longsword as before. Her figure flickered, and she charged towards Xu Tianyang.
"Then let's try our swordsmanship first!" Seeing that Xu Nianshuang hadn't released her Spirit, Xu Tianyang also didn't release his Spirit immediately. Instead, he excitedly drew a Soul Guidance longsword and quickly thrust it upwards.
"Clang!" A crisp explosive sound rang out. Xu Tianyang felt the power transmitted through the sword, and his heart was somewhat surprised. Her strength was much greater than before.
Did she suffer a disadvantage in physical fitness during their previous encounter, which is why she strengthened so much in just three months?!
Xu Nianshuang pointed her longsword forward, and a massive sword light instantly streaked across the sky, spanning tens of meters, vertically slashing down towards Xu Tianyang's body.
Xu Tianyang held his recently completed Level 2 Soul Guidance longsword with both hands, raising his sword to slash horizontally, and a similarly massive sword light burst forth.
The clash of vertical and horizontal was also the collision of their Spirit attributes, the power of ice and fire.
The two sword lights collided and shattered in mid-air, turning into countless specks of light.
The dissipated spirit power fluctuations caused the ground beneath them to tremble.
Xu Nianshuang's delicate brows furrowed. Her foot moved, and in the next moment, she appeared before Xu Tianyang. The tip of the azure longsword in her hand trembled slightly, transforming into thousands of sword shadows.
Xu Tianyang's dynamic vision, boosted by his Spirit, operated at its peak. His figure cleverly dodged, and the longsword in his hand executed one exquisite parry after another.
Such a clash between the two astonished Xu Yunxiao and Feng Tianxiang, who were watching. This level of strength was something they themselves did not possess even when they were Spirit Masters.
"Tianxiang, where did Yang'er learn his swordsmanship? Did you teach him in private?" Xu Yunxiao looked back at Feng Tianxiang in confusion.
"Your subordinate has not taught His Royal Highness the Grandson swordsmanship." Feng Tianxiang shook his head, observed for a moment, then said, "From my observation, Her Royal Highness Nianshuang's swordsmanship has a military foundation, likely learned in the army. As for His Royal Highness the Grandson's swordsmanship, it appears to consist only of the most basic sword moves. Your subordinate speculates that he relies on the innate advantage of his Spirit to preemptively cut off his opponent's swordsmanship, entirely depending on his Spirit advantage in combat."
"Haha, that boy is quite lucky." Xu Yunxiao smiled and shook his head, then looked at Xu Nianshuang with a surprised expression, saying, "It's Shuang'er who has given me a great surprise. That must be the embryonic form of Sword Intent. She truly is a born swordswoman. It's a pity her Spirit isn't suitable."
Nodding, Feng Tianxiang also looked at Xu Nianshuang in surprise, secretly regretting that she didn't have a sword Spirit. Even if she comprehended the embryonic form of Sword Intent, what good would it do? This world, after all, is dominated by Spirits. In the future, Xu Nianshuang's cultivation in the way of the sword would ultimately fail to keep up with her Spirit cultivation and would be abandoned.
"Boom!"
A loud bang came, and it was clear that the two sides were no longer limited to just competing in swordsmanship, but had incorporated the abilities of their Spirits.
Xu Nianshuang's right foot scraped across the ground, drawing a long arc as she kicked towards Xu Tianyang. An ice thorn emerged from the ground, creating a wall of ice spikes along the direction of her kick, which Xu Tianyang dodged.
The yellow spirit ring encircling Xu Nianshuang lit up, and the sky instantly gained an ice-blue hue, radiating cold air. Her Spirit was pure ice element; controlling ice was her most basic ability. With the amplification of her first spirit ring, she could instantly create a large world of ice and snow.
"Mental Field!"
In Xu Tianyang's eyes, obscure fiery red patterns flickered, and his only spirit ring also lit up. A terrifying Mental Field enveloped the entire arena.
The familiar sensation once again spread throughout Xu Nianshuang's body.
The battle quickly ended. At the low-level Spirit Master stage, mental attacks were an unsolvable move for ninety-nine percent of Spirit Masters.
Without using their Spirits, Xu Tianyang and Xu Nianshuang were a seven-three split, but once Spirits were used, it immediately became a ten-zero split.
"Are you alright!"
Xu Nianshuang, exhausted of spirit power, sat on the ground and looked at the hand extended towards her. She looked up at Xu Tianyang's concerned eyes, feeling a hint of joy in her heart. Xu Tianyang, who had defeated her twice, left an indelible impression on her. Due to her past experiences, she greatly admired strength; Mu Mengyu was the ideal she pursued.
Therefore, she usually tried to emulate Mu Mengyu's demeanor.
Ever since Mu Mengyu saved her and helped her get revenge, she had secretly vowed to repay her with all her might, even if it meant sacrificing her own life.
When Mu Mengyu asked if she would be her daughter-in-law, even though she had never met Xu Tianyang at that time, she agreed without hesitation. Although Mu Mengyu told her then that if she wasn't satisfied, she wouldn't be forced.
However, Xu Tianyang was the first person she had ever truly taken to heart.
Then came her first meeting with Xu Tianyang after enrolling in school. At that time, Xu Nianshuang didn't have any special feelings for him, until she was defeated by Xu Tianyang for the first time.
Xu Tianyang, with a forceful presence, barged into her heart.
This was the second time she had lost to Xu Tianyang. Looking at the concern in his eyes, a chord in Xu Nianshuang's heart seemed to begin to vibrate.
She put her hand in his and stood up, trying her best to hide the joy in her heart, and said in a still cool voice, "I'm fine, just need a rest."
"Mm!" Xu Tianyang didn't say anything. In his opinion, with Xu Nianshuang's personality, she shouldn't lie.
"Splendid! I never expected you two to possess such strength at your age. Father couldn't do better than you two back then." Xu Yunxiao's joyful voice drifted from afar.
Looking at the two, Xu Yunxiao was very excited. Xu Tianyang and Xu Nianshuang were far more outstanding than he and his wife. He truly wished to fast-forward twenty years, wondering what kind of scene it would be then.
"Although your eye Spirit has immense potential, it lacks sufficient offensive means in the early stages. spirit tools are enough to compensate for this. Your idea is very good, but your swordsmanship hasn't undergone systematic learning and cannot fully utilize the potential of this body. During the upcoming holiday, let Tianxiang teach you swordsmanship."
After speaking to Xu Tianyang, Xu Yunxiao turned to Xu Nianshuang, who was standing nearby, and praised, "Shuang'er, your talent in the way of the sword is something even I have to marvel at."
"However, it's a pity your Spirit isn't a sword Spirit. Delving into the path of swordsmanship isn't suitable for you." Seeing Xu Nianshuang open her mouth to say something, Xu Yunxiao raised his hand to stop her, saying, "Swordsmanship is also a good offensive method in the early stages. You don't need to answer me now. As for the future, you still have a long time to choose."
"Remember, always choose what your heart desires most. The same goes for you, Yang'er."
Looking at the serious expression of Xu Yunxiao, Xu Tianyang and Xu Nianshuang both nodded seriously in agreement.
"It's good that you understand. Next, Shuang'er, you and Yang'er will follow Tianxiang to cultivate the way of the sword during the day. In the evenings, I will guide you in your Spirit and spirit tool cultivation."