Chapter 24

Lin Shen’s eyes were bloodshot as he glared at Han Muye, as if he were about to devour him.

Drawing his sword a thousand times, this was his path.

This was his belief.

Now, someone was questioning his belief, which was tantamount to destroying his path.

Destroying one’s path was an unforgivable act.

Han Muye looked at Lin Shen and said in a low voice, "Lin Instructor, I ask you, is there a difference between drawing your sword a thousand times and drawing it ten thousand times?"

"There is." Lin Shen replied without hesitation, "Drawing your sword ten thousand times deepens your understanding of the sword path."

Han Muye nodded and continued, "Is there a difference between drawing your sword a hundred thousand times and a million times?"

"There is." Lin Shen answered loudly again, but paused slightly after his response.

"After a million times, drawing and swinging the sword become one fluid motion."

As soon as he finished speaking, Han Muye asked, "Is there a difference between drawing your sword five million times and six million times?"

This time, Lin Shen hesitated and did not speak.

After a while, he seemed to be giving himself confidence and said softly, "No matter what, as long as I persist for a few more years and draw my sword a million times, I will soar to the sky..."

Han Muye shook his head and said indifferently, "If the sword is in your heart, drawing it a thousand or ten thousand times is enough."

"If there is no sword in your heart, drawing it a million times is useless."

After saying this, he did not linger and turned to leave in large strides.

"Is there no sword in my heart?" Lin Shen stood there, his face full of confusion: "I have a sword in my heart, my sword is just..."

"No, I only believe in the sword in my hand, what use is there for a sword in my heart?"

"Wrong, after drawing the sword a million times, I should believe in the sword in my heart."

He muttered to himself, seemingly completely forgetting where he was for a moment.

...

Han Muye left the Skill Hall, asked for directions to the Clear Stream Gorge, and ran all the way. After about two hours, he saw a clear and serene river.

On both sides of the river, there were continuous bamboo forests and mountains, with bamboo houses scattered among them.

This was the Clear Stream Gorge.

Mo Yuan was also a well-known figure here, and Han Muye found out his location with a little inquiry.

Unfortunately, he was not there today.

Perhaps he was at the Skill Demonstration Hall?

Han Muye turned and headed for the Skill Demonstration Hall.

At the Skill Demonstration Hall, Han Muye took a room key and walked into the room, writing a line on the jade wall.

"Room 183, seeking the skill 'Myriad Swords Return to the Source,' reward: ten spirit stones."

The message flashed on the jade wall for a long time, but no one responded.

Han Muye could only regretfully touch the message to make it disappear.

It seemed that the first disciple of the outer sect, Mo Yuan, was not at the Skill Demonstration Hall.

He wrote another line.

"Room 183, seeking the subsequent derivation of 'Iron Ox Strength,' reward: three merit points."

He only had three merit points.

The subsequent derivation of Iron Ox Strength was worth this price.

After a moment, a light flickered, and the task was accepted.

Soon, the door to the room was pushed open.

"It's you?" The tall Zhao Pu frowned when he saw Han Muye, "What, didn't you understand it last time?"

He then said in a deep voice, "Cancel the task, I told you, if you have any questions about Iron Ox Strength, just come to me."

Han Muye shook his head and said, "Senior Brother Zhao Pu, I want to know, how many levels can the subsequent derivation of Iron Ox Strength have?"

"Can it reach the ninth level of the Cultivation of Primordial Energy?"

His words made Zhao Pu pause.

"How many levels?"

"Iron Ox Strength has only one level, it is one of the lowest-level skills in the Skill Demonstration Hall, with cultivation effects only slightly better than the outer sect's fist and foot techniques."

He shook his head and continued, "It is impossible to reach the ninth level of the Cultivation of Primordial Energy with this body-strengthening skill."

Only one level?

Impossible to reach the ninth level of the Cultivation of Primordial Energy?

Han Muye was somewhat disappointed.

Zhao Pu would not lie to him.

"I will demonstrate it for you again." Zhao Pu said, then took a horse stance, raised his hand, and punched, with a shadow of a green ox floating behind him.

After completing the set of punches, he looked at Han Muye, "You go through it, let me see where the problem is."

Han Muye nodded.

Zhao Pu was a good person, cold on the outside but warm on the inside.

Taking a deep breath, Han Muye raised his hand and took a stance, then moved his body.

"Hum—"

Behind him, the shadow of a green ox instantly appeared.

"Not bad, this is already a minor success..." Zhao Pu's eyes lit up, then his eyes flashed with a sharp light, "No, this is about to be a major success!"

"To achieve a major success in Green Ox Strength in just a few days, your comprehension..."

Before he could finish, Han Muye punched, and a second shadow of a green ox appeared behind him!

Zhao Pu was stunned, his whole body trembling.

Han Muye retracted his punch, and the two shadows of green oxen slowly dissipated.

"This is my question." Han Muye looked at Zhao Pu and spoke softly.

Two shadows of green oxen.

Zhao Pu stared at Han Muye, and said in a deep voice, "Tell me, how did you do it?"

Han Muye did not hide anything and recounted his insights during his cultivation.

Following his method, Zhao Pu practiced a few times and condensed the second and third shadows of green oxen.

Seeing the three shadows behind him, Han Muye's eyes lit up.

He had always felt that Iron Ox Strength could condense more shadows of green oxen, but he was unsure if this cultivation direction was correct and did not dare to continue.

Dissipating the shadows behind him, Zhao Pu looked at Han Muye.

"It seems that Iron Ox Strength really has deeper cultivation methods."

"I will discuss it with my master, and you should not rashly continue your cultivation for now."

He smiled and said, "What is your name, and where are you cultivating?"

Han Muye bowed and said, "I am Han Muye, a sword observer at the Sword Pavilion."

"A sword observer?" Zhao Pu was taken aback for a moment, then nodded, "Alright, I will come to the Sword Pavilion to find you once I figure it out."

With that, he turned and left in large strides.

He did not take the three merit points from Han Muye.

Han Muye smiled bitterly and shook his head.

He had hoped that Zhao Pu could give him some help, but now it seemed there was no hope.

Deriving a skill was not an easy task.

Turning around, he saw many messages on the jade wall seeking sword techniques.

Among them was a frequently appearing message, "Seeking the third level of the Green Wave Skill."

It seemed this must be Yang Shao.

However, Han Muye did not have the heart to derive the Green Wave Skill for Yang Shao at the moment. He chose a few messages with reasonable prices, then took a bronze mask from the front desk and entered a room.

In half an hour, he earned eleven merit point certificates.

Then he selected three body-strengthening skills.

Two of them, "Five Elements Body Strengthening Technique" and "Great Iron Armor Skill," each cost four hundred spirit stones.

The other, "Dual Primordial Body Strengthening," cost five hundred spirit stones.

He found a room, posted a message, and someone came to demonstrate the skills.

Han Muye also asked a few questions.

The result was disappointing.

None of the three body-strengthening skills could be quickly mastered.

Even the inner sect senior who demonstrated the skills earnestly warned him that cultivation must be done step by step, with no room for superficiality.

But how could reality allow him to cultivate slowly?

Back at the Sword Pavilion, Old Huang Li looked at Han Muye with a strange expression.

After dinner and washing up, Han Muye looked at his reflection in the water basin and was momentarily stunned.

In the reflection, he saw that his temples were filled with many more white hairs!

Could it be that his lifespan was really coming to an end?

Back in his room, he began to practice the body-strengthening skills.

From Iron Ox Strength to the body-strengthening techniques, he alternated between four different skills.

He could feel the increase in his physical strength.

But this could not stop his aging.

On the contrary, because of the body-strengthening skills, he could clearly feel a certain force rapidly depleting within him.

"Is this because the sword intent in my qi sea is too strong, and my body cannot bear it, leading to the depletion of my lifespan?"

"Then, should I dispel all the sword intent?"

Sitting in the room, Han Muye's eyes flashed with a sharp light.

"Perhaps, there is another way?"

After a moment of contemplation, Han Muye still could not bear to dispel the sword qi.

In the cultivation world, cultivation and combat power were everything.

Without sword qi, he felt uneasy.