Chapter 2

In the early morning.

At the training ground of the Meng family in Mirror Lake, Liu July was practicing archery, while Meng Chuan was practicing his sword techniques in the corner.

"Huhuhu."

The sword techniques were elusive and hard to predict.

And they were extremely fast, being the most advanced fast sword technique that could be learned in the mortal world, known as the "Falling Leaf Sword."

Since he was a six-year-old child, he had passed the family's test, confirming his talent for fast sword techniques, and he also enjoyed practicing them the most because... they were fast enough!

After practicing basic sword techniques at home for two years, at the age of eight, his father Meng Dajiang sent him to the Mirror Lake Dao Academy, one of the eight major Dao Academies in Dongning Prefecture! The head of the Mirror Lake Dao Academy, Ge Yu, though of average character, was the fastest sword user in all of Dongning Prefecture!

At the age of nine, Meng Chuan had perfected the basic sword techniques, with a solid foundation, and was taught the advanced sword technique "Chasing Wind Sword."

At the age of eleven, he had perfected the "Chasing Wind Sword," and the headmaster personally taught him the most advanced sword technique he was best at, the "Falling Leaf Sword."

At the age of thirteen, he had achieved great success with the "Falling Leaf Sword" and became a member of the Mountain and Water Pavilion in the Mirror Lake Dao Academy. The Mountain and Water Pavilion... only the most outstanding disciples among the thousands of disciples in the entire Mirror Lake Dao Academy could enter. Even now, the Mountain and Water Pavilion has only twenty-two disciples in total.

Now he is fifteen years old.

"Unfortunately, my Falling Leaf Sword is still only at the stage of great success, not yet perfected." Meng Chuan stopped, looking at the sword in his hand, frowning slightly, "How can I finally understand the secret techniques of the Falling Leaf Sword to reach the first major realm of sword techniques, the 'Unity Realm'?"

Sword techniques, spear techniques, and so on...

All skills.

The first major realm is the 'Unity Realm,' which refers to the unity of body, mind, and skill, capable of exerting unimaginable power.

The second major realm is called 'Momentum,' where the universe has great momentum! Mountains have mountain momentum, water has water momentum. When using sword techniques, one should have sword momentum! That is a higher major realm.

However, Meng Chuan has been in the foundational stage for many years. Of course, his foundation is already extremely solid, and his sword techniques are just one step away from the 'Unity Realm.'

But that one step... is the hardest!

"Even in the entire Dongning Prefecture, those who can reach the Unity Realm in sword techniques and other skills are few and far between." Meng Chuan was very clear about this, "Only by reaching the Unity Realm can one be considered a true expert. Otherwise, they are just mediocre."

Those mediocre ones, even if they have abundant true qi, are just targets with greater strength and speed.

In front of true experts, they are killed in one move.

"According to the description of the Falling Leaf Sword, it consists of eighty-one forms. As long as the eighty-one forms are practiced to a state of mastery, one will naturally grasp the secret technique 'Three Autumn Leaves,' and at that time, one will reach the first major realm of sword techniques, the 'Unity Realm.'" Meng Chuan felt somewhat helpless because the entire book only had this small paragraph about the Unity Realm.

There was no more description, not even what the moves looked like.

'To naturally grasp the secret technique,' sounds too mystical. My 'Falling Leaf Sword' has been at the stage of great success for two years, and I practice hard every day. Why haven't I 'naturally' grasped the secret technique?

"Mortal cultivation is divided into five stages: Foundation Building, Internal Refinement, Bone Washing, Soul Transformation, and No Leakage. To reach the No Leakage stage from the Soul Transformation stage... one must achieve the Unity Realm in sword techniques and other skills. Only by 'unifying body, mind, and skill' can one truly integrate all the power of the Soul Transformation stage and break through to the No Leakage stage." Meng Chuan thought to himself, "In large families, with sufficient elixirs and treasures provided, becoming a Soul Transformation stage is not difficult. But becoming a No Leakage stage is extremely rare!"

Meng Chuan started Foundation Building at the age of six.

He entered the Internal Refinement stage at the age of nine and the Bone Washing stage at the age of twelve. According to Meng Chuan's estimation, he should be able to achieve the Bone Washing stage and enter the 'Soul Transformation stage' around June this year. This speed is considered normal among the core disciples of divine and demonic families. Like Yun Qingping, who is lazy in cultivation, even after taking many elixirs and treasures, she only reached the Bone Washing stage at the age of fifteen, which is considered relatively lagging.

Mortal cultivation has five major realms: Foundation Building, Internal Refinement, Bone Washing, Soul Transformation, and No Leakage.

Above that is 'divine and demonic.'

The transition from the No Leakage stage to divine and demonic is a formidable barrier!

Becoming divine and demonic is very difficult. In the past hundred years in Dongning Prefecture, only a few have become divine and demonic.

"I have sworn at my mother's grave that I must become divine and demonic in this life, to kill demons and avenge my mother." Meng Chuan stopped his sword techniques, looking at the sword in his hand. As a child, he didn't fully understand, but now he realizes how difficult it is to become divine and demonic. However, no matter how difficult, he will not give up, "I must quickly master the first major realm of sword techniques, the 'Unity Realm,' and in the future, I must also master the second major realm, 'Momentum.' Only then will I have a slight chance of becoming divine and demonic."

Suddenly—

"Chuan'er." A plump figure walked into the training ground.

Meng Chuan turned to look: "Father."

The plump middle-aged man with a smile on his face was his father, Meng Dajiang, who ran the first tavern in Dongning Prefecture. He was also the next head of the Meng family.

Meng Dajiang was exceptionally powerful, being one of the strongest below the divine and demonic stage, and he was a No Leakage stage expert who had mastered 'sword momentum.' However, at the age of forty-seven, his hope of becoming divine and demonic was becoming increasingly slim!

"Liu July, come here." Liu July also walked over.

"March 3rd is the Yu Yang Palace Demon Slaying Festival, right? July is a skilled archer, and the Liyang Dao Palace will definitely give you a spot." Meng Dajiang said, and Liu July nodded happily. Meng Dajiang then looked at his son, "Chuan'er, what about you? Your Mirror Lake Dao Academy only has three spots for Bone Washing stage disciples. Do you have a chance to go?"

"No chance." Meng Chuan was very self-aware, "Among the top ten Bone Washing stage disciples in our Mirror Lake Dao Academy, the gap between us is not significant. I have some hope of competing, but I might also fail. If I could grasp the secret technique of the Falling Leaf Sword, I would definitely have a chance. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to grasp it. Father, do you have any special techniques for grasping secret techniques?"

"Haha, your headmaster is the fastest sword user in Dongning Prefecture, and he will teach you what he should." Meng Dajiang laughed, "As for secret techniques, I think it's just about practicing more. Practice more, and you might grasp it."

Meng Chuan felt helpless.

There was no shortcut.

"Don't think too much. In the entire Dongning Prefecture, none of your generation in the Bone Washing stage have grasped secret techniques." Meng Dajiang laughed, "I, your father, am the most outstanding of my generation in the Meng family, and I only grasped secret techniques at the age of nineteen."

"But the old ancestor of the Zhang family, it's said that he grasped secret techniques at the age of thirteen and reached the Unity Realm in sword techniques." Meng Chuan sighed.

"The old ancestor of the Zhang family is the only one in the past hundred years in Dongning Prefecture who could be admitted to the Yuanchu Mountain. The Zhang family has therefore become the leading one of the five divine and demonic families in Dongning Prefecture." Meng Dajiang said, "Don't be in a hurry. The old ancestor of the Meng family, Yu Shan, grasped secret techniques at the age of eighteen and became divine and demonic at the age of eighty. Great achievements can come late, but they can still become divine and demonic."

Meng Chuan, of course, knew this.

When he was a child, his mother would tell him many stories about the growth of divine and demonic beings, and he would pester his mother and father to tell him stories!

Besides drawing, listening to stories was his favorite as a child.

His parents bought many biographies of famous divine and demonic beings in history and read them to him.

"One day, I will also become divine and demonic." Meng Chuan said to himself.

...

That afternoon, Meng Chuan went to the Mirror Lake Dao Academy because there was a sword technique class taught by the headmaster. As the headmaster, he only taught once every five days.

After an hour of sword technique class.

"Still can't break through."

"I really don't know when my sword techniques will reach the Unity Realm." Meng Chuan walked through the academy, and for the past two years, he had almost gone mad thinking about the 'secret technique of the Falling Leaf Sword' every day.

As he passed a vacant area, he heard angry scolding.

Meng Chuan looked over.

The academy's instructor, Ma Jiaoyu, was scolding a group of young people with spittle flying.

"Learning from the best, you only get the average; learning from the average, you get the worst. Do you understand?" Ma Jiaoyu scolded, "I want you to learn from the best, not the worst. Learning from the worst... will only make you more mediocre! If you can't reach the Bone Washing stage, you'll have no future. If you can reach the Bone Washing stage, you must serve in the military at the age of twenty, fighting demons. If you don't sweat now, you'll bleed and lose your life later. Only about half of those who serve in the military will return alive! Do you want to die on the battlefield or return in glory?"

"Look, that's Meng Chuan from the Meng family. He achieved great success with the Falling Leaf Sword at the age of thirteen and entered the Mountain and Water Pavilion of our Mirror Lake Dao Academy, personally taught by the headmaster! There are no shortcuts to achieving great success in sword techniques; only hard practice. I heard that Meng Chuan practices for several hours every day at home. What about you? Look at yourselves!"

"Learn from the best, and you'll only get the average. The one you should learn from is Meng Chuan. Do you understand?"

Under Ma Jiaoyu's angry roar, the young people didn't dare to breathe loudly.

While roaring, Ma Jiaoyu smiled at Meng Chuan, who was passing by nearby. Meng Chuan also smiled and nodded, but his eyes lit up, and he quickened his pace to head home.

...

Back in the mansion, Meng Chuan immediately went to the study.

"Learn from the best, and you'll only get the average; learn from the average, and you'll get the worst. If you want to learn, learn from the best!" Meng Chuan muttered to himself, his eyes becoming brighter and more excited, "If you want to learn, learn from the strongest divine and demonic beings! Learn from the most powerful beings in history. This is learning from the best!"

"Many of the invincible strong beings who have left their names in history have long returned to dust, but their biographies have been passed down for thousands of years!"

"Their biographies contain records of them."

Meng Chuan looked up at the books, "Father and Mother, when I was young, you read many biographies of divine and demonic beings to me. You bought many books."

Saying this, he casually picked up a book.

He flipped it open.

This book tells the story of a divine and demonic being, Deng Feng, who dominated an era. The biography records that Deng Feng lived in the deep mountains without a master to teach him. His only relative taught him one move, 'Drawing the Sword,' and then died. He lived alone in the mountains, practicing 'Drawing the Sword' for four hours every day, drawing the sword ten thousand times, and he didn't learn any other sword techniques.

But he lived alone in the mountains, practicing 'Drawing the Sword' for four hours every day, drawing the sword ten thousand times, for twenty years.

When he left the mountains, he entered the human world, and with the strength of the Bone Washing stage, one move of 'Drawing the Sword'... he killed a No Leakage stage expert. His sword technique had reached an unimaginable level. The news spread, and he was immediately recruited by the legendary 'Yuanchu Mountain,' becoming a disciple of Yuanchu Mountain and thus embarking on the path of divine and demonic beings.

...

The book is quite long, recording many of Deng Feng's deeds after becoming a divine and demonic being, inspiring later generations.

There is little about cultivation, only the so-called 'practicing 'Drawing the Sword' for four hours every day, drawing the sword ten thousand times, for twenty years.'

For Meng Chuan, this book is most important for this one sentence.

"A skilled expert, even if they perform the sword technique slowly, can draw the sword ten thousand times in one hour." Meng Chuan frowned, "He practiced for four hours every day, which means he put a lot of effort into each draw, and then drew the sword! One draw after another... each draw was a buildup and an explosion, and it took four hours to do this ten thousand times."

"Putting effort? Practicing the same move? A large number of times?"

Meng Chuan wrote this down with a brush at his desk, then went to read another biography of a divine and demonic being.

He needed to find the 'common points' of the powerful divine and demonic beings from one biography to another.

Learn from the best, and you'll only get the average; learn from the average, and you'll get the worst.

If you want to learn... learn from the strongest!

Learn from those who were invincible in history!

"Uncle Qian." Meng Chuan suddenly called out.

"Master." A voice came from outside.

"Take two people and go out to buy all the biographies of divine and demonic beings on the market! Also, buy the family precepts of some powerful divine and demonic families. Bring them back quickly!" Meng Chuan said.

"Alright, I'll go right away." Uncle Qian responded.

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