「Ten days later, at the Su Mansion’s Martial Arts Arena.」

The early spring wind was still biting, sweeping a few withered yellow leaves into swirling eddies across the empty Martial Arts Arena.

Su Yu was bare-chested, his lean, powerful muscles gleaming like jade in the morning light.

He held the Mo Yuan Saber, which weighed a hefty one hundred and eight jin. Instead of immediately beginning his practice, he stood quietly with his eyes slightly closed, regulating the rhythm of his breathing.

"HOO... HAA..."

Each breath was accompanied by a powerful rise and fall of his chest, faintly emitting a low, thunderous rumble.

’The mind-ape is pacified, its edge revealed. A single slash to cleanse the world of its filth!’

As he silently recited the Saber Techniques in his mind, the restless mind-ape within him grew incredibly placid.

"Begin!"

Su Yu’s eyes snapped open, a sharp glint flashing within them.

Without any warning, the Mo Yuan Saber in his hand slashed out, creating a low, oppressive hum, like muffled thunder rolling through the clouds.

"Demon-slaying Mountain Splitting!"

The slash was immensely powerful and heavy.

Where the blade passed, the air seemed to thicken like mercury. The formless saber intent pressed down, causing withered leaves ten zhang away to tremble violently.

But this was only the beginning.

Su Yu executed the Seven Fiends Thunder Collapse Step, his figure instantly blurring into an afterimage as he zipped back and forth across the Martial Arts Arena.

The light of his saber flashed like snow, continuous and unbroken.

"Spiritual Ape Emerges from the Cave!"

His body contracted like a phantom, and the long saber thrust out from under his arm like a striking viper, so fast that only a thin black line of light was visible.

"Vine Demon Lock!"

His saber’s momentum abruptly shifted from fierce and unyielding to soft and insidious. The blade coiled like a spiritual serpent, tracing bizarre arcs through the air, as if weaving an impenetrable net of saber light.

As he practiced again and again, Su Yu entered a profound, trance-like state.

He forgot the passage of time, the ache in his arms, and even the saber in his hands.

In that moment, the saber was no longer a cold weapon but an extension of his arm, a manifestation of his will.

The Qi and Blood in his body surged like a river bursting its banks, madly pouring into the saber’s blade. The originally pitch-black Mo Yuan Saber now faintly glowed with a dark red, bloody light—a sign that his Qi and Blood had merged with his saber intent!

The previously formless saber intent began to compress and condense to an extreme degree, seemingly transforming into a tangible force.

[Spiritual Ape Demon-Slaying Saber Skill Level +10]

[Spiritual Ape Demon-Slaying Saber Skill Level +10]

...

An unknown amount of time passed. The sun climbed high into the sky.

Su Yu’s movements grew faster and faster. Amidst the low, thunderous rumble, sharp and piercing whistles began to emerge.

"SHREEEE—!"

It was the mournful cry of tearing air, and a harbinger of the Spiritual Ape’s furious roar echoing through the mountain forests!

"Condense!"

A sudden inspiration struck Su Yu, and he let out a fierce shout.

The great dragon of his spine pulled taut like a bowstring. His body’s Qi and Blood and his saber intent reached a peak of resonance. Clasping the saber with both hands, he brought it down in a vicious slash toward the massive block of greenstone used for testing blades!

"Zhenyue Slash!"

"VMMMM!!!"

A sudden transformation occurred!

On the edge of the Mo Yuan Saber, the once-invisible air instantly distorted, and an incredibly dense and profound jet-black saber energy erupted forth!

This black energy was no longer an illusory shadow. It was like a layer of flowing black mercury, instantly enveloping the entire blade and extending more than half a foot past its tip!

Then, an even more astonishing scene unfolded.

Driven by the surging Qi and Blood within Su Yu’s body, a layer of eerie and violent crimson light ignited upon the surface of the ink-black saber energy!

"TCHH!"

As Su Yu brought the saber down, he deliberately controlled the distance.

Ordinarily, this slash should have hit nothing but air.

However,

the jet-black saber energy, wreathed in crimson light, silently swept over the greenstone.

"PFFT."

There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a soft, muffled sound like a blade slicing through silk.

The crimson light first seared the stone’s surface, and then the sharp, jet-black saber energy within cut through without any resistance.

The hard greenstone, as if made of tofu, was instantly split in two!

The cut was smooth and even, yet it displayed a strange, interwoven pattern of charred black and ashen white—the mark left by the simultaneous searing of Qi and Blood and the cutting of the saber energy’s edge.

"BOOM!"

Only after the two halves of the massive stone crashed to the ground did Su Yu slowly sheathe his saber.

The terrifying red-and-black saber energy clinging to the blade slowly dissipated, turning into a gust of scorching wind that blew outwards.

[Spiritual Ape Demon-Slaying Saber has broken through to the Great Success Realm] 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

[Martial Arts]: Spiritual Ape Demon-Slaying Saber (First Layer) (Great Success 1/10,000)

"Success!"

Su Yu looked at the Mo Yuan Saber, now returned to its normal state, the stunning afterimage of red and black light still lingering in his eyes.

’So this is the qualitative leap of the Great Success Realm. Saber intent manifests as energy, and Qi and Blood envelops it!’

’With a single slash, I can now unleash the dual crushing force of my Qi and Blood and my saber intent! Within the Skin Tempering Realm, most Martial Artists probably couldn’t even block one of my strikes! Even my own Profound Silver Flow Armor likely wouldn’t withstand more than a few hits!’

’The Spiritual Ape Demon-Slaying Saber truly lives up to its reputation as Master’s ultimate technique. He once said he obtained it from a great personage. It seems he wasn’t bluffing!’

...

「Black Stone Avenue, the Central Arena.」

"BANG!"

A dull thud echoed down Long Street.

A figure flew from the arena like a kite with a snapped string, crashing heavily onto the ground. He spat out a mouthful of blood and couldn’t get up for a long while.

Atop the arena, Ding Mianyue was dressed in tight-fitting black martial arts attire that, while outlining a youthful figure, already revealed a ruthless demeanor.

She held a pair of Water-Splitting Emei Needles in one hand, looking down on her defeated opponent with unconcealed contempt in her eyes.

"Too weak."

She shook her head, her voice crisp but grating. "Is this the Martial Arts of Black Stone City? You can’t even take a single one of my moves. In this entire, huge city, isn’t there a single person who can fight?"

At these words, the faces of the local Black Stone City Martial Artists in the crowd instantly turned purple with rage, but they dared not voice their anger.

"This is outrageous! That Ding Mianyue from the Flying Fish Martial Arts Hall is practically grinding Black Stone City’s face into the dirt!" someone complained indignantly.

"Sigh, you have to admit she’s impressive. She’s only twenty, but she’s already at Skin Tempering Perfection. Her Flying Fish Breaking Kill Technique is perfected, and her Body Technique is as fast as a phantom. Among our younger generation here, even Cui Wanhe only just reached the Third Acupoint at her age."

"An ’Overseas Dragon’ from Liangzhou Prefecture is ferocious indeed. I’m afraid things are about to change in our little city."

...

「Four Seas Tea House, a private room on the second floor.」

A young master dressed in a Flowing Cloud Brocade Robe was toying with a Jade Wrench in his hand with great interest. His gaze swept over Ding Mianyue on the arena, a playful smile on his lips:

"This Ding Mianyue has some skill, but at the end of the day, she’s just a stray dog who fled from Liangzhou. Black Stone City is under the jurisdiction of our Jian’an Prefecture. For her to run wild like this is making Jian’an Prefecture lose a bit of face."

Although his tone was condescending, he had the capital to be arrogant. He was Liu Yunzhen, the third young master of the direct line of the Liu Family of Jian’an Prefecture.

Though not yet thirty, he had already been in the Flesh Refining Realm for several years.

Beside him, Liu Yuan, dressed in a meticulously tailored silk dress with a face as lovely as a peach blossom, diligently offered a cup of fragrant tea to Liu Yunzhen with both hands. "The Flying Fish Martial Arts Hall is just posturing for now. Once your people make a move, Master Liu, they will naturally learn their place."

As she spoke, her slender, jade-like fingertips casually brushed against the back of Liu Yunzhen’s hand.

Liu Yunzhen accepted the teacup, lightly caressing the back of her hand with the pads of his fingers, a trace of unconcealed aggression in his eyes.

Liu Yuan trembled slightly, a blush rising on her cheeks. She lowered her head shyly, but her eyes were filled with secret delight.

’This is the true dragon I’ve always dreamed of!’

’He’s from a prestigious family, his strength is unfathomable, and he’s dashing and suave. If I could marry him, I’d be set for life!’

’As for those so-called mud-legged geniuses from Black Stone City, like that Su Yu, or even Cui Wanhe... they’re just lowlifes unworthy of even carrying Master Liu’s shoes!’

...

「On the arena.」

Seeing that no one else dared to come up, Ding Mianyue grew bored and flicked the blood from her weapon, turning to her Senior Brother, Jiang Pingzhi, who stood to the side.

"Senior Brother, these last few places were pathetic. Who’s next on the list?"

Jiang Pingzhi, dressed in green robes, had an effeminate air about him. He slowly opened a register in his hands, tapped his finger on a line, and revealed a taunting smile.

"This one is a little interesting. The White Ape Martial Arts Hall. Though it’s a small hall, it’s gained quite a reputation recently. Especially a fellow named Su Yu. Nineteen years old, Second Acupoint, hailed as Black Stone City’s new rising genius."

Ding Mianyue scoffed, her eyes full of disdain. "Only at the Second Acupoint at nineteen? You call that a genius? In Liangzhou, trash like that isn’t even qualified to be my sparring partner."

The two did not bother to lower their voices, and their conversation instantly spread throughout the entire crowd.

"Hiss... They’re targeting the White Ape Martial Arts Hall!"

"It’s over! Su Yu is strong, and his combat power has always been impressive. But facing Ding Mianyue, who’s at Skin Tempering Perfection, I’m afraid he won’t be able to take even a single blow..."

"Sigh, if Su Yu loses, not only will his own reputation be ruined, but the White Ape Martial Arts Hall will be forced to hang its head in shame from now on!"

A wave of lament spread through the crowd.

No one was optimistic about Su Yu’s chances. After all, the gap in their realms was plain to see. Combined with the immense combat power Ding Mianyue had displayed, Su Yu’s defeat seemed inevitable!

"Sigh, in my opinion, it would be best for the White Ape Martial Arts Hall to refuse the challenge. Just ignore them and wait for the Yuan Lantern Festival. The powers from Jian’an Prefecture will make a move then, and maybe they can get through this!"

"Wouldn’t that be acting like a coward?"

"That’s still better than being crippled by Ding Mianyue in a single move!"