Ling Tian Sword God

The Great Elder and Vice Leader of the Shocking Death Sect were successively defeated, and the others were not faring well either. As the saying goes, "A skinny camel is still bigger than a horse." Even though more than half of the Divine Intent Sect's Experts had fallen during the great upheaval, the Sect still retained a deep foundation. The quality of the Experts within the Sect was superior to that of the Shocking Death Sect.

Moreover, none of the Disciples in the Shocking Death Sect could match Nie Wu Xiang, Longyang, and Shangguan Qiushui. Only their Elders could face them in combat.

"Stop!" The Great Elder of the Shocking Death Sect looked panicked. If this battle continued, his Sect would suffer devastating casualties.

On the Divine Intent Sect's side, Ye Nantian also waved his hand, signaling his people. "Fine, everyone stop."

Some of the Divine Intent Sect Elders and Disciples shouted, "Vice-Head, why stop? We clearly have the upper hand! Why not take this opportunity to obliterate the Shocking Death Sect, make an example of them, and deter other sects in the Martial World?"

"To kill a thousand enemies means suffering eight hundred casualties ourselves. Our Sect is currently in a period of restoration and development. We should avoid conflict whenever possible, not strive for dominance through aggression," Ye Nantian said indifferently.

At this time, some Elders from other sects came over to mediate. "Vice-Head Ye is indeed far-sighted. We are all of the Righteous Path; why should we fight to the death?"

"Exactly. We should cooperate and deal with the Demonic Sect together, not engage in internecine conflict."

"Now they remember to say such things. When the Shocking Death Sect was targeting us just now, why didn't I see them make a move?" Xiao Muyu said, somewhat resentful.

Ling Chen shook his head. "Our Divine Intent Sect used to dominate the Martial World. Although we are not as strong as before, our influence remains. Most people like to kick someone when they're down. Of course, they were happy to see us being oppressed by the Shocking Death Sect."

"But now the tables have turned; the Shocking Death Sect is being suppressed by us. Naturally, they can't sit still. This is the art of checks and balances. They want to restrain the Divine Intent Sect's development and prevent the former overlord of the Martial World from re-emerging."

"So that's how it is. How can these people be so calculating?" Xiao Muyu was still furious. "Back when our Divine Intent Sect was the dominant power in the Martial World, we never bullied the weak. Instead, we upheld justice and greatly helped many sects. I never expected these sanctimonious Sect Elders to be so ungrateful."

"Envy of the strong is human nature. Justice often becomes pale and feeble in the face of self-interest," Ling Chen said indifferently.

Seeing that many sects were siding with him, the Great Elder of the Shocking Death Sect immediately found his courage renewed. His gaze fell on Ling Chen as he sternly shouted, "Ling Chen! We will thoroughly investigate your crime of killing Wang Yan. When the time comes, we will hold you accountable! But before that, you must return Wang Yan's Extinguishing Life Saber to us. That saber is a Treasure of our Shocking Death Sect, and we must reclaim it!"

Facing the Shocking Death Sect's Great Elder's interrogation, Ling Chen remained noncommittal. "I didn't kill Wang Yan. So how could I possess the Extinguishing Life Saber?"

"You insolent whelp!" The Great Elder of the Shocking Death Sect was enraged. He hadn't expected Ling Chen to still be denying his guilt at this point.

"Well, Your Excellency, are you looking for another fight?" Shangguan Hong was already watching the Shocking Death Sect's Great Elder vigilantly, ready to strike mercilessly if the latter dared to make a move.

"Very well!" The Great Elder of the Shocking Death Sect's face darkened. However, he naturally didn't dare to instigate further conflict now. He could only shout sternly, "The Shocking Death Sect will remember what happened today. Don't think this is over!"

The Great Elder of the Shocking Death Sect waved his hand. "Let's go!" The rest of his Sect, though unwilling, had no choice but to follow him and depart from the square one after another.

"Those guys... they actually just left?" Xiao Muyu was surprised that the people from the Shocking Death Sect had departed so meekly.

What else could they do but leave? They gained no advantage, and staying would only bring further humiliation. However, I'm worried. They probably won't dare to provoke the Divine Intent Sect anymore, but their focus will likely shift entirely onto me.

Ling Chen sheathed his Cloud-hidden Sword. He knew the Shocking Death Sect wouldn't let this go so easily. It seems I'll have another Sect to watch out for in the future.

Knowing Ling Chen's concerns, Xiao Muyu offered comfort, "Luckily, the Shocking Death Sect is far away in the Aqua Country. Even if they want to target you, their reach isn't that long."

Ling Chen shook his head. "If they're truly set on it, distance isn't an issue. Besides, even if they can't act themselves, they could hire Assassins from the Black Market Shadow Building to kill me."

"Then what should we do? Perhaps we should have given them the Extinguishing Life Saber earlier to resolve this enmity," Xiao Muyu said, her brow furrowed.

"You're too naive." Ling Chen's smile was tinged with helplessness at her naivety. "Even if I had handed over the Extinguishing Life Saber, the Shocking Death Sect would still not give up on killing me. On the contrary, it would only confirm that I killed Wang Yan, giving them a perfect excuse to come after me."

With that, he patted Xiao Muyu on the shoulder. "Don't worry. It's inevitable for a genius to face trials and tribulations on their path. Just meet the challenges head-on."

Xiao Muyu nodded in agreement. He's right. Those who truly become strong are the ones who tenaciously survive. As for these so-called geniuses living under the protection of their elders, they're like flowers in a greenhouse, incapable of achieving anything significant in their lifetime. Only geniuses tempered through countless trials have even a sliver of hope.

After the Shocking Death Sect departed, the other sects also dispersed one after another.

"Everyone, pack up. We return to the Sect tomorrow."

All the Elders and Disciples returned to their respective camps, leaving a small group of Disciples to clear the bodies from the encampment.

「Ten days later, everyone returned to the Divine Intent Sect.」

「The next day, Ling Chen exchanged all the Contribution Points he had earned on the Fire Country battlefield for Solid Reality Pills.」

Although Ling Chen hadn't killed many enemies on the Fire Country battlefield, he had broken into the Tienzong secret palace after entering the Tienzong Ruins. This brought great honor to the Divine Intent Sect, so the Elders rewarded Ling Chen with twenty Solid Reality Pills.

Adding the secret manuals, weapons, Hidden Weapons, and other items found on Wang Yan and Poisonous Scorpion, Ling Chen exchanged them all for Solid Reality Pills. In total, he now possessed no fewer than fifty Solid Reality Pills.

With this, I've gathered enough Energy to advance to the Martial Artist Seventh Realm.

Next is systematic Cultivation.

Solid Reality Pills were quite troublesome to refine. Ordinary people only needed a few to break through the Martial Artist barrier. However, Ling Chen required at least five, or even ten times that amount. This was because his Dantian was larger than that of ordinary people, capable of storing more True Qi. Furthermore, his Lingtian True Qi was far purer than ordinary True Qi. To break through a Realm, he naturally needed a much more potent supply of Energy.

The Ling Tian Sword Scripture was like an insatiable child. Cultivating such a high-level Cultivation Technique was ten times more difficult than it was for ordinary people.

Thus, when Ling Chen first obtained the Ling Tian Sword Scripture, a warning had come with it: Only those with exceptional talent may cultivate it; only those with great perseverance may study it. Both are indispensable.

Reflecting on it now, those words rang true. If one's aptitude was mediocre, or if one lacked sufficient willpower, cultivating the Ling Tian Sword Scripture would be an arduous struggle, with progress being incredibly slow and difficult.