Heavenly Sword Saint
The following morning...
A thin layer of mist covered the Jian Clan.
The eastern side of the clan was already bustling with activity.
Atop the small hill stood the Spirit Gathering Pavilion.
Three stories of ancient stone rose above the surrounding buildings.
Beneath it...
A spiritual vein quietly released spiritual energy into the earth.
Although the spiritual vein was insignificant compared to those in the Divine Realm...
To the current Jian Chen...
It was extremely valuable.
Jian Chen stood before the pavilion.
His gaze slowly swept across the ancient building.
"So this is the place..."
Behind him stood Xiao Yue.
She looked at the pavilion with curiosity.
"Youth Master, this is your first time entering, right?"
Jian Chen nodded.
"Yes."
He had never been qualified to enter this place in his previous life.
Sixteen years of being unable to cultivate had kept him far away from the resources given to the clan's talented disciples.
But now...
Things were different.
He had defeated Jian Rui.
He had obtained the tenth position.
And with that position came access to the spiritual vein.
A clan elder guarding the entrance stepped forward.
"Jian Chen."
"Since you obtained the tenth position yesterday, you are permitted to cultivate here for seven days."
He handed Jian Chen a small jade token.
"This is your identity token."
"Do not lose it."
Jian Chen accepted it.
"Understood."
The elder continued.
"Every disciple holding a position will receive five Body Tempering Pills."
"You have already received yours."
"Use them carefully."
"Those pills are refined from medicinal herbs purchased by the clan."
Jian Chen nodded.
He already understood the importance of these resources.
The Body Tempering Realm relied on spiritual energy to temper the body.
The more spiritual energy one could absorb...
The faster one's body could become stronger.
And the awakened meridians determined how efficiently a cultivator could absorb spiritual energy.
One awakened meridian.
Two.
Three.
Every additional meridian represented a greater aptitude.
However...
Jian Chen's situation was different.
He possessed the Heavenly Sword Scripture.
The technique could awaken meridians that ordinary cultivators were born with.
That alone made it extraordinary.
"Seven days..."
Jian Chen murmured.
He looked toward the pavilion.
"That should be enough to make some progress."
The elder opened the stone door.
"Go inside."
Jian Chen stepped forward.
The moment he entered...
His expression changed slightly.
Spiritual energy surged toward him.
It was far denser than the spiritual energy inside his courtyard.
Even breathing felt different.
A faint spiritual mist floated through the corridor.
Jian Chen's eyes narrowed.
"This spiritual vein..."
"It's quite decent."
To an ordinary cultivator...
This place was almost a treasure ground.
To Jian Chen...
It was simply the first resource he had obtained since returning to the path of cultivation.
He walked toward the cultivation rooms.
Each room was separated by stone walls.
The tenth position was located on the lowest floor.
The higher-ranked disciples occupied the upper floors.
Jian Chen didn't care.
He entered the room assigned to him.
A simple stone platform sat in the center.
He closed the door.
Silence immediately surrounded him.
Jian Chen sat cross-legged.
He placed the five jade bottles beside him.
His eyes became serious.
"Let's begin."
He closed his eyes.
His consciousness entered his sea of consciousness.
The Heavenly Sword Scripture appeared before him.
The ancient scroll slowly unfolded.
Golden characters emerged from its surface.
Jian Chen carefully studied them.
Then...
He began circulating the cultivation method.
The spiritual energy surrounding him immediately began moving.
Threads of spiritual energy entered his body.
They flowed toward his first awakened meridian.
The meridian trembled slightly.
Then...
The spiritual energy began circulating through his body.
A warm sensation spread through his limbs.
Jian Chen's expression remained calm.
He didn't rush.
He carefully controlled every strand of spiritual energy.
His body needed time to adapt.
After several cycles...
He opened his eyes.
A faint light flashed within them.
"The absorption speed is much better."
Outside the pavilion...
A cultivator might need several hours to absorb the same amount of spiritual energy.
Here...
Jian Chen could feel his cultivation progressing continuously.
But he wasn't satisfied.
He picked up one of the jade bottles.
He opened it.
A faint medicinal fragrance filled the room.
Inside was a small crimson pill.
Body Tempering Pill.
Jian Chen examined it carefully.
"This pill isn't bad."
For a cultivator of the Mortal Realm...
It was valuable.
For Jian Chen...
It was only a low-grade resource.
But resources were resources.
He swallowed the pill.
Boom!
Medicinal energy immediately erupted inside his body.
A wave of heat surged through his limbs.
Jian Chen immediately circulated the Heavenly Sword Scripture.
The spiritual energy from the pill was slowly absorbed.
His muscles began trembling.
His bones seemed to become heavier.
His blood circulated faster.
Pain gradually spread through his body.
Jian Chen remained motionless.
He allowed the medicinal energy to temper his flesh.
An hour passed.
Then two.
The medicinal energy slowly disappeared.
Jian Chen opened his eyes.
He clenched his fist.
A faint crack sounded.
His strength had increased.
Not dramatically...
But enough for him to notice.
"One Body Tempering Pill..."
"Combined with the spiritual vein..."
"My cultivation speed is several times faster than before."
He looked at the remaining four bottles.
Then...
His gaze became determined.
"Continue."
Days passed quietly.
On the second day...
Jian Chen spent nearly the entire day cultivating.
On the third day...
He consumed another Body Tempering Pill.
On the fourth...
His physical strength increased again.
Yet...
He still hadn't opened his second meridian.
The blockage remained firmly sealed.
Jian Chen wasn't surprised.
Opening a meridian wasn't something that could be forced through impatience.
He needed enough spiritual energy and sufficient control over his sword qi.
On the fifth day...
Jian Chen opened his eyes.
His gaze became sharp.
"Today..."
"I'll try again."
He sat upright.
His consciousness descended into his sea of consciousness.
The Heavenly Sword Scripture slowly unfolded.
Jian Chen began condensing sword qi.
One strand...
Then another...
The two strands slowly merged.
A sharp aura filled his sea of consciousness.
Jian Chen carefully guided the sword qi into his body.
The moment it reached the second blocked meridian...
Pain erupted.
His body trembled.
His face became pale.
But this time...
He was prepared.
Boom!
The sword qi struck the blockage.
Nothing happened.
Boom!
Again.
A faint crack appeared.
Jian Chen's breathing became heavier.
"Again..."
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The blockage shook violently.
Blood appeared at the corner of his lips.
But Jian Chen continued.
He had already opened one meridian.
He knew the process.
He knew the pain.
And he knew...
What waited on the other side.
Boom!
Crack!
The third meridian opened.
A massive amount of spiritual energy suddenly rushed into his body.
Jian Chen's eyes opened.
A sharp light flashed within them.
The spiritual energy flowed through the thirth meridian.
His absorption speed immediately increased.
He could feel the difference clearly.
"Three meridians..."
His lips curved upward.
The Heavenly Sword Scripture had once again proven its terrifying potential.
In the Divine Realm...
He had never heard of a technique capable of forcibly awakening a meridian that had not been opened from birth.
Yet this technique had done exactly that.
And he had only just begun.
Jian Chen slowly stood.
His body was covered in sweat.
But his eyes were brighter than ever.
Outside the cultivation room...
Several disciples suddenly looked toward the tenth room.
One of them frowned.
"Did you feel that?"
Another disciple shook his head.
"What?"
"Nothing."
The first disciple stared at the closed stone door.
For some reason...
He felt that the spiritual energy around the tenth room had fluctuated strangely.
But after waiting for a moment...
Everything returned to normal.
Inside...
Jian Chen calmly looked toward the remaining Body Tempering Pills.
He still had three.
The annual examination was approaching.
He had only one month.
But now...
He possessed two awakened meridians.
A spiritual vein.
Body Tempering Pills.
And the Heavenly Sword Scripture.
Jian Chen's eyes became cold and determined.
"One month..."
"Let's see how far I can go."