The rest of the night was a blur of violence.
Jiang Chen didn't rush straight for the red light in the distance. He wasn't suicidal. After the close call with the Deacon, he knew he needed to consolidate his new strength.
He prowled the outer ring of the Mortal Dust Battlefield like a wolf.
Slash.
A Remnant Will of a spearman lunged from the fog. Jiang Chen didn't even use his hands. He utilized the Flowing Wind Sword Steps to weave past the spear tip, then slammed his shoulder into the ghost, using his newly hardened Steel Bone physique to shatter the spirit upon impact.
[Defeated Spearman Remnant.]
[Reward: +2 Months Cultivation Base.]
"Too little," Jiang Chen muttered, absorbing the wisps of energy.
He moved on. He found a cluster of three Archer Remnants atop a ruined wall. They fired arrows of condensed spirit energy.
Jiang Chen didn't dodge. He picked up a broken stone slab and used it as a shield, charging straight through the arrow rain. When he reached the wall, he dropped the slab and unleashed a flurry of strikes.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
[Defeated Archer Remnant x3.]
[Reward: +6 Months Cultivation Base.]
[Reward: Basic Archery Proficiency (Small Success).]
He kept killing. Swordsmen, brawlers, scouts. He slaughtered them all.
His progress bar toward the 6th Stage (Mid-Phase) inched up slowly. 10%... 15%... 20%.
By the time his mental energy was finally exhausted and the headache returned, the sun was rising in the real world.
07:00 AM. Skyscar City.
Jiang Chen woke up, gasping for air. His bedsheets were soaked in sweat.
He checked his status.
[Realm: Body Tempering 6th Stage (Early - 25%)]
[Inventory: Cold-Iron Heavy Sword (Broken)]
[Skills: Sword Steps (Small Success), Basic Archery (Small Success)]
He stood up and stretched. His joints popped loud enough to sound like firecrackers. He felt incredibly dense. If he punched a concrete wall right now, the wall would break, not his hand.
"I need a weapon case," Jiang Chen muttered, looking at the black slab of metal under his bed. "Carrying a 300kg broken sword openly will attract too much attention."
He showered, dressed in his school uniform, and wrapped the heavy sword in a thick blanket, tying it with rope. It looked like he was carrying a massive art portfolio or a musical instrument.
He slung it over his back. The weight pressed down on his shoulders, digging into the muscle.
"Good training," he gritted his teeth. Constant pressure would help temper his bones further.
He left the apartment and headed for the commercial district. He had 2,000 Credits worth of Blood Vitality pills left (2 pills), but he needed cash for a proper case and maybe some actual food.
The Black Market - "Rat Alley"
Jiang Chen didn't go to the official malls in the Upper District. He went to District 11, the trade zone for hunters, scavengers, and criminals.
The alley was narrow, crowded with stalls selling monster parts, rusted tech, and questionable potions. The air smelled of ozone and roasted lizard meat.
Jiang Chen walked into a shop called "Old Li's Junk."
Old Li, a one-eyed man with a mechanical arm, was polishing a dented helmet. He looked up as Jiang Chen entered.
"We don't buy trash, kid," Old Li grunted.
Jiang Chen didn't speak. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the remaining two Blood Vitality Pills. He placed the bottle on the counter.
Old Li paused. He picked up the bottle, sniffed it, and his single eye widened.
"Tier-1 Pills. 90% purity. Where did a student get these?" Li looked at Jiang Chen suspiciously.
"Gift from a teacher," Jiang Chen lied smoothly. "I need quick cash. How much?"
Old Li narrowed his eye. "Market price is 2,000 a bottle. Since it's opened and missing one pill... I'll give you 1,200."
"1,500," Jiang Chen countered. "Or I go to the Alchemy Guild."
"Tch. Fine. 1,400. Final offer."
"Deal."
Old Li transferred the credits to Jiang Chen's comm-watch. Jiang Chen then pointed to a large, reinforced guitar case in the corner. It was lined with lead—usually used to smuggle energy weapons past scanners.
"Throw in that case," Jiang Chen said.
"That thing? It's heavy as hell. Take it. It's been gathering dust for years."
Jiang Chen grinned. He transferred his wrapped sword into the guitar case. It fit perfectly. Now, to the outside world, he just looked like a musician with a very heavy instrument.
Afternoon. The City Park.
Jiang Chen didn't go to school. The instructors gave students the day off before the Mock Exam to rest and prepare.
He found a secluded spot in the forest park near the edge of the district. It was raining lightly. The park was empty, save for a few stray cats.
He needed to test the sword.
He opened the case and gripped the handle of the Cold-Iron Heavy Sword.
Whoosh.
He swung it. The weight was immense. Without Qi, he could barely lift it. With Qi channeling through his Steel Bones, he could swing it, but it was slow.
"Too slow," Jiang Chen frowned. "If I fight a speed type, I'm dead."
He practiced for hours. Swing. Recover. Swing. Recover.
The rain grew heavier. Thunder rumbled overhead.
100 swings.
200 swings.
500 swings.
His muscles burned. His Qi was draining rapidly. But with every swing, he felt his connection to the blade deepen. He wasn't fighting the weight anymore; he was flowing with it.
Snap.
A twig broke behind him.
Jiang Chen spun around, the heavy sword raised in a defensive posture.
Standing ten meters away, holding a transparent umbrella, was a girl.
She wore a white dress that seemed out of place in the dirty rain. Her skin was pale, her eyes large and unfocused. She looked like a porcelain doll that had been abandoned in the woods.
She was staring at the sword.
"That's... a sad sword," she said. Her voice was soft, barely audible over the rain.
Jiang Chen frowned. "Who are you?"
He scanned her. No uniform. No visible weapons. She looked frail. But his instincts—sharpened by the Grave—were screaming.
[Warning: High Energy Reading Detected.]
The System in his head buzzed.
[Target: Unknown.]
[Threat Level: Lethal.]
Lethal? Jiang Chen's pupils constricted. This girl?
"It's crying," the girl continued, taking a step forward. She pointed a slender finger at the broken edge of the black blade. "It misses its other half."
"Stay back," Jiang Chen warned, tightening his grip.
The girl tilted her head. "You're using it wrong. Heavy swords aren't for swinging."
She dropped her umbrella. It floated in the air, suspended by invisible Qi.
Telekinesis? That's a Nascent Soul ability! No... it was wind manipulation. Extremely precise wind manipulation.
"Let me show you," she whispered.
She didn't move her feet. She simply swiped her hand through the air.
A raindrop falling between them suddenly accelerated. It shot forward like a bullet.
Bang!
The raindrop hit the massive oak tree next to Jiang Chen. The tree trunk exploded, a hole the size of a basketball punched clean through it.
Jiang Chen froze. Cold sweat mixed with the rain on his back.
If that raindrop had hit him, even with his Steel Bones, he would be dead.
The girl blinked, as if waking up from a trance. She looked at the destroyed tree, then at Jiang Chen's terrified face.
"Oh," she said, covering her mouth. "I did it again."
She grabbed her floating umbrella and turned around.
"Wait!" Jiang Chen called out, lowering his sword. "Who are you?"
The girl stopped. She looked back over her shoulder.
"Heavy swords aren't for swinging," she repeated. "They are for crushing. Don't cut the wind. Break it."
With that, she stepped into the heavy rain. Her figure blurred, and in the blink of an eye, she vanished.
Jiang Chen stood alone in the rain, staring at the hole in the tree.
"Break the wind..." he whispered.
He looked at his sword. He had been trying to use the Flowing Wind Sword Steps—a technique meant for light swords—with this heavy slab. He was trying to be fast.
But this sword wasn't fast. It was an avalanche.
He took a stance. He didn't try to be aerodynamic. He didn't try to slice.
He raised the sword and slammed it down with pure, brute force, channeling his Qi not into speed, but into weight.
BOOM!
The blade hit the wet ground. Mud and water exploded outward in a ten-meter radius. A fissure appeared in the earth, three feet deep.
Jiang Chen stared at the destruction.
"I see," he grinned, wiping the rain from his face. "So that's how you use it."
He sheathed the sword back into the guitar case.
Tomorrow was the City-Wide Mock Exam.
"Wang Teng's brother... Lin Qingxue... the mysterious girl..." Jiang Chen slung the case over his shoulder. "This city is full of monsters. Good thing I'm becoming one too."