Chapter 123: Three Months

In the cave dwelling's training ground, despite it being summer, the temperature at the mountain peak was still extremely low.

Meng Chuan stood there. Without warning, his right hand instantly drew his saber, and its gleam flashed like lightning, appearing and disappearing in an instant.

This strike made Meng Chuan shake his head slightly. "Senior Guoke's Second Heart Saber Form," he mused, "when executed, condenses the saber's lightning glow to its extreme. The lightning shatters the void, distorting space wherever it passes and altering distances. Dozens of feet can be compressed to less than a foot due to the spatial distortion. Shortening the distance by dozens of times also means the saber is dozens of times faster! Moreover, the saber's trajectory is hard to predict, and its power is far more terrifying than mine."

"Facing this strike, I fear I'd be dead in a single move."

Of the five Heart Intent Saber forms demonstrated by Senior Guoke, the first was the simplest; he understood 90% at a glance and fully comprehended it after careful thought. The third form was so profoundly advanced that he could barely grasp it! As for the fourth and fifth forms, they were entirely beyond him.

Only the 'Second Heart Saber Form' was truly suitable for his current level of comprehension.

"A more restrained strike?" Meng Chuan pondered, then attempted another slash. His ten-zhang domain allowed him to clearly observe his saber technique. Dissatisfied, he shook his head slightly and continued practicing.

Immersed in practice, he completely lost track of time.

His mind was focused solely on cultivating his saber technique.

In the past, he had relied purely on textual descriptions and diagrams to grope his way through practice. Now, with the entire saber art legacy imprinted in his mind, he had countless ideas to try.

Some ideas he tried for a long time, only to fail.

Others, after repeated contemplation, finally succeeded.

Each success, every slight improvement in his saber technique, filled Meng Chuan with joy. The clear sensation of his saber art growing more powerful and his foundation deepening was incredibly captivating.

One day, two days, three days...

Meng Chuan's mind was solely on saber arts! He thought about saber arts while eating, while July urged him to bathe, and even before sleeping.

He even forgot to paint daily! And he forgot his daily cultivation of true essence! All of it was cast aside...

Aside from eating and sleeping, he was constantly practicing his saber.

"In the past, during dinner, Ah Chuan would chat with me for a long time. Now, he just grunts a couple of times," Liu Qiyue mused, watching Meng Chuan head alone to the training ground after dinner. A smile touched her lips. In all these years, she had never seen Meng Chuan so utterly engrossed, but deep down, she was delighted. She knew that this was a period of rapid progress for him, and he shouldn't be disturbed in any way.

"Lady Liu Qiyue, someone requests an audience outside," Steward Liu said respectfully.

"Oh?"

Liu Qiyue came to the entrance of the cave dwelling and saw a mundane middle-aged man. The man respectfully said, "Lady Liu Qiyue, please come to Scarlet Blood Cliff tomorrow at noon to witness Senior Chang Yong's name being inscribed on Scarlet Blood Cliff."

"Brother Chang Yong died?" Liu Qiyue paused, slightly stunned.

Having one's name inscribed on Scarlet Blood Cliff signified that a Godfiend had died, and their name was engraved there for the juniors of Yuanchu Mountain to pay their respects.

The 28th of each month was the fixed day for all Godfiends from Yuanchu Mountain who had fallen in battle that month to have their names inscribed on Scarlet Blood Cliff.

"Are there no other Godfiends whose names will be inscribed on Scarlet Blood Cliff this month?" Liu Qiyue asked again.

"That's right, only Senior Chang Yong," the mundane middle-aged man replied before respectfully withdrawing.

"Brother Chang Yong..." Liu Qiyue frowned slightly. Of course, she knew the list of disciples at Yuanchu Mountain over the years. Brother Chang Yong was a Godfiend of the Great Sun Realm, and he was 152 years old this year. Dying at this age was considered long-lived among Yuanchu Mountain's Godfiends.

Every time she went to witness a fallen comrade's name being inscribed on Scarlet Blood Cliff, Liu Qiyue's mood would darken, but after so many years on the mountain, she had grown accustomed to it.

Because every year, a few Godfiends would die in battle, sometimes even twenty or thirty. She had truly seen too many, and she could now face it all with relative calm.

"Ah Chuan is practicing his saber art like a madman right now, and he said he doesn't want any disturbances." Liu Qiyue gazed towards the training ground, able to see Meng Chuan sitting there in a daze through the courtyard gate. "I won't tell him about this."

Missing the 'Scarlet Blood Cliff Inscription' ceremony two or three times would have no impact on humanity as a whole. However, interrupting Meng Chuan's fervent cultivation would cause him considerable disturbance. Even the venerable masters had specifically instructed that he not participate in any events.

Inside the training ground.

Meng Chuan sat there, seemingly lost in thought, but in reality, his mind was ceaselessly contemplating. After contemplating for the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, he would stand up, execute a few saber techniques, then, still puzzled, sit down again to continue pondering.

He had practiced the "Heart Intent Saber" for nearly eleven years, and this was the first time he had received an artistic conception legacy. There were too many aspects he needed to verify and try.

Days passed, and his accumulation grew deeper! His saber technique was also transforming rapidly.

On the twenty-third day of the seventh month.

Meng Chuan instantly drew his saber, its lightning-like gleam flashing brilliantly. At this moment, the saber's light, though extremely restrained, made the lightning even more dazzling. Meng Chuan could even faintly perceive the fluctuations after spatial distortion through his saber. Following the closest of these fluctuations to his target, his saber effortlessly crossed several feet and struck a point in mid-air.

The apparent distance was several feet! Yet, by following the trajectory of that fluctuation, the distance was shortened by several times.

"How marvelous," Meng Chuan exclaimed, filled with wild joy after executing that strike.

It was truly remarkable.

It was like two points: taking a winding path from one point to another might require ten li of travel.

But a straight path from one point to another might only take two li. The destination is the same, but the distance is significantly shortened.

This was precisely the case with Meng Chuan's strike. To the naked eye, the linear distance was indeed three or four zhang. But by moving through that mysterious spatial fluctuation, the distance between them became just one zhang.

"The more condensed the saber's power, the more dazzling the lightning it unleashes, even to the point of affecting the void." Meng Chuan began to understand. For normal Godfiends, the void was incredibly stable. But when his saber's power condensed to a certain degree, breaking through with a concentrated point, it would cause the void to distort. Once distorted, distances would change. By following the closest fluctuation, the distance to the target would be minimized.

Senior Guoke's Second Heart Saber Form, which could make dozens of feet feel within arm's reach with a single strike, showed a level of condensation in striking, mobilization of full body strength, and control over true essence circulation that was ten times more profound in all aspects.

Currently, he had only grasped the merest surface.

"Since I can affect the void, according to the legacy's description, this is a qualitative change, meaning I've reached the perfected stage of Saber Soul Realm," Meng Chuan nodded slightly.

Having reached the perfected Saber Soul Realm, Meng Chuan didn't dwell on it but continued his fervent, almost obsessive practice, for he still had many ideas.

He even had many ideas to try with his other cultivated forms: 'Flying Swallow,' 'Dragon Roar,' 'Tiger Roar,' 'Red Lotus,' and 'Extreme Yin.'

In the blink of an eye, it was late autumn.

On September 19th, Meng Chuan fully returned to his normal state.

Over the past three months, he had attempted everything he intended. Some attempts led him astray, while others yielded significant results. Meng Chuan was quite satisfied with reaching the perfected Saber Soul Realm. Achieving 'Saber Soul Peak' was not easy. Of course, the most difficult breakthrough was from Saber Soul Peak to the grand realm of 'Saber Dao.' Many Great Sun Realm Godfiends never managed to break through it in their entire lives.

"What a blast, what a blast," Meng Chuan stretched in the training ground. "It's about time I became a Great Sun Realm Godfiend. Once I pass through the Nine Xuan Cave, I can go down the mountain."