Chapter 887: Still Human?

With the Heaven's Path Divine Art, Zhang Xuan did not hesitate and rapidly improved his cultivation using the Earth Vein Spirit Liquid. The Earth Vein Spirit Liquid was rich in spiritual energy, and its absorption rate was much faster than that of spirit stones, naturally leading to even swifter progress for him.

However, while his progress from the Stepping Void Realm to the Silkworm Cocoon Realm seemed quick, the demand for spiritual energy was simply immense. He had obtained a large quantity of Earth Vein Spirit Liquid from Cloud Mist Ridge, yet just this brief period of use consumed nearly one-third of it!

"The higher one's cultivation, the greater the demand for spiritual energy," Zhang Xuan mused. "Although the Earth Vein Spirit Liquid is plentiful, its purity is still somewhat lacking..."

Zhang Xuan shook his head.

The spirit liquid was quickly absorbed and rich in spiritual energy, making it a rare treasure. However, its purity was insufficient. While this wasn't an issue for Saint Beasts or other cultivators, for him, using it felt somewhat wasteful. The Heaven's Path Divine Art had extremely high requirements for the purity of spiritual energy. When he used this spirit liquid to improve his cultivation, its utilization rate might not even reach one-tenth; the remaining nine-tenths were completely wasted!

"It seems I can no longer use the Earth Vein Spirit Liquid for cultivation in the future," Zhang Xuan pondered. "If necessary, I'll sell it..."

Zhang Xuan fell into contemplation.

For him, the Earth Vein Spirit Liquid's effect was already weakening. Continuing to use it would only lead to more waste, so he might as well find a way to sell it. While useless to him, it was an extremely rare treasure for others. If not for this, the Saint Beasts of Cloud Mist Ridge wouldn't have guarded it so fiercely.

"I'll consider it when I return to Hongyuan City!"

Dispelling further thoughts, Zhang Xuan began to examine his newly enhanced strength. From the early Stepping Void Realm to the early Silkworm Cocoon Realm, his True Qi strength surged by nearly a hundred percent, increasing from the previous 17 million ding to 29 million ding! Solely based on True Qi strength, he was already comparable to a late-stage Silkworm Cocoon Realm expert! (Early Silkworm Cocoon Realm: 25 million ding, Middle: 28 million ding, Late: 31 million ding, Peak: 34 million ding!) If he added his soul power of 20 million ding and physical body strength of 16 million ding, his total strength reached 65 million ding, comparable to a middle-stage Transcendent Saint expert! (Early Transcendent Saint: 60 million ding, Middle: 65 million ding, Late: 70 million ding, Peak: 75 million ding!)

In other words, although he was only in the early Silkworm Cocoon Realm, he possessed combat power close to a middle-stage Transcendent Saint, having surpassed two entire major realms!

"Now, that fellow shouldn't be my match anymore!"

He chuckled softly. Although Brother Lu was not weak, compared to him, he was definitely slightly inferior.

Sitting cross-legged on the ground, he consolidated his cultivation and raised his aura to its peak. Only then did he open his eyes and look across. He saw that Brother Lu had also nearly recovered from his injuries. His aura was sharper than before, exuding a strong sense of pressure. It appeared the other party had also used some powerful secret art to restore his body to its peak condition, ready for battle.

"This fellow... he's not easy to deal with!" Zhang Xuan sighed with emotion.

Under normal circumstances, if his own strength were so much weaker, the opponent should be completely unconcerned. Yet, Brother Lu adjusted his state and showed no hint of disdain... This mindset alone was something countless cultivators couldn't achieve. Clearly possessing strength yet still able to maintain his composure, that was truly admirable.

"I've recovered. My friend, are you ready?"

After an unknown period, Brother Lu exhaled a stream of sword qi, raised his eyebrows, and abruptly stood up. Although he still looked somewhat pale, his spirit, energy, and essence had reached their peak, making him considerably stronger than before.

"Of course!" Zhang Xuan smiled and stood up.

"Let's begin. Bring out your weapon..."

With a flick of his wrist, another long sword appeared in Brother Lu's palm. An expert of his caliber certainly didn't possess just one sword.

"Alright..." Zhang Xuan flicked his wrist, and a long sword appeared in his palm. It was the Ice Rain Sword!

"A semi-Saint artifact?"

Seeing the long sword drawn, a chilling aura shot straight out, seemingly sealing off everything around it. Brother Lu's mouth twitched, and he almost failed to suppress the True Qi within his body. This fellow just casually pulled out another semi-Saint artifact... Is a weapon shop your family business? How can he have so many good items?

"Your sword is too sharp..." His face flushed, and he couldn't help but say, "Can you use a different one?"

The sword in his hand was merely a superb spirit artifact, fundamentally different from the opponent's semi-Saint artifact. If they were to truly fight, just the sharpness of the long sword alone would increase the opponent's combat power by as much as fifty percent, while his own abilities would also be weakened.

"Use a different one?" Zhang Xuan frowned. He suggested using the Purple Sun Beast, but they said a beast tamer wasn't allowed. He suggested using the Golden Origin Cauldron, but they said a Saint artifact wasn't allowed. Now he brought out a semi-Saint artifact, and they're being picky again. Can we even fight or not?

Although frustrated, he still nodded. He looked around, then reached out and picked something. With a light smile, he said, "I'll use this to fight you!"

"Dog... foxtail grass?" Hu Yaoyao and the others stumbled.

They saw that what Zhang Xuan had just picked was a slender stalk of foxtail grass. Use this for the match? The opponent was a Half-Saint, and not just an ordinary one, capable of challenging those beyond his rank. You... even if you've broken through, you shouldn't be like this! This is truly demoralizing!

Seeing their concern, Zhang Xuan chuckled softly. He placed the foxtail grass between his index and middle fingers, and with a movement of True Qi, the originally bent weed instantly straightened, resembling a long sword.

"When swordsmanship reaches an advanced realm," Zhang Xuan explained, "one is not constrained by objects; grass, wood, bamboo, or stone can all become swords. This is indeed foxtail grass, but if used well, its power is more than just that of a weed!" With a gentle smile, Zhang Xuan's foxtail grass brushed against the tree trunk previously discarded by the Purple Sun Beast. The tree, as thick as a bowl, instantly broke into two sections.

"Such pure True Qi..." Brother Lu's pupils constricted. Although the opponent was holding foxtail grass, in reality, True Qi acted as the blade, making the True Qi as sharp as a real sword blade... How pure must it be? At least he couldn't do it!

"Let's begin!"

Knowing that even if the opponent used a weed, his strength wouldn't be significantly weakened, Brother Lu let out a long cry, swayed his body, and launched the first attack. His long sword swept through the air, sword qi crisscrossing. With his first move, he unleashed his full power, showing no disdain despite the opponent's seemingly weaker strength or the use of foxtail grass.

"Good move!" With a soft smile, Zhang Xuan did not dodge. The long grass in his hand transformed into a sword light, pointing forward and aiming directly at the opponent's armpit. This strike targeted the opening created by the opponent raising his sword. Any sword practitioner, once they draw their sword, will invariably leave their armpit exposed, simply a matter of how quickly or slowly. For this reason, this spot is often targeted when dealing with sword experts; many have long since trained this opening into the most heavily defended area.

Brother Lu was no exception.

*Swish!* Although he was puzzled why the opponent would use such a basic sword move, he still dared not underestimate him. With a slight flick of his palm, he blocked the opponent's sword move. At the same moment, sword qi spread outwards, thrusting directly at Zhang Xuan's eyes and brows. It was a defensive and counter-attacking move, turning a passive situation into an active one!

"Not bad, quite standard, but... still a bit lacking!" With a raised eyebrow, Zhang Xuan flicked the foxtail grass. Its straight forward thrust suddenly changed; the entire stalk of grass bent ninety degrees like a rope.

"What?" His pupils constricted, and Brother Lu's face turned pale. The "sword" that was originally thrusting straight forward suddenly bent, rendering all his blocking useless. More importantly, the tip of the grass was aimed directly at a vital acupoint on his chest; if he didn't dodge and was struck, he would very likely be severely wounded on the spot! After all, the opponent had just effortlessly cut through a log on the ground with this very grass; its power was astonishing!

"Retreat!" Not daring to hesitate, he flicked his long sword, and his body rapidly retreated a few steps.

"Heh heh!" Seeing him retreat, Zhang Xuan had already anticipated it. He stepped forward, and the foxtail grass flicked again. What was originally bending left and right immediately bent up and down, thrusting its tip towards Brother Lu's throat. This change in move showed no hint of constraint; it flowed as if in one smooth motion, round and full of beauty. To outsiders, it looked refreshing and delightful, but in Brother Lu's eyes, it was like Yama, the king of death, coming for his life. If he didn't retreat, his throat would surely be pierced on the spot.

His face turned pale again, and he continued to retreat. Zhang Xuan continued to advance. The weed in his palm danced again, this time aiming not for the throat, but for the Shanzhong acupoint on the chest. Brother Lu retreated again. The foxtail grass in Zhang Xuan's hand, like a soft sword, danced freely, gradually exposing the flaws in this Half-Saint expert's swordsmanship. This intimidated him to the point where he couldn't retaliate, only retreat step by step. From the beginning until now, the long sword and the foxtail grass had not collided even once.

"So strong..." Hu Yaoyao, Dong Xin, and the others looked at each other, their throats dry. Earlier, they thought Brother Lu was already very strong, that even ordinary Transcendent Saints wouldn't be his match. But seeing Teacher Zhang's actions, they realized... he was the true expert. Using foxtail grass to compete against the opponent's superb spirit artifact, not only was it not cut off, but it also forced the opponent to retreat repeatedly. How profound must one's understanding of swordsmanship be to achieve this?

"It seems... Brother Lu is destined to lose..." Xue Zhenyang clenched his fists. Previously, he had always thought that purely based on weapons, the opponent would definitely not be Zhang Xuan's match. Only now did he realize that the gap between the two could no longer be measured in kilometers. They were completely not on the same level. He was fortunate to have recognized Zheng Yang as his teacher back then and become a grand-disciple. Otherwise, if he had truly gone to cause trouble, he would surely have been beaten to the point where his own father wouldn't recognize him. Too terrifying!

While everyone was still in shock, they then saw Brother Lu retreating continuously. He finally reached the edge of the rock wall, his back pressed against it, with no further room to retreat. Unable to retreat further, the foxtail grass in Zhang Xuan's hand finally gave a slight flick, stopping above the opponent's heart, seemingly ready to pierce the skin at any moment.

"I've lost..." His face turned as white as paper. Although Brother Lu did not want to admit it, he knew he had been utterly defeated.

"Thank you for the concession!" With a light smile, Zhang Xuan flicked his wrist. The foxtail grass in his hand could no longer withstand the force, breaking into seven or eight pieces and falling to the ground.

Witnessing the battle between the two, Wu Xu, standing to the side, had trembling lips and darkened eyes. "One hundred thirty-two sword moves, not a single collision!" he murmured. "Brother Lu retreated seventy-seven steps and surrendered his sword..."

"Is this... even human?"