Chapter 330: Stealing Home

The five Disciples of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect abruptly halted, their expressions frozen as they stared at the scene before them. They saw three groups of people had occupied this spot—no, not just this spot, but the three best training grounds in the entire Sword Forest. This was a place frequently visited by the Disciples of the Ten Thousand Swords Sect.

The sword energy and spiritual qi here were the densest. Cultivating near the two broken swords left by the Supreme Elder offered an almost divine boost. They had intentionally lured away disciples from other sects, their goal being to monopolize these two prime locations. But to their surprise, someone had already taken over their spots!

"Senior Brother Ling, what should we do?" a female disciple asked anxiously. "Are we really going to use only the remaining training spots?" The last two spots were significantly inferior, even worse than those occupied by the Qingyun Sect disciples.

Ling Guihai snapped back to reality. He had never imagined someone would hijack their prime spots right under his nose! He focused his gaze, and his anger intensified: "It's you?" The person was none other than Shadow Guard Number One, the very one who had caused him to be punished!

Jiang Fan slowly opened his eyes, a smile on his face. "Thank you, Senior Brother Ling, for distracting the other sect disciples," he said. "That's how we were able to pick any spot we wanted here."

These infuriating words sent Ling Guihai into a furious rage. "You dog! Instead of hiding, you dare to steal a spot from our Ten Thousand Swords Sect disciples?" he roared. "Get out here, or you'll regret it!"

Many cultivating disciples were startled awake, seeing Ling Guihai's fury. Nie Yunxi shivered in fear, her eyelids twitching nervously. It seemed that prime cultivation spot wasn't so easily claimed. All the other disciples here were in the Foundation Establishment realm, while Ling Guihai, a Core Formation realm cultivator, was practically a king in the Sword Forest whom no one dared to provoke. Jiang Fan would likely be unable to hold onto the prime spot he had claimed.

Ji Ruyue was also startled and quickly interjected, trying to smooth things over. "Senior Brother Ling, it's first come, first served, so just let him..." She had hoped their acquaintance would make him show some courtesy. However, she underestimated Ling Guihai's deep animosity towards Jiang Fan. He snorted, "If your Joyful Union Sect wants to continue cultivating in that prime spot, then shut your mouth!" Her words left Ji Ruyue feeling both angry and helpless, as her inferior cultivation meant her words held no sway.

Ling Guihai then glared at Jiang Fan. "Do you think just because you arrived first, it's yours?" he challenged. "Let me tell you, this is the Sword Forest, the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, and it's my territory! If I tell you to get out, you get out!"

Xu Yining couldn't help but worry. "Perhaps we should yield?" she whispered. If Jiang Fan were to be injured by Ling Guihai over a piece of territory, she would be wracked with guilt and unable to focus on her own cultivation. However, Jiang Fan simply waved his hand, saying calmly, "I claimed this spot through my own strength. If others want it, they'll have to take it by their own strength."

Hearing this, Ling Guihai laughed in anger. "Do you really think a bit of amateur swordsmanship gives you the right to be arrogant in front of me?" he scoffed. "Our Ten Thousand Swords Sect are the progenitors of swordsmanship! Who do you think you are? I'll give you three breaths; otherwise, don't blame me for what happens next!"

He held up three fingers. Before he could even begin to count, Jiang Fan finished for him. "One, two, three," he said. "Done."

Clang— Ling Guihai, feeling profoundly provoked, decisively drew his sword. "You won't shed tears until you see the coffin!" he snarled. "I'll grant your wish!" He immediately unleashed a Profound-grade High-level sword art, slashing towards Jiang Fan.

Jiang Fan silently rose and stepped out of the cultivation spot, wanting to avoid damaging it during their impending fight. "For you, I don't even need swordsmanship," Jiang Fan stated. He met the attack empty-handed, his blood qi surging. The poison core within him unleashed, infusing tendrils of potent poison into his spiritual energy, which he then launched towards Ling Guihai.

Ling Guihai instantly felt a sinister force rushing towards him, triggering a strong alarm. He pulled back his sweeping sword, drawing it close to his body, and formed swirling vortexes to disperse the spiritual energy. "Petty tricks!" Ling Guihai scoffed, seeing no immediate danger. It wasn't until a faint sizzling sound reached his ears that he noticed his beloved mid-grade longsword was being corroded, leaving behind scorched black streaks. His expression changed drastically as he gasped, "You cultivate poison arts?" He quickly tore off a piece of cloth to wipe away the potent poison, but the sword was already pitted and corroded, severely damaged.

This made him both heartbroken and enraged. "You destroyed my artifact!" he bellowed. "You're asking for death! Ocean Sword!" Spiritual energy surged within him, clearly displaying his Core Formation second-layer cultivation as he unleashed the strongest strike from his sword arts.

The very air trembled! Nie Yunxi, watching from a distance, couldn't help but hold her breath, feeling the immense pressure of a Core Formation realm strike. Xu Yining also tensed, overwhelmed by the suffocating power. Jiang Fan, however, remained expressionless. Ling Guihai's strength was comparable to what it had been during the Heavenly Secret Pavilion auction, with hardly any noticeable improvement. Back then, Jiang Fan would have been utterly helpless against him. But now, things were different.

He didn't even need to use the physical techniques from the "Nine Forms of Warring Heaven." He simply unleashed the poison core, raising his powerful palms and striking them out fiercely. "Dragon-Elephant Combat Body!" he roared. His palms erupted with an overwhelming force, like a mighty elephant roaring towards the sky, the sheer power terrifying. Ling Guihai, who was close by, trembled from the impact, nearly losing his grip on his sword. That unimaginable, immense force surged forward like a crashing tide, slamming hard against his sword. In an instant, the sword was knocked away, and Jiang Fan's palms, like direct thrusts, struck Ling Guihai's chest.

Bang— Ling Guihai was sent flying backward with a crash, as if he had been struck by a colossal wild elephant. He moved with the speed of a meteor, leaving a trail of afterimages in the air. After smashing through a large section of the Sword Forest, he finally came to a halt, lying on the ground, coughing up blood incessantly. The visible indentation on his chest indicated severe injuries, rendering him completely incapacitated.

"Your strength does not match your arrogance," Jiang Fan stated calmly. "Nor do you have the power to claim this prime spot." With that, he returned to Xu Yining's side, closed his eyes, and resumed his cultivation.

Silence fell over the surroundings. Nie Yunxi rubbed her eyes, wondering if she had seen incorrectly. A Foundation Establishment realm cultivator, using only physical strength, had made Ling Guihai cough up blood? Ling Guihai was a genuine Core Formation second-layer martial artist, a true offensive powerhouse specializing in swordsmanship. Yet, he had been instantly and utterly defeated? She stared at Jiang Fan's back and gasped. Just who was this friend Xu Yining had made? Even the chief disciples of the various sects weren't this terrifying, were they?

Ji Ruyue pouted slightly and gloated, "He brought that upon himself." Then she calmly resumed her cultivation. This was Xu Yining's first time witnessing Jiang Fan directly engage in combat, and it completely redefined her understanding of Shadow Guard Number One's capabilities. She secretly felt fortunate to be with Jiang Fan; with him, she truly had nothing to worry about.

Ling Guihai's pained face was etched with horror. Shouldn't only Foundation Establishment realm cultivators enter the Sword Forest for advanced training? But Shadow Guard Number One's recent strike was nothing like an attack from a Foundation Establishment realm disciple. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his face filled with resentment.

As he noticed the high-grade broken sword at Jiang Fan's cultivation spot, Ling Guihai suddenly realized something and burst into laughter. Jiang Fan opened his eyes and frowned. "I wounded you," he said, "I didn't feed you a madness potion." Ling Guihai's laughter grew even more unrestrained. "Hahahaha!" he roared. "I'm laughing because your luck is simply terrible. Of the only two prime spots, you chose the one you shouldn't have."

Jiang Fan frowned, staring at him intently. Ling Guihai continued with a mocking expression, "I don't mind telling you, that sword beside you was left by the First Supreme Elder, the very founder of Sword Mastery. Cultivating near his sword requires sword energy of the same origin. Otherwise, if you cultivate for too long, his sword energy will repel you." The five Ten Thousand Swords Sect disciples behind him suddenly understood. "That's right, we almost forgot about that detail," one murmured. "The only reason we can cultivate here is because we brought a jade pendant imbued with a wisp of Supreme Elder Xu Qingyang's sword energy. How would disciples from other sects find sword energy of the same origin as Sword Mastery?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Yining's face fell. This prime cultivation spot actually had such a specific requirement? She wondered if it was her imagination, but she genuinely felt a faint, needle-like prickling sensation inside her, as if the sword energy were repelling her.

Ling Guihai sneered, "You cur, if you're smart, get out of the way. This spot is only fit for our Ten Thousand Swords Sect disciples. Keep being stubborn, and you'll be the one to suffer." What a twist! This place still belonged to the Disciples of Ten Thousand Swords Sect after all.

To everyone's surprise, Jiang Fan showed a peculiar expression. "According to you," he said, "as long as one cultivates Sword Mastery, then it doesn't matter, does it?"