Heavenly Sword Saint
Clang!
The two swords collided.
A violent shockwave swept across the platform.
Jian Chen's feet slid backward.
His arms trembled from the impact.
This strike was far stronger than anything Jian Xuan had used before.
Jian Xuan didn't give him time to recover.
He stepped forward.
His sword descended.
Swish!
Jian Chen's pupils contracted.
He raised his iron sword.
Clang!
The blades collided again.
The tremendous force drove Jian Chen backward.
One step.
Two steps.
Three.
He finally stopped near the edge of the platform.
His breathing became heavier.
Across from him, Jian Xuan stood calmly.
Eighth Stage spiritual energy surged around his body.
"This is the difference between us."
His voice was calm.
"Your swordsmanship is impressive."
"But your cultivation is still too weak."
Jian Chen slowly raised his sword.
He didn't answer.
His eyes remained fixed on Jian Xuan.
The previous exchange had already told him enough.
Jian Xuan wasn't simply powerful.
His control was extremely precise.
Every movement was calculated to make full use of his Eighth Stage cultivation.
If Jian Chen met him head-on...
He would lose.
If he continued defending...
His spiritual energy would eventually run dry.
There was only one choice.
He had to turn Jian Xuan's strength against him.
Jian Xuan moved.
Boom!
His body shot forward.
His sword pierced toward Jian Chen's chest.
Jian Chen didn't retreat.
At the final moment...
He stepped sideways.
The sword passed beside his body.
His wrist turned.
The iron sword followed the movement of Jian Xuan's blade.
Clang!
The attack was redirected.
Jian Xuan's sword slid past him.
Jian Chen immediately counterattacked.
Swish!
His sword swept toward Jian Xuan's ribs.
Jian Xuan's expression changed slightly.
He twisted his body.
The iron sword barely missed.
But Jian Chen didn't stop.
His sword followed naturally.
Slash!
Jian Xuan raised his sword.
Clang!
The two blades collided.
Jian Xuan was forced half a step backward.
The crowd gasped.
"Jian Chen forced him back!"
Jian Xuan glanced at his feet.
Then he looked back at Jian Chen.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"So that's your answer."
Jian Chen's eyes narrowed.
Jian Xuan suddenly released more spiritual energy.
Boom!
The pressure surrounding the platform intensified.
Jian Chen's clothes fluttered violently.
"This time..."
Jian Xuan raised his sword.
"I won't give you the opportunity to redirect my attacks."
He disappeared.
Jian Chen's expression changed.
Too fast.
He barely raised his sword.
Clang!
The impact sent him flying backward.
His feet left the ground.
Bang!
He landed heavily.
Dust spread across the platform.
"Jian Chen!"
Several disciples shouted.
Jian Chen rolled once before stopping.
Pain spread throughout his body.
He slowly pushed himself up.
Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
Jian Xuan didn't immediately pursue.
He simply watched.
"Still standing?"
Jian Chen wiped the blood from his lips.
"Why wouldn't I be?"
Jian Xuan smiled.
"Good."
He raised his sword.
"Again."
Boom!
He charged.
Jian Chen's eyes became cold.
The world around him seemed to slow.
His breathing gradually became steady.
His grip loosened.
His sword lowered slightly.
The Flowing Cloud Sword Art circulated through his mind.
Clouds.
Wind.
Movement.
Then Jian Chen suddenly understood something.
The clouds didn't resist the wind.
They didn't fight against it.
They moved with it.
They gathered.
They dispersed.
They changed shape.
No matter how violently the wind moved...
The clouds never had a fixed form.
Jian Chen's eyes flashed.
His sword moved.
Swish!
Jian Xuan's attack arrived.
Jian Chen turned.
The blade passed beside him.
Jian Xuan immediately changed direction.
Jian Chen moved with the attack.
Clang!
The sword was redirected.
But this time...
Jian Chen didn't counterattack.
He waited.
Jian Xuan attacked again.
Clang!
Jian Chen waited.
Another attack.
Clang!
Again.
His sword continued moving.
Soft.
Natural.
Almost effortless.
Jian Xuan's brows gradually furrowed.
Something was wrong.
Jian Chen was no longer merely reacting.
He was beginning to understand the rhythm of Jian Xuan's attacks.
Jian Xuan suddenly changed his rhythm.
His sword swept toward Jian Chen's waist.
Jian Chen stepped backward.
The blade missed.
Jian Xuan immediately thrust forward.
Jian Chen turned.
The sword passed beside his shoulder.
Then
Jian Chen stepped inside Jian Xuan's range.
His iron sword moved.
Bang!
The blade struck Jian Xuan's chest.
Jian Xuan staggered backward.
The crowd erupted.
"He struck Jian Xuan!"
Jian Xuan looked down.
A shallow cut had appeared across his robe.
Blood slowly seeped from the wound.
His expression finally became serious.
Jian Chen stood several meters away.
His breathing was heavy.
His spiritual energy was rapidly diminishing.
He knew he couldn't maintain this state forever.
But something had changed.
His sword felt different.
Lighter.
More natural.
Almost as though it had become part of his body.
The Flowing Cloud Sword Art had advanced.
Not in cultivation.
Not in power.
But in understanding.
A faint pressure gathered around Jian Chen's sword.
The supervising elder's eyes widened.
"What is that?"
One of the visiting elders stared at Jian Chen.
"That feeling..."
He stopped.
His expression became solemn.
Another elder whispered,
"He's beginning to touch something deeper."
Jian Chen didn't notice their reaction.
His attention remained fixed on Jian Xuan.
Jian Xuan slowly raised his sword.
His expression was no longer playful.
"You're dangerous."
Jian Chen remained silent.
Jian Xuan looked at the blood on his shoulder.
Until now...
He had regarded this battle as a test.
That had changed.
Jian Chen had forced him to take the battle seriously.
Jian Xuan tightened his grip.
"Then I suppose there's no reason to hide it anymore."
Boom!
His Eighth Stage spiritual energy erupted.
The entire platform trembled.
A powerful sword aura spread outward.
Several disciples instinctively stepped backward.
The supervising elder's expression changed.
"Jian Xuan..."
He knew what was coming.
Jian Xuan raised his sword high.
"Mountain-Splitting Sword!"
Boom!
His sword descended.
The air seemed to split apart.
A terrifying sword force rushed toward Jian Chen.
The crowd erupted in alarm.
Jian Chen's pupils contracted.
The attack was too powerful.
His body couldn't withstand it.
His spiritual energy couldn't block it.
His cultivation couldn't compete with it.
So...
He wouldn't compete.
Jian Chen closed his eyes.
For one brief moment...
Everything became silent.
Then his eyes opened.
His sword moved.
Not quickly.
Not forcefully.
Just...
Naturally.
The Flowing Cloud Sword Art unfolded.
Jian Chen stepped forward.
His sword touched Jian Xuan's attack.
Instead of blocking...
He guided it.
The terrifying sword force shifted.
It swept past Jian Chen's body.
Boom!
The platform exploded.
A deep crack tore across the stone.
Dust filled the air.
The spectators stared in disbelief.
Jian Chen was still standing.
But his face was pale.
His arm trembled violently.
Blood dripped from his fingertips.
He had redirected the attack.
But the terrifying force had still injured him.
Jian Xuan stared at him.
For several breaths...
Neither spoke.
Then Jian Xuan suddenly laughed.
"Hahaha!"
His laughter echoed across the training ground.
"You actually redirected it."
Jian Chen raised his sword.
Jian Xuan's smile slowly disappeared.
"But..."
He studied Jian Chen carefully.
"You're already at your limit."
Jian Chen remained silent.
Jian Xuan was right.
His spiritual energy was nearly exhausted.
His body had reached its limit.
He could barely maintain the Flowing Cloud Sword Art.
If the battle continued...
He would lose.
Jian Xuan slowly raised his sword again.
"Then let's finish this."
He stepped forward.
Suddenly
"Enough!"
The supervising elder's voice exploded across the training ground.
Jian Xuan stopped.
Jian Chen turned toward the elder.
The elder stepped onto the platform.
His expression was solemn.
"The battle is over."
Jian Xuan frowned.
"Elder"
"The platform has already been damaged."
The elder pointed toward the enormous crack beneath them.
"Continuing would risk serious injury."
Jian Xuan remained silent.
He looked at Jian Chen.
Then at the supervising elder.
After a moment...
He lowered his sword.
"Fine."
The crowd immediately erupted.
Some disciples were disappointed.
Others were still trying to understand what they had witnessed.
A Sixth-Stage cultivator had fought an Eighth-Stage cultivator.
He had been completely suppressed at the beginning.
Then his swordsmanship had changed.
He had injured Jian Xuan.
He had even redirected Jian Xuan's strongest attack.
The visiting elders exchanged complicated looks.
One finally spoke.
"The Jian Clan has produced an extraordinary young man."
Another shook his head.
"Extraordinary isn't enough to describe him."
His eyes remained fixed on Jian Chen.
"He learns during battle."
A third elder's expression became serious.
"That kind of comprehension..."
He paused.
"If he continues growing at this rate, his future will be difficult to predict."
The Jian Clan elders exchanged glances.
They understood the hidden meaning.
Praise was one thing.
Attention was another.
And Jian Chen had attracted far too much attention today.
One visiting elder glanced toward the Jian Clan's elders.
"Jian Clan Elder, what exactly happened to this child?"
The question caused several surrounding elders to look over.
The Jian Clan elder's expression remained calm.
But his eyes were complicated.
"We are still trying to understand it ourselves."
The visiting elder narrowed his eyes.
Clearly, he wasn't satisfied with the answer.
But he said nothing more.
On the platform, Jian Xuan approached.
He stopped in front of Jian Chen.
"I had the advantage."
Jian Chen looked at him.
Jian Xuan continued.
"But you forced me to use my strongest technique."
His expression became serious.
"I won't forget this battle."
Jian Chen's lips curved slightly.
"Neither will I."
Jian Xuan turned around.
Then he stopped.
"But next time..."
He glanced back.
"I won't hold back from the beginning."
Jian Chen tightened his grip around his iron sword.
"Then I'll be stronger next time."
Jian Xuan laughed.
"I'll be waiting."
He walked away.
Jian Chen watched his back disappear into the crowd.
Only then did the exhaustion finally hit him.
His vision blurred.
His knees nearly weakened.
But he remained standing.
He looked down at the iron sword in his hand.
For a brief moment...
He felt something.
Not spiritual energy.
Not cultivation.
Something deeper.
His fingers tightened around the hilt.
A faint sensation passed through the blade.
Jian Chen's eyes narrowed.
What was that?
He focused his perception.
Nothing.
The sensation had already disappeared.
He slowly turned the sword in his hand.
The iron blade looked exactly the same as before.
Ordinary.
Dull.
Unremarkable.
Yet Jian Chen couldn't shake the feeling that something had changed.
He closed his eyes.
For a moment...
He thought he could hear something.
Not a voice.
Not a sound.
More like an echo coming from somewhere beyond his understanding.
Then it vanished.
Jian Chen opened his eyes.
His expression became thoughtful.
He didn't tell anyone.
He simply returned the sword to its sheath.
Around him, the annual competition continued.
The disciples had already begun discussing the battle.
The elders were still watching him.
And Jian Xuan had already left the platform.
But Jian Chen's attention was no longer on any of them.
He looked toward the distant mountains.
His eyes gradually became sharper.
Today, he had discovered the limit of his current strength.
But he had also discovered something else.
The Flowing Cloud Sword Art wasn't simply a sword technique.
There was something hidden within it.
Something he had only barely touched.
And if that faint sensation had truly come from the sword...
Then perhaps the technique he had obtained from the Heavenly Sword Scripture was far more profound than he had imagined.
Jian Chen lowered his gaze.
The iron sword rested quietly at his waist.
No light remained.
No aura.
Nothing unusual.
Yet somewhere deep within the sword...
Something seemed to have awakened.
And Jian Chen didn't know it yet.
But the moment he touched that mysterious presence...
his path as a swordsman had begun to change.