After reviewing his stats, Xiang Yu felt a deep satisfaction with his progress. His gaze lingered on his sword technique, which had reset to zero after breakthrough. This presented a dilemma – he still wanted to advance his knife technique to Great Completion, but splitting his focus might slow his overall progress.
Then, a realization struck him. With his newfound ability to cook spirit food, he could completely rejuvenate his energy after each meal. This changed everything. He would no longer experience diminishing returns as he trained more since his stamina bar would be reset after each meal.
This was perfect, he could now practice the knife technique during the day, and after dinner when his energy is restored, he could then practice the sword without experiencing any loss in performance.
With his strategy set, Xiang Yu considered whether to sleep. He paused, taking stock of his condition. Despite being awake for a full twenty-four hours – unusual for someone at the Body Refining stage who still required mortal necessities like food and sleep – his mind remained remarkably sharp. He wondered if this clarity was a benefit of breaking through to Mind Level 1.
Since that was the case, then going to sleep would be a waste of valuable time, he thought, settling into the meditation position to practice the Mountain Heart Sutra.
This time, he approached the practice with greater caution, placing deep emphasis on affirming his nature to resist the mental demons that had nearly claimed him before. As he settled into position, the familiar sensation began to envelop him – that seductive pull toward peaceful nothingness.
Though he continued affirming his heart's desire for survival, the void's influence grew increasingly overwhelming. A flicker of concern passed through his fading consciousness as he wondered if his desires were truly so weak. The emptiness pulled him deeper and deeper until once again, he floated in that state of pure existence – wanting nothing, feeling nothing, simply being.
Just before he could fully surrender to the void's embrace, something extraordinary happened. Within the endless emptiness where his consciousness drifted, a flame materialized before him – the Abyssal Void Flame. Though black as night, it somehow illuminated the surrounding darkness. Xiang Yu felt its gentle warmth caress his senses, gradually restoring his awareness.
He pulled the flame toward himself with a thought, heaving a sigh of relief as his consciousness fully returned. "It seems I'm still too weak to practice mind techniques safely," he acknowledged. "Fortunate that I have the Abyssal Void Flame. Otherwise..." He left the thought unfinished, silently thanking his martial aunt for her timely gift.
As his awareness expanded, Xiang Yu examined his surroundings. The endless dark void stretched in all directions, eerily similar to descriptions he'd heard of a spiritual sea – something typically accessible only to cultivators at the Golden Core stage. Had practicing the sutra somehow allowed him to open his spiritual sea prematurely?
With a spiritual sea, he could use spiritual sense to detect things around him, allowing him to avoid ambushes. Though looking at his dark spiritual sea, he admitted that it was probably unusable as it lacked the spiritual qi required to function.
Still, he recognized its potential value. With deliberate intent, he guided the flame toward his forehead. The black fire settled there, manifesting as a flaming mark that caused his entire form to glow, illuminating a small radius within the dark void.
He reasoned that with a spiritual sea, even without qi to perform mental attacks or use spiritual sense, the flame could settle in there, providing protection against mental attacks when practicing mental techniques in the future or when he's attacked using mental techniques.
As he closed his eyes in his spiritual sea, his physical eyes opened in the real world. The first rays of dawn were just beginning to pierce the horizon. Perfect timing – he hadn't fallen behind in his training schedule.
...
Xiang Yu summoned his system interface to check if anything had changed after the long session:
[Enlightenment: Low (105/1000)]
[Battle Instinct: (45/100,000)]
[Spirit Flame: Abyssal Void Flame: 7th Grade (6/30,000)]
[Mountain Heart Sutra: Level 1 (12/1000)]
His eyes widened with genuine surprise. Some of his most stubborn stats had increased significantly—and without the system's doubling effect. The Mountain Heart Sutra had proven far more valuable than he'd initially realized, jumping from a mere 2 points to 12 overnight. Even his Battle Instinct, which had previously resisted conventional training methods, had grown by 5 points.
He was very satisfied with the sutra as he studied the numbers. "With the protection of the Abyssal Void Flame against mental demons, I can practice the sutra every night instead of wasting precious hours on sleep."
This optimization appealed deeply to his calculating nature. Twenty-four hours of productive cultivation per day—no moment wasted, no opportunity squandered. His path to power would accelerate even further.
Xiang Yu rose from his meditation posture and made his way to the nearby lake. The cool water against his skin banished the last vestiges of mental fatigue as he methodically washed his body, preparing for the day's training.
When he arrived at the training ground, Li Yao was already waiting, her slender figure silhouetted against the rising sun. They exchanged brief morning greetings before drawing their weapons. No time was wasted on idle conversation—both went straight to sparring.
As their sparring began, Xiang Yu immediately noticed the tangible improvements in his battle awareness. The prediction lines that guided his defense had grown remarkably precise—no longer the broad, hazy trajectories of before, but hair-thin indicators of exactly where and how attacks would manifest. His perception had sharpened to the point where he could discern not just the path of Li Yao's blade, but the subtle shifts in her weight distribution that telegraphed her intentions microseconds before she committed to them.
More impressively, his own attacks had become ruthlessly efficient. Gone were the wasted movements and unnecessary flourishes. Each strike, each parry, each footstep served a specific purpose in his overall strategy. He applied pressure when advantage presented itself and yielded ground when tactically beneficial, never allowing pride or fear to cloud his judgment.
It was as if the entire battle had transformed into an intricate game of chess and he was somehow a master of it.
Though still physically outmatched by his junior sister's raw power, his newfound tactical acumen created genuine pressure that forced her to adapt. For perhaps the first time, he wasn't merely surviving their exchanges—he was actively challenging her.
Across the training ground, Li Yao observed the transformation with growing interest. Her senior brother stood in a flawless defensive stance, his posture betraying none of the hesitation that had previously characterized his fighting style. His eyes tracked her movements with predatory focus, analyzing rather than fearing.
Her lazy and cowardly senior brother had evolved from someone who could barely muster the courage to counterattack into... whatever this was.
She released an audible sigh that carried across the training ground. The time had come to take her senior brother seriously. Continuing with her current unrefined technique would no longer provide the challenge he needed to grow.
With fluid grace, Li Yao shifted her stance, adopting a sword form she rarely displayed during their practice sessions. The change was immediate and dramatic—the entire atmosphere of the battlefield seemed to transform with her.
Xiang Yu felt his battle awareness tingling in response, recognizing the profound shift in danger level. Her new form embodied true mastery, the culmination of dedicated practice rather than the flawed techniques she'd been using to accommodate his lower level. As he observed her sword form, it felt like staring into an abyss with no end, "Is this what perfection feels like?" he wondered.
Yet instead of apprehension, a rare smile spread across his face as she launched toward him with blinding speed. This escalation—this genuine pressure—was exactly what he needed to transcend his current limitations.
Xiang Yu twisted away from a devastating blow that cratered the ground where he'd stood moments before. His mouth twitched as he wondered if his junior sister really had it out for him. There was no time to dwell on the thought as another attack came whistling toward him. He rolled across the ground and immediately sprang away as her blade struck where he'd just been.
His enhanced battle awareness, while impressive, seemed only sufficient for desperate evasion against Li Yao's perfected sword technique. The sheer pressure of her attacks generated what felt like a fear effect—had it not been for his spiritual sea helping him overcome the mental barrier, he might have frozen in place completely.
Despite the overwhelming odds, Xiang Yu found satisfaction in his improvement. From his assessment, his battle instinct had nearly caught up to his junior sister's level. After one more doubling, the difference would be like an adult competing against a child. Yet this didn't mean victory was within reach. Li Yao was essentially a kid wielding a gun while he remained unarmed. Though he could pressure her now, it was only because she deliberately held back her true strength. If she unleashed her full power, he wouldn't stand a chance—at least not yet.
Across the training ground, Li Yao observed her senior brother dodging another precisely aimed strike. She marveled at how much he'd grown, considering she was currently using the strength of a Body Refining sixth layer cultivator combined with a perfect-level sword technique, yet couldn't land a clean hit. He seemed to have adapted to her current level.
With a contemplative sigh, she decided to escalate further. Without warning, she released more of her true power, elevating to the strength of a Body Refining seventh layer cultivator.
As she charged toward Xiang Yu, her footwork suddenly accelerated, and she materialized before him in a blur of movement. He barely managed to block the attack, raising his knife and bracing it with his free hand. His feet dug into the ground as he absorbed the tremendous force.
Recognizing the sudden increase in pressure, Xiang Yu made a split-second tactical decision. Instead of maintaining the block against her overwhelming strength, he deliberately released the tension, allowing her attack to flow toward him while he rolled to safety. Her sword plunged deep into the earth where he'd stood.
Seizing the momentary opportunity, Xiang Yu sprang up and placed his knife against her exposed neck. "I win this time," he declared with uncharacteristic smugness.
Li Yao rose slowly, retrieving her sword with casual grace. "Is that so?" she replied with dangerous calm. "Let's try again."
The air around them seemed to shift, becoming charged with an entirely different energy. Before Xiang Yu could process what was happening, Li Yao stood directly before him.
"A movement technique?" he exclaimed in shock.
His realization came too late as her fist connected squarely with his abdomen, sending him flying several meters backward. Before he could regain his footing, she had already closed the distance, her sword poised at the ready, its gleaming edge promising no further mercy.
...
Xiang Yu stared at the descending sword, his enhanced battle awareness tracking its deadly trajectory perfectly. Yet his body betrayed him—his muscles couldn't match the speed his mind demanded. As the gleaming edge closed in, mere inches from his flesh, something extraordinary happened.
Suddenly, Xiang Yu found himself gazing up at the clear sky, squinting against the harsh sunlight. Confusion washed over him. What had just transpired? One moment, Li Yao's attack was inches away, and the next, he was sprawled on the ground some distance away.
Li Yao's face appeared above him, her silhouette blocking the sun's glare. "Senior brother, you finally mastered it," she announced, pride evident in her voice.
"Mastered what?" he wondered aloud, his mind still reeling from the abrupt change in position.
"The movement technique," she explained, her eyes bright with excitement.
Confusion gave way to realization as the memory crystallized. When the sword was about to strike him, his legs had moved almost of their own accord—carrying him at a speed he could barely control. He recalled crashing into a tree, the impact knocking him to the ground where he now lay. So that's what happened.
With focused intent, he summoned his status interface, eager to confirm this breakthrough:
[Mid-grade Phantom Footwork: Beginner (5/100)]
There it was, finally. After countless hours of practice and failed attempts, he had finally grasped the elusive technique. A rare sense of accomplishment warmed his chest. Though it had taken far longer than anticipated, he knew that with his system's exponential growth, mastery was now inevitable and would come swiftly.
"Let's take a break," he suggested as Li Yao helped him to his feet. They sheathed their weapons and headed toward the kitchen to prepare lunch.
As they walked, Xiang Yu noticed a subtle difference in his movement. Though he wasn't actively employing the Phantom Footwork, his legs felt more responsive, more fluid. He sensed that even if sudden danger arose, he could retreat instantly. If he developed this technique to perfection and combined it with his ever-improving battle instinct, he would never again fall to sneak attacks like he'd almost done during Gu Wuqing's ambush.
In the kitchen, Xiang Yu approached his culinary duties with renewed enthusiasm. Since acquiring the spirit flame, cooking had transformed from mere necessity into a valued opportunity to practice controlling his mystical fire. As his hands moved with practiced precision, he contemplated expanding into other secondary professions. Pill refining and artifact crafting would not only develop his spiritual flame control but would eventually allow him to create his own cultivation resources and weapons—crucial advantages for someone determined to survive in this dangerous world.
Lost in these practical considerations, he barely noticed when the meal preparation concluded. This time, only Elder Guo arrived for the meal. Noting his martial aunt's absence, Xiang Yu carefully wrapped her portion and set it aside. She had become family, after all, and her generosity in gifting him the spirit flame demanded reciprocity. The least he could do was ensure she enjoyed his spirit-infused cooking, even if delayed.
After master and disciple finished their meal, Elder Guo remained seated, his expression turning solemn. "The Heaven-Testing Pagoda is about to open," he announced, his tone causing both disciples to fall silent. "Every pavilion is required to send disciples to participate."