Chapter 159: Someone in the Sword?

The room for the screening test was empty, containing only a futon and a sword rack, with nothing else.

On the sword rack lay a sheathed precious sword, its style ancient and majestic, almost identical to the long sword hanging at He Mingjing's waist.

"The Sword Nurturer's test is simple: as long as you draw this sword from its sheath within a two-hour period, you qualify to become a Sword Nurturer."

Upon entering, Old Man Huang began explaining the rules for becoming a Sword Nurturer.

"From now on, if you can resonate with the Heaven-Extinguishing Sword Intent within the sword within three months, you can become a Sword Nurturer candidate."

"If you can achieve the unity of person and sword within a year, you can become a true Sword Nurturer."

"The steps to become a Sword Nurturer are surprisingly tedious!" Qin Shuo exclaimed in shock.

"Tedious?"

Old Man Huang glanced at Qin Shuo without expression, somewhat displeased, and said:

"Once the Sword Nurturing Art is mastered, it can unleash the power of supreme martial arts—a strength countless martial practitioners dream of."

"Moreover, the greatest feature of the Sword Nurturing Art is that it grows alongside the Sword Nurturer's strength."

"If you can fully comprehend it, when you later achieve the rank of Grandmaster, there will be no hindrance whatsoever."

"It can be said that any martial practitioner who masters the Sword Nurturing Art has the potential to become a Grandmaster of the Martial Way in the future."

"Now, do you still find training in the Sword Nurturing Art tedious?"

"Mastering the Sword Nurturing Art allows one to achieve the rank of Martial Way Grandmaster without obstruction?"

Qin Shuo was shocked.

Reaching the realm of Grandmaster, how difficult it is!

Countless martial practitioners who have perfected their viscera, even reached perfection, stop at the threshold of Grandmaster.

Yet this Sword Nurturing Art can actually bypass the Grandmaster threshold and lead straight to the pinnacle of the Martial Way—what shocking news!

No wonder He Mingjing initially held this Sword Nurturing Art in such high esteem; it turns out there is such a hidden secret within.

"Alright, no more nonsense! In two hours, I'll come check your sword-drawing progress; if you can't draw it, it's all over!"

The surnamed Huang old man is obviously also a devoted follower of the Sword Nurturing Art.

Qin Shuo merely sighed offhand, causing the old man's favor toward him to plummet to rock bottom.

If not for the screening rules, Huang Jiyun would have long ago thrown out anyone who disrespects the Prince's sword intent.

Old Man Huang flicked his sleeves in displeasure and left; only Qin Shuo and He Mingjing remained in the room.

"Old Qin, don't take it to heart; Old Man Huang just can't stand anyone speaking ill of the Sword Nurturing Art."

"Focus on your comprehension; I'll come get you in two hours."

He Mingjing gave a few instructions, then shared some sword-drawing insights with Qin Shuo before turning and leaving.

After the two had walked far away, the screening room fell silent, so quiet that a dropped pin could be heard.

Whoosh~

Qin Shuo gently exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, calming his mind and blood, then took down the sheathed long sword from the rack.

The scabbard was ancient and felt slightly heavy in hand.

Merely hefting it casually, Qin Shuo knew this sword was extraordinary.

"The Taotie Cauldron hasn't reacted yet—could it be that the scabbard also hides some secret?"

Qin Shuo was slightly surprised.

"Logically, this long sword bears the sword-method will of the first Martial Saint of Great Li; the Taotie Cauldron should have reacted immediately."

"But now, after staring at this long sword for a long time, there is no textual prompt appearing on the Taotie Cauldron."

"Perhaps I should first draw the sword."

As the thought arose, Qin Shuo's hand already covered the hilt.

Clang!

The long sword drew half an inch from its sheath!

At the same moment, an extremely fierce tiger roar exploded in Qin Shuo's mind.

A towering, fierce sword aura emanated from that half-inch blade edge, like a tsunami, incessantly striking his mind and spirit.

In an instant, Qin Shuo felt as if he were being cut by a thousand knives.

That extremely sharp aura penetrated every opening.

It seemed to easily rend his diamond-like body,

along with his organs, spirit, and thoughts, all seeming to be sliced into countless tiny fragments at that moment.

Under this overbearing, extremely fierce sword intent, everything in heaven and earth seemed utterly fragile.

The sword aura rolled like a vast ocean, engulfing star rivers, shattering sun and moon!

It seemed as if even the void were sliced into countless fragments, letting all return to nothingness and darkness!

This thread of sword intent is too overbearing!

Even though Qin Shuo's mind and spirit were sufficiently resilient, he also experienced a momentary daze.

In that instant, boundless terror arose in his heart, giving him the illusion of being as fragile as paper, utterly unable to resist.

Fortunately, this impact lasted only an instant, after which everything returned to calm.

Clang—!

The standard long sword was completely drawn from its sheath.

Only then did the Taotie Cauldron finally react.

【Ingredient discovered: Heaven-Extinguishing Sword】

【This sword is a replica of the Thunder Tiger Heaven-Extinguishing Sword of Feng Tianxing, the Martial Pacification King of Great Li, containing a thread of Heaven-Extinguishing Sword Intent!】

【Heaven-Extinguishing Sword Intent is not for the decisive and brave; only the fearless and forward-charging can comprehend it!】

【Current energy is sufficient; shall we refine?】

「Refine! 」

As Qin Shuo's thought moved, the gloomy, pitch‑black Gluttonous Beast Cauldron instantly burst forth with a rosy crimson light.

Hum!

The cauldron walls trembled; Qin Shuo's long blade in his hand vanished, being drawn into the Gluttonous Beast Cauldron.

In the next instant, brilliant light filled his entire sea of consciousness; wherever his mind reached, it was a expanse of crimson light.

No one knows how long this state lasted.

When Qin Shuo gradually eased from this extreme bright light, the scene before him had already changed dramatically.

This was a barren expanse of land.

Between heaven and earth, blue lightning spread like a spiderweb, thick and dense, resembling a vast, violent thunder pool and electric sea.

Although only his consciousness had entered this space, Qin Shuo still felt the heart‑shaking aura of destruction.

Compared to the thunderous intent here, Yue Shan's Five Thunder Exterminating Palm back then was nothing more than child's play.

「Could it be that this is the source of the Heaven‑Severing Blade Intent? 」

Qin Shuo steadied his mind and lifted his gaze to look into the distance.

Far off, he saw a colossal golden divine blade standing upright at the edge of the land.

Its height was unknown in kilometers, its width unknown in hundreds of meters; from afar it looked like a golden divine peak that pierced heaven and earth.

More than half of its blade was buried underground; the exposed portion alone was terrifyingly tall.

「This blade... 」

Qin Shuo felt a little parched.

Such a huge blade—does it truly exist, or is it a manifestation of divine will?

If it is real, the one who wields this blade must surely be tens of thousands of feet tall!

If it is a manifestation of blade intent, that is even more terrifying!

With such a genuine, mighty blade intent, if unleashed with full force, what kind of sight would it be?

Heaven collapsing, earth sinking, the river of stars extinguished?

Sun and moon dimmed, the void shattered?

This blade is too terrifying!

After observing for a while, Qin Shuo detected nothing abnormal, whereupon he felt reassured and walked toward that golden divine blade.

Though more than ten li away, that golden divine blade already seemed tall, but only upon drawing near did Qin Shuo realize he had still underestimated it.

This blade's height is terrifying; the above‑ground portion alone is nearly a kilometer, and if the buried part is included, it must be at least a thousand zhang tall!

A thousand‑zhang‑long blade!

What does that even mean?

Qin Shuo felt a creepy sensation in his heart.

As he drew nearer, he could feel an extremely sharp chill ahead, as if it wanted to freeze and shatter his soul and consciousness.

From afar, beneath the majestic, mountain‑like golden divine blade lay a forest suffused with blue electrical light.

But only upon approaching did Qin Shuo horrifiedly realize this was no forest—it was clearly a sea of blades.

Upon the earth, divine blades stood like a forest.

Countless long blades were slanted into the barren land, their edges icy cold, their sharpness peerless, making hearts tremble.

These chilling blade auras stretched and merged like rivers, lakes, and seas, forming a terrifying aura of destruction.

The blue startling thunder wandering throughout this heaven and earth emanated from that sea of destruction.

Qin Shuo approached cautiously.

Finally, he arrived beneath the golden divine blade, at the edge of the boundless blade‑sea forest.

But when he focused his gaze on the long blade nearest to him, he suddenly froze.

Because inside that blade……

Sat a person!