Chapter 91: Is It Wang Changling?

“Wang Changling? Where’s my big sparring platform?” Lei Zhan stared at the ruined sparring platform, barely holding back his shock.

On the platform, Jiang Xia paid no attention; his Complete Body Susanoo held in its left hand the Ten Pounds Sword, a gourd-shaped artifact imbued with sealing power, and in its right hand the Kagutsuchi Sword, wreathed in black flames!

“Break!”

The Complete Body Susanoo crossed its two swords and slashed violently at the Huang Quan phantom. The sealing power of the Ten Pounds Sword merged with the undying fire of Kagutsuchi, unleashing an unimaginable force.

Sssshhh—

One slash cut through—the Huang Quan phantom was split cleanly in two; the spectral souls within shrieked in agony as they were utterly burned to ash, and the Huang Quan image rapidly dissipated.

“Puff!”

The spell forcibly shattered, Cui Jue suffered backlash, spitting out a mouthful of blood, his face instantly pale as paper, his aura withering.

He stared in disbelief at the towering blue giant, his eyes filled with shock.

The Complete Body Susanoo slowly faded; Jiang Xia’s face also turned pale—his current spiritual power could only sustain this single slash of the Complete Body, and anything more would overload him.

He walked up to Cui Jue and extended his hand: “Your courtesy, Young Master of the Underworld. Your reputation is well-deserved.”

Cui Jue looked at Jiang Xia’s outstretched hand, fell silent for a moment, then finally reached out and shook it, his tone complex: “I lost. Your strength… exceeds my understanding.”

“The Yinming Cold Spring is yours.”

With that, he struggled to his feet, stumbling off the platform.

This battle firmly established Jiang Xia as the top trainee beneath the rank of Wang Hou! Some even speculated that if he unleashed all his hidden cards, he might even kill a Wang Hou-level expert.

After absorbing the Yinming Cold Spring, Jiang Xia spent all his points on training resources and was not seen again until the graduation assessment.

In the solo training room, Jiang Xia continuously absorbed the spiritual energy around him, yet the progress bar for breaking through to Wang Hou remained just short.

After another failed breakthrough, Jiang Xia sat cross-legged in the center of the room, drained: “No wonder this step trapped Akatsuki Jin and others for half a year—even with fortune on my side, I can’t easily cross it!”

As the graduation assessment neared and everyone assumed Jiang Xia would enter it at the peak of Wu Zong cultivation, Zhao Tianji found him again, his expression grave.

“Kid, there’s a place that might help Itachi take the final step beyond Wu Zong—but the risk is extreme. Are Itachi going?”

“Where?” Jiang Xia asked eagerly.

“Jiannan Pass,” Zhao Tianji uttered three words.

Jiang Xia’s pupils contracted. Jiannan Pass—separate from Shanhai Pass—guarded solely by Jian Nan Zhu, a legendary sword saint!

It was said his cultivation had reached the peak of Ren Sheng, the second of the Three Sacred Realms, one of humanity’s highest ceilings. (The Three Sacred Realms: Fa Sheng, Tian Sheng, Zhi Sheng)

“Master Jian Sheng…?”

“Don’t get the wrong idea—it’s not Jian Sheng himself who will guide Itachi.”

Zhao Tianji cut him off. “Outside Jiannan Pass lies the [Grave of Swords]. It’s where Jian Nan Zhu has slain enemies and honed his sword intent over the years.

Countless fragments of beast wills and shattered law traces linger there, swords qi crisscrossing, death lurking everywhere.

But for cultivators with unwavering will seeking breakthrough, it’s the ultimate whetstone.

Especially for someone like Itachi, who possesses a powerful eye technique capable of observing and analyzing law traces—Itachi might catch a glimpse of the chance to break through to Wang Hou.”

Zhao Tianji paused, then spoke solemnly: “But I must warn Itachi—the Grave of Swords is extremely dangerous. Those with weak wills risk spiritual damage, or worse, being corrupted by lingering killing intent, turning into fools or even exploding. Are Itachi still going?”

Jiang Xia hesitated not at all, his eyes gleaming with resolve: “I’m going!”

Risk and opportunity coexist—he craved power, craved higher realms.

Wang Hou—he must break through before the graduation assessment!

Under Zhao Tianji’s arrangement, Jiang Xia secretly traveled to Jiannan Pass. He told no one, leaving only a brief note for Wang Teng and Ye Lingxi.

The Grave of Swords—true to its name.

It was a vast, bottomless chasm, filled with piercing sword intent, violent thunder, scorching flames, chilling death qi… fragments of various law attributes collided chaotically, forming a chaotic and deadly wasteland.

The moment Jiang Xia stepped onto its edge, countless chaotic wills surged against his mind like a tidal wave.

The frantic roars of dying beasts, the furious howls of powerful cultivators refusing to surrender, and above all, Jian Nan Zhu’s glorious sword intent that obliterated everything.

He immediately activated his Sharingan and Rinnegan, guarding his spirit with all his strength, while carefully observing and analyzing the shattered law traces.

The process was excruciating—his spiritual power drained at an unprecedented rate; the jade seal on his forehead continuously emitted cool energy, stabilizing his mind.

He wandered the edge of the Grave of Swords for three days and nights without sleep or rest.

He encountered danger multiple times—once chased by a lingering killing sword intent that nearly split him in two, another time engulfed by a violent flame law fragment that nearly burned through his Susanoo.

But his gains were immense—through observing and analyzing these law fragments, his understanding of [Law] surged.

Especially when he dared to approach a relatively intact fragment belonging to a fallen Semi-Saint, enlightenment struck.

“Law… Domain… The Wang Hou realm is the initial mastery of the rules of a certain domain, forming one’s own force or domain…”

He sat cross-legged, ignoring the raging energy storms around him, focusing entirely on comprehending the essence within that law fragment.

Simultaneously, his spiritual power, guided by the jade seal, circulated in an unprecedented manner, attempting to resonate with some rule of this world.

One day… two days… Just as his spirit neared exhaustion and his body reached its limit—

“Hum!”

Something within him shattered like a lock—his aura erupted violently!

His previously liquid spiritual power began transforming into a higher, denser form, tinged with a faint golden hue.

His spiritual perception instantly ascended, expanding his sensing range more than tenfold, achieving unprecedented control over surrounding spiritual energy.

More importantly, he felt he could now influence the rules within a certain radius around him.

With a thought, gravity and repulsion within a ten-meter radius surged several times over, objects around him constantly pulled in and flung away.

Wang Hou realm!

Success! Through the life-or-death trials of the Grave of Swords, aided by the jade seal and his own accumulated foundation, he finally entered the Wang Hou realm—before the graduation assessment!

Moreover, the domain he had initially comprehended seemed linked to the power of his Rinnegan.

When Jiang Xia staggered out of the Grave of Swords, exhausted, Zhao Tianji, waiting outside, saw the still-unsettled Wang Hou aura radiating from him—his eyes filled with both relief and awe.

“Good kid… Itachi actually made it!”