Chapter 100: Breakthrough

In the meditation chamber, Yu Fei took out the Longquan No. 3 Enlightenment Tea that Yan Sea had given him. He opened the lid, portioned out about a fifth of the leaves into a white porcelain teacup, and then quickly put the rest away.

His Sword Nurturing Skill had hit a bottleneck, and he could not advance. He refused to be held back. Having grown accustomed to making progress with every session, he found the thought of toiling in vain unbearable.

Yu Fei poured a small amount of warm water into the white porcelain cup. With a gentle swirl, the emerald-green leaves slowly unfurled, releasing a crisp, refreshing fragrance that instantly revitalized his senses.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Yu Fei picked up the porcelain cup and downed the tea in one go. He then plucked the leaves stuck to the sides, chewed them thoroughly, and swallowed.

He had no time to savor the taste before he felt a flood of insight wash over him, his mind racing. Without a second thought, Yu Fei quickly sat cross-legged on the floor. With a flick of his finger, the Cyan Lotus Sword hovered steadily an inch from his brow.

"Decree!"

As the Sword Technique activated, the ethereal, swift sword light struck once more. This was the same Sword Intent that had pierced his spiritual space hundreds, even thousands of times.

Thanks to the effects of the Enlightenment Tea leaves, Yu Fei’s comprehension was vastly enhanced for a short period. Coupled with the sevenfold neural reaction speed granted by his [Super Speed Reaction], his thoughts flashed like lightning.

Countless thoughts tangled and collided in his mind as scenes from his countless past clashes with the Cyan Lotus Sword Intent flashed before his eyes.

Sword Intent—profound and indescribable!

The orthodox method of cultivating Sword Intent was to comprehend the principles of the sword through Sword Techniques, merging one’s own mind with the essence of the sword, and in turn, merging the sword’s essence with the will of the heavens. Through tireless refinement, day and night, one would forge a ’sword of law’ and wield it with impunity.

Generally speaking, Sword Intent was far beyond the reach of a first-realm Martial Artist.

However, the Sword Intent cultivated through the Green Lotus Sword Nourishing Skill seemed utterly absurd from the start. From its core philosophy to the way the technique functioned, everything about it was heretical.

It lacked the gradual progression of ordinary Cultivation Techniques; there was no room for retreat. From the very beginning, a practitioner had to face the great terror of life and death in a mental confrontation, sparking life’s primordial edge. As a result, the Sword Intent it nurtured was exceptionally pure and incredibly powerful.

Countless insights flooded Yu Fei’s mind. Within his spiritual space, two nearly identical Sword Intents were locked in a stalemate. In a trance, he seemed to understand something. ’Sword Intent isn’t just about Sharpness... it must also possess resilience.’

In that moment of hesitation, Yu Fei’s own Sword Intent was shattered, dissolving into light before vanishing completely.

Ignoring the searing pain in his mind, he forwent any recovery exercises and immediately executed the ’Decree’ technique again. The sword light surged toward him once more.

Yu Fei couldn’t help but recall the many trials he had faced since beginning to nurture his sword. They were a source of both pain and sustenance.

The resolve forged through countless life-or-death struggles became the very core of his Sword Intent.

The light of the Sword Intent he now visualized had coalesced, feeling tangible for the first time, no longer ethereal and unbound.

"CLANG!"

The two swords clashed, but this time the attacking Sword Intent’s power waned and was shattered by Yu Fei’s. A much denser, cyan-white energy remained in the spiritual space. It was drawn to his Imagined Sword, and the two rapidly fused. A jolt of energy surged through Yu Fei, and he couldn’t help but let out a long, triumphant shout.

In his excitement, he swung the physical Cyan Lotus Sword. A beam of sword light, about a foot long, shot out from the blade, carving a long, narrow gash into the wall of the meditation chamber.

Sword Nurturing Skill: Mastery!

It took him a while to cool down from the joy of his breakthrough. When he did, he looked at the gash in the wall and felt a pang of dismay.

’What do I do?’

His VIP membership was the highest tier offered by the dojo, granting him numerous privileges. However, none of those privileges included permission to deliberately destroy dojo property.

Yu Fei sheathed his Cyan Lotus Sword and silently pulled out his phone. He had to talk to Jia Yun about this first.

’No matter what, this is my fault. I’ll just have to pay for the damages.’

’I wonder if the 190,000 in my account will be enough!’

Yu Fei sighed as he looked at his Cyan Lotus Sword. ’Why can’t I ever control myself?’

...

"Mr. Yan, did you feel something?"

The instant Yu Fei’s Sword Nurturing Skill broke through to mastery and he made that phantom slash, his Sword Intent flared out, and Su Yue sensed it.

After all, she was at Gang Qi Perfection—a mysterious and powerful state with incredibly sharp Perception!

Yan Sea frowned, a look of surprise on his face.

In truth, he had also detected a flicker of intense Sharpness. Though his own cultivation realm was gone, the foundation of his former power remained.

Yan Sea pointed toward Yu Fei’s Kuaidou Chamber, his fingertip trembling slightly.

Instinctively, they turned to look at each other.

"Could it be...?"

"Let’s go!"

Yu Fei was still staring blankly at the damaged wall when Yan Sea and an elegant, sophisticated woman flew down from the open-air sand platform. The moment they landed, their eyes were drawn to the sword mark on the wall, and they immediately turned to him with fiery gazes.

The Martial Arts Gang Qi Realm was the highest level of cultivation just beneath the rank of Grandmaster. Anyone who reached this stage was considered a top expert and naturally possessed a wealth of martial arts experience.

A dense Sword Intent still lingered within the gash on the wall, making it easy for them to deduce that Yu Fei had mastered his Sword Nurturing Skill.

Their gazes were fiery, but to Yu Fei’s senses, the goodwill radiating from them felt even more intense.

The feedback from his [Profound Sight] ability told Yu Fei that the beautiful woman who had just arrived bore him as much goodwill as Yan Sea.

’That’s strange.’

Yu Fei noticed the woman holding Yan Sea’s arm and seemed to understand. He stepped forward and greeted them.

"Teacher, what brings you here? Is this Mrs. Yan?"

Hearing him call her "Mrs. Yan," Su Yue’s eyes lit up and a smile she couldn’t suppress spread across her face. She tightened her grip on Yan Sea’s arm.

"You must be Yu Fei. What a handsome young man. I’m Su Yue, Yan Sea’s fiancée. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I have a little something for you."

As she spoke, she handed Yu Fei an exquisite, palm-sized purple gift box. Clearly, she had come prepared.

Seeing that Yan Sea didn’t object, Yu Fei stepped forward and graciously accepted the gift. "Thank you, Mrs. Yan. May all your wishes come true, and may you stay forever young!"

The smile hadn’t left Su Yue’s face since she met Yu Fei. ’Compared to a blockhead like Yan Sea,’ she thought, ’this student of his sure knows how to talk.’

"Go on, open it!"

She gestured for Yu Fei to open the gift box.

Inside the box was a green jade bodhi pendant, strung on a jet-black cord.

Su Yue said softly, "This little trinket is quite special. It’s made from materials from the Borderlands and has a calming effect on the mind. You should wear it at all times."

Hearing that this jade pendant had a special effect, Yu Fei quickly refused, saying, "This is too valuable, I can’t accept it."

’If it were an ordinary gift, I’d have just taken it. But an item like this, with special effects for a Martial Artist, must be incredibly valuable.’

Seeing Yu Fei refuse, Su Yue lightly pinched Yan Sea.

"Ahem... Yu Fei, just accept it. It’s a token from your... teacher’s wife."

With Yan Sea’s words, Yu Fei no longer refused. Su Yue, for her part, was extremely pleased with how he’d referred to her.

"By the way, Yu Fei... just now, did you reach the Mastery stage?"

As the words left his mouth, Yan Sea grew tense, afraid that his senses had deceived him.

Yu Fei nodded, "Yes, Teacher. The Longquan No. 3 Enlightenment Tea you gave me was incredibly effective. I used just a little and crossed the bottleneck, successfully breaking through."

Su Yue turned to Yan Sea and asked quietly, "The Enlightenment Tea from Longquan Mountain? Number Three, at that? Is this really how you treat your star disciple?"

Yu Fei didn’t understand the implication, but Yan Sea shifted uncomfortably at her words.