Chapter 40: Extreme Emotion Sword

The next day.

At dawn, a thin mist hung hazy.

Fang Xing practiced sword techniques slowly, holding a hundred-fold forged steel blade he bought on a roadside stall.

The key to the A-rank martial art “Ghost God Blade” lies in simulating an artistic realm at the entry level—in meditation and hypnosis!

Once this is mastered, the forms become very simple.

After finishing his blade practice, Fang Xing’s eyes flashed as he fixed his gaze on his attribute panel:

【Name: Fang Xing】

【Age: 17】

【Occupation: Martial Artist】

【Second Realm: Sinew and Bone (Sinew Refinement: 31/100)】

【Military Boxing Twelve Forms: 61/100 (Proficient)】

【Great Dragon Stance: 14/200 (Mastered)】

【Ghost God Blade: 2/100 (Entry)】

【Gate of All Realms (Charging)】

…

“This Ningshen Pill doesn’t just aid in practicing the Ghost God Blade—more crucially, when its potency activates, I enter a strange state, similar to a cultivator’s ‘spiritual awareness,’ where I can fully control every part of my body… This is the ultimate posture of martial arts!”

“Unfortunately, this state only lasts while the pill’s effects are active—once it fades, it’s gone… Even so, Ningshen Pills are undoubtedly a great boon to my martial path.”

Gazing at the rising numbers on his panel, Fang Xing’s eyes gleamed brightly.

He increasingly felt that Qinglin Market held many treasures waiting for him to uncover.

“Train! Train!”

“With such conditions, not pushing myself to the limit would be a waste…”

“At my current pace, before school starts, I’ll definitely make Gu Yun cry…”

For Fang Xing, nothing else mattered—only his martial training was truly important!

Now, with the herbs he’d gathered, his spirit stones were no longer lacking.

Daily consumption of spirit rice and beast meat, combined with a spirit-charged environment and occasional Ningshen Pills to aid cultivation.

Under these combined effects, his martial progress was truly skyrocketing.

So much so that he became lost in this insane training, oblivious to the passage of time…

That day.

Hss! Hss!

Within the courtyard fenced with bamboo, blade qi crisscrossed wildly.

On Fang Xing’s steel blade, the inch-long blade aura suddenly surged, growing to about three inches, radiating a soft glow.

“Once you’ve entered the Ghost God Blade, it’s just like any other martial art—keep grinding daily…”

“Its levels are probably the same as other arts: Entry, then Proficient, then Mastered… Beyond Mastered, it shouldn’t be about simulating the realm anymore—it should be fully mastering that realm, elevating it into true ‘Realm Art!’”

“Though Blue Star Federation’s Puyu Realm martial artists resemble the Primordial Realm in cultivation level, their combat power must surpass it… So what about the fourth realm, ‘Courage’?”

“At the very least, they should match late-stage Qi Condensation experts—or perhaps even full-stage Qi Condensation?”

Fang Xing speculated inwardly.

In this world, even the peak Primordial experts could only match mid-stage Qi Condensation cultivators.

At late-stage Qi Condensation, one was already a local expert in Qinglin Market—there weren’t even a few hundred such people in the entire market.

Not to mention those at full-stage Qi Condensation.

“I wonder how they’d compare to Foundation Establishment cultivators?”

“Never mind, I’m overthinking.”

Fang Xing was about to return indoors when his expression suddenly changed.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ground trembled slightly.

He looked up sharply to see the array shielding Qinglin Market wide open, countless spirit lights falling like rain.

Dozens of flying vessels, ten meters tall and a hundred meters long, resembled war beasts slowly emerging from the market.

The terrifying spirit radiance and pressure made Fang Xing think of the Federation’s “aerospace fighters”—though the smallest models at best…

“By order of the sect, we purge the beast tide!”

A deep, resonant voice rang out, echoing across the entire market.

The moment Fang Xing heard it, he shuddered: “Foundation Establishment cultivator?!”

“It’s a Foundation Establishment elder!”

“Finally, Qingxuan Sect can’t hold back anymore—they’re moving!”

“Ha! Let’s go! Crush the beast tide—spirit stones galore!”

The market’s cultivators cheered and leapt, eagerly following the procession.

For them, danger wasn’t feared—monotony was. No opportunity was worse than no chance.

Roar! Roar!

At that moment, a terrifying beast roar came from beyond the market.

The sound was like distant thunder, carrying a pressure utterly unlike that of a Tier-One beast.

“It’s a Tier-Two beast!”

Someone among the free cultivators cried out.

“Just a beast, daring to act up?”

The earlier deep voice spoke again, tinged with anger.

“Here it comes?”

Fang Xing saw a streak of earth-yellow light surge from the fleet, like a rainbow, shooting toward the roar’s origin.

Then came a thunderous crash, followed by the earlier beast’s furious roar.

Moments later, an old man in green Daoist robes, with three long beards and an ethereal aura, returned dragging a Tier-Two beast corpse as large as a small hill.

The beast was a giant ape, sixteen meters tall; even lying dead, it towered like a mountain, one claw capable of crushing many cultivators into pulp.

Its fur bristled with chilling cold, like countless blades, faint spirit glimmers still lingering, blood continuously oozing from its wounds, its corpse occasionally twitching…

But it was dead… slain by a Foundation Establishment cultivator!

“Indeed, cultivators hold an edge over beasts of the same level—but such overwhelming dominance suggests a small realm gap. This ape was likely low-tier Tier-Two, while the Qingxuan Sect’s Foundation Establishment cultivator was probably mid-stage, or even higher…”

Fang Xing mused inwardly, his gaze on the ape’s corpse burning with interest: “Tier-Two beast meat—what’s its effect?”

“March out!”

At the Foundation Establishment elder’s command, the flying vessel fleet advanced, followed by many self-equipped free cultivators and martial artists.

Though they joined voluntarily, those who slew beasts would receive rewards.

And the rewards were exceptionally generous.

It was a grand feast—though stained with blood…

“Forget it, this isn’t suited for me…”

Fang Xing gave the column one final glance, shook his head, and returned to his room to head to Chu Ying Star.

Though Qingxuan Sect surely had full preparations and high odds of victory,

joining the easy victory would yield plenty of gains—he still refused.

The world was vast, but he was the most important.

In such perilous warfare, distance was essential.

…

Chu Ying Star.

Happy Garden Community.

“It’s August already…”

Watching the lightning flash and torrential rain outside, Fang Xing glanced at the calendar and murmured: “School starts in September…”

Only now did he seem to snap out of the market’s earlier atmosphere.

“One must maintain independence—don’t be swept up by the tide… Someone with a simple mind might’ve seen that scene and rushed headlong into battle… What good would my dying do?”

Fang Xing muttered to himself, picking up his communicator to check who had contacted him.

“Huh? Normal contacts are few—I only had Liu Wei as a close friend, and now he doesn’t even play with me… But Ouyang Qianqian actually invited me to spar at the gym? She still won’t give up…”

He reviewed the missed calls, replied to each, then picked up another communicator and entered a password.

This was a black-market communicator, its location tracking erased and not registered under his name, avoiding many troubles.

On the black-market communicator, messages were sparse—only one.

“Huh? Zhang Jiarui? Is there an event at the Blood Cage Fighting Arena?”

He stared at the contact, puzzled, but knew this “Bun” bunny girl wasn’t ordinary—he immediately answered.

Beep!

A hologram appeared—Zhang Jiarui!

She wore a black mini suit, her demeanor noticeably sharper.

“Client… I’ve been promoted to manager now. As for the A-rank martial art you asked me to find—I’ve got leads. You’ve heard of ‘Extreme Emotion Sword,’ right? The arena recently has a coach who specializes in ‘Extreme Emotion Sword’ and is willing to serve as a private instructor. If you want to book, contact this number…”

This is a pre-recorded video.

Fang Xing immediately closed it, then pondered: “The Ultimate Emotion Sword? Too late now… I’ve already entered the basics of Ghost God Blade—why are you bringing this up now?”

He remembered he had indeed mentioned something similar to Zhang Jiarui before.

But he never expected she actually remembered it—and found it!

“The Ultimate Emotion Sword!”

Thinking of this, Fang Xing immediately went online and searched for content related to the “Ultimate Emotion Sword.”

“Ultimate Emotion Sword, A-rank martial art, created by the martial master Yuan Lang, renowned for its exquisite sword techniques and astonishing power… Training requires simulating extreme emotional states—friendship, love, or even hatred… Due to its extreme nature, it is not included in high school curricula!”

“Damn, it’s considered more extreme than other A-rank martial arts? Isn’t that a bit dangerous?”

“But I do love sword techniques, and Zhang Jiarui was rare enough to find a private tutor…”

After thinking it over, Fang Xing first obscured his true appearance, then used a black-market communicator to place a call, expressing his thanks and asking about the price.

On screen, Zhang Jiarui still wore a small suit, seated in her office like an ordinary urban white-collar worker.

Hearing Fang Xing’s question, Zhang Jiarui smiled faintly: “Coach Ping is very reasonable—he agreed to offer cost price: ten thousand per lesson…”

“Ten thousand per lesson?! I’ll think about it…”

Fang Xing felt a sharp toothache.

“Oh, and… we’ve found someone for your previous request: triangular eyes, Caucasian, skilled at communicating with small animals… In the black market, only ‘The Scavenger’ Lans matches—this is a free tip. For detailed intel, flat rate: two hundred thousand…”

Zhang Jiarui continued with a pleasant smile.

“Really? Thank you. I’ll come to make the transaction soon.”

Fang Xing hung up the call with a blank expression.

“The Scavenger Lans?”

A flash of coldness instantly passed through his eyes.