Chapter 64: Fleeting Junior Brothers, Unshakable Eldest Senior Brother

(PS: I added some content to the end of the previous 53 chapters; there is one more chapter today.)

"How can I not add it?"

Inside the sword practice room, Fang Shi was utterly baffled.

At this moment, he was trying to allocate a specialty point to Lightning Reflexes III.

A stream of data flashed across his vision.

"You do not meet the conditions for upgrading the specialty; you cannot improve."

This left Fang Shi greatly disappointed.

Wasn't the specialty point claimed to be able to upgrade skills of any level?

Why was it stuck?

Or was his previous knowledge too shallow, missing some unclear bottleneck?

"No, it's not that I cannot improve, but that I do not meet the conditions."

"But where is the problem? Lightning Reflexes III already belongs to the Epic specialty; does upgrading it again require additional factors?"

Fang Shi thought for a moment and ultimately accepted the above speculation.

Right now, he couldn't even fully utilize Lightning Reflexes III.

Let alone the more powerful Lightning Reflexes IV.

Perhaps if he forcibly upgraded it, his brain couldn't withstand it, and he would immediately become a Bai Chi.

But regardless, Fang Shi still felt a bit regretful.

Every level increase in Lightning Reflexes brings a qualitative change.

It is truly hard to imagine what kind of power Lightning Reflexes IV would possess.

"Thump, thump, thump."

A knocking sound came from outside the room, interrupting Fang Shi's thoughts.

He walked out and opened the door to the small courtyard.

He saw a tall and thin outer sect disciple standing outside the door, with the aura of Qi Condensation on his body.

"Senior Brother, what do you need from this junior brother?"

Fang Shi was somewhat puzzled; after arriving at the Heavenly Sword Sect, besides disciples from the same batch,

he had seen very few other Qi Condensation senior brothers, let alone spoken to them, so where would any connection come from?

"Hello, Junior Brother Fang, my name is Ling Hefeng; I am ordered by the Eldest Senior Brother to take you to the Demon Valley." The tall and thin Ling Hefeng said with a smile.

Fang Shi asked strangely: "The Demon Valley? Isn't that where outer sect disciples hunt? Why are you looking for me?"

"Junior Brother, aren't you in the Qi Condensation stage? Naturally, you must complete this month's mission."

"That doesn't sound right; I remember new disciples entering the sect get a one-month exemption from missions; why must I go?"

Ling Hefeng was somewhat surprised: "Junior Brother, you broke through to Qi Condensation before even a month had passed; your talent must be remarkable."

Fang Shi said modestly: "Oh no, oh no, I merely practiced some good martial arts in the mortal world."

Ling Hefeng's attitude became even more enthusiastic: "That is still extraordinary; how many disciples does the Heavenly Sword Sect recruit every year?"

"Among my batch, there were also so-called Alliance Leaders of the Martial World, Five Great Experts, and the like, yet they still only advanced after a month, just like me."

"No matter how powerful the mortal Wu Gong is practiced, it is worlds apart from cultivators."

Fang Shi sensed that the person opposite seemed to be talking more and more, so he quickly changed the subject: "By the way, Senior Brother Ling, wasn't it the Eldest Senior Brother who called me to the Demon Valley?"

"What exactly is going on?"

Ling Hefeng also felt he had gone off-topic and gave an awkward smile: "That is correct; in principle, newcomers do have a month of rest time. But this is the Eldest Senior Brother's order; you and I had better proceed."

"Very well, then I will accompany Senior Brother on the journey."

Thus, Fang Shi set off and left his residence with Ling Hefeng.

"Senior Brother, where in the Demon Valley are the demon beasts easier to kill?"

"Naturally, the big black bears on the outskirts; they look thick-skinned and fleshy, but are actually very stupid; as long as you are careful, you can kill them easily."

"Oh, oh, then please trouble Senior Brother to take me to the big black bear's territory."

Ling Hefeng asked in surprise: "Huh? Junior Brother, you are so cautious; the big black bear is trash; it knows no spells at all, and even some powerful mortals can kill it."

"Using these for practice seems a bit inappropriate, don't you think?"

"We sword cultivators walk the path of slaughter;

if one cannot fight above one's level, one is merely mediocre talent."

"Furthermore, our Heavenly Sword Sect disciples have higher requirements; generally speaking, even newly entered disciples do not go to kill black bears."

Fang Shi felt helpless inside; he couldn't exactly say he was in a hurry.

There were plenty of first-tier monsters, but this cultivation treasure land of the Heavenly Sword Sect with its thirty-times speed was not easy to find.

He was not willing to waste time on killing monsters.

"Senior Brother, I have only recently advanced to Qi Condensation; my sword techniques are not refined, so it is better not to take risks."

Ling Hefeng shook his head: "Wrong, wrong; sword cultivators must press forward without hesitation, rise to difficulties, and break through amidst life and death."

"Our Heavenly Sword Sect has outer sect disciples breaking through to Foundation Establishment within a year every single year, precisely because of the existence of the Demon Valley."

"Like other immortal sects, timid as mice, spending all day refining pills, mining, exhaling, and sitting in meditation; some even reach Jin Dan without ever having fought a single battle."

"Such trash-like Jin Dan can be sliced to death with a single sword strike by a slightly more powerful Fake Dan senior brother."

Fang Shi was speechless; he did not think there was anything wrong with reaching Jin Dan steadily and safely.

That proves they have the confidence to cultivate to Jin Dan without worry.

Of course, this does not mean the Heavenly Sword Sect is not powerful.

Through the Heavenly Sword Sect's propaganda, every entering disciple knows that the Heavenly Sword Sect is the number one sect in the human world.

One can only say their philosophies on cultivating disciples differ.

"Senior Brother speaks the truth."

Fang Shi changed the subject again: "By the way, Senior Brother Ling, how did the First Senior Brother know I advanced to Qi Condensation? I only entered the promotion stage not long ago and haven't even left the sect."

"This is simple. Disciples who have been in the sect for a long time all know that the First Senior Brother holds control over the formations within the sect. He is perfectly clear on the sensing of qi mechanisms."

Fang Shi exclaimed in surprise: "The First Senior Brother's authority is so great, even controlling the formations within the sect."

Ling Hefeng smiled mysteriously: "The position of First Senior Brother does not carry such great authority; rather, the First Senior Brother himself possesses this authority."

"Do you know, when I entered the sect twenty years ago, the First Senior Brother was already the First Senior Brother."

"And the senior brother who guided me told me that when he entered, the First Senior Brother was also the First Senior Brother."

"Disciples of every generation flow like water; some advance, some pass away, but the First Senior Brother remains the First Senior Brother."

"Even the elders at the Golden Core Stage within the sect must address the First Senior Brother as First Senior Brother when they come to the Outer Sect."

Fang Shi was even more shocked in his heart: "Then why is the First Senior Brother so..."

"So gentle, right? He lacks the unfathomable majesty of a senior expert, yet instead guides new disciples every year."

"He never puts on airs, acting just like a First Senior Brother at the Qi Condensation Stage."

Fang Shi nodded; a few days ago, seeing the First Senior Brother's sword intent at the Qi Condensation level, he had thought him an unparalleled genius.

But thinking that even elders at the Golden Core Stage address the First Senior Brother as First Senior Brother, knowing a bit of sword intent is not strange.

As for the Qi Condensation cultivation, is it not simple to deceive the newcomers?

Regarding the conduct of such senior experts, Fang Shi truly admired it.

Playing with the world represents freedom and worry-free existence.

To put it bluntly, only without troubles of lifespan and without troubles of safety can one be so leisurely.

Ling Hefeng added: "The First Senior Brother likes it this way, so we satisfy him, the elder."

"After knowing this, you need not treat him specially; just act as usual, otherwise it will provoke the First Senior Brother's displeasure."

"Moreover..."

Ling Hefeng chuckled: "The First Senior Brother likes genius disciples. As long as you win his favor, the benefits will not be few."

Fang Shi touched the "Sword Art" in his bosom and smiled: "Thank you, Senior Brother, for the guidance."

Thus, the two chatted while traveling, and soon arrived at the Demon Valley.