Chapter 64: Flowing Disciples, Ironclad Senior Brother

(PS: Some additions were made to the previous 53 chapters; there’s one more chapter today.)

“Why can’t I add it?”

Inside the sword practice room, Fang Shi could not fathom it.

He was currently attempting to allocate a specialty point to Lightning Reflex III.

A stream of data flashed across his vision.

“You do not meet the conditions for specialty upgrade; cannot improve.”

This left Fang Shi deeply disappointed.

Weren’t specialty points supposed to upgrade any skill level?

Why was he stuck?

Or was his prior knowledge simply too shallow, missing some crucial barrier?

“No, it’s not that I can’t upgrade—it’s that I don’t meet the conditions.”

“But what’s the problem? Lightning Reflex III is already an Epic-level specialty; does further upgrade require additional factors?”

Fang Shi thought it over, and ultimately accepted this hypothesis.

He couldn’t even fully unleash Lightning Reflex III yet.

Let alone the stronger Lightning Reflex IV.

Perhaps if he forced the upgrade, his brain couldn’t handle it and he’d become an idiot.

Still, Fang Shi felt a pang of regret.

Each level increase of Lightning Reflex brought a qualitative leap.

He couldn’t imagine what kind of power Lightning Reflex IV might possess.

“Thud, thud, thud.”

A knock came from outside, breaking Fang Shi’s thoughts.

He stepped out and opened the gate of his small courtyard.

There stood a tall, slender outer disciple, radiating Qi Refining energy.

“Senior brother, what brings you to this junior?”

Fang Shi was puzzled; since arriving at Tianjian Sect, apart from his own batch of disciples,

he’d barely seen any other Qi Refining senior brothers, let alone spoken to them—how could there be any connection?

“Junior brother Fang, I’m Ling He Feng, sent by Senior Brother to take you to Demon Valley.” Ling He Feng smiled.

Fang Shi frowned: “Demon Valley? Isn’t that where outer disciples hunt? Why me?”

“Aren’t you Qi Refining? Naturally, you’re assigned this month’s task.”

“That’s not right—I recall new disciples get a one-month exemption from tasks. Why must I go?”

Ling He Feng was surprised: “Junior brother, you’ve already broken through Qi Refining before the month’s up? Impressive talent.”

Fang Shi modestly replied: “Not at all, just some decent martial arts from the mortal world.”

Ling He Feng’s attitude grew warmer: “Still, that’s remarkable—how many disciples does Tianjian Sect recruit each year?”

“My batch had martial arts champions, Five Great Experts—you name it—and they all took a full month to advance.”

“No matter how skilled mortal martial arts are, they’re worlds apart from cultivation.”

Fang Shi sensed the man was about to ramble further, so he quickly changed the subject: “By the way, Senior Brother Ling, wasn’t it Senior Brother who summoned me to Demon Valley?”

“What’s going on here?”

Ling He Feng realized he’d gone off track and chuckled awkwardly: “That’s true—new disciples do get a month’s reprieve. But this is Senior Brother’s order; we’d best go.”

“Then fine, I’ll accompany you, Senior Brother.”

Thus, Fang Shi set out with Ling He Feng, leaving his quarters.

“Senior Brother, where in Demon Valley are the demons easiest to kill?”

“Naturally, the giant black bears on the outskirts—they look tough, but they’re stupid. Just be careful, and you can easily slay them.”

“Oh, then please take me to the giant black bears’ territory.”

Ling He Feng blinked in surprise: “Huh? Junior brother, you’re being overly cautious. Giant black bears are garbage—they don’t know any spells, even skilled mortals can kill them.”

“Using them for practice seems inappropriate.”

“We sword cultivators walk the path of slaughter,

if you can’t fight above your level, you’re mediocre.”

“Besides, Tianjian Sect demands more—even new disciples rarely hunt black bears.”

Fang Shi felt helpless—he couldn’t say he was in a hurry.

There were plenty of level-one monsters, but this thirty-fold cultivation acceleration was hard to find.

He didn’t want to waste time killing monsters.

“Senior Brother, I’ve only just advanced to Qi Refining; my swordplay is crude. Better not take risks.”

Ling He Feng shook his head: “Wrong, wrong. Sword cultivators must press forward, face hardship head-on, and break through in life-or-death moments.”

“Every year, Tianjian Sect has outer disciples break into Foundation Establishment within a year—thanks to Demon Valley.”

“Other immortal sects are cowards, spending all day refining pills, mining ore, meditating, some even reaching Golden Core without ever fighting a single battle.”

“Such worthless Golden Core cultivators? Even a slightly stronger pseudo-Golden Core senior brother could cut them down with one sword.”

Fang Shi was speechless—he didn’t think calmly reaching Golden Core was bad.

It proved they had the confidence to cultivate to Golden Core without worry.

Of course, that didn’t mean Tianjian Sect wasn’t powerful.

Through Tianjian Sect’s propaganda, every new disciple knew it was the number one sect in the mortal world.

It was merely a difference in cultivation philosophy.

“Senior Brother is right.”

Fang Shi changed the subject again: “By the way, Senior Brother Ling, how did Senior Brother know I’d advanced to Qi Refining? I’ve barely left my quarters since the breakthrough.”

“It’s simple—longtime disciples all know Senior Brother controls the sect’s arrays; he senses spiritual fluctuations perfectly.”

Fang Shi was astonished: “Senior Brother has that much authority—even control over the sect’s arrays?”

Ling He Feng smiled mysteriously: “Senior Brother’s position doesn’t grant that authority—it’s Senior Brother himself who has it.”

“Do you know, when I joined twenty years ago, Senior Brother was already Senior Brother.”

“And the senior brother who guided me told me, when he joined, Senior Brother was already Senior Brother.”

“Disciples come and go like flowing water—some advance, some pass away—but Senior Brother remains Senior Brother.”

“Even Golden Core elders who come to the outer sect address him as Senior Brother.”

Fang Shi was even more stunned: “Then why is Senior Brother so…”

“So gentle? No aura of a revered elder, yet he guides every new disciple year after year?”

“Never puts on airs—he acts like a Qi Refining senior brother.”

Fang Shi nodded; a few days ago, he’d seen Senior Brother manifest sword intent at Qi Refining and thought him a genius beyond compare.

But now he realized—if even Golden Core elders called him Senior Brother, manifesting sword intent wasn’t surprising.

As for his Qi Refining cultivation? Easy to fool newcomers.

Fang Shi truly admired this elder’s way of life.

Living like a wanderer meant freedom, no worries.

Plainly put: only those free from lifespan constraints and safety fears could be so carefree.

Ling He Feng added: “Senior Brother likes it this way—we accommodate him.”

“Now that you know this, don’t treat him differently—just act as usual, or he’ll grow displeased.”

“And…”

Ling He Feng grinned: “Senior Brother loves talented disciples. Win his favor, and benefits won’t be lacking.”

Fang Shi patted the《Sword Art》in his pocket and smiled: “Thank you, Senior Brother.”

Thus, the two chatted as they walked, soon arriving at Demon Valley.