Rise of Humanity

by <unknown>

  The fist landed on Zhong Yue’s body creating a muffled impact sound, the power of the Hebo body spread out through his whole body, concussing his psyche, psyche ocean, and soul!

  At the same time, Zhong Yue had also struck his fist onto Shui Qinghe’s body, the strength of the Hebo body was then clearly shown, the immensely strong punch given out by Zhong Yue was unstoppable to any other Shui Tu Clan core disciples, but Shui Qinghe’s Hebo body was able to withstand it at the cost of the body scales, while Shui Qinghe was left unharmed.

  His body was armored with fish scales like a god of water, not only did he strike an impressive figure, but the combat defense capability was also superlative!

  But that was not all, after Zhong Yue’s fist struck Shui Qinghe, he opened his palm and along with a loud dragon’s roar, another Jiao Dragon rammed into Shui Qinghe, immediately perforating a hole in the Hebo body, exposing Shui Qinghe within the body!

  The Hebo body was not a true and real Hebo body but rather it was only a creation of his psyche where he hid in the body of Hebo.

  This was not a true physique refining art, it would not increase one’s strength but rather he was only borrowing the strength of Hebo through the psyche creation of the Hebo body. The strength of Hebo would disperse as soon as the Hebo body was gone.

  Whereas on the other hand, Zhong Yue was a true physique-refiner, his bodily strength increases continuously, even without the Jiao Dragon winding his body, his strength would still be immensely strong.

  This was the difference between a physique-refiner and a Qi cultivator.

  The Qi cultivator visualizes close-combat arts such as the Hebo body, with arts like these they can then engage in close-quarters combat – some were even able to surpass other physique-refiners.

  Shui Qinghe threw his second punch, Zhong Yue stood his ground and returned back the punch, aiming right at Shui Qinghe who was in the Hebo body!

  The two exchanged punches and a stream of blood trickles down from Zhong Yue’s mouth, Zhong Yue had to take tens of steps back to offload the incredible impact force inflicted from the Hebo body.

  The mountain rocks and quartz slabs burst when he stomped on them, causing a billowing wave of sand and dust.

  Shui Qinghe also let out a muffled groan, the fishtail swam backward and blood trickled down from his mouth.

  In two strikes, Zhong Yue was able to destroy the body of Hebo and wounded Shui Qinghe!

  Shui Qinghe’s body was not as strong and as tough as the body of Hebo, he was wounded when was struck by Zhong Yue; but his body was still after all, way stronger than most of the upper house disciples, that was why he was not badly injured!

  “Zhong Shan Clan member, you are indeed strong….”

  Shui Qinghe inhaled deeply, his face stiffened up, he was the ‘thousand miles horse’ of the Shui Tu Clan. The Shui Tu Clan was one of the top ten clans, they had painstakingly invested meticulously in him, he was constantly bathed in various kinds of medicinal herbs, the medicinal efficacy having seeped through his body and strengthening him overly.

  The witch doctors of the clan even drew markings of totems on his body with the blood essence of the marvelous beasts to further strengthen his body!

  When he arrived at Swords Gate, Shui Qinghe was then treated with medicinal pellets, his body could be said as being strengthened thoroughly from birth!

  But now, he was wounded!

  Zhong Yue’s strength exceeded his predictions, the Jiao Dragon totem pattern was raised to an extremely high level, but even the【Jiao Dragon Winding Body Totem Art】and【Spring Thunder Swords Skill】could not hurt him, what really injured him was Zhong Yue’s incredible explosive strength!

  An explosive force of strength capable of striking through the body of Hebo!

  The toughness of Zhong Yue’s body also exceeded his estimations, how incredibly strong was the body of Hebo, but even after landing two punches on his body, it could only affect his internal organs and the injuries were also not that serious.

  Only the Qi Practitioners of Swords Gate and the magnificent beasts or demons could train their body physiques to such an extent!

  Zhong Yue wiped off the blood on his face, he calmly said, “Senior Martial Brother Shui can unleash your strength all you want.”

  “Two moves are made, now this is the third!”

  Shui Qinghe took in a deep breath, with a solemn face his fishtail gently swung around, water was condensing out of thin air forming a small pool that lifted him higher and higher.

  The pool suspended in mid-air with Shui Qinghe standing on it, his imposing manner became stronger and he was ready to release it onto Zhong Yue!

  He was casting his strongest skill, a secret move he prepared to use during the year-end Lawless battle, he intended to crush Zhong Yue with a single strike, utterly defeating him in totality!

  Zhong Yue’s face stiffened up, he was prepared. All of a sudden, Shui Qinghe saw a few figures out of the corner of his eyes, he gave a cold sneer and dispersed his psyche and released the Hebo body, he turned around and before he left, he said coldly, “That’s it for today, Zhong Shan Clan member, we will continue this battle during the Lawless Battle!”

  Zhong Yue was startled, he followed Shui Qinghe’s sights and he made out a few human figures walking down from the Swords Gate mountain towards the upper house.

  The aura of the latecomers was strong, comparable to that of Shui Qinghe, they should also be the outer disciples training in the inner hall, Zhong Yue wondered which clans they come from. From the way Shui Qinghe reacted, they should be of the top ten clans and their strength must match their statuses too.

  Shui Qinghe only backed down because he did not want to reveal his hidden ace to them, otherwise, he would have been placed at a disadvantage during the Lawless Battle.

  “What a formidable opponent….”

  Zhong Yue’s hands couldn’t stop trembling, another stream of blood trickled down from his mouth, his internal organs faintly ached in pain, he thought to himself, The top ten clans all have their own unique techniques, the totems inherited from their ancestors were stronger than the others, this Shui Qinghe is really strong, he could reach this level without using his Qi cultivation arts, I am weaker than him.

  But he did not take in consideration that he had only truly started the cultivation for a month or so, while Shui Qinghe was meticulously raised and trained for more than five or six years – only he could be this strong!

  In the upper house, there are more formidable opponents like Shui Qinghe from the elites of the big clans! These people, they will all bloom in the year-end Lawless Battle, competing with each other for the chance to enter the Ethereal Palace. When that day comes, they will not hide their hands in the shadow anymore, they will surely give it their best!

  Zhong Yue strode his way back to Ting Lanyue and He Chengchuan, his thoughts continued on, Two months, I have two months left!

  After two months, when I encounter with the clan elite disciples, I wonder who will have the edge over the others?

  There was a surge of heroic spirit in his chest, he mumbled, “The one to have an edge over the others ... if I can’t do it, then who can?”

  “Zhong Yue of the Zhong Shan Clan, these are the two soul weapons I promised you!”

  Elder Pu saw Zhong Yue coming and called Zhong Yue over, he took out two soul weapons and placed them in front of Zhong Yue, he smiled, “Twenty days I’ve spent on these two soul weapons, I am quite exhausted, how do you like them?”

  Chapter 28: Dragon Blood Sword Scabbard |

  In the training room, Ting Lanyue, He Chengchuan, and the other Elder Pu’s disciples came forward. Ting Lanyue clenched her teeth to come forward despite her heavily wounded body. Most of them had their own soul weapons, but the weapons they possessed were not of high quality – they were all curious about the soul weapons that Elder Pu spent twenty days crafting.

  “A wooden box?”

  Ting Lanyue and the others were dumb
founded, their sights were fixated on the six feet tall wooden box, even Zhong Yue was confused. The soul weapons Elder Pu talked about is a box carved from a single piece of maroon-red wood, it was made without any signs of connecting components or joints. The wooden box was placed vertically on the floor and its height reached his chest.

  On the surface of the wooden box were carved various markings of dragons, which appeared to be a totem carving. But the dragon totem carvings were not postnatally carved by man, instead, it seemed more like the natural markings of the wood itself!

  “This is … the Dragon Blood Wood!”

  Ting Lanyue was shocked, she exclaimed out involuntarily, “This is really the Dragon Blood Wood! My clan’s Qi Practitioner elders said that there is a Dragon Blood Forest somewhere on the Swords Gate mountain. Rumors said that tens of thousands of years ago, the blood of a wounded true dragon splattered into the woods forming the Dragon Blood Woods! The woods were naturally innate with the dragon totem carvings, but their maturity cycles were too long, more than hundreds of years. Even most of the elders are unwilling and reluctant to craft soul weapons out of the Dragon Blood Wood!”

  “Even the Swords Gate elders aren’t too willing to use them?” Zhong Yue was dumbstruck upon hearing her words, all of a sudden the wooden box felt so much heavier.

  He was not one of Elder Pu’s disciples, yet Elder Pu crafted him a soul weapon using such a precious material, this favor was too heavy for him to accept!

  Elder Pu caressed the wooden box with his fingers, he smiled and said, “This Dragon Blood Wood was given to me by the headmaster as an appreciation for my contributions to the Swords Gate during my early days. It is good for the nourishment of the soul, soul weapon and Sword Qi, but it is not of much use to me, that’s why I have never crafted it into a soul weapon, I was planning to leave it to my disciple but I couldn’t find any suitable disciple, so it was sequestered away all this while.”

  Elder Pu was gratified as he continued on with a smile, “Zhong Yue, although you aren’t my disciple, fate brought you here, in addition to your【Jiao Dragon Winding Body Totem Art】, the Dragon Blood Wood was fated just for you, hence, I have crafted it into a sword scabbard for you.”

  Zhong Yue was surprised and overjoyed at the same time, anxiously he said, “Elder Pu, this is too precious….”

  Elder Pu laughed and said, “Precious? It isn’t precious at all! If it wasn’t you that looked after Lanyue and the others, I am afraid my disciples would have all died in the Demon Ruins! The disciples of the other Qi Practitioners all died in the Demon Ruins, thousands or even more of them, but a dozen of my disciples survived, what is the Dragon Blood Wood compared to this? You deserve this Dragon Blood Sword Scabbard! Zhong Yue, open it up and have a look!”

  Zhong Yue cleared his thoughts and he opened the wooden sword scabbard, Ka! A light sound could be heard as the sword scabbard opens, showing a wooden sword’s hilt.

  He gently removed the soul weapon from the scabbard, the sword was five feet long with strange totem carvings on its blade, it weighed a hundred kilograms with a perfectly adjusted center of balance!

  The sword was all jet black but it reflects rays of dark-gold; it was evident enough that the sword was made of an alloy of darksteel and mystic gold so as to enhance the soul weapon’s toughness and sharpness through the synergy of the two materials that complemented each other's strengths and flaws!

  Thunder-like engravings can be seen throughout the entirety of the soul weapon as if it were kissed by true lightning – clearly, it was formed when Elder Pu forged it with the thunder totems!

  The dragon scale like carvings was the Jiao Dragon totem, giving a draconic scale look to the sword, the moment Zhong Yue pulled the sword out from the sword scabbard, he could hear the resounding dragon blood flowing in the body of the sword!

  He immersed his soul in the sword without having any difficulties controlling the sword, his soul did not felt any discomforts but rather a never before felt placidness.

  This was the difference between a high-quality soul weapon and ordinary soul weapons. One’s soul could not leave the body for too long or otherwise, it would be damaged, this was often the quagmire faced by those who possessed ordinary soul weapons!

  But a well-built soul weapon was like another body, immersing the soul into it would feel like occupying an identical body in which no discomfort would be felt and there would be no concern for adverse effects associated with the soul departing from the true body for an extended period of time....

  While the lower level soul weapons were not as good, they also could not protect the soul too well, if the soul stays within the soul weapon for a longer period of time then it would be put in jeopardy at which point, it would need to return back to the body to recuperate.

  When Zhong Yue immersed his soul into the sword, it felt like he was just entering another body of his own, one could tell how high the quality of the sword was, it was definitely a soul weapon of the highest caliber!

  “Dragon Blood Wood nourishes the Dragon Scale Sword, just perfect for you.”

  Elder Pu said slowly, “These two soul weapons complement each other and would also nourish your body, helping you in your cultivation. The soul weapons require frequent sustenance from the soul. The stronger the link between the soul, psyche and soul weapons, the stronger the power they can unleash and the faster the speed they will travel. Zhong Yue, these two soul weapons, are you satisfied with them?”

  Zhong Yue returned his soul back to his body and was overjoyed, he caressed the Dragon Scale Sword and Dragon Blood Sword Scabbard, he said, “Satisfied, satisfied!”

  “The Dragon Blood Sword Scabbard can store nine Dragon Scale Swords, but there is only one at the moment, you will have to figure out and find yourself the other eight.”

  Elder Pu smiled and said, “Moreover, after you become a Qi Practitioner and have consummated the Sword Qi, this sword scabbard can store your Sword Qis. A single thought and there will be thousands of strands of Sword Qi bursting out from the sword scabbard, many times stronger than the ordinary soul weapon!”

  Ting Lanyue, He Chengchuan, and the others were envious of him, Zhong Yue too was fascinated, he mumbled, “Sword Qi?”

  “Crafting the soul weapon with the darksteel and mystic gold is only a small thing, the truly unstoppable facet is the Sword Qi!”

  Elder Pu started his sermon with a solemn face, “As the name suggests, a Qi Practitioner practices the Qi. We the Swords Gate specifically practice the Sword Qi, when you have successfully consummated your spirit, you can then utilize the spirit to harvest various kinds of essence and coalesce them into your Sword Qi, jettisoning the physical steel and iron weapons aside. Taking this sword scabbard as an example, it can only contain nine soul weapons, but if you store the Sword Qi in it, it can not only store nine, but you can store a hundred or even a thousand or more strands Sword Qi in it!”

  Zhong Yue was enthralled, “Hundreds or even thousands of Sword Qis?”

  With a single lift of the finger, hundreds or even thousands of strands of Sword Qi bursting out from the sword scabbard, how incredible and strong would that be?!

  “I will not teach you all any more techniques today, it is unwise to chew on more than you can swallow. Continue on practicing the arts I have taught before, that way all of you can get a better ranking in the Lawless Battle.”

  Elder Pu instructed his disciples and then turned to Zhong Yue, “You have just joined the upper house recently, your repertoire of techniques you practice is too limited, even if I teach you anything now, it will be too late to fully grasp them. All you need to do now is to further familiarize yourself with the Dragon Blood Sword Scabbard and the Dragon Scale Sword, your prowess will not improve much if you spend too much time practicing new techniques. In the Lawless Battle, the participants are mostly the core disciples of the big clans who are fully-equipped with soul weapons, hence, the chances that you can win with the techniques are slight, but the use
s of a good soul weapon are myriad. For the upcoming days, you need only practice with these two soul weapons and further consolidate your【Jiao Dragon Winding Body Totem Art】and【Spring Thunder Swords Skill】, increasing their powers.”

  Zhong Yue was a little disappointed, he thought that during the next round of the knowledge teaching session of the Knowledge Teaching Pavilion, he could seize the opportunity and learn a flying skill. But Elder Pu’s words were right, there were only two months left till the Lawless Battle, learning a new technique would be too hasty and an exercise in futility.

  In addition, he would need some time to familiarize himself with the soul weapons, it would better for him to just focus on the【Jiao Dragon Winding Body Totem Art】and【Spring Thunder Swords Skill】, this way, his odds to win in the Lawless Battle would be greater.

  “You need to be careful.”

  Elder Pu whispered to him, “The battle between you and Shui Qinghe has allowed the others to gain a glimpse at your strength, be cautious that someone might clear you out of their path. If you are wounded before the Lawless Battle, your prowess will invariably be handicapped and unable to be fully unleashed, the chances for the others to enter the Ethereal Palace will thereby be greater.”

  Zhong Yue’s face turned stern while Elder Pu continued on, “You may not be among the top ten candidates, but your prowess can definitely threaten their place, hence, you need to be cognizant of the possibility that someone may surreptitiously jeopardize your chances of entering the Ethereal Palace. Even if they don’t, there will also be strong candidates taking you as a practice whetstone for the big battle!”

  Taking me as a practice target?

  Zhong Yue thanked Elder Pu’s warnings, he smiled, “Rest assured Elder Pu, I too, wanted to take them as my practice whetstone, I will simply treat this as the warm-up for the Lawless Battle, I will fight my way to the end of the Lawless Battle!”

  Elder Pu gazed at Zhong Yue’s back as he walked out of his sights, he exclaimed in his heart, What a young man with great potential, the more I look at him the more gratified I feel. If it was back in the early days, the Qi Practitioners would have definitely fought over such a talented youngster. Sadly, he offended the Tian Feng Clan … but that’s not all, he then formed enmities with the Shui Tu Clan – of the top ten great clans, he had fallen foul of two … I suppose not long later he will again offend the third, then the fourth….