Zhao Chun focused her gaze and looked around, suddenly seeing a divine light erupt from one of the sects in the arena. The sect's elders and disciples all had their eyes closed, their brows relaxed, as if they were in a celestial paradise, their bodies filled with an unconcealable joy.
"Did it... go to that sect?"
Liu Xuan nodded.
"This first breath of fortune has already flown to where that sect is located. Within the sect, everyone from the Profound Division elders down to those who have just guided Qi into their bodies will be nurtured by this fortune. Those who came to this Hundred Sects Assembly will benefit especially much. Junior Sister and I can also look forward to it."
As the divine light gradually faded from that sect, the elders remained seated with calm composure, but the eyes of the disciples revealed a sense of reluctance to let it go, showing that the benefits had been considerable. The Black Tortoise continued to spit out breaths of Clear Qi from its mouth, which flew off in all directions.
Finally, after one breath of Clear Qi crossed into the distance, a divine light also emanated from where the True Spirit Sect was. Zhao Chun felt her entire body being bathed in a warm ocean of spiritual Qi.
The two spiritual roots in her dantian leaped with joy, but the violent sensation that usually arose during her daily cultivation did not appear. Instead, it was incomparably gentle and soft as it entered her body with the spiritual Qi, growing slowly. She immersed herself in the comfort of her cultivation base rapidly advancing.
She didn't know how much time had passed before the divine light gradually dissipated, and the ocean of spiritual Qi also faded away. No wonder those disciples looked so reluctant. Just this single infusion of spiritual Qi had caused Zhao Chun's cultivation base to surge, allowing her to step into the Ninth Layer of Qi Refinement.
Looking at the expressions of the True Spirit Sect disciples beside her, they should have benefited greatly, just as she had. The Black Tortoise continuously expelled Clear Qi. After all of the hundred-plus sects in the arena had received their fortune, the Black Tortoise was seen opening its great mouth again.
The clear light from the sky then poured into it, transforming into orbs of light of varying sizes. The largest of these orbs, however, rose straight up and entered the Tunqi Pond, heading towards the Perceptive Moon Sect's location.
Zhao Chun knew that this must be the extra fortune contended for by the Foundation Establishment cultivators in the Fate Seizing Battle. As expected, the light orbs of various sizes flew off in all directions, just like the Clear Qi. Not every sect had a Foundation Establishment cultivator who entered the top hundred of the Fate Seizing Battle.
The sects with no one in the rankings could only watch as others were nurtured by fortune again, feeling envious. This time, the True Spirit Sect had four people in the battle. Their combined fortune was even comparable to the fortune that had been evenly distributed to each sect earlier.
Receiving another infusion of spiritual Qi, Zhao Chun could gradually feel that the spiritual Qi in her body had been completely converted into True Qi, reaching a state of saturation. All she needed was to find a spiritual object to build her spiritual foundation, and she could naturally break through to Foundation Establishment! However, the excess fortune was not wasted.
Zhao Chun was startled to find a scene of her sword duel with Jiang Yun suddenly appearing in her mind. Although the person was undoubtedly in her own body, the movements and execution of the techniques were more agile and fluid. There were even a few moves whose methods she had never considered before.
In just a moment, she understood that after her cultivation base became saturated, the nurturing fortune had shifted to advance her Way of the Sword. She immediately focused her mind to memorize it. Even after this profound sensation dissipated, Zhao Chun did not feel satisfied.
Instead, she was left wanting more, wishing it could have lasted for another three to five hours. Shaking her head, she laughed inwardly at her own insatiability. Such an opportunity only came once a decade; how could it be given out so easily?
It was better to completely digest the scenes in her mind before thinking of anything else. Once the division of fortune was complete, the next event would be the Core Formation Battle. The disciples of the Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining Stages were all to leave the arena.
Considering this, the Perceptive Moon Sect had long ago found places for them to go. Those who wished to cultivate in seclusion could go to the valley north of Tunqi Mountain to find a cultivation cave for quiet cultivation.
Those who wanted to purchase spiritual medicines, spirit pills, and various artifacts could visit the market district at the foot of the mountain. If one still wished to duel and discuss the Dao with others, there were also specialized combat arenas for cultivators to go to.
Liu Xuan was an alchemist who liked all kinds of spiritual medicines and rare trinkets, and had long wanted to visit the Perceptive Moon Sect's market district. As it was located in the far south of the Southern Region, many of the spiritual medicines grown here were of types hard to find elsewhere.
She naturally wanted to get her hands on all of them. Zhao Chun, however, declined Liu Xuan's invitation to go with her, single-mindedly heading straight for a cultivation cave to cultivate in seclusion, wanting to comprehend the scenes in her mind as soon as possible.
Seeing this, Liu Xuan perceived that she must have gained something from the nurturing of fortune, so she did not insist. She said that after Zhao Chun came out of seclusion, she could just return to the residence they were staying at before rejoining the True Spirit Sect, and not to linger outside for too long.
Nodding to accept this kindness, Zhao Chun got up and headed for the cultivation caves. It was truly worthy of the leader of the Southern Region. The cultivation caves, arranged in rows throughout the valley, were actually situated directly on top of an entire spirit vein!
After registering her name, Zhao Chun closed herself into one of them. The surrounding spiritual Qi was abundant, countless times better than her own residence in the Secluded Valley. No wonder the cultivators of the world all yearned for the major sects.
Indeed, the resources of a major sect were so rich that even the treatment of an ordinary disciple surpassed that of a minor sect by a great deal. However, the difficulty of being selected as a disciple was also much higher than others.
Zhao Chun had never expected to make another breakthrough in her Way of the Sword in such a short period of time. The image of herself in her mind was extremely familiar, yet also exceptionally foreign.
She had always felt that her swordsmanship was already exceedingly fluid, but after watching this figure duel, she realized that her own moves often had slight pauses, lacking decisiveness and speed. Although each move was connected to the next, because of these faint pauses, it appeared rigid and deliberate, not natural enough. What was natural?
That figure moved like the wind, its feet as light as falling leaves, yet as fast as a clap of thunder! Was that the "Swift Travel Sword Art"? But there were also many contradictions...
Why couldn't there be contradictions? Zhao Chun's eyes lit up. When she first obtained the "Swift Travel Sword Art," the footwork and the sword technique were incompatible, so she had modified it slightly to merge the two, thus greatly increasing its power.
Since then, however, she had been sticking to the established rules, practicing the moves until she reached Major Achievement. But if she was limited to the techniques of her predecessors, how could it be suitable for herself?
In the Flying Gourd Minor World, the Third Realm of the Martial Way was about intent being born from technique, about integrating and mastering it thoroughly. This perfectly matched the Cultivation World's discourse on the perfection of magical arts. This was not an idea exclusive to either mortals or cultivators, but a wisdom inherent to humanity itself.
Rote learning was useless; only by taking it and making it one's own could one truly progress. Zhao Chun stood up and drew her sword. The sword light moved like a roaming dragon.
From the "Swift Travel Sword Art" to her own sword art, she integrated the true meaning of its swift sword into the "Cloud-Cleaving Thunder Sword Technique". With each move, the wind stirred, thunder rumbled, and clouds and mist were swept away.
From this point on, with the help of the nurturing fortune, the "Swift Travel Sword Art" reached the realm of Perfection, and the "Cloud-Cleaving Thunder Sword Technique" also entered Minor Achievement! She could now integrate the true meaning of the former into the latter, unleashing her own unique sword moves!
Her magical art perfected, Zhao Chun emerged from the cultivation cave. When she went to remove her name from the register, she asked and learned that she had already been in seclusion for five days. To her, however, it felt as if she had only been in a light meditation for an hour, which she found quite marvelous.
Liu Xuan had told her not to linger outside if she had no important business. Zhao Chun had replied to her then, both of them sensing that something was strange. Even though the Perceptive Moon Sect was the leader of the Southern Region, its energy was currently focused on the Core Formation duels.
With so many low-rank cultivators coming and going, it was impossible to look after every single one. If someone with ill intentions wanted to make a move, they would likely choose this moment!
It was unknown whether the Heavenly Dao had heard the voice of her heart, for just as she left the valley and entered the forest, Zhao Chun sensed a strange noise in her surroundings. If it were before, she definitely would not have been able to sense it.
Fortunately, after her "Swift Travel Sword Art" reached perfection, she could identify things by listening to the wind, and her ability to perceive her surroundings had greatly increased. Only then did she discover the strangeness! In an instant, a cold light flashed, and thousands of long needles shot towards her!
Zhao Chun was already prepared. She immediately drew her sword to block, managing to ward off all of them, remaining safe and unharmed. The person revealed their figure from the shadows of the forest.
A giant insect covered in sharp spines was perched on their shoulder. It was not hard to deduce that the fine needles that had just attacked came from this insect.
"Yang Water Sect?"
Zhao Chun stroked the blade of her sword. The youth grinned.
"Precisely."
(End of Chapter)