Li Changying, seeing the tall youth approaching, although inwardly vigilant, felt a surge of righteous qi welling up within him, filling his sleeves, causing them to billow slightly. This youngest Confucian sage of the Great Sui, still wore a genial expression. “I know you are fellow students who traveled together with Li Huai and the others. If you are seeking justice for them, you may, but can we reason before fighting? If you can persuade me, I will not retaliate, and willingly suffer a couple of your punches.”

However, Yu Lu continued his advance, his smile unwavering, uttering words that left Li Changying perplexed, “When traveling with our satchels, I always took the later watch, so let’s set aside the reasoning for now. If you have the chance in the future, meet Li Baoping’s junior uncle and ask him yourself. I won’t discuss these matters with you tonight.”

Only five steps remained between them.

Yu Lu took a large step forward, smiling as he said, “We’re starting! Be careful, don’t let me accidentally punch you half to death. It would force me to incur too much debt, borrowing money from some fellow, and the only way to avoid repaying is to be his close friend, which I am not.”

As his presumptuous words faded, Yu Lu took a second heavy step, and Li Changying felt the ground resonate with a muffled sound. The force permeated directly into the earth, not dispersing across the surface, making the outward display of power seem unremarkable. Yet, this only intensified Li Changying’s astonishment. This single step revealed the weight of the tall youth. He was undoubtedly a pure martial artist, at least in the Fourth Realm, not to be underestimated.

While his mind raced, Li Changying’s qi surged like a river breaching its banks, unleashing with tremendous force. Cultivators, nurturing and refining qi, inherently possessed the advantage of martial arts’ internal styles, combined with self-cultivation, making them far more long-lived than martial artists. Especially Li Changying, who, from a young age, had possessed great fortune. After demonstrating his talent, he quickly gained the favor of a Grandmaster cultivator of the Great Sui, who bestowed upon him the secrets of longevity, causing his cultivation to ascend with remarkable speed. Now, before reaching adulthood, he already possessed the outstanding cultivation of the Sixth Realm, the Cave Mansion Realm. If Lin Shouyi of Cliff Academy was merely a promising, unproven gem awaiting refinement, then Li Changying was already a formed jade disk, crystalline inside and out.

The differences between the Fifth and Sixth, Ninth and Tenth Realms for cultivators, and the Third and Fourth, Sixth and Seventh for martial artists, were all vast chasms.

Seeing Yu Lu closing in, Li Changying first made a concealed hand gesture, then retreated gracefully, bringing his fingers together and raising them before his chest, like a swordsman adopting a stance with his sword. This simple gesture, performed by Li Changying, subtly possessed the demeanor of a grandmaster, giving an impression of righteousness and integrity.

Moreover, within the Book Pavilion, wisps of pale green energy suddenly came alive, like fish in water, rushing madly towards Li Changying.

The Sixth Realm, Cave Mansion Realm, signified the opening of the gates of the mansion, the opening of apertures to absorb qi, and the beginning of drawing spiritual energy from the world. The 365 apertures of the human body were like 365 naturally occurring blessed lands, which was why humans were considered the lords of all beings. Why did the world’s demons and spirits all sharpen their minds to first transform into human form before continuing their cultivation?

The root lay here.

Aside from the “seven orifices” that naturally opened at birth, men only needed to open nine more apertures to advance to the next realm, while women needed to open twelve. Many female cultivators did not reach high realms, and the number of those in the late Fifth Realms was relatively small, because many were blocked here. However, fortune and misfortune were intertwined. Once a woman opened many apertures in this realm, the gains in the subsequent Fifth Realms would be even greater.

Li Changying softly said, “Activate the formation.”

As the sage of the academy spoke, around the youth appeared a circle of crystal-clear, unsheathed longswords, of varying heights, rotating slowly. These “three-foot green edges” were formed from Li Changying’s spiritual energy. Although they had not yet solidified, they already resembled a forest of spears and halberds, inspiring awe.

Yu Lu’s response was simple and forceful: a punch in a straight line.

Like iron cavalry charging through a formation.

Li Changying smiled dismissively, pointing his fingers towards Yu Lu.

The three sword qis in front of him tilted accordingly, seeking to use their tips to resist the tall youth.

Yu Lu, who had previously revealed his Fourth Realm cultivation, suddenly accelerated, his step shattering the floor tiles, his punch splitting the air.

The sword qi instantly shattered.

The three sword qis had not even had time to demonstrate their formation before being smashed to pieces by Yu Lu’s three punches during their “formation change”.

Li Changying’s heart stirred, and he moved laterally several steps, still unhurried. His movements were filled with the unrestrained style of a Confucian scholar. At the same time, the remaining sword qis formed a line on his side.

Yu Lu’s sweeping kick arrived horizontally.

All the sword qis on Li Changying’s left exploded simultaneously, ripples spreading through the air, blurring Li Changying’s vision, as if looking into a cheap bronze mirror used by commoners.

Li Changying was somewhat annoyed. Why was Yu Lu being so ruthless and aggressive?

Li Changying snorted coldly and stepped on the Dipper’s steps in a small area. Before the swift and fierce whip-kick could sweep his shoulder, he had already shifted positions, arriving where Yu Lu had originally started, reversing their locations. Yu Lu, spinning once in the air, lowered his sea of qi and landed instantly, tiptoeing forward like a dragonfly skimming the water, silently.

The speed was unimaginably fast, so much so that Li Changying’s attempt to borrow qi from the world became a luxury. He could only temporarily rely on the spiritual energy nurtured within his own body, no longer avoiding the confrontation, but advancing instead, his fists slamming towards the unrelenting tall youth. Although he was a cultivator, at this moment Li Changying’s momentum was like a rainbow, and his martial presence and physique were in no way inferior to the all-out blow of a pure martial artist in the Fourth or Fifth Realm.

Li Changying first defended with the methods of a swordsman, then used the Daoist’s shrinking earth divine power to shift positions. Now, he simply used the military’s combat skills to meet the enemy head-on, opening everyone’s eyes.

His path seemed to be a fusion of the strengths of all schools, forging them into one.

His ambition was great, his aspiration high.

Two simple, unadorned punches collided, fist against fist.

Only a loud bang echoed in the air.

Yu Lu stood firm, while Li Changying retreated several steps, his arms drooping, his face pale, and filled with disbelief.

Yu Lu continued to press forward, showing no signs of stopping.

An aged sigh echoed within the Book Pavilion.

It came from a distance, more than twenty zhang away from where the two were fighting, separated by many bookshelves, originating from beneath a wall.
After that, a streak of snow-white sword light ignited, the three-foot-long radiance swiftly darting forward. It weaved past a row of bookshelves, then, like a shooting star, it circled back, hurtling past Li Changying’s side, aiming directly for Yu Lu.

The towering youth didn’t break his stride. At the critical moment, he twisted his entire body, evading the white rainbow flying sword. He continued his forward dash in an uncanny posture.

The aged voice, laced with a hint of fury, echoed, “Still not withdrawing?”

The three-foot arc of light, which had brushed past the tall youth, faltered slightly. Instead of altering its course, it flew backward, hilt first, as if the hilt was the point.

It was evident that the elderly sword cultivator, hidden in the shadows, knew that even with his skilled and effortless sword manipulation, any delay caused by reversing the flying sword could jeopardize the situation, possibly leading to the true injury of the great Sui’s scholastic hope. Therefore, he disregarded any notions of swordsmanship elegance, sending the flying sword hurtling toward the towering youth’s back at an even greater speed.

Yu Lu leaped into the air, planting a foot on the bookshelf to his right, using the momentum to propel himself forward. He not only dodged the swift flying sword from behind but also aimed a fist straight at Li Changying’s head.

After the sword cultivator decisively drew his sword, Li Changying was already prepared for the worst. He silently recited a Confucian classic from the Sage of Rites. The moment Yu Lu stepped on the bookshelf, many bookshelves within the story building trembled simultaneously. Scattered in all directions, from every ancient book containing the sage’s teachings, a string of white characters flew out. In an instant, they arrived, some large, some small, the script varying from regular to seal to cursive. In a flash, all converged before Li Changying.

Finally, before Li Changying, they formed a stream of characters, flowing gently, glittering and shining. Though small, the stream emanated a sacred and immense aura.

The towering youth, his form rapidly descending from above, remained unfazed, his expression unchanged, still aiming his fist downward.

He directly shattered the stream!

With a single punch, he broke the stream in half, shattering all the characters into powder!

Yu Lu kicked Li Changying’s abdomen. Li Changying, recognized as the foremost student in the academy in both knowledge and cultivation, was sent flying several yards away, crashing into the aisle between two rows of bookshelves. Even after landing, he slid backward for another yard, testament to the immense power of the kick.

A gray-robed old man appeared beside Li Changying. The flying sword, which had returned without success, hovered near the old man’s shoulder, its tip pointed at the assailant across the aisle. The old man knelt down, his face filled with panic, quickly taking Li Changying’s pulse. The injuries were significant, but thankfully not life-threatening. However, the young wise man lying prostrate was a rising star whom even high-ranking ministers of the Great Sui treated with respect, an undoubted pillar of the Great Sui’s future!

He couldn’t help but raise his angry gaze toward the towering youth, “So young, how can you be so vicious?! Do you even know…”

The old man quickly stopped his scolding.

Because the towering youth continued to advance slowly. Even after injuring someone, even after the old man had revealed himself, he showed no intention of stopping.

Yu Lu flicked his wrist, his sleeves fluttering slightly. Only then did he continue with his hands clasped in his sleeves, strolling leisurely through the aisle, smiling, “Justice lies in the clay figure yet to be found by Li Huai, in the insults heard by Li Baoping, in the fact that those who should apologize have not uttered a single word.”

Yu Lu paused slightly, his steps seemingly slow but actually closing the distance at an incredible pace, “And not in the dismissive words of a Cave Mansion realm Li Changying, the so-called ‘avoiding emotional disputes,’ and certainly not in this old senior in the Ocean Viewing realm and your…always late, always a step behind, flying sword.”

The old man, enraged by the youth’s insolent words, his beard and hair standing on end, hastily fed Li Changying a pill. Only then did he stand up, laughing in anger, “Very well, very well. This old man will see if you still have justice to speak of when you are lying on the ground.”

Yu Lu shook his head with a smile, “If I lose, I certainly won’t utter a single word of nonsense. Then, naturally, someone will come and speak reason for me. Hmm, it might be a little late, since he’s not here at the moment.”

As the old man stood up, the flying sword also slowly rose, continuing to hover beside the renowned Great Sui sword cultivator’s shoulder.

However, the old man still seemed concerned about Li Changying, glancing down at him, his expression filled with worry.

The youth’s fist technique was extremely strange. Initially, it seemed that Li Changying hadn’t suffered any damage to his bones or essence. Even the old man didn’t consider it a severe injury. However, after administering the high-quality pill, the true hidden danger was revealed. Li Changying’s Qi Sea was not slowing down, but instead showing signs of becoming increasingly turbulent and uncontrollable.

The seawater was flooding back, an extremely perilous situation!

The Cave Mansion realm of a Qi practitioner is difficult to achieve and even harder to stabilize. Because once the decision is made to open the meridians, it means that the body’s orifices must accept external spiritual energy, which also creates a dangerous situation of “seawater flowing back.” This is because the extraction of external spiritual energy must be drawn from the countless chaotic energies of heaven and earth. Opening the orifices is like a battlefield in the secular world. The defending side gives up its only advantage, actively opening the gates to welcome the enemy, making it easy to be defeated by a powerful foe.

Once seawater flows back, the body’s orifices and meridians are like towns and roads, submerged in floods, the land barren, and unable to recover. Therefore, the Cave Mansion realm is truly the first major threshold on the path of cultivation, even more difficult than breaking through from the lower five realms to the sixth realm. Many cultivators, especially those with no formal training, as well as Qi practitioners from small sects without backing, remain stuck in the last realm of the lower five realms for fear of completely losing their potential for immortality after a Cave Mansion failure.

The path of cultivation defies the natural order, going against the current. The words “against the current” truly capture the difficulties and hardships.

As the Great Sui court’s secret personal guard for Li Changying, if Li Changying’s realm was damaged, ruining his path to the Great Dao, he would be the first to be held accountable!

Yu Lu asked with a smile, “Old senior, are you finding yourself in a difficult position? Should you save Li Changying first, or subdue me?”

The old man gritted his teeth in anger. The tall youth’s question struck a nerve, further infuriating the experienced old man.

He was a Qi practitioner in the Ocean Viewing realm, and a sword cultivator at that. The term “Ocean Viewing” comes from the meaning of “I ascend the tower to view the hundred rivers, entering the sea is entering my embrace.” The spiritual energy of heaven and earth begins to expand the human body’s meridians, like rivers flowing into the sea and like expanding post roads in the mortal world. The spiritual energy gradually gathers, sublimates, and begins to nourish the physical body, thereby allowing the cultivator to extend their lifespan.

Ordinary Qi practitioners in this realm can live to be a hundred years old.
A sword cultivator of the Sea Gazing Realm was already considered a grandmaster of the sword within the confines of宝瓶洲.

In 大隋, even a high-ranking court official of the Six Ministries might not have a sword cultivator of this level to escort them when leaving the capital.

He took a deep breath.

The old man was resolved to end the battle swiftly, deciding the outcome within three moves.

“Since senior doesn’t know how to choose, I’ll help you choose then.” The tall youth was even more arrogant and overbearing, his voice still irritatingly smiling, as he took three steps, each more earth-shattering than the last, the bricks beneath his feet cracking and splintering.

*You don’t know whether to fight or not, but I, Yu Lu, will force you to fight. So straightforward.*

The old man’s pupils constricted, his mind reeling. The tall youth’s already formidable aura intensified, his spirit so strong that it felt like a heroic spirit of a battlefield war god resided within.

Even the old man revealed a hint of shock on his face. “A Sixth Realm martial artist?”

A Qi refiner had fifteen realms, while a martial artist had nine. In the contest of “equal realms” between Qi refiners and pure martial artists, aside from sword cultivators and military strategists—two types of freaks among Qi refiners—and if one disregarded the heaven-defying treasures of Qi refiners, the outcome was almost certain. Even a martial artist one realm lower could severely injure or even beat to death a Qi refiner one realm higher.

However, while the old man was shocked, he was not afraid.

Because he was a seasoned sword cultivator with many years of experience, a Sea Gazing Realm cultivator at the seventh level!

If he left himself no retreat and was determined to kill, even facing a Sixth Realm martial artist…

*One move is all it would take.*

Therefore, the old man sneered, “You seek death. I won’t let you truly die, due to the rules of the academy, but leaving you with only half a life is no problem!”

The tall youth, charging forward as if in a desperate fight, actually had a playful glint in his eyes, muttering in his heart, “*I beg you to be a little stronger.*”

Abandoning the official road, Chen Ping’an led the two children to traverse mountains and rivers. More accurately, the azure-clad boy revealed his true form, a giant serpent tens of zhang long, carrying Chen Ping’an over mountains and across waters. An unexpected pleasure was that Chen Ping’an discovered he could practice the Stance of Mountain Shaking on the serpent’s back. At first, he often slipped and stumbled, but over time, Chen Ping’an could make the serpent deliberately sway its body and still walk as if on flat ground.

The pink-skirted girl was not qualified to ride the serpent and could only run alongside with the book box on her back, cheering for her master.

One day, Chen Ping’an found a mountaintop to rest, and the three of them gathered around a campfire. The azure-clad boy began to chatter again, “Master, you’re not getting any younger. Have you thought about taking a few concubines, maids, or serving girls?”

Chen Ping’an held his hands close to the fire, the flames reflecting on his dark face. He shook his head and said, “I don’t want to.”

The azure-clad boy reached into the fire, grabbed a wisp of flame, and extinguished it bit by bit, making a crisp popping sound like soybeans bursting. “Why not? Master, rest assured, they won’t ask for betrothal gifts and are even willing to bring their own generous dowries! Doesn’t this kind of deal tempt you?”

Chen Ping’an smiled. “It doesn’t.”

The azure-clad boy was confused. He extinguished a ball of flame, then grabbed another handful. “Why, exactly?”

Chen Ping’an smiled without speaking.

The azure-clad boy clicked his tongue. “So, Master has a beloved maiden.”

Chen Ping’an glared at him.

The azure-clad boy muttered, “It’s not shameful for Master to like girls. Liking guys is what’s creepy…”

He suddenly looked excited, acting coyly, and twisting around. “Master, look at me. I’m actually quite handsome…”

Chen Ping’an felt his scalp tingle. He waved his hand and ordered, “Disappear.”

The azure-clad boy ran away, shouting to the pink-skirted girl, “Silly, do you secretly have rouge and powder? Let me borrow some!”

Chen Ping’an held his forehead. *These days are a bit hard to endure.*

Afterward, Chen Ping’an, as usual, found the azure-clad boy to spar with, using it to temper his body.

Although the azure-clad boy’s words and actions were unreliable, he was more than enough to deal with a martial artist of Chen Ping’an’s Second Realm. Even though Chen Ping’an’s realm was far superior to ordinary martial artists, to a Jiaolong, whose body was naturally tough, Chen Ping’an’s rain-like fists were nothing more than tickles. But if he landed a punch on Chen Ping’an, it would be like a mountain collapsing and the earth cracking. At first, the azure-clad boy didn’t control his strength, causing Chen Ping’an to be sent flying far away with one punch, directly breaking a tree as thick as a thigh. The azure-clad boy was terrified, thinking he was doomed, but after Chen Ping’an recovered, he still made the azure-clad boy continue to feed him punches.

Today, Chen Ping’an had just begun a fist stance, not yet truly throwing a punch, when the azure-clad boy was already rolling on the ground, able to roll dozens of times in one go.

The azure-clad boy stood up, dusted himself off, and praised, “Master’s fist force is so powerful, so terrifying!”

The pink-skirted girl squatted in the distance, watching in astonishment.

She had only heard that this local bully of the 御江 River was violent, simple-minded, and highly skilled, but she had never heard that he was such a shameless fellow.

Chen Ping’an was used to it. He sighed and said seriously, “Stop fooling around.”

The azure-clad boy immediately struck a crane stance, waving his arms wildly and making strange noises.

Chen Ping’an turned away with a dark face and sat back down by the fire.

The azure-clad boy hurriedly ran back to his side, smiling apologetically. “Master, don’t be angry. I’ll be serious later.”

Chen Ping’an waved his hand. “It’s not related to you. I’m just thinking about some things and can’t calm down.”

The azure-clad boy made an ‘oh’ sound. “Then we’ll talk when Master calms down.”

Late at night, at the foot of Donghua Mountain, home to the Cliff Academy, a white-robed youth began to slowly climb the mountain, sighing constantly.

A voice quietly sounded in his mind. “What are you doing here?”

Cui Chan said unhappily, “My teacher has something to do, and the disciple must serve.”