Upon the table, a dazzling array of objects lay spread.

This was both Chen Ping An’s harvest, and his journey through the Jianghu.

A superior serpent gallbladder stone, returned to Chen Ping An by the Divine Edict Sect Daoist Nun, He Xiaoliang, from their time on the Kun vessel. There were also some ordinary, faded serpent gallbladder stones.

A golden Wen Dan (literary gallstone), gifted by Shen Wen, the City God of Caiyi Kingdom. Beside it sat a small pile of golden and silver fragments of divine statues: silver shards from the Wen and Wu attendant officials, and broken golden pieces from the immoral mountain god of Rouge County.

A seal that once belonged to a Celestial Master of Dragon Tiger Mountain. According to Shen Wen, it required the Daoist Five Thunders Rectification technique to unleash its full power, but what Chen Ping An remembered most was this: “Only the virtuous may wield it.”

A small mountain of copper coins: Grain Rain coins, Minor Heat coins, Snowflake coins.

A pile of small bamboo slips, some made from ordinary bamboo, but many from the Azure God Mountain bamboo left over from Wei Bo’s bamboo house construction. They were covered in famous quotes and fine poetry. There were the sage articles recited by Cui Chan when they practiced boxing together, the characters Li Xisheng used to draw talismans on the walls of the bamboo house, excerpts Chen Ping An had copied from landscape travelogues, and unintentional words overheard in the Jianghu…

A fighting cock cup purchased at the ferry of Combing Silk Country, worthless, but a rare extravagant purchase for Chen Ping An.

Two golden dragon whiskers gifted by the swordsman Zuo You, along with a golden Daoist robe left behind by the deceased mischievous old Jiao dragon, and an old, yellowish pearl resembling a medicinal pill.

A white porcelain brush washer, obtained from the Scorpion Lady, an assassin from Ancient Elm Kingdom. It had not been sold at Green Coffer Lane, because Chen Ping An liked the lively and agile circle of writing on it.

A “Sword Arts Classic” and a jade pendant containing spatial properties were gifts from Zheng Dafeng of Old Dragon City.

A Confucian classic gifted by the old scholar Wen Sheng, and several landscape travelogues and literati notes obtained from the Rouge County Prefect’s mansion.

A seal engraved with “Peaceful Mind, Happy Heart”.

A Water Seal, lacking its Mountain Seal companion, appeared somewhat lonely.

Chen Ping An placed it in the most accessible spot.

And, of course, the “Shaking Mountain Fist” manual, his longest-standing companion.

Ning Yao sifted through the items, examining them one by one, and finally smiled. “Are you giving them all to me? Not keeping any secret stash?”

Ning Yao felt a pang of annoyance in her heart.

What was with the “secret stash” talk? She couldn’t be so thoughtless when speaking to Chen Ping An in the future.

Remember, this wasn’t sword cultivation.

Chen Ping An clearly hadn’t noticed the deeper meaning in Ning Yao’s words. He pointed at a few items, speaking earnestly: “This ‘Shaking Mountain Fist’ manual, as you know, isn’t mine. I’m just keeping it safe for Gu Can, so I can’t give it to you. The seal Master Qi gave me is also off-limits, and I don’t think the Celestial Master’s seal from the City God is suitable for you. The rest, you can have if you want.”

Ning Yao pouted. “I don’t want them, keep them all.”

Chen Ping An slapped his forehead, unhooking the gourd “Jiang Hu” from his waist and placing it on the table. Then, he drew out the talisman from his sword chest, the one inhabited by the skeletal female ghost, and explained: “This gourd was a prize for buying several mountain peaks. Mountain God Wei Bo helped me get it from Great Li. This talisman holds a rather fierce female ghost. With the help of Lady Osmanthus, I signed a sixty-year contract with her. She now resides within the sword chest. Lady Osmanthus said this is called a ‘Ghostly Residence’. Yin beings dwelling inside can nourish their souls and increase their cultivation, like their own little blessed land.”

Ning Yao asked, “Is the skeletal female ghost pretty?”

Chen Ping An thought for a moment. “So-so, not as pretty as the wedding dress ghost from the manor. And the wedding dress ghost isn’t as pretty as you.”

Ning Yao flared with anger. “Chen Ping An, you’ve become so glib! Did you learn that from A Liang?”

Chen Ping An shook his head with a smile. “Nope, they’re all heartfelt words. Nice words and glibness are different.”

Ning Yao chuckled. “So, you’ve deceived the hearts of many girls?”

Saying this, Ning Yao leaned on the table, turning to look at Chen Ping An, who had grown taller and fairer. She seemed somewhat disheartened. “I can no longer strike five hundred Chen Ping Ans in a single blow. You’ve traveled across most of Treasure Bottle Continent, and so many girls in those little places might see you as a deity and then fall for you.”

Chen Ping An quickly waved his hand. “No girl likes me. Along the way, it’s either fighting enemies or fleeting encounters that end in farewell.”

Saying this, Chen Ping An sighed, also leaning on the table and gently poking the gourd with his finger. “When I left my hometown, I was on a Kun vessel from Dazhao Mountain in Julu Continent. I met a pair of sisters, one named Chunshui (Spring Water) and the other Qiushi (Autumn Harvest), around my age. Later, the Kun vessel crashed. I may never see them again.”

Chen Ping An glanced at the unremarkable brush washer on the table.

It was only a foot or so away.

But he was already very far from them.

Ning Yao didn’t think Chen Ping An was being unfaithful. Instead, she softly comforted him. “Partings and deaths are unavoidable.”

She still had one cheek pressed against the table. “Here at the Great Wall of Sword Qi, the old and the young, the men and the women, so many people die every time there’s a battle. Some you don’t know, some you do. You can’t afford to be sad, or you’ll be the one to die. Only after the war ends do the survivors have time to grieve, but even then, there’s not much grief. They face the south of the Great Wall of Sword Qi and offer a cup of wine in remembrance. Everyone is like this.”

Ning Yao’s eyes were deep, like the iron-locked well in Chen Ping An’s hometown, cold and eerie. “Like before, when we drank Forget Worry Wine at the tavern, and I casually mentioned that little incident. I was drinking farewell wine with friends, and someone brought up my parents and said something sarcastic. You asked me if I was angry. Of course I was, but not as much as outsiders think. Why? Do you know?”

Chen Ping An met her gaze, lying there, and could only shake his head slightly.

Ning Yao gave the answer: “Because that person who said those hurtful things will one day die on the battlefield too, and he’ll surely die a hero, just like his ancestors. Thinking of that, I feel like there’s no need to be too angry. Just a few words, weightless, not as heavy as the sword qi around me. Maybe one day I’ll fight alongside those people, or maybe someone will save someone, or maybe I’ll just have to watch someone die.”

Chen Ping An nodded, then sat up, shaking his head. “Miss Ning, thinking like that…”
Ning Yao rolled her eyes and said, “I don’t want to hear道理 (dao li – reason/truth), don’t bother me.”

Other people’s reasoning, she could ignore. The elders and ancestors of her family, the venerable old sword immortal on the city wall, A-Liang who saw her off when she left Upside-down Mountain, her peers around her, but if it was Chen Ping An speaking, she could only be annoyed by him. It was better to tell him not to speak from the start.

Chen Ping An grunted an “oh,” and continued to lie down, truly not speaking any of those “dao li” he had painstakingly read from books.

Ning Yao suddenly sat up straight. “Are you really going to Sword Qi Great Wall?”

Chen Ping An sat up as well, nodding. “The old senior who taught me fist techniques said that as long as I ascend the city wall, it will help temper a martial artist’s divine soul. As long as I don’t die there, it’ll be a great gain. And I don’t know why, but after drinking the Worry-Forget Wine with that couple last time, I always feel that reaching the sixth realm from the current fourth realm is like a natural progression, as if I could easily ascend as long as I wanted to. But of course, I won’t be foolish enough to break through realms like that. If I don’t build a solid foundation, it will be precarious later. But I have a feeling that after drinking the fine wine of Yellow Millet Paradise, breaking through from the fourth to the fifth and from the fifth to the sixth realm before the seventh realm will be much easier.”

Ning Yao took the sword-nurturing gourd and casually shook it, her eyelashes slightly trembling. “Then you have to thank them properly. They gave you such an opportunity.”

Chen Ping An nodded. “Of course. So this time I’m going to Sword Qi Great Wall to see if I can meet them again.”

Ning Yao thought for a moment and didn’t say much.

Chen Ping An was a little apprehensive. “But being captured to Sword Qi Great Wall last time was too miserable. I’m afraid I won’t even be able to stand firm. How can I ascend the city wall?”

Ning Yao explained, “Actually, it’s not as exaggeratedly terrifying as you think. The city wall is originally the place where sword qi is most abundant. If you enter the pass from Upside-down Mountain and walk towards the city wall step by step, gradually adapting, it will be much easier. Sword Qi Great Wall is somewhat similar to the Outer Heavens corresponding to the Azure Billow World. It’s a lawless land. Even the thirteenth-realm Ascended Realm sword cultivators are not forced to ascend. No one cares about our life or death. Even the Heavenly Dao doesn’t care here. So many foreign sword cultivators like to come here to train and participate in battles. The group of celestial sword cultivators you saw above the Clear Ripple Grotto Heaven last time were Qi cultivators from Jùlú Continent. With their assistance this time, on the surface, the demon race’s three offensives have all been fruitless, leaving tens of thousands of corpses under the city wall, all of which have become our capital to purchase supplies for the Upside-down Mountain ferry. But I don’t think it’s that simple. I believe Grandpa Chen, who captured you to Sword Qi Great Wall, and the other two Sages who are stationed here, can see it even more clearly.”

Ning Yao smiled. “The higher the realm of a cultivator, especially the upper five realms, whether they are humans or demons, the more they will suffer from acclimation when entering someone else’s territory. This is the key to the Sage’s being stationed in one world, taking advantage of the opportune timing and geographical advantages. To give you an example, when Lu Chen, the Daoist Headmaster of the Azure Billow World, entered the Vast Brilliance World, his highest realm should only be the thirteenth realm. This was the rule first established by the Sage of Rites. And the Confucian Sage entering the Azure Billow World is no exception. There is both a battle of Great Daos between Sages, but that doesn’t mean they won’t respect each other. You may not believe it, but among the demon race, there are also existences worthy of our sword cultivators’ respect, even if they are enemies on the battlefield who must fight to the death. Similarly, there are also many great demons who admire some of our powerful sword cultivators.”

“In our Sword Qi Great Wall, as long as they are not sword cultivators, like you martial artists and the Qi cultivators of the Hundred Schools of Philosophers, it will be very difficult. It may be a great blessing, or it may completely wear down the foundation of the Great Dao by the sword intent here. There are two examples. One is that in history, a Cave Heaven realm sword cultivator from Jùlú Continent gradually became an Immortal realm cultivator here. The other is that an Immortal realm cultivator from Swaying Continent not only did not find an opportunity to break through the realm here, but instead fell back to the Nascent Soul realm in one breath.”

Chen Ping An suddenly said, “A-Liang taught me the Eighteen Stoppages breathing technique.”

Ning Yao was stunned for a moment. “That guy is good to you. Here, only sword cultivators who have made great contributions are qualified to teach this breathing technique to someone. It is almost always passed on to the most proud disciple or family heir. But don’t be too happy. The Eighteen Stoppages is more of a ritualistic feeling, as if to say that Sword Qi Great Wall is passed down through the generations, and the later generations will always inherit the sword intent of the earliest generation of ancient sword immortals. In fact, the Eighteen Stoppages itself is not a very clever breathing sword technique.”

“Those big families in the northern cities, each has a true superior sword technique. The Chen family’s sword technique can reconstruct bones, the Dong family’s sword technique can cleanse the marrow, the Qi family is good at refining the spirit, the Ning family sharpens the blade of their natal sword, the Yao family focuses on the reality and emptiness of sword qi, and the Nalan family’s sword technique complements the qi and intent. These are all unimaginable for you Vast Brilliance World sword cultivators. But no matter what, since you have learned the Eighteen Stoppages, you will adapt more quickly when you arrive at Sword Qi Great Wall. It’s a good thing.”

Chen Ping An grinned.

Ning Yao casually asked, “According to the time, you have been studying for almost two years, right? How many stoppages have you completed? Fifteen, sixteen? At least it should have passed twelve stoppages. After that, unlike before, each stoppage will be more difficult to overcome. After all, you are not a native of Sword Qi Great Wall. It’s normal to be slower. Some of my friends, Fatty spent eight months completing the Eighteen Stoppages, Little Dong has better talent, only half a year, and the rest are about nine months to a year. But Little Dong’s older sister is more powerful, only three months. It’s just that the Dong family has been hiding and tucking away for so many years, unwilling to reveal the truth to the outside world. Among people about my age, there are about thirty who have completed the Eighteen Stoppages at Sword Qi Great Wall. So our generation is regarded as the best year in the Sword Qi Great Wall in three thousand years. The elders all say that as long as we give us fifty or sixty years, the demon race will not see the city wall of Sword Qi Great Wall in the next millennium.”

Chen Ping An’s face was blank.

He had gone through all kinds of hardships to barely break through the threshold of the seventh stoppage, able to complete the twelve Qi reservoirs in one go. After that, it was like a heavy snowfall sealing the mountains, unshakeable as thunder, making people feel that the hope was too slim.

Ning Yao stopped talking after noticing Chen Ping An’s expression. “Then I won’t talk about myself.”

Chen Ping An tentatively asked, “How long did you take?”

Ning Yao gave a mocking smile. “Hehe.”

Chen Ping An was unwilling to give up. “How long is hehe?”
Ning Yao endured for quite a while, but seeing that Chen Ping’an showed no signs of giving up, she had no choice but to honestly reply, “I just kept ‘heh heh’-ing for a while, and I learned it right after listening to the Eighteen Halts mantra.”

Chen Ping’an sighed in despair, took the gourd for nurturing swords, and silently took a sip of wine, “Back when I got the Mountain-Shaking Fist manual, learning the fist was like this, and now with the Eighteen Halts, practicing the sword is still like this. Will I never be able to catch up to you in my entire life? How am I supposed to become a great sword immortal then…”

However, before Ning Yao could say anything, Chen Ping’an had already figured it out himself, “But it doesn’t matter. You have to eat one bite at a time. What others are like is their own business. It’s enough for me to know that I’m getting better and better, even if it’s a bit slower. I promised you back then that I’d practice one million punches. At the time, I couldn’t even imagine that I’d ever be able to finish them in this lifetime, but now I only have twenty thousand left. Who knows what will happen in the future.”

Ning Yao asked, “Others?!”

Chen Ping’an, realizing he’d misspoke, wore an embarrassed expression and could only chuckle.

Ning Yao thought for a moment, “Then should we go to the Great Wall of Sword Qi sooner?”

Chen Ping’an took down the jade token from his waist, hesitating, “But I’m supposed to enter the pass at the Zi hour tomorrow night.” (11pm-1am)

Ning Yao had already stood up with decisive action, “Pack your things. I’ll take you there. Didn’t that Azure Dragon True Lord say he had something to discuss with them? Upside-Down Mountain said it themselves, they can’t go back on their word. Let’s go.”

Chen Ping’an had nothing he couldn’t let go of in Upside-Down Mountain. Thinking that practicing the fist at the Great Wall of Sword Qi sooner would be a good thing, he gathered all the items on the table into his flying sword Fifteen. When Ning Yao saw this natal flying sword again, she reminded him, “Being both a flying sword and a spatial item is rare. You must cherish it.”

Even Ning Yao thought it was “rare,” so it must be something of extraordinary value. Chen Ping’an nodded, remembering it.

Chen Ping’an first went to tell Jin Su that he was going to the Great Wall of Sword Qi ahead of schedule.

That Osmanthus Blossom maiden stood at her doorway, filled with mixed emotions. In the end, she bid farewell to Chen Ping’an and that Miss Ning with a smile.

Leaving the Crane Lodge near Catch-and-Release Ferry, Ning Yao brought Chen Ping’an to the foot of Solitary Peak Mountain. The little Daoist boy, who held the second most important position in Upside-Down Mountain, glanced at the young man’s irregular pass token, then looked at the little girl’s “it’s my right” expression. This made the little Daoist boy jump up from his meditation cushion in anger. Fortunately, Chen Ping’an had already begun to explain, “Esteemed immortal, we encountered the Azure Dragon True Lord at Thunderclap Terrace. He told Miss Ning that the old True Lord’s master had already issued a decree that an exception could be made for Miss Ning. If the immortal is worried, you can discuss it with the old True Lord. If it’s truly impossible, then I’ll just go through this gate tomorrow night.”

The little Daoist boy squinted at Chen Ping’an, “Who are you? This little girl’s lover?”

Chen Ping’an just blinked, not saying a word, feigning ignorance with the little Daoist boy.

The little Daoist boy recited silently, chatted with Azure Dragon True Lord, who in terms of seniority was his grand-disciple, and then sized up Ning Yao and Chen Ping’an, “You can pass through the gate to the Great Wall of Sword Qi.”

Since he’d made up his mind, the little Daoist boy no longer made things difficult for the two. He plopped back down onto the cushion, probably because he found the little girl too infuriating, so he simply leaned back, sprawled out on the cushion, and then opened the Daoist scripture, covering his face with it, wanting to be rid of the sight.

Ning Yao reached out and took Chen Ping’an’s hand, whispering, “Remember, after you cross into the Great Wall of Sword Qi, it’s normal for your qi palace to be flooded by sword qi sea water. You can’t be hasty. The more hasty you are, the more chaotic your qi will become, and the more of a mess it will be.”

Chen Ping’an nodded, “I understand. I’ll just treat it like I’m throwing clay on a potter’s wheel. As long as my heart is steady, everything will be steady.”

Ning Yao rolled her eyes, “Country bumpkin!”

Chen Ping’an smiled and held her hand.

Ning Yao quickened her pace, pulling Chen Ping’an hurriedly into the mirrored gate.

The sword-carrying burly man sitting on the hitching post clicked his tongue in wonder, “The younger generation over there is going to go crazy. This silly boy’s treatment will definitely not be any better than the demons.”

The little Daoist boy, his head covered by the book, muttered, “Although I don’t like this girl’s bad temper, it still makes me feel bad to see her tricked by a fool. One is in the heavens, the other is on earth, how did these two get together? Isn’t this a mismatched couple? Who tied the knot? Stand out, I’ll definitely stab this half-assed matchmaker to death. Well, I’ll stab him half to death first, leaving him half a life for me to curse him to death.”

On the peak of Solitary Peak’s tall building, one of the Three Purities bells rang softly, but it was inaudible and did not announce itself to the world, resounding throughout Upside-Down Mountain.

Then a wisp of qi swiftly swept over the little Daoist boy’s head, entering the book. The book seemed to be possessed by a deity, snapping shut with a sound, and then giving the little Daoist boy a slap on each cheek, very crisp and clear.

The little Daoist boy, who had no time to dodge, was struck by lightning, and then suddenly realized, hugging his head and begging for mercy, “Uncle-Master, I was wrong, I was wrong…”

Stepping into the Great Wall of Sword Qi, Ning Yao’s heart tightened, but she soon felt relieved.

It turned out that when she brought Chen Ping’an across the mirrored gate of Upside-Down Mountain, they did not appear near the door of Old Man Nalan and Daoist Nun Shi, but came directly to the top of the Great Wall of Sword Qi. This eliminated the long journey of crossing the city and ascending to the top of the wall, but as a result, Chen Ping’an was likely to suffer.

Sure enough.

Chen Ping’an, who suddenly arrived at the top of the wall, had a flushed face, then turned ashen, and finally trembled all over.

However, Chen Ping’an’s eyes were always clear and calm.

The last time was too sudden, but now he was mentally prepared. Even though he had ascended to the heavens in one step, arriving directly at the top of the wall where the sword qi was strongest, Chen Ping’an was too familiar with enduring hardship. It was nothing more than returning to the second floor of the Bamboo Lodge in Fallen Phoenix Mountain. As long as he didn’t die on the spot, Chen Ping’an’s state of mind was like a hitching post, like a pillar supporting the river.

There were no sword cultivators patrolling, scouting, or honing their cultivation nearby on this section of the wall where the two were.

A stooped and thin old man walked from the original place to this place in one step, smiling and looking at Ning Yao. She was a little embarrassed.

The old man smiled, put his hands behind his back, and although he had already seen through the Great Li youth’s details, he still circled around Chen Ping’an again today, nodding, “Indeed.”
The old man sighed with a hint of regret, muttering to himself, “Even after a century here, A-Liang hasn’t shed that scholarly air. Otherwise, with that sword in hand, he could hold his own against Dao the Second fifty-fifty. Now, they’re just trading blows outside the heavens, what’s the point? A swordsman without a sword, a Daoist acting like a mere brute, what a disgrace… But then again, with her temperament, she might not have been willing to follow A-Liang anyway… Yet, choosing this simple lad makes no sense. Is it a last-ditch effort, a refusal to simply fade away? No, her nature is not like that, too proud, like… I shouldn’t say that, it should be like herself! So who persuaded her? Qi Jingchun of the Literary Sage’s lineage? Qi Jingchun is just a scholar, with great learning to be sure, but not of her ilk. He shouldn’t have been able to convince her… How strange indeed…”

Although this Elder Chen was close to Ning Yao, and wasn’t just thinking to himself but speaking aloud at length, Ning Yao couldn’t hear a single word.

The old Sword Immortal stopped dwelling on what he couldn’t figure out.

The world held too many things, and if they didn’t concern him directly, they weren’t important.

Moreover, there were more than just one world involved.

The old Sword Immortal decided he needed to think about something pleasant, so he smiled at the young girl, Ning Yao, “Wonderful.”

Sword Qi Great Wall, this generation of young sword cultivators was producing talents in droves, a grand sight unseen in three millennia.

She was already showing signs of standing head and shoulders above the rest.

Even this old Sword Immortal, who had inscribed more than just a few words on the wall, eagerly anticipated the birth and unveiling of her natal sword.

During a recent long journey, Ning Yao had recklessly almost unleashed her still-immature natal sword. The world had reacted with unusual phenomena, and due to certain secret techniques of the Sword Qi Great Wall, even across a small world and two great realms, he and a few other old fellows on the wall had sensed the abnormality. The most short-tempered of them had nearly broken the rules to barge into the vastness of the Jade Essence Domain.

Fortunately, the little girl had pulled back from the brink, preventing any harm to the foundations of the Great Dao.

Ning Yao quietly asked, “Grandpa Chen, will he be alright?”

The usually stern old Sword Immortal never hesitated to smile at Ning Yao, saying with a gentle smile, “If something happens to him, Grandpa Chen would probably have to answer for it, wouldn’t he?”

Ning Yao glared at the old man.

The old man teased, “Oh, finally showing a bit of girlishness. It seems this outsider boy has done wonders.”

The old Sword Immortal stopped teasing the young girl. “This boy has an excellent foundation in martial arts, and a steadfast heart. Not bad, not bad, he’ll definitely endure. Rest assured, let him stay on the wall and endure for the time being. My little neighbor, Cao Ci, came through the same way. Just don’t take him to the city in the north, it’s too chaotic, it’ll ruin even the best seedlings.”

After speaking, the old man turned his back and slowly walked away, this time without using divine powers to shrink distances on the Sword Qi Great Wall.

The old man silently guarded this section of the wall.

He’d been doing so for countless millennia.

Later, it took Chen Pingan five hours before he could slowly move his feet.

Another five or six hours passed before he began to attempt practicing the Six Steps Stance, moving awkwardly, like a child learning to box for the first time.

Ning Yao would come to the wall several times a day, saying little before returning to her family in the city to the north.

Chen Pingan’s Six Steps Stance gradually became more skilled.

He steadily punched forward with his left hand, slowly but surely, and as soon as he felt utterly exhausted, he would quickly switch to the Sword Furnace Stance, standing still.

During this time, Chen Pingan didn’t dare approach the wall, only moving along the rampart.

It was said that south of the wall lay the Wild Desolate Realm.

Moreover, in that realm, three bright moons hung in the sky at night.

Chen Pingan felt that throwing a hundred punches on the Sword Qi Great Wall was more exhausting than throwing thousands of punches in the Jade Essence Domain.

Moving and stopping like this, on the third day, as he faintly made out the outlines of the two small thatched huts, he saw Cao Ci, practicing the boxing stance on the wall a mile away, his steps light and agile, his punches like rainbows. Even if Chen Pingan wasn’t a Fourth Realm martial artist, just an ignorant layman, he would sincerely admire the perfection of Cao Ci’s boxing form!

Chen Pingan was moving from right to left, while Cao Ci, who lived in the small thatched hut, was moving from left to right.

Their eyes met, but neither stopped, continuing forward, eventually passing each other at a distance.

At that moment, Chen Pingan’s boxing intent was extremely subtle, most of it suppressed by the sword qi.

Cao Ci’s powerful boxing energy, on the other hand, surged outward, visible to the naked eye, seemingly suppressing the sword qi around the wall.

As Chen Pingan slowly practiced the stance, eventually approaching the old Sword Immortal’s thatched hut, Cao Ci had already completed a round of practice and caught up with Chen Pingan.

Then Chen Pingan saw Ning Yao beside the old Sword Immortal.

Cao Ci, in turn, saw his master, the Grand Tutor of the Great End Kingdom, the female Martial Goddess Pei Bei, beside the old man.

After confirming Chen Pingan’s progress in practicing boxing, Ning Yao felt relieved and led him towards the northern wall near the thatched hut, took him up onto the wall, overlooked the city, and told him where her home was, and where her friends lived.

And not far behind them, Cao Ci was practicing a new boxing form, while the female Martial Goddess watched with a smile, occasionally pointing out some flaws in his form.

That night, the female Martial Goddess stood on the wall, closing her eyes to rest.

Cao Ci practiced boxing all night.

Chen Pingan continued practicing the walking stance until late at night. In the second half of the night, he sat cross-legged on the northern wall, maintaining the Sword Furnace Stance, and slowly fell asleep.

The next morning, the old Sword Immortal came to their vicinity and suddenly suggested that the two young men spar.

Cao Ci didn’t care.

Chen Pingan didn’t care either.

So the old man used his finger as a sword to create a temporary small world, only ten feet in radius.

A female Martial Goddess watched the battle, finding it quite interesting.

On this day, without any restrictions, the two were like being on an ordinary battlefield in the Jade Essence Domain. Flying swords, magical treasures, boxing techniques, both sides could use whatever they wanted.

Moreover, before the spar, the old Sword Immortal told the two Fourth Realm martial arts youths that they should forget that they wouldn’t die on the wall. They should treat it as a true life-and-death battle.

Chen Pingan gave it his all, losing all three battles.
Cao Ci’s true strength remained a mystery, a well-guarded secret. In any event, he achieved victory in all three of his bouts.