Chapter 331: About to Break Through
"There are flowers? What kind of flowers?" Bai Qing asked curiously.
Her eyes lit up when she heard there were flowers.
"Lots of them," Chu Feng said. "Peach blossoms, for example."
"Peach blossoms? I’ve never even seen one before." Even Bai Feng, who was driving, sounded envious.
"No problem. When you get a chance to leave the sect, come visit me in the south. I’ll be your host," Chu Feng said. "Whether you want to visit Xixiang, Beihai, or even my Chu Family estate, you’re welcome anytime."
"Senior Brother, do you really mean that?" Bai Qing asked excitedly.
"Of course," Chu Feng said with a nod. "As long as you have the time, you’re welcome anytime."
"That’s great! Bai Feng and I will be able to leave soon. We’re both about to break through to the Qi Cultivation Realm. After this Martial Arts Grand Ceremony is over, we’ll probably be allowed to go out and get some experience," Bai Qing said happily.
"That’s great. By the way, are you two participating in the Martial Arts Grand Ceremony?" Bai Xue asked.
"We both signed up. But when the time comes, Senior Sister, you’ll still be the strongest. You’ll definitely sweep the floor with the disciples from the other sects and Martial Arts Families," Bai Qing said.
After all, Bai Xue’s cultivation and strength were the greatest among the younger generation of the Celestial Sword Sect, earning her immense prestige.
What’s more, it was especially difficult to gain such high prestige in a sect composed entirely of female disciples. After all, where there are many women, disagreements and arguments are inevitable—there’s always plenty of drama.
"It’s not as easy as you make it sound. I’ll be lucky just to hold my own," Bai Xue said with a sigh, not feeling very confident in her chances. "I heard that for this Martial Arts Grand Ceremony, some of the younger generation from other sects have already reached the Foundation Establishment Realm."
In truth, take the Celestial Sword Sect for example. While it was a major sect with a great reputation, it was a far cry from its peak and had already begun to decline.
Moreover, the entire Celestial Sword Sect had fewer than a hundred disciples, which wasn’t a large number compared to other Martial Arts Families.
Maybe seventy or eighty, tops.
However, every single disciple of the Celestial Sword Sect was so talented that if they were in any other Martial Arts Family, they would be considered strong enough to be trained as a core disciple.
Take the Chu Family, for example. They probably had several hundred members under the age of fifty.
But very few of them had actually reached the Qi Cultivation Realm. The ratio was incredibly low.
This was why Martial Arts Sects were generally stronger than Martial Arts Families.
"Someone’s already broken through to the Foundation Establishment Realm? Then what’s the point of competing? It’s supposed to be a bunch of Qi Cultivation cultivators, but if a Foundation Establishment expert shows up, it’s game over," Chu Feng said.
"There’s no way around it," Bai Xue said. "The rules are clear: anyone under fifty can participate. As for the differences in cultivation realms and strength, that all comes down to individual ability. The whole point of the Martial Arts Grand Ceremony is to discover top-tier geniuses and give the major factions a chance to make a name for themselves."
"When you put it like that, it makes sense," Chu Feng said.
In truth, that was the principle behind it. This kind of competition was all about talent. If someone else could reach the Foundation Establishment Realm by fifty, then you could reach it by thirty.
If you weren’t happy about it, there was nothing you could do. You just had to admit you were outmatched.
"If there’s a Foundation Establishment Realm expert competing, it’s going to be really hard for Senior Sister Bai Xue to take first place, isn’t it?" Bai Qing said.
"Who knows?" Bai Xue said. "All I can do is give it a shot. I won’t give up until the very end. Besides, I have a feeling I might even be able to break through during the competition."
"Break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm? Senior Sister, have you had some kind of epiphany? It looks like this trip wasn’t a waste after all!" Bai Feng and Bai Qing asked, their faces lighting up with pleasant surprise.
"A little, I guess. After all, I’ve been in the late-stage Qi Cultivation Realm for several years now. Going out this time let me relax properly, and I gained some new insights. I feel like I’m touching the threshold, so I might be able to break through soon," Bai Xue said.
But as she said this, she glanced at Chu Feng behind her.
’In truth, she felt a sense of helplessness. After all her hard work, she was only just now touching the threshold of the Foundation Establishment Realm.’
’Meanwhile, Chu Feng was already at the Human Martial Arts Peak Realm. Even her own master was no match for him.’
"Wow, Senior Sister, you’re so amazing!" Bai Qing exclaimed.
"Sigh... what I’ve achieved is nothing," Bai Xue said with a sigh. "On the path of the Martial Dao, experts are as numerous as clouds, and there is no shortage of heaven’s chosen geniuses."
This was a heartfelt sigh. Before her trip to the south, she would have been extremely confident.
But after this trip south, her confidence had taken a severe blow, especially after witnessing Chu Feng’s monstrous talent.
’There was simply no comparison between her and Chu Feng. So what if I break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm? The gap between us would still be enormous.’
’We’re about the same age, yet the gap in our strength is immense.’
Then again, Bai Xue’s talent was already considered very strong. To have reached her level of cultivation before the age of thirty was truly outstanding.