Divine Wilderness Dragon Emperor

The crowd below buzzed with discussion, all of them wondering if Lian Shuang had taken a liking to Ling Fei.

Even Fang Yuan was astonished.

But no matter how many times she asked, Lian Shuang would never clarify, leaving her feeling frustrated.

"Honestly, Senior Sister Lian Shuang... If she likes him, she should just say so. Why be so secretive?" Fang Yuan muttered. "It's not like it's some shameful affair. Besides, Pill Master Ling Fei is a once-in-a-generation genius. Few in the entire Southern Wilderness can compare to him!"

Despite thinking this, she truly couldn't fathom Lian Shuang's intentions.

The arena was abuzz with chatter, but on the stage, Lian Shuang's expression remained unchanged. She simply stared impassively at Ling Fei.

It seemed the discussions below hadn't stirred the slightest ripple in her heart.

"'The heart isn't in it'... Does that mean my heart wasn't fused with the Mystical?" Ling Fei murmured on the stage, as if he'd realized something.

As he pondered, he began to recall the move he had just executed.

That attack—the Nine Swords unleashed in succession. Each sword carried a surging momentum, like a Sword Wave.

But while the Sword Momentum was like a river, it only possessed the form of one.

As such, the Sword River was just a Sword River, like a hollow imitation. Without a heart, it lacked a soul.

'My heart... it truly wasn't in the sword.' Ling Fei had an epiphany, finally understanding his own shortcoming.

'Heart... Sword!' Ling Fei mused. He seemed to have grasped something, yet it was still just out of reach.

At that moment, a glint flashed in Lian Shuang's eyes. She, too, seemed to have noticed the change in Ling Fei.

"Then please, receive my sword," Lian Shuang said. With a flick of her elegant wrist, she thrust her sword toward Ling Fei.

As the sword moved, ripples of water flowed along the blue Long Sword, as if transforming it into a great, surging river. The momentum wasn't overwhelming as it simply thrust toward Ling Fei.

And yet, within this strike, Ling Fei sensed an impeccable momentum.

The sword seemed to move in perfect unison with Lian Shuang.

It was as if Lian Shuang and the sword had become one, and the Mystical aura it exuded was distinctly different from Ling Fei's.

"There seems to be a certain subtlety to this sword strike," Ling Fei murmured.

'It seems this is what a true sword of the Mystical is like.'

His own Celestial River Nine Swords had merely scratched the surface of the Mystical.

'So this is the Heart in the Sword?' Ling Fei's thoughts raced, his Sword Heart stirring. 'Before, when I comprehended Sword Intent, the sword would follow my heart's movements. But that was just Sword Intent—my intent. It never truly touched upon the Mystical of Heaven and Earth, nor did I fuse it into my blade. So, what I called the sword following my heart was really just the Sword Intent following my heart.'

'But with Lian Shuang's strike just now, the Mystical and her Sword Heart are truly fused. There is Mystical within her Sword Heart, and Sword Heart within the Mystical.'

His understanding of the Sword Dao Mystical grew increasingly clear.

Before, his grasp of Sword Intent and the Sword Dao Mystical had been vague.

But now, it was apparent that Sword Intent and the Mystical were two completely different concepts.

Sword Intent was merely a person's conceptualization of the Sword Dao through their Willpower.

Only by comprehending the Sword Dao Mystical and condensing it into a Mystical Technique Pattern could one be said to have truly mastered it.

This was far more profound than mere Sword Intent.

Naturally, the two could not be compared.

However, Lian Shuang's sword had already arrived, leaving Ling Fei no more time to think.

One Sword Seals the Heavens!

As the Sword River thrust toward him, Ling Fei's Long Sword moved. An Extreme Cold Qi burst from its tip, freezing the Void before it.

The Extreme Cold Qi swept out, causing the air ahead to condense into ice bit by bit. Even the Sword Qi erupting from Lian Shuang's strike faltered for an instant.

But her sword did not stop.

The light of her sword flashed like a flowing river and stabbed directly into the condensed wall of ice.

CRACK!

The ice wall fractured, pierced through by the Long Sword. Then, Sword Qi suddenly surged from the blade like a colossal wave crashing down, utterly demolishing what remained of the wall.

With the ice wall shattered, the blue Long Sword pressed its advantage, stabbing toward Ling Fei.

However, that momentary resistance from the ice wall had bought Ling Fei a precious instant to breathe. His body shot backward like a fierce wind.

Though his body was in full retreat, Ling Fei's Heart Spirit was already in motion. Facing Lian Shuang's strike, he appeared perfectly calm.

'Heart in the Sword!' A glint flashed in his eyes as his Long Sword moved in response. The Sword Pattern in his Dantian flickered, and Sword Intent swept forth.

Celestial River Sword!

A low voice sounded as Ling Fei's Long Sword moved, slashing forward.

This time, he unleashed only a single strike. As the sword moved, his heart followed, becoming completely immersed in the Sword River.

In that instant, the Sword River manifested by Ling Fei's Long Sword seemed to possess a soul. It appeared tranquil, yet it contained a great underlying momentum.

It contained his Sword Heart.

'With the Sword Heart present, the sword can change according to the heart's will!' As his heart and the Mystical fused, Ling Fei's comprehension of the Celestial River Sword improved dramatically.

This strike seemed gentle, but it concealed turbulent undercurrents, ready to counter the enemy at any moment.

This was the qualitative transformation brought about by his elevated Sword Dao Mystical.

In just a flash, the blue Long Sword slashed down and clashed with Ling Fei's strike.

And just as the blue Long Sword came slashing down, Ling Fei's Heart Spirit stirred.

"True Dragon Emerges from the Sea!" he called out in a low voice. The originally calm and rippleless Sword River suddenly surged, lunging forward like a True Dragon.

BANG!

A tremendous boom echoed out. The crowd then watched in utter astonishment as the blue sword light violently shattered. Lian Shuang's elegant hand trembled slightly.

Her body then drifted backward like the wind. Sword Patterns immediately swirled around her, forming Sword Lotuses that encircled her body.

The aftershocks from Ling Fei's strike were completely neutralized by these Sword Lotuses.

Thus, Lian Shuang retreated completely unscathed.

"Junior Sister Lian Shuang was actually forced back by Ling Fei this time?"

"How could this happen? Last time, Ling Fei used his Nine Swords and was defeated in a single blow. This time, he used only one strike and pushed back Junior Sister Lian Shuang?"

As Lian Shuang's figure retreated, an uproar instantly erupted from the crowd below.

The Profound Pill Realm Cultivators, in particular, were utterly baffled.

"That Ling Fei actually elevated his Sword Dao Mystical to the state of fusing his heart with the Mystical. He's now practically a Cultivator at the Celestial Pill Minor Achievement Realm." A few Cultivators at the Celestial Pill Great Success realm had a flash of insight in their eyes, their faces filled with surprise. Just a moment ago, they had clearly sensed that Ling Fei had only just entered the Celestial Pill Realm.

He reached the Celestial Pill Minor Achievement Realm after just one exchange with Lian Shuang. His comprehension ability was simply terrifying!

Instantly, the geniuses of the Celestial Pill Realm all revealed solemn expressions. When they looked at Ling Fei now, there was an added measure of respect in their eyes.

They had all heard tales of how powerful Ling Fei's talent was.

However, since they had never witnessed it firsthand, they hadn't taken it to heart.

Even when Ling Fei defeated the Third Prince, Li Xun, people had assumed he relied on some special Power and a Profound Spirit Treasure.

Only now did they have no choice but to take Ling Fei's talent in the Martial Arts seriously.

"Not bad. In just a short moment, you've grasped the Mystical of the heart being in the sword." On the stage, Lian Shuang landed gracefully. After settling, her eyelashes fluttered and her gaze lifted. After a glance at the young man before her, she offered a word of praise. Ling Fei's comprehension had not disappointed her.

"This is all thanks to Senior Sister Lian Shuang's guidance." Ling Fei also landed gracefully. Then, with a slight smile, he cupped his fists and thanked her.

Without Lian Shuang's pointers this time, he truly wouldn't have been able to elevate his Sword Dao Mystical so quickly.

"There is no need for thanks. It was all due to your own high comprehension," Lian Shuang said coolly.

"How could Ling Fei dare forget the kindness of Senior Sister Lian Shuang's guidance?" Ling Fei replied with a serious expression.