Shhhh…
The soft hum of spiritual Qi faded into silence.
Bai Zihan slowly opened his eyes.
A sharp glint flickered in his pupils—the result of countless hours of tireless cultivation.
His aura was calm, but the space around him seemed subtly distorted, carrying traces of sword intent and profound Dao resonance.
The air was dense with the scent of spiritual herbs and the lingering heat of tempering Qi.
He took a breath—deep and slow.
Then looked inward.
“System!”
A translucent screen appeared before him, displaying his current status:
*************************
[ Host Info ]
Host: Bai Zihan
Age: 18
Cultivation Realm: Spirit Severing (Early)
Constitution: Supreme Dao Bone
Martial Arts:
Nine Shadows Flowing Light Sword (Greater Mastery)
Eternal Flowing Water Sword (Minor Mastery)
*************************
He smiled faintly.
(As expected… Worth it!)
His cultivation had taken a massive leap. Although the jump wasn’t as drastic as going from Core Formation Stage to Soul Formation Realm within a year, it was still impressive.
One should know that starting from the Soul Formation Realm, making any progress in cultivation is very difficult.
One could take even centuries to break through—if they did at all—to the Spirit Severing Realm.
So, for him to take only a year to do so was a very good result.
Of course, he couldn’t have achieved that if he didn’t get help from the System.
He used a System Cultivation Card to make sure that he could break through to the Spirit Severing Stage.
With that, now he was only left with 5000 System Points.
(Well, at least it was worth it!)
Moreover, his mastery over the technique had significantly increased as well. It’s just that he still couldn’t achieve any mastery over the Fate Severing Stage.
It wasn’t a lack of talent or comprehension, but he seemed to be missing something else to be able to use the technique.
He could still use it to a certain extent, and it was very powerful, but still not at the level that he saw being used.
Tap… tap…
The sound of footsteps echoed down the hallway outside Bai Zihan’s seclusion chamber.
Kong Zhanghong stepped in and immediately bowed deeply.
“Congratulations, Young Master!”
Though his expression was respectful, his eyes trembled slightly as he glanced at Bai Zihan.
(He… he looks so ordinary…)
But that was precisely what made it terrifying.
Despite standing barely a few feet away, Kong Zhanghong couldn’t feel a trace of spiritual pressure from Bai Zihan. No energy fluctuations. No aura. Nothing.
Yet Kong Zhanghong knew that Bai Zihan was far from being ordinary, and it was only because Bai Zihan was restraining himself.
(Could he… already be stronger than even the elders from the Heaven Sword Sect?)
He didn’t just think, but now genuinely believed it.
Although the elders were powerful—terrifyingly so—he could still sense that they were powerful.
Although one might think that it was because they were that powerful, that wasn’t the case. It was because they lacked as much control of Qi as Bai Zihan.
Bai Zihan nodded.
The first thing that he did after coming out was to call upon Kong Zhanghong and Fang Jinyan.
“Fang Jinyan didn’t come?”
Bai Zihan asked.
“Young Master, he has been infiltrating the Anti-Sect Leader Faction lately. Perhaps he has gone to collect information from them.”
Bai Zihan nodded.
Anyways, more than Fang Jinyan, he required Kong Zhanghong.
“Let’s get to the point then. What’s the status of the thing I asked you to look into?”
Kong Zhanghong straightened and immediately launched into his report.
“Yes, Young Master. Regarding Nie Fengzhuo…”
He took out a scroll and passed it respectfully to Bai Zihan.
“Our men have kept eyes on him. For the past 10 months, he has been in hiding and no one saw him. But finally, he emerged around two months ago, and I had my people keep their eyes open for him.”
“Oh?”
Bai Zihan raised a brow. It seems like he has completed his preparation and it was time for him to make a move.
The only time when protagonists are not doing anything is when they are cultivating.
But at other times, they wouldn’t be happy if a single day passes without making some noise.
Now that Nie Fengzhuo has emerged, Bai Zihan knew that tracking him down would be easy for Kong Zhanghong—unless he goes into seclusion once again.
“Where is he at now?”
Bai Zihan asked.
“He’s currently residing at the Verdant Pavilion Guest Hall in Capital City, preparing for the public selection for the Dragon and Phoenix Competition. My conclusion a year ago turns out to be correct. He wants to compete in the Dragon and Phoenix Competition and avenge his humiliation!”
“Is that so?”
(He definitely must be eager to do so as well!)
Otherwise, he could have waited for the next Dragon and Phoenix Competition, but he made a hasty decision—or perhaps he is that confident about defeating Bai Xueqing?
“When is the public selection for the Dragon and Phoenix Competition?”
“5 days from now!”
“Hmmm… Okay then. Make preparations to go to the Capital. We will go to this Public Dragon and Phoenix Selection.”
(Let’s see whether this person really is a protagonist or just an unfortunate soul that happens to be dumped by my sister!)
“Young Master… You want to participate in the Public Dragon and Phoenix Selection? Young Master can probably be selected by a Sect or Clan, though most of the selection has already been done. But they would definitely have kept a seat for you.”
Kong Zhanghong said.
After all, going through public selection isn’t liked by those geniuses from top clans and sects.
They not only think that it’s beneath their level but also a waste of time to compete with people with no talent and background.
Bai Zihan shook his head.
“I have no interest in the Dragon and Phoenix Competition, nor do I wish to participate.”
Bai Zihan thought about whether he would need to participate to perhaps change the fate of his sister being defeated by his ex-fiancé—which is most likely possible if Nie Fengzhuo was Heaven’s Chosen.
But he didn’t think that he would need to.
Even if his sister was defeated, he didn’t think that would necessarily cause anything other than a small loss in reputation for the Bai Clan and people talking about Bai Xueqing making the wrong decision.
Of course, there is a high chance that he would be a threat to him, but that is precisely why he is going to see this guy.
If he is indeed a threat, Bai Zihan didn’t want to waste time going through a useless tournament and would directly deal with him.
“Then it’s for Nie Fengzhuo?”
Kong Zhanghong asked cautiously.
Bai Zihan nodded.
Kong Zhanghong didn’t truly understand why Bai Zihan cared so much about Nie Fengzhuo.
True, he was a talented guy who dared challenge Bai Xueqing, but Kong Zhanghong didn’t think that even then he warranted such attention from Bai Zihan.
Moreover, there was no need to observe Nie Fengzhuo. If Bai Zihan wanted to, he could have easily taken care of Nie Fengzhuo any time he wanted.
So, he didn’t understand Bai Zihan’s intention.
But who was he to question Bai Zihan? He just needed to do what he was told.
“Don’t worry, Young Master. I will make sure to prepare everything!”