After countless failed attempts, Wu Yuan suddenly retreated, pulling back ten zhangs. He stood still, staring at his hands which were trembling and numb. Taking a deep breath, Wu Yuan somberly declared, “Hierarch, I concede!”
From start to finish, Wu Yuan didn’t gain the upper hand a single time. If not for The Sword Hierarch adopting a purely defensive stance, he’d have been utterly beaten.
“Haha, it’s been decades since I last fought. Facing a Great Grandmaster like you is quite refreshing,” the Sword Hierarch laughed.
But inwardly, he was also quite shocked by how quickly Wu Yuan adapted. At first, his control of heaven and earth’s power had an effect on Wu Yuan. But as the battle progressed, aside from the natural suppression caused by heaven and earth’s power, it no longer posed a threat to him.
“Both of you are stronger than me,” The Rain Hierarch walked up to them with a smile. Then added, “Once this is over, I’m guessing you two will dust yourselves off and leave, dumping all this mess on me.” She pointed to the ground beneath them.
Only then did Wu Yuan and the Sword Hierarch notice that the surrounding azure stones within a radius of 30 zhangs had been completely destroyed, shattered into countless fragments. As for the area where the battle had taken place, it had been reduced to dust.
“Rain Hierarch,” Wu Yuan gave a sheepish smile.
“Senior Sister,” the Sword Hierarch glanced at Rain Hierarch indifferently. “It was you who asked me to spar with Wu Yuan. If anyone is to blame, it’s you.”
The Rain Hierarch sent a piercing glare his way, but it didn’t seem to faze the Sword Hierarch in the slightest. Wu Yuan couldn’t help but chuckle at their sibling-like banter.
“Wu Yuan,” The Rain Hierarch looked at Wu Yuan and smiled, “If you had continued to hold back just now, I fear that The Sword Hierarch and I would have found it difficult to fully trust you.”
“I was overly cautious,” Wu Yuan sincerely replied.
“Wu Yuan,” Sword Hierarch said quietly, “Your rapid rise to the Great Grandmaster level at seventeen with such a strong physical constitution cannot simply be explained by talent. We understand that everyone has their secrets, and we will not force you to share yours.”
“I only wish to ask one question. You can choose whether to answer or not,” The Sword Hierarch softly asked, “Are you truly yourself?”
Wu Yuan’s pupils narrowed. Could it be that Sword Hierarch had caught on to something?
He paused, deep in thought.
“Hierarchs,” he finally spoke, his voice barely above a whisper, “I am Wu Yuan, the Heavens Heir of the Cloudstride Sect!”
With his response, Sword Hierarch and Rain Hierarch understood that pressing further would be meaningless. Either way, their concerns were largely alleviated.
“Alright, we believe you.” The Rain Hierarch’s eyes sparkled, “Haha! The news of a seventeen-year-old Great Grandmaster will shake the world!”
“It will also prompt the Heavenly Rankers from all over the world to kill you,” The Sword Hierarch interjected, giving the Rain Hierarch a sidelong glance.
Wu Yuan gave a silent sigh. A Grandmaster in his 50s or 60s? None of the major powers would bat an eye. But a Grandmaster not even in his twenties? That would make all factions tremble in fear. Upon discovering such an uncontrollable menace, the major powers would surely scramble to eradicate it without delay.
“Wu Yuan, you are destined to lead our sect in the future, so I shall not conceal this from you,” spoke The Sword Hierarch with a dispassionate tone. “The power I wielded in our duel is the power of heaven and earth, reserved solely for those who have attained Unity.”
“The power of heaven and earth?” Wu Yuan murmured to himself.
He understood that the man in front of him, who was nothing more than a bottom-tier Land Ranker in the public eye, was in fact a terrifying expert. He had surpassed all the predecessors of the Cloudstride Sect, even Ancestor Fang Xia, becoming the first ever Unity-level expert in the history of the sect!
“The first two steps of the Harmony of Man and Nature, Perception and Integration, involve gradually merging oneself into the environment, reducing the world’s rejection of oneself,” the Sword Hierarch said softly. “Unity is the act of becoming one with the world, with heaven and earth!”
Wu Yuan’s breath caught as he listened. This knowledge was not mentioned in the Grandmaster’s Insights. Those Grandmasters were merely speculating about Unity. Meanwhile, the Sword Hierarch had already reached that level.
“Sword Hierarch, how does one achieve Unity?” Wu Yuan asked.
Despite attempting numerous methods over the past year, he couldn’t even find the right door.
The Rain Hierarch also listened with rapt attention. Her skill level was not far from Wu Yuan’s, perhaps even higher, but similarly, she was stumbling blindly in the dark.
“To progress from Integration to Unity, there are four paths,” The Sword Hierarch said slowly. “The first is the path I took: meditate to quiet your heart and mind, gradually becoming one with the world. After meditating for 30 years, I unwittingly reached Unity! In other words, attune yourself to nature.”
Wu Yuan and the Rain Hierarch listened with contemplative expressions. They both knew of this path, yet it was an extremely difficult one, especially for The Rain Hierarch who was racing against the clock.
“The second path is based on ancient texts I obtained during my time in the Xin Continent,” the Sword Hierarch murmured, “When skill converges on the Dao, one achieves Unity. That’s the endpoint of martial skill, but the starting point of comprehending the natural world.”
“Among qi refiners, there are some extremely powerful beings whose strength surpasses the Heavenly Rankings. They control Intent. If they’re willing to expend their energy, they can naturally guide martial artists to unravel the mysteries of heaven and earth’s power.” The Sword Hierarch shook his head, “Attuning oneself to the world is extraordinarily profound. It’s indescribable, ineffable. But if one can already perceive it, then the difficulty of cultivation will be reduced by more than tenfold.”
Intent? Beings surpassing the Heavenly Rankings? Wu Yuan listened in shock. He faintly understood that the vast world of the Middle Land hid many secrets he had yet to comprehend.
Unfortunately, the second method turned out to be a dead-end. After all, the Heavenly Rankers stood as the strongest beings in the Middle Land. Surpassing the Heavenly Rankings? He’d never heard of such a thing.
“What’s the third method?” the Rain Hierarch asked.
“The soul!” The Sword Hierarch declared without hesitation, “A strong body nurtures a strong soul. After achieving the Harmony of Man and Nature, the soul will be nurtured by the world and grow stronger.”
“A powerful soul sharpens the mind and substantially enhances one’s comprehension abilities. Likewise, when the soul reaches higher levels of strength, it naturally gains insight into the workings of nature. The stronger the soul, the easier it is to comprehend the world,” the Sword Hierarch murmured, “Just like how a child is unable to grasp certain concepts, but after they grow up, it becomes much easier.”
“Which is why many Heavenly Rankers who are only at the Integration level initially can later slowly raise their martial skill to the Unity level as their souls strengthen.”
The Rain Hierarch listened with a resigned heart. Strengthen the soul? It was impossible.
On the other hand, Wu Yuan’s eyes lit up, a wave of excitement bubbling within him.
“The fourth method is to rely on extraordinary objects! Treasures!” The Sword Hierarch spoke, “Some treasures birthed by the world hold unimaginable power. Once utilized, they can naturally endow the user with mastery of the Harmony of Man and Nature stage, even potentially transcending Unity. Of course, such extraordinary objects are incredibly rare,” the Sword Hierarch sighed lightly, “Most immortal relics lack such treasures.”
Four methods. The first and third methods could essentially be summarized as relying on oneself and strengthening oneself. The second relied on guidance from seniors. As for the fourth? Pure reliance on external objects!
Extraordinary objects? Soul? Self-reliance? The Rain Hierarch silently pondered. In reality, she already knew most of this information.
“Sword Hierarch, now that you have reached Unity, how long will it take for you to enter the Heavenly Rankings?” Wu Yuan curiously asked.
“It will take some time. Once Unity is achieved, there are two major effects. The first is a deepened perception of heaven and earth, allowing one to draw on heaven and earth’s power in battle,” The Sword Hierarch murmured, “The second is to guide heaven and earth’s power into one’s body, further enhancing one’s physical strength, and rejuvenating one’s youth.”
Wu Yuan nodded slightly.
According to what The Rain Hierarch had previously said, as long as one was not over a hundred years old, breakthroughs were practically guaranteed once Unity was achieved!
“The younger you are, the easier this process! It has been two years since I reached this stage, and I estimate it will take quite a few more years before I can break through.” The Sword Hierarch revealed with a smile, “But for you, with your boundless vitality, as long as your physical strength increases to 400,000 catties, you should be able to circulate your qi throughout your body, open up your qi sea, and complete the breakthrough in at most one to two months.”
“400,000 catties?” Wu Yuan asked softly, “A Heavenly Ranker possesses such strength?”
“That’s right,” Sword Hierarch nodded. “The physical constitution of a Heavenly Ranker greatly surpasses that of a Land Ranker. 400,000 catties is the limit to which the spiritual qi can augment one’s physical constitution!”
“For a Heavenly Ranker, physical strength is merely one aspect. What truly makes them formidable is qi. Although qi isn’t as explosive as raw physical strength, it is flexible and versatile. It can be used to kill enemies from a distance, control objects, and cast arcane arts.”
“Once Heavenly Rankers achieve complete Harmony of Man and Nature, they can initially command around 100,000 catties of heaven and earth’s power. As their strength increases, they can ultimately control up to 200,000 catties of heaven and earth’s power. With the combination of diverse powers, it enables the Heavenly Rankers to easily unleash a force of two to three million catties.” Sword Hierarch muttered in a low voice.
“A Land Ranker would be utterly helpless in the face of a Heavenly Ranker. Though, if they possess a first-grade divine weapon, they might be able to block one or two strikes.”
“A first-grade divine weapon?” Wu Yuan was taken aback.