Twenty days had passed since my fight in the training grounds with the disciples. The commotion and murmurs had long since died down, fading naturally with the passage of time.
It seemed as if everyone had finally moved on, except for the occasional glances or whispered remarks thrown whenever my name was mentioned. Not that I cared much; I had bigger things on my mind than idle gossip.
Ding!
--- The Celestial System ---
[[Name: Xuan Yuan (Lucas Silva)
Age: 17
Cultivation Level: 4th stage of Qi Gathering – (56%)
Skills:- Flowing River Sword Art - Intermediate(●●●○○), Iron-Bending Monkey Staff Manual – Small Success(●●○○○)
Abilities:- Lunar Slash (click to view details)
Items:- One-time use Power card(Increase strength by 3 minor realms)
Quests: CLICK HERE]]
I had reached intermediate mastery in Flowing River Sword Art and small success mastery in Iron Bending Monkey Staff Manual.
Every movement felt smoother now, and the techniques that had once been awkward and stiff now flowed like water through my veins. Even my morning exercises seemed lighter, as though my body had finally remembered the rhythm it was meant to follow.
Meanwhile, Luo Cheng broke through to the 3rd stage of Qi Gathering Realm, and also gained intermediate stage progress in his palm skills today. The news also made me realize he was an above-average talent of the clan who was on the level of low-level geniuses, and I was genuinely impressed.
Afterwards, I met my sister, Xuan Ling. It was our second meeting, as I watched her standing and leaning on a pillar of the hall, and staring at me too intently, due to which I realised quickly that she was looking for me and maybe wanted to talk to me.
So I myself took the burden of going up to her while silently cursing my luck, and as I reached her, she suddenly widened her eyes but then returned to normal after a moment.
She started speaking, "Oh, you reached the late-second stage of Qi Gathering this early, maybe uncle might have helped with your spirit roots, wanna have a spar to see where you might need improvements?"
I was genuinely impressed by how she made up these words and didn't directly say to me "my hands are itching and you might be a good subject so want to get a round of beating?", I thought as I cursed in my mind but I also knew I couldn't decline her, who knows, maybe she would get irritated and beat me in the halls of the clan directly.
I didn't want my dignity to dip lower as it was barely getting better after I crossed over in this world and female maids didn't get bullied from then on so I decided to agree and have a spar in my courtyard, she didn't seem to mind the fact that I wanted to spar in my courtyard and not in the disciple training halls.
She would also mention something unimportant to me. I nodded silently, trying not to look too nervous, though my heart was already racing a little.
Later, when we reached the courtyard, I chose the staff to spar instead of the sword as it would be my main weapon in the future. During the session, it reminded me again that she was at the 8th stage of Qi Gathering, impressive at just 19 years old.
I couldn't help but let out sounds of me panting as the spar started getting intense.
During our sparring, she seemed slightly surprised by my battle prowess. Even though I was only at a late second-stage Qi Gathering, my techniques could challenge a mid-third-stage cultivator, which was unusual.
I tried to keep calm, but inside, I felt a flicker of pride. Not bad for someone still technically a beginner in the grand scheme of things.
While sparring, she did not fight me with her full power, only using a beginner third-stage Qi Gathering cultivator's prowess.
Her techniques were far superior to normal disciples at that stage, which gradually pressured me. Each strike and movement tested my reflexes, forcing me to adapt, learn, and push beyond my comfort zone.
Through the spar, I gained many insights and developed rapidly.
After 15 minutes of intense sparring, she ended it with an upward sword move, which rested just on my neck before stopping. My heart skipped a beat, but she smiled lightly. "Relax, I didn't mean to chop off your head.. for now."
The words caused my heart to panic but I was also surprised at the same time that she didn't beat me up in the sparring session but genuinely guided me.
After the spar, I started moving through the halls as I met the Second Elder, Xuan Liang. I didn't know who he was, but when I got closer and saw his face, I recognised him through the predecessor's memories as the second elder of the clan.
I stopped and paid my respects to him by saying, "Greetings, esteemed Second Elder."
He chuckled lightly and started conversing with me "Hmm... looks like you are training hard."
Hearing this, I nodded and said, "I am training for the Xiantian Sect recruitment, esteemed elder" though I was already sure that he knew about me going to be participating in the sect recruitment.
He nodded at my words and said "Work hard, and enjoy life also when you get the chance, learn to maintain balance and strive to achieve more, you are the future of the clan and everyone knows that you will have to inherit the Clan in the future as the patriarch so you should even if you don't want to learn strategies and methods which the sect might be the best option to teach you, so always remember, you are the prince and pride of this clan, show the world what you can do in the sect recruitment. "
Hearing this, I panicked slightly, but inside, I sighed in relief. The clan trusted me; there was no secret plot against me. All members were currently on the same side, though, of course, traitors could exist—one could never be too careful.
While saying this, Xuan Liang also thought of the Wei Clan stirring trouble, but he did not mention it to me, as it was a matter of the elders, not a disciple and it would only make a disciple panic and solve nothing.
As I continued moving through the clan, I observed how everything operated. I had only ever trained, sparred, and tried to survive in this world, but never actually seen the daily workings of the people and the clan.
Each courtyard, room, and corridor seemed to tell its own story.
I visited the alchemy room where elders were making pills and the disciples were watching intently while some raised a few questions along the way, disciple quarters, training grounds, family courtyards, and even the kitchens, seeing how every area functioned.
I noticed some higher-ranking people scolding the lower-ranked for skipping work yesterday with an excuse, while some cursed behind the backs of those in charge. Some of the arguments were so petty, I almost chuckled quietly—almost.
Returning home, I thought silently about the expectations placed on me by the Second Elder and my father.
I resolved to reach the 5th stage, which I could attain with daily practice. I also set a goal for reaching the Great Success stage in Flowing River Sword Art and the Intermediate stage in my Iron-bending monkey staff manual skill.
Though harder to achieve everything as I only had currently twenty days of remaining time but with grit and daily determination, I knew I could reach it.
And I would. I would have to if I want to, if I need to survive and conquer this world. That's my goal, and that's what I will always strive for, so that one day I can go back to my previous world, and my first step to do that would be to become the strongest in this world.