Chapter 1945: The Ten-Mile Sword God

At the same level, Zhang Xuan was nearly invincible.

If he suppressed his cultivation to the same level as an Ancient Sage First Layer, even if his opponent were a sect master or an elder, it was uncertain whether they could defeat him!

Since that was the case, he could simply go and trounce them... These people had plenty of good stuff and certainly knew a lot of information; by defeating them, he could inquire carefully!

Perhaps there would be a lead on Luo Ruoxin.

It seemed that after arriving at the sect, he must quickly find a suitable Divine Communication Jade Talisman, enter their system, and then... specifically seek out the sect master or the highest-level elders to beat up!

Thinking of this, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but slap his thigh and stand up: "Great, that's settled!"

"What's settled?"

Elder Lu Yun looked over with a puzzled expression.

I just warned you that you might encounter the sect master and elders... What are you so excited about?

Could this guy be mentally challenged?

Earlier, he had considered taking him into the Sword Pavilion, but after spending a few days together and discovering that he occasionally had psychotic episodes... that thought gradually faded.

"Uh, nothing... Just talking to myself!" Zhang Xuan scratched his head awkwardly and chuckled.

Shan Xiaotian covered his face.

The flying sacred beast soon landed on a tall mountain peak. Descending from its back, Elder Lu Yun arranged a residence.

"You rest here first. Shan Xiaotian, come with me; I'll take you to the assessment!"

After settling Zhang Xuan, Cao Chengli, and Old Yi, Elder Lu Yun said.

"Assessment?"

"My earlier assessment only qualified you to become an inner disciple. To truly enter the inner sect, you need to test your sword at the Sword God Hall!"

Elder Lu Yun said.

"Sword God Hall?"

"It's the place for disciple assessments. Whether a menial disciple wants to enter the inner sect or an inner disciple wants to become a personal disciple, they all need to go there for testing. It's the same principle as my earlier match between you and Huo Jianghe, only here the testing is more standardized! It better reflects one's true strength than combat."

Elder Lu Yun explained with a smile: "In combat, due to state of mind, mood, and on-the-spot reactions, discrepancies may arise, but the Sword God Hall assessment does not! As long as your understanding of swordsmanship is sufficient and you meet the level, it can be easily measured."

Shan Xiaotian understood.

"Let's go!"

Elder Lu Yun finished speaking and was about to leave with Shan Xiaotian.

"Elder Lu, I'd also like to take a look. May I?"

Zhang Xuan walked over.

The Sword God Hall could test one's understanding of the sword path. He had some understanding of swordsmanship himself, so it would be good to check it out.

"This..."

Elder Lu Yun hesitated for a moment: "Alright!"

Normally, outsiders were not allowed into the Sword God Hall. However, menial disciples could take assessments there, and inner disciples could as well. Although this Zhang Xuan was not a Sword Pavilion disciple, he was Shan Xiaotian's friend. It should be fine for him to take a look.

They mounted the beast again and flew for a while until they reached another tall mountain peak.

In the center, a building shaped like a long sword stood planted in the ground like a tall tower.

"This is the Sword God Hall. Every day, many menial disciples, outer disciples, and inner disciples come here for testing!"

Entering the main gate, they indeed saw many people standing inside, all carrying long swords, with faint sword aura emanating from them. Most of them were not weaker than Zhang Xuan.

"As expected of one of the six major powers in the Upper Firmament... There are indeed many experts..."

He couldn't help but sigh.

He was at the peak of the early stage of Ancient Sage Fourth Layer, which he thought was decent, but here he couldn't even rank.

These were just those who came to try their luck and take tests. One could imagine how many experts were in closed cultivation and what their strength was.

"There are rooms everywhere, each with a Sword God Platform. As long as you have enough Sword Pavilion Coins, you can open the door and enter for testing!"

Knowing that they were new here and unfamiliar with the Sword God Hall, Elder Lu Yun continued to explain: "Of course, the first assessment is free; subsequent assessments require payment!"

"Oh!"

Both of them breathed a sigh of relief.

They had just arrived at the Sword Pavilion and didn't even know what a Sword Pavilion Coin looked like. If they had to pay, they wouldn't have any.

"I'll open a room for you. It can be used for two tests. Shan Xiaotian goes in first. If you, young friend Zhang Xuan, want to try, you can go after he comes out! The Sword God Platform can only test one person at a time; more would interfere with the collection of sword intent!"

After explaining, Elder Lu Yun walked over and soon led them to a room: "After entering, grip the long sword and immediately release your sword intent, circulating your understanding of the sword path... If the sword intent exceeds one meter, you can become a menial disciple; ten meters, an outer disciple; thirty meters, you qualify as an inner disciple! Your goal now is to surpass this distance!"

"Thirty meters?" Shan Xiaotian nodded blankly.

"Thirty meters refers to the understanding of the sword path, not sword qi. With your cultivation, sword qi couldn't extend that far..."

Elder Lu Yun laughed.

"Yes!"

Shan Xiaotian felt embarrassed.

With his understanding of swordsmanship, he could release sword qi for two or three meters, but thirty meters was definitely impossible.

The so-called sword intent was probably not that kind.

Creak!

Shan Xiaotian pushed the door open and entered.

Seeing him leave, Zhang Xuan looked over with curiosity: "What is the limit of sword intent length for inner disciples?"

Thirty meters passed the selection, but what was the limit?

"Normally, if sword intent reaches one hundred meters, one qualifies as a core disciple! But many inner disciples have already surpassed this distance. The top ones have exceeded two hundred meters, three hundred meters, or even more!"

Elder Lu Yun said.

"Three hundred meters?" Zhang Xuan was stunned.

Although he didn't know exactly how this sword intent length was measured, normal inner disciples could barely manage thirty meters, and some could achieve ten times that distance—the terror of it was easy to imagine.

"Indeed. But among the core disciples, some are even stronger, exceeding five hundred meters. Beyond that distance, one can be called a Sword God! Hence, titles like 'One-Li Sword God' or 'Two-Li Sword God' exist... It is said that in the history of the Sword Pavilion, the most talented individual once extended his sword intent to ten li, and was thus called the 'Ten-Li Sword God'!"

Elder Lu Yun's eyes gleamed with admiration.

"Ten-Li Sword God?"

Zhang Xuan was astonished.

While ordinary people struggled with mere tens of meters, this genius had reached ten li... The thought was mind-boggling.

"May I ask... how far can Elder Lu's sword intent extend?"

After his shock, Zhang Xuan was filled with curiosity.

"Me?"

Hearing the question, Elder Lu Yun gave a wry smile. "I wasn't gifted. In my youth, I couldn't even pass the inner disciple exam. It was only through later effort that I reached my current cultivation and earned the position of an outer elder... Though I've practiced the sword for many years, I still can't break a hundred meters—I'm stuck at ninety-seven meters!"

"Ninety-seven meters? That's already impressive..."

Zhang Xuan nodded, then couldn't help looking toward the door ahead...

This disciple had only studied swordsmanship with him for one night, merely memorizing the sword techniques, with little understanding of the Way of the Sword or sword intent... How many meters could he achieve?

...

Shan Xiaotian entered the room and immediately saw a small round platform before him, with a longsword inserted in its center.

This must be the so-called Sword God Platform.

Straight ahead was an open wilderness.

So this room had no walls—no wonder it allowed sword intent to extend dozens of meters. Otherwise, building such a large, open room that couldn't block sword intent would have required considerable effort.

Stepping onto the platform, he drew the longsword and held it in his palm. Taking a deep breath, Shan Xiaotian concentrated his mind and circulated the power within his body.

So-called sword intent was one's understanding of the sword.

He had practiced the sword since childhood, training hard for over a decade, and had long developed his own insights and feelings about swordsmanship.

As the longsword rested in his palm, he felt a sense of perfect harmony, as if it were an extension of his arm.

Hum!

Sensing his intent, the longsword let out a sobbing ring. Under the operation of the Sword God Platform, a pure white light slowly gathered and extended forward.

His eyes narrowed as he continuously channeled his power.

Pop!

The sword intent spreading forward came to a halt. Seeing the distance, Shan Xiaotian's face stiffened.

"One foot? That is... one-third of a meter?"

Having exerted all his strength, his sword intent only reached one-third of a meter... Didn't that mean his understanding of the sword was inferior even to a menial disciple?

"Impossible... Even Huo Jianghe at the same level is no match for me..."

Dazed, Shan Xiaotian felt his head was about to explode.

Elder Lu Yun had kept saying how fair the Sword God Hall was. He had tested his swordsmanship—even Huo Jianghe at the same level couldn't withstand it. How could he fail to reach even one meter in this test?

"I defeated Huo Jianghe by throwing the sword. Let me try that move..."

After hesitating for a moment, he suddenly remembered his strongest technique. Taking a deep breath, he lightly flicked his finger.

Hum!

The longsword left his hand and hovered in midair.

Rumble!

The moment the sword left his palm, a powerful sword intent burst forth from his body. The entire room gathered into countless white mists, surging wildly like a hurricane.

"This..."

His mouth twitched, and Shan Xiaotian stood dumbfounded.

Earlier, with all his effort, his internal sword intent had only extended one-third of a meter. Now, using the throwing technique taught by his master, before the sword even left his hand, it was already so fierce. How powerful would it be when the move was fully executed?

The difference between what his master taught and what he had figured out on his own... couldn't be this huge...

"Go!"

With an awkward expression, he flicked his finger, and the longsword shot straight forward.

Boom!

The white sword intent surged rapidly, vanishing from sight in the blink of an eye.

This...

Shan Xiaotian blinked.

His own sword intent maxed out at one foot, but when he executed his master's technique, it flew out of sight... invisible to the naked eye...

This clearly exceeded thirty meters, fifty meters, or even a hundred meters!

"Still flying?"

After waiting a while, the sword intent seemed not to have reached its end. Shan Xiaotian was at a complete loss.

If it kept flying, did that mean he would have no result?

Hum!

Just as he was utterly perplexed, the side wall trembled and displayed a result.

"499 meters!"

499 meters—one step away from Sword God!