He moved a box from under the bed; it was covered in a thick layer of dust.
He gently opened it, revealing two books inside. His father had left them three years ago, hoping they would be useful when he could Cultivate one day.
Opening the first book, a series of images appeared before Chen Zheng.
“Flowing Cloud Saber, Yellow Rank Medium Grade!”
Then, opening the second book, vivid shadows flickered before him; the figures in the book seemed to come alive.
“Ghost Shadow Seven Steps, Yellow Rank Medium Grade.”
These were all left by Chen Yu three years ago, hoping his son would one day clear his Meridians and become a true Martial Artist. His father's love was like a mountain, and Chen Zheng's eyes welled up.
He pulled out a long saber hanging on the wall and then took it down.
Leaving the courtyard, he arrived at a secret room. He activated a mechanism, and the stone door slowly opened.
A damp Aura rushed out.
Soon, he entered a huge stone chamber with no furnishings. The Cultivation room could simulate various scenes for Cultivation.
Walking to one side of the stone wall, he saw a button. Pressing it would activate the mirror projection, though Chen Zheng was not yet clear on its specific function.
Many words appeared below, introducing the various functions of the mirror projection.
It could imitate the real world, hone Martial Skills, simulate Immortal Master battles, and improve one's Realm. It was divided into three Ranks: Simple, Difficult, and Demon. The latter two were still grayed out, not yet activated.
“Activate mirror projection!”
The surrounding scenery immediately changed. Chen Zheng stood in a desert, with gusts of wind blowing, and yellow sand filled the sky, obscuring his vision.
“Single choice? Multiple choice?”
A menu popped up with a single choice and a multiple choice option. Chen Zheng easily understood this, as it meant a single scenario or multiple scenarios.
A single choice would be one world, while multiple choices would present several different worlds.
“Multiple!” He chose multiple, intending to hone himself for a longer period.
“Select the type and quantity of challenges. You cannot choose more than three types.”
Numerous species appeared on the interface. Some were as large as elephants, while others were as small as palm-sized rats. Chen Zheng recognized some and not others. Text was displayed, providing analysis of their combat power and so on.
For the first type, he chose rodents; for the second, wolves; and for the third, Human Race. Their strength ranged from Acquired Second Realm to Acquired Fourth Realm.
Increasing progressively, he had little time left and needed to improve his Realm as much as possible.
The mirror projection had activated. Chen Zheng held his long saber, ready to face the enemy. A rumbling sound came from afar, like ten thousand horses galloping.
Dark shadows approached—a group of low-Rank Yao Beasts, about the size of house cats, with sharp claws.
Marmots, the first species Chen Zheng chose, with their numbers controlled at around a thousand.
It was Chen Zheng’s first time fighting Yao Beasts. He felt a bit nervous, holding his long saber, and charged forward.
“Slash!”
A simple saber strike, yet it contained several variations. Chen Zheng had Cultivated it before but had never grasped its essence. Whether he could Cultivate it to the Perfection Realm required continuous practice.
Blood splattered. Marmots, being the weakest type of Rank One Yao Beast, had relatively low attack power, perfect for a novice like Chen Zheng.
Hot blood sprayed onto Chen Zheng’s face; it was a completely real world. Chen Zheng even felt the fishy smell of the blood.
His long saber was covered in blood. After killing more than a dozen marmots, a wave of fatigue hit him. He circulated the Chaos Divine Sky Art, continuously pushing his Physical Body.
Slaughter was the best way to Cultivate. His Physical Body was greatly pushed, bringing him closer to Acquired Third Realm. The energy from the mysterious liquid he consumed yesterday had not completely dissipated, still hidden beneath his flesh and blood.
After successfully slaying sixty marmots, his muscles rippled, and his Realm gradually ascended.
Entering the Acquired Third Realm, his strength underwent an astonishing change. Especially with the Flowing Cloud Saber, which previously required five swings to kill a marmot.
Upon reaching Acquired Third Realm, three swings were enough to kill one, and his speed had significantly improved.
During the hunt, Ghost Shadow Seven Steps also gradually became proficient. His footwork was agile, like a ghostly shadow, moving freely, making it impossible to predict where he would appear next.
After all the marmots were killed, the scene changed, switching to the second scenario. Chen Zheng stood on a grassland.
The second species he chose… jackals, with their numbers controlled at one hundred.
Dozens of jackals charged over, baring their fangs. They already possessed attack power and were faster. In a moment of carelessness, Chen Zheng’s left arm was scratched by a jackal’s claw.
“Hiss!”
He gasped in pain. In the mirror projection, the pain was also real; it was a completely real world.
Without time to bandage his wound, he charged at the jackals, engaging in battle. Chen Zheng lacked combat experience and was a bit flustered.
Through continuous practice, the coordination between Ghost Shadow Seven Steps and Flowing Cloud Saber became increasingly seamless, and Chen Zheng also managed to control his inner fear.
“Flowing Cloud Slash!”
His long saber suddenly slashed upwards, making an unusual posture. Even he was startled. This Flowing Cloud Saber contained so many variations; it had a Concept of no saber being better than having a saber.
“Crack!”
A jackal charged over and was disemboweled by Chen Zheng’s saber. Blood mixed with intestines spilled everywhere.
This further stimulated the remaining jackals, who all pounced on Chen Zheng. The scene was extremely dangerous, as each jackal possessed the strength of the Acquired Third Realm.
His strength was dissipating extremely quickly. If this continued, he would be exhausted to death. The Tian Family’s conspiracy and the Peng Family’s open robbery meant that the crisis was imminent, and he dared not waste time.
“Pour in the mysterious liquid!”
He gritted his teeth fiercely and poured the last drop of liquid into his Physical Body.
Swallowing it, a violent power erupted from his Physical Body. His strength climbed steadily; the mysterious liquid’s effect was too powerful.
The benefit was that Chen Zheng’s Meridians became wider and wider. The surface of his Physical Body was covered in a thick layer of sludge, all forced out from his Meridians.
His Physique was too weak. If it were anyone else, the sludge in their Meridians would have been cleaned out long ago!
When he got tired, he would rest for a while, circulating the Chaos Divine Sky Art to widen his Meridians.
He had to Cultivate to the Acquired Fifth Realm Great Perfection within three days and Cultivate Flowing Cloud Saber and Ghost Shadow Seven Steps to Minor Achievement.
After resting for an hour, he continued to throw himself into battle.
His footsteps flickered continuously, causing the jackals to constantly miss. Chen Zheng seized opportunities, and each saber strike landed skillfully.
It took him most of the day to slay all one hundred jackals, and his Aura was also steadily rising.
“Prepare for Breakthrough.”
After slaying so many jackals and consuming a drop of mysterious liquid, his Meridians became wider and wider. In just half a day, he broke through two Meridians, fully impacting the Acquired Fourth Realm.
A more powerful Aura swept out, and he finally entered the Acquired Fourth Realm. Chen Zheng felt as if he were dreaming, having broken through two Realms consecutively, and the strength of his Physical Body was still abundant.
“Continue!”
The mirror projection had been active for two days, during which he experienced countless brutal battles. His saber techniques and footwork were undergoing astonishing changes every day.
Although his Physique was not good, his intelligence was not low. Under his comprehension, the two Martial Skills became increasingly proficient.
The scene switched again. This time it was not a desert or a plain, but a Human Race city. Chen Zheng stood on a street, and before him appeared ten men, all dressed in black and holding long swords.
The third species was Human Race, with a quantity of ten.
Fighting Yao Beasts, whose intelligence was inferior to humans, the third scenario simulated the human world. Chen Zheng gripped his long saber tightly.
“Kill!”
Time was pressing, so Chen Zheng actively charged forward. Ghost Shadow Seven Steps was already skilled.
As the Flowing Cloud Saber appeared, saber shadows were everywhere. The ten men in black should also be in the Acquired Fourth Realm, with strength similar to Chen Zheng’s.
The men in black also moved; their speed was not weak at all. They understood Martial Skills and cooperated, causing Chen Zheng a great deal of trouble.
“Pfft!”
One stabbed Chen Zheng’s thigh, drawing blood. Before he could tend to the wound, another man in black arrived, his long sword thrusting directly at Chen Zheng’s neck.
“How ruthless!”
Chen Zheng’s eyes suddenly turned fierce.
“Flowing Cloud Slash!”
He suddenly rose a meter, lifting off the ground, and his long saber slashed down from mid-air, making dozens of variations that enveloped the ten men in black. Chen Zheng was also startled; this Flowing Cloud Saber actually contained moves within moves.
After consuming two drops of mysterious liquid, Chen Zheng’s Meridians had become as thick as chopsticks, and there were not many Impurities left inside.
His Physical Body was still continuously changing. Beneath his muscles, a burst of power was hidden. His body was like a Dragon, descending from the sky.
The two drops of liquid were worth hundreds of thousands of gold coins. Probably no one in the entire Yan City was as extravagant as Chen Zheng.
The saber light was sharp, cutting out a strange posture. Chen Zheng found that his combat awareness and control were becoming stronger and stronger.
The men in black clearly did not expect Chen Zheng’s saber techniques to have so many variations, nor his ghostly footwork, which was elusive.
Most people in Yan City Cultivated Yellow Rank Low Grade. Those who could Cultivate Medium Grade definitely came from large Families. As for High Grade, it was extremely rare.
To Cultivate Yellow Rank Extreme Grade, one could only go to the Imperial City, where they existed. Most were collected by the imperial Family; only by making contributions to the royal Family could one be granted the right to Cultivate them.