When cultivating a mystic class, low-tier sword art, Li Fuchen only required a few days to comprehend its sword intent.
But when cultivating a mystic class, mid-tier sword art, Li Fuchen spent ten days to reach the sub-perfection stage.
Li Fuchen understood that relying solely on his perception wasn’t going to work.
His cultivation level must continue to advance.
The higher the martial arts grade, the higher the requirement for one's cultivation level.
Take for example a rapid moving river, a whirlpool can form easily within. But for a shallow stream to form a whirlpool, it would be ten folds more difficult.
Unless this stream was flowing ten folds or hundred folds faster than the river.
A pity that a stream’s volume of water has a limitation of only so much. To let it become a fast current, would require a much deeper grove.
In this example, the river and stream represent cultivation levels, the whirlpool the martial arts. The speed of the current represents one's perception level and the depth of one's martial dao foundation.
Perception and martial dao base are rather similar. Perception level is dependent on one’s body, but pne's martial dao base level can be increased. They compliment each other and one cannot lack one or the other.
After another two weeks, Li Fuchen attained the sub-perfection stage for both the Nine Revolution Sword Style and Rotating Flow Sword Style.
It was not because Li Fuchen didn’t want to continue studying the Starfire Sword Style, but because he couldn’t.
A mystic class, mid-tier sword art required the martial artist to at least be at the high level Earth Realm to utilize it to the fullest. If he were to use his exceptional perception to force it, it would need at least a few months of time.
"Looks like it is time to visit the Sword Monument."
Within the Sword Monument were sword intents of the Azure Water Sect’s strongest fighters. If anyone could comprehend all of these sword intents, it would mean comprehending all of the Azure Water Sect’s sword arts. Their sword dao base would then be equivalent to a sect’s sword dao base and that would be sufficient to birth an abnormally strong martial artist.
After returning the manuals for the Starfire Sword Style, Nine Revolution Sword Style, and Rotating Flow Sword Style, Li Fuchen headed over to the Sword Monument.
The Sword Monument was located in a canyon. This canyon was named after the Sword Monument and was thus called Sword Monument Canyon.
The canyon was very vast, but there were quite number of people here too, about 30 to 40 people. Li Fuchen took a quick glance, most of them were inner sect elders with the minority being outer sect elders and direct disciples.
Everyone minded their own business and quietly meditated. Some of them would uncontrollably begin executing sword arts.
When Li Fuchen arrived, it didn’t bring about anyone’s attention.
"No wonder it is called the Sword Monument."
Even at a distance away, Li Fuchen could feel the sword intents permeating from the Sword Monument. Some of the sword intents were subtle like water, violent like fire, ferocious like thunder, blooming like flowers, drifting in the void, or letting out decadent music, disrupting the human heart.
There were too many sword intents. As the sword intents intersected like a fine net, it was hard to grasp one complete sword intent.
Li Fuchen picked a rather spacious area to sit down as he stared at the Sword Monument.
On the Sword Monument, sword scars criss crossed each other. As Li Fuchen concentrated, it was like he saw sword moves flashing in front of them. Each of the sword moves were so exquisite, unrestricted but feeling faint at the same time.
Compared to these sword arts, Li Fuchen’s sword arts were undoubtedly just a child’s play and was still very green.
***
As time passed.
Li Fuchen’s heart was suddenly inspired as he rose up and executed a sword art.
This sword move was the Starfire Sword Style’s 'Fast Like Starfire'.
A tiny spark shot out in mid air. It is small and not eye catching. In the next moment, the spark exploded and displayed the firepower of 'Fast Like Starfire'.
The Starfire spread all over the sky.
Unknowingly, Li Fuchen’s Starfire Sword Style had attained the perfection stage.
Although Li Fuchen’s cultivation level was low and was still nowhere near those who were at the high level Earth Realm, his control was actually surpassing those high leveled Earth Realm martial artists. The exquisite level of the sword move was incomparable.
Nine Revolution Sword Style, nine revolutions for every blade.
Previously Li Fuchen could only achieve eight revolutions.
After meditating by the Sword Monument for some days, Li Fuchen could now achieve nine revolutions per blade.
With nine revolutions, it allowed him to neutralize any forces and return it back to the enemy. If the enemy’s strength was stronger, the forces that the user would have to withstand would be higher.
Finally, it was the Rotating Flow Sword Style.
This was an extremely ferocious sword art. It could be assisted by a chilling ying qi or by a blazing yang qi.
In mid air, flames rotated like water currents, forming a flaming loop, consuming everything and decimating everything.
"Not enough, this isn’t enough."
Although three of the mystic class, mid-tier sword arts were at the perfection stage, Li Fuchen wasn’t satisfied.
A perfection stage mystic class, mid-tier sword art was just slightly stronger than a mystic class, low-tier sword art that had sword intent. It couldn’t drastically increase his overall combat ability.
Now with more concentration, Li Fuchen stared closely at the Sword Monument and tried to find sword intents that was a match for his three sword arts.
"What is this sword art?"
Li Fuchen unintentionally noticed a pile of weird sword scars.
This sword scar was like a pile of ashes, drifting with the wind and had traces of glaring sparks.
"Everything in the heaven and earth shall turn into ashes."
A voice echoed in the void as Li Fuchen saw a sword move flash across.
"This sword move is fearsome to the extreme. With a single brandish, all things in the world would burn into ashes."
‘Could this be one of the three major sword arts of the Azure Water Sect, the Ashes Sword Style?' Li Fuchen thought to himself.
The Azure Water Sect had two ultimate cultivation techniques, three major sword arts, and one sect defining secret technique.
The two ultimate cultivation techniques were the True Azure Water Technique and True Inferno Technique.
One of the three major sword arts is the Ashes Sword Style.
As for the sect defining secret technique, it was naturally the Sect Origin Swords.
If one could cultivate any one of these 6 absolute arts to its limits, one could rule supreme and look down upon others.
Sensing that the Ashes Sword Style had similarities to the Starfire Sword Style, Li Fuchen began to seriously analyze it.
Day after day…
Li Fuchen began to fall deeper and deeper. A hidden sword intent was slowly being nurtured in the deepest part of his heart.
Seated on the ground, Li uncontrollably drew his black gold sword.
An intense blazing intent was emitted, on the surface of Li Fuchen’s black gold sword were traces of waves as tiny starfires floated.
"Go!"
Opening his eyes, Li Fuchen swung his sword.
With an invisible sword light, only a tiny starfire could be seen launching out. It landed on a giant boulder in front. It obviously was filled with explosive power, but no sound was made. A huge crater was instantly created in the boulder, magma flowed from within as some even finer molten liquid was sprayed all over.
The spirit in his eyes dissipated and Li Fuchen regained consciousness.
"Is this the Starfire Sword intent?"
Looking at the middle section of the boulder turning into magma, Li Fuchen’s eyes widened.
This sword art is too domineering, even more so than the Meteor Sword Style’s penetrative power or the Radiance Sword Style’s destructive area attack. It is much more fearsome by at least a few fold. If this sword move isn’t reveal, nothing will happen, but once the sword move is executed, death will be the end result.
Li Fuchen took a look at the hourglass that he retrieved from his storage bag.
15 days had already passed. It was much faster than he thought it would be.
He consciousness thought that it was only a few days.
"There are still another 15 days. Let’s use it all up then!"
Another 13 days passed in a wink of an eye. Li Fuchen had comprehended the Nine Revolution Sword intent.
Perhaps addicted to the feeling, Li Fuchen topped up another 1 million contribution points to comprehend the Rotating Flow Sword intent.
As of now, Li Fuchen had a total of ten sword intents.
7 mystic class, low-tier sword intents and 3 mystic class, mid-tier sword intents.