It was evening when Ye Tian Yun stepped out of his room once again and headed for the Guest Courtyard.
He wanted to meet Jun Xie and see what the latter had decided upon after learning about the whole truth.
'I wonder if he left…'
Ye Tian Yun knew that there was a high chance that Jun Xie might have left already.
'Considering his character, he must have been in a dilemma of what to do. Now I will see for myself what he chose.'
Ye Tian Yun exhaled as he passed through the newly constructed Guest Hall.
'They are not here…'
Boom!
He suddenly heard the faint sound of someone falling at a distance.
'They are in the practice ground.'
The noise was coming from the practice ground, not far away from these courtyards.
Ye Tian Yun changed his course and soon reached the courtyard.
In front of him were Zheng Xiang and Jun Xie - both of them currently in an intense sword battle.
'Zheng Xiang still has a lot to learn.'
Ye Tian Yun couldn't help but chuckle at the scene in front of him.
He then looked around and soon found an empty seat.
He stared at the two young men sparring on the stage while sitting on the empty bench.
After a few minutes, Ye Tian Yun said, "So you decided to stay, huh?"
His voice was very low, just barely enough for someone sitting beside him to hear.
"Yeah." Someone replied.
Ye Tian Yun turned his head and smiled, "You will never regret this decision, Jun Xie."
Jun Xie shrugged. "Its no use regretting now."
Ye Tian Yun nodded as both of them turned towards the spar on the platform.
"Since how long is this spar going on?" Ye Tian Yun asked.
Jun Xie shrugged, "Half hour."
"Damn, Zheng Xiang's too weak right now." Ye Tian Yun frowned.
Jun Xie chuckled, "But that grin on his face reeks of confidence."
Ye Tian Yun rolled his eyes upon hearing this, "Show him the reality; he will see the truth of this world."
Jun Xie smiled, "Alright."
Snap!
As soon as Jun Xie snapped his finger, the scene in front of them suddenly changed.
Now, there was only Zheng Xiang standing frozen on the platform because of the sudden change.
He had his eyes wide open, and then as he slowly glanced around, he soon located Ye Tian Yun and Jun Xie smiling at him.
"You…" A bad premonition dawned upon him.
"This was all an illusion!?"
He couldn't believe his own eyes.
'Senior Brother Jun Xie is so powerful!?'
Here he thought he was almost toe-to-toe against Jun Xie, but now he found out that everything around him was just an illusion, and the real Jun Xie was sitting on a bench, watching him hit the air with his sword.
Zheng Xiang sighed and rubbed his face in embarrassment.
"Come here," Ye Tian Yun called him, "You still have a lot to learn, don't be discouraged just because of this."
Zheng Xiang's shoulders were slumped as he walked and sat beside them.
"That was pathetic," He had his face covered with his hands, "If this were a real battle, I would have long lost my life."
Ye Tian Yun nodded, "True."
Zheng Xiang exhaled a long breath and leaned back on the bench. "How could the illusion be so powerful? This is not the first time I have faced someone with an illusion technique, but this one was on a whole different level."
Ye Tian Yun nodded, "You're learning from the best; you should treasure this chance."
Zheng Xiang frowned and asked, "Senior Brother Jun, what should I do to identify if I am in an illusion or in reality?"
Jun Xie thought for a moment and replied, "Well, there are a few basic things that you can look for, but none of these give an accurate answer.
The first is shadows. Shadows in an illusion are the hardest to create and manage. Matching them with the body movement, direction of light, and even the dimensions of the shadow… such things make it harder for a cultivator to master the illusion technique.
This wasn't the problem in my situation, though, since I had already mastered the shadow creation phase.
The second thing you can do is increase your Intent level - be it sword, spear, saber, or any other weapon. If you can reach the Domain Realm, no illusion will work on you."
"No illusion?" Zheng Xiang was surprised, "Doesn't that mean you're powerless if a Sword Saint appears?"
Jun Xie smiled, "Well, everyone is powerless against a Sword Saint. But if you're trying to say against the Sword Domain - against them, you don't need tricks, but raw power.
Therefore, even if you have the Sword Domain, you would have most likely been defeated by me."
Zheng Xiang frowned upon thinking about it, "I practiced with Brother Fang, but I couldn't feel any improvement in the sword cultivation."
Ye Tian Yun shook his head, "One-time practice won't help much. What you need is consistency. If you can focus consistently on the Sword Cultivation while also increasing your cultivation, it won't be long before you enter the big boys league."
Zheng Xiang chuckled, "Big Boys league? It's still a long way. I will try to improve tho. Don't want to be a burden."
Ye Tian Yun nodded, "Yeah, keep that last part in mind. If I feel you're being a burden, I won't be including you in major plans."
"Major plans?" The other two got curious.
Ye Tian Yun thought for a moment and said, "Well., we will be heading somewhere after five days from now. Both of you should come; it will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for you people."
Zheng Xiang and Jun Xie nodded, "Alright, five days it is then."
Ye Tian Yun paused for a moment and added, "But today, we're heading somewhere else."
"Oh, where?" Zheng Xiang asked.
"Gao Xuan has opened a tavern; we will visit him tonight."
"Gao Xuan?" Jun Xie frowned. He hadn't officially met Gao Xuan yet.
Ye TIamn Yun nodded, "He… will be a good ally in the future, and he's making a dish today, so let's have dinner at his tavern."