Time flies in cultivation.
In the blink of an eye, Ye Guan had already been cultivating in the tower for a month.
At this moment, he had reached the sixth floor.
The space-time gravity here was six times that of the outside world.
The instant he entered this level, Ye Guan immediately felt as though a great mountain was pressing down on him. He could barely even breathe.
Yet, he gritted his teeth and endured it.
Only by enduring the bitterest hardships can one rise above others.
This was the truth he believed in.
If you do not put in the effort, how can you expect rewards?
Though the process was painful, the sense of improvement and achievement that followed each bout of pain truly addicted him.
This time, it took him a full three days to gradually adapt to the space-time gravity of the sixth floor.
Then, he began frantically practising his sword thrusts.
Although he focused on cultivating speed, when speed reached a certain level, power would also increase countless times as a result.
He knew his energy and time were limited, so he specialised in one aspect.
I will train speed, pushing it to the extreme.
Another three days passed, and Ye Guan finally fully adapted to the space-time pressure of the sixth floor.
Now, his sword speed was the same as it was outside.
Ye Guan took a deep breath, sat cross-legged on the ground, and after resting for an hour, he stood up and entered the seventh floor.
The moment he stepped into the seventh floor, although the gravity had only increased by one times, he felt as if it had multiplied countless times. His breath caught, and he nearly collapsed on the spot.
Ye Guan’s expression darkened. Damn it, the higher you go, the more perverse it gets.
At that moment, the little tower suddenly spoke. “Actually, with your current realm, reaching this point is already your limit. You can stop for now.”
Ye Guan took a deep breath. “I want to see where my limit truly lies.”
With that, a flash of determination crossed his eyes, and he continued thrusting his sword.
However, this thrust was very slow, at least several times slower than outside.
Moreover, after just one thrust, he was already drenched in sweat.
Ye Guan wiped the sweat from his face and continued.
In this way, with each repeated thrust, his speed gradually began to increase.
He was determined to break through his own limits.
He was determined to surpass himself.
Four more days passed, and his speed improved more and more noticeably.
At this point, only twenty days remained until the martial examination.
Ye Guan still showed no intention of leaving the tower. Every day, he continued training in the seventh floor without sleep or rest.
All this intense training over the days had paid off.
Now, the speed of each of his sword thrusts was almost the same as outside.
Clearly, he had fully adapted to the gravity of the seventh floor.
On this day, when his sword speed became completely identical to what it was outside, his entire body suddenly gave out.
He was truly exhausted, without a shred of strength left.
Yet he laughed wildly.
He had succeeded.
He had once again broken through his own limits.
The little tower suddenly said, “Feels great, doesn’t it?”
Ye Guan grinned. “Extremely great.”
The little tower asked, “Heading to the eighth floor?”
Ye Guan immediately sat up. “Why not?”
With that, he began to rest.
An hour later, Ye Guan arrived at the eighth floor.
Upon reaching the eighth floor, he once again felt that powerful space-time pressure.
This time, however, there was no solemnity in his eyes, only excitement.
A challenge was a good thing.
Next, Ye Guan entered intense training mode once more, thrusting his sword again and again.
This time, astonishingly, he adapted even faster than on the seventh floor. It took him less than ten days to fully adjust to the space-time pressure of the eighth floor.
On the ground, Ye Guan lay quietly.
Now, he was somewhat looking forward to the scene after leaving this tower.
After resting for an hour, Ye Guan proceeded to the ninth floor.
The moment he entered the ninth floor, he froze.
The space-time gravity here was exactly the same as on the eighth floor.
What was going on?
Ye Guan was puzzled.
Just then, a portal of light suddenly appeared not far ahead of him.
Seeing this portal, Ye Guan grew excited.
Could this be the combat trial?
At that moment, the portal opened, and a shadowy figure slowly emerged.
The figure carried a sword.
A sword cultivator.
Ye Guan’s eyes narrowed slightly, filled with excitement.
The figure’s realm was the same as his, also the Imperial Sky Realm.
Suddenly, the figure thrust its sword.
Whoosh.
A flash of sword light, and a sword instantly appeared before Ye Guan. His pupils contracted sharply. Powerful combat instincts caused him to subtly shift his body, dodging the strike by a hair’s breadth. At the same time, a qi sword materialised in his hand, and he swept it horizontally with force.
Whoosh.
A sound of sword tearing through air rang out in the arena.
The strike missed.
The figure had already retreated several zhang away.
Such incredible speed.
Ye Guan was shocked.
Then, the figure suddenly vanished from its spot. The next instant, countless overlapping afterimages densely appeared before Ye Guan.
Ye Guan was horrified. He had not expected this shadow sword cultivator’s speed to be so terrifying.
He wanted to dodge, but it was too late. A sword was already pressed against his forehead.
The blade pierced half an inch in.
Blood flowed freely.
In an instant, Ye Guan’s entire face became covered in blood.
Yet the shadow did not continue its attack. It slowly faded away.
The trial tower naturally focused on testing, not killing.
The Guanxuan Academy was not that perverse.
In place, Ye Guan stood silent.
The little tower said, “Feeling discouraged?”
Ye Guan shook his head. “I regret it. I regret not being fully alert when facing him.”
With that, he turned and descended to the eighth floor, then returned to the ninth.
The shadow appeared once more.
Without a word, Ye Guan pointed with two fingers, and a sword shot towards the shadow. Yet this thrust still missed.
Whoosh.
Air shattered.
Almost simultaneously, the shadow appeared before Ye Guan like a phantom. Ye Guan was prepared. The instant it thrust, he shifted sideways.
He anticipated and dodged.
This time, he successfully evaded the first strike.
But the next moment, the shadow swept its sword horizontally, placing it directly against Ye Guan’s throat.
Failure again.
The shadow quietly vanished.
In place, after a moment of silence, Ye Guan said, “Tower Master, it seems he anticipated my anticipation.”
The little tower replied, “No, his speed is simply far greater than yours. You are much slower than him. If you can match this fellow’s speed, then I can only say that within the same tier, you would be absolutely invincible.”
Ye Guan slowly closed his eyes. “Invincible in the same tier is boring. I want to be invincible across tiers. I want to remain invincible forever.”
After a brief silence, the little tower said, “Arrogant.”
Ye Guan returned to the eighth floor, then ascended to the ninth once more.
The shadow appeared again.
Ye Guan thrust directly.
His thrusting speed was actually not much slower than the shadow’s, but his reactions were.
Whoosh.
His strike missed. At the same time, the shadow closed in on Ye Guan. He dodged the first sword, then the second, but on the third…
Whoosh.
A sword suddenly pierced into Ye Guan’s chest, entering half an inch.
The shadow slowly faded.
In place, after a long silence, Ye Guan turned back to the eighth floor, then returned to the ninth.
He thrust again.
In this way, Ye Guan failed time after time, yet challenged again and again.
In the blink of an eye, more than ten days passed. By now, Ye Guan had gone from being unable to dodge even one sword to evading dozens of the shadow’s strikes.
At this point, only seven days remained until the martial examination.
Inside the trial tower, Ye Guan grew more excited and passionate with each battle. Every failure allowed him to identify his shortcomings.
Identifying shortcomings meant he could improve.
Thus, with each defeat, Ye Guan grew stronger.
Three more days passed.
Now, Ye Guan could exchange blows evenly with the shadow.
Both sides pushed each other to the limit.
It truly was a limit-pushing contest. The slightest mistake from either would lead to immediate defeat.
Two more days passed. Now, Ye Guan was evenly matched with the shadow. This battle had already lasted two days and two nights.
Both pushed each other to the limit for two full days and nights.
Ye Guan made no mistakes, nor did the shadow.
On the third day, the shadow suddenly slipped. Ye Guan seized the opportunity, sending a flying sword at an extremely tricky angle into the back of the shadow’s neck.
Whoosh.
The shadow froze in place.
Moments later, it raised its sword vertically before its brow, gave Ye Guan a slight salute, then slowly disappeared.
Ye Guan stood silent.
At this moment, he felt no joy, only a touch of loss.
Then, the distant portal trembled slightly. The next instant, a woman slowly walked out.
Seeing her, Ye Guan froze.
It was the very woman who had appeared in the trial tower at the Nanzhou Guanxuan Academy.
The woman carried a sword case on her back. She looked very cool.
Ye Guan said in surprise, “Senior?”
The woman walked slowly to Ye Guan and smiled. “I did not expect we would meet again so soon. Congratulations on breaking through your own limits.”
Ye Guan said gravely, “My own limits?”
The woman smiled. “Yes. This trial was set by me, based on your own strength. That shadow represented your limit. Defeating it means you have broken through your own limit. Now, you could be considered a Sword Sovereign. One who surpasses oneself is a sovereign among swordsmen.”
Sword Sovereign.
Ye Guan was momentarily stunned.
The woman blinked. “Are you not happy?”
Ye Guan said gravely, “Senior, is there a reward?”
Sword Sovereign?
He did not care much.
It was just a title.
If it were Sword Immortal, he might feel excited.
A reward.
The woman shook her head with a smile. “You really are something.”
With that, she opened her palm, and a badge appeared before Ye Guan.
Seeing the badge, Ye Guan’s expression darkened. “Could I get some money or something instead?”
The woman thought for a moment, then said, “Sorry, this trial only offers the badge. No money or techniques, because I never imagined you would be so poor.”
Ye Guan’s expression stiffened.
The woman smiled. “This badge is no ordinary thing. It is the Trial Sovereign Badge, a mark of honour.”
Ye Guan fell silent.
He did not like honours. He only liked money.
The woman looked somewhat helpless. “This badge will be of great use in the future. Trust me, its value cannot be measured in money.”
Ye Guan sighed inwardly, then put away the badge. “Senior, a suggestion. Next time you set up something like this, change the reward to money, or techniques and skills. Honour… cannot be eaten.”
The woman’s expression stiffened.
Ye Guan added, “Regardless, thank you, Senior.”
The woman suddenly patted Ye Guan’s head and smiled. “Keep going. I look forward to the day you reach the main academy.”
With that, she vanished completely.
Ye Guan shook his head with a sigh and turned to leave.
At this moment, he was somewhat eager to see what the outside world would be like.
After all, the gravity here was eight times that of the outside.
If he returned outside, his strength…
Just thinking about it excited him.
At that moment, the little tower suddenly said, “If you had used the Path Sword earlier, you could have easily defeated that shadow.”
Ye Guan shook his head. “I did not want to.”
The little tower asked, puzzled, “Why?”
Ye Guan said gravely, “If a person relies too much on external things in ordinary times, over time they will gradually lose themselves and fail to see their true capabilities. When those external things are gone, they may become lost, lack confidence, or even feel fear.”
The little tower fell silent.
