“Only spirit bodies can cultivate it?” Qin Xiu’s brows furrowed. That wasn’t good—he wasn’t a spirit body either. But he had a divine body. “Wait, I’ve been misled by the Royal Princess and the Dean.”
Back to the main point—his breakthrough required ten times the effort of others, and his spiritual Qi was several times more abundant than ordinary cultivators. “This Starsteel Seven-Slaughter Sword must be a technique with tremendous power and equally extreme spiritual Qi consumption. A single sword strike would likely drain the dantian of a regular cultivator.”
However, this was exactly the type of martial technique Qin Xiu yearned for. The Azure Dragon Battle Technique he cultivated fully unleashed the indestructible strength of his divine body. The Starsteel Seven-Slaughter Sword, on the other hand, perfectly complemented his vast and surging spiritual Qi.
As for swordsmanship mastery, that was only a matter of time—something he could build upon gradually. Especially when a phantom figure of a tall and thin old man appeared before him, performing each move of the sword technique with precision, the sword gleamed with a brilliance like starlight, every movement slowed by countless times.
Even after watching it only once, Qin Xiu already grasped the essence of the sword technique. It felt as though, if he had a sword in hand at that moment, he could immediately sketch a magnificent picture of stars in motion across the heavens with each strike.
This wasn’t blind confidence. Even as a child, Qin Xiu had this kind of intuition. Back then, he would quietly observe Yun Xuerong and other members of the Yun family practicing martial techniques. After just a few repetitions, he could already perceive the core essence of the technique and even detect subtle flaws others couldn’t notice.
Of course, the Yun family had often mocked him for it, thinking he was just fantasizing about martial techniques being easy simply because he couldn’t cultivate.
After being laughed at a few times for not being able to gather spiritual Qi, Qin Xiu had stopped speaking up to avoid further ridicule.
Snapping out of his memories, Qin Xiu decisively chose that martial technique. As soon as his palm touched the light screen, a wave of sword intent surged to the roof of the Library Pavilion. The stars in the sky, now visible as dusk approached, seemed to tremble in response.
“Dean, I’ve made my choice.”
When he descended to the fourth floor, Qin Xiu saw Yun Nishang holding a scroll of ancient scripture tightly to her chest, her expression gentle and full of joy—it was clear she had found a cultivation method she liked.
“So quick? Let this old man take a look at what you’ve chosen.”
When Elder Mo saw the Starsteel Seven-Slaughter Sword, his eyes widened in surprise. Then, with a complicated expression, he fell silent for a moment before finally saying, “Excellent sword technique. You have good taste.”
“But before anything else, I must apologize to you. Even I cannot fully guide you in this technique.”
“Not only I—even throughout the entire Empire, I doubt anyone can truly comprehend the full essence of this sword art.”
Hearing this, Qin Xiu was deeply shaken. He hadn’t expected the technique to be so profound.
“Dean, who created this sword technique? It seems that predecessor must have been a spirit body as well.”
Qin Xiu suddenly recalled the voice within the light screen mentioning a battle with a Star Spirit Body. Could it be the ancestor of the Starseizing Pavilion?
“That predecessor was a direct descendant of the Great Li royal bloodline. In terms of law and lineage, he was qualified to inherit the throne. But in pursuit of the pinnacle of the sword path, he devoted himself to cultivation, completely disregarding wealth and honor…”
According to Elder Mo, that senior was not only of noble birth, but also once helped the Great Li royal family through a crisis and restored their dignity.
“He was born with the Innate Sword Profound Spirit Body, and went by the name Jian Xuan. On the day of his birth, ten thousand swords rang out across the imperial city.”
He lived during the same era as the ancestor of the Starseizing Pavilion, though he was born a few centuries later. That period was when the Starseizing Pavilion was at its peak, overshadowing both the royal family and the Heavenly Profound Sect. Hence, from a young age, Jian Xuan vowed to restore the Great Li royal family’s glory.
At the peak of his sword mastery, he climbed to the top of the Starseizing Pavilion and fought against the stars with his sword.
“Our ancestor fought the ancestor of the Starseizing Pavilion using this very Starsteel Seven-Slaughter Sword.”
“Although the Pavilion ancestor was already old at the time, and his blood Qi had weakened, the Star Spirit Body was already famed across the world.”
“Yet our ancestor Jian Xuan managed to fight him to a draw.”
That battle ended in a tie. It was the turning point that helped the Great Li royal family regain their pride. The popular saying, ‘The world knows only the Starseizing Pavilion and not the royal family or the Heavenly Profound Sect,’ gradually faded from public discourse.
“Unfortunately, despite dedicating his entire life to it, our ancestor could only execute six of the seven sword strikes. The final strike remained elusive, even in death. It was his lifelong regret.”
As Elder Mo recounted the story, his tone was filled with emotion. Jian Xuan had once said that if he could complete all seven sword strikes, he could shatter the galaxy and defeat the ancestor of the Starseizing Pavilion.
Even though Jian Xuan became famous later in life, and the Pavilion ancestor was already old by then, taking advantage of age, the Star Spirit Body was ultimately stronger than the Sword Profound Spirit Body.
To create a sword technique that could stand toe-to-toe with such a powerful body made Jian Xuan a revered figure for generations of Great Li sword cultivators.
Qin Xiu felt a deep sense of respect after hearing the tale. Elder Mo sighed and said, “Now you understand why not even I can guide you, right?”
The technique’s creator couldn’t even complete it, and that was with the support of the Sword Profound Spirit Body.
“But with the potential of your divine body, perhaps you can create a miracle.”
Elder Mo’s tone shifted to one of hope and admiration. He was eager to see how much more extraordinary a divine body could be than a spirit body. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
“Alright then, take your time cultivating. Before you master the sword technique, I can still offer you some guidance.”
As night fell, the Royal Academy had already prepared a residence for Qin Xiu and Yun Nishang.
“Young Master Qin, this is your residence. Have a look. If there’s anything you’re not satisfied with, let me know right away,” Su He said while introducing the place.
From the outside, the residence was grand and majestic. A faint mist surrounded it.
Yun Nishang’s eyes trembled. She realized the mist wasn’t for aesthetics, but was spiritual Qi condensed by an array formation. “The spiritual Qi is so dense it forms visible mist… How much energy must it cost to maintain this array each day?”
In all her years in Lingqu City, she had never seen such a thing. It left her in awe.
Inside the residence, the décor was luxurious yet elegant. Qin Xiu glanced around. Suddenly, he heard Yun Nishang call out softly with embarrassment.
“H-Husband, come here quickly.”
Qin Xiu was quite satisfied with how naturally Yun Nishang had begun calling him husband. As he walked over, he raised an eyebrow. He could understand her shyness in front of the Dean earlier, but now they were alone—why was she even more flustered?
When Qin Xiu walked past the screen divider, his face also flushed red.
Behind the screen was a soft, spacious bed. Yun Nishang stood shyly by the bed, her slender pale fingers tightly intertwined.
“I-I looked around just now… There’s only one bed.”
When she glanced at the two pillows on the bed, her cheeks turned even redder. She bit her lip gently, her pure and charming appearance like a snow lotus on the verge of blooming.
“Uh…”
Qin Xiu felt his throat go dry. This residence represented the highest treatment given to a Dean’s personal disciple, and there were only a few of those. Su He must have assumed it was only natural for a husband and wife to share a bed.
Yun Nishang lowered her gaze, shame flooding her eyes like an autumn lake. But gentle and obedient as she was, she could never bring herself to say something like asking Qin Xiu to sleep on the floor.
In the silence, a hint of sweet tension filled the air. After a long pause, Yun Nishang softly parted her lips and whispered, her voice barely audible, “J-Just one bed is fine…”