Chapter 180: The Grand yan Sword Formation
"Enough of that. If you have time to joke, spend it improving your cultivation or working on your spiritual botany skills." Hou Chunyu waved dismissively. As far as he was concerned, it was ridiculous that Gu Mo—a disciple of his spiritual cultivation lineage—had shown such astonishing talent in alchemy instead.
After giving a few more reminders, Hou Chunyu left behind a special leaf talisman as a token. With this talisman, Gu Mo could enter the sect's treasury and choose one treasure.
In the days that followed, Gu Mo stopped accepting commissions. Coupled with the sect's deliberate information management, the buzz surrounding the supreme-quality Meridian Expansion Pill gradually faded, allowing Gu Mo a period of rare peace.
He used this quiet time to focus on his avatar.
At present, Gu Mo's avatar had already become an outer disciple of the Grand yan Sword Sect. Despite its poor natural aptitude, by relying on Gu Mo's deep insights into the way of the sword, the avatar had bypassed the menial labor rank and directly entered the outer sect.
"No wonder it's called a sword sect—their inheritance really is comprehensive."
In the outer disciple quarters of the Grand yan Sword Sect, Gu Mo's avatar slowly opened his eyes. Now that he was officially an outer disciple, he had begun training in orthodox sword cultivation.
Compared to his previously self-taught and scattered approach, the Grand yan Sword Sect provided a systematic and well-rounded sword training program. Even though outer disciples couldn't access the sect's core techniques, the standard curriculum was more than enough to shore up the avatar's foundational weaknesses.
Only now did Gu Mo fully understand that sword cultivation involved far more than just learning sword techniques. One had to cultivate Sword Momentum and Sword Intent. Only by mastering both could the techniques unleash their full power.
Recalling what he had read about Sword Momentum, a sharp aura suddenly burst forth from Gu Mo. It was clear—he had already grasped Sword Momentum.
This feat was possible only because of Gu Mo's powerful Golden Core-level divine soul, and his mastery of two nameless sword techniques. Without such an advantage, gaining Sword Momentum would not have been so quick.
As for Sword Intent, that would take more time and experience. Sword Intent wasn't something one could comprehend through theory alone—it had to be forged through battle. Only a blade that had been tempered could give birth to true intent.
Fortunately, the Grand yan Sword Sect had just such a place for tempering one's sword—a place known as the Grand yan Sword Formation.
This formation was one of the sect's most powerful inheritances. It used sword techniques to create a formation, unleashing strikes that exceeded one's natural limits.
The sect's very name, Grand yan Sword Sect, originated from its supreme sword inheritance: the Grand yan Sword Codex.
"Time to try out the Grand yan Sword Formation."
Now that he had grasped Sword Momentum, Gu Mo planned to give the formation a try. As an outer disciple, he was entitled to one attempt each year to temper his sword skills within the Grand yan Sword Formation.
This formation also doubled as a trial ground. Disciples who performed well could earn rewards from the sect.
Gu Mo hadn't joined the Grand yan Sword Sect's avatar program just to learn some basic sword techniques. With the sect contribution points he had accumulated through alchemy in the Shennong Valley, he could easily exchange them for the Azure Lotus Sword Manual, a Golden Core-level sword cultivation method on par with the core teachings of ordinary sword sects.
But compared to the Grand yan Sword Codex, the Azure Lotus Sword Manual was clearly inferior.
What's more, Grand yan Sword Sect offered expert guidance and powerful tools to assist sword cultivators, like this very formation.
Flying on his sword, Gu Mo soon arrived at the location of the formation. It was set within a valley, marked by a massive stone stele standing at the entrance.
The stele was covered in names, each followed by a number. These numbers represented how many sword puppets each disciple had defeated within the formation.
"Twenty-eight."
Gu Mo looked up and spotted a name at the very top, accompanied by the number 28. That meant this person had defeated 28 sword puppets in a row. While Gu Mo hadn't yet seen these puppets for himself, he'd heard plenty of rumors—each puppet was born wielding powerful sword techniques. Some even possessed Sword Momentum, or even Sword Intent.
If the Grand yan Sword Formation were to be fully activated, it could summon terrifying sword puppets meant for killing intruders. That was one of the formation's core purposes.
But now, the formation was repurposed to help disciples temper their sword path. A deadly formation used for training—clearly, this was a sword sect through and through. One careless moment could result in serious injury or even death.
Still, the disciples it produced had unmatched killing power. This was the essence of a true sword cultivator!
The atmosphere in the Grand yan Sword Sect was intense, filled with constant competition. In contrast, the Shennong Valley was peaceful and serene. Its disciples were mostly spiritual farmers—growing crops, researching new plants. In terms of combat strength, Shennong Valley was considered the weakest among the six major righteous sects.
But that didn't mean the sect was weak. So long as Shennong Valley stood, the Taiching Sect and Yin-Yang Sword Sect could not be overrun by the three major demonic sects. Shennong Valley was the greatest support force among them.
While their disciples lacked frontline battle prowess, no one could match Shennong Valley in defense and logistics. With them handling support, the other righteous sects could go to war without worry.
After watching for a while from outside the formation, Gu Mo noticed a steady flow of outer and servant disciples going in and out. None had made it onto the ranking board, though.
The stone stele listed the top 100 performers. The lowest-ranked disciple had defeated 5 sword puppets.
That number was also the threshold to qualify as an inner disciple. Anyone who defeated 5 sword puppets and made it onto the list would be promoted.
It was the fastest path for outer and servant disciples to advance.
Defeating 10 puppets earned you a top-20 spot and eligibility to compete for a core disciple position. The top 10 were already the sect's official core disciples.
Even the lowest among them had defeated more than 15 puppets. The top three had surpassed 20, and the first place stood alone at 28—far ahead of the rest.
Gu Mo's goal now was to defeat 5 sword puppets and become an inner disciple. The reason he set his sights so "low" was because his avatar's cultivation was still too weak.
With poor aptitude, the avatar's cultivation speed was limited. Even under the control of Gu Mo's Golden Core-level soul, it had only reached the second level of Qi Refinement.
For a sword cultivator, strength wasn't just about techniques—it was also about cultivation base. Without sufficient cultivation, even the most powerful techniques couldn't be used to their full effect.
But this wasn't a problem for Gu Mo. His plan was simple: once the avatar officially became an inner disciple, his true body would send over a wave of resources to quickly elevate its cultivation.
In a sword cultivator sect, hiding one's strength was pointless. The stronger you were, the more resources you'd earn, which would in turn make you even stronger—a snowball effect where the strong became stronger and the weak fell further behind.
With this in mind, Gu Mo took out his disciple token and stepped into the Grand yan Sword Formation.
The moment he entered, a vast and overwhelming sword intent pressed down on him. This was the power of the formation itself—if fully unleashed, even a Nascent Soul cultivator could be cut down.
Fortunately, the sword intent was currently restrained. Still, as Gu Mo appeared, a nearly imperceptible ripple stirred within that boundless pressure.
Then, a sword puppet emerged, its appearance identical to Gu Mo's own. It was formed entirely from the sword intent of the great formation.
Whoosh—
Gu Mo summoned his flying sword artifact. As a disciple of a sword sect, even outer and servant disciples were issued a basic flying sword upon initiation—a signature privilege of the sect. However, unlike pills and elixirs, no alchemical resources were provided, which was one reason Gu Mo's avatar's cultivation had progressed so slowly.
Of course, that too was because he was still only an outer disciple. If he were an inner disciple, the resources available would be entirely different.
As Gu Mo summoned his sword, the puppet attacked instantly with a refined sword technique. While it didn't contain any Sword Momentum or Sword Intent, it was still a strike at the early Qi Refinement stage.
Even so, that one blow, with its exquisite execution, was powerful enough to defeat most outer and servant disciples. And this was only the first sword puppet.
That made it abundantly clear: defeating five sword puppets to qualify for inner disciple status was no small feat.
Naturally, such an attack couldn't threaten Gu Mo. In fact, he responded by launching a counterattack using one of the foundational sword techniques granted to outer disciples of the Grand yan Sword Sect.
Gu Mo had already fully mastered this basic sword art. After all, he had comprehended two forms of the mysterious nameless sword codex—understanding a mere standard technique posed no challenge.
Shing!
His flying sword flashed like a stream of light and slashed across the puppet's neck. The puppet vanished instantly. Still, cutting down a puppet that looked just like himself felt a little strange.
Fortunately, the avatar's appearance had been heavily altered and bore no resemblance to Gu Mo's true face.
As the first sword puppet dissipated, a second one quickly formed—still in the avatar's image but with slightly increased cultivation. It too lacked Sword Momentum or Sword Intent.
The third and fourth puppets followed in the same pattern—only enhancing sword technique precision and cultivation base, but still devoid of Sword Momentum or Intent.
It wasn't until the fifth puppet appeared that Gu Mo felt the presence of Sword Momentum. This puppet had the cultivation level of the fourth, but now carried Sword Momentum—making it exponentially more dangerous.
That one factor alone elevated its combat strength by a whole tier.
The battle placed genuine pressure on Gu Mo. The disparity in cultivation made it difficult to match, and if he hadn't grasped Sword Momentum himself, the fight would've been far more troublesome.
"Heaven-Slaying!"
With that cry, Gu Mo unleashed a technique from the nameless sword codex and struck down the fifth puppet.
Then, he chose to leave the Grand yan Sword Formation.
Though he had the ability to fight—and perhaps even defeat—the sixth or seventh puppets, there was no need to overextend. His low cultivation made each battle far too taxing. Since defeating five puppets already qualified him for inner disciple status, Gu Mo decided to first focus on raising his avatar's cultivation.
Once the avatar's cultivation caught up, he would return to challenge the formation again. His goal: the top ten, to become a true core disciple of the Grand yan Sword Sect and earn the right to study the supreme inheritance—the Grand yan Sword Codex.
As Gu Mo exited the formation, a new name appeared on the ranking stele at 91st place: "Lin Wu", with the number 5 beside it.
Among those who had defeated five puppets, rankings were sorted by how long it took to win. Since Gu Mo had directly used the Heaven-Slaying technique to finish the fifth puppet, his time was among the shortest.
As a result, he wasn't listed at 100th, but 91st—the highest rank among the five-puppet victors. The 90 disciples ahead of him had all defeated six puppets.
Naturally, the appearance of a new name on the list drew attention. As disciples whispered and speculated about the newcomer "Lin Wu," a Golden Core elder of the sect had already tracked Gu Mo down.
"Not bad. If you were able to defeat five sword puppets, you must've grasped Sword Momentum, correct?" the elder asked, confirming Gu Mo's identity token and reviewing his basic profile.
Though his spiritual roots were poor, his aptitude for sword cultivation was remarkably promising. After all, to defeat five sword puppets with only second-layer Qi Refinement required exceptional sword comprehension.
"Would you be willing to become an inner disciple?"
Without hesitation, Gu Mo replied, "I would be honored, Elder!"
"Good."
The elder nodded approvingly and handed Gu Mo his inner disciple token, along with the accompanying benefits and allowances.
Inner disciples were now eligible to formally take Golden Core elders as masters. And if their performance was exceptional, they might even catch the attention of a Nascent Soul ancestor and be accepted as a personal disciple.
Of course, whether a Golden Core elder chose to accept someone as a personal disciple was up to them. But regardless, inner disciples would receive lectures and direct guidance—vastly superior treatment compared to outer disciples.
There was another major benefit: unlimited access to the Grand yan Sword Formation. With only a few hundred inner disciples, the strain on the formation was negligible. On the other hand, the vast number of outer and servant disciples meant their use had to be strictly limited.
Moreover, since the lower-ranked disciples were weaker, frequent exposure to the formation posed real risks, including injury or even death. By restricting access, the sect ensured they were adequately prepared before challenging it.
Gu Mo's promotion stirred up no small commotion among the outer disciples. However, another outer disciple soon followed suit, defeating five puppets and also becoming an inner disciple. The excitement around Gu Mo's feat quickly died down.
That day…
Gu Mo's avatar left his inner disciple residence and headed for the Mission Hall. He was about to accept an out-of-sect assignment—an excuse to meet up with his true body.
"This one'll do."
After quickly scanning the available missions, Gu Mo chose a beast-clearing assignment. Sword sect missions were usually straightforward: slay beasts, eliminate demons, hunt down evil cultivators.
The three great demonic sects often sent spies into righteous sect territories. When one was discovered, sword sect disciples—or others skilled in combat—were typically dispatched to eliminate them.
Of course, no one handled such tasks better than sword cultivators.
However, those missions came with high risks. This time, Gu Mo selected a simple beast-clearing task. He only needed a pretense to rendezvous with his main body—he had no intention of picking a high-risk demon-hunting mission.
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