"You're right. My strength might not be weak in Luoyang City, but compared to Young Master Soaring Dragon, the gap is just too wide."
Her weak spot struck, Liu Xianyu bit her lip, swallowed a Qi Locking Pill, took a few deep breaths, and walked to the cliff's edge to begin practicing her sword.
Her moves were fierce and filled with a chilling killing intent, clearly because she was thinking of Young Master Soaring Dragon.
Ning Jiang watched, but then shook his head. "Wrong. You're practicing your sword filled with killing intent and resentment. Be careful you don't succumb to qi deviation. When practicing the sword, your heart must be still like calm water. Your intent must be level, in harmony with your heart. A calm heart and even qi, like still water—this state of selfless immersion is the best way to practice."
Ning Jiang's tone was gentle, like flowing water soothing the soul. "Forget Young Master Soaring Dragon. Don't rush. Take it slow."
Liu Xianyu was, after all, the Liu Family's number one genius. Her aptitude was not poor. Under Ning Jiang's guidance, she gradually calmed her heart. Though her Sword Technique now lacked its previous killing intent, it became even more exquisite and profound.
The ground beneath her feet was slick as ice, and with the fierce, cold wind, she naturally couldn't move as if on flat ground like Ning Jiang.
She faced danger several times, her body nearly blown away by the gale-force winds.
Whenever this happened, she had no choice but to quickly stop her practice and struggle to steady herself.
"Don't be afraid. Execute your moves with confidence. If you really fall, I'll save you," Ning Jiang reminded her.
WHOOSH!
The wind raged, its coldness sharp as a knife. This gust was strong enough to snap ordinary trees in two.
On the cliff's edge, Liu Xianyu finally failed to resist. She staggered, her body tilting over the precipice as she began to fall.
This was a moment of life and death. She had taken a Qi Locking Pill, making it difficult to use her Innate Gang Qi. A fall would mean certain death.
At the critical moment, her gaze shot toward Ning Jiang.
Ning Jiang had said he would save her.
But Ning Jiang stood there like a stone, watching coldly, completely unconcerned as she fell.
"Ah!"
Liu Xianyu shrieked. Her entire body had already gone over the edge, and she was plummeting downward.
What chilled her heart the most was that Ning Jiang showed not the slightest intention of saving her.
'Am I going to die?'
The thought flashed through Liu Xianyu's mind in an instant. But perhaps the fear of death unlocked her potential. At the last possible second, she desperately swung her longsword and stabbed it forcefully into the cliff face.
The sword was an Upper Grade Treasure Artifact, astonishingly sharp.
SCREEECH.
The Treasure Sword plunged into the rock, sending sparks flying. Liu Xianyu clung tightly to the hilt, her body dangling. As she looked down, terror bloomed in her heart.
"Climb up on your own."
Ning Jiang stood by and watched, utterly unwilling to help.
Liu Xianyu gnashed her teeth in resentment. Although she couldn't use her Cultivation, her physical skills were not bad. Bit by bit, she climbed back up.
"You said you would save me!"
Once she was back on top, Liu Xianyu's pretty face was like ice, and she was furious. She had almost just fallen to her death. It was the first time she had ever experienced such a perilous situation.
"I was lying. You actually believed that?"
Ning Jiang sneered. "Save you? A person must learn to save themselves. It's better to rely on yourself than on others. Your life is your own. My fate is mine to decide, not heaven's. I can save you once, but what about the next time? What will you do if someone wants to kill you one day and I'm not around?"
"When it's time to face your Celestial Tribulation in the future, you'll have to do it alone. What will you do then? Expect someone else to save you?"
"If you had really fallen to your death, it would just mean you were a hopeless idiot. I couldn't care less about the life or death of an idiot."
Ning Jiang's first few sentences were well-reasoned and irrefutable, but his last sentence nearly made Liu Xianyu die of anger.
"You... you really are ruthless."
Liu Xianyu was so angry she couldn't think straight, not even addressing him as "sir" anymore.
"Continue," Ning Jiang said, seemingly incapable of anger, perfectly calm.
Liu Xianyu shot Ning Jiang a venomous glare. She was beginning to have a much clearer understanding of his personality.
This man, Ning Jiang, appeared amiable and approachable, but in reality, his seemingly gentle nature concealed an even greater ruthlessness.
"Don't resist the wind. Learn to use its force against itself. The principle of 'four ounces repelling a thousand pounds' is all about borrowing strength to redirect a great force. By the same token, when the wind blows, if you use its momentum to swing your sword, the power will be completely different."
Ning Jiang would offer a couple of pointers from time to time. In this respect, Liu Xianyu found him to be an impeccable teacher. Every word he spoke held a truth that benefited her immensely.
After a while, Liu Xianyu was drenched in fragrant sweat, her face flushed. Despite the biting cold of the wind, she was still covered in perspiration.
"Keep practicing. Practice until you reach your limit." Seeing Liu Xianyu's movements slow, Ning Jiang knew she wanted to rest. "You can't even handle being this tired? Are you that useless?"
Liu Xianyu was speechless with indignation. 'Does this man have no concept of showing tenderness to a woman?'
While Liu Xianyu practiced her sword, Ning Jiang wasn't idle either. He held two Primordial Stones and activated his Heaven-Devouring Demon Skill to devour the Primordial Qi within them.
The Primordial Stones were the size of pebbles and had a cyan hue.
The Primordial Qi within a single Primordial Stone could sustain an ordinary Martial Artist's cultivation for at least three days.
But with his thirty-six-times-accelerated rate, Ning Jiang could drain a Primordial Stone dry in just one hour.
Time slowly passed until evening. Ning Jiang had told Ning Yu'an he wouldn't be back for lunch, so he had his meals at the Liu Mansion.
Over the course of the day, Liu Xianyu fell from the cliff several times. Ning Jiang never intervened, forcing her to save herself every time.
To Liu Xianyu's pleasant surprise, under such extreme practice, her Sword Technique had improved dramatically, becoming faster, more precise, and sharper.
"Alright, you can stop now," Ning Jiang said.
"I thought you wanted me to practice until I died," Liu Xianyu said, her eyes filled with resentment. Her whole body was exhausted, and she could barely even hold her sword.
"Not quite. You've just reached your limit, which is perfect."
Ning Jiang didn't mind her complaints. "Everything requires a balance between tension and relaxation. Look at a zither string—if it's pulled too tight, it will snap. The human spirit is the same. Today, you've been on the edge of life and death, your mind constantly taut under immense pressure. If you don't get adequate rest, it will do more harm than good. Resting appropriately to recover your spirit is the proper way."
Just as Ning Jiang was speaking, a Maid ran up and handed Liu Xianyu a gold-inlaid invitation.
After reading it, Liu Xianyu's elegant brows furrowed slightly. "Liu Yun has broken through to the Innate Realm. There's a banquet tonight, and all the younger generation of the Liu Family are invited."
Among the younger generation, breaking through to the Innate Realm was a major event. Previously, she was the only one in the Liu Family's younger generation to have done so. Now, there was also Liu Yun.
Ning Jiang wasn't interested. This was a Liu Family banquet. "I'll take my leave then."
"Wait, the invitation is for you as well. It says they hope to bury the hatchet over a small misunderstanding at the Drunken Moon Pavilion. What happened at the Drunken Moon Pavilion?"
"A little something happened. Forget it, I'll go with you," Ning Jiang said, waving his hand dismissively.
Although it was likely that whoever sent the invitation had ill intentions, he didn't care. Even Old Sir Liu of the Liu Family needed his help now, so what did a small banquet hosted by the Liu Family's younger generation matter?
"Alright, then. I'll go change my clothes first."
Liu Xianyu looked down at herself. Her clothes were almost completely soaked with sweat, her skin faintly visible, which added to her allure.
Unfortunately, from beginning to end, Ning Jiang had barely looked at her. Only when he was occasionally giving her pointers did his gaze fall upon her.
That gaze was deep and tranquil, devoid of any other emotion.
In Ning Jiang's eyes, her beauty was no different from a pile of bones.
'Is this guy into men or something?' Liu Xianyu muttered to herself.
...
「An hour later.」
Liu Xianyu had washed up and changed into a fresh set of clothes.
The banquet was being held within the Liu Mansion, in a bamboo forest that contained pavilions and halls, all decorated with festive lanterns.
As the two walked, Liu Xianyu explained some of the Liu Family's situation to Ning Jiang.
For instance, the third generation of their Liu Family, despite sharing the same surname, was rife with internal strife and fierce competition.
This competition had already begun with the Liu Family's second generation—the children of Old Sir Liu Yuanlong. Although they shared the same father, they generally had different mothers.
For a powerful man like Liu Yuanlong, having three or four wives was a common occurrence in the Cyan Cloud Country.
As for the main figure of this banquet, Liu Yun, he was the son of the eldest of the second generation, Liu Zhengkun.
The Liu Family's second generation all shared the "Zheng" character in their names, like Liu Zhengkun and Liu Zhensheng.
The third generation didn't follow such strict conventions. Names like Liu Xianyu, Liu Mi, and Liu Yun were chosen more arbitrarily.
According to Liu Xianyu, Liu Yun was originally the Liu Family's top genius, but she later surpassed him by being the first to step into the Innate Realm. Now, Liu Yun had also reached this Realm, becoming the second-ranked member of the family's younger generation.
Furthermore, most of the current third-generation members of the Liu Family were on bad terms with her. This was because Liu Yuanlong valued her too highly, even planning to hand the Liu Family over to her. As a woman without paternal support, she naturally attracted a great deal of jealousy.
"I didn't want to come to this banquet tonight, but if I didn't, they would just secretly curse me for being aloof and arrogant."
Liu Xianyu sighed softly. Despite being the Liu Family's number one genius, she faced many frustrations.
Liu Yuanlong's favor toward her had caused a lot of dissatisfaction within the Liu Family. No one dared to question Liu Yuanlong, but she, a junior, was a different story and was often targeted.
"The power and authority that comes with controlling the entire Liu Family... of course they wouldn't be willing to let you have it."
Ning Jiang said this, then shook his head. "Chasing power, scheming against each other... they're all idiots, wasting their lives. Mortals are like this, always wasting their time on petty squabbles. Instead of all that, it would be better to improve one's strength. In the face of true strength, everything else is fleeting."
Speaking of which, Ning Jiang thought of the Ning Family in Baiquan Town.
Wasn't the Ning Family's situation just the same? Weren't he and Ning Yu'an in Luoyang City precisely because they had been targeted by certain people in the Ning Family?
The Ning Family... it had chilled both his and Ning Yu'an's hearts.
However, all open conflicts and secret schemes were illusory in the face of absolute power.
He would return for this year's Ning Family annual meeting, and with absolute strength, he would suppress everything!
At the center of the bamboo forest, over a hundred people were gathered—all young men and women in fine silks and dazzling jewels. It seemed that Liu Yuanlong's children had mostly taken several spouses themselves, resulting in a crowd of descendants.
When Liu Xianyu arrived, dozens of gazes immediately focused on her.
Then, even more eyes shifted to the person beside her, Ning Jiang.
Who was this person walking with Liu Xianyu? It was well-known that she rarely associated with men.
"Everyone, allow me to make an introduction. This is the man who caused such a stir a few days ago by agreeing to a life-or-death battle with Zhou Wenhao. He is that Ning Jiang."
A young man stepped forward. It was Liu Feng. He walked step by step until he stood before Ning Jiang.
"I originally thought that anyone who dared to accept a life-or-death battle with Zhou Wenhao would at least be an outstanding talent. But now it seems he's just..."
A disdainful smirk played on Liu Feng's lips, his eyes filled with ridicule. "...a reckless fool who doesn't know his place!"
The cold taunt, deliberately amplified with his Cultivation, echoed throughout the clearing.
The area fell silent. Every single gaze converged on Ning Jiang.
Slowly, looks of disdain began to appear in the eyes of the crowd.
This Ning Jiang, the man who was set to fight a life-or-death battle against Zhou Wenhao of the Luoyang Ten Heroes, was only at the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer!