Chapter 151: Senior Sister Pei's prized pupil is truly terrifying!

Cao Xuan felt quite pleased with himself. At this moment, he had reached the first refinement of the Sword Spiritual Roots, a spiritual aptitude comparable to the first refinement of the Heavenly Spiritual Roots.

Over this past month, he could distinctly feel the sensation of a complete physical and spiritual rebirth.

True to its name, the Sword-Washing Pool had forged his "ordinary sword" into a top-tier "spirit sword"!

"I finally understand what Fairy Yunyi and Fairy Yuxin meant by their glances."

Cao Xuan already sensed that his mastery of the Azure Firmament Sword Intent at the Great Accomplishment stage could, at most, temper his aptitude to the first refinement of the Sword Spiritual Roots.

If he wanted to advance to the second refinement, this level of Great Accomplishment Sword Intent would no longer be able to sustain the state of "transforming into a sword"!

"Fortunately, I made preparations by drawing from the system in advance!"

Cao Xuan glanced at the rewards displayed on his interface, then casually checked out the fairy who had just "fallen into the water."

[Name: Jiang Lingyun]
[Spiritual Root Attribute: Earth Spiritual Root, Third Refinement]
[Cultivation Talent: Grade Six]
[Multiplier: 320x]
[Cultivation Realm: Early Golden Core]
[Characteristics: Crystal-Clear Sword Heart, Round and Flawless, Budding and Unopened]

"Oh, she is actually a genius. This multiplier is quite impressive!"

Though Cao Xuan had recently seen fairies with multipliers in the thousands, those were the supreme powerhouses of the cultivation world.

He was not one to aim unrealistically high; he knew that figures like Lin Miaoxuan and Chen Qianru possessed multipliers of a mere 10x.

Even his master at the Azure Cloud Sect only had a multiplier of 80x.

With 320x at the early Golden Core stage, Jiang Lingyun's foundation was, in Cao Xuan's view, already quite formidable.

"Is this what a Holy Land is like? There are certainly no lack of geniuses at the same level!"

Just as Cao Xuan was lost in thought, Jiang Lingyun similarly caught sight of him.

Having undergone the sword-washing process for over a month, Cao Xuan's edge was now fully revealed, sharp and piercing.

In her eyes, Cao Xuan's sword intent soared into the sky, making him look exceptionally dashing and romantic.

"This senior brother is also immensely strong! His natural talent and aptitude must be far superior to mine!"

Jiang Lingyun clenched her fists. "Master said that although our Heavy Sword Peak ranks lower now, it was once among the top-tier peaks."

"I must work harder too, so as not to bring shame upon Heavy Sword Peak!"

Because of Cao Xuan, Jiang Lingyun was filled with fighting spirit, and her own sword intent surged significantly.

Unlike Cao Xuan, who possessed no special physique, Jiang Lingyun possessed three major characteristics, and her spiritual roots were at the third refinement of the Earth Spiritual Roots.

Therefore, even with a Great Accomplishment Sword Intent, in the eyes of powerhouses like Fairy Yunyi, she would likely temper her way to around the second refinement of the Sword Spiritual Roots.

If she could maintain the Great Accomplishment Sword Intent continuously, she might even have a chance to reach the peak of the second refinement.

Spiritual roots varied in quality, especially once they reached the Earth Spiritual Root level and above. Not only was there a vast gap between different refinements, but there were also subtle differences within the same refinement stage.

In Pei Yuxin's view, Cao Xuan's control over his Great Accomplishment Sword Intent was smooth and effortless. Reaching the late stage of the first refinement of the Sword Spiritual Roots, or even the peak, should pose no problem at all.

In that case, even if his cultivation talent was only Grade Seven, his cultivation speed wouldn't be too slow; transforming into a sword would be entirely achievable, and the Void Refinement stage would be well within reach.

For the heritage of any peak, having at least a Void Refinement powerhouse at its lowest tier meant that the lineage could be considered properly succeeded.

Consequently, Pei Yuxin held a favorable impression of Cao Xuan, which was why she had personally brought him here.

Otherwise, had she let Qingyin bring Cao Xuan along—even though Qingyin was her successor—he would not have received the attention of Peak Master Yunyi, and the location of his stone platform in the Sword-Washing Pool would not have been nearly as prime.

Although the success of sword-washing largely depended on one's own capabilities, having a prime location could always enhance the outcome by a notch or two.

Cao Xuan had been washing his sword for over a month and thought he was nearing the end when he suddenly felt a gentle warmth spreading through his body.

"Hmm? Aside from the sword intent, does my Heaven-Connecting Sword Dao talent also have an effect on the Sword-Washing Pool?"

As Cao Xuan's Azure Firmament Sword Intent neared its end and slowly receded, his body gave a sudden jolt. The spiritual quality of his sword roots, which had already reached the peak of the first refinement, leaped out of nowhere and transformed into the mid-stage of the second refinement of the Sword Spiritual Roots.

"So this is the effect of a special physique!"

Cao Xuan felt a wave of shock, finding it almost unscientific.

Previously, through the continuous purification of his spirit using sword intent within the Sword-Washing Pool, he had felt that the process followed a gradual, progressive path.

Yet his innate talent—or what the Holy Land powerhouses called a "physique"—had allowed him to skip ahead without any warning, directly advancing by an entire tier and landing squarely in the mid-stage.

...

By the edge of the Sword-Washing Pool, Pei Yuxin played a few more moves. Beside her, Hong Lang, the Master of Heavy Sword Peak, wore a solemn expression as he pondered his own strategy to break the stalemate.

Compared to Fairy Yunyi at the early stage of the Mahayana realm and Pei Yuxin at the late stage of the Fusion realm, Hong Lang was merely a cultivator at the early stage of the Fusion realm, so his spiritual perception and strategic thinking were naturally somewhat inferior.

"Boom—"

Sensing Jiang Lingyun's towering Mountain-Heavy Sword Intent erupting into the heavens while Cao Xuan's Azure Firmament Sword Intent grew faint, Hong Lang smiled and said, "It seems Senior Sister Pei's prized disciple has finished washing his sword!"

Pei Yuxin frowned slightly, and Fairy Yunyi also revealed a look of mild surprise.

In their estimation, Cao Xuan should have been able to hold out for a little longer.

Because they had probed Cao Xuan on the shore earlier and found that he possessed no special physique, they had evaluated him strictly based on a standard Great Accomplishment Sword Intent.

They had no way of knowing that through the system draws, Cao Xuan not only possessed the Crystal-Clear Sword Heart, but had also upgraded it to the Heaven-Connecting Sword Dao, which to a certain extent accelerated the sword-washing progress.

If it were Jiang Lingyun finishing early, they would assume she had achieved an excellent result; but with Cao Xuan finishing early, they naturally assumed they had overestimated him.

"What a pity..."

Yunyi spoke up, preparing to console Pei Yuxin. Like Hong Lang, she assumed Cao Xuan must be a newly accepted disciple of Pei Yuxin.

Without a special physique and with only mediocre sword roots, to be completely honest, he was somewhat unworthy of being a peak master's direct disciple.

The subtle expectations Pei Yuxin had previously harbored in her heart were instantly snuffed out at this moment. "Forget it, it was Qingyin who wanted to take him as a disciple in the first place."

"As the very first disciple accepted before succeeding the peak master, he's passable enough."

Pei Yuxin mused that Qingyin had taken in quite a few disciples before; even her earliest senior disciple had only reached the peak of the Soul Formation stage—a cultivation level that was neither too low nor particularly astonishing.

Back then, however, she herself had merely been a direct disciple of the Myriad Sounds Sword Peak.

Pei Yuxin waited for Yunyi to finish speaking so she could clarify that Cao Xuan was not actually her disciple.

"Boom—"

Another surge of sword intent soared into the clouds.

"What? Mountain-Heavy Sword Intent! Jiang Lingyun... No, the intent and spirit resemble it, but the form does not!"

Hong Lang, the master of Heavy Sword Peak, wore a look of utter shock. Recalling the "what a pity" Yunyi had just uttered, his expression grew heavy as he continued, "Junior Sister Yun, it's fine. I understand that girl Jiang Lingyun; she has a pure and innocent nature. Even when washing swords alongside Senior Sister Pei's prodigy, she won't lose her Dao-heart due to any blow to her confidence!"

"That's not it!"

Yunyi's expression turned awkward. That wasn't what she meant at all, but at that moment, she too sensed that Cao Xuan was once again displaying a completely new sword intent.

And it was the exact same Mountain-Heavy Sword Intent as Jiang Lingyun's—one of the foundational sword intents of the Heavy Sword lineage.

Because the form was lacking, everyone present understood that this sword intent had not been comprehended through a sword manual, but rather through drawing inferences from other instances, touching the scene and stirring the emotions, and grasping the Mountain-Heavy Sword Intent through observing someone else's comprehension.

Hong Lang's expression grew deeply solemn. "To be able to achieve such a striking resemblance in spirit and intent merely by sensing the Mountain-Heavy Sword Intent for a brief moment... Senior Sister Pei's disciple is truly extraordinary!"

"Congratulations, Senior Sister Pei! In the future, the Myriad Sounds Sword Peak will surely be able to contend for the supreme leadership position!"

"That's not it either!" Pei Yuxin said, her expression equally awkward.