Zhang Yong walked silently toward the isolated area, a place he had reserved beforehand among the mountains in one corner of the small world.
He sat down cross-legged in the center, took out from his storage the bag of spirit stones he had taken from the shop, and laid them all out before him. "Let's hope the quantity is enough."
Then he began to exhale and inhale calmly, placed his hand on the spirit stones, and started absorbing them.
One by one, the spirit stones turned to dust.
Five days later...
Zhang Yong sat in the middle of a circle of gray ash. All the spirit stones had been completely consumed. His face was slightly pale but more refined than before.
Yet it was not enough. The quantity had not sufficed.
"Damn it, I'm still only at the edge..." he muttered as he opened his crimson eyes. "I need another boost... immediately!"
He placed his finger on his forehead, activated his spiritual bond with the Bandit King, and sent a message.
"Bring me as many high-level herbs and plants from the garden as possible right now."
Time passed slowly, but soon the Bandit King arrived and placed several bundles of fourth and fifth-grade plants on the ground. "I didn't bring everything, only the plants that can regrow if their roots are not cut. But this amount should be enough."
Zhang Yong opened the bundles one by one and immediately began picking up the rare herbs: Blazing Dawn Flower, Heavenly Monkey Root, Golden Swallow Leaves, and even Heavenly Blood Fungus.
He put them into his mouth and devoured them as if he had been starving for thousands of years.
"Get away from here. If the lightning calamity comes, you will be affected," Zhang Yong said as he chewed like a madman.
The Bandit King sighed, but he had already seen lightning strike Zhang Yong before. In his current spiritual form, surviving the lightning would be difficult.
After a period of eating, Zhang Yong's body began to glow, his veins becoming visible.
Crack!
The sky shook violently and turned a dark gray color. Circles of interwoven energies began to form above his head.
"This... the Royal Lotus Lightning?! Even Huo Qiangda, on the verge of breaking through to the Emperor rank, only summons ordinary lightning!" shouted the Bandit King from afar, having suddenly appeared at the edge of the protected area.
As the sky was split by spiraling bolts of lightning, dense energies gathered in the center, forming a gray lotus of pure lightning, spinning slowly.
As for Zhang Yong, he slowly opened his eyes. His eyes were now like crimson stars, and a smile split his face. "Welcome, heavenly tribulation."
He raised his hands upward and pulled the lotus toward himself without hesitation.
The sky exploded.
The sound of thunder filled the small world, and a storm of light swept across the entire area.
Herbs trembled, mountains cracked, and water boiled in the rivers. But at the center of it all, Zhang Yong stood, defying the heavenly lotus itself.
The explosion of the sky coincided with a powerful flash emanating from the center of the lotus, which began emitting a bright yellow lightning glow.
The lightning shot from the lotus toward him with devastating force, but he did not step back a single step. With his raised hands, he received the lightning wave.
His muscles convulsed, but he did not retreat. Instead, he took a deep breath and continued to endure the lotus's strikes with his raw body.
Then suddenly, the lotus began to slowly open, and the petals started to fall from their place.
The lotus petals fell from the sky like transparent shards of glass, each one saturated with pure lightning energy.
One petal exploded a few meters from Zhang Yong, causing the earth to crack and the mountains around him to split. Even though his body was receiving shocks beyond what most cultivators could bear...
"Even Huo Qiangda was struck by nine dragons and still lived, and you think I will retreat because of a lotus?" he roared powerfully as he spoke to the sky.
Crack!
Another lightning strike landed directly on his chest. He choked for a moment, his knees bent, and blood trickled from the corners of his mouth, but he did not fall.
Then the last petal of the Royal Lotus fell, and there was only silence...
Then... an explosion!
A deafening roar swept across the sky, and a wave of pure energy exploded from Zhang Yong's body, sweeping through the mountains and valleys, shattering the rocks.
The energy explosion swept through the entire small world. The shockwave even blew the Bandit King away, despite him standing at a safe distance.
The ground beneath Zhang Yong's feet turned into a deep crater, and the rocks around it simply evaporated under the force of the released power.
In the center of this chaos, Zhang Yong stood still, then fell to the ground from exhaustion.
(Heaven-defying Body upgraded to the fifth level)
(Strength +250, Speed +250, Endurance +250, Intelligence +100)
The Bandit King, who had regained his balance with difficulty, stared at the scene with wide eyes. "He... succeeded?"
At that moment, Zhang Yong fully opened his eyes and lifted himself from the ground.
With a single step, he struck the ground with his feet and reached the Bandit King's side.
"Good, my speed and strength have increased dramatically. This will be perfect," Zhang Yong said, clenching his fist happily.
Zhang Yong raised his arm before his eyes, examining his skin, which had become tougher than steel. Every muscle in his body radiated raw power.
The Bandit King approached cautiously, his ghostly eyes examining Zhang Yong with astonishment. "You survived the Royal Lotus Lightning... Even in my time, I only heard of a handful of cultivators who dared to attempt that."
Zhang Yong smiled a tired but satisfied smile. "I have no choice. I cannot be like others."
At that moment, Zhang Guan suddenly appeared beside them, his black robe fluttering in the residual energy winds. "Congratulations on the breakthrough. But you have devastated part of our spiritual garden."
Zhang Yong looked around with a slight sense of guilt. Indeed, the surrounding area was completely destroyed. Cracked mountains, dried-up rivers burned to ash. But with the effect of the two springs, it would quickly return to new.
"By the way," the Bandit King turned his palm and handed over a void bag. "Don't start searching for herbs again. I have collected some herbs here as you wanted."
Zhang Yong took the void bag, then opened it to find it full of fourth and fifth-grade herbs and below. His eyes widened slightly in surprise.
"This... is more than I expected," he said honestly. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me," the Bandit King said gruffly, but the corner of his mouth rose slightly. "Just make sure all of this doesn't go to waste."
Zhang Yong nodded, then turned his gaze toward Zhang Guan. "I have a question for you. It is about Sword Qi and its other types."
Zhang Guan and the Bandit King exchanged a quick glance. "In fact, Sword Qi and Spear Qi are different types of spiritual energy. They are not absorbed from the outside, but produced internally, specifically in the Middle Dantian," Zhang Guan finally said.
Then the Bandit King added, "By creating and accumulating Sword Qi, you can even use Sword Intent. In your case, even without spiritual energy, you can create it. But this will require some work and quite a long time. However, with your talent, I say you will create your Sword Intent in less than ten years."
Zhang Yong pondered their words deeply, his crimson eyes flashing with a spark of determination. "Ten years? I don't have that much time," he said confidently. "I will find a way to speed up the process."
The Bandit King shook his head in annoyance. "Always reckless! Anyway, to create Sword Qi, you must find your own meaning of the sword."
"My own meaning of the sword?" Zhang Yong frowned and sighed. "More of this nonsense. Fine, I will think about it."
Zhang Yong took out his teleportation token and exited the small world.
When Zhang Yong returned to the Purple Star Sect, he found the atmosphere had completely changed.
After the great battle, the sect was bustling with activity and repairs.
Disciples were building the destroyed walls, and elders were supervising the reconstruction of the main halls.
Then Zhang Yong returned to the disciples' hall, and when he opened the door, it seemed to him that everyone was confused.
As Zhang Yong entered the disciples' hall, he found a strange atmosphere hanging over the place.
Everyone was gathered around the central table, their faces expressing clear shock.
"What is happening here?" Zhang Yong asked as he approached.
"Finally, you're back!" said Su Ming in a hoarse voice. "A disaster has occurred!"
Zhang Yong raised his eyebrows, a feeling of unease creeping into him. "A disaster? What do you mean?"
Liu Yan, who was standing in the corner with reddened eyes, intervened. "Wu Ruxian was arrested on charges of being a demonic spy, but she escaped before her trial."
A heavy silence fell over the hall. Zhang Yong stood frozen, his crimson eyes reflecting no feeling.
At that moment, time seemed to stop. Then suddenly, Zhang Yong burst into bitter laughter. "Is that all? You think I will collapse because that traitor escaped?"
Su Ming approached him cautiously. "Zhang... we know there was a relationship between you..."
"A relationship?" Zhang Yong cut him off sharply. "Nothing matters at this moment. There was no relationship between us. If I had known beforehand, I would have killed her myself."
The looks of doubt did not disappear from his companions' eyes, but Zhang Yong did not seem concerned. He walked calmly to the table and poured himself a cup of wine.
"Pay her no mind. She will not return," he said, raising the cup. "What matters now is rebuilding our sect."
Wang Wei did not pursue the matter further and raised his cup. "True words. A toast to the Purple Star Sect."
One by one, everyone raised their cups, but their glances still turned toward Zhang Yong from time to time.
It was clear they did not believe he was unaffected by the matter.
As for Zhang Yong, he drank his wine calmly, his eyes looking into the distance through the window. Deep inside, he felt a strange emptiness. He had killed her himself, torn her soul, and erased every trace of her... so why did he still feel this weight in his chest?
Zhang Yong shook his head. "Alright, everyone. I am going into secluded cultivation."
Su Ming placed his cup slowly on the table, his black eyes studying Zhang Yong carefully. "Secluded cultivation?"
"Yes, I will try to assimilate what I have gained so far," Zhang Yong replied coldly, twirling the cup between his fingers.
Su Ming did not seem convinced, but he did not object. "Alright, how long will you be gone this time?"
"I don't know," Zhang Yong answered honestly. "Maybe months."
"Then I will not fall behind. I will also go into seclusion," Su Ming stood up, a spark of enthusiasm igniting in his eyes.
Wang Wei raised an eyebrow as he took a gulp of his wine. "Both of you in seclusion? It seems the summit will be quiet for a while."
Everyone laughed. Even Zhang Yong could not suppress a small smile. The atmosphere in the hall lightened despite the circumstances.