"There's nothing wrong with your sword. I just wanted to ask—do you still remember back at Heishi Mountain? That place had no spiritual energy. You and I, in order to mine the blackstone, had to cultivate a different kind of force within our bodies, distinct from spiritual power. Only then could we complete the daily mining tasks."
Han Pengfei nodded.
"Of course I remember. It was you who had the insight, Zhūnzhǔ, and told me to use Qianyun Palm. That way, the strange force could circulate through the meridians and gradually build up."
"However," he continued, "after we left the Purple-Grade Secret Realm, that force seemed to vanish from my meridians. I haven't felt it again since."
Jian Dan listened carefully. It sounded like Han Pengfei's situation matched her own. She asked again,
"In these past years of cultivation and experience, have you ever faced moments where your life was truly in danger?"
"A few times. I barely escaped with my life."
"And did you ever experience meridian exhaustion during those moments?"
Han Pengfei's eyes sharpened. He immediately caught on and responded,
"You mean, when the meridians were completely drained of spiritual energy... that dormant force reappeared?"
"Exactly. You catch on quickly."
Han Pengfei lowered his gaze briefly, then looked up and said,
"You're trying to confirm something, aren't you? That's why you came to me. After all, only the two of us cultivated that power back then."
"It's just a preliminary theory," Jian Dan said without denying it.
"Then how about we spar? Zhūnzhǔ, you could deplete all of my spiritual energy, force me to my limit, and see if that power surfaces again."
"That was indeed my plan, but I still needed your consent."
"I'm in. Right now, the only ones capable of exhausting your spiritual power are Unity or Mahayana cultivators. Not easy to come by. And frankly, getting to spar with you is an opportunity I've been hoping for. It'll give me real combat experience against a high-level cultivator."
Han Pengfei smiled faintly, clearly pleased to be of help. He stood up and cupped his hands respectfully toward Jian Dan.
"No time like the present. Zhūnzhǔ, please follow me to the dueling platform on Yunhai Peak. The sect has a private arena reserved for core disciples."
"A bit impatient, aren't you?"
In truth, Jian Dan was just as eager to investigate this mysterious power. After all, that final strike of hers had completely obliterated the physical body of a Unity stage cultivator. The force behind it was undeniably overwhelming.
If she could master it, it would be another trump card for survival. In the cultivation world, you could never have too many means of staying alive.
"I still have a few matters to take care of. I'll head to Yunhai Peak in an hour. Go ahead and make the arrangements. But this matter must not be leaked. A power like this—unknown and unpredictable—would draw too much attention."
Jian Dan gave a warning. Han Pengfei bowed low and solemnly replied,
"I, Han Pengfei, swear by the Heavenly Dao not to reveal this to anyone. Should I break this oath, may my cultivation never progress another step."
The laws of the Heavenly Dao descended, and the oath was sealed.
Jian Dan smiled faintly. "That wasn't necessary. I trust you. I'm just worried about others causing trouble."
"I understand. If anyone asks, I'll say that Zhūnzhǔ owes me a personal favor and agreed to help guide my swordsmanship. After all, when it comes to the sword, the Heavenly Sword Sect is the orthodox lineage. Our sect is the foremost among all sword cultivators."
"Alright. We'll go with your explanation."
There was no need to dwell on minor details. With their plan settled, Han Pengfei left Yunyin Peak, full of excitement, to begin making preparations.
Jian Dan summoned Wu Siyuan.
"Young Master Wushuang just invited me to Yunhai Peak to give him some pointers on swordsmanship. Pick four Divine Transformation cultivators and two Divine Soul cultivators to come with me."
Wu Siyuan's eyes lit up. He immediately accepted the order and left to make arrangements.
While Jian Dan was speaking with Han Pengfei earlier, Wu Siyuan had already made a copy of the combat recording from Yue Liang. He was planning to study it later.
Now he had the chance to watch a live match. There was no way he'd miss it. He quickly notified the cultivators, but the sword maniacs almost came to blows fighting for a spot to spectate.
Furious, Wu Siyuan was forced to suppress them with force, then resorted to drawing lots to select six people. The rest could only ask the winners to bring back the combat recording afterward.
Now that everything was arranged, Jian Dan finally had time to pull out the message jade slip left by Jian Wu and read through it carefully.
It contained follow-up information on the recent Spirit-Convergence operation. During the mission, the higher-ups of several major sects had already obtained details about the Dingfeng Pearl and begun backtracking its origin.
The goal was to identify its current holder, confirm if the pearl had caused any anomalies, or if there was a risk of parasitic infestation. Only with extensive information could accuracy be guaranteed.
The Heavenly Sword Sect and its affiliated families were initially caught off guard by the return of the sword-amber, but they worked quickly to trace the pearl's whereabouts, deploy personnel, and only then did they release the news. Unsurprisingly, the Jia family immediately became the target of scrutiny.
Because of its early and thorough investigation, the Heavenly Sword Sect suffered only minor losses. A couple of small family leaders had been parasitized by black insects and were eliminated during the operation. In contrast, smaller sects and clans suffered heavier damage.
Taking advantage of the chaos, mid-sized sects nearby began a new wave of annexation and recruitment, redrawing territorial lines.
The Heavenly Sword Sect stayed out of all that. Its sole concern was eliminating black insects and retrieving any Wind-Fixing Pearls that had slipped out through the Jia family.
What wasn't made public, however, was that something was wrong with the pearl connected to the Fu family on Tiandu Peak. One elder had been controlled, resulting in severe internal damage.
Other major sects, having learned from the previous wave, managed to handle matters with relative ease and kept their losses to a minimum.
One figure worth noting was Fan Ji'an. The day the Jia family fell, his estate was immediately surrounded by city guards and he was taken into custody without a chance to resist.
Over the past thirty-some years, he'd already sensed Peng Xilai distancing himself. Important tasks were no longer given to him.
So when Du Yanran came back seeking protection, he hadn't hesitated to abandon her. He was in no shape to take on another enemy.
Even though he had been keeping a low profile, Fan Ji'an was still investigated due to his obvious ties to the Jia family. His downfall was inevitable.
Meanwhile, Du Yanran remained hidden in a rented room within Yunling City, holding the combat recording jade in her hand. Over and over again, she replayed the image of Jian Dan in battle.
She was absolutely certain: the Jian Lu Zhūnzhǔ of the Heavenly Sword Sect was none other than Jian Dan.
But according to the information she had gathered, Jian Lu Zhūnzhǔ hailed from the mortal realm, a native cultivator who had joined the sect by chance and was now a traditional sword cultivator.
Du Yanran trusted her instincts. She dug deeper and found that the mortal village Jian Dan had come from had been wiped out by evil cultivators. There were no survivors left who could verify Jian Dan's identity as Shan Yunzu.
Clearly, this was a false identity.
But what about the Mo Yue Zhūnzhǔ? Their appearances, behaviors, cultivation techniques, and weapons were all different. Could they truly be the same person?
Du Yanran felt like she had run into a wall. No matter how she turned it over in her mind, she couldn't find a way out. Looking back, whether it was Mo Yue or Jian Lu, both were now far beyond her reach. The difference in cultivation was too great.
Frustration and hatred surged up from her chest. Her spiritual energy suddenly spiraled out of control. She was on the verge of deviation. Her inner demon stirred.
The same vision replayed itself in her mind: Jian Dan holding that magnolia pendant, smiling at her with unrestrained joy.
"No! Give it back to me!"