Li Tianwu delivered a resounding punch. It was even accompanied by the rumbling of thunder. Although it was weak, Li Ye could immediately sense the bone-chilling onset of danger.
Thump!
On that occasion, Li Ye was forced to retreat a couple of meters before halting to a slow stop. By contrast, Li Tianwu laughed grimly. He followed up with another blow, with forgiveness clearly not on his agenda.
"Trash! Don't assume that you can change your fate just because you've already manifested your bloodsoul! I'll destroy your bloodsoul today! That way, you'll forever remain an uncultivable piece of trash!"
Such was Li Tianwu's ruthlessness. Bloodsoul was a cultivator's foundation—once destroyed, a person would be unable to cultivate for the rest of their life! It was far crueler compared to a person who had yet to manifest their bloodsoul, because failure to do so did not automatically mean that one was incapable of doing manifesting in their lifetime. Destruction of the bloodsoul, however, would definitively render one useless and uncultivable for the rest of one's life.
"Looks like I shouldn't be holding back anymore!"
Li Ye was not at all inferior to Li Tianwu in terms of pure strength. Even if Li Ye was merely at the latter phase of Martial Spirit Level One, it was but a negligible discrepancy between himself and the initial phase Level Three Li Tianwu.
Unfortunately, Li Tianwu knew how to wield battle skills. It allowed him to raise his bodily strength by more than double. That was practically the reason why Li Ye struggled to fend him off.
"DIE!" With a cold snicker, Li Tianwu completely ignored the rule that descendants of the same clan must not kill each other without cause. He showed zero signs of holding back.
At that exact moment, an angry voice was heard.
"LI TIANWU!"
Li Ye was just about to fight as though his life depended on it, but he was startled too. The person who shouted was none other than the beautiful woman who nurtured him—Aunt Yun.
Li Tianwu ceased his actions and shifted his gaze to one side. At that moment, a glimmer of infatuation and lust appeared in his eyes. He obviously recognized the woman who was always at Li Ye's side.
"Ye Yun, after all these years, you're still keeping this piece of trash instead of giving up on him?"
"Li Tianwu! This isn't the Li clan residence. Please leave!"
Aunt Yun was slightly angry, but a person like Li Tianwu was never going to be afraid of her. Instead, her rage made Li Tianwu burst into laughter. "Ye Yun, why must you set yourself against the Li clan for the sake of such a useless person? It'd be much better if you serve me. You'll have an endless supply of glory, splendor, wealth, and rank!"
Once he finished his sentence, he let out a lewd and ear-piercing laugh. His decidedly repulsive expression was displayed in full view.
Li Ye was thoroughly angered! Li Ye himself only dared to fantasize a teensy bit but Li Tianwu had the decency to even act rudely in front of her!
His patience was wearing thin!
"Li Tianwu! How dare you insult Aunt Yun!"
"HAHAHA! TRASH! Don't even think you can change your fortunes just because you've manifested your bloodsoul! I want you to know that I don't intend on just insulting her! As your
Upon completion of his sentence, Li Tianwu pushed Li Ye aside and grabbed Aunt Yun immediately.
"How dare you!"
Li Ye could not possibly let Li Tianwu do as he pleased. Li Ye was no idiot—he knew full well what Li Tianwu was trying to convey through those arrogant and vulgar words!
"Watch and see if I dare! I've always suspected something going on with both of you because she still protects you even though you're trash.. Might there perhaps be some illicit relationship going on between the two of you?"
"You're talking nonsense!"
"Hahaha! We'll know soon enough whether I'm talking nonsense! I'd like to see whether this illicit body is still pure after years and years of strong passion!"
Li Tianwu's words became more and more obscene. A blazing inferno of rage was burning within Li Ye, who delivered a punch without caring that he had earlier suffered a blow at the hands of his opponent!
"You're asking for it!"
Bang!
As expected, Li Ye was unable to keep him at bay. Although Li Tianwu's strength was not that much stronger than Li Ye, with the few battle skills that he had, his strength was enhanced to ridiculous extent.
"Trash is trash! You're still trash even if you had bloodsoul! Well today, I'm going to show you what a real martial practitioner looks like!"
Pow!
Li TIanwu unleashed a swift punch. The air exploded with a bang and all Li Ye could feel was a wave of intense pain. His entire body was sent flying back, hitting against the wall.
"Do you see it now! This is true strength! You already thought of fighting me even though you've only just manifested your bloodsoul? You're a dreaming fool! HAHAHA!"
His unbridled laughter prompted Li Ye to get up from the ground and wipe off the blood from his lips.
"LI TIANWU! STOP!"
Aunt Yun hurried over to Li Ye's side, protecting him as a hen would protect her chick.
"You don't need to hurry, Ye Yun. I'll treat you real good later! I won't kill him, I'll just let him see your look of pleasure beneath my body! That'll be the best gift for him!"
The Li clan was already one of Wu Prefecture City's great clans and Li Tianwu's status was not at all low. Despite not being as heinous of a person as Li Haoran, he was still an unsavory character.
Not to mention, Aunt Yun was a very beautiful woman. Many people would have secretly coveted her.
Li Tianwu was simply taking advantage of Li Haoran as an excuse to do the deed once and for all.
"LI TIANWU! Come to me if you have the balls! You're not fit to be a man if you lay your hand on a woman!"
Li Ye pulled Aunt Yun away. His voice had a somewhat demonic character, and since he was never a match for Li Tianwu, he had to resort to other methods!
The strength of his spirit!
Li Tianwu seemed distracted, but it was evident that he was a cut above Li Haoran. His absent-mindedness lasted only briefly and he soon snapped out of it.
"I'll show you whether I'm a man or not real soon!"
He sported an indecent expression and did not waste any more time. Stepping forward, he grasped Li Ye and laughed grimly. "Don't worry, I won't kill you! I'm gonna let you watch me pamper your beloved Aunt Yun! Hahaha!"
At that exact moment, Li Ye suddenly made direct eye contact with Li Tianwu!
"Li Tianwu!"
A defeated look appeared in Li Tianwu's expression after that dream-like sequence of a shout. Without waiting for Li Tianwu to recollect himself, Li Ye struck a hard punch directly on Li Tianwu's chest!
The strength within that punch was sufficient to break granite. In spite of Li Tianwu being at Martial Spirit Level Three, the punch elicited an instant cry of pain from him. Spitting out some fresh blood, he went sent flying the other way.
He who dominates would not be merciful—Li Ye knew that taking a person's life was best done when said person was in terrible condition. When else should he mount his attack if not at that moment!
'Lawless beating kills a master,' or so the saying went. Despite having zero knowledge of battle skills, a series of repeated pummeling left Li Tianwu confused and disoriented.
Li Haoran backed off after seeing what was happening. The little brat turned around and fled the scene without showing the slightest concern for his own brother's fate. Without a doubt, he was truly a boozer and a guzzler that was beyond saving.
It saved Li Ye some trouble at least.
After seeing the bruised, swollen, and unconscious Li Tianwu lying on the ground, Li Ye panted tiredly and sat bottom-first on the ground.
Soon enough, he looked up and saw Aunt Yun's shocked expression.
"This isn't good!"
It was then that he remembered how he ought to have been a frail and sickly child in Aunt Yun's eyes. How could he have turned into such an energetic person so abruptly?
"Aunt Yun, I!"
In that split second, he did not know how best to explain himself. However, the one thing that made him feel odd was Aunt Yun's rather unreadable expression. She looked at him with a profound gaze, as though she wanted to say something but stopped herself from doing so.
"You've grown up, and in the end, you still walk this path."
Aunt Yun's odd reaction puzzled Li Ye. She did not even pay attention to Li Tianwu and simply left with a heavy heart.
Although still unsure of why Aunt Yun reacted as so, Li Ye had other things to deal with.
Devouring Li Tianwu's bloodline essence!
"Li Tianwu, you're the one who brought this one yourself!"
…
Martial Spirit Level Two, initial phase.
Martial Spirit Level Two, latter phase, and counting!
Martial Spirit Level Two, at its peak! At the peak of Martial Spirit Level Two, the power breakthrough slowly came to a halt and subsequently ceased altogether.
Pow!
A simple punch seemed capable of causing an explosion in the air. His strength was basically ten times stronger than before, if not more!
"That much of an enhancement?"
A normal person who advanced from latter phase Level One into peak Level Two would, at most, see a threefold increase in power. Why then, did his power increase so dramatically?
In addition, Li Ye felt that his bloodsoul strength was more robust than an ordinary person. He would not even be outdone by someone of Martial Spirit Level Four. It allowed him to have a strength comparable to that of a peak Level Four!
"It's not even a month yet. If I can get another breakthrough, it'll be more or less enough!"
As of then, he would not have too many issues in defending against someone who's at Martial Spirit Level Four. Even if his opponent had battle skills, Li Ye's chance of success was not that low. Descendants with Martial Spirit Level Four were simply an interlude in each of the annual tournaments. The focal point would be those with Martial Spirit Level Five and above. Only cultivators of those levels would be worthy of attention from their clan's elders.
"I'm still slightly weaker at this point."
A person who did not possess a good bloodline would be naturally weaker than others. Once cultivation began, people who lacked good cultivation exercises would progress much slower than someone who had them. The entire Li clan was one such example—plenty of people cultivated Yellow Rank Intermediate cultivation exercises. A few of those elite disciples would be able to cultivate the Yellow Rank Advanced's Yellow Dusk Exercise, thus progressing significantly faster than normal.
Li Ye was not worried, though. He realized that he need not be too anxious about things, as his bloodsoul strength was growing exponentially. It was particularly so at night, when his body—out of its own volition—began absorbing the spiritual energy of earth and sky at an insane rate, like a black hole. Although the effect was much more diminished in the daytime, cultivation continued throughout the day.
It should be clarified that not many cultivators were able to do that. Humans, after all, were creatures of seven emotions and six desires. They needed to eat, drink, defecate, urinate, and sleep. Unless one were a cultivation maniac, no sane person would cultivate constantly without pause.
Li Ye, however, was able to do just that. Performing the cultivation was not even necessary, as his body was capable of doing it in its own accord.
On that day, the aura of Li Ye's blood appeared to manifest substantially while his vital force continued to increase in a steady flow.
His vital force finally stabilized sometime later. He opened his eyes and a flash of light came and went in the blink of eye
A gleeful expression graced his face after he commenced a cursory examination.
"Martial Spirit Level Three! Although it did not come as fast as it did when I devoured people's blood essence, I'm still faster at this speed compared to the clan members who cultivated using the Yellow Dusk Exercise."
In one day alone, he managed to break through from peak Level Two to initial phase Level Three. It was a speed that was completely and indescribably frightening! Leaving aside Yellow Rank Advanced martial exercises, not even the rumored-to-be-higher Black Rank exercises could bring about such a result!
Sighing once more, he realized how extraordinary his bloodline was!
As Li Ye was preparing himself to make a move and test the extent of his newfound powers on a suitable target, the bed before him let out a sudden cracking sound.
He looked down to see that his not-so-sturdy bed had split in half after his breakthrough earlier.
"Crap, I'm gonna get a scolding if Aunt Yun finds out!"
Just when Li Ye was feeling slightly vexed, he noticed that there was an empty space under his bed board, seemingly with some kind of package hidden underneath.
"What's this?"
He reached out to pull the bag out, then opened it. Inside was a
Taking out the sword, he could see that it was a rare godly weapon. Although the sword looked rather unassuming and ordinary, it emanated a certain coldness. It was definitely much sharper than many bladed weapons made elsewhere.
He placed the sword aside and opened the letter.
The minute he unfurled the letter, it burst out in flames. Next came a frightening consciousness that immediately surged into Li Ye's mind.
The consciousness bore no ill-will but Li Ye's mind suffered intensely as a result.
"So, you still opened it."
A soft and experienced-sounding voice came out of that consciousness. For some unknown reason, hearing that voice made Li Ye feel a certain feeling of close kinship.
Li Kainian?! His father?
It had to be Li Kainian! Li Ye's instinct told him that the consciousness was none other than Li Kainian, the Li clan's most outstanding prodigy in nearly a thousand years of history!
"I'm not sure whether letting you dabble in this is right or wrong, but since you've already manifested your bloodsoul and achieved the state of Martial Spirit Level Three, then it must surely be heaven's will!"
The consciousness was left behind by a virtue of a Master using his mystical powers. Li Ye was more shocked than ever before. It was known that an Innate Sovereign Level Master would scarcely be capable of doing that!
Was Li Kainian's state much higher than that of an Innate Sovereign Level Master?
"I know you have plenty of questions but this is the only piece of consciousness that I could leave behind. It cannot be maintained for too long. To summarize, since you have ended up embarking on this path, this is something that you must bear."
Soon after, the consciousness dispersed immediately, turning into a constellation of tiny lights that melded into Li Ye's thoughts.
"When you reach the Heaven Ascending State, come and look for me in Zhong Prefecture's sacred land."
That was the last thing mentioned by the consciousness. Finally, the entirety of it flowed into Li Ye's mind.
"Heaven Ascending State? Zhong Prefecture's sacred land?!"
Li Ye's jaw dropped and he left it that way for a really long time.
What did he know about the Heaven Ascending State?
Martial Spirit Levels were the foundation and the stepping stone for cultivation. There were nine levels in total. Once one broke through from Martial Spirit Levels, they could then enter into Innatism. Martial cultivators who reached that state were termed Sovereign Level! Only a tiny amount of people in Wu Prefecture City achieved that kind of level! A biased hegemony!
It was rumored that there were even states above the Innate Sovereign Level that were much more terrifying and even more refined. Such a state was called the Dark Earth State, considered the pinnacle of skill in the whole of Jiangnan Circuit!
At states above that of the Black Earth State, martial cultivators would undergo a tremendous change as they shed their mortal body. Their flesh would turn sacred and they could then fly and roam the Four Seas! In mortals' eyes, they were divine beings and that was what was considered the Heaven Ascending State!
Did Li Kainian actually suggest that Li Ye could only look for him after reaching the Heaven Ascending State? Zhong Prefecture's sacred land? Was that not the exact center of Cloudveil Continent? Was it the legendary heavenly abode of countless martial cultivators and the place where Masters were like clouds?
"Could my nominal father actually be at that place? What kind of state is he in now?" Whatever the state, Li Kainian would certainly not be at the Innate Sovereign Level that everyone in Wu Prefecture City believed! The manifestation of Li Kainian's consciousness confirmed one fact, at least... Before Li Kainian left the place, he was a Master who—at the very minimum—managed to reach the Dark Earth State!
Setting aside the doubts and suspicions in his heart, Li Ye noticed that the consciousness left him a series of secret martial exercises and battle skills.
"Lunar Dream Heart Sutra?"
Within his mind was the addition of the Lunar Dream Heart Sutra, a cultivation exercise of unknown rank. After Li Ye read all of it, he exhaled a cold breath and his heart began thumping with increased intensity.
"This is practically tailor-made for me!" The martial exercise and battle technique were both related to the illusionary technique!