Heavenly Sword Saint
The physician's footsteps gradually disappeared into the distance.
The old courtyard returned to silence.
Jian Chen stood beneath the morning sunlight, his gaze fixed upon the distant training grounds.
The voices of the Jian Clan disciples drifted through the air.
Shouts.
Laughter.
The sound of weapons striking against one another.
Everything sounded ordinary.
Yet to Jian Chen...
Everything was different.
A month.
That was all the time he had.
He lowered his gaze and looked at his hands.
These hands were still too weak.
His body was still injured.
His cultivation was still at the beginning of the Body Tempering Realm.
And only one meridian had been awakened.
By the standards of the Divine Realm...
This was nothing.
But Jian Chen had never been someone who feared starting from nothing.
He had once been weaker than countless geniuses.
Yet before the age of thirty...
He had become the greatest genius of the Jian Clan.
His eyes gradually became sharper.
"The first meridian has been awakened."
"Now I need to temper this body."
He turned around and returned to his room.
Instead of immediately cultivating, he sat down.
His consciousness entered his sea of consciousness.
The Heavenly Sword Scripture floated quietly in the darkness.
Jian Chen stared at the ancient scroll.
"Show me..."
"How far this technique can take me."
He slowly opened the scripture.
The ancient characters began to glow.
A vast amount of information entered his mind.
The Body Tempering Realm was only the foundation.
The scripture didn't simply instruct a cultivator to absorb spiritual energy.
It explained how to guide spiritual energy through the body in a specific pattern.
Every circulation would temper a different part of the body.
Flesh.
Blood.
Bones.
Organs.
Even the meridians themselves.
Jian Chen's expression became serious.
"This is..."
He continued reading.
The more he understood...
The more shocked he became.
The Heavenly Sword Scripture didn't merely open meridians.
It also used those meridians to gradually transform the cultivator's entire body.
It was like building a foundation for a magnificent palace.
If the foundation was strong enough...
The palace could rise into the heavens.
Jian Chen slowly closed his eyes.
"I understand."
He began cultivating.
The surrounding spiritual energy slowly gathered.
Because he only possessed one awakened meridian...
The amount entering his body was extremely small.
For an ordinary cultivator...
This amount might have been considered pitiful.
But Jian Chen wasn't concerned.
He carefully guided every trace of spiritual energy.
Nothing was wasted.
The spiritual energy entered his meridian.
Then...
It flowed toward his muscles.
Warmth spread through his body.
Jian Chen's muscles tightened slightly.
He could feel the spiritual energy slowly tempering them.
One cycle.
Then another.
Time passed.
An hour.
Two hours.
Three hours.
The sunlight gradually moved across the courtyard.
Jian Chen remained motionless.
Sweat slowly covered his forehead.
His breathing became heavier.
Yet he didn't stop.
Every cycle made his body slightly stronger.
His previously weak muscles gradually became firmer.
His bones became denser.
His blood circulated more smoothly.
Even his injuries began recovering faster.
But the transformation was still slow.
Very slow.
Jian Chen understood why.
"One meridian isn't enough."
"If I want to increase my cultivation speed..."
"I need more."
He opened his eyes.
A faint light flashed within them.
He wasn't impatient.
Before awakening another meridian...
He wanted to make sure his body could withstand the process.
He stood.
Then walked into the courtyard.
The old wooden sword rested against the wall.
Jian Chen picked it up.
The moment his fingers wrapped around the hilt...
His entire bearing changed.
The weakness disappeared.
The calm expression remained.
But his eyes became incredibly focused.
He raised the wooden sword.
Then...
He began practicing.
One strike.
Two strikes.
Three.
His movements were simple.
There was no spiritual energy.
No sword qi.
No complicated technique.
Just the most basic sword forms.
But each movement was precise.
His wrist remained steady.
His feet moved naturally.
His breathing followed the rhythm of the sword.
Again.
And again.
The wooden sword cut through the air.
Swish!
Jian Chen's movements became faster.
Yet they remained controlled.
He wasn't trying to display power.
He was rebuilding his body's coordination.
His previous life had given him an extraordinary understanding of the sword.
But this body was different.
His current muscles couldn't perfectly execute the movements his mind understood.
Therefore...
He needed to train.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Sweat began flowing down his back.
His arms became sore.
His injured ribs also began aching.
Jian Chen ignored it.
He continued.
One hundred strikes.
Two hundred.
Three hundred.
His breathing became heavier.
His body began trembling slightly.
Finally...
He stopped.
The wooden sword lowered.
Jian Chen stood silently.
His chest rose and fell.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Much better."
His body was still weak.
But his control had improved.
Suddenly...
He heard footsteps outside.
Jian Chen immediately put the wooden sword away.
The courtyard gate opened.
Xiao Yue entered carrying a bucket of water.
The moment she saw Jian Chen...
She froze.
"Youth Master?"
Jian Chen looked at her.
"What is it?"
Xiao Yue stared at him.
"You've been exercising?"
Jian Chen nodded.
"A little."
"But Elder Xu said you shouldn't fight."
"I'm not fighting."
Xiao Yue looked at the sweat covering his clothes.
"You've been practicing the sword."
Jian Chen smiled.
"Just basic movements."
Xiao Yue sighed.
"You really are stubborn."
She placed the bucket down.
"At least rest for a while."
Jian Chen nodded.
"I will."
Xiao Yue looked at him carefully.
Then she smiled.
"You're really different now."
Jian Chen paused.
"Different?"
"Yes."
She tilted her head.
"Before..."
"You always looked sad whenever you practiced."
"But now..."
"You look like you actually enjoy it."
Jian Chen was silent for a moment.
Then he looked at the wooden sword.
"I do."
Xiao Yue smiled.
"Then I'll leave you to rest."
She turned around.
But before she left...
Jian Chen spoke.
"Xiao Yue."
She turned back.
"Yes, Young Master?"
"Thank you."
She blinked.
Then smiled warmly.
"You don't need to thank me."
She left.
The courtyard became quiet again.
Jian Chen watched the wooden door close.
His expression gradually became serious.
He looked toward the sky.
"One month..."
His hand slowly clenched.
The annual examination was approaching.
By then...
Everyone would see the result of his efforts.
But Jian Chen didn't intend to reveal everything.
Not yet.
There were too many eyes in the Jian Clan.
The Great Elder.
Jian Hu.
The other clan disciples.
He didn't know who could be trusted.
And after what happened in his previous life...
He had learned one lesson deeply.
Never reveal all your cards.
He would remain quiet.
He would cultivate.
He would grow stronger.
And when the time came...
He would let his strength speak for him.
That afternoon...
Jian Chen returned to his room.
He sat cross-legged once more.
His consciousness descended into his sea of consciousness.
The Heavenly Sword Scripture appeared before him.
His gaze settled upon the section concerning the meridians.
One awakened meridian.
Then another.
Then another.
Each one would increase his ability to absorb spiritual energy.
Not his cultivation realm.
His aptitude.
His foundation.
His future potential.
Jian Chen's eyes became determined.
"The first meridian..."
"Was only the beginning."
He began condensing sword qi.
A tiny strand slowly appeared.
This time...
There was no hesitation in his eyes.
He guided it toward the next sealed meridian.
The moment the sword qi touched it...
Pain exploded through his body.
Jian Chen's expression remained calm.
He had already experienced this once.
He knew what awaited him.
Boom!
The sword qi struck.
The sealed meridian trembled.
Jian Chen clenched his teeth.
Again.
Boom!
A tiny crack appeared.
His body trembled.
But he continued.
Again.
Again.
Again.
The courtyard remained silent.
Outside...
The Jian Clan continued its ordinary day.
No one knew what was happening inside the abandoned courtyard.
No one knew that the useless young master...
Was slowly changing.
And no one knew...
That with every strike of sword qi...
The distance between Jian Chen and the person he had once been...
Was becoming smaller.
The second meridian...
Was beginning to open.