I Cheated While Cultivating

Since obtaining this ultimate technique, Zhou Heng had attempted to comprehend it many times, but he had achieved very little success, with virtually no improvement in proficiency.

Based on his current progress, if he wanted to master this ultimate technique, he feared that he would need to continuously comprehend it for hundreds of years, and success might still not be guaranteed.

Of course, this was under the assumption that his cultivation realm did not improve.

Nonetheless, the enhancement of one’s cultivation realm is not something that can be achieved overnight. With his current martial arts foundation, he indeed couldn’t successfully comprehend ultimate techniques of this caliber under normal circumstances.

Although he had previously learned other Fourth Rank ultimate techniques such as “Purple Thunder Seven Strikes,” “Overturning Heaven Three Palms,” and “Golden Crow Slaughter God Great Law,” the mastery of these three ultimate techniques actually had their specificities.

Purple Thunder Seven Strikes, for instance, had its initial moves that were neither particularly powerful nor profound in concept, so the enhancement from lower-level martial arts was quite significant, allowing for straightforward comprehension and mastery.

Overturning Heaven Three Palms was different. It was the basis of the Overturning Sky Seal from the Primordial Gold Chapters; both its concept and power were extremely formidable. The mere first move possessed the force of “heavens and earth capsizing”, making its comprehension naturally extremely challenging.

However, at that time, Zhou Heng had an insight card, which allowed him to directly learn the Overturning Heaven Three Palms without truly experiencing the difficulty of comprehension.

The comprehension difficulty of the Sword Technique of Conviction was even higher than that of Overturning Heaven Three Palms. It was an ultimate technique associated with the laws of time, a fundamental derivative of the Slaughter Immortal Sword from the Spirit Treasure Jade Scroll, and very obscure and hard to understand.

With Zhou Heng’s current martial arts foundation, naturally, he could not successfully comprehend it.

And he had been worried about this all along.

He felt like someone guarding a mountain of treasures but unable to find the entry.

However, just now, upon seeing Li Qiyun take out the Time Stone and explain its effects, Zhou Heng felt that his opportunity might have arrived.

Therefore, he decisively used an appraisal card on the Time Stone.

The result was just as he expected—

This Time Stone, which contained the mana of time’s laws, not only allowed one to peer into fragments of others’ past but also had the effect of assisting one in cultivating time-related martial arts and Taoist formulas.

It was just like when Zhou Heng initially mastered the Golden Crow Slaughter God Great Law.

The fact that he possessed the heavy treasure of the Celestial Man Cave Sky, which intertwined laws belonging to the path of the sun, significantly reduced the difficulty of comprehending that martial art, enabling his mastery.

The Time Stone provided him with this kind of assistance for comprehending the Sword Technique of Conviction.

It was a big opportunity tailored just for him.

However, if he directly snatched the Time Stone from Li Qiyun’s hands, the risk would be too great.

Although she couldn’t detect Zhou Heng in his stealthy state, if he were a bit slow in taking something from her, he might get caught on the spot.

After all, she was a Great Grandmaster at the Absolute Fourth Rank. When it came to the speed of making a move, it would undoubtedly be many times faster than Zhou Heng.

Hence, Zhou Heng still chose to wait until the Time Stone was in Feng Shaoe’s hands before he stole it, and indeed, he stole the Time Stone from Feng Shaoe’s hands in the end.

Moreover, the moment the Time Stone was in his possession, Zhou Heng placed it into the Celestial Man Cave Sky, in order to block Li Qiyun’s perception.

In doing so, even with Li Qiyun’s Absolute Fourth Rank cultivation, even if she had made prior preparations and set some kind of tracking arrangement, she would not be able to trace the whereabouts of the Time Stone.

And while placing the Time Stone into the Celestial Man Cave Sky, Zhou Heng began sprinting towards Huangtong Mansion City, lest Li Qiyun, in a fit of rage, flew straight into the sky to start “carpet bombing.”

What he didn’t expect was that, under stealth, his taking the Time Stone actually scared Li Qiyun, a Grandmaster at the pinnacle of the Fourth Rank, into fleeing on the spot.

It seemed he had been mistaken for some extraordinary figure.

However, this was also good, avoiding many troubles and dangers.

Zhou Heng quickly returned to Huangtong Mansion City but did not immediately enter the city. Instead, he cancelled his stealth on the outskirts, where it was quiet and deserted, and pretended to search around.

Along the way, he deliberately encountered some people to ask questions before returning to Huangtong Mansion City.

After all, when he had left earlier, he had said he was going to track down Feng Shaoe, so of course, the act had to be complete.

After getting back to Huangtong Mansion City, Zhou Heng briefly described his process of tracking Feng Shaoe outside the city, putting on an appearance of regret for not having found her.

Lei Xiuyan, Lin Cang, and others were not surprised by this, since they had all noticed that the White Tiger had the level of Secret Sixth Rank; it was normal for Zhou Heng not to have caught up.

And perhaps this was not necessarily a bad thing.

Afterward, Yu He proposed to host a banquet to welcome and clean the dust off Zhou Heng and Cheng Jianjian. Lin Cang and Lei Xiuyan naturally agreed, and neither Zhou Heng nor Cheng Jianjian refused.

Consequently, that evening, the banquet was laid out in Yu He’s restaurant, with delicious food freely provided and fine wines for unlimited drinking.

In the end, Yu He, Lei Xiuyan, and Lin Cang all ended up drunk as lords.

Zhou Heng and Cheng Jianjian had profound Inner Qi and martial arts techniques far beyond the ordinary; even by the end, they showed little sign of drunkenness. After settling Yu He and the other two, they returned home.

…

The rental house in the far suburbs of Huangtong Mansion City was as usual.

The landlord had gone to bed early, there were no lights in the yard, and Zhou Heng, bringing Cheng Jianjian along, easily jumped over the wall and entered, returning to the familiar courtyard.

Zhou Heng pushed open the door to his room and was immediately greeted by a cloud of dust—it had been over two months since he had last been there, and it was normal for dust to accumulate in the room.

However, not a speck of dust could land on the current Zhou Heng. His Inner Qi was slightly revealed, wrapping around the dust and transferring it to the courtyard outside.

Then, the two of them walked into the room, which looked just as familiar as before.

“I should thank you for back then. Otherwise, being wounded by the ghostly energy, my fate could have been uncertain,” said Cheng Jianjian, looking at the now-repaired roof and smiling lightly. “Speaking of which, do I still owe you a roof?”

When alone, she still liked to call Zhou Heng “Young Master,” instead of “Little Uncle-Master” as she did before.

“What, is Jianjian going to compensate me for a roof?” Zhou Heng laughed.

“Mhm, it should already be counted in the rent I gave you,” Cheng Jianjian said, her eyes twinkling playfully. “The rent was quite substantial then.”

“Ah, that…” Zhou Heng chuckled dryly, changing the subject, “Speaking of which, how shall we arrange tonight? Just like before?”

He was referring to the time when Cheng Jianjian had been immobilized by ghostly energy and had to stay here.

Meaning, Cheng Jianjian on the bed and him on a chair.

“There is no need for that,” Cheng Jianjian replied softly shaking her head with a smile. “Nowadays, both of us can replace sleep with meditating in a seated position. There is room enough for the both of us on your bed.”

“Indeed, that’s true,” Zhou Heng observed his own bed. Although it was meant for a single person to sleep, if they were just to sit in meditation, there would be more than enough space for two people, and quite spacious at that.

And so, that was how they settled it.

Zhou Heng and Cheng Jianjian replaced sleep with meditation, passing the night quietly on this one bed.

It was all a very normal affair.

…

In the following days, Zhou Heng and Cheng Jianjian often visited the Pure Yang Martial Arts Hall.

After all, Cheng Jianjian’s main purpose for coming to Huangtong Mansion City was to see what the Pure Yang Martial Arts Hall was like and to assess the apprentices’ talents.

These apprentices might one day truly become disciples of the Pure Yang Palace.

Occasionally, when they saw a good prospect, they would personally offer some guidance, and the apprentices who received this advice would advance dramatically in their martial arts, becoming the envy of others.

In addition to visiting the martial arts hall, Zhou Heng also took Cheng Jianjian to the sealed-off Wang Family and lingered on the road in front of the Wang family estate.

This was where Zhou Heng and Cheng Jianjian first met.

In the days that followed, Zhou Heng took Cheng Jianjian around various places in Huangtong Mansion City.

Together, with their outstanding grace, they stood side by side, resembling a couple of immortals, inspiring envy in many.

On the ninth day of the first month, during a heavy snow, Cheng Jianjian bid farewell to Zhou Heng and left Huangtong Mansion City. She needed to prepare for the upcoming Zhou Tian Boundary Officer gathering and the Chaoyang wine event.

Moreover, according to her, life in Huangtong Mansion City was too easygoing and peaceful. If she stayed too long, she feared she might become too immersed in this comfort.

Therefore, she chose to leave.

Zhou Heng understood her feelings well.

Not just Cheng Jianjian— even he himself sometimes had the thought of living out his days in Huangtong Mansion City, enjoying the ease and comfort, which didn’t seem too bad.

However, occasional thoughts were just that, thoughts. Zhou Heng had long been clear about what he planned to do next and what his real purpose was.

After Cheng Jianjian left, he also began to concentrate, reining in his wandering mind. On the tenth day of the first month, he started to use the Time Stone to assist his comprehension of the “Sword Technique of Conviction.”

Of course, he didn’t meditate in his rented lodging to avoid any anomalies upon successful comprehension that might affect the house and the landlord.

Zhou Heng chose a mountain peak outside Huangtong Mansion City as the place for his meditation, where he could overlook the entire panorama of the prefectural city, expansive and unobstructed.

He could also see the forest where he used to practice the Palm Thunder.

Atop this peak, Zhou Heng withdrew his gaze from Huangtong Mansion City and took out the crescent-shaped crystal from the Celestial Man Cave Sky.

The Time Stone.

By now, this Time Stone had been made absolutely secure.

Zhou Heng had reasons for waiting several days before beginning his comprehension of the Sword Technique of Conviction.

On the one hand, Cheng Jianjian’s presence did pose some inconveniences; on the other hand, he had been utilizing the power of the Cave Sky during these days to purify the Time Stone, in case it bore any tracking spells left by Li Qiyun.

Since Zhou Heng still couldn’t personally enter the Cave Sky world, if he wished to use the Time Stone to facilitate his comprehension of sword techniques, he needed to take the stone out of the Cave Sky.

Although Li Qiyun couldn’t possibly track it while the Time Stone was within the Cave Sky world, the moment it was taken out, it could potentially attract Li Qiyun’s attention.

This was not a result Zhou Heng wanted to see.

Fortunately, after his breakthrough to the Peak of the Seventh Rank, he gained a slight increase in his control over the Cave Sky world, allowing him to use some of the Power of Cave Sky for purification of specific items.

This way, he could cleanse any arrangements on the Time Stone, making it a genuine aid and wonder, rather than a disaster-bringing calamity.

Zhou Heng sat cross-legged on a large bluestone, holding the Time Stone in his palm, his eyes slightly closed as he gathered his spirit and began to comprehend the “Sword Technique of Conviction.”

Indeed, meditating with the assistance of the Time Stone felt completely different than before.

“You are contemplating the martial art ‘Sword Technique of Conviction\'[Absolute Fourth Rank], and due to holding a treasure containing the laws of time-related principles, the difficulty of comprehension has significantly reduced, proficiency +0.02.”

…

“You continue to delve into the martial art ‘Sword Technique of Conviction\'[Absolute Fourth Rank], triggering the ‘Heaven Rewards the Diligent’ effect, further aided by the time-related treasure, you suddenly attain an epiphany, proficiency +0.8.”

“Congratulations! The proficiency of the martial art ‘Sword Technique of Conviction\'[Absolute Fourth Rank] has reached 1, you have officially mastered this martial art!”

…

“Congratulations! Since you had a foundation in swordsmanship, your understanding of the martial art ‘Sword Technique of Conviction\'[Absolute Fourth Rank] deepened, proficiency +3000.”

“Congratulations! For having mastered the martial art ‘Sword Technique of Conviction\'[Absolute Fourth Rank], your insight into similarly-typed martial arts and Taoist formulas has deepened.

“… The martial art ‘Innate Formless Sword Technique\'[Secret Sixth Rank], ‘Sword Control Technique\'[Secret Sixth Rank], proficiency +3000.

“The Taoist formula ‘Divine Sword Thunder Control\'[Sect Fifth Rank], proficiency +1000.”

As the reward notifications grew in number, Zhou Heng felt as if in a trance that he seemed to glimpse a vast and mighty river of bright silver, flowing in the unknown recesses of the cosmos.

Within the river, the water shimmered with sparkling light. Besides bright silver, it exuded an indescribable luster, as if it contained all things in the world and spanned past, present, and future.

This seemed to be… the River of Time!

Suddenly, he “saw” the River of Time beginning to condense, changing from its boundless expanse to a dwindling stream, until at last, it formed a pale cyan light.

The pale cyan light, no more than three feet, was full of the resolve to kill.

This was a sword light!

The Conviction Sword Light!

In this sword light, Zhou Heng felt the flow of time.

All things in the world, under the wash of time, cannot remain forever unchanged; they must transform.

This is the first gesture of the Sword Technique of Conviction, ‘Ephemeral Time’.

Then, Zhou Heng felt a new enlightenment in his heart; the pale cyan sword light he “saw” seemed to encompass other profound truths.

The flow of time itself seemed to be forcibly fixed by this sword light, no longer moving forward nor able to reverse, as if it would stay forever in the moment captured by the sword light.

This is the second gesture of the Sword Technique of Conviction, ‘Time Stands Still’.”

Zhou Heng was contemplating in a fixed state, unaware of the passage of time within that state.

Therefore, he sat on the green stone at the mountain summit for seven days and seven nights, until the morning of the seventeenth day of the month, when he slowly opened his eyes, awakening from the fixed state.

Zhou Heng spread his hand open, finding that the Time Stone’s radiance had slightly dimmed, but his heart was filled with infinite joy, and his eyes sparkled with vitality.

…

[Absolute Fourth Rank] Sword Technique of Conviction: Third level (1/3000)

…

The Sword Technique of Conviction, finally achieved!!