Chapter 185: Advancing Another Rank Higher

With this, I had a rough idea in mind. Although I still didn't know what kind of treasure was hidden inside the Seven-Color Hall, it was bound to be immensely valuable.

Therefore, I secretly made up my mind that I had to go inside the Seven-Color Hall when I had the time. No matter what was in there, I had to see it with my own eyes.

"Senior Brother, you carry on with your watch then. I'll be leaving."

This disciple wasn't a bad guy. Unlike the others who were fierce and brutal, he was relatively easy to get along with. Seeing that we were about to leave, he gave a casual wave.

Chen Chen and I continued to stroll around, and Chen Chen whispered to me, "I think that place is actually the sect-protecting treasure."

I had thought about this question carefully just a moment ago, and it was indeed very likely. However, since we didn't know where the object was hidden, it was hard to make a move.

Besides, there seemed to be guards around that place day and night, so trying to force our way in was far from ideal. We would have to plan it out carefully.

Apart from that Seven-Color Hall, there was nothing nearby that caught my eye, nor was there any sign reading "Prison"—perhaps that had been hidden away as well.

This stroll wasn't without its gains; I had gathered some useful information, and I intended to try sneaking into the Seven-Color Hall tonight.

Returning to the cabin, I saw that the people in the courtyard next door were still busy. First, I drew a bucket of water, drank a few mouthfuls, and then thought about heading back to continue my cultivation.

Since the next test wouldn't be until tomorrow, this afternoon was a prime opportunity to increase my strength.

Chen Chen had the same idea as me, wanting to boost his strength as soon as possible. Thus, the two of us sat cross-legged on the bed and began to circulate our spiritual energy.

With the experience from the early hours of this morning, running the energy came to me as naturally as a fish in water, without the slightest obstruction. After I explained the method to Chen Chen, he also grasped how to cultivate here.

Time passed quickly during cultivation. When I opened my eyes again, dusk had arrived, and I could feel that I was only a step away from a breakthrough.

At the same time, I noticed that the pattern on Chen Chen's forehead was growing brighter and brighter, showing signs of a breakthrough at any moment.

I decided to give him a hand. Once again, gathering power in one hand, I channeled a dense surge of spiritual energy into Chen Chen's body.

Suddenly, Chen Chen's body shuddered, and his realm ascended to the second-grade of the Spirit Lotus stage.

"Not bad, not bad. You're about to catch up with me," I said calmly, looking out the window, though inwardly I was wondering why breaking through realms was so slow. Was it because I hadn't cultivated for too long?

I couldn't worry about that for now. I'd just let nature take its course—I was the pioneer of a Buddha-style, go-with-the-flow cultivation.

Afterward, I smiled faintly at the setting sun and prepared to practice my saber and fist techniques in the courtyard.

I hadn't used the Snow Blade recently. Sometimes it would still vibrate inside the storage ring, as if saying, "Let me out already!"

Yet it still had to remain hidden for a few more days. After all, my Snow Blade was far too recognizable; even if I wore a mask, people would still be able to identify me.

Therefore, I drew the Miao saber out from the ring instead. This saber was a gift from my Second Uncle back in the day. Its quality was quite good, and after using it for so long, there was not a single sign of damage.

As mentioned before, compared to a long saber, a Miao saber was slightly clunky, but for me, executing the Wing Shadow Saber Technique with it was an absolute breeze.

I naturally assumed the starting stance of the Wing Shadow Saber Technique, then began to wield the Miao saber in my hand.

This was the first chapter, containing no high-difficulty movements, yet it was still dazzlingly fast. I didn't dare to use my full strength, fearing that the Wing Shadow Saber Technique might be too powerful for the Miao saber to withstand.

It turned out I had been overthinking it. The Miao saber carved a perfect arc through the air and then crashed heavily into the ground.

A large pit appeared on the ground, but the Miao saber was completely unscathed.

Just as I wanted to continue practicing the second chapter, I felt a reaction within my spiritual energy, as if a breakthrough was imminent.

Immediately, I sat straight down on the ground and began to slowly circulate the *Tan Zi Record*.

Sure enough, as the spiritual energy inside me swelled, I slowly began to break a sweat.

Yet after the storm came the rainbow: a surge of spiritual energy shot straight to the top of my head, and I successfully advanced to the fourth-grade of the Spirit Lotus stage!

"Hoo..."

I slowly opened my eyes and saw Chen Chen, who had pulled a chair over and was sitting nearby. He wasn't cultivating right now, just gazing up at the stars the whole time.

"Tell me, why aren't you cultivating?"

Seeing that I had woken up, Chen Chen gave me an eye-roll and then said, "It's already past eleven-30 at night. You took so long just to advance a grade, and I was afraid someone might come and disturb us, so I came out."

So that was it. Moreover, it had actually taken me four or five hours to complete the advancement—that was much too slow, but it was worth it.

Now that I had reached the fourth-grade of the Spirit Lotus stage, the spiritual energy within my body had increased substantially, and even my hearing and vision had become extremely acute.

This was the joy of advancing grades, hahaha...

After gloating quietly to myself for a while, I called for Chen Chen to go back to sleep. Having sat outside for half the day, Chen Chen was somewhat tired as well.

Once the two of us returned to the cabin, Chen Chen lay down and immediately fell asleep. I had originally intended to go take a look at the Seven-Color Hall tonight, but I gave up due to sheer laziness.

"There's plenty of time..."

Having cultivated for so long, my lower back was a bit sore. Lying down brought immense relief, and before long, I drifted off to sleep.

......

When I woke up the next morning, I was once again roused by a commotion. Listening closely, I realized it was the people next door shouting and screaming at the top of their lungs.

I really felt a burst of irritation, so I changed my clothes and pushed the door open to go outside.

Yet upon stepping out, the sight left me completely dumbfounded: more than a dozen of them were actually ganging up to beat a tiger, and yet they were still losing.

I narrowed my eyes to take a closer look. Even that tiger was at the first-grade of the Spirit Flower stage; its strength was already formidable compared to that group of people.

The tiger acted like a god of slaughter. In an instant, flesh and blood flew across the courtyard next door. It was rather bloody, making me want to vomit first thing in the morning.

The instructor over there was also standing off to the side with a furrowed brow. I figured their task must be to hold out for a certain amount of time; otherwise, relying solely on a bunch of weaklings at the second-grade of the Spirit Leaf stage to kill a tiger was utterly unrealistic.

Did that mean our side would have to fight a tiger too? It seemed I'd have to keep acting today...

Perhaps because we were too tired last night, it was already past seven o'clock now, but the big guy who was always punctual hadn't shown up yet. Could he have gone to look for a tiger?

Anyway, we had nothing to do right now. Each of us pulled up a stool and sat in the courtyard to watch this battle of vastly unequal strength.

Most of the people over there were fresh greenhorns making their debut, so their weapons were garbage too. Many used daggers, and only a few possessed long sabers or long swords.

Weapons were important, but having a good weapon was even more crucial. If it wasn't a weapon suited to oneself, it would only do more harm than help.

Yet within just a few minutes, another person died over there. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before everyone on that side went to report to the King of Hell.

Therefore, I figured the instructor on that side definitely wouldn't let the fight go on much longer; he would have to step in and stop it before long.