Naked Sword Art

Looking around, Xiao Fang finally noticed how eerily quiet the stadium was. Empty. Silent. He had no idea how long he'd been unconscious, but judging by the dust and the stillness in the air, it had been several days at least.

It was strange—why had they left him here all this time?

But before he could dwell on it, his thoughts shifted to something more pressing: how was he going to explain what he had done when he returned to the sect.

"You don't need to worry about that," Zhen Lixuan said, answering the question before it was spoken. "As far as anyone knows… your fight with Chu Piao never happened. After that girl, Xun Wei, defeated all nine of her opponents, Chu Piao went berserk and killed the Elders of the Flowing Blade sect."

Xiao Fang frowned.

He had noticed it earlier—when the man warned him not to tap into the Curse's power—and again just now. The timing wasn't a coincidence.

"Did you read my mind?" Xiao Fang asked, his tone cautious.

"I'm not doing it intentionally. Your thoughts are just open for me to see," Zhen Lixuan replied.

Xiao Fang's brows wrinkled. "Well, I don't like that. How can I hide them?"

Zhen Lixuan laughed like an Elder. "You can't, not until you reach the Heavenly Realm. That's when your path as a cultivator really begins."

Xiao Fang's awareness has fully returned now. Questions crowded his mind—questions about the rumors, about the exile, and where this man had been all this time—but one weighed heavier than the rest.

"Why did you help me?" he asked.

"Why?" Zhen Lixuan echoed with a faint smile. "Because you're my grandson. Do I need another reason than that?"

He paused, his expression turning somber.

"But I won't be able to pay visits to you anymore. From here on out, you will be on your own. Now that your mother has spread a few rumors about me, it's only a matter of time before they start hunting me down again."

"Who's they?" Xiao Fang asked cautiously.

"The Royal Court," Zhen Lixuan replied. "Stay far away from them. If they ever pull you into their sect, your fate will be sealed."

The answer only deepened Xiao Fang's confusion.

"And why would they care about me?"

Zhen Lixuan's eyes narrowed slightly. "If they ever find out that you carry two curses, they'll never let you go."

Xiao Fang blinked. "Two curses? I only have one."

Zhen Lixuan looked at him for a long moment, his expression tightening.

"You don't know…?"

"Know what?" Xiao Fang pressed.

"Maybe I shouldn't have said anything," Zhen Lixuan muttered. "But in time, when your strength grows, the second curse will naturally reveal itself."

Xiao Fang felt a wave of frustration rise in him, but before he could push further, Zhen Lixuan spoke again.

"You need to reach the Heavenly Realm soon—and leave this place. Once you do, everything will start to make sense."

"You say that like it's simple," Xiao Fang replied, frowning. "I've met cultivators who spent their entire lives trying and never got close."

Zhen Lixuan studied him for a moment, then his expression hardened.

"Fang… it seems you've either been misled, or simply never taught about the Heavenly realm. In either case—listen carefully to what I'm about to tell you."

Xiao Fang leaned in, holding his breath.

"As you already know, body cultivation is advanced through the consumption of tiered-beast meat or physical training. Spirit cultivation, through absorbing Qi from Qi-dense environments, pills, or beast cores. Comprehension of your cultivation methods helps too…"

He paused briefly, then his voice dropped lower.

"But no amount of pills, meat, or training will ever push you into the Heavenly Realm. In this country, there is only one known path to that breakthrough, and it's by consuming a fruit from the Tree of Ascension located in the Royal Court."

Xiao Fang stiffened. He knew he was being told something few were ever meant to hear.

"So eventually… I'll need to go to the Royal Court."

"Yes. Sooner or later, you'll have to. But you shouldn't rush. You'll need powerful allies there, and making the wrong enemies could destroy you before you even get the chance."

Zhen Lixuan's tone turned firm.

"For now, focus on one thing: Raising the cultivation realms of every method you intend to keep using. Get them all to the Divine Realm before you even think about ascending."

Xiao Fang mentally reviewed where he stood:

Illusory Body: Refinement Realm

Soul Devourer: Core Realm

Dual Cultivation: Core Realm

Divine Sword: Profound Realm

Death Reaper: Divine Realm

Surprisingly, the Death Reaper Method had already leapt straight into the Divine Realm. Though his other cultivation methods still had a long way to go, Xiao Fang could finally see the path ahead beginning to take shape.

"Do you have a completed version of the Dual Cultivation Method I can borrow?" Xiao Fang asked.

Zhen Lixuan shook his head. "Unfortunately, I do not."

Xiao Fang was disappointed, but not without hope. Yu An had once told him that Matriarch Shi possessed the completed version. If he could just get his hands on that book, breaking through to the Divine Realm in that method might actually be possible.

"Beyond the borders of this country," Zhen Lixuan began, "Heavenly Realm cultivators are far more common. Most only ever cultivate a single method to the Divine Realm before ascending—two, if they're gifted. But you… I can see you're practicing five."

He paused, then continued with a hint of gravity in his voice.

"I don't expect you to reach the Divine Realm with all of them, but if you can cultivate at least three to that level before ascending, you'll stand a far better chance of surviving the monstrous beings and terrifying cultivators that roam the lands overseas."

Xiao Fang raised a brow. "How many methods did you cultivate to the Divine Realm before ascending?"

"I cultivated three," Zhen Lixuan said. "But I can only use two."

"Why's that?" Xiao Fang asked, puzzled.

"The third was the Heavenly Fate Method—the method practiced by the cultivators in the Royal Court." His tone darkened. "Whatever you do, do not attempt to learn it. No matter how powerful it may seem, the price is your freedom. Your fate will no longer be your own. It's the reason why I cannot stay in this country for long."