Chapter 283

Chapter 283: Because It Was Too Weak

This time, it was a Hundred-Star Realm battlefield.

A swordsman stood proud and sharp-edged, sword in hand. Opposite him was a man who looked almost ordinary, wearing straw sandals, as if he didn’t want to fight at all.

“I’ve long heard of Third Zen Heaven’s great reputation,” the swordsman said coldly. “Yet you’re on the battlefield and don’t even dare to strike?”

The man in straw sandals bowed. “It’s not that I don’t dare. I simply don’t wish to kill Your Excellency.”

He raised his eyes, calm as still water. “Your Excellency’s heart is clear, and your devotion to the sword is pure. Someone like that shouldn’t die on a battlefield.”

The swordsman’s eyes narrowed. “Kill me? Let’s see if you have the skill.”

He thrust.

A vast pressure condensed at the sword tip in an instant. The strike made Wang Jie’s eyes ache. He recoiled, instinctively refusing to meet it directly.

This swordsman was far stronger than the Hundred-Star Realm opponent Xiao Hui had just faced.

Shu Rang sighed in admiration. “He doesn’t care for sword technique. Only sword power. That obsession makes him an oddity within the Ancient Sword Bridge-Pillar.”

“No wonder the one from Third Zen Heaven didn’t want to kill him.”

Wang Jie frowned. “Mentor, they’re enemies. Why hesitate? If the swordsman grows stronger, shouldn’t that be even more reason to kill him?”

“Because the one in straw sandals cultivates Third Zen Heaven’s Formless Zen Path,” Shu Rang said.

“Formless Zen Path?”

“In Third Zen Heaven, there are Entering Zen, Transforming Zen, and Zen Regression,” Shu Rang explained. “Those are the three major realms. Their methods have to reach those realms as well.”

“That man has reached Transforming Zen. In the Formless Zen Path, that means he’s stepped into the Formless Realm—clear-hearted, unstained by worldly dust. In a way, he resembles the swordsman.”

“He follows his heart, unmoved by outside forces—whether those forces are cultivation power or political stance.”

Wang Jie only half understood. What he understood clearly was this: if the man didn’t fight back, he would be stabbed to death.

The man from Third Zen Heaven watched the sword approach.

He didn’t dodge.

The blade pierced through him.

He met the swordsman’s gaze calmly.

The swordsman’s pupils shrank. “You—”

Before he could finish, the man in straw sandals raised a hand and struck. With a single palm, he shattered the swordsman into pieces.

Wang Jie’s breath caught.

Shu Rang shook his head. “His heart became disturbed. He was no longer clear. Once he stopped being the same kind of person, he could be killed.”

Wang Jie stared at the man from Third Zen Heaven, unsettled.

That had been a trap. He’d coaxed the swordsman into striking, then deliberately took the sword to disrupt his state of mind, and only then struck back.

Wang Jie clenched his jaw and memorized the man’s face.

If he ever became an enemy, don’t give him a chance. Kill him outright.

In the next moment, the scene shifted again.

They appeared in the void, near a Star-Refining Realm battlefield fierce enough to make the starry sky tremble. One side was Zhi Xing Xue.

Wang Jie’s eyes widened. Were they going to watch Star-Refining Realm combat up close?

“Want to see?” Shu Rang asked.

“Yes,” Wang Jie said immediately.

“Then watch.”

They moved closer. The void rippled. Starforce surged like a cosmic tsunami. The pressure alone was beyond anything in a Hundred-Star Realm duel.

Zhi Xing Xue struck, and it felt as if she became a star—drawing in surrounding Starforce and forcing it under her control. One blow shattered the void itself.

Her opponent’s sword arts were equally terrifying, too fast and too deep for Wang Jie to truly understand.

They kept approaching.

Wang Jie’s skin prickled. At this distance, he should have been torn apart by the aftermath already.

He glanced at Shu Rang.

Shu Rang’s expression didn’t change. He didn’t slow.

Wang Jie swallowed hard and kept watching.

Close enough now, he could see Zhi Xing Xue clearly. Snow wrapped her like a mantle, and around her—like a halo—Wang Jie thought he saw the familiar outline of Xia Peak. Heavy snow melted and steamed as she attacked.

He could see every detail. He couldn’t understand it—but it was clear.

He was standing right in front of her.

And she didn’t see him at all.

“Her power is Accumulated Snow,” Shu Rang said. “Snow accumulated in the heart. She likely endured cold lands for many years. She’ll need the warmth of ordinary life to melt it away.”

“At the Star-Refining Realm,” Shu Rang continued, “you become a ‘star’ yourself. It’s a metaphor, but depending on your methods and materials, you can transform into something that isn’t quite human anymore.”

He looked at Wang Jie. “Do you see a difference between Star-Refining Realm combat and ordinary combat?”

Wang Jie hesitated, then shook his head. “Not really. It still feels like a contest of Starforce, and of techniques and arts.”

Shu Rang smiled. “Correct. Because the Star-Refining Realm is weak.”

Wang Jie froze.

Weak?

Shu Rang’s posture was calm, even proud.

Wang Jie stared at him, shaken. “Mentor… what realm are you?”

“When you reach the Roaming-Star Realm,” Shu Rang said, “we’ll talk.”

Then the world snapped back.

They were once again outside the warship, as if none of it had happened.

Wang Jie’s head spun. He’d just stood in the heart of a Star-Refining Realm battlefield and watched it like a lesson. To Shu Rang, this war truly seemed like nothing more than a classroom.

“Think back,” Shu Rang said. “Did you notice anything?”

Wang Jie replayed the scenes, then admitted, “This disciple is dull. I didn’t notice much.”

“Xiao Hui,” Shu Rang prompted.

Wang Jie replayed Xiao Hui’s blade again and again. The false-and-real shift. The One Blade that split heaven and earth.

Still…

Shu Rang sighed. “Your experience is shallow. Fine. Here’s a hint—Starforce.”

Wang Jie frowned. “Starforce…?”

Then realization struck like lightning.

“Ordinary Starforce,” Wang Jie blurted. “Xiao Hui doesn’t have special Starforce.”

Shu Rang smiled. “And do you know why?”

Wang Jie’s mind raced. Xiao Hui was a genius of the Xiao Family. Even within Black-White Heaven, many Starforce cultivators possessed special Starforce. If Xiao Hui didn’t, it wasn’t because he couldn’t—it was because he wouldn’t.

Shu Rang looked out into the starry sky. “Special Starforce is what you get when universal Starforce mixes with a planet’s specific environment. If you compare the universe to a living being, then special Starforce is the impurities in its body.”

“If you want to go farther, don’t cultivate impurities.”

“Yes,” he admitted, “some impurities are strong. They can boost combat power quickly. But impurity is impurity. Once you reach a certain height, you’ll find the more impurities you’ve accumulated, the steeper the climb becomes toward the top.”

“That’s why some refuse to cultivate special Starforce. The most ordinary Starforce is the foundation.”

“And understanding yourself,” Shu Rang said quietly, “is the only ladder upward.”

He looked at Wang Jie. “Even though you don’t cultivate Starforce, remember this.”

Wang Jie bowed. “Yes, Mentor.”

Shu Rang took a sip from his wine gourd, satisfied. “I showed you three battles—Roaming-Star Realm, Hundred-Star Realm, and Star-Refining Realm. You should have taken something into your heart.”

He lowered the gourd. “You’ve rested for more than a month.”

“It’s time for a test.”

His finger moved.

The void stretched and folded.

Wang Jie blinked—and found himself face-to-face with someone.

Fang He.

Fang He stared at him in shock. “Wang Jie?”

Wang Jie heard Shu Rang’s voice at his ear, calm and absolute.

“Kill.”

Fang He had been chasing a fleeing group in the distance. Now, seeing Wang Jie appear, his shock twisted into delight. “Good. I didn’t expect you to be on this battlefield. Perfect—our grudge ends today.”

He sneered. “This time, there won’t be anyone to save you.”

“Wang Jie—die!”

One Blade fell.

Starforce roared down like a mountain collapsing.

Wang Jie raised his sword, Qi-Qi Convergence surging through him, and met the strike head-on.

The impact exploded through the void.

Fang He’s eyes flared with killing intent. He poured Starforce into the blade, pressing harder. He’d fought Wang Jie before—he knew if he didn’t go all out, he wouldn’t finish the kill quickly.

But the scene he expected—Wang Jie being crushed down—didn’t happen.

Starforce collided with Lockforce, and the shockwave shot upward in a column, splitting the darkness.

For an instant, Fang He’s Starforce couldn’t overpower Wang Jie’s Lockforce.

Fang He’s face changed. “Impossible.”

Then his gaze sharpened. “You… reached the Full-Star Realm?”

Even that shouldn’t be enough.

Wang Jie twisted his sword, forcing Fang He’s blade to turn with it. At the same time, Tempered Sword-Thread snapped out—fine as hair, almost invisible—cutting toward Fang He.

Fang He couldn’t see them, but danger crawled up his spine. He dodged on instinct.

A thread grazed his face, leaving a thin line of blood.

Fang He tightened his grip, eyes cold. How had Wang Jie improved this much?

Lockforce could clash head-on with his Starforce. And Wang Jie’s physical strength had always been monstrous. At this point, their overall power wasn’t far apart.

Fang He slashed horizontally, forcing Wang Jie’s sword back with brute dominance. Then he stepped in, both hands gripping his blade.

“Again!”

The second strike came down.

Wang Jie’s eyes narrowed. Rain spread around them, and four swords spun into position. Rain Sword Art stacked upon itself, sword qi weaving into a broad barrier.

The blade smashed through it, tearing open the rain curtain as it drove for Wang Jie.

Fang He’s Six-Path Roamer Starforce and his mastery of combat technique sharpened to its peak.

Even Chen Art couldn’t fully hold it.