Chapter 126: Chapter 126: Are You This Long?

Seeing the crowd’s shock, Liu Suifeng did not hold back.

"Sword Gang is not simply the condensation of True Essence. One must refine the divine essence of their Cultivation Technique entirely into their Sword Qi, transforming it from Qi to Aura, and finally into Gang. It must become as easy to command as one’s own arm—indestructible and unstoppable. The core lies in the union of ’intent’ and ’Qi,’ and the connection between ’spirit’ and ’sword.’"

Liu Suifeng went on to explain his insights on comprehending Sword Gang. Fang Chen listened with rapt attention. The vague doubts he had harbored about how to progress further after achieving Great Success in the *Clear Radiance Swordsmanship* were suddenly cleared away like clouds parting.

It turned out that Sword Gang was not just energy compression, but a complete fusion of will, insight, and power.

At this moment, many students below the stage began to look troubled, and some even muttered complaints.

"We don’t understand, sir..."

"Exactly, we haven’t even cultivated Sword Qi yet!"

"Isn’t jumping straight to Sword Gang way out of the syllabus?"

Hearing this, the excited glow that had just appeared on Liu Suifeng’s face from demonstrating Sword Gang quickly faded. He reverted to his usual lazy demeanor, twitching the corner of his mouth. "Heh, true. I got a little too excited."

He waved his hand casually. "Then I’ll just explain Sword Qi to everyone again."

But at the mention of "Sword Qi," his previously cheerful expression suddenly turned slightly apathetic, even carrying a hint of frustrated resignation at their failure to meet his expectations.

"Sword Qi..." He dragged out the syllables. "It’s not that I want to scold you, but with any High Martial Level Swordsmanship, as long as you put in the effort to cultivate it to the Minor Achievement stage, you will naturally stimulate Sword Qi. Is that so difficult?"

His gaze swept over the many students below who looked either ashamed or unconvinced.

"You all have been at the academy for quite some time now. Your cultivation hasn’t improved much, and you haven’t made any real progress with your Martial Skills, either. To be honest, if you could just concentrate on cultivating one type of Swordsmanship, combining the academy’s resources with the True Essence you’ve cultivated, reaching Minor Achievement and producing Sword Qi within a year or so should come naturally. It should be a very easy thing to do."

Fang Chen inwardly agreed with this point.

Ever since cultivating True Essence, he clearly felt that the efficiency of honing his Martial Skills far exceeded that of the True Qi period.

True Essence was purer, richer in Spiritual Attribute, and much more malleable. It was like replacing a rough iron ingot with hundred-refined steel before forging a weapon. Whether it was the speed of comprehension or the power of the final product, the two could not be mentioned in the same breath. It was a qualitative leap.

For the same Martial Skill, if it took ten years to temper it to Perfection using True Qi, it would only take three years using True Essence.

Fang Chen thought, "No wonder the academy’s assessment doesn’t care about the True Martial Realm. Once you reach the High Martial Realm, the board is basically wiped clean and everyone starts over."

He finally understood.

Many students hung their heads in dismay after being reprimanded. Others were unconvinced but didn’t dare contradict the teacher.

At this moment, near the right side of the front row, a figure stood up with a SWOOSH.

The young man was in his early twenties. He had a tall, straight posture and a handsome face that carried a hint of sharpness. He wore a dark blue martial outfit.

Frowning slightly, he looked toward the directions where the complaints had just come from and spoke in an impolite tone.

"Exactly! I was listening perfectly fine to Teacher Liu’s lecture on Sword Gang. I was just feeling inspired, like I was about to grasp an opportunity! But it was completely interrupted by you noisy people!" He looked around, his voice clear but laced with obvious disdain. "Truly... fools cause nothing but trouble!"

Seeing this, Fang Chen whispered to Fan Yutong beside him, "Does this guy... just want to make himself a target for everyone? Or does he have such a powerful background that he’s not afraid to offend people?"

Fan Yutong curled her lips and replied in a hushed voice.

"His name is Shao Feng. He’s from the Canglan Society, two years our senior. He’s already at the Yellow Rank with two strands of Dao Qi. He’s only one suitable Stabilizing Essence Spirit Guide away from breaking through to the Profound Rank.

"You know how the Canglan Society crowd is. They always keep to themselves, act incredibly arrogant, and rarely give anyone face. Besides... this Shao Feng is currently the Speaker for the Canglan Society among the Yellow Rank students. He’s strong, and his temper is indeed quite explosive."

Sure enough, as soon as Shao Feng finished speaking, a senior student from another society with an equally strong cultivation abruptly stood up and shouted angrily, "Shao Feng! Who are you pretending to be? Do you think everyone specializes in Swordsmanship like you? We just haven’t wasted all our time on a single Martial Skill! Don’t you know the principle of biting off more than you can chew?"

Shao Feng didn’t even bother to look at the man. He simply snorted coldly and turned his gaze toward Liu Suifeng, as if seeking permission.

Liu Suifeng stood with his arms crossed, watching leisurely with an expression that said, "Do as you please."

Receiving tacit approval, Shao Feng put his right index and middle fingers together like a sword and gestured through the air toward a standard longsword on the nearby weapon rack.

CLANG!

The longsword flew out of its sheath and landed right in his hand.

The next moment, without any grand posturing, he merely flicked his wrist and slashed at the air in the direction of the person who had just retorted!

SWISH!

A condensed, pale blue Sword Qi shot out from the blade. It whistled through the air with a cold, sharp intent, moving at an astonishing speed!

Of course, unleashing a Sword Qi so openly and directly wouldn’t actually hurt anyone. The people in its path dodged it in an instant.

With a sharp CRACK, the Sword Qi struck the side wall of the classroom dozens of paces away.

The Protective Array Patterns engraved on the wall’s surface instantly lit up with a ripple-like glimmer, neutralizing and dissipating most of the Sword Qi’s power. However, a smooth-edged cut was still left on the hard surface of the Cyan Gang Stone wall.

If it had been an ordinary brick-and-stone wall, it likely would have been cleaved wide open by this ranged strike!

The classroom suddenly fell silent once more.

Liu Suifeng looked at the gradually fading traces of the pale blue Sword Qi. A hint of approval flashed in his eyes as he nodded.

"Good! This Sword Qi already shows signs of being condensed like silk. With more time and polish, it won’t be far from nurturing a trace of the ’Sword Aura’ intent. It seems what you said earlier wasn’t a lie—you really were inspired."

Only then did everyone realize that Shao Feng’s earlier claim of an "epiphany" was neither an exaggeration nor a simple provocation. He truly had touched upon the opportunity for his own Sword Dao to advance while listening to Liu Suifeng’s explanation of Sword Gang.

Liu Suifeng’s attitude toward Shao Feng softened significantly. "No matter. After today’s class ends, I’ll tutor you privately for a few days. Hopefully, it’ll help you cultivate a Sword Aura sooner."

The arrogance on Shao Feng’s face faded slightly. He immediately cupped his fists and bowed deeply. "Student Shao Feng thanks Teacher Liu!"

Right at this moment, on the other side of Shao Feng, a student in a crimson martial suit suddenly stood up. His face was full of indignation, clearly agitated that Shao Feng had received the chance for private tutoring.

"You dare show off with this level of Sword Qi?"

His voice rang out as his sword struck. True Essence surged, and the longsword in his hand trailed a streak of fire. He slashed fiercely—seemingly aiming at Shao Feng—and a blazing, furious crimson Sword Qi roared out!

With such obvious intent and unleashed so openly, it was virtually impossible for the strike to hurt anyone. After the crowd scrambled to dodge, their gazes trailed the Sword Qi, instinctively looking toward the end of its path.

There, at some unknown point in time, stood an unfamiliar young student. He seemed to be turned sideways, whispering to someone next to him, completely oblivious to the Sword Qi bearing down on his back!

Liu Suifeng frowned. "Hmm? Is this guy... a newcomer? He hasn’t reacted? Oh no!"

He shifted his body, preparing to intervene and intercept the attack.

In a split second, the young student—without even turning his head—casually thrust his longsword behind him. With a light tap of the sword tip, a half-foot-long radiant glow extended from it!

POP.

A soft sound echoed, like a bubble being popped.

The imposing crimson Sword Qi shattered without warning the instant it touched that radiant glow. It dissipated into the air like scattering red fireflies.

Meanwhile, the smear of yellow radiance on the blade of the young student’s longsword slowly faded away.

Liu Suifeng’s gaze instantly froze, his pupils constricting slightly.

He wondered in shock, "Is that... Sword Aura? No, that’s not right... How is this Sword Aura so long?"

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