"Outer disciple Liu Wei, ranked fiftieth among the newly promoted outer disciples, has come to claim a sword," that disciple hurriedly said, bowing respectfully to Meng Fan.
Ordinary disciples held the Sword Pavilion in extreme reverence.
Upon arriving at the Sword Pavilion, they were courteous to everyone they met, and they wouldn't dare offend a sword-guarding disciple like Meng Fan.
Frowning, Meng Fan asked, "The outer disciple examinations haven't even begun yet. How could the rankings be updated?"
The disciple named Liu Wei replied, "One of the senior brothers has fallen. I was previously ranked fifty-first, so I naturally advanced to the fiftieth spot."
Hearing this, a trace of surprise flashed in Meng Fan's eyes. He hadn't expected such a loophole to exist.
Still, it made complete sense and was entirely reasonable.
"Very well. You may freely choose any sword on the first floor of the Sword Pavilion. However, some swords are extremely terrifying. If you covet a sword beyond your ability to control, you may suffer a backlash!"
This was a mandatory procedure; every disciple who came to claim a sword had to be given this warning.
"I understand," Liu Wei nodded, then stepped into the Sword Pavilion to select his weapon.
***
A short while later, Liu Wei picked up a sword and gave it a few swings in the main hall to see if it felt right in his hand.
*Whistling Wind and Swaying Willow Sword Technique*
Meng Fan had heard of this sword technique, but back when he was a handyman disciple, he had never had access to it.
Yet, watching Liu Wei practice, he instinctively guessed that this was the Whistling Wind and Swaying Willow Sword Technique.
He could even see through the flaws and shortcomings within Liu Wei's execution of the technique.
It was utterly absurd!
Even though he had never studied this sword technique, he could spot its flaws at a single glance.
He even subconsciously used his finger as a sword, making a few casual strokes in the air, and actually corrected the defects in Liu Wei's sword technique.
Based on this alone, who would ever dare call Meng Fan a miscellaneous-grade spiritual root?
In the main hall of the Sword Pavilion, Liu Wei frowned.
Because as he swung the sword, he always felt a lack of fluency, yet he couldn't figure out where the problem lay.
An outer disciple ranked in the top fifty only had a single opportunity to claim a free sword.
If he wanted to exchange it for another sword later, he would have to hand over three Spirit Stones.
Therefore, Liu Wei had to be quite cautious with his very first sword selection!
"Not satisfied?" Meng Fan asked Liu Wei.
Liu Wei nodded and said, "I tried several swords just now and felt this one suited me best, but when I swung it, something felt a bit off. I just can't figure out where the problem is."
Meng Fan glanced at Liu Wei and smiled. "Actually, your arms are not the same length. Your right arm is half an inch shorter than your left, so you should use a slightly longer sword.
"Moreover, your grip on the sword is different from ordinary people; your little finger tends to drift away from the hilt and brace against the very end of the pommel.
"Therefore, you are suited for a sword with a relatively short hilt.
"This sword suits you much better!"
Meng Fan reached up, took a sword down from the wooden rack, casually unsheathed it, and glanced at it.
The only reason he unsheathed it was so the lingering aura within the blade could feed the warm current aiding his cultivation.
He hadn't wiped this sword yet, so he certainly couldn't waste it!
The moment a surge of energy from the blade flowed into his body, Meng Fan tossed the sword over to Liu Wei.
Liu Wei caught the sword and gave it a tentative swing.
A look of pleasant surprise instantly appeared on his face.
Meng Fan's selection was spot on; this sword truly suited him.
After practicing his sword technique once more with this new weapon, Liu Wei was utterly satisfied.
He earnestly cupped his hands and bowed to Meng Fan. "Many thanks, Senior Brother!"
In truth, he didn't even know whether Meng Fan was his junior or senior brother.
But this title of Senior Brother was a mark of respect.
He was thoroughly convinced and won over!
"Don't mention it. You cannot linger in the Sword Pavilion. Since you've chosen your weapon, register it and be on your way," Meng Fan said calmly to Liu Wei.
Liu Wei hurriedly completed the registration, clutched his beloved precious sword, and departed happily.
Senior Brother Luo appeared before Meng Fan, carrying a wine gourd, and looked at him with surprise. "Kid, your discernment and insight are quite something!"
Meng Fan gave a shy smile. "Senior Brother flatters me."
Senior Brother Luo shook his head. "It's not flattery; it's genuine praise. It's a pity for someone like you to be stuck in the Sword Pavilion. You ought to achieve great things."
Meng Fan quickly said, "Actually, I feel the Sword Pavilion suits me very well."
"Fair enough. If you can endure and grind it out in the Sword Pavilion, your achievements will surpass those of anyone outside!" Senior Brother Luo patted Meng Fan's shoulder. "Cultivate diligently. Once you reach the 5th Layer of Qi Condensation, I'll take you to meet Old Lin."
"I will certainly work hard," Meng Fan nodded with a serious expression.
Then, he stared at the wine gourd in Senior Brother Luo's hand for a few moments and asked somewhat doubtfully, "Senior Brother, isn't this the wine gourd from my room?"
Senior Brother Luo rolled his eyes at Meng Fan and grumbled in dissatisfaction, "How do you even have the nerve to ask? I parted with it in agony, giving you a whole gourd of wine, and you didn't even drink it! The wine aroma was about to fade away—what a terrible waste of heaven's gifts!"
"Uh, my alcohol tolerance is a bit low. I only took one sip."
Hearing that Meng Fan had at least taken a sip, Senior Brother Luo didn't mind; he simply raised the wine gourd and drank straight from the rim.
"Such immortal brew, yet you don't know how to enjoy it. How boring."
After expressing his disdain for Meng Fan, Senior Brother Luo walked out the front doors of the Sword Pavilion and wandered off who-knows-where.
To be honest, Meng Fan envied Senior Brother Luo a little.
Ever since coming to the Sword Pavilion, he hadn't stepped outside even once.
When Senior Brother Luo returned this time, he would have to ask if he was allowed to go out.
All afternoon, Meng Fan continued wiping swords.
He only stopped after finishing forty blades.
Ever since the Black Wind Sword, none of the subsequent swords possessed any sword baleful energy, which brought a sigh of relief to Meng Fan.
The baleful energy of the Black Wind Sword had damaged his vital Qi, and he hadn't fully recovered from it yet.
As the sun set in the west, Senior Brother Luo returned right at the moment the Sword Pavilion was closing.
Just like last time, he reeked of alcohol with a wine gourd tucked at his waist.
It seemed this Senior Brother Luo was someone utterly obsessed with wine.
That made things much easier; if he ever needed Senior Brother Luo's help with anything in the future, all he had to do was procure some good wine to make conversation smoother.
That night, Meng Fan continued practicing the *Spirit Wind Mysterious Technique*.
Having wiped so many swords during the day and absorbed so much lingering aura, a warm current once again appeared in his lower abdomen when he practiced.
Relying on these warm currents, Meng Fan believed he could soon reach the 2nd Layer of Qi Condensation.
This time, the warm current lasted until the first light of dawn before finally exhausting itself.
As usual, Meng Fan rose exceptionally early.
And just like usual, Senior Brother Luo didn't emerge from his room with sleepy eyes until the sun was high in the sky.
"Kid, you don't need to be this diligent. Even if you sleep until the afternoon, nobody's going to care," Senior Brother Luo said with a yawn.
Meng Fan said rather awkwardly, "What if a disciple comes to claim a sword in the morning?"
Senior Brother Luo waved it off dismissively. "Then let them wait. Whenever we open the doors is when they get their sword.
"The rule of the Sword Pavilion is to close on the dot every sunset.
"As for opening time, it entirely depends on our mood!"
Hearing Senior Brother Luo's words, Meng Fan gained a slightly new understanding of the Sword Pavilion.
"Alright, Senior Brother, I have a question. I don't know if I should ask it."
"Ask!" Senior Brother Luo replied nonchalantly, always wearing a lazy expression.
"Senior Brother, if I have business to attend to, am I allowed to leave the Sword Pavilion for a bit?" Meng Fan asked, feeling a bit lacking in confidence.
After all, he had only been at the Sword Pavilion for a few days.
It felt like a newly hired employee at a company wanting to ditch work and slack off.
Yet Senior Brother Luo replied with complete indifference, "Of course you can, as long as you're back before the Sword Pavilion closes. If I'm inside the Sword Pavilion, you can just walk right out. If I'm not here, just remember to lock the front doors of the Sword Pavilion before you leave!"
Hearing this, Meng Fan was slightly dazed.
Could he really be this casual?
It completely exceeded his imagination.
Meng Fan continued asking, "Senior Brother Luo, outer disciples of the Shushan Sword Sect are allowed to cultivate in the Merit Palace for one hour every day. As a sword-guarding disciple of the Sword Pavilion, my status is equivalent to an outer disciple. Am I also allowed to go cultivate in the Merit Palace for an hour?"
"Of course. Since you've just entered the Qi Condensation Realm, you should indeed go practice in the Merit Palace more often," Senior Brother Luo told him.
A place like the Merit Palace was obviously useless to someone like Senior Brother Luo.
If Meng Fan hadn't brought it up, he would have forgotten such a place even existed.
The Merit Palace was equipped with a set of minor spirit-gathering arrays.
However, this place was generally only useful for disciples in the Qi Condensation Realm.
Moreover, once someone surpassed the 6th Layer of Qi Condensation, the effects became practically negligible.
"Then Senior Brother, I'll head out for a bit right now and check out the Merit Palace?" Meng Fan asked with a thick skin.
Senior Brother Luo smiled. "Go ahead. I have no plans to leave the Sword Pavilion today anyway."
Stepping out through the front doors of the Sword Pavilion, Meng Fan felt a refreshing sense of clarity.
He had been cooped up inside the Sword Pavilion for days, and stepping outside made even the air feel fresher.
Soon, he arrived at the Shushan Sword Sect's Merit Palace.
The Merit Palace was massive, easily capable of accommodating over a thousand disciples.
Sharing a single minor spirit-gathering array among a thousand disciples made it quite a tasteless chicken rib of a feature.
No wonder someone of Senior Brother Luo's caliber had long since forgotten about the Merit Palace.
But for a martial artist like Meng Fan who had just stepped into the 1st Layer of Qi Condensation, the Merit Palace could still be considered a treasured ground.
Meng Fan pulled out his sword-guarding disciple token, registered, and stepped into the Merit Palace.
Finding a spot, he sat down cross-legged on the floor and began to cultivate.
A moment later, his brow furrowed.
The warm current in his lower abdomen had already been used up last night.
He was currently practicing dry cultivation, and even inside the Merit Palace, it produced no notable effect.
He could barely perceive the circulation of the *Spirit Wind Mysterious Technique*. The speed was virtually identical to cultivating in his room at the Sword Pavilion without any warm current—there was no improvement whatsoever.
*With this kind of time, I'd be better off wiping a few more long swords and accumulating more warm currents.*
Meng Fan had already lost interest in the Merit Palace. Without a doubt, he had no intention of coming back tomorrow.
For other outer disciples, boosting their cultivation speed just a tiny bit in the Merit Palace was better than nothing at all.
But for Meng Fan, it truly amounted to a waste of time.
Meng Fan stood up, preparing to leave the Merit Palace rather than waste any more time.
Only to run into an acquaintance.
Well, not exactly an acquaintance—they had only met once before.Yang Stone! (Yang Shi)
Ranked forty-first among the outer disciples.
This guy was actually still coming to the Merit Palace to cultivate, which proved he hadn't yet reached the 6th Layer of Qi Condensation.
Once they reached the 6th Layer of Qi Condensation, disciples generally stopped coming to the Merit Palace.
Meng Fan now had a rough understanding of the outer disciples.
The top fifty outer disciples hadn't even reached the 6th Layer of Qi Condensation yet; to be honest, it was somewhat beneath mention.
Previously, Meng Fan had viewed outer disciples as towering figures, worlds apart from mere handyman disciples.
Yet looking at it now, outer disciples were nothing special!
***
When Meng Fan spotted Yang Shi, Yang Shi spotted Meng Fan as well.
Enemies are bound to cross paths!
Yang Shi glared coldly at Meng Fan with a ferocious grin on his face.
Back at the Sword Pavilion, with Senior Brother Luo present, he hadn't dared to do anything to Meng Fan.
Now, arriving at the Merit Palace—this place was no Sword Pavilion; this was his chance to teach Meng Fan a lesson.
"Meng Fan, I never expected you to have the guts to walk out of the Sword Pavilion. I couldn't do a thing to you inside the Sword Pavilion, but things are different here."
This fellow strode right up to Meng Fan, looking down at him with an arrogant expression.
Meng Fan smiled, glanced at Yang Shi, and casually asked, "What do you want?"
"What do I want? That depends on your attitude. Either return the Black Flame Sword to me, or don't even think about walking out of the Merit Palace in one piece today!"
"I don't believe you'd dare attack me inside the Merit Palace," Meng Fan said offhandedly.
The Merit Palace was not a place where people could just start brawling.
Yang Shi sneered, "I'll wait for you outside. Unless you hide inside the Merit Palace forever and never come out."
Blocking the door?
This tactic felt just like kindergarteners shouting threats: "Don't leave after school today, wait for me at the school gates!"
Meng Fan glanced at Yang Shi without paying him much mind.
Even though this Yang Shi was in the top fifty of the outer disciples, truthfully, Meng Fan wasn't afraid of such trash.
Barring accidents, this Yang Shi was at the 5th Layer of Qi Condensation.
The 5th Layer of Qi Condensation was theoretically much stronger than the 1st Layer.
However, this strength only lay in the aspect of True Qi; it didn't mean his swordsmanship or actual combat ability were similarly formidable.
To put it plainly, strong True Qi simply meant greater stamina and higher attack power.
Yet Meng Fan believed his swordsmanship could crush his opponent. If he could suppress his opponent with a single sword stroke, the opponent's stamina would become meaningless.
As for high attack power—if one could find the opponent's weakness, the opponent wouldn't even be able to land a hit.
Of course, this assumed the opponent wasn't strong to an unresolvable degree.
If someone reached Layers 7 and 8 of Qi Condensation, their True Qi would be incomparably tyrannical; even if their sword moves were utterly trashy, they could still crush you with overwhelming True Qi.
In that case, no matter how fancy your moves were, you could only take a beating.
However, Yang Shi clearly wasn't strong to that extent, so Meng Fan felt he could toy with him a little!
Yang Shi walked out of the Merit Palace and waited for Meng Fan outside.
Meng Fan followed closely behind and left as well. He had already planned on departing anyway, so he wasn't going to change his schedule on account of Yang Shi.
The moment Yang Shi stepped out, he saw Meng Fan following him right out of the Merit Palace.
A trace of surprise crossed his face.
In his mind, he had assumed Meng Fan would cower inside the Merit Palace and not dare to show his face.
"You've got quite a bit of nerve, kid!" Yang Shi stared at Meng Fan with a chilling voice. "I'll give you one last chance. As long as you return the Black Flame Sword to me, I'll let bygones be bygones and won't trouble you anymore."
Meng Fan shook his head. "The Black Flame Sword has already been reclaimed by the Sword Pavilion. If you want to claim a new sword, prepare ten Spirit Stones."
Outside the Merit Palace lay a martial arts practice ground.
Yang Shi grabbed a wooden sword from the weapons rack by the training grounds and pointed it at Meng Fan. "Since that's how it is, don't say I'm bullying you. Today, you're going to pay a price."
Meng Fan also picked up a wooden sword from the weapons rack.
These were the most ordinary wooden swords—unsharpened dull blades that carried zero lethality.
The Shushan Sword Sect's actual swords were mostly kept in the Sword Pavilion.
Even the newly forged swords from the Artifact Refining Hall were sent straight to the Sword Pavilion.
If disciples wanted to acquire a sword, their only option was to go to the Sword Pavilion to get one.
This Yang Shi was also quite pathetic; after losing the Black Flame Sword, he didn't even have a personal weapon left.
So right now, if he wanted to teach Meng Fan a lesson, he had to make do with the wooden swords scattered all over the training grounds.
Truthfully, if he gritted his teeth, he wasn't entirely incapable of scraping together ten Spirit Stones. But handing over ten Spirit Stones just like that really felt like a massive loss to him!
The more he thought about it, the more he hated Meng Fan.
Disciples often sparred on the practice grounds, so the confrontation between Meng Fan and Yang Shi didn't attract anyone's special attention.
"Swoosh—!"
Yang Shi drew his sword from its scabbard.
Even though it was a wooden sword, a faint hint of killing intent emanated from his hands.
Looking at the wooden sword in his grasp, the more he looked, the angrier he became. Originally, he should have had a proper, legitimate sword!
And it was all because of this Meng Fan!
He lunged forward toward Meng Fan in a flash, flicked his wrist, and twirled the sword in a flashy flourish.
Meng Fan sneered.
Flashy and useless!
Yang Shi hadn't taken Meng Fan seriously at all, so when he executed his strike, he threw in a meaningless flourish that served no combat purpose—purely for show and flashiness!
Thus, in Meng Fan's eyes, the opening stance of Yang Shi's sword strike was riddled with flaws.
Meng Fan drew his sword, striking first by acting last.
The flat of his wooden sword slapped against Yang Shi's wrist, instantly knocking the wooden sword out of his hand.
Then, with a flash of movement, he sidestepped Yang Shi's body.
He raised his foot.
And delivered a fierce kick right to Yang Shi's flank.
*Crack!* A crisp snapping sound echoed out.
At least three of this fellow Yang Shi's ribs were broken.
It was crushing and decayed like dead wood!
Effortless!
Meng Fan didn't even use the True Qi within his body. Although his reserve of True Qi was very small, once utilized, it could at least double or even triple his attack power.
Of course, it would only last for a single strike.
After that single strike, his True Qi would be completely exhausted.
Yang Shi was kicked sprawling onto the ground, staring at Meng Fan in utter shock and disbelief.
How could this handyman disciple possibly be this strong?
Earlier, Yang Fei had told him Meng Fan was formidable, but he hadn't taken it to heart at all.
A handyman disciple, what did he even amount to?
Yet, Meng Fan's strength far exceeded his imagination.
In their brief exchange just now, the opponent had seen right through him and completely controlled the rhythm of the battle.
This level of insight and experience simply filled him with despair.
A handyman disciple?
This was even more terrifying than an inner disciple.
He could sense that Meng Fan's cultivation realm was lower than his own—by quite a margin.
Yet this combat power had completely left him in the dust.
Absurd!
"Yield?" Meng Fan stepped forward, planting his foot right onto Yang Shi's face.
This was naked, unadulterated humiliation.
Yang Shi instantly flew into a rage, his True Qi erupting and forcefully thrusting Meng Fan's foot away.
It even forced Meng Fan to take two steps back!
"You're courting death——!" Yang Shi roared. Having already lost his weapon, in his fury, he threw bare fists directly at Meng Fan.
Using an unfamiliar *Startled Goose Step*, Meng Fan deftly evaded Yang Shi's punch.
"Swoosh!"
With a flick of his left hand, his wooden sword was unsheathed once more.
The tip of the blade rested right against Yang Shi's throat.
Though it was an unsharpened, dull wooden sword, if Meng Fan exerted a bit more force, he could still shatter Yang Shi's throat.
"Your swordsmanship and your combat awareness are both far too poor. All you have is cultivation and nothing else."
Normally, if Meng Fan said something like that, Yang Shi would certainly have scoffed with disdain.
But right now, with a sword pressed against his throat, he couldn't afford to!
His throat bobbed as he swallowed hard, and he said cautiously, "I yield."
These were true words.
He truly yielded.
***
Meng Fan's two moves made Yang Shi understand that he was no match for Meng Fan at all—he was leagues behind!
In truth, at this moment, he didn't feel Meng Fan was terrifying; rather, he felt the Sword Pavilion was terrifying.