novelraw Chapter 276 : A Gift from the Sword Sovereign — Earth-grade Sword Technique
Chapter 276 : A Gift from the Sword Sovereign — Earth-grade Sword Technique
Chapter 276: A Gift from the Sword Sovereign — Earth-grade Sword Technique
Outside the Sword Pavilion, the young Daoist held a sword scabbard.
His wrist hung low past his hips, causing the scabbard to rest almost against his thigh.
Chu Huaixu guessed that both people needed to touch the Black Bead and maintain physical contact with it in order to “interact.”
So he first tugged at the bead, grabbed it firmly, and then slapped it hard against the outside of his thigh.
This body cultivator didn’t control his strength at all.
“Pa——!”
The Dao Ancestor’s outer thigh felt as though it had been struck by a palm.
A full-force strike from a Third Realm body cultivator!
Yet the Dao Ancestor remained completely unmoved.
After all, he too was someone who had deeply concealed his body cultivation.
To him, this was probably no more than scratching an itch through a boot.
Everything around them froze once again.
“Hm?” The Dao Ancestor turned his head, letting out a soft exclamation, clearly not expecting the young man to act like this.
Since Chu Huaixu couldn’t see his expression or remember his appearance, he could only infer from his voice.
He faintly heard a trace of laughter.
“No need to be impatient,” the Dao Ancestor said gently, his tone warm.
——《He actually coaxed him.》
As soon as the words fell, the frozen world resumed. Everything began to move normally again.
However, the black sword scabbard in the Dao Ancestor’s left hand had disappeared, having been stored away in his Storage Token.
Chu Huaixu: “.”
Damn it, he muted me!
Driven nearly insane, Chu Huaixu felt a surge of frustration.
Yet the Sword Sovereign before him didn’t notice anything unusual at all.
With his terrifying cultivation, he didn’t even realize the scabbard in the Dao Ancestor’s hand had vanished.
It was as if, in his memory, the Dao Ancestor had never held a scabbard to begin with!
This made Chu Huaixu frown slightly.
The Sword Sovereign, who seemed rather straightforward in temperament, took out a jade slip from his storage ring.
“This Earth-grade sword technique was something I obtained during my travels. I gift it to you, fellow Daoist—it does not violate sect rules.”
The young Daoist did not refuse and accepted it gladly, smiling.
“This humble Daoist thanks the Sword Sovereign.”
After exchanging a few polite words, the Daoist from the Gentleman Temple declined the Sword Sovereign’s attempt to detain him.
He left the Sword Sect, flying through the air.
The scene before Chu Huaixu shifted. When it reappeared, the young Daoist had already found a beautiful small mountain, sitting atop an ancient tree, eagerly beginning to study the Earth-grade sword technique, clearly delighted.
Chu Huaixu: “.”
You just finished comprehending the Three Thousand Scrolls of the Sword Dao.
And now someone gives you another one—you fly for barely a dozen minutes and immediately start studying again?
But thinking about how this was a priceless Earth-grade sword technique…
Chu Huaixu endured it.
This Earth-grade sword technique gifted by the Sword Sovereign was called 【Azure Firmament Lodged Flame】.
The name itself wasn’t anything special—easy to understand.
“Azure Firmament” referred to the sky, while “Lodged Flame” meant a fire that had burned through the night without extinguishing.
The essence of this sword technique lay in the fact that after slashing out one strike, the dispersed sword qi would partially return, gathering again into the next strike, strengthening it—thus achieving an effect where the sword qi never ceased, each strike stronger than the last.
There were only nine strikes in total, with the ninth being the strongest.
However, there was a crucial condition: each move had to follow seamlessly without pause.
Once interrupted, it would no longer be a “lodged flame”—the fire would have gone out midway.
Overall, this was merely a mid-tier Earth-grade sword technique.
Even the incomplete version of 【Six Formations of the Broken Array】 was already Earth-grade. After Xu Ziqing completed it, it had reached mid-tier Earth-grade.
Its power, however, was at the level of high-tier Earth-grade—only the cost was too great, not something “ordinary players” could handle.
Chu Huaixu estimated it himself while checking the system’s description and data.
【Azure Firmament Lodged Flame】 could stack up to nine strikes.
At the same skill level, the first seven strikes were actually weaker than 【Six Formations of the Broken Array】 and not as fast.
The eighth strike was roughly equal.
Only the final strike surpassed it in output.
This meant that in battle, one had to choose techniques depending on the situation.
“【Azure Firmament Lodged Flame】 has no backlash, but it requires buildup beforehand.”
“Especially the first few strikes—their power is far inferior to 【Six Formations of the Broken Array】.”
Overall, from Chu Huaixu’s personal perspective, he still felt that 【Six Formations of the Broken Array】 suited him better.
Moreover, this self-destructive divine skill had already been cultivated to Major Mastery, while 【Azure Firmament Lodged Flame】 would have to start from scratch.
“But for Big Ice Block, the gains would definitely be huge.”
“After all, among everyone in the world, the most compatible with 【Six Formations of the Broken Array】 is probably me, followed by Little Xu.”
“For someone like Han Shuangjiang who doesn’t train the body—she’s just not suited for it. This kind of high-output divine skill is unusable for her. One use and her delicate hands would be ruined; two or three uses and even her slender arms would be finished!”
At this moment, within the Dao Ancestor Inheritance Secret Realm, Chu Huaixu, for the first time, hoped the Dao Ancestor would train 【Azure Firmament Lodged Flame】 to Perfection.
After all, this was Earth-grade!
“It doesn’t matter if I suffer a bit in this ‘little black room.’”
“At least time outside is paused.”
“This skill—once I leave, I won’t be able to upgrade it.”
A technique of this level was never meant for players in their thirties.
Just upgrading 【Six Formations of the Broken Array】 had already been a heavy burden for him.
Moreover, if 【Azure Firmament Lodged Flame】 reached Perfection, its power would certainly surpass Major Mastery 【Six Formations of the Broken Array】 by a significant margin.
In the mountain forest, Chu Huaixu followed the Dao Ancestor, practicing again and again.
After an unknown amount of time, system notifications began to sound in his ears.
“【Ding! Your skill ‘Azure Firmament Lodged Flame’ can now be upgraded. Upgrade?】”
“Upgrade.” He chose immediately.
The frozen surroundings did not resume.
The Dao Ancestor was still practicing his sword.
Seeing this, Chu Huaixu felt a surge of joy.
“As expected, once there’s a hard requirement, motivation changes completely.”
He continued tirelessly, raising the technique to Minor Mastery, then Major Mastery.
Just as he was looking forward to reaching Perfection, he suddenly heard the sound of birds chirping!
This world was no longer frozen—it returned to normal!
“No! Dao Ancestor, you’re not comprehending anymore?” He panicked.
Get up and keep studying!
What is this—collapsing right before victory?
He saw the Dao Ancestor slowly raise his head, looking toward the sky, and gently say:
“This sword technique’s concept contains contradictions. It is not beneficial for ascending to the peak of the Sword Dao. Learning it is truly tasteless.”
Chu Huaixu: “.”
You’re even critiquing it? It’s just a mid-tier Earth-grade technique—why are your standards so high!
If it’s tasteless to you, I’ll take it!
I see you eating fasting pills and I’m already jealous!
But his attention was quickly drawn to the Dao Ancestor’s next sentence.
“So, what is the strongest sword technique under heaven?” the Dao Ancestor gazed at the drifting clouds and sighed.
“It’s coming!” Chu Huaixu’s heart tightened.
The strongest sword technique under heaven was naturally 【Myriad Swords Converge】.
To be precise, it wasn’t just the number one sword technique—it was the number one technique in the world!
The Dao Ancestor’s next self-murmured sentence seemed like a supplement to his thought:
“The sword technique that I can use.”
At that moment, Chu Huaixu finally confirmed his answer.
Everything was exactly as he had expected.
For some unknown reason, the Dao Ancestor truly could not use the spiritual energy within his body to execute sword techniques.