Chapter 57: Xuan Qing Summons

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  The next morning, Lu Qing and the two of them sat cross-legged and circulated the sword yuan gong for a moment, forcing out the wine gas in their bodies. At this time, the sky was already bright, and the two of them packed up and said: "I haven't gone to morning exercises for a long time, although there is no rule that must go, but after all, it's a tradition on the peak, let's go once today."

  Lu Qing nodded, and the two of them arrived at the square in front of the Chaoyang Grand Hall. Today, many inner sect disciples had already returned to the peak, and on their way, they met quite a few people. Lu Qing didn't realize it until several disciples called him "Shixiong" (senior brother), that he was no longer the young junior brother from half a year ago. He had broken through his innate nature and become a pre-heavenly sword cultivator, one of the top-notch individuals in Chaoyang Palace, and even within the entire sect, he was a highly notable and exceptional disciple, not to mention his age.

  Arriving at the square, there weren't many people. Lu Qing took a look and saw that there were less than twenty disciples, most of whom ranked behind him. It can be inferred that the lower the ranking, the weaker the family's power, so the investment in training is not as good as some large families, and the strength will not be strong either. Of course, the time for the annual festival will not be long either.

  But Lu Qing saw that there were only two or three people in front of him, and they had hardly met before, so it was impossible to talk about their relationship. As for the three Gong Yangyu from yesterday, they did not show up.

  Upon seeing Lu Qing and the other person arrive, all the disciples made way for them to come forward. The others were fine, but several of the higher-ranking disciples changed color slightly. With their keen eyesight, they had naturally noticed Lu Qing's transformation. After their initial shock, they couldn't believe it, but they all remained silent. As for Lu Qing, that new disciple who had shone so brightly in the grand competition, they would certainly have a better understanding of him afterwards.

  The news afterwards also made them really surprised, and it's no wonder that they were introduced to the sect by their master Xuan Qing in person at first. Now many people are thinking about how to get close to Lu Qing, after all, now looking at it, whether it's strength or background power, Lu Qing has the qualifications for them to make friends with him.

  Looking at the group of people in front of him with a cold eye, Lu Qing sneered in his heart. Is this the change brought about by strength? At the same time, he also felt a sense of disgust towards the smiling faces of the few people in front of him, and a definition emerged in his heart: these people are not worth befriending.

  In Lu Qing's eyes, only those who did not underestimate and despise him for his abilities at the beginning were truly gentlemen with great virtues, while people like Duan Qingyun who went all out to help him were friends he could wholeheartedly interact with.

  Not to mention the power struggle before the annual festival, it made him have a deeper understanding of Duan Qingyun and others, that is what true friends are, they can understand your changes and think for you at all times.

  Less than twenty people rearranged themselves according to the ranking of the previous Grand Comparison, although there were some changes, many still stood in their original positions. Over the years, the Grand Comparison had taken place nearly a dozen times, and everyone had a deep understanding of each other's strengths, so even with changes, they wouldn't be too drastic.

  Lu Qing found out the final result of the big competition after leaving through his conversation with Nie Qingtian yesterday. Perhaps he was too familiar with his opponent's strength, so he gave up the opportunity to challenge from sixth place all the way to Zhao Qianye in third place. Maybe it was really influenced by Nie Qingtian back then, and Zhao Qianye indeed broke through his previous cultivation smoothly after closing himself off, advancing from the peak of the Small Sky Realm to the Middle Sky Realm.

  Although Zhao Qianye did not fully integrate the power of Feng Lei's two energies, he still managed to rank third with his powerful strength that was beyond the five elements. However, when faced with Zhao Qianye's challenge, Ling Xiang, who ranked second, unexpectedly chose to forfeit and give up defending his ranking, leaving many people perplexed.

  And then, Zhao Qianye surprisingly chose to challenge Nie Qingtian, which made the more than 200 disciples present almost boil over. The three protectors on the viewing platform, except for Xuanqing, were also shocked. However, what happened next was that Zhao Qianye's strength shocked them even more. Facing the sword master Xiao Tianwei's Nie Qingtian, Zhao Qianye's Zixiao Fenglei Sword had a major breakthrough and successively launched the eighth and ninth moves of the eighteen moves.

  As the first generation of Sword Emperor Lu Tianxiu's creation and continuous improvement, the profound swordsmanship that is considered to be at the top of the world finally showed its true power. At this time, the wind and thunder in the field were rolling, even Nie Qingtian's Xunfeng sword energy combined with his Clear Wind Drunken Sword could only barely break open Zhao Qianye's initial wind and thunder sword energy. Zhao Qianye's strong strength made the trial highly uncertain, to prevent both sides from suffering a crushing defeat, which would affect the selection of entering the Sword Pool half a year later, Xuan Qing personally intervened to separate the two.

  The battle was originally supposed to end in a draw, but Zhao Qianye's sword energy was depleted and he remained second. It wasn't until now that everyone understood why Ling Xiang had given up defending his ranking earlier - it turned out he had already known about Zhao Qianye's breakthrough, and in the face of an absolute gap, continuing to fight would only be humiliating.

  After listening to Nie Qingtian's narrative, Lu Qing also had greater expectations for the Zi Xuan Wind and Thunder Sword. At the same time, he deeply admired the extraordinary style of the generation's sword king, Lu Tianxu. After all, no matter how you say it, Lu Tianxu's body flowed with the blood of his Lu family.

  After a crowd of people stood still and steady, the morning exercise began. It was still the same basic seven-style sunrise swordsmanship. At this moment, Lu Qing's swordsmanship unfolded, and it was another scene from when he first entered the Yang Palace. The refined heart sword was now fully contained within a radius of about ten feet around him. Lu Qing did not activate his sword energy, but his purple electric sword aura was majestic and powerful. As soon as he started to wield it, it was no longer just morning exercise, but a display of showmanship.

  Despite this, Lu Qing still practiced the Chao Yang Seven Forms with ease and precision, his feet treading on the soft snow as he faced the rising sun in the sky. His heart was exceptionally calm, and now his every move had a subtle sense of lightness and heaviness, the transitions between sword forms smooth and effortless, changing at will. The large sword in his hand seemed like a lightweight bamboo branch, already subtly transcending his physical strength, yet it was an expression of entering a state of lightness and heaviness.

  However, more than a dozen disciples next to and behind him now seem to be paying attention to him. At this time, the residual light saw that Lu Qing's swordsmanship was so shocked that he lost his color, and even one of the brothers next to him had stopped his morning exercise, staring at Lu Qing's movements with dead eyes, while his hands were constantly making gestures, but still couldn't get the key, yet he didn't give up. With Lu Qing practicing over and over again.

  Lu Qing also sensed the changes in the people around him, but with his current state of mind, he wouldn't bother to pay attention to so many things. His movements remained unchanged, immersed in his own realm. The debate on swordsmanship last night had given him a lot to think about. At this moment, he was adjusting his actions and mental state according to the practice of sword techniques, trying to thoroughly digest what he gained from the battle with Nie Qingtian last night.

  "Come see me in the great hall after your morning exercise."

  It was Master, Lu Qing's heart moved, but it was Xuan Qing who was currently in the Chaoyang Hall transmitting his voice to him through divine sense.

  This time, Nie Qingtian rarely participated in the morning exercise, so he had been leading the sword on the Yayang platform for more than a dozen times before stopping. Except for some family members who were concerned about Lu Qing, after being shocked, they still shifted their gaze to Nie Qingtian. Nie Qingtian's swordsmanship was smooth and effortless, as if it would forever connect the sky and the earth. His white clothes were like snow, and his clear wind sword almost infinitely enlarged the essence of the Chaoyang Seven Styles. Moreover, it contained his profound grasp of the subtleties of lightness and heaviness. Without using the Sword Origin, he was even more majestic than Ling Xiang's sword leading at that time, and even more shocking to people's hearts.

  Lu Qing walked towards the Chaoyang Hall after finishing his morning exercise, unaware that Nie Qingtian's gaze from a distance was different from his usual carefree and uninhibited self, with a hint of solemnity and even a flash of sharpness.

  Unlike the nervousness of entering the Chaoyang Hall half a year ago, Lu Qing's heart was calm and peaceful when he entered the hall again after six months. He had become a true innate sword cultivator, and in the entire Zixia Sect, he could be said to be a top-notch expert. The change in his strength also made Lu Qing's state of mind more resilient, not to mention that he had previously broken through life and death, and was no longer shaken by anything.

  "Arrived——" At this moment, Xuan Qing sat quietly on the ground. Before, Lu Qing's realm was not enough, but now that he had entered the Sword Origin Realm, he faintly felt his master Xuan Qing's aura as if it had merged with the surrounding heaven and earth. Every breath seemed to be the space itself breathing, giving him a feeling of depth like the ocean.

  Slowly, Xuan Qing's eyes opened. At this moment, although there was no light or even a glimmer in his eyes, Lu Qing still felt that the burning incense around him seemed to dim down, as if the only thing left in the grand hall was this pair of eyes, and all the light had been taken away by them.

  "Your progress has surprised me, in just half a year, you have made such progress."

  Xuan Qing's voice was very soft, but it seemed to ring clearly in Lu Qing's ears. He bowed his head and said, "Master."

  "Ah, sit."

  Lu Qing also did not decline and sat down cross-legged on a futon about ten feet away in front of his master Xuan Qing.

  "Although I don't know how you've improved, but now you have the qualifications to make the sect make some concessions for you." Xuan Qing looked deeply at Lu Qing's calm face and said solemnly.

  It's finally here! (Ten Steps to the Newcomer Chart, urgently seeking recommendation votes and collection, hoping everyone will generously assist, making Ten Steps truly kill one person, a thousand miles without leaving a trail, killing all the way to the top ten!)