Volume One: Divine Sword, Light Clouds

Chapter One: The Mysterious Decayed Sword

　　"You are a one-in-a-million sword talent! If you follow me in learning the sword, at most ten thousand years from now, you could become a peerless Immortal King!"

　　Amidst the multicolored, misty haze, a faintly discernible young maiden was looking down from above. Her face was unclear, but from her tone, she was utterly serious.

　　Adam Carter could only stare speechlessly at the scene before him, his expression a bit dazed.

　　Why is it this dream again? When will it ever end!

　　Without hesitation, Adam Carter pinched his own cheek, and sure enough, felt no pain at all.

　　He then shook his head vigorously, and this multicolored world suddenly shattered into pieces. Adam Carter also awoke from his deep sleep and opened his eyes.

　　He was by the bank of a waterfall, the setting sun casting the clear stream in a crimson glow.

　　Adam Carter had no mind to appreciate the scenery, instead fixing his gaze in front of him.

　　At this moment, he was sitting cross-legged, palms up. And right on his knees, sure enough, lay a sword, placed perfectly straight.

　　The sword was as wide as a finger, four feet three inches long, its blade slender, covered in mysterious ancient patterns, yet rusted all over. Along the edge, there were more than a dozen nicks.

　　No matter how you looked at it, it was just a useless, decayed sword.

　　Yet Adam Carter only felt a chill run through his body, a coldness flooding his heart.

　　Could he really have encountered something supernatural?

　　The origin of this sword was quite strange. About seven days ago, as the chief disciple on duty, he was responsible for organizing the academy's armory. This decayed sword was among them.

　　At the time, he hadn't paid it any mind, since the sword was so badly damaged. He bundled it together with a batch of discarded blades and weapons and sold them as scrap iron to a few blacksmiths in the east of the city.

　　Then strange things began to happen one after another. Every time he slept, he would dream of that indistinct young girl. And every time he woke, he would see this decayed sword.

　　For the past few days, Adam Carter had tried everything to get rid of it, and guessed that the sword must be connected to the girl in his dreams. On the fourth day, he threw the sword into the river; on the fifth, he buried it three zhang deep and pressed it down with a three-thousand-jin boulder. On the sixth day, he smashed the sword to pieces with an iron hammer and tossed it into a bottomless abyss.

　　But every next day, whether he was meditating or sleeping, he would always enter the same dream. And upon waking, the sword would be back at his side, completely intact.

　　The words that girl spoke, Adam Carter had memorized by now—always just that one sentence.

　　A one-in-a-million sword talent? That was just too exaggerated. When he first started martial arts, several instructors at the academy said he was clumsy and should give up on swords and blades, focusing on boxing instead.

　　And what was this so-called peerless Immortal King, anyway?

　　Immortal King? Did 'immortals' really exist in this world?

　　Shaking off his wandering thoughts, Adam Carter began to wonder if he should have someone completely melt down this decayed sword in a furnace. But if the result was the same as before, what should he do then?

　　In all his fifteen years of memory, he had never encountered something so baffling and intractable.

　　With a sigh, Adam Carter casually stuck the decayed sword into the ground beside him, then stepped into the water. First, he took a greenish pill from his robe and swallowed it, then stood firmly with his feet in a stable stance.

　　The pill was a Marrow-Nourishing Pill. Seven days ago, after clearing out the academy's discarded weapons, Adam Carter had earned some extra money and exchanged it for a full twenty Marrow-Nourishing Pills.

　　They could help one renew blood and nourish the marrow—truly a holy medicine for this stage of external training.

　　In all the nations of Tianyi, martial arts and immortal techniques were revered, and there were countless cultivators in the world. Though cultivation methods varied, the realms were roughly similar: Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, and Nascent Soul, each with twelve levels.

　　But before the Qi Refining realm, there were six minor stages. Entering from internal breath was the Six Stages of Qi Unification. Gathering spiritual power was the Six Stages of Spirit Nurturing.

　　For those like Adam Carter who trained external arts to strengthen the body, there were six minor stages: Skin Tempering, Bone Training, Tendon Training, Membrane Training, Blood Training, and Marrow Training.

　　From the outside in, once Marrow Training was mastered, the body would naturally generate internal energy.

　　Though the three paths ultimately led to the same destination—marked by the formation of true essence and entry into the first level of Qi Refining—the first two were much more convenient, saving half the time. Even with poor aptitude, one could complete them in four or five years.

　　But starting with external arts, though it led to a stronger body in the future, the entry was extremely difficult.

　　Adam Carter's talent for cultivation wasn't particularly strong, but not weak either. Even so, it took him a full seven years to reach the Marrow Training stage. Only after crossing this step could he generate internal essence and become a true cultivator.