The art of sword control emphasizes channeling spiritual power outside the body to command a flying sword. William Harper had once heard a wandering swordsman say that a hundred years ago, there was a sword saint who could achieve such a feat—could it be that the other party was an immortal cultivator?

　　As Grace Bennett spoke, she observed the other person's expression.

　　Her cultivation from her previous life was gone, and even her thoughts were as ordinary as a mortal's. She no longer possessed the divine sense she had cultivated in the upper realm; all of this made her feel as if she were in a dream.

　　What frustrated her even more was that seven days was too short a time to retrain. Her current status was not high, and no one believed her—only the young man before her was willing to try listening.

　　After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Grace Bennett finished explaining all the essentials of sword control.

　　As soon as she finished speaking, William Harper's mind exploded, and his consciousness was instantly transported to a vast and magnificent palace, resplendent in gold and jade.

　　This was his Celestial Palace!

　　When he first arrived, he stood outside the palace and could see the plaque inscribed with the words "Celestial Palace." After that, he would appear directly inside the palace.

　　The space within the Celestial Palace was vast, but after his exploration, there was only this one hall. On both sides of the hall were displayed all kinds of weapons; he could also imagine weapons and martial arts equipment, creating them at will. He could even change the environment inside the hall, all with a single thought.

　　"It's real... it's real..."

　　William Harper was overwhelmed with excitement. Listening to Grace Bennett explain sword control, he already felt it was profound. Now, entering the Celestial Palace proved that sword control was real—such a supreme art must be a cultivation technique.

　　Most importantly, even though it was a cultivation method, he could still enter the Celestial Palace!

　　What did this mean?

　　In the future, when he cultivated, he could save the real-world time needed to practice techniques and spells—this would be his greatest advantage!

　　William Harper couldn't help but cheer, exhilarated to the extreme.

　　Since childhood, he had longed to roam the world. He had planned to travel the land after turning eighteen, living a carefree life with his martial arts skills. Now, knowing that cultivation existed, his wanderlust grew even stronger.

　　After calming down, William Harper thought of the impending destruction of the Fang family and immediately began practicing sword control.

　　Cultivating in the Celestial Palace was tedious. It had taken him nearly twenty years to reach perfection in his internal martial arts, and with other supreme martial arts, though he appeared sixteen, he had actually lived seventy or eighty years. Fortunately, the Celestial Palace did not affect his physical lifespan.

　　William Harper was already proficient in a top-tier sword technique of the era and had deep insight into swordsmanship. Practicing sword control was not so difficult to understand; the only issue was that sword control used the spiritual power of cultivators, while he had the true qi of a martial artist. He didn't know if true qi could control a sword.

　　A full ten years passed before William Harper painstakingly cultivated sword control to perfection.

　　Perfection—the highest realm of this supreme art, far more than mere mastery.

　　The moment he achieved perfection, his consciousness returned to reality.

　　……

　　After finishing her explanation of sword control, Grace Bennett stared at William Harper, wanting to see his reaction. However, William Harper's expression did not change, which left her a bit disappointed.

　　She immediately asked, "So, do you believe it or not?"

　　A glimmer flashed in William Harper's eyes, and the corners of his mouth lifted, revealing the youthful spirit on his face.

　　"I believe! Such a supreme art is not something ordinary people can master. From now on, I will join you in changing the fate of the Fang family!" William Harper declared resolutely, his heart surging with excitement, though he tried hard to restrain it.

　　Grace Bennett was stunned, looking at William Harper with a strange expression.

　　She couldn't tell if she felt comforted, moved, helpless, or amused.

　　The setting sun outside the window sank lower and lower, as if telling her that time was running out. She could only trust the young man before her, just as he trusted her.

Chapter 2: The Righteous Path and the Demonic Path

　　"By the way, before you were reborn, how did I behave on the night the family was destroyed?"

　　William Harper's question pulled Grace Bennett back to reality.

　　With all his supreme skills, he must have been outnumbered and exhausted to death, right?

　　As William Harper was thinking this, he heard Grace Bennett say, "I have no impression of you. You probably died on the night of the massacre. After that, only a few people from the Fang family survived, and you weren't among them."

　　I'm the dignified thirteenth young master of the Fang family, and you have no impression of me?

　　William Harper felt insulted, but Grace Bennett's next words made him feel as if he had been sentenced to death. The thought that everyone he cared about would die made his heart tense up.

　　"Let's talk about the night of the massacre you mentioned and see how we can deal with it," William Harper said seriously.

　　To wipe out the Fang family, it would either take an army attacking the city or martial arts sects infiltrating the Fang residence, and it would have to be a large number of experts acting together. Many of the servants in the Fang family were actually retired martial arts masters.

　　Grace Bennett tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, took a deep breath, and said, "On the night seven days from now, the Fang family will face a catastrophe. All the enemies are martial artists—six of them come from the imperial city and are top martial arts experts of the Great Qi Dynasty. There's also one cultivator; most of the Fang family died at his hands. He possesses a strange treasure that can absorb the souls of the dead."

　　A cultivator!

　　No wonder he died!

　　William Harper's heart sank. Through practicing sword control, he already understood the gap between martial artists and cultivators. Even though he had reached a legendary level in martial arts, facing an unknown cultivator was still a huge pressure.

　　"How great is the gap between that cultivator and martial artists?" William Harper asked Grace Bennett, fixing his gaze on her.