"Are you done? Give me the Projection Stone."
Ye Fenghan suppressed the urge to strangle Ye Tianling, his voice low.
Ye Tianling tossed the Projection Stone over, and Ye Fenghan immediately shot out a hand to catch it.
His speed was so fast it left an afterimage.
With the hidden threat resolved, Ye Fenghan finally let out a breath of relief. He spoke earnestly, "Inside the Qiankun Ring are three Dragon Bone Pills, three Tiger Bone Pills, and one Profound Tier Middle Grade Creation Pill. Keep them. Consider it the price for you and Mei'Er breaking up."
Ye Tianling simply flicked the Qiankun Ring. It transformed into a streak of white light and shot straight for the spot between Ye Fenghan's eyebrows.
Ye Fenghan frowned, his gaze gathering a surge of Sword Essence Power to stop Ye Tianling's insolent act.
The Qiankun Ring froze in the Void for a moment before falling into Ye Fenghan's hand.
Ye Tianling said, "I told you, after Mei'Er goes to the Celestial Sword Sect, I'm going too."
Ye Fenghan's expression turned colder as he said sarcastically, "If you have the ability, then pass the assessment and enter the Celestial Sword Sect on your own. Relying on Mei'Er to get you in the back door? Are you even a man?"
Ye Tianling said nonchalantly, "I don't have any other skills. My only talent is mooching off women, like Mei'Er, for instance. As for whether or not I'm a man, Mei'Er certainly knows the answer to that."
Hearing this, Ye Fenghan almost flew into a rage.
'This little brat is just too infuriating, too hateful!'
"Forget it. I won't stoop to your level. We'll see if Mei'Er even has the ability to get you recruited into the Celestial Sword Sect. If that day ever comes, it would mean Mei'Er has become truly outstanding. By then, she'll no longer be that ignorant, naive little girl."
In the end, Ye Fenghan decided not to argue further.
His objective had been achieved.
Besides, he was gradually coming to terms with it. Ye Tianling had burned his Fiery Sun Bloodline Talent. He was now like a shooting star, with only a few short days of brilliance left. His current arrogance, frivolity, wild indulgence, and shamelessness were likely just his way of going crazy in the final moments of his life.
'With his Innate Deficiency, on top of forcibly Burning his Bloodline Talent and damaging his foundation, how much longer can this boy possibly live?'
Thinking this, he suddenly felt a flicker of understanding for Ye Tianling's current state of mind.
Ye Fenghan's sudden shift in mood caught Ye Tianling a little off guard.
Ye Tianling pondered for a moment, then said, "You have a point. Maybe by then, she'll be shining so brightly that she'll have long forgotten about me. So, I've decided. I'll rely on myself to pass the assessment, enter the Celestial Sword Sect, and then pursue her."
Hearing this, Ye Fenghan felt a headache coming on.
He felt as if his previous words had been a complete waste of breath—this boy was just too stubborn.
Ye Fenghan had lost all interest and said impatiently, "In that case, let me be the first to congratulate you on your extraordinary talent, on getting specially recruited by the Celestial Sword Sect, and on getting everything you wish for."
He had just started to understand Ye Tianling, but the boy's refusal to see reality and his complete lack of dignity—persisting even after being so verbally humiliated—only deepened his revulsion.
Ye Tianling nodded, saying confidently, "But of course! With my outstanding talent, I'm bound to make a name for myself one day."
Ye Fenghan gave a mocking laugh. "I'm leaving. You're on your own! You should first think about how you're going to deal with being hunted by people with sinister intentions. I was able to be your guardian for this journey, but I can't be your guardian for a lifetime."
Ye Tianling said, "Hm. Seeing as Elder Fenghan has shown no killing intent from start to finish, I'll be merciful and offer you a word or two of guidance."
Ye Fenghan was taken aback for a moment, then couldn't even be bothered to show contempt. He said mockingly, "Then please, O peerless genius and remarkable man Ye Tianling, do enlighten me."
Ye Tianling said, "Don't underestimate me. I will use my gaze to execute a single move on you and let you experience what true Sword Intent is."
Ye Fenghan suppressed a scornful laugh. "Fine. Then I will seriously face this one move of your Supreme Sword Intent."
Ye Tianling closed his eyes, gathering his Dragon Blood and recalling the invincible life of the Sword Dao Grandmaster, Dugu Qiubai.
Finally, numerous Sword Dao Realms converged into two points of light.
Ye Tianling opened his eyes. It was as if his eyes had disappeared.
At that moment, in Ye Fenghan's vision, the pupils of Ye Tianling's eyes suddenly turned pitch-black.
A sudden chill shot through Ye Fenghan's heart. A cold sweat broke out all over his body as a sense of soul-deep terror washed over him.
The instant that feeling arose, Ye Tianling's dark eyes abruptly became as dazzling as two blazing suns!
In a flash, that divine radiance seemed to transform into two beams of sword light, striking out like lightning!
Ye Fenghan had no time to resist. He felt his mind tremble violently, as if his very soul had been pierced by those two beams of sword light in an instant.
"AARGH—"
Ye Fenghan cried out in alarm, and with a PFFT, he spat out a large mouthful of blood!
It was fresh blood, coughed up from a surge of vital energy, and it even contained a portion of his Lifebound Essence Blood!
What was even more terrifying was that although the attack had left almost no major physical wounds, an intensely powerful and horrifying illusion washed over Ye Fenghan's mind: 'I'm already dead!'
This terrifying illusion was incredibly vivid—so vivid it could deceive all five of his senses and even his Sixth Sense!
It was so real that his body and mind went cold, and his very soul trembled!
Fortunately, Ye Fenghan's Realm was high, his foundation was profound, and his willpower was astonishing. He forcefully suppressed the dark thought that he had been cut down by the Slaughter Sword Dao, that his soul was shattered, and that his body and mind were already dead. After taking a deep breath, he struggled to calm himself.
After another six full seconds of controlled breathing, Ye Fenghan finally composed himself.
The way he looked at Ye Tianling was now filled with shock and uncertainty.
"You've comprehended Sword Intent?! What kind of Sword Intent is this? When did you comprehend Sword Intent?!"
Ye Fenghan was agitated, but also utterly shocked and astounded.
Ye Tianling said, "It's just Sword Intent, a simple thing. I wanted to comprehend it, so I did. This is just a Sword Intent I casually gathered. I call it 'Dugu Sword Intent.'"
Ye Fenghan said, "Dugu Sword Intent? What kind of Sword Intent is it?"
Ye Tianling said, "Dugu Sword Intent is the Sword Intent of Dugu Qiubai—the Sword Intent of one who sweeps across the world, peerless and invincible, who seeks a single defeat but can find none."
Ye Fenghan was stunned for a long moment before saying, "It's incredibly powerful and domineering. If it weren't for you burning your talent… What a pity…"
Ye Tianling let out a soft, mocking laugh. "You still think that?"
Ye Fenghan said, "If that weren't the case, you would have never made it out of the Ye Race."
But Ye Tianling didn't dwell on the issue. "What is Sword Intent? How does one comprehend it? I'll teach you, and you can teach Mei'Er."
At this, Ye Fenghan's expression immediately grew serious. "Alright."
Ye Tianling clasped his hands behind his back and paced back and forth, musing, "The comprehension of Sword Intent actually lies in solidifying your own will into a sword. That is how you form the embryonic stage of Sword Intent.
"Furthermore, even if you succeed, that kind of Sword Intent is still just an ordinary one. True Sword Intent originates from the soul. The fundamental key is to cultivate your soul until it transforms into a Sword-shaped Soul!
"Therefore, you can understand Sword Intent as the Soul Sword, the might of the sword itself."
Ye Fenghan was deeply shaken, but he frowned and said, "A Soul Sword? A Sword-shaped Soul? But many who wield Sword Intent, and even more powerful Swordsmen, certainly don't have Sword-shaped Souls, yet their Sword Intent is exceptionally powerful."
If Ye Tianling hadn't just released a Sword Intent that had severely injured him, Ye Fenghan would have definitely thought he was spouting nonsense.