The root of the problem was still his fundamentals. The combinations in his old Sword Techniques were too simple. When he used them as ultimate moves, their power wasn’t as great as he’d imagined, and they were full of openings. To use such techniques in the Great Yuan Realm, with its high-quality Elemental Qi, was a complete waste.

Wang Meng decisively abandoned his old Sword Techniques, focusing on mastering new ones. The Curved Sword Skill he had used last time had already given him a taste of success, and his Five Elements Technique was compatible with all types of Sword Techniques.

The teaching Array Techniques in the Sword Dao Institute were also divided into zones. There was a section for principles, one for fundamentals, and one for Sword Formulas. These were further subdivided, of course. Some techniques were collected from Small Thousand Realms and improved upon, while others came from the Star Alliance, but all were organized by level.

Wang Meng was in the fundamentals section. In the eyes of others, a person of his level belonged there. However, "fundamental" Sword Techniques were not necessarily low in difficulty. The Curved Sword Skill, for example, was also in the fundamentals section, but it was extremely difficult to master.

Beautiful arcs of Sword Qi filled Wang Meng’s vision. He was looking at the advanced stage of the Curved Sword Skill: the Double Arc Sword Technique.

Its difficulty was even greater.

Wang Meng watched the demonstration repeatedly. The more he saw it, the more he liked it, until he was completely mesmerized. Without the support of the second stage of his Five Elements Technique, watching would have been pointless; he wouldn’t have been able to execute the move at all. But now, a whole new realm was unfolding before him.

In truth, Wang Meng was a bit of an oddball. He spent every day in the fundamentals section, and no one knew what he was looking at. He had been doing this for a long time. Many others went straight to the advanced Sword Technique section. Their thinking was, ’Why waste all day on these uselessly simple sword techniques? Better to put in the effort to master a profound one. Once you do, won’t you be invincible?’

Wang Meng arrived early and left early. For the past year, he had focused mainly on the Five Elements Technique. He’d looked at many Sword Formulas, but only to gain a basic understanding and broaden his horizons, not wanting to pigeonhole himself. But now, having completed the second stage of the Five Elements Skill, his comprehension of those same Sword Techniques was completely different. Compared to his previous understanding, he could now grasp them far more clearly.

Wang Meng returned to his room and shut himself in, hanging a "Do Not Disturb" sign. He preferred not to be bothered when practicing his Sword Technique.

Immersing himself in the Heaven and Earth Spirit Locking Array, Wang Meng chose to face Wangtian’s cold visage. ’Gotta be hard on myself right from the start.’

Pressure creates motivation. Wang Meng psyched himself up, replaying the essentials of the Double Arc Sword Technique in his mind.

"Die!"

Wang Meng roared, slashing out with Broken Heaven Edge. A glimmer of light appeared in the indifferent "Wangtian’s" eyes as it instantly swung its Time Demon God Sword.

SHING... CLANG!

A perfect Double Arc Sword Technique, as natural as breathing. Accompanied by Master Wang’s helpless scream, he was spectacularly one-shotted. Even someone with Wang Meng’s immense confidence was being so thoroughly trounced that he had no pride left.

But Master Wang was resilient. Just as he had once told Xu Huang, his talent was persistence!

So Wang Meng went at it again. He needed the pressure from Wangtian. Only under that kind of pressure would his full potential be forced out.

’Charge!’

Wang Meng’s roar got stuck in his throat. A beautiful, double-sided arc flashed before his eyes, and then Master Wang was gone again.

When Wang Meng reappeared in the Heaven and Earth Spirit Locking Array, he didn’t immediately start the fight. Instead, he unleashed a heaven-shaking, god-frightening tirade of curses at Wangtian.

He only started once he was done cursing and felt better.

This time, Wang Meng didn’t roar. He was determined to get at least one swing in.

But Wangtian didn’t give him the chance. And just like that, Wang Meng was gone again.

Emerging from his Sea of Heart, Wang Meng stared at the four walls, his frustration palpable. ’Damn it all! Pressure might be motivation, but this is just too much.’

’I can’t take this anymore!’

Wang Meng activated his Star Ring and entered the Battle Space. ’I need to find a "normal person" to fight.’

The appearance of "Master" immediately sent a new wave of excitement through the already lively Battle Space.

Wang Meng had no time to pay it any mind. He entered the queue for a random Magical Combat, not giving a damn who his opponent was.

It was mainly because "Master" was so famous, especially among the new disciples, that his presence instantly caused a commotion.

"Hahaha, my luck is great today!"

An opponent materialized before Wang Meng. He was Hua Wuque, from the Dragon Gate Small Thousand World. His looks were, indeed, quite flawless. The only problem was that Wang Meng now felt a little sick whenever he saw the word "Dragon."

"Heh, sorry, but I’ll be taking this win."

Wang Meng watched him coldly, waiting for him to finish. After being tormented to death and back by Wangtian, he was in no mood for small talk.

"Hua Wuque, huh? That kid’s pretty lucky."

"He just lost a match. Looks like he’s about to get that win right back."

"The Dragon Gate Three Waves Kill from the Dragon Gate Small Thousand World is pretty famous, too."

"...I think I heard that Master won his last match using the Curved Sword Skill."

"You believe that?"

"Haha, I’d have to be an idiot to believe that crap!"

Hua Wuque was overjoyed and thus a bit too enthusiastic. Seeing that "Master" was being cold, however, he lost his excitement. He decided to finish this guy off quickly; he had other fights to prepare for.

"Let’s begin. I’ll let you have the first move!" Hua Wuque was certainly confident. Although he had just lost a match, his win rate was over forty percent, which was by no means weak in the zones below the Thirtieth Layer.

Wang Meng had no patience for pleasantries. His mind was completely filled with the image of Wangtian’s endlessly repeating sword strike.

He unceremoniously swung the standard-issue sword provided by the Star Alliance, a dazzling light flashing in an instant.

That flash alone told Hua Wuque that this was bad. But his identity as a member of the Dragon Sect was no joke. After changing his Heart Technique, he had found a way to better utilize his Body Technique.

’This kind of Sword Qi can’t hurt...’

SHING...

Hua Wuque’s mind reacted and his body moved, but a cold sensation already touched his neck.

As his head flew through the air, Hua Wuque’s eyes were wide with disbelief. "Curved... Sword Skill."

Wang Meng felt awesome. One-shotting someone was satisfying; being one-shotted was extremely unsatisfying. But he still had to go back to the taste of being one-shotted.

Wang Meng left the Battle Space, leaving chaos in his wake.

"Damn, were my eyes playing tricks on me just now? Was that really Curved Sword Qi???"

"Not only that, Hua Wuque got one-shotted!"

There were a few more people watching this fight in the Battle Space than last time. To be honest, his previous match hadn’t drawn much attention; this time was only different because the space was more crowded.

Curved Sword Qi? The best way to use that Sword Formula was to forge a special Curved Sword. But Master had used a standard Whiteboard Sword.

And it was... Master!

Wang Meng had one-shotted his opponent. He’d already forgotten who it was; he had no time to remember such things. The problem was, even pulling off the Curved Sword Qi no longer gave him a thrill. He had to break through!

Returning to the Heaven and Earth Spirit Locking Array, Wang Meng shrewdly switched his opponent to "Moo Shan." Although at first glance both seemed to have the same effect on him—instant death—once the Elemental Power levels were normalized, the differences between "Moo Shan" and "Wangtian" became clear. Moo Shan was sharp and domineering, his Sword Technique seemingly unstoppable. Wangtian, on the other hand, was all about total battlefield control, which was even more terrifying. Before him, no attack could hide, and the pressure was as crushing as a mountain range.

Wang Meng’s usual routine was to first train against Wangtian, then try to find a breakthrough against Moo Shan.

And then Moo Shan also one-shotted him.

Master Wang had grown accustomed to this life of either one-shotting others or being one-shotted himself.

(It’s the last day of August! I’m desperate for your monthly passes! Please vote!) (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian.com to vote with recommendation and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)