Eternal Life: I Have the Favor System-Chapter 101: Mastery

The Qiao Pass competition.

Da Wang and Ji Hu both achieved a Grade A Middle Grade result.

Ji Hu was ranked higher.

Da Wang hoped to break into the top ten in this year’s Daoist Examination.

Even after encountering this group of Noble Family Disciples, his ambition had not wavered. He had lost to Chu Lingguang and Ji Hu in the Qiao Pass competition, but in the second event—the saber trial—he was determined to even the score.

Ji Hu, however, only had eyes for Chu Lingguang. He was equally determined to win this second trial; he would not allow himself to lose to a Lower-class Youth again.

The five of them walked onto the sandy field together.

Chu Lingguang remained silent, gathering his focus along with the others as they awaited the examiner’s command. Guo Wei’s words, "just do your best," had allowed him to completely relax. He ignored the countless gazes from the crowd, his mind and body at ease.

The moment he grasped the long saber,

Chu Lingguang felt his breath synchronize with its vibrations. His Qi Blood resonated with the blade, a natural connection that needed no conscious effort. It was as if his arm and the saber had become one.

"Ready!"

"Begin!"

The examiner’s voice rang out.

WHOOSH!

The five contestants drew their sabers almost simultaneously.

All of them used their full strength to produce a Sword Sound.

Chu Lingguang did the same. But the instant his saber left its sheath and sliced through the air, he felt the air itself tear at the edge of the blade.

The Sword Sound became incredibly sharp.

It was as if a needle-fine current of air burst forth from the saber’s edge.

PFFT!

The layers of window paper were pierced through.

Chu Lingguang didn’t look. On pure reflex, he brought the saber down on the wooden post before him. The post was thick and tall; splitting it couldn’t be done with brute force alone.

Borrowing Strength was the key.

But he only had one strike. He couldn’t use the Continuous Slash Saber Technique. Involuntarily, he rotated his wrist, letting the long saber twirl once in the air.

And it was that single twirl.

It made his strike feel incredibly light. The sensation of dragging it through water was gone. In that instant, a ripple went through Chu Lingguang’s mind. He realized the technique of Borrowing Strength wasn’t just about feeling the increasing drag; it was about taking that force, integrating it into the saber, and then striking out with even greater speed.

His proficiency with the Continuous Slash Saber Technique had long since reached Perfection.

Despite his bitter training day and night, Chu Lingguang had been unable to activate this skill, unable to find the crucial secret to Borrowing Strength.

His previous strikes, while astonishingly powerful, had been like Lifting Light as if it were Heavy. He had only mastered half the technique. The true secret was to find that drag in the water, and then transition from Lifting Light as if it were Heavy to Lifting Heavy as Light. Only then could he borrow the power of the preceding motion to make each subsequent strike stronger than the last.

It was a moment of pure clarity.

Everything clicked into place for Chu Lingguang. The saber in his hand felt incredibly light. Even as its force was multiplying, the turn of his wrist sent its power skyrocketing.

VREEE!

A cold light flashed.

Chu Lingguang felt as if he were back on Cyan Cloud Mountain. The thick, large post before him transformed into a towering tree. His face contorted, and he let out a fierce roar.

The long saber cleaved down upon the giant tree.

CRACK!

The wooden post was split right down the middle.

The edge of Chu Lingguang’s saber plunged into the sandy ground.

Not only had he split the post, but the unstoppable downward force had driven the blade deep into the earth.

The two halves of the post separated.

They fell to either side.

Only half an inch of the saber’s spine remained visible above the ground; most of the blade was buried in the sand.

Countless people, both inside and outside the testing area, stared at Chu Lingguang.

Ten layers of window paper pierced, the wooden post split in two—this was the best result since the second trial began. Sitting in the front row, Guo Wei saw this and tried to suppress his excitement to maintain his composure. But in the end, he couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing at Master Yan beside him.

His very yellow teeth were quite conspicuous.

Tie Zhennan hadn’t gone far. He was secretly keeping an eye on Chu Lingguang’s performance. When he heard Guo Wei’s laughter, he turned and stalked off in a huff. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

In the contestants’ preparation area, Yan Chengdu stood as straight as a spear.

Chu Lingguang’s Sword Cry and Sword Force had both exceeded his expectations.

Shi Guangzhong and Chai Yaolong cursed themselves for coming to South City to take the Martial Arts Examination.

"This..."

"He pierced all the window papers."

"That guy got first place in both rounds."

"His power just now... it seemed to multiply several times over in an instant."

...

The examiner and the crowd whispered among themselves.

Chu Lingguang let out a long breath and pulled his saber from the sand. ’So the technique of Borrowing Strength is this simple,’ he thought. ’Leader Ma didn’t lie to me. Lifting Light as if it were Heavy, and Lifting Heavy as Light... I couldn’t grasp the secret before because I just didn’t understand this principle.’

He sighed inwardly.

Chu Lingguang looked over at Da Wang, Ji Hu, and the others.

He saw them all staring at him. Da Wang’s face was a mask of disbelief, his gaze slowly turning listless, as if realizing he could no longer defeat Chu Lingguang.

As for Ji Hu, he looked like he wanted to eat him alive. His eyes burned with endless hostility and rage, as if Chu Lingguang had stolen everything from him and become his mortal enemy.

The other two contestants, however, wore looks of awe and admiration, cupping their fists in congratulation.

Chu Lingguang also saw that Da Wang had only pierced the eighth layer of paper, and Ji Hu was the same. On the wooden post, both of their cuts had reached the red line, with Ji Hu’s being just a fraction of an inch deeper.

The other two had only pierced one or two layers of paper, and their cuts had barely reached the first black line.

It was clear at a glance who was the strongest and who was the weakest among the five.

Chu Lingguang was the undisputed winner, earning a Grade A+ Upper Grade and temporarily taking first place.

He returned to Guo Wei’s side, a relaxed expression on his face.

"Master Guo, congratulations, congratulations."

Leader Ma approached with Da Wang, Xiao Wang, Da Wu, and Xiao Wu to offer his congratulations. He looked crestfallen. He was the one who had taught Chu Lingguang the Continuous Slash Saber Technique, and he could clearly see that Chu Lingguang had just used the Borrowing Strength technique to split the post and drive his blade into the sand.

He had originally thought Chu Lingguang was a dull student who would never learn the Continuous Slash Saber Technique, no matter how carefully he taught him. He never expected that Chu Lingguang would use this very technique to utterly dominate his own two disciples.

"The same to you. Da Wang and Xiao Wang also performed well,"

Guo Wei said, standing up.

Hearing this, Leader Ma gave an awkward smile and offered a few words of encouragement to Da Wang and Xiao Wang.

"Contestants Yan Chengdu, Jiang Yan, Ma Family, Shi Guangzhong, and Chai Yaolong, your examination begins now!"

An hour later, the names called by the examiner caused quite a stir. The crowd’s gaze shifted back to the sandy field, focusing on the young man standing in the center.

He had failed at the Qiao Pass.

In the second trial, the saber competition, Chu Lingguang had achieved a perfect score in both parts. This put immense pressure on Yan Chengdu. If he lost to Chu Lingguang in this trial as well, he would truly become a laughingstock.

WHOOSH!

With the examiner’s single word, "Begin," the five contestants drew their sabers simultaneously.

Like everyone else, Chu Lingguang watched the window papers in front of Yan Chengdu, as well as the newly replaced wooden post on the ground.

PFFT!

Ten layers of window paper were pierced in an instant.

A blindingly cold light flashed across the sandy field. With a CRACK, the wooden post in front of Yan Chengdu split in two.

The long saber was sheathed.

Yan Chengdu turned to look out at the crowd and immediately found Chu Lingguang. Their eyes met, and it was as if sparks flew between them.

(Tonight’s update is a bit late. There will be another Chapter later, so please go to sleep first and read it in the morning!)