A moment later, Yan Beichen retracted his saber and stood upright.
Su Zimo heaved a sigh of relief and he could barely contain the joy in his eyes.
Apart from the final stance of the Sea Calming Manual which he was still unable to produce, he managed to comprehend the force levels of the other four stances completely!
It was all because of the pressure that Yan Beichen gave him that he was able to comprehend them so quickly.
Otherwise, even if he practiced against air for dozens of years, he might not be able to reach this step unless he had another opportunity.
If cultivators wanted to grow, they would have to grind against the brink of life and death continuously!
Of course, what truly brought joy to Su Zimo was not only because he managed to comprehend the realm of force.
More than that, under the pretext that they were both on the same power level, he was not weaker than this number one paragon of Tianhuang Mainland North Region in the past in terms of his saber technique!
Although Yan Beichen had been immersed in the Dao of the saber for countless years, Su Zimo was not disadvantaged.
“Amazing!”
Su Zimo was drenched in sweat and was invigorated.
Yan Beichen’s expression was cold and his gaze was calm, as though he could read Su Zimo’s mind.
“Do you think that you’re incredible because you’re able to defend against my attacks?” Yan Beichen asked indifferently.
Su Zimo remained silent.
During their previous exchange of blows, although Yan Beichen was repressing him the entire time, Su Zimo did not reveal any openings and in fact, he managed to defend all of the former’s various attacks!
However, Su Zimo was embarrassed to admit to something like that after Yan Beichen read his mind.
Yet, Yan Beichen’s next remark caused Su Zimo’s heart to sink as chills filled his body!
“Take a look at your body,”
Yan Beichen’s eyes was shimmering with a hint of disdain.
Furrowing his brows slightly, Su Zimo lowered his head and he froze up, his pupils constricting violently.
Before he knew it, a series of cuts had already been made on the green robes in front of his chest. They intertwined near to his heart and formed a gigantic character for the word ‘death’!
“This…”
Su Zimo felt his limbs go cold.
This meant that if this was an actual life and death battle, he would have died more than six times in that short exchange earlier on!
The most frightening thing was that he did not notice it at all up till now!
The more Su Zimo thought about it, the more alarmed he was.
The pride and exhilaration he displayed earlier had vanished entirely.
If there were no restrictions and he could rely on his movement techniques from the Mystic Classic of the Twelve Demon Kings of the Great Wilderness, his speed and his terrifying physique, Su Zimo might not lose.
However, at the very least, he was completely defeated in terms of saber technique.
Yan Beichen swiped his storage bag and two more ancient manuals appeared in his hands. He handed them to Su Zimo.
Focusing his gaze, Su Zimo could not help but exclaim.
“The Tidal Manual!”
The Saber Emperor left two inheritances in the ancient battlefield, one of which was the Sea Calming Manual which Su Zimo had obtained.
The other one was the Tidal Manual which was taken away by Yan Beichen a thousand years ago.
Yan Beichen said, “The Tidal Manual is not a saber technique, but a secret skill with nine levels to it. It was created by the Saber Emperor in the past while he was at the seaside, observing the ebb and flow of the tides. He combined that as a skill together with the Dao of the saber and it possesses the obscurities of the universe.”
“The Tidal Manual and Sea Calming Manual complement and complete one another. After cultivating the Tidal Manual, you’ll be able to utilize the might of the tide. At Level 1, each time you make an attack, there will be an additional layer of power to it and that’s the Tidal Might.”
Su Zimo seemed to have an understanding.
Yan Beichen continued, “At Level 1 of the Tidal Manual, you’ll experience a 10% increase in strength. At Level 2, 20%. Don’t look down on the percentages because in actual combat, the difference will be significant!”
Su Zimo was secretly shocked.
If he managed to cultivate to Level 9 of the Tidal Might, it would be equivalent to an additional 90% and that would be akin to twice of his strength – it was enough for him to overwhelm anyone else of the same cultivation realm!
“Of course, the most important use of the Tidal Might is to make up for the flaws of the Sea Calming Manual.”
Yan Beichen explained, “You are already extremely proficient in your first four stances. However, there is still some sluggishness in your transition between gentleness and toughness while changing stances.”
“While ordinary cultivators are almost blind to these openings, you will be in danger of dying if you meet with people who are truly impressive!”
Suddenly, Su Zimo was enlightened.
Indeed, he had experienced slight sluggishness while he was practicing his saber techniques earlier on.
However, when he battled in the ancient battlefield against the paragons of the immortal, Buddhist and fiend sects, nobody noticed those openings. As such, Su Zimo did not pay much attention to it.”
He had not expected that his openings would be so fatal when they were exposed to true experts!
Su Zimo was immensely grateful.
He had not thought that Yan Beichen would impart to him the Tidal Manual so easily without hesitation.
“Senior, I’ll demonstrate the Sea Calming Manual once and describe to you the details of it,”
Su Zimo’s thought process was simple – he wanted to impart the Sea Calming Manual to Yan Beichen as well as a form of exchange.
“There’s no need.”
Yan Beichen waved it off indifferently. “I’ve already begun to comprehend my own Dao. In my eyes, the Sea Calming Manual is no big deal!”
There was a hint of arrogance in Yan Beichen’s tone.
He was firmly convinced that he would definitely be an emperor in the future with accomplishments above the Saber Emperor!
Su Zimo did not press on further and took the Tidal Manual. When he saw the second ancient manual, he could not help but frown. “Asura Saber?”
The other secret skill was Asura Sect’s secret skill, Asura Saber!
“This…”
Su Zimo was confused.
By doing this, did it mean that Yan Beichen wanted him to join Asura Sect?
Su Zimo hesitated for a moment before returning Asura Saber. “I haven’t thought about leaving Ethereal Peak before. Senior, please take the Asura Saber back.”
Yan Beichen glared at him but did not take it back.
“Even if you don’t join Asura Sect, you can take this saber manual to cultivate.”
“Is this… appropriate?”
Su Zimo frowned.
Usually, one would be severely punished and might even be killed if they imparted the secret skills of a sect!
“You’re telling me that even though I dare to impart it to you, you don’t dare to learn it?” Yan Beichen sneered.
Su Zimo was silent.
In the ancient battlefield, he had truly created quite a bit of trouble and there was nothing he wouldn’t dare to learn.
Furthermore, it wasn’t as though Su Zimo hadn’t cultivated techniques of the fiend sects before.
Back in the river undercurrent, when he was stuck with Demoness Ji in that cramped stone coffin, he cultivated the Blood Refinement Fiend Sutra that was left inside.
At that thought, Su Zimo accepted both the ancient manuals.
After pondering silently for a moment, he recalled something and asked, “Asura Sect is located in the Middle Continent. Senior, were you able to arrive in time because Senior Gu Xi sent you a message?”
Yan Beichen and looked at Su Zimo with a strange stare. “To think that this generation’s Pure Maiden of the fiend sects would have chosen you as her tripod.”
This was the second time that Su Zimo had heard of the term.
The first time was under the Human Emperor’s Palace when Demoness Ji confessed to it after being questioned by the Sealer of the Illusion Fiend Cult.
“What’s the meaning of being a tripod of the Pure Maiden Sect?” Su Zimo could not help but ask.
Yan Beichen did not reply.
When Su Zimo saw that, he suppressed the curiosity in his heart for now. He thought for a moment and asked again, “Why are all the sects, cultivators and even the royal family of Great Zhou so wary of the witch race?”
“That cautiousness stems from a catastrophe that happened 10,000 years ago,” Yan Beichen replied indifferently.
