「Three days later.」
Ling Chen, Li Liuxing, and Xiahou Lin were led by a purple-robed elder to the front of the Spirit Martial Hall.
Besides these three, those who had earned eligibility for the Spirit Martial Hall included three other great geniuses: Xiao Muyu, Yun Tianhe, and Gu Lingfeng.
The latter three were also True Disciples, privileged to enter the Spirit Martial Hall once every year. However, considering their age and qualifications, this was their first ti entering.
This damnable fellow. Yun Tianhe gloomily stared at Ling Chen, who wasn’t far away. He had been striving to catch up with Ling Chen, desperately trying to narrow the gap. Unexpectedly, in such a short period, he had been thrown so far behind by Ling Chen that he couldn’t catch up.
Of the forr Four Great Geniuses, the so-called "Stars of Tomorrow," Ling Chen was now undoubtedly the most brilliant.
Apart from these six, many other disciples had followed. They were also eager to witness what cultivating in the Spirit Martial Hall was like.
Ling Yin was among these disciples. She had naturally co to see Ling Chen and Xiao Muyu, and besides, she harbored so curiosity about the Spirit Martial Hall.
SCREECH!
The Bronze Gate opened, and an elderly woman in a gray robe walked out. She stood atop the nine-layer-high white stone steps, looking down at the crowd below.
The Purple-robed Elder approached the old woman and whispered a few words. After the old woman nodded, the Purple-robed Elder returned to the front of the group.
"Disciples," the Purple-robed Elder began, "I am Elder Bai Kui, who oversaw the True Disciple Examination last ti. I’ve previously told you about the Spirit Martial Hall. You will have only one day to cultivate within the Spirit Martial Hall. This ans that by this ti tomorrow, you must exit."
"Next, allow to introduce Elder Xie Chan, the one responsible for the Spirit Martial Hall."
All the disciples respectfully looked towards the gray-robed elderly woman, bowed, and said in unison, "Greetings, Elder Xie Chan."
As the one responsible for the Spirit Martial Hall, Elder Xie Chan was highly experienced. Ling Chen’s father, Ling Tianyu, had once told him that when Ling Tianyu first assud the role of Sect Leader of the Divine Intent Sect, Elder Xie Chan was already an elder of the Spirit Martial Hall. Now, more than twenty years later, Elder Xie Chan still managed the Spirit Martial Hall.
Not only did this Elder Xie Chan hold a prestigious position, but her strength was also unfathomable.
However, what surprised many disciples was that the fluctuations emanating from Elder Xie Chan didn’t seem strong. Judging by aura alone, she didn’t even seem to compare with Elder Bai Kui.
As if noticing the confusion on the disciples’ faces, Elder Xie Chan offered everyone a faint smile. "Actually, I don’t consider myself a traditional warrior. My areas of study are Array Formations and Illusion Techniques."
Elder Bai Kui added, "Elder Xie Chan is one of the most powerful Illusionists and Array Masters in the Five Kingdoms. Her Array Formations have reached the realm of ’Manipulating Arrays with Qi,’ and her ntal strength level, furthermore, is above twenty."
WHOA!
The disciples below all showed expressions of shock. To cultivate ntal Power beyond level twenty! They were astounded; they could only look up to such an achievent.
External School warriors cultivate Qi, and Internal School warriors cultivate True Qi. Array Masters and Illusionists, however, cultivate ntal Power—a force even more elusive than True Qi. Consequently, without exceptional talent in this area, perceiving ntal Power was nearly impossible.
The levels of ntal Power also had fixed thresholds. Generally, level five ntal Power was comparable to a Martial Artist, while level fourteen ntal Power could match a Grand Master. A ntal strength level above twenty ant one was considered a top-tier Grand Master.
Under equal conditions, an Illusionist was generally stronger than a warrior.
However, within the entire Divine Intent Sect, very few disciples cultivated ntal Power. Thus, all disciples maintained an attitude of profound respect towards Elder Xie Chan.
Elder Xie Chan said, "I am allowing you into the Spirit Martial Hall for two main reasons: first, for you to study martial arts classics, and second, to train your ntal Power. For ordinary warriors, cultivating ntal Power might seem like a waste of ti, a foolish endeavor. However, true geniuses *must* cultivate their ntal Power to a certain strength. You, for example, are all true, top-tier geniuses. Therefore, you must cultivate ntal Power."
Yun Tianhe stepped forward. "But isn’t the cultivation of ntal Power most reliant on talent?" he questioned. "We already struggle to find enough energy for our martial arts cultivation. Wouldn’t cultivating ntal Power simply add to our burden?"
"While that’s true," Elder Xie Chan replied, shaking her head, "the innate talent for ntal Power among martial arts geniuses is usually not poor. Cultivating martial arts requires imnse willpower, and this willpower has a reciprocal relationship with ntal Power strength; they influence each other."
"The Spirit Martial Hall houses nurous wondrous treasures and cultivation manuals, many of which contain profound mysteries. So even include tests of willpower. If your ntal Power isn’t strong enough, you’ll find it very difficult to comprehend these secrets. You might even leave the Spirit Martial Hall empty-handed."
So that’s how it is. A look of realization spread across Ling Chen’s face. No wonder Elder Xie Chan had spoken to them about ntal Power; it was clearly related to their upcoming cultivation in the Spirit Martial Hall.
"Elder Xie Chan," Gu Lingfeng stepped forward, his posture ramrod straight, "surely the importance of ntal Power doesn’t end there? Cultivating ntal Power is also to facilitate future breakthroughs to the Grand Master realm, and perhaps even to beco a Top Sky Apex Strong."
Elder Xie Chan nodded slightly, a look of approval in her eyes. "Precisely! Before one becos a Grand Master, martial arts cultivation has little to do with ntal Power. However, after reaching the Grand Master realm, one’s ntal strength level becos increasingly crucial, its role in martial arts cultivation growing ever more prominent. And to beco a Top Sky Apex Strong, there’s a strict prerequisite: one’s ntal strength level must reach twenty."
"Many martial practitioners only realize the importance of ntal Power upon reaching the Grand Master Realm and only then begin to cultivate it. But by then, it’s often too late. They must expend ten tis the effort of others just for a chance to cultivate their ntal Power to level twenty. So may even die of old age before their ntal Power reaches level twenty."
"This is why many Grand Master Level Powerhouses find themselves stuck at this stage. They cannot break through to beco Top Sky Apex Strongs. Granted, so may be stymied by a bottleneck in their martial arts. However, a significant portion of them fail because their ntal strength level never reaches twenty, preventing them from ever becoming a Top Sky Apex Strong in their lifeti."
As Elder Xie Chan finished speaking, the disciples couldn’t help but fall into deep thought. They hadn’t expected ntal Power to be so crucial. Although they were still far from the Grand Master Realm, they understood they had to prepare for the future. Otherwise, they might beco the very people Elder Xie Chan had described.
Who among them didn’t aspire to beco a Grand Master, or even a world-dominating Top Sky Apex Strong? Unless they were content to remain at the Martial Artist Realm indefinitely.
Ling Chen’s thoughts differed from the others. This ntal Power... it’s probably not as simple as Elder Xie Chan made it out to be, he mused. He had a subtle feeling that a close connection existed between ntal Power and Sword Intent. Whether one could comprehend Sword Intent likely depended on the strength of one’s ntal Power.
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