Ascension of the Silent Guardian

As soon as Tian Ling returned to his cave dwelling, he quickly sat in a lotus position. With a focused mind, he entered the simulation arena. Without hesitation, he selected the Sect Master as his opponent, feeling more confident than ever. This time, he truly believed he could defeat him.

"Sorry for always choosing you as my opponent, Sect Master, but you’re the strongest person I’ve met so far," Tian Ling thought, a mix of respect and determination in his mind.

The Sect Master soon appeared in the arena, imposing as ever. Wasting no time, Tian Ling drew his Heaven Divider Sword from his storage ring, the steel gleaming as he used his Celestial Light Movement to close the distance. In an instant, thunderous Qi roared around his blade.

"Storming Heavens Sword!" he shouted, attacking with precision.

The Sect Master reacted with incredible speed. Wielding a nearly transparent sword, he blocked Tian Ling’s strike entirely, creating a shockwave that pushed him back. Tian Ling barely had time to process the power of the block.

"Tsk, I knew it wouldn’t be that easy... He’s too strong. I need to try something different."

Adjusting his stance, Tian Ling felt adrenaline coursing through his body. He activated the Celestial Light Movement again, but this time at its maximum potential.

"I need to infuse the Wind Qi along with it, to boost my speed," he thought quickly.

By infusing Wind Qi into his movements, his speed increased drastically. In an agile leap, Tian Ling dashed toward the Sect Master, but this time, he didn’t use his sword directly. Instead, he unleashed the Celestial Palm, temporarily forcing the Sect Master’s soul out of his body. With the window of opportunity open, Tian Ling jumped into the air and charged his sword with Qi once more.

"Storming Heavens Sword!" he shouted again, descending toward the Sect Master with lightning dancing around his blade.

Boom! Boom!

A deafening sound echoed, and the dust around them began to settle slowly. When Tian Ling finally touched the ground, the system echoed in his mind:

[Simulated Challenge Ended: Victory. Time Elapsed: 93 minutes.]

"Finally, I managed to defeat him. But the fight took way too long..." Tian Ling muttered, clenching his fists in frustration. "If he didn’t have that defensive treasure, it would’ve been easier. No, any opponent in the True Soul Realm will have some hidden trump card. I must be ready for that."

Though he had defeated the Sect Master, something bothered him. He knew a victory with such effort was far from ideal. The fight drew too much attention, it was long and exhausting. "I still have a lot to improve," he thought.

Without wasting time, he returned to the simulation arena, determined to face the Sect Master relentlessly. He spent an entire month facing his opponent repeatedly, striving to perfect every move.

"Tsk, the best I could do was defeat him in 42 minutes... That’s still too much time. Even though he can’t break through my defenses due to my treasures, he repels my attacks flawlessly."

Exhausted, Tian Ling finally left his cave dwelling, deciding to visit his junior sister, Jin Yu. However, when he arrived at her cave, she wasn’t there.

"Did she go out to train?" he thought, walking toward the Vortex of the Mythic Realm of Mist. When he was nearly there, he saw something that made him stop abruptly. Near the training area of Elder Mei Lianhua’s disciples, he saw a scene that made him frown.

"Junior Sister Jin Yu, think carefully about this. I’m an elite disciple, I might even become an Elder soon," said a young elite disciple with a smug smile, while Jin Yu looked visibly uncomfortable.

"Senior Brother, I appreciate the offer, but I have a promise with someone else," she replied, her voice trembling slightly. "You think you’re worthy? My brother Tian Ling is much better than you," she thought, though she didn’t dare say it aloud.

"A promise? That doesn’t matter. What truly matters is strength!" said the disciple arrogantly. But before he could continue, his body froze as he felt an overwhelming aura and a murderous intent coming his way.

"W-what is this? What terrifying aura is this?" the elite disciple thought, slowly turning toward the top of the training area. Tian Ling was there, watching him with a cold and fierce gaze.

Tian Ling jumped onto his sword and flew directly toward them. Upon his arrival, the elite disciple exclaimed, visibly shaken:

"Wh-who are you?"

At the same time, Jin Yu, relieved, ran up and hugged Tian Ling.

"Brother, you’ve finally returned! I’ve been looking for you," she said excitedly, clinging to his arm, making it clear to the elite disciple that he had no chance.

"Brother?"

"Yes, I’m Tian Ling, disciple of Elder Mei Lianhua. And you, who are you?" Tian Ling asked, with a cold and direct gaze.

"He’s just a new disciple? Now that I’ve calmed down, I realize he’s only at the fifth level of the Spiritual Core... That aura couldn’t have been his," the disciple thought, trying to regain composure.

"Hmph, I’m Lei Guan, one of Elder Mei Lianhua’s elite disciples. You must be the junior brother who recently joined the Inner Sect, right?" he said with disdain, jealousy filling his eyes at the sight of Jin Yu embracing Tian Ling.

"Exactly. Pleasure to meet you, senior brother," Tian Ling replied, maintaining his cold and intimidating gaze.

"What do you say we have a friendly duel, junior brother?" Lei Guan asked with an arrogant smile. "I’ll crush you in front of Junior Sister Jin Yu. That will surely impress her."

Tian Ling gave a slight smile, keeping his eyes fixed on him.

[Name: Lei Guan
Elite Disciple of Elder Mei Lianhua
Age: 111 years
Realm: Sixth level of the Spiritual Core
Spiritual Root: Medium (Enhanced)
Bloodline: Born in the mortal world, raised by farmers. Through luck and pills, he reached the Spiritual Core at 70 years old, considered a prodigy.
Affinity: He doesn’t have a good impression of you due to his interest in Jin Yu. If possible, he will try to humiliate you to feed his ego.]

"A mere sixth-level Spiritual Core wants to duel me? Does he think he’s worthy?" Tian Ling thought.

"Very well, we can duel," he said firmly.

"Don’t do it, brother! He’s an elite disciple!" Jin Yu whispered, worried, unaware of Tian Ling’s true strength.

"It’s fine, sister. It’s just a spar between disciples," he said calmly.

Reluctantly, Jin Yu sighed, still concerned.

Both moved to their respective sides of the arena and grabbed wooden swords to avoid serious injury. After bowing to each other, the duel began.

Lei Guan lunged at Tian Ling with speed, wanting to end the duel quickly.

"Serene Sword!" he shouted, attacking with all his strength.

The attack only passed through a mirage created by the Celestial Light Movement.

"An illusion?" Lei Guan was confused, turning quickly.

"You’re too slow, senior brother," Tian Ling said as he landed a powerful strike on Lei Guan’s right side, sending him flying a few meters back.

"Huff, huff... What strength is this? He’s faster and stronger than me?" Lei Guan thought, shocked.

Tian Ling advanced again, landing another strike, this time infused with Wind Qi, increasing his speed and power. The battle ended right there.

Jin Yu, who had been watching, was amazed and incredulous. "Is this supposed to be an elite disciple of the sect? But he was defeated by Tian Ling, and he didn’t even seem to try..."

Tian Ling bowed to Lei Guan again and approached Jin Yu.

"Sister, how have you been? Let’s sit and have some tea while we talk," he said, smiling.

She nodded, and the two headed off to talk in a quieter place.

"Brother, how did you get so strong? That was an elite disciple..." Jin Yu asked, still surprised.

"I just cultivate diligently, sister."

"That’s true... You’re one of the few disciples who doesn’t go on missions and only knows how to cultivate," Jin Yu said with a slight smile, hinting at something.

"I must become stronger, sister. You never know what the future holds."

"You’re right, brother. There’s something I wanted to talk to you about..." She hesitated, blushing slightly.

Tian Ling realized what she wanted to say but knew it wasn’t the right time yet. He still considered himself too weak to protect anyone, but one thing was certain: he wouldn’t let anyone get close to her easily.

"Sister, I understand what you mean, but I don’t think it’s the right time yet. I promise we’ll have this conversation again when I reach a higher realm," he promised sincerely.

She nodded, slightly disappointed, and after exchanging a few more words, they said their goodbyes.

Now, Tian Ling was determined to return to cultivating the Mist Spiritual Core. He had already wasted too much time.