Chapter 51: Sky Realm
Chapter 51: Sky Realm
Claude knew that neither the Prodigy Summit incident nor the incident concerning the Monarchy and the Academies would be resolved swiftly.
The ruckus in the Royal Palace and the Academies would surely continue for a long time.
But all of these had nothing to do with him.
"The Sky Realm.... In order for me to climb up and be able to fight against the best of my generation, I have to boost my strength. And for that, I have to ascend to the Sky Realm!"
Training alone in his courtyard, a thought flashed across Claude's mind. Even though he wasn't able to utilise it properly, the 'Beau Paradis Sword Art' left a deep impression.
The Sky Realm would open up a whole new world for a martial artist, including tremendous changes to your speed, strength, and dexterity.
But to break through to the Sky Realm, he would need an immense force to circulate through his body, and compared to the techniques that he was practicing with, the Beau Paradis Sword Art Technique was one of the most powerful Sword Art for martial artists, and the most powerful cultivation technique in his arsenal.
"I should try it out!"
Making up his mind, Claude closed his eyes, and his mind slowly blanked out to reach an imperturbable state.
He stretched his hands forward, and a burning wave gushed out from Claude's chest, and spread to the rest of his body, making its way towards his palms.
Peng!
In the blink of an eye, a long sword had already appeared in Claude's hands and a large amount of energy erupted from it.
"Not yet" Claude said to himself as he advanced forward, practicing the moves of the Beau Paradis Sword Art technique.
Similar to the Invisible Sword Technique, the core to practicing the Beau Paradis Sword Art Technique was for one to comprehend the intent of the sword and its movement.
It allowed the spiritual energy to flow through the martial artists' body continuously.
"Not yet I still have to let the spiritual energy build up!" Claude turned around and stepped his foot forward, and his motion and the sight looked as though he was floating on the ground, elegant in nature.
Every move he made was connected and precise, as though he was dancing. Even though the spiritual energy was being released at a very high pace, the movements performed by Claude utilised much of the released energy, making the build up within the body much slower and giving ample time for the cultivator's body to get accustomed to the technique.
While cultivating it straight could create a burst of energy much faster, making the training much more effective for a high level cultivator, it resulted in a significant loss of energy in a really short time, which made it difficult for someone with a lower cultivation level.
"It's about time for the beast to awaken..."
The air currents around Claude suddenly burst, as his body suddenly shuddered. By now, Claude could feel the uncontrollable restrictive force increase several times with every second, and he felt as though his entire body was being pressed downwards due to the tremendous amount of force exerted on him.
"Just a bit more.." Claude was not going to allow himself to waver, and smiled faintly. He could feel the blood in his body flowing faster and faster, increasing in speed and he had a feeling that he could break through.
"Now!" After an unknown period of time, Claude finally opened his eyes, and an endless amount of spiritual energy burst out Claude's body as the sword in his hands began to shake violently and a cold light gleamed forth.
Wham!
Claude swung the sword with all his might and stabbed into the ground below, and in an instant, the crisp sound of cracking bones sounded from his entire body, as his cultivation suddenly burst forward and an incredible strength surged into his arms.
Boom!
At the same time, a gleam of light flashed through the sky, and as a screeching sound echoed, the ground below him was split into two and dust flew into the sky. Then, with a loud boom, a massive force knocked Claude back. However, unlike last time, he didn't suffer any damages to his body and landed safely.
"Ha! At last, I've done it! I've finally reached the Sky Realm!" With a smile, Claude clenched his fist. In the blink of an eye, he shattered his bottleneck and broke through to the First level of the Sky Realm. He could feel that his muscles had grown stronger and tougher, and he realized that the Spiritual Energy within his body also became denser!
"Congratulations young master! You have broken through to the Sky Realm!" A delighted voice sounded from behind, and Claude turned around to see Randall's thrilled face.
"Thanks," Claude nodded with a smile on his face.
Randall was about to speak when suddenly, his body jolted.
"Young Master Chong, someone is approaching your room."
Just as Claude was about to ask what was wrong, he suddenly heard Randall whispering to him, as he glanced at the entrance gate.
"Oh?" Claude's consciousness was jolted, and he look toward where Randall was glancing at.
"Hup!" At that moment, a high-pitched voice sounded from Randall, and all of a sudden, the rest of Claude's servants appeared around Claude, surrounding him.
At the same moment, a domineering aura began exuding from the exterior of his abode, and Claude couldn't help but take a deep breath.
"Do not worry! I have come in peace!" an impassive voice sounded just before the entrance gate opened, and a young man slowly walked in, exuding an intimidating aura that made Claude feel as though he was standing helplessly amidst a huge storm.
'Who is this man?' Taking a deep breath, Claude calmed himself down, as he lifted his gaze to match the young man who was standing in front of him.
"What's the meaning of this, General Ivan? I thought the Royal Army couldn't barge into an inner disciples' room as they please," Randall's face turned grim as his fierce gaze descended onto the young man in front of them.
Claude's brows raised.
General Ivan of the Royal Army?
"Didn't I tell you not to worry, servant? I've come here today to discuss changes that are to be made to the academy and I thought I'd drop by some of the inner disciples' rooms. You know, to make sure they aren't planning on blowing anyone up," The General looked at Randall with a pair of calm eyes.
"That doesn't answer my question!" Randall was incomparably agitated.
"Like I said, there's going to be some changes around here. And the changes include giving me and my men the authority to barge into the rooms of the academy disciples as we please. Happy with the explanation, servant?" The General spoke with a calm voice.
"What? You're lying!" Randall's face revealed shock.
"Oh, but I'm not, servant.. I really am telling the truth. And soon every disciple will know it as well," General Ivan looked at Randall and said indifferently, "Better adapt to it as fast as you can, because you have no other choice."
"Well, I only came here today to check up on some of the disciples. If you'll excuse me, I have to leave now.." His gaze descended onto Claude, and the corners of his mouth curled into a sneer. "See you later, Second Elder's disciple. I wish you the best of luck, because you're going to need it."
And with that, General Ivan left the room, leaving the entire scene with silence.
What was actually going on?