The Deity of War

Only after cultivating late into the night, achieving a preliminary mastery of the Dark Falcon Illusionary Claw, was Qi Ying struck by a sense of exhaustion. He returned to his room and fell asleep on his bed without even changing his clothes.

After waking up, Qi Ying opened his eyes and was met by a ray of piercing sunlight. He sat up and opened his window, to find that the sun was already hanging high in the sky. It looked like he had missed his morning classes already, and with that in mind, he didn’t really feel like going to the academy. He made his way out of his room to find that Mother Yu was standing in the courtyard, sweeping aside some of the remnant rubble and debris with a broom.

Qi Ying immediately hurried over and took the broom from her. “Leave that to me, Mother Yu. You can’t see, so you should be more careful.”

Xuan Yu chuckled as she grabbed the broom back from Qi Ying. “Are you looking down on blind hags like me? It’s just sweeping the floor; I can tell where there are potholes and bumps on the ground with my broom. Hurry up and go to the academy.”

“But…”

Qi Ying looked around at the courtyard, which was still in quite a messy state. “I want to do some renovations today.”

“There’s nothing for you to renovate here. Everything is broken and all of the flowers and vegetable seedlings are gone. Go to the academy. At least attend the last couple of classes, then go and buy some things to replace the stuff that was damaged.”

“Alright, I’m off then.” Qi Ying nodded and turned to head off to the academy, but he turned back, speaking with a concerned look after taking only a few steps, “No, I can’t leave you here by yourself, Mother Yu. What if people from the Duan family come here again…”

Xuan Yu replied in a reassuring voice. “They already came yesterday, so they shouldn’t turn up again today. You don’t have to worry about me. Also, do you remember what I said to you yesterday?”

“I do. I will be just like a dragon. In any case, do be careful, Mother Yu.”

“Alright.”

…

“Warriors use cultivation to acclimatize themselves with heaven and earth. Energy Martial Stage warriors will begin to be able to sense the constituent particles of the vital energy of heaven and earth and also absorb those particles. True Energy will then be created, which will in turn from an energy vortex. “As one’s cultivation base continues to improve, their energy vortex will become denser and their dantian will have a larger True Energy capacity. At the same time, the meridians in their bodies would become wider and more supple, allowing more True Energy to pass and circulate through at a faster rate…”

A middle-aged man in a set of green robes stood before a group of disciples and gave a long-winded lecture.

This was the first class Qi Ying had attended in many days and it was still one of those lessons that detailed cultivation protocol for warriors. Purely theoretical classes were not his cup of tea, but he had just progressed to the Energy Martial Stage, so it certainly couldn’t hurt to hear what the teacher had to say. At the very least, it would give him a clearer understanding of his future cultivation path.

“The Energy Martial Stage is only the most basic level for warriors. However, it is quite likely that none of you will reach any higher levels… Are you curious about what lies beyond the Energy Martial Stage? Alright, then let me tell you. Ahem! Only after reaching the Spirit Martial Stage can one be considered to be a truly powerful being. There is a massive gulf between the Ninth Energy Martial Stage and the First Spirit Martial Stage. Even though it’s just a single step, that step is an extremely difficult one to take, as Spirit Martial Stage warriors can awaken their Battle Spirit! That is also why our continent is known as the Battle Spirit Continent. Once a warriors awaken their Battle Spirits, they will experience a qualitative increase in power and be capable of using all types of incredible abilities. A First Spirit Martial Stage warrior who has awakened his Battle Spirit can even defeat an army of a thousand Strength Martial Stage and Energy Martial Stage warriors!

“I trust that everyone knows of the Celestial River County Colosseum. The only Golden rank warrior there is a Spirit Martial Stage warrior. He is extremely mysterious and powerful, and has even defeated a Dark Tier beast in the past. What’s even more amazing was that he was wounded by the beast, but he still managed to insta-kill a Ninth Energy Martial Stage warrior who had dared to provoke him right after the colosseum battle! All of the most powerful beings in our Celestial River County, such as the leaders and great elders of the four major families, the Mayor, and the General of the county army; all of them are Spirit Martial Stage warriors who have awakened their Battle Spirits!”

The middle-aged teacher’s lecture continued and all of the disciples were entranced!

The Spirit Martial Stage! Battle Spirits!

All of the disciples shared a common dream of reaching that level, regardless of whether they were of noble or undistinguished upbringing. If one were to reach the Spirit Martial Stage and attain a Battle Spirit, he would be powerful enough to travel the world. Regardless of whether it was the lavish capital, Yun Xiao City, or the mysterious Western lands, all of these were locations that they could visit! For a warrior, ascending to the Spirit Martial Stage meant that boundless riches would come rolling in and countless beauties would clamber to catch his eye.

“The Spirit Martial Stage…”

Qi Ying clenched his fists as he mused to himself.

Two months ago at the Nameless Mountain, he had seen countless Spirit Martial Stage powerful beings and was stunned by their unmatched power… However, in the face of that terrifying disaster, even they were unable to escape death.

The trials and tribulations he was going to face in the future were no easier to transcend than the disaster that had taken place on the Nameless Mountain!

He had survived the Nameless Mountain ordeal through miraculous luck.

However, those future obstacles had to be overcome through strength… Only by sweeping aside all impeding elements could he be together with the person he loved the most!

…

Qi Ying walked out of the classroom following the conclusion of the lesson, he noticed many disciples pointing at him, while discussing the events that had taken place on the drill grounds the day prior. There weren’t many people complimenting him for his actions, as most of them preferred to insult the Duan family instead. All of them were waiting in anticipation to see what the Duan family was going to do next.

Qi Ying obviously despised the Duan family, but he didn’t want to create any further conflict with them, as he couldn’t handle the consequences. He could only keep a low profile and cultivate as if his life depended on it. Once he reached the Spirit Martial Stage and awakened his Battle Spirit, the Duan family would no longer pose a threat to him.

Even a dragon could be struck down and forced to seek refuge in the ocean. However, they were down but never out, and they would continue to grow stronger until they could vanquish all those who had wronged it in the past!

As these thoughts were running through his mind, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him.

“Hmm?”

Qi Ying’s footsteps faltered and he looked up to discover a gorgeous young woman in a set of snowy white robes standing before him.

“An Ruyi, what do you want this time?”

Qi Ying’s brows furrowed upon seeing her.

This woman was like an ill omen to him; whenever he bumped into her, ill fortune would inevitably follow. That day, he had saved her in the Colosseum and missed out on a battle, thereby wasting an entire day without earning any pills. After that, he encountered her at the academy gates, where she latched onto his hand and began asking him a barrage of questions, irking Duan Renshan in the process and starting his bad blood with the Duan family. Even the battle he had with Duan Tianshan was also because of her!

It could be said that An Ruyi was almost directly responsible for his conflict with the Duan family. Even though she hadn’t actually done anything wrong, Qi Ying really didn’t want to see her ever again.

An Ruyi wore a slightly panicked expression on her face and didn’t seem to notice Qi Ying’s cold demeanor. She grabbed Qi Ying’s left hand and dragged him into a corner before saying. “Duan Gucheng has deployed his four most powerful henchmen to teach you a lesson! They’re already onto you and your location is constantly being monitored. Make sure to stay at the academy where teachers are always nearby and never go to any secluded locations, or they’ll beat you until you’re disabled!”