A month later, the Jax family patriarch's decree arrived: Keane was to immediately inherit the position of city lord of Cheir County. Until Keane came of age, his sister Jenny would assist in managing the county's affairs.
"Brother Lei, you're leaving?"
Jenny, Keane, and Lambert all stared at Lin Lei in surprise.
Keane had inherited the position of city lord, and Jenny would serve as his advisor. The siblings were finally at ease, their hearts brimming with the desire to repay Lin Lei. Yet now, of all times, Lin Lei announced he was leaving Cheir County.
"Brother Lei." Jenny's eyes even reddened slightly.
Lin Lei carried the heavy sword on his back, Bei Bei perched on his shoulder, and beside him stood the black-striped cloud leopard, Black Lu. Lin Lei smiled faintly. "In Cheir County, this bustling environment has been somewhat detrimental to my cultivation. I'm not going far—I'll simply be training alone in a quiet valley outside the city."
For Lin Lei, nothing mattered more than cultivation. Especially now, when he was still making constant progress and had yet to encounter a bottleneck. This was precisely the time to push himself even harder.
Among the Dragon Blood Warriors of the Baruch Family, there were those who had endured decades of bitter training, only to emerge after reaching the Saint Realm and dominate the world.
A true powerhouse must be able to endure solitude.
"A valley?" Jenny and Keane both sighed with secret relief.
"Well, I may come visit when I have time. This is the extent of what I can do for you. From now on, you'll have to rely on yourselves," Lin Lei said with a smile.
Looking at Jenny and Keane, the two siblings, Lin Lei sometimes thought of himself and little Wotton. Now they had no parents.
"I wonder how Wotton is doing. Once I grasp the next level beyond 'Momentum,' I'll set off to see him," Lin Lei said to himself.
He knew full well that Wotton was currently studying and training at the O'Brien Academy. There was no need to disturb him now. Besides, a person only grows faster when relying on themselves.
Once Lin Lei arrived at Wotton's side, it might actually hinder his growth.
To the east of Cheir County rose a range of verdant mountains. In an inconspicuous valley within those mountains, Lin Lei built a wooden cabin and began his solitary cultivation.
Night fell over the valley. A patch of green grass spread before a quiet lake.
Lin Lei sat cross-legged on the lawn by the shore, eyes closed, quietly communing with nature. Beside him, a campfire burned, casting shifting light and shadow across his face.
He could feel the weight of the earth, the lightness of the wind, the flow of water, the ferocity of fire…
As a mage—one with extraordinary elemental affinity for both Earth and Wind Systems—Lin Lei held a tremendous advantage over ordinary warriors when it came to perceiving nature.
This was precisely why that ancestor of the Baruch Family, who wielded a great hammer, had only reached the realm of "lifting the heavy as if it were light" upon breaking through to the Saint Realm. Warriors, after all, found it far more difficult to merge with nature than mages.
"The 'Thunderclap' of 'lifting the heavy as if it were light'—its explosive force is like a volcanic eruption. And the so-called 'Momentum' is the momentum of heaven and earth, of fire, water, and wind. But…"
After meditating in silence for a long time, Lin Lei suddenly understood.
"Momentum is merely momentum—borrowing the power of the surrounding world. What lies beyond 'Momentum' encompasses all things. What I should be pursuing now is the path most suited to me."
In the darkness of night, Lin Lei opened his eyes as he sat cross-legged by the lake shore. Those eyes sparkled like the stars in the sky.
"Different weapons follow different paths. A heavy sword is mighty and weighty! A heavy sword has no edge—it does not triumph through sharpness. It triumphs through its straightforward, imposing weight; through its straightforward, unmatched strikes."
A faint realization dawned upon Lin Lei's heart.
The way of cultivating the Black Jade Heavy Sword shared common ground with the Laws of the Earth.
"The weight of the earth, the boundlessness of the earth, the steadiness of the earth…" Lin Lei gripped the Black Jade Heavy Sword, and his heart synced perfectly with the pulse of the earth.
The earth had its own unique pulse—a rhythm that resonated deeply with the soul, one that could only be perceived when one's comprehension of the earth had reached an extraordinarily high level.
Lin Lei rose to his feet.
He began to slowly swing the Black Jade Heavy Sword. With each sweep, both his footwork and his sword technique entered a unique rhythm.
It was a rhythm that made one's heart tremble.
"Whoosh."
The Black Jade Heavy Sword pierced through the air as if it weighed millions of pounds. As Lin Lei wielded it, he seemed to merge with the earth itself. Even merely watching his practice conveyed a sense of immense weight.
"Phut."
Lin Lei's Black Jade Heavy Sword suddenly thrust into empty air. Several sonic booms rang out in rapid succession. A simple straight thrust at nothing produced multiple sonic booms. It was almost inconceivable—no matter how fast a weapon moved, it would typically produce at most one sonic boom. Generating several in a row was virtually impossible.
"Hm?" Lin Lei's eyes lit up.
But the moment his focus wavered, he immediately snapped out of that wondrous state.
"What just happened? I wasn't using Battle Qi, yet that force somehow split into several rhythmic, successive waves of attack."
Lin Lei fell into deep thought.
During training, one might occasionally slip into a special state and achieve astonishing results. But unless one fully grasped and internalized the insight, it could not be replicated at will.
What Lin Lei needed to do was to keep thinking, keep training.
To master everything perfectly!
The sky was a brilliant blue, clear and without a single blemish. A few white clouds drifted like beautiful silk scarves. The valley where Lin Lei lived was indeed serene and secluded.