I will eventually become a god through sheer hard work.

"Alright, lie down."

Wu Xuanzhu shook his head and spoke.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yinglin dared not disobey. He replied with a "yes" and, enduring the pain, lay down, gasping for breath but not daring to scream.

Seemingly amused by this, Wu Xuanzhu chuckled twice and said:

"Look at you, all disheveled. You're usually so good at putting on an act, what happened? You finally ran into a brick wall?"

Zhou Yinglin dared not reply.

"It's good for young people to be arrogant, but if they lack ability and act arrogantly towards everyone, they'll eventually encounter ghosts if they walk in the dark too often."

"I was fooled by you before. I thought that since you were so humble in front of your teacher and your senior brothers and sisters, there was nothing wrong with you. Therefore, I neglected to educate you."

Wu Xuanzhu walked to Zhou Yinglin's bedside, looked down at him, and slowly spoke.

"Get ready. I'll be sending you to the Seventh Metropolitan Area. It's time for you to calm down and realize your limitations."

Zhou Yinglin responded in a low voice.

"As for your grudge with Xue Jing..."

As Wu Xuanzhu spoke, he carefully observed Zhou Yinglin's expression.

Seeing the fear that Zhou Yinglin couldn't help but show when he uttered the name 'Xue Jing', Wu Xuanzhu shook his head in disappointment.

“That child is no ordinary person. He is someone that even my Wu family’s Little Phoenix values ​​highly and treats with special regard.”

“He’s on a different path from you, and you shouldn’t have had much to do with him. But this time, you’ve been tricked by that brat from the Zhu family.”

"I will try to resolve your feud with him... Otherwise, even though he doesn't take you seriously, if we happen to run into each other on the street again, he might just kill you on the spot."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yinglin timidly said, "Thank...thank you, Master..."

Upon hearing this thank you, Wu Xuanzhu's expression grew even more disappointed.

He turned and walked outside, speaking softly as he went:

"In my life, I achieved great things late in life. I was nearly fifty years old when I finally crossed the dragon gate. After that, I was unstoppable. I made three leaps in twenty years to win the title of 'Master of War'. The key to this success was my 'steadiness'."

"Ying Lin, although you have some talent, you are not really suitable to be my apprentice. I hope that going to the Seventh Metropolitan Area will change you. If not..."

As the sound faded into the distance, Zhou Yinglin's expression grew increasingly flustered.

He understood that his master had lost hope in him.

It's all Xue's fault...!

The moment the thought crossed his mind, he seemed to see a pair of indifferent and disdainful silver eyes looking down at him.

"Ahhhhh!!"

Zhou Yinglin screamed in terror.

……

Xue Jing quickly returned to the Zhige base.

His current speed, when using only his internal energy and without using explosive techniques like Flame Continuous Colors or Twin Strike, has reached nearly 90 meters per second.

That is, speeds of 300 kilometers per hour or more!

Although it wasn't as fast as the high-speed monorail in Yuancheng, it was heading straight towards Zhige Base, so the overall speed was much faster than taking the train back.

"Brother Xue!"

Ning Yuantai paced back and forth in front of Xue Jing's villa, waiting anxiously. As soon as he saw Xue Jing return, his eyes lit up and he shouted excitedly.

"Lu Shenliu was indeed coming for you, but I didn't expect Wu Xuanzhu to stop him... Everyone in Yuan City saw and heard what happened just now!"

"As expected of that Wu family member, she actually managed to get the 'Gun Saint' to protect you. Brother Xue, could it be that she and you are..."

Ning Yuantai stopped abruptly at this point, his gaze unconsciously drifting to the black cat perched on Xue Jing's shoulder.

He then coughed lightly, "Hmm, that person certainly values ​​you highly."

This abrupt change of topic made the cat snort coldly, a hint of danger flashing in its emerald-like vertical pupils.

Xue Jing was also somewhat guilty and dared not say much, but his expression remained normal, showing no abnormality, as if he had a clear conscience. He simply said:

“She values ​​me quite a bit… Yuan Tai, come over for dinner tonight. I’m going to practice my martial arts for a while now. I just witnessed two masters clashing and gained some insights.”

Ning Yuantai nodded quickly: "Okay, then I'll be going now. You go ahead with your work."

He then hurriedly ran away.

Xue Jing stepped into the villa, placed the cat on the sofa, and said softly, "...Then I'm going to practice my skills."

The cat glanced at him sideways and said, "You'd better be."

Xue Jing smiled and reached out to vigorously rub her cat's head, eliciting an annoyed meow, before walking up to the rooftop.

"Then, let's give it a try, ascension..."

Xue Jing thought for a moment, then invoked the power of words to summon the 'non-existent beast'.

He then reached into the air beside him, grabbed the long hilt of the sword, and pulled it outwards.

He pulled the Forgotten Greatsword from the void.

"To imbue 'things that belong to me' with a feathering effect, to control them freely... this sword should be considered something that belongs to me, right?"

Xue Jing muttered to himself.

With a thought, he instinctively used 'Ascension' on the Forgotten Greatsword in his hand.

The next moment, he felt as if he had gained something.

It's like... having an extra movable arm?

He subconsciously waved the extra 'hand'... but what moved was not the 'hand', but—the Forgotten Greatsword.

The giant sword, which is 2.3 meters long and taller than a person, and as big as a door, moved around in the air.

Yes, Xue Jing has let go, but the Forgotten Greatsword still floats in the air, like a flying sword in a cultivation novel.

"Ascension... Could it be that it literally means adding 'wings' to things?"

Xue Jing asked in confusion.

The term "feathering" originates from the process of an insect pupating into an adult. After emerging from its pupa, an insect undergoes complete metamorphosis, essentially transforming from one organism into another. Therefore, "feathering" is often used to refer to 'transformation'.

The Taoist concept of "feathering and ascending to immortality" refers to the transformation of a 'human' into a 'celestial being,' and also implies the ability to 'fly to heaven.'

Xue Jing controlled the Forgotten Greatsword, making it spin back and forth in the air with incredible agility and speed.

Blood ties, free control... This level of smooth control is beyond the level of "like an arm or fingers," it's not just "like an arm," it's a real second arm.

"It's fast and easy to control, making it very useful as a flying sword, but is this all the skill is capable of...?"

Xue Jing pondered for a moment.

He could barely manage to do the same flying sword maneuver with Dragon Thunder, but it was difficult to control and had little practical value in combat.

Ascension is a divine skill, so it should have more than just this function, right?

After thinking for a moment, Xue Jing controlled the Forgotten Greatsword to fly back to him and examined it carefully.

"The panel shows slight depletion... It seems that this isn't a depletion-related system like Plant Pact, but rather a system like Shadow Flame Twins where depletion occurs with each use."

"Wouldn't that make things even worse...?"

"No, it shouldn't be just that."

After thinking for a while, Xue Jing suddenly realized something.

As easy as using an arm or fingers, as connected by blood... it's like having an extra part of the body?

In this case……

Xue Jing's mind raced.

The Forgotten Greatsword floating in the air suddenly changed. A layer of platinum coating gradually covered its surface like flowing water, and soon it transformed into a platinum greatsword.

Xue Jing's eyes widened slightly.

"Sure enough!"

The weapon enhancement of the Lord of Soldiers appeared out of thin air on the floating Forgotten Greatsword without his touch!

After 'ascension', the things that are ascension become extensions of his body!

"If that's the case..."

Xue Jing's eyes flickered slightly, and another thought crossed his mind.

The platinum-gold giant sword darted back and forth in the air, cutting through the air with a whooshing sound.

Suddenly, the giant sword seemed to be fast-forwarded, its speed doubling dramatically. It was incredibly swift, and because of its speed, the visual afterimages of its back-and-forth movement almost formed an ∞ symbol.

"As expected, divine skills can also be applied remotely to 'feathered things'!"

Xue Jing's eyes revealed excitement.

Just now, he used 'Twin Speed' on the Forgotten Greatsword!

This skill was originally only supposed to work on his physical body!

"In that case..."

Xue Jing suddenly had a brilliant idea and used 'Ascension' on his own physical body!

The next moment, a feeling of freedom spread throughout his body, as if he had broken free from some kind of restraint.

Just as an ordinary person raises their arm, he naturally—flew up!

Without using dragon horns or relying on dragon lightning to control its own gravity, it truly broke free from the constraints of the planet beneath its feet and soared into the sky!

"call out--!!"

Xue Jing shot into the sky at incredible speed, tearing through the air currents and letting out a sharp whistling sound. In just over ten seconds, he reached a height of a thousand meters!

Its speed was no less than that of running on the ground, and it was nearly twice as fast as the dragon lightning coiled around it as it flew through the sky. Moreover, it was extremely agile!

As if he were born to fly, Xue Jing made all sorts of fancy turns in the air without any hindrance, moving with incredible smoothness.