Xuanqing Guard

Chapter 311: Chapter 311: Differences

Just as Nie Yun said, most of Chang Baifeng’s disciples are Sword Cultivators. The duels are bursting with sword light, every move is extremely dangerous, and their killing blows show no mercy at all, which is completely unlike what Shen Hao had imagined before.

"Are they all this ruthless?" Shen Hao had just seen a Primordial Pill Realm Cultivator nearly lose an arm to a fellow disciple, a chunk of flesh torn from his shoulder, and even then he refused to admit defeat, only dragged off after being kicked unconscious.

"Sects cultivate in seclusion most of the time, so disciples gain their combat experience mainly from dueling with fellow sect members. As such, the duels are usually as close to real battle as possible; it’s rare to stop at just a touch. Heh, this is the opposite of how duels play out in the secular world, right?"

"Yeah, this is the first time I’ve seen people get bloodthirsty over dueling. What if someone slips up?"

"That’s unlikely. Look, there are three Profound Sea Realm Elders watching. If the disciples truly lose control, those Elders will intervene."

"But injuries and permanent damage must happen sometimes, right? Isn’t it a bit too costly?"

"Not really. The sects have plenty of medicine for reconnecting severed limbs; the risk of lasting disability is very low. What’s truly dangerous are Soul Techniques—those are hard to defend against and even harder to heal. A single mistake can damage someone’s soul foundation or even directly take their life. That’s why Soul Techniques are typically forbidden in duels."

After hearing this, Shen Hao felt more at ease. Simply put, these Sect Cultivators treat intra-sect duels as a way to grow practical combat experience, aiming for true battle while doing their best to avoid fatalities. Every strike and move tries to "kill the enemy." So, thinking that people who stay on the mountain and cultivate all day have no battle sense is dead wrong.

Nie Yun continued from the side: "Actually, these duels aren’t just between sect members. Many allied sects hold regular duels with prizes, which both fosters communication and encourages their disciples to work harder in cultivation. It also prevents disciples from only practicing inside the sect and losing their adaptability."

"So that’s how it is!"

The Cultivators trained this way absolutely outshine loose cultivators in combat. From the start, they’ve battled others of the same realm and confronted all sorts of sect tricks and magical artifacts—their experience is way ahead of any loose cultivator.

After all, loose cultivators rarely spar, let alone participate in high-stakes duels; when they fight, it’s usually to the death or serious injury. This is very different from sect duels that are meant purely for self-improvement and gaining combat experience.

This gave Shen Hao some inspiration—maybe this sect method could be adapted for the Xuanqing Guard?

Aside from marveling at how fierce the duels were, Shen Hao was blown away by the powerful techniques the sect cultivators displayed. Whether it was magic or fighting style, everything was flexible and ingenious, with new tricks at every turn. He saw many skills for the first time, and sometimes his eyes couldn’t keep up with the fighters—too fast.

Even the last pair of Chang Baifeng disciples, both at Gathering Spirit Realm Fourth Layer, stunned Shen Hao with their power. He wasn’t sure he could beat either of them himself.

Nie Yun occasionally took a swig of wine, grinning as he watched the action, and quietly noted every change in Shen Hao’s expression. Loose cultivators like Shen Hao, seeing the skills of sect disciples for the first time, always looked just like this.

"This is the difference between cultivation and struggling in the mundane world."

Shen Hao nodded in agreement: "True, even if an outside cultivator is in the same realm, they usually can’t compare to those trained in a sect."

"It’s good you understand that. But there are exceptions to every rule."

"How so?"

"Like I said: Sect disciples have rich combat experience, but not much real life-or-death trial. That’s their biggest weakness. How many times have you barely escaped death?"

"Seven or eight, maybe? I can’t really remember."

"Heh, I’ve only had five in all my cultivation. And that’s because I frequently go out and deliberately seek out dangerous places to gain this experience—think about how common this is among average sect disciples?"

When Shen Hao heard Nie Yun’s words, he really wanted to spit: You treat escaping death like going on vacation? You envy that? You even deliberately seek it out? Are you nuts?

But after another thought, he had to admit there was some truth to it. There is a great terror between life and death—those who haven’t experienced it usually panic when faced with true danger, and might even lose their last bit of vitality.

But don’t we cultivate to raise ourselves so we don’t have to face life-and-death situations? Why deliberately chase after extremes?

While they chatted, the last pair of Chang Baifeng disciples finished their match, and the whole duel session ended.

No matter what others felt, at least Shen Hao, seeing this kind of event for the first time, was awed by Chang Baifeng’s strength. Among the dueling winners, there were a full twenty-two Primordial Pill Realm Cultivators—this was just the power displayed by a second-tier sect, who knows what else is hidden? Imagine a stronger first-class sect, or a super sect like Mountain of Ten Thousand Books—what kind of lineup would they have?

Thinking even deeper, just how much power must the Jingjiu Dynasty have to keep all these sects under its thumb and maintain balance?

"Everyone, my Chang Baifeng disciples have finished their exhibition. Is there anyone interested in coming up to show off some skills and help us celebrate?"

This is how it should be; the guests are here to congratulate, and aside from offering gifts, it’s customary to perform and add some excitement, making the host look good. Of course, congratulations come first—no one’s here to upstage the host.

Shen Hao was curious who would step up and give Chang Baifeng some face.

"After watching for so long, my hands are itching! Let me offer my congratulations for Chang Baifeng’s centennial celebration!"

Before Shen Hao could turn his head, Nie Yun—who’d been beside him—leapt straight off the viewing platform, landing lightly in the middle of the arena.

This...

From afar, Shen Hao saw Nie Yun’s smile was dazzling, and it oddly reminded him of Nie Yun’s expression back in the Sword Emperor’s Tomb when he was about to challenge the Dark Cloud Sword—a genuine excitement from deep inside.

"I bet he came to this celebration just for this part, right?" It sounded absurd, but Shen Hao was sure he wasn’t wrong.

It wasn’t just Shen Hao surprised to see Nie Yun step out—everyone present was caught off guard.

What kind of status does Nie Yun have? He represents one of the two first-class sects in the Jingxi Territory, Gui Mountain Cultivation Institute, with cultivation at Primordial Core Realm Perfection, his power is widely acknowledged, known as one of the "Jingxi Double Eagles." How is the host supposed to pick someone to go up against him?

Is this really him congratulating Chang Baifeng, or is he just making things awkward for the hosts?

But Nie Yun’s next words were: "I’ve long heard the name of Fairy Qing Wan from Mountain of Ten Thousand Books, and her Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin is legendary. Today, on the occasion of Chang Baifeng’s grand celebration, Nie Yun would like to ask the fairy for a few moves, if the fairy dares to accept?"

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