Ai Hui’s movements were awkward and full of errors. It was difficult for people to associate him with his nickname "The Lightning Blade."
Shi Xueman and the rest were used to it however. There were always all sorts of quirks when it came to Ai Hui.
This was not the first time and would not be the last.
While everyone was fully aware of Ai Hui’s abilities and valor, it was a little difficult for them to endure seeing such a clumsy swordplay as time went by. Even if they knew that a main course would definitely be delicious, it would be an unpleasant experience if they had to first eat terrible tasting appetizers one after another.
Everyone became alert when a faint light ray started to gather on the longsword in Ai Hui’s hand.
They were filled with anticipation since Ai Hui’s swordplay was outstanding and often breathtaking.
What no one expected was for Ai Hui’s sword moves to remain disjointed in spite of the flickering sword ray. It was a tragic sight.
"What is he trying to do?" Duanmu snorted.
Even if the person executing such clumsy swordplay was the person he wanted to defeat, wasting so much time watching it was unacceptable!
Even without looking at Duanmu Huanghun, Shi Xueman remarked, "You can’t beat him anyway."
Duanmu Huanghun’s body stiffened, as if an immobilization spell had been casted on him.
A few minutes passed before he gradually turned his head around, his facial muscles twitching and eyes shooting flames.
"Wanna fight?"
Shi Xueman’s icy words woke Duanmu Huanghun up, as if he’d been hit by a basin of ice cold water. Fighting with Ai Hui did not scare him at all. Instead, he looked forward to it very much.
But to fight with Shi Xueman…
Duanmu Huanghun trembled at that thought, and his childhood trauma returned to him instantly like an enveloping black cloud. He had seen with his own eyes how Shi Xueman made the bigger brothers and sisters wail and howl. This had also fueled his determination to succeed.
This childhood trauma was really a bit too overwhelming…
Duanmu Huanghun groaned a little before turning his head back.
Don’t be fooled by his recent progress. He was still meek when it came to confronting Shi Xueman. Losing to Ai Hui was not a big deal because it would just feed his fighting spirit.
But losing to Shi Xueman…
That nightmarish scene would trigger his childhood trauma. It would be too terrifying.
Ai Hui’s nickname for her, "Violent Iron Lady," was simply an understatement!
Humph, I shall not bother with women!
Duanmu Huanghun looked down, half-embarrassed and half-ashamed.
Ai Hui’s eight palaces were incessantly being filled with "sword pills." Elemental energy pills shaped like sword pills continued spinning at high speeds and were suspended within the elemental energy palaces. Plus, Ai Hui found another benefit of the elemental energy pills–they were more precise compared to the wisps and threads of elemental energy he used in the past. This was a huge advantage in battles and was especially suited for Ai Hui’s [Big Dipper].
[Big Dipper] required seven identical amount of elemental energy, which was why it was a very challenging skill. Ai Hui had to simultaneously control seven palaces and accurately guide seven identical amount of elemental energy within an extremely short period of time and while in combat. This was a very demanding task for elementalists.
It was much easier now since Ai Hui only needed his seven palaces to control one elemental energy pill.
Ai Hui paid even more attention when he was "rolling the sword pill," ensuring that each elemental energy pills was identical.
This caused Ai Hui’s rolling speed to reduce, but he felt it was very much worth it. Preparation work that could help in battle ought to be done no matter how complicated and tedious.
A short battle determined life and death, and preparation work consumed time and energy, but one must survive to have time and energy.
It took Ai Hui a whole 12 hours to get sufficient elemental energy, roll them into elemental energy pills and place them within his eight palaces. As the amount of uncontrollable elemental energy within his body decreased, Ai Hui’s sword ray became brighter and clearer.
When the last elemental energy pill entered his sky palace, Ai Hui’s body jerked.
Eight palaces shook at the same time and the high-speed spinning elemental energy pills suddenly froze. The next moment, a violent surge of elemental energy current flowed backward from between Ai Hui’s brows.
Something rumbled in Ai Hui’s head, causing his mind to blank out.
Just then, everyone saw a ray of light lighting up from between Ai Hui’s brows. The dazzling light transformed into a whirlpool of light as countless wisps and threads of brightly-colored rays seemed to get sucked into it from thin air.
"Sky palace?"
Shi Xueman was stunned.
Not just her, but Duanmu Huanghun, who was about to leave, was stunned too.
When eight palaces advanced from Initial Completion stage and attaining elemental internalization, elementalists would be able to sense the elemental energy of heaven and earth as well as guide it into the body. This process was known as [Opening of Palace Door], and each palace opened a different kind of palace door.
Generally speaking, opening palace doors were for elementalists’ strongest palaces since the most tempered elemental energy palace had the keenest reaction to heaven and earth elemental energy. Furthermore, this was directly related to the inherited training methods.
For example, Shi Xueman opened the sea palace’s palace door because she practiced the [Cloud Whale] techinque and mainly trained her sea palace. As such, her spear skills were powerful, while her elemental energy was mild and soft.
Duanmu Huanghun practiced the [Viridescent Flower], but trained mainly his gate palace. The gate palace linked everything between heaven and earth. As such, the [Viridescent Flower] technique was named after its flexibility.
Ai Hui opened the sky palace’s place door.
Opening the sky palace was not that bizarre. A lot of inherited absolute arts, such as the famous [Eyebrow Heart Knife], focused on training the sky palace.
But Ai Hui practiced the [Big Dipper].
At the moment, people were still clicking their tongues in wonder since the [Big Dipper] demanded a lot from the practitioner. Seven strong palaces were required, and it was only now that they realized Ai Hui had seven strong palaces. Other than his sky palace, the rest were strong. They felt that while Ai Hui had low affinity with elemental energy, he had a rather rare constitution for possessing seven strong palaces.
In Ai Hui’s hands, the [Big Dipper] was a formidable power that lived up to its fame and glory.
If Ai Hui had opened a palace door from one of his strong palaces, it would not be surprising or strange, yet it happened to be his sky palace that opened.
Could it be that Ai Hui’s sky palace had undergone more tempering than the rest?
Everyone was confused, but not many were surprised when Ai Hui broke through Initial Completion to elemental internalization. The astonishing lightning version of [Dust Fall] displayed during the battle on the long street had already convinced everybody that Ai Hui was beyond ordinary elementalists, so it would not be surprising for him to also open his palace door.
The light whirlpool between Ai Hui’s brows continued swallowing the elemental energy that surged out from the air. Simultaneously, there were wisps of brightly-colored elemental energy dispersing from Ai Hui’s surroundings. These were elemental energies that Ai Hui was unable to absorb.
Ai Hui gradually recovered himself.
The steady flow of elemental energy was heterogeneous, so it was very uncomfortable for him when all of it entered his body. Just by willing it in his mind, the elemental energy from his eight palaces automatically started the Circulatory Cycle Revolution.
The elemental energy pills, lustrous as pearl and jade, circulated within his body.
It felt different from before. Elemental energy used to feel like flowing liquid, but after becoming elemental energy pills, they became more agile. This required Ai Hui to have better control so he had to be even more alert. Previously, he did not have to worry about the fluid elemental energy getting clogged when he was performing the Circulatory Cycle Revolution, but now, if the elemental energy pills moved in a swarm, blockages were very possible.
Ai Hui did not mind in the least. Placed alongside its benefits, the costs were not worth mentioning.
As the Circulatory Cycle Revolution continued, wisps of elemental energy were absorbed by the operating elemental energy pills. They followed the pills in the circulation, as if they had smelled a similar odor.
Ai Hui quickly took this opportunity to roll this elemental energy into pills since he needed them.
Those that he did not require were dispersed from around his body.
Ai Hui’s Circulatory Cycle Revolution was different from anyone else’s. Not only was his circulation for eight palaces, it was also for the sword in his hand.
Wholeheartedly rolling elemental energy pills, Ai Hui did not notice that following the circulation, the elemental energy pills entered his sword before flowing back into his body.
Each elemental energy pill contained sword aura. Ai Hui used the sword pill method to roll the elemental energy into pills, but the sword aura did not weaken because of this. Instead, it was more controlled than that of the original elemental energy swords.
The elemental energy pills passed through the longsword during the revolution, causing it to tremble very slightly.
The longsword was quietly undergoing changes.
Ai Hui sensed the longsword’s change 10 minutes later. The sword aura within the elemental energy pills agitated the longsword nonstop. Now, Ai Hui had a keen comprehension of the sword, achieving unprecedented progress.
Perhaps the elemental energy pills were beneficial to the longsword?
Ai Hui’s eyes lit up. Wanting to inspect the changes, he turned his attention to the longsword in his hand.
The sword aura in the elemental energy pills kept stimulating the longsword, and Ai Hui felt the sword becoming increasingly sharp, so sharp that it could cut open anything. Yet, there was an indescribable, incorporeal obstruction.
Ai Hui instinctively disliked this layer of obstruction. He knew not what it was, but felt that it restricted the sword.
What to do?
Suddenly it clicked. Since the elemental energy pills could stimulate the longsword, just increase the intensity!
He sped up the circulation of the elemental energy pills within his body.
Ai Hui was pleasantly surprised to discover that following an increase in speed of circulation of the elemental energy pills, the obstructive layer became thinner.
All of a sudden, Ai Hui felt his hands becoming light as that invisible obstruction disappeared.
Boom, Ai Hui’s mind shook.
While those present were still processing the strange fact that Ai Hui was opening his sky palace’s palace door, a brilliant ray lit up and suddenly caught their eyes once again.
They raised their head automatically and were dumbfounded upon digesting the situation.
The light ray from Ai Hui’s longsword continued to grow as the bright silver light transformed into a light whirlpool.
Everyone felt a great sense of familiarity toward the next scene.
The wisps of brightly-colored lights surged up from thin air and incessantly entered the silver light whirlpool.
Duanmu Huanghun’s eyes were about to drop onto the floor.
A longsword… opening a palace door?
Seeing that the light whirlpool on the longsword was the same as the one between Ai Hui’s brows and that both were absorbing the heaven and earth elemental energy simultaneously, everyone was struck dumb.
When it came to opening a palace door, no one had even heard of simultaneously opening two of them. Needless to say, no one knew that a sword could open a palace door as well…
The silver light from the longsword and from between Ai Hui’s brows shone so brightly that it illuminated each and every stunned face of those present.
Even Lou Lan revealed a lifeless gaze, which was rare.
Not a single voice could be heard in the training hall.