Chen Dazheng was puzzled and didn't understand why Elder Fang had come personally.
"Could it be that there's a problem with the treasure?" Chen Dazheng wondered. "That can't be right; if there were really a problem, the tone would have been different."
He quickly ran towards the Outer Door disciples' accommodation area, realizing that only by finding Lin Xuan would he understand what was going on.
However, what caused him even more of a headache was that Lin Xuan was not in his room at all. Chen Dazheng asked the surrounding disciples, but no one knew where Lin Xuan had gone.
With no other choice, he could only bite the bullet and go back to report to Elder Fang.
After listening, Elder Fang stroked his beard and said, "When he returns, have him come see me immediately."
"Yes," Chen Dazheng respectfully replied.
As soon as Elder Fang had left, Chen Dazheng suddenly slapped his forehead. "Ah, I forgot I have Lin Xuan's newly repaired treasure saber in my hand!"
"Forget it, I'll wait for Lin Xuan to return before sending it." He now didn't dare to go looking for Elder Fang; he could only hope that Lin Xuan would return soon.
At the same time, a storm was about to hit the Outer Door of the Xuantian Sect.
The Divine Power Group's disciples mustered all their strength to search for people Zhang Bin had been in contact with before his death, and a square-faced disciple revealed astonishing news.
He had been injured in a fight, and Zhang Bin had come to his rescue after seeing his signal. Later, Zhang Bin and others tracked the man deep into the forest and were ultimately killed there.
Finally, the Divine Power Group's disciples sketched Lin Xuan's likeness, and an operation to capture Lin Xuan unfolded at the Outer Door. After extensive inquiries, they finally ascertained Lin Xuan's background.
"A Sword Slave, newly joined the Outer Door?" A scar-faced youth became enraged after hearing this. "Do you think he could kill a Fourth Rank Spirit Warrior and two Third Rank Spirit Warriors?"
This youth was one of the heads of the Divine Power Group's Outer Door, named Yan Kong, with a Cultivation at the Sixth Rank of the Magnetic Condensation Realm. He was furious upon hearing about Lin Xuan.
"Brother Yan," the square-faced disciple stammered, "when I fought with Lin Xuan, I found that although he is a Third Rank Spirit Warrior, his strength is far beyond that level."
"Brother Yan, we only have this one lead right now. Whether it's him or not, we should capture him first; otherwise, we won't be able to explain ourselves when Zhang Rui returns," said a disciple standing beside Yan Kong.
"Let's go and take a look!" Yan Kong gestured grandly, leading a group of people towards Lin Xuan's residence.
...
A group of Divine Power Group's disciples suddenly appeared at the Outer Door disciples' living area, swiftly surrounding a small house. One of the disciples kicked the door in.
The surrounding disciples came out one by one, watching the Divine Power Group's formidable disciples and looking baffled.
"Brother Yan, the kid's not here!" someone went inside to check and then came out and reported.
"Not here? Did he run away?" Yan Kong's brow furrowed deeply. "Send people to search around the sect right away, leave some here to wait; I refuse to believe that he can escape to the heavens!"
At Yan Kong's command, the Divine Power Group's Outer Door disciples began to move swiftly, and the surrounding disciples began to understand their actions—the name Lin Xuan was recognized by everyone for the first time.
When they learned that Lin Xuan was merely a minor Outer Disciple who had just joined, with no background or support, they suddenly felt dizzy. Indeed, ignorance is fearlessness; a junior disciple dared to provoke an enormous entity like the Divine Power Group.
As soon as Tang Yu heard the news, she hurried to find Lin Xuan. She hadn't expected Lin Xuan to cause such a mess, not only troubling the Divine Power Group but also having killed people!
She rushed towards Lin Xuan's residence, fearing that Lin Xuan had already been taken away by the Divine Power Group. Fortunately, she saw only a house full of Divine Power Group disciples and no trace of Lin Xuan.
"The little bastard even knows to run away, huh!" Tang Yu cursed Lin Xuan silently in her heart.
After a fruitless search for Lin Xuan, she stomped her feet angrily and stormed off.
A group of onlooking disciples chatted among themselves: "Did you hear that Lin Xuan used to be Tang Yu's Sword Slave?"
"Yeah, that was Tang Yu who just left."
"Ah, could this be a scheme secretly arranged by the Battle Group?"
...
In just half a day, the murder case had escalated into a rumor of an imminent war between the Divine Power Group and the Battle Group, with news spreading everywhere within the Outer Door.
Soon, even the Inner Sect was abuzz with this gossip, but the high-ranking officials of the Battle Group personally came forward to clarify that the incident had nothing to do with them, effectively quashing the lies.
Having guarded for a day without sighting Lin Xuan, the Divine Power Group became even more convinced that Lin Xuan was the murderer who had fled.
Meanwhile, Lin Xuan was standing in front of a large rock carving characters.
After several days of training, he had begun to gain initial control of the spiritual power within his body. His fingers danced, and rows of characters with uniform depth appeared on the rock.
"Very good, faster than expected!" Lord of Wine hummed approvingly.
"Then, may I start practicing swordsmanship?" Lin Xuan asked excitedly.
"You're so young, and you don't believe it, this is just the First Step," Lord of Wine admonished. "The Second Step is to carve characters on leaves without piercing them."
Lin Xuan knew that this required even more precise control of power, but he was unafraid.
Picking up a leaf from the ground, Lin Xuan began to channel Spiritual Power to start.
"Hey, what are you doing!" Lord of Wine suddenly shouted.
Lin Xuan looked puzzled, "You said to carve characters!"
Lord of Wine, exasperated, kicked the large tree behind him.
"Oh." Lin Xuan turned and kicked the tree trunk.
Although he didn't use much force, the large tree still swayed three times, with leaves fluttering and scattering in the wind.
"Now you can begin," Lord of Wine said.
"Ah!" Lin Xuan looked at the sky full of leaves, his face immediately fell.
...
In the blink of an eye, half a month had passed.
In the forest, a shadow leaped into the air, swinging a Black Iron Long Sword like lightning, carving the character for "martial" on each fluttering leaf without piercing them, with a fascinating precision.
That shadow was Lin Xuan, and after a half-month of cultivation, he had mastered the delicate task of carving characters on leaves without tearing them.
"Drunken Uncle, I've completed this training. What comes next?" Lin Xuan asked with a grin.
Lord of Wine nodded with satisfaction: "You can now begin the actual sword practice. Start with the First Level."
The First Level of the Thunder Move Sword Technique consisted of Thirteen Sword strikes, each as fast as Thunderbolt and sharp beyond compare. Moreover, the power release of the Thunder Move Sword Technique was very peculiar; one would only use seventy percent of the strength, conserving thirty percent in preparation for the next strike, much like the build-up of thunderclouds endlessly accumulating power.
"Practice in the water, the resistance there will be greatly beneficial for your sword technique," suggested Lord of Wine.
The resistance in water was substantial and a greater test of one's control over force. Without hesitation, Lin Xuan remembered there was a waterfall not far ahead.
Gathering his belongings, Lin Xuan headed towards the waterfall to practice his sword technique.