Plunging back into the deep water, even with the ice-cold pool surrounding him, Zong Shou still felt an unbearable heat emanating from his body. Without even throwing a punch, the pores on his skin began to exude sweat, which was pitch black, thick as ink.

This was the effect of the Lin Blood Fish: it could expel impurities from the body and enhance one's physique. The blood of six hundred-pound Lin Blood Fish was equivalent to a second-tier Spirit Pill, perhaps even superior to one.

However, when Zong Shou stepped onto the stone platform, he did not practice his fists. Instead, he held the second-tier Thunder Fang Sword and began to move it underwater.

The Chaotic Extreme Wind Fist, with only minor modifications, transformed into the Chaotic Cloak Sword Style, which similarly stirred the depths, causing chaotic currents to surge. A massive whirlpool gradually formed beneath the water.

Recklessly, he urged it to grow larger, exceeding the scale of his previous fist practice many times over. Zong Shou did not foolishly stand at the exact center of the whirlpool; instead, holding the Thunder Fang Sword, he moved all around within it.

It was within the whirlpool that he practiced his movement techniques and sword movements. His footwork was entirely unremarkable, consisting only of the most fundamental steps, yet when he executed them, they morphed into myriad variations, allowing him to dodge the turbulent currents with absolute precision.

The sword movements were similar. Zong Shou was no longer constrained by the basic stances of those forms.

Over those thirteen years, every sword technique in Zong Shou's memory, along with the exquisite sword movements he had witnessed on his journey from the Qiantian Mountain, were brought forth one by one. Every thrust of the sword was executed in an instant, meeting the force head-on, either completely shattering the momentum of the turbulent undercurrent—which was at its fiercest and most astonishing [Baidu Shenhuang Forum]—or causing this underwater vortex to become increasingly violent and vast.

Gradually, the surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy began to swirl around him with his sword. In his previous life, his unparalleled swiftness, his cunning, and his mastery of killing at the brink of death were all cultivated through this very method.

Not only were his sword movements peerless, but before ascending to the Celestial Rank, his shifts in movement were also among the very best in the world. After twenty minutes, Zong Shou finally showed slight signs of strain.

The speed of the sword in his hands slowed slightly, causing the violent vortex to decelerate as well. Zong Shou’s brow lifted slightly.

"This stage of my Body Refinement—the World-Shaking Spiritual Art—is nearly complete. Many deficiencies and gaps remain, which must be perfected and filled in later!

However, although this Qi Refining technique is established, the accompanying mental cultivation, sword formulas, and various combat techniques are sadly lacking," Zong Shou secretly rubbed his temples. The sword techniques and various arts he comprehended numbered no less than a thousand.

But no matter which one he chose to mobilize this spiraling vital energy, the results were somewhat unsatisfactory. When he attempted to employ the exquisite sword formulas from his memory, there were always moments of obscurity and difficulty.

After all, not every sword art, like the River of Death Sword, could perfectly integrate with any cultivation method or Qi refining technique. With this realization, Zong Shou sighed inwardly.

He knew he would likely have to put in more effort. Since he had already carved out this World-Shaking Spiritual Art, the mental cultivation and sword formulas were indispensable.

His resolve made, Zong Shou’s swordsmanship changed once more. It became much slower, the main focus shifting from practicing the sword to an experimental demonstration.

His mind raced, analyzing and constructing entirely new sword movements. Unconsciously, he entered a state of deep absorption.

For the following few days, Zong Shou’s routine became entirely fixed: every morning, he would emerge to reach this Black Water Pool. He practiced his fists twice daily and his sword once, each session lasting about two hours.

Only at dusk would he return to the nearby shore to rest. However, on the fourth day, Ye Feihan, who had left with her sister, reappeared before him.

This time, the girl was accompanied by Ye Feishuang. The former looked eager to please, while the latter’s face was flushed red.

After a long hesitation, she forced a stiff smile and asked, "Could Brother Xiao manage to get some food for us every day? Anything will do!" After speaking, as if afraid Zong Shou would refuse, she placed a third-tier Spirit Stone before him, her voice growing louder, as if this were only natural: "I will pay you; you cook for us!

One stone per meal. I know these spirit stones sell for a high price in your city!" Whether by coincidence or not, the moment the spirit stone was placed down, Ye Feishuang’s stomach let out a loud, gurgling sound.

Ye Feihan [Baidu Shenhuang Forum] also put on a mournful expression, clasping her hands in a begging gesture, "Younger Brother Zong Shou, my sister and I haven't eaten in two days. Brother Shou is a good person, you will surely help us, right?

My sister and I are so useless; what we cook is inedible. We are starving to death..." Ye Feishuang became even more shy, increasingly afraid to meet Zong Shou’s gaze.

Zong Shou’s expression turned incredibly strange. Whether as the current Young Master of Qiantian Mountain or as Sword Emperor Tan Qiu from his previous life, he never expected to stoop to being a cook for hire.

After careful consideration, Zong Shou let out a slight sigh. He figured, since he had nothing else to do, enticing these two sisters might be amusing.

He then accepted the third-tier Spirit Stone into his sleeve without hesitation. He had refused the bag of spirit stones earlier, but he accepted this single stone with a clear conscience.

In his past life, if someone wanted to invite him, the Sword Emperor level master approaching the peak of culinary arts, to showcase his skills, the appearance fee would be at least a seventh-tier Spirit Stone. The cost of ingredients was calculated separately.

Accepting merely this small third-tier Spirit Stone was letting the sisters off cheaply. Seeing Ye Feishuang’s visibly relaxed expression, Zong Shou chuckled softly and started a fire again.

The materials were to be caught by the two sisters; Zong Shou was only responsible for preparing them. Unfortunately, lacking other tools, only roasting was possible.

However, the ingredients brought back by the two sisters gave him a small surprise. It wasn't just fish; they had somehow captured two Golden Blood Spiders, which brightened Zong Shou’s eyes.

There would be other flavors; at least he wouldn't be suffocated by the smell of fish for the next few days. The subsequent days proceeded as usual; only during midday or evening did two girls appear to freeload their meals.

It couldn't exactly be called freeloading. Occasionally, when Ye Feishuang felt particularly satisfied, she would happily offer an extra reward of three to five spirit stones, all pure, high-grade third-tier ones.

Yet, Ye Feishuang seemed extremely frugal, hesitating every time, afraid of giving too much, which secretly made Zong Shou laugh until his stomach ached. Ye Feishuang possessed a proud and aloof nature, considering herself clever, and always maintained a degree of caution and wariness toward Zong Shou.

She acted as the elder sister, taking meticulous care of her younger sibling. Ye Feihan, on the other hand, was simple-natured, speaking directly without guile or reservation.

With these two girls accompanying him, occasionally chatting about this and that, Zong Shou found his days of practice, outside of his rigorous training, were not tedious at all. He felt quite emotional.

In his past life, when he was tired from training, he could only chat with girls online to alleviate his boredom. Where else could he find two incomparably beautiful fairy sisters by his side, refreshing his spirit as he did now?

With his spirits high, even his daily cultivation progress seemed to accelerate. In a mere twenty days, he managed to open every one of his external meridian access points.

When all four hundred and eighty acupoints across his entire body were forcefully opened, reaching their peak, the vast vital energy within Zong Shou’s meridians immediately surged and churned. It spontaneously rushed towards the two Earth Gates beneath his feet.

However, as the energy reached halfway to the Dan field, Zong Shou forcefully restrained and suppressed it. He knew that after these twenty-odd days of body tempering, his meridians had become tougher and wider.

Coupled with his dual-meridian body, the true Qi he could contain already surpassed that of a normal peak Ninth-Meridian Martial Master by more than three times, yet he was still far from opening the Earth Gates. Even attempting it now would be futile.

He recalled that in his previous life, he accumulated five times the true Qi of an ordinary person, combined it with the understanding gained from the Ultimate Death Sword Intent, and consumed an Elixir of Softening the Obstruction before forcefully breaking through the barrier between Man and Heaven. He was already close to that stage now.

The current suppression was precisely to prepare for a decisive push, to blast through it in one go without letting the momentum dissipate! At this moment, Zong Shou's entire skin was gradually solidifying, forming a layer of hardened hide adhering to his body to resist the immense water pressure and the tearing centrifugal force.

His internal organs, marrow, bones, and fascia were all supremely tough. Even if he stood in the whirlpool now and resisted its full force, he would sustain no injury.

However, Zong Shou then increased the speed of the Chaotic Extreme Wind Fist technique, causing the speed of the whirlpool to double again. Then, every ten days, he would increase the speed by nearly double again!

After another short sixty-odd days, the hardened skin began to shed again, revealing the skin underneath, which looked slightly tender, indistinguishable from that of an ordinary fourteen-year-old boy. But now, when Zong Shou casually threw a punch, the deep water beneath him would heave and shake.

"Without external aid, a single punch I throw now can reach about twenty-one thousand jin. This is not much different from someone newly entering the Xiantian realm." At this pace, he would only need a few more days to attempt to break through the barrier between Man and Heaven!" A surge of joy filled his heart, and Zong Shou’s punching speed increased.

Not only the water flow, but even the spiritual energy began to generate a storm. The entire bottom of the water shook, and countless fragments of rock tumbled down.

And if one were to look from outside the pool at this moment, a giant vortex could be seen forming on the surface of the water pool, two hundred feet above. When he reached the final stage, Zong Shou stopped caring about the chaos below and simply leaped out of the pool.

He opened his hand again; in his palm, a spiral of swirling water and fire suddenly materialized. Zong Shou’s eyes showed even greater satisfaction.

Though the dozen or so Meridian Spirit Pills had not yet caused his meridians to fully transform into a spiral shape, he could now wield nearly sixty percent of his true strength, which was almost twenty percent more than ordinary people! His physical stamina had also increased significantly.

At least he wasn't gasping for breath after walking a few steps like before. Now, he only needed to walk dozens of steps before panting.

—Although still weak, it was a fundamental difference. "I now have a head start on the matching sword movements.

With the Heavenly Spiral Power as the first example, this should be manageable! However, once the Xiantian barrier is broken, I will need to integrate the Earth Meridian energy into my body.

Chu Xue has nearly perfected the first Earth Meridian now. Speaking of which, it is time for me to prepare to seek out a suitable Earth Meridian."