System S.E.X. (Seduction, Expansion, eXecution)

Chapter 614: The Twin Swallow’s Flight

Ethan stood silently in the center of the cavernous chamber, gently running his fingers along the newly refined, smoothed edge of his black sword where the deep fractures had just bound together.

"What exactly was that, Crul?" said Ethan, communicating directly through his consciousness.

[That wooden toy contained the compressed, pure intent of a true sword master, along with a hidden martial inheritance,] said Crul. The ancient voice chuckled darkly deep within his mind. [The simpletons of this pavilion thought it was just a failed relic, but your blade knows how to harvest the finest meat. Here, take it. It belongs to you now.]

An instantaneous, burning jolt of spiritual information flooded straight into Ethan’s mind, making his amethyst eyes flash with sudden intensity. The technique was called the Twin Swallow Cut. It was a spectacular, high-tier martial strike that unleashed two simultaneous beams of lethal sword light. The true terror of the technique relied entirely on the user’s personal sword intent; the stronger the intent, the more devastating the attack became. The second strike manifested as a perfect, blinding afterimage of the blade, yet it carried an incredible sixty percent of the original blow’s raw destructive force, making it an exceptionally dangerous ambush technique.

Ethan’s lips curled into a fierce, eager smirk. He immediately stored the heavy black sword back into his spatial ring, drawing his standard, notched steel blade instead.

He widened his stance, planting his boots firmly onto the stone floor, and closed his eyes.

"Let’s see what this can do," said Ethan.

With a deep breath, he unleashed his sword intent aura without holding back. A violent, brilliant blue spiritual energy erupted from his core, swirling around his body and instantly coating the steel blade. The air around the weapon began to wildly warp and distort, the violent energy dancing like a localized tempest. Ethan continued to relentlessly channel his internal qi, pushing the limits of the technique until the standard steel sword literally began to bend under the sheer, suffocating pressure of his aura.

Xiu!

With an explosive leap forward, Ethan brought the blade down in a savage, lightning-fast arc. The sword unleashed two blinding, parallel crescent beams of blue light that roared through the air, completely tearing into the reinforced walls of the chamber and leaving two massive, smoking gouges deep within the ancient stone.

Thud.

Ethan fell to one knee, heavily drawing breath as thick sweat poured down his face. He used the hilt of his sword to balance himself, his chest heaving violently.

"The power... easily surpasses the Brilliant Slice," said Ethan, gritting his teeth through his exhaustion. "But the consumption is completely massive."

The single strike had completely drained his current reserves, emptying his energy pools so thoroughly that it temporarily left him out of commission for immediate combat.

Clap, clap, clap.

The heavy sound of applause echoed from the entrance as the primary outer elder walked into the chamber, his eyes widening slightly as he looked at the two massive, devastating furrows carved into the pavilion’s reinforced stone walls.

"Splendid," said the elder, a look of profound respect crossing his weathered face. "Congratulations, Ethan Brightsword. You have successfully comprehended and passed the inner intention of the trial. You may rest now."

The elder turned and walked back out toward the courtyard, his voice booming across the grand gates to the anxious crowd outside. "The first participant has successfully completed his trial without any issues. The selection process will now continue for the remaining ranks!"

Two young, graceful female servants from the pavilion clan quickly rushed into the room. They gently supported Ethan under his arms, helping him walk through the side corridors. They carefully guided his exhausted body toward the final designated waiting area, leaving the inner chamber open for the rest of the anxious noble heirs to attempt their admission exams.

One by one, the remaining applicants were permitted to enter the sacred chamber. For the next several hours, the grand gates opened and closed in a tense, rhythmic cycle. Young masters and mistresses from the core regions stepped inside with expressions of absolute confidence, only to emerge moments later looking completely drained, their brows furrowed in deep frustration.

The trial was far more brutal than they anticipated. Attempting to comprehend the profound, ancient power sealed within the legendary blades required a level of raw, innate talent that insider secrets simply couldn’t buy. Most of the noble heirs weren’t capable of extracting anything more than a fleeting, superficial idea from the inheritances. They grasped at fragments of techniques, catching only a brief glimpse of the true sword intents locked inside the steel.

Depending on the meager results they managed to display before the counting disciples, some were granted a passing grade, while many others were unceremoniously rejected, their faces pale with humiliation as they were escorted out.

After six grueling hours, the final examination officially concluded.

When the dust settled and the final roster of accepted disciples was posted on the central obsidian board, a bitter, suffocating reality swept over the courtyard. To the surprise of absolutely nobody, nearly every single name on the passing list belonged to a prominent noble clan or to individuals with direct family ties to ancient, established members of the Heavenly Sword Pavilion itself.

The flagrant, systemic corruption of the selection was laid bare for all to see. The weak, coddled heirs who had barely scratched the surface of the blades were handed passing tokens simply because of their lineage, while dozens of exceptionally talented frontier cultivators who had fought like demons through the Crag of Wolves were rejected without a second thought.

Yet, right at the vanguard of the newly accepted disciples, standing directly behind Ethan’s top rank, two unexpected figures held their ground.

Justus Fang and Lesly Whitecloud stood side by side, their posture unyielding as they ignored the cold, elitist glares of the surrounding nobility. They were the only two commoner applicants who had managed to utterly break through the corrupt barrier through sheer, undeniable merit. During the first phase of the selection, their flawless execution and massive talisman harvest had forced the examiners’ hands; their performance had been so spectacularly dominant that the pavilion couldn’t disqualify them without entirely destroying their public facade of strict impartiality.

Aside from Ethan, who had thoroughly dismantled the entire exam from the inside out, Justus and Lesly were the sole representatives of the common people to survive the meat grinder.

Ethan watched them from his seat in the final waiting area, his amethyst eyes narrowing slightly as his physical strength slowly returned to his muscles. A dark, predatory smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

-------------------

From this moment forward, to avoid confusion regarding cultivation ranks, I will include this footer with the current established levels.

Note: These are only the ranks mentioned so far to avoid spoilers.

Body Refinement Realm

Skin Refinement / Bone Refinement / Organ Refinement

Spiritual Gathering Realm

Spiritual Perception / Spiritual Mist / Spiritual Condensation

Spiritual Core Realm

Core Solidification / Core Awakening / Spiritual Collapse (Half-step Spiritual Core)

Spiritual Soul Realm

Spiritual Soul Awakening / Soul Nourishing / Soul-Core Fusion

Golden Core Realm

Prime Fusion / Core Perfection / Core Destruction

Spiritual Sea Realm

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??

Dao Manifestation Realm

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??

Spiritual Transcendence

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??