"You’ve truly opened my eyes, young man. I must admit, you’ve caught me by surprise."
The old man chuckled, a hint of amusement mixed with exasperation in his voice. The ten spirit swords left by their ancestor had all acknowledged Li Xuan as their master. The Sword Sect would likely have to revise their disciple assessment plan from scratch.
Li Xuan scratched his head. Strictly speaking, he had only subdued the first sword, Tian Zhan, while the remaining nine had been recruited by Tian Zhan itself. However, since they had chosen to follow him, Li Xuan wasn't about to let them go.
Li Xuan could clearly see that these ten spirit swords were of no ordinary quality.
"Rest assured, since they have chosen you, I will not take them back. Now, come with me," the old man said with a slight smile, noticing Li Xuan’s wary expression. He then flicked his sleeve and turned to leave.
Li Xuan shot an embarrassed glance at the other three, bowed respectfully, and quickly followed the old man.
"What do you think of this destined one?" As Li Xuan followed the old man away, the middle-aged man among the three suddenly asked.
An elder smiled and replied, "Never mind the ten spirit swords he acquired. If he were an ordinary disciple, do you think Tian Zhan would have appeared and followed him so readily?"
"Great Elder, what do you mean?" the middle-aged man asked, raising an eyebrow.
The Great Elder chuckled, "To say he went to find Tian Zhan is a misnomer. It was Tian Zhan that found the destined one. It seems our Sword Sect is about to become quite lively."
Sword Sect, Inner Hall.
"My name is Jian Nancang, and I am the current Sect Master of the Sword Sect. Since you have passed the assessment, I will uphold my promise and accept you as my disciple. Those ten flying swords were left by our ancestor. Since you have subdued them, they are now yours," Jian Nancang said slowly, glancing at Li Xuan.
"Disciple Li Xuan, greets Master," Li Xuan said, bowing deeply to Jian Nancang.
Jian Nancang nodded slightly. "After the disciple recruitment ceremony concludes, I will impart the Sword Sect's core techniques to you. As there is still time, I will teach you the art of flying swordsmanship first. Do not underestimate these ten flying swords; if you can control all ten simultaneously, even a seasoned cultivator might find it a challenge."
With a flick of his finger, Jian Nancang sent a beam of spiritual light into Li Xuan's forehead, which then vanished.
"Thank you, Master." Li Xuan sensed the profound mystique of the flying sword techniques and withdrew his thoughts, bowing to Jian Nancang again.
"Very well, our Sword Sect does not stand on ceremony. Once I have handled the sect's affairs, I will thoroughly examine your swordsmanship. During the disciple recruitment ceremony, you may explore the sect and familiarize yourself with the surroundings," Jian Nancang said, waving his hand.
"Disciple understands," Li Xuan replied with a nod.
Seeing that Jian Nancang had no further instructions, Li Xuan bowed and retreated.
Leaving the inner hall, Li Xuan felt a sense of daze. He hadn't expected to join the Sword Sect so easily.
The next moment, Li Xuan moved, disappearing from his original spot. He needed to get acquainted with this Sword Sect.
After about half an hour, Li Xuan landed on a secluded mountain peak. Although the Sword Sect was not exceptionally vast, it was about twice the size of the Green Hall. To be a mainstream power on Lang Yu Island, its scale was certainly not insignificant.
Li Xuan casually set up a protective formation and then sat down cross-legged. Closing his eyes, the incantations for the flying sword heart method instantly surfaced in his mind. Li Xuan immersed himself in cultivating the flying sword techniques, and time quietly slipped away.
In the blink of an eye, five days had passed.
One day, Li Xuan's eyes suddenly snapped open.
"Dong Qian Shan, Wan Juan Shu, Jiu Ge, Po Jun!" As names rolled off Li Xuan's tongue, four flying swords instantly materialized before him.
"Go!" Li Xuan flicked his finger, and the four flying swords shot towards the void ahead, slashing down.
Boom!
With a rumbling sound, Li Xuan nodded in satisfaction. Jian Nancang's words about the ten swords posing a threat to seasoned cultivators were indeed true.
The method of controlling flying swords was, in essence, a form of sword manipulation. Li Xuan's mastery of sword manipulation was already superb, so his rapid progress was to be expected.
Beyond that, a powerful divine soul was also necessary. It could be said that Li Xuan already possessed the means to control flying swords; he had simply lacked suitable ones.
Controlling ten swords simultaneously, Li Xuan believed, was only a matter of time.
"It should still be the period of disciple recruitment. I have some time for this."
Li Xuan pondered for a moment, then closed his eyes and began to control them with his divine soul once more.