Ning Beichen was quickly blasted away by the Venerable with another punch.
In fact, it was already enough for Ning Beichen to be proud that he hadn't died yet after fighting to this point.
It was important to know that his current cultivation was still only at the Extraordinary realm, not even at the Transcendent realm. To be able to fight a Heavenly Venerable to this extent without dying was enough reason for him to be proud.
However, Ning Beichen didn't want just that; he wanted to win.
No matter what, he, Ning Yanwang, had boasted that he was the strongest below the Venerable, and that one-on-one, he could contend with anyone above the Venerable. How could he lose?
Even if he were to lose, it would have to be a life for a life.
"One Sword Buries All Ages!"
Ning Beichen bounced up, like a carp leaping over the dragon gate, flying into mid-air. He gripped his sword with both hands, roared, and slashed down at the Venerable!
A sword light, like a waterfall, crashed down from the heavens and exploded on the ground, like a blooming epiphyllum.
With a boom, a huge black hole appeared on the stage floor.
This was the fifth stance of the Songshan Sword Art, and it was also the first time Ning Beichen had used it.
However, he couldn't quite control this move yet and hadn't fully grasped its power.
But Ning Beichen couldn't care about that anymore. He didn't want to lose and was unwilling to accept defeat. Although this was just a simulation and he wouldn't actually die, Ning Beichen treated every battle as if it were real, with no distinction between truth and falsehood, only victory and defeat.
Today—it was either you die or I die!
"Kill, kill, kill!"
As a blinding light shot up into the sky, the Venerable was buried under the sword. However, after using this move, Ning Beichen's body couldn't bear it, and he also disappeared from the virtual stage, equivalent to perishing with the Venerable.
"This... this brat."
Chen Xingyun's eyelids twitched as he watched, his heart filled with both shock and comfort. This brat had finally grown up, able to fight against a Heavenly Venerable.
Instead of being intimidated by Ning Beichen's brutal fight, others scrambled to enter the virtual arena to battle.
After some time, even Liu Yilin had become a skilled fighter. After all, the virtual arena offered an endless stream of opponents for practice, without the penalty of death, something that couldn't be achieved in reality.
In reality, Ning Beichen and the others often guided Liu Yilin, even sparring with her. But who would truly attack Liu Yilin? They would subconsciously go easy on her, not wanting to hurt her, which completely negated the training effect of the virtual arena.
While Ning Beichen and the others were happily training and cultivating every day, Ning Xiaoling detected a new energy source and asked Ning Beichen if he wanted to explore it.
"Go."
Ning Beichen said without hesitation.
Although the spaceship still had about sixty percent of its energy, and it wasn't currently in flight, the daily cultivation of everyone consumed a significant amount of energy.
If the spaceship's energy wasn't replenished, Ning Xiaoling calculated that within three months, the energy would drop below thirty percent, and her calculations were never wrong.
Even though they could return to the Mortal Realm now, they couldn't defeat Yu Huaxue, so returning would only be suicidal.
Therefore, Ning Beichen had no intention of returning to the Mortal Realm until he was confident he could deal with Yu Huaxue.
However, revenge still had to be sought, and Yu Huaxue still had to be dealt with. Now, Ning Beichen was thinking about how to make his master a Heavenly Venerable.
Once his master became a Heavenly Venerable, they would have a chance against Yu Huaxue.
But becoming a Heavenly Venerable wasn't just about diligent cultivation; otherwise, the Mortal Realm would be filled with Heavenly Venerables.
Ning Beichen had also asked Ning Xiaoling about how to become a Heavenly Venerable. After all, Ning Xiaoling came from a higher world and was knowledgeable, so she might have a way, or at least offer some inspiration.
Indeed, although Ning Xiaoling didn't have a method for Chen Xingyun to become a Heavenly Venerable, she did know something that Ning Beichen and the others didn't.
The most crucial step to becoming a Heavenly Venerable was to cultivate a spiritual domain, which was exclusive to the soul, a dojo for the soul. If one only cultivated their physical body, they would never become a Heavenly Venerable.
However, Ning Xiaoling had no relevant information on how to cultivate a spiritual domain; this was something Chen Xingyun had to explore on his own.
But for Chen Xingyun, at least Ning Xiaoling had pointed him in a clear direction, rather than leaving him in complete darkness and confusion.
This was not only important for Chen Xingyun but also for Ning Beichen and the others, as they would eventually face this step themselves.
After learning the secret of becoming a Heavenly Venerable from Ning Xiaoling, Chen Xingyun began to go into seclusion to meditate.
His cultivation had already reached the peak of the Venerable realm. He lacked not power, but a method.
About ten days later, the spaceship left the disk and entered a peculiar place.
The others didn't find it strange, but through his extraordinary eyes, Ning Beichen saw that the spaceship was flying in a spiral around a place that resembled a black conch shell.
"Sister, where is this place?"
Ning Beichen asked Ning Xiaoling curiously.
"Brother, this is the Conch Cave. It appears occasionally in the dimensional space. We are very lucky. It contains many energy sources that the spaceship needs. These energy sources are not only for the spaceship but are also in high demand by humans in the Xidu World."
"Besides powering the spaceship, these energy sources can also be used for cultivation. Your master wants to ascend to the Heavenly Venerable realm, and these energy sources can help him."
Ning Xiaoling told Ning Beichen.
"That's great! Thank you, Sister."
Ning Beichen said excitedly.
"You're welcome, Brother. It's my duty."
Ning Xiaoling replied shyly.
She was becoming increasingly lifelike, and apart from not having a physical body, she was no different from a human.
However, the Conch Cave was not without its dangers, but with the spaceship, these dangers were easily neutralized by Ning Xiaoling.
Before long, the spaceship reached the bottom of the Conch Cave. They saw objects floating everywhere that were pale yellow and resembled fluorite. These were the energy sources that Ning Xiaoling had mentioned.
However, each energy source was accompanied by a creature that looked like a praying mantis.
These creatures were very powerful. A single swipe of their claws could leave a scratch on the spaceship.
If they were to strike a human, their bodies would likely be torn in half.
In a short while, numerous claw marks appeared on the spaceship's hull.
Ning Beichen looked at this with concern, worried that the spaceship wouldn't be able to withstand it. However, Ning Xiaoling reassured him, saying that the spaceship had an automatic repair function and there was no need to worry.
But the spaceship couldn't directly collect the energy crystals; someone had to leave the spaceship to collect them.