Half a year had passed, and the disturbance in Mingde Hall had subsided. Huo Yuhao walked to Xuan Ziwen's office door with ease and knocked gently.

"Come in." Xuan Ziwen's voice came from inside the door, still with a bit of laziness and casualness.

Huo Yuhao pushed the door open and found Xuan Ziwen buried in a pile of blueprints, frowning slightly, as if he was thinking about some difficult problem. Hearing the door open, Xuan Ziwen raised his head and saw that it was Huo Yuhao. A smile immediately appeared on his face: "You kid, you finally came back?"

Huo Yuhao scratched his head awkwardly and said, “Teacher Xuan, I have been practicing in seclusion the whole time. I came here to report right after I finished.”

Xuan Ziwen stood up, patted Huo Yuhao on the shoulder, and said, "Well, it's good to be back. It's good to be back. Come on, I'll take you to see your new laboratory."

Xuan Ziwen then led Huo Yuhao out of the office and headed towards the underground base. Along the way, students and researchers from Mingde Hall passed by them from time to time, and their eyes could not help but stay on Huo Yuhao for a moment.

Huo Yuhao could sense the various emotions contained in those eyes, including curiosity, awe, jealousy, and unwillingness to accept. He looked calm, not looking away, and just followed Xuan Ziwen silently, walking towards his destination.

The underground base was still busy and full of scientific research and invention. The sounds of various metal collisions and the humming sounds of soul guides intertwined to form a unique underground symphony. Huo Yuhao took a deep breath and smelled the faint smell of metal and herbs in the air, which made him feel familiar and intimate.

Under Xuan Ziwen's guidance, Huo Yuhao came to a brand new laboratory deep in the underground base. This laboratory was much more spacious and brighter than the previous one he had been in, and it was equipped with a more complete range of experimental equipment and materials.

"How is it? Are you satisfied?" Xuan Ziwen asked with a smile.

"Thank you, Teacher Xuan. I like it very much." Huo Yuhao said sincerely.

"I'm glad that you like it. Hurry up and get ready. I'll take you to meet someone in a few days." After Xuan Ziwen said this, he turned and left the laboratory, leaving Huo Yuhao alone in the laboratory.

Huo Yuhao looked around, and his eyes finally fell on a laboratory table in the center of the laboratory. He walked forward and gently stroked the smooth and cool metal on the table, his heart filled with anticipation and excitement.

He knew that new challenges were coming. In the eyes of outsiders, he seemed to be no different from six months ago, but trouble still came...

After completing a day's research, Huo Yuhao dragged his tired body out of Mingde Hall. The afterglow of the setting sun shone on him, making his figure particularly slender and coating his face with a layer of light golden light. As he walked towards the dormitory, he silently thought about what he had gained today. After the qualitative change of his spiritual sea, he clearly felt that his brain was activated, and his calculation and analysis abilities had made great progress. His understanding of soul guides also naturally evolved with the deepening of knowledge, which made him full of confidence in future research.

"Even if I can't study the giant metal man now, consolidating my ability as a soul guide will obviously be more effective for future research." Huo Yuhao whispered to himself, with a determined light flashing in his eyes. He clenched his fists, feeling the power surging in his body, and his heart was full of expectations for the future.

Just as he was about to walk into the dormitory door, a chill suddenly rose from the bottom of his heart, and a warning sign suddenly rose. Huo Yuhao paused, tapped the ground with the tip of his left foot, and turned to the other direction as light as a feather, scanning the surroundings with sharp eyes.

"Who's there?" Huo Yuhao asked in a deep voice, with a hint of vigilance in his voice.

"It's me." A deep voice came from the shadows not far away, with a hint of coldness in the tone.

Under the dim street lights, a tall figure slowly walked out of the shadows. He held a black long sword, and the sword emitted a cold light, as if it could swallow all the light. The person who came was Ji Juechen. He still had a cold look, with long black hair draped over his shoulders, and a sharp light flashing in his deep eyes. Compared with half a year ago, his aura seemed to have become sharper, like a sword out of its sheath, full of a sharp sense of oppression.

Huo Yuhao looked at Ji Juechen, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, revealing a faint smile: "I knew it was you, the sharp sword intent in you is unique, and it cannot be hidden no matter where you go."

Ji Juechen walked to a few steps in front of Huo Yuhao and stopped. He looked at him calmly, nodded slightly, and said in a deep voice, "Thank you."

Although there were only three short words, Huo Yuhao could hear the complex emotions contained in them. He knew that Ji Juechen must have encountered something, and this matter was likely related to him, otherwise he would not appear here at this time.

"Thank you for what?" Huo Yuhao was slightly stunned and asked in confusion, with a hint of puzzlement in his eyes. Ji Juechen looked at him with deep eyes, and said calmly and seriously: "After that day, I went into deep meditation when I came back. That battle made me understand the sword more deeply, so I want to thank you." Huo Yuhao heard this and a look of surprise flashed across his face:

"Oh? You also entered deep meditation? Congratulations, it seems that you benefited a lot from that battle." He paused, a humble smile appeared on his face, "But you don't have to thank me, I just woke up from deep meditation not long ago, and we are also predestined to meet, and we both gained a lot from that battle." Ji Juechen's face rarely showed a different expression from the usual indifference, it seemed a kind of helplessness, but also like a sigh:
"My deep meditation only lasted for a month..." He paused, his eyes fell on Huo Yuhao, with a hint of inquiry, "But you, it took half a year." He took a deep breath, with a bit of fighting spirit in his tone: "I came here today to see how much you have improved after half a year." "Okay." Huo Yuhao did not refuse, nor did he ask more questions. He knew that for a man like Ji Juechen, any words would be pale and powerless, and only strength could make him look at him squarely. Moreover, seeing that Ji Juechen had changed to holding the sword with both hands, Huo Yuhao understood,

This battle is inevitable. He took a deep breath, without making any preparations, but stared at Ji Juechen with burning eyes, and walked towards him step by step. A strange scene appeared. Every time Huo Yuhao took a step, a layer of gold would appear on his body. In his eyes, the gold was particularly strong, like two golden stars, shining with dazzling light. Even where he walked, it seemed that golden footprints were left, flashing with a faint golden light, mysterious and powerful. Ji Juechen was indeed different from half a year ago. His sword intent was no longer overwhelming.
Instead, it condensed into a sword that was several times more powerful than before, like a blue dragon, and with an unstoppable momentum, it rushed straight towards Huo Yuhao. However, when this sword will hit Huo Yuhao who was slowly walking forward, it could not stop him at all, and could only shatter, like glass, instantly shattering, turning into tiny starlights, and dissipating in the air.

I walked towards Ji Juechen step by step, and every step seemed to be stepping on his heartstrings. His sword trembled slightly with my steps, and the sweat on his forehead became more and more. The distance of two meters seemed like two different worlds. I stopped, and the golden light enveloped me, but there was no trace of momentum leaking out, just like a ball of gentle light.

"Are you nervous?" I asked, my voice as calm as water.

Ji Juechen clenched the sword in his hand, his knuckles turning white, and said in a deep voice: "I have to be cautious when facing you."

"Cautious? You should go all out." I said calmly, "Otherwise, you won't even have a chance to attack." Ji Juechen took a deep breath, and his sword intent rose again, but was interrupted by my words: "You are wrong, sword intent is not just about being strong, the real swordsmanship lies in the heart."

I slowly raised my hands and put them behind my back. The golden light became more dazzling, but there was still no sense of oppression. "You are on the right path. Focusing on one thing and devoting your entire life to the sword is the true meaning of kendo. If you continue on this path, you will surely achieve unimaginable success."

There was no trace of sarcasm in my words, only sincere recognition, which made Ji Juechen even more confused, and the sword in his hand trembled slightly.

"I'm not even as good as you in terms of concentration." I continued, my tone calm and indifferent, "but..."

My tone paused, a golden light flickered slightly, and an invisible pressure quietly spread. Ji Juechen's breathing suddenly stagnated, and he could hardly hold the sword in his hand.

"But in terms of talent and luck, I'm sorry, I have too much of an advantage." I said lightly, with a hint of helplessness in my tone, "I have a great teacher, and his guidance is better than your decades of hard work."

Ji Juechen's face turned pale and the hand holding the sword trembled violently. He knew that I was telling the truth. In the face of absolute talent, no matter how hard you try, it will seem pale and powerless.

"If you want to beat me, you'll probably have to chase it for your whole life," I finally said, with a hint of pity in my tone.

I finished speaking, put down my hands, and turned to leave. The golden light gradually dissipated with my steps, as if it had never appeared. I only left a back view, but it was deeply imprinted in Ji Juechen's mind and could not be erased.

I returned to the dormitory building and disappeared at the door. At that moment, Ji Juechen could no longer hold on, and with a muffled groan, the meteorite sword in his hand fell weakly to the ground, and beads of sweat dripped down, soaking the ground.

We didn't fight, but our "wills" had already engaged in a fierce collision. His sword will, my soul power, clashed in the invisible realm, and the winner was already decided.

Ji Juechen's sword is all about sword intent. Once he overwhelms his opponent in terms of momentum, no matter how strong the opponent is, he will be killed in one blow.

His soul power level is obviously higher than Huo Yuhao's. Not long ago, he broke through the seventh ring and entered the coveted martial soul true body realm. However, when he really faced Huo Yuhao, he felt an invisible pressure that made him breathless.

This pressure did not come from soul power, but from the spiritual oppression. When Huo Yuhao walked towards him, he felt that he was not facing a person, but a towering mountain, an insurmountable peak. With every step he took, the sense of oppression intensified, as if it was going to crush him completely.

"Where is your sword intent?" Huo Yuhao walked up to him and asked calmly. There was no trace of sarcasm in his tone, but it was like a heavy hammer hitting his heart.

Ji Juechen's hand holding the sword trembled slightly. He wanted to swing the sword, but found that his sword intent was like a candle in the wind, and was about to collapse in front of Huo Yuhao's powerful mental power.

"You lose." Huo Yuhao said calmly. Although his tone was flat, it was full of irrefutable majesty.

"I... lost..." Ji Juechen lowered his head weakly. He knew that he had lost completely and wholeheartedly.

Huo Yuhao did not say anything else. He just looked at him quietly. His eyes were as deep as the starry sky, as if he could see through everything.

After a long time, Ji Juechen slowly raised his head, his eyes full of confusion and unwillingness, "Why? My sword power has been cultivated to the extreme, why can't I defeat you?"

Huo Yuhao shook his head. "Your sword intent is too sharp and lacks restraint and concentration. It's like an unsharpened sword, which is only for show."

Ji Juechen was silent. He knew that Huo Yuhao was right. He had been pursuing the ultimate attack but neglected his own cultivation.

"If you want to defeat me, you'll probably have to pursue it your whole life." Huo Yuhao said this and turned away.

"Chasing for a lifetime?" Ji Juechen murmured to himself, his eyes gradually becoming firm, "Okay, I will chase for a lifetime! One day, I will surpass you!"

Huo Yuhao did not look back. He knew that Ji Juechen had found his goal, a goal worth pursuing for his whole life. If he continued to develop, who could say that he could not create another Jun Lin Tian Xia?

"Ji Juechen's talent is not outstanding," Huo Yuhao thought to himself, recalling the scene of his fight with Ji Juechen.
“I can clearly feel that he was able to achieve such success entirely through his unremitting efforts, firm persistence and determination to never give up.

Every step he took on this road to becoming a strong man was soaked with sweat. Even his soul power improvement may be related to his unique way of cultivation. Otherwise, with his mediocre martial soul, how could he have achieved such an amazing cultivation at this age? "Huo Yuhao couldn't help but clench his fists. "If I fight him with all my strength, I'm afraid my chances of winning are less than 20%. After all, the gap between our cultivation is too big. Moreover, Ji Juechen's swordsmanship is extremely sharp and deadly. It's hard for me to resist."

Huo Yuhao took a deep breath and secretly rejoiced in his heart, "Fortunately, Ji Juechen's goal is different from mine. He doesn't just pursue victory or defeat. This is why I won twice by chance." Thinking of this, Huo Yuhao's eyes became more determined. (End of this chapter)