Was that sword intent?

"Grandpa, Why are you making him split ironwood?" Shen Yun asked from the porch. She had stopped training hours ago and was having a cup of her grandfather's unique blend of tea that was full of spiritual energy.

"Why do you think?" Shen Guo smiled. "I want you to tell me what you see."

"Well, he's gotten better than he was a while ago, but are you training him to be a lumberjack?" she asked, confused. 

"Then how about you watch the spiritual energy around him instead."

Shen Yan eyed Li Jun from the distance. A faint blue mist seemed to pulse from the surface of his skin. Just as the head of the axe was about to strike the wooden logs, the spiritual energy would briefly gather at his shoulders and then shoot down his arms, creating a barrier around the axe that increased its cutting ability.

The axe head broke through the log in a single swing. Li Jun had finally mastered the technique of cutting Ironwood. 

Shen Guo smiled with satisfaction. He wasn't sure how long it would take him to figure it out, but Ironwood gained its name from being so dense and tough to split because its grains wrapped and twisted around each other like entangled vines. 

You need a lot of control and spiritual energy to split Ironwood in a single swing. Li Jun had coated the axe head with a layer of blade-like spiritual energy, and as it passed through the surface grain, he shifted the blade-like energy from side to side, weaving between the grain, creating an effortless slice.

"Was that sword intent?" Shen Yun couldn't believe her eyes. She blinked in shock as she awaited her grandfather's response.

"Not quite. This is a very basic form of blade intent. There's a long way to go before he will be able to use sword intent, but this is a good start." Shen Guo looked up at the sky with a pained expression, but as his eyes fell down upon his student, he smiled gently. 

"I don't believe it. How could someone learn blade intent so quickly? It's impossible!" She Yun exclaimed, but her grandfather wasn't the type to lie.

"Yun'er," Shen Guo said with a stern voice. "Some people in this world have the talent to defy all logical thoughts. The sooner you accept that others can be better than you and let go of your arrogance, the faster you will grow. Your father experienced something similar during his childhood, as did I. The heavens will is sometimes impossible to understand and incredibly cruel, but as martial artists, we fight through the cruelty." He explained as his granddaughter sat patiently and listened. 

'The heavens are incredibly cruel.' Shen Guo thought to himself once more as his eyes settled back upon Li Jun. 'Those with the greatest talents often don't live long enough to make use of them.'

Li Jun continued splitting logs until Master Shen stopped him and gave him a spirit-gathering pill to recover his strength. Li Jun stayed until the effects from the pill wore off and then made his way home. He continued to cultivate through the night after filling his stomach with snake meat. He then pulled out a spirit stone and held it close to his body.

He felt his cultivation base climbing as he circulated the energy throughout his body. With just a few more days of effort, he felt as if he could reach the third stage of body refining.

The sun beamed down over the peaks of the snow-capped mountain range, which separated the Great Hao Empire from the neighboring Kingdom of Yingong.

Li Jun awoke upon feeling the heat of the morning sun gently graze his cheeks. He stood up and stretched his body using iron mountain palm strikes and stretched his legs by using phantom steps. 

After eating another portion of snake meat, a bell chimed at the entrance to his courtyard. Li Jun frowned slightly. He wasn't expecting any visitors.

He opened the gate to see a middle-aged man in long red robes; on the left side of his chest was the Li Family crest. His long brown hair and scruffy beard were vaguely familiar, but Li Jun couldn't quite recognize the man. His skin was pale, and he had dark bags beneath his eyes; it looked as though he hadn't slept in weeks.

"Little Jun." The man smiled gently as he looked down his crooked nose. "It's been so long I hardly recognized you."

Behind him stood twenty or so guards wearing dark red armor, and among them, Li Jun spotted his cousin, Li Min. It seemed she had come back to cause more trouble. He shifted his gaze back to the man and almost gasped. 

"Third Uncle?" Li Jun asked with surprise. It had been just over ten years since he had last seen the man, but it looked as if he had aged by thirty years instead.

Li Tang was the younger brother of his father and the closest thing to a real family member Li Jun had while growing up in the family estate. 

Whenever the other children would tease Li Jun while his father was away, Li Tang never failed to intervene and chase them away. The man was a beginner in pill refining and Li Jun often watched him practice.

But in the pursuit of knowledge Li Tang went to study in the capital city, leaving his wife and children behind. Of course he visited home often, but by that time Li Jun's father had died and he and his mother had already been kicked out by Li Hong and his wife. 

"I meant to visit you sooner, but the patriarch forbade me from coming here." Li Tang explained with a look of sorrow.

"Li Zhang forbid you from seeing me?" Li Jun asked. His use of his grandfather's name was a subtle hint that Li Jun didn't see himself as part of the Li family any longer, and Li Tang didn't miss it. But in response to the question, he gently shook his head. 

"Since my father has gone into closed doors cultivation, Patriarch Li Hong is now the acting patriarch of the family. Without his permission, if I came to visit, I would risk not only my own position in the family but also risk my wife and children's too." He frowned as he explained.

Li Jun nodded. He understood. It was a man's duty to keep his family safe, and he couldn't feel bitter about that. However, he knew exactly why Li Tang had been allowed to visit today.

"I'm guessing that bastard sent you to bring me back?" Li Jun asked, his words angering a few of the guards who served the Li Family, but Li Min and Li Tang didn't share their anger in the slightest. 

"Patriarch Li Hong has ordered me to bring you back." Li Tang corrected him formally. Clearly, their conversation would be reported back to Li Hong, and his third uncle didn't want to put his family at risk by badmouthing his brother openly.

"Fine, let's get it over with." Li Jun sighed.

Li Min almost fainted when she saw how easily he had accepted her father's request. She wondered why exactly he had to hit her when she had come for him the last time, not taking into account that Li Jun respected Li Tang the most of anyone in the Li Family.

They walked back in silence; Li Tang wore a nervous expression and hung back to speak with his daughter. Li Jun thought nothing of it and continued walking towards the family estate.

Upon arriving, he found it oddly quiet. Guards lined a wide path that led to a large staircase leading up to the front door of the banquet hall. It seemed that they were expecting him and didn't want him to wander around.

"I can only accompany you this far, I'm afraid." Said Li Tang as they reached the bottom of the stairs. 

"That's fine, I'm sure I can face the old fart alone." He laughed. His comment gained a few displeased glares from the guards that lined the path. There were probably close to one hundred of them in total, and they were all trained soldiers from the Li Family's military branch. 

"Be careful what you say." Li Tang whispered as Li Jun strode up the staircase and in through the doors. 

Upon entering the hall, the air felt cold. There were no guards to be seen. Only a woman and a man sitting side by side on golden thrones, high above the rest of the room.

Large stone pillars supported the tall roof, which was large enough to fit two houses stacked on top of each other. Red carpets and banners with the family crest lined every part of the room. This was where the family elders met to discuss important matters, but it was now being used to bully a child.

"He's here at last." Li Cui sneered.

The man beside her had long, dark brown hair and a thick, bushy beard. His eyes were as cold as ice, and just by looking at him, Li Jun could tell he was a powerful martial artist. 

'I didn't think he was this strong.' Li Jun thought as he saw the aura of spiritual energy floating around his uncle Li Hong. It was almost comparable to that of Captain Lu's.

"Li Jun." Li Hong spoke casually, but his voice shook the entire hall. 

Li Jun felt pressure shake his body as he looked up at his uncle. He felt hesitant to speak, but he remembered the golden token in his pouch and grinned menacingly. 

"What is it? I don't have time for this, be quick." Li Jun spoke loudly and confidently. 

"You won't be going anywhere," Li Hong's voice boomed, and the large doors that Li Jun had entered slammed shut behind him.

"You seem sure you can stop me." Li Jun smiled.

"Don't test my patience. You might have learned some martial arts but even you should be able to tell the difference between our strength." Li Hong frowned as he looked at his nephew.

He didn't believe it when his son had been defeated, nor did he believe it when Li Min was carried back by her guards. But looking at Li Jun, he couldn't deny it anymore.

'This is impossible. I knew I should have sent someone to take care of that pill refiner.' Li Hong thought to himself as he stared with fury hidden behind his calm demeanor.