Xu Ming stood in front of the lake and brought out his sword from his storage ring after making sure that no one was nearby.

He raised his sword high in the sky as he got into the sword stance that he had found out in the skill book. ​​

He made his Origin Energy pass through the specific path that was described.

After around ten seconds, he felt like he was ready.

"3 Strikes of Heaven: First Strike!" He called out softly as he swung his sword in full force.

Although he gave it his best, nothing happened. He had failed.

"Did I make a mistake somewhere?" He muttered with a thoughtful look on his face.

He again got into the sword stance and followed the same steps.

He once more swung his sword, but it was still the same. Nothing happened.

"Am I missing something?" He thought with a frown on his face.

He repeated the same thing again and again. Each time he tried to change something that he felt like he was doing wrong, but nothing worked. The whole night passed away just like that.

It was already early morning and he was already pretty tired. He went back.

He entered his courtyard and closed the doors. Entering his bedroom, he dropped to his bed and fell asleep instantly. He had been circulating his Origin Energy all night long to learn the skill, but even after all that, he didn't achieve success, but his cultivation had increased slightly.

Since that day, Xu Ming has gone to the lake every night. He spent half the time in the lake and cultivated, while he tried to master the skill in what little remained of the night.

He attended classes 3 days a week. The rest of the days, he just slept since he wasn't getting sleep during the night.

Slowly, everyone in the Outer Sect had got to know who Xu Ming was and no one offended him since he had the backing of Wu Tian and Elder Wu.

Just like that, 3 months passed. Elder Jin never appeared in front of Xu Ming in those 3 months.

Xu Ming had managed to learn the Origin Movement Skill during those 3 months. Surprisingly, it wasn't as tough as everyone was talking about. He just used his Origin Energy when trying to use that skill, and it worked.

When he observed carefully, he realized that this skill was probably the simplest skill as there were no complicated steps when learning it.

The main problem was the 3 Strikes of Heaven. Despite spending close to 90 nights practicing the skill, he still hadn't been able to use even the first strike itself. But he had a feeling that he got closer to mastering its essence with every strike he performed. He just had a feeling that he would soon master the first strike.

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"Please Please Please work!" Xu Ming said with a pleading look on his face as he raised the sword once more.

"Three Strikes of Heaven: First strike!" He let out with determination as he swung his sword once again.

It was already his 2000th strike of the night and his clothes were covered in sweat.

Fortunately, this strike of Xu Ming did work.

As his sword came slashing down, a bright arc of light escaped from his sword and advanced ahead at a lightning-fast speed.

The arc of light was filled with frightening amounts of destructive power. It struck the calm water.

A straight deep crater appeared in the still water as huge waves started rising in the calm lake.

For a brief moment, Xu Ming had even felt like he was able to see the bottom of the lake right after the impact of his attack on the water, but it only lasted for a brief Instant.

His mouth was opened wide in surprise as he saw the power of his attack.

The shocked look on his face had changed into an excited one as he realized that he had managed to successfully use the first strike of heaven. Although it took him 3 months, it was worth it.

The massive waves on the lake still hadn't subsided when he decided to leave.

It had already started to brighten as the sun started rising in the distant horizon. He left that place and walked back to his courtyard.

As Xu Ming left, he didn't see that an Elder was flying in the sky, watching him.

"3 months to learn the strike of heaven? Not bad kid," A smile appeared on the face of the man.

The man disappeared like he was never there.

Xu Ming entered his courtyard and fell asleep.

As Xu Ming was sleeping, in another courtyard, a special meeting was taking place.

Two old men were drinking wine as they talked.

"Are you sure about this? I heard that the kid has the backing of Elder Wu. I most certainly wouldn't want to be involved if you weren't the one talking to me," One of the men said.

"Don't worry. You won't get the blame. We'll do everything according to rules. What happens after that won't fall on your shoulders," The second person replied.

"Come on. We have been friends for so long. Can't you do this little thing for me?" The second person further insisted.

"Alright, alright. I'll do it. I gotta say though, You really hate that kid," The first person nodded his head as he said.

"That kid dared to pity me! Every time I think about that, I start hating myself more. I can't rest in peace as long as that kid is not dead. I have become a joke in the entire sect because of him!" The second man said with clenched teeth.

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Xu Ming woke up in the evening and left his bedroom, but just as he came out, he heard a knock on the door.

He walked towards the door with a confused look on his face.

'In the last 3 months, not a single person had come here. Why would a person be here suddenly?' He couldn't help but wonder.

He opened the door and found 2 boys standing in front of him.

Both the boys looked like they were in their early 20s.

"Do you need something?" Xu Ming asked.

"Yes! We're here for you! Do you know what you have done?" They said as they glared at him.

"What did I do? I don't think that I did anything wrong?" Xu Ming said with a wry smile on his face.

"Hah? You did nothing wrong? Come with us! We'll show you what you did!" Both the man said with a smile on their faces.

"I don't think I did anything wrong! What the hell are you talking about? And why should I come with you!" Xu Ming let out in a loud tone as he glared at the men.

"We are from the punishment hall! You should come with us without making it difficult for us, out we might be forced to use other methods! The Punishment Elder wants to meet you!" The men said in a heavy tone.

"The punishment elder?" Xu Ming gazed down and it was indeed the truth. They did have have badges of the Punishment department.

"Alright. I'll come with you. I haven't find anything wrong anyways!" Xu Ming said with a confident look on his face as he came outside.

The boys caught his hands each as they walked with him like they were carrying a criminal to jail.

"Can you leave me? I know how to walk!" Xu Ming said, but they didn't listen.

"Hey? Aren't they the punishment hall members? What are they doing with Xu Ming?"

"It's clear. They're taking him for their Punishment. He must have done something wrong and broke the rules. I pity the poor kid,"

"Do you think Elder Wu would get involved? I heard that he cares for the kid,"

"He most probably wouldn't. The punishment elder wouldn't do anything against the rules, so I don't think Elder Wu can do anything. It's all that kid's fault,"

Many of the disciples saw Xu Ming being taken by the disciples of the punishment hall and they couldn't help but talk amongst themselves about what was actually happening.

After walking for over 30 minutes, Xu Ming finally reached the Punishment Hall. It was a building that was just as big as the skill hall.

The boys brought him inside the building and presented him in front of an old man that was sitting in comfort in his chair.