Two hours spent in a dark space, Wu Tian was panting heavily. He had no real stamina in this place, but the mental strain of constant fighting daunted him.

"Argh!" His disheveled crouched figure punching, a much bigger fist smashed into his face, almost breaking his skull apart. The indentation on his left cheek still there, another bursting forth from his right one. This second punch almost ripped his head off.

Sent tumbling around like a toy on the solid black water, Wu Tian tried to stand back up, crawling like an insect. This can't be... at my- ho! Exhaling his entire oxygen supply, he had not seen Guizou close in so fast, his burly left leg kicking him in the stomach. "Don't vomit kid. This is only the true level of a three thousand pounds Warrior!"

Ashamed, Wu Tian winced like an animal, nearly howling from the unfairness. Level three Warrior my ass! I'm getting my life beaten out of my body! You... Aren't you a fucking Great Emperor?! How is this fair! Can't you hold back a litt- Another large pressure befalling his left cheek, Wu Tian had been kicked on the face without mercy.

Sent flying dozens of meters away, he tumbled once more like a ragdoll. He honestly felt like a punching bag, and so since hours. "On your left." About to successfully stand back up for the first time in an entire hour, Guizou's right leg swept his left thigh, snapping the leg in half. "Gurh! Ahhh! Fuck! Dammit! Let me stand u-" His pitiful struggle unending, Guizou sliced his head off with a longsword. "Don't think this isn't fair. I even held back so much. But losing your weapon against an unarmed opponent within thirty seconds was honestly embarrassing!"

Coughing his remaining fortitude away, Wu Tian gave up, staying down. "Already out? You only got your ass kicked for two hours? Come on young man! Get a grip!" What grip?!! Get in my position and we'll see how long you fucking last you antique!

"I don't like that gaze young man..." The longsword reaching every angle, Wu Tian's headless body was sliced apart from all directions. "Remember that I'm still taking time to teach you, taking time to give you experience. This is priceless!"

Healing Wu Tian, the youth remained silent under the abyss above. Looming around him was nothing but darkness. A sturdy iron wall of a man standing right in front of his lowered head. A pillar of unrestrained might dressed in loose fluttering robes. "You still have three hours to go. Don't disappoint this old man! Don't disappoint the ruler of the Fairy Land!" Feeling immense pressure at the mention of such words, Wu Tian grit his teeth as he stood up. Finally on his feet, he raised his head.

Eyes meeting, wills clashing, his body was unable to remain motionless. Restless in his attitude, mind and fortitude. "Why are you trembling? Let's go to the next level. Just be aware... your teeth aren't gritted enough!" Guizou did not hold back as much this time, his casual right left fist slowly moving forward. His burly physique did not even seem to move.

Without much of a choice left, Wu Tian nearly closed his eyes shut, a simple left arm desperately trying to fend off the offensive ahead.

Two fists colliding slowly, Wu Tian's left arm shattered into pieces of light. A hurricane of might assaulted him. His left shoulder almost blew apart as well, his ribcage taking a huge strain. Fuck...

Left without arms, the poor young man was unable to understand anything as a large fist attained his defenseless skull. A forehead bending softly, the insides wishing to be spewed out gruesomely. In only a fraction of a second, his head was blasted off.

Regenerated in a blink of an eye, the giant fist was still pressed against his recovered forehead. Noticing a visible blur, a powerful shockwave utterly annihilated his entire upper body into dust.

Taking a step back, Guizou's body teleported extremely far away. He was standing on the endless horizon, brandishing a pale blue longsword of ethereal light, like the celestial armament of old tales. The blade was filled with pride, its mere physical length unable to contain its rampaging might. "Let's see now. Have you learned anything more about the [Beginner Imperial Sword Art]?"

Wu Tian was confused, suddenly feeling an object push his left hand down. Looking at it, he realized his longsword to have been placed right into his palm out of nowhere.

Guizou was hundreds of meters away, his earlier voice still echoing from its raw influence. Tightening his grip, Wu Tian began to sweat. He already guessed what would happen. He just did not want to believe it.

Guizou's freezing gaze remained still as he spoke. "First, we'll need to deal with your potential fear of powerful enemies. Make you understand that injuries are the least of your problems when death could knock on your doorstep at any moment. But you should also remain cautious of any and all injuries. No matter how minor they are."

"To know the difference between a smart sacrifice and a foolish one, only battle experience amassed throughout countless lethal wars can give you the answer." The light blue longsword held in his right hand, Guizou pointed it forward. "Do not fear death in this place, but learn of its potency."

Shakily raising his own longsword to chest height, Wu Tian nervously looked ahead. Guizou's figure was smaller than an infant from so far away, yet appeared countless times bigger than titans. A familiar set of words echoed in thunderstorms into his mind, causing his sweating to intensify. "[Imperial Stab]." Watching a pale blue light shield Guizou's figure, a sudden burst of energy was seen across his vision.

It only took an instant for it to dissipate. Wu Tian left stranded in mindless folly as his head lowered, watching his own flesh, a hole fifteen centimeters in diameter on his chest. One could see the other side perfectly.

Still in a daze, Guizou remained firm. "[Imperial Burst]." From the horizon down to his position, an explosion chain cracked his resolve, one explosion at a time. They were pale blue, yet more impressive than volcanic eruptions. Large bursts of ethereal energy exploding from the ground, their peak reaching a hundred meters in height.

A thousand explosions later, the final one reached the target, Wu Tian's body blown apart. He was drowned in discomfort and fear. His mind was overloaded from so much information.

"[Imperial Motionless Cleave]." Recovered as usual, Wu Tian was familiar with the process, but unfamiliar with his entire field of vision suddenly being split in half vertically. Just as he wondered, Guizou followed up. "[Imperial Motionless Cross]." Another thin line splitting Wu Tian's vision horizontally, he was left dumbfounded, his vessel split in four parts before being shattered into fragments from the vast shockwave.

"[Imperial Retreat]." Seeing his master take a small step back, his left knee bending slightly, Wu Tian shivered. The most frightening part was the whole light show. Watching as an ethereal light overcome his senses felt surreal. He was swiftly killed, a flurry of blue spikes emerging from the ground in succession.

"[Imperial Cleave]." The ethereal sword high up, it suddenly came back down, a large diagonal slash of pale blue light rushing in. It only took a couple seconds for the hundreds of meters to be crossed, Wu Tian's body too small, therefore destroyed entirely once again.

"[Imperial Ascension]." Brandishing the longsword, pulling it back up, Guizou's movement let out another vast visible slash of blue, this time transforming midway into a wall thousands of meters high and wide. The wall crashing into Wu Tian in an instant, it blasted both his body and mind into oblivion until healed.

"[Imperial Descent]." The longsword cleaving down furiously, nothing strange came out. But remembering his first time facing the high Star Grade version, Wu Tian reflexively looked up. His empty gaze met with a blue translucent meteor thousands of meters across falling. He was left speechless, unable to form a coherent thought.

His body disintegrated under the tremendous weight and incessant mess of Qi, he opened his eyes facing the last one.

"[Imperial Lucid Madness]." Wishing to gain strength, Wu Tian knew for it to be an empty dream. Sighing at the words, his body finally moved, effortlessly raising the longsword with his left arm. Guarding himself with the blade, a large wall made up of tens of thousands of blue slashes rushed toward him. He finally had the resolve to do something, even if so insignificant. This grew his backbone ever so slightly. But it was still a futile attempt when facing the harsh cold reality.

His sword and left hand were the first to take the brunt of the impact. In the moment before another death, time nearly froze on him. He could see the wall of countless sword slashes slow down to an absurd level. But so did his body. He could only helplessly watch his longsword and left hand be sliced apart mercilessly. He could only gawk at his left arm dissipating into dust, only yearn when his vision darkened once more.

Opening his eyes, Wu Tian's body was drenched in cold sweat. He was collapsed on the icy layer within the cave. Thinking back on what he felt, Wu Tian was astounded. He was even a little bit proud of himself. In the end, he still had the resolve to raise his blade. Even in the face of absolute defeat.

His master's methods indeed worked, even if he doubted their authenticity. A strange way to train someone it truly was.

But before he could think of another praise amidst his torrential mental scars, the purple Guizou sounded next to him. "What are you doing? This isn't over yet! Come back here!"

Wu Tian suddenly awoke one more time as he only blinked once. He was now back into the infinite darkness. Can't you let me praise you for once before pulling stuff like this every time?