The Chiming Divine Son smiled faintly, saying nothing. His smile carried a hint of arrogance, clearly disagreeing with Xing'an's words: "He didn't understand that 'not inferior to me' was just modesty... However, the problem he faced truly cannot be solved by me. Only the Netherworld Divine Son can help him."
High above, Quinn Shepherd was still in a losing position.
Libationer Barrett grew smoother and smoother as he fought, unable to hold back a series of long howls while unleashing all the skills he'd learned in his lifetime.
As the chief libationer of River Lee Academy, all the fruits of reform at River Lee passed through his hands. Yet, because Barrett was stuck in a bottleneck with his own divine arts and Dao techniques, he desperately studied others' arts and Daos, hoping to use outside inspiration to break through.
However, worthy opponents were rare.
He was caught in an awkward predicament. The fusion of battle-methods made his attacks overwhelmingly powerful—few could withstand his dominant strike at the same cultivation level. Yet, because he hadn't entered Dao, whenever he faced masters like Butcher or Xing'an, he would lose within a move or two, never getting a chance to truly compete or display his skills.
Libationer Barrett was at the prelude to a transformation—a most frustrating and powerless bottleneck. Though talented, his talent alone wasn't enough to help him break through. He needed pressure, but few could give it to him.
Only when facing the Black Tiger God did he get a chance to fully unleash himself, but the Black Tiger God followed the Woodcutter Sage everywhere and had only visited once.
This time, with Quinn Shepherd at River Lee Academy, Quinn's 'thick skin and tough flesh' made him exceptionally resilient, finally allowing Barrett to display all he had learned and understood to his heart's content.
Quinn Shepherd had come to study the fruits of reform at River Lee Academy, but now he had become Barrett's whetstone. No matter what divine art or Dao technique Barrett unleashed, Quinn could withstand it—and Quinn's adaptability was astonishing. Though retreating, his moves were exquisitely refined; he learned River Lee's divine arts from Barrett and immediately countered with them.
In fact, Quinn Shepherd could pick up his divine arts in just a move or two, immediately spot the flaws, and force him to keep adapting and refining them.
Quinn was like a whetstone, sharpening him—making him brighter, keener, more dangerous with every clash.
A rival like this was almost impossible to find.
“This isn’t a senior feeding moves to his junior—it’s the junior pointing the way for the senior.”
Old Farmer shook his head at Butcher and said, “Quinn’s teaching skills outstrip yours.”
Butcher nodded. “Barrett lacked enough boldness and insight—he couldn’t master my saber arts, but he always tried to learn them. He wasn’t clever enough, so he never reached the point of entering the Dao with a supreme technique. Fortunately, after my ‘death,’ he finally stepped out of my shadow and created his own Confluent Battle-Method Arts. But I can’t guide him any further.”
Old Farmer thought for a moment, then said, “Knowing when to let go makes you a good teacher.”
Butcher grinned. “Warfist Celestial Teacher—have you opened the Celestial River Treasury yet?”
Old Farmer sighed and shook his head.
“The Martial Emperor only became the Martial Emperor because he didn’t have the Seventh Divine Treasury—he leapt straight into the Heaven Palace. But because he lacked the Seventh Divine Treasury, he’s always been a bit weaker than the other Emperor’s Throne powerhouses.”