Martial Arts Master: The Lin Family Sword God, who swept through the Five Mountains and Four Sects

"The system originally thought the host could comprehend it on their own... but it clearly underestimated the host's oversight." The system responded calmly, "But rest assured, the time flow ratio between The Return of the Condor Heroes and The Smiling, Proud Wanderer is three to one. Three days here are only one day there."

Lin Tian let out a long sigh of relief, but cold sweat had already soaked his back.

Thankfully... it wasn't a thousand years.

Otherwise, he would truly become a heartless man on this trip.

Hearing the system's explanation, Lin Tian finally breathed a sigh of relief. But not long after, his brows furrowed again: "Is there a pattern to the flow of time in different worlds?!"

While the world of The Return of the Condor Heroes is indeed peaceful, even if he stayed there for three hundred years, he wouldn't be able to even touch the threshold of the Mythical Realm, let alone surpass it. Therefore, once he becomes the number one in this world, he will inevitably have to embark on the path of transmigration sooner or later. But if the time difference between the next world and the world of The Smiling, Proud Wanderer is too large—then there will be big trouble.

"Host, there's no need to worry," the system replied calmly. "The flow of time in a world is directly related to its energy level and spiritual energy concentration. The stronger the energy and the more abundant the spiritual energy, the faster time flows. And your future travel path will only lead you towards worlds with higher energy levels. Therefore, the flow of time will only accelerate."

These words put Lin Tian at ease. This greatly increased his chances of breaking through to the Mythical Realm within the time limit agreed upon with the East, or even achieving his goal ahead of schedule.

At that very moment—

A deep voice came from afar: "Guo'er, do you see that mountain ahead? That's Zhongnan Mountain, and the Chongyang Palace of the Quanzhen Sect is located on its summit. Your father once received martial arts instruction from Master Qiu, but unfortunately... he went astray and squandered that opportunity."

Lin Tian looked in the direction of the sound and saw a middle-aged man leading a boy of about thirteen or fourteen years old slowly towards them.

"Finally here! I'm exhausted!" The boy slumped down on the stone steps in front of the mountain gate, panting heavily. "Uncle Guo, I have a question for you—compared to yours, which is more powerful, the Quanzhen Sect's martial arts?"

"This..." Guo Jing paused slightly.

"Hey! Uncle Guo, you mustn't be lying to me!" Yang Guo blinked, his face shrewd. "If you dare to lie, I'll learn from you and start telling lies all the time!"

Guo Jing was somewhat embarrassed. In terms of strength, the Seven Masters of Quanzhen combined couldn't even defeat him with one hand. But could he say that directly?

After a moment's thought, he said solemnly, "Guo'er, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. The Quanzhen Sect's martial arts are the orthodox school of martial arts in the world, with a solid foundation, and should not be taken lightly."

"Oh! I knew it!" Yang Guo interrupted abruptly, his face flushed red with grievance. "Your martial arts are clearly so much better than theirs, yet you still sent me here... You all just hate me! Otherwise, why would you throw me into a place like this to learn such low-class skills?!"

"Guo'er, how could you say that!" Guo Jing's expression darkened. If it weren't for the resentment his master and Rong'er harbored towards Yang Guo because of Yang Kang, how could he have the heart to send this child to Zhongnan Mountain? In his heart, he had long regarded him as his own son.

"That's just how it is!" Yang Guo's grievances instantly turned into anger, his voice trembling. "If you really cared about me, why didn't you let me stay by your side? If you were going to do this, you might as well not have taken me in at all! You should have let me wander alone! Anyway, I have no parents, and no one would care if I died..."

"Shut up!" Guo Jing shouted angrily, slamming his palm down on a foot-thick bluestone tablet beside him.

boom!

The palm strike exploded, sending stone chips flying everywhere. The entire stele instantly crumbled into fragments, scattering across the ground.

Lin Tian's eyes narrowed slightly.

That palm strike just now was merely a casual blow delivered by Guo Jing in a moment of emotional outburst, devoid of any skill or full force. Yet, with just that one strike, he shattered the hard bluestone—clearly demonstrating that his internal energy had reached the Innate Realm, though most likely only at the initial stage, it should not be underestimated.

"Something's wrong! There's a problem!!" Lin Tian's pupils shrank, and alarm bells rang in his mind.

In the original world of The Return of the Condor Heroes, Guo Jing was virtually invincible. Even if the Five Greats joined forces, they might not be a match for him. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he was the best in the world.

But now? With Lin Tian's current strength—a perfected Innate Realm cultivator, capable of breaking into the Legendary Realm at any moment—let alone a direct confrontation, he could easily overwhelm Guo Jing simply by suppressing his aura. What does this mean? It means he is now the strongest person in the world!

Why didn't the system indicate that the task was completed? Why hasn't the exit mechanism been triggered yet?!

And what did the system just say? — "A world that can be considered as The Return of the Condor Heroes".

"Can be considered? What kind of nonsense is that?!" Lin Tian questioned coldly, "Aren't you going to explain?"

"Host, 'can be considered' means that the plot of this world is completely consistent with the 'The Return of the Condor Heroes' in your memory. However, please note that novels are ultimately fictional works and differ from the real world." The system's tone was calm.

"What's the difference?!" Lin Tian pressed.

"Please explore on your own, host..."

Sure enough. It was that same nonsensical, pretentious attitude again. Lin Tian, ​​too lazy to bother with this treacherous system any longer, fell into deep thought.

"What exactly is the difference...?"

He muttered to himself, then suddenly his eyes flashed, as if he had grasped something crucial—

A master at the Perfected Innate Realm has a lifespan of two hundred years.

The last peak of martial arts fiction seems to have been just over a hundred years ago?

"System, you mean—Xu Zhu, Duan Yu, and that bunch of cheaters are still alive?!" Lin Tian looked constipated.

"Host, explore on your own..."

"..."

Lin Tian's lips twitched. Although he rolled his eyes inwardly, he didn't really take it to heart.

No matter what, this metal-themed martial arts world is only a mid-to-low level martial arts realm, at most reaching the legendary realm. With his current strength, he'd be walking on thin ice.

Besides, he's not in that lone wolf mode from *The Smiling, Proud Wanderer* anymore. Can't win? Just turn around and retreat, very gracefully. As for involving the Quanzhen Sect? Ha, what does that have to do with me? His identity was given by the card; he has absolutely no sense of belonging to this sect.

If destroying the Quanzhen Sect could yield a golden card, Lin Tian would definitely charge into Chongyang Palace with his sword, hacking his way from the mountain gate to the Ancestral Hall, carving a bloody path to the very end without even blinking an eye.

"I won't say anymore, I won't say anymore, I won't mention it anymore..." As soon as Guo Jing got angry, Yang Guo immediately shrank into a ball.

……

Guo Jing sighed, realizing he had spoken too harshly, and said gently, "Guo'er, the Taoist priests of the Quanzhen Sect are all my seniors. We mustn't be rude, understand?"

"Yes, yes! I will be extremely respectful!" Yang Guo nodded quickly.

"You audacious lecher!! How dare you run wild in my Quanzhen Sect? You're tired of living!" A loud shout rang out, and several Taoist priests drew their swords and stepped forward to block Guo Jing's path.

"Uncle Guo...they called you a lecher."

Guo Jing was taken aback and quickly stepped forward, clasping his hands in greeting: "Esteemed Daoists, you have misunderstood. I am by no means here to cause trouble."

"Then why did you destroy my sect's stone tablet?!" a Taoist priest glared angrily.

"It was an accident on my part, I'm truly sorry," Guo Jing sincerely apologized.