Lin Bohui's Origins

Facing such a fierce offensive, Lin Bohui's expression did not change in the slightest. He gathered his qi once more and wielded his sword, and a thunderous roar of wind suddenly erupted from thin air.

The sword light of the longsword was like a mass of flowing mercury, wrapping around Lin Bohui's body. In the span of a brief instant, it clashed more than a dozen times with Duàn Yì's Ten Refinements Sword. The ringing never ceased, like clear mountain springs striking stone—crisp and pleasant to the ear.

Sparks scattered and sword winds howled. Duàn Yì, stepping on King Yue's Divine Arrow, was driven back several more paces. The veins on the back of his sword-holding right hand bulged, and his whole body was numb and tingling, as though he had been struck by lightning.

Jade Well Heavenly Pool had returned without success, yet instead of being alarmed, he was delighted. His gaze brightened as he looked at the trembling Lin Bohui, revealing a strange smile, as if he had calculated something.

"How could this be? My true qi?"

After driving back Duàn Yì, Lin Bohui felt more fervent than ever. The true qi within his dantian surged and leaped like boiling water, restless and eager to move, even raising his swordsmanship another level.

Had that been all, it would have been fine. The crucial thing was that his blood and qi churned, desire rose within him, and a trace of terror appeared on his face.

Lin Bohui came from the Lin Family of Fuzhou, Lingnan. His Lineage held no small measure of prestige in the local martial world, and his grandfather's swordsmanship was even more extraordinary. Known as Fuzhou's Number One Sword, he was famous to all.

As the legitimate son of the current generation of the Lin Family, Lin Bohui should have inherited the family's Bixie Swordplay from childhood, training diligently. Years later, he would have entered the martial world, made a name for himself with his inherited swordsmanship, and become someone like his grandfather.

Yet when he was seven years old, his grandfather—Lin Chunwang, the previous head of the Lin Family—judged him to possess only ordinary aptitude and deemed him unfit to inherit the Bixie Swordplay.

To cultivate the Bixie Swordplay, one had to be at least thirty years old and possess a certain foundation in martial arts. As for whether he would wish to practice it by then, that was another matter altogether.

In contrast, when his younger brother turned seven, he was immediately judged to possess excellent aptitude and allowed to cultivate the family martial arts. He was even given the Bixie Sword Manual. Lin Bohui was deeply envious and jealous, yet he harbored no other thoughts.

Until five years ago, when he felt that his cultivation had achieved some success, he proposed a sword duel with his younger brother.

The result of that battle was beyond anything he could have imagined. One move—just one move—and he was subdued.

His younger brother's swordsmanship was unfathomable as ghosts and gods. Lin Bohui could not summon even the slightest desire to fight him, and resentment and doubt took root from that day onward.

The Bixie Swordplay was so overwhelmingly powerful. They were both descendants of the Lin Family, so why could his younger brother be taught while he could not? Was it truly because of aptitude?

To uncover the truth, he made indirect inquiries and repeatedly pestered his doting father until he finally learned a shocking secret.

The Lin Family's Bixie Swordplay was indeed incomparably powerful, worthy of being called peerless swordsmanship. Yet its foundation lay in the hidden method of qi cultivation within it.

And to practice it, one had to castrate oneself in order to endure the first trial, when the cultivation began and heat arose. Otherwise, one would suffer Qi Deviation, with no chance of escape.

For any man under heaven, self-castration was something he would rather die than face.

However, since several generations ago, the Lin Family had formed an unwritten rule. Every generation had to raise many descendants, selecting those with outstanding aptitude to receive the Bixie Sword Manual. Once their martial arts reached fruition, they would succeed to the position of family head themselves.

As for those of ordinary aptitude, if they had children in the future, they were to choose one and transfer the child under the sword practitioner's name, so that the bloodline might continue. Meanwhile, the branch that had not castrated itself would be moved into a collateral branch.

His own father was an example. He was not Lin Chunwang's biological son, but Lin Chunwang's biological nephew. Because he had never castrated himself to practice swordsmanship, his martial arts were not particularly formidable, and he could only live under Lin Chunwang's reputation.

And Lin Bohui himself was another example. If he married and had children in the future, he would have to choose one and give the child to his younger brother, making the child his younger brother's son. This was compensation for the sacrifice. He did not know whether he should feel fortunate or disappointed.

Because in the year his younger brother turned seven, he had no longer been a true boy.

To ensure that the Lin Family's prestige would not decline, there had to be someone who practiced the sword to take over the Lin Family after Lin Chunwang. Decades later, perhaps another ignorant child would suffer the same fate as his younger brother.

Lin Bohui certainly grieved over his younger brother's plight, but such a divine art would be a terrible regret not to cultivate.

Thus, he found an opportunity to secretly coax the Bixie Swordplay out of his younger brother, then began studying its secrets, hoping to find a way to master it without castrating himself.

For several years, he gained nothing, nor could he bring himself to castrate himself for cultivation. It nearly drove him mad.

It was not until he accidentally obtained a Calming Incantation that things finally took a turn.

The reason one had to castrate oneself to practice the Bixie Swordplay was that the cultivation process produced an intensely fiery and scorching true qi, making one burn with lust and unable to restrain oneself. Even an enlightened high monk could not withstand it.

Yet the Calming Incantation happened to possess the marvelous effect of dispelling desire and relieving scorching heat. It allowed him to endure the first trial, though it also left behind hidden dangers.

This opportunistic method merely treated the symptoms rather than the root, carrying enormous limitations and hidden dangers.

For instance, his current level of cultivation was already his limit. He could no longer cultivate qi to strengthen his inner power, or his inner power would lose control and Yang Fire would consume him from within.

For instance, whenever he fought someone, he had to engage in intercourse both before and after the battle to vent the scorching yang qi and desire within him. Even when he struck, he could not unleash his full strength; he had to keep himself within a level he could control.

For instance, his luxuriant body hair was the result of cultivating the Bixie Sword Manual without castrating himself. Fortunately, he was a man, so having more hair merely made him look more imposing.

Later, using travel as an excuse, he journeyed north from the Lin Family in Lingnan and eventually arrived in Hebei. There, he conceived the idea of testing his sword against the heroes of the realm. He challenged a local Willow-Whip Swordsman and won in a single battle.

That battle was the first time he had used the Lin Family's Bixie Swordplay against an enemy, and he experienced the might of this swordsmanship firsthand. It truly was beyond comparison with those so-called superior sword arts.

Afterward, he challenged six more people in succession, winning battle after battle.

It could be said that until now, everything had been under Lin Bohui's control. Whether cultivating or challenging martial arts masters, everything had remained within manageable bounds.

As for accepting Ruan Xiang's hefty bribe to defeat a young man, he had not taken it to heart at all.

But now, at this very moment, Lin Bohui was terrified beyond measure. The true qi within his dantian was like oil set aflame, burning fiercely and growing stronger the more it burned.

Without him even needing to circulate it, it had already erupted at high speed, exceeding the range that his Calming Incantation could control.

Such a result had indeed greatly increased his true qi within an extremely short time, but great advancement was always followed by great chaos.

He could no longer control the true qi throughout his body. Once the true qi cultivated through the Bixie Swordplay lost control, there was only one outcome: Qi Deviation.

It was like a rope used to bind an evil dragon had somehow snapped without anyone noticing. At this moment, the evil dragon's strength had grown far greater, but the first one it devoured in backlash was not anyone else—it was himself.

After all the twists and turns, he still could not escape this trial.

Lin Bohui's heart was filled with regret and resentment. He regretted coveting the power of this divine art, and resented that everything he had painstakingly planned was about to vanish like smoke.

Beyond regret and resentment, an immense doubt also filled his heart.

Why had his true qi lost control for no reason?

Last night, he had bedded four women, and with the effects of the Calming Incantation, the scorching heat in his true qi and the distracting thoughts in his heart had long since been thoroughly purged.

Earlier, when fighting Duàn Yì, he had not even circulated his true qi at full force. Why had he fallen into such a state? Which stage had gone wrong?

"Was it that fragrance? It was an extraordinarily potent aphrodisiac? How could he possibly know my weakness?"

In his daze, a flash of lightning crossed Lin Bohui's mind. He recalled the fragrance transmitted from Duàn Yì's sword when their Ten Refinements Sword had clashed, and understood where the problem lay.

But the solution to one question marked the beginning of another. How had his opponent learned of the hidden danger in his martial arts?

"Ah, you despicable wretch! I want you dead!"

The doubts in his heart remained unanswered, but they no longer mattered. Lin Bohui had only one thought now: while his mind was still clear, kill the man who had plotted against him, and go to hell together.

His furious roar was like a bolt from a clear sky, rumbling through the mountains. Its echoes lingered without end, startling countless birds and beasts and spreading across half the mountain peak.

At the same time, Lin Bohui gritted his teeth and forced the true qi within him under control as he unleashed the Bixie Swordplay. The sword light reappeared, without the slightest reservation.