From Utmost Simplicity to Utmost Complexity, Both Are Sound Principles

Dugu Qiubai had not left behind any sword manual or sword scripture in the Sword Tomb.

Nor could the Divine Condor teach swordsmanship. It could only serve as a sparring partner, and its attacks somewhat followed Dugu Qiubai's martial arts style.

But it could neither speak nor wield a sword. It had no way to demonstrate exquisite, intricate sword techniques, much less impart the Nine Swords of Dugu—a sword art whose general outline originated from the Book of Changes, with exceedingly precise and complex cultivation formulas, and whose General Formula Stance alone contained three hundred and sixty variations.

Thus, the Sword Tomb contained only the remains and life account of the "Sword Demon," as well as four swords—or, more accurately, two swords.

One was a four-foot-long sword gleaming with blue light, while the other was the famed Profound Iron Heavy Sword.

There had also been a Ziwēi Soft Sword, but Dugu Qiubai had cast it into a deep ravine after it accidentally injured a righteous man.

The final one was merely a rotten Wooden Sword, symbolizing the highest realm of Dugu Qiubai's lifelong path of the sword—not being constrained by objects, where grass, wood, bamboo, and stone could all become swords, gradually advancing toward the realm where no sword surpassed a sword.

"A heavy sword without an edge; great skill appears clumsy?"

Inside the Sword Tomb, Huang Rong tried to pick up the Profound Iron Heavy Sword. To her surprise, she could not even lift it at first—the Profound Iron Heavy Sword was only a little over three feet long. Though thick and blunt like an iron rod, if it had been made of ordinary steel, it would have weighed at most ten or twenty jin. With Huang Rong's wrist strength, she might not have been able to wield it freely, but lifting it one-handed should not have been a problem.

"Why is it so heavy? What kind of metal is this?"

Huang Rong's face was full of astonishment.

Lu Chen said, "It should be the legendary profound iron."

"Profound iron? No wonder!"

Huang Rong's eyes lit up.

"I've heard that profound iron is several times heavier than ordinary steel. Even just one or two taels mixed into ordinary iron when forging blades can turn them into divine weapons. If this heavy sword is truly forged entirely from profound iron, then it really is a rare treasure!"

As she spoke, she gripped the hilt with both hands and circulated her full strength before barely managing to lift it. After only a few swings, her little face had turned bright red and a fine sweat beaded her forehead. With a clang, she planted the sword on the ground and leaned against it, panting heavily.

Seeing this, the Divine Condor puffed out its chest and belly and let out several squawks, as though mocking her.

Huang Rong was somewhat unconvinced, but she truly could not wield the heavy sword. After pondering for a moment, she said with a smile, "A heavy sword without an edge; great skill appears clumsy—those words are right, but they are also wrong."

The Divine Condor's eyes widened as it fixed her with a sharp glare, looking exactly like a child who did not understand anything should not spout nonsense.

Huang Rong said with a grin, "Since ancient times, people have said, 'Generals of staffs and hammers cannot be met with force.' Staffs and hammers refer to heavy weapons whose weight far exceeds ordinary arms. This heavy sword probably weighs seventy or eighty jin, doesn't it? Throughout history, few people have been able to wield such a heavy weapon.

"If someone can swing such a weapon with ease, then either they were born with the tyrannical strength of an overlord, or their cultivation has reached the realm of lifting heavy things as though they were light. With such strength and cultivation, what need is there for flashy techniques? Swing it and smash at will—how many people could possibly withstand it?"

Seeing the Divine Condor staring with wide eyes, its gaze seemingly a little muddled, Huang Rong pressed her advantage.

"This Profound Iron Heavy Sword can be called a sword, but it can also be called a heavy staff or a heavy mace. After all, it has neither edge nor blade, and even its tip is rounded. Compared to a sword, I think it resembles a staff, a mace, or even a hammer more.

"Anyway, if I too could use this seventy- or eighty-jin heavy sword with ease, then with an iron staff, a bronze mace, or a great hammer, a few simple chops, smashes, and sweeps would likewise flatten my enemies. I could also say that my martial arts were great skill appearing clumsy. But could that mean my swordsmanship was formidable? It would only prove that I was strong enough, my internal power deep enough, and that I had the advantage of a weapon—using one force to overcome ten techniques, that was all."

Lu Chen also felt that Huang Rong's argument made some sense.

If he remembered correctly, the Profound Iron Heavy Sword weighed eighty-one jin.

Such an immensely heavy weapon, coupled with profound iron's property of being "indestructible against all hardness," might be nothing in worlds with higher martial strength, but in a low-martial world, it truly was a heavy weapon beyond the power of ordinary people to contend with.

As long as one could wield an eighty-one-jin heavy weapon one-handed with ease, whether it was a sword, saber, staff, mace, or hammer, there were indeed few people in a low-martial world capable of parrying it.

But fundamentally, that relied on the advantage of strength and weaponry—overwhelming others with force, using one force to overcome ten techniques. It did not prove that one's martial skill would necessarily overshadow the age.

After all, even Dugu Qiubai himself believed that "not being constrained by objects, where grass, wood, bamboo, and stone could all become swords, until no sword surpasses a sword" was the pinnacle of technique and cultivation.

Of course, before reaching the realm of "not being constrained by objects," there was nothing wrong with relying on strength and weaponry as a transition—if I can wield such a heavy weapon, that is my own ability too!

The Divine Condor flapped its wings, looking angry. It was clearly very dissatisfied that a little girl like Huang Rong had so carelessly refuted its master's theory.

But it could not speak and had no idea how to argue back, so it could only wave its pair of short wings about wildly.

Lu Chen laughed heartily and said, "Condor Brother, don't be angry. Whether it is great skill appearing clumsy or infinite variation, both are sound principles of the martial path. I believe that besides the path of utmost simplicity embodied by great skill appearing clumsy, Senior Dugu Qiubai surely also had a path of utmost complexity, of infinite variation."

The Nine Swords of Dugu, whose general outline originated from the Book of Changes, possessed a set of exceedingly precise calculation formulas and claimed to break all martial arts under heaven. A single General Formula Stance had three hundred and sixty variations—clearly, this was Dugu Qiubai's path of utmost complexity.

It was merely unknown where Dugu Qiubai had hidden the sword scripture of the Nine Swords of Dugu, for it did not reappear until the era of The Smiling, Proud Wanderer.

The Divine Condor clearly agreed greatly with Lu Chen's words. It cooed and nodded vigorously, then pointed at Lu Chen with a short wing before pointing at the heavy sword.

Lu Chen understood. Grasping the heavy sword's hilt with one hand, he exerted force and lifted the Profound Iron Heavy Sword.

Ever since he had met the Divine Condor, Lu Chen had swallowed three Bosiqu Snake gallbladders every day. Not only had his true qi cultivation soared once more, but his muscles, bones, and strength had grown stronger by the day. Lifting the eighty-one-jin Profound Iron Heavy Sword one-handed did not feel overly strenuous.

Of course, to actually wield the heavy sword, he still had to circulate his true qi.

Without waiting for him to familiarize himself with the heavy sword, the Divine Condor swept its left wing toward Lu Chen.

It was a unique, extraordinary Divine Condor unlike any other in the world. It had been born with monstrous strength, and it regularly ate Bosiqu Snakes to nourish itself. Its power had reached an inconceivable level. When it swept out its wing, the gale it stirred was practically like the Void Splitting Palm Force unleashed by a martial arts master. Before the wing even arrived, the chilling pressure of the wind already struck Lu Chen's face with pain and constricted his breath.

Lu Chen did not dare be careless. He held the heavy sword horizontally before the Divine Condor's iron wing. With a deafening clang, he felt as though he had been struck by a massive hammer. The hand holding his sword jerked violently, and his feet involuntarily plowed across the ground as he slid backward.

Before he could steady himself, the Divine Condor pounced again, its right wing chopping downward like a great saber or heavy axe.

Lu Chen hurriedly gathered his true qi and sent power coursing through his arm, swinging the heavy sword upward. Another tremendous crash rang out. Amid the surging gusts, Lu Chen staggered back once again.

The Divine Condor did not even sway. It continued charging forward, its iron beak darting toward him like lightning, resembling a Stabbing Sword Style whose timing and angle had both been calculated with extreme precision.

Lu Chen drew a deep breath and poured true qi into his legs, forcibly stabilizing his stance. In that instant of sparks and lightning, he executed the Stabbing Sword Style from the basic sword forms and thrust his sword toward the Divine Condor's iron beak.

The heavy sword was simply too heavy. Not only did it prevent him from freely employing his Movement Technique, even sword moves with slightly more complex variations were difficult to use. He could only rely on basic sword forms.

Yet his basic sword forms could now incorporate a trace of the essence of "Sword One." Whether in speed, precision, or power, they were anything but ordinary.

Clang—

Amid the ring of metal striking metal, the divine condor's iron beak collided with the blunt, rounded tip of the heavy sword, bursting forth in a brilliant spray of sparks.

This time, the divine condor was finally forced to halt by the Stabbing Sword Style imbued with a hint of Sword One's spirit. Lu Chen, meanwhile, was only knocked back two steps before firmly steadying himself.

A flicker of approval appeared in the divine condor's eyes. It nodded at Lu Chen, then lunged again. Its short wings swept and chopped sideways, while its iron beak darted out in occasional pecks. Though its attacks were simple, every blow was immensely powerful and heavy, the fierce winds they raised sending sand and stones flying across the ground and filling the air with dust, as though a Martial Arts World master were circulating his full strength, true qi spilling forth and stirring the wind and sand.

Lu Chen drove his true qi to its limit, responding with the simplest basic sword forms—stabbing, chopping, sweeping, lifting, and the like. Since his Movement Technique was unwieldy, he simply did not use it. He planted his stance with all his strength, shifting slowly in tiny steps as he countered each move of the divine condor's. For a time, he actually held off the divine condor's assault with complete steadiness.

At the same time, he carefully pondered the shadows of Dugu Qiubai's swordsmanship hidden within the divine condor's attacks.

Ever since obtaining the Sword One Imprint, Lu Chen had contemplated it every day, gradually coming to understand the principles of the sword. His aptitude for the Sword Dao increased with each passing day.

Even though the divine condor could not speak to offer guidance, nor perform overly exquisite or complicated techniques, those attacking stances that bore the traces of Dugu Qiubai's swordsmanship alone allowed him to comprehend many principles from them. For a time, he felt he had benefited beyond measure.

As soon as the two began exchanging blows, Huang Rong had already retreated to one side. She took out some watermelon seeds from her little pouch and, cracking them one by one, watched the pair's sparring without blinking.

At first sight of the divine condor's fierce attacks, each casually whipping up sharp gusts like the Void Splitting Palm Force of a Martial Arts World expert, Huang Rong thought that if it were her, unable to wield the heavy sword against it, she likely would not even last ten moves. A few strikes would be enough for the divine condor to send her flying with a flap of its wing.

Even if she wanted to use her Movement Technique to circle and fight, with her light, petite body, she feared it would be difficult to keep her footing amid those gusts that sent sand and stones flying.

Yet Lu Chen had stabilized his defense in mere moments. Moreover, as he fought the divine condor, the power of those plain, basic sword forms steadily increased. They even faintly showed signs of forming a sword technique suited to the Profound Iron Heavy Sword. From merely defending at first, he had gradually become capable of occasionally striking back.

Seeing how rapidly he was improving, Huang Rong cracked her seeds faster and faster, her brows dancing with delight as she watched. In her heart, she continuously cheered him on and applauded.