Frost Moon Sword

After getting up that morning, Gao Wu practiced fist and sword forms in the yard for an hour.

When he saw the old man get up, he ran out to buy buns and steamed bread, then heated up two leftover dishes from last night. That was enough for breakfast.

While they were eating, the old man suddenly said, "Don't go to the martial arts hall either. Tie Dalong and his sister have both been detained by the Supervision Bureau."

"Huh?" Gao Wu was rather surprised. It was normal for those two to be implicated, but it was strange that even with their connections, they had not managed to get out.

"It involves Demonic Cult believers, several people died, and there have also been multiple missing-person cases recently. This is a major case."

The old man said, "The Public Security Bureau actually detained all the related personnel already, but they were all transferred to the Supervision Bureau."

Gao Wu asked, "It shouldn't have anything to do with Teacher Tie, right? His martial arts hall was doing just fine. Why would he stir up this kind of trouble?"

"That may be true, but who can guarantee he's innocent?" The old man shook his head. "Tie Dalong and the others will have to stay in there for a while, unless they can catch all the Demon God Cult members in a short time."

He added, "This isn't something you can meddle in. Don't contact them either."

After breakfast, Gao Wu had nowhere to go and could only practice martial arts in the yard. At noon, he informed the old man and rode straight to Yunhu Villa.

To check on the situation at Tielong Martial Arts Hall, Gao Wu deliberately took a detour. Sure enough, the gates of Tielong Martial Arts Hall were tightly shut, without a single soul in sight.

"What a calamity falling from the sky..." Gao Wu sighed. Teacher Tie had been a pretty good person, diligent and responsible in teaching palm and sword techniques. He had even let Gao Wu mooch food and drinks at noon.

Unfortunately, his luck was bad. He had run into someone like Zhang Hao.

When Gao Wu arrived at Yunhu Villa, he swiped his card and entered. The guards in the booth pointed and whispered, but no one stopped him.

Song Mingyue had just gotten out of school, and Gao Wu happened to catch lunch.

"Thanks to your help, otherwise I don't know how long I would have been locked up!" Gao Wu thanked her sincerely.

"It was nothing. You had the video, so you could always prove your innocence," Song Mingyue said softly.

To be honest, Song Mingyue rather admired him for it. With the abilities of the Public Security Bureau, they had actually failed to find a single problem with Gao Wu. That was no ordinary feat.

It could only mean that Gao Wu had not been doing good deeds for show. He had been steadily and earnestly doing good deeds. He really was a good person!

"It was still you who got the video spread around. You deserve the greatest credit!"

After thinking for a moment, Gao Wu said with utter seriousness, "That deed was worth at least ten billion—no, twenty billion!"

Song Mingyue could not help laughing. When she smiled, her bright eyes curved like a new moon, and she bloomed with radiant charm.

Gao Wu had known Song Mingyue for so long and was with her almost every day, yet this was the first time he had seen her smile. He discovered that when she smiled, she was delicately beautiful and gentle, and all the chilliness and distance around her were swept away.

That smile was actually somewhat captivating!

He said from the bottom of his heart, "You look really beautiful when you smile."

A faint blush appeared on Song Mingyue's jade-like cheeks. Pretending nothing had happened, she said, "Your qi is settled and your spirit condensed, your skin is lustrous, and your cultivation has improved again."

"Good friend, your eyes are as sharp as torches." Gao Wu knew Song Mingyue was changing the subject, and she had brought up something he was proud of. He was just about to boast properly to the girl.

He said, "I was locked in the holding room, alone in the deep night, cold, bleak, and desolate. Then inspiration suddenly struck. I comprehended the way of Heaven and man transforming into life, of all things growing and flourishing, and my cultivation greatly advanced!"

"Heaven and man transforming into life, all things growing and flourishing? Why does that sound so strange?"

Confusion flashed through Song Mingyue's bright eyes, but she knew Gao Wu well. The boy's words were usually as unrestrained as a Pegasus and wildly unreliable, so there was no need to take them too seriously.

"I'm not bragging. When we go to Bailin Lake tonight, I should be able to help you subdue the Strange Spirit!" Gao Wu was brimming with confidence. He had been tangling with the Strange Spirit for a month now. With the Divine Mantra's power greatly increased, he should be able to deal with it.

"Oh." Song Mingyue knew Gao Wu was serious, but she did not fully believe him.

The key was that Gao Wu could only play a supporting role. Only she could lock onto the Strange Spirit, and only then would they have a chance to kill it.

After thinking about it, she said, "Then let's try tonight. I need to take medicine in advance to increase the success rate."

Yet Gao Wu hesitated. He had not tested the Divine Mantra's exact power. If it failed, would he not be putting Song Mingyue in danger?

"Don't rush. Let's try it tonight first," he said.

"The Strange Spirit has intelligence too. If we startle it, it might not come out again."

Song Mingyue shook her head slightly. "It's best to go all out the first time. It will be easier to succeed."

She looked at Gao Wu and asked softly, "Has your psychic ability improved? Let me test it."

Before Gao Wu could speak, Song Mingyue continued, "The Strange Spirit's attacks are mostly on the spiritual level. The fact that you can withstand its cold qi is not merely because your physique is special; you also have a special talent on the spiritual level. Roughly one in ten thousand Martial Artists awaken special abilities. Having dual innate abilities really is extraordinary."

"Uh..." Gao Wu hesitated somewhat.

He and Song Mingyue fought the Strange Spirit together every day. Her spiritual power was strong and her perceptions extraordinarily sharp; she had sensed something about the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation, but she had never asked him about it directly.

This time, Song Mingyue had taken the initiative to make things clear because the two of them were about to join forces in doing something major.

Viewing the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation as an innate ability was also the most reasonable explanation. If Song Mingyue could tell it was a spell technique, that would truly be seeing a ghost!

Gao Wu was not afraid of the secret getting out. He had to use this spell technique eventually. Since others did not understand its true nature or origin, they would only regard it as a psychic ability.

He simply did not know the power of the Swift Wind and Thunder Transformation, and he was afraid of hurting Song Mingyue.

Song Mingyue seemed to understand Gao Wu's concern. She said, "My spiritual power is fairly good. You don't need to worry about hurting me."

"All right, then let's try it." Gao Wu was actually a little curious about the power of the Thunderbolt Transformation. In his view, an attack on the spiritual level like this could not be too strong.

Even if Song Mingyue could not withstand it, at most she would have a headache for a while. It would not cause any serious harm.

"Are you ready? Here I come!" Gao Wu asked with a straight face.

Song Mingyue seemed not to catch Gao Wu's joke. She nodded, signaling that he could begin.

To show his seriousness, Gao Wu formed a sword-finger gesture and pointed at Song Mingyue. At the same time, he activated the Thunderbolt Transformation within the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation.

Song Mingyue, standing opposite him, saw a flash of lightning twist and gleam deep within Gao Wu's pupils. Then her mind jolted, as if struck by an invisible arrow. The blazing, tyrannical spiritual force, like Thunder itself, nearly shook her consciousness.

She was somewhat surprised as well. Gao Wu's innate ability was truly rather formidable. At the Martial Artist level, few people could withstand a spiritual attack of this caliber.

"How was it?" Gao Wu saw that Song Mingyue's expression was calm, as though she had not been affected at all. He felt a little disappointed. The Thunderbolt Transformation seemed kind of useless!

"The power is good." Song Mingyue asked again, "Can it be strengthened further?"

"It can be strengthened fivefold." Gao Wu did not hide it. He and Song Mingyue were going to do something serious, and concealing his strength would affect their coordination.

After everything that had happened, he trusted Song Mingyue deeply.

Song Mingyue fell silent for a moment before saying, "If its power can be enhanced fivefold, it would pose a certain threat to both Beginner and Intermediate Warriors. Don't reveal this innate ability before outsiders, and especially don't use it in the arena. It would be easy for people to notice something suspicious..."

As she spoke, she rolled up the sleeve on her left arm and revealed the silver bracelet around her wrist. "This is my Frost Moon Sword. It is made from a White Frost Ice Wolf energy core combined with three-dimensional atomically woven liquid metal. It can change form when activated by spiritual power.

"Releasing spiritual power as telekinesis is also my innate ability."

Gao Wu's gaze fell on Song Mingyue's wrist. Her hand was fair and slender, her knuckles evenly shaped and exceptionally beautiful. Her forearm was smooth as jade. The patterned silver bracelet was somewhat broad and thick, yet it looked perfectly harmonious around her wrist, carrying an ancient and elegant beauty.

The two often sparred, and Gao Wu knew Song Mingyue always wore that bracelet. He had thought it also served as a wrist guard.

He had never expected it to be a sword! A weapon that could transform actually existed in this world, and it left him greatly astonished.

Still puzzled, he asked, "Why are you telling me this?"

Song Mingyue circulated her spiritual power. The silver bracelet flowed like mercury and, in the blink of an eye, became a straight, slender four-foot sword. She lightly swung the blade, and a dazzling silver gleam tore through the air with a sharp whistle. Its chilling aura pressed straight toward Gao Wu's brow.

The cold brilliance and sharp edge of the sword light made Gao Wu's heart tighten. This shapeshifting sword looked light and airy, yet he had not expected it to be so sharp and fierce.

Song Mingyue said softly, "You told me your secret, so I'm telling you mine. It's fair."

Gao Wu laughed and gave Song Mingyue a thumbs-up. "Proper!"