Dragon Play Whip

For a fleeting moment, Lu Feng had wanted to take the Netherworld Bow from the Kirin Ring. But when he heard Jiang Ruoyun mention going shopping, he dismissed the thought. He did not want to miss such a fine opportunity to gather information.

By evening, Jiang Ruoyun no longer allowed Lu Feng to keep occupying her boudoir. Yet there were no spare rooms in this side courtyard, so with no other choice, Lu Feng had to make do with the crude storeroom in the corner.

Lu Feng had no objections to this. He understood Jiang Ruoyun's situation as well—she had no say in Jiang Manor, and even she herself might soon find that she had nowhere to go.

From his casual chats with Jiang Ruoyun, Lu Feng had also learned some details about Xiao Rou. She had been arranged by Jiang Ruoyun's Second Uncle—namely, Second Manor Lord Jiang Aotian's son, Jiang He, Jiang Caiyun's father. In name, Xiao Rou was there to care for Jiang Ruoyun, but in truth, there was no lack of surveillance involved. Though Xiao Rou had been proper and obedient over the past few years, Jiang Ruoyun had always maintained a degree of distance and wariness toward her.

Night fell. Lu Feng had already tidied up the storeroom, throwing out all the messy junk and making the entire room look much neater. He casually pieced together a bed from wooden boards, and the place finally looked a little like a room.

To Lu Feng, the rest of the furnishings were dispensable, but a bed was necessary. After all, at his current cultivation level, he could not avoid such mundane daily matters as sleeping and eating.

As the night deepened, Lu Feng still had not gone to sleep. Sitting cross-legged on the wooden bed, he quietly sensed the state of his Life Soul. During the time since he had "left" Worryfree Village and arrived in Azure Dragon Town, he had already felt that several other Spirit Soul Arrays within his Life Soul had faintly loosened. Yet after reflecting on them, he still found them difficult to control and connect.

Helpless after repeated failed attempts, Lu Feng could only settle down to sleep. He casually pulled the blanket from beside him over his body, when a delicate fragrance suddenly drifted beneath his nose. It smelled wonderfully pleasant. Lu Feng could not help recalling that the bedding he was using had once covered Jiang Ruoyun. Because she "disliked" it, she had replaced it with new bedding and thrown the old set to him.

"A woman's bedding really does smell nice~" A gentle smile curled across Lu Feng's lips.

At dawn, as the darkness gradually receded and the sky had only just begun to show a pale fish-belly white, Lu Feng was already standing in the courtyard.

Not long afterward, Jiang Ruoyun emerged from her room. By then, Lu Feng had already "cleaned" the courtyard inside and out many times over.

Jiang Ruoyun glanced at Lu Feng's figure in the courtyard, and her sleepy eyes widened slightly.

Lu Feng held a broom in his hand, sweeping away the dead leaves and debris on the ground. He took three pauses with every step, sometimes moving left, sometimes right. After sweeping for so long, he seemed to have remained in the same place, yet the ground did seem to have become much cleaner...

Jiang Ruoyun silently praised him. What exquisite footwork!

As Lu Feng swept, the steps beneath his feet were none other than Exquisite Valley's legendary footwork. Since childhood, he had been accustomed to cultivating every morning. He had once practiced swordsmanship, but now, restricted by his circumstances, he could only secretly train his movement technique.

Jiang Ruoyun looked around and felt that the Ancient Banyan Tree in the courtyard, as well as the lush green potted plants surrounding it, seemed somehow different. Yet she could not say what exactly had changed. It was as though the entire courtyard had become cleaner and far more comforting.

Jiang Ruoyun also had the habit of morning cultivation. In the past, she had always practiced in this courtyard, but today, seeing how clean Lu Feng had made it, she could not bear to ruin it.

"I'm going to the back mountain to practice my whip technique. Do you want to come along?" Jiang Ruoyun did not know why she had suddenly invited Lu Feng. Or perhaps, deep down, she wanted someone to see the whip technique she was most proud of.

Lu Feng stopped sweeping and turned to look at Jiang Ruoyun. Her attire today differed somewhat from yesterday's. Her long, flowing black hair had been tied into a ponytail, and her clothing looked exceedingly neat and capable. Her wrists, waist, abdomen, and ankles were all tightly bound, with no loose sashes or sleeves dragging about. There was not the slightest trace of sluggishness in her every movement. Her whole person appeared vibrant and energetic, brimming with youthful vitality.

"Practicing whip techniques?" Lu Feng smiled faintly. He had seen Jiang Ruoyun whip Jiang Ren across the face yesterday with perfect clarity, and he was rather curious about that fleeting glimpse of her whip technique. At once, he followed Jiang Ruoyun to the back mountain.

The two left their courtyard, turned left through a small gate, then turned right. Before long, they reached the rear gate of Jiang Manor. After passing through it and walking for Half an Incense Stick's Time, they arrived at the back mountain of Jiang Manor. Beyond that lay a forest.

The place where Jiang Ruoyun practiced her whip was at the foot of the back mountain, where there was a level stretch of open ground. She did not venture deep into the forest.

Jiang Ruoyun took out her long whip from the Storage Ring on her hand. Her gaze lingered on the ring for a while, and a touched expression appeared on her face. This Storage Ring had been a reward from her grandfather, Jiang Batian, on the day she connected all seven souls as a child. It carried a special meaning for her.

Lu Feng examined the pale pink long whip in Jiang Ruoyun's hand. It was much longer than an ordinary whip, its body woven from gradually shifting red-and-white patterns. When swung, it carried an added touch of beauty. The handle was wrapped in a thick layer of protective cord, better safeguarding the wielder's palm.

While Lu Feng was lost in thought, Jiang Ruoyun had already begun practicing. The long whip in her hand danced nimbly, sometimes striking straight down a line, sometimes sweeping across an entire stretch. Its vertical and horizontal movements crisscrossed, shifting with great naturalness, leaving countless pale pink afterimages in the air.

Jiang Ruoyun had begun practicing the whip at the age of six. Day after day, year after year, she had never once slackened, not even after her seven souls had regressed. Though her understanding of whip techniques had not yet reached the pinnacle where all things could become whips, she had still attained profound mastery.

Jiang Ruoyun's whipping was like dancing. Her figure shifted with agility, and every gesture seemed as lively and beautiful as a painting. Her tied braid bobbed up and down, making her seem like a nimble little rabbit—utterly adorable.

Lu Feng watched in a daze. In the past, he had focused single-mindedly on cultivation. When had he ever seen such a beautiful scene?

"Let me show you something even more impressive." A delighted smile rose on Jiang Ruoyun's lips as she shouted at Lu Feng. Then her figure suddenly changed, and with a turn of her wrist, she lashed out.

Boom...

A huge boulder not far in front of Lu Feng was actually smashed into a pile of rubble by Jiang Ruoyun's single whip strike.

The light, graceful beauty from moments before vanished in an instant, replaced by an aura brimming with violent, unyielding force.

Seeing this, Lu Feng's mouth could not help twitching. The contrast was simply too great!

Shake, strike, coil... In Jiang Ruoyun's hands, these few simple basic moves brimmed with power. Each swing produced explosive might, while crisscrossing marks across the ground all proclaimed their terrifying force.

The strength behind every lash Jiang Ruoyun sent out was astonishingly terrifying. She was only at the Two Soul Realm, yet she already possessed such power. Once her cultivation rose further, a single strike of that whip might well shatter heaven and destroy earth.

If this girl has a violent temper at home, the man who marries her in the future will be miserable. Lu Feng secretly snickered with ill intent.

Crack...

The sound of the long whip snapping rang out.

Lu Feng looked over and discovered that the long whip in Jiang Ruoyun's hand had actually been unable to endure such force and had broken.

"What kind of whip technique is this?"

Lu Feng was startled. How could he fail to see the extraordinary nature of this whip technique? Yet Jiang Ruoyun had only displayed simple, basic whip flourishes, so he could not determine its rank.

"Dragon Play Whip." Jiang Ruoyun smiled mischievously, wiped the sweat from her forehead, rested briefly, then took another new whip from her Storage Ring and began swinging it once more.

Lu Feng understood inwardly that neither the Dragon Play Whip nor that "threefold strength" cultivation method was something Jiang Manor could possess.

Looking at the woman before him, whom he found increasingly impossible to see through, Lu Feng could not help growing curious. Just how many secrets was she still hiding?

The two vastly different styles of whip technique—one light, nimble, swift, and ever-changing; the other violent, forceful, and advancing with indomitable courage—shifted between hardness and softness with effortless control, swift yet never chaotic.

Jiang Ruoyun did not delve deeply into practicing the Dragon Play Whip. She understood clearly that mastering these most basic moves was the key.

Only by dancing out a series of whip flourishes and then combining them—flourish linked to flourish, flourish wrapped around flourish, one blossom connecting to another—would she be able to learn any profound whip technique with twice the result for half the effort.

When the long whip had grown somewhat worn, Jiang Ruoyun stopped and concluded her daily practice. Although she broke one or two long whips every day, they were fortunately cheap enough to remain within what she could afford.

Jiang Ruoyun estimated the time, then called to Lu Feng, "Go back and get ready. We're going shopping."

Hearing this, Lu Feng put down the pieces of rubble in his hands and returned to the manor with Jiang Ruoyun. While Jiang Ruoyun had been practicing her whip just now, Lu Feng had not been idle either. Using the scattered stones all around him, he had practiced inscribing formations. Carving them onto these useless stones meant that even if he made a mistake and they shattered, he would not feel any heartache.

After the two returned to the manor, Jiang Ruoyun washed up and changed back into her usual casual clothing. Her tied hair was let down once more. She no longer possessed the dashing, valiant air she had while practicing the whip, instead gaining a hint of a refined young lady's gentle grace.

"Let's go. I arranged to meet Sister Qiao at Gathering Fragrance Garden," Jiang Ruoyun said. Seeing Lu Feng's somewhat puzzled look, she smiled and explained, "Gathering Fragrance Garden is a tea house in Azure Dragon Town, and Sister Qiao is my best friend."

"Are you going to discuss something?" Lu Feng asked.

"I'm about to be 'driven out,' after all, so I can only find a place to live as quickly as possible." Jiang Ruoyun smiled, then took out some soul coins and handed them to Lu Feng. "Take this money. Later, buy yourself a bow that feels right in your hands."

The currency used on the Profound Heaven Continent was called soul coins. The smallest unit was the Copper Soul Coin, followed by the Silver Soul Coin, Gold Soul Coin, and Jade Soul Coin. Their exchange rate increased by hundreds—that was to say, one Silver Soul Coin equaled one hundred Copper Soul Coins, while one Gold Soul Coin equaled one hundred Silver Soul Coins.