Update Preview / Embezzlement

It should have been a perfectly ordinary ending.

But for You Yuyao, whose mental defenses had already crumbled, Gu Chengming's breezy, unconcerned attitude was the final straw that broke the camel's back.

She had lost before, but never so miserably, so humiliatingly.

She had been beaten with the most basic swordsmanship by someone everyone had always regarded as a "good-for-nothing"—and after she had provoked him first, no less.

You Yuyao wanted to get up and preserve the last shred of dignity she had as a Jingshui Pavilion disciple.

But when she tried to push herself up, a sharp pain shot through her arm. She couldn't help letting out a hiss, and her body went limp, dropping back down.

That fall brought tears to her eyes.

You Yuyao panicked.

She didn't want to cry. It was too pathetic.

She desperately tried to hold it in, sniffing hard as she raised the back of her hand and rubbed at her eyes haphazardly.

But her tears were like beads spilling from a snapped string. The more she wiped, the more they came, and she couldn't stop them no matter what.

As she wiped away her tears, You Yuyao glared at Gu Chengming.

Watching this, Gu Chengming was at a loss for words.

He hadn't even hit her that hard. They were just surface injuries—was there really any need to cry like this?

Gu Chengming was just about to say something.

But You Yuyao sprang up from the ground as if someone had stepped on her tail. No one knew where she found the strength. Ignoring the pain in her body, she covered her face, turned, and ran.

As she ran, she didn't forget to make a few broken threats through her tears:

"Next time... I'll beat you next time."

The girl stumbled out of the Training Ground.

Watching her flee in such a sorry state, Gu Chengming stood where he was and sighed.

Although he had made her cry, he didn't feel particularly guilty.

After all, she had provoked him first. He had merely acted in self-defense and, while he was at it, upheld the dignity of his own Cultivation Method.

And more importantly...

Gu Chengming opened the System Panel and looked at the string of notifications that had appeared. The corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl upward.

[The Huiyuan Sword Art witnessed the entire course of events.]

[It saw you stand up for it, willing to duel someone to defend it.]

[It saw you use its unadorned techniques to defeat an opponent who looked down on it and make her bow her head in apology.]

[It heard you say, "Apologize to the Huiyuan Sword Art."]

[It thought: So there really is someone in this world who understands me, someone truly willing to fight for me.]

[Huiyuan Sword Art Favorability +20]

[Current Favorability: Adoration (85/100)]

[Favorability status changed: upgraded from [Like] to [Adoration]]

[Congratulations! Huiyuan Sword Art Favorability has exceeded 80 points. Special bond effect unlocked.]

[Fixed attribute points gained: Strength +2]

[Passive trait gained: [Imperfect Clear Sword Heart]]

[[Imperfect Clear Sword Heart]: Your understanding of Basic Sword Moves has reached the pinnacle. When using any basic sword technique, its power increases, and you have a certain chance of seeing through the flaws in your opponent's moves.]

Hahaha, this was the reward for being a Gal Expert!

Looking at the soaring Favorability and the newly acquired trait, Gu Chengming was overjoyed.

You Yuyao hadn't come to provoke him at all. She was clearly a lucky charm delivering wealth!

Not only had she given him a huge boost in Favorability, she had also helped him unlock a bond trait outright.

If a few more "kind souls" like You Yuyao came along, wouldn't clearing this solo route be as easy as breathing?

Meanwhile, on one side of the Training Ground.

Beside the railing on the second floor of an inconspicuous pavilion, where the view was excellent,

an old man wearing a battered Bamboo Hat and Coarse Cloth Linen Clothes, with a dark red Wine Gourd hanging at his waist, was leaning against a pillar. Pinching a few peanuts between his fingers, he tossed them into his mouth as he watched everything unfold below with a grin.

From You Yuyao's provocation to Gu Chengming drawing his sword, and then the final exchange, he hadn't missed a thing.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk..."

Chewing peanuts, the old man gave a muffled murmur of approval.

"Interesting. Very interesting."

Although they were some distance apart, a shrewd light gleamed in his cloudy old eyes.

As a centuries-old eccentric who had immersed himself in the Sword Path, he had naturally seen the subtleties in the few sword strikes Gu Chengming had just performed.

That really was the Huiyuan Sword Art—the most basic, most ordinary, and downright common beginner's sword technique.

But in that young fellow's hands, the technique had changed.

That sticky force, that binding force, and his control and use of "momentum" were beyond the grasp of any ordinary beginner disciple.

One could even say that many so-called Inner Sect Elders in Wenjian Sect probably didn't understand the Huiyuan Sword Art as deeply as this young man did.

Turning the rotten into the miraculous.

This wasn't something diligence alone could accomplish. It required talent, exceptional comprehension, and a clear Sword Heart.

"Without a doubt, he's a piece of unpolished jade."

The old man picked up his Wine Gourd and tipped it back. The fiery liquor rolled down his throat, and he contentedly narrowed his eyes.

He took another careful look at Gu Chengming.

First Realm Level Three.

With that level of cultivation, he would indeed be near the bottom in a great sect like Wenjian Sect. He was even the sort who might be dismissed as a good-for-nothing and kicked out.

But the old man saw a rare quality in Gu Chengming.

That steadiness, that lack of arrogance or impatience, and that purity in his pursuit of the Sword Path.

Despite possessing remarkable skills, he had willingly honed his foundations at a low level. Though he could have made a name for himself in one fell swoop, he had chosen to keep his abilities hidden until now.

If that young girl hadn't pressed him so hard today, no one might have forced him to show his true skill.

Wasn't this exactly the sort of story those people who went around saying "keep the sword sheathed until its moment comes" dreamed of?

Keep the sword close, cultivate one's spirit for three years, then draw it once and shake the world.

"Heh, heh..."

The old man suddenly broke into a sly grin, his wrinkles bunching together.

It seemed that none of those blind fools in Wenjian Sect had discovered this unpolished jade yet.

More importantly, he had found him first.

And he wasn't a member of Wenjian Sect.

In fact, he had quite a few "old scores" to settle with those old diehards in Wenjian Sect.

"If I secretly poach this young fellow..."

The old man rubbed the sparse stubble on his chin, and a scene had already taken shape in his mind:

Several years later, at some grand Xianmen tournament, Gu Chengming would make a stunning debut on behalf of his sect, defeating Wenjian Sect's chief disciple with a single sword strike.

Then those old geezers from Wenjian Sect would watch, learn that the disciple had originally belonged to their own sect but that they had dismissed him as a good-for-nothing, and be so furious that their beards bristled. They'd regret it until their guts turned green, perhaps even spitting up three pints of blood on the spot...

The more the old man thought about it, the more brilliant the idea seemed. He couldn't help slapping his thigh and letting out a strange laugh.

Poach him! He absolutely had to poach him!

And he had to do it without leaving a trace, so those old geezers would be left chewing bitter herbs in silence, with no way to voice their grievance!

Having made up his mind, the old man stopped watching the show.

He adjusted the Bamboo Hat on his head, drained the last of his liquor, and blurred out of sight.

There was no ripple of Spiritual Power, nor even the faintest sound of wind.

He simply vanished from the pavilion, as if he had never been there.

Only the empty Wine Gourd remained, swaying gently on the railing.

P.S.:

This chapter is three thousand words. Tomorrow night at midnight, there'll be a huge update of at least sixteen thousand words—eight chapters released at once.

If you found this somewhat enjoyable, please give me a few free recommendation votes. I'm begging you, OVO.

Update Preview

Today's update will be a little late. I'll post around sixteen thousand words at midnight, so I'm putting up a preview in case you're waiting up too late.

The new original stories on Hedgehog Cat are having such a rough time during their launch period these days, QVQ. If you can follow along, I hope you'll keep reading. Please!

Embezzlement

A rumor spread through Wenjian Sect.

Apparently, a disciple had seen a Female Cultivator from Jingyu Pavilion spar with Gu Chengming of Huiyuan Gate at the Training Ground—and lose.

The name "Gu Chengming" was fairly well known among Wenjian Sect's disciples and throughout the Outer Sect.

He had been a "Delusional Person" who, after three years as a disciple, was still stuck at First Realm Level Three, yet dreamed of becoming Dao Companions with that Peerless Dao Seed from Daoning Gate. Wherever he went, he was always a choice topic for people to gossip about.

Only this time, the subject of the gossip had changed a little.

"Have you heard? That Gu Chengming beat a Senior Sister from Jingshui Pavilion?"

"Pah, and you believe that nonsense? Jingshui Pavilion handles sect patrols. Aren't they all experts at the late First Realm? Someone at First Realm Level Three probably couldn't even touch the hem of her clothes."

"Exactly. It's probably another story some idle disciple made up to attract attention. Why not say he beat an Elder with one sword while they're at it?"

Most people took the matter as a joke.

Except Jiang Lu.

The moment he heard the news, Jiang Lu was polishing his sword. His hand abruptly stopped.

The others thought it was absurd because they had never seen Gu Chengming's sword.

Beating someone at First Realm Level Nine in swordsmanship while at First Realm Level Three... Although it sounded outrageous, when Jiang Lu recalled the Senior Brother Gu's exquisite Fuhai Sword Intent in the courtyard that day, he felt sure of it.

Hadn't he, a dignified First Realm Level Seven cultivator, been soundly defeated just a few days ago?

If Senior Brother Gu's swordsmanship had improved further over the past few days, and if that Senior Sister from Jingshui Pavilion had been careless, and they had only competed in sword techniques without using Spiritual Power, then overcoming the gap from Level Three to Level Nine... perhaps it wasn't entirely impossible.

Of course, Jiang Lu understood that this was only true when speaking strictly of swordsmanship.

In a fight to the death, the enormous gulf created by their cultivation levels could not be crossed.

What he couldn't figure out was that he had been coming and going with Senior Brother Gu every day these past few days. Apart from the occasional trip to relieve himself or visit the Scripture Repository to look up information, the two had been practically inseparable.

When had Senior Brother Gu found time to spar with someone? Had it been while Jiang Lu was off buying food?

Curious about the rumor and wanting to confirm his suspicions, Jiang Lu took the opportunity to ask a couple of probing questions when he went to visit Gu Chengming that day.

The two of them were sitting beside the stone table in the courtyard.

Gu Chengming was casually flipping through an ancient book, looking quite relaxed.

"Senior Brother Gu, there's been a rumor going around the sect lately..." Jiang Lu chose his words carefully. "They say you fought someone at the Training Ground?"

Gu Chengming's reaction was quite calm. Without even looking up, he casually replied:

"Ah, I did have a spar with someone yesterday."