The concept of "Body Seizure" did exist in the worldview of this Cultivation Game.
According to the system's underlying logic, if a Target of Affection—whether human, demon, or Artifact Spirit—was completely taken over through Body Seizure, and its nature changed, then the name displayed in the game would directly change to the Body Seizer's True Name.
Gu Chengming had taken this into consideration when he made the MOD.
Once a Target of Affection was "taken over," the name above her head would be replaced with the name of the person who had seized her body.
But now...
Gu Chengming checked the panel again.
[Huiyuan Sword Art: Flowing Light Sword Shadow (CG Unlocked)]
The subject was still "Huiyuan Sword Art."
It just had a suffix now.
Flowing Light Sword Shadow.
Well, in theory, that should be fine.
So the reason the Huiyuan Sword Technique had become like this must be that the Flowing Light Sword Shadow technique had evolved from another Cultivation Method.
He remembered the system had given him its name once. It was called... Flowing Clouds Following Moon Sword Technique, wasn't it?
Gu Chengming had a hunch.
So the personality of the Huiyuan Sword Art now was actually the personality of Flowing Clouds Following Moon?
Then the CG Unlocked suffix might be related to the Flowing Clouds Following Moon Sword Technique.
But that immediately brought up another problem.
As the saying went, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated.
To win over a Target of Affection, you first had to figure out its temperament.
The previous Huiyuan Sword Art had been easy to understand. All he had to do was keep the Resentful Woman company, and her resentment would naturally fade away.
But this new one...
Characters who spoke with tildes and musical notes were usually sweet on the outside, dark on the inside—or else they were the kind of jokers no one could ever make sense of.
He'd have to sound it out.
Gu Chengming made up his mind to take the initiative. He tentatively asked in his mind:
"How are you feeling?"
The response came quickly, still brimming with that inscrutably cheerful energy.
[Huiyuan Sword Art giggled. Is that what you call it??]
Gu Chengming: "..."
Could it stop speaking with musical notes? He couldn't hear them, either.
Still, the musical notes might be a good opening.
Gu Chengming composed himself and continued probing. "Your personality seems to have changed quite a bit. Is that because you comprehended Flowing Light Sword Shadow?"
This time, the response came half a beat slower.
[Huiyuan Sword Art blinked and decided to keep it a secret.] [It said, what was there to investigate in such a boring theoretical question?] [What mattered was that it was stronger now. Not only could it help you swing your sword faster, it could also...] [It deliberately left him hanging.] [Let you see more interesting scenery. Wasn't that wonderful?]
Gu Chengming furrowed his brow.
Dodging the question and changing the subject.
And doing it in a way that left him unable to find fault with it—one that even made it seem a little cute.
It was worlds apart from the old Huiyuan Sword Art, which said whatever came to mind and had even shown him its innermost feelings of inferiority without holding anything back.
After this brief exchange, Gu Chengming had formed a preliminary impression.
More lively, more mischievous.
And better at... putting on an act.
Exactly. Putting on an act.
That was what concerned Gu Chengming most.
According to the system's rules, the interactions between a Cultivation Method and him were the embodiment of the Cultivation Method's "inner voice." What he saw was its "True Self."
But now, facing this entirely new Huiyuan Sword Art, Gu Chengming felt a powerful sense of dissonance.
Every sentence it spoke seemed to express an emotion, but it felt more like it was... "performing."
It was playing the role of someone "lively, cute, and a little mysterious."
The "??" and the descriptions of it "blinking" concealed its true intentions and thoughts completely.
It was talking to him, but it wasn't letting him see its "heart."
That gave Gu Chengming a headache.
Trying to win over someone who might lie to him—or at the very least, hold something back—would make the difficulty shoot up exponentially.
"This is a bit of a problem..."
Gu Chengming rubbed his temples.
Before, it had been, "I can hear your thoughts, so I know how to comfort you."
Now it was, "I can hear your words, but I don't know which ones are true and which ones are you messing with me."
It was like playing a Galgame where every choice was "???" One careless move, and he'd end up in a Bad End.
Just as Gu Chengming fell into thought, another line appeared in his mind.
[Huiyuan Sword Art watched you frown in deep thought, seeming to find it very amusing.] [It wanted to poke your cheek.] [Why did you stop talking? Were you scared by how it looked now? Or...] [The words paused briefly, then grew even more cheerful.] [Were you wondering how to get to know it all over again?] [Don't worry. We have all the time in the world. Let's take it slow~?]
That's all for now. I'll post another chapter a little later.
I Will Reach a Perfect Ending.
The night wind was cool, stirring a few dead leaves in the courtyard.
For some reason, the wind was particularly strong tonight.
Gu Chengming held a Wood Sword and focused his mind.
He couldn't quite figure out how the Huiyuan Sword Art would react, but there was one thing he could be sure of.
That was how to use Flowing Light Sword Shadow.
He didn't summon much Spiritual Energy. He merely tried to touch the newly formed Spiritual Power circuit inside him, with its faintly unfamiliar aura.
It was a strange sensation—light and buoyant, as if it might slip from his fingertips at any moment.
As his thoughts shifted, the unremarkable Wood Sword in his hand suddenly gave a clear, ringing hum.
There was no earth-shattering spectacle, no dazzling radiance.
Gu Chengming's figure swayed in place, as if the frame had momentarily frozen.
The next instant, a faint Sword Mark, almost indistinguishable from the moonlight, had appeared on the bluestone ground ten paces away.
After a soft sound, the afterimage where Gu Chengming had stood slowly faded.
It was unbelievably fast. Even Gu Chengming himself was dazed for a moment.
[Flowing Light Sword Shadow: CG Unlocked +5]
Before he could make out the small text that had appeared across his vision, the cheerful voice in his mind spoke up.
[Isn't it much stronger now than that old clumsy thing that could only teach you how to swing a sword?]
Gu Chengming looked down at the Wood Sword in his hand, then felt the Dantian inside him, suddenly drained by a third.
It was certainly powerful.
That strike had been at least several times faster than the original moves of the Huiyuan Sword Art. In a real fight, it would be enough to catch an opponent off guard.
But the cost was steep. One move had drained a third of his "mana bar." If he failed to kill his opponent after three strikes, he'd be left lying there, ready to be mocked.
On the other side, Hundred Bones Ming, who had witnessed the whole thing, was completely dumbstruck.
[Hundred Bones Ming thought, is this the power gained by sacrificing oneself?]
[Dammit, why did it feel like being taken over wasn't so scary after all?]
Gu Chengming didn't care what Hundred Bones Ming thought. His attention was fixed entirely on the words "CG Unlocked." Using the sword technique had only added five points. That meant simply "using" it wasn't the key to unlocking it. This so-called CG, and the true form of Flowing Light Sword Shadow, which had yet to appear, were clearly hiding something more. Gu Chengming put away the Wood Sword and stood in the courtyard, letting the night wind ruffle his hair. He fell silent for a moment, then asked softly in his mind: "Huiyuan Sword Art."
[Huiyuan Sword Art laughed. What is it? Do you want it to show you again?]
Gu Chengming didn't take the bait. He got straight to the point: "Will you change back?" "Back to how you were before." The voice in his mind paused, a rare break in its chatter. Then that cheerful mood surged up again, as if the pause had been nothing but an illusion.
[Huiyuan Sword Art cried, oh! It always had to strive for greater heights. The old it hadn't been good enough or strong enough. It couldn't even stay by your side for the journey ahead.]
[Wasn't it better like this? It was stronger and more interesting now, and it could help you better.]
[Or are you actually sentimental, and don't like the way it's changed?] ```
It deftly turned the question back on him, brushing aside the weighty subject as if it were nothing.
Gu Chengming took a deep breath.
He hated this feeling.
He was a player, one of the so-called Fourth Calamity, willing to do whatever it took to beat the game—but he was also a person.
He hated seeing someone or something familiar suddenly become unrecognizable.
Especially when the change didn't happen naturally, but felt like a forced distortion of itself—an attempt to please him, to avoid being abandoned.
"Huiyuan Sword Art."
Gu Chengming's voice lowered, carrying a seriousness he'd never shown before.
In his mind, he spoke slowly, one word at a time:
"I don't know if you can understand what I mean."
"If your personality really changed because of this sword technique, and that's how you became the way you are now, then I'll try to accept it. I'll try to get to know you all over again."
"No matter what you become, as long as you're still the Huiyuan Sword Art that's been with me all this time, I'll treat you just as I always have."
He paused, his voice growing even more resolute.
Before you continue