Innate Sword Bone

Most martial arts in the world had their own unique internal cultivation methods.

Only by combining internal energy with sword moves could a sword technique unleash its formidable power.

Gu Shaoan's Willow Catkin Sword Technique had previously reached the realm of "Entering the Hall" in terms of its forms.

He had already grasped the essence of the Willow Catkin Sword Technique.

What he lacked was merely the support of internal energy.

Now that internal energy had been added to the mix, Gu Shaoan's sword moves possessed not only grace and agility, but also a sharper, more lingering quality.

As Gu Shaoan practiced the Willow Catkin Sword Technique over and over, the wooden sword in his hand swung faster and faster.

By the fifth repetition, Gu Shaoan had once again fallen into a peculiar state.

At the same time, Miejue, who was cultivating in her room, seemed to sense something. She first opened her eyes and glanced toward a certain direction outside, then struck her side with one palm.

Borrowing the rebounding force of her inner energy, she rose gracefully, drifting out of the room as lightly as a paper kite. With a light tap of her toes, she crossed more than ten zhang in a few breaths and appeared beside the bamboo grove, her gaze fixed on the figure dancing with a sword beneath the moon.

As her gaze focused, Miejue's previously calm expression shifted slightly.

Just then, several figures rushed from different bamboo cottages in succession. They were Zhao Jingxuan, Ding Minjun, and Bei Jinyi.

Upon noticing Miejue standing beside the bamboo grove, the three changed direction and hurried toward her.

Before they could bow or speak, Miejue swept her sleeve, and her low voice sounded directly beside their ears.

"Quiet. Do not disturb Shaoan's cultivation."

Hearing this, they all turned to look at Gu Shaoan, who was practicing his swordsmanship nearby.

After watching for a few moments, Zhao Jingxuan, the strongest among the three women, narrowed her eyes and could not help exclaiming, "Something is wrong. Why are Little Junior Brother's sword moves so fast?"

At Zhao Jingxuan's words, Ding Minjun and Bei Jinyi looked closely.

The wooden sword in Gu Shaoan's hand left faint afterimages in the air. The speed of his strikes was scarcely inferior even to theirs.

One had to know that Bei Jinyi and Ding Minjun had trained for years. Only through the nourishment of internal energy and long, grueling practice had they attained their current sword speed.

Yet Gu Shaoan had only just begun. He had not even undergone systematic sword training, but his sword speed had already reached a level comparable to theirs.

For a moment, Ding Minjun and Bei Jinyi both stared wide-eyed, looking as though they had seen a ghost.

A Martial Artist's use of the sword was never something that could be mastered simply by holding a secret manual and practicing from it.

Within the Emei Sect, every disciple who studied the sword first had to train in stillness.

They first had to stand holding a sword, with their arm and blade aligned in a straight line, maintaining a sword stance as motionless as a mountain.

They had to hold that position for half an hour at a time, once in the morning and once at dusk.

Once they could achieve this, they would begin tying sandbags to their arms, gradually increasing the weight.

Generally speaking, the quickest could pass in three months, while the slowest might take half a year.

Those who passed would have initially formed arm strength; when their swords emerged, cold light would flash.

As Miejue's Personal Disciples, Zhao Jingxuan, Ding Minjun, and Bei Jinyi had to take the lead in all things and set an example for Emei's fourth-generation disciples.

Therefore, even now, whenever they had time, Zhao Jingxuan, Ding Minjun, and Bei Jinyi still spent half an hour each day practicing stillness.

That was how they had gained their present sword speed.

But Gu Shaoan had only just entered the sect and had cultivated for merely a few days, yet his sword speed was already close to matching all three of them. How could they not be shocked?

After recovering from her shock, Zhao Jingxuan first looked at Gu Shaoan.

Only after confirming that Gu Shaoan had not been affected by her sudden cry did she let out a breath of relief.

She then looked at Miejue and asked, "Master, Little Junior Brother clearly has not undergone sword-training exercises yet. Why is he...?"

Though she did not finish, everyone knew what Zhao Jingxuan was asking.

After pondering briefly, Miejue slowly said, "If I am not mistaken, Shaoan may possess an Innate Sword Bone."

"A Sword Bone?"

The three women looked blankly at Miejue's words.

Miejue explained, "This is also something I once heard from other seniors. According to that senior, some people in this world are born with unusual arms and bones."

"With the same sword technique and sword moves, they can always display greater power and faster speed than others, as if they were born for the sword."

"Thirty years ago, there was a famous swordsman in the martial world named Jing, known as the 'Life-Taking Sword.' It was said that he possessed a Sword Bone. His left hand was innately stronger than his right, making his swordsmanship swift as a startled swan and difficult for ordinary people to contend with."

After hearing Miejue's explanation, the others showed understanding.

Bei Jinyi said softly, "No wonder Little Junior Brother's sword was so fast despite having only just begun learning. So he is exceptionally gifted."

Zhao Jingxuan smiled. "Congratulations, Master. With such a gifted disciple as Little Junior Brother in Emei, our Emei Sect will surely rise to even greater heights in the future."

Miejue nodded in satisfaction, clearly pleased by Zhao Jingxuan's words.

Afterward, the group stood quietly beside the bamboo grove and watched Gu Shaoan cultivate.

Miejue also wished to see how much Gu Shaoan's swordsmanship had improved after these past few days.

Under their watchful eyes, Gu Shaoan was using the Willow Catkin Sword Technique just as he had several days ago, his swordsmanship agile and dense.

Yet unlike before, there was now an additional trace of unpredictability within those nimble sword moves.

In the distance, Gu Shaoan stood in a side-facing empty stance, his sword tip angled down toward the ground. The blade trembled faintly. As he stepped forward on one foot, his wrist twisted lightly like a living snake, and the wooden sword in his hand traced a small circle, like willow floss carried by the wind and winding around branches.

It was the third move of the Willow Catkin Sword Technique, Willow Silk Stroking.

But in the next instant, Gu Shaoan shifted back half a step and flicked his wrist. The wooden sword brought forth layers of afterimages as it stabbed rapidly forward, like willow catkins filling the sky and rushing toward one's face, obscuring an enemy's vision.

Yet it was not the fourth move of the sword technique, Catkin Rising From Pond Surface, but rather the fourteenth move, Catkin Shadows Thousandfold.

Every move seemed as natural as an antelope hanging its horns, without a trace to follow.

His sword moves were like real willow catkins, seemingly drifting in disorder like boneless willow branches swaying in the wind, yet concealing deadly strikes within.

They had completely shed the rigid, step-by-step quality they possessed at the "Entering the Hall" stage.

Moreover, the Willow Catkin Sword Technique Gu Shaoan used was no longer practiced one move at a time, strictly following the sequence of forms as it had been in the beginning.

As they watched the Willow Catkin Sword Technique Gu Shaoan was using, their expressions changed again and again.

Ding Minjun said almost word by word, "Mastery."

There were countless sword techniques. Those who had only begun learning sword moves could not avoid following the manual by rote when using their swords. Even after a sword technique was initially mastered, they would inevitably remain constrained by the habits formed during training.

When using sword moves, they would instinctively follow the order laid out in the sword technique.

Only when one's understanding of a sword technique deepened further and reached "Mastery" could one break free of that framework, making one's sword moves more flexible and varied, and far harder for others to withstand.

Thinking of how long Gu Shaoan had been studying the Willow Catkin Sword Technique, then looking at the endlessly changing sword moves in his hand, Zhao Jingxuan, Ding Minjun, and Bei Jinyi felt as if towering waves were crashing through their hearts, unable to calm themselves for a long while.

It was not only Zhao Jingxuan and the others. Even Miejue was moved as she watched Gu Shaoan, who had already cultivated the Willow Catkin Sword Technique to the level of "Mastery."

Looking at the youth moving with his sword beneath the moon in the distance, Miejue seemed to see not merely her disciple, but the opportunity and hope for Emei Sect's future rise.