Swordsmanship

The old man was not bad-looking either: three strands of handsome beard, a face like polished jade, elegant bearing, and an otherworldly air—a distinguished old gentleman. Dressed in Purple Sash Immortal Clothes and carrying a horsetail whisk, he had something of a Heavenly Immortal's transcendent grace. Other than cultivators who had suffered qi deviation, most practitioners were not too ugly.

Moreover, he could carry people through the air, so his cultivation was surely higher than that little curvy Fuling. But the wind battered Li Fan's face during flight, and it was not steady at all. Though the rainbow light filled the sky with great spectacle, its speed was noticeably lacking. He was probably still no match for Fairy Wangshu and her long white legs.

After adding it all up, Li Fan had a rough idea. He was probably a Golden Core-level master.

"May I ask, Immortal Elder..."

"Down." The handsome old man had not flown far. He carried Li Fan seven or eight li south into the old Bamboo Mountain forest, then lowered his escape light toward a bamboo grove.

He landed lightly atop the bamboo leaves and set Li Fan down on a bamboo tip beside him. But the moment he let go, Li Fan cried, "Mom!" and snapped the bamboo branch beneath his foot, nearly plunging to the ground. The old man jumped as well. "Use your qi, you idiot!"

Use my ass! I don't know how!

Then the Sword Intent flowed again, guiding a meridian through Li Fan's left foot. Li Fan immediately understood. Following the usual method, he circulated qi from his kidneys through his spine, out along the inner side of his popliteal fossa, emerging at Rangu before slanting through the sole of his foot. He released a breath of Dao Breath beneath his left little toe. His Zhenqi joined with the bamboo tip beneath his feet, and Li Fan became like an extra bamboo leaf, standing on one leg atop the branch like a golden rooster, swaying and rising with the wind.

"Hm? You're walking the Foot Lesser Yin Kidney Reverse Meridian alone? Your aptitude is quite good..." The handsome old man watched from the side and pondered silently, but did not press the matter. "Boy, you have drunk too much soup. Your meridians have yet to reach Foundation Establishment, so I fear your Zhenqi may run rampant. I brought you here to vent some fire."

Oh? How was he supposed to vent it? Wash his hair? Soak his feet?

The old man pointed into the forest below. "Do you see that troop of Thunder Monkeys down there?"

Li Fan glanced down. They were "monkeys" resembling gorillas and baboons, each as large as a cow, with blue fur, red hair, and iron bristles standing on end. They had three triangular eyes, a violet lightning-flashing crystal growing from their foreheads, and lightning crackling between their red-black horns amid peals of thunder. Yet the most eye-catching feature was their monkey-like, pinkish-white big butts, opening and closing.

Li Fan swallowed hard and said with difficulty, "A person can't... at the very least, they shouldn't..."

"What do you mean, should or shouldn't?" The old man looked baffled. "The qi inside you is running wild. Aren't you feeling stifled? Go down and kill those Thunder Monkeys."

"Huh? This..." Li Fan sighed in relief, but still hesitated. "They've lived here for generations. They're just sitting there eating bamboo shoots and haven't harmed anyone. It wouldn't be right for me to suddenly rush over and kill monkeys, would it?"

"Hmph, what generations? My sect bought these Thunder Monkeys back then to harvest their Thunder Spirit Crystals, and incidentally to give Qi Refining Stage disciples practice targets. But now everyone is squatting around drinking soup, these monkeys have lost all restraint and become increasingly lawless. They often steal the sect's medicinal pills, Dao plants, spirit birds, and precious beasts. They have become a menace.

"Just go kill them. Those Thunder Spirit Crystals are rare spiritual materials that can be used to refine pills and artifacts. Even if you do not need them, you can trade them away or donate them to the sect for contribution points.

"Do not worry. With me watching here, the Monkey King will not dare show itself to take revenge on you. Just go."

Perhaps tired of talking, the handsome old man simply pressed a hand to Li Fan's shoulder and shoved. A gust of clear wind brushed his back and swept him down from the treetop, setting him gently before the troop of monkeys below.

"Roar roar?" The Thunder Monkeys turned to look at Li Fan.

Li Fan swallowed and looked around. The bamboo grove's branches and leaves intertwined into a single mass, like a green sky. He could not see any trace of the Golden Core old man and had no idea whether he was still guarding nearby.

What was he supposed to do? Li Fan treated people kindly; he had never fought monkeys before. And these were not monkeys at all. Every one of them had iron arms and a bear's waist, bulging biceps, practically like King Kong...

Profound Heaven Sword Intent indicates that the host has drunk too much soup. Venting some fire on these monkeys is fine. It is also a good chance to practice swordsmanship and expand the meridians. No loss there.

Oh, no loss... my ass! And what swordsmanship did he know!?

Profound Heaven Sword Intent indicates that the host should form a sword seal at Shaochong, use Returning Dust Sword Qi, send breath through the Right Hand Lesser Yin Heart Reverse Meridian, and simply control the sword according to the Sword Intent.

Lesser Yin Heart...

That is the first meridian opened last night. Open your mouth.

Okay, okay... huh?

Li Fan froze, then felt a chill in his throat. A flickering white light shot from his mouth, like a point of icy starlight flashing before him, darting left and right. Profound Heaven Sword Intent had actually emerged on its own!

Li Fan reacted and formed a sword seal with his right hand. He curled his ring and little fingers, pinning them with his thumb, while extending his joined index and middle fingers. He branded the Return-to-Dust Zhenqi transformed within him into Sword Visualization and pointed toward Profound Heaven Sword Intent.

With a sharp hiss, a three-foot azure qi sword burst from his palm. Following the guidance of his fingers, it chased after Profound Heaven Sword Intent and stabbed forward. At the base of the qi sword, a faint thread of qi was held at the Shaochong acupoint. As he tried to pull and guide it, he found that he could actually control the Sword Qi's circling and turning at will.

And when the Sword Qi came within a zhang or so of Profound Heaven Sword Intent, Li Fan felt a clear pull of qi, as if someone were personally guiding the sword's path and momentum!

Li Fan immediately understood that Profound Heaven Sword Intent was teaching him sword moves. He rallied his spirits, followed the white sword-shadow, formed the seal and controlled the sword, stabbing the Returning Dust Sword Qi left, hooking it right, thrusting it upward, and circling it inward. In an instant, the lights and shadows shot back and forth through the monkey troop with repeated whistles. After perhaps three or four snaps of the fingers, the Sword Qi was exhausted.

When he looked back, the twelve monkeys in the forest—six large and six small—had all had their heads neatly severed. Their heads dropped one after another, rolling across the ground like bloody gourds.

Bleurgh...

Li Fan's mood has risen slightly.

What the fuck... Host, what kind of standard is this system rating using? Is it really based on my mood? Is there really nothing wrong with it?

"Hm? That sword technique is quite handsome! Which Real Person trained you?" When Li Fan turned around, the handsome old man was already behind him, looking as though his entire worldview had been shattered.

Normally, Bamboo Mountain Sect Qi Refining cultivators simply threw Sword Qi straight ahead in hard thrusts, using it like arrows or javelins. He had thought that even with the boy using Returning Dust Sword Qi to counter them, the Thunder Monkeys' fur would require two or three strikes apiece to pierce, assuming he could hit accurately enough.

Yet unexpectedly, Li Fan had used a superior sword-control technique to take advantage of the situation, cutting only throats and piercing acupoints with the sword's edge. Not only had this saved more than half his sword power, but his Sword Qi had also been refined to remarkable purity. It did not dissipate until it had taken off an entire nest of monkey heads. He truly had grasped the essence of Bamboo Mountain's basic Sword Qi.

"This junior cultivates under Fairy Wangshu..." Li Fan said cautiously, cold sweat running down his back. He caught sight of the white light formed by Profound Heaven Sword Intent returning. It even quietly circled the old man's neck once before lazily slipping back into Li Fan's sleeve.

Well, the old man had no reaction at all. It seemed Golden Core Stage cultivators could not "see" the existence of Sword Intent.

"Wangshu? So it is that monster... But wasn't her boy attendant... Oh, so you are the new one. I never expected her to be so proficient in swordsmanship..." The old man nodded and thought for a moment, then pressed Li Fan's shoulder again. "But I brought you here to vent qi. Your swordsmanship is so exquisite that killing them this way will not vent much at all. Do not use sword techniques. Try something else."

"Huh? But I do not know anything else..." Li Fan spread his hands.

The old man seemed to misunderstand and nodded. "Yes, I can tell that all your skill and energy have gone into refining your sword techniques. Good. I will teach you a sword art. This sword art is a spell driven by Sword Qi. It consumes a great deal, but its power is astonishing."

Sword Intent indicates, hehe, what sword arts could Bamboo Mountain possibly have? Trash.

"This art was passed down from the Beichen Sword Sect. You may not have heard its name. That sect was once filled with peerless sword immortals, but unfortunately it was later destroyed by Youquan, and the Sword Sect's secret arts scattered across the world..."

Oh, come on, stop talking. If you provoke the Sword Intent too much, Li Fan might not be able to suppress his kirin arm later...

Profound Heaven Sword Intent indicates, let him speak. My Beichen Sword Sect accepted only peerless geniuses of extraordinary talent and clear sword hearts. Did he think our secret sword arts were so easily learned? Any random cat or dog dares claim to possess my Beichen Sword Sect's true transmission? I want to see what sort of garbage he can teach.

Then the handsome old man shifted his whisk to his left hand, gathered his immortal robe in his right hand like a pouch, and spiraled his arm in a twist. "Qiankun Flying Dragon Sword!"

Profound Heaven Sword Intent says, holy shit.

Li Fan said, "..."

The handsome old man thrust out a palm from his sleeve, flinging out a tornado. Black-and-white qi currents poured together like twin dragons playing with a pearl, surging and raging as they swept through with a boom—turning the entire bamboo grove into powder. Countless bamboo splinters and shattered leaves drifted down like a torrential rain. The path of the sword-wind storm looked as though it had been gouged open by a drill, leaving behind only a deep scar one zhang wide and five zhang long.

That was with the old man holding back. He had merely demonstrated the move, then released his sword seal and let the Sword Qi charge wildly forward, dispersing and fading on its own.

"I used two strands of Sword Qi twisted together. If you can control them, you can double them to four, eight, or more. The power would be far more than merely doubled. Among close-range sword arts, this move is among the strongest. You must send swords simultaneously through the Hand Greater Yin Lung Meridian and the Hand Greater Yang Small Intestine Meridian. When using the move, remember this mental formula: 'Qi has countless uses, yet the heart remains one; heaven and earth repel, yin and yang unite; limitless without delusion, near yet apart.' Then you can bring out its subtleties."

The old man apparently truly thought Li Fan was someone dedicated to sword cultivation. He casually gave him a few pointers and expected him to try it himself...

Sword Intent, translate that for me?

Profound Heaven Sword Intent did not respond for a moment. It simply traveled through the two meridians in Li Fan's right hand once each.

It seemed the Sword Intent had once again been struck speechless. Fine, there was no need to embarrass it further.

In any case, he had felt both meridians. So Li Fan tried it himself first, flicking his hand as the old man had and releasing two streams of Sword Qi from his right hand at once.

He still used Returning Dust Sword Qi, but what emerged was no longer azure. Instead, it became black and white, and its aura was extremely weak. It was like throwing out two mud loaches, one black and one white. They tangled together, rolled once, twisted into a braid, flew five chi, and vanished.

Li Fan felt awkward. Did shouting the move's name when unleashing a big attack make it stronger?

The handsome old man did not mind, instead nodding repeatedly. "Your aptitude truly is good. You succeeded on your first try. There is no secret to this move. It only requires diligent practice. Once your hands become skillful, you will naturally gain a feel for it. By then, your qi should be nearly spent as well.

"Remember to practice often in the future. Perhaps one day it may save your life."

Huh? That was it? The lesson was over? Seriously...?

*Profound Heaven Sword Intent indicates that the Qiankun Flying Dragon Sword is a superior sword art of the Beichen Sword Sect, the threshold for advanced sword arts. Killing moves with fiercer momentum cannot match its flexibility and versatility, while sword moves of endless variation cannot match its boundless power.

The old man's explanation of the mental cultivation method contains no errors. It is the authentic formula. The host may cultivate this move in peace.

Got it. It had the highest overall performance score. Then he would practice this one. It was just flicking his sleeves, anyway...

When he turned around, the handsome old man had vanished again, who knew where he had hidden himself.

Li Fan merely shrugged and began using the nearby Thunder Monkey corpses as targets for practice.

Just as the old man had said, this move had no great mystery. It only involved a slight change when releasing qi from the Qi Sea in the Inner Landscape. The qi had to pass through the two lungs and the triple burner, splitting one stream into two and firing them simultaneously from the Greater Yin and Greater Yang meridians. They had to be divided exactly evenly, neither more nor less, and released at precisely the same speed. It was indeed challenging.

Moreover, the Sword Qi spiraled forward after being fired. He could not use a sword seal to direct it, making it difficult to guide the paths of the two qi streams. If the black-and-white qi twisted too closely, they would annihilate each other; if they were too far apart, they would fly off course; if they collided, they would explode. The farther they flew, the heavier the Sword Qi became and the harder it was to control. It truly was a move requiring long-term practice and familiarity before one could master it.

After swinging his right arm for a while, Li Fan found that his left hand could also release Qiankun Flying Dragon Sword Qi in the same way. He finally understood what the Sword Intent meant by flexibility and versatility. So he alternated his left and right hands, his palms flipping in succession as he launched move after move.

He practiced for more than half a day. By the time he had emptied the Zhenqi filling his meridians, he could use a Flying Dragon Sword from ten paces away to bore a bloody hole through a Thunder Monkey's butt.

"Qingyue, so you were here..." Real Person Wangshu descended beside him at some point. She raised an eyebrow at the troop of Thunder Monkeys over there, all decapitated and with their asses blown apart in grotesquely miserable deaths. "Mm... If you are under any pressure, you can tell me..."

...I do not have psychological problems! It was just that color, that shape, that center—it was perfect for target practice... Sigh, forget it. Better not mention it...

"Um, Fairy, this junior drank too much and could not digest it properly, so I came here to practice a little..."

At that moment, the handsome old man emerged as well and bowed. "Honored Master, I failed in my supervision and allowed your boy attendant to drink five bowls of immortal soup. To avoid harming his meridians and cultivation, I took it upon myself to bring him out and clear the forest of Thunder Monkeys to vent his qi. I failed to inform Real Person beforehand. Forgive my discourtesy."

"Oh ho ho, no wonder he smells so delicious. Master Zhang, you are too polite. There was really no need. I could simply have helped him regulate it." Real Person Wangshu licked her lips and giggled. Her laughter made both Master Zhang and Li Fan lower their heads and remain silent as cicadas in winter.

"Thank you for looking after him, Master. Qingyue, come with me. Fuling has been worried sick."

She nodded casually in farewell, then took Li Fan by the hand and flew into the sky.

Li Fan caught Master Zhang subtly shaking his head at him. But when he looked carefully, it seemed the man was merely bowing solemnly in salute. Li Fan pondered this silently and said nothing, merely wrapping his arms around Real Person Wangshu's thigh as he followed her away in flight.