Blade Technique Perfection, Far Exceeding Expectations!

With the problem that had troubled her for so long finally resolved, Luo Qingyue was overcome with excitement. Her cheeks flushed a faint red as she stepped out of the small courtyard, eager to begin her training with renewed vigor, determined to break through to the Tendon Refining Realm as soon as possible.

Her departure from the courtyard did not go unnoticed by a group of disciples who had been dying to see the gossip but were too afraid to lurk directly by the walls.

They stared at Senior Sister Luo, who was beaming with excitement and sporting flushed cheeks, and their eyes widened in shock.

"Good heavens, what did Senior Sister Luo and Junior Brother Liu Chu do in that courtyard? Why is she so excited, and why are her cheeks so flushed!"

"It's over, it's all over. Has my Senior Sister Luo been snatched away by a pig? Wuwu, I'm so heartbroken!"

"Sigh, I never expected that kid Liu Chu to be so charming. In just a short time, he's already managed to bewitch Senior Sister Luo..."

"Junior Brother Liu Chu excels in the way of Combat Technique, while Senior Sister Luo is not skilled in it. It's a perfect yin-yang complement, which isn't strange. But, isn't Junior Brother Liu a bit... short on time?"

"That makes sense. They only entered the utility courtyard for a few breaths, and she's already walking out with a flushed face... the time really was short!"

The disciples gathered in small groups, whispering and gossiping among themselves.

Liu Chu had no idea that these people's thoughts were so filthy. Watching Luo Qingyue leave in high spirits, he couldn't help but shake his head, feeling completely baffled.

Did I break her? I only said a few words of comfort, so why does she look like she's had a sudden epiphany...

Liu Chu was puzzled.

What he had said were just common, run-of-the-mill platitudes; logically, the effect should have been mediocre at best.

He didn't believe that their master, Yang Wenhuai, hadn't said similar things to Luo Qingyue before.

In reality, Yang Wenhuai had said such things more than once, but because Luo Qingyue had been defeated by someone of a lower rank, he had lost face.

His words of comfort were insincere, and his tone had been cold and rigid.

They had failed to provide any real guidance at all.

Perhaps, deep down, Yang Wenhuai still harbored some resentment toward Luo Qingyue, wanting her to continue grinding away at Combat Technique to win back his reputation.

This had only made Luo Qingyue feel worse, driving her to stubbornly master Combat Technique in hopes of washing away her shame!

But after her successive sparring sessions with Liu Chu, that stubbornness had been completely shattered.

It made her realize that she had absolutely no talent for combat!

Continuing to train in it would only be a waste of time and energy.

Coupled with Liu Chu's timely comfort, the timing was perfect, naturally leading to Luo Qingyue's sudden epiphany!

"Whatever, this is fine. Now, an average martial artist in the Tendon Refining Realm is no match for me within ten moves. Senior Sister Luo, as an opponent, has lost her utility for testing my strength..."

Liu Chu didn't dwell on it further and walked out of the courtyard.

His sparring with Luo Qingyue had always been intended to test his own strength.

But as he gradually integrated his Combat Technique with his blade work, his strength had increased tremendously, and Luo Qingyue no longer had the ability to test his moves.

"Junior Brother! Junior Brother, come over here!"

Just as Liu Chu stepped out of the courtyard, Chen He pulled him toward a corner of the wall.

His mysterious demeanor made Liu Chu frown in confusion. "Senior Brother, what is so mysterious?"

Chen He made a "shh" sound, then pulled out a small bottle and lowered his voice. "Junior Brother, this thing is called a Dragon-Spirit Tiger-Vigor Pill. One pill at a time, don't be greedy. Take it for fifteen days, and it will solve your hidden ailment..."

Upon hearing this, Liu Chu's expression became incredibly colorful. He looked at Chen He with a strange, disgusted expression and said, "Senior Brother, I practice the Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Practice, and it's already reached great success. These pills of yours are redundant!"

"The Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Practice has that kind of effect?"

Chen He was stunned, looking at him skeptically. "Then why did you and Senior Sister spend such a short time in the courtyard?"

Liu Chu couldn't help but roll his eyes. "We only exchanged two sentences! Where is your mind wandering?"

Chen He still didn't believe him, pretending to put the pills away. "You really don't want them?"

"Keep them for yourself!"

Liu Chu couldn't be bothered with him anymore and turned to find an open space to practice his blade work.

"Huh, could I have really been wrong?"

Seeing Liu Chu so decisive, not looking like someone with a hidden ailment at all, Chen He couldn't help but scratch his head.

He quickly ran over to apologize to Liu Chu, and Liu Chu naturally didn't hold a grudge. He suddenly asked, "By the way, is Senior Brother Lin Bei still dealing with the matter of the leaked technique?"

"Yeah, he's been busy with it for a while now, and even Master has been going out frequently."

Chen He sighed. "I hope nothing goes wrong."

Liu Chu also felt that this matter seemed to be trending in a bad direction.

Logically, with Senior Brother Lin Bei's strength in the Tendon Refining Realm, and with several Skin Refining Realm disciples following him, it shouldn't be hard to resolve.

Yet, after so long, it still hadn't been settled.

It had even reached the point where their master, Yang Wenhuai, had to get involved.

"Forget it, overthinking is useless. I should focus on bringing my blade work to perfection!"

"If nothing goes wrong, my saber technique should reach perfection today!"

Liu Chu did not overthink it and continued to practice his saber technique.

As he practiced, his long saber whipped up gusts of wind. His momentum was as swift and fierce as a crashing wave, dragging behind it a trail of afterimages. Combined with his footwork, the technique contained nimble variations within its domineering style.

While it appeared rugged and heroic, with wide-open, sweeping strikes, it was actually filled with profound mysteries. A strike launched with the force of a thunderbolt could instantly shift, flowing as naturally as moving clouds and flowing water.

He performed the saber technique over and over again.

Until a certain moment, the long saber let out a sound like the roar of a tiger and the cry of a dragon. As it sliced through the air, it resembled a dragon and tiger surging forward. Its momentum suddenly climbed to a new level, enough to shock and unsettle any ordinary martial artist in the Tendon Refining Realm!

"The saber technique... is perfect!"

A flash of violet lightning seemed to streak across Liu Chu's eyes. His entire aura erupted, as if he had merged into one with his blade, the saber becoming sharp to the extreme.

Every strike contained ultimate speed and power, enough to suppress any martial artist in the Tendon Refining Realm, while those in the Skin Refining Realm would not dare to resist at all!

"After the saber technique reached perfection, my force-exertion technique has ascended to a new level. Even if I continuously exert power comparable to a Tendon Refining martial artist, I won't damage my tendons!"

Liu Chu's saber technique was like a raging tide; in the blink of an eye, he unleashed dozens of strikes, his eyes growing increasingly bright.

He felt that after the saber technique reached perfection, his force-exertion technique became more refined. A single unit of power could now unleash the effect of three, all without harming his tendons, bones, skin, or membranes.

Without needing strong tendons, bones, skin, or membranes, he could still support the eruption of power comparable to the Tendon Refining or even the Bone Refining level!

"So that's how it is. Whether it's Skin Refining, Tendon Refining, or Bone Refining, the essence is to strengthen the body. While cultivating power, one is also forging the body into a vessel capable of bearing even greater strength."

"And martial arts techniques are about mastering more refined force-exertion methods through moves and skills, allowing a single unit of internal power to unleash several units of might without damaging the body's vessel!"

"In this way, even if the body's vessel hasn't been strengthened and the raw power remains weak, one can still use these techniques to unleash greater might from that weak power..."

Liu Chu's gaze was burning; he finally understood the difference between cultivation realms and martial arts techniques.

Indeed, only when one reaches a certain realm can one have such a profound realization!

Previously, he had been ignorant, knowing only that the higher the level of a martial art, the easier it was to defeat an opponent, yet he was limited to predicting and countering moves.

"Wait, when I mastered the combat technique, I didn't have this feeling. I could unleash powerful force comparable to the Tendon Refining Realm, but I couldn't sustain it, or else I would damage my tendons..."

Liu Chu suddenly frowned, a look of confusion appearing on his face.

Before, when the combat technique reached perfection, although it allowed him to unleash extremely strong power, he could not maintain it for long.

"Could it be because the combat technique is a simplified version!"

Liu Chu quickly understood the reason.

The Dragon-Tiger Combat Technique was, after all, simplified from the Dragon-Tiger Blade-Breaking Technique. It was incomplete, even if the difference in power wasn't significant.

But it focused on split-second life-and-death struggles and was not suited for prolonged combat.

Perhaps it was for this reason that even though the combat technique was perfect, its moves and skills could not be as refined as the Duanmen Saber Technique!

"This also means that after the saber technique reached perfection, my increase in strength is much greater than I expected!"

A brilliant light flickered in Liu Chu's eyes, and a look of joy appeared on his face.

Originally, he hadn't expected a significant boost in strength from perfecting the saber technique. After all, the combat technique was already perfect, and stacking these martial arts wouldn't result in a simple one-plus-one equals two effect.

Perhaps his strength would have increased from one to one point two or three.

But as it turned out, it had increased to at least one point five!