Every Move Connected, Better Than One Mastered

As Lu Wu-bing practiced further, he discovered that not only was his body's vital essence being consumed severely, but more importantly, his mind could no longer maintain focus.

He easily grew fatigued, to the point where his qi meridians, once thoroughly connected, became unstable during circulation.

Thus, he understood.

Practicing internal energy was essentially a process of refining essence into qi.

Without essence, how could there be qi?

Practicing for a long time, insufficient vital energy in the body was one aspect that made it unsustainable.

Another aspect was certainly controlling qi with intent; the mental and spiritual energy consumed was too great, making further practice impossible.

This was completely different from his own cultivation of the [Six Yang Divine Needles] technique.

The [Six Yang Divine Needles] focused on the character "nurture"...

Nurturing meridians, nurturing qi, cultivating vitality.

It neither opened acupoints nor connected meridians, thus it was only suitable for using needles to treat illnesses, not for combat.

That surge of vitality circulated within the silver needles, thin and weak, soft and gentle, injecting into the patient's acupoints without causing any harm.

However, the Dripping Water Force was vigorous and sharp, with formidable offensive power.

It was difficult to compare the quality of cultivation techniques. One could only say that their natures were different.

The only benefit of cultivating the Six Yang Vitality for so many years in his original body was that it made Lu Wu-bing's current body exceptionally vital, giving him a much deeper foundation when he truly began practicing the Dripping Water Force.

Of course, this was also related to the continuous consumption of tonics over the years.

His original essence was sufficiently deep.

However, this deep original essence was almost entirely depleted after the first time he practiced the Dripping Water Force.

This was why he now felt slightly hungry.

But now was naturally not the time to order the kitchen to prepare food; he still had to listen to Senior Sister Lan answer his questions.

Ouyang Lan, with an air of dignified grace, gently patted Lu Wu-bing's shoulder.

"Cultivating internal energy is not a matter of a single day or night, especially the Dripping Water Force. You can't rush it no matter how much you want to.

Opening all the divine repositories in the body and unblocking the twelve main meridians and the eight extraordinary meridians is like moving mountains and breaking stones, or clearing rivers and digging canals. It becomes more difficult the further you go. You must have patience."

Lu Wu-bing nodded repeatedly.

This is sound reasoning, he thought.

With his [Heaven Rewards Diligence] destiny, as long as he learned something, he could grasp its basics. Practicing once would increase his proficiency by one point.

He could master the cultivation technique at an astonishing speed, far surpassing ordinary people in cultivation efficiency.

However, the speed at which his body accumulated vital essence and converted it into internal qi was not something proficiency could solve.

If the body didn't have this vital essence to begin with, it couldn't be conjured out of thin air. Truly, it was a laborious, time-consuming endeavor.

"We won't talk much about internal energy for now. You've learned the cultivation methods for [Dripping Water Force]. I'll draw you a diagram of acupoint opening and meridian unblocking later, and you can follow it for your future cultivation."

Ouyang Lan spoke earnestly, then her tone shifted, "Internal energy is the foundation, but swordsmanship is the focus.

In the martial world, one is often subject to circumstances and cannot avoid facing dangers and hardships.

Without powerful swordsmanship, even if your internal energy is deeply cultivated, you might still be challenged by someone of a lower level and killed on the spot."

"Senior Sister, are you going to teach me the supreme sword techniques of our Celestial Star Sect?"

Lu Wu-bing's heart filled with joy at her words.

He remembered how Senior Sister Lan had leaped into the air and drawn her sword to save someone on the street.

That swordplay was exceptionally refined and magnificent.

Not only was it powerful, but crucially, it was very cool.

Being strong is temporary.

Being cool is eternal.

Such a sword technique that was both cool and strong.

He definitely had to learn it.

Seeing Lu Wu-bing's face full of eagerness, Ouyang Lan was very pleased and smiled, "Although our Celestial Star Sect's rules aren't overly strict, there are regulations for cultivating internal energy and swordsmanship.

Regardless of talent or comprehension, whether an outer disciple or a personal disciple, everyone first learns basic internal energy and basic swordsmanship."

"You already know the basic internal energy. Next, I will teach you the Celestial Star Sect's basic sword technique, the Thirteen Life-Snatching Swords."

Lu Wu-bing was astonished. "The Thirteen Life-Snatching Swords are basic sword techniques?"

Ouyang Lan's expression turned serious. "Although it's a popular name in the martial world, our Celestial Star Sect's foundational sword techniques are not inferior to the ultimate sword techniques of other small sects. Each sword strike is fierce, chasing souls and snatching lives. How could it not be called the Thirteen Life-Snatching Swords?"

"Yes, Senior Sister. Please, take it slow with your sword movements. I learn slowly."

Seeing Ouyang Lan preparing to demonstrate, Lu Wu-bing quickly said.

His comprehension, how should I put it? If it's about understanding, he's actually not bad. Otherwise, he wouldn't have gotten into a good school in his previous life.

However, when it comes to body control, martial arts, or dance, he doesn't have any strengths. It takes him several days to even master a simple broadcast gymnastics routine.

"It's fine. Sword manipulation and footwork are actually quite simple. The key is the sword heart technique, coordinating your entire body's strength with your internal Dripping Water Force. Pay attention to how I gather my breath when I draw my sword."

Ouyang Lan performed the first sword stance, "White Rainbow Pierces the Sun," at a slow speed, repeating it three times while explaining the essence of energy manipulation.

The sound of "chi chi" echoed in their ears.

She turned her head to look.

She saw Lu Wu-bing standing with his feet in a natural stance, his clothes rippling...

His long sword transformed into a stream of light pointing forward, its edge tearing through the air, creating ripples.

Drawing and sheathing the sword was truly like a white rainbow streaking across the sky.

It was utterly perfect and full of spirit.

"You're saying you learned this slowly?"

For some reason, Ouyang Lan's voice was muffled, as if she felt wronged.

Teaching a student like this offered no sense of accomplishment.

When she first learned this move, "White Rainbow Pierces the Sun," it took her ten days just to get the basics down.

To truly reach such a state of extreme proficiency, where movements flowed seamlessly and were full of spirit, wouldn't be measured in days, but in years.

"Uh, I've spent years practicing a single thrusting sword technique, so I have a lot of experience. Although White Rainbow Pierces the Sun has a more complex sword manipulation method, it doesn't deviate from the foundation of thrusting, so I'm fairly proficient."

Lu Wu-bing explained casually, his heart filled with joy.

Thrusting swordsmanship and thrusting swordsmanship are not the same.

He possessed the "Heaven Rewards Diligence" destiny, allowing him to increase his proficiency and understanding with every sword strike. His thrusting sword technique had already reached the mastery level and was gradually progressing towards grand accomplishment...

He felt that in terms of "thrusting sword," he had already mobilized his entire body's strength and controlled it with extreme precision.

However, after executing the sword strike with the "White Rainbow Pierces the Sun" manipulation technique, he discovered that his sword speed had increased by nearly thirty percent.

Not only was his sword speed faster.

With the amplification of his internal energy, the power behind his sword strikes was no longer a constant line, but concentrated into a single point.

The sharpness of the sword tip multiplied its lethality, increasing it by more than three times.

'If I were to stab Lu Zhongkui right now, while he's distracted, during that moment when he's facing the Life-Severing Sword, I could pierce him directly.'

Thinking back to his encounter with one of the Seven Swords of the Eastern Sea, Lu Wu-bing felt joy mixed with a sigh.

He silently estimated the difference in strength. Even with his current sword speed, if the opponent were prepared, he would absolutely not be able to defeat that person.

This was because he had only trained this one sword technique to the [Mastery] level or above.

It was a straightforward attack, with no room for variation.

It was useful for surprise attacks...

But once seen through, it could be dodged or blocked...

And then, with deeper internal energy and more refined sword techniques, the opponent could counter-attack, making it difficult for him to cope.

'In this world, martial artists are not heavily constrained. Life and death are determined by one's will.

To live freely and control one's own life, it ultimately comes down to personal strength.

Without strength, one is like a sheep in the wilderness, never knowing when it will become the prey of wolves.'

With this thought, Lu Wu-bing's passion for learning swordsmanship soared.

He followed Ouyang Lan to learn the remaining twelve sword stances. After arranging for a servant to bring food, he wolfed it down. He temporarily set aside the other sword stances he had just learned and focused solely on practicing the "White Rainbow Pierces the Sun" stance.

'Mastering all moves is not as good as perfecting one.'

'Faster, get faster.'

The sixty-three thousandth sword strike.

The sixty-three thousand and first sword strike.

Lu Wu-bing, drenched in sweat, danced alone under the moonlight.

His "Heaven Rewards Diligence" destiny told him that after ten thousand sword strikes, he could achieve grand accomplishment in this sword stance and break through to another realm.

At that time, his attack power and sword speed would increase to an unimaginable level.

He had discreetly inquired with Ouyang Lan.

Among the eight senior disciples of the Celestial Star Sect, only the eldest disciple, Yue Lingfeng, was a sword genius and had already mastered the Celestial Star Sword Technique.

The other senior disciples were basically at the proficient level of swordsmanship.

And in the lineage of Gazing Sky Cliff within the Celestial Star Sect, only the master and mistress had reached the grand accomplishment level of swordsmanship, a feat achieved through decades of arduous practice.

For him to be able to train his swordsmanship to grand accomplishment in such a short period.

Even though it was a basic sword stance, and he was only practicing one move.

But if he succeeded, when he truly encountered enemies, at least with the "White Rainbow Pierces the Sun" strike, ordinary third-rate martial artists, whether ninth or seventh rank, would find it extremely difficult to resist.