Thunderous Sound, Limit Break

The morning breeze carried wisps of coolness.

It stirred the morning dew and moisture, splashing onto Lu Wu-bing.

Half a red sun leaped out from the edge of the clouds.

"Hah..."

Lu Wu-bing thrust his sword forward.

His entire body suddenly trembled violently.

His skin and hair simultaneously rippled with layers of waves.

Within the Orchid Fragrance Courtyard, a faint, resonant thunderclap echoed.

The ripples followed the path of the sword's edge, merging into the wind and spreading outwards, making the bamboo leaves rustle.

"Two hundred thousand swords... Since activating the Heaven Rewards Diligence fate, I've practiced two hundred thousand swords in eighteen days."

Lu Wu-bing stopped his sword practice and stood still.

He felt an infinite sense of emotion welling up inside him.

The insights gained from each sword, finally, after reaching the critical point, transformed into a long scroll of his life.

A stream of light flowed into his mind, etched into his soul.

[Forty years of arduous cultivation, the green snake beneath the sleeve desires to become a dragon.]

At this moment, he felt as if he had truly practiced swordsmanship for decades, practicing only one stance, only one sword.

One sword gave birth to ten thousand swords, and ten thousand swords returned to one.

Lu Wu-bing felt as if a lifetime had passed. He looked at the "old companion" in his hand with extreme affection.

The sword was no longer just a sword, but a habit, a persistence.

It was his life.

Looking down at the "Changfeng Sword," Lu Wu-bing felt a surge of emotion.

This sword wasn't particularly good, and his father, Lu Changfeng, wasn't a man who cherished swords. He loved his silver needles far more than any sword.

One could only say that this green-bladed sword, named "Changfeng Sword," was only slightly better than ordinary martial arts standard weapons.

Lu Wu-bing had carried this long sword, traversing mountains and crossing rivers, experiencing numerous battles. Although he rarely clashed sword blades directly with opponents, the sword had inevitably suffered some wear and tear.

He could see three nicks, each about the size of a grain of rice.

But none of that mattered.

After practicing twenty thousand swords to completion, under the utterly unreasonable reward of [Heaven Rewards Diligence], he not only felt that the sword had merged with his bones and blood, like another arm.

It had also forged an inseparable bond with his spirit.

The sense of familiarity was like that of an old friend of decades, a tacit understanding in their hearts, entrusting each other with life and death.

"So, this is what it feels like to have perfected the Stabbing Sword Technique."

Lu Wu-bing took a step forward, his sword light flashing.

This time, it wasn't a white ribbon or a mere glint of light, but the thunder in his palm, transforming into an aura.

"Buzz..."

He could clearly sense that the sword's edge seemed to have pierced through a thick barrier.

As the thunderclap sounded, a light arc emerged from around the blade.

Where the light arc passed.

The bamboo branches and leaves silently shattered into dust.

A sharp gust of wind shot out three feet from the sword.

With a "poof," it pierced the bamboo stalk as if passing through a thin piece of paper.

At this moment, he could not only clearly feel the distribution of power within the sword body, the lightness and heaviness of its force.

He could also sense the subtle air currents stirred by the sword technique, colliding and exploding with a roar...

"Not only is the sword speed nearly doubled, but the power is also more condensed. While the strength of his entire body's blood essence, muscles, and bones are fully integrated, he is also mobilizing all of his [Dripping Water Force] internal energy.

In addition to these two forces, there is also a spiritual fluctuation hidden deep within his mind, unseen and untouchable.

This fluctuation carries a spirit of unwavering progress and indestructibility.

This is the true transformation of the sword technique; it cannot be achieved without the reinforcement of mental will."

After trying two more sword strikes, Lu Wu-bing had a rough idea of what [Sword Draws Thunder] actually was.

It was the breaking of the sound barrier.

This was different from the sword's whistle caused by internal energy attaching to the blade.

One was the sharp sound of breaking through the wind.

It was faster than sound, breaking through layers of resistance.

After practicing the thrusting sword for so long, he knew very well that once sword techniques reached the extreme of speed, any further increase was incredibly difficult.

Especially on top of a master-level fast sword, doubling the sword speed again.

The increase in power brought about solely by the rise in speed was a terrifying thing.

"It gives me the feeling that no matter what stands in my way, I can pierce through it with a single sword..."

Clearly the same sword moves, yet they felt different.

It was a sublimation from technique to intent, an evolution from the mundane to transcendence.

The thrusting sword technique had reached perfection, and there were no longer any secrets to it in his heart.

Lu Wu-bing silently felt the sense of perfection in his heart, as if all thrusting sword techniques in the world were contained within him. He then had a strange realization.

"Huh? I haven't practiced much, but this move, [Flowing Wind Returning Snow], has actually become full of spirit and energy, stepping directly into the Proficient realm?"

Of the Thirteen Life-Snatching Swords, Lu Wu-bing had spent countless hours of hard work on all but the move [White Rainbow Pierces the Sun].

For the other twelve swords, he simply didn't have the time to practice.

He had originally planned to gain the power to protect himself and then, once he was completely safe, shift from specializing in one area to developing all aspects.

As a result, with the thrusting sword technique reaching perfection, he had a bird's-eye view. When he re-enacted the other twelve sword techniques, he found it effortless and smooth.

The previous sword was still at the Familiar realm, but the next sword's essence was understood in an instant, stepping directly into the Proficient realm.

To reach mastery might still require some hard training, to allow his body and mind to adapt to the sword moves.

However, the Proficient realm could be achieved in the blink of an eye.

This was already an incredible feat.

After trying [Flowing Wind Returning Snow], Lu Wu-bing performed [Looking Back at the Moon], [Autumn Leaves Before the Hall], [Parting Waves Chasing Waves]... and was astonished to find that the same applied to all of them.

"The gains are too huge, saving me so much time."

Thirteen sword moves, one perfected, and the other twelve all proficient...

If Senior Sister Xiaolan knew, she would probably be so envious her eyes would turn into little bunnies.

Haha.

Lu Wu-bing let out a silent laugh and a long sigh of relief.

In fact, he had been struggling with a choice just moments ago.

After his sword intent reached perfection, should he continue to cultivate [White Rainbow Pierces the Sun]? Or should he turn his attention to practicing other sword moves?

Now, he didn't have to worry anymore.

All sword techniques and sword moves were ultimately interconnected.

It wasn't as if practicing the thrusting sword offered no help to sweeping or chopping swords.

In fact, all sword moves complemented each other, promoting mutual progress.

A sword was, after all, just a method of using a weapon.

"After reaching perfect sword techniques, and then using the [Heaven Rewards Diligence] talent to forcefully practice the thrusting sword move again, I can actually break through [White Rainbow Pierces the Sun] once more..."

Sensing his sword technique realm, Lu Wu-bing practiced the thrusting sword again and found that he was beginning to gain subtle insights.

In other words, the progress bar had started moving again.

However, the experience points required this time were quite substantial.

It was almost unbelievable.

"Could it be that I can break through to the next realm? Senior Sister Xiaolan never mentioned any levels beyond this. Hmm, she probably doesn't know either. But to break through after reaching perfection clearly exceeds the limitations of existing sword techniques. Let's call it [Limit Break]."

This time, he needed to reach four hundred thousand full-hearted sword practices.

That meant another two hundred thousand.

It wasn't a lot.

If he spent three hours, six hours, practicing the sword every day, it would only take twenty-four days to break through.

It's just that...

After thrusting a few swords with the perfect sword intent, even though he wasn't using his full strength, Lu Wu-bing still felt something was amiss.

"My physical strength is still a bit insufficient."