Sword Control Technique, Qi-Controlled Sword

Jiang Liang remained at the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.

Every day, he practiced Qi Refinement, Sword Nourishment, and learned new sword techniques from Sword Mother.

When Dugu Yan saw him practicing swordsmanship, she was quite dismissive.

In her view, a Soul Master's battles were battles of Soul Power and Soul Skills.

Why practice those useless sword techniques instead of focusing wholeheartedly on cultivating Soul Power and mastering the use of Soul Skills?

But Jiang Liang soon gave her a harsh lesson.

Jiang Liang used only his Martial Soul, without any Soul Rings.

Within three strikes, he left her flustered and helpless, unable even to defend herself properly.

His sword was simply too fast.

Every strike precisely sealed off her escape routes, each move piercing straight through her openings and leaving her no room to counterattack.

Jiang Liang raised an eyebrow smugly. "So? Do you still think swordsmanship is useless?"

"Hmph! It's just a little faster. What's so impressive about that?"

Dugu Yan continued to stubbornly talk back, refusing to admit defeat. "You little brat, remember this: thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river. Never bully a poor young girl!"

Jiang Liang nodded in agreement. "Right! Never bully a poor young girl, never bully a poor young woman, never bully a poor old woman. The dead deserve respect."

"You... you..." Dugu Yan was so furious that she could not speak, and could only glare at him resentfully.

This little brat had said he fell in love with me at first sight.

Yet he would not give me even the slightest bit of face. This is infuriating!

Dugu Yan stomped her foot hard, then turned and ran off to seek comfort from Dugu Bo.

Watching her flee in embarrassment, Jiang Liang could not help letting out a snort of laughter.

Sword Mother shook her head helplessly and said softly, "If you truly like that girl, stop finding ways to tease her all the time."

Jiang Liang replied with a grin, "Fairy Sister, you don't understand. As the saying goes, fighting is affection, scolding is love, and when love reaches its peak, you kick them."

"Besides, practicing Qi Refinement and Sword Nourishment every day is really boring. Having someone to bicker with once in a while is quite fun."

Sword Mother did not know whether to laugh or cry. She extended a slender jade finger and lightly poked his forehead.

"You really are full of crooked logic."

Jiang Liang chuckled. "Fairy Sister, I'm actually quite serious."

"I've never seen you acting serious." Sword Mother tapped the tip of his nose coquettishly. "All right, it's time to discuss something important."

As she spoke, her expression also turned serious. "Your swordsmanship was indeed fast enough just now, but there is still the same old problem: your killing intent is lacking."

"So, aside from practicing Qi Refinement and Sword Nourishment during this period, you can go outside and find Soul Beasts to temper your killing intent."

"Okay, I understand!" Jiang Liang cast aside his previous unserious manner and nodded with a solemn expression.

Thus, from that day onward, in addition to Qi Refinement and Sword Nourishment, his daily routine included going outside to fight Soul Beasts.

At first, he could not defeat them.

After all, the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well was located in the core region of Sunset Forest.

The Soul Beasts roaming nearby were all at the ten-thousand-year level, and there were even top-tier Soul Beasts like the Man Faced Demon Spider.

How could Jiang Liang possibly contend with them at his current level?

Every time he went out, he returned covered in wounds.

Dugu Bo watched from the sidelines and repeatedly shook his head with sighs.

That senior was far too ruthless.

That little bastard might have a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Ring, but he was still only a Soul Grandmaster. How could he possibly compare to those Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts?

Dugu Yan was even more distressed by the sight. She even brought her close friend Ye Lingling from Heaven Dou City to treat Jiang Liang's injuries.

Hmph! She was only afraid Jiang Liang would die here and bring bad luck.

She absolutely was not worried about him!

And so, as time passed, Jiang Liang's swordsmanship advanced by leaps and bounds amid the life-and-death battles.

In just one month, he had not only developed his own killing intent, but also mastered the use of Sword Force with ease. His level had also reached twenty-six.

When facing Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts, he was no longer as miserable as before.

Sometimes, he could even use the terrain to kill them.

Sword Mother watched all of his growth and nodded in satisfaction.

He had Sword Force, killing intent, and sufficient Sword Qi.

Moreover, she had noticed that the connection between Jiang Liang and the Cold Moon Sword was growing deeper and deeper.

She had originally thought he would need at least three or four months to reach this stage.

She had not expected him to accomplish it in only one month.

It was time to teach him how to control a sword.

When Jiang Liang learned that Sword Mother was finally going to teach him Sword Control, he was immediately ecstatic.

Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling saw that his face had turned red with excitement, but they could not understand how swordsmanship had captivated him so deeply.

Jiang Liang merely shook his head with a smile. "Women, you don't understand."

"Sword Control is the romance of Sword Cultivation!"

"The strong ride their swords through the skies and take heads from a thousand miles away as easily as everyday matters."

"They can even condense Sword Qi into form and gather countless Flying Swords. So-called Ten Thousand Swords Returning to the Origin is nothing more than that."

The two girls were left utterly bewildered by his words.

Could Sword Control really possess such abilities?

Thus, when Jiang Liang began learning Sword Control from Sword Mother, the two curiously dragged Dugu Bo over to watch from the side.

In truth, Sword Control was very simple.

Once a sword cultivator had formed a connection with their natal Flying Sword through Sword Nourishment, they could use the Sword Qi in their Qi Sea to control the Flying Sword.

This was the first realm of Sword Control: Qi-Controlled Sword.

Sword Mother gently rubbed Jiang Liang's head and smiled softly. "Xiao Liang, now activate the Sword Qi within your Qi Sea."

"I've taught you this before. Guide the Qi through your meridians and form a resonance with your natal Flying Sword. Let the sword follow your will and move with your heart."

Jiang Liang nodded firmly, then slowly closed his eyes. His consciousness sank into his Qi Sea as he guided a strand of pure Sword Qi to flow slowly through his meridians.

That strand of Sword Qi slowly overflowed from his fingertips. At Sword Mother's prompting, it carefully coiled toward the Cold Moon Sword.

The instant it touched the Sword Qi, a hum rang out.

The sword body immediately gave a trembling cry, and a faint cold gleam lit up, gradually resonating with his Sword Qi!

"Steady your mind. Don't rush to control it. First, feel the resonance between yourself and the sword," Sword Mother softly instructed from the side.

Jiang Liang nodded gently and adjusted the flow of his Sword Qi bit by bit.

The next moment, the Cold Moon Sword trembled slightly and slowly rose from the ground, hovering in midair, though it still swayed somewhat unsteadily.

As time passed, the Flying Sword gradually stabilized in the air.

It began turning with his thoughts and shifting slowly. In the end, it even began flying around him.

Though its movements were still somewhat clumsy, it signified that Jiang Liang had taken the first step toward Qi-Controlled Sword!

"Fairy Sister, I succeeded, right?" Jiang Liang opened his eyes and lifted his small face toward Sword Mother with hopeful anticipation.

"Not bad. You've succeeded." Sword Mother gently rubbed his head.

Meanwhile, Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling, watching from afar, were already dumbfounded.

His Martial Soul...

His Martial Soul had actually flown up on its own!

Heavens, was this really something a Soul Master could do?

"Grandpa Dugu, you're a Title Douluo and have seen so much. Are there Soul Masters on the continent who can do this?" Ye Lingling asked Dugu Bo curiously.

Dugu Bo shook his head helplessly. "Forget Title Douluos. No one on the entire Douluo Continent controls a Martial Soul like this!"

"Even Sword Douluo Chen Xin could never do this without using Soul Skills, controlling his Martial Soul with Soul Power alone."

Dugu Yan exclaimed in shock, "Could that little brat be even more powerful than Sword Douluo?"

"It isn't that little bastard. It's that senior..." Dugu Bo sighed as he looked at Sword Mother.

First came the mysterious Golden Core Meditation Method, then the powerful swordsmanship, and now this Object Control Technique.

Anything that senior brought out would be enough to cause a sensation across the continent.

Dugu Bo even suspected that this senior might be an ancient-era powerhouse.

Watching Jiang Liang happily play with Sword Control, Dugu Bo thought that with such a powerful expert aiding him, that little bastard would surely achieve great things in the future.

As he thought this, he suddenly turned to look at his granddaughter.

That little bastard seemed to like Yanyan quite a bit. Should he... give them a little push?

That way, even if he was gone someday, there would still be someone capable of protecting Yanyan.