I Have a Friend

"Sister Yue, you seem a bit distracted."

"What exactly did Director Shi and the others say to make you look so soul-lost?"

On the other side, Li Qingmeng noticed the unusual state of Zhao Yue beside her.

Based on her understanding of this "sister," her mental fortitude was not weak; after all, she was a Swordsman. While she might not be able to remain calm when Mount Tai collapsed before her, ordinary matters could never shake her resolve.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yue looked at Li Qingmeng's curious and slightly worried expression, fell silent for a moment, and then said, "Even if I don't tell you now, you will know sooner or later."

"That freshman, he is also a natural Sword Ghost."

"The fate of a Sword Ghost rarely ends well."

"Actually, I know that there are plenty of natural Sword Ghosts in this world; it's not rare. It's just that this particular scene reminded me of some vague memories."

Hearing this, Li Qingmeng looked toward where Zhao Cheng was standing. From her position, she could only see a small part of his profile and his back.

"Sister Yue, don't overthink it. It's actually not like that at all."

Li Qingmeng held her hand and whispered comfortingly.

In her own memories, there were no similar scenes, so there was no such thing as being moved by the sight of something familiar. She had simply remembered this person and his name because of his uniqueness—nothing more.

Thus, as a bystander, she saw clearly and understood the knot in her sister's heart.

"You're right!"

"It seems I really am getting old. They say that only when one is older is it easy to be moved by scenes and lament the autumn."

Zhao Yue was a Swordsman after all, with a strong mind, and she quickly composed herself, saying with a smile.

"Sister Yue, you aren't old at all..."

Zhao Cheng, who was watching the excitement, only vaguely felt that gazes were often falling upon him. To this, he didn't take it to heart.

He simply assumed that everyone was just paying a little extra attention to the freshmen.

You are watching the scenery on the bridge, and the person watching the scenery is also watching you; while Zhao Cheng was watching the excitement, he himself was the "excitement."

At this moment, Wu Nian walked over and said to Zhao Cheng, "I just went to probe Director Shi for his thoughts. Director Shi thinks very highly of you and says you are a talent worth molding."

"Also, the strong all crave battle. Therefore, as your swordsmanship deepens, when you have the urge to fight, do not think that there is something wrong with your mental state. That is a normal situation. Some have strong battle intent, some have weak battle intent; having strong battle intent is a good thing."

"Of course, you cannot do anything illegal. You can't just pick a random person to fight because you feel like it; that is called provoking trouble."

"Some young people, after practicing a few sword techniques, feel they are powerful and superior, and their courage grows, so they go out to stir up trouble. That kind of behavior is unacceptable."

"Back then, a friend of mine surnamed Wang was like that. After learning a few sword techniques, he beat up a group of gangsters. Fortunately, the police chief who caught him was a righteous man; seeing that he was young and still a student, he didn't leave a criminal record and pushed all the responsibility onto the gang. Otherwise, his future path would have been difficult."

"However, he was a lawless character and has now gone abroad to develop. I heard he's doing quite well."

"But that's not important. My point is, don't fight battles that have no benefit."

Wu Nian kept nagging in Zhao Cheng's ear.

It was the first time Zhao Cheng realized that this instructor, who had taught him for so many years, could be so long-winded.

Of course, he also knew that Wu Nian was saying these things for his own good.

If he didn't have the experiences of his past life, at sixteen or seventeen, suddenly awakening part of his innate thirst for battle, he would inevitably have been driven by his inner emotions.

Even if he appeared mature, his age was still a factor.

Zhao Cheng guessed that Director Shi had likely seen the battle intent in his heart.

Unless his mental state reached a level of subtle and profound mastery, this was difficult to conceal.

The battle intent hidden in his heart was just like some people having "invincible" written on their faces; in the eyes of some, it was still quite conspicuous.

Wu Nian naturally could not know that Zhao Cheng was beaten up in his simulations every day, that he had fought enough battles, and that his emotions had been released, so there was no need to show off or provoke trouble.

Because of this information gap, Wu Nian was so talkative.

Such a display was truly a sign of great pedagogical virtue.

Therefore, Zhao Cheng listened to every word without feeling annoyed.

People often treat those who are good to them as "enemies" at certain ages, and Zhao Cheng had clearly long passed those years; he knew who was truly good to him.

After a while, Wu Nian changed the subject and began pointing at the field: "Look at the one on the left. His defense seems airtight, but in reality, the tighter the defense, the more flaws there are."

"Swordsmanship is created for the purpose of attacking. If you defend for too long, you will eventually fail."

"The key to actual combat is actually quite simple. Once you overcome the instinctual fear and stop trying to protect yourself completely, you have taken the first step in actual combat."

"Of course, it's easier said than done. Fear is not easy to overcome."

"Besides that, there is tactics."

"Tactics are different for everyone, and opponents are different, so there is no fixed formula."

"However, there is one point: fully utilize your strengths, deepen your own style, and try to lead your opponent into your style and your rhythm. That way, you have already won half the battle."

"This is something you need to ponder first before others can give you pointers. You must have something first before you can refine it. No matter how brilliant a teacher is, they cannot create something out of nothing for you."

Zhao Cheng listened quietly, combining the words with his own experiences and insights, feeling that every single sentence rang true.

When he was in the dungeon, he had been exactly like that. Facing the Fist Art Master, he was initially restricted and clumsy, making him no match at all; he was beaten back step by step because, at that time, he simply did not know how to fight.

He only knew the methods of training, not the methods of combat.

It wasn't until later, after he crossed that psychological threshold and gained enlightenment through his qualitative talent for swordsmanship, that he was finally able to defeat his opponent.

Before overcoming his psychological barrier, he was like Zhang Wuji with a perfected Nine Yang skill—he had the power, but couldn't unleash it. After crossing that barrier, he could use a little, but still couldn't bring it all to bear.

It wasn't until he achieved enlightenment and awakened the Battle Blood effect that he suddenly became comparable to Zhang Wuji after he had mastered the Heaven and Earth Great Shift, instantly unleashing the full force of his power.

The first step of real combat is to overcome instinct; this one sentence already captured the true essence of fighting.

As far as Zhao Cheng knew, the boxers from his past life took their first step in training by learning to take a punch. Beyond building up their ability to withstand blows, the most important part was overcoming the body's instinctive fear of a fist.

An ordinary person, seeing a fist coming, would subconsciously close their eyes, only to be struck and left unable to counterattack. A skilled boxer, however, would not only keep their eyes open but would instinctively use the sturdiest parts of their body to receive the blow while looking for an opening to strike back.