Exploration 1

"I think we should go for that prize money!" Russell leaned over and suggested.

"With the teacher's skill, even Chen Huan, the strongest competitor, wouldn't be a match for him. He'll definitely get one of Huaisha City's spots.

"Last time, ten teams from Huaisha City took part. Who knows how many will enter this time?" Xiayin explained.

"Ten?" Lin Sheng asked in surprise. "Aren't there only three clubs?"

"Since it's a singles competition, anyone with enough confidence can enter, as long as they bring their own protective gear. So it won't just be the three of us competing," Xiayin explained.

"Got it." Lin Sheng nodded.

"Then, teacher, are you going to enter?" Russell asked eagerly. "You could win some medals and trophies for our club. It'd make recruiting people so much easier!"

Lin Sheng was silent for a moment, then nodded. "Sure."

"I knew it! Those useless guys from Tengchong don't stand a chance now!" Russell burst out laughing.

"Each county or city can advance two people. Chen Huan should be able to take second place," Xiayin said calmly. "Of course, that's assuming she doesn't have to compete against the teacher."

Lin Sheng said nothing. He looked over the information in his hands, then glanced up at the competition date: April 13.

"What's today's date?" he asked casually.

"March 27. The competition's still more than ten days away, about two weeks. We have plenty of time," Xiayin replied.

"Right. Only one person can compete, so you'll be the reserve team. That's enough about this for now. Let's start today's lesson." Lin Sheng handed the information sheet back to Xiayin.

The other three quickly put down their things, stood up, and lined up in front of him.

Their line was a little loose, but it was clear they were taking this seriously.

Ever since Lin Sheng had defeated Russell, their opinion of him had changed completely. He was no longer just some swordsmanship coach they'd hired. They now treated him with genuine respect as their teacher.

Lin Sheng carefully surveyed the three of them.

Russell stood on the left.

He was 1.8 meters tall, big and strong, with dark blond hair, a few faint freckles, and ordinary light blue eyes. He looked like a typical white man.

He wasn't handsome, and he had no particular air about him. He was always grinning and joking around, but when he got serious, there was a fierce streak to him.

Lin Sheng quickly assessed Russell and decided what kind of style would suit him.

Then he looked at Madilan.

Madilan was even taller than Russell, nearly 1.9 meters. He was a little leaner, with long arms and legs and a plain, honest face.

He always trained diligently and never slacked off. Of the three, he had the strongest fundamentals. He also had the greatest stamina and strength.

The third was Xiayin.

She was a typical rich young lady: smart, arrogant, and always looking at people as if they were idiots. She had decent perseverance, too. She wasn't as determined as Madilan, but she was on Russell's level.

She was beautiful, but she didn't have the spoiled fragility common to pretty girls who were all looks and no substance.

After finishing his assessment of them, Lin Sheng gathered his thoughts and began speaking.

"You've been practicing the basic moves for a while now. Basic moves are the foundation of every style and technique. All sword techniques in every style evolved from these fundamentals."

He paused, then continued.

"Naxi Swordsmanship doesn't refer only to the swordsmanship passed down in the Naxi region. It's a general term for the many kinds of swordsmanship that evolved in different places from those roots."

"What I need to know is how well you understand stances in this swordsmanship."

He gave the longsword in his hand a flick, gripped it with both hands, and swished it out in front of him at a downward angle. The tip nearly touched the ground, but stopped just short.

"What is this stance? Anyone know?" he asked gravely.

"Uh, it's the upward-slash stance. The main purpose is to attack between the legs!" Russell answered immediately.

"Teacher, we've never learned this before. Also, isn't that move a little obscene?"

Lin Sheng glanced at the other two. Madilan and Xiayin both looked completely lost.

He immediately realized that Naxi Swordsmanship seemed to differ quite a bit from the swordsmanship he had obtained in his dreams.

After a brief pause, he explained.

"Most Naxi Swordsmanship techniques focus on stabbing, so our protective gear is designed to guard against thrusts and cuts.

"But the swordsmanship I specialize in is different. I focus not only on thrusts, but also on basic moves like chopping and slashing."

"So, teacher, did you create your own swordsmanship?" Xiayin asked at once.

"No." Lin Sheng shook his head. "My swordsmanship comes from an ancient school. I named it..." A long list of names flashed through his mind.

After hesitating, he chose the plainest one.

"I named it Black Feather. Black Feather Swordsmanship."

The sword techniques he had absorbed all came from the soldiers and swordsmen of Black Feather City. Calling them Black Feather was perfectly reasonable.

"Black Feather? Why did you call it that?" Xiayin asked curiously.

"I'll explain that another time. For now, let's go over the principles behind this stance."

Lin Sheng began explaining in detail.

"This stance is called Iron Gate Stance. There are many variations, but the most commonly used one places the sword directly in the center. It's called the Central Iron Gate."

"This stance can transition into many other sword techniques, and it's also one of the best defensive stances. It looks like it leaves your head open, but that's just a way to bait your opponent into attacking."

He demonstrated the different variations and follow-up moves for them one by one.

The three had already learned some Naxi Swordsmanship stances, but this was the first time they had heard of these. They studied them with unusual focus.

As he instructed them, Lin Sheng also sorted through the memories he had obtained from the Elite Rotten Swordsman.

From that swordsman's memories, he had gained not only a comprehensive foundation in Black Feather Swordsmanship, but also a genuine, orthodox sword technique.

Earlier, he had also learned the sword technique Angry Strike from Ravel's notes, but he hadn't trained hard at it.

He had tried practicing Ravel's Angry Strike, but his progress had been too slow.

Compared with hunting Rotten Swordsmen and directly obtaining their experience and memories, he estimated that it would take him at least half a year to master Angry Strike completely.

And fully incorporating it into his own swordsmanship would take an indefinite amount of time.

Ravel's Angry Strike was a technique he had developed for himself, one best suited to his own abilities.

I can study it and absorb its essence, but copying it wholesale is out of the question. Lately, Lin Sheng had been using his free time to mull over the Angry Strike technique he had translated.

He was working on incorporating its force-generating techniques into other similar moves, but his progress was slow.

After a long training session, time slipped by, and forty minutes passed before they knew it.

Lin Sheng left them exercises to practice, said goodbye to the three, and left the club.

After gaining the Elite Rotten Swordsman's memories, his strength had increased greatly. He hadn't fully digested them yet, but the next time he entered the dream, he wouldn't be the same ordinary novice as before.

At least I'll be at the level of a regular soldier, a first-rank warrior, right?

With that in mind, he went home and diligently reviewed his coursework, worked through practice books, and read his study materials.