Gale Swift Saber Reached Perfection, Nurturing Origin Stance Naturally Entered the Minor Accomplishment Realm

At this moment, the sun hung high in the sky, and the spring breeze brushed against his face with a touch of warmth and fervor.

Liu Yunche stood with saber in hand, practicing the Gale Swift Saber beneath the sunlight.

Though his foundation was still shallow and his movements initially somewhat raw, preventing him from completing the sequence in one smooth flow, the saber dao experience imprinted within his Divine Soul continuously fed back into him. Every swing and every change of stance was being rapidly refined.

Before long, his saber forms gradually became fluid. All the former sluggishness melted away, and his transitions already carried the flowing grace of drifting clouds and running water.

After practicing the set once, his Gale Swift Saber had already advanced from entry level to the Minor Accomplishment Realm!

Such progress would have been astonishing even for a martial artist of exceptional talent.

"Is this the ability of a Saber Grandmaster?"

Liu Yunche murmured inwardly, his grip around the saber tightening slightly.

Gradually, all distracting thoughts vanished from his mind, leaving only the long saber in his hand.

In a daze, he seemed to sense the spirituality of the weapon itself.

It was the resonant iron bones forged through hundreds of hammer blows and tempered a thousand times over; it was the chilling will of a blade quenched in cold water, frost condensed into an edge.

The entire saber no longer seemed like a dead object. The instant his palm settled against the hilt, the blade's center of gravity, the thickness of its edge, and every minute detail of how force traveled through it were clearly reflected in his mind.

Liu Yunche did not stop. His body continuously shifted beneath the sunlight as he raised his saber and practiced once more.

His strikes became faster and faster. The wind howled, and the saber shadows grew increasingly dense.

He had thoroughly grasped the true essence of the Gale Swift Saber. The minute stiffness and flaws in his exertion from before were corrected one by one beneath the insight of the saber dao.

More than that, he was no longer bound by the fixed forms recorded in the saber manual.

Following the habits of his own body, breathing, and force, he quietly altered the angles of his attacks and the momentum connecting each move, making the entire saber art better suited to himself and even sharper and swifter.

Time passed, and the sun moved westward.

Liu Yunche sheathed his saber and stood still. The breeze caressed his face, while the branches and leaves of the ancient trees rustled softly.

He imitated Liu Wangzhou's appearance from that afternoon. When his father had drawn his saber that day, a cold gleam had flashed and vanished, and everything around him had been severed into two.

He had secretly admired that sight then. Now, he practiced according to that image for no other reason than that such a bearing best matched the saber wielder he envisioned in his heart.

Suddenly, Liu Yunche had an idea. He grinned and muttered softly:

"Watch closely. This next saber strike... will be very cool."

Just then, a withered leaf drifted down on the wind. The next instant, white light burst forth, like daylight suddenly appearing in an empty room. A chilling gleam blazed, and all the fallen leaves around him were cut into two.

The Gale Swift Saber had reached perfection!

"If I were to fight Lin Liang and Zhang Yong now, one strike would be enough to decide life and death. After all, neither of them has entered the Skin Tempering Realm yet. They cannot withstand the sharpness of weapons."

Liu Yunche stood where he was, quietly savoring the feeling. Only after a long while did he slowly return his saber to its sheath.

"The Gale Swift Saber reaching perfection is ultimately only a skill for self-defense. If I want to gain a foothold in this world, I still need to enter the Skin Tempering Realm as soon as possible. That is the foundation."

"The Nurturing Origin Stance can stir the skin membranes throughout the body to achieve the effects of Skin Tempering. This is internal training. If I wish to progress faster, perhaps I should seek opportunities elsewhere..."

The next day, the night had not yet fully faded.

Liu Yunche rose early and assumed the Nurturing Origin Stance. Although he had rested for less than three hours, he was still brimming with energy.

Though the Nurturing Origin Stance was not a saber art, under the Saber Grandmaster's ability to draw inferences from one instance to another, Liu Yunche still improved at astonishing speed.

Relax the waist and tuck the hips, slightly draw in the tailbone, hollow the chest and raise the back, like setting up an arched bridge. The secrets of the Nurturing Origin Stance flowed through his mind.

Some vague points of exertion were being corrected. After each round of practice, Liu Yunche could sense every improvement through the size of the flame that arose in his abdomen.

By the time the sun was high overhead, Liu Yunche was persevering through the final round of the Nurturing Origin Stance.

His expression was numb, his teeth clenched tight, his legs weak, and his clothes already soaked through with sweat.

At the final moment, he sensed a flame slightly larger than before emerge within his abdomen.

It then transformed into streams of light that struck against his skin membranes, like nail hammers pounding flesh. The pain of each strike was not severe, but he could not withstand the streams of light falling like a torrential rainstorm.

The pain in Liu Yunche's eyes was impossible to conceal, yet he endured it forcefully without letting out the slightest cry.

This was the struggle of his will. Martial artists needed unwavering conviction and an unyielding fighting spirit to practice martial arts.

Where did such things come from? Naturally, they were accumulated bit by bit through ordinary cultivation. These thoughts flashed through Liu Yunche's heart one by one.

Only after three full breaths did the pounding end. Liu Yunche stood in place, delight rising in his heart. Under the Saber Grandmaster's ability to draw inferences from one instance to another, the Nurturing Origin Stance had reached the Minor Accomplishment Realm!

After a good while, he slowly finished his practice.

Chunyan, who had long been waiting attentively nearby, hurriedly brought over the bowl of Nourishing Origin Soup that had already been prepared when she saw Liu Yunche finish practicing.

Taking the bowl, Liu Yunche drained it in one gulp. The gentle medicinal power of the Nourishing Origin Soup wandered through his body, nourishing his exhausted frame.

In the end, all the medicinal power gathered in his Lower Dantian, providing qi and blood for his next stance practice.

Liu Yunche walked toward a pavilion not far away and sat down to rest. Before long, servants arrived carrying lunch.

As he ate lunch, Liu Yunche suddenly found himself missing the flavors of the past.

The former cook had felt guilty over Liu Yunche's poisoning and left the Liu Household of his own accord.

Of course, he had been allowed to leave unscathed because he had nothing to do with the poisoning.

The current cook had retired from Jingyuan Tower, the finest restaurant in the county.

His cooking skills were beyond reproach. It was simply that Liu Yunche had eaten the old flavors for sixteen years, and the sudden change was difficult to adapt to in such a short time.

After lunch, Liu Yunche carefully assessed his progress in Skin Tempering. According to the martial manual, if one practiced without interruption and possessed decent talent and bones, it could be accomplished in three months.

With medicinal soups to nourish the body and guidance from a renowned master, one might enter the Copper Skin Realm within a month.

Liu Yunche had all of those. If he could cultivate his stance technique to major accomplishment, he presumed the time needed to enter Copper Skin would be even shorter.

That afternoon, Liu Yunche was the only one left in Cloud Perch Courtyard. Standing beneath the shade of a tree, he swung his long saber. Silver glints suddenly flashed around him, each strike faster than the last.

The Gale Swift Saber at perfection formed an impenetrable circle in his hands.

A servant's voice suddenly came from outside the courtyard. "Young Master, Master requests your presence."

Liu Yunche returned his saber to its sheath and pushed open the courtyard gate. The sharp aura from his saber practice still lingered in his eyes as he asked the servant:

"Do you know what it is about?"

Seeing that sharp gaze, the servant's heart tightened, and he hurriedly bowed. "Hall Master Shi has arrived."

Liu Yunche nodded with lowered eyes to show that he understood. After tidying himself up and changing into a black long robe, he headed for the reception hall.

When he arrived at the reception hall, Liu Wangzhou was chatting with a middle-aged man dressed in thin spring robes.

The middle-aged man was tall, and his robust muscles could be seen through his clothing. He had a fierce and valiant air about him. He was Hall Master Shi—Shi Xiuyan.

A richly dressed youth stood behind Shi Xiuyan. Upon seeing Liu Yunche arrive, the youth smiled with his eyes and waggled his brows at him.

That was Shi Qingyue, Liu Yunche's childhood companion. The two were as close as brothers.

"My worthy nephew has arrived." Shi Xiuyan turned toward Liu Yunche, his eyes carrying an elder's concern for a junior.

"I was away for a month, and only then learned of your poisoning. Seeing that your complexion is normal now puts me at ease."

"Thank you for your concern, Uncle Shi." Liu Yunche clasped his hands in salute, then went to stand behind Liu Wangzhou.

Shi Xiuyan asked, "Have you found out who struck from the shadows?"

Liu Wangzhou shook his head, his expression slightly dark. "There are no leads yet. We are investigating."

"You and I are like family, and I watched Yunche grow up as well. I will investigate this matter too," Shi Xiuyan said without hesitation.

Changing the subject, Shi Xiuyan's gaze fell on Liu Yunche, and he asked, "I heard that my worthy nephew has begun practicing martial arts?"

"That is correct. Only after passing through life and death did I realize the benefits of martial arts." Liu Yunche sighed.

"Good! You have finally come to your senses. If you do not practice martial arts, who will your father pass all his martial skills on to?" Shi Xiuyan's tone was forthright and uninhibited.

"As it happens, I acquired a century-old precious ginseng on my return from the Prefecture City. It is perfect for laying the foundation for my worthy nephew's martial practice."

With that, Shi Xiuyan took a brocade box from his sleeve and placed it on the table.

"Brother Xiuyan, how could I accept this?" Liu Wangzhou's expression changed, and he hurriedly tried to refuse.

"Using such precious ginseng to lay Yunche's foundation is truly wasteful. Besides, Qing Yue is about to break through to the Flesh Tempering Realm and is precisely at the time when he needs nourishment."

Hearing this, Liu Yunche's gaze fell upon Shi Qingyue, and a trace of surprise flashed through his eyes. His childhood friend was actually already about to reach that point.

But upon further thought, it was only natural. Shi Qingyue had practiced martial arts since childhood.

"Ah..." Shi Xiuyan waved his hand. "Brother Wangzhou, why are you being so polite with me? Qing Yue has eaten plenty of good things over the years. He does not lack this one."

"Yunche is different. He has only just recovered from a serious illness. Without precious ginseng to replenish him, his progress in martial arts will certainly be affected."

Shi Qingyue also chimed in, his words carrying a hint of pride. "Uncle Liu, do not worry. Breaking through to the Flesh Tempering Realm will not stump me. Yunche's health is more important."

"You brat, daring to boast so shamelessly here. If you fail to break through, I will break your legs," Shi Xiuyan said with a laughing scold.

"Brother Wangzhou, I have made you witness a joke."

"Haha... what are you saying, Brother Xiuyan? Qing Yue's flesh is firm, his bones are excellent, and his foundation is deep. He must have put in no small amount of hard work."

Liu Wangzhou turned to Shi Qingyue and smiled gently. "Qing Yue, then this uncle will await your good news."

"Brother Wangzhou, just accept this item. If you had not saved my life back then, how could I have today?"

Liu Wangzhou smiled helplessly. "All right. Since Brother Xiuyan has put it this way, I will accept it."

Liu Wangzhou paused for a moment before asking Shi Xiuyan, "Brother Xiuyan, did your journey go smoothly?"

"This journey..." Shi Xiuyan was about to speak when he seemed to recall something. He glanced at Liu Yunche and Shi Qingyue.

"Qing Yue, you have not seen Yunche in a long time. Go take a walk together."

Shi Qingyue curled his lips upon hearing this. "Understood, Father."

He turned and waved to Liu Yunche. "Yunche, let's go out for a stroll."

Liu Wangzhou nodded. "Go on. It would be good to get out and relax today."

Hearing this, Liu Yunche followed Shi Qingyue outside.