Intent Sword

"Am I that kind of person?!" Yan Zhenghua said righteously. "Please don't think of me as so sleazy. In keeping with the principle of doing honest work for honest pay, I'll definitely give it my all!"

After a pause, Yan Zhenghua casually asked, "Is it legitimate?"

"Who'd go if it were legitimate?"

"Hehehe..."

A string of lewd laughter rang out from the training room. Naturally, it came from Yan Zhenghua. Lu Ren felt a faint sense of contempt in his heart.

He had never been to a place like that. Really, truly.

Back to the point.

Yan Zhenghua held a wooden sword and casually flicked its tip, drawing a sword flower.

"Most swordsmanship is practiced through forms. I call this the Form Sword. By continually practicing sword techniques and training diligently, you carve the swordsmanship into your bones and integrate it into your body's instincts. The next step is to comprehend the essence of the swordsmanship and grasp the spirit within it. Then comes sublimation, realizing the hidden true meaning of the swordsmanship. But only supreme sword arts can contain such true meaning."

Yan Zhenghua's gaze sharpened, like a keen blade leaving its sheath. His fat body suddenly tightened, and his loose clothes seemed to turn into skintight wear, revealing bulging muscles beneath. He raised the wooden sword, flicked his wrist, and thrust it toward Lu Ren with a swaying motion.

Clang!

A crisp sword chime actually came from the wooden sword. Though it was still three feet away from Lu Ren, he felt a bone-chilling cold that made every hair on his body stand on end. A sharp gust of sword wind pierced toward him.

It was as though his chest had been struck from afar.

Lu Ren's face paled as he staggered back two steps.

"What was that?"

"The intent comprehended after Swordsmanship Great Accomplishment Perfection."

Yan Zhenghua sighed. "Unfortunately, I'm too old. I have no way of seeing a higher vista."

"A higher vista?"

Yan Zhenghua did not directly answer Lu Ren's question. Instead, he asked, "Do you know how strong the limits of humanity can be?"

Lu Ren cautiously replied, "Maybe like the Hulk?"

Yan Zhenghua shook his head slightly. "The people I've seen... Forget it, telling you this is a complete waste of breath. Why is a brat who's just gotten started thinking about such things? You're already this old and still want to learn martial arts. It'd be good enough if you achieved anything at all!"

"Now I'll teach you."

They were finally getting to the point. Lu Ren quietly breathed a sigh of relief. If he had not been worried that Yan Zhenghua would feel slighted and deliberately make things difficult for him, he truly wanted to say that his time was precious and could not be wasted.

Yan Zhenghua said, "Since you already have a foundation in swordsmanship, I'll teach you the Sword Manual Primer."

With that, he plopped down cross-legged, laid the wooden sword across his legs, and half-closed his eyes. He then went completely still.

Other than his faint breathing, he made no movement at all.

Half an hour later, Lu Ren could not take it anymore.

"Master Yan, what are you doing?"

Yan Zhenghua maintained the same posture.

"Clear your mind and visualize a sword! A sharpened sword is too keen and will stab at the mind. A blunt sword is too sluggish and leaves the spirit without sharpness. A wooden sword is just right for beginners to comprehend sword intent."

That sounded awfully mystical...

Lu Ren was rather confused. "Then what should I do?"

Yan Zhenghua opened his eyes and tilted his chin toward the wooden swords displayed on the rack beside them.

"Go pick one that feels right, then do as I do."

Lu Ren walked to the sword rack and tried several wooden swords before drawing out the one that felt best in his hand and turning it over curiously.

"...There aren't any systematic forms or moves?"

Yan Zhenghua said, "Young man, you need to understand that all swordsmanship originated from Basic Swordsmanship: sweeping, lifting, flicking, thrusting, chopping, shaving... Moves are dead, people are alive."

Once Lu Ren sat down cross-legged, Yan Zhenghua began to carefully teach him the method of visualizing a sword.

The more Lu Ren listened, the more astonished he became. He had never imagined that swords could be used this way. Practicing sword moves thousands, even tens of thousands of times, could integrate them into the body's instincts. But Intent Sword was a visualization technique: the mind as the sword, the body as its vessel, until everything became seamless and natural.

After listening, Lu Ren recited it to himself several times to make sure he remembered the core of the sword manual, which was fewer than a thousand words. Then he asked, "Can I eventually swing a sword and unleash Sword Qi?"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I mean, like a single sword flash chilling nineteen provinces, Sword Qi sweeping across thirty thousand miles."

Yan Zhenghua did not even lift his eyelids. "You've read too many novels. Where would Sword Qi exist in reality? At most, powerful strength and speed combined with superb sword techniques can cause airflow changes as the sword rubs against the air at high speed. If your technique is good enough, you can form the airflow into an air slash with cutting and lethal properties. Going a step further, you can use special secret techniques paired with a sufficiently powerful mental state to form Sword Aura. As for going further still... Hm, I'm not too sure either."

After confirming that Lu Ren had learned everything without missing anything, Yan Zhenghua instructed, "Only when the wooden sword takes shape in your heart and mind can you proceed to the next stage of cultivation: cleanse away the mundane and reshape your spirit. What this form trains is mental will."

As he spoke, Yan Zhenghua pulled out a book covered in grease stains from the stack of books propping up a table leg and held it out before Lu Ren.

"Here, this is the sword manual I painstakingly compiled. It has my annotations and explanations of the essentials. If you really don't understand something, you can come ask me. But there'll be a consultation fee when the time comes."

Lu Ren said, "...Fine. I'll be leaving, then."

Before Lu Ren could even walk out of the convenience store, Yan Zhenghua's face darkened. "Have you forgotten something?"

"..."

Lu Ren took out his last stack of cash. "This is for your massage. I have something to do, so I might..."

Yan Zhenghua snatched it away. Lowering his head, he grinned so broadly that the weathered wrinkles on his face bloomed like a chrysanthemum. He waved his hand as if shooing flies. "All right, all right. Seeing how sincere you are, I won't charge you for that wooden sword in your hand. I originally crafted it with great care."

"I..."

Lu Ren looked at the words carved into the sword hilt.

"Manufactured by Longquan Toy Factory."

"..."

By the time he returned home, it was nearly evening. The sun slanted downward, and as dusk approached, only the fading sunset remained, trembling on the horizon.

Lu Ren looked at the wooden sword in his hand and sat down on the second-floor viewing terrace. He carefully memorized every detail of the wooden sword, examining it over and over, before finally using the willpower granted by his 10 points of Spirit to slowly empty his mind.

Modern people were far too restless. Moreover, in this age of information explosion, everyone received vast amounts of information every day, of which useful information did not even account for five percent.

As a result, ordinary people were constantly filled with countless thoughts and desires.

Trying to calm down and empty one's mind was an exceedingly difficult task.

After Lu Ren sat down and closed his eyes, all sorts of stray thoughts came flooding in, impossible to stop.

That girl I saw on the subway on the way back earlier was pretty cute. She had a great figure too, but she was dressed way too provocatively. It was a little hard to accept.

I haven't played League of Legends in ages. Should I play a few matches later?