Sword Venerable Sparring Partner

Song Zhizhi:...

The food

from earlier

suddenly no longer seemed appetizing.

Still, no matter how reluctant Song Zhizhi was to practice swordsmanship, once she had decided to master it, she would not slack off. The afternoon's two hours of sword practice officially began.

After practicing once, Song Zhizhi felt that her grasp of the sword moves seemed somewhat better than it had been that morning. Yet the transitions between moves still felt stiff. In Sword Venerable Mingxiao's eyes, her entire sequence was riddled with flaws.

But considering that Song Zhizhi had only been learning for two days, reaching this level was already quite impressive. Most beginners had the same problem. To solve it, one could either spend a great deal of time practicing diligently until the sword moves were etched into one's heart, or find a highly skilled senior to exchange moves with. Only under pressure could one grow faster.

Song Zhizhi had thought that Xie Xiuji had arranged the first method for her. She had been prepared to practice this sword art hundreds or even thousands of times.

Second time—

Song Zhizhi was already very familiar with the opening stance of the Heavenly Profound Sword Art. After completing its first form, she concentrated fully as she shifted into the next move. Suddenly, a branch thrust in from the side, blocking her sword's momentum. The branch seemed to have just been snapped from a tree, still carrying several fresh green leaves, yet when it met Song Zhizhi's sword, it gave off a crisp metallic ring.

"Clang!" Sword Venerable Mingxiao held a three-foot branch in one hand, the other tucked behind his back. Using the branch as a sword, he launched an attack at Song Zhizhi.

Song Zhizhi hastily raised her sword to block. Seeing her move, Sword Venerable Mingxiao frowned and knocked the sword from her hand. "As a sword cultivator, you must learn to remain fearless in the face of danger. No matter what unexpected event you encounter, you must keep a calm heart. But just now, you became nervous. The sword moves in your hand were completely distorted, and you failed to display the strength you should have had. Again."

Song Zhizhi understood that Xie Xiuji was right. She took a deep breath, nodded, picked up her sword, and began practicing the first form of the Heavenly Profound Sword Art again.

As she transitioned from the first form to the second, she steeled herself. Sure enough, Xie Xiuji attacked her again with the branch. This time, with mental preparation, her sword moves did not deform—but the sword in her hand was still knocked away by Xie Xiuji within three seconds.

"Your reaction is too slow. In a real battle, that strike of mine just now would have been enough to take one of your arms."

The third time, Song Zhizhi blocked Xie Xiuji's first move, but the very next second, the sword in her hand was ruthlessly sent flying again.

"Your transitions are not flexible enough. That strike just now was too hasty; you failed to grasp the timing." Sword Venerable Mingxiao mercilessly pointed out the flaws in Song Zhizhi's sword moves.

Song Zhizhi pressed her lips together. The unyielding resilience in her bones was instead stirred awake. She let out a breath and said with high fighting spirit, "Again!"

The fourth time, the fifth time...

Song Zhizhi did not know how many times the sword in her hand had been knocked away. But gradually, she could withstand one move, two moves, three moves under Xie Xiuji's hand. Even though Xie Xiuji had not used spiritual power, her progress was plain for all to see. Her sword moves became increasingly nimble and well-rounded. She never made the same mistake twice if Xie Xiuji had pointed it out. Her talent in the sword path was truly obvious to all.

Unconsciously, a trace of appreciation entered Sword Venerable Mingxiao's gaze as he looked at Song Zhizhi. He raised his head and glanced at the sky. "Practice one last round, and today's task will be complete."

After spending these two hours exchanging moves and wits with Xie Xiuji, Song Zhizhi was too tired to speak. She nodded, raised her sword, and answered him with action.

Author's note:

Don't ask whether the female lead's child will have an accident after being exhausted like this. If you ask, the answer is that fetuses in the cultivation world are extremely tough. [dog head]

Sword Venerable Sparring Partner

Song Zhizhi's body was tired, but her spirits were exceedingly high. She had found some enjoyment in exchanging moves with Xie Xiuji—back and forth, fighting to her heart's content. Of course, that was only on the condition that Xie Xiuji did not use spiritual power. Otherwise, Song Zhizhi would not be able to last even a second against him.

This time, Song Zhizhi seized the opportunity and attacked first. Xie Xiuji defended with the branch. After two hours had passed, the paulownia branch in his hand was still lush and green, without even a single leaf having fallen.

Using the branch as both sword and shield, Sword Venerable Mingxiao blocked Song Zhizhi's wave of attacks, then turned defense into offense, leaving her hard-pressed to cope. The sword in her hand moved so quickly it left afterimages, yet she was still struck by his branch at times. Wherever she was hit burned with pain.

But Song Zhizhi's expression did not change. When exchanging moves with Xie Xiuji, she had to remain tense at every moment, which instead made her overlook the pain in her body. She watched Xie Xiuji's movements and reacted in time. With Sword Venerable Mingxiao, the number one sword cultivator under heaven, personally feeding her moves, her swordsmanship was advancing at a terrifying speed.

Yet her progress only allowed her to hold out a few more breaths beneath Xie Xiuji's sword moves. She was still far from reaching his standards.

"Clang!" Song Zhizhi's sword was knocked flying once more. This time, she had gripped the sword rather tightly, so Xie Xiuji also used greater force when knocking away her spirit sword. The shock left the web between her thumb and forefinger numb, and her right hand trembled uncontrollably.

Song Zhizhi clenched her fist. After the numbness subsided, she exhaled and slowly emerged from her tense battle state. She took a step forward, intending to pick up the sword from the ground, but her vision suddenly went black, and her body swayed.

A figure appeared at Song Zhizhi's side in time, grasping her arm to steady her. Then, with his palm pressed against the center of her back, he sent some spiritual power into her meridians. Only then did Song Zhizhi feel somewhat better—her physical strength had failed her just now because all the spiritual power in her body had been exhausted.

Seeing that Song Zhizhi had regained enough strength to stand steadily, Sword Venerable Mingxiao released her arm. Lowering his eyes, he instructed, "After your spiritual power is exhausted, sit in meditation and recover as soon as possible. It can widen your meridians and accelerate your cultivation."

"Today's cultivation ends here. I will come again tomorrow at the hour of the Rabbit."

Song Zhizhi had just sat down and arranged herself into a meditative posture when she immediately opened her eyes at those words. "The hour of the Rabbit?" Did that not mean she had to get up at five in the morning to practice swordsmanship?

Deep down, Song Zhizhi was still a modern person. You could make her stay up until five in the morning, but make her get up at five in the morning? Even when she had been in her final year of high school, she had never been this diligent.

Rankings

|

Transmigrated into a Book

Sweet Romance

Transmigration and Rebirth Romance

Tu Yanyan

Amnesia trope