Treading water, skimming waves

The Tianhe Blade was such a profound saber art that grasping its essentials would take at least several months. Dongfang Liren was in no hurry and nodded.

"Study it well. As long as you figure out how to train in it, I'll teach you the Dragon-Slaying Order even if you haven't mastered it. By the way, you said last time that you wanted to compare Lightness Skills. After reading Lu Jieyun's insights for a few days, what have you learned?"

Ye Jingtang had only just begun practicing his Lightness Skill. In truth, he had yet to study those insights, which required a Grandmaster's foundation to even begin. He said:

"My experience in the martial world is shallow, and I've never encountered advanced martial arts. If you ask me for insights, I certainly can't offer any. How about I compete with Your Highness and see where my Lightness Skill stands?"

Dongfang Liren found this rather amusing, but she still displayed the bearing expected of an expert and did not refuse. To show Ye Jingtang just how high the heavens and deep the earth were, she lightly tapped the grass with her toes, floated into the air, and landed atop a willow on the riverbank, her movements weightless and ethereal as an immortal's.

Seeing this, Ye Jingtang took a step forward.

Whoosh-

He sprang into the air with a faint rush of wind and landed on a branch beside Dongfang Liren, making the willow bough sway several times beneath his feet.

Creak, creak-

The difference in their abilities was immediately apparent. He was clearly no match for Dongfang Liren.

Yet surprise flashed in Dongfang Liren's eyes.

"You know a Lightness Skill?"

"I just learned it. Please forgive my clumsy display, Prince Jing."

Just learned it?

Dongfang Liren looked somewhat puzzled. A few days ago, she had confirmed that Ye Jingtang knew no Lightness Skill. Had her test been mistaken, or had he been hiding his abilities?

After a moment's thought, Dongfang Liren whirled down from the willow and landed on the clear river. Her feet touched the emerald ripples as she headed upstream like a dragonfly skimming the water, every movement full of heroic grace.

Ye Jingtang had yet to attempt "treading water, skimming waves," but according to the principles of Lightness Skills, he could leap into the air even from a blade of grass, provided he had something to push off.

After considering it briefly, Ye Jingtang leaped down, plunging straight toward the river. The result...

Splash-

Water sprayed everywhere, making Niao Niao shake his head.

Treading water and skimming waves was an exacting test of one's mastery of a Lightness Skill. One slight mistake, and the practitioner would become a drowned chicken.

Dongfang Liren had known this would happen. She glanced back with a teasing look, but before she could mock him, her gaze turned startled and uncertain.

After crashing into the river, Ye Jingtang quickly burst out of the water and began sprinting across its surface.

Tap, tap, tap-

His movements were fierce and swift, kicking up splashes taller than he was. It was hardly a pretty sight, but with enough brute force, even a brick could fly, and his speed was astonishing.

In the time it took Dongfang Liren to turn her head, Ye Jingtang had already overtaken her and charged upstream like a wild horse that had slipped its reins.

??

It was the first time in her life that Dongfang Liren had seen such a bizarre Lightness Skill. She could not help asking:

"Why are you running so fast?"

Ye Jingtang's answer was equally straightforward. "If I slow down, I'll fall into the water. What does Your Highness think of my Lightness Skill?"

What the hell kind of Lightness Skill is this?!

Dongfang Liren did not even know what to say to him. He was genuinely fast, but he made as much noise as thunder. What use was that except for running for his life?

Dongfang Liren was no Grandmaster, but she had learned her Lightness Skill from the White-Haired Truth-Listener, and it was unquestionably first-rate. Being overtaken and left in the dust by a half-trained amateur displeased her. She immediately accelerated to catch him.

"The key to a Lightness Skill is 'lightness.' Only speed without a sound or trace is true speed... You!"

Dongfang Liren had intended to catch up and explain, only to discover that the fellow ahead had not the slightest grasp of social graces. When he noticed her pursuing him, he actually ran faster and faster, as though determined to shake her off.

Tap, tap, tap...

A line of ripples appeared across the clear river.

Two figures raced along, one behind the other. One skimmed the water like a dragonfly, graceful and carefree; the other looked like a naughty child skipping stones.

After pursuing him for a while, Dongfang Liren gradually realized something was wrong.

Ye Jingtang kept accelerating as he ran across the water, his speed already defying all reason. Even Shang Jianli would probably only manage to keep pace. She could not catch him at all!

"You!"

Dongfang Liren instantly grew angry, convinced that Ye Jingtang was pretending to be a pig to prey on a tiger and making a fool of her.

Yet when she examined his footwork, she found that he really was a half-trained amateur. His running was simply too ugly!

And he could still leave her behind like this?

Dongfang Liren secretly gritted her teeth and accelerated with all her strength. But after chasing him for a long time, she had not closed the distance at all; instead, he kept pulling farther away. Seeing that she could not catch him, she could only call out:

"Stop right there!"

Ye Jingtang had merely been getting accustomed to the rhythm of pushing off the water. Naturally, the more familiar he became with it, the faster he went. Only upon hearing her did he realize something was wrong. He quickly leaped off the river and landed on the bank.

Tap, tap, tap...

Emerald ripples spread across the river. Dressed in her python robe, Dongfang Liren caught up in moments and landed before him, her slender brows raised in anger!

Realizing what the problem was, Ye Jingtang said awkwardly:

"I only just learned this Lightness Skill and couldn't rein in my strength. Please forgive me, Your Highness."

Even Dongfang Liren's plump dragon swelled a little. Still, she was no delicate woman. After giving Ye Jingtang a look, she suppressed her irritation.

"To run this fast when you've only just learned a Lightness Skill, your foundation is indeed exceptional. Keep honing it, and don't pursue speed alone. An expert in Lightness Skills is difficult to spot from a hundred paces away. Running like that, you could flee ten miles and your pursuers would still be able to follow the noise."

Ye Jingtang knew the flaws in his Lightness Skill and nodded.

"Thank you for the guidance. I'll be sure to pay attention to that."

Dongfang Liren had originally wanted to discuss martial arts with Ye Jingtang, but after this ordeal, she felt there was no way to continue the conversation. She caught Niao Niao and turned away.

"What you lack most right now is experience of the wider world. Seek advice from the Black Bureau's experts and me more often. Even with a good foundation, you must take the right path to achieve anything."

Their chase had taken them some four or five li along the river. They were already far from Jade Pool Manor and had reached the vicinity of White Horse Academy on the outskirts of the city. Darkness had fallen as well.

White Horse Academy was one of Yunzhou's four great academies. Wealthy merchants and prominent households liked to make lavish donations to send their children here for a "gilding." Pei Luo, the Pei Family's eldest young master, studied here. According to Chen Biao, it had cost a considerable sum to get him admitted.

The academy stood on the riverbank. Since its students came from all corners of the land, they boarded there, and several small streets lay outside its grounds.

However, the academy's rules were extremely strict. Once darkness fell, students had to return to their rooms to finish their studies and prepare for bed. The shops along the small streets outside had all closed too.

The Lightness Skill contest had nearly left Dongfang Liren questioning her life. With no desire to leap all the way back alongside Ye Jingtang, she placed Niao Niao on her shoulder and walked with her hands behind her back, surveying the silent academy.

"Have you had any schooling?"

"My family ran an escort agency and was fairly well-off. I attended a private school for a few years, though I've never been to an academy this large. I've read some books-pretty much everything available on the market."

"Oh?"

Dongfang Liren had already discovered that Ye Jingtang's talent for martial arts was somewhat terrifying, and his looks were outstanding too. If he excelled in both letters and arms on top of that, he would scarcely be human. She asked:

"How are your literary skills?"

"My handwriting is decent, and I can keep accounts. I don't know the first thing about anything else."

"That's a pity. Martial pursuits flourish in Great Wei, so men with decent fighting skills are everywhere, while scholarly young gentlemen are scarce. If you could compose poetry and prose, a single appearance at a literary gathering or poetry assembly would bring who knows how many families to your door, hoping to claim you as their dragon-riding son-in-law."

"Everyone has their strengths. As for poetry..."

Ye Jingtang had intended to casually show off a little, but before he could recall anything, his ears twitched slightly. He turned his gaze toward the pitch-dark street...