Ji Yuan's expression remained calm, without a trace of a smile. Maintaining seriousness was the greatest respect he could show the Dragon Daughter. He merely nodded faintly and gave a brief, soft reply.
"Very good! Your abilities have indeed improved considerably."
As Ji Yuan's words fell, he extended his right hand forward. The Green Vine Sword had already spun through an arc of sword light and landed in his hand. The instant he grasped its vine-wrapped hilt, the Sword Qi that had shrouded the blade like dense mist vanished completely, restoring the Immortal Sword's clear and unadorned original appearance.
At the same time as he took hold of the sword, Ji Yuan formed Sword Fingers with his left hand and lightly brushed them across the Green Vine Sword's blade. A reflection like sunlight seemed to move along the blade a half-beat slower than his fingertips. When his fingers slid to the sword tip, his Sword Fingers followed through and pointed down at the ocean. That streak of light descended in the same direction.
The sword light was incredibly swift, reaching the Dragon Daughter in an instant. She flicked her fan, sweeping its face directly across the sword light. Rings of light twisted apart, as though water had met a channel and changed course, while the sound of metal scraping against metal rang out before Ying Ruoli.
"This treasure is so handy!"
The Dragon Daughter praised it, pouring magical power into it. Her peripheral vision swept across the Sword Dance Painting on the fan, and she wielded the fan as though it were a sword. The fan face pressed against the sword light, dissolving it bit by bit, before she swept it skyward in the manner depicted by the embroidered painting upon it.
"Woo—woo—"
Ji Yuan's sword light actually merged into