Xiao Chen Comprehended Sword Intent, Tenfold Reward
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye...
Two and a half months had passed since Xiao Chen began cultivating under Chu Feng.
It was late at night.
Beneath the waterfall.
Xiao Chen held a longsword and continued swinging it without pause.
At that moment, his entire being was immersed in a profound and mysterious sensation.
Clang!
A sword rang out!
Xiao Chen swung the sword in his hand, and the waterfall before him was instantly cleaved in two.
A terrifying surge of Sword Intent struck the rock face.
"I did it!"
"I finally comprehended Sword Intent!"
Splash!
Before Xiao Chen had finished shouting, the waterfall came crashing down from the mountaintop again, washing him into the pool.
Pfft...
Xiao Chen spat out the water in his throat, shook the water from his body, and hurried up the mountain.
He had comprehended Sword Intent, which meant he could continue cultivating.
Now Xiao Chen could hardly wait to tell his master the good news.
In the Miscellaneous Dao Institute, inside a brightly lit bedroom in the head's courtyard.
Chu Feng reclined on his side on a couch, engrossed in a book. In the firelight, the two large characters for Spring and Autumn could still be clearly seen on its pages.
"Ding! The host's eldest disciple has comprehended Sword Intent and reached Sword Intent Initial Mastery. The host receives a tenfold reward-Sword Intent Great Perfection!"
As the voice rang out, a figure suddenly appeared in Chu Feng's mind.
The figure casually swung a sword toward the sky.
Clang!
A terrifying surge of Sword Intent swept through the entire space in an instant.
Bang!
Hearing that familiar mechanical voice, Chu Feng sprang straight off the couch.
"That kid Xiao Chen comprehended Sword Intent so quickly? Is this the charm of a child of fortune? Love it, love it."
If I take on a few more disciples like him, won't I soon be invincible under heaven?
At the thought, Chu Feng jumped up and down with excitement.
It's time to teach Xiao Chen Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin tomorrow.
I wonder when that kid will comprehend Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin?
The next day, Chu Feng did something unprecedented: he got up early and sat in meditation in the courtyard.
He closed his eyes and quietly waited for Xiao Chen to arrive.
When the sun was high in the sky, Xiao Chen arrived in the courtyard.
"This disciple greets Master."
Chu Feng slowly opened his eyes. "No need for formalities. Judging by the look of you, you must have reached Sword Intent Initial Mastery."
Xiao Chen said excitedly, "Master has a keen eye. This disciple did indeed comprehend Sword Intent last night."
Chu Feng said, "Not bad. You were a few days faster than I expected, but only a few days. Comprehending Sword Intent is merely the first step on the path of the sword."
If anyone else had said that, Xiao Chen would certainly have scoffed at them.
Among the hundreds of outer court disciples in the Dao Inquiry School, not one had managed to comprehend Sword Intent.
Didn't that mean none of them had even touched the threshold of the sword path?
But as Xiao Chen saw it, his master was telling him not to grow arrogant or impatient.
"Master is absolutely right. This disciple will certainly cultivate diligently."
Chu Feng was very pleased with Xiao Chen's response. He took a book from his robes and placed it on the table.
"Now you are qualified to cultivate Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin, the sword technique I painstakingly researched. As long as you can learn it, defeating a mere Qin Rou will be no problem at all."
"Thank you for bestowing this technique, Master."
Xiao Chen respectfully accepted the book containing Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin.
He asked curiously, "Master, are there any secrets to cultivating this sword technique?"
"I've written everything in the book. Take it back and study it yourself."
Chu Feng spoke with a solemn expression.
I've never cultivated Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin, so how would I know how to cultivate it? I've only watched someone else cultivate it.
"This disciple will not disappoint Master's expectations."
With that, Xiao Chen left, his face full of excitement.
Chu Feng watched Xiao Chen's departing figure and thought, I wonder what kind of surprise you'll bring me this time, kid.
Xiao Chen returned to his courtyard brimming with confidence and eagerly opened the peerless manual.
A few lines of small characters soon caught his eye.
Ten thousand streams of Qi arise of themselves, the sword surges through the ruined acupoints; martial arts return to the origin, the school reaches far and its achievements is enduring.
Cultivation formula: Qi leaves the wrist meridian and reverses toward Taichong; heaven and earth turn upside down, transforming softness into hardness.
Hiss...
After reading those lines, Xiao Chen instinctively drew a sharp breath.
Master tailored a cultivation technique especially for me.
Even though the Dao Inquiry School was one of the finest cultivation holy lands on the Profound Heaven Continent, it had no cultivation technique that someone who had lost all their cultivation could use.
Yet his master happened to have one, and it was a technique exclusively for sword cultivators.
He continued turning the pages. Apart from a few blank sheets, all he saw were basic sword techniques that even ordinary sword cultivators could practice.
This technique seems a little too slapdash!
Smack!
Xiao Chen tapped himself on the head with the book and muttered, "How could I question Master? There's absolutely nothing wrong with the technique Master gave me."
And so Xiao Chen began cultivating Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin according to the instructions in the manual.
Meanwhile, the Miscellaneous Dao Institute received a visitor.
"Elder Qin, what wind blew you here?"
Chu Feng was taken aback when he saw who had arrived, then spoke with a smile.
The old man before him had graying hair and a graying beard, and an immortal air about him. He was the Dao Inquiry School's elder in charge of internal affairs, overseeing all its internal matters, and his status was much the same as Chu Feng's as institute head.
Elder Qin stroked his beard and said, "Little Feng, I came this time to talk to you about the Dao Inquiry School's outer sect competition in three months."
??
Chu Feng looked at Elder Qin in confusion and asked, "Hasn't our Miscellaneous Dao Institute always stayed out of both the inner and outer sect competitions?"
"Sigh..."
Elder Qin let out a long sigh. "That was indeed the case before, but now the heads of the various institutes say that if the Miscellaneous Dao Institute wants resources, it must take part in the competition. Resources will be allocated according to the results.
"If your Miscellaneous Dao Institute's disciples can't even get past the first round, all resources allocated to your Dao Inquiry School will be cut off.
"Even the servants who usually clean the Dao Inquiry School will be recalled."
Damn!
Chu Feng blurted out instinctively, "Aren't they obviously targeting my Miscellaneous Dao Institute?"
Fortunately, he had been quick to act and had taken Xiao Chen, that child of destiny, as his disciple first.
Otherwise, he wouldn't even have been able to support himself.
"You're right, but all the institute heads made this decision together. Although the school master wanted to preserve the tradition, even he was powerless to do anything. I'm afraid you'll have to bear the hardship, lad."
As Elder Qin finished speaking, a trace of regret showed in his eyes.
Little Feng hadn't been at the Dao Inquiry School for long, but he was upright, respected his teachers, and honored the Dao. He could be called a good child.
Yet he was being targeted like this just because he had taken pity on Xiao Chen and offended the people of the Heavenly Spirit Institute. Even Elder Qin could hardly bear to watch.
Chu Feng smiled. "Thank you for coming in person to tell me, Elder Qin. I'll have Little Chen take part in the outer court competition when the time comes."
"How can you still smile, lad? Don't you know someone is deliberately targeting you?"
Seeing that Chu Feng was still so optimistic at a time like this, Elder Qin couldn't help reminding him.
Chu Feng said unconcernedly, "It's already happened. Being pessimistic won't solve anything. The only thing I can do is face it positively."
"Sigh..."
Elder Qin said irritably, "I really don't know what to do with you, lad. If you truly can't make ends meet, come find me at the Internal Affairs Hall. I'll help you through the hard times."
Hearing that, Chu Feng couldn't help feeling warmth in his heart. "Thank you for your kindness, Elder Qin."
"All right, I'll be going back now. Save up more money while you can."
With that, Elder Qin turned and left...