Chapter 33

Reincarnated as the Sword Emperor in the Sword Clan (33)

After returning from the "Swamp of Bone Piles," Leonard did not go out for several days and began to seclude himself for training.

"Seniors, I want to take a break for about a month."

He declared that he would also take a break from the sword sparring with the trio and dedicated himself to refining the new abilities he had acquired.

The integration of the core, which was akin to a privilege of this lineage, and the physical and internal strength that far surpassed the third level of the External Force Stage were things he had never achieved in his previous life. He needed to harmonize these as well.

If an ordinary apprentice knight suddenly gained this level of power, it would take at least half a year to be able to handle it with his own senses.

However, Leonard, whose mind was already in the realm of the Harmonization Stage, only took about two weeks.

"... If we consider physical ability alone, it must be more than five times that of Yan Wuhe. Isn't this a bit too much?"

Leonard muttered, amazed.

It couldn't be helped.

Even in his previous life, he had never neglected external cultivation, and his body was several times stronger than those who only cultivated internal strength.

Only a divine monk who had achieved indestructibility through the Muscle Tendon Changing Classic, or a fist king like Huang Baozhong, who had spent decades refining his external skills to the point of breaking qi with a punch, could surpass him.

Yet, this body's abilities were overwhelmingly superior.

Crunch.

When he gripped the cave wall with his fingers, the rock crumbled like sand on a beach, turning to powder.

Even without proper training in claw or finger techniques, this strength could tear flesh and shatter bones.

Direct striking techniques like fist and leg techniques were even more formidable.

'Thinking about it, I should also practice close combat techniques.'

It would be a waste not to properly utilize such a strong body. Inserting a couple of techniques between sword strikes could crush the opponent's body in various places.

Leonard reviewed the martial arts in his mind.

And soon, he made a decision.

'I should start with Xingyiquan.'

Yan Wuhe also used this fist technique as a foundation, refining other martial arts to suit his body.

It was because Xingyiquan had excellent compatibility with the "Yi Yuan Wu Xing Gong."

Xingyiquan starts by learning the basic stance, San Ti Shi, and then progresses to the Five Elements Fist. After mastering the five techniques—Beng Quan, Pi Quan, Zhan Quan, Pao Quan, and Heng Quan—it culminates in the Five Elements Continuous Fist, which combines all the techniques.

The next level, the Twelve Forms Fist, is merely an extension of the Five Elements Fist, so there's no point in learning it.

Boom.

As Leonard took a step and punched, the ground trembled, and the air in front of his fist exploded.

It was the straight punch of Wood, Beng Quan.

Bang!

At the same time, he stepped back, blocked, and struck, sending a wave of pressure that hit the wall.

This was the Fire punch, Pao Quan, which combines blocking and striking.

Starting with these two movements, Leonard's body began to flow through a series of concise techniques. Xingyiquan, one of the three internal fist techniques alongside Tai Chi and Bagua, is known for its simplicity and directness.

While other martial arts are like intricate dances with complex routines, Xingyiquan is the opposite, consisting of short and direct movements.

'Remember, it was quite challenging even when I first started. It brings back memories.'

Generally, martial arts are practiced from large to small movements. As movements become smaller, the subtle control of force becomes more important, and beginners often struggle to manage their center of gravity.

One of the profound results of this principle is the Immovable Wisdom King Step, a technique from Shaolin.

However, Xingyiquan skips this process entirely.

'Since the movements, breathing, and consciousness must be synchronized from the start, most people can't even learn it.'

Yan Wuhe spent several months focusing solely on this before returning to sword practice. Once you understand it, the path is smooth, but the initial step is extremely difficult, leading most to give up.

Before long, the individual techniques of Xingyiquan naturally connected into the Five Elements Continuous Fist.

This was evidence of his enlightenment, even after experiencing life and death.

'My body is stronger and more flexible than in my previous life, so the number and combinations of techniques have significantly increased.'

The same applied to the Twelve Forms Fist.

The techniques were refined by practitioners of Xingyiquan to be useful in real combat, for the benefit of those who had not yet experienced it.

If one could freely combine and modify techniques, anyone could create the Twelve Forms Fist.

"Huff."

With a final step, he planted his foot deeply and exhaled the remaining heat from his body.

Despite the short and simple movements, Leonard was already drenched in sweat after several minutes of continuous motion. It was a mysterious phenomenon.

His physical endurance had greatly improved with the breakthrough of the External Force Stage, yet he was still this tired.

'If I limit my internal strength and fight only with fist techniques, even my past self would find it difficult to defeat me.'

The completion of "Yi Yuan Wu Xing Gong" was higher in this life, and his physical abilities were more than five times stronger.

The only aspect where he lagged behind his past self was internal strength.

However, Leonard was confident that even with equal or superior internal strength, he could not defeat Yan Wuhe.

If martial arts were determined solely by the amount of internal strength and physical ability, the top martial artists of each generation would naturally come from Shaolin.

"Still far from the unity of essence, energy, and spirit..."

Leonard stood there, examining himself.

Essence (精) - Physical body.

Energy (氣) - Internal strength.

Spirit (神) - Mind.

Since he had inherited Yan Wuhe's mind, only his spirit was powerful, while his essence and energy lagged behind.

However, his physical body was already stronger than in his previous life, yet it still couldn't match the power of his mind. The reason was simple.

'Who would have thought that breaking through the External Force Stage would further strengthen my mind. Well, there's no need to rush.'

The mind is harder to develop than the physical body and internal strength. If his mind, which had already reached the Harmonization Stage, became even stronger, it would be useful when advancing to the next stage.

Leonard, who had no intention of stopping at the Transcendence Stage, placed value on this possibility, even if the unity of essence, energy, and spirit was delayed.

His knowledge of Yan Wuhe's memories only extended to the Fire Stage.

'The Reality Stage, Life and Death Stage, or even the Divine Transformation Stage, I must approach them with the mindset of starting from scratch.'

Even the top martial artist, the Demon of Heaven Dan Muzhen, was only at the Reality Stage.

Compared to the high-level experts of the Life and Death Stage and the Divine Transformation Stage, he was still far behind.

There was still a long way to go, and more power was always better.

Rushing to complete it would be counterproductive; he needed to build from the ground up, as the Demon of Heaven had said about using a sword too hastily.

"Hmm."

At that moment, Leonard's eyebrows twitched as he sensed someone approaching his residence.

It had been two weeks since he last met the trio.

'I should go out.'

Leonard quickly pressed various acupoints on his body to limit his internal strength and close the open meridians.

It felt like being submerged in water after flying through the sky, but he couldn't be discovered now.

"Ah! It's Leonard!"

As soon as he opened the door, the apprentice knights, who hadn't seen him for two weeks, ran over in excitement.

Leonard's eyes widened slightly at the sight of them.

The flow of qi emanating from their bodies was intense. Since they hadn't learned internal strength techniques, there was only one conclusion.

"Seniors, did you break through?"

The trio looked at each other in surprise before speaking.

"What? Who told you?"

"We were going to surprise you!"

"How did you know?"

An apprentice knight at the third level of the External Force Stage in their fourth year was considered a valuable talent in the Cardenas family.

For a first-year to instantly discern this was quite remarkable.

"The atmosphere was different. I also broke through a few stages in the Body Strengthening Stage, so my mana increased. That's how I knew."

The trio, now smiling, immediately asked.

Iain was the most enthusiastic.

"Oh! What level?"

"Level 8."

"Fast! It's an unbelievable speed, even for a Pentacore. Is it true that with enough spirit stones, the aftereffects and stabilization period are less?"

This was something Leonard had realized when he first broke through the Body Strengthening Stage, but it seemed to be common knowledge.

Pentacores are rare, and few people break through quickly, so it didn't receive much attention. In the martial arts world, top-tier techniques are studied by many, but third-tier techniques are often ignored.

This didn't negatively affect Leonard.

'Telling them about the levels of mana cultivation a bit earlier should be fine.'

If a significant change occurs in a well-known field, everyone will pay attention, but if it happens in an unknown field, people will be puzzled.

Single cores, though few in number, are highly valued and studied, but Pentacores are the opposite.

After considering this, Leonard spoke.

"Then, how about a sparring session to celebrate our breakthroughs? It will be fun after so long."

Hayden, Iain, and Gale, who had been looking forward to this for two weeks, smiled but soon frowned.

They remembered something they had forgotten.

"Ugh, I really appreciate the offer, but not today."

"Why?"

"We have night training scheduled. We need to gather at the assembly point in an hour, receive training, and enter the inner area with the seniors. If we're late, we'll get a beating from Banneret."

Gale echoed Hayden's words.

"Apprentice knights don't go out at night and avoid difficult or troublesome areas, so Banneret is angry. He says there's no point in coming to the hardest area if we do this."

"That's true."

"So, starting tonight, we'll enter the inner area with the seniors."

Leonard nodded in agreement.

If they only faced familiar monsters in comfortable areas, the advantages of the Cardenas family's intangible sword technique would be lost, leading to a bias in their development.

The Order of the Dragon Knights, led by Sir Bradley, planned to correct this with night training.

'Excellent. Leading by example is not an easy virtue.'

Night training is more burdensome for the intermediate knights and the Order of the Dragon Knights, who supervise the apprentice knights.

Monsters are often nocturnal, and their behavior is adapted to the night, making night battles several times more unpredictable.

Despite this, the determination to raise the next generation led them to endure this hardship, truly befitting members of a prestigious family.

"Am I not going?"

Leonard asked, but the trio laughed, knowing what he would say.

"Would we take a kid who's only at the eighth level of the Body Strengthening Stage? Sir Bradley is a human, despite his appearance."

"We also have to endure night training. You should rest well."

"Once I have some free time, I'll ask for a sparring session."

Hayden, who seemed to agree with the idea of avoiding night training, took out his spatial bag.

"By the way, Leonard, you said your sword broke last time?"

"Ah, yes."

"We bought a few for you as spares. The quality is decent, and you shouldn't have trouble with the monsters in your area."

When he took out the swords from Hayden's bag, there were exactly five, perfect for Leonard, who was preparing to practice the "Yi Yuan Wu Xing Jian Jue."

The trio, leaving Leonard with wide eyes, turned to leave, saying they had to hurry.

Iain, representing the group, said goodbye.

"Then we're off. Take care!"

"Senior Iain!"

"What is it?"

Without stopping, Iain turned back, and Leonard asked, raising his voice.

"Where are you going for the night training?"

"The Swamp of Bone Piles! The territory disputes have brought in all kinds of monsters from different areas! We're cleaning up the mess while training!"

"Understood. Be careful!"

"Sure thing!"

The trio quickly disappeared into the forest.

'Night training...'

Leonard, who had stored the five swords in his spatial bag, looked towards the inner part of the island.

It seemed that the balance of the food chain had been disrupted by the disappearance of the red troll and the defeated Lycanslof, two Demon Stage monsters.

The apprentice knights and the Order of the Dragon Knights would focus on stabilizing this area, reducing attention to other regions.

'If I go to the opposite side of the Swamp of Bone Piles...'

Even if he used his full strength, it was unlikely that his presence would be detected.

His eyes lit up as he realized this.

It was a good opportunity to test the power of the third level of the External Force Stage.