Chapter 11

According to legend, there is a sword technique that travels through the sky: the Seven Heavens Sword Technique!

When this sword technique first appeared, the strongest sword immortal of the time, Lord Youtu, the former hall master of the Holy Shrine, wielded the Seven Heavens Sword Technique and then disappeared from the world, leaving behind a beautiful tale.

Later generations, after studying the "Seven Heavens Sword Technique," created the "White Cloud Sword Technique."

Of course, it was several levels lower in quality.

This was just an ordinary innate spirit technique!

The "White Cloud Sword Technique" is recorded in the Spirit Treasury of the Tian Sang Spirit Palace, consisting of thirteen moves in total.

At that time, Xu Xiaoshou, who had average talent, exhausted all his knowledge and finally learned the first move, "Gentle White Clouds," within three years.

This was the first and only spirit technique he had mastered in his life...

Well, to be precise, it was one-thirteenth of a move!

When his mind was consumed by darkness and he felt the earth shake, Xu Xiaoshou saw "Zangku" carrying him up to the clouds with a whoosh.

He swung his sword, and the white clouds dispersed and then gathered again.

Eternal and unending, immortal and undying.

In an instant, countless sword techniques flooded his mind, and numerous insights came pouring in.

He recalled every night he woke up in a start and practiced sword techniques in the courtyard.

Thrust, slash, stab, cut...

These were the most basic fundamentals, the blood and sweat, the instinctive moves and techniques that seemed to merge and connect at this moment.

Xu Xiaoshou looked at the white clouds before him and sheathed his sword.

At that moment, a slow-moving sword light appeared in the sky, crisscrossing and seemingly leisurely approaching, but in reality, it arrived in an instant.

The white clouds shattered into fragments, and the sky crumbled into dust.

"Wow!"

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly woke up, breathing heavily. As he moved, his clothes turned into pieces and fell to the ground, just like the clouds in the illusion.

He looked down, and "Zangku" in his hand seemed to be jumping with excitement, emitting a clear sword cry.

So...

"What the hell is going on?"

Xu Xiaoshou was bewildered. He had just inserted the passive key, which disappeared, and then he entered the illusory world of the gentle white clouds, which brought up the most painful moment in his heart.

Practicing for three years, he only mastered one-thirteenth of the White Cloud Sword Technique...

This was an innate sword technique!

How poor must one's talent be to achieve such a difficult feat, could it not be painful?

Xu Xiaoshou calmed down, buried his memories, and quickly looked at the information bar. This must be related to the passive key.

A new line had been updated:

"Obtained Master Passive Skill: Sword Mastery!"

Master type?

Sword Mastery?

Xu Xiaoshou was stunned. Was this the result of "One More Spoon"?

Did I really get a potentially the most powerful passive skill, and one with a special entrance effect?

"Damn!"

Xu Xiaoshou finally couldn't hold back his curse. Was the blessing of the Euro King really true?

"Sword Mastery..."

The name alone sounded impressive, far surpassing those like "Strength" or "Sharpness."

Given the monotony of the passive system's naming, the emergence of a passive skill that surpassed everyday terms was a clear indication of how terrifying "Sword Mastery" was.

Moreover...

Thinking about the white cloud illusion, Xu Xiaoshou was so excited that he trembled.

Could it be that I have already mastered the sword techniques and knowledge in the illusion?

Because it was a passive skill, it appeared silently and subtly, and if Xu Xiaoshou didn't deliberately ponder, he wouldn't have noticed the changes in himself.

He looked at "Zangku" in his hand, which was buzzing.

It was very excited!

Xu Xiaoshou clearly and strongly felt that "Zangku," which was originally a lifeless object, was now extremely excited, even ecstatic!

Should I try it?

This thought flashed through Xu Xiaoshou's mind, and he closed his eyes, recalling the sword technique in the illusion that shattered the white clouds.

His breathing gradually calmed, and he felt himself floating, ascending.

Ethereal, transparent, serene...

What a magical feeling.

In the next moment, Xu Xiaoshou felt himself transform into a cloud, gentle white clouds, vast and picturesque.

As the summer wind blew, the white clouds shattered!

Xu Xiaoshou felt the need to draw his sword.

So he drew his sword, an unconscious stroke, obscure and incomprehensible, yet it instantly traversed the beginning and end.

A gentle sword stroke, a desolate evening breeze, blowing away the fallen leaves.

Sssss!

The scene in the illusion reappeared, countless sword lights gently approaching, but instantly filling the room.

Clearly drawn at an extremely slow speed, they vanished into the sky at an extremely fast speed.

Xu Xiaoshou opened his eyes.

Boom!

The house made of red heartwood shattered into pieces and fell.

Bang bang bang!

He looked up, and the red heartwood fragments rained down, forming a wooden tomb that buried him.

"Damn!"

"What's going on?"

...

In a narrow and cramped room, there was a round wooden table and three men.

Xiao Qixiu sat straight, but the sword on his back was now resting on his knee. He shook his head seriously: "I don't drink!"

"You know that true sword cultivators don't get drunk from alcohol, only from swords. Drinking will only cloud my mind, and in the long run, my sword will lose its precision."

Qiao Qianzhi spat out the wine, spraying it onto the old man's face, causing an awkward moment: "Uh, not on purpose."

He turned to Xiao Qixiu, trying to suppress his laughter: "It's like you can make great progress in sword cultivation without drinking?"

Xiao Qixiu smiled faintly: "I have indeed made progress."

He turned to the old man, who was wiping his face: "Old Sang, are you planning to stay for a long time this time?"

The old man still had a few blades of grass on his head. He glared at Qiao Qianzhi, picked up his wine glass, and drank it in one gulp.

"Stay for a while longer!"

He looked at the empty glass and suddenly said: "You can get drunk from both alcohol and swords!"

Xiao Qixiu was about to object, but the old man continued: "Unfortunately, you can't do it, otherwise, the Eighth Sword Immortal would be yours..."

Qiao Qianzhi couldn't hold back and burst out laughing: "Haha... Haha..."

Xiao Qixiu: "..."

At that moment, the long sword beside his knee buzzed and vibrated violently.

The three men looked at each other, all seeing the surprise in each other's eyes.

Xiao Qixiu grabbed the buzzing sword, listened closely, and immediately saw the scene nearby in his mind.

Tian Sang Spirit Palace, Outer Courtyard.

A gentle evening breeze blew, and a disciple was walking with his sword, contemplating life.

Suddenly, the sword in his arms began to tremble and tried to break free.

He was shocked and quickly pressed down on his sword, only to find that everyone around him, as long as they were sword cultivators, was experiencing the same thing.

"Clang—"

The sound of swords resonated, harmoniously blending together, echoing through half of the Outer Courtyard.

"What's going on?"

All the disciples were dumbfounded.

"Three li sword cry, innate sword intent?" The old man said calmly.

"Um!"

Xiao Qixiu nodded, immediately stood up, and exclaimed:

"Didn't expect another disciple in the Outer Courtyard to cultivate innate sword intent. Adding to the two spirit cultivators and one physical innate cultivator we discovered earlier, the quality of this batch of Outer Courtyard disciples is truly exceptional."

"Physical innate?"

The old man was surprised, putting down his wine glass, seemingly deep in thought.

Then he said: "I remember the last sword intent was Su Qianqian, right?"

"Um, innate sword intent," he added.

Xiao Qixiu, eager but still answering, said:

"Su Qianqian is incomparable. She is a true genius, possessing one of the twenty-one famous swords on the continent, which even I covet."

"Don't pretend, let's go and see!" Elder Qiao also stood up, "You can't hold back any longer, yet you insist on staying here."

Xiao Qixiu awkwardly scratched his head.

The old man smiled: "Go ahead!"

The two rushed out of the door.

"Tsk tsk..."

The old man remained calm, as if the innate sword intent was not enough to arouse his interest.

He finished the remaining wine in the flask, picked up the straw hat behind him, put it on, took the cane from behind the door, and slowly left.

After a long while, he returned, closed the door, and left again.