Chapter 77

Chapter 78: Xu Yan Grasps Swordsmanship, Sword Heart Enlightenment

In the forest, only Xu Yan remained.

He stood in the woods, his gaze sweeping around. Sword marks crisscrossed everywhere, and the trunks of large trees were punctuated with numerous small holes.

Trees that had been neatly cut down lay on the ground, each cut into more than a dozen pieces.

The remnants of sword techniques and moves were still faintly visible.

The more Xu Yan looked, the more he felt a vague understanding, as if a chaotic jumble of sword moves, once demonstrated by his master, surfaced in his mind.

But he had forgotten them.

No!

It wasn't that he had forgotten them, but rather that he had forgotten the sequence of the moves, which ones were used in which instances.

The chaotic sword moves in his mind and the traces around him corroborated each other. Suddenly, one move overlapped with a sword mark on the ground.

"This sword mark was made by this move," Xu Yan murmured to himself.

"Sword Heart Enlightenment begins with a clear and unobstructed heart, free from the constraints of sword techniques and moves, and then comes enlightenment..."

Xu Yan felt he had some insight.

However, the path to Sword Heart Enlightenment was still far away.

At this moment, he felt as if he had returned to the small village, back when he had just started practicing martial arts, everything was unclear, yet he had some understanding.

"Forget the moves, forget the techniques, don't be bound by form... The first step is to have a clear heart, and the first step for me is to completely forget the sword techniques my master demonstrated.

"No! Forgetting is not really forgetting, but forgetting the form, breaking free from the framework of the techniques...

"Then, what I need to do next is to sort out the traces of the sword techniques, recreate them one by one, and then forget the framework, freely selecting moves and techniques, ultimately forming my own sword technique.

"This is the first step. Once I complete this step, I should be close to Sword Heart Enlightenment!"

Xu Yan felt a flash of inspiration, understanding how to gain insight and how to enter the realm of Sword Heart Enlightenment.

He jumped onto a large tree, sat on a branch, and looked down at the sword marks, silently overlapping them with the moves in his mind, verifying them.

"This sword mark covers the previous one, making it almost invisible, how can I verify it...

"Why am I being bound by the techniques and moves again?

"Even though that sword mark is covered, there is still a trace... It must be this move."

It wasn't until it was dark that Xu Yan returned to Yunshan County.

However, his mind was filled with sword moves and techniques.

Li Xuan observed his disciple's return without saying anything, letting him find his own way.

Talking too much would only create interference.

He recalled how Xu Yan had practiced in the small village, and now he was simply retracing the path of understanding.

Li Xuan believed that Xu Yan could gain insight.

The swordsmanship he had created was much more complete than the one he had improvised back then, and he had personally demonstrated the moves to Xu Yan.

"Sword Heart Enlightenment is the foundation of practicing swordsmanship. The starting point of my swordsmanship has raised the requirements for talent.

"Once one enters the path of swordsmanship, the power naturally becomes stronger.

"This is a framework, and any future sword techniques or moves can be fitted into it. When Xu Yan goes to the Inner Domain, whatever sword techniques he learns can be integrated into this framework, making them his own.

"Moreover, it will surpass the original, forming new sword techniques."

Li Xuan thought silently.

He had taught Xu Yan swordsmanship, but Meng Chong, a muscular brute, had no talent for swordsmanship.

Instead, he excelled in saber techniques!

He should also create a complete saber technique to teach Meng Chong.

"Xu Yan remembered my sword techniques after just one look, showing his exceptional memory, which is the foundation of Sword Heart Enlightenment. With this foundation, he should find it easier to gain insight."

Li Xuan was also impressed by Xu Yan's memory.

He remembered after just one look.

The speed at which he demonstrated the moves was not slow at all.

In the following days, Xu Yan spent every day gaining insight into swordsmanship, striving to achieve Sword Heart Enlightenment.

He would go to the forest early in the morning and return only when it was dark.

Meng Chong, spurred on by Xue Wuxin, practiced even harder, accelerating his bone tempering progress.

Shi Er had already completed his skin tempering, and his progress was good.

The state of Qi remained unchanged in Qi Guo.

In the capital, Prince Guo Rongshan was still the foremost among the ministers.

The third prince visited every day to pay respects.

The first prince had already left to seek a master.

The other children of the ministers were also actively seeking masters.

Although the son of the Minister of War and others had turned into dry corpses, and the cause was unknown, Xu Yan had not provided an answer, and no one dared to ask.

They all speculated that they might have encountered an unknown monster, which led to their deaths.

When exploring the Endless Mountains, they became more cautious and did not venture too deep.

The Endless Mountains had countless peaks, and it would take a long time to search each one. Teams of people were traversing the mountains.

But most of them avoided the direction explored by the son of the Minister of War and his group.

It was too dangerous.

A month passed.

Meng Chong's bone tempering was almost complete, about to reach the bottleneck and unable to continue tempering.

Shi Er had completed his skin tempering.

With his top-notch martial arts skills, it took him a long time to complete skin tempering, showing a significant gap in talent compared to Xu Yan and Meng Chong.

Moreover, Li Xuan noticed that after completing skin tempering, the strength of Shi Er's skin and qi was inferior to that of Xu Yan and Meng Chong.

Even though they had all completed skin tempering, there was a noticeable difference in the strength of their skin membranes.

"Skin tempering is also graded, not everyone who completes it is the same."

This was due to the difference in martial arts talent.

After completing skin tempering, Shi Er's strength increased.

Li Xuan then taught him bone tempering techniques.

According to Xu Yan, his father had already started bone tempering, and his mother had just completed skin tempering, showing the gap in martial arts talent and the difference in the benefits of practice.

Pharmacist Pan had also entered the bone tempering stage.

Among the other loyal guards, a small number had entered bone tempering, and some had completed skin tempering.

This was due to Pharmacist Pan's preparation of nourishing medicines to assist in their practice.

As for Guo Rongshan, due to his age and declining qi, he had missed the optimal practice period and could only勉强进入皮肤锻炼阶段，依靠宝药堆砌勉强达到。

Guo Yun Kai, on the other hand, had better talent and had already completed skin tempering, about to start bone tempering.

His two cousins, one had completed skin tempering, and the other had started bone tempering.

"The path to martial arts is still far away, and it will take some time to see any feedback or results," Li Xuan thought.

Some of these people would likely get stuck at the martial arts entry level.

He noticed that the nourishing medicines Pharmacist Pan prepared to assist in practice were very effective.

"Should I try to create some pills? But how do I create them? I don't know anything about it."

Li Xuan fell into deep thought.

"The young girl from the Heavenly Mother Sect is highly skilled in medicine. Perhaps I can learn something from her?"

Li Xuan thought of the current Heavenly Mother of the Heavenly Mother Sect, the young girl.

She had persuaded a wicked person to stop doing evil, which was truly impressive.

Last time, he had Shi Er deliver a message to the young Heavenly Mother to come, but she was still in Wu Guo and had not arrived yet.

"No rush, Meng Chong hasn't reached the entry level yet. I'll wait and see about the third disciple."

Li Xuan put this matter aside for now.

Xu Yan had gone out yesterday and didn't return until late at night, seemingly having made progress and was close to achieving Sword Heart Enlightenment!

He was full of anticipation.

Outside the city of Yunshan County, on a hillside.

Xu Yan sat cross-legged, silently watching the sunset on the horizon.

He no longer looked at the sword marks in the forest but had destroyed all of them.

At this moment, his mind was clear, and the sword moves in his mind were constantly evolving.

He had long forgotten the sword techniques his master had taught him.

Now, a new set of sword techniques was forming in his mind.

His mind became increasingly clear, as if he had already understood all sword techniques and moves.

At a certain moment, a flash of inspiration appeared in his mind.

The evolving sword techniques were complete!

At this moment, he entered a profound state.

His heart was clear and enlightened.

Buzz!

The precious sword on his lap began to vibrate, as if it wanted to leap out of its sheath.

Sword Heart Enlightenment!

Xu Yan had achieved Sword Heart Enlightenment!

At the moment he understood Sword Heart Enlightenment, the door to swordsmanship had opened.

In his mind, he now had a set of sword techniques and the traces of swordsmanship.

He had broken free from the constraints of sword techniques.

Even the Dragon Subduing Palm had gained new insights and improved.

The second level of the Dragon Subduing Palm was now complete!

Xu Yan opened his eyes, pointed at the precious sword on his lap, and it rang out as it was drawn from its sheath.

He gripped the sword and raised it, slashing it out.

The sword light was like a long rainbow, cutting through the air and striking a hundred paces away.

The sword light landed silently.

If one approached, they would see a thin crack extending for dozens of paces, its depth unknown!

"Today, I, Xu Yan, have achieved Sword Heart Enlightenment and entered the realm of swordsmanship. You shall be called the Enlightenment Sword!"

Xu Yan stroked the sword with his index and middle fingers.

Enlightenment Sword!

This was his first sword, a witness to his entry into the realm of swordsmanship!

"I have achieved Sword Heart Enlightenment and entered the realm of swordsmanship. Next, I will reach the peak of qi and blood and break through to the innate realm!"

Xu Yan's face was filled with excitement.

If he had achieved Sword Heart Enlightenment and entered the realm of swordsmanship earlier, how could Xue Wuxin have been his match?

"The Inner Domain!"

Xu Yan looked in the direction of the Endless Mountains.

His heart was surging with excitement. The Inner Domain, the martial arts world of the Inner Domain, had long been his dream.

He had long wanted to explore the martial arts world.

"Wait a bit longer. After reaching the innate realm, I will go to the Inner Domain!"

His parents' strength had not yet improved, and he had not yet broken through to the innate realm.

Therefore, he had to suppress his excitement.

In the small courtyard.

Li Xuan, as usual, sat in a chair, organizing the martial arts he had created.

Especially the subsequent martial arts techniques, how to create and improve them.

He had already determined the realms after the innate realm.

The direction of practice was also set, but the subsequent martial arts realms and practice directions needed to be outlined.

"My martial arts are stronger than those in this world from the beginning, so the subsequent martial arts realms should also become increasingly stronger.

"The realms must connect well. If there are gaps, the theory will not hold, and it will be impossible to gain insight."

After days of repeated thinking and deliberation, Li Xuan had basically sorted out the subsequent practice directions.

However, it still needed to be done step by step.

Only by successfully practicing could he confirm that it was feasible and continue to improve the next realm.

"Meng Chong's bone tempering is complete, but he is stuck at the peak of bone tempering and cannot temper his Vajra Crystal Bone. I should help my second disciple successfully temper his Vajra Crystal Bone."

Li Xuan glanced at Meng Chong, who was still diligently practicing.

Once the Vajra Crystal Bone was formed, he could break through to the qi and blood realm.

After all, his practice involved skin tempering, bone tempering, and organ tempering all at once.

Suddenly, a golden light appeared.

"Your disciple Xu Yan has achieved Sword Heart Enlightenment and entered the realm of swordsmanship. Your Sword Heart Enlightenment is complete, and your swordsmanship is perfected!"

At this moment, Li Xuan felt his heart clear and enlightened, understanding all swords, and the insights into swordsmanship continuously surfaced.

Swordsmanship perfection, but it could only be considered the foundation of swordsmanship!

Li Xuan was overjoyed.

"My disciple has the potential to become a sword god. I did not misjudge him!"

Xu Yan has done well, truly achieving Sword Heart Enlightenment and entering the realm of swordsmanship.

The future improvement of his swordsmanship will depend on him.

However, Li Xuan believed that once Xu Yan went to the Inner Domain, his swordsmanship would improve without worry.

And as his disciple's swordsmanship improved, his own swordsmanship would improve even more!

"The swordsmanship realm after Sword Heart Enlightenment should be passed on to Xu Yan, to help him gain insight into sword intent as soon as possible!"

Li Xuan thought happily.

"Your disciple Xu Yan has completed the second level of the Dragon Subduing Palm, and your Dragon Subduing Palm is now perfected!"

Another achievement.

The second level of the Dragon Subduing Palm is now complete.

Xu Yan's understanding of Sword Heart Enlightenment has also improved, leading to the enhancement of the Dragon Subduing Palm.

This is reasonable.

It shows that Xu Yan's talent and insight have improved with Sword Heart Enlightenment.

Li Xuan raised his finger, and a sword aura appeared.

He pointed, and the sword aura rose into the air, silent and undetectable, even the sharp edge was imperceptible.

In the air, the sword aura crisscrossed.

"The swordsmanship I created is truly powerful."

Li Xuan was excited.

"Is it stronger than the sword techniques in the Inner Domain?"

The strength of the sword techniques in the Inner Domain's martial arts world is unknown.

However, it can be inferred that they are still in the powerful sword technique stage and have not yet reached the level of swordsmanship, naturally not matching the swordsmanship he created.

The sword techniques of Inner Domain martial artists can be seen through by someone with Sword Heart Enlightenment, their flaws and reality can be easily identified, and their moves can be freely adapted.

"With my current strength, I can slay a grandmaster with one sword!"

Li Xuan flicked his finger, and the sword aura in the air disappeared.

His strength had greatly improved, and even Inner Domain grandmasters would not be his match.

Now, everything was stable.

He no longer had to worry about the threat from Inner Domain experts.

"Master, I'm back!"

Xu Yan returned excitedly.

"Good! Good! Good!"

Li Xuan was deeply moved, saying, "My disciple has the potential to become a sword god, and you have not disappointed me!"

Hearing this, Xu Yan's spirit was instantly lifted, as if he had undergone a transformation.

"Master said I have the potential to become a sword god!"

He patted his chest and said, "Master, I will spread your swordsmanship far and wide. I will not let you down and will surely become a sword god!"

"Good! With such ambition, I believe you can achieve it!"

Li Xuan was overjoyed. His disciple would surely become a sword god, and as for himself... the title of the founder of swordsmanship could be claimed in advance!

I want to write more, but I really can't. o(╥﹏╥)o