Chapter 6

A hoarse and aged voice echoed from upstairs, stopping the gray-robed steward in his tracks.

"Head of the Hall, Wang!"

On the rooftop stood a stern-faced old man in black, his gaze severe, exuding an overwhelming presence.

"Pay respects to the Head of the Hall, Sir!"

The other outer disciples in the Hall of Affairs, upon seeing the old man, changed their expressions slightly and knelt down to pay their respects.

This old man was the Head of the Hall of Affairs, with his cultivation reaching the ninth level of Martial Dao.

The tenth level of Martial Dao had three major thresholds, each step bringing one closer to the limits of the physical body, making it increasingly difficult to break through.

Within the entire Green Cloud Sect, apart from the Sect Master, there were very few who had reached the ninth level of Martial Dao. Even in the entire Tianshui Kingdom, Head of the Hall Wang was considered one of the few formidable experts, with formidable strength.

On a regular basis, this old man would oversee the Hall of Affairs and rarely intervene in specific matters.

"Steward Yang, I know what happened. You did nothing wrong, but since he has passed your test, don't make things difficult for him. As an apology, you are responsible for providing him with the sect's clothing, entry-level cultivation techniques, and weapons."

"Yes, yes, yes, the Head of the Hall is right, I will certainly follow your instructions."

The old man nodded slightly at this, glanced at Lin Yun, and then turned to leave.

The gray-robed steward heaved a huge sigh of relief, grateful that the Head of the Hall did not punish him, considering today to be a stroke of luck.

However, the thought of having to personally provide clothing and select cultivation techniques and weapons for this sword slave made him somewhat displeased.

"Follow me."

He said this without much enthusiasm, and Steward Yang led Lin Yun to the second floor.

As Lin Yun disappeared on the second floor, the Green Cloud Sect disciples in the hall all thought that Lin Yun had truly had good luck.

If it weren't for the appearance of Head of the Hall Wang, Lin Yun would have certainly suffered more today.

As for the fallen Zhou Ping, he could only consider himself unlucky, and no one cared about him anymore.

The second floor of the Hall of Affairs was a crucial area of the sect.

Most of the cultivation techniques and martial arts collected by the entire Green Cloud Sect were stored here. New outer disciples had one free opportunity to choose cultivation techniques and martial arts, and after that, they would need to make contributions to exchange for them.

"Let's choose a cultivation technique first. Once you reach the third level of Martial Dao, you can cultivate inner strength. This is where the inner strength cultivation techniques are placed."

Steward Yang led Lin Yun to a row of bookshelves, pointed, and did not wish to say more.

Lin Yun did not act formally, came to the bookshelf, and quickly flipped through the cultivation techniques.

"Green Cloud Technique, Wind and Thunder Strength, Green Water Technique..."

Seeing the speed at which Lin Yun flipped through the books, a mocking smile appeared on the corner of Steward Yang's mouth. A sword slave is a sword slave, flipping through so quickly, he probably wouldn't understand a single one.

If he had a bit of discernment, he would know to ask me for guidance on how to choose.

"Steward Yang, I choose this one."

"Pure Yang Technique."

Steward Yang took it and looked at it, his expression becoming strange, inwardly sneering.

Those who cultivate the Pure Yang Technique have heavy and fierce inner strength, but this technique is slow to cultivate, and most who choose it within the sect eventually give up.

"Are you sure?"

"I am sure."

The gray-robed steward smiled and said, "You have good discernment, this technique is quite suitable for you."

Lin Yun read the expressions and knew that the gray-robed steward was smiling with hidden malice, not having good intentions.

However, in just a moment, he had already read through the summaries of all the cultivation techniques on the bookshelf.

Every word was imprinted in his mind.

After careful consideration, he chose the Pure Yang Technique. The first ten levels of Martial Dao are all about refining the physical body. The heavy and fierce inner strength of the Pure Yang Technique is undoubtedly the most suitable.

For the next martial art selection, the martial arts, like cultivation techniques, are divided into basic, intermediate, and advanced levels.

Lin Yun chose an intermediate sword technique, the Flowing Wind Sword Technique, known for its great destructive power and agility.

"Don't blame me for not warning you, the Flowing Wind Sword Technique has high requirements for comprehension. Many inner disciples find it difficult to master."

Steward Yang saw Lin Yun choose another "wrong" technique.

He thought to himself, since it was a task assigned by the Head of the Hall, he should give some guidance to avoid leaving any handles.

"No problem, thank you for the warning, Steward Yang."

"Ungrateful!"

Steward Yang's face darkened, he muttered under his breath, and ignored Lin Yun.

In the Hall of Affairs' weapon pavilion.

Since the martial art chosen was a sword technique, the weapon naturally had to be a sword. Steward Yang did not give him a choice and casually handed him one.

Lin Yun drew the sword and examined it, finding the three-foot blade satisfactory.

This sword was forged from green steel through hundreds of temperings, the standard sword for sect disciples. Lin Yun had seen many of them when he was a sword slave.

Judging by the patterns on the blade, it should be of a high quality among green steel swords.

Snap!

Without warning, the blade suddenly broke and fell to the ground with a clatter.

The long sword in his hand was now only half left.

"What's going on?"

Steward Yang stepped forward, took the blade, and examined it for a long time, unable to understand, cursing, "Change to another one. The person in charge of purchasing green steel swords for the sect is passing off inferior ones as good ones again."

Snap! Snap! Snap!

After changing three more, each one broke without warning. Steward Yang looked Lin Yun up and down, "You, the sword slave, aren't causing trouble, are you?"

Lin Yun's sword-nurturing technique was somewhat famous within the Green Cloud Sect.

The continuous breaking of four green steel swords made Steward Yang somewhat suspicious.

Lin Yun was also puzzled and said, "I don't have that ability, and I wouldn't cause trouble. How about, Steward, let me choose myself?"

"Nice try, just wait!"

Steward Yang glared at Lin Yun, rummaged through the pile of broken swords in the corner of the weapon pavilion, and his eyes lit up.

He pulled out a rusty, dusty old sword and handed it to Lin Yun without hesitation.

Before Lin Yun could draw the sword, he forcibly pushed him out, "Go back and test the sword, don't mess around here. If you break it again, I won't have any swords left for you."

After breaking four swords in a row, Lin Yun felt a bit embarrassed and had to give up.

As they were parting, Steward Yang looked at Lin Yun and said, "Are you sure you won't change the Flowing Wind Sword Technique?"

"Not changing?"

"Ha, you have spirit. The comprehension required for this technique is far beyond what a sword slave can imagine. If you don't change it now, and come begging me to change it later, I won't do it for you!"

"Goodbye."

Steward Yang, who was bothered by Lin Yun's persistence, sneered inwardly, there will be a time when you'll beg me!

Two hours later.

In front of Lin Yun's small wooden house, he changed into the sect's uniform. Wearing a white robe inside and a blue long robe outside, his handsome face looked much more spirited.

On the empty ground in front of the wooden house, the sound of the sword whistled as Lin Yun wielded it, his movements flowing like clouds and water, graceful and free.

If Steward Yang were here, he would have been shocked and disbelieving.

The Flowing Wind Sword Technique, which ordinary people could not master in half a month, was effortlessly wielded by Lin Yun, as if it were second nature.

"It doesn't seem that difficult."

In just two hours, Lin Yun had grasped the basics of the Flowing Wind Sword Technique.

In addition to the basic sword techniques, the Flowing Wind Sword Technique had three major killing moves: Gathering Sword into Wind, Reflecting Light and Flowing Shadow, and Wind Passing Without a Trace.

The sword technique was still far from being perfected, but it wouldn't take long.

Examining the sword, Lin Yun was thoughtful. This was the old sword that Steward Yang had given him.

The sword was two fingers wide, three feet and three inches long, and the blade was dull. The body of the sword was dark green, looking old and worn, with no luster.

Tapping it lightly, the heavy sword did not produce a clear metallic sound.

Lin Yun deduced that this sword was likely made from a metal tree, directly polished.

In addition to metal, which can be forged into a sword, animal bones, mountain rocks, and metal trees can also be made into swords, though they are relatively rare.

Metal tree is not a formal name, but refers to some sharp grasses and trees that can match the hardness of metal.

When Old Hong was teaching him the sword-nurturing technique, he gave him a book of the Hundred Flowers Sword Spectrum, which recorded many famous swords in the world.

Among them were some rare treasures, made from natural grasses and trees.

Many grasses and trees can be made into swords, the most famous being the ancient Jianmu.

The origin of this sword in his hand was unclear.

However, its dull color and lack of spiritual energy suggested that it was likely a broken sword, no matter how prestigious its origin.

Grasses and trees made into swords value the natural Dao aura and spiritual energy. Without special care, over time, the spiritual energy dissipates, and the Dao aura fades, making it inferior to ordinary swords.

But Lin Yun was still happy. At least this sword didn't break.

With proper care, it would suffice.

Sheathing the sword, Lin Yun took out the Pure Yang Technique, somewhat eagerly, "It's time to cultivate inner strength."

Without cultivating inner strength, there would be no way out. The third level of Martial Dao is when one truly becomes a martial artist.

Sitting cross-legged, he closed his eyes.

Sensing the inner strength within his body, Lin Yun carefully circulated it using the Pure Yang Technique.

At first, he was not proficient.

The energy in his body moved erratically, hard to control, like a slippery eel.

By the time he mastered it, it was already dark.

Under the starry sky, Lin Yun's anticipation reached its peak, finally able to successfully circulate the Pure Yang Technique.

His mind sank, the Pure Yang Technique circulated, and Lin Yun entered a mysterious state.

As the inner strength flowed within his body, he could actually see his internal organs, a wondrous experience.

Internal vision!

After reaching the third level of Martial Dao and cultivating a technique, one can internally visualize the body's organs, thus truly embarking on the path of a martial artist.

However, Lin Yun, immersed in the cultivation of the technique, did not notice.

In the mysterious space above his dantian, an ancient broken sword existed alone, its hilt wrapped in nine chains extending into the darkness.

As he circulated the Pure Yang Technique, a bit of spiritual light fell on the broken sword, causing ripples.

With the falling of the spiritual light, the ends of the chains stirred in the darkness.

It was strange and mysterious.