Chapter 2

Standing quietly in the cold wind for a while, Tanggu finally came to his senses when he heard the faint sound of footsteps behind him. Shaking his head, he no longer dwelled on it, picked up the bag of miscellaneous items, and quickly headed out of town along the main gate of the martial academy.

A moment later, after emptying the bag, Tanggu did not return the same way but instead took a secluded path. This path, known only to him, could shorten the return journey by two or three tenths, but it was rugged and inconvenient to carry things on.

So he always went out on the main road and returned on the small path. No one knew that beside this desolate path was actually a strange grove of purple bamboo. The purple bamboo whistled in the wind, producing a peculiar sound.

In the bamboo grove, at this time every day, a girl in white practiced her swordsmanship. Tanggu did not know her background, only that her sword technique was very peculiar, swift and elusive like a ghost, yet agile and swift like the wind, smooth and fluid, very similar to the legendary second-grade low-level sword technique of the martial academy, "Drifting Sword."

Each time he watched her practice, Tanggu felt as if he were standing in a storm, initially unaware of it, but after several such experiences, he began to have a vague sense of stepping into the threshold of swordsmanship. For someone who knew nothing about martial cultivation, such a miracle was astonishing.

So he never told anyone this secret and, to avoid disturbing the girl's practice, he never dared to step into the purple bamboo grove, fearing that once he startled her, he would never have such an opportunity again.

Since a year ago, Tanggu had been carrying the bag of miscellaneous items along the main road to the outskirts of town every day. When he returned empty-handed, he would avoid others and take the secluded path to watch the girl in white practice her swordsmanship.

One practice, one watch, one departure, one return, often took an entire hour. Over time, a tacit understanding formed between them. Tanggu did not disturb the girl in the purple bamboo grove, and the girl treated Tanggu outside the grove as if he did not exist. After each practice, she would always pick up her long green steel sword and leap away from the other side of the grove, disappearing without a trace.

No one knew where she went. Tanggu never dared to inquire about this secret, fearing it might be just a dream, a fantasy he had conjured up.

Watching the girl in white practice her swordsmanship in the bamboo grove every day had become one of his essential routines. If he missed a day, he always felt something was missing. This had become his habit.

Sure enough...

On this day, when he took the path to the purple bamboo grove again, he saw the tall, slender, cold, and beautiful figure of the girl in white.

However, when he looked closely, he was surprised to see that the girl had changed her sword technique. The previous techniques were swift as the wind and fierce as lightning, but now, she was practicing a sword technique he had never seen before.

This sword technique was incredibly heavy, as if a thousand pounds were dragging the tip of the sword, and it paused at various points. Only when a breeze blew through the bamboo grove did the sword light bloom again, like a lotus flower opening layer by layer.

Tanggu counted carefully and found that from start to finish, this sword technique had nine pauses, meaning the lotus bloomed nine times, and there were nine peculiar nodes in the technique.

Tanggu understood that these must be the key points of the technique, but even if he watched the entire technique, without the mental method, it would be useless.

Moreover, it was clear that the girl in white was also new to this technique, very unskilled, and had to rest for half an hour after practicing for three to five moments. The sword moves were no longer as agile and smooth as before, and there was no longer the previous elegance and grace.

At this point, although it was strange, Tanggu stopped thinking about the girl's sword technique and focused on her footwork. Despite the unskilled sword moves, her footwork was still as agile as before, moving with the wind, invisible and intangible, shifting positions as if she were floating in the air, her figure appearing everywhere in the bamboo grove.

However, although her footwork was smooth, the sword technique was not, and after a while, the girl's footwork became disordered. She angrily threw her long sword and stood still for a long time before suddenly moving again.

This time, it was the familiar "Drifting Sword." Her figure was agile, and her footwork remained unchanged, but the long sword in her hand began to move in unpredictable ways, sometimes straight, sometimes curved, sometimes hard, sometimes soft, sometimes forward, sometimes backward, sometimes advancing, sometimes retreating.

In the ethereal and graceful movements, a "hissing" sound like a snake's tongue flickering and the moon rising filled the air, showcasing the ancient and elegant nature of the technique. The entire sword technique was like a fresh rain in a quiet mountain, graceful and beautiful, transcending the mundane world. The cold light of the sword cut through the bamboo leaves, turning them to dust.

She stood in the morning light, her long hair flowing like a waterfall, her white clothes like snow, her entire figure bathed in a faint golden glow, like a goddess descended from the heavens, or a fairy about to ride the wind away.

Was she a fox? A demon?

Tanggu was momentarily entranced, feeling that the girl's mysterious and elusive footwork, combined with this technique very similar to "Drifting Sword," complemented each other perfectly, making her sword technique as flawless and fluid as before.

After practicing for a while, the girl in white finally sheathed her sword, a hint of disappointment on her face. Clearly, she was dissatisfied that her footwork could not match the new sword technique, and she had to continue practicing "Drifting Sword."

However, she did not know the shock in Tanggu's heart. The legendary "Drifting Sword," as the name suggests, had unpredictable and elusive moves, making it very difficult to master. Once mastered, however, it was nearly impossible for anyone to predict the direction of the sword unless their strength was far superior.

Tanggu had seen this technique many times, but this time, the girl's performance gave him a new and fresh feeling. Despite it being the same technique, Tanggu had a sense of "perfection."

In martial cultivation, besides one's own cultivation, the body techniques, tactics, martial skills, and spiritual techniques one practices are all key to determining victory. Each of these techniques is divided into several minor realms based on the level of cultivation.

There are six minor realms in total: rudimentary, entry, profound, thorough, transformation, and perfection.

Although he had never seen the real "Drifting Sword," he had heard about this legendary technique many times. It was a famous technique in the entire "Martial Academy," and he was well aware of its characteristics and style.

This technique was not an outer court martial skill but one of the six treasures in the "Inner Court Arsenal."

"Drifting Sword," "Soft Sword," "Fog Sword," "Gentle Breeze Flowing Sword," "Six Great Brightness Sword," and "Rushing Wind Heavy Sword."

In martial cultivation, the rudimentary realm indicates only a superficial understanding; the entry realm indicates a basic grasp of the essence; the profound realm indicates some achievement. The thorough realm indicates complete mastery of the technique. Beyond this, it becomes very difficult.

The thorough realm is a turning point. The transformation and perfection realms are highly advanced, almost unimaginable, and very few people can reach them. Even among the mentors in the "Martial Academy," few can achieve these realms.

To cultivate a martial technique to these realms requires a lot of time, absolute talent, and unwavering perseverance. Even in larger places like the Green Dragon City or the Empty Wheel Snow Region, people at these realms are rare, as reaching this level is extremely difficult.

Without a stroke of luck, it can only be achieved through time and practice, but whether one can succeed is uncertain. If two disciples of the same cultivation and rank can reach these realms, they will far surpass their peers. Fighting ten at once would not be a joke.

"Drifting Sword," "Soft Sword," "Fog Sword," "Gentle Breeze Flowing Sword," "Six Great Brightness Sword," and "Rushing Wind Heavy Sword" are all high-level sword techniques of the second grade or higher. These six techniques are far superior to the first-grade high-level fist technique "Seven Steps King Fist" practiced by the outer court disciple Yan Shan.

Therefore, the higher the technique, the more difficult it is to reach the profound, thorough, transformation, and perfection realms, and the more difficult it becomes as one progresses.

Now, Tanggu saw the shadow of the perfection form in the technique the girl in white was practicing. Although he could not confirm if it was the "Drifting Sword" from the inner court arsenal, even a technique similar to "Drifting Sword" was enough to shock him.

Even though he was still a novice in swordsmanship, he had heard enough to understand the difficulty. For the first time, Tanggu became curious about the girl in white's identity. Who was she, and how could she possess such a mysterious and profound sword technique?

Moreover, she was not satisfied and seemed to have another higher-level powerful sword technique. Although she had not mastered it, it did not diminish the technique's mystique.

Was she a ghost, a fox, or a fairy? Tanggu's mind was filled with endless speculation.

At this moment, as if sensing his doubts, the girl in white in the bamboo grove suddenly looked up and glanced in Tanggu's direction. She frowned, and that moment of frowning gave Tanggu a chill as if cold water had been poured over him.

Clearly, she was very unhappy about making a mistake in front of him. However, after looking at Tanggu, she said nothing, picked up her long sword, leaped to the other side of the bamboo grove, and disappeared.

Even as she left, she chose the other side of the grove, clearly not wanting to see Tanggu again.

Realizing this, Tanggu suddenly looked up and was startled to find that he had been standing there for two hours, an hour longer than usual, and the sun was already high in the sky.

"Oh no."

Tanggu was startled and quickly picked up the empty bag, rushing back to the "Martial Academy."

Unbeknownst to him, he was now stepping in a peculiar footwork, like flowing clouds and wind, leaving multiple afterimages. His speed had unconsciously increased, and it vaguely resembled the footwork the girl in white had used while practicing her sword.

...

Second update, please give 1 recommendation and 1 collection.

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