Chapter 33

* * *

“Do you dislike Ye Yun, Daoist Priest?”

Danmubi, who had been throwing a tantrum, could not resist the soothing touch of her sister and fell asleep as if collapsing.

Lian wanted to do the same when she brought Huayun to the meditation chamber, but Huayun's aloof attitude made her give up and ask another question.

Huayun flinched slightly and shrugged.

“What if my sister casually accepts him as a brother?”

“He is a disciple of True Man Tai Xu. How could I do that? And Ye Yun, Daoist Priest, is two years older than me. He is four years older than you.”

“Oh, that's right...”

“Is that right?”

“No, I don't dislike him, so don't worry.”

“But why do you avoid eye contact and act so coldly?”

“...I don't just act that way with them. This is the first time we've had visitors here, except for the people from the merchant caravan.”

“Are you just shy about meeting people? There will be more visitors in the future.”

Huayun, who was trying to think of a response, finally nodded with a look of resignation.

Before Lian could say anything, she quickly added,

“That doesn't mean I need other friends.”

“Friends... Oh.”

Lian had been about to say that, so she closed her mouth slightly.

“Still, wouldn't it be nice to have some friends? Aren't you bored?”

“I'm never bored with my sister and Bia. I have to memorize characters, Bai Lian has to cook, and I have to stop my sister from playing with the Daoist at night.”

“You're really busy...”

“Exactly.”

* * *

Lian took a deep breath and raised her fan.

At first, she was overjoyed to have a sparring partner, but the thought of facing Ye Yun in the afternoon made her uneasy.

‘I can't lose to the Jin Family, and I can't lose to Kunlun either.’

Of course, the degree of affection is different, but Kunlun is not a family.

Even if they were family, the eldest grandson shouldn't lose easily, let alone to someone of the same generation.

Thanks to this, she had read all the Kunlun-related books in the estate since dawn.

‘I was trying to prepare for the Jin Family, but this is what happened.’

Although she felt the roles were reversed, she couldn't stop.

And for the first time, she decided to engage in a sword discussion (論劍) as the fan suggested.

[Initiating sword discussion. Are you ready?]

‘Ready? Do I need to prepare? I've studied a bit...’

[Please focus your attention.]

Lian thought for a moment and then sat cross-legged.

[Please focus your attention.]

‘What do you mean?’

Should I close my eyes? Then I can't see the fan. Lian glared at the fan, took a deep breath, and closed her eyes tightly.

[You can enhance the effect of the sword discussion by using a mental technique that helps you focus.]

Then, in the darkened field of vision, pale blue characters appeared. Lian opened her eyes in surprise and quickly closed them again.

‘A mental technique to help focus? Is it different from the cultivation method for building inner strength?’

[The Danyue Mansion has the Yu Cheng Huan Jue.]

‘I haven't learned that, so let's start with the sword discussion for now.’

[Initiating sword discussion.]

At the same time, the characters disappeared, and a crude figure drawn with a brush appeared. One resembled Lian, and the other resembled Ye Yun.

‘Wait, it's almost like a simulation?’

[How will you move?]

But there was no time to be amazed. Lian quickly focused.

‘I'll take the initiative? First... with the first move of the Twelve Falling Stars Sword...’

As soon as she thought this, the small Lian picked up a sword and moved. At the same time, the small Ye Yun also began to move.

[Blocking the sword with a variation of the first move of the Tai Qing Sword and obstructing the view with the left hand]

‘Third move of the Twelve Falling Stars Sword to gain distance, then the fourth move to thrust.’

[Jumping and dodging the thrust with the first move of the Yun Long Eight Styles, then striking down with the eighth move of the Tai Qing Sword]

‘Ah, again, again. Thrusting with the fourth move while maintaining distance to prepare for the Yun Long Eight Styles and disrupting the landing.’

Although Lian had her eyes closed, if she had opened them, they would have been sparkling. It was unexpectedly fun to see the ink drawings move as she thought. Lian became more and more engrossed in the sword discussion.

[Jumping and then... with the second move of the Yun Long Eight Styles...]

* * *

“Did you stay up all night? Your eyes are red.”

“It’s... I was so focused on studying for the sparring session that it turned out this way.”

When she first tried the sword discussion, her mind was buzzing. While real combat won't be exactly the same, it's not like practicing alone is the same as sparring with someone.

‘If it's already this good, how much better would it be with the Yu Cheng Huan Jue?’

It's been acknowledged that using a mental technique like the Yu Cheng Huan Jue to conduct a sword discussion is more effective.

There was no one to ask for guidance at dawn, so Lian took Zheng Ying to the estate's library.

Since mental techniques that help focus don't have a clear effect, they weren't very popular. It took a while to find the book in the estate's library.

‘It was lucky we could go into the inner library.’

It wasn't the deepest part, which only the head of the family and their successor could enter, but Zheng Ying had the right to enter the next level.

When she saw this, Zheng Ying looked somewhat embarrassed.

Thanks to this, they managed to find the book with the Yu Cheng Huan Jue's incantation after searching the library together.

After learning it with Zheng Ying, Lian spent the whole night conducting the sword discussion while using the Yu Cheng Huan Jue. She felt she could win perfectly if she just did a little more, so she kept going until dawn.

In the half-awake, half-asleep state, her luck value increased by 1.

Previously, Lian had taught Zheng Ying about footwork, and it seemed he had seen immediate results after learning the Yu Cheng Huan Jue.

“What's the point if you lose?”

Huayun glared at Lian. Lian rubbed her tired eyes and looked embarrassed. It felt awkward and shameful, like being caught playing an exciting game all night.

Lian thought for a moment and slowly tried to use the Yu Cheng Huan Jue to gather her spirit.

‘This power that has only been destructive to my body...’

Thanks to practicing the Yu Cheng Huan Jue all night, she felt inspired and believed she could use her spirit in a positive way.

As the spirit's threads aligned, her spirit flowed clearly into her. The spirit retreated from the injured areas and gently filled the tired and deficient parts.

‘It works! It really works!’

Using a bit of spirit, her tired body relaxed. She felt as refreshed as if she had had a good night's sleep. The problem of having too much spirit couldn't be solved, but...

“Just wait and see. You'll see how well I do.”

Lian, who had quickly become confident, said this, and Huayun narrowed her eyes but didn't say anything more.

Meanwhile, Wei Zhiqing, who looked very worried, approached and firmly held Lian's hands.

“Don't worry, Mother! I've prepared well.”

“Winning and losing is a common occurrence, but if you get hurt...”

Wei Zhiqing swallowed her moist voice. It would be embarrassing for a martial family to worry and cry over the eldest grandson getting hurt.

“I won't get hurt. So, after the sparring session, will you play Go with me?”

“Of course, I'll play whenever you want.”

Before giving birth to Lian, Wei Zhiqing had always been frail, and her only hobby was playing Go.

Unable to properly cultivate martial arts or participate in battles, she had a rather aggressive style of play, contrary to her refined appearance.

Recently, she had been enjoying playing a few moves with her daughter, which had brought her joy.

“Then I'll be back!”

* * *

“Ye Yun. You must not use your inner strength, understand?”

“Yes, Daoist Priest.”

Ye Yun, who couldn't call True Man Tai Xu his master, nodded.

“Are you ready?”

Lian nodded at the hand on her shoulder from her grandfather.

“Don’t feel pressured. Approach it as if you are learning slowly.”

“Yes, Grandfather!”

Lian stood in front of Ye Yun, holding a practice wooden sword. Ye Yun also looked slightly tense.

“Then I'll go first!”

With Lian's determined shout, Ye Yun nodded.

Lian's foot moved smoothly. Even without using inner strength, the elders of the estate would have been impressed by her posture, as if taken from a sword manual.

As Lian's wooden sword smoothly traced its path, Ye Yun's hand moved.

Clack!

The wooden swords collided, making a sharp sound and vibrating the hands that held them. At the same time, Ye Yun's sleeve flapped roughly.

Thud!

Ye Yun lightly moved his feet and leaped off the ground.

Rustle!

‘He's better than I thought.’

It was a movement she had seen many times in the sword discussion.

Clang!

Lian deflected Ye Yun's wooden sword, which came down from above.

Due to this, Ye Yun, who couldn't maintain perfect balance in the air, wobbled as he tried to land. At that moment, Lian's wooden sword swiftly aimed for his ankle.

Clack! Thud!

Ye Yun barely moved his wooden sword to block it and used the force to spin his body once.

Lian deftly deflected the sword that came flying from the expected direction and tilted her head in thought.

‘It seems Ye Yun, Daoist Priest, can't fully control his inner strength.’