Chapter 30

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Chapter 30: Why Practice Swordsmanship

“Nebula Sword Art?” Qin Chu Yi, after understanding Ming He’s intention, did not refuse. She took the jade slip, focused her mind for a moment, and then returned it to Ming He. “I have never practiced this sword art before; today is my first encounter with it. In terms of talent for swordsmanship, you far surpass me.”

The Woman in White spoke gently, her meaning clear. She did not refuse Ming He’s request for guidance, but she couldn’t offer any insight either.

However, if Qin Chu Yi couldn’t provide her with any ideas or pointers, why did the Sect Master suggest she come to seek her advice?

“The swordsmanship she practices is different from ours.” Ming He thought about the complexity and subtlety in the Sect Master’s expression and couldn’t hide her confusion, which was clearly displayed on her face.

Qin Chu Yi glanced at her and, as if thinking of something, her eyes sparkled with a hint of amusement. “Did the Sect Master send you here?”

Though she asked Ming He, her tone was full of certainty. “Actually, I can still offer you some help.”

Ming He: “……” I don’t quite understand what you mean.

“Ha!” Qin Chu Yi couldn’t help but laugh at her somewhat dazed expression. After her laughter subsided, she replaced it with a serious and stern demeanor. Her voice was sharp, striking at the soul. “Ming He, why do you practice swordsmanship?”

Why do I practice swordsmanship?

This was the first time Ming He had ever been asked this question. Her fingers, hidden beneath her flowing sleeves, instinctively moved, but she remained silent.

She didn’t know.

She practiced swordsmanship simply because the original host did. For her, the sword was just a tool to help her grow stronger. As long as she could defeat others, it didn’t matter what she used.

A sword is fine, a knife is fine; anything will do.

This was her most genuine thought, but looking at the earnest expression of the Woman in White, she instinctively knew that her ideas were profoundly wrong in the cultivation world—a grave misunderstanding.

This was because cultivation emphasizes enlightenment, and every action has its causes and effects.

“I don’t know,” Ming He said, meeting Qin Chu Yi’s cold, clear gaze with her own honesty. She truly didn’t know—not at this moment.

“It’s okay not to know.” Qin Chu Yi showed no surprise on her face. “One day, when you do know, I believe you will travel further and faster along the path of swordsmanship.

You are only at the Spirit Guiding Sixth Level right now, and you still have plenty of time to find a reason—a reason you must pursue swordsmanship.”

“One day, when you truly find that reason, everything you don’t understand now will be easily resolved, like breaking through clouds to see the light. I’m really looking forward to that day.” A ray of light hid in Qin Chu Yi’s gaze, and she truly did look forward to it.

When that day arrives, what changes would the world undergo when she finds the meaning behind wielding a sword?

A reason that demands swordsmanship?

Ming He’s eyes narrowed, seeming thoughtful. “Since Sister Qin is asking me why I practice swordsmanship, then what about you, Sister?”

“What is your reason for practicing swordsmanship?” she asked, fixing her gaze on Qin Chu Yi, who appeared momentarily stunned.

“Reason for practicing swordsmanship?” Qin Chu Yi repeated uncertainly, a thought flashing through her mind that caused her expression to shift. She turned her body away, concealing her face. “I practice swordsmanship for killing.”

“I wish to wield my sword on the battlefield of the heavens, to slay all foreign tribes and their leaders.” When Qin Chu Yi turned back to face Ming He, her expression had become calm, her beautiful face embodying a fierce murderous intent and unwavering determination.

Ming He stared at her. Qin Chu Yi was exceedingly beautiful, her features striking and her eyes radiant, but as she spoke of wanting to eradicate foreign tribes, her demeanor impressed Ming He far beyond her appearance. “Is that so?”

If that’s the case, then who is the person from the original storyline who insisted on marrying Su Cheng Feng, resisted her family’s engagement, and was imprisoned for over twenty years?

Ming He mumbled to herself, realizing for the first time that the original plot might not be completely accurate. The storyline is dead, but the Qin Chu Yi before her, alive and speaking of slaying foreign tribes, was very much real.

“I don’t know what this reason means in relation to swordsmanship itself, but this is the true answer in my heart. I wield my sword because lives await me to harvest.” Qin Chu Yi repeated, her gaze deep and heavy, holding a weight Ming He could not comprehend.

“Enough of this,” Qin Chu Yi set aside that topic and continued, “As for the Nebula Sword Art, I can’t give you much guidance. However, since you, Junior Sister Ming He, have come to ask me personally, I can’t let you leave empty-handed.”

This must also be the Sect Master’s scheme, that old fox.

“Our clan’s sword art secrets cannot be revealed,” Qin Chu Yi said. “Ming He, I will teach you a sword technique called the Unsheathing Style.” She drew a long white sword from her sleeve, holding it in her hand. The sword was entirely white, resembling the one Ming He carried, but its grade and sharpness were incomparable.

At that moment, the sword rested in Qin Chu Yi’s slender hand. Even sheathed, it exuded wisps of sword energy, its hidden edge undiminished, suggesting it was an extraordinary blade.

“Watch closely,” Qin Chu Yi said softly, standing upright before Ming He. In the next instant, she suddenly unsheathed the sword without a sound, the blade arriving before her.

She pointed the sword forward, her eyes carrying a chilling coldness, the sword tip reflecting a glimmer of icy light. Ming He stood by her side as an observer, her heart shocked in that moment.

“Whoosh—”

A leaf from the nearby pine tree fell and spun around, abruptly breaking into several scattered pieces on the ground at a certain distance, lifted by the wind to dance in the air. Under the agitation of the sword energy, the pieces continued to shatter into smaller fragments, disappearing one after another.

If an enemy stood where her sword pointed, as long as the gap in cultivation wasn’t insurmountable, they would surely shatter like the leaves of the pine tree and vanish from this world.

Unsheathing Style.

Ming He silently repeated those three words, slowly closing her eyes and replaying the feeling from that instant in her mind, a shiver running down her spine as if being targeted by a terrifying ancient beast.

Unsheathing, gathering momentum.

Extreme, sudden.

Her grip tightened on the white long sword, and as she opened her eyes, a flash of fighting spirit appeared within them, carrying a momentum that sought to clear all obstacles in her path, like a trapped beast sensing dawn in the darkness, bursting forth in an instant, slicing through the dark to unleash the dawn, and beyond that, an endless daylight.

“Clang—”

The clear sound of the sword unsheathing accompanied the summer cicadas. The sword energy surged through the small courtyard, clashing and resonating. The nearby pine tree was unexpectedly severed, swaying as it fell to the ground, branches and leaves scattered everywhere.

Ming He opened her eyes, her sword tip pointed ahead. In that brief moment, it felt as though she had understood something, and her gaze brightened, revealing the elegant grace of a sword cultivator.

Flickering Light.

The sword danced out of its sheath, scattered starlight filling the sky. It was not solely a brightness in the darkness but a sword that illuminated all of heaven and earth.

“This sword is quite impressive,” Qin Chu Yi interrupted Ming He’s contemplation, her tone filled with unhidden admiration.

After just one demonstration, Ming He managed to replicate it perfectly, showcasing considerable power. Qin Chu Yi faintly saw in her a resemblance to her father’s description of ancient sword cultivators. “But it’s still not enough.”

“The Unsheathing Style comes from a certain secret realm. It is said to be the sword technique that ancient sword cultivators practiced first,” Qin Chu Yi explained simply, then took out a broken stone page carved from rock, showing it to her. The worn page was old and creased, looking quite similar to the jade slip of Flickering Light that Ming He had obtained.

Ancient sword cultivators.

Ming He had seen the records about ancient cultivators in the library, knowing that during ancient times, cultivation techniques were still in their infancy. At that time, spiritual energy was rich, and natural treasures were abundant, but techniques were not yet given much importance, thus there were no jade slips.

She received the broken page from Qin Chu Yi’s hand and lowered her head to examine it. The page featured three carvings: the first depicted a cultivator standing upright, holding the sword with their right hand, their expression nothing like the cold determination Qin Chu Yi displayed when unsheathing her sword.

On the contrary, the person wore a calm expression, betraying no inner emotions. If it weren’t for the second carving showing him pointing the sword forward with a surge of murderous intent, no one would suspect that this calm cultivator would suddenly unsheathe his sword in the next moment.

Did he attack when the enemy was unprepared?

Ming He quietly speculated as she turned her gaze to the third carving.

The third carving showed a cultivator seemingly similar to the first, standing straight as they returned the sword to its sheath, their expression still calm, as if it were a mirror of the first image.

However… the aura surrounding them and their expression… Ming He’s gaze shifted back to the first carving, her heart suddenly enlightened. One depicted the sword waiting to be drawn, poised and ready, while the other embodied the serenity of withdrawal after success, waiting peacefully for the next move.

“Sister Qin, are you giving me this broken page?” Ming He asked softly, clutching the fragile paper and looking up at her.

“Yes,” Qin Chu Yi nodded. “When I wield this technique, it has the power just as you saw, but my understanding ends here. You, however, are different.”

“Perhaps this broken page will be more suitable in your hands.” Qin Chu Yi’s gaze was calm as she looked at the fallen pine tree beside the courtyard.

“Well then, I sincerely thank you, Sister Qin.” Ming He bowed politely, straightening her back and maintaining a serious demeanor.

“No need for such formality. I should be thanking you,” Qin Chu Yi turned her head, looking somewhat shy. She had never expressed gratitude to anyone before; it seemed that Ming He was the first.

“Hmm.” Ming He smiled gently, standing straight and noticing a hint of rosy tint on Qin Chu Yi’s otherwise flawless face, but she said nothing.

Outside the courtyard, the green pines swayed gently under the clear blue sky and white clouds, the scenery exceptionally beautiful.

Inside the Chang Ming courtyard.

The sword energy surged through the courtyard, the sound of the sword ringing endlessly. The girl in blue clothes danced with her sword amid the not-so-large space, the once sharply-edged large stone being gradually smoothed by the whirlwind of sword energy, shiny and simple, reflecting glimmering waves of light under the sun.

Ming He gripped the white long sword, her movements seamless as she transitioned from the Unsheathing Style to Liu Yun Sword Art, then to Flickering Light in one flowing motion, finally finishing with the Nebula Sword Art.

That day, she did not leave empty-handed from Qin Chu Yi. Besides the Unsheathing Style, the Flickering Light sword technique, she also gained a moment of clarity and shock.

The first move of the Nebula Sword Art, Liu Yun.

Ming He shook the sword tip again, recalling the life-and-death moments from the outer sect grand competition, and the few words described in the jade slip came to her mind, her gaze distant and breath steady.

“Clang—”

The clear resonant sound shattered the silence in the courtyard. Ming He tightened her grip on the sword, exuding sword intent against the vast blue sky and white clouds, suddenly swirling the clouds as her sword harmonized with the flowing clouds above, as if for a moment, they merged into an extraordinary rhythm. In her eyes, there was only the sword she held.

The second move of the Nebula Sword Art, Lonely Star.

Ming He recalled the descriptions from the jade slip and all her insights and experiences since she had started wielding the sword, reacting instinctively as she swung the sword.

The sky was now clear, the vast blue expanse washed clean, but standing in this courtyard, Ming He felt as if she could see the starry sky emerging after nightfall.

Lonely Star.

As Ming He repeated those two words, she continued to wield her sword and dance, her steps like the wind gliding effortlessly in the small expanse of the courtyard, her blue clothes fluttering. She wielded her sword like a true sword cultivator, dancing tirelessly under the blazing sun and the crescent moon, day and night.

The round stone in the courtyard became gradually smoother under the influence of sword energy, subtly transforming into a beautiful scenery. The sun and moon cycled, and in a moment, two months had passed.

The cave should be opening now.