Chapter 19: Patrol I

It was night. Lin Hui stood alone in the center of the inner room, which was the private room he was allocated after becoming a formal disciple.

The room was large enough for him to practice his sword without worrying about insufficient space.

Lin Hui held the black sword given by Mingde, his attention fully focused on the blood-red text in his field of vision.

As he concentrated, the information related to the Seven-Section Quick Sword quickly appeared.

‘Seven-Section Quick Sword: Clear Wind Taoist Temple fundamental training method, basic sword style. Prerequisite for Nine-Section Quick Sword. Evolvable Branches: 2.’

‘Current Status: Perfected.’

‘After Body Tempering reaches a certain stage with the Perfected realm, the special effect Light Body can be activated. The special effect is currently activatable.’

“Light Body… I thought this special effect was gone, but it seems it’s still here.”

Lin Hui took a breath and mentally confirmed the activation of the special effect.

Hiss.

In an instant, he felt his entire body lighten. It wasn’t the illusion brought by Body Tempering, but his body genuinely felt much lighter.

He raised his sword and executed the Nine-Section Quick Sword.

A crashing sound of the sword slicing through the air suddenly erupted. His current sword speed was more than double his normal state!

The sword’s shadow was almost completely invisible. Although his sword shadow was already hard to see due to Body Tempering, one could still discern him within the blur.

But at this moment, the shadow had completely merged into a curtain, wrapping him tightly.

He had never seen such an exaggerated speed, even during the disciple competition before.

Although speed doesn’t equate to absolute strength, high speed inevitably implies great power.

Lin Hui carefully recalled the formal disciples’ previous sparring matches. Apart from the movement speed increase from Body Tempering, they didn’t seem to have any explosive special effects.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to hide it so well before.

He estimated that when using the Light Body special effect, his speed could only be matched by the Senior Brother or Senior Sister when they were fully engaging their sword style for offense.

“What a powerful effect.”

Of course, if he were to fight the Senior Brother in a real duel, with his messy Nine-Section Quick Sword and lack of mastery over the Clear Wind Sword Style, he would definitely lose.

But this speed alone was enough to dominate seventy to eighty percent of the formal disciples.

However, after a short while, Lin Hui suddenly felt his heart rate increase and his mind grow weary.

‘It seems the consumption of the special effect is quite high. I can’t keep it activated constantly. I can only use it at critical moments.’

‘The physical limit dictates that the special effect cannot be kept on for long. I still need to learn the Clear Wind Sword Style as quickly as possible. The Nine-Section Quick Sword is the offensive killing technique of the Seven-Section Quick Sword, while the Clear Wind Sword Style is another complete set of sword arts that includes both Body Tempering and offense. The Body Tempering effect is an advanced version of the Seven-Section Quick Sword.’

Lin Hui confirmed his goal and continued to immerse himself in Body Tempering cultivation, concentrating fully.

Inside the room, the light was faint yellow, and the shadow of his sword movements flickered rapidly under the lamp.

Outside, in the gray mist, thin, strange shadows quietly crawled like snakes, emitting faint hissing sounds.

Before long, Lin Hui completed his ten rounds of Body Tempering, quickly regulated his breath, extinguished the lamp, and lay down to rest.

He glanced outside the window, seeing the long, slender snake shadows reflected by the faint moonlight on the windowsill, climbing the outside wall like huge vines.

The only thing blocking all of this was the small, purplish-black stone block hanging on the wall inside the room. That was the jade talisman sought from the Inner City Rain Palace Cult.

Merely this small object could block the strange and bizarre Mist Zone Monsters outside.

Lin Hui did not understand. Looking at the small jade talisman, he always felt a strange sense of unease.

‘What if, one day, the jade talisman suddenly fails?’ This thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

This was not the first time such a thought had occurred, but there was no helping it. Aside from the jade talisman, there was no other way for a living person to survive in the mist at night.

At least, he hadn’t heard of anyone who could.

Hoo.

With a soft sigh, Lin Hui forced himself to close his eyes and rest.

---

The next day.

He packed his luggage and continued practicing the sword after breakfast. The newly learned Nine-Section Quick Sword still required extensive time to familiarize himself with.

This style of movement was completely different from the Seven-Section Quick Sword—one could say it was the opposite style.

If the Seven-Section Quick Sword was akin to compressing a spring, the Nine-Section Quick Sword was the violent release of that compressed spring.

The intensity of that momentary burst was closely related to the mastery of the Seven-Section Quick Sword.

Lin Hui performed the Body Tempering exercises over and over. By the morning, he had completed his ten rounds of Body Tempering and his Nine-Section Quick Sword practice for the day. After eating lunch, he continued to practice the Nine-Section Quick Sword, but after only the third round, several people gathered to observe him.

The observers appeared to be a small group of three. The leader was none other than Chen Chong, who had previously clashed with Chen Zhishen.

He and his two followers watched Lin Hui practice, their eyes flickering, their intentions unknown.

Swish.

Lin Hui abruptly withdrew his sword and looked toward the three of them.

“Senior Brothers, is there something I can help you with?”

“Nothing in particular. We just came to see how the newly promoted Junior Brother is worthy of being selected for the patrol team like me. After all, the entire front courtyard only needs five people,” Chen Chong smiled, his attitude mocking.

“I apologize if I disappoint you, Senior Brother. I was selected through True Man Mingde‘s connections, not by my own skill,” Lin Hui answered sincerely.

Cough.

Chen Chong was taken aback by his blunt honesty. For a moment, he stared at Lin Hui, unsure how to respond.

He had originally intended to mock the other party’s weakness as a connection-based hire. But the opponent stated right to his face: I got in through connections, I’m very weak, please bear with me, Senior Brother.

This left him helpless.

“I’ve met thick-skinned people, but never one as uniquely wonderful as Junior Brother,” Chen Chong said, feeling he might have previously underestimated Lin Hui, his voice now full of exasperation.

“Is there anything else you wanted to say, Senior Brother?” Lin Hui said flatly.

“Well…” Chen Chong was about to speak again, but Daoist Mingde began clapping his hands not far away, signaling everyone to gather.

“Those who are setting off tomorrow, come over and prepare. The team should familiarize themselves with each other first,” Daoist Mingde had a Taoist child cordon off a specific area as the meeting point for the team.

Before long, all five people—Senior Brother Chen Sui, the two geniuses Huang Shan and Qiu Yiren, and the two connection-based hires Chen Chong and Lin Hui—quickly gathered in front of Daoist Mingde.

“I called you all here so you can gauge each other’s general strength, allowing you to allocate tasks and respond appropriately at critical moments, maximizing the team’s power,” Mingde said.

“You mean sparring, right? That’s simple,” Chen Chong said directly. It wasn’t his first time participating in such a lucrative assignment, so he was experienced.

“Since the last patrol, we have three newcomers: Huang Shan, Qiu Yiren, and Lin Hui. Therefore, the main subjects of the inspection this time are the three of you. Chen Chong, you will be the tester. Your strength is just right,” Mingde said plainly.

Chen Chong nodded, drew his sword, and walked to the open ground.

He had been at the Clear Wind Taoist Temple for five years. His current strength ranked thirteenth in the front courtyard, placing him perfectly as a standard reference against the three newcomers.

“I’m ready. Who wants to go first?” Chen Chong‘s gaze swept over the three of them, then quickly landed on Huang Shan.

He had been watching this girl intently, wanting her but unable to get her, and had even been warned by Mingde because of her. Now, during the assessment, his eyes kept sweeping over Huang Shan‘s shapely backside, and his heart began to itch again.

“You asked for it!” Huang Shan was disgusted by his repulsive gaze and instantly drew her sword, walking out to face him.

Both pointed their wooden swords diagonally at the ground. Their eyes met, and they quickly entered a focused state.

An inexplicable aura of confrontation intertwined between the two.

“Begin!” Mingde gave the command.

Swish! Two sounds of the air being sliced erupted simultaneously.

Both had completed Body Tempering and both used the Nine-Section Quick Sword. Now, fighting quickly against quick, the two wooden swords collided instantly, letting out a crisp sound.

Boom!

The two crossed paths, then quickly stomped their feet to pivot, executing a diagonal slash backward.

This was Gazing at the Moon While Looking Back, a killing move from the Nine-Section Quick Sword.

It was perfect for sneak attacks after an inconclusive clash, but since both had the same idea, the two swords collided again, making another crisp sound.

The second clash was clearly stronger on Chen Chong‘s part. His strength overpowered Huang Shan, who had just recently completed Body Tempering, easily pushing her back.

But Huang Shan was truly a genius. Her comprehension and application of the sword style were clearly superior to Chen Chong‘s.

She leveraged the push, retreating, shifting her body, and her wooden sword snaked around like a viper, swiftly striking toward Chen Chong‘s waist from the side.

This sudden move forced Chen Chong, who was preparing to press his advantage, into a clumsy defense. He had intended to attack, but now, with his waist unguarded, he could only hurriedly change his stance to block the wooden sword.

The two traded blows, shifting between offense and defense. They exchanged over ten moves in a matter of seconds, their speed incredibly swift.

Lin Hui stood on the side, watching the match with Qiu Yiren and Chen Sui.

“Junior Brother Chen‘s thirteenth rank won’t be safe for long. Junior Sister Huang has improved significantly since the last time,” Chen Sui said calmly. He was the strongest among all the disciples, the person closest to the power of the Ming Generation Masters.

He had long since perfected the Clear Wind Sword Style and had begun pursuing the realm of swordsmanship beyond mere stances. His perspective was naturally on a different level than that of the ordinary disciples.

To be precise, the top three ranked disciples—himself, Second Senior Brother Zhao Jiangan, and Third Senior Sister (also the Senior Sister) Mu Qiaozhi—had formed a complete chasm between themselves and all the other front courtyard disciples.

The three of them were already on the path of pursuing the realm of the Clear Wind Sword Style, rather than simply mastering the stances.

Even with Body Tempering, their Clear Wind Sword Style Body Tempering had reached the physical limit their bodies could withstand. After all, the three of them had been at the Clear Wind Taoist Temple for many years and possessed exceptional talent. Their practice time was simply incomparable to the others.

“Senior Brother, do you think Junior Sister Huang will win?” Lin Hui asked softly.

“It depends on her execution. Junior Brother Chen has greater strength. Junior Sister Huang, while ranked higher with superior speed and comprehension, is less stable in her execution. Their momentum is roughly equal; the gap is minimal,” Chen Sui commented.

Just then, the two on the field had clashed over a hundred times. Chen Chong was noticeably running low on stamina, while Huang Shan remained agile.

In the moment that Chen Chong took a step and his wooden sword movement slowed down slightly, Huang Shan seized the instant vulnerability, thrust her sword forward, and forcefully struck Chen Chong‘s left shoulder.

Puff!

Chen Chong fell backward with a cry of pain.

“That’s enough! Huang Shan wins. I’ve roughly gauged your skill level. Chen Chong still hasn’t improved, same old self. Huang Shan‘s improvement is significant, well done,” Mingde said calmly, his gaze shifting to Qiu Yiren and Lin Hui on the side.

“The two of you are up.”

Lin Hui and Qiu Yiren stepped forward, cupping their hands in a salute toward each other, their wooden swords in hand.

This was Lin Hui‘s first formal combat with someone. He was somewhat nervous. However, recalling that his Nine-Section Quick Sword was a mess and he had only practiced it for a few days, he relaxed slowly, figuring a bad performance was expected anyway.

He looked at Qiu Yiren opposite him and noticed she was also a bit nervous.

“Begin!” Mingde commanded.

The two simultaneously thrust their swords toward the opponent’s torso. This was the Thousand Mountain Stab (Qian Shan Ci) from the Nine-Section Quick Sword.

Though the stance was the same, Lin Hui‘s thrust was noticeably off the trajectory of the sword style, not standard at all.

This caused him to be unstable upon initiating the move. Qiu Yiren changed her stance, executed a downward chop, and easily struck his hand, causing it to tremble and almost drop his wooden sword.

In a matter of seconds, the two exchanged blows, their wooden swords clanging repeatedly. Lin Hui was quickly suppressed and continuously forced to retreat.

Suddenly.

Whoosh! The wooden sword in his hand was cleanly knocked away, flying out and hitting the crowd of front courtyard disciples watching the match, where someone caught it mid-air.

“Junior Brother Lin, your sword.” The person laughed lightly and casually tossed it back to Lin Hui.

Lin Hui quickly caught it, his face flushed. He offered a bitter smile and clasped his hands in salute to the person, then saluted Qiu Yiren.

“Thank you for showing mercy, Junior Sister.” He had entered the temple before her, so calling her Junior Sister was normal.

“Your Nine-Section Quick Sword is completely unpracticed…” Qiu Yiren looked somewhat helpless, unsure what to say.

(End of Chapter)