Chapter 40: Chapter 38: A Fulfilling Day, Soaring Progress
As Shi Yun and the others were talking in amazement, the situation on the field changed again.
Yang Chen, having gathered his power to its absolute peak, drew in all the moisture from the air.
The next moment, he poured all his accumulated strength and the ambient moisture into a single, all-out slash at Zhong Ming.
"Dire Shark, Slash!"
BOOM!
With his furious chop, the energy and moisture coalesced into a vicious shark.
The shark now carried an unparalleled force as it bore down on Zhong Ming.
The sight made Zhong Ming’s pupils shrink.
But he showed no fear. Instead, he held his sword with both hands and blocked the charging shark with all his might.
While blocking, Zhong Ming circulated the Flow of Water, trying to divert the shark to one side. At the same time, he retreated swiftly, moving like a current of water.
He was trying to use his retreat to lessen the great shark’s impact.
Unfortunately, everything Zhong Ming did was useless.
Although the raging shark had left Senior Brother Yang Chen’s sword, it acted like a living creature. It could automatically adjust its position, rendering Zhong Ming’s attempts to deflect, retreat, and sidestep completely useless.
No matter how he adjusted, the shark would twist its body to attack Zhong Ming from the most vicious and direct angle.
RUMBLE!
Just like that, the shark slammed into Zhong Ming, sending him flying back more than thirty meters.
The sheer force shattered Zhong Ming’s stance and ultimately struck his body.
HUFF, HUFF, HUFF...
Although the shark’s power had dissipated just before it made contact with his body, the duel, which had lasted over two hours, had left Zhong Ming utterly exhausted.
As the shark vanished, he collapsed to the ground, not even having the strength to move a muscle.
But even then, there was no disappointment on Zhong Ming’s face—only pure joy.
’Sword Qi that leaves the blade acts like a living thing. So that’s another meaning behind the "Living" of the Fourth Realm... What a magnificent Living Sword! What a magnificent concept!’
[You have gained insight into the Longxi Swordsmanship. Cultivation Technique progress
121]
...
Zhong Ming’s reaction—being defeated yet showing no discouragement, even cheering for his opponent’s Swordsmanship—surprised Yang Chen and made him think even more highly of the boy.
’With an attitude like that, even without his extraordinary Talent, he would never be a mediocre person.’
After his moment of reflection, Yang Chen saw that Zhong Ming truly had no strength left to practice and wasn’t just slacking off, so he didn’t push him. "Sparring is over. Take a rest."
He then tossed a jug of wine to Zhong Ming.
"This is Hundred Flowers Brew. It can restore your stamina, physical body, and spirit. The jug is yours; drink as much as you need."
"Uh, I couldn’t possibly. Senior Brother’s guidance has already helped me so much..."
Before Zhong Ming could finish, Yang Chen waved his hand dismissively. "You were so decisive when we were training. Why are you being so hesitant now? I’m telling you to drink, so drink. Your senior brother can still afford a jug of wine."
"..." Since he put it that way, Zhong Ming couldn’t refuse. "Thank you, Senior Brother."
...
While Zhong Ming drank the Hundred Flowers Brew to recover his strength, Yang Chen walked over to Shi Yun and the others.
He had just reached them and hadn’t even spoken when Qi Hong said with a smile, "Yang Chen, how was Zhong Ming’s performance? Did he meet your expectations?"
Yang Chen rolled his eyes at the question. "Do you really think I’m qualified to comment on his Talent?"
Having said that, Yang Chen glanced toward Longxi Peak, a relieved expression appearing on his face.
"I thought that after Senior Brother Xiao passed away, our Longxi Peak would gradually decline. I never expected the heavens to still favor us."
At this, his expression turned solemn again.
He looked his friends straight in the eye and said seriously,
"Junior Brother Zhong Ming’s Talent is immense, but he has yet to mature and needs our guidance more than ever. From now on, I want you all to give it your absolute best when you teach him. Don’t hold anything back!"
Shi Yun and Lin Shuyu were immediately displeased by his words.
Lin Shuyu: "Yang Chen, what kind of person do you take me for?"
Shi Yun: "As if you even needed to say that."
Even Qi Hong had something to say. "If I really intended to hold back, I wouldn’t have called you all over in the first place."
...
Qi Hong and the others had already decided to pull out all the stops and teach Zhong Ming their most prized techniques.
They were doing this not only because they saw Longxi Peak as their home and didn’t want to see it fall, but more importantly, because they had witnessed Zhong Ming’s Talent and believed in his future.
"When one person achieves the Dao, even their chickens and dogs ascend to heaven." In the Cultivation Realm, this wasn’t a joke; it was the honest truth.
As long as Zhong Ming became powerful, they, as his early investors, would benefit endlessly.
The bare minimum return would be Longxi Peak’s ranking rising in the Seven Peaks Grand Competition, which would lead to more sect resources being allocated to them and better benefits for everyone.
A higher-tier return would be Zhong Ming fully realizing his potential. At that point, it was even possible he could heal their injuries, allowing them to walk the path of Cultivation once more.
’With Zhong Ming’s Talent, as long as he doesn’t fall along the way, he’s guaranteed to become a Golden Core expert. Even if he focuses on the Sword Dao and lacks healing abilities himself, he’ll be on good terms with other Cultivators, including Elixir Masters. When that time comes, he would only need to mention it, and my injuries could be fully healed.’
’No, I have to teach Zhong Ming well and make him remember me...’
’Zhong Ming is weak right now, but this is my chance... If he truly grows powerful, a half-crippled man like me won’t even be qualified to approach him.’
As they thought of this, their gazes grew fervent.
Once they had reached a consensus, what followed was simple. After Zhong Ming had recovered his strength with the Hundred Flowers Brew, Lin Shuyu immediately went to him and began teaching him the Wave-Surging Dragon Stream Step.
"The first three realms of the Wave-Surging Dragon Stream Step are about moving like water. But starting from the Fourth Realm, the focus is on the ’Surge.’ To surge, you must build up power, which is the foundation of the Three-Layer Wave Treading technique... Follow me. See that waterfall? Your next task is to leap from the bottom of the waterfall to the very top..."
Following Lin Shuyu’s instructions, Zhong Ming stood beneath the waterfall and leaped upward again and again.
At times, Lin Shuyu would race against Zhong Ming, or have the other three continuously throw stones at him to test his dodging ability.
Under his guidance, Zhong Ming’s progress in the Wave-Surging Dragon Stream Step soared.
[You completed a full practice session of the Wave-Surging Dragon Stream Step and gained some insight. Cultivation Technique progress
11]
[You completed a full practice session of the Wave-Surging Dragon Stream Step and gained some insight. Cultivation Technique progress
23]
[You completed a full practice session of the Wave-Surging Dragon Stream Step and gained some insight. Cultivation Technique progress
79]
[You completed a full practice session of the Wave-Surging Dragon Stream Step and gained some insight. Cultivation Technique progress
8]
[...]
After him, it was Shi Yun’s turn to teach the Spirit Stream Finger: Water Dragon Technique.
"Water is formless, so it can take any form. The Spirit Stream Finger: Water Dragon Technique is a method for shaping water. Initially, this Cultivation Technique allows us to condense inanimate objects, like a Water Gun or a Water Sword."
"But starting from the Third Realm, you must condense living things. In the Fourth Realm, you must even imbue these living things with a conceptual resonance... Only when they are truly lifelike can the water you control cause significant trouble for your enemies..."
[You listened to the teachings of another and gained some insight. Spirit Stream Finger: Water Dragon Technique progress
9]
[You performed a practice session of the Spirit Stream Finger: Water Dragon Technique. Cultivation Technique progress
13]
[You performed a practice session of the Spirit Stream Finger: Water Dragon Technique and gained some insight. Cultivation Technique progress
37]
[You...]
Shi Yun didn’t rely on words alone. He and Zhong Ming would stand on opposite sides of a stream and use its water to form various weapons and animal shapes, then have these mimicked creatures fight each other.
Combat, running, water-shaping, ravine-leaping, and even heart-tempering... That day, under the guidance of his several senior brothers, Zhong Ming had a very busy schedule.
But it was also a very fulfilling day for him.
After a full day of practice, Zhong Ming’s Longxi Swordsmanship, Spirit Stream Finger: Water Dragon Technique, and Wave-Surging Dragon Stream Step had gone from:
[Longxi Swordsmanship: Second Realm, Insight (837/4900)]
[Spirit Stream Finger: Water Dragon Technique: Second Realm, Insight (652/4200)]
[Wave-Surging Dragon Stream Step: Second Realm, Insight (778/4800)]
to:
[Longxi Swordsmanship: Second Realm, Insight (2799/4900)]
[Spirit Stream Finger: Water Dragon Technique: Second Realm, Insight (2100/4200)]
[Wave-Surging Dragon Stream Step: Second Realm, Insight (2673/4800)]
’They’re all halfway there. If I’m lucky, all three of these skills could advance tomorrow. And then, I’ll obtain another three instances of the Flow of Water.’
’Whew... Five instances of the Flow of Water... that should be enough to stack into a Dao Rhyme, right?’
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