Chapter 129: Sword God Han Guang
The surrounding scholars were all stunned, and the one who had earlier mentioned the stench of decay was especially bewildered, never imagining that the young man and woman who had been dancing so intimately moments before would suddenly turn to lethal violence. That brocade-clad youth had directly slammed the girl into a brass pillar, embedding her there—truly brutal, leaving a psychological shadow on everyone!
Before long, Shen Wanyun walked over and struck the brass pillar with his palm. The pillar shuddered violently, and Yue Qinghong, who had been embedded in it, was jolted out as if by an electric shock, then fled with her face covered.
The girl was bruised and swollen, her face utterly disgraced.
She could have freed herself from the pillar, but with all the scholars watching outside, she felt she couldn't bear the shame, so she stayed hidden in the pillar, planning to come out when fewer people were around. Instead, the crowd only grew larger.
Shen Wanyun then went to the rockery where Wolf Slave was pinned by his blades, pulled out the two demon sabers, freed him, then leaped down from the jade cliff, took off his own outer robe, and draped it over Monk Yun Que to cover his body before waking him.
When Yun Que saw he was left in only a pair of white shorts, he immediately realized that after being knocked unconscious, he had been looted by that youth named Qin Mu. He felt both shame and indignation.
His white monastic robe was extraordinarily valuable, worth more than ordinary spirit weapons. Yun Que had sold all his belongings to scrape together enough money for that robe, and now Qin Mu had stripped it off him.
Soon, Shen Wanyun, Yun Que, Wolf Slave, and Yue Qinghong gathered again. Shen Wanyun smiled and said, "Junior brothers, junior sister, what do you think of Qin Mu's skills?"
Yue Qinghong snorted coldly. "You weren't confident you could beat him yourself, so you sent us as vanguards to probe his strength? Senior brother, aren't you being a bit cunning?"
Shen Wanyun said calmly, "All is fair in war—that's a lesson I learned on the battlefield. I also learned there that knowing yourself and knowing your enemy ensures victory. Without observing his weaknesses, I won't act rashly. You two are not much weaker than me. If you couldn't defeat him, I'd struggle too, so I had to find his flaws. If even I lose, then he becomes the senior brother of Scholars' Residence, the face of our establishment."
Yun Que had become much more respectful and asked, "Senior brother, what did you observe?"
"His mana, cultivation, techniques, combat awareness, skill, and cunning are all top-notch!"
Shen Wanyun continued, "When you clashed palms with him, you were practicing Buddhist arts with immense cultivation and astonishing defensive power, yet he shattered your defenses with his palm strike. His mana and cultivation surpass yours! Wolf Slave's cultivation is also formidable, and his blade techniques are killing moves from the battlefield, yet he couldn't touch him and lost in three moves. That shows Qin Mu's combat awareness and techniques are elite! As for defeating Junior Sister Yue, that relied on skill and cunning. While she was checking Wolf Slave's injuries, he silently closed in, robbing her of the initiative and forcing her into close combat, where she fell into his trap."
Yue Qinghong thought of the tight embrace with Qin Mu, her face flushing slightly as she snorted again.
Shen Wanyun said, "His sword speed is incredible, wounding Lingyun Daoist and humiliating him before the hall, proving his swordsmanship is his strongest suit. And when he defeated over a dozen scholars from Scholars' Residence, he used spells to control their minds, showing mastery of magic as well. This man has almost no weaknesses."
Yun Que and Yue Qinghong grew more alarmed. Although Yue Qinghong had investigated the techniques Qin Mu used to defeat the scholars, hoping to know her enemy, she still didn't understand as much as Shen Wanyun.
Shen Wanyun's ability to hold the position of senior brother at Scholars' Residence for years was no empty reputation.
"How do we defeat someone so flawless and without openings?" Yun Que murmured.
Shen Wanyun said calmly, "This concerns the face of Scholars' Residence, the face of the Imperial Academy, and the face of all scholars in Yankang. He must lose, no matter what! He's an outcast from the Great Ruins. If he doesn't lose, heh, wouldn't that mean our Yankang scholars are inferior to an outcast?"
His spirits lifted as he slowly continued, "Since he has no weaknesses in these areas, I racked my brains and looked for flaws in his cultivation technique. And I found one."
Yun Que and Yue Qinghong were shaken and looked at him.
Shen Wanyun smiled faintly. "I found a flaw in his technique. When he fought you, as he channeled his energy, there was a barely perceptible crack. That's his weak point. I still need to observe him a bit longer to pinpoint its exact location."
Yue Qinghong was also convinced and sighed, "It's no wonder we've lost to you over the years. You truly are a cut above us."
Shen Wanyun laughed. "Without you, I wouldn't have improved so fast. Your pursuit forced me to train relentlessly. Once I pinpoint his weakness, I'll challenge him openly, defeat him before all the Imperial Academy scholars, and preserve the honor of Yankang's scholars!"
Back at Scholars' Residence, Qin Mu walked along, and the scholars he passed all wore terrified expressions. Clearly, many had seen him slam Yue Qinghong into the pillar and pin Wolf Slave to the rockery, and some had likely heard that Yun Que was knocked out and thrown off the cliff.
Two of the three top experts at Scholars' Residence had been soundly beaten by this outcast from the Great Ruins. Besides Shen Wanyun, who else could stand against Qin Mu?
Qin Mu opened his door and went inside, then Little Fox poked her head out and shouted, "Does anyone still want these sword cases? If not, I'll sell them off in the capital!"
"Wait!" a scholar quickly called out. "Wait, I want to buy back my sword case!"
"And mine too—don't sell it! I'll gather the money and redeem it!"
"Little Fox, my monthly stipend hasn't come yet. Can you cut me some slack and let me take my case back first?"
"Then you'll have to write an IOU. When you have the money, you can take the IOU back."
...
Fox Ling'er finished dealing with the sword cases in the yard, clutching a few IOUs as she walked inside. "Master, are these IOUs written correctly? I can't read."
Qin Mu gave a knowing smile. "You can't read, yet you dared to take IOUs? These are fine—keep them safe."
Fox Ling'er was delighted and quickly hid the IOUs in a hole in the wall.
Qin Mu called her over and said, "There are two days until school starts. I'll teach you the Creation Spirit Art."
Fox Ling'er sat down properly, and Qin Mu began to explain the Creation Spirit Art in detail. This art was the final chapter of the Seven Chapters of Creation in the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture. It could be cultivated by both humans and demons. Qin Mu had been studying the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture closely these days and found that the Creation Spirit Art might be more suited for demons.
He had studied under Deaf, reading extensively. Deaf had taught him not only Confucianism but also various ancient poems, which were very obscure. However, because of this, Qin Mu found it much easier to comprehend other scriptures.
Qin Mu tried to explain the Creation Spirit Art in simple, accessible terms, lecturing Little Fox. The Seven Chapters of Creation were among the highest-level techniques in the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture, a scripture capable of leading one to godhood or demonhood, the supreme sacred text of the Demon Sect. The Creation Spirit Art's inclusion there showed its brilliance.
Over the next two days, Qin Mu stayed mostly indoors, teaching the Creation Spirit Art to Fox Ling'er. She was already able to grasp the basics and attempted to form a spirit embryo.
The purpose of this Creation Art was to alter the spirit embryo. For example, if someone had a Black Tortoise spirit body, their spirit embryo would be a Black Tortoise spirit embryo. Through the Creation Spirit Art, they could transform it into a White Tiger spirit embryo or change it into other forms. Even the attributes of their energy would change accordingly. It was arguably one of the most miraculous techniques in the Great Nurturing Demon Scripture.
Of course, each of the Seven Chapters of Creation was equally wondrous, not inferior to the Creation Spirit Art.
Qin Mu believed the Creation Spirit Art was more suitable for demons because creatures like Fox Ling'er or the Demon Ape—beasts or demons—had no spirit embryo or divine hideouts.
Since they had none, they had to create one themselves.
By cultivating the Creation Spirit Art, Fox Ling'er could develop her own spirit embryo and even change its form.
Two days later, the Imperial Academy finally began its term.
Qin Mu, along with other new scholars, followed the Imperial Academy overseer to the treasury to collect their sword cases, pills, robes, furnaces, jade, brushes, ink, and study tokens, as well as a bag of money called a stipend. Qin Mu heard the scholars call it a monthly allowance, given once a month. Though not much—only about a dozen coins—it was still a considerable sum for commoners.
Once a scholar of the Imperial Academy, one held the official rank of eighth grade, so the court issued stipends accordingly.
After collecting his items, Qin Mu attended a speech before the Imperial Academy hall, where the young founder gave a talk, encouraging the scholars to study hard, train diligently, and strive for excellence.
Qin Mu returned his belongings to his room and then went with the other new scholars to Han Guang Hall for lectures. Royal family members were also studying there. Qin Mu looked around and spotted a familiar girl who winked at him, but when she met others' gazes, she became very reserved.
"Seventh Sister, what are you doing?" That girl was Ling Yuxiu. A prince beside her noticed her repeatedly glancing toward Qin Mu and frowned, asking quietly.
In Han Guang Hall, a man in black robes sat cross-legged, a sword lying horizontally before his knees. He was the overseer of Han Guang Hall, his gaze sharp as a sword as he swept over the scholars. His eyes landed on Qin Mu, and the corner of his eye twitched. He said unhurriedly, "Han Guang Hall is the hall of swordsmanship. What is Han Guang? The sage said, 'I have three swords, for you to choose, none can kill, but let me describe them. The first is called Han Guang—invisible when looked at, intangible when wielded. What it touches merges without boundary, passing through objects without them noticing.' That is the origin of Han Guang. Reaching this realm means becoming a Sword God."①
Qin Mu was surprised and thought to himself, "This overseer is the Sword Hall master of my Holy Sect..."
The Sword Hall master was tall and burly, dressed in black, and very proud. During the 360 Halls' test, Qin Mu had knocked him flying with a single sword strike before he could even use any techniques.
But Qin Mu found it strange. The Imperial Academy was the highest sacred ground of Yankang—how did they recruit a Demon Sect hall master?
After explaining the origin of Han Guang Hall, the Sword Hall master said, "When the sword reaches the realm of Han Guang, it has achieved a wondrous state, the highest level. It is called the Dao Sword. In today's world, only one or two have reached this step, and only one is called the Han Guang Sword God. I am far from it. You scholars from all over should aim for the highest realm of swordsmanship and never slacken for a day. Today, I will teach you the basics of swordsmanship—the simplest thrust, slash, wipe, and circle."
The scholars in the hall were astonished. The Imperial Academy's Han Guang Hall wasn't teaching advanced sword techniques but the most basic fundamentals? Did they need to come to the Imperial Academy to learn that?
The Sword Hall master said solemnly, "Don't underestimate the basics. If the foundation isn't solid, all divine sword techniques are useless. Over three years ago, I met a child, only eleven or twelve, with an incredibly solid foundation. I dueled him at the spirit embryo realm, and he defeated me with a wooden sword. That's when I realized how important the basics are."
The scholars buzzed with discussion. One murmured, "A child who could defeat the teacher with a wooden sword—is he a Sword God?"
The Sword Hall master shook his head. "Not yet. That child is only fifteen now; he can't have reached the Sword God realm."
Note ①: This passage is excerpted from "Liezi: Tang Wen," describing three divine swords—Han Guang, Cheng Ying, and Xiao Lian—also called the Three Swords of the Shang King, representing three realms of the Dao Sword.