Chapter 130: Blocking the Gate to Strike at the Heart
Qin Mu’s face flushed slightly, knowing that the Sword Hall Master was referring to him.
The Sword Hall Master must have been reflecting deeply on that defeat and had worked hard on his swordsmanship fundamentals. Now his strength was extraordinary, and it seemed he was on the verge of another breakthrough. It would be nearly impossible for Qin Mu to defeat him with a single sword strike again.
The Sword Hall Master taught the scholars the most basic sword techniques. Qin Mu nodded inwardly. Over the years, the Sword Hall Master had grasped the essence of swordsmanship fundamentals. Although there were still some shortcomings, he had improved greatly compared to his past self.
When class ended, Qin Mu was about to leave the Han Guang Hall when the Sword Hall Master suddenly said, “Qin Mu, stay behind.”
Shen Wanyun, Yue Qinghong, and Yun Que’s hearts tightened. They exchanged glances and walked out of the Han Guang Hall. Ling Yuxiu had intended to approach Qin Mu, but seeing this, she had no choice but to give up and was dragged away by several princes and princesses.
The scholars left the Han Guang Hall, leaving only Qin Mu and the Sword Hall Master.
“Young Sect Leader, what do you think of my swordsmanship?” The Sword Hall Master stood up and asked solemnly.
Qin Mu said, “You’ve improved a lot.”
The Sword Hall Master’s eyes burned with intensity. “Compared to you?”
Qin Mu thought for a moment, then shook his head. “You’re still lacking. Your foundation isn’t as solid as mine, and even if your foundation were as solid, you still wouldn’t be my match. At the same cultivation level, my cultivation base is far stronger than yours, and my techniques are far superior. You focus too much on the sword and neglect other aspects. At the same level, you’re still no match for me. However, your progress has been significant.”
The Sword Hall Master performed a disciple’s salute, his expression solemn. “So I earnestly ask the Young Sect Leader to stay and offer some guidance. I taught them just now, and now I beg the Young Sect Leader to teach me!”
Qin Mu sat down calmly and said, “Alright. After all, you are my hall master, so it’s no trouble to guide you. Swordsmanship isn’t just about the sword. Body techniques, cultivation methods, fist techniques, spirit embryos, and intent are equally important. When you taught them sword practice just now, you hadn’t yet achieved the unity of all elements.”
The Sword Hall Master asked, “How does one achieve unity of all elements?”
Qin Mu taught him the thrusting sword technique that the Village Chief had passed on to him. The Sword Hall Master suddenly understood and murmured, “So this is how you exert force… Wrong, wrong. I’ve been practicing swordsmanship for a hundred years, and I’ve been doing it all wrong… Thank you for your guidance, Young Sect Leader!”
Outside the Han Guang Hall, Shen Wanyun and the others wore grim expressions. Yue Qinghong said indignantly, “The Imperial Academy is biased! They’re giving him special treatment, keeping him behind to teach him swordsmanship alone! His swordsmanship is already formidable. If the Imperial Academy deliberately nurtures him, where does that leave us?”
Shen Wanyun said calmly, “Don’t worry. No matter how exquisite the swordsmanship the Imperial Academy teaches him, it won’t be a match for me. As long as I exploit the flaws in his techniques, I can defeat him!”
“That may be true, but we can’t let our guard down,” Yun Que warned.
Shen Wanyun nodded. “Rest assured. He’s improving, but so am I. These past few days, I’ve been suppressing my cultivation level, and I feel I’m on the verge of reaching the Six Harmonies realm. With my peak Five Luminaries combat power, how could I fail to take him down? If he receives guidance from the Imperial Academy, it will only consume his time and energy practicing new sword techniques, leaving him no time to cultivate! Defeating him at the Five Luminaries realm is my wish. Otherwise, even if I become a Divine Ability practitioner, I’ll still have regrets.”
The three of them had no idea that inside the Han Guang Hall, things were nothing like they imagined. The Sword Hall Master was acting like a student, and Qin Mu was the teacher, guiding him in sword practice!
If the three of them had seen this scene, their eyes would have popped out of their sockets!
The Sword Hall Master committed the unity of all elements to memory. Qin Mu suddenly remembered something and said, “Although my foundation is solid, I don’t have much expertise in swordsmanship. I still need your guidance, Hall Master. You mentioned earlier that the sage has three swords. You only spoke of the first sword, Han Guang. What are the other two swords?”
The Sword Hall Master said, “The first sword is Han Guang, the second is Cheng Ying, and the third is Xiao Lian. These are the three realms of the Dao Sword. This is from the ‘Treatise on the Sword’ written by the Imperial Preceptor, which the Emperor has praised as the Three Swords of the Son of Heaven. You want me to guide you in swordsmanship, but I dare not. Teaching swordsmanship depends on the teacher. I can teach them, but I cannot teach you.”
Qin Mu understood his meaning. Teaching techniques required a good teacher. For example, the monk Mingxin from the Great Thunderclap Monastery—his master hadn’t fully mastered the Eight Forms of Thunderclap, so the forms he taught Mingxin had flaws.
Similarly, if the Sword Hall Master didn’t fully comprehend a certain move and taught it to Qin Mu, Qin Mu would inherit those flaws.
Therefore, to learn profound techniques, one needed a good teacher!
Qin Mu’s expression shifted slightly. “Where can I see the ‘Treatise on the Sword’?”
“The Tianlu Tower.”
The Sword Hall Master said, “Young Sect Leader, the book token is the key to entering the Tianlu Tower. With a book token, you can enter and borrow the collection.”
Qin Mu’s spirits lifted. He hadn’t yet visited the Tianlu Tower, which housed the classics of all the sects in the empire. How could he miss it?
“Young Sect Leader, have you had lunch yet?”
The Sword Hall Master rarely smiled and invited, “I’m about to have lunch myself. Why not come to my humble home? I still have some doubts I’d like to discuss with you over a meal.”
Qin Mu hesitated. “I have a little fox at home…”
“Bring her along.”
Qin Mu left the Han Guang Hall with him and returned to the Scholar’s Residence. Hu Ling’er was practicing the Creation Divine Art. When she heard about going to eat, she immediately rushed out excitedly. “Is there wine?”
“Yes,” said the Sword Hall Master.
Hu Ling’er cheered and rode a gust of demon wind to follow. The two of them and the fox arrived at the Sword Hall Master’s residence. His home was simple, a two-courtyard house with no servants.
Qin Mu looked around. There was no one else. The Sword Hall Master cooked and prepared the meal himself, moving swiftly. Clearly, this wasn’t the first time he’d cooked at home.
“Sword Hall, don’t you have a wife?” Qin Mu asked curiously.
“Wife?”
The Sword Hall Master was fast, using true fire to cook. How could he be slow?
This middle-aged man quickly brought the dishes to the table, then served rice, saying, “What would I need a wife for? Too much trouble.”
Hu Ling’er tasted his cooking and exclaimed in surprise, “This is delicious! Sword Hall, your culinary skills are amazing, better than many chefs in the capital. Why don’t you find a wife?”
“I had one before. When I was young, I was involved with a woman from the sect. I was young and foolish back then.”
The Sword Hall Master recalled the past and shook his head. “Later, I realized that the sword brings me more joy. The happiness a woman could give me wasn’t as much as my sword, so I thought, why bother? So we broke up. Young Sect Leader, women are trouble. Never get involved with them. They’ll make you carefully accompany them, coax them, and they’ll throw tantrums and scratch you. We should focus on cultivation. Practicing the sword brings us more joy—joy that women can’t give. So, absolutely no women.”
Hu Ling’er was stunned and argued, “Sword Hall, that’s not right. What’s wrong with women?”
The Sword Hall Master’s vital energy clanged like countless swords colliding. He said calmly, “You simply don’t understand the joy the sword brings me. It’s useless to talk to you about it.”
Qin Mu blinked. The Sword Hall Master’s realm was too high; he couldn’t yet comprehend it.
After lunch, the Sword Hall Master asked Qin Mu a few more questions, then sank into deep thought, saying nothing for a long time. Qin Mu was about to take his leave when the Sword Hall Master came to his senses, stood up, and said, “Young Sect Leader, I won’t see you out.”
Qin Mu smiled wryly and waved at him.
“The Sword Hall Master has such a strange temper.”
He shook his head. “I wonder who that woman he was involved with was. Maybe I could bring them together. But with his temper, they’d probably break up again.”
He returned to the Scholar’s Residence and suddenly saw many scholars heading down the mountain. Not only the scholars from the Scholar’s Residence but also those from the Prince’s Villa and the Divine Ability Residence were streaming down the mountain.
Qin Mu was puzzled when a voice said, “Brother Qin, over here!”
Qin Mu looked and saw Wei Yong among the crowd, so he walked over. Hu Ling’er asked, “Fat Wei, what’s going on?”
Wei Yong laughed. “You don’t know? I heard a Taoist from the Dao Sect has come down the mountain with a disciple. They’re sitting right at the gate of our Imperial Academy, blocking the road.”
Qin Mu was surprised. “They’re blocking the gate!”
Wei Yong nodded. “Exactly! The Dao Sect is the foremost orthodox sect. The Taoist calls himself Danyangzi, and the young man beside him is called the Dao Son. A supervisor from the Imperial Academy went to ask, and Danyangzi said they weren’t here to cause trouble but to exchange ideas. He said they’d long heard that the Imperial Academy is the foremost sacred land under heaven, gathering talents from all over, so they brought the Dao Son to visit and test the Dao techniques and divine abilities of the Dao Sect against the Imperial Academy.”
Qin Mu’s heart trembled. He let out a long breath and said slowly, “A clever move.”
Wei Yong was puzzled.
“This is an attack on morale.”
Qin Mu’s eyes flickered. “Outside the capital, various sects are taking advantage of the chaos, waving the banner of opposing the Imperial Preceptor. But inside the capital, it’s still peaceful, and the people’s support is clear. The Imperial Preceptor reformed the sects, established elementary schools, higher schools, and the Imperial Academy, gathering talented individuals from across the land to become students of the Son of Heaven, thus placing all scholars under the Emperor’s command. I’ve heard that the Yan Kang Empire is essentially a sect disguised as a nation. If the Dao Son blocks the gate and none of the Imperial Academy’s scholars can defeat him, then what use is the Imperial Preceptor’s reform?”
Wei Yong was stunned and murmured, “This isn’t just an attack on morale—it’s a strike at the heart…”