Chapter 380: The New Sword Style
Looking at Chen Changsheng, who was in a deep sleep, Su Li raised an eyebrow slightly, lost in thought. This was because of his own last words, and also because of the many things Chen Changsheng had said and done over the past few days.
In his long, wandering journey of hundreds of years, he had seen many outstanding youths. Some were geniuses, others possessed immense perseverance. The few youths he admired most were now all in the Li Mountain Sword Sect.
But he had never seen a youth like Chen Changsheng.
He had always believed that youths possessed a unique spirit and vitality—the morning sun and dew, newborn butterflies and fledgling birds. That youthful life force was so clear and intense. Chen Changsheng also had this quality, but it was more indifferent. This youth was also a spring breeze, but it was the wind of early spring, very light, and thus refreshingly pure.
Su Li looked at the sleeping Chen Changsheng, silent, observing carefully.
Ordinary youths, when awake, often deliberately lower their tone, pretending to be calm and composed, to earn the praise of their elders for being mature and the envious admiration of their peers for being steady. But in sleep, they would revert to their true age, revealing an innocent and naive side. Chen Changsheng was not like this. His brows and eyes were those of a youth, clear and tender like a tea garden before the rain, but his expression was as calm as when he was awake, even... somewhat sorrowful.
Why, even in deep sleep, were this youth's brows still furrowed so tightly? What was he thinking? What was he worried about? What was he anxious about? If he carried a pressure on his shoulders that he couldn't shake off even in dreams, then why, when awake, was he so calm and composed, showing no trace of it to others?
Su Li knew very well that Chen Changsheng must have something on his mind, but he didn't want to ask, nor did he want to probe. It wasn't that he wasn't curious, but because there was something more important to do now. He looked up at the vast, desolate wilderness, his face expressionless, his eyes like stars, the coldness gradually intensifying. His hand holding the yellow paper umbrella handle was slightly looser than before, but it was a more suitable posture for drawing a sword.
That assassin named Liu Qing was now somewhere in this wilderness, probably watching this place. The third-ranked assassin on the continent was undoubtedly terrifying to ordinary people, but under normal circumstances, he couldn't make Su Li even glance his way. However, the current situation was not normal. Chen Changsheng was unconscious and severely injured. No matter how you looked at it, this was the best opportunity for that assassin to strike, unless he decided to continue adhering to the doctrine of conservatism.
Su Li suddenly felt a bit nervous, so his expression became even more indifferent. He hadn't been this nervous in many years, because for many years, no one had been able to threaten his life. He thought he had long seen through life and death, but after Xue He and Liang Hongzhuang appeared, he realized that even with his sword heart's clarity, he still couldn't maintain that clarity in the face of death. Perhaps it was because he had just experienced the most difficult trial of life and death.
In his life, he had faced many trials of life and death, defeated countless seemingly invincible enemies. Compared to those opponents, figures like Xue He and Liang Hongzhuang were nothing. But he knew very well that the moment he came closest to death in his life wasn't on the snowy plains outside the Snow Old City, nor by the cold stream of the Longevity Sect, but not long ago in that nameless desolate mountain, the instant Liang Hongzhuang, her dancing dress like fire, rushed at him.
The reason that was the moment he came closest to death was because Liang Hongzhuang would definitely kill him, because Liu Qing was certainly hidden nearby at that time, and the most important reason was that he had no way to control his own fate.
Whether facing the shadow of the Demon Lord and the tens of thousands of demon troops outside the Snow Old City, or facing those dozen or so unfathomably powerful elders of the Longevity Sect by the cold stream, he had a sword in his hand. He could swing his sword.
As long as the sword was in his hand, the world was his, Su Li's. Even if Death stood before him, he would not fear. But... at that moment just now, he could do nothing. He could only entrust his fate to this youth named Chen Changsheng.
Fortunately, that youth proved himself to be very trustworthy.
"This time, I really owe you a life."
Looking at the sleeping youth's slightly furrowed brow, Su Li shook his head and said.
...
...
That assassin was still hidden in the wilderness, for some reason never making a move. Perhaps it was because Chen Changsheng's performance or identity made him somewhat wary, or because Su Li's hand never left the yellow paper umbrella handle.
By evening, Chen Changsheng finally woke up. His face was as pale as snow, his eyes not as clear and bright as usual, as if he were hungover. Fortunately, his sea of consciousness had finally calmed down, so there should be no danger.
He looked at Su Li, but before he could say anything, Su Li said expressionlessly, "What do you want to say?"
Chen Changsheng was silent for a moment, then said, "Past events. As a junior, I don't know the story behind them, so it's hard to judge right from wrong. Senior might not have been wrong to kill, but as a son, avenging his father is also not wrong. If neither side is wrong, yet they keep killing each other, then there must be something wrong with this matter."
Su Li said, "Still lecturing, I see."
Chen Changsheng said, "On the snowy plains, Senior always said he wasn't a good person because he had killed too many people. This shows that Senior also knows that killing too many people is ultimately not a good thing. Why not change?"
Su Li raised an eyebrow slightly, a faint smile playing on his lips. "But when did I ever say I wanted to be a good person? Since I don't want to be a good person, why should I change, why should I kill less?"
Chen Changsheng was speechless. After a moment, he said helplessly, "Senior, why must you always be the first to argue, to debate everything?"
"A hundred boats race upstream, wanting to argue but forgetting the words. If you don't argue, don't debate, what kind of life is that?"
Su Li spoke very calmly and frankly. But Chen Changsheng was silent for a long time. Since he had become aware of things, he had been constantly reading. After learning about his poor health, he thought about how to live longer. He felt that life was truly the best thing in life, that living was the most beautiful thing. He rarely thought about what kind of life constituted 'living'.
He thought about it for a while, then stopped thinking about it.
He understood that, in terms of their views on life, he was like a country boy who couldn't even get enough to eat, while people like Su Li had been feasting on rich food for years and were now starting to pursue lightness and health, seeking heritage and spiritual meaning in food. They were simply not from the same world. This didn't mean he had any aversion or dislike for people from that world. On the contrary, he envied them. Because the people in that world were the majority in this world. Living, one should live like that. At least it was more meaningful than how some people lived.
"That Li Mountain disciple named Liang Xiaoxiao..."
Chen Changsheng had already told Su Li most of the things he was willing to share about what happened in the Zhou Garden, including the matter of Liang Xiaoxiao. But some details from the lakeside were only fully supplemented today.
As he saw it, since the gate of the Zhou Garden had reopened, as long as Qi Jian and Zhe Xiu were still alive, Liang Xiaoxiao would certainly have been punished by now. But after the battle with Liang Hongzhuang, he had become sensitive to the surname Liang, so he brought it up for Su Li's consideration. He didn't expect Su Li's reaction to be so strong.
Upon hearing that Liang Xiaoxiao had stabbed his sword into Qi Jian's abdomen, Su Li's face darkened, as if a storm was brewing between his brows and eyes, ready to unleash several thunderbolts at any moment.
Finally, Su Li said, "He will die."
Chen Changsheng thought, that's your Li Mountain's own business, and he certainly deserves to die. But he didn't expect that that damned Liang Xiaoxiao was already dead, and his death had left behind a lot of trouble.
Su Li had already figured out why Liang Xiaoxiao had colluded with the demons, but it involved the reputation of Li Mountain, and crucially, the two bloody incidents he had personally caused in the Longevity Sect and the Northern Lands over a decade ago, so he was unwilling to say too much to Chen Changsheng.
"How did you actually see it?" He looked at Chen Changsheng and asked instead.
This question was naturally about how Chen Changsheng had seen through Liang Hongzhuang's star domain. If the first sword was a guess, what about the following seven swords? Sword after sword, none missed. It couldn't possibly be just guessing. Had he already learned the Wisdom Sword?
Chen Changsheng thought about it very carefully, confirmed the situation at the time, and said, "It really was a guess."
Su Li naturally didn't believe it, but his expression didn't seem fake. Most importantly, Chen Changsheng had no reason to deceive him. And most importantly of all, there was no way Chen Changsheng could have learned the Wisdom Sword so quickly.
Being able to guess which star among the myriad stars would move was already incredibly unbelievable. Being able to guess the flaws in a Star Gathering realm cultivator's star domain was even harder to imagine, let alone guessing correctly seven times in a row.
"If you really relied on luck, then your luck is so good it's more than just luck."
Su Li looked at him and said, "You are a person with great destiny."
Chen Changsheng didn't understand. "Destiny?"
"What is the most important thing in cultivation?"
"Perseverance? Comprehension?"
Su Li shook his head and said, "No, it's luck. Any strong person who eventually dominates a region, any so-called saint, is invariably a person with extremely good luck. Only then can they escape so many dangers. Of course, luck is only temporary, but destiny lasts a lifetime. So they are all people with great destiny, including me."
Chen Changsheng thought for a moment and said, "What determines destiny?"
"Fate, of course."
Su Li looked into his eyes and said, "So in other words, your fate is very good."
Hearing this, Chen Changsheng was speechless. From the moment he was born, he had been considered to have a bad fate. Who would have thought that now someone would say his fate was very good? This made him feel somewhat absurd, somewhat comforted, and somewhat bitter.
...
...
Continuing their journey south, the two of them and their two deer finally neared Tianliang County, and the sword learning entered a new phase.
After experiencing the battle with Liang Hongzhuang, Chen Changsheng was very clear about his current weaknesses.
First, he needed stronger divine sense and willpower. He understood why Su Li had said beforehand that only through experience could one know that using the Wisdom Sword required sufficient strength, because the Wisdom Sword demanded extraordinary energy. Otherwise, the swordsman couldn't bear the massive calculations and would likely faint before even drawing the sword.
Second, to defeat a Star Gathering realm cultivator, he needed to increase his output. This way, he might be able to seize the fleeting opportunity and deliver a heavy blow directly, avoiding the situation where he struck eight consecutive swords without killing Liang Hongzhuang. That situation was truly dangerous. If Liang Hongzhuang had been slightly stronger and could have held on a little longer, Chen Changsheng's sea of consciousness would have been shaken and he would have collapsed, and both he and Su Li would have surely died.
So, by a stream at dusk, Su Li began to teach him a second sword style.
"Your true essence output is terrible. It's like a child holding an embroidery needle. No matter how fast you are, even if you poke three thousand six hundred holes in your opponent, you can't kill them. So, a few days ago, I thought of a sword style."
Su Li looked at Chen Changsheng in the stream and said, "Do you want to learn?"
Chen Changsheng didn't answer, because such a question didn't need an answer. Any swordsman would want to learn swordsmanship from Su Li, let alone a sword style that was clearly designed specifically for him. Besides, he was too shocked at the moment.
Looking at the middle-aged man by the stream, his mouth hung open, unable to speak for a long time. According to this statement, didn't it mean that after discovering his true essence output was problematic that day, Su Li had started thinking about this problem, and in just a few days, he had designed a completely new sword style? What is a true genius? What is a sword master? This was it.
Su Li acted as if he hadn't noticed his expression, continuing to speak, calmly introducing this newly created sword style. As for whether he felt a little proud inside, one could tell from his slightly raised eyebrows.
This sword style was called the Burning Sword. It still had only one move, or more precisely, a method of wielding the sword. If the Wisdom Sword helped the swordsman see through the weaknesses of a Star Gathering realm expert, then the Burning Sword helped the swordsman burst forth his own sword momentum and true essence, gaining a massive boost in a short time, thereby inflicting greater damage on a Star Gathering realm opponent.
Both sword styles Su Li taught him were very targeted, as if they were specifically designed to help a through-the-heavenly...