The Heavens: A Qing, the Yue Girl at the beginning

Nothing major happened in the next few days.

Early in the morning of the first day, Yuan Wu used rare books in the palace, including the Bashan Sword Sutra, to semi-publicly exchange with Fang Houfu for the "Sword Controlling Intention", a secret sword that once made him fearful. Then he was able to master it in a short period of time. In the subsequent sword competition, he defeated the real Ye Celeng and Fang Xiumu alone.

Afterwards, without much rest, he still suppressed his cultivation at the sixth realm and went on to challenge a true master of a complete realm. His victory was much easier than the previous battle, which really amazed many spectators, who felt that Emperor Yuanwu was invincible and arrogant.

This not only made most people realize that there was a huge gap between the seven realms masters, and that the legendary eight realm Qi Tian was truly extraordinary, it also confirmed that the secret sword was indeed an excellent means of cross-border challenges, and the reputation of Fang Hou Mansion suddenly increased significantly.

At the same time, the extensive publicity in the streets and alleys of Changling and the surrounding areas made Ye Celeng and the other man, who almost turned defeat into victory, also famous and became idols in the minds of young practitioners in the Qin Dynasty. The real purpose of the masterminds behind these public opinions was naturally to highlight Yuan Wu's lofty image.

Storytellers in teahouses and taverns slammed the gavel to vividly depict the heroic figure of Ye Ce piercing the clouds with his sword; in the "Two Heroes Fighting the Dragon" displayed by painters on Zhuque Street, Fang Xiumu's endless secret sword styles and Emperor Yuanwu's calm demeanor of responding to a myriad of changes with one move intertwined and rose...

The most ingenious design is hidden in the newly compiled "Record of the Sword Meeting" by the Palace Jingwu Pavilion. The compiler broke down the battle between Yuanwu, Ye and Fang into 360 sections, and each annotation contains hidden meanings.

When the practitioners who bought this set of scriptures studied the "Dragon Raising its Head" move, they found the annotation clearly stating: "When His Majesty abandoned defense and turned to offense, the double sword energy coincided with the three-inch empty door."

This text, seemingly recording the details of the battle, actually caused a huge storm in the world of cultivation - what kind of terrifying realm is required to be able to accurately predict the flaws of two top swordsmen?

In the steam rising from the tea, the people suddenly realized that the figure on the throne was standing in a higher dimension: he was both a referee and a chess player, but he made all the chess pieces covered with gold.

When the young monks were yearning for Ye Fang and the other two, the incense smoke would eventually drift towards the direction of the Changling Palace.

When the light snow came, the children in Changling clapped their hands and sang a newly composed nursery rhyme. The last two lines seemed to be the highlight: "The night rain washes the sword coldly, and the embroidered curtain cannot cover the emperor's lamp."

However, in this Changling Sword Conference, Ye Celeng and Fang Xiumu, who followed the exquisite tactical ideas shown in the "Suggestions" and took the opportunity to obtain the Yuanwu they wanted, and should be considered half beneficiaries and received extra rewards, still could not compare with what Zhao Qing gained alone.

Although on the surface she was just an ordinary participant in the sword competition who showed up a few times and then left, her only commendable record was that she had defeated Ye Celeng by chance. But in fact, she had comprehended the meaning of hundreds of profound sword scriptures through sparring and competition by pretending to be Ye Celeng.

In addition, Zhao Qing was extremely satisfied with the large amount of life energy that she had quietly collected, the training improvement plan established for hundreds of people in the sixth and seventh realms, and the famous swords of the three dynasties in the sword library of the Xuanying Palace that she could observe at will.

Compared with the progress in cultivation, what is the point of a little fame?

It is worth mentioning that under her careful guidance, Xue Wangxu and Du Qingjiao of Baiyang Cave both showed quite outstanding performances, and won the rewards of Yaoguang Sword and Hanjiang Qianxue Sword respectively, which added more impetus to their own cultivation paths and made the sect show signs of revival.

Almost at the same time, Ding Ning, who had several kinds of spiritual fungi and medicinal wine to assist in his practice, broke the ordinary people's cognition in the speed of practice. In just three days, he successfully introduced the essence of heaven and earth into his body and integrated it, breaking through from the initial second level of Qi Refining to the third level of True Essence.

Of course, Ding Ning had actually already cultivated the "Nine-Death Silkworm" to the middle-grade bone-breaking level of the second realm long before joining the Aries Cave, and the fusion of true Qi significantly accelerated the speed of cultivation, but such progress was still beyond human comprehension.

The reason is very simple. In recent years, the two "monsters" recognized as the most talented in Daqin, An Baoshi and Jing Liuli, although they did not use any elixirs to practice, it took them eight months to go from the second realm to the third realm. And most of the time was spent on the latter part from the upper grade of the second realm to the formal breakthrough.

This represents a shocking gap of dozens of times. If it were known by outsiders, it would certainly cause countless troubles.

But no matter what, the medicinal power of spiritual brews such as "Taixu Chonghe Drink" is really impossible to resist, and as a "reincarnated" cultivator, Ding Ning has no shackles at all in terms of realm. In order not to waste resources in vain, he reluctantly "goes with the flow" and improves his realm a little.

On the evening of the fourth day, the north wind wrapped in lead-gray clouds rolled over the top of Changling City, and the bronze bells on the eaves made a faint whimper.

As the dusk soaked through the parasol trees and fell onto the bluestone pavement like ink, the first snowflakes of winter brushed against the edge of the wine sign and drifted down, just like jade chips that were accidentally shattered by a fairy in heaven.

"I have the confidence that in half a month at most, I will be able to try to break through to the fourth realm of integration."

Inside the wine shop, Ding Ning casually shook off the charcoal ash stuck to his coarse cloth cuffs, looked up at the hazy moon in the night sky, and said so.

"Half a month? From the third realm to the fourth realm, even with the help of many spiritual brews, this speed is a bit too fast... An unstable foundation is a taboo in cultivation. The accumulation of medicinal energy in the body will affect the future perception of vitality..."

Changsun Qianxue looked at the other person with suspicion, and seemed to be thinking about something in her heart.

She had been drinking this kind of spiritual brew quite a lot these days, and she knew very well that although the derivatives of the "Taixu Zhongyu Jue" were miraculous, they were ultimately just external forces and could not truly enhance the practitioner's perception of the realm.

Simply put, if some young practitioners with ordinary talents also take spiritual brew, although it can also increase their Qi refining speed by dozens of times, the key small and large realm barriers still need to be broken through by their own efforts and understanding.

However, Ding Ning seemed to have no such trouble at all. From the second realm to the third realm, he encountered almost no obstacles, as if... he had already experienced all of this and knew all the levels and difficulties.

You just need to follow the established route and you will be able to advance to the next level naturally.

This made Changsun Qianxue start to rethink Ding Ning's true identity. Was he just a disciple of "that person" or was there a deeper secret? Or was he the reincarnation of "that person"?

Thinking of this, she inadvertently revealed a hint of cold murderous intent. When she ran away from home, the Gongsun family was massacred. No matter what, "that person" was not unrelated to it.

Her determination to kill Yuan Wu and Zheng Xiu to avenge "that person" does not mean that she can completely let go of this blood feud.

The reason why she could live in harmony with the disciple of "that person" under the same roof was only because she knew very well that if she wanted revenge, she would absolutely need the help of the young man in front of her. What's more, Ding Ning had never done anything to let her down.

At present, there is no conflict of interest between the two parties. Instead, they can help each other in spiritual practice.

But if Ding Ning was really the reincarnation of "that person"... Changsun Qianxue pursed her lips. She didn't know if she could continue to get along with him peacefully like she did now.

This thought only flashed through her mind for a moment, and Changsun Qianxue quickly suppressed her murderous intent and said softly:
"In short, you still have to be careful. Too much is as bad as too little. When you have free time, go and ask Zhao Qing for some advice on the mysteries of the 'Taixu Planting Jade Technique' to see if there is a more reliable method to refine the medicinal power..."

Ding Ning naturally also felt the emotional fluctuations of the woman next to him, and couldn't help but sigh in his heart, knowing that she was probably thinking of some unpleasant past events again, but her face did not show it at all.

He picked up the charcoal tongs as if he hadn't noticed anything, and fiddled with the crackling firewood in the furnace, smiling and nodding:
"Don't worry, I know my limits. As for Senior Zhao, I will go find her after I stabilize my realm tonight."

"The sixth to seventh levels of the Taixu Seeding Jade Art have a very significant qualitative change. Even with my vision and knowledge, I may not be able to control it perfectly. With her guidance, I am sure I can avoid many detours."

"What are your plans next?" Changsun Qianxue took a deep breath, forced herself to suppress her turbulent thoughts, and asked in a deep voice.

Ding Ning's hand holding the fire tongs was suspended in mid-air. The red star condensed on the tip of the iron tool happened to fall into the pottery jar, sparking a little phosphorescent blue flame. He stared at the flickering light in the jar and said, "Practice, and then wait for the next move of Yuan Wu, Zheng Xiu, and Senior Zhao."

Ding Ning was of course aware that Changsun Qianxue was simple-minded and indifferent to worldly affairs. She was just immersed in cultivation. However, it was impossible to keep her own secrets hidden forever.

But at least for now, he didn't want to have a complete showdown with the other party and explain things that could not be explained at all.

"How about this... When you go to Aries Cave tomorrow morning, take these recipes with you."

Changsun Qianxue glanced at the empty wine jars stacked in the corner, and after a moment's hesitation, she continued, "Thanks to the help of the 'Taixu Chonghe Drink', I can now suppress the vitality of the Nine Netherworld King Sword, and will soon be able to formally refine it into a life sword... I have to give you some thank you gifts."

Ding Ning nodded, knowing clearly that the snow tonight was probably caused by the other party's breakthrough: "The situation in Changling and even the whole world is becoming more and more complicated. If we can make further progress in our cultivation, our safety will be more guaranteed..."

"I really have to thank her for this, but I don't seem to have anything good on hand to give as a return gift."

Ding Ning did not feel sorry that Changsun Qianxue had reduced her reliance on him. On the contrary, he was quite relieved. The extreme coldness and fierceness of the Nine Netherworld Sword, coupled with the endless supply of spiritual wine, was enough to allow her to reach the peak of the seventh realm in a short period of time, becoming one of the top grandmasters in the world. Although she was still far behind those who had touched the barrier of the eighth realm, she was also extremely powerful.

As for what was written on those recipes, he could guess roughly without even looking at them. Most of them were secret methods related to the brewing of medicinal liquor, which were top-secret treasures of the Gongsun family in the past.

Although Changsun Qianxue has been selling crude and sour homemade wine in recent years, which tastes almost the same as rotten rice water, in fact, over the past few hundred years, the Gongsun family, the head of the old powerful families, has been recognized as the top family in the wine business, and has mastered several secret recipes for rare and precious wines that can be called "nectar".

Normally, as the eldest daughter of the Gongsun family, whose status was once comparable to that of a princess of the Qin Dynasty, there was no need for her to be exposed to these things that should have been learned by the professional wine masters in the family.

After all, for a young genius in cultivation, delving into such mundane affairs would only waste precious time and energy.

However, because those people in Bashan Sword Field often drank happily together and recited "Wine is the joy in the heart, drunkenness and sobriety are the world", and even imagined opening a tavern and living in seclusion in the city in the future when chatting, Changsun Qianxue also developed a strong interest in this.

Not only did she read all the ancient books related to wine in the family, she also asked the elders in the family for various related secret recipes, and tried to brew it herself many times, wanting to see if she could make those people praise it and give Wang Jingmeng a surprise one day.

Unfortunately, a series of dramatic changes that took place later completely shattered her dreams. The Gongsun family was destroyed, and the Bashan Sword Field was also destroyed overnight. These wine-making secret recipes that were once regarded as treasures lost their original meaning and became her sustenance for reminiscing about the past.

In the remote Wutongluo in Changling, Changsun Qianxue fabricated a household registration and hid herself under the noses of her enemies by posing as a wine shop owner. In a sense, she indirectly fulfilled the "wishes" of those people back then, but the wine in the shop was famous for its sourness, just like fermented tears.

Leaning against the bronze steamer that was being heated, Ding Ning gently rubbed the edge of the coarse porcelain wine cup with his fingertips, watching the water vapor condense into tiny dewdrops at the bottom of the cup, like shrunken stars rolling.

"But the Thousand Days Intoxicated Orchid Fragrance?" He suddenly raised his eyes. "I heard that the old King of Chu loved this wine the most and often sent envoys to buy it. Nine years ago, at the Lushan Alliance, he drank the last jar and sighed, 'The jade branches are burning and the earth is scorched, the ice strings are broken and the sky is clear, I will go to the starry fields to pour wine, but the sweet springs are dry and how can I make more wine?'"

"What the Emperor of Chu bought was just inferior goods. There are better wines." Changsun Qianxue pulled out a yellowed silk book from her sleeve. The fine seal characters glowed amber under the candlelight: "The real Gongsun family's nectar must be made from thousand-year-old corals from Wuyin Island in the South China Sea, and the wine jar must be smoked with Fengqi wood..."

"Lying down and listening to the sound of the phoenix, dreaming of the stars sinking into the blue sea, and the footprints of a lone wild goose on the snow... Zhao Qing is well versed in the properties of medicine, so he will be able to restore the mystery."

Her slender fingertips traced a line of dark red annotations, and she was suddenly stunned. On the edge of the silk book was written the delicate small characters "Wait for Brother Wang to break through the realm and return to drink together", the ink was blurred by the years. It was a sentence she wrote casually when she was copying the secret recipe in the library on her eighteenth birthday.

Ding Ning keenly noticed the stagnation of her breath.

The snow particles that drifted in from the window hit the bronze candlesticks, making tiny crackling sounds.

He saw the woman's drooping eyelashes casting a butterfly-wing shadow under her eyes, and suddenly remembered the look in her eyes when she looked at him across the wine flag when she gave him the sword as a farewell gift at the Guihua Street wine shop - like the moonlight of an entire Bashan Sword Field sinking in a deep pool.

"In fact, what they wanted back then..." Changsun Qianxue suddenly spoke, her voice as soft as melting the last snowflakes between heaven and earth, "was just a place where they could drink in peace."

The silk book felt cold to the touch, like frost in a cellar. The moment Ding Ning took it, he saw tiny wrinkles on the edge of the paper from being folded and flattened repeatedly, like some unspoken words that curled up and stretched over the years.

"Well, the value of these secret recipes should be no less than the entire fortune of an ordinary seventh-level master. Senior Zhao should like them." He was silent for a while, carefully considered his words, and spoke slowly.

Zhang Sun Qianxue gave a short laugh: "If I keep these things, it would just be a waste. Miss Zhao is proficient in brewing, and she will definitely be able to carry forward their achievements..."

"As for your return gift, if you feel bad about it, you can return the favor when you have the chance in the future."

As she spoke, she leaned forward, took out a few pieces of paper covered with densely written small characters, handed them to Ding Ning, and whispered:

"These are some of my insights from brewing wine over the years. If you are interested, you can take a look. Maybe you can draw inferences from one instance to another, and it may help your practice." As he spoke, the silver tassels of the jade hairpin hanging from his hair swept across the surface of the pottery steamer, making tiny clear sounds in the steam.

Ding Ning was slightly stunned. He didn't expect that Changsun Qianxue would take the initiative to share these things with him. A warm current surged in his heart. He solemnly took the plain paper, nodded and smiled, "Thank you."

"Between you and me, there is no need to say thank you."

Changsun Qianxue also smiled faintly, as if she had put down a heavy burden and felt much more relaxed. She lowered her eyes and poured wine, and the cup seemed to reflect Wang Jingmeng's smile when he drank.

When one can truly taste the swordsman's lifelong joy in wine, the only one left who makes the wine is a heartbroken person.

I raised my glass and looked around, only the wind and snow knocking on the window.

Snowflakes fell from the ceiling of the wine cellar, transforming into countless transparent figures dancing with swords in the moonlight, and finally dissipated in the steaming wine mist with the first ray of morning light.

……

On the morning of the fifth day, as if to prove that the Great Chu Dynasty did have the military strength to inflict "heavenly punishment" with the nine-sky thunder and fire, several fleets of so-called Tianyuanjia-type flying aircraft suddenly launched an unprecedented air strike on the hills beside Hangu Pass, which was dozens of miles deep in the Qin territory.

Under the comprehensive attack of the newly modified "Tianlu" guided rockets and the Fiery Sun Sand bombs, the entire peak was completely flattened.

According to the projection ranging method, the Chu army's manned flying kites even reached an altitude of seven or eight thousand feet, which was far beyond the attack range of almost all the crossbows and flying swords of the Qin army. This meant that if a conflict broke out between the two sides in the near future, the former would surely have an incomparable strategic advantage, and even make it difficult for the latter to fight back.

Of course, this depends on how many people the newly formed air force of the Chu Dynasty has and whether the Changling military still has countermeasures to draw a definite conclusion. But even so, the Qin army, which was originally fearless and happy to hear about war, gradually began to feel panic.

On that day, the thick morning fog outside Hangu Pass had not yet dissipated, and more than 30 Sky Kites of the Chu Army were already hovering at an altitude of 7,000 feet like giant black iron rocs. The "Tianlu" rockets dropped from the belly of the aircraft dragged purple-red tail flames and accurately pierced into the abandoned mines 70 miles away.

This was the Qinghan crystal vein stone mining area that had been mined out during the reign of the Qin Emperor. The jagged mountains peeled off layer by layer like crispy maltose blocks in the series of explosions, and molten lava gushed out from the cracks, turning the area within a radius of twenty miles into a red purgatory.

"Raise your shields!" the captain's roar was drowned out by the sound of the oncoming gusts of air.

The crossbowmen behind the crenels of the pass were horrified to find that the Chu army did not bother to attack the garrison fortress at all, and those killing weapons with flame tails only wandered among the barren peaks. Whenever the vibrations of landslides and cracks came along the ground, the bronze seismometers on the top of the city would shake off the jade beads all over the ground.

In the performance report submitted to the Changling Military Commander, the garrison commander wrote: "…at 3:30 a.m., a Chu kite of thirty-six came from the southeast and hung 7,400 feet above the ground. At about 5:00 p.m., suddenly red light fell on the cold mountain like rain, with a sound like thunder beating a drum…"

"I urgently ordered the Shenwei heavy crossbow battalion to fire in unison, but the arrows ran out of power and fell after reaching two thousand feet... The Eagle Beak Peak thirty miles away was like a candle meeting fire, and the mountain melted into a stream of glass..." There were a few drops of ink on the corners of the report on the work, as if one could see the writer's trembling wrist through the letter tube.

What really terrified the Qin army was not the power of the serial bombings, but the absolute air superiority displayed by the Chu army. The heavy cavalry on patrol that night saw with their own eyes that a certain Sky Kite actually dropped three flare bombs accurately at midnight, illuminating the entire training ground as bright as day.

Afterwards, the horses of the grain transport team convulsed and hit the fence at midnight. The horsemen told everyone they heard the sharp cry of a kite flying through the clouds. The military rune masters and craftsmen repeatedly modified the model of the Xunfeng rune engraved on the Changfeng arrows.

In the arrow tower on the east side of the parade ground, three crossbowmen were whipped by the military inspector for adjusting the elevation angle of the heavy crossbow to the limit without authorization. Their bloodshot eyes were always fixed on the clouds, as if the chains of judgment would be dropped from there at any time.

Military law was strict, and no Qin soldier chose to flee. However, when the bronze bell on duty rang by mistake for the third time, some soldiers used fire tongs to burn their ears - as if the shadow deep in the clouds echoed day and night, and would raise poisonous bees that never sleep in the cochlea.

……

When the urgent news from the border was transmitted back to Changling, it was discovered that the fourteen-year-old eldest prince Fusu had already entered the fifth realm of divine consciousness, and that He Shanjian, who had fled back to Minshan in a panic, was directly deposed from his position as elder by Baili Suxue. These anecdotes that usually aroused countless discussions seemed dull at this moment.

Although the Great Chu Dynasty had always been at the forefront of talisman craftsmanship, the fact that they had developed such a mysterious creation that could change the world's war pattern without any warning still made all those who knew about it feel incredible, and they suspected that the other party had accidentally discovered technical information from the You Dynasty era during archaeological excavations. (End of this chapter)