Walking alone with a sword, slaying ghosts and gods

Chapter 48: Sword Challenges All Living Things, Continuous Victories (V)
"Sister, sister! The Sword Master is really amazing. There is no need to say much about me and Chen Tengjiao from the Sword Master Hall and Master Bai from the Jinhong Sword Hall. Even the notoriously 'unkind and unjust' Jiao family duo were defeated by his sword when they joined forces."

A month later.

"Sister, sister! The 'Forty-Nine Swords' taught by Master Lin is so wonderful. The Great Dao is fifty and the forty-nine is derived. Master Lin said that every move and every form of this sword technique can be broken down and reorganized to evolve into other sword techniques. After nine breaks and nine builds, you can comprehend the essence of swordsmanship, and from then on, you can change as you like, and all methods will return to one!"

Three months later.

"Sister, sister! Master defeated the red-haired evil ghost Li You, the old man Guan from Feidao Sect, and Madam Sun from Curse Spirit Pavilion with his sword. When will I be able to be like Master, test the world with his sword, and be invincible!"

Ever since her sister Lin Qingxue entered Wenjianzhai, she would brag to her elder sister Lin Qingyue about her new swordsman every once in a while.

At first, Lin Qingyue thought that her sister was just trying to have some fun, but she would be fine after the excitement wore off.

But unexpectedly, Lin Qingxue really fell in love with swordsmanship and started to practice hard day after day in the past six months. Sometimes, her hands were rubbed to the point of bleeding, and she continued to practice even after wrapping them with cotton cloth. This made Lin Qingyue feel extremely distressed.

"Forget it, Xue'er, why do you have to torture yourself like this?"

"Is it bitter? Sister, I don't feel it's bitter. Master said that the sword is only safe when it is held in one's own hands. The foundation of all the laws and rules in this world is this sword!"

When saying this, Lin Qingxue's eyes showed a fanatical look.

Lin Qingyue looked at her sister and felt almost strange for a moment, but finally felt relieved.

In a blink of an eye, six months passed. With the help of Chen Tengjiao from the Sword Art Hall, the people of Lucheng sat at home and welcomed the successive challenges from the senior masters from all sides of the City That Never Sleeps. Their reputation for defeating many heroes with swords rose rapidly.

The reputation of Wenjianzhai is growing day by day in this city that never sleeps.

Because Wenjianzhai only accepted two hundred disciples, the monthly tuition fee of ten spirit stones was raised to thirty or fifty spirit stones.

In other words, if the person who paid the tuition fee earlier is willing to withdraw and give up his or her place, he or she can earn forty spirit stones out of thin air.

But even so, very few people are willing to quit.

You don't have to serve Master Lin of Wenjian Zhai for a few years. It may be more than ten years. After you pay a tuition fee, he will really teach you swordsmanship. This young Taoist is like a treasure trove of swordsmanship. He can point others in the direction of progress with just a few pointers.

Of course, Lin Zhaizhu himself said:
"What I am teaching now are all quick-success magic sword techniques, which are used to improve combat power. To truly practice the way of the sword, one must start with the intention in the heart and the spirit in the chest. Being too obsessed with the changes in the sword moves themselves is a move that misses the point."

"My teaching today actually has far-reaching consequences for the City That Never Sleeps."

Master Lin was a man of noble character. When he said this, others just listened and then went there in large numbers to study.

Demonic way?

The devil is actually the Tao.

You're telling us, who are just cultivating Yin and poison, about the dangers of practicing magic?

Haha, it's obvious that they usually eat too well. It's good enough for ordinary people to have a way to make progress, and there's also magic swordsmanship.

Although Lu Cheng was only willing to accept two hundred disciples, each disciple was charged ten spirit stones per month as tuition, so for two hundred people that would be two thousand, and for six months that would be twelve thousand.

At the Liujin Ancient Artifacts Workshop auction, a Foundation Establishment Pill cost only 32,000 spirit stones. It took a family of immortal cultivators more than ten years to scrape together that much money, but Lu Cheng can now earn that much in a little over two years, and that's because he can't teach enough and is unwilling to expand his enrollment.

At this time, Lu Cheng began to understand why Chen Tengjiao was targeting him. It was really a huge profit.

But not everyone can earn such huge profits. If Lin Lie was not from Lu Cheng, an ordinary swordsmanship master who opened a swordsmanship hall in the city that never sleeps, but did not go to the main swordsmanship hall to pay homage to the master, would have his tendons cut in two days and his cultivation would be ruined.

After a while, it might rot in some stinky ditch.

The underlying operating logic of this world is ultimately violence.

The City That Never Sleeps, ten miles southwest.

The Sword Immortal Ape Liu Baihong challenged the Sword Master Lin Lie to a duel. He presented a visiting card three days ago with complete courtesy, so Lu Cheng accepted the challenge.

This person is a senior among the seniors among the sword cultivators in the City That Never Sleeps, and a famous master among the famous masters.

After defeating this man, there should be no more powerful sword cultivator in the Qi training realm in the City That Never Sleeps.

Stone road, forest.

Liu Baihong is a man wearing a green Taoist robe and with a head full of white hair, but his face is that of a young man.

When Lu Cheng arrived, he slowly turned around:
"Thank you, Master Lin, for taking the time out of your busy schedule to come here to keep your appointment."

"This young man Chen Tengjiao once came to me for help, but I had no intention of getting involved in such grudges. I only have the path of Tao in my heart."

"So the battle between you and me today is not for grudges, but only for the pursuit of truth. I am very happy about this."

After saying this, the Taoist in green looked at Lu Cheng. There was no killing intent or fighting intent in his eyes, only joy.

Liu Baihong was poor when he was young and it was difficult for him to seek the truth. He was born a beggar and had no parents since he could remember. Fortunately, people could survive by starving in the city that never sleeps. He begged for food here and there and grew up little by little. When he was ten years old, he was abducted by a group of vicious beggars who wanted to use their magic of cutting living things into pieces to create an immortal.

The nameless beggar, who was not called Liu Baihong at that time, relied on his ruthlessness and luck to get a sharp knife at night, and killed all the beggars in half of the temple overnight while the evil beggars were sleeping.

When someone found this place the next day, blood was flowing out as soon as the door was opened.

Because of his ruthlessness, the nameless beggar was spotted by a killer organization, taken away for training, and then became the Liu Baihong of today.

Because I started from such a low point, I wasted a lot of time.

Liu Baihong is already over sixty years old, and is still at the ninth level of Qi training. Moreover, his vitality has begun to deplete, and his chances of successfully building his foundation are getting lower and lower.

"Good opponents are hard to come by. Only with a good opponent can one continuously improve oneself and unleash one's potential. Very good, you understand."

The next moment, a sword light with a soft glow had already pierced in front of Lu Cheng.

Liu Baihong was born a beggar and a killer. Although he later destroyed the killer organization he came from, that long period of time still left a deep mark on him:

The sword moves in an unconventional and strange way.

Lu Cheng narrowed his eyes and drew his sword. Many monks who practiced sword techniques were reluctant to hold the sword in their hands, because the flying sword was powerful while their own strength was weak, which would slow down and weaken the sword's speed and strength.

But Lu Cheng was different. He and his sword were one. The sword's strength and his human softness blended perfectly. Buzzing, the red sword shadow bloomed like a lotus, without any fireworks, blocking the flying sword of the Taoist priest in green and blocking all attacks from the opponent at the same time.

"it is good!"

With a low shout, the Taoist in green slid to the right with a smile on his face. He restrained his breath and became elusive, appearing and disappearing mysteriously, and attacked from the side again.

Lu Cheng slid to the left, his aura also restrained. He seemed to become elusive and unpredictable, and attacked from the side again.

Looking down, the two people were like two phantoms in the smoke, drawing a perfect circle, and then suddenly meeting each other.

Clang.

The two swords collided, the tips of the two flying swords collided, the sword forces collided and impacted, and wind and waves suddenly arose.

Whirring whirring.

The sword wind whistled, and the sound of the sword spread. The branches and leaves of the ancient trees in the mountains and forests fell down one after another, and it seemed that even the heaven and earth shook.

Both sides used mysterious and sharp sword moves, and after a brief test, they joined forces to attack.

Liu Baihong was known as the Immortal Sword Ape. When the sword light he controlled was tightly caught by Lu Cheng's red flame sword light and the two were entangled like dragons.

The white-haired and green-robed swordsman put his fingers together to form a sword and flew forward to attack in an instant.

Close combat requires the hands, eyes, heart and courage to blend together. This word "courage" can often be worth ten years of hard training. Lu Cheng is a skilled swordsman who has experienced countless sword fights. He can even cut off his own fear, especially with forty-nine heavenly soldiers and generals protecting him. How can he be afraid of others in close combat?

With their fingers as sharp as swords, the two sides attacked each other.

Liu Baihong rushed to attack and Lu Cheng flew back in the air.

The two flying swords were now biting and entangled with each other, both wanting to strangle the other, or to return to the hands of their masters first to be refilled with mana, so only two rainbows of light were seen chasing each other, spreading the sword power and causing explosions in the mountains and forests on all sides.

Boom boom boom boom…

Liu Baihong's body movements were better than Lu Cheng's. Lu Cheng was used to following his sword and escaping with it. As the saying goes, "An immortal wields a sword like a dragon." This means that when an immortal wields a sword, it is like riding a dragon, with the person riding on the dragon and flying all over the sky, but it is the dragon that is flying, not the person.

However, when facing the situation where his flying sword was entangled by the opponent, the immortal was only an immortal, and the dragon was gone, so his body movements were at some disadvantages.

However, Liu Baihong discovered that when the swords and palms of both sides collided with each other, a little of his own sword power was always borrowed by his opponent. This was because his own swordsmanship was not as sophisticated as his opponent's, so although he had the advantage, he could not attack for a long time.

"I should go grab the flying sword now!"

"No, I can't. It is said that this person has mastered the secret sword energy method, and the sword he condensed into is extremely powerful. The moment I tried to snatch the flying sword, he struck me with a sword. It was a matter of life and death in an instant. I had no confidence in winning."

In a split second, Liu Baihong made the decision.

He had great agility and therefore had a certain degree of initiative, and suddenly flew back quickly. After landing, he did not call back his flying sword, which had little power left, but chose to combine his fingers to form a spell, gather the sword energy around him, and slash out with the sword.

Any cultivator can use sword energy, the only difference is the strength of the power. Lu Cheng's meridian-breaking sword energy is enough to condense the sword into a sword and is strong enough to challenge the magic weapon of the same level. This is the level of the cultivator's sword energy secret method.

Clang.

A pure white sword energy burst out as Liu Baihong slashed with his sword.

The young Taoist who was in mid-air used his magic power to jump up and avoid the sword energy. However, a cultivator in the Qi training stage could not fly on the wind. This kind of jump was more like the light work skills of ordinary warriors. After the Qi was exhausted, he would fall.

And this was the moment Liu Baihong had been waiting for. He quickly displayed his body skills again, almost bringing with him layers of phantoms behind him. He flew up to a higher altitude, drew his sword in the air, and fiercely attacked his opponent.

One side is exhausted, the other side is in perfect condition and trying its best, one side is falling, and the other side is attacking from above with a sword.

Liu Baihong really had enough confidence that he could completely defeat Lin Lie when he landed, thereby increasing his confidence in breaking through the bottleneck.

"Should we cast White Rainbow Piercing the Sun at this moment?"

"No, we will have a better chance when he hits the ground and his energy is extremely weak."

Liu Baihong pounced into the air and approached Lu Cheng, with her sword and palm thrust straight at his throat.

So far in this battle, Lu Cheng had indeed miscalculated. The Immortal Sword Ape Liu Baihong was almost the strongest cultivator in the Qi training realm in the City That Never Sleeps. Although Lu Cheng was confident, he was not conceited. Before coming here, he had read his life experience and knew that this person had experienced countless ups and downs in his life.

Therefore, although he possessed the sword-wielding skill Sword Intent Formation, he had never used it. This was because for a cultivator with such a strong character, Sword Intent Formation would most likely only weaken him to a limited extent, and instead serve as a tempering. It was better to save it for the right critical moment.

A meteor from the sky, a sword strike, sure kill, sure victory, sure death, kill/defeat with one sword, leaving no room for adaptation.

Every kendo skill is very powerful, but it doesn’t mean that you will be invincible after mastering it.

The sword intent is extremely effective against most cultivators, but its effect will be greatly weakened against cultivators with strong minds.

"But it was too easy for me to win battle after battle. I even dared to look down on a swordsman who was almost a legend. I didn't use my skills and tied my own hands..."

The sword skills and sword intent took shape, and Lu Cheng's sword palm counterattacked.

At the moment when the swords and palms of both sides collided, the pupils of Yijianxianyuan Liu Baihong dilated violently, but he suppressed them the next moment and looked at Lu Cheng in disbelief.

But he still defended in time and blocked the sword that Lu Cheng launched when he found an opportunity.

The two men fought in the air, each displaying their sword moves.

Things were exactly as Lu Cheng had thought. Apart from the first sword, there were no more gaps in Liu Baihong's sword moves. Instead, it was as if he had stimulated some kind of potential. His fingers were like blades and his arms were like swords. He swung dozens of swords in a row, sweeping over like a storm.

This sword technique was fast, fierce, and all-pervasive. Every strike of the sword seemed to be made with all one's strength. Lu Cheng seemed to see Liu Baihong's bloody life:
I fight every day, because I can't survive otherwise!

Taking advantage of the force and breaking the momentum, Lu Cheng's defense was extremely strict and meticulous, and no water could penetrate.

quick!quick!quick!
Both sides fought fast, with sword stabbing, sword slashing, and rapid falls, but each of their attacks was able to attack and intercept the opponent with incredible accuracy.

Lu Cheng has already borrowed enough sword power to break enough sword momentum.

He landed first and disappeared in an instant. Only a piece of land was seen rising up and moving forward at a rapid speed.

"White rainbow penetrates the sun!"

At this moment, the Sword Immortal Ape Liu Baihong also used the most powerful killing move in his swordsmanship.

His entire body seemed to be one with the sword, as if he was wrapped in a pure white sword rainbow that emanated from the sky and slashed down obliquely.

White Rainbow Piercing the Sun, this is the most basic of the basic moves in swordsmanship. Even a naughty boy in the mortal world can perform it when riding a bamboo horse and fighting with a wooden sword.

However, Liu Baihong was born a killer in the mortal world in his early years. Every time he used this style, he tried to kill the enemy with one sword. After a decade, he did not die: How terrifying has this sword become?
To describe such a sword with the Taoist theory of the three treasures of essence, energy and spirit, it can be called: divine transformation! The superposition of sword intent eventually leads to the state of divine transformation.

This sword strike almost surpassed the level he should have been able to reach.

"Where to go!"

When Liu Baihong used the White Rainbow Shooting Through the Sun move, his energy and spirit had already reached the peak.

After the magic power was exhausted, the flying sword that was stuck in the rocks spread out pure white mist from the inside out, making a buzzing sound, and then suddenly broke through the air and flew into Liu Baihong's hands.

As the Taoist in green clothes and white hair swung his arm and slashed, a white sword light slashed out from the bottom of the ground, but it did not chase the earth escape. Instead, it slashed towards the ancient tree behind the place where Lu Cheng had just landed, and cut it into two pieces with a loud bang.

However, the next moment, Liu Baihong's expression changed in shock, and he turned around quickly. But at this moment, Lu Cheng, who had been rushing forward through earth escape, suddenly pounced out, recalled the Red Flame Sword, and at the same time pressed forward to press against Liu Baihong's throat.

If an ordinary cultivator in the Qi training stage tried to use the Five Elements Escape Technique to escape from Liu Baihong, whose spirit and energy were elevated to the peak through the use of the White Rainbow Piercing the Sun, he would be seen through ten thousand times and would definitely be cut off ten thousand times, and would not be able to escape even once.

However, Lu Cheng's sword intent was constantly weakened, and ultimately Liu Baihong's Baihong Guanri could not reach the extreme point. The six senses' capture had flaws, and Liu Baihong could only rely on his experience to choose between attacking the ancient tree or escaping through the earth. Liu Baihong chose to attack the ancient tree.

Because this way, there is no need to actually perform the Five Elements Escape Technique, and it can be simulated with sword energy and breath control, which is relatively easy. However, Liu Baihong did not expect that Lu Cheng really knew the Five Elements Escape Technique and practiced it well:
In other words, you are proficient in both swordsmanship and martial arts?
"In this battle, I have been defeated sincerely. Please give me a quick death." Liu Baihong closed his eyes and said no more.

"…Why do you say that, Mr. Liu? Didn't you say at the beginning that this battle is a battle for the truth? If that's the case, why should we care so much about winning or losing?"

Making friends with swords, although Qin Hui can also practice good calligraphy. But Lu Cheng mastered the sword intent, he could vaguely sense and grasp Liu Baihong's heart of seeking the truth, so he naturally trusted him more. In this case, there was no need to kill him and reduce his reputation in the city that never sleeps.

Most importantly, Liu Baihong was the only person who could make him suffer in a sword fight. Lu Cheng really wanted to fight him a few more times to make up for his own shortcomings.

Although Lu Cheng felt that he was the weakest at the Qi Training Stage, it was like asking a top poker player to participate in a relay game. The fewer cards in his hand, the less room he had for maneuver. Only when he chose all the cards he had, could he reach his peak state.

"Since I have nothing else to do, Mr. Liu, would you mind going with me to Wenjianzhai for a drink? Recently, a disciple who runs a tavern sent me a jar of good wine, saying that it was buried when his sister was born. Now one jar is for his sister's dowry, and the other is for me, the owner of the tavern."

Liu Baihong looked at Lu Cheng, then touched his neck. Although he was not afraid of death, he would not seek death. He laughed loudly and said:

"Well, it is a blessing for me to make friends with someone like Fellow Daoist Lin."

"please!"

"please."

(End of this chapter)