Tumor Sword Immortal

Chapter 29 Swordsmanship
The training ground was spacious, and the students and teachers gathered in small groups without disturbing each other.

Pei Xia only had a few kittens on her side, so she just found a corner, waved her hand, and told everyone to sit on the ground.

"Have you ever had any cultivation experience? Or have you learned about it from others?" Pei Xia asked.

Xu Shangxin, along with Li Er and Liu San, all shook their heads.

Xie knew perfectly well what was going on, but he didn't bother to pay him any attention.

Pei Xia didn't care. She reached out and brushed aside the ground in front of her, spreading out a patch of sand.

"First, you need to have a general idea, to know the relative importance and significance of things."

Pei Xia raised her hand, and a wisp of qi emanated from her fingertips, as thin as a long needle, condensed and not dissipated.

This made Xie take another look, somewhat surprised.

I thought that even if a scholar from the Prime Minister's mansion trained for ten years, he would hardly achieve anything of note in his spiritual practice.

This move, demonstrating his mastery of Qi Refining, is quite exquisite.

Pei Xia used the qi at his fingertips to slowly write the four characters "One Righteous and Three Wonders" on the sand.

"Some people find it hard to remember, but it's actually not complicated. Martial arts is the orthodox path, with twelve realms. The three wonders are the Plain Master, the Military Strategist, and the Qi Observer. The Plain Master has nine realms, while the Military Strategist and the Qi Observer each have only five realms."

"The path of martial arts progresses from low to high through eight realms: Hearing the Wind, Transforming into the Dark, Vibrating the Qi, Refining the Cauldron, Comprehending the Profound, Opening the Mansion, Transforming into the Origin, and Heavenly Consciousness. These eight realms encompass ninety-nine percent of the martial artists in the world."

"As for the Su Masters, they are only referred to by their realm. Achieving mastery is the first realm, being able to refine pills is the second realm, being able to refine weapons is the third realm, being able to control spiritual power remotely is the fourth realm, casting spells is the fifth realm, and dissolving spells is the sixth realm. Similarly, 99% of Su Masters are in these six realms."

"In military strategy, the first level is a hundred, the second a thousand, the third ten thousand. Only by practicing formations and refining one's skills can one break through to the next level. Once one reaches the fourth level and becomes a Blood Guardian of the Nation, that is basically the limit. There are only a handful of such people in the entire Nine Provinces."

At this point, Xie curled the corners of his mouth, said nothing, and gave a vague hum from the tip of his nose.

Pei Xia had already explained it simply enough, but Li Er and Liu San were still completely bewildered.

They are not stupid.

They weren't listening attentively; deep down, they were just there to support Xu Shangxin.

It was her eldest brother who was concentrating intently. As soon as Pei Xia finished speaking, she immediately raised her hand high: "Sir, sir, what about observing qi?"

"Observing the aura..." Pei Xia was about to speak.

Xie, who was standing to the side, had already answered on his own: "The requirements for a Qi Observer are extremely high, and the cultivation is so difficult that it often takes decades. An ordinary person may not even encounter a Qi Observer in their entire life of wandering the world, so there is no need to worry about it."

Pei Xia's face hardened, and she reached out and broke off a twig from beside her backside, slamming it to the ground with a "smack": "You won't answer when I ask you, and you interrupt when I do. Who taught you to be so bad?"

Pei Xia opened her mouth and scolded.

Xie Huan's guards, however, did not yield an inch, and with a clang, drew their swords.

Xu Shangxin's expression changed immediately.

"What are you doing?" Xie glared coldly at his guard. "Is the academy a place for you to draw your sword?"

The guards, of course, dared not disobey their young master. They simply stared coldly at Pei Xia and slowly sheathed their swords.

Pei Xia looked at his hand holding the knife and laughed, "Your knife is three feet long. When you draw it, you extend one arm forward, keep your left hand on the scabbard, and don't use your waist. With this style, you can't even scare a martial arts performer. What, has General Xie's mansion fallen so low that it has to hire a troupe of actors to serve as guards?"

Young Master Xie's guard had just sheathed his sword when he heard this. A vein throbbed on his forehead, and he put his hand back on the hilt of his sword: "You!"

However, this time, Xie stopped him again.

At the same time, Young Master Xie's gaze towards Pei Xia also became strange.

His martial arts skills as a bodyguard were all personally taught by Xie Huan.

Regarding the seemingly insignificant details of gripping and drawing the sword, Pei Xia was not the first to point them out.

The previous one was his father, Xie Zu.

Now, he's actually quite interested in Pei Xia's so-called martial arts class.

Xie didn't persist, so Pei Xia gave him a couple of warnings, telling him not to disturb the teacher's class anymore. Then she continued, "Since we've brought up drawing the sword, let's continue and talk about this martial art."

In fact, the term "martial arts" is rarely mentioned among practitioners anymore.

Because of the transformation and refinement of the body, most martial arts cultivators have sharp ears and eyes, and when fighting with others, they can react and counter moves. In many cases, they rely on their reactions and instincts.

Many martial arts manuals circulating among martial arts sects, including sword techniques and saber skills, are more about the use of spiritual energy, relying on swords and sabers to manifest various mysteries.

Martial arts has gradually become a general term encompassing all techniques used in combat.

No one would think there's anything wrong with this; since the twelve realms of martial arts were summarized, everyone has understood it this way.

But Pei Xia was different; yesterday was the first time in his life that he had tried the twelfth realm of martial arts.

Before that, Pei Xia's "martial arts" and "physical strength" were separate.

Strictly speaking, this young man really didn't have any real martial arts skills.

If Pei Xia wants to teach martial arts, she can only follow the old path she took years ago.

"Practice your skills first, then build up your physique. It's never a bad thing to lay a solid foundation in these two areas."

As he spoke, he stood up, holding the tree branch he had just broken off, and looked at his four students: "I will demonstrate a basic sword technique for you. In the future, any derived techniques will follow this path."

Pei Xia appeared to be holding a sword.

His steps were not swift, but steady and unwavering. His sword was simply thrust forward, but his arm was outstretched, as if every muscle in his body was perfectly coordinated to exert force for this thrust.

Xie saw even more detail—at the top of the branch in his hand, a tiny green leaf tilted backward in the wind, but when the thorn stopped, it returned to its original position without any resistance.

If he hadn't failed to detect any trace of spiritual power, he would have even thought that Pei Xia was cheating and deliberately creating a mystery.

Thrust, flick, horizontal, diagonal, slash...

This is indeed a very basic sword technique demonstration.

It's supposed to be so ordinary and boring that it would make you yawn. If you saw it on the street, even the most lively and active child would feel bored and walk away.

Even Xie Huan and Xu Shangxin saw a strange beauty in Pei Xia's swordplay.

Xu Shangxin didn't understand cultivation; what she thought of was "coherence."

Xie understood; what he thought of was "harmony and compromise."

He had only ever seen this feeling of observing swords in his own father, Xie Zu.

It's not surprising that Xue Zhenguo, a survivor of countless battles, possesses such versatile and adaptable martial arts skills.

But how old is Pei Xia? He's even two years younger than me.

The hands that were originally resting on her knees were now tightly gripping the hem of her clothes.

After finishing her routine, Pei Xia casually tossed the branch in her hand onto the ground.

A quick glance revealed that Li Er and Liu San were already chatting quietly, chirping crickets softly.

Xu Shangxin was watching him. Although the girl didn't quite understand, she nodded repeatedly, indicating her approval of his swordplay.

To Pei Xia's surprise, Xie Huan was actually watching very attentively.

He coughed and said, "A tall building starts from the ground up. Don't bite off more than you can chew. I'll teach you this much for today. Go back and practice this sword technique until you're proficient. We'll talk about physical fitness tomorrow."

Xie's eye twitched slightly: "Physical fitness, you have your own insights?"

"Why, you don't believe it?"

"letter."

This time, Xie didn't say anything sarcastic. He struggled to compose himself, then tried his best to appear calm, and let out a long breath: "I'll be here on time tomorrow."

(End of this chapter)