The undead have descended upon the world? I possess a sword that can cleave the heavens once more!

This happened on the afternoon before Wu You went to the deep dark realm to clean up the corpses.

In front of Aijia Sporting Goods Store next to Lanxing Residential Area, Lanhe City.

"Xiao Jing, it's easy to hurt yourself if you start practicing swordsmanship without a foundation."

Lin Xinmai, with her long black hair cascading down her back and wearing a loose T-shirt, had her brows slightly furrowed.

Her gaze fell on the girl in front of her with a high ponytail and rosy complexion, her bright eyes filled with worry.

Wu Jing nodded, holding up the bag in her hand and saying, "It's okay, didn't we buy protective gear?"

"And I'll be careful."

. . . . . .

After buying the sword, Wu Jing returned home.

The door closed behind her, shutting out the sweltering air outside.

She changed her shoes, went into her room, placed the long bag against her desk, sat down, and opened the book "Basic Martial Arts Swordsmanship (Part 1)" again.

"The thirteen basic stances are: draw, carry, lift, parry, strike, stab, point, collapse, stir, press, chop, intercept, and wash."

"The 'drawing' technique involves drawing the sword horizontally, either from left to right or from right to left."

"The 'carrying' technique involves the sword blade moving backward along the opponent's weapon, using the momentum to your advantage."

. . .

"The most basic footwork is divided into five types: advancing, retreating, vertical, horizontal, and diagonal..."

Her gaze continued downwards.

"Start practicing from the basic thirteen postures..."

"After becoming familiar with the basic thirteen postures, you also need to combine them with footwork..."

"Finally, we also need to pay attention to the coordination of breathing rhythm, footwork, and the thirteen basic postures..."

"Footwork, breathing, and sword techniques complement each other..."

. . .

After flipping through the first few pages of "Basic Martial Arts Swordplay," Wu Jing couldn't help but sigh before closing the not-so-thick stack of "martial arts manuals" in front of her.

Although it looks complicated, it is actually not simple at all.

She recognized every word on it and could understand every sentence, but when she tried to translate those words into actions in her mind, she found that she had no idea how to move them.

Wu Jing took a deep breath, first glancing at the long bag she was leaning against the desk, then at the still bright and hot sky outside.

"What you learn from books is never enough; you have to try it out first."

Wu Jing had a good memory to begin with, and after reviewing the basic sword techniques several times, she had memorized the previous content clearly.

She stood up, picked up the long cloth bag leaning against the desk, and turned to leave the room.

Upon entering the living room, Wu Jing looked around and quickly came to a conclusion: the space in the house was clearly too small, making it impossible to move around freely.

After going downstairs, Wu Jing walked out of the apartment building where she lived.

The moment she stepped out of the apartment building, the scorching sunlight shone on her entire body, and a wave of heat continuously assaulted her.

Although it was already past four in the afternoon, the air outside was still unbearably hot.

Wu Jing slightly shielded her eyes from the still somewhat glaring sunlight with her hand, then walked around the neighborhood, her eyes scanning the surroundings.

She needed to find an open space, a place big enough for her to swing her sword.

The next moment, a tiny patch of land, nestled between several six-story old buildings, came into her view.

Not only are there several old buildings blocking most of the sunlight, but there are also several old sycamore trees growing crookedly around, forming a shady place with shade.

It is the small park inside the Lanxing residential area.

Although Wu Jing had lived in Lanxing Community for a long time and knew that there was such a small park, she had never paid much attention to it when she passed by in the past.

After all, that place was so ordinary and unremarkable that there was nothing worth looking at.

But looking at it now, it's actually quite suitable for practicing basic martial arts swordsmanship.

Without hesitation, Wu Jing immediately walked quickly towards the shady spot.

Under the shade of a tree, she pulled out an unopened training sword from a long cloth bag.

The sword had a silver-white metal blade, was not sharpened, had a rounded tip, a black guard, and a dark blue sweatband wrapped around the hilt.

Then she followed what she had written down: she placed the hilt of the training sword against her palm, gripped the guard with her thumb and forefinger, and held the hilt naturally with the other three fingers.

She adjusted the position of her fingers on the hilt several times before finally finding a comfortable grip.

After gripping the sword, Wu Jing began practicing the basic thirteen postures individually.

First is the "drawing" method.

Wu Jing was thinking about the key points of the "drawing" technique: the force should be generated from the front part of the sword, and the arm should be driven by the waist, rather than just the wrist.

Then, holding the sword in one hand, she swung it horizontally from left to right, just as she had in mind.

Unfortunately, it resembles the form but not the spirit.

The way you exert force is completely wrong.

Just now, she swung the sword entirely using the strength of her arm and wrist.

The core strength of the waist was not mobilized at all.

"Again."

Wu Jing sheathed her sword and gripped it firmly again.

She tried rotating her waist as she swung the sword, letting her waist lead her arm, and her arm lead the sword.

But when she turned her waist, she lost her balance again.

"Again!"

She steadied herself and swung her sword again.

Still not right.

She tried again and again, making mistakes, and again and again, as she drew arcs with her sword under the shade of the tree.

Before long, she stopped, panting, with glistening beads of sweat covering her forehead beneath her bangs.

This was after she used those exotic plants and her physical strength had been significantly improved.

Without those exotic plants, she probably would have suffered from arm soreness and wrist injury after just a few training swings.

Wu Jing took a few breaths and then raised her head again.

Although she knew that this so-called basic sword technique of martial arts would be difficult to learn, she did not expect it to be this difficult.

Even just one of the thirteen basic postures is this difficult.

If you master all thirteen forms, and then add footwork and breathing techniques, how long will it take to complete that?

she does not know.

But she won't give up.

She thought of the hideous monsters in her dream, the black trench coats with strange abilities, her parents, and the "missing" person.

She understood that she needed strength.

She needs real, genuine strength that can protect herself and others!

"Again!"

She raised her training sword once more and began practicing.

. . .

Time flew by with each swing of the sword. Before long, the sun had moved to the western horizon, and the sunlight had changed from dazzling white to a lingering orange.

Wu Jing didn't know how many times she had swung her sword. All she knew was that she had rested more than a dozen times and wasted a lot of time.

Having rested once more, she stood up from the ground again and raised her sword once more.

At that moment, Wu Jing didn't notice that a girl wearing a simple white short-sleeved shirt and thermal pants, with a neat short haircut, was quietly watching her.

The girl leaned against the lamppost, her body slightly tilted, one hand in the pocket of her hot pants, and the other hanging at her side.

Her short hair swayed gently in the evening breeze, and a few strands were blown onto her beautiful face.

But she didn't dial it; she just looked in the direction ahead.

Hua Linlin, who had only come to visit her second aunt after get off work, never expected to witness such a scene.

She looked at the girl under the sycamore tree, whose clothes were completely soaked with sweat, whose hair stood in strands on her forehead and cheeks, and whose arms were trembling, yet she was still swinging her sword again and again. A scene she had seen before couldn't help but come to mind.

The same place, the same dedication to sword practice.

She murmured to herself, "They really do look alike..."