That wretched vixen has disguised herself as my wife!

However, she is still very gentle with children, so the three demons like her very much. The two boys were spreading rumors about the young mistress, which was probably to speak up for her.

"When I'm not around, you two need to behave well and protect Tangbao, understand?"

"understood."

Perhaps sensing the atmosphere of parting, Tanggua and Tangzao nodded blankly.

“You can start learning swordsmanship tomorrow. If Uncle He asks, just say that the young master has approved it.”

As soon as Jiang Jingming finished speaking, the two boys jumped up excitedly. Tangbao, who hadn't even wiped away her tears, also grinned foolishly.

"Go, go and get your wooden swords. You can even carve your names on them."

Jiang Jingming patted them on the back and watched them run away happily.

A flock of wild geese flew in the distance, making the sky seem vast. A gust of wind rose, and the faint sound of flowing spring water could be heard.

Jiang Jingming suddenly remembered that when he was in the Xiquan Sword Sect, he was only allowed to move around in a small courtyard most of the time.

Looking up from the courtyard, all you can see is a square patch of sky. Occasionally, a bird will perch on the eaves to rest, tilting its head and curiously staring at you.

Like the stereotypical image of sword cultivators in Jiang Jingming's mind, the Xiquan Sword Sect is martial but indifferent to emotions, but as the young sect leader, he is not allowed to practice martial arts.

That villa was less a place of tranquility and more a prison.

He only had the opportunity to learn martial arts after being abducted into the Duyue Cult.

But because he had no foundation and was physically weak, when Jiang Jingming first started learning the knife, he was just like a clumsy child who couldn't learn to walk no matter how hard he tried.

Such a situation is something that a martial arts prodigy like Jiang Wuwang could never comprehend.

This rogue firmly believed that fighting should be an instinct; once you grasp the hilt of the sword, you naturally know how to draw it.

So one of them, dragging a knife, staggered about, while the other, incredulous, didn't know where to begin teaching.

Finally, Gu Tinghan, who had been standing by with his arms crossed and watching coldly, suddenly spoke up and said, "Let me teach him."

At that time, Jiang Jingming felt that there could not be a worse master than Jiang Wuwang, so he did not hesitate to become his disciple.

However, it turned out that neither of them was any better than the other.

Gu Tinghan was a man of few words, and most of the time he would close his eyes to rest. You could tell where he was not practicing well just by listening to him.

Furthermore, this person has a severe tendency towards perfectionism; he won't release someone until they've practiced every move to his satisfaction.

Jiang Jingming practiced even the first basic horizontal slash at least a thousand times.

After a few years, Gu Tinghan gradually stopped pointing out his mistakes and instead began to spar with him using a wooden sword.

Jiang Jingming felt that during that period, every bone in his body must have been broken and rebuilt.

Even the strictest Lady Song couldn't bear to see it, and Master Han wrote a proclamation to denounce the traitor and scold this military man for being inflexible.

But day after day, his swordsmanship improved steadily.

At six years old, Jiang Jingming couldn't even hold a knife properly, but at sixteen, he could already exchange over a hundred blows with Gu Tinghan without being at a disadvantage.

Now that I am about to embark on a long journey, I think I should go and say goodbye to my master.

Chapter Five: State of Mind

The person who named this place Mangya probably never imagined that the end of the desert would truly be a sheer cliff stretching for thousands of miles.

A seemingly insurmountable abyss suddenly appears in the dusty Gobi Desert; standing on the edge and looking down, all you can see is bottomless darkness.

This is the teaching location chosen by Gu Tinghan.

When practicing swordsmanship in the past, Jiang Jingming would always stand only half a step away from the cliff, then turn around to face Gu Tinghan and exchange blows with him.

In such a situation, if Jiang Jingming were to feel fear and try to retreat, he would lose his footing and fall off the cliff.

This is Gu Tinghan's teaching philosophy: even if it means death, we must not retreat even half a step.

Jiang Jingming stood on the edge of the cliff as usual, the howling wind making his black robe flutter loudly.

"Master."

He greeted them without turning his head.

"Ah."

A faint response.

Gu Tinghan appeared in the shadows behind the cliff at some unknown time; he was always there.

"I'm going on a long trip and may not be able to practice my swordsmanship for a while."

Jiang Jingming turned around and nodded slightly.

"Ah."

Gu Tinghan's tone remained as icy as Mount Tianshan, showing no sign of softening.

"Thank you, Master, for all these years. If you hadn't been willing to teach me, I might still be like I was ten years ago, unable to even hold a knife properly."

"It has nothing to do with me."

Gu Tinghan shook his head and stepped out of the shadows.

He probably meant to say, "This is your own effort and has nothing to do with me," but his succinctness made him seem extremely inhuman.

But Jiang Jingming could understand, so he smiled.

A strong wind passed between the two of them and blew towards the bottom of the cliff where there was no echo.

Gu Tinghan was dressed in white, with a long sword hanging at his waist. He was around thirty years old and still quite young.

With such a cool and aloof face, countless young women would likely fall for him.

Where are we going?

"Zhongzhou. The Tingpu Manor was wiped out. If we don't find out the truth, it will probably cause a lot of trouble."

Jiang Jingming gave a brief explanation, deliberately omitting the fact that a despicable vixen was impersonating the young mistress.

"Oh."

Gu Tinghan sneered, as if he had heard something funny.

Jiang Jingming originally wanted to ask him a few more questions, but he figured he wouldn't want to say more.

It was already very strange that someone like Gu Tinghan would join the Duyue Sect, so he always kept to himself and no one really knew about his past.

After a brief exchange, the master and apprentice fell silent for a moment.

Jiang Jingming was used to such silence, but today it was Gu Tinghan who spoke first.

"You have studied swordsmanship for ten years, and your mindset is sufficient, but your killing intent is insufficient. This trip may allow you to make some progress."

"State of mind?"

Jiang Jingming was slightly taken aback.

"State of mind".

Gu Tinghan stood to the side, a cold glint flashing in the wind, as he drew his sword.

Jiang Jingming subconsciously thought this was another sudden academic test, and was about to draw his sword when he shook his head.

"The reason I had you practice with your back against the cliff was to temper your mind."

Gu Tinghan held the knife in both hands and closed his eyes. At this moment, the howling wind around him was completely silent.

The world was completely silent, and an invisible pressure surged towards him like a tidal wave that blotted out the sky. Jiang Jingming could only hold his breath and suppress his instinct to retreat and avoid it.

Gu Tinghan stepped forward and swung his sword. In an instant, the sky seemed to shatter, and the sword flashed like lightning, bringing with it a thunderous sound as if the sky were collapsing and the earth was splitting!

The wind howled, sand and stones flew everywhere, and Jiang Jingming opened his eyes to see a huge gap in the cliff face.

"You die for the sword, I live for the sword."

Gu Tinghan stood with his sword drawn, the silver blade reflecting his cold gaze.

"As long as you maintain this mindset, even if there are millions of martial artists in the world, they are no match for you."

Jiang Jingming really didn't know if he had the same mindset as his master, who seemed to have been born to reach the pinnacle of martial arts.

Gu Tinghan glanced at him and sheathed his sword.

"With your personality, you might be better suited to learning swordsmanship."

Jiang Jingming was slightly taken aback.

Gu Tinghan once said that there are many fancy moves in swordsmanship; some emphasize flowing and smooth movements, while others require a poetic and picturesque style.

But all knives are for killing; regardless of the style of knife work, the goal is always to kill the opponent.

There may be swords filled with tender feelings, but there will never be knives filled with tender feelings.

"In terms of swordsmanship alone, you've already mastered it. However, you still need to find a reason for learning swordsmanship, and no one can help you with that."

"Why did you learn the sword, Master?"

Jiang Jingming raised his eyes and asked a question he had wanted to ask for a long time.

"In order to explore the limits of martial arts."

Gu Tinghan's answer was even more rigid than expected.

Jiang Jingming smiled and changed the subject.

"Then why did Master join the Crossing Moon Sect?"

This question seemed a bit more difficult to ask than the one before. Gu Tinghan remained silent for a while before slowly speaking.

"Because I lost to Jiang Wuwang."

Jiang Jingming raised an eyebrow slightly at the unexpected answer.

"Back then, he was still using a sword..."

Gu Tinghan's voice grew softer and softer until it was almost inaudible, as if he were lost in memories.

Jiang Wuwang, this devil, used to use a sword?

Although Jiang Jingming was somewhat surprised, he did not intend to ask any further questions.

After all, it would be rather cruel to ask someone like one's master to recount the defeat.

After a while, Gu Tinghan suddenly raised his wrist, and the silver knife in his hand was drawn three inches from its sheath, its cold light sharp.

"You've completed your apprenticeship. I originally intended to give you this Silent Snow Blade. However, this blade is too malevolent and is not suitable for you."

"I have a knife."

Jiang Jingming pulled Wujiu out from behind him and handed it to him.

Gu Tinghan's eyes lit up, and he drew his sword, frowning as he examined it closely.

"Wu Jiu, very good."

"Master, do you recognize this knife?"

It was rare to see any change in his expression, so Jiang Jingming laughed.

"Ah."

Gu Tinghan released his grip, letting Wujiu slide into its sheath on its own, the blade emitting a clear, piercing sound.

"It seems Jiang Wuwang really wants you to go out and see the world."

After he finished speaking, he paused, then looked at Jiang Jingming seriously.

"Although what I taught you is that even if your opponent is ten or a hundred times stronger than you, you must never retreat and live to the death. However, if you encounter danger on this journey, you must not act recklessly or violently."

"..."

It was hard to imagine that Gu Tinghan would say such a thing. For a moment, Jiang Jingming wondered if he was dreaming.

"Before you were born, you did not know the wickedness of people's hearts and the difficulty of guarding against hidden arrows."

Gu Tinghan shook his head slightly, his expression very serious.

“I once met a woman who was clearly skilled in martial arts, but she never took me seriously. She just looked at me and smiled, and she always pretended to ask me for advice. I think she must have had ulterior motives.”

"..."