IS Chapter 26

Chapter 26

The autumn wind was bleak.

As Su Yizhen drew his sword to meet it, the sword’s edge, like a startled dragon, had already swept towards him, extremely close.

Only when the swords clashed did he realize that the seemingly light and ethereal red figure wielded a sword of immense weight.

Like a meteor falling to earth, leaving no life beneath it.

One move passed, and in an instant, another arrived like thunder.

It was the fastest, most fierce, and most damaging sword Su Yizhen had ever seen in his life.

It was as if walking on a glacier, suddenly struck by an avalanche; the piercingly cold killing intent went straight into the soul. The net-like sword light was fatal with every move. Those trapped within had no way to parry, only to defend.

Faced with such a torrential and violent offensive, almost all of his swordsmanship cultivation turned to nothingness, leaving only the body’s last instinct and intuition: reveal a flaw, and you will die.

——From the initial exchange, it was already like this, and thereafter, he could only retreat step by step.

By the two hundredth sword, the hand holding Su Yizhen’s sword began to tremble faintly.

By the three hundred and forty-first sword, he was forced into a dead end, with no way to turn back.

Ye Zhuo did not knock the sword from his hand.

He retracted his hand and landed back in his original spot, his gaze as calm as ever.

The wind howled, blowing through the mountain peak, yet no one felt that the wind was cold.

Because the person standing in the wind was more chilling than the autumn wind on the mountain peak, colder than the sudden snow in the far north.

The sword is like the person.

Seeing such a breathtaking sword was enough to shake anyone’s seemingly solid Dao heart.

It would make every swordsman wonder if their own path was wrong, if they had to be like this person to use a sword’s edge to its fullest potential.

Of course, if one were accustomed to such swords, they would find it pleasing to the eye.

“That’s enough.” Wei Sheng Xian ate a snack, praising, “To spar with Ah Zhou for the first time and not be frightened into losing your composure, and to last over three hundred moves, is already rare in the world. The way of the sword is truly a gathering of talents, with geniuses emerging in great numbers… Ah Jiang, this snack is not good.”

Feng Jiang angrily moved the plate away from him: “If you don’t eat it, I will.”

Li Yuan was curious and took one to try.

The tea pastry was not very sweet, but had a hint of tea flavor, subtle and elusive, very artistic.

“This tea flavor…” Li Yuan said.

Feng Jiang glared at him.

Li Yuan: “Like a wild goose stepping on snow, quite poetic.”

Feng Jiang’s eyebrows curved into a smile.

“Brother Li Yuan, would you like to try this plate?”

“Oh? Then I’ll try again.” Wei Sheng Xian tasted another tea pastry. “Indeed, after understanding the key, it’s truly a superb product, a crystallization of the great Dao.”

He was answered by the fourth palace master’s sinister voice: “If you insist on putting on such a show, then you’re overdoing it.”

Wei Sheng Xian coughed lightly.

“Daoist friend Su is suffering in the wind and rain, yet we are so cheerful and laughing; is that not appropriate?” Wei Sheng Xian said.

Feng Jiang: “Anyway, they’re focused on sparring and won’t care what we’re doing. It’s a pity that my little nascent soul isn’t very good at understanding. Ah Zhou is really good-looking.”

Su Yizhen slowly tightened his grip on the sword hilt, looking at Ye Zhuo’s eyes, his chest still rising and falling rapidly.

In his dazed gaze, there was incomprehension, and also shock.

It was as if he had never expected that there would be such a sword in the world.

Ye Zhuo looked at him: “How did you practice your sword?”

The sound entered his ears, and Wei Sheng Xian almost didn’t swallow the tea in his mouth. Feng Jiang also closed his eyes, seemingly unwilling to watch any longer.

Li Yuan: “Why are you like this?”

Wei Sheng Xian: “Ah Zhou’s words sound rather mocking.”

Li Yuan pondered: “But I don’t hear it.”

Feng Jiang sighed: “Because only sword cultivators can understand what sword cultivators say.”

Just as the fourth palace master said, after hearing Ye Zhuo’s question, Su Yizhen’s expression was solemn and serious, not at all like he felt mocked.

He said: “Before coming down the mountain, I was always practicing my sword in the sword tomb. The sword tomb has the sword intent, sword techniques, and Life-Bound Sword techniques of past sword masters. I first comprehend the sword, and then draw the sword. Only after I could surpass the sword intent of all the predecessors with one sword did my master allow me to leave seclusion.”

Ye Zhuo listened, while looking at Su Yizhen and Su Yizhen’s sword.

But out of the corner of his eye, he saw that the black dragon had actually mixed into the two Micro-Snow Palace members silently and harmoniously at some point.

How this was done, Ye Zhuo did not understand.

This dragon could always do things that he didn’t understand, and Ye Zhuo had no intention of paying attention to it.

Withdrawing his gaze, he looked directly into Su Yizhen’s eyes, as if he had something to say.

The people watching this sword spar under the tree all perked up.

“Rare, rare.” Wei Sheng Xian muttered to himself.

Although the Second Palace Master Ye traveled and sought swords often, he rarely spoke.

Some busybodies had verified this in many ways and concluded that as long as the Second Palace Master Ye asked someone about swords, it meant that this person was already an outstanding figure in the way of the sword.

If he approached a young disciple, it meant that this disciple had a reputation, amazing talent, and a promising future.

If he intentionally fed someone two moves, there was no need to say more; this person was definitely a genius, with great potential in the future.

By this reasoning, if, after the sword spar, he actually gave direct guidance—then this person must be a peerless genius, a sword Dao prodigy.

However, among the young disciples at present, no one had yet received this honor.

At this moment, the entire main peak was silent, with only the sound of the wind.

“The sword is a weapon of killing. The reason you couldn’t receive my sword is not because your swordsmanship is bad.” That person’s clear, cold voice landed calmly.

He said: “It’s because every sword of yours only wanted me to lose, while every sword of mine wanted you to die.”

Su Yizhen’s breathing gradually calmed, and the hand holding the sword also tightened again.

“Yizhen is grateful for the lesson,” he drew his sword solemnly, his eyes burning, his voice firm, “Please, Second Palace Master Ye, give me more guidance.”

Ye Zhuo had no expression. As his sleeves fluttered, he slashed out with another sword.

Su Yizhen resolutely met it with the Great Mystery Sword Art.

This time, he received nine hundred moves.

His sword was indeed very good. From a famous sect, pure and clear.

The tip of the Great Mystery Sword trembled slightly, and the person holding the sword revealed a pale state on his face due to exhaustion, but there seemed to be a fire burning in his eyes.

“Second Palace Master Ye,” Su Yizhen asked, “Can you give me more guidance?”

“You may,” Ye Zhuo said, “How about suppressing my cultivation to the nascent soul stage?”

Suppressing cultivation by a major realm would consume less spiritual energy, allowing for more exchanges.

The meaning in his words was that as long as he could still draw his sword, he would accompany him to the end.

“Good!” Su Yizhen said immediately.

After saying that, he seemed to feel a little impolite, and pursed his lips slightly in slight embarrassment, saying in a low voice, “Second Palace Master Ye, your guidance in my sword Dao is an kindness greater than mountains.”

Ye Zhuo: “No need.”

As he spoke, in the blink of an eye, he attacked again!

This time, Su Yizhen received one thousand four hundred moves.

The next time, he received one thousand seven hundred moves.

If he could receive it, Ye Zhuo would accompany him.

As the sun rose and the moon set, by the night of the second day, when the new moon was one point fuller than the night before, Su Yizhen could already receive two thousand six hundred moves.

It seemed that he had reached his limit today, and no matter how much more he sparred, the number of moves always remained the same, without increasing.

Su Yizhen was originally in the mid-stage of Integration Realm, but now that he had suppressed his cultivation to the Nascent Soul stage, although it was more than enough each time, after a day and a night, his spiritual energy and physical strength had reached their limits.

In addition, he needed to comprehend the massive amount of sword Dao insights he had gained.

“Second Palace Master Ye, I want to gain some insights; I will come to ask for guidance again later.”

Ye Zhuo, however, looked to the side, towards the tree below.

At this time, the Fourth Palace Master Feng had already fallen asleep, propping his head up with one hand on the table. Wei Sheng Xian was still watching.

As for Li Yuan, as a sword cultivator, how could he not watch?

Ye Zhuo sheathed his sword and looked in Li Yuan’s direction: “You go spar with him.”

Su Yizhen listened and stepped forward.

Because of their brief acquaintance during the Mid-Autumn Festival, he always felt that this brother Li Yuan was more amiable.

However, after arriving at the Micro-Snow Palace a few days ago, he had not seen brother Li Yuan, and when he asked Palace Master Wei Sheng about it, Palace Master Wei Sheng began to act like a Dao Sect elder and beat around the bush.

In addition, seeing that the Micro-Snow Palace’s clothing was mainly red and white, while brother Li Yuan wore black, Su Yizhen had actually had some doubts in his heart.

However, these doubts were completely dispelled when he saw brother Li Yuan appear together with Second Palace Master Ye, and calmly drink tea and chat with Palace Master Wei Sheng and Fourth Palace Master Feng.

Perhaps brother Li Yuan simply didn’t like red.

“Brother Li Yuan, long time no see; I have come to fulfill my promise.” Su Yizhen greeted Li Yuan.

Having watched this day and night of sword spars, Li Yuan had long been interested in Su Yizhen.

Hearing this, he gladly stood up, suppressed his cultivation to the nascent soul stage, and stood in the center of the field, several feet away from Su Yizhen.

Wei Sheng Xian was intrigued, and Feng Jiang also woke up in time, blinking his eyes as he looked at them.

“Brother Su, what kind of sword Dao do you cultivate?” Li Yuan asked Su Yizhen.

Now he knew that there were many different kinds of sword Daos in the human world. Besides the Emotionless Sword Dao, there were also the Amorous Sword Dao, the Red Dust Sword Dao, the Supreme Purity Sword Dao, etc., and the Red Dust Sword Dao and the Amorous Sword Dao were not even the same kind of sword Dao.

There was even something called the “One Sword Dao,” where one would only unleash one sword at a time, or even one sword in a lifetime.

However, according to Jack-of-all-trades, the entire inheritance of the One Sword Dao had now been severed by Ye Zhuo, and they had switched to cultivating other sword Daos.

Because everyone’s “one sword” could not defeat Ye Zhuo’s one sword, and the Second Palace Master Ye could unleash many swords like that.

“It’s not any particular sword Dao,” Su Yizhen answered frankly, “I want to cultivate my own sword Dao.”

Li Yuan liked this answer very much.

“I am also my own sword Dao,” he replied.

As he said this, he remembered that according to human customs, he also had to declare his sword name.

“My sword’s name is Do Not Long For,” he said.

Su Yizhen: “Where does this name come from?”

Actually, asking about the source of a sword’s name was like asking about the background of someone’s wife; sword cultivators generally didn’t do that. But this name was quite unique; not only did it have one more character, but it also sounded like the sword name someone who had suffered from a love injury would choose when switching to cultivating the Emotionless Sword Dao.

“No reason. It was just a gift from my blood relatives of my predecessor, so I used it.”

“I see; please forgive my presumption.”

Thinking about it, brother Li Yuan was so pure and bright, handsome and cultured; he must be doing so well in love that he wouldn’t have been hurt.

“It’s nothing,” Li Yuan said, “I will attack after three breaths; how about it?”

“Good,” Su Yizhen nodded.

However, watching Li Yuan draw his sword, a sense of foreboding suddenly arose in Su Yizhen’s heart.

So he cautiously said, “Brother Li Yuan wouldn’t be like Second Palace Master Ye and want to break my Dao heart with his first sword, would he?”

A slight smile seemed to rise in Li Yuan’s eyes: “Don’t worry; the person you’re talking about and I are on different paths and cannot work together.”

Hearing these words, Ye Zhuo only wanted to sneer.

Looking at Su Yizhen, Li Yuan said seriously, “Brother Su, the sword is the master of all weapons. Second Palace Master Ye said that every sword of his wants to kill you. Then every sword of mine only wants to defeat you.”

——How did we get back to square one?

Su Yizhen suppressed the confusion in his heart and humbly said, “Brother Li Yuan, please give me guidance.”

After sparring with the Second Palace Master Ye, he was no longer here to seek enlightenment; he only regarded himself as a disciple who had just begun to learn the way of the sword.

…In fact, he felt that he really was one now.

He only saw the sword light before his eyes, like a vast river, instantly separating heaven and earth.

Like looking up at a high mountain.