"Lower to the Absolute Ground Chronicle, Exterminate!! Hahahaha—"
Yunli laughed maniacally as she raised her heavy sword. In an instant, a sword qi fully a thousand feet long shot into the sky, slashing viciously downward toward Yanqing!
Yanqing: "Wait! I haven't chosen yet!"
"Hahaha, no response means you accept by default!"
Facing such a powerful sword strike, Yanqing knew that even if he wanted to curse, he would have to wait until after this sword passed. Thus, he immediately gripped the flying sword in his hand tightly and held his breath in concentration.
Back then, he had been a swordsmanship genius renowned throughout the Luofu. Even after having his talent sucked away by Phantylia for three years, this fact could not be denied.
Over these three years, his progress in swordsmanship had been nonexistent, but that didn't mean he had completely abandoned it. On the contrary, he practiced repeatedly every day.
Moreover, he had taken Jing Yuan as his master. Although Jing Yuan usually behaved no differently from an ordinary Xianzhou person, Yanqing knew that such a mindset and demeanor were not something an ordinary person could possess.
Now, he needed to think carefully about what he had learned from all his efforts over these years...
—"Yanqing! Come on, put on a show for everyone! Go!"
—"X, ignore!"
The flying sword carried him into a backflip.
Tch... Not this. This was the acrobatics he did during live streams with Little Guizi; it didn't count as a real sword technique.
He had to think about what Master Jing Yuan had actually taught him.
—"Yanqing, lend your master some money."
—"Yanqing, one must live in the moment, not die in the moment."
—"Yanqing, your master is tired; carry your master back..."
...It seemed like over all this time, he really hadn't learned any sword techniques.
It was fine if he didn't think about it carefully, but now that he did, a crack appeared in the image of Jing Yuan in Yanqing's heart.
Screech—
That heaven-piercing sword shadow tore through the air, exploding with a sharp whistling sound, drawing ever closer...
Two little figures popped up on Yanqing's head. Little Figure No. 1 shouted anxiously: "Hurry up, Yanqing! Think of something! You're about to die!"
Little Figure No. 2: "Didn't Master Jing Yuan make a move when he fought Phantylia back then? You could learn a move on the spot!"
Little Figure No. 1: "But that old fox used array blades! He doesn't even use swords himself!"
Little Figure No. 2: "What about the others? The techniques of the Astral Express teachers, Bailu, and them?"
Little Figure No. 1: "None of them use swords!"
Little Figure No. 1: "That old fox Jing Yuan just knows how to slack off; he didn't teach any proper moves. I'm going to be screwed now! If there's a next life, I'll definitely make him refund the tuition!"
"...Slack off."
Yanqing's gaze deadlocked on that increasingly near sword shadow. A bold and absurd idea surfaced in his mind:
Was slacking off also a technique?
He closed his eyes and recalled the bits and pieces of his time with Jing Yuan. He suddenly realized that every moment Jing Yuan slacked off or lazed around was so perfectly timed.
Finishing work on the dot to clock out, arriving precisely when the discounted meal had only three portions left, stacking various coupons...
"So that's how it is."
Yanqing murmured, and the sword in his hand suddenly moved forward to meet the sword shadow—
Cling!
The two blades, vastly different in size, collided, emitting a not particularly loud metallic clash. Immediately after, Yanqing twisted his wrist, executing a clever deflection that flung that heaven-supporting sword shadow flying away!
"Hoo... Th-Thank you, Teacher, for the instruction." Yanqing exhaled and clasped his hands in salute.
That saying was truly not wrong: the more dangerous the situation, the easier it was to awaken one's potential. Sometimes, without forcing oneself, one could never imagine how strong one could be.
Hearing this, the corner of Yunli's mouth immediately lifted in an excited arc: "You actually broke through for real!"
Yanqing: ?
So you were really just going for chopping me earlier?!
Yunli raised her heavy sword again and laughed maniacally: "In that case, if I give you a few more swords, won't you ascend on the spot?"
With that, ignoring Yanqing's protesting gaze, she unleashed again. This time, ten gigantic sword shadows appeared in the sky.
Yanqing: !!!
The reason his earlier sword had allowed him to break through in the heat of battle was because of the accumulation over three years—when conditions were ripe, success followed naturally, the result of steady buildup. How could it be explained by simple addition?!
—Whoosh!
At this critical juncture, a white shadow sped in from the edge of his vision, positioning itself in front of Yanqing.
Cling!
The heaven-supporting sword shadow struck the white shadow's shoulder but could only tear a gash in her clothing. Even as the ten sword shadows fell, it was the same.
—"Yanqing!"
Meanwhile, Stelle and the others, who had hurried over upon hearing the news, quickly arrived at Yanqing's side and asked with concern: "Are you okay?"
Yanqing was stunned for a second before hurriedly saying: "Everyone, I'm fine... It was this warrior who acted, allowing me to remain unharmed."
"Ah, it's Lady Feixiao!"
Lingsha took one look and immediately clasped her hands in greeting: "Lady Feixiao, how are you so free today? The physician's prescription said to rest quietly."
Feixiao waved her hand: "If I didn't come soon, these two cubs might really end up maiming each other. Though I don't mind, the Xianzhou has its Xianzhou rules, so I just stepped in to manage it."
"But this management led me to discover an unexpected delight: the Luofu does have some talent; it's not as feeble as I imagined."
Stelle looked at Feixiao, whose appearance was basically unchanged, and murmured: "So this is the Three-Five General..."
March 7th secretly pinched Stelle's waist and whispered: "Don't say it to the general's face."
"Three-Five General?"
Evidently, the pair of fox ears on Feixiao's head weren't for show. After hearing Stelle's words, she immediately cast a sinister glance over and said: "Little girl, do you know what the consequences would be if I heard that nickname on Yaoqing? Hm?"
Stelle instinctively took a step back and asked somewhat fearfully: "Wh-What consequences."
—"She'd get promoted."
At that moment, an unfamiliar voice suddenly rang out from right behind Stelle. The voice was so close it felt like it was whispered right in her ear, startling Stelle into a jolt as she jumped straight into March 7th's arms: "What thing is talking?!"
Only to see a hooded figure suddenly emerge from Stelle's shadow, its eyes peering eerily at Stelle. Upon realizing it had been noticed, it swam in the shadow like a diving fish to Feixiao's feet.
"Hahahahaha! I scared you, huh!"
Feixiao suddenly burst into laughter. "Don't worry; this is my guard, Moze. His entrance is interesting, right?"
Everyone: "..."
No one spoke, making Feixiao's laughter stand out all the more.
"...General, your subordinate is late; stop laughing first."
At that moment, the pink-furred fox Jiaoqiu also hurried over from afar. He took one look at Feixiao laughing alone and quickly leaned in to whisper in her ear: "Laughing like this, no one will dare to talk to you."
Feixiao's laughter stiffened, and she immediately reverted to her previous dignified and cold demeanor: "What happened just now was merely a joke; don't take it to heart."
Jiaoqiu (whispering): "Too serious; be gentler... Did you see Miss Lingsha over there? I hear she's extremely popular. You could learn her way of speaking."
Feixiao "thwack" clasped her hands in salute: "Greetings, heroes. This little brother is named Feixiao, general of Yaoqing. Very pleased to meet you all..."
However, before she could finish her words, the group backed away as if they had seen something terrifying...