Chapter 132: Sharpening the Blade
Xia Wudi’s sword technique was pretty standard, bordering on generic—and even that generic was the kind of thing you’d find plastered on every corner. Yun Zhonghe knew her techniques inside and out. After all, he was once a hardcore gamer and a specialist in swordsmanship. He didn’t just know the moves; he could recite each segment’s power coefficient like it was a song.
His obsession with understanding these coefficients was no less intense than his study of swordplay methods. Thus, any slight discrepancy in Xia Wudi’s attack power triggered his inner detection system faster than a cheat scanner!
Holy cow! Could Xia Wudi be an ace from the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow Sect? Did she sneak in some cheat codes?
No wonder she was so strong.
Of course, this was just a joke in Yun Zhonghe’s mind. More likely, Xia Wudi had mastered some unique technique hidden within the sword method.
Yun Zhonghe felt a growing sense of anticipation. Was this challenge about learning her tactics?
Legend has it, mastering legendary sword moves! His heart did a dance.
There was no need to explain how much he loved the sword. After honing his skills for years and discovering countless sword techniques, his passion was clear as day.
Now, he had a new technique unfolding before him, one he hadn’t seen, even better, an opportunity to train under a legendary mentor. How could he not be excited?
“Slight twist there on her sword energy, usually it’s just let loose, but she draws it back instantly after engaging,” Yun Zhonghe mused, testing more moves against Xia Wudi and noticing a unique handling of her sword energy.
But wait, drawing sword energy back? This was insane, nearly slicing up her own meridians—this was beyond human.
Yet Xia Wudi did it seamlessly, even layering damage with this technique! The second strike included the initial one, then retracted and used with the next hit, and so on…
If she could withstand it, the damage compounded infinitely. Now he got it. No wonder she could block his ultimate attacks. She stacked damage segments until her prowess surpassed his!
Wow! What a nutty sword technique.
Still, Yun Zhonghe was stoked. A move that stacked damage without a limit? As long as it was manageable, it could go on forever.
Perhaps even a Foundation Establishment cultivator could slay a Spirit Transcender!
Obviously, this was an exaggerated pipedream, but one has to try to know, right?
“Bro Yun… what’s going on?”
“He seems to be imitating Xia Wudi’s moves. Has he deciphered something?”
Mu Jixue and Lin Zhongyu watched, baffled, as Yun Zhonghe clashed more fiercely with Xia Wudi. Rather than the Eight Desolate Sword Technique, he now replicated her exact moves perfectly. Now it was not the technique that mattered. Yun Zhonghe sought deeper insights into her swordmanship.
His intelligence was high, but he couldn’t claim uniqueness. Likely, others had cracked through too, but none after a century matched Xia Wudi.
Only after tasting it did Yun Zhonghe realize such mastery wasn’t humanly possible. This sword energy was no mere spiritual force reserved in meridians ready to release. Attempting to draw it back after releasing would injure himself!
Too bad Xia Wudi’s specter couldn’t talk, otherwise, Yun Zhonghe would have dissected her to understand her mechanism. If only he could peek at her acupoints.
Thus, he experimented again and again.
“Sword energies can’t be stored in my practice meridians, else it risks internal injury, so they must be kept in acupoints uninvolved with meridians.”
Acupoints act as tiny compartments for spiritual energy, whereas meridians are their flowing channels. Thus, acupoints were perfect for storing such force.
Even if the sword energy went berserk, it’d only harm one localized area.
But there lay the crux. How could he store the energy effectively without harming himself?
Yun Zhonghe recalled compression techniques, squeezing the sword energy to temporarily weaken its potency, then wrapping it in abundant spiritual energy for protection before depositing it in appropriate acupoints. Once needed, release it.
Efficient but cumbersome. Thankfully, his spiritual energy was robust enough. With four Spiritual Pearls, he could divide his attention among multiple tasks.
And just so happened, those pearls synchronized well enough to manage one storage.
Till the second strike required reclaiming two energies… BOOM!
His sword flew as Xia Wudi stepped him back. bl**d exploded from his right palm as he collapsed onto the ground.
“Bro Yun!”
Lin Zhongyu leaped forward, but Yun Zhonghe stopped her.
“It’s nothing, my mishap. I’m fine.”
Unable to proficiently compress both energies simultaneously, they erupted in his right acupoint, turning his palm into mush. Lucky he released the energies in time or his hand would’ve been history.
“I need more spiritual energy to handle more sword energies!”
His eyes narrowed. Noticing Xia Wudi motioning him closer yet again, his resolve hardened further.
He never bowed before on the sword path!
“Must I master your technique and surpass you to pass the thirty-fifth floor?”
His face curled in a mischievous grin. Never before had he felt so pumped.
“Enough said, watch me crush it! Watch me crush YOU!”
Legendary, huh? Old hag from a hundred years ago, stop showing off those outdated moves!
Try the vigor of our young generation!
Young people aren’t anything special, except we’re energetic! Once doesn’t cut it, twice too? Three times always seals the deal!
Suddenly, Yun Zhonghe sat in meditation, a surge of spiritual energy exploding outward.
Time to start pilfering some more!
Yun Zhonghe finally understood why the Myriad Path Divine Tower could steal reserves of spiritual energy. It must’ve been set for trialists to defeat Xia Wudi!
Only by continuously boosting their spiritual energy could they stand any chance.
The Immortal Alliance truly thought it through!
BOOM!
The Myriad Path Divine Tower began trembling violently.
From the forty-fifth floor upward, the stored spiritual energy started draining away endlessly.
An Immortal Alliance powerhouse below, clutching their head, cried out, “What’s going on here?!”
