Chapter 39: Strange Swordsmanship

Night fell. Stars dotted the sky.

Xu Xiaoshou had only slept for a short while before waking up. No, it definitely wasn't because he was nervous about tomorrow's semi-finals! He took his sword and stepped into the courtyard, standing quietly. Amidst the chirping of cicadas and croaking of frogs, the wind whispered faintly, and he seemed even more lost in thought.

"This is a good time to practice swordsmanship..."

Xu Xiaoshou recalled the sword techniques he had comprehended in the past few days. "Sword Mastery" was truly different from other passive skills. Unlike "Strength" or "Sharpness," which were straightforward bonuses, it offered more profound insights. These insights required Xu Xiaoshou to synthesize them himself.

He slowly closed his eyes. At that moment, everything in the courtyard seemed to tremble slightly: the rock garden, the spirit pool, the newly built house... In his mind, he replayed Zhao Qingteng's "Great Cold Without Snow." Of all the techniques he had witnessed in the competition so far, this move had left the deepest impression. It wasn't because of the spiritual technique's power or its skill level. Rather, it was because this was the first time Xu Xiaoshou had seen someone detach their sword intent from their body and imbue it into snowflakes. This method of applying sword intent truly broadened his horizons.

Yes, he was currently trying to steal techniques. He was trying to steal Zhao Qingteng's "Great Cold Without Instruments"! Although he couldn't create falling snow, if sword intent could be imbued into snow, could it also be imbued into other natural elements? As the cold wind blew, Xu Xiaoshou felt a connection with nature; even the small pebbles on the ground began to tremble rapidly.

*Clatter!**Clatter!*

Xu Xiaoshou abruptly opened his eyes. The pebbles shot into the air like floating snow, and sword intent surged.

"Hah!"

He swung his sword, and in his mind, an ethereal landscape of rolling snowy mountains unfolded. It seemed as if this single strike could sever heaven and earth! In his vision, the pebbles shook violently and clattered back to the ground.

Hmm... That's it?

Xu Xiaoshou's face darkened. How was this slightly different from what he had imagined?

*Phew!*

Good, no one saw it... Otherwise, he would have been thoroughly embarrassed. He calmed down slightly, realizing that stealing techniques wasn't that simple. However, this sword technique, which involved imbuing sword intent into all things, seemed to hold great potential.

"Essentially, this is also a way to fight using sword intent..."

Xu Xiaoshou paced with his sword, his thoughts wandering in the night. This method of cultivation strongly resembled the combat style he had previously considered: fighting purely with sword intent, without spiritual techniques.

"Moving with the heart, walking with the blade?"

Images of falling leaves causing widespread devastation, and then a single sword coming to court and ten thousand swords returning to their origin, appeared in his mind. Perhaps if he continued down this path, he could reach such a realm? Xu Xiaoshou was somewhat moved. He knew his natural talent wasn't exceptional, having only mastered one stance of the White Cloud Sword Technique in three years. However, his comprehension of sword intent had improved with the advent of "Sword Mastery." Given this, could he try walking down this path?

The mainstream path for sword cultivators involved using sword intent in conjunction with spiritual techniques to unleash terrifying damage. His idea, however, was to fight purely with sword intent. This was destined to be a path completely different from the mainstream. He just didn't know if it would lead him astray, or if he would carve out his own unique style within the mainstream.

"Alas!"

Xu Xiaoshou shook his head. The latter was too difficult; he'd just take one step at a time.

"First, I should think about how to approach tomorrow's semi-final..."

His congenital physique had already been exposed, and everyone knew about it. As long as opponents kept their distance, he would lose half of his initial advantage. The only thing left that could influence the battle was this sword, "Hidden Misery"...

Xu Xiaoshou's face showed a strange expression. How was it that no matter how he thought about it, he always circled back to sword intent? He fell into deep thought. Under the amplification of sword intent, the single stance of "White Cloud's Leisure" allowed him to perform many variations: Netting Sword Style, Pushing Sword Style, Reversal Sword Style... The first two were fine; they were merely preliminary applications of sword intent. But as for the "Reversal Sword Style"...

Xu Xiaoshou looked at "Hidden Misery" in his hand. During his fight with Zhao Qingteng, this particular stance, which came to him in a flash of inspiration at a critical moment, primarily combined sword intent with the sword itself. At that time, he felt as if "Hidden Misery" had come to life!

"A spiritual sword?"

This also seemed to be a way of imbuing sword intent into other objects, but "Hidden Misery" was relatively close to him, which allowed it to succeed. Suddenly, a thought struck Xu Xiaoshou: he could imbue "Hidden Misery" with sword intent to achieve a counterattack, but was it limited to just that?

No! Xu Xiaoshou's eyes lit up. If he could perfectly control "Hidden Misery" with sword intent, wouldn't he be able to achieve the legendary "Sword Control Art"?! Or even... Sword flight?! One had to know that flight was a congenital patent. He was only at the eighth stage of Spirit Refining; if he could achieve sword flight, wouldn't it make everyone's jaws drop?

"I'll try!"

Xu Xiaoshou recalled the afternoon's battle and infused sword intent into the blade of "Hidden Misery."

*Buzz...*

With a long hum, "Hidden Misery" began to tremble. Xu Xiaoshou was startled. He truly felt that the black sword in his hand wasn't an inanimate object but rather possessed a trace of sentience. Excellent! This showed he had already formed a connection with it.

Xu Xiaoshou threw "Hidden Misery" out and raised two fingers upward.

"Rise!"

He seemed to envision the black sword soaring into the air, but after being thrown, the thing just fell to the ground like a very ordinary sword.

*Clang! Clang! Clang!*

Xu Xiaoshou's face was as black as charcoal. The black sword seemed to be struggling on the ground, as if it had been forced. That's not right, it wasn't like this in the afternoon! Was the throwing force too weak?

Xu Xiaoshou picked up the sword, infused it with sword intent again, and threw it with all his might.

*Whoosh!*

The blade sparked, shooting towards the horizon! Xu Xiaoshou exclaimed that it was feasible. Soon after, he again felt the excited sword intent and immediately summoned it back. With a *swish*, a black dot appeared on the horizon and shot violently towards Xu Xiaoshou.

Xu Xiaoshou was startled. *Damn it*, he wasn't covered in ice sculptures now! If that sword struck him, wouldn't he become the second Zhao Qingteng? Thinking this, he quickly leaped up, intending to stand on the blade and ride the sword. However, "Hidden Misery" flew too fast, sweeping past his feet and instantly tripping him.

*Thump!**Clang!*

Both crashed to the ground simultaneously, and the scene became utterly silent for a moment.

"Damn it, I don't believe this!""Again!"

Xu Xiaoshou tried the sword again. Tonight, he was determined to master the legendary Sword Control Art! But...

*Thump!**Clang!*

"Continue!"

*Thump!**Clang!*

...

Persistence was a poison, and the night brought vexation. Who knew how much time had passed before Xu Xiaoshou finally realized that when he threw the sword, the black blade wasn't actually sentient. The moment it truly became excited was when it reached its peak flight, the moment he summoned it back. In other words, it was the "Reversal" in "Reversal Sword Style"; only during the process of reversal did the black sword truly become sentient.

This discovery left Xu Xiaoshou silent for a long time. He couldn't understand the difference between "throwing it out" and "flying it back." But he couldn't find a reason.

"This damned 'Reversal Sword Style'...""I should have renamed it 'Sword Control Style'!"

Xu Xiaoshou simply discarded the throwing step. He pointed the sword tip at himself and began infusing it with sword intent.

*Buzz!*

The blade instantly vibrated with excitement, and Xu Xiaoshou immediately felt its life force. He reversed the sword tip, pointing it towards the horizon.

*Buzz...*

Only a trace of that life force remained. He flipped it back.

*Buzz!*

He flipped it again.

*Buzz...*

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

"What the hell is this principle? Does it only gain sentience when pointed at me? I think you're trying to devour your master!"

Xu Xiaoshou refused to believe it and flipped it repeatedly.

*Buzz!**Buzz...**Buzz!**Buzz...*

A line of exasperation darkened his brow. Xu Xiaoshou angrily threw "Hidden Misery" away. "This damned sword must be sick!"

*Whoosh!*

The black sword flew back towards him.

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

Cursed, Passive Points, +0!