Urban Martial Saint

This time, Ye Qing learned from his previous lesson and wasn’t as embarrassed as before. However, the force of the soybeans hitting him was so great that Ye Qing still felt his arms go numb, and his grip on the Seven-Star Ancient Sword started to falter.

Meanwhile, Shen Tianjun showed no sign of stopping, continuing to flick soybeans one after another.

Ye Qing blocked three in a row, but his arms were already beginning to hurt from the vibrations. If this continued, he feared he might not be able to block another three. A sense of astonishment filled his heart. Wasn’t Shen Tianjun supposed to be teaching him swordsmanship? What was this all about?

After a few seconds of silence, another soybean flew towards him. As Ye Qing raised the Seven-Star Ancient Sword to block it, a sudden inspiration flashed through his mind. He tightened his grip on the sword and just as it was about to collide with the soybean, he gave his wrist a shake, tracing a circle with the sword in the same way he would knock on tree trunks with a twig.

This time, the result was completely different. Employing the technique of knocking on tree trunks allowed a lot of the force to be diverted; the soybean’s impact on the Seven-Star Ancient Sword was not as severe as it had been, and Ye Qing’s arm didn’t tremble as much.

Ye Qing was overjoyed by the outcome; he finally understood what Shen Tianjun was getting at. He had originally thought that Shen Tianjun was going to demonstrate a set of sword moves for him to learn, but upon reflecting on Shen Tianjun’s earlier words, he realized there was a distinction. Shen Tianjun hadn’t told him to watch closely but to feel carefully—there was a difference.

Had Shen Tianjun said to watch closely, it would have meant he wanted Ye Qing to memorize the sword moves. However, by urging him to feel carefully, it meant he was emphasizing a kind of sword intent, a philosophy. Now, Ye Qing gradually understood Shen Tianjun’s true intention: he wanted Ye Qing to apply the technique he had practiced the day before into actual swordplay.

It must be said that Shen Tianjun had a very unique way of teaching martial arts which proved indeed useful to Ye Qing. With his high aptitude and ability to integrate learning into practice, he learned naturally and quickly. This kind of progress wouldn’t be possible for the others at the Shen Family Manor.

Seeing Ye Qing block the soybeans using the method of knocking on tree trunks, Shen Tianjun let out a slight smile, knowing Ye Qing had grasped the true meaning he wanted to convey. Without pause, he continued to flick the soybeans one by one. As Shen Tianjun’s flicking grew faster, Ye Qing also became quicker at blocking, his movements increasingly smooth and adept. He had thoroughly infused the concept he learned the previous day into the longsword in his hand.

Though Ye Qing didn’t learn any fixed moves, the martial arts philosophy he had grasped was far more important!

After Shen Tianjun had finished flicking the entire handful of soybeans, Ye Qing’s technique became exceedingly proficient. In the last round, Shen Tianjun flicked three soybeans at once, and Ye Qing was able to block them all with ease, eliciting a nod and a pleased smile from Shen Tianjun as he stroked his beard.

”You’ve done very well,” said Shen Tianjun, ”I have already demonstrated the routine to you. Practice here on your own. How much you comprehend is up to your fate. Master this sword technique today, and come back tomorrow—I will teach you a boxing technique. After you learn it, you will be ready to leave the Shen Family Manor.”

Having said this, Shen Tianjun did not linger and rose to leave. On the other hand, Shen Qingyi wore an expression of worry. She had been quite pleased when Shen Tianjun praised Ye Qing, but upon hearing that he would leave the Shen Family Manor after learning the boxing technique, worry clouded her heart again; she truly did not want Ye Qing to leave.

Yet she was well aware that Ye Qing had his duties outside and couldn’t stay at Shen Family Manor. Despite her reluctance to see him go, she said nothing. In the mind of such a young woman, loving someone didn’t necessarily mean staying together with him; it was enough to watch him pursue what he wished to do.

Ye Qing spent the entire day in the courtyard practicing the sword. Though it was called a sword technique, the key was that singular philosophy. Initially, Ye Qing practiced the movements slowly with the Seven-Star Ancient Sword, but later, he simply set the sword aside and traced the moves with his bare hands. He had fully understood Shen Tianjun’s intentions, so having a sword or not made no real difference in his practice anymore.

After another day of practice, even though he hadn’t picked up the Seven-Star Ancient Sword again, Ye Qing’s confidence had grown immensely. He had almost fully grasped what Shen Tianjun had taught him. While there weren’t many tangible skills to show for it, his strength had increased substantially in an intangible way. Now, as Shen Tianjun had said, if he were to encounter a formidable opponent like Wang Tian’an, he would not be without the power to fight back.

In the evening, Ye Qing dined with the people of Shen Family Manor. Tomorrow, after learning the last set of boxing techniques, he would depart from Shen Family Manor; this meal served as his farewell banquet. Du Tianyi was also present—grateful for their lifesaving assistance, the Shen family treated them both very well. Only, Huangfu Ziyu was not present at the dinner, which left Ye Qing feeling a hollow emptiness.

Southern Fist King Shen Tianjun and Old Madame Shen did not come over; it was Shen Da leading the Shen family members as they joined Ye Qing and Du Tianyi for dinner. Without the elders present, the atmosphere became much warmer, and the meal went on for a full two hours before coming to a stop.

After dinner, Ye Qing, who had drunk quite a bit, staggered back to the separate courtyard where he stayed. As soon as he returned to his room and was about to get ready for bed—having taken off half of his clothes—he suddenly felt something was off and quickly draped his jacket back on. When he turned around, he saw a woman dressed in red sitting in the darkness behind the door, her skin white as snow, and yet on her wrist dangled a red cord like blood, giving her a strikingly enchanting allure.

This woman was none other than Huangfu Ziyu. He didn’t know how long she had been sitting there in the dark; Ye Qing had drunk to the point of fuzziness tonight, and when he entered the room, he did not notice anyone else. It was not until he had undressed halfway that he sensed something was amiss.

Seeing Huangfu Ziyu, Ye Qing couldn’t help but be taken aback, his face showing more excitement than anything else. Having stayed this long at Shen Family Manor, he had been living in the same place as Huangfu Ziyu, but he never had the opportunity to speak more than a few words with her. Every time Huangfu Ziyu saw him, she was as cold as ice, which made him think she was dissatisfied with him. Now that Huangfu Ziyu had come to find him, his heart surged with happiness.

”Miss Huangfu, it’s you!” Ye Qing breathed a sigh of relief and turned on the bright lights in the room. Under the bright light, Huangfu Ziyu’s snowy complexion appeared even more dazzling to the eye.

Huangfu Ziyu watched Ye Qing in silence, her face devoid of any expression, leaving him clueless about what she was thinking. This created an awkward atmosphere, and for a moment, he didn’t know what to say.

After what felt like an eternity, about five minutes later, Huangfu Ziyu suddenly stood up and casually tossed the Seven-Star Ancient Sword that was behind the door to Ye Qing.

Ye Qing quickly caught it, looking at Huangfu Ziyu in surprise. At that moment, Huangfu Ziyu also drew her Cold Moon Blade and pointed it at a distance towards Ye Qing.

”Miss Huangfu, what are you doing?” Ye Qingqi asked curiously.

”I’ve said before, there must be a battle between you and me!” Huangfu Ziyu’s gaze was icy cold as she said, ”Now is the right time. Otherwise, once you return to Shenchuan City, I certainly won’t chase after you there!”

”Why should I fight you?” Ye Qing threw the Seven-Star Ancient Sword aside, puzzled and said, ”Miss Huangfu, we have no resentments and no quarrels, why should we fight?”

”We must fight!” Huangfu Ziyu said in a firm tone. ”You are the successor of the Northern Fist King Li Changqing, and I am the disciple of the Southern Fist King Shen Tianjun. Although Master won that great battle twenty years ago, he always felt unworthy of his victory, believing he took advantage when others were down, which he considers the greatest stain in his life. If there was a chance, he would really like to have a fair fight with Li Changqing, but that’s been impossible. So, this battle must be fought by their respective disciples. Ye Qing, you represent Li Changqing, and I represent my Master. I want to prove with my strength that my Master’s victory was without remorse!”

Huangfu Ziyu’s words left Ye Qing stunned. Scratching his head, he said, ”Miss Huangfu, what has this got to do with that? That matter is already twenty years past, why are you so obsessed and can’t let go? Besides, even if we do fight and there’s a winner and a loser, what then? People will only focus on that battle from twenty years ago, who would care about our win or loss? Miss Huangfu, let’s not fight, all right?”

”No, we must fight!” Huangfu Ziyu insisted once more, her voice firm. With her blade, she casually flicked the Seven-Star Ancient Sword at her side, tossing it right into Ye Qing’s arms, and without another word, she slashed her blade towards Ye Qing.

Ye Qing, holding the Seven-Star Ancient Sword, had no intention of striking back or dodging and blocking. Seeing this, Huangfu Ziyu grew even angrier and forcefully chopped down, as though intending to split Ye Qing in two.

Ye Qing stood his ground, unmoving. Despite Huangfu Ziyu’s terrifying attack, he made no move to dodge. Just as the blade was about to fall on his head, Ye Qing still did not evade, and Huangfu Ziyu, ultimately not wanting to take his life, flicked her wrist at the last moment. The Cold Moon Blade nearly brushed past Ye Qing’s ear, leaving a wound on his left shoulder from which blood slowly began to seep out.

Seeing the bloody wound, Huangfu Ziyu paused for a moment. However, she soon clenched her teeth, raised her blade, and slashed Ye Qing’s left arm again, leaving another mark before sheathing the Cold Moon Blade back into its scabbard.