Martial Cultivator

When a sword cultivator crossed the threshold, there would be this saying about observing the sword. Usually, their respective masters would provide them with some sword cultivation techniques that could generate sword intent, and record how long it took and how many of these techniques the disciple needed to read before resonating without clashing with the sword intent. The less time it took, the smoother this person’s path of Sword Daowould be, and it also represented this person’s suitability for sword cultivation. If it took too long, it would prove that this person was mediocre and might never reach a high level in their lifetime.

As for cultivators who could not be recognized by the sword intent, it proved that they could not become a sword cultivator.

This was observing the intent of the sword.

In the history of sword cultivators, those with excellent talent, which were also those who could read the first volume of sword cultivation technique without being rejected by the sword intent, such existences would often have great achievements after stepping into Sword Dao cultivation. They were all existences with hope of achieving Nepenthe. If a sect discovered such a talented sword cultivator, they would definitely regard them as a precious treasure and nurture them carefully.

If there were no accidents, such a sword cultivator would one day become the pillar of a sect; a truly important figure.

After observing the sword, the next step was to cultivate sword qi within the body. This stage also had varying degrees of speed, but even the most talented individuals usually required three to five days.

Sword cultivators who could birth sword qi within their body on the same day they observe the sword were extremely rare existences.

There were usually only three to five such individuals in each generation. Many times, there was only one person.

Sword cultivators who could birth sword qi on the same day they observe the sword would often become one of the most brilliant sword cultivators of that era.

Someone like Xie Nandu who could birth sword qi within her body while reading her first volume of sword cultivation technique, her talent could probably rank in the top ten in the entire cultivation history of sword cultivators, or even an existence in the top five.

Such a sword cultivator would be regarded as someone who was born to practice the sword; a potential sword immortal.

Xie Nandu was not a sword cultivator. She came to the library tonight just to take a look at the sword cultivation techniques. She never thought about cultivating at all.

She knew little about sword cultivators and seemed a little confused. However, if news of what happened tonight were to spread, a grandmaster of Sword Dao might enter the academy tomorrow to take her away and earnestly impart her their Sword Dao cultivation. Those sword cultivation sects whose legacies were not considered too long-standing might even promise her on the spot that the position of sect master would be hers in the future.

Before today, Xie Nandu’s talent had already been revealed. When she was at the small pavilion in the middle of South Lake, the dean had taken a serious look at her and recognized her extraordinary talents. Hence, he wanted to take her in as a disciple. Then, when Wei Xu gave her lectures by the lake, he also often marveled at how his little junior sister was a cultivator who was naturally suited to cultivate.

Even earlier, before she came to the Divine Capital, Xie Nandu’s exceptional talent for cultivation had already been discovered when she was still at White Deer. The Divine Capital’s Xie Family had gone to White Deer’s Xie Family when she was very young. After observing her, the Divine Capital’s Xie Family made the decision for her to come to the Divine Capital to study after she turned sixteen

She had long been acknowledged as a cultivation genius and no one in the entire Divine Capital would doubt this fact.

But who could have imagined that, in addition to cultivating daoist techniques, she also had such talent in Sword Dao...

This meant that in the future, she would not only be able to traverse extremely far in daoist technique cultivation, but also become an extremely powerful sword cultivator.

In the history of cultivation, there had been other cultivators who could excel in both paths at the same time like her. But she had such a bright future in both areas. She might be the only one in the entire history of cultivation.

If one could advance in both paths at the same time and reach the farthest point on both at the same time, that would be an achievement that no one dared to imagine.

But tonight’s matter was currently not known to others for the time being and Xie Nandu also did not know know what it meant. Perhaps even if she knew, given this young girl’s personality, she would just shake her head and not care too much.

Dismissing her thoughts, that hint of sword qi dissipated before Xie Nandu withdrew her hand and closed the volume of sword cultivation technique. She undid the hair tie that was tying her hair and retied the bamboo slip.

Her black hair was casually draped over her shoulders, with a faint floral fragrance, like a pear blossom in spring.

She did not look at the name of that sword cultivation technique, nor did she flip through it again, because she remembered everything she had read. This was her ability.

After putting away that volume of bamboo slip, she turned and went downstairs. It was already midnight now and there were no students in the library. When she left the library, she looked up and saw the bright moon hanging high in the sky. The moonlight spilled down on the earth, allowing her to see the path ahead clearly. With the moonlight as her companion, she walked quietly towards the lake, without the fear that ordinary women would have.

……

……

The library which was as bright as daylight, was the brightest place in the entire academy at night.

This brightness was even a bit abrupt, but the students of the academy did not think so.

After scolding his disciples during the day, the dean felt bored and fell asleep. He woke up in the middle of the night, thinking about the things that his youngest disciple said to Wei Xu that fool by the lake. The dean got up and headed towards the library.

Although he, as the teacher, did not know sword cultivation techniques, since his disciple had this idea, he could still do something about it.

He was prepared to enter the library to choose a volume on sword cultivation technique and write a letter to inform that damn short-lived disciple in the north, asking him to write down and reply with his cultivation insights, so that his youngest disciple could also embark on the path of Sword Dao.

With this in mind, the dean slowly went upstairs. In just a moment, he had arrived at the bookshelf where the sword cultivation techniques were placed. He reached out and quickly picked up a scroll from among the many bamboo slips, which happened to be the same one that Xie Nandu had read before.

The dean frowned slightly at the girl’s hair tie on the bamboo slip. When he looked down, he found that the string that was originally used to tie the bamboo slip was currently quietly lying on the ground.

The cut was very neat, as if it had been cut by a sword.

The dean pondered for a moment and figured out what had happened.

He turned his gaze back to the hair tie and fell silent.

Then, a light breeze blew out of his clothes, stirring up tiny specks of dust and creating a rather ethereal atmosphere on the second floor of the library.

A scene gradually appeared.

It was precisely the same scene of that young girl browsing the bookshelves before.

The dean looked at the scene and said to himself, self-mockingly, ”I’m really a bit late.”

He had intended to find a sword cultivation technique for her, but he had not expected Xie Nandu to arrive earlier than him. This girl had always been calm, so why was she so impatient this time?

She had only just asked him these questions during the day, but she could not hold back anymore when night fell?

Did she really dislike cultivating daoist magic and insisted on learning those sword cultivation techniques?

The dean pondered these questions, but did not pay much attention to them. This was a trivial matter in the first place, it was not a problem worth deep consideration.

If Xie Nandu really liked sword cultivation techniques, then let her cultivate them. Could it be that she would stop being her disciple after becoming a sword cultivator?

This logic did not exist.

He waved his hand, put the bamboo scroll back on the shelf, and was about to turn around and leave.

But as he turned around, he suddenly became distracted and turned his gaze back to the image.

At this moment, that young girl lowered her head and looked at her fingertips.

The dean also looked over.

He felt a hint of sharpness.

This kind of tracing method could only reproduce the situation at that time, but some things would still be missing and it would not be so clear.

However, that sharp intent still currently existed in the library and had not completely dissipated.

The dean was a little dazed.

Even for a character like him, he did not know what he should say when he saw such a scene too.

He naturally knew that the disciple he took in was a genius.

But he never expected that Xie Nandu would also have such talent in Sword Dao.

At the thought of how this disciple might become a peerless one-of-a-kind figure in history who dual-cultivated sword qi and daoist techniques, the dean... ... could not help but laugh.

His laughter was very hearty and quickly spread throughout the entire library.

”Whatever bullshit about how the size of your fist is the truth, whatever rubbish about how educated people can talk reason, but can’t fight! Alright, you all just wait a few years, I’ll show you what it means to have truth in my hands. I’ll spin it however I want!”

It was just that this laughter was not pleasant to the ear.

……

……

In the early morning when the sky was just turning bright, students gathered by the lake. There were no classes at the academy today, so there were more students than usual by the lake. However, all these students seemed a bit anxious and many had heavy dark circles under their eyes, as if they had not slept well last night. It was unclear what had happened.

People who knew each other greeted each other and chatted casually.

Soon, someone began to ask anxiously, ”Did you guys hear it too?”

Hearing this, many students by the lake nodded their heads in agreement, saying, ”That sound was like a howling ghost. It was terrifying at first and then more frightening as we thought about it. It gave us the chills!”

”Brother Chen is right. I was reading a book on sage teachings at the time. I’m not afraid to admit that the sound scared me so much that I immediately dropped my book.”

”Exactly. The academy is where we study the teachings of the sages. There should be great righteous energy that has lasted through the ages. Why would there be ghosts?”

”That’s true. It doesn’t make sense, but we really did hear that sound. It was definitely the howling of an evil spirit!”

Some students were confused and had doubtful looks on their faces.

”Who can say for sure?” One student whispered, ”Judging by the direction of the sound, the cry of the ghost last night came from the direction of the library...”

”We need to tell the teachers about this. They’re great scholars with great righteousness, it should be easy for them to drive away the ghosts. If this matter isn’t resolved, how can we dare to go to the library to read?”

”You make a valid point. If the ghosts don’t leave, we really have no interest in studying.”

The students of the academy discussed the sound they heard last night by the lake, each and every one of their faces looking ugly.

However, they did not notice that currently, outside the crowd, the expression of a man who had been too excited last night and had come for an early morning walk by the lake was becoming increasingly uglier.