[Qingxin Formula watched your little performance.]
[Though it finds your acting a touch overdone, it has to admit — that 'retreat to advance' maneuver was executed beautifully.]
[Its interest in you has grown by another notch. It's rather looking forward to seeing whether, once you've truly mastered the Hundred Bones Resonance, you'll still be able to douse a fire in your own backyard so easily.]
[Qingxin Formula Favorability +1]
Gu Chengming's mouth twitched.
A favorability point was a favorability point. He'd take it.
The other matter, however — his progress with the Hundred Bones Resonance — was a whole different story.
He'd assumed this "gold-devouring beast" of a technique merely had a large appetite. He hadn't expected it to have such sluggish digestion too.
Fortunately, while the technique was brutal to get started on, it wasn't a dead end that simply couldn't be trained.
Each session bled his qi and blood dry, but the satisfying ache of muscles tearing and rebuilding, and the faint tightening he felt when he woke the next morning, were proof that something was happening.
Even if it was only the tiniest, most infinitesimal something.
So Gu Chengming decided he would attempt the foundational step of the Hundred Bones Resonance once per day going forward, and dedicate the rest of his time to training the Huiyuan Sword Art.
And so the days passed — unremarkable on the surface, but full beneath it.
Until one afternoon, junior brother Jiang Lu — whom he hadn't seen in quite some time — came knocking again.
This visit, Jiang Lu carried himself notably more carefully than before.
He stood at the courtyard gate, solemnly straightened his robes, and only then knocked.
The moment Gu Chengming appeared, Jiang Lu cupped his hands and bowed deeply:
"Senior Brother Gu, I trust you've been well. After we parted last time, I returned and spent many days reflecting on what I'd learned. I benefited greatly. I've come today expressly to offer my thanks."
The faint, nearly imperceptible thread of condescension Jiang Lu had carried on their first meeting was long gone.
Whatever else one might say, in terms of pure swordsmanship, Senior Brother Gu's "Obsessive Entanglement" sword intent had earned Jiang Lu's wholehearted respect. That title of "Senior Brother" now came from the heart.
The two exchanged pleasantries as they walked into the courtyard and settled around the stone table.
The moment Jiang Lu sat down, his gaze was drawn to the rows upon rows of medicine bottles lined up on the stone table behind Gu Chengming.
The jade vials were standard sect-issue, but sheer quantity gave them a striking visual impact, stacked as they were into a small mountain.
"Senior Brother, those are…?" Jiang Lu asked, hesitating — he had clearly recognized them as cultivation resources.
Gu Chengming followed his gaze and waved a hand casually. "Oh, those. I picked them up from the Hidden Sword Pavilion a couple of days ago."
Jiang Lu's tongue nearly fell out of his mouth. A rough count suggested there had to be dozens of vials.
He ventured carefully: "That's… how many months' worth?"
There was no way this was a single month's allocation for Gu Chengming.
It was far too much. Jiang Lu doubted his own last six months of resources combined would amount to this.
Gu Chengming said mildly, "One year."
"…?"
A giant question mark slowly materialized above Jiang Lu's head.
One year?
Gu Chengming hadn't spelled it out, but watching Jiang Lu's bewildered expression, he had a good idea what the confusion was about.
He gave a brief explanation: for various reasons, he'd simply never gotten around to collecting his allocations before. This time, he'd gone and retrieved the full year's backlog in one trip.
Upon learning that this was Senior Brother Gu's first-ever visit to the Hidden Sword Pavilion in three years as a disciple, Jiang Lu's confusion didn't clear — it deepened considerably.
Three years as a disciple, and not a single resource collected?
The look Jiang Lu gave Gu Chengming grew stranger by the second.
He'd always wondered why Senior Brother Gu's swordsmanship had clearly surpassed his own, yet the man's cultivation realm remained stuck at the pitiable First Realm, Third Layer.
Now he understood.
This senior brother had spent three entire years without touching a single cultivation resource.
Pure talent and sheer grueling practice, grinding his sword intent into shape through nothing but stubbornness?
The speculations he'd harbored until now seemed, in this moment, to crystallize into something vivid and undeniable.
A dragon lurking in the depths, hiding its blade for three years — when it finally roars, it will shake the heavens?
Was today the day the sword would finally be unsheathed?
The more Jiang Lu thought about it, the more his pulse quickened. His mind had already auto-completed a three-hundred-thousand-word epic titled "■ Breaks Through the Vault of Heaven."
The gaze he turned on Senior Brother Gu — already filled with admiration before — now carried several layers of deep, fervent reverence.
Gu Chengming felt a little unsettled under the heat of that stare. He quietly scooted back on his seat and broke the silence.
"Is there something you came to see me about, Junior Brother Jiang?"
Snapped back to reality, Jiang Lu reined in his runaway imagination and spoke.
"Partly to thank Senior Brother for his guidance last time — and partly to show Senior Brother what I've come up with after all my reflection."
Ever since that bout where Gu Chengming's final strike had "demolished" him, Jiang Lu had gone into seclusion and spent days dissecting and turning over that last sword move in his mind. He had recently achieved a breakthrough, and created a brand-new sword technique.
Gu Chengming smiled. "Another sparring match, then?"
Jiang Lu's breath caught. He smiled sheepishly and waved his hands. "That — let's skip the sparring. Another time, another time."
The memory of being utterly steamrolled by Gu Chengming last time was genuinely demoralizing.
He had come prepared this time, and had genuinely made progress — but if by some chance he lost again, the fragile confidence he'd painstakingly rebuilt would shatter to dust. That was a blow to the dao-heart he could not afford.
The two chatted for a while longer, and the atmosphere gradually warmed.
Abruptly, Jiang Lu rose, walked to the center of the courtyard, drew the sword at his hip, and his expression turned unusually grave.
"Senior Brother Gu, please watch carefully. This is my sword."
The words had barely left his lips when Jiang Lu's bearing transformed entirely.
He flicked his wrist. The longsword rang out with a clear, bright cry.
The opening stance was unremarkable.
But then the sword light flashed — like a gentle breeze skimming the surface of a lake, ripples spreading out in overlapping rings.
The second strike followed in its wake, the sword's momentum rising like an incoming tide, each wave cresting higher than the last.
Third strike. Fourth strike.
Jiang Lu's silhouette darted and wove across the courtyard, sword light weaving thick as cloth, layer upon layer. Each swing landed heavier, faster, and fiercer than the one before.
It was like the sea rising — first gentle waves lapping at the shore, then gradually surging, crashing, a wall of water roaring toward the sky.
Until the final strike.
"Ha!"
With a low shout, Jiang Lu brought his sword down in a sweeping arc, carrying the force of a mountain being overturned.
BOOM.
The air in the courtyard seemed to split apart, a muffled concussive crack rolling outward.
Fallen leaves were swept up by the sword wind, howling outward in all directions like waves driven by a gale.
Every ounce of force spent, nothing held back — as though the sea itself had been upended.
Sitting beside the stone table, Gu Chengming watched, a thoughtful gleam passing through his eyes.
He clapped lightly. "Fine sword work."
Jiang Lu came to a stop, chest rising and falling, a flush across his cheeks. At the praise, he rubbed the back of his head with a slightly bashful grin. "Senior Brother flatters me."
Modest words, but inwardly he was quite pleased with himself.
This technique, after all, was his hard-won creation — the product of many days of bitter reflection and personal insight.
He introduced it with obvious pride: "I named this move the 'Raging Tide, Sea-Overturning Form.' I created it myself after many days of thought."
Then, in a tone of absolutely transparent casualness, he added:
"Actually, before coming here, I did spar with a few senior brothers of somewhat higher cultivation using this form. Managed to win a few exchanges, as luck would have it. Even some of the elders of Huiyuan Gate who observed said the technique was quite impressive — that it had the bearing of a true master's work."
Creating an original sword technique was a rare achievement even within the Wenjian Sect.
If one were to submit such a technique to the sect for elder review, it could potentially be exchanged for a substantial haul of contribution points and resources.
Yet from Jiang Lu's manner, that didn't seem to be his intention at all.
Sure enough, the next moment, Jiang Lu looked at Gu Chengming with earnest eyes and said:
"If Senior Brother Gu wishes to learn it, I would be happy to teach you everything without reservation."
Honestly, this was a deeply generous gesture. In the cultivation world, techniques were resources. An original sword technique, if someone else wanted to learn it — even a fellow sect member — typically required paying a hefty "friendship fee" or incurring a significant favor.
Even submitting it to the sect in exchange for resources would yield a handsome windfall.
Yet Jiang Lu was willing to teach it to Gu Chengming for free — a genuine expression of gratitude and sincere respect for this senior brother.
Gu Chengming felt a small stir in his chest at those words. But in the end, he shook his head with a smile. "That won't be necessary."
That brought Jiang Lu up short.
He grew flustered, assuming Gu Chengming didn't think much of the technique, and quickly explained:
"Senior Brother, don't dismiss it — though it's my own rough creation, its explosive power is formidable. In the right situation…"
"Junior Brother Jiang, you misunderstand." Gu Chengming cut him off.
He rose slowly from his seat and picked up the wooden practice sword resting against the stone table.
"It's not that I think poorly of this technique."
As he spoke, he walked toward the center of the courtyard.
"It's just…"
Before the words had fully left his mouth, Gu Chengming moved.
Opening stance — identical to Jiang Lu's.
But the feeling that followed was entirely different.
If Jiang Lu's sword intent had been like watching the tide from shore — powerful, yes, but separated from you by a layer of distance — then Gu Chengming's was like being dropped into the open sea itself, staring up as a towering wall of water bore down on you.
One strike. One strike. One strike.
Each one heavier than the last. Each wave taller than the one before.
Gu Chengming moved with fluid, unbroken grace, without a single hitch. The layering momentum — the core of the technique — was expressed under his wooden sword in a way that was more complete, more cohesive, and frankly more terrifying than what Jiang Lu had shown moments ago.
Then Gu Chengming flicked his wrist and drove the wooden sword straight forward in a level thrust.
No earth-shaking boom. No dramatic leaves spiraling in a gale.
Yet in that instant, Jiang Lu's vision swam — and he could have sworn he saw an ocean blotting out the sky, surging down to swallow him whole.
The suffocating pressure made him instinctively hold his breath.
The sword struck — and the sea overturned the heavens.
This was his sword technique.
And yet it wasn't entirely his sword technique.
Because it was more refined, more charged with intent, its conception reaching further and deeper.
This — this was what "Overturning the Sea" truly meant.
Now it was Jiang Lu's turn to be left completely speechless.
He stared, wide-eyed and slack-jawed, unable to piece together a single coherent sentence for a long moment.
"Senior Brother… this… this…"
Gu Chengming came to a stop and looked at Jiang Lu's dumbstruck face. He smiled.
"It's not that I think poorly of the technique. It's simply that I already know it."
"But — but why?"
Jiang Lu blurted it out instinctively. What he had meant to ask was: why could Senior Brother Gu learn it in a single viewing — and perform it better?
But a beat later, the thought shifted. What Gu Chengming had demonstrated was clearly far more refined than his own version — this wasn't simple imitation. It felt more like… the technique had always been this, and he himself simply hadn't trained it to its proper depth?
But Jiang Lu was genuinely mistaken on that count.
The technique truly was his own "Overturning the Sea."
Only — the core momentum of "Overturning the Sea" was itself derived from the "Stacking Waves" principle within the Huiyuan Sword Art.
And Gu Chengming, who had spent his time endlessly farming the Huiyuan Sword Art's favorability, had reached an almost incomprehensible depth of understanding with that foundational sword art.
So the moment Jiang Lu launched his first move, Gu Chengming had seen straight through to the technique's essence and its underlying mechanics.
Combined with his bone-deep command of the Huiyuan Sword Art, executing the same core principles simply yielded a result that was, naturally, several degrees more refined than what its original creator could produce.
Hearing Jiang Lu's lost "but why," Gu Chengming was quiet for a moment.
He looked at Jiang Lu and said, with complete sincerity:
"You don't practice the Huiyuan Sword Art. You wouldn't understand."
[Huiyuan Sword Art thinks to itself: there's really no need to mention me every single day]
[Huiyuan Sword Art Favorability +2]
— So it had a tsundere phase too, apparently.
Meanwhile, the Jiang Lu who had just heard those words was thoroughly bewildered.
What did he mean, "you don't practice the Huiyuan Sword Art so you wouldn't understand"?
He was a member of Huiyuan Gate — the very first sword art he had ever learned was the Huiyuan Sword Art! It was a mandatory foundational course!
But isn't the Huiyuan Sword Art a basic entry-level technique?!
What kind of basic technique produces results like that?!
Jiang Lu felt like crying without tears. His entire worldview had just taken a severe blow.
He'd thought that as long as there was no sparring, he wouldn't have to take any hits. Instead, just watching someone run through his own technique once had been a more crushing blow than losing the actual sparring match last time.
Somehow… this felt like even worse damage to the dao-heart?
A long while later, his head drooped. He let out a bitter smile.
"...The way of the sword is truly… boundless. I've been nothing but a frog at the bottom of a well."
Watching Jiang Lu sink into that shaken, vaguely existential slump, Gu Chengming judged that the moment was ripe.
"Would you like to learn it, Junior Brother Jiang?"
Gu Chengming's voice cut cleanly through Jiang Lu's spiral of despair.
"Huh?" Jiang Lu's head snapped up, not quite processing it.
"This true 'Overturning the Sea.'" Gu Chengming gave the wooden sword a small flourish. "Want to learn?"
Jiang Lu blinked for one stunned second — and then the dejected slump vanished entirely.
His eyes lit up like lanterns.
"Yes!"
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