I Hate The Sword

The woman raised her sword vertically and ran th finger of her other hand up its length. The silver blade turned black and a chilly aura swirled around the blade.

As the men rushed toward her, a frightening amount of killing intent burst out of the woman. 

Li Chen could feel her boiling rage gnawing at her sanity. 

SWISH—!

SWISH—!

She flickered past their attacks and moved past three men in a snake-like fashion. Even Li Chen couldn't see what she did as blood spurted from their necks and they slumped to their demise.

Undeterred, her sword swooshed out, reaping lives. Her sword was fast, unpredictable, and stealthy, like a shadow.

With time, Li Chen noticed she used more piercing attacks than slashing. Each time her sword came for her next victim, it had a certain effect that made the sword seem far away when it was already close!

Facing the leader, the woman clashed with him twice and unleashed a deadly barrage of three consistent strikes.

The man successfully blocked it and smiled. At that moment, blood spilled from his mouth, stunning Li Chen.

He realized during the first attack that she had also finished with a slash to his throat. It had the element of a swift sword but this one released no radiance.

Her target was dead without knowing it. He was now a part of her sword's kill count. 

As blood slid down the blade, the girl looked around. 

Though visible, she had killed everyone like a shadow. Her sword could be seen yet it couldn't be heard. It could react yet couldn't speak or release radiances.

"I'll name you Shadow Sword and this is your technique." She said this to her sword, sheathed it, and walked away.

Li Chen woke up.

'Did she learn that technique because she was being chased?' 

As he thought, the scent of peach made him turn his right. Two meters away sat Xiu Ying on a wooden chair, studying a scroll on top of the table before her.

'I guess I have time for the other scroll.'

Opening the scroll, he looked at the star level. As with the Shadow Sword Technique, it was a 2-star sky-grade technique.

'Light Sword Technique. Wait, is this…' Li Chen's thought trailed off as his mind got sucked in.

From a bird's-eye view, he saw a cultivator holding a white sword. He wore a metal hat that had the shape of a straw hat and sat atop a roof.

He was the final line of defense for the village behind him. The villagers hid in their homes.

Li Chen saw dark clouds appear and the village descended into darkness. 

In the eerie silence, two stout men appeared on rooftops, their chilling laughter piercing the air.

"Finally. I've been waiting for you two for days now. Come, die, and let me get paid." The man scowled, grabbed his sheathed sword and got up.

Both spirits, who wore luxurious clothes, exposing some parts of their bodies, chuckled. They had earrings on their large ears and one had a large green gourd strapped to his back.

RUMBLE —!

The clouds rumbled and a heavy downpour began. The water was colder than usual and a white mist enveloped the surrounding areas.

"This should be fun." The swordsman's lips curled into a smirk and he floated to the ground. 

Unsheathing his sword, he let the blade's edge cut through the soil as he walked toward the laughing duo.

"Clearly, you court death!"

"And we shall show you the result of those who court such a fine lady, hehe," the second one remarked.

The gourd opened and the greenish water within floated out. 

"Poison. I should have known I wouldn't be dealing with respectable spirits." The swordsman scowled. His grip tightened and he dashed forward.

With each step, his aura rose. At his tenth step, a piercing aura billowed off his body and he leaped into the air.

The moment he reached the peak, which was ten meters, the swordsman's lips curled upwards and he flickered.

SLASH—!!

A bright, large radiance curved into an arc swooshed past the men and the swordsman appeared at their backs, sheathing his sword.

THUD—!

THUD—!

Along with their split bodies, the two wooden buildings on both sides were cut into two!

'This technique also has its own movement technique attached to it. I should be able to deliver wide-ranging attacks while moving at a high speed.' Li Chen thought.

The Shadow Sword Technique focused on unpredictable, unseen attacks that were sure to deliver a killing blow. His enemies wouldn't die instantly and wouldn't know where he struck.

The light sword technique focused on wide-ranging attacks. Equally quick but less precise and good for dealing with groups in less time. He would also be able to move within thin and large spaces while unleashing life-stealing sword beams!

Waking up, Li Chen stretched. His eyes burned with thirst to comprehend these techniques, which would greatly boost his strength by leaps and bounds.

Once he had trained to his satisfaction, he would take a mission and hone his strength with battle experience.

Turning his head, he found Xiu Ying resting her head on her palms and staring at him. [You're done.] He asked.

"I am. I was studying the Dharma of Self Transformation technique." 

[What kind of technique is that?]

"It's like condensation for mortal and immortal human cultivators. Dharma of Self Transformation projects enhanced forms of ourselves." 

[Oh? Have you chosen your techniques?]

"Mn," Xiu Ying nodded and they walked down the stairs, ignoring people's stares.

On the first floor, Li Chen saw Ning Chuan and Ren Xing studying scrolls. 

Seeing them, Ning Chuan stomped toward them. "I've defeated the official number 8 of the outer disciple ranking."

[That's good.] Li Chen nodded.

Veins bulged on Ning Chuan's head. "You're just a coward. You won by a fluke last time!" 

His eyes went to Xiu Ying. Her beauty only brought jealousy but he swallowed it.

"Old Cat, let's go." Xiu Ying yawned softly and walked away. Her nonchalance dealt a severe blow to Ning Chuan's confidence.

When they reached the ground floor, Li Chen brought out the scrolls and placed them before the old man.

Even if he didn't want to, the old man could detect the signatures of every scroll inside anyone's storage space.

So, it was meaningless to try to steal.

"2-star sky-grade techniques are five hundred points and the last one is 200." 

Sighing, Li Chen paid, and Xiu Ying also paid for her techniques. Seeing her pay over 7,000 points made Li Chen's eyes widen.

Leaving the library, they walked on the road silently. Xiu Ying had her hands at her back and Li Chen crossed his arms.

[Why don't you hold your sword?]

Xiu Ying turned her head toward him. "Not everyone loves to hold their weapons like you and... I don't like the sword that much." 

[What?!]

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