The world of martial arts, the immortal swordsman in the mortal realm.

Chapter 5, Part 05: Lu Chen's Special Talent
Early in the morning, Huang Rong woke up, jumped out of the hammock, stretched lazily, straightened her clothes, and was about to go out to fetch water to wash up when she suddenly heard the soft sound of waves mixed with sharp, piercing sounds.

huh, huh, huh...

The sound of air being cut is rhythmic and distinct, with the intervals between each two sounds being almost perfectly consistent, giving a sense of stability and precision.

Huang Rong listened intently for a while, then a look of surprise appeared on her pretty face:
"You were so exhausted yesterday, how come you were able to get up so early to practice swordsmanship today?"

Last night, Lu Chen practiced swordsmanship until he was almost exhausted. He also lacked internal energy, so he couldn't use it to relax his muscles and regulate his blood and qi. Even after a night's rest, his arms should be sore and weak today, and he should have difficulty even lifting them.

Judging from the rhythmic sound of the wooden sword cutting through the air outside, he clearly seemed to be handling the situation with ease.

Huang Rong suppressed her curiosity, first rinsed her mouth and washed her face with some water, then combed her hair, making herself look beautiful, before lightly stepping out of the cabin and onto the bow deck.

In the gentle sea breeze, Lu Chen held a wooden sword, his eyes fixed ahead, his spine straight. Following the basic rapier technique taught by Huang Rong the night before, he focused intently on thrusting one sword after another without stopping.

His movements were already extremely precise, and those bad habits from yesterday, such as gripping the sword too tightly, exerting too much force, and being too stiff, had all been completely corrected. At least in the basic sword stance of "thrusting the sword," Huang Rong could not find a single fault.

Standing with her hands behind her back to his side, silently watching him thrust his sword over a hundred times, Huang Rong finally spoke in a clear voice:
"Getting up so early to practice swordsmanship, doesn't your arm hurt?"

It wasn't until she spoke that Lu Chen, who was engrossed in practicing his sword, realized Huang Rong had arrived. He stopped his stance, wiped the fine sweat from his forehead, and smiled slightly at Huang Rong:
"I don't have any other strengths, but I recover very quickly. No matter how tired I am, I can recover after resting for a while."

He patted his arm:
"My arm was really so tired last night that it was completely exhausted, but it's back to normal now."

Although he was a transmigrator with special abilities, Lu Chen's physique was not unusual.

His strength, speed, and endurance are about the same as those of an average person.

The only noteworthy strength is its recovery.

No matter how tired he is, he only needs to rest for an hour or two at most, and he will be full of energy again. He will not suffer from the aftereffects of being too tired, such as physical weakness, muscle soreness, weakness in his hands and feet, or even being unable to hold a water glass.

"Your recovery ability is already a remarkable talent."

Huang Rong expressed her admiration and said earnestly:

"The way of martial arts is about balance. Why balance? Because too much of anything is bad. If you overdo it and don't have time to rest and recover, too many hidden injuries will accumulate, and sooner or later you'll injure yourself or even ruin yourself. But Brother Lu, you have such a strong recovery ability that you can practice martial arts for much longer each day than the average person."

“When I taught you last night, you showed good comprehension and had exceptional focus and perseverance. Coupled with your recovery talent, your future martial arts achievements, Brother Lu, may be limitless.”

Hearing Huang Rong's approval, Lu Chen was overjoyed and laughed heartily.
"Thank you for your kind words, Miss Huang. If I succeed in swordsmanship, Miss Huang will be credited with the greatest contribution! When I take Miss Huang to visit me, I will do my best to fulfill whatever request Miss Huang has."

Huang Rong winked playfully:

"Brother Lu, if you put it that way, I'll take it seriously!"

Lu Chen was full of vigor and high spirits, his heart brimming with heroic ambition:
"Take it as true, though."

After exchanging a few jokes, Lu Chen suddenly remembered something:
"By the way, Miss Huang, I feel that practicing the basic sword techniques you taught me is quite beneficial to my physique. Could it be that I can develop internal energy this way?"

Huang Rong, with her hands behind her back, said with a grin:

“Developing internal strength from the outside in isn’t easy. Internal strength originates from the body’s Qi and blood, which Taoists call ‘refining essence into Qi.’ To cultivate internal strength through external martial arts, one needs to combine techniques with footwork to loosen muscles and bones, circulate Qi and blood, and supplement this with corresponding breathing exercises. Only when Qi and blood are abundant to a certain degree can internal strength gradually arise on its own. Brother Lu, your basic sword style lacks both footwork and corresponding breathing exercises, so at most it can only strengthen the body and lay a foundation for the future. Internal strength, however, cannot be cultivated.”

Lu Chen was not disappointed upon hearing this, and smiled:
"I was overthinking it. But it's good to strengthen the body and build a solid foundation in the right way."

Huang Rong's eyebrows were curved, and her dimples were shallow:
"Yes, yes, if you lay a solid foundation, you'll develop internal energy quickly. With Brother Lu's talent, as long as you learn the right swordsmanship, I think it won't be long before you develop internal energy."

After discussing martial arts for a while, Huang Rong took out some dry rations and had a simple breakfast with Lu Chen before setting sail and continuing towards the mouth of the Qiantang River.

Lu Chen originally wanted to learn how to sail and help Huang Rong a little, but Huang Rong told him to just focus on practicing his sword and leave the miscellaneous tasks to her—in order to travel to the Immortal Realm and see the incredible wonders of the Immortal Realm with his own eyes, Huang Rong was determined to do her best to help him practice his sword.

He also possessed a powerful regenerative talent, allowing him to practice swordsmanship non-stop all day long. Huang Rong felt that the "Immortal Realm" was already beckoning to her, warmly inviting her to "Come and play, Rong'er."

And so, Huang Rong steered the boat, Lu Chen practiced his swordsmanship, and in the gentle sea breeze, the small boat cut through the waves along the coast. As noon approached, the mouth of the Qiantang River came into view.

Huang Rong maneuvered the sails and used the wind to sail against the current into the river mouth.

At this time, the maritime trade of the Song Dynasty was thriving, and there were countless merchant ships coming and going at the mouth of the Qiantang River. Even Huang Rong, while controlling the sails and steering the ship, couldn't help but look around frequently. Lu Chen, however, was still immersed in practicing his sword, maintaining the rhythm and practicing the rapier technique. He didn't seem to find it monotonous or boring at all, and he was oblivious to the bustling scene of the masts and sails.

Seeing this, Huang Rong admired him even more, thinking to herself that with his single-mindedness and my assistance, if Brother Lu could not master swordsmanship, then it would be truly a case of Heaven being blind.

The boat traveled very slowly up the river. Even though the small boat had a shallow draft and could take advantage of the wind from all directions, it was not until evening that they finally arrived at the confluence of the Cao'e River and the Qiantang River.

After entering the Cao'e River, they came to another dock. Seeing that it was getting late, Huang Rong decided to moor there for the night.

After finding a berth and mooring the boat, Huang Rong told Lu Chen to wait on the boat while she went to the dock town.

"What is Miss Huang going to town for?"

"I'll buy you a toothbrush and clothes. Brother Lu, with your short hair, you could still be considered a monk who hasn't been out of secular life for long, and your hair hasn't grown out properly yet. But you need to change out of this strange outfit, otherwise you might be mistaken for a 'clothing demon' on the street and cause trouble."

Lu Chen thought about it and agreed, then nodded and said:
"Then I'll stay here and watch the ship."

"I'll be back soon."

Huang Rong smiled sweetly, waved to him, turned around and leaped off the bow of the boat. As she soared, her white clothes fluttered and her beautiful hair flew, making her look like a fairy descended to earth riding the wind, leaving Lu Chen in a daze for a long time.

Only after watching Huang Rong's graceful figure disappear into the distance did Lu Chen turn his gaze away and continue practicing his sword on the bow deck.

Once immersed in practicing his sword, Lu Chen lost track of time until he heard a commotion coming from the dock. Only then did he snap out of his reverie and see that the sky had become even darker and that lights had been lit in some parts of the dock.

As for the source of that noise and commotion...

Lu Chen looked up and saw Huang Rong carrying a package, running ahead with a smile, followed by more than a dozen men in short clothes holding knives and sticks, shouting and chasing after her, as if determined to capture her.

Lu Chen tensed up upon seeing this, not knowing what trouble Huang Rong had gotten into. He glanced at the wooden sword in his hand, which was only about three feet long, and decisively threw it onto the deck. He then grabbed the bamboo pole, which was more than ten feet long, and jumped off the bow of the boat, rushing towards Huang Rong.

(End of this chapter)