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

Chapter 73, Episode 88: Nicknamed the Celestial Sword [Bonus Chapter, Requesting Monthly Tickets!]

Lu Chen's first sword strike was purely ceremonial, employing only the essential principle of "lightness and heaviness" with a seemingly heavy swordsmanship, to remind Master Dingyi to be alert and not to be careless.

At this moment, when he truly began to make his move, even though he had greatly restrained himself and held back a lot of his strength in both his skills and techniques, the unrestrained swordplay that seemed to run wild still caused Dingjing and Dingxian, who were watching from the sidelines, to change their expressions slightly and their eyes to gradually become serious.

As martial arts masters who have been famous for many years and have seen all kinds of martial arts, they are not only highly skilled in martial arts, but also have extremely keen eyesight. They can tell the origin of ordinary martial arts after watching just a few moves.

However, they couldn't discern at all which school or style Lu Chen's swordsmanship belonged to.

Generally speaking, each school of swordsmanship has its own unique style.

Some sword styles are as powerful and fierce as the Songshan School, others as gentle and harmonious as the Hengshan School, still others as majestic and perilous as the Huashan School, still others as imposing and powerful as the Taishan School, still others as elusive and unpredictable as the Hengshan School…

Although a set of sword techniques cannot have only one style, there is always one style as the main style, and the others are auxiliary variations.

Lu Chen's swordsmanship is a mix of styles: fierce and sharp, gentle and tender, swift and graceful, powerful and profound, and constantly changing between reality and illusion. It's impossible to tell which style he primarily uses.

If an ordinary person used a sword like that, they would be criticized as haphazard and nonsensical.

Yet, Lu Chen's swordsmanship was remarkably natural, with various styles blending seamlessly together.

In a single move, the first half is a fierce slash like a heavy sword, while the second half transforms into a soft, gentle sword style like a silkworm spinning silk or a spider weaving a web.

Or the first move is light and graceful, like a ribbon fluttering, while the second move transforms into a powerful and heavy one, like a bronze hammer and axe.

These seemingly abrupt changes, in Lu Chen's hands, appeared natural and fluid, without the slightest hint of awkwardness.

Furthermore, Lu Chen's swordsmanship is not merely about exquisite moves, but rather about the simultaneous application of sword and qi, with each strike enhanced by true qi.

This is terrible.

This not only represents that Lu Chen's swordsmanship has reached an incredible level, allowing him to freely disassemble and combine various styles of swordsmanship, and then use them with ease and freedom, no longer bound by established sword routines and moves, but also represents that when he exerts his strength, his control over his power has reached a level of exquisite precision and effortless mastery.

It's important to know that the techniques for channeling and generating power are different for each style of swordsmanship.

The first half of the move is still a fierce slash like a heavy sword, but the second half suddenly becomes like a silkworm spinning silk or a spider spinning a cocoon. The force suddenly changes from the hardest to the softest, or from heavy to light. The speed and nature of the true energy are completely different, even contradictory and conflicting with each other.

With such changes in technique, the speed and nature of the internal energy circulation are constantly shifting in completely opposite directions. If one is not careful, the internal energy will conflict with itself due to these opposing contradictions, go astray, and even injure itself.

It's like a horse-drawn carriage loaded with heavy stones, speeding down a slope, suddenly encountering a sharp bend. It must control its speed and turn at the last second, otherwise it will crash and kill everyone.

It's fine if a master shows off their skills or encounters an emergency once or twice, but almost every move is like this...

It was like a carriage speeding down a narrow, winding mountain road with many bends and steep slopes, constantly facing the risk of crashing and losing lives.

This is why each sword technique can only focus on one style, with other styles serving as supplementary.

Because most martial artists, even those at the sect leader level, cannot control such contradictory and violently conflicting changes in true energy.

However, Lu Chen was not showing off his skills. Since every move he made was like this, it showed that he had completely mastered the changes in true energy that were constantly in conflict. He had treated this fighting style as an ordinary means that was not even considered a surprise move or a killing move!
Ding Jing and Ding Xian were shocked. They felt that Lu Chen's swordsmanship was incredible and divine. They felt that Ding Yi might not even be able to withstand a hundred moves.

However, Ding Yi, who was under Lu Chen's offensive, did not think so.

She felt that this match was the most exhilarating sword fight she had ever had in her life.

All the sword skills she had learned in her life were brought to their fullest potential thanks to Lu Chen's unpredictable swordsmanship. Even many sword moves that she thought she had mastered to their limit were given new inspiration in this fight. When inspiration struck, the details of her sword moves became more exquisite, and there was even a hint of a new breakthrough!

Okay, Dingyi's perception wasn't wrong.

Lu Chen not only held back his strength, but also subtly "guided" Dingyi Shitai with his own superb swordsmanship while dismantling her Hengshan swordsmanship.

As Abbess Dingyi was unknowingly guided by him to fully demonstrate the essence of the Hengshan sword technique, she herself also benefited greatly from it.

When novices fight each other, they only become less skilled. Only when they meet a worthy opponent can they fully unleash their potential.

Just like Pang Ban and Lang Fanyun, even if they mastered the skills, they couldn't break through the void. After a battle, they both shattered and disappeared.

Lu Chen's skill and swordsmanship are undoubtedly far superior to those of Master Dingyi.

But he has too much control.

Even with Feng Buping's 108 swords of raging wind, he could always maintain a firm grasp on the rhythm, let alone Ding Yi, who was the weakest of the three Ding of Hengshan and inferior to Ding Jing and Ding Xian.
His swordsmanship, in the eyes of Dingjing and Dingxian who were watching from the sidelines, was nothing short of divine, and they felt that they would have no chance against it.

However, Dingyi, who was in the "eye of the storm," felt that he had met the best opponent he had ever met, and they fought to their hearts' content.

Because all the disciples of the Hengshan Sword Sect are women, their swordsmanship is not the kind that is fierce, swift, and aggressive.

Hengshan swordsmanship is characterized by its circular and intricate movements.

Each sword move is imbued with a subtle, yielding power; nine out of ten moves are defensive, with only one being a surprise attack. Each sword strike is fluid and circular, leaving much unsaid.

Under the pressure, or rather the guidance, of the sinking land.

Master Dingyi's swordplay, with its circular movements, subtly formed a "three-foot sword circle" around her, enveloping her like a sphere, using its extremely dense and rounded resilience to resist Lu Chen's continuous onslaught.

Occasionally, the "three-foot sword circle" would rise up in strange peaks, as if it had been compressed to its limit and was rebounding and counterattacking on its own, returning a wonderful sword strike to Lu Chen.

This is the key to the Hengshan sword technique's "hidden needle within cotton".

It's like hiding a steel needle in cotton. If someone strikes the cotton with their palm, the cotton will feel light and weak and unable to withstand the force, but the steel needle hidden inside will pierce the enemy's palm.

As for the severity of the injury, it depends on the force with which the enemy struck.

The harder you hit me, the more you will be injured.

This also aligns with the Buddhist concept of "cause and effect, and the inevitable retribution."

Under Lu Chen's oppressive guidance, Master Dingyi displayed the "Hidden Needle in Cotton" technique to its fullest extent. Her counterattacks, full of unexpected twists and turns, even impressed Dingjing and Dingxian.

Before they knew it, the two had exchanged more than five hundred blows.

Contrary to Dingjing and Dingxian's expectations, Master Dingyi was not defeated in less than a hundred moves. Instead, she became more and more spirited as the battle progressed.

Dingjing and Dingxian were shocked, while the other Hengshan disciples were amazed and whispered among themselves.

The disciples lacked the insight to discern much.

They found the fight between the two to be truly spectacular, marveling at how young Lu Chen could fight Dingyi's martial arts to a standstill, and were momentarily awestruck by his extraordinary skill.

A round-faced girl dressed as a lay disciple whispered to Huang Rong:

"Miss Huang, how old were you when you started practicing martial arts, Benefactor Lu? You don't look much older than me, yet your swordsmanship is so superb?"

Huang Rong was a little smug:
"I didn't train for very long, maybe about half a year?"

"Half a year?"

The round-faced little girl named Zheng E clicked her tongue in amazement:
"To have mastered swordsmanship to such a level in just six months... is Benefactor Lu some kind of celestial being descended to earth?" Huang Rong said with a smile.
"It's not that exaggerated. However, my brother Lu Chen is nicknamed 'Heavenly Sword,' and he does indeed have a bit of the demeanor of a sword god."

Zheng E was filled with awe:

"A divine sword from beyond the heavens? How impressive!"

The girls around her were also amazed, and they had no doubt about the title "Heavenly Divine Sword".

After all, Lu Chen looked only eighteen or nineteen years old, about the same age as them, yet his swordsmanship was so profound. They couldn't even understand his swordplay; they only felt that it was powerful. He had fought over five hundred moves with Uncle Dingyi, yet he remained calm and composed, handling the situation with ease...

If he truly only practiced swordsmanship for half a year and achieved such accomplishments, calling him "Heavenly Divine Sword" doesn't seem too exaggerated.
"A divine sword from beyond the heavens?"

Upon hearing this title, even Dingjing and Dingxian couldn't help but take notice.

Just then, Lu Chen, who had been fighting Master Dingyi for six hundred moves, suddenly paused his swordplay, leaped back ten steps, and then bowed to Master Dingyi.
"Thank you, senior, for your advice."

On that day in the Zhongtiao Mountains, after receiving about a hundred moves of Feng Buping's Gale Sword, he figured out the secrets of force exertion in 30% of the moves of the Gale Sword.

By the time he had fought Dingyi for over three hundred moves today, he had already thoroughly explored and mastered the Hengshan sword technique that Dingyi had learned.

He has mastered the moves, the application of force, and even the key to "hiding a needle in cotton."

The reason they fought for over two hundred more moves was purely to reciprocate the favor and guide Ding Yi to discover his potential.

After this battle, Dingyi's martial arts skills will surely improve.

If I spend more time studying and digesting the lessons learned from this battle, my swordsmanship can be improved even further.

Ding Yi was engrossed in the fight when Lu Chen suddenly withdrew and retreated. The pressure that had been pouring in from all directions vanished instantly. Instead of feeling relieved, she felt a little unsatisfied.

He had intended to continue the sword fight, but suddenly realized that his inner energy was almost depleted and his physical strength was severely depleted.

Unbeknownst to her, she had already exhausted her true energy and physical strength with Lu Chen's seemingly "evenly matched" fighting style. However, she was in such good condition during the sword fight that she did not even realize it.

Lu Chen realized that Master Dingyi was about to give up, so he took the initiative to stop.

Otherwise, it would be too impolite to exhaust her.
This is just right. Master Dingyi is radiant and full of energy. Even though her skills are almost exhausted and her strength is depleted, she can still stand steadily. After catching her breath, even if her skills and strength cannot be restored in time, she can move freely without looking disheveled.

At this moment, Abbess Dingyi also realized why Lu Chen had stopped.

This young man possessed astonishing swordsmanship and profound skill, yet he was not arrogant or conceited. On the contrary, he was so polite, helping her maintain face in front of the disciples...

For a moment, her gaze toward Lu Chen became more and more favorable, filled with both amazement and curiosity.

She truly couldn't fathom how an eighteen or nineteen-year-old could have cultivated his internal strength and swordsmanship to such a level.

In any case, what that lovely little girl said earlier was correct.

For Lu Chen's age, he is indeed a gifted prodigy.

As evening approached, although Lu Chen still wished to learn from Abbess Dingxian and Dingjing and wanted to witness the Hengshan Sect's seven-person sword formation, he had already interrupted their Buddhist evening prayers and secretly learned the Hengshan sword technique. It would be impolite to disturb them further today.

Let's come back tomorrow...

So Lu Chen bowed again to Abbess Dingyi and said:

"I have benefited greatly from your guidance today. It is getting late, so I will not disturb you nuns during your evening prayers."

After saying this, he bowed to Dingxian and Dingjing and said, "Excuse me."

Huang Rong waved goodbye to the young nuns from Hengshan whom she had just met, apologized to San Ding, and then went down the mountain hand in hand with Lu Chen.

Watching the two figures disappear into the distance.

Dingxian and Dingjing walked up to Dingyi and sighed:
“Master Lu is quite thoughtful. I thought he could defeat you within a hundred moves, but he actually dragged it out to six hundred moves and even left you with a draw.”

"Ok?"

Dingyi was taken aback:
"You think you can defeat me in a hundred moves? Although your swordsmanship is superb, it's about the same as mine. While your internal energy is greater than mine, I'll eventually exhaust my strength and be defeated if this drags on. But in terms of swordsmanship alone, I'm no match for him..."

As she spoke, seeing the strange looks from Dingxian and Dingjing, she gradually became less confident.

After carefully recalling the feeling during the sword duel, and reflecting on how his swordsmanship had unknowingly reached its full potential and even surpassed its previous level, Ding Yi gradually came to understand:

"This... his swordsmanship is far superior to mine, and he can control the pace of the fight at will?"

Calm and serene observers have a clear perspective and slowly nod their heads.

Ding Jing said:

"That's not all. Your swordsmanship today is much better than before. And this improvement is obvious at a glance. Dingxian and I both saw how your swordsmanship gradually improved over these six hundred moves."

"This……"

Ding Yi, blinded by his own involvement, previously thought that he had encountered an excellent opponent, which had stimulated his potential, sparked his inspiration, and allowed him to understand many subtle variations, thus improving his swordsmanship.

Only after her two senior sisters pointed it out did she show shock and say in astonishment:

“Master Lu… he guided me to improve my swordsmanship, yet I remain completely unaware?”

Ding Xian nodded solemnly:

"exactly."

Ding Jing sighed:
"That Miss Huang said that Benefactor Lu has only been practicing swordsmanship for half a year. If this is true, Benefactor Lu is truly an unparalleled swordsmanship prodigy. No wonder Miss Huang said that someone gave Benefactor Lu the nickname 'Heavenly Divine Sword'..."

Dingyi sighed, "I wonder which master taught this disciple."

Ding Xian said, "I'm afraid it's not something any master could have taught him. To have achieved such mastery in swordsmanship and internal energy after only half a year of training, such astonishing progress can only be due to his own talent..."

The next day.

Lu Chen and Huang Rong arrived at the Wuse Nunnery.

"I have long admired Senior Dingjing's 'Ten Thousand Flowers Sword Technique' and it is unparalleled in the North. I have come here today to seek your guidance. I humbly request your instruction, Senior. I would be eternally grateful."

"..."

The three looked at each other, speechless.

[Yesterday's monthly votes increased significantly, so I'm adding an extra chapter today as a thank you. I'm still asking for more monthly votes!]

(End of this chapter)