"Eh?" Seeing the somewhat wronged expression on Ming Yu's face, Fu Hua was also a little surprised. "Why would you think that?"
"A teacher is one who imparts knowledge, teaches skills, and resolves doubts," Ming Yu said slowly, looking away. "Although there were all sorts of reasons for it, since you chose to teach me those things, you deserve the proper respect."
"A master, huh..." A strange light flashed in Fu Hua's eyes, her thoughts unreadable. After a long moment, she continued, "There's no need, and I stopped taking disciples long ago. Of course, I will teach you everything I'm supposed to, not a single thing less, but you can call me whatever you like."
Feeling a pang of guilt, Ming Yu cursed himself inwardly and said solemnly to Fu Hua, "In that case, I'll continue to call you Class Monitor."
Ignoring Ming Yu's little thoughts, Fu Hua's expression turned serious. She once again looked carefully at the young man before her, her thin lips parting as her cool voice echoed in the training room. "As I said before, your age is not the best stage to learn Taixu Sword Qi. Theoretically, the best time to learn is before the age of ten, when one's mind is clear and it's easier to perceive the existence of the 'Tao'."
"At your age, if you were to practice using the normal methods, it would be very difficult to achieve anything," Fu Hua said, sighing softly.
Ming Yu's face also showed a hint of regret, but a sliver of hope remained in his heart. Since Fu Hua had brought it up, there must be a solution. If conventional methods wouldn't work, then there must be an unconventional one.
Besides, he had a cheat of his own. Although it wasn't very reliable, it shouldn't be a problem to speed up his training to a certain extent.
As expected, without pausing for too long, Fu Hua spoke again, "Therefore, to enable you to master these things as soon as possible, we need some help."
As she said this, Fu Hua slowly extended her right hand, and a red feather gradually materialized in her palm.
In Fu Hua's delicate and slender palm, a red feather of about two or three inches floated. The fine feather was weightless, as if it could be blown away by a gentle puff of air. But it remained there steadily, seeming to tumble, yet also to burn.
"Fenghuang Down!" Fu Hua called out in a low voice.
The crimson feather instantly burst forth with a brilliant red light, filling the entire training room. Ming Yu could see nothing else, only that dazzling red radiance.
When Ming Yu came to his senses, he found that he had already left the training room and arrived at a place that resembled a Taoist temple. In front of the main hall stood a huge incense burner, from which wisps of purple smoke slowly rose.
He stretched out his hand, and the black longsword Jizo Mitama fell into it, which made him feel a little more at ease.
Looking at the perfectly seamless scene before him, Ming Yu was slightly dumbfounded.
Is this the illusion created by Fenghuang Down? It's completely indistinguishable from reality. If he hadn't been mentally prepared beforehand, he probably would have thought this was real.
"Taixu Sword Qi has five aggregates: Heart, Form, Intent, Soul, and Spirit. The Heart Discipline is the mind-method, the entry-level discipline. It is the most fundamental, but in a way, it is also the most difficult."
As Fu Hua's calm voice resounded in this space, a figure with white hair and red eyes gradually emerged.
After looking this version of Fu Hua up and down, Ming Yu immediately averted his gaze. This outfit didn't have much fabric, which made the Celestial seem even flatter than ever.
Ignoring Ming Yu's thoughts, creating this illusion was not a simple task for Fu Hua. The injuries she had sustained years ago severely affected her use of Fenghuang Down. If she were at her peak, creating an environment of this level would be a matter of a mere wave of her hand.
Making use of the limited time, Fu Hua continued, "The Heart Discipline has four realms: Still Water, Dustless, Bright Mirror, and Taixu. The cultivation of the Sword Heart primarily values a pure state of mind, requiring a mind free of distracting thoughts. This depends on both the level of one's comprehension and the purity of one's disposition."
This was also why the practice of Taixu Sword Qi had an age requirement. When people are young, their dispositions are purer, allowing them to discard the interference of distracting thoughts. Adults, on the other hand, mostly have cluttered minds, and practicing the Sword Heart would be like trying to catch the wind with one's palm—a futile effort.
"Next, I will use the power of the feather to guide you in perceiving and cultivating the Sword Heart. How much you can learn will depend entirely on you." As she spoke, Fu Hua's right hand opened slightly, and a longsword condensed from crimson flames appeared in her hand. The red flames were completely solidified on the sword's body, showing no sign of burning, appearing merely like patterns on the blade.
Then, Fu Hua threw the longsword in her hand towards Ming Yu, shouting at the same time, "Relax your mind, do not resist!"
Seeing the crimson longsword flying towards him, Ming Yu's first reaction was to swing his own sword to meet it, but Fu Hua's words immediately rang in his ears. Although he briefly wondered if this was a trap, he then considered the power gap between them—she had no need to do this, and it wasn't in her interest either.
Forcibly suppressing the urge to resist, Ming Yu forced himself to focus his attention on that flying red sword.
Soon, the crimson flying sword made intimate contact with Ming Yu's body. The seemingly sharp longsword did not pierce his body, but instead transformed into flames upon contact, engulfing him.
The moment he was swallowed by the flames, Ming Yu felt not the slightest heat. Instead, waves of coolness washed over him, guiding his spirit, and Fu Hua's profound and mysterious voice echoed in his ears.
"The heart is..."
Accompanied by a series of profound words, the scene before Ming Yu gradually became clearer, and his sensations grew deeper.
He felt as if he had become a quiet lake. A gentle breeze blew past, yet it failed to raise the slightest ripple.
A single, golden-yellow ginkgo leaf slowly drifted down from above, gently sinking into the lake's water, leaving not a trace of dust.
The ginkgo leaf continued to sink, sinking into the deep blue depths of the lake, but the bottom of the lake had suddenly turned the blue of the sky. For a moment, he couldn't tell whether the ginkgo leaf had drifted into the lake from the sky, or if it was being blown from the lake towards the heavens.
Gradually, the yellow leaf drifted to a place so distant it was no longer visible. Even the sensation of water and air had vanished, as if only a boundless void remained.
In this void, Ming Yu could not sense the existence of time or space. But unlike when he was in the void created by Higokumaru within the Stigmata Space, there was not the slightest panic in his heart; instead, it was filled with tranquility.
Slowly, even his perception of himself began to fade, as if he too had become that void. Beyond that, there was nothing else, and no other thought.
But Ming Yu knew he was looking for something, something very important. Yet, he didn't know its shape; even his awareness of the thing had vanished without a trace.
Suddenly, from the depths of the endless void, a sword flew forth. This sword had no concept of length or weight, no distinction of shape or color. The only word that could be used to describe it was simply 'sword'.
A slight smile appeared on the corner of Ming Yu's mouth. He knew that was what he was looking for.
PS: Second update is served...