Li Shen woke before dawn. The world was silent — not even the crows had begun their cries. The faint mist blanketed the training ground, soft and pale under the dim sky. He strapped the Iron Spirit Blade to his waist, its faint greenish gleam harmonizing with the early morning fog. This sword, though merely a low-grade mortal weapon, carried a certain weight — a sense of yearning to cut through all obstacles, just as its master desired to cut through the path of mediocrity.
He carried with him the jade slip of the Verdant Blade Form, a foundational sword technique of the Verdant Cloud Sect.
The jade slip glowed faintly as Li Shen infused a thread of his mental energy. Information flooded his mind — a sequence of movements, breathing rhythms, and visualizations of flowing qi.
"Verdant Blade Form: The way of the fast blade is not recklessness, but clarity. To be fast is to be precise. To be precise is to be calm. The blade that flows like the wind must first rest like still water."
He exhaled softly.
"Fast, precise, simple, and foundational... yet endless," he murmured.
He stepped into the clearing, drew his Iron Spirit Blade, and took his stance.
Speed was never about muscle, nor brute force.
In swordsmanship, speed is born from efficiency of motion.
The great Elder Wu Jian — the "One Sword Ten Worlds" master — once said:
"The fool moves his arm, the wise moves his intent. The sword that leaves the scabbard before thought — that is speed."
Li Shen recalled those words and began his drills. The Verdant Blade Form contained Four foundational cuts, each with its own essence.
The First Cut – The Verdant Dawn: A simple vertical slash, focused on balance and body alignment.The Second Cut – Flowing Stream: A diagonal slice where breath and qi move like water.The Third Cut – Whispering Leaf: A parry disguised as a strike, emphasizing precision.The Fourth Cut – Shifting Wind: A recovery stance into a swift counter, teaching fluid transitions.
Each form built upon the previous — repetition was the root, patience the soil, and enlightenment the bloom.
Li Shen's blade began to hum softly through the air.
At first, his swings were stiff and uneven. The sword trembled at the end of each motion.
He frowned — his rhythm was wrong.
"Too much force, too little flow," he muttered. He closed his eyes and steadied his breath.
He remembered his other cultivation — Cutter's Vital Rhythm.
It harmonized movement and qi flow.
He inhaled once more, this time aligning his qi to his breath.
The blade moved again — swifter, cleaner, freer.
Ding—
Host has learned Verdant Blade Form (Tier I) [Proficiency: 1%] [Efficiency: 1%]
The system's voice rang softly, but Li Shen ignored it.
Swordsmanship was not measured in numbers — though he found comfort knowing he had begun somewhere.
He spent the next three hours drilling.
He repeated each cut one hundred times.
With every repetition, his movements grew smoother, his breathing more stable. Sweat poured from his forehead, yet his gaze remained sharp.
The Verdant Blade Form emphasized repetition until formlessness. When one's sword intent was pure enough, form disappeared — every swing, every motion, became both attack and defense.
After a short rest, Li Shen began his second set — the Wind Drills.
This exercise trained the control of weight and momentum.
He would swing his sword not to hit, but to stop precisely an inch before the target.
A thousand times he did so, cutting through air and halting mid-swing.
His arms ached, his wrists trembled, yet his control improved.
Then came the Flow Drills, designed to merge qi with motion.
He drew the sword slowly while exhaling, then slashed diagonally while inhaling — the inverse of normal breathing. This technique forced his qi to circulate counterflow, sharpening his focus.
Lastly, the Verdant Pulse Drill — a meditative stance where the sword remained sheathed while qi was guided into the blade through intent alone.
The challenge: to make the blade vibrate faintly without unsheathing it.
He failed a dozen times, but on the thirteenth attempt — the sword gave a faint hum.
Ding—
Verdant Blade Form Proficiency +2% (3%)
Efficiency +1% (2%)
He smiled faintly.
"Even small progress is still progress."
The sun had begun to rise, painting the mist in golden hues. The dew glistened like a sea of tiny mirrors across the training field. Li Shen sheathed his sword, breathing deeply, feeling the slow rhythm of his qi settle within him.
Sword training was not merely for battle — it was cultivation itself. The more one aligned his sword with his intent, the clearer his heart became.
After a few moments of rest, Li Shen wiped his sweat and stretched. He could feel his muscles tightening, forming memory through repetition. The sword felt lighter now — not because its weight changed, but because his understanding did.
He took one final glance at the rising sun.