Chapter 10: Ten Li Slope
The mountain cave was deep, and the stream flowed gently. Old Tao paddled the bamboo raft against the current while Jiang Yuebai held the lantern to illuminate the way.
The chilling wind pierced their bones, and the cold air was oppressive.
Achoo!
The echoes reverberated, startling the bats that flew chaotically from the cave's ceiling.
Jiang Yuebai dodged the bats that bumped into her and rubbed her nose as she asked, "Grandpa, where are we going at this late hour?"
Old Tao looked at the faint light ahead in the cave and said in a calm voice, "This waterway on the back mountain of Huaxi Valley leads to the Ten Li Slope, where the sect punishes disciples who make mistakes."
"You entered the first level of the Geng Metal Art in just half a month, and you've already learned the Edge Sharpness Formula, as well as the Chasing Star Steps and Chopping Wood Sword Technique, all in their early stages. I'm both surprised and pleased."
Jiang Yuebai squinted and smiled foolishly, stealing a glance at her own cultivation panel.
【Name】 Jiang Yuebai
【Spirit Roots】 Five Elemental Spirit Roots (Metal 9, Wood 9, Water 9, Fire 9, Earth 9)
【Cultivation Realm】 Qi Refinement First Layer
【Cultivation Techniques】
Geng Metal Art (First Layer: 9/100)
Edge Sharpness Formula (First Layer: 3/100)
【Martial Arts】
Chasing Star Step (Entry Level: 15/100)
Chopping Wood Sword Technique (Entry Level: 15/100)
The cultivation technique had successfully reached the first layer three days ago, which was slower than expected because her Qi circulation was still awkward and required more practice. The Edge Sharpness Formula took her three days to master; out of ten attempts, she could only activate the sharp sword aura three times, each time consuming about five breaths of Qi. She still needed to increase its power and speed.
Her progress in martial arts was smooth, and with daily accumulation, she could progress from entry level to small accomplishment and then to great accomplishment.
Old Tao continued, paddling the bamboo raft faster with the pole. "Tonight, we will start the real practice."
"Real practice?" Jiang Yuebai's face was full of anxiety as she widened her eyes.
She thought that once she mastered the Edge Sharpness Formula, she could help with the work, and she believed the Edge Sharpness Formula was used to exterminate pests.
Old Tao glanced at her and smiled, asking, "Scared?"
Jiang Yuebai nervously twisted her clothes and trembled slightly. She was indeed scared. Ten Li Slope in Yin Wind Gorge sounded like a haunted burial ground.
But besides being scared, she was also excited.
"I told you before that if you want to compete, you must first protect your life. That's why I taught you the powerful Geng Metal Art, the Edge Sharpness Formula, as well as the Chasing Star Step and the Chopping Wood Sword Technique. When the one-month deadline is up, you will need to move around the sect, attend lectures at the Law Hall, and interact with others."
Jiang Yuebai nodded. She had worried about these things before, but she didn't expect that Grandpa had already made plans for her.
"Grandpa, you are really nice, just like my parents."
Old Tao's heart warmed at her words, and he looked at the stream and suddenly remembered something. "You said that when you activate the Edge Sharpness Formula, your finger movements always feel sluggish. You can try practicing with your hands submerged in the water."
Jiang Yuebai tilted her head, full of curiosity.
"The Edge SharpnessFormula is the most finger-focused among the five techniques of a Linggeng Master and also the most difficult one. If you learn the Edge Sharpness Formula well, learning other techniques will become much easier."
"The key to the Edge Sharpness Formula lies in the fingers stirring up spiritual energy, differentiating it, and then condensing and strengthening it. Spiritual energy is elusive and hard to find a stirring sensation. You can replace spiritual energy with the stream to practice and see how it goes."
Hearing this, Jiang Yuebai quickly put down the lantern and knelt on the bamboo raft, submerging her hands in the water, and began to move her fingers.
The ice-cold water made Jiang Yuebai shiver. As she slowly moved her fingers, the flow of the water slowed her movements, but it eliminated the sluggish feeling she had before and made her movements smoother and more fluid.
【You received guidance and discovered the essence of finger techniques, triggering an enlightenment. Edge Sharpness Formula proficiency +1】
Unconsciously, Jiang Yuebai became engrossed in it, and her hands remained submerged in the water, with tiny sharp sword auras occasionally flashing at her fingertips.
"All right, the cold water isn't good for your body. When you go back, you can practice in a water tank. Still water is better than flowing water. We've arrived."
Jiang Yuebai reluctantly took her hands out of the water. Her ten little fingers were frozen bright red, and she quickly exhaled and rubbed her hands.
The bamboo raft exited the cave and stopped by the bank.
The moonlight was hazy, and the Ten Li Slope was overgrown with weeds, with dead trees scattered all around. Crows cawed from the trees, sending shivers down their spines.
Several rats scurried by, and white bones were exposed on the ground. In the distance, ghostly lights floated, appearing and disappearing.
Jiang Yuebai grabbed Old Tao's sleeve. When she was a child, she was not well-behaved and was often frightened by her mother with ghost stories. So, she was more afraid of ghosts than the ferocious beasts in the Nine-fold Mountains.
Old Tao pulled his sleeve away from Jiang Yuebai's hand and handed her a wood-cutting knife.
"This wood-cutting knife was refined by myself many years ago. It's not a high-grade tool, but besides being sharp and restraining Yin evil, it can also store the powerful Geng Metal sharp aura to deliver a strong slash."
"Storing thirty-three Edge SharpnessFormulas can rival the initial Qi Refinement stage, sixty-six can rival the middle Qi Refinement stage, and ninety-nine can even pose a threat to the late Qi Refinement stage."
"However, storing the Geng Metal sharp aura can only be used for one slash. When not in use, the Geng Metal sharp aura will gradually dissipate over time, lasting a maximum of seven days. From now on, you can practice the Edge SharpnessFormula with this knife. Make the best use of it and keep it for self-defense."
Jiang Yuebai took the wood-cutting knife, feeling its weight and sharpness. The black blade was covered with ancient marks and engraved with rune grooves, ready to be infused with the Geng Metal sharp aura.
Old Tao led her to clear away the dry grass and walked up the hillside. In the distance, there was a solitary peak standing dangerously, with bizarre rocks in the middle, as if they had been split by a giant blade, leaving a narrow and long mountain stream.
The chilling wind whistled in it, wailing like a hundred ghosts, endlessly eerie.
Jiang Yuebai tightened her grip on the wood-cutting knife and took two quick steps, following closely behind Old Tao.
After a short while, Old Tao paused his steps, "That ahead is the Ghost Lantern."
Jiang Yuebai leaned out half of her head from behind Old Tao, and she saw a lantern-like green phosphorescence floating under the dead trees in front of them, flickering like a breath.
"Yin Wind Gorge was once a battlefield between the Cang and Yun countries, where nearly a million people were buried. Later, Tianyan Sect expanded, and to prevent this place from giving rise to bloodthirsty zombies and evil spirits, they used the Earthshifting Method to seal two solitary peaks, leaving only Yin Wind Gorge as a place for cultivation."
"The Ghost Lanterns are weak monsters formed by gathering Yin Qi and the phosphorescence of corpses. They have no intelligence and like to charge at living people. When they are hit, at most, they will be entangled by Yin Qi and fall ill for a few days."
Hearing this, Jiang Yuebai finally came out from behind Old Tao and looked curiously at the ghostly lantern under the tree.
Her gaze gradually drifted further, discovering that there were even more Ghost Lanterns deep in the hillside, layer upon layer, forming a green expanse.
"So many Ghost Lanterns, why doesn't anyone manage them?"
In a land of immortals, shouldn't such monsters be a joke?
"The Ghost Lanterns are weak and not threatening. Moreover, they are agile and hard to catch, especially when they sense high-level cultivators, they run away even faster. After being eradicated, they will reappear in just a few days. That's why the sect cleans them up thoroughly only every three to five years."
As he finished speaking, Old Tao quietly approached, and his hands moved quickly, activating the Edge SharpnessFormula in an instant.
A short golden aura shot out, and the Ghost Lantern disappeared with a "puff."
At that moment, another Ghost Lantern rushed out from the grass on their side and came straight for Jiang Yuebai.
Old Tao didn't make a move, and Jiang Yuebai widened her eyes as she took a step back, shining her emerald light on her face. She then remembered to use the Chasing Star Step and quickly dodged to the side, followed by swinging her wood-cutting knife.
The wood-cutting knife broke the Ghost Lantern, and the phosphorescence dissipated like the wind.
【You used the Chasing Star Step to dodge the Ghost Lantern's attack, feeling awkward and almost falling, but the dodge was successful, Chasing Star Step proficiency +1】
【You used the Chopping Wood Sword Technique to deal with the Ghost Lantern. The technique was unimpressive, but it accidentally killed the target. Chopping Wood Sword Technique proficiency +1】
After the Ghost Lantern was extinguished, before Jiang Yuebai could check the panel prompts, she saw more green lanterns floating up from the ground, surrounding her in an instant.
The phosphorescence rose and fell, creating green waves.
Beautiful, but dangerous!
Jiang Yuebai swallowed her saliva, standing still and looking at Old Tao in the distance. She saw him lowering his eyes, calmly lighting up a smoking stick, and puffing away.
Dozens of Ghost Lanterns were attracted to her living aura and instantly went into a frenzy, flashing and charging around.
Jiang Yuebai's eyes widened, and she activated the Chasing Star Step while waving the wood-cutting knife.
Her footwork was stiff, and her knife technique was clumsy. She only managed to kill one Ghost Lantern in front of her before being bumped by three Ghost Lanterns on her back.
The phosphorescence burst open, and the bone-chilling Yin Qi penetrated her body. Jiang Yuebai shuddered, and her knife missed, with another Ghost Lantern hitting her right arm.
A feeling of blood freezing surged through her body, making her right arm stiff and difficult to move. Jiang Yuebai dodged left and right, trapped in a siege of Ghost Lanterns that continued to close in, becoming more and more frenzied.
Old Tao still didn't make a move, and Jiang Yuebai's eyes turned fierce. Her experiences in the mortal world taught her to be calm in dangerous situations.
Seeing a group of Ghost Lanterns charging towards her, she dodged behind a dead tree, circled around, and attacked from the side.
With a horizontal sweep of the wood-cutting knife, the phosphorescence scattered, and the group of Ghost Lanterns turned around. She used the Chasing Star Step and circled the tree again, launching a surprise attack from behind.
Leaning against a dead tree, Jiang Yuebai felt flustered but remained calm. The Chasing Star Step and Chopping Wood Sword Technique complemented each other, making her movements orderly. She gradually slayed dozens of Ghost Lanterns.
Old Tao nodded slowly, his gaze towards Jiang Yuebai becoming brighter.
With the last Ghost Lantern extinguished, Jiang Yuebai relaxed her body but was soon overwhelmed with fear. More Ghost Lanterns emerged from the ground.
Clearly, they took advantage of her being weak to take her life!
Jiang Yuebai's little face immediately drooped, and she was on the verge of tears.
"Grandpa..."
"Haha."
Old Tao burst into laughter, taking a puff of his smoking stick and exhaling white smoke.
The white smoke dispersed, and the startled Ghost Lanterns disappeared like electricity, leaving Jiang Yuebai sitting on the ground, feeling frustrated.
"You little monsters who bully the weak! Come at me if you dare!"
Old Tao walked over and squatted down, his palm pressing on Jiang Yuebai's shoulder, and warm Fire-attribute spiritual energy entered her body, dispelling the Yin cold of the Ghost Lanterns.
"Grandpa, am I useless?"
"No need to belittle yourself. You're already quite remarkable. I accompanied you today, but from now on, you should come here by yourself every few days. In addition to practicing footwork and martial arts, try using the Edge Sharpness Formula against the Ghost Lanterns."
"Remember, fear is due to your insufficient strength. Once you overcome them, you will realize that these Ghost Lanterns are nothing to be afraid of."
Jiang Yuebai nodded dejectedly. She didn't find them particularly scary; she could just run away if she couldn't beat them. She just didn't want to disappoint her grandpa.
Old Tao helped Jiang Yuebai up from the ground. "Let's go further in."
Jiang Yuebai followed behind Old Tao. When she was fighting just now, she didn't have time to pay attention to her cultivation panel, but now that she looked at it, she was pleasantly surprised.
【Martial Arts】
Chasing Star Step (Entry Level: 26/100)
Chopping Wood Sword Technique (Entry Level: 32/100)
Before, the proficiencies were only at 15, and she could only increase them by 1 point after completing a full set of practice, which was time-consuming and laborious.
Now, just in one battle, it increased so much!
After careful consideration, Jiang Yuebai understood that during her usual practice, she only followed fixed moves and routines without grasping the essence.
In battle, under the pressure of danger, fixed moves could be turned into effective attacks through flexible application.
Even if she couldn't gain 1 point of proficiency from killing one Ghost Lantern, through continuous use and actual combat, her proficiency would undoubtedly increase faster than practicing alone.
Thinking of this, Jiang Yuebai's palms gradually warmed.
Now, when she saw the countless Ghost Lanterns around, how could she think of them as bullies? They were all cute little things helping her improve her cultivation techniques and martial arts!
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