After this bitter battle, the three of them finally saw the fruits of their labor. They looked at each other and smiled, before collapsing to the ground to catch their breath.
Although Yáng Chōng could not show his expressions, Chu Ze had become increasingly able to read the gleam in his eyes. Between people, what is precious is mutual understanding.
Yáng Chōng opened his mouth, intending to ask who should be the first to enter the Hall of Enlightenment on the fourth floor for meditation.
Before he could make a sound, Chu Ze and Liú Xiāoxiāo spoke in unison: "You go first!"
Yáng Chōng looked with confusion from Liú Xiāoxiāo to Chu Ze and back again. Then, as if he had realized something, he did not decline; he rose and led the way into the deep, mysterious hall.
No sooner had his figure vanished inside than the heavy stone door silently and slowly closed. Liú Xiāoxiāo explained, "Now that the Wooden Man Formation is broken, there are mechanisms to open and close the door on both sides." She also added a reminder: "If the door hasn't opened within three days, we will go inside to wake him to prevent him from becoming too deeply lost in his meditation."
Chu Ze nodded in agreement.
With only the two of them left outside the hall, the atmosphere suddenly turned a bit subtle.
Liú Xiāoxiāo lowered her head, twisting the corner of her red garment unconsciously. She looked up at Chu Ze several times, but swallowed her words each time they reached her lips.
Chu Ze just watched her quietly. When their eyes met a few times, Liú Xiāoxiāo felt her cheeks burning slightly and looked away, feeling self-conscious.
In the end, it was Chu Ze who broke the silence, suggesting, "In the battle just now, I believe we all gained some insights. Why don't we... choose names for our newly acquired techniques?"
Liú Xiāoxiāo’s eyes lit up, and she immediately shook off the subtle atmosphere, clapping her hands. "Good idea! Then... whose technique shall we name first?"
Chu Ze shifted his gaze, pointing toward the tightly shut stone door: "Let's start with Yáng Chōng!"
Liú Xiāoxiāo gave a mischievous smile: "Alright, then I won't be polite!"
At this moment, Yáng Chōng, who was deep inside the hall, concentrating on his meditation, had no idea that the two people outside had already begun "unauthorizedly" naming the movement technique he had just comprehended.
Chu Ze recalled the scene of the battle and mused: "What Yáng Chōng realized belongs to a set of profound movement techniques. Its footwork contains the mysteries of the Nine Palaces; its shifts and turns are like ghostly phantoms, erratic and unpredictable... Why don't we call it 'Nine-Palace Illusory Wander Step'?"
Liú Xiāoxiāo nodded frequently at first, thinking that words like "Nine-Palace" and "ghostly" were quite fitting and impressive. But when she heard the final name, she felt, for some inexplicable reason, that it was a bit too plain. She blinked, and a flash of inspiration hit her: "The words 'Illusion' and 'Wander' are wonderful, but perhaps it could sound more agile and elegant? How about 'Drifting Clouds Nine-Turn'? 'Drifting Clouds' captures its formless and unpredictable nature, coming and going as it pleases, and 'Nine-Turn' fits the changes of the Nine Palaces while suggesting complex transformations."
Chu Ze’s eyes brightened when he heard this: "'Drifting Clouds Nine-Turn'... Good! It's both fitting and free-spirited!" he praised.
Liú Xiāoxiāo lifted her chin proudly, then remembered something and said, "Then my finger technique shall be called 'Jade Soul Heart-Shattering Finger'!" This name carried a touch of coldness and lethal intent, which was exactly what she felt in that moment between life and death when her state of mind was clear.
Chu Ze was slightly surprised and asked with curiosity, "Why the words 'Heart-Shattering'?"
Liú Xiāoxiāo’s cheeks flushed slightly. She avoided Chu Ze’s inquisitive gaze and hummed with the playful, coquettish tone of a young girl: "Hmph, it's just meant for shattering the hearts of certain dense blockheads who don't understand romance!" Having said that, she turned her head away, though the base of her ears quietly turned red.
Chu Ze didn't understand the implication, but seeing that she liked the name, he smiled and agreed: "What a great name! It has extraordinary momentum!"
When it was time to name his own sword style, Liú Xiāoxiāo’s eyes darted around, as if to turn the tables. She deliberately drew out her voice: "As for your sword style..." She walked two steps around Chu Ze with her hands behind her back, putting on a serious act. "The moves are strange and unpredictable, and your Sword Intent is like the deep sea. Let's call it... 'Abyssal Sea Hidden Edge Form'! It implies hiding one's light and containing one's edge. How about that?"
After speaking, she looked at Chu Ze with a hint of roguish amusement in her eyes.
Seeing her eyes dancing and her face full of spirit, Chu Ze felt completely content. How could he care about what the name was? As long as she was happy, it was fine. He nodded and laughed without a moment's hesitation: "Abyssal Sea Hidden Edge... Good! Let's call it that!"
Seeing him agree so readily, Liú Xiāoxiāo was actually taken aback for a moment. Looking at the youth’s clear, smiling eyes and feeling his natural, inherent tolerance, she felt her heart wrapped in a warm current, turning impossibly soft.
Chu Ze saw her staring blankly at him, his expression growing even gentler.
Liú Xiāoxiāo missed a heartbeat under that gaze and hurriedly lowered her eyes, clearing her throat to cover her confusion: "Cough... no! I didn't think it through just now. 'Abyssal Sea Hidden Edge' sounds too heavy, it suits an obtuse blockhead like you! Let's change it!" She acted unsatisfied and stomped her foot. "Hmm... it should be called 'Startling Waves Overlapping Sword'! Borrowing from that continuous, wave-upon-wave sword momentum of yours!" She tried hard to put on a serious face, as if she were carefully deliberating the principles of swordsmanship.
Chu Ze watched her trying to hide her shyness and couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Good! Whatever you say! 'Startling Waves Overlapping Sword', let's call it that!" His laughter echoed outside the empty hall, dispelling the last trace of awkwardness and leaving only the pure, warm rapport between the boy and the girl.