"Sword Intent! You have comprehended Sword Intent!"
An intense, blinding killing intent flashed in the eyes of the Ye Family Patriarch!
A swordsman who comprehended Sword Intent at such a young age—if he was not killed, the Ye Family would eventually be destroyed!
At the same time, a trace of regret stirred in his heart: how far could someone who comprehended Sword Intent at this tender age take the Ye Family?
No, that wasn't right.
The Sunset Dynasty would never allow Ye Qiubai to grow up!
With that thought, the Ye Family Patriarch hardened his resolve and lashed out with a palm strike toward Ye Qiubai!
His momentum was overwhelming!
Brushing forward with boundless oppressive force, it swept straight toward Ye Qiubai, as if determined to crush him to death!
Facing the incoming palm print, Ye Qiubai neither retreated nor evaded, neither dodging nor yielding.
With one hand, he gripped the hilt of the Qingyun Sword, and with the other, the scabbard, attempting to draw it!
Even as just a sliver of the blade was exposed, surges of Sword Intent soared into the sky!
So powerful was it that even the entire Tianyuan City could feel it!
It was razor-sharp, as though it meant to split this heaven and earth apart!
Yet, just by drawing out that tiny bit of blade, Ye Qiubai felt those surging waves of Sword Intent flood his own body, bringing with them an irresistible force.
If he drew the entire sword, he would likely explode and die on the spot!
Even so, the momentum of the Sword Intent as it was right now was already enough.
The Sword Intent swept outward, transforming into streaks of swords capable of cleaving heaven and earth as they slashed directly at the oncoming palm print!
Boom!
An explosive roar resounded directly across the entire Ye Family estate!
The surrounding buildings collapsed and crumbled to dust in that very instant!
Some of the low-cultivation handymen couldn't even withstand the aftermath and were sent flying straight through the air!
At the same time, that massive palm print developed countless fractures on the spot, ready to shatter at any second!
The Ye Family Patriarch's expression shifted. This was his full-strength strike, yet it could only manage to stall this Sword Intent!
The palm print shattered with a crash!
Unstoppable, the Sword Intent slashed onward toward the Ye Family Patriarch!
The Patriarch let out a low grunt, pressing both palms upward to block the torrent of Sword Intent.
Yet, in that exact moment, Ye Qiubai moved like a phantom right up to Ye Yan's side and thrust out a single finger!
Under Ye Yan's terrified gaze, his glabella was pierced straight through!
In that moment, Ye Yan died, his soul scattered to the winds!
Chapter 19: How Did He End Up Brainwashing Himself...
Ye Yan was dead.
There was a hole right between his brows, from which blood trickled continuously.
And Ye Qiubai? He had long since vanished from the Ye residence, clearly having departed.
The Ye Family Patriarch watched this scene with an extremely gloomy expression. After all, Ye Yan was the successor he had chosen, yet now he had been killed by Ye Qiubai.
Seeing that Ye Qiubai had left safely, Ye Qing ceased to worry and let out a relaxed smile.
The Ye Family Patriarch looked toward Ye Qing, let out a cold snort, and said, "From this day forward, the position of Family Head shall be held by Ye Ling!"
Hearing this, Ye Ling froze, yet he couldn't find it in himself to be happy at all—after all, his own son had just been killed.
Ye Qing shrugged, unconcerned. For him, the fact that Ye Qiubai had recovered his strength mattered more than anything else.
Meanwhile, the instigator of all these events, Ye Qiubai, was currently sitting inside a cave outside Tianyuan City, regulating his breathing. After all, drawing the Qingyun Sword earlier had caused a massive backlash.
At the same time, a secret sense of astonishment stirred in Ye Qiubai's heart.
Just drawing out a tiny fraction of the blade had allowed him to ruthlessly kill someone right under the noses of experts like the Ye Family Patriarch.
If he were to draw it completely, would even the Patriarch be unable to block a single sword strike?
However, if he completely drew the Qingyun Sword, that overwhelmingly powerful Sword Intent would probably destroy him in an instant...
He recalled the words Jiang Tianhan had spoken earlier.
The Sunset Dynasty... was it?
The overlord of the Northern Domain, whose current ruler was an ultra-powerful entity currently ranked fourth on the Four Domains Martial Rankings.
Yet, Ye Qiubai did not feel a shred of discouragement.
To him, even the Sunset Dynasty was not necessarily a mountain he could not surpass!
With that thought, a surge of Sword Intent rose from within Ye Qiubai's body, shooting straight into the clouds with an unstoppable momentum!
His sword heart was steadfast, pushing ever forward, capable of slaying all things!
His Sword Intent broke through!
From this moment on, Ye Qiubai could be called a Sword Master!
Two days later, Ye Qiubai concluded his enlightenment, left the place, and walked in the direction of Cangdao Academy.
He wondered if Master had been feeling lonely, seeing as he was the only disciple. Once he left, there was no one to talk to him, and no one to cook for him.
...
Meanwhile, at the Grass Cottage.
A young woman frowned as she walked out of the kitchen holding a bowl of fish soup.
Placing it before Lu Changsheng, she said coldly, "Can you instruct me now?"
During these past few days, the shocks Lu Changsheng had given her were simply too numerous.
From the very beginning, she had been unable to see through him.
That vague, lingering sword-path aura emanating from him was far richer than ordinary Sword Intent, imbued with the power of Dao Rules!
Even in her past life, Hongying had never witnessed such a sword-path aura.
And then there was the willow tree on the cliff; it clearly possessed sentience, even though it didn't emit any aura at all. Yet it filled her heart with a faint sense of wariness.
The little bird on the parasol tree held a bloodline attraction toward Hongying. What was terrifying was that she even faintly felt a sense of suppression from it!
Not only that, but Lu Changsheng's understanding of cultivation techniques also left Hongying profoundly shaken.
A casual remark, a single word of guidance from him, could grant Hongying a profound epiphany!
One had to remember that in her past life, she was a Great Emperor! Her understanding of martial arts could be said to be at the very pinnacle of this world.
One could only imagine how far Lu Changsheng's martial understanding surpassed her own!
This was why Hongying had taken the initiative to seek instruction.
However, guidance wasn't free.
Coincidentally, ever since Ye Qiubai left, no one was cooking for him, and Lu Changsheng was too lazy to cook himself.
So, using cooking as the price, as long as Hongying took charge of three meals a day, Lu Changsheng would instruct her once.
You must know that for tens of thousands of years, Hongying had never cooked a single meal.
Lu Changsheng looked at the fish soup before him, smiled faintly, and nodded. "Not bad, much better than that charred, pitch-black junk from before."
He then took a sip. "Mhm, at least it's edible now."
Hongying let out a disgruntled, chilly snort. When had she, a female emperor, ever been ordered around like this?
"Is that good enough? Hurry up and teach me!"
"No rush, let me finish eating first."
Thus, Hongying sat across from Lu Changsheng, watching him eat bite by bite. It was just that Lu Changsheng ate exceptionally slowly, chewing and swallowing every single mouthful with deliberate care. This actually made Hongying somewhat impatient.
Suddenly, Hongying froze.
That's right—since when had she become so restless? Why was she starting to feel annoyed just waiting for this short amount of time?
Realizing this, Hongying immediately crossed her legs and sat down in meditation to adjust her state of mind.
Mindset.
It was immensely important on the path of cultivation, yet people often overlooked it.
When a person was anxious, their cultivation might make zero progress; in severe cases, it could even lead to a deviation in cultivation, causing one's cultivation level to regress and damaging one's Dao foundation!
Only by maintaining a tranquil state of mind could one comprehend more profound truths.
This was a principle every cultivator understood.
And yet, sometimes, the simplest things were the easiest to forget. Take Hongying right now: she had been desperate to recover and elevate her strength, failing to notice that her state of mind was already entirely unsuited for cultivation.
Now that she realized it, she immediately began to adjust herself.
Lu Changsheng finished eating. Seeing that Hongying was still meditating, he shrugged and casually cleared away the bowls and chopsticks.
On the second day, Hongying was still meditating.
On the third day, it was the same.
It wasn't until the fifth day... that Hongying slowly opened her eyes, a sharp gleam flashing through them!
Her aura burst forth!
A breakthrough—Water Overflowing Realm!
It happened naturally, water flowing and forming a channel!
Following the Golden Core comes the Purple Palace Realm; after the Purple Palace Realm is the Qi Sea Realm; and only after the Qi Sea Realm does one reach the Water Overflow Stage.
Ye Qing was in the Early Water Overflowing Realm, while the Ye Family Patriarch had already reached the Peak Water Overflowing Realm!
Hongying let out a long breath, a stunning smile blooming at the corner of her lips.
At this moment, Lu Changsheng walked out and smiled. "You've broken through?"
Hongying nodded, and then bowed deeply to Lu Changsheng. "Thank you for your guidance."
Huh?
Lu Changsheng was stunned. He hadn't guided her at all over the past few days, had he?
Hongying smiled and said, "You knew my mindset had issues, so you deliberately made me cook to help me discover where my mental block was, didn't you?"
Lu Changsheng: "???"
I didn't, I really didn't, stop talking nonsense. I just purely wanted you to help me cook!
Hongying continued, "Otherwise, with your current cultivation, you would have long since reached the Inedia stage; why would you still eat mortal food every day? Especially since my cooking wasn't even good."
At the mention of this last point, a blush inevitably crept onto Hongying's face.
Lu Changsheng, however, was completely dumbfounded.
Why were all the people around him so fond of brainwashing themselves?
I clearly didn't think any of that...
Immediately after, Hongying suddenly dropped to her knees, bowed before Lu Changsheng, and said, "There is no seniority in learning; the one who achieves mastery first is the master. Please accept me as your disciple!"
Lu Changsheng: "......"
I haven't even done anything yet.
How... how did she end up brainwashing herself?!
My mind is blown...
Chapter 20: Master, Aren't You a Sword Cultivator?
[Congratulations to the host for completing the disciple-recruitment mission.]
[Received rewards: Gun Dao Rule, Fire Dao Rule, Samsara Spear Technique, Nine-Turn Return Origin Pill formula, 2,000 years of cultivation.]
Good grief.
Lu Changsheng had originally thought it would take a very long time to win over this female emperor. Before he could even begin thinking of a method, she had gone and brainwashed herself...
Meanwhile, back with Ye Qiubai, upon returning to Cangdao Academy, he now held a tremendous reputation throughout the entire institution.
That battle during the academy grand competition had made everyone in the academy recognize Ye Qiubai—the one from the Grass Cottage.
"Senior Brother Ye."
"Eh? Senior Brother Ye's strength seems even harder to see through. Has he improved again?"
"Sigh, as expected of Senior Brother Ye."
Ye Qiubai responded to each of them, smiling and nodding.
Inwardly, however, he couldn't help thinking: *Ah, when will Master ever take in a junior brother or junior sister...*
"Hey, Senior Brother Ye, earlier I saw Senior Lu take a woman who looked like a fairy over to the Dean's place."
Hearing this, Ye Qiubai paused, and instinctively asked, "What did they go to the Dean's for?"
"Seemed like it was Senior Lu's newly accepted disciple?"
"???"
Hearing this, Ye Qiubai vanished from the spot in a flash.
Upon returning to the Grass Cottage, he saw a woman who looked as though she had stepped out of a painting placing dishes one by one before Lu Changsheng.
Did he finally have a junior sister?
He walked over, wanting to pay his respects to his master, only to hear Lu Changsheng say indifferently, "Back already?"
"..."
Ye Qiubai was dumbfounded. Was he being given the cold shoulder just like that?
Should I leave, then?
Seeing the peculiar look on Ye Qiubai's face, Lu Changsheng explained, "I meant, you finished your business so quickly?"
Ye Qiubai stepped forward, bowed respectfully, and proceeded to recount the entire sequence of events.
"The Sunset Dynasty... I've heard Uncle Qin mention it a few times."
Uncle Qin was Qin Tiannan.
"That force seems even stronger than the Cangdao Academy in our Southern Domain."
Ye Qiubai also nodded. "I know."
Lu Changsheng looked at Ye Qiubai's slightly solemn expression and said softly, "I'll say it again: I won't help you resolve these kinds of matters. After all, it's your own grudge. Besides, for the elders to step in after beating the youngsters—I could never do something like that. How embarrassing would that be?"
Ye Qiubai didn't mind at all; instead, he smiled and said, "Of course I wouldn't have Master step in to help. The Sunset Dynasty will ultimately serve as my whetstone."
"It's best if you think that way."
Suddenly, Hongying on the side also chimed in, nodding. "That's the exact mindset to have. If you rely on external help every time, it will affect your future cultivation."
At that moment, Hongying was sizing up Ye Qiubai.
As a former female emperor in her past life, she naturally possessed her own methods of assessing people.
To have comprehended Sword Intent and reached the level of a Sword Master at such a young age—the cultivation technique he practiced was also extraordinary.
As for his constitution, Hongying couldn't see through it.
And his innate talent was likewise not inferior to her own...
Lu Changsheng smiled and introduced him to Hongying. "This is your junior sister, Hongying."
Ye Qiubai smiled at Hongying and said, "Junior Sister is right. If you ever need anything in the future, just look for your Senior Brother to help you solve it."
Hongying, however, wore a peculiar expression as she nodded and said, "Then many thanks, Senior Brother."
Lu Changsheng took a bite of his food and spoke after a moment, "Your junior sister is currently in the Water Overflowing Realm. It's not yet certain who is helping whom."
Ye Qiubai was startled.
The Water Overflowing Realm? Wasn't that several major realms higher than his own?
At this thought, Ye Qiubai quickly said, "Master, I gained some insights along the way; I'll go into secluded cultivation first."
With that, he hurried back to his own room.
Lu Changsheng couldn't help but chuckle. He had taken a hit to his pride.
Immediately afterward, Hongying prepared to go cultivate as well.
Lu Changsheng called out to stop her. "Don't rush. When Qiu Bai entered the sect, I gave him a Creation Pill to grant him a stroke of fortune, and a Qingyun Sword to send him soaring straight to the clouds. Now that I've taken you as a disciple, I can't play favorites."
Hongying smiled indifferently. "I don't need any."
Cultivation resources? She had plenty of them. After all, she carried the heritage of an entire empire within her.
Instead, Hongying was actually wondering whether she should give Master some good things. After all, Lu Changsheng didn't seem to possess many valuable items himself.
Thinking of this, just as she was about to take out some pills or the like, she saw a medicinal pill flicked straight toward her.
Hongying caught it instinctively.
The surface of the pill was marked with swirling Samsara patterns, archaic and mysterious.
"What pill is this?"
Lu Changsheng said calmly, "Didn't your Nine-Turn Samsara Technique already reach its ninth life? This pill can allow you to perfectly fuse the innate talent and cultivation of your previous nine lives."
Hearing this, Hongying's expression changed drastically.
Leaving aside how Lu Changsheng knew about her Nine-Turn Samsara Technique, now that she was in her ninth life, she indeed desperately needed a Samsara Pill to fuse the talent and cultivation from her past nine lives.
However, how precious and rare was a Samsara Pill? It was a legendary medicinal pill; whether one could even find it was a question in itself.
Yet even a standard Samsara Pill could only achieve a sixty percent fusion.
And the pill Lu Changsheng gave her could achieve a *perfect* fusion—how could this not shock her?
Following that, Lu Changsheng added, "Mn, relying on just a single pill feels a bit too shabby. Come here."
Shabby?
Hongying was stunned, instinctively stepping forward.
Lu Changsheng pressed a finger directly between Hongying's brows.
In an instant, streams of information poured into Hongying's mind like a roaring torrent!
The Samsara Spear Technique.
Entering the martial path through the spear, entering the Dao through Samsara!
...
Hongying looked at those wisps of information, her heart reeling with shock.
Not to mention that the power of this Samsara Spear Technique could shatter heaven and earth, it also fit her Nine-Turn Samsara Technique with terrifying compatibility!
She was already walking the path of Samsara; with this Samsara Spear Technique, Hongying's strength could be said to soar by several massive tiers!
Lu Changsheng withdrew his finger and rubbed his chin.
"Hmm... at this rate, you might comprehend it too slowly. Let me demonstrate it for you once more. Watch closely."
With that, he flipped his hand, and a spear formed of spiritual energy materialized in his palm.
Hongying widened her eyes.
Master, aren't you a sword cultivator?
Why are you picking up a spear now?
Could it be...
Just as that thought crossed her mind, the spear in Lu Changsheng's hand trembled.
He thrust it forward with a ferocious strike!
The spear moved like a dragon, carrying the intent of Samsara as it pierced straight through a distant mountain peak!
That distant mountain peak now bore a massive, gaping hole!
Hongying stared blankly as Lu Changsheng demonstrated the Samsara Spear Technique. During the process, there was spear intent that reached the ultimate extreme.
And there was also a kind of power of rules that transcended spear intent, unlike anything in this mortal world!
That was the Dao Rule of the Spear!
Hongying drew a sharp breath.
She had thought Lu Changsheng was a sword cultivator, but it turned out his mastery of the spear path was not the least bit inferior either!
It was countless times stronger than her own!
No wonder he could casually produce supreme martial techniques like the Samsara Spear Technique...
After a moment, Lu Changsheng put away the spear and said casually to Hongying, "Alright, cultivate on your own. I'm going to take a nap."
Hongying: "......"
Chapter 21: The Power of Rules, Perfect Inheritance!
One had to admit that Lu Changsheng's demonstration just a moment ago gave Hongying an immense wealth of insights.
Hongying sat cross-legged on the ground, quietly comprehending the spear intent and spear Dao Rules lingering in the space around her.
Before long, she slipped into a state of sudden enlightenment.
Time flew like a fleeing white horse. Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
Ye Qiubai was still in his room consolidating his comprehension.
Hongying was also still in her state of enlightenment.
Lu Changsheng sat in his reclining chair, sighing fretfully, "Both of these fellows are cultivating, and there's no one to cook for their master again. Do I need to go find another disciple?"
Just as his voice fell, a surge of spear-path intent soared into the sky from Hongying's side!
She immediately opened her eyes, grasped her long spear, and began executing a flurry of movements!
It was precisely the first form of the Samsara Spear Technique!
At that moment, Ye Qiubai also stepped out of the thatched cottage holding a wooden sword.
Wisps of Sword Intent inadvertently lingered around his body, sharp beyond compare!
"Junior Sister, let's spar."
Ye Qiubai chuckled freely as he shot toward Hongying like a bolt of lightning!
Hongying was currently looking to vent her energy and consolidate the newly comprehended Samsara Spear Technique anyway.
With a matching smile, she met Ye Qiubai head-on.
Throughout the spar, both Hongying and Ye Qiubai suppressed their cultivation realms to the absolute minimum.
The wooden swords and spears in their hands were devoid of any spiritual energy reinforcement.
All that remained was the clash between spear intent and Sword Intent!
For a time, sword qi and spear might crisscrossed and raged near the cliff!
Yet the nearby willow tree was entirely unaffected; not a single leaf fell, merely swaying gently along with the passing sword qi.
Ye Qiubai stepped back slightly, a turbulent storm raging in his heart.
Hongying's mastery of spear intent could be said to far surpass his own. Throughout the sparring match, she gave the impression of strolling leisurely, completely unhurried.