CH 14

◎ full strength? senior brother, are you tricking me? ◎

the outer sect transmission hall was a two-story building.

on most days, the transmission masters would teach and explain techniques on the first floor.

the second floor mostly housed martial arts techniques and books.

however, the transmission hall had an underground chamber specifically for disciples to practice sparring and techniques.

the walls of the chamber were engraved with reinforcement formations left behind by spirit formation masters.

among them, six rooms were for qi condensation disciples, and only one was for foundation establishment seniors and elders. even with a full-force strike, it couldn’t be broken.

at this moment, lin shuang was following senior brother xu rui, entering the underground chamber.

beside her was zhao keran, holding the medicine box in worry.

curious gazes from the surrounding disciples turned toward them.

“is senior brother xu going to instruct junior sister zhao?”

“junior sister zhao has only been in the sect for less than four years, yet she’s already ranked in the top three among the disciples. with such talent, it’s natural that senior brother xu would pay close attention.”

“i’m afraid next year, junior sister zhao will likely enter the inner sect.”

amidst the discussions, lin shuang showed no change in expression. on the contrary, zhao keran’s face turned red.

senior brother xu rui furrowed his brow as he observed the disciples standing in the corridor, feeling displeased.

three on the left.

five on the right.

an imbalance of light and weight.

senior brother xu rui closed his eyes for a moment and then spoke in a deep voice, “the transmission hall is for disciples to study techniques. what are you all doing here? if there’s nothing, then leave quickly.”

the disciples immediately retreated to their chambers, not daring to come out.

the corridor became empty.

senior brother xu rui heaved a sigh of relief.

behind him, lin shuang smiled and raised an eyebrow playfully.

zhao keran lowered his head, biting his lip tightly to keep from reciting out loud.

“senior brother xu rui has a serious case of obsessive-compulsive disorder. he has high standards for everything he sees, hears, and touches, preferring symmetry and balance. he dislikes lateness and disorder, and he likes even numbers.”

—《research manual of fastest cultivation: outer sect affairs and disciples’ preferences》

indeed, she was senior sister!

everything matched up!

“senior brother, if you only spar with senior sister, won’t that leave you unsupported?”

it’s not symmetrical!

zhao keran tightened his grip on the sword in his hand. “senior brother, why not spar with me first and then practice with senior sister? this way, won’t we be paired?”

she could consume most of senior brother’s spiritual energy first.

upon hearing this, lin shuang couldn’t help but give her skilled and informed junior sister a smile of approval.

as expected, the two symmetrically-crossed eight trigram swords behind xu rui trembled fiercely.

in his gentle yet composed eyes, a glimmer of light flickered, struggling and wavering.

【zhou xuanwu】: senior brother, after some consideration, let’s talk in detail another day.

“…”

xu rui’s waist communication stone vibrated, and he looked at it with a twitching brow.

【xu rui】: no need. i will spar with lin shuang immediately.

satisfied with the neatness of his message, he put away the communication stone and looked at the two senior sisters in front of him—damn it, they had to be paired, symmetrical, and harmonious.

xu rui cleared his throat lightly. “lin shuang, you go first.”

zhao keran immediately felt disappointed.

lin shuang, however, breathed a sigh of relief. starting and finishing first meant she didn’t have to wait on the sidelines and waste time.

“alright.”

xu rui drew his eight trigram sword. “four moves.”

stepping into the designated area for the match, he stood still, “junior sister, give it your all, don’t hold back.”

lin shuang smiled. “understood.”

turning her head, she met zhao junior sister’s worried expression. “don’t worry.”

“now that you’re here, senior sister will take advantage of this unexpected event to teach you something and improve our relationship as roommates. this will also enhance our cultivation efficiency.”

zhao keran cleared his throat.

here it comes again.

sparring, teaching, chatting.

once senior sister starts, she won’t stop.

“look, as long as you observe and listen, you can notice that senior brother xu rui pronounces words in pairs when he’s serious.”

while lin shuang explained, she also walked slowly into the combat arena.

“from this, we can deduce that his twin sword technique must be symmetrical, and the use of spiritual energy on both arms is evenly matched.”

in an instant, zhao keran seemed to grasp a crucial point.

“we can only win a duel with the least amount of spiritual energy and time consumption if we know our opponent’s fighting habits and abilities.”

“remember, every bit of spiritual energy is accumulated through countless days of practice. it’s incredibly valuable. once lost, we have to meditate again to recover, which takes time and effort.”

“we should cherish it.”

“similar to what senior brother xu rui said, don’t hold back, junior sister, make sure not to listen to that advice.”

“only a fool would act so recklessly.”

zhao keran: “!”

senior sister, you’re as reasonable as ever.

xu rui: “???”

junior sister, he heard everything!

when zhou xuanwu hurriedly arrived at the transmission hall underground, he entered the second-tier practice room as the number one disciple of the outer sect. he saw xu rui senior brother’s eyes, usually gentle, now ablaze with fire.

“junior sister, four moves in total.”

he looked at lin shuang’s defense of the qi condensation third layer, and even the mud buddha would be provoked.

“first move, twin dragons emerge from the sea!”

his eight trigram sword instantly transformed into two dragons emerging from the water, soaring high from behind him with an overwhelming momentum!

lin shuang narrowed her eyes, taking it seriously. in an instant, her first qi condensation layer’s dantian spun at full speed.

the little love lion dog talisman in her sleeve flew out and hovered in the air.

【ding, little love is detecting spiritual essence…】

【within 30 steps to the southeast, a spiritual energy flow is detected, with an intensity around qi condensation layer four great perfection. 】

【within 30 steps to the southwest, a spiritual energy flow is detected, with an intensity around qi condensation layer four great perfection. 】

a somewhat familiar announcement from little love resonated in an instant.

all three individuals in the room were momentarily stunned.

xu rui’s eight trigram sword, entwined by the twin dragons, froze in the air.

lin shuang’s expression revealed an “i knew it” kind of look.

senior brother xu rui, you are indeed gentle.

i nearly fell for it.

“only if i give my all?” lin shuang patted her mustard seed bag in relief, and twelve first-grade reinforced talismans flew out.

they circled the broadsword she held in one hand!

【little love reminder: qi condensation layer three defense against qi condensation layer four can be achieved through the following methods: 】

【1. form a formation with twelve reinforced talismans to enhance defense. 】

【2. activate the second…】

before she finished, lin shuang covered the broadsword in her hand with yellow talisman paper and charged toward the twin dragons head-on!

twelve reinforcement talismans instantly lit up.

the talisman orifices connected, and the vitality of heaven and earth surged in.

talisman patterns penetrated the paper and formed a circle, connecting and forming an array!

“this is the homework from the previous lesson!”

zhao keran realized.

zhou xuanwu also recalled, “master li gave her a ‘grade b’ for this.”

xu rui’s foundation was far above the two of them.

he could almost discern the runes on the talismans as they flew out.

sparse markings, insufficient orifices.

the cinnabar field seemed to have a bit but not enough.

these grade b-rated talismans were so irregular that he almost wanted to stop and urge her to redo them!

however, with a low hum, lin shuang’s broadsword in her hand expanded by twice its size in an instant.

with a hint of hesitation in the twin dragons that xu rui summoned, they collided fiercely!

holding the sword, lin shuang took three steps back and barely steadied herself.

the twin dragons in the air exhausted their spiritual energy and slowly dissipated, disappearing.

zhao keran immediately rejoiced, “she caught the first move!”

xu rui eased his stance, stood upright, and paused for a moment, revealing a hint of appreciation.

“so that’s it. although the quality of these talismans is not high, each talisman can only exert about twenty percent of its effect. but junior sister, your talismans are all almost identical, with only slight differences between them.”

“when combined into an array, the effect is doubled.”

zhao keran and zhou xuanwu were both amazed.

so that’s how it works.

xu rui nodded and explained in detail to them.

“twelve talismans arranged according to the twelve earthly branches positions. normally, for an ordinary disciple, each talisman would be about twice the amplification of the previous one.”

“but junior sister’s control over spiritual energy is extremely strong, and the quality of each talisman is nearly the same, without the quality fluctuations between talismans like those of ordinary disciples. with this array, the effect is tripled or quadrupled.”

zhou xuanwu’s mouth twitched.

extremely close, because this is from the same batch made with the copying trick?

“thank you for your praise, senior brother,” lin shuang modestly smiled.

xu rui waved his hand, “then prepare for the second—”

“little love, adjust the data.”

lin shuang rubbed the wrist that held the sword.

“only eight talismans are needed to immediately counter an opponent at the peak of qi condensation layer four.”

“ah, four were wasted. it’s all senior brother xu rui’s fault. he just deceived me into using my full strength a moment ago, using the method of provocation to ignite my long-suppressed competitive spirit. i really did go all out just now.”

zhou xuanwu and zhao keran froze simultaneously.

xu rui’s forehead tensed: “…”

taking a step forward, he released both swords, “second move!”

the sea serpent transformed into a dragon, doubling its power.

【ding, little love detected two attacks at the peak of qi condensation layer six! 】

【estimated need for forty-eight… ding, little love data adjustment, thirty-nine reinforced talismans…】

in an instant, talismans fluttered once more, completely covering the broadsword.

amid xu rui’s twitching gaze, lin shuang faced the eight trigram sword, shaped like twin dragons, in mid-air.

three swords clashed.

lin shuang retreated five steps in succession, the broadsword touched the ground, barely stopping her retreat.

even after the twin dragons dissipated, the broadsword in her hand was still trembling uncontrollably.

xu rui’s eye corner twitched. did she actually manage to catch it perfectly?

however, her five-step retreat made him feel uncomfortable in his chest. holding the eight trigram sword, he also took a step back on his own, making it six steps in total.

“come again!”

“junior sister, let’s see how many talismans you have left! disperse the talismans and let me see your true strength!”

in an instant, the eight trigram swords thrust toward her gasping face.

【two opponents in front, at the great perfection of qi condensation! 】

【estimated need for 1444 reinforcement talismans (insufficient inventory, only 136 available), warning, severe warning! 】

【recommend activating the use of odd-numbered dantian.】

what?

odd-numbered what?

xu rui was taken aback.

zhou xuanwu raised his head.

zhao keran seemed to remember something and was about to speak.

but all they saw was a proliferation of talismans in front of lin shuang, and the broadsword trembled slightly.

behind the broadsword, she extended her hand and took out a self-made earpiece talisman, inserting it into her left ear.

the moment high-intensity bgm rang in her ears, her limbs and bones, the dormant clusters of the spiritual sea within her body, responded and awakened one by one.

dantian 1 through 87, odd-numbered, activate!

“senior brother, warm-up’s over.”

lin shuang raised her lips, her left eye gleaming like a burning fire.

she lightly tapped the hilt with her left hand.

the broadsword instantly shot out, like a comet with a tail, cutting through the long night—

with a boom, it sent the eight trigram sword flying!

the momentum didn’t stop; it even brushed against xu rui’s crown!

and it sliced off three of his hair strands!

zhao keran: “!”

zhou xuanwu: “!”

xu rui: “!!!”

“darn miscalculation, i actually overestimated the strength of the great perfection of qi condensation.”

“activate the dantian at seventy percent, that should be enough… damn it, what a waste.”

“my damn competitiveness!”

lin shuang’s murmurs drifted into the ears of the three.

“…”

“…………”

author’s note:

lin shuang: just one regret, senior brother, compensate me with spiritual energy.

“the 134th generation sect leader zhao keran’s diary 14”: “on this day… my mind was blank, i really don’t know how to describe the feelings of this day. only two words that senior sister often says in her sleep, damn it—”

zhou xuanwu: …so, i don’t know if i should tell senior brother xu rui the truth. he won’t be angry and embarrassed now, right?

senior brother xu rui: …………

*