12dz Chapter 14 The Elbow Always Turns Outward
Chapter 14 The Elbow Always Turns Outward
The words are divided into two parts.
When Shen An followed his memory and returned to the open space by the stream from yesterday, he found that Qu Feiyan was already waiting there.
Unlike yesterday, she was not lively and active. She just sat quietly on a smooth rock by the stream, holding a foxtail grass in her hand, idly tapping the water's surface, creating ripples.
Well, her coarse cloth clothes fit her quite well and were thick today, so it seems she had prepared them carefully.
"Brother An, you're here!"
Just as Shen An was looking her over, she also saw him. A big smile immediately bloomed on her face, her eyes curved into crescents, and she threw down the foxtail grass and hopped over to him in a few steps.
"You arrived so early?" Shen An asked with a gentle smile.
"Um..." Qu Feiyan's eyes darted around, "Grandpa came to chop firewood earlier than usual today."
"Chopping wood, huh? You almost chopped me up yesterday." Shen An silently complained in his heart, but his face remained expressionless as his gaze swept over a bundle beside him: "What's this?"
"Oh, right!" Qu Feiyan seemed to have just remembered, and hurriedly ran over to unpack the bundle, carefully taking out a neatly folded blue outer robe. "Brother An, I took your clothes back yesterday and washed them. Here you go."
To be honest, Qu Feiyan had a lot of internal struggle last night in order to convince herself to return the clothes that carried his scent.
"Ruoyun is very thoughtful."
"Speaking of which, Brother An's sword is so heavy..." Qu Feiyan pouted. "When I got back, I tried to swing it a couple of times, but I found that I couldn't swing it at all."
"It's alright, Ruoyun will be fine when she grows up a bit more." Shen An smiled.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Shen An picked up the standard iron sword he had casually picked up from the Hundred Refinements Workshop that morning and prepared to begin his cultivation.
A pure heart remains unperturbed even when the sky falls...
As Shen An silently recited the incantation in his mind, from Qu Feiyan's perspective, the gentle and kind Brother An who had just been standing there suddenly changed his demeanor after picking up the sword, becoming a fanatic whose eyes were only on the sword.
Yesterday, when she secretly watched Shen An practice swordsmanship, she was too far away to see clearly. But now, Qu Feiyan truly felt the chill of the first snow.
So this is another side of Brother An... Is this the secret of genius?
Qu Feiyan was somewhat mesmerized, silently marveling at his extraordinary insight.
Following yesterday's progress, Shen An continued to reconstruct and connect the remaining moves.
The ancient dragon and the verdant green are the next move, the Jade Well Heavenly Pool.
This move draws inspiration from the crystal-clear Heavenly Pool of the Jade Maiden Peak among the thirty-six peaks of Mount Taishi. The sword technique is defensive and meticulous, with the sword light encircling the body like pool water, effectively neutralizing the enemy's fierce attacks. It is a rare defensive move among the seventeen styles of Songshan swordplay.
To transition from the "Layered Greenery and Floating Blue" technique or any other move to this one, one must first retract the momentum.
Following his mental calculations, Shen An twisted his wrist as the sword intent of "Layered Green and Floating Blue" was about to dissipate, intending to gather the power back to its source. The process was exceptionally smooth, even easy—the standard iron sword lightly drew an arc, and the sword light subsided in front of him.
But that's not right.
Shen An frowned slightly and sheathed his sword.
The sword was "drawn" too quickly and too lightly, as if it were just a casual swing of the arm, completely lacking the expected heavy sense of transformation, like guiding a rushing river into a tranquil lake. The anticipated dense protective force thus appeared hollow and empty, merely existing in form.
He looked down at the standard iron sword from Bailianfang in his hand. The blade was gleaming, but it was rather thin. He immediately understood where the problem lay.
This sword is too light and too flimsy. It's far inferior to my previous personal sword.
However, it would probably take some time for Li Qingde to forge a new sword, and he couldn't possibly shamelessly ask Qu Feiyan to return the previous sword.
If you can't make any changes to the sword, perhaps you could add some weight.
Got it!
Shen An recalled Yang Yu's experience of practicing martial arts in the sea and mountain torrents, and murmured, "If only there were a waterfall."
"A waterfall? What does Brother An want with a waterfall?"
Shen An hadn't expected that the little girl would hear his whispered mutterings, but it wasn't anything he couldn't tell anyone. He simply marveled at her keen senses and then explained to Qu Feiyan why he wanted to find the waterfall.
Qu Feiyan, who had been secretly focusing her attention on Shen An, was also amazed by his imaginative idea. Using the force of a waterfall to practice swordsmanship—a cultivation method that rivaled the power of heaven and earth—truly exceeded her expectations.
"I know about waterfalls! There's one if you walk a mile upstream from this stream!" The thought only flashed through Qu Feiyan's little head for a moment before she was quickly immersed in the emotion of being able to help Shen An and sold her grandfather's secret meeting place.
Shen An was overjoyed upon hearing this, but he took it as a coincidence and patted Qu Feiyan's head: "Ruoyun, you've been a great help to me."
"hey-hey……"
The two immediately followed the stream upstream. Sure enough, after walking a short distance, they could faintly hear the roar of the water.
After passing through a dense forest, the view suddenly opened up. A white ribbon of water cascaded down from a cliff dozens of meters high, crashing violently into the deep pool below, creating a misty spray that was truly awe-inspiring.
"What a great place!" Shen An exclaimed.
He settled Qu Feiyan on a dry rock away from the pool, instructing her not to approach. He then removed his outer robe and upper garment before venturing into the waterfall. In his mind, Qu Feiyan was just a young girl, a younger sister, and there was no need for excessive formality.
However, they don't think that way over there.
Qu Feiyan looked at Shen An's broad shoulders, smooth back lines, and the strong abdominal muscles that were revealed as he walked, and her pretty face turned red instantly, even her ears became hot.
She gasped in surprise, quickly covering her eyes with her hands, and said with a mix of embarrassment and annoyance, "Brother An, you...you..."
But those fingers, as if they had their own thoughts, uncontrollably and quietly opened a crack.
Amidst the roaring, noisy water, Shen An couldn't hear the girl's coquettish complaint. As soon as his feet entered the water, the waterfall swayed him from side to side, making it difficult for him to stand.
The water pounded against his head, shoulders, and back, like countless heavy water hammers relentlessly pounding him, a dull pain shooting through every inch of his skin. The icy water kept pouring into his mouth and nose, making it extremely difficult to breathe. Besides the thunderous roar of the water, there was nothing else in his ears; the whole world seemed to consist only of this endless onslaught and oppression.
Shen An had just begun to have some thoughts of backing down when he was overwhelmed by a surge of heroic spirit.
What? Yang Guo can stand on this waterfall, but I can't?
He immediately held his breath, used a powerful downward strike to stabilize himself, and struggled against the raging torrent, wielding his sword with great difficulty.
Each swing of his sword seemed incredibly difficult, the sword's momentum repeatedly disrupted by the water, but his eyes remained resolute as he repeated the exercise time and time again.
The sight of this young man defying heaven and earth is truly breathtaking.
At least that's what that one audience member thought.