Chapter 172: Chapter 150 Guidance
Among the three girls, Jiang Yao was the most stunning and vivacious, and she had the closest ties with Ye Chen. The girl in light yellow clothing saw Ye Chen emerge from the Illusion Array, her clear eyes, shining like stars, filled with joy. She immediately ran up to Ye Chen.
"Ye Chen, you truly are formidable. Even sister's test couldn't stump you," she said.
Behind Jiang Yao, Yu Luoxuan also gave a gentle smile and walked towards Ye Chen.
Lastly, Yu, in a white dress pure and elegant like water, looked at Ye Chen with a soft smile and said, "Ye Chen, my little junior brother, meeting you for the first time has quite surprised me."
"Ye Chen, this is Sister Yu. It was Sister Yu who tested you just now," Jiang Yao said to Ye Chen with a laugh, "and also, Sister Yu is Sister Yu Luoxuan's elder sister—I only found out just now myself."
This Sister Yu is Yu Luoxuan's elder sister?
Ye Chen looked from Sister Yu in white to Yu Luoxuan in green, noticing a resemblance between the two, although Sister Yu carried more grace and composure, while Yu Luoxuan still retained a hint of youthfulness.
Ye Chen cupped his fists and greeted Sister Yu, "Ye Chen has seen Sister Yu," while he also nodded and smiled at Yu Luoxuan.
In the few moments spent within the Illusion Array, Ye Chen had perceived the wonders of Sister Yu's swordsmanship merely from the countless sword marks.
Indeed, as Daoist Wine Sword, Fairy Jia Luo, and Jiang Yao had said, Sister Yu possessed considerable accomplishments in the way of the sword.
"Little junior brother Ye Chen, Master informed me yesterday about your and Yao'er's intentions to practice swordsmanship under my guidance. I shall heed the instruction of our master, and from today onward, I can teach you three hours of swordsmanship daily, until the Sword Dueling Tournament begins," Sister Yu told Ye Chen and Jiang Yao with a light smile.
Three hours of swordsmanship instruction every day!
These words from Sister Yu filled both Ye Chen and Jiang Yao with joy.
Known to be reclusive and seldom appearing in Taixuan Sect as she concentrated on her swordsmanship, they had worried that Sister Yu might be reluctant to spend too much time on them.
Unexpectedly, Sister Yu was remarkably kind!
Three hours—a lengthy period of teaching, especially for someone as dedicated as Sister Yu!
"Thank you, Sister Yu!"
Ye Chen and Jiang Yao both expressed their gratitude respectfully.
Then, Sister Yu turned to look at Yu Luoxuan, "Little sister, you will practice alongside little junior brother Ye Chen and Yao'er," she said.
"Yes, sister!" Yu Luoxuan was visibly excited to have the chance to train with two of Taixuan Sect's most capable prodigies, Ye Chen and Jiang Yao.
After patting her sister's head, Sister Yu looked at Ye Chen and Jiang Yao again, "The last Spirit Sea Realm Sword Dueling Tournament, I participated in that as well. Five years have flown by since then, and I hadn't expected the next Spirit Sea Realm Sword Dueling Tournament to come around so quickly."
"Last time, under the guidance of Master, I grasped five types of second-level Sword Intents, and I thought I could win the tournament. However, I didn't anticipate that two young geniuses from the Great Qian and Great Xia Dynasties would appear in the tournament, and both had advanced into the practice of the third-level Sword Intents!"
With a hint of anticipation in her eyes, Sister Yu continued, "Over the years, I've finally entered into the realm of third-level Sword Intent and even gained a significant opportunity in the way of the sword. Sadly, I have yet to break through to the Rotating Pill Realm, or else I would surely engage with those two once more in a match at the Rotating Pill Realm Sword Dueling Tournament!"
Ye Chen and Jiang Yao listened silently as Sister Yu spoke of the previous Sword Dueling Tournament. Hearing about the second-level and third-level Sword Intents raised some doubts in them, especially in Ye Chen.
After Ye Chen had condensed the Slaughter Sword Intent from the four major Sword Intents, he was told it was a powerful second-level Sword Intent, but he never understood what exactly constituted a second-level Sword Intent.
And now, Sister Yu had even mentioned the existence of a third-level Sword Intent!
"Sister Yu, what are the second-level Sword Intent and the third-level Sword Intent?" Ye Chen couldn't help but ask aloud.
"Sword Intent is the pursuit of the essence of swordsmanship, extracted from the very nature of the sword," she explained.
"The first-level Sword Intent is the most fundamental and important. Like swordsmanship itself, there are myriad forms of this level of Sword Intent, all derived from the mood of all things."
"For instance, the Purple Lightning Sword Intent you both have practiced comes from the mood of Purple Lightning!"
Whoosh.
As she spoke, Sister Yu flicked her finger, and suddenly, countless currents surged through the void, instantly forming a Purple Lightning Sword in the void!
Sister Yu understood Purple Lightning Sword Intent and even recognized that Ye Chen and Jiang Yao had practiced it—a level of skill and insight that stunned both Ye Chen and Jiang Yao.
Seeing their shocked expressions, Sister Yu smiled gently, "Once you step into the third-level Sword Intent, you too will be able to easily discern the Sword Intents of those at a lower level of sword practice."
Sister Yu went on, "Purple Lightning Sword Intent is just one of the countless first-level Sword Intents. With myriad wondrous Sword Intents, even after more than a decade of sword training, I have mastered only a small portion."
"Like this Piercing Light Sword Intent, Flying Rainbow Sword Intent, Seven Stars Sword Intent, Drifting Snow Sword Intent..."
As Sister Yu named each Sword Intent, she would flick her finger, and a corresponding Sword Intent would manifest in the void. These swords of Sword Intent ranged from a bright glare like the sun, to rainbow-colored transformations, from the dazzling shine of seven stars, to snowflakes falling from the sky...
Through these marvelous demonstrations of first-level Sword Intent, Ye Chen and Jiang Yao came to understand what the first-level Sword Intent was.
The first-level Sword Intent encompasses the Sword Intent of All Things, derived from the moods of all things!
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Just like the Wind Sword Intent, Torrential Rain Sword Intent, Sword Intent of Thunder, and Purple Lightning Sword Intent that Ye Chen cultivated, these four great Sword Intents all originated from the Sword Intent of All Things and all are at the first-level Sword Intent!
Previously, Sister Yu said that there were thousands of kinds of first-level Sword Intents, which is no wonder, given the myriad moods of all things. It's naturally very difficult to master them all, and even observing the natural world for decades or centuries wouldn't be enough to fully understand all its aspects.
After demonstrating several kinds of first-level Sword Intents, Sister Yu flicked her finger lightly, and in an instant, Ye Chen noticed many kinds of first-level Sword Intents beginning to fuse. Under Sister Yu's direction, a new Sword Intent started to spread toward him.
This sensation of Sword Intent was just like when he had ventured through that Illusion Realm, observing those traces of swords - it was the same feeling!
This was indeed Sister Yu demonstrating the second-level Sword Intent!
"The second-level Sword Intent is the fusion of Sword Intents, extracting a deeper essence from various first-level Sword Intents.
The first-level Sword Intent of All Things is just the surface of all things, while the second-level Sword Intent is a fusion of the essences within, like how the Wind Sword Intent contains a mood of slaughter, the Rain Sword Intent also has a Sword Intent of slaughter, the Sword Intent of Thunder contains a Sword Intent of slaughter, and the Electric Sword Intent also has a Sword Intent of slaughter.
The Slaughter Sword Intent is an example of a second-level fusion Sword Intent!"
Boom!
In a moment, countless Sword of Slaughter appeared in the void around Sister Yu's body.
Ye Chen saw that these Sword of Slaughter were even more powerful and terrifying than the Sword of Slaughter he could control!
Obviously, Sister Yu was demonstrating the only second-level Sword Intent Ye Chen had mastered to explain to him what the second-level Sword Intent was.
"The second-level Sword Intent can continuously increase in power. The more first-level Sword Intents you fuse, the stronger the power will be. Like the Slaughter Sword Intent you cultivated, it is only a fusion of the slaying power of four first-level Sword Intents. But my Slaughter Sword Intent already has eighteen kinds of slaying powers fused, making it all the more powerful!"
While Sister Yu spoke, aside from the essences of wind, rain, thunder, and lightning, glimmers of piercing light slaughter, blizzard slaughter, and flame slaughter, along with even more first-level Sword Intents, flickered on the Swords of Slaughter around her body.
At that moment, Ye Chen had an epiphany.
It turned out that by fusing the first-level Sword Intents of All Things and extracting the common points of the Sword Intents from all things, one could form the second-level Sword Intent. And the more first-level Sword Intents mastered, the stronger and more terrifying the second-level fusion Sword Intent would be!
As Ye Chen came to understand, a glint of thorough enlightenment also appeared in Jiang Yao's eyes.
Both were prodigious youths with much stronger comprehension abilities than others; they certainly understood Sister Yu's words!
By comparison, Yu Luoxuan on the side still seemed somewhat confused.
Sister Yu didn't explain further to Yu Luoxuan, knowing that these sword Dao rules would become clear with more practice. She continued, "Slaughter Sword Intent is just one type of second-level fusion Sword Intent. There are many things in the world that can be fused, like Speed Sword Intent, which is the refinement of the swiftness of countless Sword Intents of All Things!"
Whoosh!
As Sister Yu spoke, Ye Chen and Jiang Yao felt a sword light flash through the void, and instantly, a sword light appeared dozens of meters away in the high sky.
The speed was truly unimaginably fast!
This Speed Sword Intent was even faster than all the Swordsmanship Ye Chen had learned!
"There's also this kind of fusion Sword Intent: Vibrational Sword Intent!"
Sister Yu pointed at a piece of blue stone placed in the courtyard not far away, and in an instant, the blue stone appeared as if it were enveloped by an inexplicable Sword Intent.
Ye Chen probed with his divine consciousness and was shocked to find that while the surface of the blue stone had not changed, its interior was violently vibrating. In just a moment, the blue stone shattered completely from the inside, pulverizing into dust.
This was an incredibly powerful Sword Intent, Vibrational Sword Intent, and Ye Chen instantly memorized the name of this second-level Sword Intent!
"Vibrational Sword Intent is derived from refining the vibrating frequencies of all things. This kind of vibration is very useful in battle, especially against those whose defense relies mainly on their physical bodies. Once the Vibrational Sword Intent is transmitted into their bodies, even if their external defenses are strong, the internal vibrations can directly shatter them from the inside!"
Ye Chen nodded, indeed, this was a very useful tactic, not attacking directly from the outside, but from the more vulnerable inside!
Slaughter Sword Intent, Speed Sword Intent, Vibrational Sword Intent...
After demonstrating seven or eight second-level Sword Intents, Sister Yu finally spoke about the third-level Sword Intent.
"When you master several second-level Sword Intents, you can cultivate an even more powerful third-level Sword Intent."
"The third-level Sword Intent is called 'Sword Formation'!"
"What is a Sword Formation? It is using second-level Sword Intents in combination to form a unified formation attack, like my 'Minor Thousand Sword Formation,' which contains the twenty-three second-level Sword Intents I've cultivated so far!"
Whoosh.
As Sister Yu spoke, Ye Chen saw that within hundreds of feet in the distance, countless currents surged and countless sword lights flickered.
Ye Chen could sense that that area contained at least hundreds of Swords of True Qi!
Within these Swords of True Qi were the powers of slaughter, vibration, speed, and even a terrifying power of destruction!
The fusion of these countless second-level Sword Intents turned that area into a veritable Sword Formation of slaughter capable of grinding everything to nothing.
The Illusion Array that Ye Chen had previously fallen into was this Minor Thousand Sword Formation.
Previously, Sister Yu had only presented the various Sword Intents to him and had not unleashed the true killing power of the Sword Formation.
Now, just by looking, Ye Chen knew that the killing power of this Sword Formation could easily slay a late Spirit Sea Realm expert and, without using ultimate moves like "Void Instantaneous Change" and "Flying Sword," he might also be instantly annihilated by the Sword Formation.
This was the power of the third-level Sword Intent!
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