Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Chapter 371 – Intellectual Sword (Part Two)

Translated by: Pipipingu

Edited by: Nora

Chen Changsheng had originally wanted to ask just what the heck did the essence of the path of the sword have to do with how great Wang Po and Xue He’s blade techniques were? However, after seeing Su Li’s angry appearance, how could he dare say that, so he replied sincerely, “Yes.”

“Then let me continue. The spirit of the path of the sword is about ‘one (一)’.”

This time, while saying the word ‘one’, Su Li stressed it, so as a result, it sounded very much like ‘one hundred million (亿)’.

TL: One (一) and one hundred million (亿) sound similar in Chinese, with just a difference in stress of tone.

Chen Changsheng asked seriously, “You are saying… cultivating the path of the sword requires one to be single-minded?”

Su Li thought about it and said, “Yes and no.”

Chen Changsheng thought about it and said, “Then… is it yes or no?”

Su Li stared into his eyes and said, “Anyway, it’s all about the word ‘one’.”

Chen Changsheng lowered his head again and said, “Yes.”

“I’ve already said that the sword is a lethal weapon, and those who are not Saints should not use it. This actually also means that the sword is also a sacred weapon.”

Su Li quietly looked at the Heaven Shrouding Sword in his hand. His right hand grasped the hilt, and the index and middle finger of his right hand pinched the sword, slowly sliding past. He said, “Horizontally, the sword is a mountain range in the flat plains, the metal chains at the bottom of a great river, and vertically, it is a feathered arrow that flies in the sky, a drop of rain from the sky. To point down means that it wants to open the ground to see the abyss of the Yellow Springs, and to point up is to… burn the heavens.”

“The reason why it is like this is because of its shape, because of its intent.”

“The shape of the sword is one (一), and the intent also needs to be one (一).”

“Only with the shape and intent fusing can the spirit also become one.”

“No matter how many sword styles you know, it is still not as great as training one sword style to the limit.”

“Even if you have tens of thousands of swords, you can only choose one sword from within.”

Su Li said while looking at Chen Changsheng, a deep meaning hidden within his words.

Chen Changsheng seemed to be in deep thought, and he really was in thought—the points that Su Li had raised on the path of the sword was not new. There were many similar records in the Daoist Canon, but it just did not match with what he thought.

Su Li said, “Of course, in the very beginning, it is still good to learn a little more, to broaden your insight before choosing the most suitable style. It won’t be so much that it’ll dazzle you. Just like when I was fifteen, I knew so many sword styles that I couldn’t even remember all their names, which was why I had accomplishments later on. Anyway, it’s just some activities like looking at mountains or lakes. It’s rather complicated, understand it to the best of your ability.”

Chen Changsheng did not need to seriously think about it and he understood most of it. It was just that teachings at such a level were a little too great, and they were matters for later. But, what was he going to do now, knowing that the assassin was currently hiding in the night, and not knowing how many more powerful opponent he would meet on their journey to the south. It was even possible that countless experts were hurrying towards them right now.

Su Li looked at him and said, “Speaking about the battle in detail, your situation is a little weird. You clearly have a lot of true essence, but for some reason, your output in battle is instead really terrible.”

Hearing this, Chen Changsheng admired Su Li so much that he could almost prostrate himself on the ground. In the capital and the Garden of Zhou, he had been teased or taken pity on for his true essence for being too thin. Only Su Li could see where his true problem lay.

This was indeed a very troublesome problem. He thought of Luoluo, Nanke and those people with special bloodlines, who used their endless amounts of true essence to carry their fame. He envied them very much. It was just that the problem was involved with the problems of his meridians in his body. He was unable to explain it too thoroughly, and so he could only silently wait for Su Li’s next words.

“The greatest feature of the Star Condensation Realm is the existence of the Star Domain. If one wanted to break through it, perhaps they would use an even greater cultivation level to forcefully suppress it, use sword energy to crush it or use enough true essence to forcefully attack one point. Your level of cultivation is not enough, and the true essence output from your sword moves is also not enough. Even if your dagger is sharp enough, it is unable to enter the world of someone else.”

Su Li glanced at Chen Changsheng’s dagger. He said, “Fortunately, most of the Star Condensation experts have undeserved fame, and their Star Domains are far from perfect. They all have weaknesses and flaws. If the opponent does not move, perhaps he can use his level of cultivation and bearing to cover up the weaknesses and flaws, but once he starts moving, they can definitely be seen. As a result, what you need to learn the most right now is how to see the weakness of an opponent in the Star Condensation realm.”

Chen Changsheng thought about the battle in the morning and said, “Just like how you saw through Xue He’s flaws?”

“Correct, but if you really wait for the opponent to move and then see it, it will often be too late. As a result, according to your current cultivation, the best method is to calculate beforehand, and choose a few locations even if you have to guess.”

“How do you calculate?”

“Age, cultivation, body strength, body state, the move that has the highest chance of being used, the features of their Star Domain, how much true essence, background sect or school, customs that they follow, features of the geography, eating habits, marital status, number of children…”

“Senior, what has it got to do with their marital status and the amount of children they have?”

“Those who are married will obviously be slightly less courageous, and their body strength will be slightly weaker.”

“Then what about the number of children?”

“If they just had a kid, that person will definitely be powerful and difficult to defeat, because he would have too many things that he is attached to and unwilling to let go of.”

“What if he has seven children?”

“That person will also be very terrifying, because it is very possible that he doesn’t fear death.”

“…so speaking of it this way, being married for too long will make you extremely fear death?”

“You speak typical words of the inexperienced and those that lack knowledge. Just what is terrifying about the opponent? I fear that you think of suicide every day.”

“…Senior, we are talking about important stuff, so please stop making trouble without reason.”

“Who’s the one making the trouble?”

Su Li indeed was not causing trouble. He gave Chen Changsheng thirty-seven detailed examples. No matter if it was age, cultivation, body strength, body state, background sect or school or skin tone, they all carried importance in battle. According to what he said, if Chen Changsheng was able to learn this sword style, he would be able to see the flaws of a Star Condensation opponent very easily.

The sword style did not have any moves, and did not require certain levels of true essence or cultivation. It only required intelligence and great abilities in calculation, giving the sword-user an all-seeing mind that could see through the world. As a result, it was called the Intellectual Sword.

The night passed slowly and the stars remained in the sky. Su Li treated the sword as a brush, writing and drawing on the ground by the lake. He explained the connections and changes that these things that seemed completely unrelated could bring. Chen Changsheng slowly accepted the ideas regarding the Intellectual Sword, and listened with great attentiveness and seriousness. His mind constantly thought quickly, unwilling to miss a single sentence or even a single word.

Finishing the explanation of the Intellectual Sword, Su Li lay down between the two furry deer and started sleeping.

Chen Changsheng sat by the lake. He did not sleep because he could not sleep.

Before his eyes were a series of densely packed words and extremely complicated calculation processes.

He was good at forcefully memorizing things. However, his ability in this aspect was really ordinary.

Without enough intelligence, how could he learn the Intellectual Sword?

He was unable to grasp this sword style that seemed easy but was actually extremely complicated.

Just at this moment, he suddenly thought of that Lady Chujian. There seemed to be white clothes drifting on the surface of the lake before him. If it was her who had extreme talent in the area of calculating and deducing who came to learn this sword style, she probably would have learned it very quickly.