togophonebook Chapter 7 Wind Demon
Chapter 7 Wind Demon
The seedlings on the ridges of the fields in Daling Village are growing well, and smoke rises from the village, which is surrounded by earthen walls. The sounds of chickens and dogs can be heard, and the village is no longer as dilapidated and desolate as it was half a year ago.
More than half a year has passed since Shen Gui led his men to capture Daling Village.
On Daling Mountain next to Daling Village, Ahe, dressed in a short skirt, was gripping a rough blacksmith's sword, her face flushed, as she swung it with measured precision.
This iron sword was made by the village blacksmith based on the fine iron longsword that Shen Gui had captured. It was made of the most ordinary iron and was even inferior to the one at Shen Gui's waist.
Shen Gui stood to the side with his hands behind his back, watching his young apprentice practice swordsmanship. He spoke calmly, "Keep your wrist steady, keep the sword along the center line, and generate power from your waist, not by swinging it forcefully with your arm."
Ah He bit her lower lip and obediently adjusted her posture, but the iron sword still wobbled in her hands. She could barely manage a few basic slashing movements, and her little face was full of frustration: "Master, Ah He is too stupid. I have practiced for so long, but I still can't even make a decent sword move, let alone emit that kind of light like you, Master."
Despite practicing diligently for more than half a year, Ahe made almost no progress in swordsmanship. Not to mention condensing sword light, he even struggled with the most basic chopping, slashing, thrusting, and parrying techniques. He could barely defend himself, let alone fight an enemy.
Shen Gui saw this and understood that this disciple was born with no affinity for the way of the sword.
He didn't reprimand her, but gently straightened Ahe's hand holding the sword, his tone mild: "It's alright. Swordsmanship isn't for everyone; you don't need to force yourself. Tell your master, how far have you progressed in your Qi Cultivation and Energy Nourishing Technique?"
Mentioning cultivation, Ahe's eyes lit up instantly, her dejection vanished, and she looked up at him with a bright, cheerful voice, "Master! I've already condensed the Profound Realm Wheel! I've completed the first level of Fetal Breathing!"
The fourteen-year-old girl went from being an ordinary person with no cultivation half a year ago to breaking through to the first level of the Fetal Breathing stage and condensing the Profound View Wheel in just over half a year. Such speed would surpass most of the disciples in the outer sect of the Canglan Immortal Sect.
Shen Gui felt a little relieved. Ahe's talent for cultivation was beyond doubt, but it was a pity that she didn't have talent for swordsmanship.
"Well done," Shen Gui patted her head. "Put aside swordsmanship for now. Go back and focus on cultivating the Qi Cultivation and Energy Nourishing Technique to solidify your foundation in the first level of embryonic breathing. The Dao of Alchemy is the foundation for your future."
"Okay! Ah He will listen to Master!" Ah He nodded obediently, hugged the thick iron sword and skipped to the shade of a tree to meditate and cultivate. Her small figure was full of seriousness.
After Ahe left, only Shen Gui remained.
He stepped forward slowly, skillfully drew the long sword from his waist, lightly brushed the blade with his fingertips, and slowly infused it with magical power.
Shen Gui took light steps, his figure as graceful as a swan, and with a flick of his wrist, the sword in his hand was like a nimble dragon.
His steps were light and ethereal, his swordplay fluid and graceful, without any fancy moves.
Shen Gui gently stroked the sword with two fingers, and a half-foot-long shimmering white sword light suddenly burst forth from the blade, its sharp aura overwhelming.
"cut!"
Shen Gui gave a soft shout, and with a light flick of his longsword, a sword light shot out.
A dead tree on the sidelines, which would take one person to encircle, snapped in two with a snap, the cut as smooth as a mirror, without even a speck of wood flying.
Sheathing his sword and standing still, the strong wind dissipated, Shen Gui looked at the precious sword in his hand, feeling satisfied.
Although "The Sword Dao Insights of a Disciple of Fengtian Palace" has no fixed moves, it records all the difficulties in sword cultivation and the secrets to condensing sword light.
In contrast, Ahe struggles to even master the most basic magic-based sword manipulation, demonstrating that she was born without a sword-wielding constitution, making further training futile.
"I will never let her touch a sword again." Shen Gui made up his mind and threw the iron sword aside.
Shen Gui introspected and saw that the spiritual wheel of the third cycle was pulsating slightly, and the three spiritual apertures were in harmony and order.
Some time ago, the three wheels of fetal breathing were also connected.
It's a pity that the spiritual energy accumulated in his body has been used up, and he will have to patiently breathe in and out strand by strand in his future cultivation.
In the past six months, he had already used the wonders of the Heavenly Bell to test the spiritual apertures of every child under the age of twelve in Daling Village. However, the results were slightly disappointing. Among the dozens of children in the village, not only were they not recognized as talented by the Heavenly Bell, but not even one of them possessed the most basic spiritual aperture that would allow them to embark on the path of cultivation.
Undeterred, he examined every adult man and woman in the village one by one. After scanning dozens of people, he finally detected spiritual fluctuations in Su Wanniang and the nearly seventy-year-old man.
Unfortunately, Su Wanniang was already in her early thirties, and only now was she beginning her cultivation. She was destined not to go far, and it was ultimately too late.
The old man was even worse; when he got confused, he couldn't even remember the incantation. And because of his great joy, he passed away a few days later.
Shen Gui did not hold back and passed on the first two layers of the "Nourish the Origin and Cultivate the Wheel" formula of the Canglan Sect to Xie San and Su Wanniang.
Xie San has a solid foundation and received guidance from Shen Gui in his early years, so his cultivation has steadily improved, and he has already reached the peak of the first level of embryonic breathing.
Su Wanniang is thoughtful and quick-witted, and her cultivation speed is even faster than Xie San's. Unfortunately, she started too late and is still accumulating spiritual energy at the first level of the embryonic breathing stage.
Now Xie San is in charge of the village's young and strong, security and defense, while Su Wanniang takes care of the women and children, farming and miscellaneous tasks, managing Daling Village in an orderly manner. Shen Gui is also able to relax and focus on cultivating the sword path and consolidating his realm.
When Shen Gui reached the edge of Lingtian in the south of the village, he stopped.
The severe drought that lasted for two consecutive years in northern Xinjiang has finally come to an end. This year, the weather has been favorable, and the rice and wild rice in the fields are growing very well. The full ears of rice are bending the stalks, which is a delightful sight.
This sacred field is a naturally blessed land in Daling Village. It is not particularly fertile, but rather just average.
Xie San was leading the able-bodied men to weed the field when he saw Shen Gui approaching. He immediately bowed and greeted him, "Immortal Master!"
"The crops in the spirit field are growing well," Shen Gui said casually.
"Thanks to the immortal's blessing!" Xie San said with a beaming face, pointing to the rice paddies, "This natural spiritual field in our village produces about eighty to one hundred and ten catties of spiritual rice annually, which, after husking, yields about forty catties of spiritual grains, roughly the same as the yield in my hometown. After giving some to that wind demon's lair, there will still be some left over!"
Xie San grinned with satisfaction.
Shen Gui nodded slightly, thinking that it was impossible to hand over most of the year's harvest, as there wouldn't even be enough food for his own family. However, this matter needed to be considered carefully.
His gaze fell on Su Wanniang on the edge of the field.
The woman was squatting by the field, her hands forming simple hand seals. Her magic power slowly flowed out, energizing the wooden bucket in her hands, and she carefully sprinkled clean water onto the roots of the spirit rice.
Although the Spirit Rain Technique is a basic spell, the Northern Frontier is barren, and independent cultivators have no chance to learn it. Even clan cultivators like Xie San can only rely on watering bucket by bucket with meager magical power and incantations to supply the spirit fields.
An invisible and intangible gust of wind suddenly burst forth from the forest, its force extremely treacherous, carrying several sharp leaves, heading straight for Su Wan Niang's right arm as she held the hand seal!
The strong wind was hidden within the gentle breeze, silent and unnoticed, and would have been completely undetectable were it not for the soft rustling of leaves breaking through the air.
Su Wanniang was caught off guard. It wasn't until the strong wind was only a few meters away from her that she felt the biting cold. Her expression changed drastically, and it was too late to dodge!
"Be careful!"
Shen Gui had already moved.
After he began practicing swordsmanship, his steps became increasingly light and swift. He moved like a ghost to Su Wanniang's side, grabbed her with his left arm, and pushed her away abruptly.
At the same time, he drew his right hand, and the sword at his waist was unsheathed, unleashing a burst of half-foot-long sword light once again.
With a horizontal swing of his sword, the sword's light directly split the invisible gust of wind into two!
After all, it is a spell made of magic. Swordsmanship is good at attacking, and the sword's edge can directly damage the magic structure within it, and it can also cut through the wind.
Shen Gui didn't believe in the so-called wind demons. Such natural spiritual cultivators were almost never seen even in the Canglan Sect. How could a single force in the Northern Frontier have so many?
It's just a charade.
Two gusts of wind brushed past Shen Gui's temples, scattering a few strands of his hair, but did not harm him in the slightest.
Immediately afterwards, a detached voice came on the wind and clearly reached my ears.
"Seven days later, at the edge of the world, we will gather in the market."
The sound vanished, the strong wind disappeared, as if it had never existed.
Still shaken, Su Wanniang clutched her chest and bowed deeply, saying, "Thank you so much, Immortal Master, for saving my life!"
"It's alright." Shen Gui sheathed his sword, his gaze fixed on the sky, his eyes slightly darkening.
"They've finally come knocking, which is a good thing. There are three protective talismans left. Leave two for Xiao He; she can't be allowed to get into trouble. Take the items and go with her. Xie San and Su Wan Niang will stay in the village together."
..............................
High in the sky, a handsome cultivator dressed in a light blue robe was flying on the wind.
The lingering magic incantation still lingered on his fingertips as he flew, muttering to himself with a helpless expression:
"What a hassle. In order to maintain the mysterious aura of Listening Wind Pavilion, which is known for spreading news throughout the world, I or the patriarch have to hide in the clouds and manipulate wind magic every time, pretending to be wind demons delivering messages. It's exhausting..."
"I just glanced around and the old man from Half Acre Field has already reached the peak of his embryonic breathing. There's also a monster here who can condense sword light. What's wrong with this godforsaken place, Fuxing County... But the ancestor said that the other counties are even more unsettled. Those damned inland sects, they've really meddled far and wide. Don't they think the northern frontier is chaotic enough?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a gentle breeze swept beneath the cultivator's feet, and his figure vanished instantly into the depths of the clouds, leaving no trace.