"What is a sword?"
Lin Xuan murmured upon hearing this.
To him, a sword was simply a weapon; his fondness for it stemmed purely from the influence of his past life's culture. He simply enjoyed the carefree feeling of "riding the wind on a sword, vanquishing demons across the land."
As for how to cultivate swordsmanship, he knew absolutely nothing. He was originally a self-taught individual, without any formal instruction, only gradually refining his basic swordsmanship with the system's help.
But the system hadn't taught him how to cultivate swordsmanship, only offering insights and flashes of inspiration on how to further advance his basic skills.
However, his ignorance didn't matter; there were still the transmigrators' special skills!
"In my view, sword cultivation can be divided into five steps. The first is the sharp sword, where the sword is used to injure the enemy using its inherent sharpness—relying on the sword's advantage; the second is the soft sword… and the final step is no sword, where there is no sword in hand but a sword in the heart,"
Lin Xuan said without batting an eye.
He just didn't know if this theory from a scientific world in his past life was reliable. However, this concept was widely circulated, so it must have some logic within it.
Wu Changkong frowned at first as he listened to Lin Xuan's sword theory, then relaxed.
"Is this really your own idea?"
Wu Changkong gave Lin Xuan a half-smile.
If this kid had truly figured it out, he wouldn't have come to him today.
"Ahem! I heard it from an old man who kept birds when I was collecting trash. I thought it made a lot of sense,"
Lin Xuan said, scratching his head, somewhat sheepishly.
Looks like he's still too thin-skinned; he needs to learn from those shameless transmigrator predecessors.
Lin Xuan inwardly reflected deeply.
"This sword theory doesn't conform to the mainstream on the continent,"
Wu Changkong said to Lin Xuan.
"Is it wrong?"
Lin Xuan frowned, thinking, "Novels really do a disservice. "
"No! Quite the opposite! The person who proposed this theory was definitely a sword master who forged his own path."
Wu Changkong shook his head and said.
Lin Xuan's eyes lit up. He had been saying that novels sometimes had some use; anyone else who claimed novels were just a bunch of nonsense trying to fool people.
"However, this path is different from the mainstream swordsmanship on the continent today."
"The swordsmanship theory you're talking about emphasizes technique, taking a path where technique is close to the Dao, which can be called the Dao of Sword Technique. The mainstream swordsmanship on the continent, on the other hand, focuses on the combination of soul power and one's own will; it is the Dao of Sword Intent." "
The current mainstream swordsmanship realms on the continent are divided into Sword Technique, Man and Sword as One, Sword Intent, Sword Soul, and Sword God!"
Wu Changkong patiently explained to Lin Xuan. He paused, then continued.
"Speaking solely of the Way of Sword Intent, your current realm is the unity of man and sword, which is the second stage. This is almost the highest realm you can reach by cultivating basic swordsmanship."
"Sword Intent! This intent refers to the swordsman's will, and the sword techniques are the vessel that carries that will!"
"These legendary sword techniques also have another name: self-created soul skills. So, if you have a sword martial soul, you can also reach the realm of sword intent through your own soul skills."
"This is also why I speculated that you don't have a sword martial soul."
Wu Changkong glanced at Lin Xuan and said. Only the soul skills of a sword martial soul can fuse with sword intent.
Compared to the Way of Sword Techniques, the continent now advocates combining one's own soul power, soul skills, and spiritual power, following a gradual approach.
"To put it simply, basic swordsmanship is just a floor tile, while these soul skills are the house built with those tiles. People can live in the house, but the floor tiles cannot! Do you understand?"
Wu Changkong explained to Lin Xuan in a different way.
"So, it's impossible to cultivate basic swordsmanship to the realm of sword intent?"
Lin Xuan asked doubtfully.
"It's not absolute, but relatively speaking, it's much more difficult. As far as I know, there was once a genius swordsman on the Star Luo Continent who cultivated pure sword intent, but it took him over a hundred years, until his death, to complete it."
Wu Changkong shook his head again.
This path isn't impossible, it's just incredibly difficult. The polarization is too severe, like someone jumping into an abyss—either they learn to fly and soar to the heavens, or they sink into the abyss forever.
The senior who proposed this theory probably didn't have a high soul power level. Although this sword technique is extreme, it also has its advantages, namely, it has almost no requirements for cultivation level.
Unlike the current sword intent path, which requires corresponding requirements for soul power and spiritual power.
"Alright!"
Lin Xuan nodded, understanding.
Although these bricks can't be used as a house, if my bricks were the same size as a house, that would be a different story.
"Then which of these two sword paths is stronger?"
Lin Xuan looked at Wu Changkong curiously again. Wu Changkong pondered for a moment, then slowly spoke.
"The sword intent in the first stage should be greater than sword technique, while the latter two each have their own merits."
The sword technique path that Lin Xuan was talking about only stays at the level of technique in the early stages, easy to learn but difficult to master. Only in the last two stages does it begin to transcend sword technique.
"I understand! But to learn these legendary sword techniques, do I need to join those powerful organizations?"
Lin Xuan nodded and said, but then changed his tone and looked at Wu Changkong.
The Tang Sect has a history of over 20,000 years, so it certainly wouldn't lack these things.
"That's true."
Wu Changkong nodded, but didn't say anything more, standing there calmly.
"Thank you for your guidance, teacher!"
Lin Xuan bowed as a disciple and didn't
dwell on the question.
Lin Xuan had anticipated this outcome; he was merely giving it a try. The two were not related, and Wu Changkong couldn't simply force him into the Tang Sect. If the Tang Sect didn't want him, the Spirit Pagoda was another option.
"If you encounter any difficulties with swordsmanship in the future, you can come find me in Class Five,"
Wu Changkong said to Lin Xuan before turning and leaving. Tang Wulin and the other two were still on the playground.
Actually, he quite liked this student. Seeing Lin Xuan's talent in swordsmanship, he had even briefly considered recommending him directly to the Tang Sect.
However, he quickly dismissed this thought. The Tang Sect's assessment couldn't be rushed; they hadn't known each other long enough. He needed to observe him for a while longer.
"Thank you, Teacher Wu!"
Lin Xuan said, bowing to Wu Changkong's departing figure.
"Sword technique and sword intent..."
Lin Xuan looked at the longsword in his hand, muttering to himself.
He actually had a slightly different perspective on Wu Changkong's statement. In his view, the relationship between sword technique and sword intent was more like the roots and leaves of a tree.
Only when the roots run deep underground can the branches and leaves of a tree flourish, and only then can it blossom and bear fruit. Conversely, the more lush the branches and leaves above, the wider and deeper the tree's roots can grow.
These two are complementary.
Only children make choices; Lin Xuan decided to cultivate both. Anyway, with the system in hand, it would just mean spending a little more time each day.
"It's just that creating my own soul skills is a bit troublesome!"
Lin Xuan scratched his head in frustration. Going from zero to one was the hardest part.
The system wouldn't conjure one up for him; Lin Xuan had to create a basic template himself.
Just like the Saitama Body Tempering Method, he spent half a year figuring it out himself before he could create a set that worked for him, and he modified many details within it.
Damn it, why isn't there a rich woman he can cling to right now!
He's got a silver tongue; he can get away with anything!
"Beep~beep! Grandpa, your son is calling! Grandpa, your son is calling!"
Just as Lin Xuan was fretting, the soul-guided phone in his pocket suddenly rang.
"Hello! Teacher!"
Lin Xuan answered the phone, and Mang Tian's voice came through.
"Xiao Xuan, are you done with the start-of-school preparations at your school? If you have time, bring Wu Lin to the forging workshop around noon."
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