Wu Ming sat on a small boulder, the hard surface pressing against his legs. His sword rested across his lap, the faint glint of its edge catching the moonlight.
His eyes narrowed as he contemplated.
Techniques.
The foundation of combat, the crystallization of countless generations of wisdom and hardship.
They did not appear overnight.
The earliest of cultivators were weak and miserable, struggling against the harshness of the world. They observed nature, mimicked the movements of beasts, studied the flow of qi within their bodies.
Step by step and failure by failure, they painstakingly refined their discoveries, passing them down.
At first, these arts were created for survival. Techniques to strengthen the body, to heal wounds, to fend off demonic beasts. But humans were far more dangerous than any beast. Greed turned wisdom into weapons. The same arts that once protected soon became instruments of war and violence.
Wu Ming smirked, 'And yet, without them, no one can stand at the pinnacle.'
His grip on the sword tightened. The jade slip in his left palm flickered dimly, transmitting knowledge straight into his mind.
Jade Serpent Sword Technique: Yellow Rank, low grade.
'Yellow, Black, Purple… Tch, the lowest of the low.' Wu Ming's fingers pressed lightly against the jade slip. 'Still, better than nothing.'
He continued reviewing the technique's intricacies.
Mastering a technique required clear steps to be followed. Most techniques, including the Jade Serpent Sword Technique, followed this sort of progression.
The first step was Initial Mastery—memorizing the Qi circulation points and becoming familiar with the essence flow. Only after achieving this could one properly execute the technique.
Next was Mastery, which went beyond mere memorization. It required a deeper understanding, allowing the technique to manifest greater power.
And above that, Great Mastery. A level requiring profound comprehension of the technique, unlocking hidden potential within the technique itself. Not all techniques had this stage, but the Jade Serpent Sword Technique did.
Wu Ming's eyes lit up, "This technique has room to grow. Good!"
Wu Ming leaped off the boulder, landing steadily on his feet. He stretched his limbs, loosening his joints.
'Before diving straight into technique training, I should at least get familiar with the sword first. I mean, a butcher doesn't swing his cleaver without knowing how to cut, and a magician doesn't…' He trailed off, realizing something obvious. He had no clue how to train with a sword.
But after a moment of thought, he dismissed the concern. The previous owner of this body had trained in the way of the sword for years.
Memories surfaced. Wu Ming began replicating those movements, not just mimicking them but absorbing the previous owner's understanding of the sword path. His stance shifted, and his cuts grew sharper.
Five minutes passed. Ten. Eventually, after half an hour, he stopped.
'Holy crap, I don't even feel breathless. Man, this cultivation body is something else. If it were the me from my old world, I'd be face down in the dirt, wheezing like a dying dog.'
His gaze fell on the sword in his hand. A smile crept onto his face.
'Also, I think I've just uncovered a profound truth. Swords are the fucking weapon to have! I used to think they were overused, but just holding this sharp, deadly piece of steel makes my blood pump. My dopamine levels are off the charts right now.'
In the heat of the moment, he executed a few 'heroic' slashes, reveling in the thrill. Then, realizing how outlandish he looked, he coughed lightly and forced himself back into a stoic stance.
After a moment of reflection, his stoicism faded.
'Half an hour of practice, and if I had to face the previous owner in a duel, I'd get my shit handed to me. I wouldn't even last a minute.'
Wu Ming gazed at the sword with a deadpan look before smiling lightly. Then, his demeanor shifted. His eyes flickered. Deep within his pitch-black pupils, a faint ring of silver emerged. If examined closely, one would notice that this silver ring resembled two semicircular branches intertwining.
He moved.
If a master swordsman had been observing at this moment, they would have noticed an immediate transformation. The hesitations, the minor inefficiencies in Wu Ming's swordplay vanished.
His grip became firm yet fluid, his footwork smooth, his slashes precise. A basic foundation of swordsmanship emerged.
Stances shifting seamlessly between high, middle, and low guards, and cuts following the natural flow of his body's movements. He was no longer just swinging a sword, he was wielding it.
Three hours passed before Wu Ming finally stopped. His eyes returned to normal as he wiped the sweat off his forehead.
"I could probably fight to a standstill now."
It was a bold claim. The previous owner had trained for two years, yet Wu Ming had seemingly caught up in a single session.
How?
The answer was simple.
The Seed of Eternal Enlightenment's first evolution—Seed of Comprehension!
Before activating it, learning had been like an old man dragging himself through a pit of mud with both legs broken. But now? It was like strapping a rocket to his ass and blasting straight past the finish line.
'Now that I've got some handle on the sword, it's time to study the technique.'
Wu Ming sat down, gripping the jade slip tightly. He activated the Seed of Comprehension.
In an instant, tens, no, hundreds of thoughts surged in his mind, and understanding bloomed like a flood breaking through a dam.
The pathway of spiritual essence, the positions of 171 Qi points, the hidden intricacies. Everything became startlingly clear. Concepts that took the previous owner three weeks to grasp were devoured in moments. Yet, the more knowledge he consumed, the more new thoughts arose, swelling like an unstoppable tide in his mind.
It was an indescribable sensation. Addictive, even.
Wu Ming's breathing turned erratic. His mind, usually serene like an ancient well, now had violent ripples. After half a minute, he memorized all the qi points. A minute later, the pathways felt familiar.
Initial Mastery accomplished!
A grin formed on his lips.
'This feeling... it's exhilarating.'
He stood up. Without hesitation, he moved.
The Green Copper essence within his body churned. His sword slashed forward, fluid and unpredictable, like a serpent.
A two-meter crescent slash of jade-green energy burst from the blade, tearing through the air with a sharp, keening whistle. The instant it struck, the boulder split apart like a steamed bun. The two halves crumbled, sending a cloud of dust surging into the air. The lingering green qi scattered, carried away by the wind.
Wu Ming examined the results of his first strike, the power he had generated was satisfactory.
However, the speed at which he had channeled his spiritual qi through the 171 circulation points left much to be desired.
"Seventeen seconds... that's way too slow," he muttered. "In a life-and-death battle, an opponent won't give me time to prepare. I need to bring this down to under a second."
Taking a deep breath, he refocused.
With each activation, he forced his qi to circulate faster. Seventeen seconds dropped to eleven. A surge of pleasure ran through him, but it wasn't enough. He pressed on. Eleven seconds fell to nine, then four.
Five more minutes passed.
By the end of it, his activation time had reached a single second.
Wu Ming allowed himself a small smile before sitting down to meditate. Two more hours passed as he recovered his spiritual essence.
By the time he reopened his eyes, the first rays of sunlight touched the horizon.
"Time flies," he murmured.
Stretching his limbs, he walked back into his dwelling, closing the door behind him. There, in the solitude of the room and with the aid of the Seed of Comprehension, he continued meditating on the Jade Serpent Sword Technique.
Memorization was over. Now came understanding.
He closed his eyes and let the technique take shape in his mind. The slither of a serpent, its hidden coils and sudden lunges. The contrast between hardness of jade and the softness of its ethereal luster. These images merged with his comprehension, deepening his grasp of the technique's essence.
The hours slowly passed. The sun set. When night fell once more, Wu Ming stepped outside.
His gaze was sharp.
The previous owner had taken six months to reach Mastery in the Jade Serpent Sword Technique. At that stage, the energy slash would transform into a four meter phantom jade serpent, doubling in strength and range.
Wu Ming suddenly raised his sword.
With a single slash, a ten-meter jade serpent shot forward, tearing through the air with a venomous hiss. It slammed into the trees, ripping them apart with sheer force. Trunks snapped, and a dozen trees fell. The serpent surged onward.
Then, with a single thought, Wu Ming made it change course.
Its body twisted like a living beast and coiled around a boulder, constricting with terrifying force.
Then—BAM!
The boulder exploded. The impact sent debris flying in every direction. Only silence remained as the jade serpent dissolved into glimmering energy, fading into the night.
Wu Ming lowered his sword.
"Great Mastery in fourteen hours…" His voice was calm, but his heart pounded with excitement.
The previous owner had never reached this level. Even in the entire Outer Court, only a handful of people had ever achieved it.
The Seed of Comprehension was terrifying.