Holding the Sword to Carry Away Senior Sister (Transmigration) - Chapter 13

Fu Yan, who had already come down from the second floor of the Martial Arts Pavilion, was naturally unaware that she had become the subject of a bet. Holding her selected manuals, she went straight to the management elder to register them and soon returned leisurely to her small wooden cottage.

There wasn’t much time left before the Inner Sect Ranking Tournament. Fu Yan knew she needed to increase her strength rapidly.

She remembered that not long after the ranking tournament, the triennial Grand Competition between all the sects in the Northern Region would take place. Only those in the top ten would have the chance to represent the sect in this large-scale event.

Fu Yan certainly didn’t want to miss it. The path of cultivation required various forms of sparring and combat to better refine one’s power.

Upon returning to her cottage, Fu Yan didn’t dare to stay idle. She immediately practiced the Frost Tempering Sutra in her mind once more. She could feel that because of this body-refining technique, her physical constitution was becoming better and better.

Now, even without using True Essence, she could easily shatter this wooden cottage with a single palm strike.

Having only just touched the beginner level of the technique, Fu Yan could guess that the manual hidden within the Ling Long broken sword was likely no lower than Grade 3. If word of this got out, countless people and sects would be green with envy.

After her body-refining session, Fu Yan pulled out the 《Wind-Shadow Steps》 she had just brought back, preparing to learn the movement technique first.

Wind-Shadow Steps: move with the wind, leaving no shadow. At the “Small Success” stage, one can cover a hundred meters in a single step; at “Great Success,” one moves like a ghost, traceless and invisible.

Reading the introduction made Fu Yan’s heart stir with excitement. She began flipping through it eagerly. Wind-Shadow Steps was relatively straightforward, with two key points: breath regulation and merging with the wind.

During practice, one needs to feel the speed and direction of the wind, allowing their shadow to hide within it—moving with the wind’s flow without revealing a physical form. Simply put, one must treat themselves as a gust of wind; gone in an instant, with a speed akin to teleportation.

It sounded simple, but practicing it was not that easy. However, Fu Yan wasn’t one to give up. She went to the courtyard, regulating her breath while feeling the natural breeze.

Concentrating fully, she began her first day of training.

Time in cultivation passed in a flash. Soon, the morning had hurried by. After practicing the steps over and over, Fu Yan finally came to a halt. She wiped the sweat from her forehead, and while sitting down to rest, she pulled out the 《Illusionless Sword》.

The Illusionless Sword consisted of three forms: Phantom Shadow, Phantom Form, and Illusionless. It was a mysterious style involving complex states of mind. Fu Yan read through it twice, but it remained somewhat cryptic and difficult to grasp.

“Whatever, I’ll focus on mastering the first form first. The rest will have to come slowly.” Fu Yan shook her head helplessly, feeling she might be aiming too high too soon. It was best to study the first form carefully.

Soon, she drew her Ling Long broken sword and began practicing the first form—Phantom Shadow.

Since coming out of the Chihei Mountains, Fu Yan hadn’t thought about forging or buying a new sword. Although the Ling Long sword was broken, it was extraordinary, so there was no need for a replacement. After using it a few times, she found it quite comfortable to handle.

Phantom Shadow: the sword-light is like an illusion, like a shadow. Fu Yan gripped the hilt, leaped, and spun, waving the blade rapidly to leave behind a series of sword afterimages in the air.

As the sky gradually darkened, Fu Yan finally stopped. She ate a simple meal and returned to her room to sit in meditation, practicing the 《Pure Essence Art》 to refine her True Essence into something more pure and potent.

For three consecutive days, Fu Yan spent her mornings on Wind-Shadow Steps, her afternoons on Illusionless Sword, and her nights refining True Essence. She didn’t slack off for a single second.

Until this afternoon. Just as she was gripping her sword to continue her training, a young female figure burst into her wooden cottage in a flurry.

“Are you Fu Yan?”

The newcomer was a girl around Fu Yan’s age. Dressed in a cyan robe, she arrived with undisguised anger, staring at Fu Yan in the courtyard and demanding an answer.

Fu Yan was stunned. The girl before her was a complete stranger; she was certain she didn’t know her.

“I am Fu Yan. And you are?” Fu Yan sheathed her sword and looked up to ask.

“Heh, still playing dumb? You’ve only been in the inner sect for a few days—instead of focusing on cultivation, you’re busy seducing men? Have you no shame?” The girl’s rage was unabated, and the look in her eyes suggested she wanted to eat Fu Yan alive.

Fu Yan frowned. She considered herself to have a decent temper, but she couldn’t tolerate someone barging in and insulting her without cause. “What do you mean?”

“I’m telling you, the one Senior Brother Zhou likes is me! The one he’s pursuing is me, Qin Xinrui! Stop your wishful thinking!” Qin Xinrui seemed blinded by rage, making logical communication impossible.

Fu Yan paused, taking a moment to realize who the “Senior Brother Zhou” she spoke of was.

However, she understood quickly enough when another figure followed closely behind. Fu Yan recognized him immediately—it was Zhou Zhenlie from the Martial Arts Pavilion.

After entering, Zhou Zhenlie saw the two girls facing off in the courtyard and hurried over. Panting slightly, he said to Qin Xinrui, “Junior Sister Xinrui, how can you just barge into someone else’s courtyard without permission?”

Turning toward Fu Yan, he smiled apologetically. “I’m so sorry, Junior Sister Fu. This is a misunderstanding. Junior Sister Xinrui and I are not what you think.”

These words were undoubtedly throwing oil on the fire.

Sure enough, Qin Xinrui completely exploded. She drew her sword and pointed it at Fu Yan, fuming with rage. “Fu Yan, do you dare to accept my challenge!”

Fu Yan stared at the two of them with an amused expression. She wasn’t actually a sixteen-year-old girl; she understood the situation perfectly.

Zhou Zhenlie seemed startled by Qin Xinrui’s action and quickly said to Fu Yan, “Junior Sister Fu, don’t be impulsive. This is just a temporary misunderstanding; she doesn’t mean anything by it. She is Rank 643—you definitely shouldn’t agree.”

According to the inner sect rules, Fu Yan (at the bottom rank) couldn’t challenge someone more than thirty ranks above her, but that didn’t stop others from challenging her.

Looking at Zhou Zhenlie, who seemed worried for her, Fu Yan’s eyes turned cold. She had seen men like this before—they enjoyed watching women fight over them to satisfy their own vanity. Right now, he was probably hoping she’d agree.

Zhou Zhenlie’s cultivation was at the Middle Opening Light stage. Although his rank was 118, Fu Yan wasn’t afraid. After all, a Middle Opening Light cultivator had already died by her hand.

Thinking of this, Fu Yan suddenly smiled. She looked at Qin Xinrui and replied:

“Challenge me?”

“That’s right! Do you dare?” Qin Xinrui said furiously.

“Fine.”