Other than the swordplay manuals, this was the first time that Ai Hui had studied a record of swordsmanship. Actually, what was written in the swordplay manuals was not exactly swordplay, but rather sword moves.
There were big differences between swordplay and sword moves.
The nature of sword moves was the ‘move’, or the change of the spiritual force, and the sword was only a carrier. The nature of swordplay, however, was the skill to wield a sword. This was also the reason why the sword declined as a weapon. In the early stages of the development of the sword moves, swordplay was a basic training subject for all swordsmen. During the Cultivation Era, swordsmen had not had to start with swordplay because the sword was not necessarily controlled by the hands.
The use of spiritual force could send the sword flying for thousands of miles and was what swordsmen practiced.
Yet, due to the unexpected disappearance of spiritual force, people had to control the sword with their hands again. Only by that time had they realized that they were no longer able to use the sword.
In terms of chopping and hacking, swords were less powerful than sabers and axes. In terms of stabbing, they were not as good as spears.
Currently, this was the embarrassing status of swordplay. While, the elimination of species was selected by nature, the elimination of swordsmanship was selected by time. Ai Hui was unaware of any profound theories, but he was well versed in the limits of swordsmanship due to his abundant experience in fighting.
If it were not for the sword embryo and its subsequent changes, he would not have chosen swordplay.
Thanks to the sword embryo, he developed his own advantage. Although he had no way of knowing if this would be advantageous in the future, he had decided to place his future on the sword simply because of what he could obtain now. Others might think he was too careless in making such an important decision for his future, but Ai Hui disagreed.
What meaning would the future have to a person like him who had nothing at all? His life was worth nothing, so it was needless to talk about his future. Therefore, to him, even the slightest advantage was valuable.
He slowly infused his elemental energy into the sword pill.
The sword pill began to shine again, and a figure appeared in the light.
Ai Hui watched carefully this time. The faster he infused the elemental energy, the more rapidly the figure move and vice versa.
His teacher said there were three independent moves with their own names. The first one was named the [Crescent Moon], the second [Dust Fall] and the third [Night Epiphyllum]. None of the names were related. That was why Cheng Rou thought they were a mess. Actually, Ai Hui had not seen an interrelation between them either.
Having watched carefully from the beginning to the end, Ai Hui realized that there was only one move he could learn now among the three moves.
It was the first one, the [Crescent Moon].
This was because the [Crescent Moon] was the only move that merely required the hand palaces. Both of the other two moves had a higher criteria in the base level and involved the activation of more palaces. The [Dust Fall] technique demanded the activation of the hand palaces and the earth palace, which was not easy to open. Ai Hui would be hard pressed to accomplish this within a short period of time. Meanwhile, the[Night Epiphyllum] was even more complicated. Apart from the four palaces of the hands and feet, the sky palace was also needed to be activated.
Ai Hui was a bit disappointed at first, but on second thought, he was satisfied as he knew very few masters would bother to create a set of swordplay for beginners.
The [Crescent Moon] alone was sufficiently complicated for him to learn.
This was the most complicated move he had ever encountered. The moves he previously learned were simple and brutal, like the [Arching Fish Back]. Although he had not really started, he had already gained a lot simply by watching the three moves in the sword pill. This experience was amazing and really eye-opening for Ai Hui.
The first thing he noticed about the three moves was their elaboration in an all-round way. The flowing route of the elemental energy, for example, was complicated and carefully designed. Moreover, the flowing speed of the elemental energy was not constant either, but was sometimes fast and sometimes slow.
Additionally, the coordination of the breath and the body was also required.
In other words, the move would only be unleashed when the elemental energy and breathing were coordinated with the movement.
The perfect combination of these three factors could lead to the most powerful execution of the moves.
The countless details were so complicated that it almost took Ai Hui’s breath away.
The difficulty in practicing the [Crescent Moon] was already beyond Ai Hui’s imagination, but it would be even more difficult to use this move in actual combat because, in a real fight, the environment was more complicated and tougher. Furthermore, the fighter would have to consider how to grasp fleeting opportunities while simultaneously dealing with the obstruction and interference of the opponents.
Based on his fighting experience, Ai Hui preferred simpler moves which were easier to use. However, he was also aware of his weakness, which was the lack of a powerful finishing move.
The three independent moves in the sword pill could become his finishing techniques.
Although he had not yet learned the move, he could already feel its power.
His teacher was right. Cheng Rou was definitely a true genius.
Admittedly, Ai Hui had gained something from the swordplay manuals. Although his training no longer depended on the swordplay manuals, he had developed his own understanding of swordplay under the influence of the manuals which contained the wisdom of numerous cultivators spanning thousands of years.
The three moves of the sword pill were featured with detail. All the energy within the body was allocated elaborately, then converged, and finally burst out.
This was awesome.
With eyes lit up, he calmed down from the excitement and began to study carefully.
The sky outside Central Pine City.
A transport wagon roared past. The students in the wagon were sitting quietly.
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