Chapter Twenty-Nine: A Sudden Leap Forward

Song Mingyue held a wooden sword in her hand, while Gao Wu, standing to the side, attempted to mimic her grip.

"That's not right; your grip is too relaxed," Song Mingyue remarked after a glance at Gao Wu, immediately noticing the subtle error in his form.

"Hmm?" Gao Wu looked puzzled. "But isn’t it said that you shouldn't grip a sword too tightly?"

He had always focused on the Nine Forms of the Dragon under the old master, supplementing with hand-to-hand techniques, but had never truly practiced with weapons. The old master believed weapons were merely extensions of the body—once one’s martial cultivation was sufficient, mastering weapons would come naturally. Training with weapons too early, he said, only risked forming bad habits.

It was only today that Gao Wu formally began sword training with Iron Dalong. Just as the old master had predicted, once his hand-to-hand combat was solid, handling a sword wasn’t difficult. After a morning spent on sword practice, Iron Dalong had mainly pointed out the intricate changes in sword moves, never mentioning any problems with his grip. Why, then, did Song Mingyue insist otherwise?

Song Mingyue paid no mind to Gao Wu’s internal deliberations and spoke directly: "You must hold the sword tightly, but your fingers, wrist, and forearm mustn’t be stiff. Don’t use dead strength. These are two different things."

Her keen spiritual power, coupled with countless practice bouts alongside Gao Wu, made her intimately familiar with his muscular strength, allowing her to spot his minor error at a glance. Iron Dalong, on the other hand, could not detect such subtle flaws; only through direct sparring with Gao Wu would he notice. From the outside, there was nothing amiss.

"A sword is an external object. To efficiently channel power through it, a martial artist must grip the hilt firmly," Song Mingyue continued. "Iron Dalong is a warrior—he can use source power to communicate with his blade and has unique sword techniques, so he tends to overlook such small details."

Gao Wu nodded in understanding. For some reason, he felt Song Mingyue’s words were absolutely correct. Perhaps it was because she could approach things with a martial artist’s mindset, while Iron Dalong, as a warrior, was less attuned to this aspect.

Following Song Mingyue’s guidance, he practiced the Soaring Dragon Sword again, focusing particularly on the moves "Breaking the Waves" and "Piercing Clouds and Splitting Stone."

"Iron Dalong has withheld nothing—the essence of the Soaring Dragon Sword lies in the footwork and body movement, emphasizing the sword moving like a dragon, the body following the blade."

Song Mingyue had also studied the Soaring Dragon Sword—a military sword technique, widely known among prestigious families. With so many practitioners, the technique had naturally branched into various schools. The Iron family had spent generations refining their own unique approach, though their true mastery lay in the variations enabled by source power. At the martial artist’s level, however, the technique was not much different from the standard form.

Her proficiency in swordsmanship was more than sufficient to guide Gao Wu.

"The key to the Dragon Step is initiating power from the five toes, then the ball of the foot, progressing to the calf, thigh, and spine—integrating the body’s strength into a single flow like a dragon. The sword in your hand becomes the dragon’s claws, fangs, and tail…"

With her wooden sword, Song Mingyue traced a line from Gao Wu’s toes up along his body, demonstrating the path of force for the Dragon Step.

Her lucid explanations and hands-on guidance allowed Gao Wu to make considerable progress in just two hours of practice with her.

Iron Dalong was like a lecturer, while Song Mingyue was the one who helped him solve practical problems—one provided theory, the other practice. Together, they enabled Gao Wu to quickly master the fundamentals of the Soaring Dragon Sword.

At nine-thirty that night, as usual, the two went to White Scale Lake to challenge the strange spirit.

As the weather grew colder, the bridge stood deserted, making it easier for them to act. Ten days of training had fostered a tacit understanding between Gao Wu and Song Mingyue. After soaking in the icy lake water for a few minutes, they quickly returned to shore. Once Song Mingyue departed, Gao Wu returned to his dormitory and opened the Book of Infinite Merit, only to find his spiritual power had not increased.

That should have been bad news, yet Gao Wu felt relieved.

His spiritual power had already reached eight points; with the same training regimen, the rate of increase ought to taper off. If his spiritual power continued to grow unabated, it would only mean the strange spirit was growing stronger as well.

Fortunately, that was not the case.

Having acquired the Blood Dragon Serum, Gao Wu had nothing to worry about for the time being. His days revolved around filming videos and relentless cultivation.

With Song Mingyue practicing swordplay with him daily, his progress with the Soaring Dragon Sword was rapid, to Iron Dalong’s evident satisfaction. In the past few days, the only leisure Gao Wu allowed himself was visiting Monkey and Wang Tiesong in the hospital, using the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation to aid their recovery.

Modern medicine was advanced enough to heal their wounds. The real issue was the damage to their physical foundations from using serums. After several sessions of the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation, both showed clear signs of renewal and vitality. Gao Wu couldn’t say for certain whether it was the incantation’s power, their youth, or the doctors’ skill, but in any case, it could only help.

During this period his Senior Martial Artist Certificate arrived. The school leaders were delighted by the news and even organized a speech in his honor, displaying his portrait on the school’s bulletin board.

To show their appreciation, the school awarded him a bonus of three thousand yuan!

As the only senior martial artist among Ninth High’s students, Gao Wu truly became the idol of the entire school. Previously, his victories over the likes of Bai Xiang had been impressive, but not universally acknowledged. The title of Senior Martial Artist, however, was an objective benchmark—everyone understood the significance of earning such a rank at the age of eighteen.

The nickname "Saint Gao," once shouted half in jest, now carried genuine respect.

No one was happier than Shen Yue—Gao Wu’s new rank greatly enhanced his own standing, making it easier to manage Gao Wu’s public persona. As his best friend, Shen Yue’s own status soared, allowing him to stride through the halls of Senior Three with newfound authority.

On Sunday, Ninth High faced the weaker Beiming High. Huang Long alone was enough to dominate the match, earning the title of best player. Gao Wu didn’t even need to take the field.

He didn’t mind; his strength was growing daily, and he was in peak condition, unconcerned with the match’s trivial points.

Instead, it was the audience that clamored for "Saint Gao" to take the stage, more eager to join the excitement than out of genuine affection.

The following week, Ninth High again faced a weak opponent, with Huang Long easily dispatching them. With time passing and Gao Wu absent from the matches, the shouts for "Saint Gao" gradually faded. No matter one’s perspective on time, nothing could stem its relentless flow.

In a blink, another week had slipped by, and the weekend competition had arrived once more.

Getting out of bed, Gao Wu pulled back his curtains to find the sky outside bleak and overcast. The campus was uncommonly quiet, and the distant White Dragon Mountain loomed in shadowy relief, its undulating ridges barely discernible.

He didn’t know why, but an inexplicable calm settled over him—a peace and sense of ease he could not quite describe.

Opening the Book of Infinite Merit, a row of data clearly displayed his recent, tremendous progress:

Strength: 9.3, Spirit: 8.5, Agility: 7.8, Constitution: 10.1.

Just yesterday, he had finished the last vial of Blood Dragon Serum. After a deep night’s sleep, he was in peak condition.

Thirty vials of the serum had more than doubled his strength, with comparable gains in spirit and agility. Even his formidable constitution had increased by 0.1. The effects of the Blood Dragon Serum far exceeded his expectations.

Truth be told, the current generation of gene serums was incredibly potent, their efficacy remarkable.

Song Mingyue’s instruction, training with Iron Dalong, and two nutritious meals each day had all further unlocked his potential.

Every night spent battling the strange spirit had, over twenty days, added another 0.5 to his spirit. Even his mastery of the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation had grown.

All aspects of his being were interconnected, mutually enhancing each other under the stimulus of the serum, leading to a comprehensive transformation.

Of course, the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation’s blessings were an integral part. Its effects could not be measured by a mere 10.1 in constitution.

Compared to a month ago, his combat power had at least doubled—a monumental leap, enough to rival the finest peers in Dongjiang.

Once he completed ten doses of the Flying Squirrel Serum, his strength would surely reach new heights.

At that point, he would be able to contend with Dongjiang’s top martial artists. The Xuetao Cup championship was within reach.

Tonight’s match would pit them against Fourth High’s martial arts team—a first-rate squad with two senior martial artists. It would be the perfect test of his progress!

Gao Wu clenched his fist, feeling the surging power within. His blood boiled with excitement, and he longed for nothing more than to find a worthy opponent for a fierce battle right now…