The sword shadows danced like a dream, lingering in the air even after the practice ended. Everyone was captivated, unable to forget what they had seen. However, the sword movements were so intricate that while they remembered them, the details seemed just out of reach.
Seeing everyone deep in thought, Li Hao didn’t waste any more time. He sat down and continued to paint.
+827, +789, +702...
Li Hao moved quickly, grinding ink and painting. Each of the dozens of paintings he created of those in the Spirit Travel realm brought him experience points, adding up to seven or eight hundred, which made his painting skills grow rapidly.
As Li Hao painted, others gradually came back to their senses. They saw him busy and didn’t dare to disturb him, instead focusing on their own understanding and reflection.
After finishing the fourth painting, Li Hao looked at everyone and asked, “How do you feel?”
“Master Li, could you demonstrate it again?” A handsome young man spoke up after exchanging glances with the others. He was a talented individual, equal in status to Song Yueyao, and felt embarrassed to admit he hadn’t grasped it well after two demonstrations.
Li Hao glanced at the others and saw their eager yet reserved expressions.
“Alright,” he said after a moment of thought. He realized that repeating the demonstration over and over wasn’t a good approach. Since he was teaching, he needed to take it seriously and ensure everyone learned properly. Otherwise, it would just be a waste of time.
He asked everyone about their backgrounds and learned that they all had a foundation in agility. However, their levels varied; some had just reached it while others were close to perfection.
“Since I’m teaching, I hope you all can achieve something,” Li Hao said, looking around. “I have three lessons this year, and I hope you can reach a perfect level in swordsmanship by the end. If you can do that, I’ll consider fulfilling three wishes of yours, within my ability!”
“Perfect level?”
“Three wishes?”
Everyone was stunned, shocked by Li Hao’s ambition. This wasn’t just granting them wishes; he was making a promise for himself!
To teach them all to perfection in just three lessons? That was a tall order, almost absurd. They didn’t dare compare themselves to Li Hao, who could grasp the sword techniques just by looking at the manual.
Besides, some of them felt a bit skeptical, thinking Li Hao must have prepared in advance. After all, how could a teacher not prepare for a class?
“Master Li, isn’t that request a bit too difficult?” someone couldn’t help but ask.
“Master, you can’t be joking, right? It’s a bit funny…” another person chimed in.
Song Yueyao looked at Li Hao with confusion. She had been at the agility level for half a year and knew how hard it was to go from agility to perfection. Even with good talent, it required a year and a half of intense practice to engrain the sword moves into one’s bones and achieve perfection.
Three lessons were simply not enough.
But for someone like Li Hao, who had shown so many “impossibilities,” it didn’t seem as far-fetched.
Li Hao noticed the chatter among the crowd but didn’t say much. He picked up his sword again.
Relying solely on practicing the perfect level sword techniques would be a bit difficult for them and waste time. But if they could grasp the essence of the sword technique, it would be much easier to learn step by step.
“Silence!”
Li Hao’s gaze turned sharp.
Those two words quieted the room instantly.
Everyone felt a strange thrill, sensing his authority, and their expressions grew serious.
“Focus and feel,” Li Hao instructed, his demeanor shifting from casual to intense as he stared at the sword.
Then he raised his sword.
The Yin-Yang Sword of Division, True State!
Yes, surpassing the flawless perfection, Li Hao directly demonstrated the true state of swordsmanship!
The true state of sword techniques returns to simplicity, transcending the ordinary, revealing the full essence of the sword art.
The sword light flickered, black and white beams alternated, a dance of light and shadow. The sword moved through the air, as if traversing another realm.
The sword was real, while the space around it was illusory.
As the sword light spun, the black and white beams continued to alternate, finally merging into one.
The sword came to an end.
The hall fell silent, everyone stared in a daze, their eyes and thoughts seemingly swept away by that one sword strike, lost in its depths.
Even after Li Hao sheathed his sword, they remained entranced, as if the profound sword shadows still flickered before them, spinning in their minds.
Li Hao remained quiet, waiting patiently.
Suddenly, someone snapped back to reality, and soon others followed suit.
“Is this the Yin-Yang Sword of Division?”
Everyone was shocked, looking at each other.
“It seems completely different from what I practiced before! But it feels real; what I practiced was fake!”
“It wasn’t fake; it was wrong!”
“This is the real Yin-Yang Sword of Division! Mr. Sun taught it wrong; no, the manual is wrong!”
“One sword reverses Yin and Yang, one sword disrupts the void!”
The more they spoke, the more excited they became, their voices growing louder, their faces flushed with emotion.
Song Yueyao was lost in thought, blocking out the discussions around her. Suddenly, she closed her eyes.
When she opened them again, she dashed to the weapon rack, swiftly drew her sword!
Then, the sword was out.
The sword shadow was like light, trembling like a snake, colorful like a rainbow!
Like a peacock spreading its feathers, the sword shadow was perfectly displayed at that moment.
The swordsmanship that had been stuck at a bottleneck for half a year crossed a new threshold!
Everyone noticed and stared at her in shock.
“Senior Sister Song has grasped it…”
“She actually achieved perfection; she had only been practicing this sword for less than a year!”
“It’s the perfect level, exactly like what Master Li demonstrated!”
Everyone was incredibly impressed, their excitement rising, and they began to refer to Li Hao as “Teacher Li” instead of “Young Master Li.”
From awe to admiration!
At the same time, a few others seemed to have insights as well, rushing to the weapon rack to draw their swords and practice.
The hall was spacious enough for them to train.
The rest of the group also returned to their senses, forgetting to watch others and hurriedly trying to engrave their recent insights into their swords.
In no time, everyone rushed to the weapon rack, grabbing swords to practice.
After finishing her sword techniques, Song Yueyao woke from her trance. She stared blankly at the sword in her hand, then looked at the young man, who smiled encouragingly at her.
That smile felt like sunshine, warming her heart.
Song Yueyao momentarily lost focus, her cheeks suddenly flushed, and she turned her gaze away.
In the hall, everyone was enthusiastically immersed in practice, trying to capture and engrave the gradually fading essence in their minds.
During this time, a few people excitedly shouted, “I did it!”
They had all been at a bottleneck, but now they had broken through.
Li Hao smiled.
When someone asked for guidance, he clapped his hands, signaling everyone to watch again.
This went on for four repetitions.
By the time the sun began to set, Li Hao concluded the lesson.
Before dismissing the class, he noticed that more than a dozen people had reached the perfect level, and he felt quite satisfied. Hard work pays off.
“Teacher Li, what level is the sword technique you demonstrated?”
“I heard that above perfection is the ultimate state; is that the level you reached?”
As class was about to end, someone couldn’t help but ask.
Li Hao smiled and replied, “Above perfection is the ultimate state, and above the ultimate state is the true state, which is the level I demonstrated to you.”
He felt there was nothing to hide about this level of skill.
Great masters of swordsmanship who have immersed themselves in their craft for decades have already touched the true state.
They even grasp some of the deeper meanings of sword techniques.
Moreover, Li Hao felt that the true state wasn’t the peak; there should be even higher levels above it.
However, with his current understanding, he couldn’t reach that yet. Perhaps when his mindset reaches a higher level, he could glimpse it.
“True state…”
Everyone was stunned by Li Hao’s words.
Song Yueyao’s pupils slightly contracted as she looked at Li Hao in disbelief.
She had heard her grandfather mention the existence of the “true state,” but it was incredibly rare to see. It required immense talent and decades of hard practice to touch it!
Li Hao was undoubtedly a genius in swordsmanship, but to master this sword technique to the true state would take at least ten years of hard work, right?
Yet Li Hao was only fourteen years old… Song Yueyao couldn’t think further, feeling her resolve wavering.
She finally understood what those who had complained about being around geniuses must have felt.
“Tonight, you all ponder it yourselves. A teacher leads you to the door; the practice is up to you,” Li Hao waved goodbye, announcing the end of the class.
Back at the residence, Li Fu found Li Hao and said that the lord had sent a message, suggesting that Li Hao should make some friends. Although the true dragon was almost certain, connections were important for a lifetime.
He hoped Li Hao could successfully secure the true dragon without leaving any shortcomings for others to criticize.
Li Hao simply agreed casually.
The next day.
Li Hao prepared an extra small pastry and went to the cold pond. He kicked a small stone, sending it flying into the water.
Soon, the large figure of the water qilin emerged, transforming into a human as it walked out of the pond, completely dry and clean.
Seeing the small pastry in Li Hao’s hand, Song Qiumo’s eyes lit up with joy.
Li Hao smiled and handed her the pastries before waving goodbye and leaving without lingering.
Watching Li Hao walk away, Song Qiumo took a bite of the pastry, her eyes turning crescent-shaped with delight.
At this moment, Li Hao returned for the second lesson, having already applied for the handover.
Just as he reached the entrance of the White Hall, he heard an angry voice from inside:
“How can you, as a teacher, insult a child like this?”
“He may not be talented in martial arts, but that doesn’t mean he’s a bad person!”
“You can discipline him, be strict like you would with a martial artist, but you can’t treat him like a beast!”
The speaker seemed extremely furious, his voice booming.
Hearing this outburst, Li Hao paused and slowly walked toward the door.
Inside, the hall was already filled with people. He had a habit of sleeping in, so he hadn’t arrived early.
At this moment, three people stood in front of the students: Sun Hongdian and Zhou Zheng, whom he had seen yesterday, and beside Zhou Zheng was a burly middle-aged man dressed in regular clothes but exuding a strong presence. He bore some resemblance to Zhou Zheng, though Zhou Zheng was slightly more refined.
On the ground in front of them lay scattered pieces of books, and aside from one more person, the scene was strikingly similar to yesterday.
“General Zhou, you can’t be unreasonable like this!”
Sun Hongdian’s face turned red from the scolding. He was reprimanding Zhou Zheng when he unexpectedly saw his father come to visit and overheard the conversation.
Originally, he thought he would thank General Zhou for his strict education, but instead, the general stormed in and scolded him, leaving him dumbfounded.
“I’m being unreasonable? What part of my words was unreasonable? Is it reasonable for you to insult my son?!”
Zhou Zheng’s father shouted angrily, “Though I’m a martial man, I understand basic principles. I know my son is a person, a decent person! He’s not a rat ruining a pot of porridge!”
“Nor is he a filthy worm that wallows in degradation!”
“He just hasn’t succeeded in martial arts; it doesn’t mean he’s unworthy of being a person!”
The burly father’s voice was filled with rage, booming, “Though my son’s talent isn’t high, he has a pure heart. Even if he’s only at the Spirit Travel level, he’s still my pride. How dare you insult him like this?”
The audience fell silent.
No one mocked Zhou Zheng for needing his father’s protection; instead, they looked on with a hint of envy.
Sun Hongdian angrily retorted, “I can’t reason with you. If you act like this, your son should just drop out!”
“Facing a teacher like you, dropping out is fine!” Zhou Zheng’s father shot back, grabbing his son to leave.
Zhou Zheng’s eyes were red, and he bit his lip, struggling not to let tears fall in front of everyone. He looked down and choked out, “Dad, I want to stay here. I want to learn properly. I practiced my sword techniques yesterday!”
“If you want to learn, I’ll find a famous teacher for you. There are plenty of renowned teachers in the world!” Zhou Zheng’s father huffed angrily.
Sun Hongdian trembled with rage, “If you walk out of here, you’ll never come back!”
“Never thought about coming back!”
Zhou Zheng’s father was furious, pulling his son away when they bumped into Li Hao at the door.
Instantly, everyone’s gaze fell on Li Hao.
The students quickly stood up, bowing in unison, “Greetings, Teacher Li!”
The synchronized voice startled both Sun Hongdian and Zhou Zheng’s father, and even Li Hao was taken aback.
“Teacher Li?”
Sun Hongdian was stunned, looking at Li Hao in confusion.
Zhou Zheng’s eyes lit up as he saw Li Hao. His previously red eyes brightened, and he hurriedly said to his father, “Dad, he’s Young Master Li Hao, Teacher Li! Yesterday, in just one lesson, he helped us all elevate our sword techniques from agility to perfection!”
“??”
Zhou Zheng’s father and Sun Hongdian both looked bewildered.
What was this kid talking about?
Li Hao was also confused, momentarily stunned.
What? They all learned it in one lesson?
Didn’t only a dozen people grasp it at the end of class?
Wait, why was he even here today?
“Young Master Li Hao…” Zhou Zheng’s father looked at Li Hao in shock, then suddenly bent down, kneeling on one knee, “I am Zhou Liang, I greet Young Master Li Hao.”
This action left everyone speechless again.
Li Hao quickly helped him up, saying, “General Zhou?”
“Master, I was once a subordinate of your father,” Zhou Liang said humbly.
Li Hao suddenly realized, then smiled, “There’s no need to be so polite.”
Beside them, Sun Hongdian’s expression darkened, frowning tightly.
“Dad, I want to stay here. I want to learn another lesson from Teacher Li,” Zhou Zheng quickly told his father.
Zhou Liang didn’t expect Li Hao, who was currently in the spotlight, to be teaching here. Seeing his son plead, he thought for a moment and agreed.
After Zhou Liang gave his son a few instructions and left, Sun Hongdian coldly snorted, “Zhou Zheng, you disrupted the class today. The academy isn’t a place you can come and go as you please.”
Zhou Zheng’s expression changed slightly.
Li Hao smiled, saying, “Mr. Sun, it was just a misunderstanding.”
Seeing Li Hao speak up for him, Sun Hongdian changed his tone, smiling politely, “Young Master Li, you might not know, but Zhou Liang is simply unreasonable…”
Li Hao shook his head, interrupting him, and smiled, “Mr. Sun, I know you want to motivate the students with sharp words, but perhaps being too harsh can stifle a young soul?”
Sun Hongdian was taken aback, his expression shifting as he fell silent.
Li Hao didn’t say more. He had no interest in engaging with such a person. After handing over the class, Sun Hongdian left, and Li Hao looked around at everyone.
“Did Zhou Zheng just say you all reached the perfect level?”
The atmosphere in the hall seemed to brighten, excitement showing on everyone’s faces. Their eyes sparkled as Ma Jing spoke up first, “Teacher Li, what Zhou Zheng said is true! The sword techniques you demonstrated yesterday were truly enlightening. We caught a glimpse of that essence, which is why we made such rapid progress!”
Though it sounded like flattery, it was genuinely on point.
Li Hao sighed, “I planned to teach you over three lessons, so if that’s the case, I guess I came here for nothing today. There’s not much to teach.”
Everyone burst into laughter, grateful and excited to have gained so much from just one lesson.
Someone jokingly said, “Teacher Li, did you forget something?”
“Hmm?”
“You said yesterday that once we all mastered the perfect level, you would grant us three wishes!”
Someone excitedly looked at Li Hao.
Li Hao was speechless. That motivation had been said casually; who would have thought they were truly capable? They were indeed worthy of entering the White Hall, with decent talent.
“Well, go ahead and discuss among yourselves, but it must be within my ability,” Li Hao said.
Upon hearing this, everyone began chattering excitedly.
Some wanted to visit the Rain Listening Tower, some wanted famous swords, and others wanted to learn another sword technique, and so on.
Amidst these more serious requests, there were also some playful suggestions, like wanting to become sworn brothers with Li Hao or wanting to visit a brothel.
Li Hao chuckled, raising a hand for silence. Once everyone calmed down, he said, “Choose one request.”
Hearing this, everyone was both surprised and delighted, not expecting Li Hao to take it seriously.
They were already very grateful for the swordsmanship lesson, and many of the earlier requests had been half-joking.
“Hey, don’t pick anything too outrageous,” Lin Feifei stood up to warn, feeling some of the guys were a bit too ambitious.
At her words, a few people immediately chuckled awkwardly.
“Teacher Li, you definitely won’t agree to the Rain Listening Tower, so how about you take us to visit a brothel?” someone teased.
Upon hearing this, the other young men’s eyes lit up, and they cheered, “That sounds good!”
At their youthful age, they had come to Qingzhou’s Tangu Academy for their studies and had hardly left the mountain. The competition pressure in the academy was immense, with a strict elimination system that left them no room to relax.
They had long yearned for that world of beauty and pleasure.
Meanwhile, the dozen or so female students rolled their eyes, looking at the boys with disdain.
Li Hao smiled, “Going to a brothel is a small matter.”
In this era, entertainment was scarce, and visiting a brothel was akin to scrolling through TikTok in the past.
Brothels also varied in quality. The lowest were brothels for cheap sex, where one could easily catch diseases.
The more reputable ones mostly offered performances, poetry, and songs. Of course, if one had good poetry or money, they could enjoy some pleasurable services.
If Li Hao were to take them, it would naturally be to the best brothel in Qingzhou, just to listen to some tunes; anything beyond that was off the table.
“Really?”
The male students were overjoyed at Li Hao’s agreement.
The female students, however, all scoffed, their cheeks flushing with embarrassment.
Song Yueyao shot Li Hao a glare and huffed, “You guys can go; I’m not going.”
“I’m not going either,” Lin Feifei immediately added.
The dozen or so female students protested.
But the other male students, fearing Li Hao might change his mind, were chattering excitedly, their enthusiasm ignited.
“It’s hard to please everyone. For those who aren’t going, I’ll gift you a painting as compensation,” Li Hao told the female students.
Hearing this, the girls were taken aback, then saw Li Hao take out a scroll and reveal a painting: “This is what I painted yesterday. You can each take one.”
As everyone looked, they couldn’t help but exclaim.
They had noticed Li Hao painting yesterday, thinking it was just a pastime, but they hadn’t expected it to be so exquisite and lifelike!
The painting included the White Hall and all the students, capturing each person’s pure and clean expressions—some frowning, some gazing to the side, all with charm. The girls appeared gentle, while the male students looked dashing and elegant, each with their unique aura.
Together, under the warm sunlight, it was as beautiful as a spring breeze.
Many were captivated by the sight.
A young man raised his hand and said, “Teacher Li, I won’t go to the brothel anymore. Can I have one?”
“There aren’t many, so female students get priority,” Li Hao smiled.
The previously dissatisfied female students rushed forward, eagerly competing for the paintings.
Song Yueyao’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Li Hao, surprised at his exceptional painting skills, which clearly couldn’t have been developed overnight.
This young man was calm and composed, dressed like a pine tree, and aside from excelling in swordsmanship, he also had the energy to focus on these other skills, making him hard to fathom.
Once the paintings were distributed, many girls carefully admired them. Although they practiced martial arts and couldn’t focus on other studies, they had a natural love for beautiful things.
After sending the female students off, Li Hao used the time of the second lesson to take the male students down the mountain.
Seeing Li Hao use teaching time to take them out for fun, everyone was extremely excited; this was unprecedented.
If other teachers found out, they would probably punish them all with wall-sitting.
But with Li Hao backing them, they weren’t afraid of anything.
As everyone descended the mountain, news spread throughout the academy.
While drinking tea, Song Yufeng almost choked, coughing repeatedly as he exclaimed in shock, “You say Li Hao went to teach and ended up taking all the students down the mountain to visit a brothel?!”
(End of this chapter)