Chapter 223: Falling Blossoms Flutter, Soothing the Heart

The sudden appearance of the Longyuan Sword left Lingxiang stunned for a moment; she had assumed Long Qi had found the Innate Qi and was secretly pleased that the fellow's aptitude was quite good, never imagining it was the Longyuan Sword's own will.

But in a flash of thought, she figured it was likely the Sword Spirit, and it was no loss for her to return the object to its original owner; it could still be considered knowing gratitude and repaying kindness.

Seeing this situation, Xin Yi also set his mind at ease, though the current circumstances were indeed somewhat passive; if the Compass in Huiwu's hand were not destroyed, the endless monsters would tire a person to death even if they didn't kill them.

Only by destroying the Compass in his hand could Long Qi and Zhao Wuyang be safe.

Given Xin Yi's cultivation, he naturally had a plan to escape, but if he had slipped away just now, Lingxiang would have been in danger. However, this moment was not a bad opportunity.

Xin Yi performed the Flying Shadow Three Styles, slaughtering all the monsters around him, and then with a flick of his fingers, he instantly transformed into a cloud of black mist, drifting toward the depths of the Black Wood Forest, disappearing without a trace in an instant.

Huiwu had been furious at the Sword Array, and seeing Xin Yi flee, he threw his head back and laughed: "In the end, you are just a dog for the Envoy; now that you are outmatched, you can only abandon your companions and flee in a sorry state." As he spoke, he looked at Lingxiang: "Now, as long as I deal with you, this little Fucang Elder, I can wipe them all out. I want to see how long this Sword Array can hold out."

Lingxiang naturally trusted Xin Yi; if he had truly wanted to escape, he would have used witchcraft to flee long ago, and even ten Huiwus could not have caught him. The Lu Family's witchcraft and Martial Dao were not suited for direct confrontation, but rather for covert work; she figured he had hidden his form and was waiting for an opportunity.

That was fine too; with the Sword Array protecting her for now, she could take a moment to rest and avoid becoming a burden later. Thinking this, Lingxiang took a Gathering Spirit Pill from her waist and, for the first time ever, began to meditate.

For now, she could only hope that Long Qi and Wuyang would achieve enlightenment quickly!

……

It was easy to say, but when Long Qi practiced at Qingwei Peak, he mostly studied the method of Guiding Spirit into Artifact, which was only to send Spirit Power into the Longyuan Sword; as for things like witchcraft, he was truly ignorant.

It was not that Lingxiang had not taught him, but firstly, he truly could not calm his mind, and secondly, at the time, Lingxiang was mainly teaching Rendong, while he and Xin Yi were merely keeping them company on the side.

According to Lingxiang, Rendong was firstly suited to practicing the Five Elements Path, and secondly, he needed to understand a great many witchcraft techniques to flexibly utilize the combinations of charms on the Suidong Fan.

Thinking of this, Long Qi could not help but feel some regret; if he had steeled his heart to learn more back then, he would not have ended up so passive.

Long Qi tried hard to recall the witchcraft Lingxiang had taught back then, but he could never remember the complex incantations and hand gestures clearly; he gestured at a dead tree for a long time, but the dead tree showed not the slightest reaction.

Just as he was feeling annoyed and restless, he suddenly remembered that the medicine field at Qingwei Peak could remain safe even after an entire winter, which, according to Lingxiang, was entirely due to Hanyang's witchcraft. At that time, Long Qi had felt jealous because of a few words from Hanlu and had specifically sought out Hanyang, intending to study witchcraft; Hanyang had said then that he could practice it.

……

"It is not that I am unwilling to teach you," Hanyang said, walking past Long Qi and taking a copy of "Dao Theory" from the bookshelf behind him, then continuing: "With your aptitude, you can indeed practice this art. But do you understand how to control the Spirit Qi within your body?"

Long Qi shook his head: "Lingxiang did teach some methods of guiding spirit, and although I can use it to some extent, I don't quite understand the underlying principles."

Hanyang smiled upon hearing this, seemingly unconcerned that Long Qi addressed Lingxiang by her name: "You see, firstly, you do not understand the Spirit-Moving Path, and secondly, your status is, after all, that of a disciple of a Fucang Elder, while I am only the Head Disciple; it is not appropriate for me to overstep my bounds."

"However, if Junior Aunt agrees, as long as you can understand the Five Elements Path and the Spirit-Moving Path, I am willing to teach you everything I know."

"She naturally agrees, but every time I practice witchcraft, I cannot grasp the method, so she taught me directly to guide spirit into artifacts, and combined with the Sword Formula, it has had some results."

"Junior Aunt simplified the complex and passed the method directly to you, but even so, you do not know the 'why' behind the 'what'; to accept it so blindly, does that not go against the path of cultivation?"

Hanyang looked at Long Qi as he spoke: "Have you ever thought about what you would do if you truly encountered danger one day and were unable to use your sword?"

"This..." Long Qi was speechless for a moment; he really hadn't thought of that point. To him now, the Longyuan Sword was like his own arm, so how could he not be able to use it?

Just as Long Qi was puzzled, he heard Hanyang say: "Currently, you can only manage to guide spirit into the sword, and at most, you can only strike out Spirit Qi by means of the sword; but if you could understand the Spirit-Moving Path, to say nothing of simple witchcraft, even Airborne Sword Control would be a simple matter."

Hearing this, Long Qi's eyes lit up instantly. The latter half of the "Entwining Dragon Sword Formula" contained moves for Lingkong Flying Sword, but no matter how hard he racked his brains, he could not do it; it seemed that this was what he was missing.

"Then how should one move spirit?" Long Qi asked urgently.

"That is for you to ask yourself," Hanyang said, flicking his fingers, and the Brush on the table began to move on its own.

"Although the method of moving spirit and guiding spirit into artifacts are used differently, their essence lies in the understanding of one's own Dao. When you circulate Spirit Qi, what is it that you are thinking of in your heart?"

……

"What I am thinking of in my heart..." Long Qi's brows were tightly locked. He had thought Hanyang was deliberately using these ambiguous words to put him off, but thinking about it now, he was actually giving him guidance.

It was true; in the past, he had only thought of revenge and was too eager for success in his cultivation, so he had never calmed his heart to think about these things properly. Thinking of it now, he had been shallow.

Long Qi walked to the dead tree and stroked its rough bark.

Old tree, oh old tree, if you are truly my Qi, then respond to me; am I not supposed to be so obsessed with hatred?

Thinking this, Long Qi closed his eyes and injected Spirit Qi into the pear tree. Unlike in the past, his Spirit Qi lacked its usual violent nature, becoming like a trickling stream, slow and gentle.

A fragrant petal drifted down and landed on Long Qi's upright nose; a delicate scent wafted over, and he hurriedly opened his eyes.

Just then, a gust of wind passed, and in an instant, fallen blossoms scattered like snow.

……

Lingxiang was still meditating; although the Spirit Qi in Yunmeng Marsh was abundant and she had taken a Gathering Spirit Pill, the results were still minimal.

After all, she had a Residual Spirit Root, and gathering Spirit Power was somewhat strenuous for her, but she dared not let her guard down in the slightest, meditating intently while carefully keeping an eye on Huiwu's movements.

During this time, monsters tried to force their way into the array, but the fire of the Longyuan Sword Array seemed alive; the flames were like ropes, tightly binding those monsters and burning them to ashes.

But not long after, the flames of the Sword Array began to slowly diminish, as if the Spirit Power were exhausted.

Seeing this, Huiwu laughed wickedly, and when the flames had vanished completely, he waved his hand, and a group of monsters roared and lunged at Lingxiang.