Chapter 102: Chapter Five: Talking of Swords

Pei Ye does possess some ability to read characters, but knowing “big” doesn’t mean knowing “quail,” and being able to read storybooks doesn’t mean being able to read the Five Classics.

This book in his hands, with its terse and profound language, might require Pei Ye to study a single sentence for a long time.

“I… know few characters,” Pei Ye repeated, blushing.

Ming Qitian fell silent for a moment, then said slowly: “Then you must learn, won’t you?”

“Hmm… I’ll try to find someone to teach me this month.”

Ming Qitian nodded, exhaling slightly—when she agreed to Yue Muzhou, she had never prepared to teach someone to read.

“Good. Learn as you go, and read as much as you can.”

“Alright.”

“Now let’s return to the Opening Sword we were discussing,” Ming Qitian said. “The ‘General Treatise’ divides sword cultivation into five realms: ‘Clumsy,’ ‘Fluid,’ ‘Intent,’ ‘Heart,’ and ‘Dao.’ The path of sword cultivation largely follows this structure.”

“I’d be honored… to hear more.”

“‘Clumsy’ refers to the realm of mastery. Master a sword technique so thoroughly that every movement is flawless, every force applied precisely at the right point. Over time, you attain the true essence of the sword, wielding it as if it were an extension of your own limbs—this is the Clumsy Realm.”

“...So this is the Clumsy Realm?” Pei Ye frowned. “Then many who train a single sword technique for ten or twenty years are merely at this level?”

“Correct. They are all in the Clumsy Realm.”

“Then what about others—even seasoned masters with three or four decades of experience—who still cannot fully master their sword’s force? What realm are they in?”

“Sword realms are unrelated to cultivation levels. As long as you make errors in technique, you are not even a proper swordsman.”

“Then I have another question, Miss Ming: Sword techniques vary in difficulty. One person trains a highly complex sword art for seven or eight years without success; another trains only the Opening Sword and masters it without error in a few months. Who qualifies as being in the ‘Clumsy’ realm?” Pei Ye had a habit of pressing for exact answers.

Ming Qitian shook her head: “The Clumsy Realm isn’t defined by mastering any particular technique—I was merely giving examples. Strictly speaking, it’s about control of the sword. When you’re sufficiently familiar, intimate, and precise with your blade, you enter the Clumsy Realm. You’ll feel the sword merging with your body.”

“And for us, there is no truly difficult sword technique. Any technique should be learnable within six months,” Ming Qitian added.

Pei Ye hadn’t expected this arrogant remark to include him, yet the woman’s tone held no excitement—only calm, matter-of-fact delivery, as natural as handing him a pear earlier.

Given her earlier ability to see through the wall and perceive the [Clouds Veil the Eyes and Feathers Fall], this “six-month” deadline clearly referred to him.

“Can these realms also be used to classify sword techniques?” Pei Ye asked.

Ming Qitian nodded: “It’s an unwritten classification. A technique’s upper limit—its highest realm—determines its tier.”

Pei Ye looked up, thinking: “Miss Ming, I’ve heard White Deer Palace is famed for its techniques. Are all their sword arts merely Clumsy Realm?”

Ming Qitian smiled faintly: “Let’s speak only of their swords. White Deer Palace’s path is an attempt to stand atop the Dao of the Sword. They obsess over technique, not to reject higher realms, but precisely to use ‘technique’ as a shortcut to reach Intent, Heart, and Dao—bypassing years of slow accumulation and insight.”

Pei Ye half-understood.

Ming Qitian continued: “If you ever study their intricate methods, you’ll feel a rupture. You can still learn their exquisitely refined moves within six months—but when you seek even greater ‘technique,’ you’ll find it impossibly hard. Why? Because you’ve left the Clumsy Realm and are now attempting to leap into the upper three realms.”

“White Deer Palace’s techniques use ‘Clumsy’ to reach ‘Fluid’ with great maturity; their brilliance allows disciples to skip much labor. Achieving ‘Intent’ through ‘Clumsy’ is not uncommon, but reaching ‘Heart’ through ‘Clumsy’ is exceedingly rare, and achieving ‘Dao’ through ‘Clumsy’ seems to have occurred only in past generations—no one in the present has succeeded.”

Pei Ye slowly nodded, mouth slightly open.

This was a true master, a pinnacle of insight. The enigmatic and revered Sword Sanctuary—White Deer Palace—the colossal power dominating the southwest, honored by the Cloud Mountains, brushing aside Long Jun’s face, each of its wandering disciples effortlessly reducing Jianghu greats to severed corpses.

And now, dismantled in mere words.

“Let’s return to the realms,” Ming Qitian said. “‘Fluid’ is the realm of synthesis. In this realm, you no longer merely use the sword—you begin to understand it. Different sword techniques no longer appear rigidly separate; movements are no longer rigidly fixed. Any technique is merely an expression of sword use—you can draw upon them effortlessly.”

Pei Ye suddenly understood, recalling how she fought Long Jun the night before.

But the most astonishing part wasn’t her effortless blending of different techniques—it was the sheer, oceanic number of those “different techniques.”

Clearly, even within the Fluid Realm, there are vast differences.

“Just as the core of the Clumsy Realm is control of the sword, the core of the Fluid Realm is understanding of the sword. It’s not enough to merely blend techniques—you must achieve ‘no-form surpasses form,’” Ming Qitian continued. “At the peak of the Fluid Realm, you reach the zenith of technique. You dismantle any move effortlessly, no longer deceived. No matter how sublime the technique, as long as it remains within ‘form,’ to you it’s merely a blade thrusting or slashing.”

Pei Ye listened, entranced.

“‘Intent’ is the realm of emotion,” Ming Qitian continued, her voice flowing gently. She appeared distant and cold, yet in daily conversation she spoke freely, never curt or deliberately aloof. Now, speaking of swords, she was meticulous, never weary of detail.

“The first two realms concern only your body. ‘Intent’ involves ‘emotion.’ Your thoughts, beliefs, feelings, insights—all these can be infused into your sword, becoming sword-intent. Only then do you enter the Intent Realm.”

“From this realm onward, your sword begins to carry your own color—not merely the achievements of others. Only by entering this realm can one truly step into the hall of the sword path.”

“This is the broadest realm, and for many geniuses, the ultimate limit of the sword path. Countless sword masters spend their entire lives refining within this realm. Even among those in the Intent Realm, individual attainments may differ as vastly as heaven and earth.”

Pei Ye now realized the previous claim—that one only truly enters the sword path here—was clearly subjective.

“As for the Heart and Dao realms, they are too distant for now. No need to dwell on them.”

“Ah? I’d like to hear, Master Ming.”

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(End of Chapter)