Chapter 46: Uncontrollable Sword
Repeating the same action over and over again, Xu Min injured himself time after time. He would summon the Shattering Palm, and then unsheathe his sword only to see how it would absorb the Qi. It would start by absorbing all the energy that was present outside of the body. As soon as it had sucked up the final bit of Qi, it would follow the connection between the expert and the Qi and start to absorb the energy inside the body of the cultivator. The only way to avoid this was to forcefully cut the connection between himself and the attack being swallowed up by the sword.
Another astonishing occurrence he found was that the sword kept around two-thirds of the energy within the blade. At the same time, it would send one-third of the energy to the holder’s body which was Xu Min. He also found that no matter how hard he tried, it was impossible for him to insert Qi into the sword the way one usually would imbue their weapons. No matter how much he tried, it was an impossibility. The only way for the sword to gain strength was from absorbing it in the air.
“This might work as well,” Xu Min mumbled to himself as he looked at the incredibly sharp sword by his side. Very carefully, he cut a small wound on his leg to allow for the tip of the sword to enter into his flesh. The sword was so sharp that he felt no pain, but as soon as the Qi was running through the wound, the sword instantly absorbed all the Qi Xu Min had left in his body. Unlike the outside energy, it was impossible for him to cut off the connection with the Qi inside of his body. The sword did not stop humming and absorbing until Xu Min was completely drained. For the first time in his life, Xu Min understood how it felt to be completely powerless. All the energy within his body had been drained down to the very last drop. He was breathing heavily as he allowed his body to fall down to the ground.
Seeing Xu Min collapse, Yong Meilin felt her heart quiver and instantly rushed towards him. Yet, what she found was a young man covered in sweat. Although he was looking weak, a large grin was spreading across his face. His eyes were closed and he seemed to enjoy the sun shining down upon him. He had found a way to absorb the energy of external experts as well.
There was, however, one thing which made Xu Min question the amazing ability of his sword which was how many experts it worked on. He could not believe that the sword would be capable of absorbing the energy of a Nine-Star Warrior or did he expect that it would be possible of snatching away the energy of a Seven-Star Warrior. But it had worked on a Three-Star Warrior just fine. Contemplating how strong the sword truly was, Xu Min once more sent a prayer of thanks to whatever god was looking after him. The weapon he had been given by Overseer Wang Li was anything but ordinary.
Although he was completely drained of energy, Xu Min slowly managed to get back on his feet and reach the box with medicinal pills. He took one of the pills that helped restore energy. Afterwards, he dragged his tired body into position and started meditating. He needed all his energy to return to him since he was not done training for the day. He had to test the sword’s power against stronger opponents as he could not afford to be in the dark.
Two hours passed by and Xu Min did not move a muscle. His entire body was submerged in cultivation, and his senses had become one with the world around him. His mind was flowing from his body, feeling the wind that swept down in his courtyard. He heard the breathing of Yong Meilin and Cao Cao, and felt the closeness of the two beings. A feeling of calmness had completely overtaken his body. He felt the grass swaying under his body and parts of the trees reaching to the sun. Everything was one and he was a part of it. He had never before felt such a tranquil meditation. He never before been pushed so far as to become one with the earth. He was not even able to tell what was happening.
Finally after two hours, the young man opened his eyes. His dark black phoenix-like eyes were filled with surprise as he felt how the energy within him was stronger than it had been before. It was as though it had been refined more than what it used to have. It was as though he needed less of his Qi to get the results he wished for. Feeling like this, Xu Min had an enlightenment. He had never before used up every drop of energy and went directly to training. He had never before been so empty that he was able to become one with the world around him. Now that he did, he was astonished to see what had happened to him.
Standing up, he felt stronger than he had ever felt before. It was as though the Qi had been refined while his muscles, veins, and entire body had been cleansed. It was with great gratitude that he once more picked up the sword that had been laying by his side. While picking it up, he felt that the sword was alive. This was something he had not felt before. As to what had sparked this changed, Xu Min was unaware. Yet in his hand, he could feel a throbbing pulse coming from within the sword which was filled to the brim with Xu Min’s energy. It had the energy it absorbed earlier that day.
“Meilin!” he called out and the young woman lifted her head from the book she had been reading. Her eyes questioned what was happening. Nevertheless, she stood up, dusted the dress, and moved towards the young man who had called for her. “What’s wrong?” she asked. It was rare for Xu Min to call for her this late during the day. He usually prefered using all of the waking hours on his own, either on cultivation or practice for his sword techniques.
“I need to have a group of experts gathered. I need two internal and external Four-Star Expert. I also need both internal and external Five-Star Experts and Six-Star Experts. If you can find one of each for Three-Star, then I will be incredibly grateful.” he said. He needed to fully understand his sword in the time for the tournament. The days were rushing by so fast that he had no other option than to ask Yong Meilin right away.
The woman had a confused expression on her face, but she quickly nodded her head and gently placed the green snake on the ground before she let herself out of the courtyard. She moved towards the barracks where the experts were living. She needed to find quite a few experts. She was worried whether or not the higher ranked experts were available but she hoped for the best.
It took Yong Meilin an hour to gather the experts that Xu Min had asked for. As she entered the courtyard, she saw that Xu Min was once more fully focused on training just one slash. Yet as soon as the door opened and Yong Meilin entered with the experts behind her, Xu Min felt a smile slip onto his face. He suddenly had the hope that if he could absorb the energy of a Six-Star Expert, then perhaps he could also absorb it from a Seven-Star Expert. If he could do this, then he did not have to wait long. He would already be ready to face off against the Zhong family leader. If he could absorb all his energy, then he could without a doubt get his revenge without waiting too long.
Yong Meilin had seen Xu Min get excited before. She had seen him like this whenever he spoke about cultivation or if he had just mastered a new attack or technique. She had seen his eyes filled with astonishment when he had seen the medicinal pills for the first time. She had seen him filled with determination whenever he had been training, but looking at him now she saw something that took her by surprise. Looking at the young man, she found that there was hope within his eyes. A heart-wrenching and painstaking hope that seemed to fill every fiber of his body. Seeing him like this, Yong Meilin could not help but wonder about what exactly had changed the young man to become what he was. For the first time, he seemed a boy his age. He did not have the aloofness that seemed as though nothing could faze him. Instead, he was now very human, filled with a naive hope for something that Yong Meilin could not understand.
“Thank you all for helping me out,” Xu Min said politely as he bowed to the many experts in front of him. His actions caused all the guards to be slightly confused. They had not been told what it was that Yong Meiling needed them. Seeing the most hated individual within Ri Chu City in front of them was not making things easier.
Although they disliked Xu Min, no one said a word. This was a part of their job and they wished continue without any problems. “The internal Three-Star Expert, please step forward,” Xu Min called and a young man stepped forward. Although he looked to be only around twenty years of age, Xu Min could easily guess that this man was at least double his age. Knowing that the man was older caused Xu Min to once more bow at the expert.
“I will need you to produce one of your martial art skills. Do not attack, just call forth the martial art skill.” The expert frowned slightly but he quickly did as he was told. Xu Min unsheathed his sword and slowly touched the martial art skill with the tip of the sword. There were not sparring matches, but instead were experiments. He did not need to slash anything, but only be calm and collected.
As soon as the tip of the sword touched the outside Qi, the face of the expert changed drastically. Xu Min’s face turned excited. The attack was slowly growing transparent and the Qi was being absorbed by the sword tip.
“I cannot cancel the suction force,” Xu Min said apologetic, “You will have to forcefully cancel the technique,” he said. The expert did not need to hear it twice before he forcefully cut off the link between him and the attack. Breathing out, the expert slowly went back to the group of experts. His face was pale and his eyes were filled with disbelief. It was not just him, everyone around him was shocked at the sight that had happened.
“The external expert, please come forward,” Xu Min continued and a massive man appeared. This man was so strong and massive that Xu Min was taken aback by looking at him. “I am sorry but I need to make a small cut in your skin.” he started, but the massive man shrugged. A small cut meant nothing to a great expert, “I am unable to stop the suction force from my sword, so in case it manages to suck up your Qi, then we have to wait until you are completely emptied. If that happens, I have a medicinal pill for you. You should sit down and cultivate right away. It will be very beneficial to you,” he said after having experienced how well it went for him last time. The massive man nodded his head. “No worries, just go ahead,” he said and Xu Min did just that. With a gentle hand, he made a one centimeter deep cut and allowed for the tip of the sword to sit in the flesh.