Chapter 271: Million Sword Illustration
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
"Ice cream?"
Just as all of the officials were wondering what ice cream was, the lights and lines enveloping Fang Zhengzhi began to fall off.
It looked like a cocoon shedding silk.
It was extremely strange.
All of the officials did not understand what was going on. Normally, shouldn’t the ice be melted?
Why is it falling off?
Nangong Mu was also shocked, but the shock did not translate to his expression. As the person controlling the lines and string, he could keenly feel what was happening.
It was not being countered, it was being assimilated.
"Assimilated?!"
"As the spring wind blows, millions of flowers bloom!" Fang Zhengzhi’s voice rang out again. This time, rays of iciness radiated from his body. They were thin and looked like threads.
"You... could you have..." Nangong Mu’s gaze changed completely. He was in disbelief.
"Blue is ice, green is wood. But wood isn’t wood, it is life!" Fang Zhengzhi murmured to himself. Then, he looked at Nangong Mu, "That was what you told me!"
"No way!" Nangong Mu gripped the Green and Blue Dual Blades tightly in disbelief. He could not bring himself to believe what he was seeing.
The Green and Blue Secret Art was something that generations of the Nangong Family did not manage to learn. Its difficulty was renowned. When Nangong Mu decided to learn it, no one supported his decision.
However, Nangong Mu decided to forgo the more widely taught Dragon Combat Plan, choosing to learn the art which no one could teach.
The reason was simple.
Nangong Hao!
Nangong Hao was the top talent of the Nangong Family. Not only did he enjoy praise and attention in the empire, he held a special place in the Nangong Family.
Nangong Hao was perfection personified.
His abilities, values, and intellect were the best within the Nangong Family. He shone too brightly.
Since young, anyone who mentioned the Nangong Family only mentioned one name.
Nan Gonghao.
No one knew that there was a second person in this generation. Even if they knew, they addressed him as Nangong Hao’s brother.
Brother!
Brother!
Nangong Mu had heard himself being called that his entire life. He was always just Nangong Hao’s brother.
He did not hate his brother. Nangong Hao loved and cared for him more than his parents ever did. However, this made him want to prove himself even more.
How was he going to do that?
By learning the Dragon Combat Plan?
Nangong Mu knew that in terms of cultivation, his elder brother had more time and resources.
If he chose to train in the Dragon Combat Plan, no one would notice him even if he became just as good as his brother.
As such, he chose the Green and Blue Secret Art. He chose a lonely road which no one supported.
His idea was simple. He wanted to solve this century old problem. He would chart a new path for his family and let everyone know that there was someone named Nangong Mu.
In order to achieve this...
Every day, every year, he worked harder than anyone else. In order to understand the profound mysteries of the Green and Blue Sacred Art, he read countless books. He would sit by himself in the library for days at a time...
Finally, he succeeded.
His father, the leader of the Nangong Family, praised him for the first time publicly when he got wind of it.
He also asked Nangong Mu to record down the process of understanding the Green and Blue Sacred Art. It would then be stored in the library.
That was Nangong Mu’s happiest day. He spent a whole month detailing down how he understood the Green and Blue Sacred Art. Then, he handed it over respectfully to his father.
His father was ecstatic when he saw that book. He immediately held a family gathering and announced the publishing of the book.
All of the elders were excited and praised Nangong Mu for his contributions to the family.
In that moment, Nangong Mu felt that he was valued for the first time.
Maybe he would finally stop being called Nangong Hao’s brother. Maybe he would actually be called Nangong Mu.
Days went by.
The book he wrote still sat inside the library. No one went to borrow it. No one even glanced at it.
Dust settled on the cover and Nangong Mu would go wipe it off. Dust would settle again, and he would go wipe it...
This continued for a year...
Nangong Mu finally realized that nothing had changed. When people called him, they still called him Nangong Hao’s brother. No one talked about the book he spent one month writing.
That night, he stood quietly in the library as he stared at that book.
Since then, he never looked at it ever again. He let the dust collect on its cover.
From that moment on, his only thought was to defeat his brother using the Green and Blue Secret Art! That was the only way to let the Nangong Family know that the Green and Blue Secret Art was not weaker than the Dragon Combat Plan. It was even better!
However...
This belief that Nangong Mu had was shattered. By looking at it one time, Fang Zhengzhi had managed to get the profound mystery of the Green and Blue Secret Art.
"I don’t believe this, I don’t!" Nangong Mu screamed in his heart.
He knew that Fang Zhengzhi was a talent. He had heard that Fang Zhengzhi had learnt Yan Xiu’s technique just by looking at it.
But this was the Green and Blue Secret Art!
This was something that centuries of Nangong descendants had failed to understand!
Nangong Mu couldn’t believe it. The officials could not believe it either. However, the truth was that the threads holding Fang Zhengzhi in place were dropping, and more were radiating from Fang Zhengzhi’s body.
That was the scene.
The only possible explanation was that Fang Zhengzhi was using the same technique Nangong Mu was, the Green and Blue Secret Art.
"How does this shameless fella do it?!" Ping Yang’s jaw dropped as her eyes glimmered with excitement and anxiety.
Just at this moment, an official sprinted over to Ping Yang, holding a few plates of food in his hands.
"Your highness, please have your meal!"
"Go f*ck yourself, scram!" Ping Yang immediately cursed using the words she had learnt from Fang Zhengzhi. She glared at the official exasperatingly.
"What?!" The official’s jaw dropped in confusion.
"Scram!" Ping Yang fumed.
"Yes your highness!" He did not dare stay any longer. He placed the dishes on the floor and left in a jiffy.
...
On the stage...
Nangong Mu bit his lip as he stared at Fang Zhengzhi. The Green and Blue Dual Blades in his hand screeched, almost as if the hilt was about to shatter.
"How did you learn the Green and Blue Secret Art!"
"Green and Blue Secret Art? I don’t know it!" Fang Zhengzhi said truthfully.
"You don’t? Then how did you..."
"Oh, you’re talking about this? This is still a little different from the Green and Blue Secret Art. I have been thinking of something recently. Dao is endless and constantly changing. The rules governing the world are Dao! I never understood it before. I initially thought that Dao would give rise to one. One would become two, two becomes three, and it would keep going on!" Fang Zhengzhi explained.
"Dao would give rise to one. One would become two..." Nangong Mu murmured to himself. He knew what this meant, however, he did not know why Fang Zhengzhi would bring this up now.
"Yes, however, I did not know how it would go on endlessly! That was until you said that the wood in the Green and Blue Secret Art was not wood, it was life! As such, I need to thank you!" Fang Zhengzhi said sincerely.
This was a sincere thought from Fang Zhengzhi. He had only been filled with life after understanding this.
The profound mystery of the Green and Blue Secret Art was in its ability to control growth in cold. As such, by controlling life, he could cause the cold to exit his body.
"Thank me?" Nangong Mu’s mouth twitched. He wanted to say something but he could not find the words to express his feelings.
"Oh yes, I need to thank you for allowing me to learn a new technique!" Fang Zhengzhi did not know what Nangong Mu was thinking.
"New technique?" Nangong Mu’s gaze froze.
After Fang Zhengzhi finished his sentence, Nangong Mu saw a jade green lightsword. More importantly, Fang Zhengzhi was holding it in his hand.
Holding a lightsword in his hand!
This was a strange sight.
However, he knew exactly what this meant.
Nangong Mu’s heart tumbled about in his chest.
The spectating officials felt the same way. Furthermore, Ping Yang, Emperor Lin Mubai, Crown Prince Lin Tianrong, and King Duan all felt the same way.
"Is that Sister Yan’s..." Ping Yang was stunned. She couldn’t take it.
"It’s the Million Sword Illustration! It’s the Divine Constabulary’s top secret Million Sword Illustration!"
"How is that possible?!"
"No way, it has to be fake. Why would the Divine Constabulary impart their Million Sword Illustration to an outsider?!"
All of the officials were awed by the lightsword in Fang Zhengzhi’s hand. This was a technique within the Million Sword Illustration.
"Is this called the Million Sword Illustration?" Fang Zhengzhi had heard the name for the first time. He had first seen it being used by Xing Hou.
Then again by Chi Guyan.
He had always thought that this was a cool move. When the lightsword turned into a million others, it was the coolest sight ever!
As such, after understanding Dao is endless and constantly changing. The rules governing the world are Dao, he decided to put it into action immediately.
"I’m coming!" Fang Zhengzhi did not continue gripping the lightsword.
He felt it getting unstable in his hand. If he did not release it now, it may explode in his hand. After all, this was the first time he was using it.
He was still relatively inexperienced.
The jade green lightsword flew out of his hand.
It turned into a ray of light as it flew towards Nangong Mu.
Nangong Mu grit his teeth as he pulled the Green and Blue Dual Blades out of the ground. His blades glowed radiantly.
"Fight!" Nangong Mu growled.
A ray of blue and green light exploded from the sword. They intertwined like two dragons in the sky. They were at least 70% combined.
There was even a faint rumble.
In comparison to the Green and Blue Secret Art, Fang Zhengzhi’s lightsword was still slightly inferior. It was smaller and seemed less powerful.
The two rays met in the middle of the stage.
In an instant.
The jade green lightsword was swallowed by the Green and Blue light.
In felt as if time had stopped.
Everyone was focused on the swallowed jade green lightsword. No one spoke. Everyone held their breath, patiently waiting for the result
They wanted to see if the lightsword will explode.
At this moment...
A jade green glow began to appear from within the green and blue light. Then, it became two, then three, then four...
The domineering aura began to be felt.
Countless jade green spots of light intertwined within the green and blue light. They danced around like a huge net. If one looked closely, one would see that each dot was a tiny, fine lightsword.
Those lightswords continued to move about, blocking the glow of the green and blue light. They continued to gnaw at and swallow the green and blue light.
Million Sword Illustration!
One of the closely guarded secrets of the Divine Constabulary!
"Boom!"
A huge explosion rang out and a powerful aura crested over the stage. The entire stage trembled under the impact as the aura dissipated.
"Kacha kacha!"
All of the ice on the stage was shattered. They turned into ice crystal smithereens and were sent flying into the air.
The entire stage looked white.
Then, all of the crystals settled.
Two figures appeared on the stage.
Fang Zhengzhi remained in the same spot, his blue long sleeved shirt flapping in the wind. Nangong Mu bit his lip, his shirt slightly torn.
More importantly, there was crack underneath Nangong Mu’s feet. This was a crack that he had caused in an attempt to stay on the stage.
"Million Sword Illustration! It really is the Divine Constabulary’s Million Sword Illustration!"
"How is that possible? How can Fang Zhengzhi know the Million Sword Illustration?!"
"Divine Constabulary, Fang Zhengzhi... why?!"
"If he he had just learnt the Million Sword Illustration, it would not matter. After all, the Million Sword Illustration and the Green and Blue Secret Art are similar in power. However, Nangong Mu seemed to get the short end of the stick there!"
"Yes, I never expected that he would become this powerful after just a few months!"