txolops Chapter 6, Five Mountain Sword Techniques
Chapter 6, Five Mountain Sword Techniques
"Click—!"
The thick stone wall could not withstand the internal force emanating from Li Che's palm and shattered with a crash.
He then followed up with palm strikes and kicks until a hole about half a person's height was revealed before he stopped.
He lit the torches he had prepared beforehand with a tinderbox, and then took a long, thin piece of dry wood, lit it, and threw it into the cave.
Seeing that the fire in the dry wood was still burning, he felt relieved and crawled inside.
Li Che had no time to pay attention to the withered bones at his feet and the scattered knives, spears, and clubs. As someone who had died once, he might have been shocked at first glance, but he calmed down after a moment.
After walking several feet along the passageway, we turned left and came to a huge stone cave, where the firelight could not reach far.
He looked around and saw that there was a torch stuck in the wall every few feet. He went up and lit two of them. The cave was instantly much brighter, and its area was enough to accommodate a thousand people.
There were quite a few weapons scattered inside the cave, some leaning and some standing upright. The first one that caught my eye was a broadsword. Although I had never seen one before, I thought that only members of the Taishan Sect would use this weapon in The Smiling, Proud Wanderer.
He walked straight ahead, amidst numerous corpses and weapons, a testament to the ferocity of the battle that had taken place.
Further on, illuminated by the firelight, one could see tiny figures crisscrossing on the stone wall, and on the right side, a row of large characters: "Completely defeat the Hengshan sword technique here!"
Looking along the wall, you soon arrive at the stone wall engraved with the Huashan sword techniques.
Li Che recognized some of the sword moves, such as "The Phoenix Comes to Pay Homage," "The Pine Tree Welcomes Guests," and "White Clouds Emerge from the Mountain." There were also more than a hundred sword moves whose names he could not recall. Judging from their style, they were intended to be "unusual" and "dangerous," and were undoubtedly Huashan sword techniques.
Looking at the demonic sect's counter-moves, they were truly ingenious. They used sticks, double axes, and copper hammers to defeat the villains, sometimes using skill to overcome the unexpected, sometimes using stillness to control movement, and sometimes using clumsiness to overcome skill.
Every move was countered and hit the weak points of the Huashan sword techniques. In terms of moves alone, the Five Sacred Mountains sword techniques were indeed broken by the opponent.
No wonder Linghu Chong was shocked and lost his composure upon seeing it.
Ultimately, he's just the kind of person who likes to get stuck on things.
Li Che simply couldn't understand why, in the original story, when Linghu Chong thought he was going to die, he only remembered to tell Lin Pingzhi his father's last words about such a major event involving the rise and fall of the Five Sacred Mountains. How could he have forgotten the sword moves of the Cliff of Contemplation?
Even after several ups and downs, he never revealed this matter to Yue Buqun.
Li Che shook his head inwardly, but he made up his mind that he would definitely tell Lao Yue the secret of the Cliff of Contemplation, but he would have to wait until he learned it first!
......
Two hours had passed before they knew it.
The torches inside the cave had burned out, and a new bonfire had been lit in front of the wall.
The bright firelight cast Li Che's silhouette on the stone wall. He moved with lightning speed, his shadow swift and unpredictable, his movements indistinguishable from his own.
There was no wind inside the cave, but Li Che's sleeves were wrapped tightly, making a popping sound as if a strong wind was blowing through them.
The three-foot-long sword in his hand gleamed like a beam of light, its blade whistling continuously.
He leaped up like an eagle swooping down on a rabbit, his sword like claws, aimed straight at a piece of firewood as thick as a bowl leaning against the rock face.
"Zzzzt—!"
The sword passed right through the wood, its tip barely touching the stone wall. He used his internal energy to control the sword, channeling his qi into the blade. With a loud "crack," although it didn't touch the stone wall, it still created a two-centimeter-deep hole.
Although this move was carved into the stone wall, Li Che executed it in a completely different way.
The sword techniques of the stone wall are powerful and unadorned, each move a deadly strike, requiring only one strike.
However, Li Che's attack was fierce and decisive, coupled with his profound internal strength. He used seven-tenths of his strength and reserved three-tenths, so that if the enemy attacked, he could counter and change his moves. This was in line with the strange and dangerous way of Huashan swordsmanship.
"Using deadly techniques when you're alive is laughable. You should learn and apply them flexibly. To think you can defeat all martial arts techniques by simply carving a few diagrams is ridiculous!"
Li Che turned his wrist to sheathe his sword and wiped the slight sweat from his forehead.
Within two hours, he had memorized all the Huashan sword moves carved on the stone wall. Moreover, he did not just memorize them by rote, but rather broke them down and applied them, with qi as the foundation and moves as variations.
If he were to demonstrate his sword techniques and have the ten elders of the Demonic Sect break them, it would likely require a lot of brainpower.
What's lacking now is experience in actual combat.
Based on his experience from books in his previous life, he knew that victory or defeat in battles in the martial arts world was not solely determined by the level of martial arts skills.
Poison, hidden weapons, traps, ambushes, and even more conspiracies and tricks...
Take the Five Poisons Sect, for example. Its disciples have mediocre martial arts skills, yet people in the martial arts world fear them like tigers.
Li Che sat cross-legged in front of the fire, his eyes slightly closed, his consciousness sinking back into his Niwan Palace.
The water droplet of ice jade remained suspended motionless, without the slightest change.
Previously, he hadn't noticed the sword techniques being taught by his master Yue Buqun, but just now, while practicing, he felt as if the more than one hundred sword moves on the wall were engraved in his mind after only watching them twice.
He thought to himself, "Could it be that this thing can not only strengthen my bones and cleanse my marrow, but also help me to have a photographic memory?"
Not necessarily. Many transmigrators experience a significant increase in memory after merging with the original owner's essence. How come I didn't notice that before?
If you haven't come to a conclusion, and you've already gained the benefits, why think about these things?
"Who?!"
Li Che suddenly stood up and looked back. The passageway was deep and dark, and there wasn't a single person in sight.
Is it just an illusion?
He frowned slightly. If there really was someone, it couldn't be a fellow disciple, and it certainly couldn't be his master or mistress. Could it be him?!
At the same time, a gray figure flashed out of the cave, and in a few strides climbed to the top of the peak. Stepping on rocks and branches, the stone left no mark and the branches swayed slightly. His lightness skill was truly superb.
......
Just after Chen Shi (7-9 AM), Li Che sat quietly on the edge of the cliff in front of the cave, breathing in and out his inner energy.
"Junior Brother Li—!"
Li Che turned his head and saw Ying Bailuo carrying a bamboo lunchbox, walking briskly along the path.
"Thank you for your hard work, Senior Brother Ying."
"It's alright, it's alright. Junior brother, hurry up and eat. Thankfully, the porridge is still warm."
Seeing his honest and simple senior brother panting heavily, with beads of sweat on his forehead and temples, Li Che felt a surge of warmth in his heart.
"Senior brother, from now on you only need to deliver meals at noon and in the evening. I only meditate and practice qi in the morning anyway, so it's fine."
"Oh? Okay, I'll go back and ask my master and mistress what they think."
Li Che smiled but didn't reply, and finished the porridge and cake in a few bites.
"Senior brother, has Master's anger subsided?"
Upon hearing this, Ying Bailuo looked like he was about to cry, "Oh dear, you're in such a bad situation, stuck in seclusion on this Cliff of Repentance."
He paused, glanced around furtively, and then said softly, "Junior brother, you don't know, eldest brother knelt in the Righteousness Hall all day. This morning, Master punished him with ten strokes of the cane and strictly ordered him to stay indoors and not go down the mountain."
"Our eldest brother got punished and needs to recover; we're in real trouble!"
"What's wrong?"
"Master said that he will test our martial arts progress this afternoon. Junior brother, you know that I am of mediocre talent. Master is still angry, and without senior brother and junior brother here, if we don't perform well, being scolded will be the least of our worries."
Oh dear, what are we going to do?
Li Che chuckled to himself, then put down his chopsticks and stood up, asking, "Senior brother, what move have you mastered in your Huashan swordplay?"
"What other move could it be? It's just the Phoenix Comes to Pay Homage. I've only been practicing this move for less than a month. As Senior Brother Lu would say, 'Your move is more like an eagle coming to join the party than a phoenix coming to pay homage.'"
As the silly senior brother spoke, he started laughing first. Li Che knew that his sixth senior brother, Lu Dayou, was lively and liked to joke. He must have given Ying Bailu some pointers in private.
"I can't chat anymore, I need to hurry back to practice my sword. Oh, right, my senior brother asked me to thank you. He wanted to come in person, but Master strictly forbade anyone to disturb your practice, so I had to do it for you."
"Let's go, I'll come back at noon."
Li Che was secretly pleased to hear this, as no one would disturb him from practicing the Five Mountains Sword Technique.
"Wait a minute, senior brother! How about we spar a few moves?"
......