The Song Dynasty was the king for thirteen years before he knew that he was Tianlong.

Chapter 478 First Form

The first move of the Celestial Flying Immortal Sword Technique: Starfall to the Mortal World!

The sword rises like a shooting star falling into the night, its silver light piercing the darkness, its trajectory sharp and swift, carrying with it an ancient tranquility. The stars of the heavens fall to earth, and with a single move, all things bow down.

This is the essence of swordsmanship, describing the artistic conception of this style.

Zhao Ti carefully savored the swordplay, then examined the flow of energy in the sword, and finally the sword's shape.

Although the ancient text describing the sword path and qi circulation is obscure, it is still understandable. By pondering and analyzing its meaning, one may not be completely wrong.

The shape of the sword is difficult to describe. This is to depict the human figure, the posture of wielding the sword, the movement, and the direction the sword is pointing.

This is the most difficult part, since a drawing can never be perfect and indistinguishable from a real move, making it exactly the same.

The subtle details depend entirely on the swordsman's talent, keen insight, extraordinary comprehension, and ability to correct their mistakes and fill in the gaps.

As the saying goes, a slight difference can lead to a huge error. Ordinary swordsmanship, or even some superb swordsmanship, may not necessarily require perfect coordination of body movements and precision. However, a divine sword like the Flying Immortal from Beyond the Heavens cannot be any different; it must be precise and flawless.

Zhao Ti pondered for a while, then found a stone pillar that was only five or six feet high and had a flat top, sat cross-legged, and began to close his eyes to comprehend the internal energy circulation of this move.

Both the Peach Blossom Sword Technique and the Celestial Flying Immortal Sword Technique belong to the category of internal sword techniques, which require the use of true qi to control and wield them, unlike external sword techniques which emphasize movement while downplaying internal strength.

The debate between internal and external sword techniques has a long history, and now it is largely clear. Internal sword techniques are difficult to learn, but the lower limit is high and the upper limit is also high, and it is possible to practice them to the level of a god.

External swordsmanship is easy to learn, but its lower limit and upper limit are both low. Although it is impossible to reach the level of divine power and the ability to pierce the stars, it is in no way inferior to internal swordsmanship in the early and middle stages, and may even be more powerful. Moreover, it is easy to practice, does not require much talent, is quick to learn, and can lead to early fame.

Ultimately, it is similar to the righteous and evil martial arts described in folk tales: one is solid and follows the right path, while the other is elusive and follows the strange path.

Zhao Ti currently has two internal energy techniques at his disposal: the Four Illuminations Divine Skill and the Exquisite Yuan Qi Skill. In fact, he can use either one to wield the sword. When using internal energy to wield the sword, only the power of the sword technique matters, and the true qi attribute is not prominent.

Although at this point, it seems that the Jingjue Yuanqi Gong, rumored to be blessed by the gods and undergoing strange changes, is even more powerful, it is still only at a minor level and cannot compare to the Si Zhao Divine Gong, which is close to perfection and has almost inexhaustible true energy.

He discerned the path of his internal energy flow within his body, then tried circulating it around. There were no obstructions or difficulties. Once his internal energy circulated throughout his body, he felt as light as a swallow, floating on air, knowing that he had not misdirected his true energy.

Then, without any visible movement of his body, he flew into the air, drew out the black sword embryo in mid-air, and then, with a slight touch of his feet to the ground, unleashed a move.

This move is like a falling star, containing thirteen variations that dazzle the eye. Black light flashes, and the sword embryo emits a hoarse, piercing sound.

Why is there such a commotion? Zhao Ti's lips twitched, the tip of his sword shifting uncertainly before finally pointing at a stone peak. With a muffled "plop," the black sword embryo sank in by thirty percent.

Something's not right...

It seems like I practiced it a bit incorrectly...

Zhao Ti reached out and scratched his forehead. Something seemed off. The sound, form, sword light, and sword aura of this sword strike did not match the characteristics of this style.

Moreover, its power is too weak, no different from normal true qi control. Normally, he could pierce the stone peak with a sword blank. If that's the case, why bother with all these fancy things?

As expected, this swordsmanship is not something that can be mastered overnight. Even though my uncle is a genius in the Yang family, he still couldn't master the first move after three months. Even if I have a clear martial mind, I can't possibly learn it completely after just one demonstration.

Zhao Ti drew out the sword blank, stood there for a moment and thought about it, then slowly began to practice.

The figures in the jade slip are not wrong or incorrect, but the figures are simple and drawn with a few strokes. The general shape is correct, but the details cannot be shown.

Furthermore, since the drawing is flat, the other side cannot be depicted, and some movements of hidden parts of the body cannot be shown.

So you have to figure out and understand all these things on your own, just like the "Heavenly Garment Corrects Myself" and "Checking for omissions and filling in gaps" that I thought about before.

Zhao Ti pondered for a long time, then took a deep breath and used the first move again.

After a dazzling flash of light, the sword blank was halfway into the stone.

Hmm? Still not right.

Zhao Ti chuckled, shook his head, and then began to think again before unleashing the first move.

Oh, still not right!

Even if I wanted to use it again, bah, that's still wrong!
I kept figuring it out and kept using it, but hehehe, it still wasn't right!
Zhao Ti kept thinking, searching for any flaws in his movements, and kept using the first move of the Celestial Flying Immortal Sword Technique.

It was noon, then afternoon, then dusk, and the sun was setting. He had used the first move hundreds of times, and although the sword embryo had finally completely disappeared into the stone peak, something was still not right.

Its power was far from sufficient, and its sword aura was too weak. Not to mention it was unworthy of the name "Flying Immortal from Beyond the Heavens," even with his current vast and boundless internal energy, he could achieve the same effect using ordinary sword techniques.

Zhao Ti stood still, no longer in a hurry to demonstrate. Instead, he looked towards the setting sun, the red and yellow afterglow of the sunset reflecting on his face. The boy's expression was somewhat helpless, yet also somewhat unconvinced.

After a long while, the sun had sunk more than halfway down and the sky was getting slightly dark when Zhao Ti suddenly moved.

The originally jet-black sword blank in his hand suddenly emitted a bright light, a dazzling silver light, and then it quickly leaped and slid.

Zhao Ti moved like lightning, and the sword embryo in his hand shone brightly, as bright as day. It was unclear why the seemingly black sword could emit such a light.

In an instant, the light rapidly converged at the tip of the sword. The point of light on the sword tip quickly rolled into a ball of light, which grew larger and larger, becoming incredibly bright and dazzling, until it finally resembled a small star.

“A star falls to earth!” Zhao Ti murmured in a strange voice.

Then, the small star atop the sword tip burst forth with boundless brilliance, dazzling and blinding, making it impossible to look directly at it. At this moment, the aura around his body changed drastically, as if nebulae were rising, hazy and indistinct, making him seem both real and unreal, and an aura of loneliness and sorrow rose up.

As he moved swiftly, the sword embryo headed straight for the stone peak. When it was still some distance away from the peak, the peak emitted a creaking sound as if it could not bear the weight.

In an instant, the sword embryo reached the peak. Suddenly, the sword tip burst out with an extremely dazzling light, and the small star suddenly exploded. Before the sword embryo even touched the stone peak, the stone peak was already shattered into dust.

Then, without stopping, the sword's momentum propelled Zhao Ti's figure like a white horse flashing past, shattering another stone pillar in front of him and then piercing through another stone peak before finally stopping, exhausted.

Zhao Ti held the sword in his hand, pointing it forward, a look of surprise on his face. He hadn't even used his full strength yet, but it already had such a powerful effect, breaking through three forest stones in succession. It seemed that this sword was the right one; this was the true first move of the Celestial Flying Immortal!
After a day, he finally figured it out and succeeded. Moreover, the power of the method was so great that he couldn't help but feel extremely happy. Just as he was about to raise his head and let out a long howl, a crow fell from the sky.

"Good brother!"

"Hmm? Brother Crow?"

A crow perched on his shoulder, its voice entering his mind: "Brother, have you mastered the swordsmanship?"

“You have indeed mastered one move. Where did Brother Crow go just now? Why can’t I see him?” Zhao Ti asked.

“That would be wonderful, congratulations, brother. I was circling in the sky earlier and noticed something, so I flew over to take a look. Can you guess what I saw?” the crow said.

"What did you see, Brother Crow?" Zhao Ti asked in confusion. He was currently at a high level of skill, but he had not heard any unusual sounds or noises nearby.

The crow saw what he was thinking and cawed twice, saying, "It's not around here. It's quite far away, but I can observe it from the sky."

"Brother Crow, did you discover someone, or did you see something?" Zhao Ti asked curiously.

“Yes, I have them all.” The crow nodded. “I passed by the blacksmith’s shop where I bought the sword last time, and it seemed to be deserted. I didn’t expect to find it here in the stone forest.”

"What? Those two from the Xiao family of Shanzhou are hiding here?" Zhao Ti exclaimed in surprise.

"Not only those two, but there were several others who should also belong to the Xiao family. They were forging a strangely shaped greatsword together and talking about the treasure hunt in Yuzhou. I think my brother might want to know, so I flew back to report," the crow said.

"The matter of the treasure hunt in Yuzhou? This is excellent! I am no longer the weak scholar I was yesterday. My divine skills and swordsmanship have been perfected, and there are few who can rival me. I am now qualified to covet the treasures from Yuzhou. Let's go and hear what they're saying: when and where will these Yuzhou treasures appear, and what kind of treasures are attracting the attention of all the powers in the world?" Zhao Ti was overjoyed upon hearing this and said, "Brother Ya, lead the way quickly! Let's go and see for ourselves!"

The crow responded with a "good," flapped its wings, and flew into the sky, heading northwest.

Although it was almost completely dark, there was still a faint light in the sky. Moreover, Zhao Ti had such good eyesight that he could see it clearly. He moved quickly and followed.

He used his lightness skill to move with incredible speed and without making a sound, weaving through the stone forest like a wisp of smoke, and soon he was far away from the place where he was practicing swordsmanship.

Then, after a short while, they saw flickering lights ahead, indicating that someone had lit a bonfire to provide light in the stone forest.

At this moment, the crow landed on his shoulder again and said, "Brother, this is the place. Including the young lady and old servant from the Xiao family you met, there are four other people. They all have martial arts skills and look quite good."

"Not bad at all. Since you've come to seize the treasure, you must all be elites. But these few are far too few. I don't think this is all there is," Zhao Ti said.

“What you say is true, my brother. From what I just heard them talking, it seems that the Xiao family has complicated factions and fierce infighting. There are two factions here this time. The people here seem to belong to the main branch of the family, and the other one belongs to the Xiao family elders’ group,” Crow said.

“I see. But this is unavoidable for aristocratic families. They are incredibly large, some with a lineage spanning thousands of years, others tens of thousands. They branch out generation after generation, with countless offshoots. Within the family, there are both main and collateral branches, with dozens of generations. The population is enormous, and they compete for power and profit, dividing into various factions.” Zhao Ti nodded. “The Yang family is the same. Brother Ya has been by my side for some time now, so you should be able to see it to some extent.”

The crow sighed: "Indeed, you humans are far too complicated. Such things do not happen to my demon race. Each clan lives together and obeys the orders of the clan leader. At most, there may be a second or third king, but even then, they must obey the king's orders."

Zhao Ti said, "Different races have different customs. Let's not talk about it now. Brother Ya, come with me to take a look."

His figure swayed, drifting upwards like wisps of smoke, and in a few breaths he approached the place of the fire, then hid behind a stone peak to observe.

In front of them was an open space, which should have originally contained trees and rocks, but it had been cleared out, leaving this empty space.

Several bonfires were lit around the area, and in the middle was an extremely large and narrow open-air stone furnace, inside which was a giant sword that looked bigger than a person.

This giant sword is wide and broad, covered with ferocious patterns, and is dark red in color, making it look extremely menacing.

The young girl and the old man from the Xiao family stood by the stove, along with four other people. One of them was carrying a small black bucket and pouring a scarlet liquid into the stone stove, which looked like fresh blood.

He evenly sprinkled the blood onto the giant sword, from the base and hilt to the tip. In just a few breaths, the blood was completely absorbed by the giant sword, making the sword's color even darker and deeper red.

"This is the last bucket of black sheep blood. If this Blood-Drinking Mad Blade produces a supernatural phenomenon and emits a whistling sound, then the crafting is complete." The old servant of the Xiao family said solemnly, "Otherwise, if there is no whistling sound, then this forging is a failure, and this blade is just an ordinary weapon, only heavier and sharper."

Zhao Ti, who was behind Shi Feng, was surprised to hear this. He hadn't expected that the other party was actually refining such a strange weapon, which was fed with blood and could even produce supernatural phenomena and make its own howling.

At this moment, the campfire burned even brighter, and the flames illuminated the faces of the Xiao family members, making them appear bright red and clear, with their eyebrows and eyes clearly visible.

Zhao Ti's gaze fell on the Xiao family girl. The girl had dark skin and an ordinary face, but her figure was extremely graceful, slender and charming.

Hmm? After glancing at Zhao Ti a few times, he couldn't help but frown slightly. This... seems a little off.

Now that his skills are so advanced, he can naturally see things that ordinary people cannot. Especially now that the campfire is blazing and the light is clear, and he is observing continuously in the dark, unlike during the day when he has to avoid suspicion, he can see things very clearly.

Is this... a disguise? Zhao Ti raised his eyebrows. Although the girl's face and hands were dark, when she raised her head slightly, a hint of white skin appeared on her neck. As she raised her hand, her sleeves fell slightly, revealing her fair wrists, which did not match her dark skin. Obviously, she had done something to cover up what was visible.

This was the first time Zhao Ti had ever seen someone in disguise. He stroked his chin. He had only ever seen such things in storybooks, like people wearing human skin masks and using disguise ointments or powders. He had never seen a real person do this before.

Just as he was pondering this, a violent, sharp, and murderous sound suddenly came from the stone furnace in front of him. It was the Blood-Drinking Mad Blade that was making its howling sound.

(End of this chapter)