Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 78 The Two Sects of Sword Qi
When it came to treasure hunting, Zhong Ling got excited and quickly offered suggestions.

"Yes, yes, we can peel off some bark to make a rope, and then slowly lower it down from the top of the mountain."

Azi said happily, "That's a good idea. You're not always so stupid, you little brat. You can make the rope. Make it strong, thick and long."

While stuffing food into her mouth, Zhong Ling shook her head: "No, I've been acupunctured and can't even lift my hands, how am I supposed to twist rope?"

Azi glared at her and grabbed her wrist: "You can't lift your hand, what are you doing now?"

Zhong Ling was stunned for a moment, then exclaimed in surprise, "Oh my, I can move my hand again!"

Jiang Mingzhe said, "I've heard that if the acupoints are pressed for a long time, they will release on their own, unless it's a very tricky or special acupoint pressing technique."

Zhong Ling nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, my mother said the same thing. It seems that the ugly bamboo pole's acupressure technique is just ordinary."

Azi said warily, "Big Ginger, don't speak up for her. I think her pressure points have probably been released long ago. She's just deliberately not saying anything because she doesn't want to help... doesn't want to help Young Master Duan with his work. She wants to learn swordsmanship from us."

Zhong Ling pouted, her eyes red, and looked at Jiang Mingzhe: "Brother Jiang, I really didn't lie to you and Zi Yatou. She's wronging me."

He was secretly nervous: How could Zi Yatou be so shrewd? But she listened to Da Sheng Jiang, and as long as Da Sheng Jiang spoke up for me, she wouldn't pursue the matter.

Jiang Mingzhe sniffed and faintly smelled a familiar tea aroma.

He thought to himself, "That's it. This little girl's mother, Gan Baobao, is a green tea saint. She wants to harm Dao Baifeng and Madam Wang, but instead of doing anything herself, she instigates Qin Hongmian, that big fool, to kill someone. She can be both charming and cry, and she can make the bull-headed man Zhong Wanchou run around in circles."

Although Zhong Ling was naive, she inevitably developed a taste for tea through her upbringing.

He shook his head and smiled, "Our sect has the strictest rules. Azi is my senior sister, so whatever she says goes."

When Azi saw Zhong Ling acting coquettishly towards Jiang Mingzhe, she was about to get angry, but upon hearing Jiang Mingzhe's words, her anger immediately dissipated.

He laughed loudly, "Big Ginger only listens to me. You're just dreaming if you ask him to stand up for you! Humph, I won't hold your past against you. Just obediently twist this big rope out for me."

Zhong Ling pouted so much she could hang an oil bottle on her lips. Duan Yu, being a chivalrous man, immediately volunteered, "How can these rough tasks be left to women? Miss Zi, let me twist the rope."

Azi glanced at him and sneered, "Young Master Duan, I see your hands are so fair and delicate, many girls can't compare to you. But if you're willing to suffer, then so be it. This rope is your responsibility."

Duan Yu patted his chest and agreed. Zhong Ling's eyes darted around slightly, but she had already decided that she would start crying as soon as she started twisting the rope. As long as Duan Yu comforted her, he would take the opportunity to let her do it herself while he went to learn swordsmanship from Da Sheng Jiang.

After eating and drinking their fill, Azi pulled Jiang Mingzhe back to the stone cave to practice swordsmanship. A short while later, Zhong Ling ran in happily, announcing, "Young Master Duan thought I was clumsy and chased me away. Have you mastered the first move yet?"

Azi pouted and said, "It's not that easy."

He didn't make things difficult for Zhong Ling anymore, and instead pulled her aside to discuss the moves: "This broken sword technique just doesn't seem right no matter how I look at it. Look at this move, he's kneeling on the ground to draw his sword, but he's also raising one leg up. Is he a puppy peeing?"

The eighteen bronze mirrors that record sword techniques each have several images outlined in lines on the back, but there is no connection between them.

For example, in the "puppy pee" scene described by Azi, one can see a person kneeling on the left knee, with their body parallel to the ground, a long sword thrusting out in their right hand, and their right leg extended and raised behind them. But in the next picture, it becomes a person kicking forward with their right leg, their body extended horizontally, their left leg tucked to their side, and their right hand holding a sword backward.

The sword transformed into seven blades, opening like a fan, it was unclear whether this signified a downward slash, an upward thrust, or simply seven consecutive stabs...

There are also a few lines of text that read: "Concentrate your mind on the jade pillow, condense your qi in the dantian, the Ren and Du meridians respond, and the Huan and Tiao meridians connect..." These are more than two hundred characters in total, all of which describe the method of internal energy circulation and have no relation to the images.

Jiang Mingzhe closed his eyes in deep thought, then heard Azi complain, "The person who left behind this sword technique is quite unpleasant, somewhat like my master. Our sect's martial arts manuals often deliberately omit the most crucial points. If the master doesn't teach them, it's difficult to truly master them. However, this person is even more outrageous than my master; it's practically incomprehensible..."

Hey!

Jiang Mingzhe's eyes lit up, thinking to himself, "Isn't the Free and Unfettered Sect just good at making things mysterious?"

He remembered a scene in the original work where Kumārajīva stole the Lesser Formless Skill and overheard Ding Chunqiu explaining to Lady Wang that the secret manual was deliberately written in the form of an account book, such as "On the first day of the first month, nine qian and eight fen of silver were received," which means that on the first day of cultivation, one should inhale nine times and hold one's breath eight times. There were also many single words with unclear meanings, but they corresponded to various different ways of reading, which secretly contained the breathing method.

In this situation, if no one can guide you, wouldn't you be a god if you could understand it?

As for the scroll that Duan Yu obtained by kowtowing, Li Qiushui had written it down clearly so that people could copy it.

These thirty-six bronze mirrors might have been left by the founder of the Xiaoyao Sect, and he certainly didn't intend for outsiders to be able to use them at a glance.

Jiang Mingzhe felt a chill in his heart when he thought of this. However, he had learned a lesson when he was discussing business back then: you must work hard, but never force things. Some things cannot be accomplished overnight, that is, the time is not right. At this time, it is best to calm down and wait for the right opportunity.

He said, "Senior Sister is right. These martial arts techniques have hidden mysteries. If one doesn't know how to solve them, practicing them haphazardly will definitely lead to a bad end."

Azi said disappointedly, "Then haven't we wasted all our efforts?"

Jiang Mingzhe was also reluctant to part with it. After thinking for a moment, he said, "In that case, let's memorize the contents of the bronze mirror carefully, copy them down and keep them. Maybe one day we'll figure out the key to it, or get some kind of opportunity, and then we'll be able to cultivate."

Azi said impatiently, "Who knows when that will be!"

Jiang Mingzhe patted her head: "Senior sister, don't be in a hurry. Good things come to those who wait. Besides, I just saw that the Netherworld Claw and White Rainbow Palm both require extremely high internal strength. Even if we can understand them, I'm afraid we still can't master them."

When Azi heard that she couldn't learn it even if she understood it now, she felt much relieved and said sullenly, "In that case, let's split up and memorize it, and then compare our work when we copy it down, so that we don't make a single mistake."

Jiang Mingzhe blinked, thinking that this plot was so familiar. They recited and copied it into a book... Wait, is the Xingxiu Sect going to split into a Qi Sect and a Sword Sect because of this?
They immediately began to memorize the contents of the thirty-six bronze mirrors by rote. When they got sleepy, they took turns sleeping on the stone bed. After a full day and two nights, they finally memorized all the contents behind the thirty-six bronze mirrors.

As for these bronze mirrors, Jiang Mingzhe had no intention of destroying them. He dug a pit under a big tree by Jianhu Lake, put them in a basket left behind by the Shennong Gang, and buried them in the pit.

While they were diligently memorizing their lessons, Duan Yu wasn't idle either. He cut a lot of tree bark and twisted it into a long rope—

However, Duan Yu's hands were indeed extremely soft, with seven or eight blisters of various sizes growing on them, which made A Zi burst into laughter.

With ropes on his back, Jiang Mingzhe led a few people out of the cliff by the river, full of vigor, ready to search for treasure at West Peak.

(End of this chapter)