Many children, many blessings: Stealing the offspring of powerful figures to cultivate immortality.

"Sizzle—"

A faint whooshing sound rang out.

Jiang Lei felt his foot trip, lost his balance, and fell face-first into the dirt with a "thud".

Just as he was about to get up, he noticed a deep mark where he had been standing.

It was carved out by someone with a tree branch.

Following the marks, several simple yet exquisite patterns appeared on the ground.

That's... a picture of a little man dancing with a sword?

Although it was only a few strokes, the path of spiritual energy, the landing point of the footsteps, and the techniques of exerting force were clearly depicted.

Especially the last point, which directly points to the reason he just fell—loss of balance.

Jiang Lei was stunned.

He subconsciously looked into the distance.

Ji Lingxiao sat on the boulder with his back to him, holding a broken branch in his hand. He seemed to be resting with his eyes closed, but the tips of his ears were actually trembling slightly.

Jiang Lei isn't stupid.

He glanced at the picture on the ground, then at the pretentious figure from behind, and pursed his lips.

"Hmph, who cares?"

They say one thing but do another.

He got up, dusted himself off, peeked at the pictures, and then tried to adjust his steps to match the poses in the pictures.

The center of gravity shifts, and spiritual energy is reabsorbed.

He drew his sword again.

"Buzz—"

This time, there was no dull sound of wind; instead, there was a clear and melodious sword cry!

The broken sword sliced ​​through the air, leaving a pale purple afterimage, its speed more than twice as fast as before!

Jiang Lei's eyes lit up.

This feels so smooth!

The spiritual energy was no longer stagnant; the feeling of powerlessness when exerting all one's strength but hitting nothing had disappeared, replaced by a sense of control.

He tried again.

It's even smoother now!

So this is the real sword technique!

Although Ji Lingxiao had his back to him, his divine sense continued to cover the area.

Upon hearing the clear, resonant sound of the sword, a barely perceptible smile appeared on his tightly clenched lips, but he quickly suppressed it, reverting to his cold, expressionless face.

"Take it easy, are you an elephant?"

Without turning his head, he coldly uttered a sentence.

Jiang Lei froze, glaring fiercely at the back of his head: "Mind your own business!"

But when the sword was thrust out the next time, the sound of its foot landing was noticeably lighter, like that of a nimble cat.

Jiang Yining saw all of this.

She held a freshly picked wild fruit in her hand, nibbling on it casually, a playful smile playing on her lips.

This man is really... adorably awkward.

They say they won't, but their actions tell a different story.

Is this what is called "virtual parenting"?

"Da Bao," Jiang Yining suddenly spoke.

Jiang Lei immediately sheathed his sword and ran over, looking obedient: "Mother, what's wrong?"

"Are you hungry?" Jiang Yining wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"I'm not hungry." Jiang Lei shook his head, then leaned close to Jiang Yining's ear and whispered, "That bad guy is so annoying, he keeps pointing and whispering over there."

Jiang Yining glanced at the person eavesdropping not far away and deliberately raised her voice: "Since you find him annoying, just ignore him. Anyway, he's just an amateur. What does he know about swordsmanship?"

Ji Lingxiao tightened his grip on the branch, and it snapped in two with a "crack".

layman?

If Lingxiao Sword Master is an amateur, then there are no experts in this world!

This woman definitely did it on purpose!

"However..." Jiang Yining changed the subject, "some things are better learned than left unlearned."

"Since someone's eager to be a free coach, why should we refuse? Wouldn't it be more cost-effective to empty their mind, then kick them to the curb?"

Jiang Lei's eyes lit up, and he looked at his mother with admiration: "Mom is right! This is... what you used to call a troublesome father?"

Jiang Yining suppressed a laugh and patted her son's head: "Smart."

Ji Lingxiao: "..."

He suddenly felt a chill on his back.

This mother and son really don't treat him like an outsider.

Especially that word "pitiful," why does it sound so jarring?

"Feed".

Jiang Lei ran up behind Ji Lingxiao, still holding the broken sword in his hand.

Ji Lingxiao didn't turn around, maintaining his aloof persona: "What?"

"I'm a little uncomfortable with this movement, draw it again." Jiang Lei pointed to a pattern on the ground that was somewhat blurred by the wind and sand.

The tone was as if he were ordering his own servant around.

Ji Lingxiao's temple throbbed.

When has he, a dignified Sword Master, ever been ordered around like this?

"I won't draw," he coldly refused. "Figure it out yourself."

"oh."

Jiang Lei didn't press the matter, turned around and left, muttering to himself, "Mother was right, he really is a half-baked expert. He probably didn't even understand it himself, and was afraid of giving himself away..."

"return!"

Ji Lingxiao turned around abruptly, his face dark as he grabbed a new tree branch.

"Watch closely! The key to this 'Thunderous Might' move is using your core strength, not your wrists! Are you trying to embroider?"

He quickly drew a few more strokes on the ground, the lines sharp and powerful, penetrating the sand and stones.

Jiang Lei looked at the new drawing on the ground, a smug smile secretly spreading across his face.

Hmph, this bad guy is quite easy to provoke.

On this day, the sounds of an argument, one loud and one soft, could be heard intermittently across the Gobi Desert.

"Idiot! Raise your hand higher!"

"You're the idiot! It's clearly your drawing that's terrible, I think it's good!"

"If you talk back again, I won't teach you this trick!"

"Fine, I won't teach you then. I have a mother!"

"Your mother knows nothing about swords!"

"Don't you dare speak ill of my mother! Take this!"

Although they argued fiercely and even occasionally sparred, Jiang Lei's swordsmanship improved at a visible rate.

The crude sword techniques that were originally performed only by instinct are being polished little by little, gradually revealing the sharpness of the nascent "Supreme Forgetfulness Sword Intent".

Sunset.

Jiang Lei collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. Although he was covered in sweat, his eyes shone with an alarming intensity.

Looking at the broken sword in his hand, he felt as if he had opened the door to a new world.

Ji Lingxiao stood to the side, hands behind his back, watching the small figure in the setting sun. The ice in his eyes, which had never melted all year round, seemed to crack open.

This child... has a better understanding than he imagined.

If only I could take him back to the sect and train him properly...

The thought had barely formed when it was interrupted by an untimely voice.

"Sword Master, you've worked hard."

Jiang Yining walked over with a smile, handing over a dry, hard biscuit.

"This is today's fee. Please enjoy."

Ji Lingxiao stared at the hard, flatbread-like object that could kill someone, his lips twitching.

He spent a whole day teaching with great effort, and all he got was this worthless pancake?

"I'm not hungry," he refused coldly.

"Oh, then I won't eat it."

Jiang Yining withdrew her hand without hesitation, stuffed the pancake into her mouth, and took a bite.

"I'm hungry too."

Ji Lingxiao: "..."

He looked at the woman's unseemly eating habits, then glanced at the little brat secretly observing him, and a sense of powerlessness suddenly welled up inside him.

Are they really going to take this scumbag act to the extreme?

But rather...

Looking at Jiang Lei's flushed face from excitement, he couldn't vent the nameless anger in his heart.

"Although I've mastered the sword techniques, I still need to match them with the mental techniques."

Ji Lingxiao blurted out a sentence out of the blue.

Jiang Yining paused in her chewing of the biscuit, raising an eyebrow at him: "What? Still want to continue delivering to your door?"

Ji Lingxiao ignored her, staring at Jiang Lei with a stiff tone: "I'll be waiting for you behind the boulder tonight. Whether you can learn it or not depends on your own destiny."

After saying that, he turned around, walked to the side, sat down with his back to the two of them, and didn't say another word.

Jiang Lei looked at his mother, then at that lonely figure, and asked softly, "Mother, should I go?"

Jiang Yining swallowed the biscuit in her mouth, a glint of shrewdness flashing in her eyes.

Mindset?

That's a closely guarded secret of the Lingxiao Sword Sect.

This old man really went all out.

"Go." Jiang Yining patted her son's head with a bright smile.

"Why not go? It's like a duck delivered to your door; you might as well take it."

"and……"

She watched Ji Lingxiao's retreating figure, her voice softening slightly.

"Since he wants to be this free stepping stone, let him be it to his heart's content."

Trying to snatch their son?

No way.

But these skills must be preserved!

But before nightfall, a figure rapidly approached from the horizon...